DAME RABIA, DAME TODO EL DOLOR
A proud eccentric dwelling in the shadows of the Autumn District, perpendicular to the control room. Ve keeps a close eye trained on ver fellow traingoers, archiving various factoids and rumors about them for ver own personal interest. Although typically secretive, ve’s willing to share some truthhoods… provided ve’s given good enough reason to.
NAME: ISEL VEGA-KAWAS
TRAIN TITLE: DOLICHONYX
PRONOUNS: HE/HIM, VE/VER/VER/VERS/VERSELF
AGE: 30
ETHNICITY: PARSI AND NAHUA
PRIOR RESIDENCE: MASSACHUSETTS
IDENTITY: TRANSMASC GENDERFLUID BISEXUAL
TRAIN ENTRY DATE: JAN 13 2108
"a wish for marigold"
PROJECTION
HISTORY
early life
Ve was born in Surat on April 6 2081. Thoughout ver youth ve expressed great passion for visual art, predominantly painting and sketching on paper. Ver family was heavily supportive of ver dedication, enrolling ver in art classes at ver full behest. Ve continued with these, additionally tacking on some music classes, throughout ver teens.
Shortly after graduating high school, ve’d undergone a strange accident near a malfunctioning train railway that ended up damaging ver leg, and lending ver moderate head trauma. The former would eventually lead to amputation, and the latter would evetually lead to the development mild aphasia. Alongside this, ver previously-light chronic fatigue had progressed into heavier, more frequent bouts of malaise, often rendering ver completely shot. In the interest of recovery and adjustment to ver new physical condition, ve paused ver plans to travel overseas for university indefinitely. Due to being too tired to paint, ve attempted to get into writing poetry around this time, wherein ve started figuring out various 'tricks' to organise ver speech without straining verself. Though this health relapse kept ver spirits low for many months, the aforementioned foray into writing and time itself eventually allowed ver to craft some optimism.
pre fornax
At age 22, ve sought out a new beginning for ver life. Ve made ver way over to Boston for ver studies, a place where ve had some distant family that could look out after ver. Though ve kept up with art school for a full semester, ve ended up dropping out afterward due to being unable to keep up with a gruelling schedule. This did sort of plant ver in the local art scene, however, which ve’s been grateful for — it certainly helped ver get a start on organising commissions and art sales. Around this time, ve’d also moved out to live on ver own, feeling confident in ver newfound independence. From then on ve got involved in local galleries, fairs, local establishments that would show off ver work… In the meanwhile ve started to observe the art around ver more, frequently touring museums and wandering by exhibitions of fellow artists.
A little more over two years later, ver habit of observation was forced to die off — ve started developing vision loss in an already ptosis-heavy eye, leading to imprecision and consequent frustration. Ve believed ve could no longer paint properly with uneven sight, and cast verself off into artistic exile. Frantic about still maintaining ver lone life, ve evaluated other methods of monetary self-support that would NOT require sight — eventually ve decided on training ver voice to try and find an occupation as a singer or actor of sorts. After practicing for a few weeks ve submitted verself to the local radio… Surprisingly getting the job quite easily. Ve fell into ver role as a radio host quite gracefully, too — bringing a casual but ruminant aura to the air.
Throughout 2107 ve had teased mild reports about Fornax, but by late 2107 ve’d dedicated an entire radio block to discussing popular theories, in addition to urging listeners to send in their thoughts for ver to read out. Once this terminated, ve’d received notice that ve was suspended from the station for multiple weeks for undisclosed reasoning. This touched a nerve of vers, launching ver into a spiral of paranoia that eventually cleared out into a lone delusion: that the Fornax organisers had grown irate with ver spread of slander, and that they were on the hunt for ver. Ve eventually decided there was only one way to progress — going into hiding. Ver precise destination? The Fornax Train itself, the most isolated place in the world, and the place anyone affiliated with Fornax was the least likely to check.
Adopting a random pseudonym to fully shield ver identity, ve left the world behind.
on fornax
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post fornax
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PERSONALITY
Eloquent, droll, iconoclastic. — Quixotic, vague, facetious, secretive.
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RELATIONSHIPS
olzhas
Well, a most divorce-like backdrop’s been set. Extensively. To swing at things in a more interesting manner… Isel’s regard of the failure of their relationship is far less of a tender subject to ver than it is to Olzhas. Ve’s quite open about the split, and most polarisingly, still expresses regular admiration of Olzhas from frequently complimenting eir work ethic, ruminating positively about eir appearance, deeming em "The most admirable man between Earth and all of Fornax…", all kinds of lauding. Or, at the very least, ve freely does this in contexts devoid of Olzhas’ presence. When talking to em directly these points seem like backhanded teases, often scrawled out in this irregular sarcastic tone, perhaps testifying to ver chronic inability to be sincere when it matters. And naturally Olzhas holds EXTREME contempt for this, since much like a salty nail, ver attitude only drives a lone question further into eir flesh: How serious IS ve about reconciliation, really?
In truth, Isel’s capricious zig-zags between clichéd professions of love and premorse half-compliments are a way to test the waters of contention… Ve views the human mind as a puzzle box waiting to be disassembled and rearranged and Olzhas is, for better or worse, not exempt from this obsession — ver chief priority is to gauge eir reactions to ver various attitudes and sponge them up for later analysis on how to proceed best. Or at least, that’d be ver excuse for it. Ve’s honestly just insecure, pushing and pulling and fleeing back and forth, unsure what to do with verself and unsure how to 'prove' ver sincere guilt for ver earlier ignorance. Combined with a background, unvoiced annoyance about wanting Olzhas to apologise for EIR unwillingness to hear ver out at first, and Olzhas’ own base avoidance of the situation… A complete web of miscommunication’s just continously being spun, with the two mutually being aware of a way to halt it, mildly, via rough intuition, yet they’re both too nervous to actually commit to shaking hands and establishing any kind of solid decree on where they stand.
And, to stress, Isel’s fanciful comments don’t arise out of nothing! Ve genuinely still holds a lot of respect for Olzhas, and a lot of ver satirical comments in a mixed Olzhas-public presence actually arise out of ancient inside jokes, or are otherwise crafted to be blatant exaggerations meant to amuse em… And amuse em they do, much to eir own dismay, particularly when e’s trying to act all hardened and save face in front of others. In a roundabout, horseshoe’d manner, ve’s at ver kindest and most jovial either around Olzhas emself, or around a wide margin of people who are expressedly not Olzhas. And even then, ver pokes are never outright stabs, very deliberately.
freya
It’s kind of impossible to talk about Isel without talking about Freya. Yes, thon serves the role of a practical umbilical cord, keeping ver up to date with recent train matters, and yes, their messenger pigeon sort of setup has practically eliminated all of Isel’s motivation to appear known to the general train populace, maybe for the worst, but… The general contract between them emerged out of genuine care for one another, and stretches far beyond 'Freya simply doing ver a favor.' Thon’s just as curious about the gossip flying round the train as ve is, and thon’s relay of it is a simple kindness meant to torch twin well-maintained fires of pettiness dwelling deep within the both of them, heh. Serious dedicated discussion goes into evaluating Freya’s overhears of Ulises discovering a new type of flower on the Octants, or Valerie’s snide comments about Somsak, or other similarly banal matters… and it is a feast for both of their minds.
Even generally speaking the way these two enable one another to go on and on about trivial subjects in surprisingly wisened, intellectual ways is an extremely strong facet of their relationship. They both like being snobbish and uppity about all kinds of things, from music they both know like the back of their hands to some random complaint Isel fully wove up for the sake of an interesting conversation. Isel finds Freya’s ability to pierce at arguments in tactful, apt ways extremely admirable, and conversely Freya’s enchanted by Isel’s drifted manner of elaborating on ideas. They’re both good at judging one another’s interest and commitment and general enthusiasm, and freely redirect conversations to 'please' one another without ever really feeling like they’re relinquishing a point… It’s nice for the both of them to have a dependable 'listener' willing to hear iconoclastic ideals, especially one who can tune into an equivalent frequency and match their energy.
dalisay
An important notion to keep in mind is one of mutual respect… albeit existing with lopsided intentions for the both of them. Dalisay DOES think of Isel as well-spoken and charming, both traits sie wishes sie hirself could better relay on a personal level. Conversely Isel finds Dalisay’s drive and perseverance immensely commendable, and ver repetitive habit of offering to help hir out by way of speeches in the midst of public conflict is sort of ver recognising that ve can compensate for Dalisay’s general lack of affect, and vice versa… In a sense, Dalisay gives Isel inspiration to articulate ver inner feelings, and Isel detects Dalisay’s intentions and magnifies them, ensuring the people around hir listen. It’s a symbiotic construct, a scale balancing as both ends work to compensate for the other end’s 'shortcomings'. Dalisay very much deems ver a guide, and Isel’s thrilled to fulfil the role.
That being said the two take a while to reach this equilibrium — Isel at first, distrusting of Dalisay and deeming hir a likely interloper, mostly wavered around an air of intimidation, vaguely trying to befriend hir for the lone sake of keeping an eye on hir. This contention didn’t last long, however, with Isel quickly becoming endeared to Dalisay’s plainspoken call for a solution, and hir insistence on wanting to find one that would indeed please everyone on the train. Once ve turned benign, Dalisay also started thinking of ver inoffensively and also grew to enjoy ver laid-back, chatty presence.
mazin
These two, for the longest time, mostly just knew one another through whispers. They both took note of each other as blurry, authoritative train figures who seemed 'in' on train gossip and minute facts about other passengers, though both seemed to see through one another’s archetypal facades, and so were mutually dismissive of their apparent power.
The discovery of Mazin’s plans to destroy the train dredge up this distant sense of paranoia for Isel, which ve kind of disguises in the Perfect Ending — ve mostly protects verself from Mazin’s eyes by becoming hidden and auxiliary, choosing to stay back and evade participation in the whole control room expedition. However in the Songbird Ending this impulse is inverted, with ver outright seeking Mazin and wishing to ensure his death to protect both verself and the rest of Cassiopeia.
There’s less of a solid 'justification' for Mazin and Isel’s connection, and more just… both of them thinking of each other as representations of their worst impulses. A mutual "You’re doing my thing wrong!" obsession.
somsak
An important thing to note, from here on out, is that most people’s contact with Isel is severely limited. Either most people knew ver decently well during ver first few years on the train (mostly being noted as an accompaniment to Olzhas) and dropped contact with ver as ve retreated deeper into the Dolichonyx persona, or people missed the boat on ver initial debut and have only caught stray glimpses of ver during ver obscure train wanderings, coupled with solemn, gated whispers describing ver temperament and looks. Somewhat akin to the way people would talk about an overhunted animal that’s only spotted in the wild every few years.
Somsak fits squarely into the second category, and is mostly just mad about that fact, because he thinks Isel sounds like "a really cool guy" and would really like to meet ver properly. Isel verself isn’t really too aware of this rascal, conversely, beyond knowing he is very much a rascal and finding that fact hilarious. Ve often privately hopes he’s doing well in the realm of annyoying random people on the train.
demeter
It’s safe to say they’re a bit 'dazzled' by the faint visage of Dolichonyx… They briefly knew one another due to mutual acquaintance Olzhas, much like most other Isel-Affinity member intersections, though out of everyone ve maybe conversed the most with Demeter. They both have a thing for digesting and bantering about 'high art' and especially dramas or needlessly elongated pretentious novels, and Isel particularly values Demeter’s more 'outside looking in' perspective on written works — there’s a big dichotomy between Isel as an extremely sentimental feelings-based artist and Demeter as a self-trained critic. Their intermittent conversations serve as a way for the two of them to 'tame' their respective knee-jerk reactions and have some passionate, very foreign albeit welcome bouts of analysis about things they’re both mystified by.
These sessions WERE somewhat cut short by Isel’s retreat into the shadows of Autumn, though ve does occasionally visit Ulises’ lab and invite a small microcosm of that analytical conversation — better yet, Demeter themself may invite ver in for a chat, though this is an even more occasional arrangement.
If there’s one complaint Demeter has about Isel, it is indeed about the flighty, absent nature ve’s taken to as of late. Plainly put, they miss ver openness and overall presence.
ulises
Whilst Demeter sings (mostly) nothing but praises for Isel, Ulises is somewhat more skeptical of ver air. The two were initially decently close, particularly bonding over their similar Nahua heritage and vague, shared love for "tricks" — they’re both the kind of person to describe themself as a "puzzlemaster", as ambiguous as that sounds — and occasionally talking more deeply and sincerely about topics like transition and adjusting to train life. Though their conversations were more simplistic than most of the ones Isel shared with other contactees, they both did value them deeply and found comfort in each other’s similar mindsets. Ulises was sad to see Isel isolate verself, even, and tried to reach out to ver multiple times to infrequent avail.
The current rift between them, mild as it may be but everpresent, started opening up when Peixin first came to the train. Since Isel had basically promised them a solution at Ulises’ place, without ever consulting her first or setting more realistic expectations, Ulises was kind of put on the spot to come up with a diagnosis for Peixin’s visions, something that already heavily stressed her out. Once Peixin stormed out of the lab due to feeling manipulated, Ulises took the blunt end of the guilt and agonised for weeks over expectations placed upon her by Isel alone. Once she lamented her fears toward Peixin’s fate, and her own regrets in how she dealt with them, Isel attempted to assure her via a very half-assed speech that basically amounted to ver telling her not to worry, and that Peixin’s estimated demise is their own fault. Ulises only found this more anxiety-inducing and felt betrayed by Isel’s flippantness, which indeed was an instruction born out of Isel’s out guilt toward 'not doing enough'. The two meet every once in a while, still, but… it’s been awkward, since then, with this incident still hanging over both their heads.
sabri
It thinks of ver as "incessantly gormless". Most of its contact with ver occurs when ve’s just wandering through Spring at unusual times, and so it mainly just considers ver a randomly-appearing poltergeist that’s trying to scare it, heh. On the other hand Isel has heard a lot about its attitude and general temperament from former Affinity members, and so ve finds it extremely respectable, wishing to hear it directly recount some old train stories and such. Something that probably won’t happen, considering Sabri’s distant distaste for ver pompous attitude and peregrine pastimes. Eh.
peixin
Ohhh Peixin fucking detests ver. This mostly, and fairly, arises out of Isel’s attitude when these two first met — with Isel being Peixin’s initial train guide and ignoring their vision-based anxieties in the interest of persuading them to help with Cassiopeia. Though at first Peixin did rely on ver this was a move born out of desperation rather than preference. As they sat through more diagnostics with Ulises, Isel’s cluelessness became clearer, as did Peixin’s distaste for the guy. They very much did not like being lied to in such a desperate situation, and their bitterness has not eased over the past year-ish of them being on-train. Isel can hardly blame them, feeling extremely guilty about the situation verself, though that’d hardly be apparent to most. Ve talks of the whole ordeal as though it’s a simple farce, referring to Peixin as 'foolish’ and seemingly blaming them for their own naivety. This is mostly just ver own unique, abysmal way of evading remorse. Ve does retrospectively wish ve’d been more responsible, but views any attempt to fix ver mistake as a "lost venture" due to Peixin’s ongoing acidity toward ver.
marjolaine
A situational companion at best. Earnestly, ve’s more fond of the environment surrounding Marjolaine than Marjolaine herself… ve quite enjoys the airy low lights all around; the uniform, ornate floral carvings within walls, shelves and furniture alike; the clustered crowds of herbs and creepers emerging from faux-windows and garden microcosms; and most of all, the copious use of interlaid platforms and nonconventional stairage. The place is basically a quaint sector of inspiration to ver, and Marjolaine often lets ver stick around for multiple hours to paint around some still life and such. Smile.
Isel’s thoughts on Marjolaine, as a person, are perhaps a bit more cynical… Though ve’d likely lead with the remark "I’m no different with regards to hermitage — my critique leaps through a glass house!" or something of the sort, ve does judge her more self-reviled social isolation with a sharp eye, feeling as though she’s only making her situation worse for herself. Though ve’s bothered by her general affinity for self-critique, ve both feels she’s "too far gone in her spiral of misery" and doesn’t feel the most comfortable granting her advice that’ll most absolutely get ignored anyway. If there is one compliment ve can grant her though, it’d be her taste in art — a particular landmark being all the obscure brass-heavy jazz she listens to, and all the poetry she’s lightly raved about to ver.
beatrix
They’re neighbors, and neither are too happy about that fact. Isel notably finds him far too preoccupied with trivial things, and especially trivial negations which ve simply feels are ways to limit creativity and thus be very boring. Beatrix thinks of ver as extremely annoying for this and thinks of ver ideas as risky and dangerous. The snake chases its own tail forever and ever.
The only time a truce arises in their constant war is whenever Beatrix’s cat, Cygnus OB2, comes into play. Basically ve’s historically been fond of cats and, upon finding out someone brought one on board, on a train which famously refuses to generate proper animalistic organisms, ve became smitten and went out of ver way to meet the beast. Though personal friction quickly sparked between ver and Beatrix, he concluded it’d be fine if Cygnus spent some time with Isel, deeming himself "a bit of an overbearing old hag" about trying to control where his cat goes. He does, begrudingly, admit ve’s better at keeping it busy than he is. They basically play nice ONLY for the cat’s benefit.
valerie
An occasional contact, albeit with an interesting history. They’ve both actually known one another for years, loosely, with Valerie living in the same general area as him in Boston — she bought a few paintings from ver in the past, in fact! Neither of the two recognised one another on the train, however… time tends to change people. Heh.
They were in loose contact whenever Olzhas felt like tying the knot between them, though Isel eventually came to seek her out by ver lonesome out of interest in her fashionable escapades and general work ethic, which ve heavily respected. The two occasionally discuss artistic matters, often within the confines of a creator mindset, which Isel does enjoy due to the rarity of such a thing elsewhere on Fornax… Valerie’s very direct with ver, though, often wrangling ver out of extended fanciful daydreams and nonsensical tangents. Something most other people often just let fly by. This is mostly because Valerie DOES find ver very interesting to talk to, just also VERY exhausting to talk to. She wants to put in the effort to understand ver right directly, rather than extrapolate from ver various run-ons ve commits to…
faris
Ve regards him as completely untouchable. Both with regards to actually befriending him, and also because ve’s granted him a sort of 'immunity' from ver gossip, entirely as a favor to Olzhas. Ve does wonder quite a bit about his life and temperament, though, and IS quite interested in his lycanthropy and the way it works. Ve’s attempted to start some conversations with him about these matters whilst on ver wanders around Autumn, but he’s always seemed uncomfortable and completely disinterested, and so ve’s relented, giving him space.
thuyết
A distant now-defunt contact, having had a conversation or two with fir early on in ver train days, and having eventually heard much more postmortem through Olzhas. Ve regards fir with a resigned interest, deeply curious about fir architectural endeavors and often harkening to them when painting trainscapes. In ver own words, "There’s no greater epitomic expression of the Fornax’s wildness and iconoclastism than the alcove where stairs float into impossible, unreachable geography absolutely constantly!"
Ve also appreciates the mixture of gentle teals and oranges that mark fir presence, finding them atmospheric in a way that lends ver a lot of focus… Fir Fornax form in general intrigues ver, and ve’s often needling away trying to figure out how best to convey the rich tones and weights present in fir clouds. Ve figures bringing fir justice by way of a few ornate depictions is the least ve can do to honor fir memory.
cas
Has a deep admiration for her, learned mostly from Freya. Particularly intrigued by her sunlike Fornax form and apparent sun motif, which ve’s harkened back to verself, further convincing ver that Cas is someone worth talking to. Ve’s never had the capacity to extend ver mind to ghosts though, much to ver own dismay. Ve’s especially touched by the story of her choosing to sacrifice herself for Lanuola’s sake, and the misstep that lead to both of their tragic ends… There’s a perhaps-excessive amount of honor ve applies to her, for better or for worse.
It’s important to note that ver favorite Fornax display is Cas’, regarding her warm reds and minor tessellations in texture quite relaxing and easy on ver eyes. Ve was also quite fond of her wind chimes, prior to their disappearance, at least…
míra
Mostly just baffled by her apparent rudeness. Ve’s tried to get Demeter to talk about her actively, to sleuth out some more details on how she used to act, though ve’s always been met with disdain and Demeter simply walking away from ver for it. Ah well.
lusine
Ve heavily empathises with its supposed decline in perception. From a distance, solely because of Fornax. Ve makes sure to send along ver good wishes through Freya, whenever thon mentions making contact with ghosts.
lanuola
Aware of her through Freya, and that’s basically where things end. The brief descriptor thon gave ver — "She’s Olzhas-like." — has mostly only raised a multitude of questions in ver mind. Unanswered, still.
omar
Ve finds the warm lighting he brings in "nice". That’s probably the most directly ve’s ever thought about him.
APPEARANCE
FACE: A square-ish, rounded face with full cheeks. Nose lightly protrudes and undulates — having a bump at the bridge with flatter nostrils. Eyebrows are thick, styled to look slightly 'swirled’. Dark circles present around eyes, alongside eyebags and light wrinkling. Ve has ptosis in the right eye, lending it a permanent squint — this eye is photophobic, hence the need for the mask, and ve often forgoes makeup on this side due to sensitivity. General makeup on the left eye, as part of ver paradigm, is a bilayer of yellow around the eye with a thicker pink atmosphere. Ve also wears eyeliner here. Ve has a well-groomed beard, adjacent to a light mustache. Ve often wears black lipstick.
HAIR: Curly, resting at around a 3b texture. Deep brown in color, with small streaks of white. These have been partially dyed over, either in pink or yellow. The hair near ver face is cut far shorter than the back — resting at around shoulder-length. The left half of ver hair has the yellow streaks, with the right side bearing pink ones and being pulled leftwise. The longer rest is tied into a high ponytail, which reaches long past ver waist.
BODY: Roughly 5’6 in height. Ve is fat, with a 'rectangular' body shape. Note that ve never binds ver breasts. Ve has thick body hair, most noticeable at ver chest — although not as defined as the graying in ver hair, it displays sporadic patches of white. Ver left leg is amputated below the knee, replaced by a prosthetic foot in the loose shape of a pink-red lava lamp.
MAIN OUTFIT: Ver greatest distinction, at a glance, is perhaps ver bird mask. Ve has a white mask that lightly cups the right side of ver face, hooking around ver right ear with a golden clasp. Atop it rests a model of a bobolink. The portion covered by the bobolink is actually composed of a lighter mesh compared to the porcelain rest, allowing ver to lightly see through it while still shielding ver eye from strong lights.
Otherwise, ver outfit is… difficult to linearly explain. Ve wears a low-cut, long-sleeved, red-and-pink lava lamp patterned shirt that exposes ver chest. Over this, ve has a small, mostly sleeve-limited vest that crafts the long drape-y black sleeves ve has — pearl-like clasps keep these from being fully loose. This vest’s connected at the back, with no ties or anything at the front. It’s decently covered by ver topmost layer, a mostly-brown vest with pink and yellow embellishments. It has wide sleeves, striped pink, with yellow-and-white jagged cuffs. The back of the vest features a stylised sun shape with a marigold silhouette in the middle, above text reading "Mirrors To The Animals." Ve also wears a black scarf, adorned with a pearl necklace. Lower along, ve has a gold disco-style belt with insciptions of a large sun and seven flying birds. Ver pants are billowy and square-fit, being an offwhite with swirly pink and straighter yellow stripes. Ve never wears shoes on ver prosthetic leg — the one ve has is a deep brown, with various square-ish stripes and a sun shape emblazoned upon it. Ve dons yellow gloves with a 'hook' at the base of the middle finger. They carry orange spirals along their depth.
Ver cane is heavily customised. The handle resembles a bobolink, sitting atop the rest of the cane — the bottom of it has small ridges and grooves that accomodate ver grip. The top half of the cane is proudly wooden, with silver text reading "When Dream & Day Unite" across it. Beneath that, a small subsection resembles a lava lamp, much like ver prosthetic leg. The bottom of it is metallic, with a yellow rubber sole at its very foot.
GENERAL FASHION STYLE: Quite theatrical and overdone. Ve’s fond of mismatched patterns, complex embroidery, multilayered outfits… Ve distinctly adores scarves, capes and similarly 'curtained' accessories. Ve also enjoys incorporating beads into ver clothing, whether through distinct jewellery, items sewn into fabric, or more creative stratagems. Ve’s usually seen in bright colors, often preferring ver classic pinks, yellows and golds, though a "secret favorite" color of vers is a deep foresty green that ve reserves for special occasions. A lot of ver clothing honestly resembles either very stuffy costuming one would see for a middle school rendition of a Shakespeare play, or the typical wardrobe of a profoundly old grandma — ve’d be flattered about either comparison.
A lot of ver fashion depends on bridging together ver senses of femininity and masculinity, quite playfully — naturally, considering ver love for glam rock and drag… Ve hardly ever misses out on embellishing ver hair and makeup to the nth degree, often being the main way ve incorporates ver 'decorative' style into even the most boring of ensembles. Ve’s hardly ever hesitant about showing skin as well, though ve prefers being classy about it, usually layering over exposing clothing to create "more allure".
POSTURE AND MOVEMENT: Frequently sitting or leaning on account of fatigue, back pain and balance problems — ve is a part-time cane user. Has a very arhythmic gait, often having to take shorter steps with ver right leg, making it seem like ve’s 'hopping' at times — ve’ll typically overcompensate by sliding ver foot around or intentionally lengthening ver stride. Tends to move via a commixtion of prolonged leans and sudden sharp turns, which may seem jarring or overly theatrical at a first glance. Ve’s generally quite handsy, often messing with the head of ver cane, grabbing at parts of ver clothes or urging others with gestures like handshakes. Quite animated with gestures in general, particularly being fond of big sweeping hand motions — well-accentuated by ver capelike sleeves. When not using ver cane for support, ve’ll often use it as an extended part of verself, using the "prop" to point at things in the distance and such. Quite affectionate around people ve knows, freely resting on shoulders, hooking ver arms around others’, calling for hugs, etc. Ve also likes blowing kisses to people and stupid little "romantic" actions like that. To put it bluntly overall, ve’s very vivacious. Unabashedly.
Ver facial expressions are much milder, comparatively. A pleasant, controlled smile is ver practiced default, and it takes a lot to wrung out serious emotions into ver countenance. Most of ver emotional displays are honestly visible in ver mouth, albeit ever so subtly — ve draws verself into a far toothier grin when genuinely enthused, freely scowls and grimaces when exhausted, often purses ver lips, such motions. Ve’s very insistent on maintaining eye contact, often to an uncomfortable and "cutting" degree. Ve also has a thing about angling ver head around a lot, partially due to ver weaker eye — ve’ll indulge in tilting and raising ver chin around frequently, often "looking down" on others. Additionally ve tends to nod very abruptly and sharply, which may seem jarring to strangers.
VOICE: Distinctly broad in just about every variable — ver past in radio has left a fanciful mark on ver voice, with ver often changing ver tone for emphasis, doing various impressions, uttering things in a musical manner, etc. Ver vocal range is remarkable and ve won’t let you forget it.
Considering general descriptors, for when ve’s talking relaxedly… It's deep in a very honeyed or "oaky" sort of manner. There’s often a pleasant rumble or "purr" behind ver words, combined with a smooth throatiness that makes ver tone very rocky and dynamic. Generally clear with pronounciation, though distinctions between consonants and sentences may melt with increased tiredness. Ver speaking pace is measured and easy to follow, with ver having a good sense of when to pause, resume and emphasise — a way to put it is it often sounds like ve’s arranging all ver phrases into poetic iambs. Ver volume is fairly dynamic, with ver taking advantage of things like whispering or shouting for ambiance and stress. Ve’ll also mould ver voice specially and exaggerate mannerisms sometimes, such as slipping into higher, squeakier registers when whining or mocking someone else, or turning comically rumbly and hoarse when giving advice.
Ver accent is difficult to categorise because ve often stresses things very artificially, whether for genuine understandability or for simple fun. When talking in a relaxed tone of voice, ve speaks with a light Gujarati accent, often stressing words sharply and borrowing its pace — a lot of ver pronounciation lies in Average English however, a remnant of ver learned accent for radio. Ve’s prone to making a show out of ver impressions-finesse, however, often nonsensically dipping into strange (and often artifical) accents mid-sentence — ver favorite is doing an overblown stereotypical American accent with ver overemphasising everything, though another personally-renowned one is a faux-posh British accent that’s intentionally terrible and inaccurate.
Ve likes whistling, humming and singing out little ditties, whether idly or in the midst of an ongoing conversation. Ve’s quite talented at mimicking even inhuman sounds, such as bird calls.
ENVIRONMENT
train room
The initial entryway gates itself as a long, pacing hallway with no diversions — about an entire 5-minute walk. Unbeknownst to most visitors there’s a secret tunnel, masked behind a painting, which cuts the journey time to about 30 seconds. Along the walls are interlacings of various paintings ve verself’s made, ranging from random impressionist portraits to crowded, overtextured Fornaxscapes and odd, completely impenetrable abstract compositions — these stretch all the way up to the ceiling, outright getting hiding into shadows and thus, seemingly stretching on infinitely. The ceiling is illused to appear extremely high and neverending, though it’s an intentional perspective trick ve’s crafted. The hallway’s soles are composed of rustic, misaligned wood steps that creak excessively — these are intentionally loosened and have sensors that outright connect to a piano in ver room, alerting ver of visitors early. Lighting is scarce and strangely all-bleeding… being here is like sitting outside during dusktimes with an invisible sun; an effect achieved by simply hiding strong lights behind paintings. Note that most of the paintings in ver room have canvases of odd shapes, like half-moons and triangles, all miraculously puzzled together to form a cobblestone-like array of paintings. Certain paintings are also intentionally made to resemble doors, as a trick.
At the end of the hallway is an actual door — becarved with flower shapes and accordingly painted to accentuate these details — which actually leads on to ver actual living quarters. The door sits slightly ajar, always, and there’s a thick multilayered bead curtain right inside adjacent to it that functions as a more proper 'doorway' in terms of tribulation to entry. The room here is a little introductory alcove, establishing a very coppery, wooden 'stagelike' form of design. Candles hang around from walls, a few curtains descend from a foggy black ceiling, horizontal beams cross the sky and carry vine wreaths across their spines. Extremely wide, but short shells of stairs slowly descend down into a smaller corridor bearing two doughy red curtains.
And that’s the end of the false starts. Though the room here features various random raised subsections, some hidden by curtains, others obsucred by annoying steps, others with blended doors that seem, at a glance, completely inaccessble, there is a main carving to be discerned. Well-oiled with sickly, distant glows of golds and red light, originating from all kinds of odd lamps, candelabra and antiquated lanterns; completely engrossed in multicolored, strangely patterned rugs, complimentary curtains and stuffy chairs and tables with cushions and linings of similar calico skins; random throwaway arrays of personal paintings and less personal summoned statues; arbitrary piles of trinkets and effective showprops all thrown about with no rhyme or reason; wide-spanning windows completely open to fornax, only peeking out beneath all those utter membranes of curtain; random pillars segmenting spinepoints of the room, often arbitrarily… in the end the room seems like an exceptionally cozy exhibit in an old-timey museum. The open air and lack of strict rooms (for the most part) certainly give the place an extensive air, only contradicted by all the mazelike implants of crafts strewn about.
A few cutaway coves are important. First, from a long faraway parallel to the opening curtains, ver typical sleeping area — hidden behind a series of unusually thick curtains, a large, raised circular pattern coated in a shell of blankets and pillows. The overall scope of the 'bed' is about the same as a decently sized bedroom in itself — one side of it faces the wall. No lights bleed through to here. At a diagonal to this is a small proper bedroom, equivalent in looks to an old theatrical dressing room, which is often left unused. Close to this is a raised floor portion beholding a fancy white piano. More cloistered away than most siderooms is also rather organised kitchen, which… also fares rare use, lest Olzhas is around to cook something for ver. Segmented by a (comparatively) short walkway is ver Nondescript Studio… in the proper noun. It’s a combined atelier and recording space, for painting and broadcasting ver radio show simultaneously.
frequented areas
Usually sticks to ver own train room, for the majority of the story, at the very least. This is in equal parts due to frequent fatigue and a desire to stay mysterious. Ve usually waits for other people to visit VER, most notably Freya.
Ver most frequent detours into external train areas are fairly crepuscular — ve intentionally wanders during 'emptier' hours, often sticking around the outer borders of districts and pacing around obtuse corridors and sidesteps, visiting the more extensive balconies and getting lost in their lunarlike emptiness… Ve often sticks to Autumn, treading around the exterior of the control room since it’s close by, but ve may also trek out to Spring on occasion for an Olzhas rendezvous. Occasionally visits Freya’s place, also, though that’s far less common and Freya usually prefers travelling to ver thonself anyway.
TRIVIA
☀︎ Ver fervent detours into odd metaphor and neologisms partially stem from aphasia. Ve often struggles to use simplistic word choices and often settles into extended prose-y run-ons that are more freeform and comfortable for ver to construct. When trying to remember precise words, ve’ll often use verbal tricks like riddles or hypothetical questions to buy verself time — that is to say a lot of ver perceieved avoidance is simply a momentary mask for ver vocabulary. Ver mistakes tend to crop up in frequency whenever ve’s fatigued, or when ve has thoughts that are 'too busy' for ver to care about sounding 'proper'. Ve may replace lost words with similar sounding ones, (such as thematic and emphatic, fluster and luster, innate and inane, etc) flip around letters (something like saying span instead of snap) or come up with new consonant-matching terms that otherwise mean nothing (like saying strift instead of drift), alongside other small quirks. Often it’s words with steep consonants that trip ver up the most.
☀︎ Similarly, ver 'avoidance' of directly answering questions has a root in logorrhoea. Due to focusing on ver speech coming off as coherent, ve’ll often lose track of the original query ve had to answer, freely swerving off into tangents. In the moment, ve usually doesn’t realise ve’s doing this, only really reflecting on it long after a conversation’s passed.
☀︎ These habits form the major reasoning behind ver locking off ver thoughts from Olzhas… Ve thinks of ver thought patterns as ridiculous and unbearable and doesn’t want em to ride ver odd trains of thought. It’s very much a deliberate choice on ver end rather than some awkward innate inability to read ver mind due to brain damage or whatever.
☀︎ Alongside ver exploits in drawing and painting, ve’s also fond of clay sculpting and very solid, textured 'crafts'. This is especially applicable to art made during Fornax, when ve was refreshing ver artistic enthusiasm… Working with rigid, boundaried objects helped ver lose some dependence on sight.
☀︎ Ve owns an extensive collection of preserved vinyl pressings of old metal and rock albums from the 1970s-1990s… It was one of the few things ve carried along with ver to Fornax. The smaller collection of cassettes and CDs ve also owns fare far less use — there’s a definitive favoritism toward gramophones in ver mind.
☀︎ Back when they were dating, ve and Olzhas used to dance together. E’d often help ver figure out alternatives to moves that were too complex in the footwork, altered eir stance to easily catch ver if ve ever fell, and often took lead in general, letting Isel float along to music breezily. Annoyingly long metal power ballads were a staple of their impromptu routines.
☀︎ Part of ver reasoning for moving from India to the Americas was to get in contact with ver Nahua heritage, which ve’d always felt was at a deficit despite ver mother’s efforts to still integrate ver in the culture. Ve mostly revolved around Mexican Nahua communities, picking up and exercising the language from there and slowly reconciling it with Nawat. Through this ve also learned quite proficient Spanish.
☀︎ Ve’s very fond of cats. Smile. When ve was younger, ve often took care of nearby stray cats in ver area — often giving them internal nicknames and 'conversing' with them, alongside leaving out foods and drink. This eventually lead to ver taking in an old beast named Vivek, who kept ver company during ver recovery period.
☀︎ Though ve’s naturally drawn to blackbirds, most of ver favorite birds are actually waterfowl! Ve finds swans especially appealing
☀︎ Ver favorite food is kolmi no patio. Ve likes shrimp and seafood in general quite a bit..
META
ROLE
Ver primary purpose is honestly to serve as a strange mentor-like figure to Dalisay, particularly in the realm of assessing and evaluating all other traingoers but also ve’s kind of just… not the best influence when it comes to that, being very plainly biased toward Cassiopeia, something Dalisay is aware of and fully sidesteps. And ve’s genuinely a good person to be on good terms with, putting verself in plenty of vulnerable positions in hir stead and outright practically being ready to kill for hir, but also a lot of ver advice HAS to be taken with with multiple ounces of salt lest sie digs hirself into a tunnel.
It’s worth noting Isel initially starts off as extremely brazen and demanding of Dalisay, trying to goad hir into helping out with Cassiopeia and intentionally lying to distract hir from hir plan to reprogram the train (not that it works, really). There’s some scathing similarity with Olzhas’ approach to discouraging hir, though instead of being outright dismissive and confrontational about it, Isel falls closer to annoying sycophancy to try and align verself to hir 'good graces'… in itself something Dalisay is also doing for ver, out of wanting to avoid serious confrontation! And as they get to know one another they both start feigning genuine support for one another, starting to genuinely meld together their goals, with Isel eventually being so overcome with respect for hir simultaneous diligence and flexibility that ve discards ver renown for Cassiopeia near-entirely.
Within Cassiopeia itself, also, ve takes a very 'interior' role — whilst ve is the central person Dalisay has to address to make commitments and negotiations for Cassiopeia, ve really doesn’t hold many cards in the race… It is indeed Freya who’s behind most of the genuine structure and action in Cassiopeia, with Isel being no more than an overseer or organiser. This kind of intwines with ver past profession in radio, with ver very much just being a reporter or courier of sorts. As the story progresses its kind of revealed that ve’s grown attached to Cassiopeia mostly as a conduit for ver to 'do something' alongside being a way for ver to accept ver own internalised 'inability to work properly' through simple vicarious support of Freya.
There’s not much to say about ver tango with Olzhas that isn’t really analogous from Olzhas’ page to vers… though Isel has perhaps a more solid self-realisation arc and has more demonstrable, physical inching toward sociability and communication, as inferred through ver Intermission-era efforts to reconvene with the rest of the Train residents, ve does have ver fair share of similar divorce melodrama. I’d say the major difference is, yet again, instead of terminating contact with Dalisay for stepping past hir bounds, Isel’s more inclined toward sculpting hir mind away from such matters through arbitrary distraction and obfuscation. And ve kind of just learns to cut it out once ve’s convinced Dalisay’s only trying to help.
Overall, I’d say Isel’s arc completely revolves around opacity, both in active presence and candidness… Ve’s someone who has kind of withdrawn verself into a niche to avoid responsibilities and judgement, and ve slowly relearns how to take a stand for both verself and ver objects of affection. In doing so ve kind of detangles ver own misexecutions, and starts to compensate for them vocally.
MOTIFS
main
Ver most prominent motif is, most certainly, the Bobolink bird. Textually it was recieving the train title 'Dolichonyx' — the genus name of the Bobolink — that awakened ver interest in the bird, and birds in general, with ver initially lacking privyness and interest in them… and so Bobolinks also partially represent ver own attachment to the train and the solitary life ve leads on it. Dare I say it signifies ver 'merging' with Fornax, considering ve very actively donned the title as a way to distance verself from Olzhas, and as a way to validate ver attachment toward investigating the train and its properties. Part of the appropriateness of the motif I also feel stems from the actual sound of the Bobolink, even its name being a silly spelled-out onomatopoeia, which I think is befitting of all of Isel’s tonal oddities. There’s a strange 'digital' quality to their call also, which I think entwines quite nicely with the Cassiopeia Message and its forays into messing with magic…
Of course ve’s also related to the sun, part of the whole league alongside Mazin and Cas… Bluntly said the sun represents death and descension into Fornax, which indeed foreshadows the Songbird ending. Ve’s got perhaps the most vibrant ties to it, visually, reeling in sunspot textures and lava lamps as a mimic of the sun’s very surface… Ve’s kind of more aware of its subtleties and is more keen on infusing them upon verself compared to the aforementioned two who kind of stop at the base outline of the sun.
Pretty hard to miss is also ver 'structural' connection to theater, particularly as a simaulteanous actor and director. Ve’s got ties to the stage all proper, and when that’s absent acting in the voice makes up for it, though also has a lot of subtler inclinations toward poetry, classical literature and (something deserving of later expansion) music. Practically anything that cements ver as exceptionally well-read AND pretentious about it. It’s difficult to note this one down considering a lot of it just comes across in ver whole tendency to act and put on a show and all and it’s definitely more transient and cosmic than something like Olzhas' harlequin motif or Freya’s very visible ice skates… it’s all in the attitude and esteem.
Ve has a 'dead motif' in the form of marigolds… doubly so! Foremost in the sense of it being a motif ve abandoned circa 2110 in the interest of refreshing ver entire appearance, and second in the sense of marigolds themselves commonly representing death. I’d say there’s some self-awareness about this connotation… I always envisioned this motif being picked up around the time ve first started transitioning, and so it was kind of the first 'death to the old self, birth of a new era' sort of move ve did, which of course became reoccuring once ve became Dolichonyx…
mild associations
Associated with birds and flowers in general. Any kind of comparisons of these nature, even if not directly mentioning ver, are often ver 'imprints' on the world around ver and are meant to harken to ver… For example, various portions of the Autumn district are decorated with inscriptions of crows and owls, kind of 'warning' others of ver presence even if ve verself is deeply unobtrusive. The flowers thing, outside of the distinct marigolds, is a bit more proximity sensitive… a notable secondary attachment is the one ve’s got to roses when around Olzhas.
I’d hardly call it subtle, but maybe nebulous or… 'fibrous' would be the right term for describing ver connections to glam rock/metal, prog, that very trained, performance-aware virtuoso side of music in general… Ve’s got a very distinct kind of musical showmanship that I really can’t explain beyond 'you just have to get it.' The whole thing I mentioned about 'new eras' and such is very much inspired by the idea of shifting presentations along a musician’s career, especially in the rocksphere where reinventions are commonplace but still weighty…
SUPPLEMENT
☀︎ As mentioned throughout, the culture of glam subgenres of rock and its bleedthroughs into more mainstream acts catalysed a huge influence on ver attitude and general presentation… I feel it’s not hard to miss this guy’s basis in Queen.
☀︎ Ve has some more subtle basis in various Pathologic characters, notably Mark Immortell and the Stamatins. Ver penchant for excessive theatricism, and moreover ver entire association with theater derives from the former, alongside ver loose awareness of metanarrative matters and whole shtick about interfering with the protagonist’s 'life'. The Stamatins as an influence moreso build up ver "artist side", and I suppose the simultaneous tragedy and sympathy inherent in ver arc. To quote the design docs from the games that I kept in mind when developing ver; "Usually there’s a haughty smile on his face. A dandy. Mark holds himself with grace and dresses sharply. He carries a heavy walking cane. " — "He has no past: he is the Theatre incarnate, its spirit materialized in a carbon-based avatar." — "He has no private life. If he’s suddenly found sipping tea in his apartment, it must be a set scene and he’s just waiting for one of the characters to turn up. Should he fall ill, it will probably be a trick as well. No one’s definitely going to see him dead." — "…well-educated, fierce, eager to taste the life, to create daring theories and carry them out. Each seems to have a spring of steel inside." — "Not to be turned into a drunken clown under any circumstances! This is a tragic character who must elicit sympathy and compassion."
☀︎ Ver design was also loosely inspired by Sol Badguy of Guilty Gear fame. This mostly just boils down to the long ponytail. While on the Guilty Gear train ver mannerisms and general vibe were refined after reconciling ver with Slayer, a guy dually cool and lame in a similar manner to ver. He’s even got the same affinity for poetry as ver. Unfortunately ve didn’t inherit his vampirism.
☀︎ A lot of how ve carries verself was also influenced by kind of an overread I had of Sol from Warrior Cats. Just the whole 'suave riddlemaster who’s actually talking bullshit and is kind of pathetic but everyone trusts him anyway just because he’s so charming' aspect of him. And the whole eclipse thing. That fed into Isel’s sun themeing practically singehandedly.
☀︎ Ver entire defunct marigold motif arises as a backhand foreshadow for the Songbird ending simply through the folk association of them with death. That’s part of why it was chosen, at least — it was also because I was listening to the Haken album "Virus" while deciding a lot of pre-story Cassiopeia stuff and the song "Messiah Complex III: Marigold" sure exists.
☀︎ Though ve had traces of it beforehand the whole thing that solidified Isel’s entire 'need for change' aspect of ver characterisation was coming across the song "Take the Time" by Dream Theater. It’s very clear once you listen to it but yeah it’s all about big revelations and taking steps toward experimentation and whatever whatever it just drove forth Isel’s big thing about 'eras' and improvement and taking risks.
☀︎ The way ver sleeves are tied are a complete pastiche to Orugio from Witch Hat Atelier.
☀︎ I can’t precisely point to anything beyond perhaps the environmental design in ver room but the Psychonauts level "Gloria’s Theater" certainly cast its shadow on Isel’s visual presentation. Solely because it was a thing I was looking at around the time I first created ver.
☀︎ The text on ver vest "MIRRORS TO THE ANIMALS" comes from the song Tetragrammaton by The Mars Volta.
☀︎ Similarly the text on ver cane "WHEN DREAM & DAY UNITE" is taken from the title of Dream Theater’s debut album.
PLAYLIST
MAIN
☀︎ TAKE THE TIME — DREAM THEATER
☀︎ EVERYTHING MOVES — BRONZE RADIO RETURN
☀︎ BLACKLIGHT SHINE — THE MARS VOLTA
☀︎ THE DRUNK — KILTRO
☀︎ LAZARETTO — JACK WHITE
☀︎ SYNTHESIZER — ELECTRIC SIX
☀︎ SAT IN YOUR LAP — KATE BUSH
☀︎ GET DOWN, MAKE LOVE — QUEEN
☀︎ MR. KNOWITALL — PRIMUS
☀︎ ONLY A MATTER OF TIME — DREAM THEATER
☀︎ THE GARDEN GOBLIN — KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD
☀︎ HAPPY WITH WHAT YOU HAVE TO BE HAPPY WITH — KING CRIMSON
☀︎ WHO DO YOU WANT TO BE — OINGO BOINGO
☀︎ KICKSTART MY HEART — MÖTLEY CRÜE
☀︎ 1980 — RX BANDITS
☀︎ SADIE SORCERESS — KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD
☀︎ WE BUILT THIS CITY — STARSHIP
☀︎ PHENOM — THAO & THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN
☀︎ WORLD IS MINE — RYO
☀︎ POST-POST MODERN MAN — DEVO
☀︎ KILLER QUEEN — QUEEN
☀︎ ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER — JIMI HENDRIX
☀︎ RAPID FIRE TOLLBOOTH — OMAR RODRÍGUEZ-LÓPEZ
☀︎ CAUGHT IN A WEB — DREAM THEATER
☀︎ DANCE OF THE CLAIRVOYANTS — PEARL JAM
☀︎ LAST ONE STANDING — PLAYBOY MANBABY
☀︎ HEART OF THE SUNRISE — YES
☀︎ VOICE OF TRESPASS — BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME
☀︎ GREY MATTER — OINGO BOINGO
☀︎ STONE COLD CRAZY — QUEEN
☀︎ HAVEN’T YOU GOT EYES IN YOUR HEAD? (FROM GUILTY GEAR X2)
☀︎ FLICK OF THE WRIST — QUEEN
☀︎ PREHISTORY — BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME
☀︎ LIGHT UP THE NIGHT — THE PROTOMEN
☀︎ RAIN IN SOHO — THE MOUNTAIN GOATS
☀︎ RADIO GA GA — QUEEN
☀︎ CATCH LIGHT — BENT KNEE
☀︎ DISCLAIM — THAO & THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN
☀︎ NO CASE GAIN — THE MARS VOLTA
☀︎ BEGINNER’S LUCK — KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD
☀︎ RATIONAL ANIMAL — THAO & THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN
☀︎ CRUSHING DESTROYER — RX BANDITS
☀︎ LOCOMOCION CAPILAR — OMAR RODRÍGUEZ-LÓPEZ
☀︎ RED GIANT — HAKEN
☀︎ SOMETIMES — NICK LUTSKO
☀︎ DINNER IS NOT OVER — JACK STAUBER
☀︎ ARE YOU SERIOUS — ANDREW BIRD
☀︎ MASTERPIECE THEATRE III — MARIANAS TRENCH
☀︎ DESPERATE GRAVES — THE MARS VOLTA
☀︎ THE SHOW MUST GO ON — QUEEN
☀︎ VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STAR — THE BUGGLES
☀︎ LIVE WIRE — MÖTLEY CRÜE
☀︎ KING RAT — MODEST MOUSE
☀︎ LET ME MEND THE PAST — KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD
☀︎ TOURMALINE — THE MARS VOLTA
☀︎ KALOPSIA — QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
☀︎ ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST — QUEEN
SUN ENDINGS
☀︎ ACT II: ALL IS ASH OR THE LIGHT SHINING THROUGH IT — THE SOUND OF ANIMALS FIGHTING
☀︎ JUSTICE — EVERYTHING EVERYTHING
☀︎ TOURNIQUET MAN — THE MARS VOLTA
☀︎ I’M A GHOST OF TWILIGHT — CLOSURE IN MOSCOW
☀︎ CRAZY — GNARLS BARKLEY
SONGBIRD ENDING
☀︎ TAKE ON ME — A-HA
☀︎ MESSIAH COMPLEX III: MARIGOLD
☀︎ MESSIAH COMPLEX IV: THE SECT
☀︎ WORLD OF LINES — COHEED AND CAMBRIA
☀︎ CROSSING THE RUBICON — THE HUMAN ABSTRACT
☀︎ THE FRAIL — NINE INCH NAILS
☀︎ WINE RED — THE HUSH SOUND
☀︎ MARIGOLD — CALIGULA’S HORSE
☀︎ BENEATH THE WHITE RAINBOW — HAKEN