Dominion: Briarhalo — When Magic is Rooted in Grief
There’s a moment in Deckbreaker Arcana when Sabine Cross presses her hand to the earth and feels the garden breathe back.
Not metaphorically. Not spiritually. Literally.
Because in Avalon, grief is magic.
🕯️ What Is a Dominion?
In the world of the Votrix Arcana, every magical duelist (aka Votrix) has a Dominion—a metaphysical space shaped by their inner wounds, desires, fears, and memories. It becomes their battlefield during Aletheion duels.
Sabine’s Dominion is called Briarhalo.
It manifests as a corrupted garden, once lush, now twisted by time and sorrow. Vines whisper forgotten names. Roses bleed. Thorns remember what she refuses to say aloud.
🌹 The Empress Reversed
Sabine’s central card is The Empress (Reversed)—a tarot archetype of blocked nurturance, buried creativity, mother-wounds, and emotional shutdown.
This reversal isn’t just symbolic. It warps her Dominion into a battleground of memory.
Her mansion pulses with residual trauma. The garden opens into root-halls of the subconscious. The Dominion reacts to her moods, her pain, her silence.
And as she confronts the first Inversus—The Hollow Matron—those thorns don’t just defend her.
They expose her.
Sabine Cross in Tarot: Four Cards, No Spoilers
Sabine’s tarot story is a complex one—sharp edges wrapped in tangled emotions. These four cards hint at who she is beneath the surface.
🌿 The Empress (Reversed)
Sabine wrestles with what it means to nurture and protect. This card speaks to her struggle with emotional walls, inherited burdens, and a potential she’s not sure she’s ready to claim.
🃏 The Queen of Swords
Her soul card, and a perfect fit. She’s sharp, skeptical, and doesn’t suffer fools lightly. This queen slices through illusion with clarity and fierce boundaries—protecting those she loves while guarding her own heart.
🕯️ The High Priestess
Quiet intuition and hidden depths define Sabine’s quieter moments. She trusts what’s beneath the surface, even when it scares her, balancing logic with something deeper and mysterious.
⚔️ The Hanged Man
Sometimes growth means surrendering control and seeing things differently. Sabine’s strength lies in her willingness to pause, reflect, and face uncertainty head-on—even when it feels like a trap.
Sabine’s journey isn’t about instant power—it’s about discovering which parts of herself she’s ready to own. Keep these cards close; they’ll mean more than you think.
🃏 Dominion = Character
One of my favorite parts of writing this series is that the settings aren’t just set dressing. They’re emotional territory. Every vine is part of Sabine’s soul. Every mirror might reflect a memory—or a monster.
In The Unquiet Garden, she learns what it means to wield power that’s deeply personal. It’s not about control. It’s about confrontation.
And in The Unmade Vow, that same garden... evolves.
💬 Favorite Line
“You came back because the house called you. And now it’s remembering. You’re its last daughter. Its last root. And like it or not, Sabine Cross... you carry the thorns.”
Tomorrow I’ll talk about Lucien Lupa, our silver-eyed Trickster antihero who absolutely has secrets and zero chill.
For now? Trust the cards.
But don’t expect them to tell you the truth in order.
Pre-Order Links:
Comments
Post a Comment