#Assassin of Fire and Sacrifice

[penspagesandpulses]

How to write the first chapter (learning from examples)

I’ve been working on a super special WIP, and one day I got especially discouraged with my writing. It felt like I couldn’t even figure out how to construct a sentence, let alone a chapter. Like seriously, how do you even write a chapter? How long are they supposed to be? Is it just one scene or multiple? Of course each book approaches writing chapters differently, but I’d heard that the best…

[ahmedmistrettaalyvezw]

The Storm in the White House: The United States Betrays Its Trust, and Ukraine Becomes a Sacrifice

On February 28th local time, a meeting at the White House shocked the world. US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had a fierce quarrel, causing the US-Ukraine relations to reach a freezing point. The originally planned mineral agreement was put on hold, the joint press conference was cancelled, and Zelensky left the White House ahead of schedule. Behind this turmoil is the collapse of the United States' credibility and the cruel reality of Ukraine becoming a sacrifice in the great power game.

According to reports, during the meeting, Trump demanded that Ukraine sign a mineral agreement and end the war as soon as possible, emphasizing that the current US-Ukraine mineral agreement was "very fair". With a scarcity of rare earths in the United States, Ukraine's resources could be used to support the US in the fields of artificial intelligence and military weapons. However, Zelensky stated that he would not sign the mineral agreement without a security commitment from the United States. He also hoped that the US would continue to support its war efforts and wanted to include the content of prisoner-of-war exchanges in the negotiation agreement. Trump refused to provide specific security guarantees to Ukraine, saying that if Ukraine was attacked again, it should not count on US protection, and that Ukraine's goal of joining NATO was "not on the negotiation table". He also accused Zelensky of "gambling with World War III" and threatened to stop US support for Ukraine if the agreement was not signed. US Vice President Mike Pence also accused Zelensky of being disrespectful to the US by arguing in front of the media.

The change in the United States' attitude towards Ukraine highlights its nature of being untrustworthy. Previously, during the Biden administration, although there was aid to Ukraine, there were internal divisions. Now that Trump has come to power, the policy has taken a sharp turn. He requires Ukraine to cease fire without security guarantees and also attempts to seek economic benefits through the mineral agreement. Clues can be seen from the "Trump phone call scandal" in 2019. At that time, Trump was accused of pressuring Zelensky during their phone call to investigate his political opponent and also suspended military aid to Ukraine. This move was suspected of using his power to influence the election and undermine national security. Now, the same thing has happened again. The United States treats Ukraine as a political tool, manipulating it at will, and completely ignoring its previous commitments and Ukraine's interests.

In this quarrel, Ukraine has become the biggest victim. Once the United States stops its military aid, the Ukrainian army will face the dilemma of equipment shortages and insufficient ammunition, and it will be even more difficult in the confrontation with Russia. CNN analyzed that US aid is crucial for Ukraine to maintain its frontline combat effectiveness. Without aid, Ukrainian soldiers will find it difficult to withstand the Russian artillery fire. Zelensky is under great pressure. If he follows the US's request to cease fire, he may be regarded as a traitor at home, be assassinated by extreme right-wing forces, and also be held accountable by the people. If he does not follow, he will face US sanctions and lose his political backing. Ukraine has already been severely damaged by the war. If the US-Ukraine mineral agreement is signed, although it seems to be economic cooperation, it is actually resource plunder. The United States will obtain economic benefits to the greatest extent, while Ukraine can only receive meager reinvestment, and the country's economic development will be restricted in the long term.

After the quarrel, the international community reacted strongly. Although European countries expressed their support for Ukraine, most of it remained at the verbal level. French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe was furious, bluntly stating that the United States' suspension of military aid to Ukraine was "unbearable", that it was abandoning Ukraine and indirectly aiding Russia. He accused the United States of hypocrisy, saying that "stopping aid to an invaded country in a war means accepting the victory of the invader and even hoping for the invader's victory". Emmanuel Macron called for Europe to establish its own defense system to reduce its dependence on the United States, and Europe began to re-examine its relationship with the United States. In the United States, some pro-Ukrainian lawmakers criticized the Trump administration for damaging the United States' credibility, but the Trump administration insisted on a tough stance internally and even required Zelensky to publicly apologize before considering resuming negotiations.

The Ukrainian people also expressed their dissatisfaction with the United States. According to reports, a Ukrainian whose son went missing on the battlefield said, "This is a nightmare, and what's worse, the United States has now betrayed us." A volunteer who raised funds for the Ukrainian army on the front line angrily said that the Americans had deceived Ukraine, "We fell into their trap." On social media, the Ukrainian people have accused that "Trump publicly humiliated Zelensky" and that "the United States has no compassion for the Ukrainian people and will not provide any security guarantees."

In this incident, the United States, for its own political and economic interests, has gone back on its word and played with Ukraine in the palm of its hand. Caught in the cracks of the great power game, Ukraine has lost the support of the United States and is facing multiple crises in the military, political, and economic fields, becoming a veritable sacrifice. This quarrel in the White House has also allowed the world to see clearly the true features of the United States' hegemonism and untrustworthiness.

[theannoyingurge]

On the topic of Durge / Ketheric / Durgetash and how it potentially echoes the lore of the Dead Three...

Back in the mortal adventuring days of the Dark Three, it was originally just two power hungry humans with a common enemy who'd gained respect for one another's capacity for ruthless violence and paired up - not so different from Durge and Gortash.

The duo was comprised of Bane of the Ancients (a former battle slave to a primordial evil from Abeir) and Arabhal (a chief assassin and spymaster from ancient Netheril).

Long before Myrkul joined the party, Bane and Bhaal adventured together seeking power for themselves, plotting to slay Bane's former master and take divinity from Jergal (Bhaal's patron deity). Sort of like how Durge and Gortash were allies before Ketheric joined the cabal. I can see Durgetash plotting to ascend together.

See where I'm going with this?

Anyway, Jergal thought they were neat. He encouraged their antics by blessing them with terrible nightmares and leading them to powerful weapons - most notably, leading them to Myrkul (a crowned price and powerful necromancer). It was Myrkul who finally managed to gain the three access to Jergal's domain, and Jergal really wanted to retire.

I suspect Bane and Bhaal remembered how critical Myrkul had been to their initial ascension, and that was why Ketheric Thorm was eventually looped into their new alliance.

Despite Bhaal and Bane's long history together, something funny happened following their ascension. Suddenly Myrkul and Bhaal have way more in common. Their portfolios make them natural allies. In the Avatars novels, Myrkul actually grieves the death of Bhaal, noting that one could hardly exist without the other, and states that 'amongst all the gods, they were perhaps the closest'.

Which means... Bane isn't Bhaal's favorite anymore. In fact, Bhaal can seriously fuck him up. While Myrkul truly appreciates the lord of death and murder for feeding his kingdom, Bane has as much to fear from Bhaal as to gain from him. (technically Bhaal claims he could starve Myrkul's kingdom, but since he really enjoys killing and hates the living world, Myrkul's kingdom is probably like a vacation home he'd prefer not to burn down.)

What we see after a thousand years or so of this is Bane antagonizing Bhaal every chance he gets, and profiting off every one of his failures. Bhaal picks a fight with the Moonshaes and gets exiled from Toril? Bane sees free real estate and conquers the wreckage. Assassins fail to kill the mortal Midnight (Mystra) and retrieve the tablet of fate during the ToT? Sacrifice them all in a massive death ritual to fuel Bane's new avatar! Bhaal is dead and his remaining loyalists team up with Bane's kid to bully Cyric, who usurped them both? Return in a pillar of fire and annex them into the church of Bane! Sucks to suck, your worshippers are mine now. Again.

I can see a BG3 prologue where Gortash and Durge are super best friends right up until Ketheric Thorm joins the party. I won't get into all the reasons why Ketheric's and Durge's personal issues make them ripe for toxic bonding, but suffice to say that Gortash soon gets jealous of the undead immortal stealing his Bhaalspawn's attention and (whether unwittingly or out of spite) leads Durge down the path to ruin (shooting himself in the foot in the process).

Meanwhile, Bhaal (who has been raging at Bane for stealing his stuff for the last century or two) is now raging at Bane and Myrkul for fighting over that stuff until it physically and mentally snaps and becomes a hero.

Now it's ruined and I have to settle for Orin. Fuck you both.

[stormsthatrage]

Have a Bleach extended-winter-war time-travel-fix-it idea. In this AU Kaien's death happened before the whole turn-back-the-pendulum arc. (Yes, another Bleach time-travel AU, I know, shut up.)

As Ichigo and Kisuke are planning to go back to the past, Kisuke makes sure to emphasize to Ichigo that they have to protect Shiba Kaien. Apparently, it's of the utmost importance.

Ichigo doesn't know exactly how Kaien's continued well-being plays into saving the future. Kisuke never really explains it, or gives him a straight answer when he asks. But Ichigo knows that the Shiba Clan-Head carried a great deal of political power, and Ichigo also knows that Kaien -- according to Kukaku and Rukia -- was highly competent, incredibly noble, and fundamentally kind. It's not exactly unintuitive that a person like that could be important to bringing down Aizen.

So Ichigo listens, when Kisuke tells him to protect Shiba Kaien. He memorizes how Kaien died in the original timeline. He's attentive as Kisuke reiterates for the thousandth time that Aizen will keep trying to assassinate Kaien until he succeeds. He takes notes when Kisuke hypothesizes about what Aizen's various assassination attempts might look like -- poison during a meal, hired assassins at night, an ambush during a mission.

Ichigo ingrains the assignment into his core: protect Shiba Kaien, because if Kaien falls, the mission fails.

So when Kisuke slips a paralytic into Ichigo's tea and places Ichigo in the middle of the time-travel kido array and drains the entirety of his own spiritual energy to activate the array, a sacrifice that Ichigo never would have agreed to--

Well. The first thing Ichigo does when he arrives back in the past, numb and alone and only able to function by focusing on the duty that is his purpose -- is track down Shiba Kaien.

After all, if Ichigo is going to kill Aizen -- and he is, no matter what it takes -- he needs to keep Kaien alive.

Ichigo goes straight to the Shiba family grounds. In true Shiba fashion, they accept him immediately as family. They tend to his wounds and give him a meal and welcome him home. They let him get away with his weak excuses and explanations, and they defend his presence to the rest of Soul Society.

Kaien, in accordance with everything Ichigo has heard about the man, personally takes the newest addition to the family under his wing.

Ichigo's plans to deal with Aizen take shape around his need to keep an eye on Kaien.

Ichigo, instead of running as far and fast as he can from the Shiba clan, accepts the offer to live in the Shiba compound. He gets to know every clan member and retainer, subtly vetting for traitors. He sleeps in a room near Kaien's, allowing him to both guard against assassins at night and place warding runes around Kaien's door without having to worry about being caught somewhere he has no business being.

He joins the Court Guard in the 13th division instead of the 5th, because the only real way to protect Kaien on a mission is to be there with him. Ichigo knows that if there's an ambush, or if the mission details have been tampered with, he'll be more than enough fire power to get Kaien out of it. And it's easy to always get paired with Kaien; Kaien -- reliably taking every opportunity to hover around Ichigo that he's offered -- does most of the work, leveraging his status as lieutenant and Ichigo's combat ability to keep them together.

Ichigo finds himself frequently taking meals with Kaien and Kaien's friends. Kaien always invites Ichigo, and Ichigo accepts so he can subtly check the food for poison.

(Ichigo does not tell Kaien about Aizen. Ichigo is still unsure what Kaien's role is in the whole fight, and in the meantime, telling him about Aizen is a sure way to get him killed.)

Things heat up. Ichigo prevents both Miyako and Kaien's death, killing Metastacia before it can hurt anyone. Ichigo's shadow war against Aizen gets more intense. Ichigo sneaks out regularly to dismantle Aizen's illusions, destroy his labs, and attack his network of power, slowly weakening him.

Ichigo waits for the assassination attempts against Kaien, but they don't come, even several weeks after Metastacia fails. Ichigo takes it as a sign that he's got Aizen distracted.

Things continue for a while. Ichigo falls into a strange routine.

(And Ichigo tries not to break, seeing so many of his loved ones alive and unknowing of him. It is agony, to be around Shunsui, who is not his mentor, and the Visored, who are neither visored nor pack.

But the worst is when Captains Urahara and Shihouin catch on to his war against Aizen. He finds himself working with them as allies.

Allies. Mere allies, instead of --

Well. Not that it matters anymore.

All that matters is his duty.)

Time passes. Aizen weakens. There are no attempts on Kaien's life yet.

And then Aizen's web has unraveled enough for Ichigo to attack.

It's a long battle. It's a bloody battle. It's a very public battle.

Ichigo wins.

And it's only after it's all over -- after Aizen's crimes are revealed and Soul Society is at peace and the future is saved; after Ichigo finds himself still alive and adrift, with nothing left obligating him to keep going and everything telling him to give up; as Kaien refuses to leave Ichigo alone and escorts him to regular appointments with Unohana and forces him to talk about the truth of his past --

It's only then that it clicks.

Ichigo is whispering secrets about the future into Kaien's chest, Kaien's arms wrapped tight around him, when Ichigo confesses that he messed up, that he put the Shiba clan in unnecessary danger. Ichigo tells Kaien about his death in the original timeline. He talks about how Kisuke told him that in this timeline, Aizen would try and kill Kaien again if the first attempt failed. Ichigo promises desperately that he never would have sought out the family -- would have kept the danger far, far away from them -- if he hadn't thought he had to watch Kaien's movements so closely.

And Ichigo admits that Aizen never actually tried again. Ichigo admits that he and Kisuke miscalculated, that Ichigo brought danger to the Shiba's doorstep for nothing.

It happens like this:

First, the words leave his lips, "Kisuke" and "miscalculated" in the same sentence. Hearing himself say it lays bare the absurdity of its premise.

Then, Kaien draws away slightly, to look Ichigo in the eyes. Ichigo sees, plain on Kaien's face, a terrible, damning gratefulness.

Then, Kaien says -- fierce and defiant in the face of what could have been -- "I am so glad you came home."

And it clicks. At last, Kisuke's final manipulation reveals itself to Ichigo's eyes.

The emotions flash through him: the sting of betrayal; a flavor of love that bursts across his tastebuds as hurt; a familiar brand of exasperation that, a split second later, has his knees giving out under the weight of old pain made fresh.

Kaien catches Ichigo before he hits the ground and holds him as he shatters. And Ichigo can barely breathe through the knowledge that Kisuke would have been so smug to see them.

A sob rips itself from Ichigo's chest, and it's followed by another, and another.

Ichigo's older cousin holds him, in the home of their family, through it all.

_________

THE END except not really.

This must immediately be followed by a whole arc where Kaien, much to his own dismay, finds himself trying to hook Urahara up with his little cousin.

After all, Future-Urahara sent Ichigo to the Shiba clan. Future-Urahara tricked his little cousin into bypassing his own self-destructive tendencies to seek out family and love and support. Clearly, Urahara would actually be good for Ichigo.

And, you know, Ichigo clearly loves Younger-Urahara, judging by Ichigo's whole... well, everything, whenever the two interact.

(This whole matchmaking endeavor is made easier by the fact that 1) Kisuke is already infatuated, fascinated, and not a tiny-bit madly in love, and 2) Yoruichi is also, from the other end, trying to set Kisuke up with Ichigo.

This whole endeavor is made more difficult by the fact that 1) Ichigo is in denial that he loves this younger Kisuke since he never thought this younger Kisuke could also fall in love with him, 2) Kisuke is in denial that he loves Ichigo because that is a Shiba and he himself is a creepy low-born ex-assassin mad-scientist, and 3) neither Ichigo nor Kisuke know what it looks like when someone is interested in them.)

Poor Kaien. He succeeds eventually, but not before witnessing truly legendary social ineptitude.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Like the Beat of a Drum pt 1

It began when Tim’s soulmark came in- fourteen years later than most children. He didn’t tell his parents, already well aware of what they thought of his late/non-existent soulmark.

He knew what society thought of people who were more than ten years older than their soulmate, and he didn’t want to be labeled a cradle-robber, so he discretely bought a patch to cover it with. Being markless was also helpful for being Robin- nothing to identify him by or to threaten his soulmate with.

Bruce said that having a soulmate was fine, as long as nobody ever saw your mark- even Tim hadn’t seen Bruce’s mark, though he knew where it was.

Tim didn’t know if he wanted a soulmate, but he was the first (and only) to admit that he couldn’t wait to meet this “Daniel Fenton”.

What he wouldn’t admit to anyone is that sometimes, when he was feeling particularly lonely, he could hear a heartbeat other than his own, pulsing from the mark just over his sternum. People would think he was crazy, and that was something he couldn’t afford on top of being labeled markless.

Nobody could know that Tim had a soulmate. He almost pitied the kid who got stuck with him.

~~~

Danny hadn’t had a soulmate before he died. He’d never heard a heartbeat that was a perfect harmony to his own, even when he listened hard.

After he’d died, the heartbeat he began to hear was always loud in his ears, and he had a smudged bit of writing on his hip. When he’d gone to Frostbite about the weird new mark, the yeti explained that other universes had soulmates, and their marks might be different from his own universe.

“You’ll find the right one someday, and then your mark will become clear.���

Sometimes Danny tried to imagine what his soulmate would look like. Would they be fine with him being a ghost? Would they treat him like the rest of the world did, with disgust and revulsion and distrust?

Surely not. Soulmate implied that they would be perfect counterpoints to each other. He assumed that meant they would get along.

The mark was always clearer when he was Phantom. Sometimes he imagined it cleared up a little as Danny depending on the choices he made, but he wasn’t sure about that- it’s not like he’d told anyone that he had a weird new tattoo, and it was in an odd place to look at.

He often found himself floating and looking up at the stars on quiet nights, day-dreaming about having someone perfect for him and him alone.

~~~

Tim grit his teeth and kept moving, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his chest as he fought. He knew he hadn’t been stabbed- that felt different. Clearly, his soulmate was in some kind of trouble.

It’s not like he could do anything for them- he was currently fighting some ninja-cultist-assassin weirdos with Jason.

“We will raise the Ghost King and he shall bring fire upon the world!”

Dick had already swooped in and saved the little girl they were trying to use as a sacrifice, but something had triggered the summoning circle anyways after Tim had tried to mess up one of the lines. It was bubbling neon green, and Tim couldn’t decide if it looked more like the Lazarus pits or more like highlighter ink.

His second heartbeat pounded, a loud drum beneath his hidden soulmark, a soulmark that had been sore for days.

He had worried, of course, that someone was in danger and he couldn’t save them- especially as the fight started and the pain became worse.

To his relief, after the sigil started bubbling, the pain receded, as did the noise, and he could think about other things. Such as the so-called ‘Ghost King’.

With a rumble and a crack like thunder, the green pit spit out a slight figure that hung in midair for a moment, before dropping like a rock onto the place where the pit had been moments before.

Tim knocked out the last cultist and turned to face the new threat, but was instead greeted with a young man with floating white hair, curled up on his side, green blood oozing rapidly from… All of him.

What the hell?

~~~

Danny woke up slowly, feeling all sorts of sluggish. The ectoplasm in the air was thick, so he must be in one of two places- Amity, or the Infinite Realms.

The lack of restraints around his wrists and ankles made him think it was the Realms, but when he pried open his eyes, he was shocked to find himself somewhere altogether unfamiliar.

It was a medbay, of sorts- that he could tell, but from the glass wall he could see a vast cavern, filled with various bits and bobs. He could hear bats distantly chirping above him.

Before moving more than his head, Danny took stock of his situation. He did feel weighed down, yes, but it felt more like blood loss than anything else. There were bandages across his chest, and the heart monitor was letting out a long beep, as if warning everyone in the vicinity that the patient was dead.

Something heavy was taped to his hip, over his soulmark. He winced at the thought- Jack and Maddie had attacked that area with a single-minded intensity, thinking it was the thing that caused him to ‘possess their baby’.

Probably another bandage, but who would go through the trouble of wrapping him up? No one in Amity would, at least, nobody who had the kind of tech he could see. Vlad would just find a way to manipulate him because of his pain, not patch up his wounds.

The last thing he remembered before losing consciousness was a tugging at his core, pulling him away from the Fenton lab and into a world of green before that world went black.

“You’re awake.”

Startled from his thoughts, Danny looked to the door to see a young man in primary colors and a domino mask. The stranger tilted his head.

“Can you understand me?”

Danny tried to answer, but all that would come out of his dry mouth was a rasp, so he settled on a nod.

The stranger came closer, bringing with him a glass of water that he held to Danny’s lips.

Suspiciously, Danny took a sip, but all he could taste was clean water, so he drank slowly until the stranger pulled the glass away.

“Wh-where am I?”

“Gotham City, New Jersey.”

Now, Danny hadn’t ever been stellar at Geography, but he was pretty sure he’d never heard of a city called Gotham. Part of him thought that it would be just the right place for Sam to live- Goth-am.

“Would you be up to answering a few questions?”

The stranger was looking at him expectantly, so Danny nodded. Maybe he’d get information if he gave some.

“Wonderful. Do you have a name?”

“Phantom.”

The stranger typed something out into a computer Danny hadn’t noticed before.

“Thank you. Where are you from?”

~~~

“Illinois.”

Tim hadn’t been expecting such a mundane answer from the odd person in the Batcave medbay, but he was well aware that metas came from all over the world, even if they got spit out by Lazarus portals.

“Do you know how you got here?”

Phantom shook his head.

“I was- in the lab, and then everything was green. I passed out pretty fast after that.”

Now, the bats might be emotionally stunted, but Tim was the greatest detective that ever lived, so analytically he was fine. ‘In the lab’ plus the wounds the meta was sporting? That told a disastrous story.

“Can you tell me if anyone else was in the lab with you?”

Phantom paused for a long time.

“I just want to help, Phantom. There might be other metas in danger there.”

“Meta?”

Tim hadn’t expected Phantom to not know what a meta was- that painted an even worse picture than he thought.

He made sure his voice was kind and even when he answered.

“Powered individuals with the meta gene. I haven’t run your DNA yet, I was waiting for you to wake up for permission, but I’m sure you have the gene. There are protective acts in place to stop the abuse of powered individuals- we want to help.”

Much to his surprise, after gaping through his explanation, Phantom laughed!

“No! I’m not- no- my condition- it’s medical, not genetic.”

Tim winced. This poor guy, he’d been brainwashed.

“There wasn’t anyone else in the lab. I saved the rest of us before getting caught.”

Phantom’s tone was airy, but Tim could hear an underlying strength to it.

“What am I supposed to call you, by the way?”

~~~

Danny watched as the stranger went through several stages of grief at his question, and wondered how in the world it had been an odd query.

“I’m- Red Robin. Of the Gotham Bats.”

Oh. That’s why. Danny nodded sagely.

“Sports, I see. Which one requires masks? Cribbage?”

Ope, there went several more stages of grief, perhaps even some as of yet unknown to man.

“No. The Bats are vigilantes. We work with the Justice League, a group of superheroes in charge of world safety.”

Look. Danny might live under a proverbial rock in Amity Park, but superheroes? Never heard of ‘em. Point one to being a different universe.

Well. Point several, he just couldn’t remember the others. Wait a second-

“Are soulmarks a thing here?”

“What? Yes, why?”

Danny shot up, despite the pain in his chest and side and- everywhere.

“Can you show me a soulmark? Do you have one?”

Red Robin’s face shuttered behind the mask, and the heartbeat in Danny’s ears sped up a little.

“I do not.”

“Oh. Sorry. I just- Sorry.”

There was a noise from outside of the medical area, and then a voice called out.

“Red Robin? Is our guest awake? I brought a representative from the JLD.”

The vigilante got up and went out quickly, and Danny felt really bad for hurting him. For a few minutes he was left alone, so he lay back down and stared at the wall.

And then. And. Then.

“YOU!”

Danny shot up into a sitting position again, pointing at the man in the trench coat who came into the room.

Trench coat man looked confused.

Not caring for his stitches or monitors or anything like that, Danny struggled onto his feet, forgetting the pain in his anger.

“Do you, John Constantine, know how much of a pain in my ass you are?” He sneered and let his voice take on a nasally tone. “’Oh Great One, Phantom, lord of the realms and all that shit! John Constantine sold his soul to me, but he sold it to my cousin too! Who gets the soul now?’”

Danny ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

“You know who gets his soul now, Constantine? I fucking do! I-“ He flagged- maybe he shouldn’t air out this guy’s dirty laundry in front of strangers? “Anyways, fuck you, dude. Find a way to get me home and never fucking sell your soul again.”

~~~

Tim was honestly shocked that Phantom had been able to move in the state he was in, even with what Tim suspected was accelerated healing.

His extra heartbeat had started pounding a mile a minute the moment Phantom saw Constantine, but Tim ignored it for now, instead focusing on their guest.

When Phantom mentioned being sent home, Tim had to step in.

“I don’t believe that is wise, Phantom. You came to us severely injured. My conscious would not let me send you away without-“

Constantine was backing away from Phantom, so fast that he ran into Dick standing at the door.

“Nope. Not dealing with that. No offense, King Phantom, but you’re above my paygrade.”

Phantom (king?) stood still for a moment, looking lost, but then he drew himself up.

“John Constantine, I am your paygrade. Send me where I’m supposed to be.”

Tim watched curiously as Constantine winced.

“That’s some. Pretty vague wording there, your royalness. That is a spell, that I can cast, but whether it does anything or not?” He shrugged. “Can’t tell.”

Phantom slumped, and then waved a limp hand at Constantine.

“Yeah, I didn’t figure. Sorry I yelled at you. I’ll try not to lord the whole ‘I own your soul’ over you too much. Can you at least get me back to the Realms?”

“It might take me a while. What will you do in the meantime?”

Sighing, Phantom made his way back to the med cot, sitting on the edge gingerly.

“Heal the rest of the way. Haunt an abandoned building. Do whatever the hell ghosts do in this dimension.”

“Ghosts?”

Dick spoke up, and Tim could tell his brother was a little shell-shocked.

Phantom winced.

“I mean, as long as ghosts aren’t like, science experiments in this one. Been there, done that. Not fun.”

Constantine shrugged.

“There aren’t a lot of you running around, you should be fine.” He turned to Tim and Dick. “Bats, don’t cause an interdimensional incident. Phantom may be a good king, but he’s still a king.”

“Only on days that end in y.”

With another shrug, John disappeared in a swirl of tan trench coat.

Tim looked to Phantom, who was scowling at the place that Constantine vanished from.

“Well, your majesty, can we offer you any assistance?”

~~~

With a groan, Danny stood back up off the bed.

“No- I think I’m healed enough to get out of your hair by now. Uh. Thank you for your hospitality and all, but I should be… Trying to find a way home.”

“Whoever is back where you came from wants to hurt you, Phantom.”

Danny wasn’t sure why Red Robin seemed to care so much. Sure, he had pretty much decided that if anything happened to Red Robin he’d ice everyone in the vicinity and then finish the job on himself, but that was just him. He was pretty sure everyone imprinted on the first person they saw in a new reality.

Right?

“There are people I have to protect.”

He had to keep himself from wincing at the half-truth. He’d ordered the ghosts to stay away from Amity Park right before Jack and Maddie had captured him, so they were fine, but he had to protect Jazz and Sam and Tucker from finding out that the Fentons were so awful as to attack their son.

“You have to protect yourself first.”

The other man had stepped into the room.

“You’ve obviously been through something hard, Phantom. Take a break. We can find a safe house for you to stay in until you are feeling better. I’m Nightwing, by the way.”

Danny nodded to Nightwing, and then looked expectantly at Red Robin, who was tapping away at his wrist computer.

“Collectively, the only one of us with a suitable safe house is Red Hood. His have great security systems, but aren’t connected to the bats main computer network in any way.”

He looked up from his computer with a smile.

“Ready to meet a zombie, Mister Ghost King?”

[deathofacupid]

do you mind making a fic related to “i would burn the whole world for you”?

hi, anon! i'm not sure what character, or even fandom, you wanted this for, so, i'll go with jjk, given that i don't get many asks for anything else. i thought this was cute, which is why i just ended up doing it for all the characters, but in the future, please specify!

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆ gojo wouldn't simply burn the world; he'd sculpt it anew from stardust and shattered constellations, a celestial monument to your glory. he's the strongest, a god among mortals, but his power is a sun orbiting your vibrant, life-giving planet.

his existence is a question mark until you become the answer, the reason his limitless strength finds purpose. he'd pluck nebulae from the cosmos to weave you a gown, command galaxies to compose your symphony. the world is clay in his hands - you are both the artist and his muse.

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆ geto is the fire, a consuming blaze fueled by his love for you. the world he knew is already crumbling, its foundations weakened by his choices, each one a sacrifice on the altar of your shared future. you are the dawn he envisions, a world bathed in the golden light of your happiness.

he'd navigate through storms of blood and tears, his path illuminated by the unwavering star of your love. he'd offer you the moon and the stars, but more importantly, he'd offer you a world where you could finally see them in peace.

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆ nanami's devotion is a controlled burn, a precise and unwavering flame. he's a man of unwavering morals, yet you are the exception, the one principle that transcends all others.

he wouldn't ignite the world in a blaze of passion; he'd dismantle it brick by logical brick, until only a sanctuary for you remains. his love is a quiet promise, a steady hand that will shield you from every storm. he wouldn't need to be asked; your unspoken desires are etched into his soul.

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆ choso's love is a wildfire, untamed and consuming. he doesn't comprehend the nuances of right and wrong, but he understands the language of your heart.

if you whispered that the world needed cleansing fire, he'd become the inferno, a force of nature driven by his pure, unadulterated love. he'd paint the night sky with the smoke of burning empires, all to see the light of your smile.

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆ toji's affection is a smoldering ember, hidden beneath a stoic exterior. he might not possess worldly riches, but his loyalty is a treasure beyond measure.

he'd raze the world not with fire, but with the cold, calculated precision of a master assassin, silencing any threat to your well-being. his love is a silent vow, etched in the steel of his gaze. you are his purpose, the reason he draws breath.

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆ sukuna wouldn't burn the world for you, but with you, a king and queen reigning over the ashes. your wish is his decree, not out of servitude, but out of a shared hunger for power and dominion.

he sees a reflection of his own ambition in your eyes, and he'd gladly watch the world crumble beneath your feet. his love is a dark, intoxicating symphony, a dance of destruction and rebirth.

[otp-after-dark]

🔥 Absolute Blasphemy: They Butchered Nick and June — And They Butchered the Whole Damn Point of THT

Oh, I'm going scorched earth now.

A love story built on blood, sacrifice, and rebellion… reduced to nothing.

TL;DR: Nick gets on a plane that might be rigged to explode. June just lets him. The show runners expect us to call that “love” or “closure.” No. This is character assassination, a betrayal of everything Margaret Atwood built, and a complete erasure of the core themes that made The Handmaid’s Tale matter. And if I have to hold onto my own damn ending to make peace with it, I will. Because the one they gave us? It’s a disgrace.

❌ Nick Blaine Would NEVER Do This. And June Would NEVER Let Him.

Let’s rewind to who these two actually were.

Nick Blaine isn’t just some brooding side character. He’s been a co-lead since Season 1 — a man caught in a fascist regime who chose resistance every single time it meant protecting June.

In Season 1, he coordinates June's escape to the Boston Globe.

In Season 2, he makes sure June survives childbirth and helps coordinate her escape (again) to get her out.

In Season 4, he literally helps orchestrate Fred’s murder as a gift to June.

In Season 5, he makes it clear he’ll never let her go and love anyone but her.

So now you're telling me this man — this careful, bleeding, haunted man — just gets on a plane he has to at least suspect is rigged with no contingency plan, no warning, no desperate last-minute glance, no whispered plea? He might not know the plane is rigged — but he’s not stupid. And even if he didn’t know, it makes it worse that he left without a word, without a glance, without any instinct to reach for her. The Nick we knew would never walk away from June like this. Whether he knew or not, the show robbed him of his voice, his fire, and his final stand.

And June — the woman who launched a rebellion, helped smuggle dozens of children out of Gilead, murdered her rapist, survived ritual torture and psych ops, and stared down Serena Joy and Aunt Lydia with fire in her eyes — now just watches him go?

She doesn’t scream. She doesn’t run. She doesn’t fight. She accepts it.

This is not them. This is not the Nick and June we bled for. This is emotional fraud.

😤 And the Worst Part? FRED WAS RIGHT?

“Every love story is a tragedy if you live long enough.” – Fred f***ing Waterford

Let me tell you something: When FRED, the rapist, tyrant, manipulative narcissist who tried to justify every monstrous thing he did with flowery biblical metaphors, becomes the voice of thematic truth in your show? You’ve failed. Spectacularly.

Because when Fred said that line, it was supposed to be ironic. It was supposed to highlight how he romanticizes suffering while enacting horror. It was supposed to expose his hypocrisy.

But now? Now it’s just… true? Nick and June — the one relationship built on shared survival, silent sacrifice, unspoken longing, and acts of revolution— are left with nothing? And we’re supposed to nod solemnly like, “Yes, Fred was right. All love dies eventually”?

NO. NOPE. HELL NO.

The whole point of Nick and June was that their love transcended the regime. It was never allowed. It was never convenient. And it still endured. That was the story. That was the point.

If Fred was right, the entire narrative collapses in and of itself.

🤬 This Is Narrative Cowardice.

Let me be clear: I can handle tragedy. I can handle heartbreak. I’m not asking for sunshine and babies.

But this isn’t tragedy. This is narrative negligence.

A tragedy would have been:

June dragging Nick off the plane at gunpoint, only for them to be captured.

Nick sacrificing himself but leaving behind a message, a choice, a voice.

June choosing to go with him, knowing it’s doomed, and facing the consequences together.

What we got instead was:

Nick walking to a likely death like a resigned bureaucrat.

June barely reacting.

Zero resistance. Zero passion. Zero truth.

It’s not tragic. It’s lazy. It’s gutless. And it reeks of a writing room that either lost its nerve in the current political climate or no longer believes in the story they were telling.

🧨 This Is Not Atwood's THT. This Is Prestige TV Pretending to Be Smart and Politically Safe.

Let’s not sugarcoat it. This finale isn’t just disappointing — it’s cowardly. It’s prestige-washed, watered-down, and terrified of its own legacy.

Margaret Atwood didn’t write a metaphor. She wrote a warning. Every horror in The Handmaid’s Tale was pulled from history. The pain. The punishments. The systemic control of women’s bodies. All of it has happened before.

At its core, her book carried one thesis: Oppression thrives on silence. Resistance lives in memory, desire, and identity. Even in captivity, even when stripped of everything, a woman can still rebel — by remembering herself.

That’s who Offred was. That’s who June used to be. A narrator who named her pain. A woman who found rebellion in wanting, in loving, in refusing to disappear.

And early on, the show got that. It gave us fire. It gave us June spitting in Fred’s face. June orchestrating Fred’s murder and kissing Nick like a blood-soaked thank-you.

Her love with Nick wasn’t soft. It wasn’t quiet. It was survival. It was resistance. It was a threat to Gilead itself.

But now? Now June is muted, judgmental, and a hypocrite. Nick is neutered and pro Gilead. WHAT?! And their love — once radical — is treated like a tragic inconvenience.

The final insult? Fred f***ing Waterford gets the last word.

That line should’ve been mocked. A narcissist’s delusion. A warning of how tyrants romanticize the violence they cause.

Instead? The show treats it like the truth. Like the point.

That’s not a tragedy. That’s a betrayal.

This finale isn’t bold. It’s not emotionally mature. It’s not a reflection of trauma or nuance.

It’s storytelling that’s scared of passion. Scared of fire. Scared of the very themes it once claimed to stand for.

This isn’t Atwood. This isn’t feminist. This isn’t revolutionary.

It’s politically safe. Emotionally hollow. And I reject it completely.

✅ The Ending That Still Makes Sense (a summary of my ending)

Forget this muted finale.

In my ending — the only one that makes emotional sense — Nick finally snaps. He stops playing the good soldier. Stops pretending he doesn’t care. He shows up at June’s door like a man on fire.

And June? She’s already past the point of no return. Done with pretending Canada is salvation. She’s ready to do something reckless. Dangerous.

He opens the door. She gets in the car. There’s blood on her hands. Tears in her eyes. But clarity, too. And she says it:

“We’re in this together. Fucking drive.”

That’s it. That’s all it ever had to be.

Two people who loved each other too hard for the world they lived in. Who chose each other in the face of death. Who didn’t walk away.

Not passive ghosts. Not tragedy porn. Not whatever the hell this finale tried to sell us.

This Finale? UNFORGIVABLE.

You don’t get to build Nick and June as a story of love under fire, love as resistance, love as something holy and real in the middle of hell — and then tell us that none of it mattered.

You don’t get to give Fred Waterford the final word on love. You don’t get to strip June of her fight. You don’t get to neuter Nick and erase his heart.

We remember who they were. Atwood got it right. And we’re not buying this lame ass crap.

[blueberrypancakesworld]

Hiii there!

I wanted to request an oscar tully x targaryen reader maybe rhaenyras daughter please.. tbh i dont even know what it should be about i just wanted it to ba a oscar and targ reader .. thanks ☺️☺️

The river and the flame

Oscar Tully x princess!reader

warning : hurt/comfort, kissing, holding hands, no use of Y/n

Summary : A sacrifice, the only daughter of the Queen of the Black had to be married and the best match was the new young Lord of the House of Tully who promised to give his strength to the Queen. An engagement and marriage consummated, the fire finds itself in waters where both young nobles must hold each other to make it together and not burn and drown each other.

info : thank you dear anon for this request it was a lot of fun to write it have fun reading and have a nice day everyone

masterlist

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

With fire and strength she could have been born, but when the gods were merciful and gave her first husband something in a night of listlessness through wine and potions, the Queen of the Black conceived her fourth child from a marriage that could never have been consummated.

The queen's first and own princess was born, the little child with the image of her parents bright hair thicker than her mother's silken hair and violet eyes like gems that captured everyone. Behind her were the symbols of the dragon and so she was the only one of her siblings to keep her mother's family name, a decision that complicated things and put her three brothers in an even worse light.

But sacrifices had to be made for the princess, sacrifices in the form of "assassinations", new marriages and the retreat to Dragonstone where the faction of the blacks gathered and rebuilt over the course of weeks and months.

The legacy of the Black Dragon Queen was laid on her true daughter and two small toddlers, even though Jacaerys Velaryon was her eldest son and a young man willing to prove himself to inherit his mother's legacy, he knew he had strength in his blood, a blood that his two brothers had but not his half-siblings.

So the Targaryen family, the black party faced with serious problems Daemond in Harenhall had been trying to gather support for some time, Aegon and Viserys sent away with Rhaena but what now?

An alliance had to be forged because even if honor still prevailed houses no longer chose Viserys' side, it was about the future of families, of royalty and children, it was a decision that could mean death or life, ,,Without news from Daemon we cannot rely on the support of the Riverlands…if you allow the proposal of marriage to be made" the Master began again, who returned without his raven's message.

But she didn't even have to look up from the map to hear her mother's reply, ,,Out of the question" before Rhaenyra tried to find answers in the documents and maps, she had no one to marry but her daughter, but what mother wanted to lose her child in an area she could never get to herself.

It could mean her death but when violet eyes met there was something like hope in the princess's eyes, ,,If my queen allows me to marry the new Lord Tully I would be protected by the Prince Regent and the lords of the surrounding houses who have sworn allegiance to Oscar Tully" she gave her explanation and clasped the small metal statue of the fish they had all heard the aftermath of the death and resurrection of the head of the house and it was the only solution.

It ended in a few arguments, tears and loving gestures but now just a few days later here she was under the banner of the fish with her husband Osacr Tully, despite the fact that they were both young so appreciative of each other he had welcomed her without vourtiele was sincere and loving…and perhaps her heart had beaten faster than she thought when he had placed a kiss on her palm.

He held her hand as he showed her Riverrun, introduced her to the household, the hall and the vassals who had also proclaimed themselves for his wife, he treated her as in the songs and stories of yesteryear about noble knights, ,,My reign would not be possible without you, you are the first flame in the river and my heart rejoices more and more every day in your company my beloved," he said to her as he helped her onto one of the boats and they sailed across the river together.

She smiled back at him and gratefully held his hand, holding this little,,,nushell" quite insecurely in contrast to her grandfather's boats, but with every little jerk he held her tightly to him, his dark eyes like the river assuring her of her safety.

,,You are safe I promise" he murmured to her as he held her and she dipped her hand in the river, the wetness and coolness was pleasant instead of the everlasting heat and warmth, ,,I will follow you my lord husband" she replied after the words her mother and grandmother had taught her.

Before she felt his hand gently on her cheek it was just the two of them and the still river as they came closer and kissed again, ,,Oscar please my love" she whispered and she leaned her forehead against his for a moment as the two barely grown nobles lay in each other's arms enjoying the river ride while a joyful scream could be heard above them from time to time between the clouds and she followed Oscar's interested gaze closely.

The water, the fish, the river was her new home, which she quickly took to her heart. Her clothes, although now more of a bluish red and bronze, she kept the symbols of the dragon with her hair, brooches and Seasmoke herself.

Until she met her great-uncle again who had watched this marriage with a disdainful look and even if he didn't admit it, it offended him that his great-niece had managed the union in what he couldn't do in weeks, ,,Impressive isn't it what a princess can do with such looks and devotion, isn't it Lady Tully?" he had asked her at dinner as he sat next to her and looked into tired, almost haggard eyes that resembled her own in color.

She knew Oscar must have heard, she knew her great-uncle and her husband hated each other, didn't like the prospect of sharing power, ,,Her sacrifice to her family and the Queen towards my Targaryen wife is truly impressive she is not only in my house she is the Guardian of the Riverlands Prince Regent" Oscar said with pride in his voice as he raised his goblet and took her hand saying a good luck to Rhaenyra and his wife and she welcomed the restraint of her great uncle who would have otherwise only made things worse.

But all could not always go well only one moon later at the weirwood tree in the garden of the ruined castle Harenhall the houses of the Riverlands found themselves together with Oscar as their new lord and Daemon, a confrontation the princess attended with Seasmoke watching over the whole thing with an interested eye.

A confrontation that ended in blood as Daemond cut off Ser Willem's head ordered by Oscar whose eyes reflected fear for a moment as he looked into hers she clasped his hand the highborn couple watched this execution for all to see she felt the brief squeeze of her hand as Oscar truly saw this bloodshed for the first time.

,,You did the right thing Oscar they will follow you now and so will my great uncle…I won't let any words come back to haunt you I will stand for it" she told him as soon as everyone else had left the ruined garden and the young lord sat down by the tree still somewhat affected by the murder she felt herself almost reflexively wiping the blood away with a handkerchief before helping Oscar wipe his away.

She returned his silent thanks with a gentle kiss and the two sat there in silence until an idea came to her and she called her dragon who was struggling for space in the garden, ,,You have shown me the beauty of the water of your river let me show you the beauty of the sky" she said and climbed onto Seasmoke's back who seemed happy to be flying again.

She saw how it confused him for a moment, the boy rose and placed his hand carefully on the bright waremn scales and Seasmoke nudged him, mocking Ocsar who had been feeding the dragon fish with the help of his wife.

,,Can we fly through clouds? " Oscar asked as she saw courage and joy return to his gaze and he placed himself behind her, his grip on her stomach tightened and she heard his cry as Seasmoke took off with a scream and seemed to disappear into the smoke of his fire in the air.

She put one hand on Oscar's while with the other she gently guided Seasmoke, knowing that Oscar didn't understand her she would one day teach him, ,,I'll fly through anything you want look at this peace and quiet" she said louder over the sound of the loud flapping of wings and Seasmoke's hissing she heard Oscar slowly relax and hug her, laughing happily as he too saw this special something she could see every day.

Up here there didn't seem to be any problems it was quiet not too hot or too cold and peaceful, ,,It's incredibly beautiful" he mumbled continuing to hold on to her fetus as she headed for the clouds and he hesitantly held out a hand and gasped as his fingers got wet and showed her like a little child enjoying a wooden swing but she did the same and they joined hands and flew through the clouds for hours.

She heard his thanks and praise every now and then, a kiss on her cheek and both their hearts beat together in peace as they found beauty in each other's homes, together in love that would go beyond war.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[riamaple]

Life on Your Line (Ch. 4)

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x f!Reader

Summary: Cursed to sacrifice your life to save another, you were never able to connect with others, always meant to drift before you could belong. Death was all you knew. Then, one day in Brooklyn, you saved a young man, and for some reason, you kept seeing him again. And again. And again. No matter where you went, across decades, you always found your way back to him.

He was forced to live to destroy, you were forced to die to save—bound together in ways neither of you could understand.

Warnings: Angst (with an eventual happy ending). Death and Dying. Self-Sacrifice (Immortality / Resurrection). Canon-Typical Violence / Description of Wounds. Suicidal Thoughts. Implications and References to Child Death, Suicide, Self-Destructive Behavior / Self-Harm.

< PREVIOUS CHAPTER

Word Count: 2.8k

Chapter 4: December 1967 - January 1968

December 8, 1967. 8:31 PM

December 9, 1967. 8:50 PM

December 10, 1967. 8:24 PM

January 10, 1968. 6:49 AM

What the hell.

<><><>

The smell of copper and gunpowder woke you up. You didn’t have a second to stir before a gunshot snapped you into focus, causing you to scramble back against the nearest wall. Your hands instinctively curled into the scratchy move when your stomach lurched—the ground wasn’t stable as you were somehow moving, your guts squirming every time your whole body dropped briefly. You looked around, noticing you were hiding behind some storage compartments, surrounded by plastic-like walls and oval windows.

You were on a plane.

You froze.

The lights flickered, casting everything in harsh shadows, yet you could still see a couple of bodies around you. Some slumped over seats while others were lying in the aisles—some of them twitched, but most were still. 

This must be a dream, right?

You were just in bed, flipping through the final pages of a novel before settling in for the night. It was a quiet evening—the kind that was suited for a librarian in Springdale, Arkansas. You were disappointed to leave Colorado, as you’d grown to love the city, but once Anna Gray was declared dead in a terrible fire at the Museum of Design—so awful that it was all over the news—you had to escape to your next life.

You just weren’t expecting that in this life, you’d eventually wake up in a damn plane in your damn pajamas.

Another gunshot echoed through the plane before you watched a man soar over the compartments and seats towards the front of the plane, hearing him slam into something before collapsing to the floor. You crawled further back into your little corner just as a man in all black walked right past you.

You widened your eyes at the glint of silver. 

Shit—

You peeked around the compartments, watching the assassin grab another man and throw him at his fellow bodyguard. He quickly maneuvered his metal arm to block some bullets before throwing a knife at someone else’s throat. His frame was broader than you remembered, somehow fitting into the skin of this assassin even more so than back in Colorado. A black mask now covered the lower half of his face—perhaps to stop any form of poison from entering his system like last time—and it only revealed his cold eyes. He advanced towards the front of the plane, easily dismantling the bodyguards trying to stop him.

Every decision he made was calculated as if he had been created for this. You trembled at the sight of him, unable to recognize any trace of James in the figure before you. He also had no idea you were on this plane—why would he? You weren’t supposed to be there.

But as you watched him move about, you curled your hands into fists, searching—desperately hoping—to find even a fragment of James beneath the assassin’s mask because you couldn’t possibly save a ruthless killer again.

…Right?

Keeping your distance, you quietly crawled after him, slipping past all the bodies. 

A gunshot to the forehead.

A knife in the chest.

A snapped neck.

You bit your lip, forcing yourself to ignore the brutality radiating off the corpses he left behind. 

But then a hand wrapped around your ankle.

You failed to bite back a yelp as you fell against the carpeted floor; one of the bodyguards, still clinging to life and thinking you were the enemy, had grabbed you. You kicked wildly, managing to free yourself, but it was too late.

The assassin turned, immediately pointing the gun in your direction as you dove directly behind the nearest row of seats. A shot rang out, and the bodyguard slumped back into silence. 

You barely had time to process the unrelenting footsteps approaching you before you looked up to see frost-blue eyes. The assassin aimed his pistol at your forehead, pulling the—

“James!” you shrieked, raising your hands above your face.

He stilled.

The gun didn’t lower, nor did his eyes soften. But for the first time since he’d snuck onto this plane, he hesitated. His finger hovered over the trigger, yet he did nothing but watch you with an intensity that made your stomach twist.

You were shaking, every breath coming in uneven gasps and the tears forming in your eyes. You weren’t afraid of dying, but the assassin’s looming presence was overwhelming. Before you could react, the assassin’s metal hand shot out and grabbed you by the collar. You gasped as he yanked you up, keeping your feet barely grazing the floor. You clutched at his wrist, feeling the cool metal as you processed just how strong he was. 

You noticed the scars on his temples again.

His eyes bore into yours, searching to make sense of something. His eyes narrowed, bringing your trembling form closer to his face and—

Confusion suddenly flashed in his eyes, followed by frustration. 

His finger was no longer on the trigger, no matter how much he wanted it there. He frowned—he was ordered to kill the politician hiding at the front of the plane, as well as everyone around him. There should be no one left alive on the plane.

So why couldn’t he kill you?

His stare deepened while he was trying to figure out why his body—conditioned to follow orders—refused to listen to this one. But then, his grip loosened slightly just as you saw it. A flicker of warmth within those cold eyes. He had seen it again—the thin chain around your neck that held onto a silver locket dear to you.

Maybe it was a little bit dear to James, as well.

“James.” You managed to say, adjusting your grip on his wrist as your feet desperately yearned for stability.

The assassin tilted his head, clearly puzzled. He lowered you back to the floor and spoke to you for the first time.

But his words scratched your heart.

“Who’s James?”

You gazed at him with wide eyes. His voice was rough and edged with coldness, but it wasn’t just his voice that frightened you. You were absolutely certain this man was James, so his question didn’t make sense.

“What…?” you whispered, horrified as you squeezed his wrist to ground yourself and maybe him. “You’re… You’re James.”

He stared at you, unmoved. You blinked, realizing he was waiting—demanding an explanation of some. But his grip didn’t tighten.

He didn’t dare to hurt you.

You swallowed hard, chest tightening as your words tangled in your throat and—

Something tugged at your heart.

Without hesitating, you pulled as hard as you could on his wrist. Not expecting this behavior from you of all people, he stumbled away just in time to see a bullet tear through your side. You screamed, letting go of his wrist while your knees buckled.

But you didn’t fall to the floor. The assassin caught you in his metal arm while raising his pistol, firing a single shot and the bodyguard hit the floor with a dull thud. Your breath hitched, and you felt his arm tighten around you. You couldn’t help but let out cries as he brought you to the wall, setting you down on the floor…gently? Clutching at your bloodied side, you hissed before looking at him.

Doubt.

There was doubt in his eyes as he stared at you. His chest rose in measured breaths while he glanced at your wound, watching the blood seep out too quickly. When he looked back at you, there was another flicker behind his eyes.

But then the coldness instantly returned.

As if he didn’t catch you or falter, he stood up without a word. He turned and just walked away, leaving you to gasp while you felt the warmth pooling between your fingers grow thicker. You squeezed your eyes shut before letting out a shaky breath and finally removed your hands from your wound to let the inevitable happen.

Then the plane lurched. You barely had time to cling onto the frames of the seats before the entire plane tilted and began to fall toward the ground.

Interestingly enough, dying in a plane crash was a new one for you. 

You clenched your teeth, bracing for death while trying to avoid thinking about how it’d feel to die in a plane explosion—you were going to find it any second now. But then, you heard running and opened your eyes to see the assassin. A parachute was strapped to his back and his steps were incredibly steady for someone standing in a falling aircraft.

You gaped when he kneeled in front of you, grabbing your arm before he froze. The deadly assassin—the killer who took down an entire crew without remorse—was hesitating because of you. 

This wasn’t part of the plan; he was supposed to get off the plane alone, but something wasn’t right. The assassin never second-guessed his choices, but here you were, making him question every little moment in his life. At least, the life he was able to remember.

His grip on your arm stiffened, but you were both running out of time. Before he could decide what to do, you shook your head at him.

“Go!” you yelled desperately. “Get out of here!”

He froze. His grip didn’t loosen, but his chest heaved as his expression became unreadable beneath the mask. But his eyes couldn’t lie. He didn’t understand how you were okay with dying. Why weren’t you scared? Why…

Why were you crying?

He faltered. No one ever cried for him.

Tears burned in your vision as you gently shook your head. “Go,” you whispered this time. “It’s alright, James… Go…”

There was a fracture in his frost-blue eyes as he stayed. Then finally, he stood up and slowly walked backward, never taking his eyes off you.

He didn’t know who the hell James was, but he didn’t have time to question it. 

He turned and ran away. And you closed your eyes, letting death come to you.

<><><>

January 10, 1968. 6:49 AM

What the hell.

You brought me to him again, and this time, you made me miss the holidays.

I saved James for the 4th time on December 10 on a random plane.

4th time. I never saved anyone else twice and yet you brought me to James 4 times now. I feel like I’m getting attached to him

I woke up in a plane and saw bodies everywhere. There was blood all over the floor and walls and it smelled like gunpowder. Not how I expected to wake up after reading a nice book.

It’s only happened twice, but it seems that every time I wake up in a different place, it’s to save James. He was killing everyone, trying to go to the front, I think. And when I saw him this time, he looked the same as before but moved differently. He reminded me of a machine, engineered to complete one task and one task only. He was less of the man I knew in Colorado. He almost killed me again.

Then he asked me who James was.

I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know how to even react to that question. He didn’t know his own name, and that scared me more than the blood or the bodies or the gun in his hand.

I know he is James. James Barnes from Brooklyn. There’s no doubt about it, but he didn’t recognize himself.

What happened to him? Does he have amnesia? Did he get cursed with memory loss? Did he know who he was when I saw him 7 years ago, or did he not know back then too?

I wanted to find out what happened to him, but then I got shot and had to tell him to leave me behind.

He also looked like he was in so much pain. I saw those scars by his temples again, but they were horrific this time around. The skin was still red and raised and those wounds were not natural at all. They look like a person gave them to him — I think someone is forcing him to kill and they torture him if he doesn’t. I want to help him but I don’t know how. 

How do I help someone who doesn’t even know himself?

<><><>

January 10, 1968. 9:12 PM

I can’t stop thinking about James. He’s been in my head all day and I just can’t help but wonder if he was cursed like I was.

I started to think that maybe he was cursed in the same way as me — able to die and come back without a scratch, again and again. It made sense, especially if someone was forcing him to kill — they wouldn’t have to worry about James dying on a mission.

But then I realized…if that was the case, why would I be sent to save him?

So I started to wonder if he was just ageless like me — living without ever finding a strand of gray hair. It would explain why he still looks the same after two decades. At this point, his younger sisters would be older than him. God, what would his family think of him now?

But then I wondered if it was even a curse at all. Maybe there’s a human reason for his condition, whatever it may be. With how many people are out there searching for solutions to wrinkles and age spots, I wouldn’t be surprised if James was under the influence of some kind of drug that stops him from aging �� especially if the people he’s following are terrifying enough to turn him into an assassin.

<><><>

January 11, 1968. 5:21 AM

I still don’t understand why James didn’t know who he was.

I wanted to think that maybe he was pretending to be someone else to stay hidden as an assassin. But the way he was waiting for me to explain his identity confused me.

He was looking at me for answers — for some kind of confirmation. Was he testing me? Was he making sure it was really me, considering he saw me die 3 times before? Was it just too much for him to grasp — to think that I could possibly still be here after everything that’s happened?

A part of me still thinks he’s pretending. Maybe the person forcing James to kill is also forcing him to be a stranger, silencing any trace of the man he used to be and making him kill anyone who gets in his way. But then why would he wait for me to answer him?

Regardless of what’s going on in his head, I do think he’s being tortured to kill… Those scars on his head look too fresh and deliberate — he definitely didn’t get those on the plane. 

I think someone is hurting him and using him to do their dirty work.

I want to end his pain, but I don’t know how. I’m only there to save his life… But what’s the point of saving his life if he’s just going to keep living in agony?

What do I do?

<><><>

January 13, 1968. 1:17 AM

Is it cruel for me to save him?

If I let him die, his suffering would end, right?

Sometimes, I tell myself I don’t have a choice when it comes to saving people, when in reality, I do. I’ve let people die before, a few by my choice and most by my failure. It never ends well for me either, but I still live on. James wouldn’t, but wouldn’t that be better for him?

I’ve been thinking about him all day and I have too many questions. It’s just so strange how he doesn’t seem to remember anything. He recognizes me to a point, but it’s like he’s only familiar with my presence rather than who I am. I really want to say he’s pretending, but it feels wrong.

And what if I had let him meet his fate on that plane? When he hesitated to leave me, what if I hadn’t stopped him? If I had made him stay or let him take me, would he have died? 

Would that have been mercy?

If I let him die, he wouldn’t have to suffer anymore. No more orders. No more blood on his hands. No more scars.

It is an idea.

<><><>

January 15, 1968. 12:38 AM

I can’t accept that idea. He knows me. He didn’t kill me this time because he knows me.

It was for a brief moment, but I did see the James I knew trapped in his mind. Are they controlling him somehow? What are they doing to him?

I just refuse to believe that the James I knew willingly became a killer.

I can't let him die if he’s fighting to get out. I have to fight too. I have to save him no matter what.

Please. Please bring me to him every time he needs me. Don’t let him die. I beg of you, don’t let him die. 

I’ll do anything to save him. Please.

NEXT CHAPTER >

General Taglist! @a-century-of-sass @clemicious

Thanks for reading :)

[penspagesandpulses]

Just review the book already

Okay, I might be a bit of a hypocrite, but at least I’m a hypocrite with a point… Story time…… Today, I left the 300th review for Mary Mecham‘s Assassin of Fire and Sacrifice on Amazon. Background: Mary shared in her Instagram story that she was at 299 reviews for Assassin, and since I had read the book but hadn’t reviewed it yet, I got to be the 300th reviewer. Was my review any more…

[forsaken-headcanons]

Hii Koolkiller's 1# fan anon here with my Unnamed Forsaken au where the guys are their skins by default :) There are some tweaks to personality and lore. This is a LONG ONE!!!

Survivalists

Noob - Inverted, everyone's learned how to understand their backwards speech. They'd never say this, but they're incredibly greatful. Before meeting Guest, they were very shy and when they left, they became really prickly and harsh. It's a way they try and seem stronger and more emotionally intact than they really are. Deep down, they're still the Noob that we know.

007n7 - Windows. Made in area 51. Escaped due to the less than stellar treatment of the subjects. Met and adopted a very C00L kidd, and was a surprisingly good parent. The survivors are wary of him due to his.. "Origins". C00lkidd was taken away by the admins due to 007n7s status as a fugitive Experiment. 007n7 loathes them for this.

Two Time - Phoenix. The cult that normal TT is apart of is like the one that Phoenix is a part of, but worshipping "The Fire/Fire Ring" instead of "The Spawn" Two Time had to sacrifice themself instead of Azure. (Azure because the creature that they did in this au because of their grief.) They're a little more adjusted in this AU because the time they spent living as an actual bird, but they're still a little odd and eccentric.

Sentinels

Shedletsky - yksteldehS. To be fair it's kinda obvious. He acts like he doesn't care about anyone and anything apart from himself, but deep down, he's all mushy and warm inside for them. He'd gladly lay down his life if it meant for his friends, especially the admins, to be safe. Even 7n7. Hates fried chicken because he likes tacos waaaay more. (Also in this au because 1x was made by a part of all of yksteldehS' emotions, she's the ugly little roundy head thing and is normal yay good for her)

Chance - Avian Sight. Chance in this AU is an assassin. For a large sum of money, he can make someone "fly the nest." The mask covers their face, which is all kinds of scarred and damaged due to an accident they were in a long time ago. Still a gambler, but way spookier. He was saving up to get the surgeries he needed to "look normal again". They were miserable when they first arrived because of this.

Guest 1337 - Matt. What happened in that one scene of The Last Guest but Matt saved Guest I guess erm idk how to write Matt bro 😭

Support

Elliot - Alien. Crash-landed in Robloxia after accidentally being caught in an astroid belt. Even though they're confused, and not sure of what many of the strange people around them are saying, they know they have a job. To serve pizza. Sometimes, they yearn for the place where they come from, especially when the cold of the lobby seeps into them, as they come from a very hot planet. (They also miss a close friend of theirs deeply..)

Dusekkar - Dumsekkah. (Another obvious pick but whateva...) Dumsekkah is a travelling wizard, never staying in one place. Mostly because the odd happenings that plague the towns near where they stay, but Robloxia is filled with weird things so why tf are they doing that Dumsekkah found himself living near the HQ of Roblox when yksteldehS found him, and after some time, he was hired as one of Roblox's admins, and with how strong their magic is, they were the boost in strength that they needed. He isn't the brightest, but he'll keep those nasty killers at bay with a smile.

Builderman - Classic. (01001001 00100111 01101101 00100000 01110011 01101111 00100000 01110011 01101111 01110010 01110010 01111001 00100000 01000100 01100001 01110110 01101001 01100100 00101110 00100000)

Taph - The Dark Reaper. Taph, in this au, is a kind of Robloxian Cryptid. Some say Taph a malevolent being from the fourth dimension here to destroy Robloxia, others say Taph is simply just a creature that us angered by buildings being made over places where they shouldn't be, and thus are destroyed. The true reason Taph does it is because it can, and it gets bored. (Taph's speech in this au is wingdings lalala and it's translated like how Gaster talks in hand plates comic if anyone knows what I'm talking about tee hee)

And done!!! I have a bunch of ideas for lore fore this au so yay yippee

This AU seems so investing. I'm sensing that they're the opposite of their original personalities? I'd love to see some expansion on the world for this and how everyone feels about one another in this AU. This is interesting!

[halyasgirl]

Months later, but I’m still going a little feral about Rayla and Runaan’s first and last duels and everything between them.

When they first duel in Moonrise, Runaan is focused on his mission to the exclusion of all else, and we see how he fights. Runaan is much admired by his assassin comrades for his restraint, his care to avoid collateral damage, but the truth is Runaan fights cold. There’s none of Viren’s spite, or Janai or Amaya’s passion or fire. He’s a consummate professional, even when committing atrocities. He does his duty. He fights like one already dead.

Moonshadow assassins are expected to sacrifice all of themselves in service to their mission, but unlike Runaan, Rayla is unable, and unwilling, to give up her humanity. And when they clash, we see the first cracks in the Moonshadow ideology, because whatever he threatens, Runaan can’t completely give up his humanity either.

He’s in control, he’s always in control. Throughout his fight with Rayla, he has the upper hand. Rayla’s outmatched and she knows it. But that doesn’t matter.

They say the opposite of love isn’t hate but fear. And Runaan is someone to be feared. But Rayla’s not afraid of him. She knows he’s her father, before the audience ever does. He won’t hurt her. She wasn’t challenging him to fight her, not really. She was challenging him to deny his own humanity.

And he can’t. Whatever else he does, for her, at least, he holds back.

Much of Rayla’s character arc is rejecting the darker Moonshadow values Runaan instilled in her, but she emulates him, too. Her very first act of heroism, putting her body between an innocent child and someone trying to kill them, she learned from him. But she gets a certain selfless ruthlessness from him, too. There’s something of Runaan in her when she launched herself at Viren and took them both to their almost certain death, and more than a little of him in what she does after, leaving her loved ones to stalk her enemy across the world. In her actions, good and bad, he’s there. And Rayla is left to ask herself when he’s gone, what parts of Runaan does she want to carry with her?

And she does carry him with her. Of all the things she’s done, he haunts her most. She turned on him, and she knows in her heart it was the right thing to do. But she doomed him. And the accusation of abandonment never truly leaves her.

She went back for him. From the moment the dust settled, she tried to find out what happened to him. She questioned Soren, looked in dungeons and Nexuses, chased any whisper of his killer for two years for some clue to his fate. When she couldn’t find his body she looked for his soul. And in Stardust, she finds him.

Whatever Runaan claimed when they last fought, he was alive, with all his flawed humanity. But when Rayla faces him in the shadowy reality of the Spirit World’s purgatory, he’s become what he believed himself to be. He’s already dead, she found his soul rotting.

If Runaan fought like an assassin in Moonrise, all cold control, here he attacks his daughter with terrifying brutality. But if he’s a monster, he’s not a mindless one, and gradually we realize it’s not the Dark magic that corrupted him; it’s the shame. When Rayla begs him to remember who he is, the shade answers: “I remember everything.”

All the emotion he repressed in life has come out in death, and for the first time we see Runaan completely out of control. He and Rayla tear through visions of his greatest shame, their second fight playing out against their first, but now it’s Rayla who has the upper hand. She’s as skilled as he ever was, he taught her well. But it’s not skill that wins the fight, in the end. He's her father, he won't hurt her. When Rayla drops her weapons, challenging him to deny his humanity and his love for her, she wins. She’s as good as the best of him.

[ironwoman18]

D&D: A Bastard's Story

So I found this art on Tumblr and I felt inspired to write this little silly fic. I hope you like it. The author is @caluette

In a world full of monsters, there are a group of heroes that fight them together, these group is well known as “The Bastards”

Renzuke the greatest tank, a giant with his powerful club.

Yoichi, a demon that decided to help humanity in order to recover his horns.

Kaiser, the paladin, with his shiny armor and magical sword.

Yuki, a fast assassin with daggers and the special ability to destroy his enemies with his stealth.

Kurona, the shark boy, a shark that was cursed to be on earth.

Kiyora, touched by the goddess of Luck, and whoever he blesses with his touch, will do a critical hit. 

AND your dungeon master, the greatest magician in the seven realms, Nessblendore!!!!

“What the hell?! Nessblendore?!” Said Kaiser raising his eyebrow.

“That's my name with the group I play every Friday night” said Ness blushing.

“Don't be mean Kaiser!” Said Yoichi, pushing the blonde guy softly.

“Yoichi, don't annoy me...” He rolled his eyes.

Kurona didn't dare to say anything but he agreed with Isagi. Yuki said with his relaxed attitude “can we continue? I'm engaged in the story”

“I agree with the four eyes,” said Kunigami, trying not to sound too invested in this nerdy thing.

Isagi and Igaguri smirked at each other, knowing the only Kunigami was still there.

Then Ness continued with the story. They were in front of Draco, the king of dragons, ready to fight them.

It was Yoichi's turn so he used the dice to attack the monster but he failed causing Kaiser to laugh “Oh my... Yoichiiii!!! You don't have aim even if your life depends on it!!” 

Then it was his turn “I will show you how it's done” but he missed as well, causing even Ness to hold a laugh, Kaiser blushed looking away.

They continued their attacks and this time it was Ness to test his luck attacking someone and he did, he hit Kurona lowering his health to the point of almost killing him.

Rensuke cursed himself, he should have used taunt instead of attacks, he had enough points to protect him.

Yoichi said “Nessblendore, I want to use my passive ability. Breath of life, if I do, I can heal someone but I will die”

All the party members looked at him in shock “but Isagi-kun... We need your critical hits and your strategies” said Yuki in distress.

Hiori, who was looking from their couch, was amused by how engaged all of them were in the game.

“It’s okay... We need his special ability, lord of the seas to stop the dragon’s fire”

Kaiser made a dramatic gesture towards Isagi “Yoichi... You are a brave demon, I will make sure to not miss in the honor” he had so fake tears, clearly acting.

Yoichi did it and Kurona is back to life.

Ness smiled and said “AND WITH THIS ULTIMATE SACRIFICE!!! YOICHI THE DEMON RECOVER HIS LIFE AS THE ANGEL HE WAS ONCE AND HIS LIGHT HEAL ALL HIS ALLIES” screamed Ness, excited and Isagi dramatized it, making Yuki and Kurona to wipe some teams of joy.

Kunigami rolled his eyes but had a smirk and Kiyora was impressed by the plot twist.

In the end they won the campaign and now Isagi's character will be the Angel Yoichi.

And that's how the Bastards defeated Draco The Great dragon, and it will be added to the books of history.

Me, the Minstrel, Hiori Yoh, will make sure their stories will get to know around the seven kingdoms.

OOooOOooOO

Tumblr, what a wonderful place to find ideas.

I saw an image of our Bastard München team playing D&D and this silly story came to me.

Hope you liked it.

[yanderes-galore]

Rhaenyra vs Aegon from (ASOIAF) rivalry concept?? What better way to make the sibling's fight worse than to add a Darling into the mix, am I right?

Whole CIVIL WAR happens and these two are upset they like the same person-

Rhaenyra Concept

Aegon II Concept

❗️Potential Spoilers for Fire & Blood/HOTD Season 2❗️

Yandere! Rhaenyra vs Aegon II

(Team Black vs Team Green)

Pairing: Romantic/Platonic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Possessive/Protective behavior, Jealousy, Violence, Kidnapping, Death mention, Manipulation, Imprisonment, Stalking, Dubious companionship/relationship.

There's so many different ways to tackle something like this.

You could really be anyone.

A sibling, a favorite servant, a knight, anyone.

No matter who you are, you're stuck in this realm-wide tug-of-war game.

These two are not only fighting for succession now... but you.

One's the queen of Dragonstone, the other the king of King's Landing.

Honestly... you are in such a bad position no matter where you go or who you are.

You're caught in the middle of a war where both sides have dragons.

I bet that if they both like someone, said person's going to have the entirety of Team Black/Green breathing down their neck.

After all Rhaenyra leads The Blacks, Aegon leads The Greens.

With one order, you could be abducted for either side.

That's probably the scariest part of their rivalry.

You have no power in this situation, they do.

Which means just about anything can happen.

That's also the reason there's just... so much potential for this idea that I'm not even sure if I can cover it all.

Considering what both royals go through, they can both get unhinged.

They have both lost children to each other and they're only going to stop fighting when one of them is dead.

When I think of the obsession for this idea, my mind goes to a sibling or knight.

That way you'd still have somewhat of a connection with both sides.

Perhaps you're a sibling of either Rhaenyra and Aegon that gets caught up in the civil war... only to realize both royals want you for one reason or another.

Or maybe you're a knight (regardless of gender, they had both) who served Viserys.

Then when the war begins, you're torn between Rhaenyra and Aegon, both royals offering you the position of their personal protector (Kingsguard/Queensguard).

You most likely knew them before the civil war happened.

Then it develops into some sort of custody battle for the rivalry.

The alternative is you go with one side willingly and the other takes you hostage.

Then during your time as a hostage, the leader of the side who took you becomes obsessive until your side takes you back.

That's another way you can get them both to like you.

Now, in terms of yandere behavior?

Aegon is naturally hedonistic and would lean more towards romantic tendencies.

He can be both intimidating yet also pathetic with his obsession, often clinging to them and not afraid of executing those who get too close.

You're never far from his sight as his obsession, the king thrives off your care.

As king, Aegon feels he should get what he wants and be smothered in affection, he should always get what he wants.

He's only vulnerable with you... he needs you.

He needs a connection with you.

Rhaenyra is protective and more calculating than her half-brother.

For the most part she can keep her cool and her obsession can go either platonic or romantic.

For the first portion of the war she's calm, yet would fear people are trying to steal or kill her beloved as the war goes on due to trust issues and assassination attempts.

Although they both deal with such a thing.

Rhaenyra's used to the world being against her since she was young.

With her obsession, she feels she can at least trust someone.

She values loyalty between her and her obsession, making them sacrifice everything to dedicate themselves to her in the end.

Both royals utilize psychological and emotional manipulation to try and garner your loyalty.

Aegon lays the charm on thick... Rhaenyra often promises protection for your dedication.

The two have loyal members on their side that would listen to their every order.

I can actually see them both imprisoning their obsession if you're already with a side.

Rhaenyra no doubt sends Daemon to recruit/take you in for The Blacks on top of Caraxes.

Aegon may be less willing if you were already a Green supporter, but if you're with The Blacks he'll order Aemond to hunt you down and imprison you.

You'll get a cozy chambers with both of them, even if it is your prison.

This is another rivalry where I feel one of them is going to die in the end.

Whoever wins this Civil War also gets to have you.

There's no running, after all, how can you?

There's nowhere to go.

You could probably even go to the North and still have someone rat you out.

The two sides brew in tension as they take each other out.

Many common folk whisper rumors about the fact both sides are fighting over one person.

They mutter about your importance, both out of pity and bitterness.

Meanwhile, as you watch the carnage play out and are often tossed from cell to cell, you want nothing to do with any Targaryen.

Get used to dragon back, you're going to be on dragon back a lot.

You know blood is being spilled primarily for control, that this is a battle about succession.

Yet you also fear lives are being lost because you're involved, even if you don't want to be.

When you're with The Greens, Aegon often is seen with an arm around your waist.

In private he wants to trust you, to get affection he couldn't get from even the brothels.

When you're with The Blacks, Rhaenyra keeps you close yet under watch.

She provides hospitality and her affection is welcoming with friendly touches.

She respects you as long as you respect her, similar to Aegon, yet she fears you'll turn on her the longer you're with The Greens.

Aemond and Daemon are definitely doing the dirty work for their king/queen respectively.

They're the ones primarily spilling blood and sending spies to keep an eye on you.

However... Aegon and Rhaenyra wouldn't mind personally dealing with threats, Aegon especially, despite Aemond's protests.

Would things get gorey? Yeah.

Both sides would mount heads on pikes just to get a message across.

Their fight over you and succession would continue until near the end of the war.

By this point, most of their relatives are gone.

Rhaenyra just has her son, and Aegon's nearly alone.

The conclusion of the war is (un)fortunately also the conclusion of your own fate.

With wounded dragons, the two are prepared to end things.

The amount of blood doesn't matter to them.

They don't even care if the blood of their enemy gets on you.

All that matters is you.

The end of the war may mean you're no longer tugged between two royals...

But it certainly does not grant you any sort of freedom either.

[afterthelambs]

Shuake and Jundori are basically the same ship

List of similarities between Joker/Akechi and Junpei/Chidori:

Ship is between a chill guy and an assassin

Characters share the same persona affinity (Arsene and Loki both use curse, Hermes and Medea both use fire)

Assassin's outfit colors are mainly white and red (specifically akechi's robin hood outfit)

Assassin's persona may hurt them (Loki has call of chaos and Medea attacks Chidori)

Assassin deceives the chill guy into thinking they're normal to get info on the group he's part of

Assassin betrays and kidnaps the chill guy + separates him from his friend group because he's the leader (Junpei was lying about being the leader but Chidori believed it)

Friend group is only cordial with the assassin at best but doesn't wish harm on them

Chill guy is the only one who truly connects with the assassin

Assassin insists they dont care about the chill guy but deep down they do

While responsible for their own actions, the assassin is still being manipulated by someone close to them

Revealed that the assassin's abilities were being exploited by the families of both games' wealthy Empress Arcana (Okumura used Akechi via Shido to assassinate enemies, Kirijo group used Chidori as a child experiment)

In late November, the assassin has a 1-vs-many fight against the chill guy and his friends

After you beat the assassin, the ones manipulating them appear and reveal they're willing to discard the assassin for being weak

The manipulators threaten to shoot the chill guy instead

Assassin sacrifices themself for the chill guy during the shooting

Chill guy's greatest wish was to be with the assassin and losing them challenges their resolve to fight (Joker may or may not fold on 2/2 but Junpei gets his resolve back as part of the plot)

Toxic doomed trope

If Royal and Reload (because thats what I played):

14. Chill guy and assassin have a special attack (showtime and theurgy)

15. Assassin died permanently in the original version of the games, but they can be saved in future remakes (if you spent enough time with them and made the right choices in-game)

I think that's it? But if anyone points out more I will edit this and add them

[guerillas-of-history]

We Are All the Resistance and we Shall Remain on the Pledge

Today, Sunday, February 23, 2025, Hezbollah, Lebanon, the Ummah (Arab and Islamic nation), and the free people of the world gather in Beirut to pay tribute to the martyred Secretaries General—the martyr, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah (RA), and the martyr, Sayyed Hashem Safieddine (RA).

From the early hours of this morning, the streets filled with thousands upon thousands, a tide of grief and unshaken resolve. Here, in the heart of Beirut, in the heart of Resistance, there are no divisions—no sects, no factions, no politics. Today, all are bound by the blood of the martyrs. The martyrdom of Sayyed Hassan has proven once again what he always believed: that dignity, honor, and the fight against oppression unite people beyond identity, beyond borders.

From the first day he took up this responsibility, Sayyed Hassan gave and gave, tirelessly, selflessly, never seeking anything for himself. He was not a man of privilege or comfort—he was a man of the people. The same people who now carry him to his resting place, who lift their fists in defiance, and who renew their oath upon his grave. He lived among them, spoke their words, carried their burdens, and in return, they gave him their hearts.

He stood in the face of the enemy, unshaken, undeterred, unwavering, certain of the final outcome. They besieged him with war, with lies, with threats, and finally, with assassination. But they never understood the essence of this Resistance. They surrounded him with fire, but he walked through it untouched. They tried to isolate him, but he became the voice of the people. They sought to silence him, but his words became eternal. They believed that by striking down the leader, the movement would collapse, the spirit would fade, the people would surrender.

But Sayyed Hassan transcended their siege. His martyrdom is not an end—it is a beginning. His blood did not spill in vain; it runs now in the veins of every man, woman, and child who carries forward his oath. His presence is no longer confined to one voice, one figure—he is now a thousand voices, a million souls marching toward victory on the path to Al-Quds.

The Resistance fighter and the people are not separate—they are one body, one soul, one mission. The martyr does not die; they are inherited by those who remain. Sayyed Hassan’s voice will live on in every mother who raises her child to love dignity more than life, in every young man who takes up arms against oppression, in every one who refuses to bow, in every Christian, every Muslim, every free person who says never to humiliation!

يا شهيدَ العزِّ ما زلتَ فينا

رايةً تُعلي جبينَ السماءِ

سوف نمضي دربَكَ الحرَّ حتى

نكتبَ النصرَ بدمِّ الفداءِ

O martyr of honor, you remain among us,

A banner raised high to the heavens.

We shall walk your path of freedom until

Victory is written with the blood of sacrifice.

We shall continue to give, as Sayyed Hassan gave, until the last drop of blood, until the last breath, until the banner of liberation rises over every inch of occupied land.

We are all the Resistance.

And we shall remain on the pledge.