A battle-torn world, shrouded with smoke and lit by the fires of burning debris. In its midst are two figures: in the foreground, a drukhari woman dressed in the power armour of the Adeptus Sororitas, a bolter in one hand and chainsword in the other. Her hair is cut in a neat bob, in mock of the traditional style worn by the Sisters; her eyes are narrowed and her lips curled in a cruel, contemptuous smile. Behind her stands a Mechanicus adept, dressed in the red robes of the Skitaarii and armed as such, though their affiliations are not so clear-cut. Their limbs are entirely cybernetic, but from the neck up they remain quite human, denied the further blessing of the Machine God - hiding their shame behind a cowled hood. Weapon in hand, they enter commands into a hololithic interface - one eye always on their charge.

Heresy
June 2025

Following the Primarch's alliance with the Eldar witch Yvraine, rumours arose of a heretical hidden Order within the Adepta Sororitas: remnants of the Wych Cults of Commoragh - each minded by a Mechanicus Adept - slaking their thirst in mocking service to the Corpse God.

#zefAU

Two figures are seen from behind. One is tall, with short dark hair, dressed in a trenchcoat and posed in a world-weary slouch - the Auditor. The other figure is shorter, dressed in casual, offensively stylish techwear - youthful garb at odds with his white-streaked hair, pulled back into a braid - the Scientist. They gaze up into a space resembling a vast aquarium filled with orange liquid. A central core feeds the tank, regulating the temperature and chemical composition of the liquid. Indistinct shapes drift behind the glass. The Scientist, arms folded, asks: 'So, tell me...what do you think of my little project?'

The angle shifts to reveal their faces. The Auditor is well-groomed, but haggard - hollow-cheeked and dark-eyed, a man who has seen much, and become inured to all of it - or almost of all. He glares up at the tank, brows knitted and lips pressed tight. The Scientist, on the other hand, grins; smug and self-satisfied. His eyes are concealed behind a visor which glows lurid red, and a strange scar mars his cheek. He continues: 'Merely a step toward the greater goal, of course - but a vital one, and not without its own potential applications.'

The Auditor does not look at him as he speaks - his eyes are still fixed on the tank. He has seen much, and become inured to it all - but there is a hint of disgust in his expression, resigned though it is, and it drips in his voice as he responds: 'And should you succeed in your "greater goal"...what do you think she would make of this?' Two identical figures dressed in long leather coats stand at his back, flanking him: tall, feminine in appearance, with grey skin, shaggy, bob-cut hair. Their expressions are blank, but their eyes are trained on the Auditor. Farther back stands a similar figure, sentry-like and heavily armoured.

Rescission
[Prev. titled 'In Another Life']
October 2023

CW: nudity, vague dubcon allusions, dark & twisted AU G'raha

1/6 🧵⬇️

#zefAU #crystariumcyberpunk #grahatia

A cavernous space, dark and foreboding as a cathedral chancel, lit with eerie arcane light. Two figures stand side by side - a good yalm of distance bespeaking tension between them - on a guilt balcony looking up towards a massive crystalline structure, glowing blue-white and cold. Indistinct in the stark light, a third figure hangs before the crystal, seemingly suspended in mid-air.

A close up on the figure to the right - the one known as The Seeker. He is dressed in travelling clothes - comfortable, worn and dusty - and carries a staff on his back, crowned with a shard of the same blue crystal that adorns his surroundings. As he stares up, his ears are pinned back in displeasure, his expression mournful, regretful - guilty, perhaps.

A close up of the figure on the left - the one known as The Priest. Dressed in flowing robes, his own staff is one of golden metal, etched in similar style to the patterns adorning the walls of their surroundings - he holds it authoritatively in his hand, although a keen observer may notice that he leans some weight upon it too. Though the resemblance between then marks them unmistakeably as brothers, he appears older than The Seeker, his hair dusted with silver and grey; more notably, The Priest is marked by some dire affliction, shards of crystal creeping up his neck and across his face, with one arm entire given fully over to it. He does not look up, as his brother does - his head is bowed, eyes closed, his expression pained and weary.

The two stand together without speaking, though it would be wrong to call it silence - the bone-deep resonance of the Tower's pulse is a constant drone in the background that could drive an outsider mad - but they are both as used to it as their own heartbeat. At last, The Seeker speaks - his arms folded, his expression full of pity. The Seeker: 'Is there truly nothing...is there no way that I might...' The Priest grits his teeth, biting back a sigh of frustration, as though he had expected those words - as though he has heard them many times before.

Princes of Allag
I. Ternion
March 2023

1/4 🧵⬇️

#zefAU #princesofallag #grahatia #gposevn

Three brothers stand on an ancient staircase that wends its way up the center of the dark tower in which they dwell. The only illumination comes from the arcane blue glow of the tower's mechanisms. Though the three look very alike, there are differences which speak of distinct personalities. Topmost on the stairs stands one dressed for the road, in dusty traveller's garments; his poise is confident, hands on his hips; hair pulled back from his face, his gaze forthright. In the middle stands one who appears older than the other two, his hair silvered, his eyes wise and tired and not altogether trustworthy; dressed in priestly robes, he is marked by some affliction, crystal creeping up his neck and across his face and claiming his right arm entire. The last seems younger, his features sharper; perched agile as an acrobat on the wide stone banister, a devious glint in his mismatched eyes. The Priest holds out a hand in welcome, or appeal, to an unseen figure whom all three brothers regard intently.

Princes of Allag
January 2023

1/2 🧵

#zefAU #grahatia

Re-authorization
April 2025

(sound on!)

#zefau #video

Alexandria, 400 years and a world away; a picturesque settlement under a transparent electrope dome, with blue skies visible beyond. A tall, white-haired figure, dressed in red and shouldering a lance, balances easily on clawed feet, looking out over the city from their rooftop perch.

Forever Searching
April 2025

#zef #zefau

College Zef was forced to leave her studies years before due to health issues. She's finding her way back to it, but struggles - insecure & isolated, a bit older than her peers. It's a tale about the friends she finds & bonds she makes - an au second chance for our Sharlayan dropout. #zeflore #zefau

If you haven't met this pair before, you can find their intro here! Apologies, this is an old post and doesn't have alt text - I'll post an updated version of this soon.
#zefAU

A desolate inn room, in disrepair and barely furnished, with empty bottles strewn around. Bleak, wan light falls in the window. On the end of the bed, the Knight of Eld sits; pensive, perhaps inebriated. Stripped to the waist, he leans on the bedframe. His right arm and much of his upper chest are claimed by cursed crystal; the price of some failure, or dark bargain. In the silence of the empty room, broken only by the crackle of a low fire for company, he muses in an inward soliloquy. 'I had not thought to return here in my lifetime.'

'The Firstpath Inn, where once we rallied in victory after the Battle of Fairfoull's Keep...' He stares into middle distance, brooding over days past.

'...fallen to ruin, like all else in this godsforsaken realm.' He frowns, contemptuous.

'No memory of those days abides among the few wretches who yet dwell here. Nothing remains of our storied past...' On a table nearby, cast carelessly aside; his armoured coat, enchanted blade, and an open book.

Fairytale
II: Haunted
January 2023

CW: suggestive.

A dark fairytale AU. Prequel to part I.

1/8 🧵

#zefau #wolgraha #gposevn

Under a darkened sky, a tall, robed figure with streaming storm-grey hair and vast butterfly wings raises a staff in warning. Beyond them, another figure stands facing them - a red-haired miqo'te, clad in black armour. The winged figure commands imperiously: 'Hold, Mortal!'

'What brazen foolishness leads you to tresspass here? I am the Storm Queen!' Regal and grim-faced, the Queen raises her staff as she confronts the intruder.

The Storm Queen: 'The merest whisper from my wings might lay waste to kingdoms half a world away, yet you dare intrude upon my sanctum, disturbing my solitude?' The intruder stands firm.

The intruder stares boldly back at her, his expression set. A slash of crystal mars his cheek. He stands on the edge of a high cliff. A Knight of Eld: 'Aye, your Highness, I know your power. And should it be my fate to find my end dashed upon the rocks below, so it be by your hand, I care not.'

Fairytale
I: Royalty
November 2022

A dark fairytale AU.

1/3 🧵

#zefau #wolgraha #gposevn

An AU Zefiris dressed in 80's hair metal style - leather and lace and a teased mullet - on stage, playing an electric guitar. She looks over her shoulder at her bandmate.

An AU G'raha, his already-era-appropriate hair down - he wears a loud patterned shirt (open, of course) and torn jeans, and is also on guitar.

The two pose together, back to back, Zefiris giving the crowd a crazed look, riling them up.

They lean against on another, under blinding lights, lost in the music.

Turned up to 11 😁

1/2 🧵

#zefAU #zefraha #grahatia #duskwight #elezen

Don't worry, he gets his revenge in another life...though something tells me this was all part of her plan too 😁

Thank you so much again @estellearante.bsky.social , I have not stopped squealing over this! 🥰

#zefAU #zefirisart

G'raha Tia, on his knees; he is in a cave lit by sparse candles, and appears to be bound. His captor stands before him - only their long leg is visible, dressed in a high-cut robe, their fingers tilting his chin up to meet their gaze.

Zefiris, yet not; this creature has oily-black hair, long and unbound, and looks down on her prey with a satisfies smirk.

G'raha stares up at her, terrified but rapt; in the light, her skin appears a lurid green, like some creature of the depthless fathoms, the patterning of her scandalous robe suggesting sea and scale.

🎃Nothing new for Halloween this year (so far anyway) so please accept this little morsel from last year! 🎃

'Well now...what's this? Someone has left me an offering...and taken the trouble to unwrap it besides. How very kind.'

(1/2) 🧵

#zefAU #wolgraha #grahatia

As well as a few random oneshots, I have four main AU stories I wish I had more time for! A little preview thread...🧵

In the fairytale AU, a cursed knight seeks the dark queen of a fallen land, known to him in another life, under another name - to redeem her or to die by her hand...

#zefAU

Zefiris, looking to camera, with the city of Amaurot as a backdrop.

Zefiris and G'raha, in his Exarch's robes, sitting nestled together in the shade of a tree on a bright afternoon in the Crystarium.

Zefiris and G'raha, present day, looking toward the horizon hand in hand.

Hi all, Zef here! Please check out the tags below for:

🍃 #zefstory for Zef's story! All VNs will be under this tag
🍃 #zeffic for prose fics only
🍃 #zeflore for qotd/quiz/etc answers
🍃 #zefAU for AU VNs/fics
🍃 #zefspice for nsfw (rare but it happens!)

🔽 Zef-feed! 🔽
bsky.app/profile/did:...