There Is A Panel Like This Of Ra’s And Little Talia But I Can Never Find It So I Just Had To Re-sketch

I did the thing :3c

Reference under cut

I’m hard right now

bloodhound may have picked up some phrases from walter

I thought about Lifeline with her hair down and got killed on the spot by my own heart

You can now read my work "The son of Lazarus" on AO3

Tags: Damian Wayne centric, Magic user Damian Wayne, Good mother Talia al Ghul, Good Grandfather Ra's al Ghul

I think the effects of using the Lazarus pit are determined by several factors, and this is all my hc ofc. I hope you don’t mind me using this old post as something to go off of teehee

For one, Lazarus pits can’t be used “raw.” There is a very tedious process of purifying them before they can be used that involves science and magic. It is, in itself, a ritual. If the steps are not taken correctly, something may go horrible wrong, a la Lazara. If you were to take a swim in raw Lazarus, your skin would probably melt, much like Melisande.

This raw Lazarus is an excellent energy source, capable of powering cities. It’s also a clean energy source, of course, and has no negative effects on the environment. The Al Ghuls don’t keep the pits to themselves out of selfish reasons, quite the opposite. The pits are hidden because they’ve seen what humanity has done with oil and coal and would not intend for the pits to be used irresponsibly.

Once Lazarus is processed, it is safe for human contact. Taking a dip for too long can lead to harsher Lazarus madness, so it is important that the length of time you’re in there is relative to the severity of injuries. Lazarus can also be processed into ingestible or injectable medicine that can cure otherwise incurable diseases. (This is why we see Talia, in the Batman Spider-Man crossover, provide a cure for Vanessa Fisks terminal illness.)

We’ve seen people get dipped in the pits after being completely dead to the point where their bodies began rotting. That sort of power is probably incredibly draining both on the body and the mind, and the Lazarus madness would be much more severe. Hence why Jason becomes insane for a while.

Though I should mention that I don’t think Lazarus madness necessarily constitutes unreasonable aggressiveness and violence. It is shown to also have an amnesia-esque effect, causing short or long term memory loss. (In my hc, Nyssa has perfected this process, using it to brainwash many members of the LoA but especially Talia. Alternatively, Ra’s has nearly perfected the process of healing with the pit.)

There’s also the point of Jason Todd gaining a white streak, and this is extremely symbolic to his character for a plethora of reasons. Some writers can make this very questionable and honestly poorly written, but it can be done really well. Nonetheless, it does beg the question as to why only Jason gained this streak!

I’m not sure if it’s ever been covered, but I do hc that Ra’s has these same white streaks due to his constant use of Lazarus for hundreds of years, AS WELL AS because of his age. Talia will also have one, but it’s towards the back of her hair, and she keeps it hidden and cut short. (Sort of like how in Rapunzel, she has that one little lock of short brown hair tucked away?)

With Ra’s, he still feels these effects every time he uses the pits, and needs time to recover after using them. This is someone who has been using them for hundreds of years. So imagine how severe that effect might be on someone for the first time? It might seem like it’s completely gone and then manifest again suddenly after a traumatic experience, or a reminder of that sensation.

This could be the same for a lot of people who use it in a dramatic way. It’s meant to be something you micro-dose. A small amount can heal so much, to submerge yourself in it is like taking an entire bottle of medicine instead of just one pill. It isn’t a floating light feeling of healing, it is incredibly painful and dramatic. We see Ra’s start to become a lot healthier once he stops using the pits, and it’s essentially one of those classic situations where too much of a good thing can be really really bad.

I’ll also briefly mention that the Lazarus pit cannot heal previously healed scars, or very old scars. Which is why I think Jason SHOULD have autopsy scars. And why I think Damian should have maybe a bit less scars than some artists draw him having, because I can’t imagine Talia or Ra’s purposefully leaving him in such a way. Not when they have access to some of the greastest doctors in the world, Lazarus based ointments and saline’s, and Talia literally being a qualified doctor… but I digress.

(Speaking of Talia being a Doctor, I hc that she went to med school specifically so she could find new ways to incorporate the Lazarus’ healing component. But I’m not gonna get into it here bc that’s a whole other thing.)

The pits should be used responsibly, and are probably more frequently used as an energy source or a base for medicines rather than submerging pools. Ra’s uses them more than he should, but that doesn’t mean he goes for a swim every time he gets a paper cut. If the injuries can be cured without it, then that’s what will be done, even if it’s more tedious.

Anyways! I hope you guys enjoy this sort of breakdown! As always, the disclaimer here is that it’s almost all my own hcs based on various sources. Please feel free to correct/educate me if I got something terribly wrong. And also ask any questions you might have!!

If "Pit madness" is a thing tell me why it's only applied to Jason and not the actual Al Ghuls who own multiple and use the Lazarus pits frequently? 🤨 TELL ME TUMBLR 🤨🤨

I keep forgetting that Lifeline has these adorable freckles in the Season 3 trailer, but you don’t really see them in game. 

snile

I don’t know how to love things a normal amount.

I think Talia truly loves her father, and I think he loves her too. I think he is terrible, though. He’s a huge abuser, made Talia feel incapable her entire life, manipulated her into feeling beneath him. And with each use of the Lazarus, his mind becomes more and more decayed. His love for his daughter twists and corrupts. He sees her as more of a tool than a child. And she grows to resent this, but still loves him deep down. She wants to help him, but he will never accept the help. So she needs to go off on her own. As someone who kind of knows the position she’s in, it can be extremely hard to latch off of an abusive parent. Especially when you have a deep connection to the concept of family. Talia wants to stay as neutral as she can and play both sides but that physically isn’t possible with the boundaries set up by Bruce. Boundaries that he is absolutely right to put up.