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Genius Bruiser fits Amicus more than Dumb Muscle, especially considering his debate performance. Not thinking things through doesn't make him dumb; this is more of a character flaw.
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* DumbMuscle: Amicus is stout, robust, and muscular, but not exactly intelligent.
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* GuiltRiddenAccomplice: [[spoiler:Alexios when Cassius is poisoned]]. ''[[YouBastard No one in the entire plot buys this]].
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* GuiltRiddenAccomplice: [[spoiler:Alexios goes crazy with grief when Cassius is poisoned]]. poisoned ]]. ''[[YouBastard No one in the entire plot game buys this]]. this]].''
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* Hypocrite: For someone who calls Amicus a rather dishonorable slur for gays, Cassius sure enjoys the company of Alexios very much.
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* Hypocrite: {{Hypocrite}}: For someone who calls Amicus a rather dishonorable slur for gays, Cassius sure enjoys the company of Alexios very much.
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* RealLifeWritesThePlot: ''Adastra'' began to be written in 2018 and finished in 2020. During this time, mass protests were in effect for racial justice, [[TheCovid19Pandemic COVID precautions]] and gay rights. As a result, sociopolitical commentary is peppered all over the novel and many characters are analogies for certain individuals or groups that profess extremist, far-right beliefs and views.
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* RealLifeWritesThePlot: ''Adastra'' began to be written in 2018 and finished in 2020. During this time, mass protests were in effect for racial justice, [[TheCovid19Pandemic [[UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic COVID precautions]] and gay rights. As a result, sociopolitical commentary is peppered all over the novel and many characters are analogies for certain individuals or groups that profess extremist, far-right beliefs and views.
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Changed line(s) 131 (click to see context) from:
* Flashback: There are a couple, and one of them is implied to be Amicus's flashback to his being outed as gay.
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* Flashback: {{Flashback}}: There are a couple, and one of them is implied to be Amicus's flashback to his being outed as gay.
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* Gayngst: Amicus is mournful over this, especially when he was outed two years ago.
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* Gayngst: {{Gayngst}}: Amicus is mournful over this, especially when he was outed two years ago.
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Changed line(s) 115,116 (click to see context) from:
* Expy: Amicus wants to be Adastra's first openly gay emperor and politician. Yup, he's a dead ringer for Harvey Milk, the United States' first openly gay congressman.
* ExtremeDoormat: Marco, mostly out of necessity, follows Alexios in his pet duties [[spoiler:until he grows a pair and asks Alexios to kindly [[ShutUpHannibal shut the fuck up and do what he says or else]] there will be consequences.
* ExtremeDoormat: Marco, mostly out of necessity, follows Alexios in his pet duties [[spoiler:until he grows a pair and asks Alexios to kindly [[ShutUpHannibal shut the fuck up and do what he says or else]] there will be consequences.
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* Expy: {{Expy}}: Amicus wants to be Adastra's first openly gay emperor and politician. Yup, he's a dead ringer for Harvey Milk, the United States' first openly gay congressman.
* ExtremeDoormat: Marco, mostly out of necessity, follows Alexios in his pet duties [[spoiler:until he grows a pair and asks Alexios to kindly [[ShutUpHannibal shut the fuck up and do what he says or else]] there will beconsequences.consequences]].
* ExtremeDoormat: Marco, mostly out of necessity, follows Alexios in his pet duties [[spoiler:until he grows a pair and asks Alexios to kindly [[ShutUpHannibal shut the fuck up and do what he says or else]] there will be
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* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Cato]] is revealed to be this.
* BadSamaritan: [[spoiler:Alexios]] puts up a kind-hearted front with Marco, offering to keep his secret about being sapient and even offering advice. In reality, he's been [[spoiler:leaking the things Marco says]] to others in Adastra to fulfill his mission of chaos in the planet.
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* BerserkButton: For Amicus, if anyone says or tries to do anything that's even remotely threatening toward Marco, you can guarantee it'll get them facing the wolfs full-blown wrath, as he truly does care for his humans well-being. Even referring to Marco in a dehumanizing way (such as "slave", "pet" and "it") when Amicus is in the room is enough to completely get on the wolven royals bad side.
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* BerserkButton: BenevolentBoss: Amicus is this to his servants and staff. [[spoiler:But once Alexios's plans are revealed, this goes out the window for the latter]].
* BerserkButton:
** For Amicus, if anyone says or tries to do anything that's even remotely threatening toward Marco, you can guarantee it'll get them facing the wolfs full-blown wrath, as he truly does care for hishumans human's well-being. Even referring to Marco in a dehumanizing way (such as "slave", "pet" and "it") when Amicus is in the room is enough to completely get on the wolven royals royal's bad side.side.
** Marco does not appreciate deception and lies and will violently reject such people. [[spoiler:Alexios]] learns this the bad way.
** [[spoiler:Cato]] abhors anything Khemia-related, and it costs him all the effort he can muster to conceal the fact until [[spoiler:he's]] outed.
** Cassius is highly homophobic and reacts badly whenever the subject comes up, though whether he's a homophobe or a closeted homosexual remains in the air.
* BettyAndVeronica: Neferu is the Veronica to ''Marco's'' Betty. That's right: ''Amicus'' is the one in a love triangle. Thankfully, it's resolved fairly early and Marco is the clear winner.
* BlackSheep: Neferu and Cassius are this to their respective families- Neferu for [[NoodleIncident reasons currently unknown]] and Cassius for his disability.
* BerserkButton:
** For Amicus, if anyone says or tries to do anything that's even remotely threatening toward Marco, you can guarantee it'll get them facing the wolfs full-blown wrath, as he truly does care for his
** Marco does not appreciate deception and lies and will violently reject such people. [[spoiler:Alexios]] learns this the bad way.
** [[spoiler:Cato]] abhors anything Khemia-related, and it costs him all the effort he can muster to conceal the fact until [[spoiler:he's]] outed.
** Cassius is highly homophobic and reacts badly whenever the subject comes up, though whether he's a homophobe or a closeted homosexual remains in the air.
* BettyAndVeronica: Neferu is the Veronica to ''Marco's'' Betty. That's right: ''Amicus'' is the one in a love triangle. Thankfully, it's resolved fairly early and Marco is the clear winner.
* BlackSheep: Neferu and Cassius are this to their respective families- Neferu for [[NoodleIncident reasons currently unknown]] and Cassius for his disability.
* BigDamnHeroes: Marco and Amicus manage to [[spoiler:break out of prison just in time to stop Neferu's execution]].
* BystanderSyndrome: Neferu is about to be executed, and [[spoiler:Alexios does absolutely nothing to stop it until coerced by Marco and Amicus]].
* CannotKeepASecret: [[spoiler:Alexios]]. And Marco learns this [[FromBadToWorse in the worst ways possible]].
* CardCarryingVillain: [[spoiler:Cato]]'s behavior and mannerisms are telegraphed to shout "bad guy" when re-reading the novel.
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* ChekhovsGunman: Neferu and Marco find [[spoiler:Alexios]] out thanks to ''a tree''.
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* CentralTheme: How far would you go for the love of your life?
* ChekhovsGun: The clearing Amicus and Marco like to swim at becomes this later on in the story, as it's here where [[spoiler:they discover Alexios's treachery, as well as the tree where they locate the concealed communications device]].
* ChekhovsGunman:Neferu and Marco find Thanks to Neferu, [[spoiler:Alexios]] out thanks to ''a tree''.is found out.
* ChekhovsGun: The clearing Amicus and Marco like to swim at becomes this later on in the story, as it's here where [[spoiler:they discover Alexios's treachery, as well as the tree where they locate the concealed communications device]].
* ChekhovsGunman:
* CorruptPolitician: Cassius is this early on, as he's willing to use [[spoiler:an incriminating sex tape]] to win a debate, as well as trying to get rid of the triumvirate. [[LaserGuidedKarma Predictably, it backfires on him thanks to Marco]].
* CrazyPrepared: Amicus and Neferu come up with a plan that nearly costs the former his relationship with Marco to protect the human from any political fallout: [[spoiler:Sleeping with Neferu is a small price to pay for Marco's Khemian citizenship, after all]].
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Cato]] dies in a way [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves befitting a traitor]]: by having his throat violently gouged out by Amicus's mouth.
* CruelToBeKind: Cato to Amicus. [[spoiler:It's an act]].
* CynicismCatalyst: After years of worshipping his big brother, Cassius's falling out with Amicus led to his becoming the sourpuss we know him as today.
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Cato]] dies in a way [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves befitting a traitor]]: by having his throat violently gouged out by Amicus's mouth.
* CruelToBeKind: Cato to Amicus. [[spoiler:It's an act]].
* CynicismCatalyst: After years of worshipping his big brother, Cassius's falling out with Amicus led to his becoming the sourpuss we know him as today.
* DarkSecret:
** [[spoiler:Cato]] is the one who sabotaged the previous emperor's ship to kill him, then eliminated [[HeKnowsTooMuch those looking into the fact]] to cover his tracks.
** [[spoiler:Alexios]] is a spy and saboteur responsible for destabilizing and eventually ruining the emperorship trials Amicus and Cassius must participate in.
* DeadpanSnarker: Marco.
** [[spoiler:Cato]] is the one who sabotaged the previous emperor's ship to kill him, then eliminated [[HeKnowsTooMuch those looking into the fact]] to cover his tracks.
** [[spoiler:Alexios]] is a spy and saboteur responsible for destabilizing and eventually ruining the emperorship trials Amicus and Cassius must participate in.
* DeadpanSnarker: Marco.
* DefiledForever: When Amicus was eighteen, he was caught kissing another wolf. Said wolf's father caught the incident on video and attempted to broadcast it all over Adastra, hoping that this would be the case for Amicus. The latter's father intervened and banished the rival and his family elsewhere.
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* DidntThinkThisThrough: This is Amicus' biggest flaw, as he sometimes tends to act out whatever idea or impulse that comes to him without fully contemplating any possible consequences or factors that could end up causing more trouble in the long run. He's even introduced carrying out an idea he immediately came up with (going to a planet that Adastra apparently failed to uplift long ago and bring home one of its inhabitants to get more support from his people to be made the next Emperor) that kicks off both Marco's story and the duos main conflict.
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* DidntThinkThisThrough: DidntThinkThisThrough:
** Poor Amicus should be the Patron Saint of the trope. This is Amicus' biggest flaw, as he sometimes tends to act out whatever idea or impulse that comes to him without fully contemplating any possible consequences or factors that could end up causing more trouble in the long run. He's even introduced carrying out an idea he immediately came up with(going to a planet that Adastra apparently failed to uplift long ago and bring home one of its inhabitants to get more support from his people to be made the next Emperor) that kicks off both Marco's story and the duos duo's main conflict.conflict: He thought he could pass a human as a pet, but what he didn't count on was the archives of Adastra misinforming him about their intelligence, leading to him committing a grave sin: initiating FirstContact with a sapient species without approval from the Parents. [[spoiler:Thankfully, the Parents were planning for this the whole time and he gets away scot free]].
* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler:Marco dies this way after his throat is sliced by Cato]].
** Poor Amicus should be the Patron Saint of the trope. This is Amicus' biggest flaw, as he sometimes tends to act out whatever idea or impulse that comes to him without fully contemplating any possible consequences or factors that could end up causing more trouble in the long run. He's even introduced carrying out an idea he immediately came up with
* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler:Marco dies this way after his throat is sliced by Cato]].
* DisabledLoveInterest: Cassius is this to Alexios.
* DrillSergeantNasty: Cato.
* TheDutifulDaughter: Virginia is always the one fixing Amicus's messes, especially after [[spoiler:the latter obtains the throne]].
* EasilyForgiven: Averted with [[spoiler:Alexios]]: Normally, you'd be forgiven for thinking that his being responsible for Amicus's [[spoiler:escape from prison]] would earn him some measure of forgiveness. ''Nope''.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: [[spoiler:Cato]] has troubles understanding ''why'' Amicus challenged him to a duel for Neferu's life, and dies cursing them both.
* Expy: Amicus wants to be Adastra's first openly gay emperor and politician. Yup, he's a dead ringer for Harvey Milk, the United States' first openly gay congressman.
* ExtremeDoormat: Marco, mostly out of necessity, follows Alexios in his pet duties [[spoiler:until he grows a pair and asks Alexios to kindly [[ShutUpHannibal shut the fuck up and do what he says or else]] there will be consequences.
* Expy: Amicus wants to be Adastra's first openly gay emperor and politician. Yup, he's a dead ringer for Harvey Milk, the United States' first openly gay congressman.
* ExtremeDoormat: Marco, mostly out of necessity, follows Alexios in his pet duties [[spoiler:until he grows a pair and asks Alexios to kindly [[ShutUpHannibal shut the fuck up and do what he says or else]] there will be consequences.
* AFatherToHisMen: Amicus becomes this.
* Flashback: There are a couple, and one of them is implied to be Amicus's flashback to his being outed as gay.
* GayAesop: The whole plot is about understanding that being gay doesn't make you any less of a person, and that gays deserve a chance at life. Even Cassius (reluctantly) comes around. [[spoiler:Cato, on the other hand...]]
* Gayngst: Amicus is mournful over this, especially when he was outed two years ago.
* Gayngst: Amicus is mournful over this, especially when he was outed two years ago.
* GeniusBruiser: Amicus is a well-read, talented orator who can kick ass just as well as he can speak to an auditorium about political progress.
* GentleGiant: Amicus.
* GentleGiant: Amicus.
* GreenEyedMonster: Cassius is this to Amicus, especially after the second trial. By ''Interea'', he is growing out of this mindset.
* GuiltRiddenAccomplice: [[spoiler:Alexios when Cassius is poisoned]]. ''[[YouBastard No one in the entire plot buys this]].
* HateSink: [[spoiler:Alexios]] is despised by cast and fandom alike for his treacherous spying and backstabbing.
* HateSink: [[spoiler:Alexios]] is despised by cast and fandom alike for his treacherous spying and backstabbing.
* HeroicBSOD:
** Amicus is reduced to [[TheAlcoholic an alcoholic]] [[DrowningMySorrows mess]] when [[spoiler:Marco "dies" from avia pox]].
** Neferu is also an alcoholic mess after [[spoiler:Cato's words get to him]].
** Amicus is reduced to [[TheAlcoholic an alcoholic]] [[DrowningMySorrows mess]] when [[spoiler:Marco "dies" from avia pox]].
** Neferu is also an alcoholic mess after [[spoiler:Cato's words get to him]].
* Hypocrite: For someone who calls Amicus a rather dishonorable slur for gays, Cassius sure enjoys the company of Alexios very much.
* IdiotBall: Marco keeps blabbing about things to people he has no business telling them to! This bites him hard when [[spoiler:Cassius is poisoned, the pin is blamed on him and Cato takes the throne by force]].
* IJustWantToBeNormal: Amicus just wants to have a normal, happy life with Marco, but the homophobia and job both equally get to him and interfere in his daily life.
* TheIllegal: Marco is this thanks to his being sapient, and part of the plot is Amicus hiding this particular trait from others- which technically makes Marco an illegal alien.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Amicus starts the novel as this, hoping everything will work out for him and for his efforts to be 100% successful. Thanks to Marco's guidance, he starts to grow out of this.
* IWantMyMommy: Cassius, especially when [[spoiler:visiting the Parents]].
* IWantMyMommy: Cassius, especially when [[spoiler:visiting the Parents]].
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold:
** Marco is a [[BrutalHonesty very honest]] DeadpanSnarker with a bit of an attitude problem, but he's portrayed as a genuinely good man who strives to do the right thing and call out the wrong stuff. His pettiness causes him problems.
** Cassius eventually becomes this as the story goes on, though he was still firmly on Adastra's side, even when at his pettiest and lowest: he wants nothing more than to improve the quality of life of his citizens, as well as expanded medical care. It's just a shame that he has to be such a twat.
** Marco is a [[BrutalHonesty very honest]] DeadpanSnarker with a bit of an attitude problem, but he's portrayed as a genuinely good man who strives to do the right thing and call out the wrong stuff. His pettiness causes him problems.
** Cassius eventually becomes this as the story goes on, though he was still firmly on Adastra's side, even when at his pettiest and lowest: he wants nothing more than to improve the quality of life of his citizens, as well as expanded medical care. It's just a shame that he has to be such a twat.
* LonelyAtTheTop: Cassius has become Emperor, but because his throne is illegitimate, he finds himself all alone.
* TheLostLenore: Amicus's wolf boyfriend when he was eighteen. For kissing Amicus, Amicus's father banishes him and his family elsewhere, leaving Amicus with a psychological wound.
* LovableJock: Amicus.
* TheLostLenore: Amicus's wolf boyfriend when he was eighteen. For kissing Amicus, Amicus's father banishes him and his family elsewhere, leaving Amicus with a psychological wound.
* LovableJock: Amicus.
* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: [[spoiler:Meera's apparition in the Meera ending of the novel. As to whether it's canon, it's unknown]].
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler:Alexios]] has an emotional breakdown shortly after Cassius is [[spoiler:poisoned]].
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* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Marco knocks out the only person who can get him home and tries to navigate a spaceship he has no idea how to pilot or read anything and ends up nearly hurling him and Amicus into a star.
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* NiceJobBreakingItHero: NiceJobBreakingItHero:
** Marco knocks out the only person who can get him home and tries to navigate a spaceship he has no idea how to pilot or read anything and ends up nearly hurling him and Amicus into astar.star.
** Virginia and Marco ask Cassius to AbdicateTheThrone [[spoiler:in full presence of Alexios the spy]], and without taking any precautions to preserve secrecy. As a result, things go FromBadToWorse the next day.
** Marco knocks out the only person who can get him home and tries to navigate a spaceship he has no idea how to pilot or read anything and ends up nearly hurling him and Amicus into a
** Virginia and Marco ask Cassius to AbdicateTheThrone [[spoiler:in full presence of Alexios the spy]], and without taking any precautions to preserve secrecy. As a result, things go FromBadToWorse the next day.
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* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: [[spoiler:Cato]] is a violent, homophobic racist who also happens to judge disabled people as worthless.
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* PrecisionFStrike: Cassius calls Amicus a [[spoiler:fag]] during his political debate. Cato isn't pleased.
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* RealLifeWritesThePlot: ''Adastra'' began to be written in 2018 and finished in 2020. During this time, mass protests were in effect for racial justice, [[TheCovid19Pandemic COVID precautions]] and gay rights. As a result, sociopolitical commentary is peppered all over the novel and many characters are analogies for certain individuals or groups that profess extremist, far-right beliefs and views.
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The project was completed in 2020 with a sequel titled ''Khemia''[[note]]named after the planet that Neferu and the Khemians reside in which will be the setting for the story[[/note]], in development with regular monthly scheduled updates. The latest versions and updates can be found on the Echo Project's [[https://www.patreon.com/EchoGame Patreon page]] and [[https://echoproject.itch.io/adastra itch.io page]]. As well as [[https://twitter.com/echothevn?lang=en a main Twitter page]] which contains information and updates on all their current projects.
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The project was completed in 2020 with a sequel titled ''Khemia''[[note]]named after the planet that Neferu and the Khemians reside in which will be the setting for the story[[/note]], in development story[[/note]]. ''Khemia'' is currently on hiatus due to a myriad of issues plaguing the project, such as writer's block and the [[ToughActToFollow pressure of following up a wildly successful novel with regular monthly scheduled updates.another one]]. The latest versions and updates can be found on the Echo Project's [[https://www.patreon.com/EchoGame Patreon page]] and [[https://echoproject.itch.io/adastra itch.io page]]. As well as [[https://twitter.com/echothevn?lang=en a The main Twitter page]] which contains information and updates on all their current projects.
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Deleted line(s) 137 (click to see context) :
* LargeHam: Cassius loves his ham with a side of dramatic honey. Most notable during his debate with Amicus.
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* LargeHam: Cassius loves his ham with a side of dramatic honey. Most notable during his debate with Amicus.
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* LighterAndSofter: Compared to other Echo Project works such as ''Echo'', ''Adastra'' is considerably lighter and sexier.
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* YouNoTakeCandle: Poor Marco has to pretend to be a dumb ape for much of the first half of the novel, with varying degrees of success. [[OhCrap It's when the facade comes off that the story takes a much darker tone]], no thanks to [[spoiler:Alexios]].
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* SceneryPorn: The backgrounds and scenery are simply amazing and definitely fit an otherworldly Roman influence.
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* SceneryPorn: The backgrounds and scenery are simply amazing and definitely fit an otherworldly Roman influence. Some of them even feel like [[Series/TheJoyOfPainting Bob Ross]] paintings.
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** [[spoiler:Cato]] gets killed off during Neferu's execution after Amicus challenges him to a life or death duel- that he foolishly accepted.
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* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler:Cato]] gets killed off during Neferu's execution after Amicus challenges him to a life or death duel- that he foolishly accepted.
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* AmbitionIsEvil: Cato had been planning to forcibly take the throne of Adastra and control it one way or another: either by installing a puppet Emperor (Amicus), or by taking control via poisoning the Emperor himself (Cassius). He is also responsible for atrocities and war crimes committed long before the events of ''Adastra''.
* AuthorityInNameOnly: This was Cato's plan all along, especially with Cassius on the throne. But thanks to [[SpannerInTheWorks Marco]], it doesn't take.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler:Alexios]], full stop. He never meant any of his words of friendship and was in fact using everyone he knew to further his own ends as a [[spoiler:spy]].
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: [[spoiler:Cato and Alexios]] are clearly on the wrong side, with Amicus and his family being on the correct one.
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: [[spoiler:Cato and Alexios]] are clearly on the wrong side, with Amicus and his family being on the correct one.
* ChekhovsGunman: Neferu and Marco find [[spoiler:Alexios]] out thanks to ''a tree''.
* ChewingTheScenery: Cassius is fond of this during his political campaigns, but it's more notable in his debate against Amicus.
* ChewingTheScenery: Cassius is fond of this during his political campaigns, but it's more notable in his debate against Amicus.
* DeathGlare: Cato features one once his [[spoiler:mask comes off]]. Amicus and Cassius also feature one in their sprites.
* DefrostingIceQueen: Virginia takes a long time to warm up to people, and is always seen sporting an indifferent stare and is emotionally distant. It's not until Marco calls her out on this before [[spoiler:leaving for Earth]] that she finally lets the facade drop, if only a bit.
* DysfunctionalFamily: Amicus is a carefree, BrilliantButLazy candidate for emperor who'd rather have fun. Cassius is TheStoic who takes the race for Emperorship far more seriously than his brother [[spoiler:(though with underhanded means)]]. Virginia is the DefrostingIceQueen who means business and has to keep her brothers in line somehow. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome Yeah, there are problems in this family.]]
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Amicus's introduction is being kicked by Marco after implanting the latter with the [[{{Nanomachines}} Lingua]].
* GoodIsNotDumb: Well done, [[spoiler:Alexios!]] You successfully assisted Amicus in ascending the throne! Surely the TheGoodKing will forgive you for your past treachery? How about ''hell no?'' Amicus banishes him from the palace and forbids him to never again step foot in there.
* HeelFaceTurn: Cassius eventually turns after he becomes Emperor and starts having doubts about himself and Cato.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler:Cato]] gets killed off during Neferu's execution after Amicus challenges him to a life or death duel- that he foolishly accepted.
* IAmTheNoun: Amicus says this trope almost word for word when he tries to take Marco out to a "human restaurant" that he convinced a local chef to open.
* {{Jerkass}}:
** [[spoiler:Cato]] projects a cool front and seems to regard everyone with decency, but this couldn't be further from the truth. He's a deluded [[FantasticRacism racist and war criminal.]]
** [[spoiler:Alexios]] is a spy and saboteur sent to destabilize and cause chaos within Adastra. None of his past interactions with the heroes were legitimate.
* LargeHam: Cassius loves his ham with a side of dramatic honey. Most notable during his debate with Amicus.
** [[spoiler:Cato]] projects a cool front and seems to regard everyone with decency, but this couldn't be further from the truth. He's a deluded [[FantasticRacism racist and war criminal.]]
** [[spoiler:Alexios]] is a spy and saboteur sent to destabilize and cause chaos within Adastra. None of his past interactions with the heroes were legitimate.
* LargeHam: Cassius loves his ham with a side of dramatic honey. Most notable during his debate with Amicus.
* LeaveTheTwoLovebirdsAlone: Subverted. After [[spoiler:Cato's]] death, this is Amicus's struggle with Marco, as people seemingly ''won't'' leave them alone for one reason or the other, with "duty calls" being the chief reason.
* NearVillainVictory: [[spoiler:Cato]] has successfully poisoned Cassius (thanks a lot, [[spoiler:Alexios]]), pinned the blame on Marco, arrested him by locking him in Amicus's room and takes the throne by force by pushing the narrative that Cassius is dead. If it wasn't for Marco's growing a pair and forcing [[spoiler:Alexios]] to help him free Amicus, the plan would have gone off without a hitch, Neferu would have been executed and Adastra would be at war with Khemia once more.
* NiceGuy: Amicus is the kindest, most well-adjusted of the three siblings.
* NiceGuy: Amicus is the kindest, most well-adjusted of the three siblings.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Rather than lock him up in prison, [[spoiler:Cato]] locks Marco in Amicus's chambers at a critical point in the story, and the balcony is unlocked. What does Marco do? [[RefugeInAudacity Jump into the water and swim to shore, of course!]]
** Marco's first reaction upon meeting a muscled alien wolf man is to kick him and panic.
** [[spoiler:Alexios]] is genuinely terrified when Marco gives him a well-deserved, scathing verbal beatdown and demanding his assistance to free Amicus.
** Downplayed by [[spoiler:Cato]] when Amicus challenges him to a life or death duel.
** [[spoiler:Alexios]] is genuinely terrified when Marco gives him a well-deserved, scathing verbal beatdown and demanding his assistance to free Amicus.
** Downplayed by [[spoiler:Cato]] when Amicus challenges him to a life or death duel.
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* PuppetKing: [[spoiler:Cassius gets made into one due to Cato brutally staging the third Emperorship trial in his favor, with the "former acting" Emperor clearly still in charge [[AuthorityInNameOnly even after the youngest wolven royal is crowned Adastras new leader]]. Out of both fear towards directly defying Cato and [[SlaveToPR concern to how the public would treat him if he were to abdicate his rule in such a short amount of time]], Cassius ends up going along with this role for a while.]]
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* ProtagonistCenteredMorality: When [[spoiler:Alexios]] brings up some valid concerns about the Parents and the Other, as well as how Adastra has some messed up politics, he is portrayed as a bad man because of his status as a [[spoiler:spy and saboteur]]. When Marco does it? He's instantly a paragon of justice who will redeem Adastra alongside Amicus.
* ThePuppetCutsHisStrings: [[spoiler:Cassius goes behind Cato's back once he becomes Emperor and gets Marco's side of the story, but this isn't fully solidified until Virginia blackmails him. The latter has some far-reaching consequences for the plot.]]
* PuppetKing: [[spoiler:Cassius gets made into one due to Cato brutally staging the third Emperorship trial in his favor, with the "former acting" Emperor clearly still in charge [[AuthorityInNameOnly even after the youngest wolven royal is crowned Adastras new leader]]. Out of both fear towards directly defying Cato and [[SlaveToPR concern to how the public would treat him if he were to abdicate his rule in such a short amount of time]], Cassius ends up going along with this role for a while. Cato expected Cassius to do his bidding from the start once Amicus is confirmed to have accidentally begun FirstContact and sabotaged the trial in Cassius's favor.]]
* ThePuppetCutsHisStrings: [[spoiler:Cassius goes behind Cato's back once he becomes Emperor and gets Marco's side of the story, but this isn't fully solidified until Virginia blackmails him. The latter has some far-reaching consequences for the plot.]]
* PuppetKing: [[spoiler:Cassius gets made into one due to Cato brutally staging the third Emperorship trial in his favor, with the "former acting" Emperor clearly still in charge [[AuthorityInNameOnly even after the youngest wolven royal is crowned Adastras new leader]]. Out of both fear towards directly defying Cato and [[SlaveToPR concern to how the public would treat him if he were to abdicate his rule in such a short amount of time]], Cassius ends up going along with this role for a while. Cato expected Cassius to do his bidding from the start once Amicus is confirmed to have accidentally begun FirstContact and sabotaged the trial in Cassius's favor.]]
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* TheStarscream: [[spoiler:Alexios to Cato.]]
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* TheStoic: Cassius.
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* TimeSkip: The third act of ''Adastra'' begins a few months after [[spoiler:Cato's death]]. ''Interea'', meanwhile, takes place in the middle of these months.
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* VillainousBreakdown: [[spoiler:Cato]] dies blaming Neferu and Amicus for every single thing that went wrong with his plan.
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* WhatTheHellHero: Cato gives a rather violent one to Amicus early in the story after missing his practice, calling him out on his tardiness and telling him to shape up. But given certain revelations in the story later on, it's unknown how much of this is genuine.
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* ThereAreNoTherapists: Discussed and deconstructed in-universe amid a talk Scipio has with Neferu [[spoiler:the day after they were almost murdered in their hotel room, which brought back some bad memories for the former. The wolf mentions all the horror he experienced three years ago at his university when the riots had broken out, and that his thoughts of said trauma being easily handled like “a glitch that can be easily patched” not playing out made him look bad. Neferu empathizes by pointing out his own trauma from that same time period, which was seeing his friend Marco die brutally, and that he dislikes Adastran society for expecting everyone to handle their inner turmoil's alone, finding this form of dealing with ones old pains frustrating. This leads to a heartwarming moment where Neferu sincerely offers to help Scipio handle his trauma, which the wolf ultimately accepts]].
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* CastFullOfGay: With the exception of Cato, every major male character in the story is homosexual.
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* CastFullOfGay: With the exception of Cato, every most major male character characters in the story is homosexual.are homosexuals. Cassius, however, remains unknown, as he could be in the closet and using his violently homophobic rhetoric during his campaign to hide it.
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Manly Gay fits Amicus a lot more than Straight Gay. If anything, Neferu could be closer to the latter trope, and even Cassius, if in-game dialogue is any indication.
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* ManlyGay: Amicus is tough, masculine, and very much gay.
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* ManlyGay: Amicus is tough, masculine, a very masculine wolf who has no feminine interests and is very much gay.gay. Although, he does regularly use lavender-scented cologne and grooms his fur, which while considered normal on his planet, would be considered feminine on Earth.
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* StraightGay: Amicus is a very masculine wolf who has no feminine interests and is very much gay. Although, he does regularly use lavender-scented cologne and grooms his fur, which while considered normal on his planet, would be considered feminine on Earth.
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Now has a character sheet. Feel free to contribute.
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* NotAfraidToDie: During a personal conversation with Scipio in the palace gardens, Neferu mentions that when he was [[spoiler:about to be executed by Cato in ''Adastra'' he had this reaction to his approaching demise, bringing up that he was even willing to die and at peace. However, after he witnessed Marco get his throat slit and saw the life within him come to an end]], Neferu basically states [[AvertedTrope his view on the topic changed]], as he for the first time feared dying.
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* TheUnreveal: It's not made clear what Neferu did to earn his status as TheUnfavorite in his family, with the jackal only bringing up vague responses such as, "After what I put them through, it's only fair", when asked why they're forcing him to stay on Adastra in order to help form an alliance that they know has little to no chance of success.
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* TheUnreveal: It's not made clear what Neferu did to earn his status as TheUnfavorite in his family, with the jackal only bringing up vague responses such as, "After what I put them through, it's only fair", when asked why they're [[ReassignedToAntarctica forcing him to stay on Adastra in order to help form an alliance that they know has little to no chance of success.success]].
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* GeneralRipper: If any trope were to be used to describe [[spoiler:Cato]], this would be the most accurate one. Long before the main story, [[spoiler:he led a brutal attack on a Khemian/wolverine settlement with incendiary weapons and killed all but two of the thousands of residents, leaving behind a gruesome aftermath. He also served as a General in the Khemian-Adastran war and contributed to a lot of death through his relentless brutality, as gleefully angry comments he makes to Neferu after the third trial indicates he enjoyed causing all that slaughter and is eager to cause so much more. Finally, it gets revealed that the main reason he tries to usurp the Adastran throne is so that he can go to war with the Khemians again and cause more violence and slaughter, with his planned killing of Neferu being the start of his goals]].
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* GeneralRipper: If any trope were to be used to describe [[spoiler:Cato]], this would be the most accurate one. Long before [[spoiler: Already having committed acts of brutality as a General in the main story, [[spoiler:he led a brutal past (primarily his attack on a Khemian/wolverine settlement with incendiary weapons and that killed all but two of the thousands of residents, leaving behind a gruesome aftermath. He also served inhabitants, as a General in the Khemian-Adastran war and contributed well as personally contributing to a lot of death through in the following Khemian-Adastran War) his relentless brutality, as gleefully angry comments he makes to Neferu after the third trial indicates he enjoyed causing all that slaughter and is eager to cause so much more. Finally, it gets revealed that the main reason he tries to usurp plan in the Adastran throne story is so that he can go to take full power of Adastra by any means necessary to start another war with the Khemians again jackals, which he hoped would begin with the public execution of their royal ambassador Neferu. As [[StupidEvil mentioned below]], the new war would have inevitably brought ruin to all of Adastra and cause its people, as Khemia is one of the Galaxias' strongest sibling species that nearly defeated them in the last battle, though from his words and actions it seemed Cato couldn't have cared any less about the consequences as long as he got to carry out more violence and slaughter, with his planned killing of Neferu being the start of his goals]].needless bloodshed.]]
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* GeneralRipper: If any trope were to be used to describe [[spoiler:Cato]], this would be the most accurate one. Long before the main story, [[spoiler:he led a brutal attack on a Khemian/wolverine settlement with incendiary weapons and killed all but two of the thousands of residents, leaving behind a gruesome aftermath. He also served as a General in the Khemian-Adastran war and contributed to a lot of death through his relentless brutality, as gleefully angry comments he makes to Neferu after the third trial indicates he enjoyed causing all that slaughter and is eager to cause much more. Finally, it gets revealed that the main reason he tries to usurp the Adastran throne is so he can go to war with the Khemians again and cause more violence and slaughter, with his planned killing of Neferu being the start of his goals]].
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* GeneralRipper: If any trope were to be used to describe [[spoiler:Cato]], this would be the most accurate one. Long before the main story, [[spoiler:he led a brutal attack on a Khemian/wolverine settlement with incendiary weapons and killed all but two of the thousands of residents, leaving behind a gruesome aftermath. He also served as a General in the Khemian-Adastran war and contributed to a lot of death through his relentless brutality, as gleefully angry comments he makes to Neferu after the third trial indicates he enjoyed causing all that slaughter and is eager to cause so much more. Finally, it gets revealed that the main reason he tries to usurp the Adastran throne is so that he can go to war with the Khemians again and cause more violence and slaughter, with his planned killing of Neferu being the start of his goals]].
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* GeneralRipper: If any trope were to be used to describe [[spoiler:Cato]], this would be the most accurate one. Long before the main story, [[spoiler:he led a brutal attack on a Khemian/wolverine settlement with incendiary weapons and killed all but two of the thousands of residents, leaving behind a gruesome aftermath. He also served as a General in the Khemian-Adastran war and contributed to a lot of death through his relentless brutality, as gleefully angry comments he makes to Neferu after the third trial indicates he enjoyed causing all that slaughter and is eager to cause much more. Finally, it gets revealed that the main reason he tries to usurp the Adastran throne is so he can go to war with the Khemians again and cause more violence and slaughter, with his planned killing of Neferu being the start of his goals]].
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''Adastra'' is a 2018 UsefulNotes/RenPy SciFi SpaceOpera {{UsefulNotes/Furry|Fandom}} VisualNovel made by the collaborative indie group [[https://itch.io/profile/echoproject Echo Project]], who are also responsible for the PsychologicalHorror visual novel ''VisualNovel/{{Echo}}'' and its standalone prequel ''VisualNovel/TheSmokeRoom''.
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''Adastra'' is a 2018 UsefulNotes/RenPy SciFi SpaceOpera {{UsefulNotes/Furry|Fandom}} VisualNovel made by the collaborative indie group [[https://itch.io/profile/echoproject Echo Project]], who are also responsible for the PsychologicalHorror visual novel ''VisualNovel/{{Echo}}'' and its standalone prequel ''VisualNovel/TheSmokeRoom''.
''VisualNovel/TheSmokeRoom'' and sequel ''VisualNovel/{{Arches}}'' as well as ''VisualNovel/GloryHounds''.
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* PlotTriggeringDeath: [[spoiler:The death of Potes, the royal siblings father, five months before the beginning of the story is what starts Amicus and Cassius' fight to be made the next Emperor of Adastra. This in turn leads to Marco getting brought over from Earth by Amicus when Cassius starts taking the lead in the campaign, as Amicus thought reintroducing a lost and forgotten uplifted species to the Galaxias would give him the support from his people he critically needed.]]
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* AliensSpeakingEnglish: Justified. Amicus implants a translator chip called a Lingua near Marco's eye which allows him to speak to aliens.
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* AliensSpeakingEnglish: Justified. Amicus implants a translator chip called a Lingua near Marco's eye which allows him to speak to aliens.
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Crosswicking new trope
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* BorrowingFromTheSisterSeries: ''Adrasta'' borrowed some of its worldbuilding horror elements from ''VisualNovel/{{Echo}}'', [[MechanicalAbomination The Other]] being extremely similar to the "Echo Entity" (which in turn likely derives from ''VisualNovel/BlackGate'' 's [[SatanicArchetype The Eternal]]; ''Echo'' did begin as a supplementary for ''Blackgate'' before the team split up altogether). Inversely, ''VisualNovel/TheSmokeRoom'' burrowed ''Adastra'' 's fanservice and "horniness" (to quote the devs) wheres ''Echo'' ultimately chose a (mostly, [[FanDisservice never titilating]]) non-pornographic style.
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* AlasPoorVillain: More along the lines of "Alas, Poor Jerkass" in regards to [[spoiler: Cassius]]. While the wolf was constantly hostile to Marco and Amicus early on in the story, it's still horrifying and saddening when [[spoiler: he ends up getting poisoned by Cato. The fact that he was going to give up his lifelong desire of being Adastra's Emperor (despite knowing how humiliating it would be for his reputation to abstain in such a short amount of time) in order to help his siblings and Marco oust Cato while also putting his brother in charge as originally planned for the planets sake probably gave way to some sympathy points. Later on, Cassius is revealed to have survived the murder attempt (making the trope mostly averted) though it still doesn't make what was almost his death scene any less painful to read]].
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* AlasPoorVillain: More along the lines of "Alas, Poor Jerkass" in regards to [[spoiler: Cassius]]. While the wolf was constantly hostile to Marco and Amicus early on in the story, it's still horrifying and saddening when [[spoiler: he ends up getting poisoned by Cato. The fact that he was going to give up his lifelong desire of being Adastra's Emperor (despite knowing how humiliating it would be for his reputation to abstain abdicate in such a short amount of time) in order to help his siblings and Marco oust Cato while also putting his brother in charge as originally planned for the planets sake probably gave way to some sympathy points. Later on, Cassius is revealed to have survived the murder attempt (making the trope mostly averted) though it still doesn't make what was almost his death scene any less painful to read]].
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* BigEater: Amicus turns out to be one. [[spoiler: During the flight back to Earth near the end of the story, Marco mildly lampshades this trope upon seeing his wolf eat half a bag of candy and asks if his parents ended up forbidding him from eating sugar (along with him noting how little food Amicus had on the ship when he first took Marco to his world) with Amicus' reply basically confirming it]].
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* BigEater: Amicus turns out to be one. [[spoiler: During the flight back to Earth near the end of the story, Marco mildly lampshades this trope upon seeing his wolf quickly eat half a bag of candy and asks if his parents ended up forbidding him from eating sugar (along with him noting how little food Amicus had on the ship when he first took Marco to his world) world, implying Amicus devoured most of the supplies on the way to Earth), with Amicus' reply about his eating habits basically confirming it]].
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* BigEater: Amicus turns out to be one. [[spoiler: During the flight back to Earth near the end of the story, Marco mildly lampshades this trope upon seeing his wolf eat half a bag of candy and asks if his parents ended up forbidding him from eating sugar (along with him noting how little food Amicus had on the ship when he first took Marco to his world) with Amicus' reply basically confirming it]].
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'''''Adastra''''' is a 2018 UsefulNotes/RenPy SciFi SpaceOpera {{UsefulNotes/Furry|Fandom}} VisualNovel made by the collaborative indie group [[https://itch.io/profile/echoproject Echo Project]], who are also responsible for the PsychologicalHorror visual novel ''VisualNovel/{{Echo}}'' and its standalone prequel ''VisualNovel/TheSmokeRoom''.
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* PuppetKing: [[spoiler:Cassius gets made into one due to Cato brutally staging the third Emperorship trial in his favor, with the former acting Emperor clearly still being in charge [[AuthorityInNameOnly after the youngest wolven royal is crowned Adastras new leader]]. Out of both fear towards defying Cato and concern to [[SlaveToPR how the public would treat him if he were to abdicate his rule in such a short amount of time]], Cassius ends up going along with this role for a while.]]
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* PuppetKing: [[spoiler:Cassius gets made into one due to Cato brutally staging the third Emperorship trial in his favor, with the former acting "former acting" Emperor clearly still being in charge [[AuthorityInNameOnly even after the youngest wolven royal is crowned Adastras new leader]]. Out of both fear towards directly defying Cato and concern to [[SlaveToPR concern to how the public would treat him if he were to abdicate his rule in such a short amount of time]], Cassius ends up going along with this role for a while.]]
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*PuppetKing: [[spoiler:Cassius gets made into one due to Cato brutally staging the third Emperorship trial in his favor, with the former acting Emperor clearly still being in charge [[AuthorityInNameOnly after the youngest wolven royal is crowned Adastras new leader]]. Out of both fear towards defying Cato and concern to [[SlaveToPR how the public would treat him if he were to abdicate his rule in such a short amount of time]], Cassius ends up going along with this role for a while.]]
