Scion AMA: Vivian Landry

Today's questions come from Jioni, goddess of the welcoming night and queen of the realm of Erebus, formerly known somewhat less grandiosely as Vivian Landry, healer and party girl extraordinaire. She is the longest-lived character still remaining in any of our games, having begun in our very first one as part of Alison and Colin's group and then progressed into Aurora's band and now finally into Geoff's, so she has plenty of life experience to spare when answering your questions.

She's also a delight, so feel free to ask her more things in comments if you want to!



If you could "rework" Erebus, what changes would you make to your Darkness kingdom?

You know, I’m sure Nyx was a fine queen, but I don’t care for her choice in interior design. There are lots of shades of black, and besides, all-encompassing darkness doesn’t have to feel so heavy and unwelcoming. The drapes are horrid. But that’s really the least of the problems in Erebus at the moment.

Erebus is not mine to “rework” really, but I do think it may need a new PR campaign. If I could have Erebus represent myself as well, I would want people to understand that even though the night is dark, it isn’t always full of terrors. I bring the night, but I am not the night itself. Dusk in Africa is beautiful and can be tranquil and cool, a blessed relief. I’m sure it will take a long time to get humanity to change its ideas about what darkness can mean, and I don’t know the best way to convey that idea when many of my peers likely prefer the status quo, but I think it can be done. It’s on my list of things to do someday, within or without Erebus.

How does one seduce a cthonic avatar of darkness and then marry it? Any quick tips?

A man is a man. Seduction is easy if you shrug off your insecurities and devote your full attention to the task.

The marriage thing was a surprise, though. I don’t have any good advice for that since I wasn’t anticipating it. But here’s my pro-tip: as a demi-goddess, it would have likely been a bad idea to spurn a titan’s advances, so unless you think being married to a titan would somehow be worse than being the bitch who turned him down, take the fancy ring. (Note: there are probably instances where it would, in fact, be worse to be married to said titan, so choose wisely!)

How do you see mortal society and ordinary people now, and how do you identify with them or anything in the world you came from - family, country or nation of origin, baseball teams, etc?

I always loved learning about and helping people. I loved to get to know people, hear their stories and offer advice or assistance to try to make their lives better. After the Long Winter, the world has considerably fewer people than when I partied in the streets of New Orleans. My sense of home has diminished and warped and stretched as I’ve grown into myself, and humanity has unfortunately gone through hardships that destroyed any resemblance to the world I grew up knowing.

I find now that I am a goddess, I still care for mortals but can only connect to them on the most basic levels. Their pleading countenances have all melded into one face, and their supplications have morphed into one voice. They want to be healed, they want to be fed, they want to be protected. I listen to their other requests and help when I’m able, but anything beyond their basic needs is a nuisance I don’t want to concern myself with any longer. I’m finding it harder to care about the individual because I must care for the multitude.

How do you remember your mortal life? Nostalgia? Contempt? Indifference? What do you miss the most?

I feel a twinge of nostalgia for sure, but so much has happened that my old life is like a crazy drunk party that I can’t quite remember properly. I miss not having so many responsibilities. I also miss the time when my problems were fewer and had simpler solutions. I miss the freedom to do what I wanted.

How many, if any, people from your mortal lives know who you are and what you've become? Are you in even passing contact with any of them?

No one knew and they all went to their graves not knowing. It’s likely better that way. Most of the people I knew in Louisiana had deeply rooted ideas regarding their faith (or lack thereof) and the way it affected their lives, and I’m not sure how I would have felt if I had revealed myself and made them question their faith in that way.

And it would’ve killed my mother, I’m sure.

If you had Comprenion by the short-hairs, and you could make it so that you were a mortal who had never been a Scion, and things had just run their course, would you? In other words - was it worth it?

There are many things I would do if I had Comprenion by the short-hairs, but outright reversing my fate would not be one of them. I’m not certain of my destiny, but I know it’s foolish to waste time wishing my troubles would go away. Even if I was able to reverse my ascension and remove any trace of divine ichor from my veins, I wouldn’t escape the web of Fate; I would just be moved farther from the center. It’s probably better to stay closer to the middle. Right?

Do you consider yourself more one of the Loa or one of the Orisha, and how do you reconcile the two halves of the pantheon?

I am Orisha, just as many of those who called themselves Loa were before me. But I’m also my father’s daughter and I do my best not to forget him. His easy smiles come less easily to me these days, and I don’t get to knock back rum or smoke a cuban as much as I used to, but I like to think he would be proud both of my return to my African roots and of my efforts to carry on in his footsteps. I haven’t met many other Orisha yet, but I hope they understand me.

You are the literal Queen of darkness, but do the other gods respect your royalty or do they alienate you because you married a titan? Do you get to hang out with other Pantheon leader figures? How does that usually go?

I have been afforded all the respect due a queen in all my inter-pantheon interactions. Erebus is viewed by many as a lesser evil where titans are concerned, so being joined to him is less of a stigma than it would be if I was married to, say, Apep. But here’s a secret: royalty treats all other royalty with respect because if you don’t, you’re inviting all kinds of problems for your whole pantheon. It’s like a cold war with some of these gods. Seriously.

To answer your other questions, I have had the privilege to spend time with many other pantheon leaders. I have a number of female frenemies. Results vary depending on the company and situation, but I typically don’t offend anyone. I’m usually given at least one pearl of wisdom regarding ruling, since I am new royalty and just a baby in many of their eyes. I’m also told that I should fix my face. It’s not especially beautiful or memorable, but nearly everyone makes a remark about it. I don’t look queenly enough.

Have you met any other Titans in friendly/political terms?

I have met Hypnos, Thanatos, and (briefly) Nemesis. I wouldn’t say any of them were particularly warm, but they are my step-children, so they were respectful. Prometheus once helped Sowiljr, Folkwardr, and myself, and he was friendly. Most are around Sowiljr.

Oh, and I’ve met other inhabitants of Keku. That never goes well.

What has been your greatest accomplishment in your current position? Do you feel like you’ve influenced things that would’ve gone horribly wrong otherwise?

My position, though it has been useful and often enjoyable, gave me the influence to do something that has become my biggest regret. Ever. And my position caused the repercussions of that decision to be much more severe than they would have been if I was just a lowly member of a lost pantheon. I spend time trying to reconcile my actions to myself, to tell myself that things could have turned out much worse, but I can’t get past knowing that things are the way they are because of the actions I took. It’s hard for me to look past the situation and see it as a comparatively good outcome.

One of the things we all love about Vivian is that you can never keep her down.

But wait, there's more! We also got in one question for that gigantic blast from the past, John Doe, and this seems like as good a place as any to drop it, right?:

You died a monster, but you were once a man. If you could send a message to your past bandmates as yourself, what would it be?

AH HA!! Very simply, it's this: Vivian, I'm waiting for ya. Cause we've got business to attend to....