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evenmoreofadisaster · 5 months ago

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Meet Cute

Hello, happy Valentine's Day. Enjoy this one-shot about One meeting Usagi for the first time :)

It’s no surprise when One finds himself at the hotel bar, watching a rerun of the latest Battle Nexus match in hopes of clearing his head. He’s been doing that a lot lately, it seems, although he has no idea why. He knows if he gets caught, Draxum will unleash the fires of Titan on his ass, but that’s a big if. Big Mama hasn’t found him yet and, until then, he’s not going to worry about the consequences.

As One watches the pre-recorded fight, he’s tapping the side of his glass. He doesn’t realize it, but whatever current expectations Draxum has of One is just getting too overwhelming.

The surrounding audience erupts in a cacophony of cheers, snapping One to attention. The warrior on-screen had just landed a critical blow to his opponent, who staggers, disoriented as it bleeds from a deep gash in its stomach. One’s eyes linger on the young warrior as he makes his finishing move.

Surprisingly quick and sharp, the warrior finishes off the beast, which One remembers is one of Big Mama’s more difficult hybrids. Admittedly, One’s slightly impressed that someone so young managed to defeat a combatant twice his size. The only other person who had been able to take on an adversary that strong at such a young age was One, back when he trained here.

Back when Draxum was easier to impress.

One’s fists tighten slightly around his empty glass. Something urgent presses at the back of his head. Really, he shouldn’t be here, considering how hard Draxum fought to keep him out of Big Mama’s grip, but he’s dreading the thought of going home so soon.

A few tears drip onto One’s closed fist. Immediately, his back straightens and he promptly wipes his face dry with his arm before anyone notices.

That’s enough, he scolds himself.

One sighs and pushes his glass away, starting to stand when someone sits on the empty stool next to him. The only thing stopping One from leaving, is that he thinks he recognizes this guy.

White fur, brown eyes, a decorated sword. One hesitates, then glances up at the TV screen. Besides the blood-soaked fur and glowing eyes, One is pretty sure the guy who just sat next to him is the guy whose face is on every screen in the room.

One notices the cast on his arm, then looks at the screen again, noting that the rabbit’s right arm is hanging at an awkward angle at his side. One looks back at the yōkai. While notably less blood-thirsty and more normal-looking, One is now 100% sure this is who he had been watching on the screen. The first thing One does is size him up. He doesn’t look nearly as capable of murder as he did on-screen. Maybe it’s the drooping ears and sad eyes.

One doesn’t know how long he’s been staring. Long enough to get the guy’s attention, apparently. The stranger’s ear flicks, then his eyes meet One’s.

They stare at each other for a solid minute and a half. One hopes he looks intimidating right now and not miserable like this guy.

After a moment, the rabbit frowns. “Is your eyeliner running? I can help with that.”

One blinks in surprise. He did not expect that. An off-handed comment, sure. A threat? Absolutely. One was not expecting an expression of concern.

The rabbit hesitates, then stands. “Here, come with me.”

One narrows his eyes, but decides to follow, if only to figure out what this guy’s deal is. The rabbit is mostly quiet as he leads One out of the room.

“There should be a mirror somewhere around here…” the rabbit murmurs. One raises a brow as the rabbit takes him down the hall and into one of the Lounge’s luxurious bathrooms.

Once they’re through, One crosses his arms as the rabbit makes his way to the sink. He grabs a face towel from a basket on the counter and runs it under the water. One stays near the door. He quickly determines that they’re alone. “So, you gonna beat me up or something?”

The rabbit turns, eyes widening. “What?”

“Come on, drop the act.”

“What act??”

One scoffs. “You’re seriously telling me you brought me all the way here to clean up my make-up?”

The rabbit pauses. “Um… yeah.” He squeezes out the excess water against the interior of the sink, then turns and reaches out. “Here, hold still.”

One grabs his wrist and shoves him back into the tiled wall, eyes sharp. “I don’t buy it.”

The rabbit holds his gaze evenly, completely calm, which deepens One’s suspicions.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” the rabbit explains carefully.

That makes One laugh. “You couldn’t hurt me.”

“Then… you shouldn’t have anything to worry about, right?”

One squints, searching through his deep brown eyes, but he doesn’t find anything remotely hostile about this guy. After a beat, One lets him go.

The rabbit studies him closely, then glances at the damp cloth in his hand and waves it a bit. “May I?”

“Only if you don’t mind losing a few fingers.”

The rabbit smiles, despite One’s clear threat. “Don’t worry, I can take it.” He reaches out again and starts to wipe away the smudged eyeliner. One stiffens at the surprisingly gentle touch, but forces himself not to flinch away because he’s definitely not feeling threatened by someone who’s so close to his age getting close to his face.

By effect, the rabbit sticks his tongue out in concentration while One’s stomach does a funny twist. While the stranger focuses on not poking One’s eye out, the slider just stands and watches and tries not to run away out of nervousness.

He has to break the silence. “So, Mr. Nice Guy. You have a name?” One huffs.

The rabbit meets his eyes. “Yuichi Usagi.” Yuichi then lowers his hand and smiles. “There we go. Good as new.”

One rolls his eyes, but takes a look in the mirror. If it weren’t for the hint of red in his damp eyes, he wouldn’t be able to tell that he had been crying. Which reminds One that he shouldn’t stay here much longer, especially now that someone's seen him like this.

One quickly looks away from his reflection, then heads for the door.

“Hey, wait!” Yuichi starts after him, then falls short when One gives him a look. “Um… what’s your name? I forgot to ask.”

The slider regards him, although he can’t say why. “One.”

Yuichi blinks. “What, like the number?” He says it too fast for One to believe he actually thought about the comment first.

“Yeah, like the number,” One scoffs. “You got a problem with that?”

Yuichi shakes his head. “Nope. It’s nice to meet you.”

One scoffs slightly. “Titan, you have no idea who you’re talking to, do you?”

“Well… I was hoping you’d tell me.”

“No.”

Yuichi deflates a little. “Oh.”

One pauses. “But… maybe another time. If you’re still alive.”

The rabbit’s eyes light up. “Yeah—!” then he obviously back pedals and tries to play it cool. “Uh— I mean— okay. Yeah.”

One feels his stomach turn again— super weird. One rolls his eyes and leaves without another word, making a beeline for the exit. His face feels warm and his chest starts to hurt.

What the hell did I just agree to?

#emd au #emd one-shots #onesagi

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glitches-and-techs · 8 months ago

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I had this idea in my head and decided to share it with you and anyone who reads it.

I call it Black Friday, a Tower Defense game that takes place in a General Store that’s about as big as a Publix. Hinobi of Japan worked with Hinobi of America and made Black Friday together because they wanted to make a game that could have a snowball’s chance of competing with the Ninja Kiwi of my Storyverse’s timeline and the Bloons Tower Defense series. Black Friday was Hinobi’s most popular Tower Defense game by the time it became mainstream in Screen City, a town made for Screen Nexus Titans, a crossover made by me and skylandersensei06, one of my mutuals on DeviantArt. At this moment in time, I’m building the lore for Screen Nexus Titans storyline while they’re otherwise engaged.

So sorry for the late reply!! But oh my gosh this sounds so fun!!!! I’ve actually been playing a TON of Bloons TD6 so this would be absolutely up my alley! I feel like Miko would love playing to get really op upgrades while Five would aim to unlock every upgrade and character in the game haha :D

also i could imagine in the game that there would be rounds in the game where there’s a rush of customers coming in every 5 or so rounds which the player would have to prepare for 👀

#I’d love to hear more abt this idea!#I’ve just recently started getting into tower defense games so I don’t know much about them but I really enjoy them so far!!#kiki answers

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thetantiger · 2 years ago

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Character Insight #9: Cryagosa

Full Name: Cryagosa Gender: Female (she/her) Race: Undead Blue Dragon (Frostwyrm) Class: Vanquisher Specialization: Cryomancer Orientation: Demi-bisexual Relatives: No Known Relatives Age: ~14,000 Height: 8'4 (6'3 Visage form) Voice reference: Jade West - Victorious Theme: For The Wicked - Friday Pilots Club

[BACKSTORY]

Cryagosa's life starts as a relatively normal Blue Dragon born before the Sundering, who aided her Flight in their duty to regulate and research Arcane magic. During the War of the Ancients, however, the crazed Deathwing used the Dragon Soul to wipe out a vast majority of the Blue Flight, and Cryagosa was one of them. Falling to the ground that would later be known as the Icecrown Glacier, Cryagosa wandered endlessly in a blank afterlife for thousands of years, recounting the event that killed her and so many of her Flight over and over until it tortured her..

..and then, Arthas Menethil came.

The Lich King's crusade of undeath spread to devout zealots known as the Cult of the Damned who helped to raise Frostwyrms from the glacier like Arthas himself had done Sindragosa. As a result, Cryagosa, too, was raised into undeath, her mind and will bound to the service of the Lich King and to the Scourge. She slayed many an adventurer and soldier in her time, opting to freeze her victims to death in an instant or sometimes tearing them apart with her bare teeth and claws. When the combined forces of the Alliance, the Horde, the Ebon Blade and the Argent Crusade marched on Icecrown, however, Arthas Menethil was slain, and the binds on Cryagosa's will were broken, freeing her from her servitude.

However, she was still stuck in her frozen, dead, skeletal body. She attempted to return to the Blue Dragonflight, but their numbers were scattered to the winds after the Nexus War. There wasn't much of a Flight to return to at all. Disheartened, she decided to embrace her undeath and seek out the Ebon Blade instead, hoping they would take pity on her. She never wanted to hurt people, and she was of the understanding many of the Death Knights did much of the same things she did before being able to turn against the Lich King. Seeing her willingness to now help the heroes of Azeroth, accompanied by her old personality as a Blue Dragon returning, Cryagosa was accepted into the Ebon Blade, and now seeks to help monitor the undead forces of Azeroth as well as protect the planet from future threats like the Lich King.

[THOUGHTS]

This is -another- minor character that the almighty name picker chose, and I thought it was neat it picked my other Blue Dragon girl right after picking the other one (Galactagosa)! Though this one is undead and a Frostwyrm as well, lol.

I like to imagine her ability to take on a visage form through the Titans' gift was lost when she was raised, however she's still able to via arcane illusion magic instead. And just chooses Dracthyr-looking ones, because I like my Dragons to look like Dragons (with the exception of Galacta I guess).

Anyway-- this girl was on screen once or twice as a undead Dracthyr but I rebooted her to be a full Frostwyrm because honestly I just find it more interesting! So, uh.. ye! Hope you enjoyed! <3

#world of warcraft #wow oc #world of warcraft art #anthro #sfw furry #dragon oc #scalie #tan's character insights #character story

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how2fit · 1 year ago

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silenceinternalmonologue · 4 years ago

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A Review of Loki (2021)

[The following is an exact transcription of Twitter user @/diolesbian ‘s thread linked here . They gave me permission to cross-post their thread on my Tumblr. Keep in mind that this review is fairly long and quite critical of the series. I agree with this review wholeheartedly, and would be welcome to discuss it with anyone else.]

Loki is a character who has died many times, but his own series may be his most brutal character assassination yet.

1. Loki’s role in the series. Instead of tackling Loki's most villainous state of mind in Avengers 1, the series literally speedran through his development in the subsequent films, after which they almost entirely halted his character progression.

Because this series was set right after Avengers 1 it had the responsibility of developing Loki further in place of The Dark World and Ragnarok. In Episode 1, this development was kicked off by having Loki watch a reel of some of his defining moments in the MCU, allowing him to see his future all the way up to his death in Infinity War. Sadly, this scene ended up being the most development he received in the entire series. And arguably, this isn’t even true development but more like a speedrun of his character up until that point, serving as a simple tactic to explain why he wouldn’t be acting all dictatorial and murderous during his own series. As soon as he had been made “good” (read: docile) enough to follow along with the plot, his agency was completely thrown out. From that point on, the series wasn’t about Loki making things happen but about things happening to Loki.

Loki was supposed to be the main character, but he wasn't the protagonist in this story. In fact, he was more of a side character than we’ve ever seen him be in the MCU before, perhaps excepting IW and Endgame.

A protagonist is by definition someone whose important decisions affect the plot, whose development is followed most closely by the audience, and who is opposed by an antagonist. Loki exhibited none of these traits in this series. Especially the latter half of the story, he was reduced to simply reacting to the revelations around him, such as the reveal that the TVA members were all variants and that Kang was the true mastermind behind everything. He never truly involved himself or acted based on any of these plot points, and hardly played a key role in what was supposed to be his own story. Even in the films, where Loki is a side character, he makes choices which impact the plot to a larger extent. He almost seems more like a background character in the role of protagonist than in the parts he plays in the films.

2. The antagonist. The TVA could have worked as the perfect setting for Loki to have a new arc. It’s a thematic antithesis to who we know Loki to be. But when this Loki turns out to not be who the audience thought he was the TVA’s thematic significance falls apart as well.

In Episode 1, the TVA’s Agent Mobius enlists the help of Loki the Variant to pin down a greater foe who we are told is another, more malicious version of Loki. Order and chaos meeting in the middle, teaming up to take down an enemy, who even happens to be the protagonists’ literal evil self: that works, it sounds promising. But this dynamic is soon undermined when Loki leaves with Sylvie. Still, the benefit of the doubt is easy to grant here: a story about tricksters is bound to contain twists. But by Episode 3 the series is halfway done and the TVA has been appointed as the main antagonist again: we’ve now established villains three different times. And then the Cloud Monster At The End Of Time is introduced, and finally Kang. In other words, the Loki series has no consistent antagonist, no one to pit its main character against. And this is where we once again miss out on an enormous aspect of Loki’s potential characterization.

Protagonists are always defined by an antagonist, whether a purple Titan, a flat tire, or themself. Loki is not given anything to define his morals, motivations, or development in opposition to and this is a huge oversight. Especially given the fact that Loki has taken on the villain’s role in the past: how is the audience supposed to know that the “bad guy” is now a “good guy” if there’s no “even worse guy” to stand up against?

3. The plot. A plot should show off its MC’s strengths and match their personality. The Loki plot hardly relied on his presence at all, he didn't play a key role. The story had so little to do with Loki that it seemed as though he has barely any impact on “his” narrative.

One of the most central conflicts in the Loki series doesn’t involve him at all: it’s between Sylvie and the TVA. This plotline was a good concept overall, but its main problem is that it’s practically the only conflict in the series. Loki himself, as mentioned before, isn’t set in opposition to anything or anyone. And thanks to his relationships with Sylvie and Mobius being weakened by conflicting storytelling devices, he appears to be in a bubble by himself away from the rest of the cast for much of the story. First he follows Mobius around, then Sylvie, then he wanders aimlessly in the void before following Sylvie once again and learning that Kang is a Really Bad Guy who he should be opposed to even though by this point he has interacted so little with the story unfolding around him that the audience doesn’t even understand why he should be choosing to play the hero.

The plot and the characters both suffer by being so incredibly unrelated to each other. A series, especially an MCU one, should tell an overarching narrative through the perspective of its main character.

In the beginning of the series, when Loki was still getting his bearings in the TVA, this lack of decision-making was more understandable, especially since some of his skills were still being shown-- he discovered Sylvie was hiding in nexus events, and he made the choice to leave Mobius and follow her. But by the latter half of the series he still hasn’t had much impact on the story or taken any actions of his own, and simply allows plot points to happen to him. Just because the Loki series had to introduce the TVA and Kang didn’t mean it had to forgo telling a story about its protagonist. If Loki’s story had been intrinsically tied to the overarching plot points, if his choices had been some of the primary factors determining how events ended up taking place, the series would have succeeded in every aspect. But instead Loki is pushed aside by the plot of his own series, a plot which subsequently ends up coming across as largely hollow and pointless due to its lack of character drive.

4. Loki’s arc. One of the main reasons MCU Loki is loved is for his excellent character development across his films. TVA Loki was extremely lacking in that aspect and chances to take his character in interesting new self-aware directions were thrown away without much thought.

Throughout the MCU, Loki is on a journey with many highs and lows. He goes from a bitter and disheartened prince standing in the shadow of his brother, to a self-loathing Jotun bent on destroying his own people in a desperate attempt to win his father’s love, to a half-mad partially mind-controlled dictator with delusions of grandeur fueled by his own insecurity, to a prisoner wondering what there is left for him to lose, to a savior of Asgard’s people finally coming to accept his place in what is left of his family, to a tragic sacrificial victim who knew he had to die so the true hero might live on. That’s a hell of a journey, incidentally shown in less than TWO HOURS of screen time, and the prospect of TVA Loki embarking on an equally stimulating one, this time told over the course of over four hours and shown from his own perspective the entire way through, was exciting. But as it turned out, this relatively simple expectation went completely unmet.

For a story trying to say so much about individuality and self-acceptance, the Loki series seemed to pass by every obvious opportunity to tackle those questions.

Sylvie’s introduction seemed like a good idea at first: Loki would be able to literally bond with himself and learn to accept who he is that way, and forays could be made to explore what Loki’s personality could have been like if he grew up under different circumstances! But aside from a scene or two in Episode 3, this was not how things ended up going. Loki didn’t come to any grand or important conclusions about his identity, he didn’t choose to act differently, all that happened was a vaguely-worded confession of pseudo-romantic feelings which was cut off in the middle, made no sense, and weakened the narrative in a whole host of other ways explained elsewhere. Loki’s encounter with other versions of themself in the Void was similarly meaningless: Loki didn’t end up expressing or demonstrating a single thing he learned from meeting all of those alternate selves, despite the fact that there was potential for massive self-discovery there.

Less than 2 hours of MCU screen time portrayed Loki more coherently than this entire series. Loki is loved because of how much he changes, and it felt like he didn’t in this series. He started off lost and stayed that way throughout the entire plot.

By the end of the series, it was impossible to identify who Loki had become. He said he didn’t want a throne, but it was not obvious why not. He looked sad to be betrayed by Sylvie, but never expressed what that meant to him. He seemed afraid once Kang was unleashed, but why? Why did he care about the Sacred Timeline? What were his motivations? Throughout the series the answers to these questions became less and less obvious, culminating in the final episode which ended without a single moment of reflection or explanation as to who Loki had become. He wasn’t a villain, but only because he wasn’t murdering people. He was in some capacity a hero, for… being against Kang, probably, but once again with no explanation as to why Loki had decided to feel that way. He never seemed self-assured in his heroism, as if he hadn’t chosen the role for himself. Again, making one’s own choices that shape the narrative are what differentiates a protagonist from a side character, but Loki did not do that in this series.

5. Loki and Sylvie’s relationship. Loki and Sylvie had the potential to be a powerful duo representing the process of self-acceptance but instead they were reduced to a strange pseudo-romance.

Despite Loki’s many developments in the films, he never truly liked himself. He has been known to act extremely confident and self-righteous at times, but this is merely the opposite side of the coin containing his self-loathing and insecurity. Having him literally meet and subsequently befriend himself in Episode 3 was a move towards developing this aspect of him and potentially teaching him to finally accept himself as he truly is, but this buildup was all shattered in Episode 4 when the relationship is portrayed to have romantic undertones. Instead of a powerful struggle to accept oneself, the relationship between Loki and Sylvie becomes a twisted thing which is memeable at best (selfcest LOL amirite?) and outright damaging to both characters and the very concept of loving oneself at worst.

Ultimately, Loki and Sylvie's relationship didn’t add anything to either character’s development and actively detracted from what could have been a touching story.

Romantic love is extremely different from self love; romantic love has connotations including dating conventions and sexuality which are impossible to ignore and in this case serve as a distraction. And on top of ruining a potentially powerful storyline, this strange relationship makes both Loki and Sylvie seem out of character. Loki is once again one thousand years old and he has never even had a true friend, so why would he possibly fall for someone after knowing them for only two days? Meanwhile in Sylvie’s case, Loki’s “feelings” for her cause the audience to pay more attention to her romantic life and gestures rather than her actual character and motivations.

6. Loki’s Sexuality and Gender Fluidity. Loki’s sexuality and gender has been shown in several comic runs, and the series was advertised as featuring this representation as well. But due to several fundamental errors and problematic storytelling this also fell flat.

Sylvie’s introduction filled many fans with hope regarding the portrayal of Loki’s identity. In the MCU neither of their LGBT identities had ever been touched upon, while the series introduced a female variant of Loki and explicitly stated their sexuality. But this portrayal soon unraveled, most notably in Episode 5, in which many other Loki variants were shown but not a single one besides Sylvie was non-male. On top of that, when TVA Loki mentioned Sylvie and referred to her as “a woman Variant of us”, the other Lokis agreed that that sounded “terrifying”. Why should a genderfluid being be afraid of a version of themselves presenting as a different gender? It read as both fluidphobic not to mention strangely sexist.

The pseudo-romance between Loki and Sylvie only aggravated the situation. Not only did the nature of the “relationship” seem to follow heteronormative storytelling tropes (falling in love after a couple days of knowing each other, one party being reduced to a love interest, valuing romantic love above any other type, etc) but it also seemed distressing and offensive to many genderfluid people. A romance between a male and a female Loki, one of which doesn’t even call herself by that name, seems to be implying that an individual becomes someone else when merely presenting as a different gender, which of course isn’t at all the case. The writing wasn’t necessarily malicious here, but it was certainly ignorant and potentially even harmful. The opportunity was there to translate Loki’s powerful comic representation into the framework of the MCU, but this attempt did not succeed.

7. Loki’s characterization. Loki is a chameleon, but there are certain traits fundamental to his character. These traits were either ignored or actively mocked in the series. The audience already knew “what makes a Loki a Loki", but the series threw that knowledge away.

Episode 1’s premise of stripping Loki of everything he is used to was an intriguing setup to ensure the discovery of the core of who Loki truly is. The only problem was that this truth didn’t end up being found at all. Mobius made fun of Loki’s most defining traits, such as his habits of lying to manipulate people and acting out of a place of insecurity, which seemed to be a signal for the narrative to forbid Loki from exhibiting any of those traits from that point on in any way. This reduction in Loki’s character was reflected in everything, from his lack of humor (in the films he’s even funny while he’s taking over the world!), the underpowered way in which he fought against Sylvie (he’ll use magic to dry his clothes, but fight with a damn vacuum cleaner?) to the way that he wore the same boring outfit in every single episode-- it may sound shallow, but clothes are important when presenting a character. Every one of Loki’s looks in the films said something about him and his state of mind, and sadly that bland TVA outfit seemed to convey that Loki really was nothing more than a subservient pawn in what was supposed to be his own story. Ironically, the writing stripped Loki of everything that made him Loki, and left us with nothing but a Jotun-shaped void to be swayed by the whims and wills of the characters and plot devices surrounding him.

8. Loki’s past and abilities. This series could have elaborated on aspects of his character which had been teased at in the films and theorized about by fans, but ended up being a disappointment in this aspect as well.

Aside from Loki’s characterization and development, something else the series ignores is much of his canon story in the films. Since Thor 1, a truth that always overshadowed Loki was his Jotun heritage. He struggled with it up until the time of his death, clearly visible in his relationship with his foster family. It’s understandable that Loki was supposed to be independent from Thor in his series, but that’s no excuse for completely ignoring this central part of who Loki is. It doesn’t matter how much he goes through or how much his circumstances change, this feeling of unbelonging sits deep in Loki’s core and should have been both explored and explicitly discussed in the series. A series all about Loki was the perfect opportunity for him to finally confront and explain his relationship with his heritage, and potentially come to terms with it as well. And this isn’t even to say how cool some more insight on Loki’s Jotun inheritance could have been-- hypotheticals aren’t the point of this review, but it would have been fascinating to see Loki reacting adversely to heat like he has been hinted to in the past or even using his ice powers like he did in Thor 1.

Loki's magic was tragically underused. It felt like he was stripped of all of his magical powers even after his TVA chains had been removed, and this was never explained.

A second huge oversight is his magic. His powers are all over the place in this series. They were always a bit vague in the films, but this series was the opportunity to set that right and explain exactly what Loki was capable of as a sorcerer, especially now that the MCU has embraced magic more than it had ten years ago. But instead, Loki showcased an inexplicable lack of magic use-- again, the vacuum cleaner fight can be presented as evidence. There is a single scene in which Loki says that he learned his magic from Frigga, but no information is given as to how much he learned or why he doesn’t always favor spells. His power levels are incredibly inconsistent (he forgoes using magic when first confronted by the TVA, but is later shown using telekinesis to save himself from being literally crushed to death). And, strangest of all, there is a scene in which he tells Sylvie that he “can’t” enchant living beings. Loki, the millennium year old Trickster sorcerer god, who can hold an Infinity Stone with his bare hands, reanimate Surtur in the Eternal Flame, and trick the average person using illusions with ease, can’t cast a little enchantment? And if so, why not? The series offered precious few explanations concerning Loki’s magical abilities and instead only raised more questions. And in this way, Loki is once again relegated into the background and left with not a single shred of any new characterization or development.

Loki contains multitudes, but the series reduced him to two dimensions.

This isn’t to mention every other facet of Loki’s story that could have potentially been explored to great success in this series-- his torture and subsequent partial mental influence at the hands of Thanos just before the events of Avengers 1 is one obvious example, as is his youth on Asgard, as are his suicidal tendencies (people don’t tend to survive falling off the Bifrost, and he knew that when he threw himself off of it), plus infinite other facets of him. Of course, it was both necessary and more interesting for this series to be its own story rather than one which lingered on past films-- but that’s not to say that none of these plot points should have come back, at least subtly, to play a role in this story. Plot points exist to be brought back later, not completely ignored. Otherwise a story may as well be written about a completely original character.

#loki #loki 2021 #loki disney+#loki discussion #loki discourse #loki spoilers #lokius #loki x mobius #loki x sylvie #sylki #marvel #marvel discourse #loki review #mcu loki #loki series #loki season finale #loki season 1 #loki ship

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skysensei07 · 10 months ago

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"Will you survive this dark and dreary night, where shadows have turned into a sea, an ocean of regret IN WHICH YOU NOW DROWN!!!"

If you thought the 2nd boss was already ghostly, wait until you've seen this otherworldly spirit.

#no straight roads #Screen Nexus Titans #SNT #nsr au #among the sleep #halloween 2024

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screennexustitans · 3 years ago

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A brief history of Screen City and its main districts.

Screen City is Vinyl City’s nearest neighbor and a melting pot of music from various worlds. Screen City’s resident record label is the Screen Nexus Titans. The Screen Nexus Titans challenged NSR and Bunk Bed Junction to a battle of musical wits that the former group ultimately lost. Below is a brief history of Screen City and its main districts.

Mad World

Charter: Mag Agent

Genre: Heavy Metal

The Mad World District is a relatively lawless district that was a part of Nevada until it was dragged towards Screen City by an improbability drive. A Mag Agent that belonged to the Torture line that had the distinction of surviving Hank’s combat prowess was elected into chartership of the Mad World District. He hated the A.A.H.W’s experimentations on him and slew every one of their operatives that dared to cross his path. The Mag Agent’s temperament has since cooled, but if it must come to blows, he has a giant Mossberg 500 shotgun and a voice that sounds like a guitar riff.

Phantasma

Charter: The Mystery Skulls

Genre: Synthwave

The Mystery Skulls’ afterlives changed for the better when they were elected into chartership of the Phantasma District. Their fans call them ghosts with hearts of gold and a fire that burn bright, so it’s only fitting that they have a mutual interest in spooky aesthetics and gothic design.

Open Ocean

Charter: The Diver

Genre: Aqua House

The Open Ocean District is an aquarium and a rehabilitation center for marine life. Its charter, The Diver, founded the district out of remorse for his involvement in the Tidal Wave, a massacre of sea creatures that left him traumatized. Said trauma was the reasoning behind his prohibition of seafood within the Open Ocean district’s borders. The aquarium was unintentionally destroyed by Bunk Bed Junction during a skirmish that occurred between them, but it has since been repaired.

The Closet

Charter: Heap

Genre: Ambient Melody

The Closet is home to the Museum of Lost Memories, where items that belonged to children that are either dead or missing are displayed. The district is chartered by the Heap, an entity with a soft spot for the youth of the world. Heap’s most common public form is a tall brown coat. He knows when people have been bad or good, and with that being said, may God have mercy on a corrupt soul, because he won’t.

Contiello

Charter: Squigly

Genre: Smooth Jazz

The Contiello District, which resembles New Orleans and is named after its current charter’s family, is the jazz capital of Screen City. Big Band originally chartered the district until he lost his bid for re-election to Squigly, who got her voice back when the Thin Man resurrected her and removed the stitches on her mouth.

Ireland Circuit

Charter: Aran Ryan

Genre: Celtic Irish Rock

The Ireland Circuit is a district themed around boxing and Irish culture. Aran Ryan’s personality hasn’t changed much since Punch-Out Wii, and that makes him a force to be reckoned with, especially when he tries to whip people into shape with an actual whip made from rope and a boxing glove. As far as the doctors there are concerned, Bunk Bed Junction hit Aran with reality and did his psyche some good, but that didn’t mean that he wouldn’t try to regain the influence he lost when he lost a boxing match to Zuke by TKO. Contrary to what many expect, Aran Ryan’s fans are predominantly Irish.

Mira HQ

Charter: MC Impostor

Genre: Space Rap

MC Impostor was involved in the destruction of the Skeld, which later became his venue when he joined the Screen Nexus Titans. He’s a runt in the Impostor species that can’t stab people with his tongue, so he carries a Desert Eagle and a butterfly knife on his person instead.

Craft-World

Charters: Humanized versions of The Legion of Stationery save for Stapler

Genre: Art Punk

The Legion of Stationery are what the Screen Nexus Titans got when a reunion occurred between Hole Punch, a Disco Star, Tape, a redeemed Mob Boss, Scissors, a Jungle Girl, Rubber Band, a Viking Opera Singer, and Colored Pencils, a war veteran who fought alongside Neon J. Hole Punch adopted Stapler, who was abandoned as a pup, and later went on to pass an audition for SNT elitehood with flying colors alongside the rest of the Legion. Despite their situation, they’re governing their district to the best of their ability. The Legion of Stationery are teachers in an art school, and recognizes Willow Tien “Obake” Wisp as one of their greatest students. Bunk Bed Junction made a mess in the Legion’s art studio during their battle against them, and Willow had the misfortune of walking in on it.

Strike Zone

Charter: Strike Man

Genre: Electronica

Once Strike Man learned his lesson in good sportsmanship, all manners of sports started to blossom in the Strike Zone District, even the Slugterran game of Slugball. Strike Man got the Thin Man a new TV after Bunk Bed Junction hit him toward his office and caused him to break the TV that the latter had.

Sunset Plaza

Charter: Ernesto de la Cruz

Genre: Mariachi

There have been whispers of rebellion against the Screen Nexus Titans from the Sunset Plaza District, which resembles a Mexican courtyard. Heap suspects that Ernesto and Kliff are spearheading said rebellion and has watched them closely ever since.

The SNT Tower

Prime Charter: Sir Janes The Thin Man

Genre: ???

The SNT Tower is home to The Thin Man of Little Nightmares 2’s fame. He was the undisputed prime charter of the Screen Nexus Titans until Bunk Bed Junction trounced him in a fight. Bunk Bed Junction wasn’t the first band that had a quarrel with him nor the last; the competition to get inside his office is fierce. The SNT Tower is also home to Nevada’s Sheriff and El Diablos Nacho, who was brought to Screen City from Slugterra’s Deep Caverns by the musical energies of qwasas controlled by the Screen Nexus Titans.

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confusedgoldenflower · 4 years ago

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There is No Glorious Purpose Chap. 2

Hello, you beautiful Tesseract-loving bastards!

I've been meaning for a long time to update but I've been having a really bad time with the whole motivation thing, and what I had first thought of doing with this fic got thrown in a wood-chipper and sunk with the Titanic... so, I'm trying to pick up the pieces and decide where I want to go with this. I also wanted to do it episodically: Chapter One aligned with Episode One and so on. That has not worked partly due to the issues of the above so, well, I guess we'll find out together!

So sorry for any grammar issues, I did my best to look it over but got too sick of staring at it over and over again in my drafts.

Small Thor cameo!

Chapter Two: You Oafs

“Yeah, well, you’re a mischievous scamp--or at least, the other you is. Been killing our minutemen and stealing our reset charges. Been happening for quite a long time….” Mobius whistled lowly. Loki nodded slowly.

“If you know me or us as well as you say, what need have you of my help?”

“Like I said, mischievous scamp. And I know what makes a Loki tick, sure, but even Sherlock needed Watson sometimes--you do know about them, right? Really fun stories with a super smart detective and his below average side-kick--.”

Loki ignored the rambling, “I agree.” Perhaps then… after… peace? “Just tell me, please… is it true that I directly led to my mother’s death?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah, definitely. Thor was pissed and then he dragged you along to Svart--Svartle… anyway, the planet of the Dark Elves with Jane because she absorbed the Aether. Then you faked your death, again . There’s that ‘doing a horrible thing then getting away,’ again. But Thor totally gets you back on Sakaar with those Obedience Disks. Yeah, yeah… oh, right, you don’t know--and won’t. He slaps one of ‘em on you when you betray him again, then dials it up all the way while he returns to Asguard. For a god, you get put down a lot .” Mobius chuckled.

Loki sucked in a shuddering breath, reverently laid the Tesseract down and stood, “let us catch this scoundrel then.” He faked a smile for the agent.

“Ok,” Mobius clapped and rubbed his hands together, “what a therapy session!”

Loki had a fleeting thought of, “he must be some Midguardian fool, possibly in some relation to Thor,” before he remembered that the all powerful Time Keepers had created the oaf in front of him.

“Ya know, for the record, maybe ‘undying fidelity,’ wasn’t the right thing to say to Thanos. Just saying. But this is good! We’re gonna be a great team.”

~~~@%*^*%@~~~

“Loki,” the orange clock whined on his ‘gifted’ desk. Though still somewhat transparent, Miss Minutes was a fairly good illusion.

“Yes?” He replied pleasantly, blue hand turning the page of a magazine. His slack-clad legs were propped on the desk, fine business shoes not too far from where she stood on a rather large book. The suit replacement of the prison wear wasn’t bad, he, of course, would have done better had he access to his seidr. But it was fine for the time being.

“Are you paying attention?” The angry little clock motioned to the old Midguardian computer screen which read in that same horrible orange color:

LET’S SEE WHAT YA KNOW!

Q2. Thanos has two apples. He eats both but realizes he wants more. He goes back in time 20 minutes and eats the apples again. Does this mean the apples will not have existed in the timeline he left?

No, because time is constantly happening

The question doesn’t matter because a branch cannot change another time branch

Thanos would’ve been hungry prior because the Grandfather paradox already accounted for the change in matter before it’s move.

TVA FILE EDIT VIEW MODE HELP

Of course he was paying attention, and of course he chose not to amuse them! One order after another; feeding off of each other even. He may have bowed to Thanos but he had never kneeled. Not truly. And he clung to that remaining dignity.

“Naturally,” he returned pleasantly. She sighed.

“What happens when a nexus event branches past red line?”

“Ragnarok.”

“Come on, Loki. What is it?... Loki!”

“It is when the TVA can no longer reset a nexus event. Are you satisfied?’

“Right. And that would lead to the destruction of the timeline and the collapse of reality as we know it.” He lowered the magazine lower into his lap and took his feet off the desk.

“Yes, indeed. Are you alive or a recording? Clearly, you can hear me.”

Her big cartoonish eyes moved around, “uh… sorta both?”

“So not an illusion or projection?” He swiped at her with the rolled up magazine.

“Ah!” A small smirk ghosted his face and he went after her again.

“Watch it! Where are your manners? Oh! Hey! Quit it! That is not nice, ya jerk!” She floated and then fazed back into the computer. He gave that ugly thing a few whacks as well. She pouted on the other side of the screen.

“Trainin’ going wel--is that my jet ski magazine? Put it down, Blue-Raz.” Mobius ripped the magazine from him, swivelled to his desk then swiveled again to flop a jacket in front of Loki.

“Gear up, there’s been an attack. Let’s go.” The agent commanded. Loki picked up the jacket. It unfolded from the collar, back facing him. “VARIANT” was emblazoned across it.

“Ah,” was all he commented as he moved to slip it on before his handler got any ideas while he was led down hallways. Norns knew the agent would have plenty of examples in his own life up to that point, much less his future or other variants.

“Good. Yeah. Smart.” Mobius commented with his fists in a move reminiscent of excited warriors as said human stopped to look back at his charge and the newly bestowed article of clothing. B-15 gave her usual droll stare. Her minutemen stood around her in a group.

“ C-20 and her team went dark shortly after they jumped into the 1985 branch. All signs point to another ambush. We've grabbed enough temporal aura to know it's our Loki Variant.”

The “actually dangerous” sort, Loki groused silently. Then Mobius opened his mouth.

“Here's the deal. When we get out on the branch, we're not just looking for a Time Criminal. We're looking for a Loki. A variation of this guy. A type we should all be very familiar with, because the TVA has pruned a lotta these guys, almost more than any other Variant. And no two are alike. Slight differences in appearances, or not so slight. Different powers, although, powers generally include shape-shifting, illusion-projection, and my favorite... Duplication-casting. Illusion-Projection.”

Mobius gestured to him when applicable in his little speech, also projecting other variations of Loki with his TemPad--all assumedly pruned likewise. Variation 8: L6792 looked exactly like he would now had he’d been afforded the luxury of keeping his clothes, but also with slight differences that led Loki to think that that variant must have been favored royally in some way he was rejected.

Variation 8: L1247 looked like a Midguardian sportsman happily holding a trophy of some kind. Variation 8: L6792 was an atrocity of him and the Hulk combined. Variation 8: L8914 was more strongly built with more prominent hair curls in their longer hair. They stood like dignitary with their hands behind them. Variation 8: L7803 looked like an oaf. A full, half-face helmet emblazoned with the horns in the wrong direction and even a piece of turf over the shoulder like a cape. Oh, dear….

“No.”

“...Huh?”

“Those two powers are completely different, although, I am unsurprised you cannot comprehend it.”

“Loki, what are you talking about--look, I’ve dealt with more of you than you’ve dealt with yourself.”

“The truth remains that those powers are not the same.”

“Then, please, Loki, tell me.”

Loki smiled easily and supplicatingly at the contempt and patronization, just like talking to anyone in Asguard.

“ Illusion-projection involves depicting a detailed image from outside oneself, which is perceptible in the external world, whereas duplication-casting entails recreating an exact facsimile of one's own body in its present circumstance, which acts as a true holographic mirror of its molecular structure.”

“Ok, take a breath. Noted. We’re gonna break into two teams, including myself and Professor Loki here”

B-15 still looked unamused and dubious.

“Whoever the Variant is, we haven’t been able to find them so I’m the Sherlock and he’s my Watson. Look, this’ll work.” Mobius said to her. She side-eyed Loki, Loki who had nothing but a branded jacket to protect himself with.

“And so my agency in this is to… tell you how brilliant you are.”

“Go outside, maybe touch some grass.” Mobius returned with a tilted smile under his twisted nose.

“Ah. I shall protect myself with your wit, then, should this superior being choose me as a next target.”

Mobius chuckled and mimed “talky-talky” again.

He passed through the portal B-15 had summoned, closed in on both ends by TVA agents. Immediately, he could feel his seidr swell within him again and redonned his Aesir glamor. The choker chafed as he glanced around, and he found himself much preferring the biting metal of the chains he was usually imprisoned in. The place they passed into was a celebration of old Midguardian times, further back than what the TVA modeled itself after, in direct juxtaposition of the modern technology with the humans held in their hands, and had used to both get to the location and create their sometimes elaborate costumes.

“Apex of nexus signature located, ma'am,” a minuteman said as they walked.

“Allow me to ask you this, why do we not travel to the moments prior to the Variant’s attack, to when they arrive.” Loki asked as the tent grew ever nearer.

“Nexus events destabilize the time flow. This branch is still changing and growing, so you gotta show up in real time. Did you watch any of the training videos you were supposed to?”

The minutemen twisted their batons, the ends glowing a shade that seemed to haunt the TVA as they neared.

Loki chuckled a laugh that was never and would never be heartfelt, “my dear Sherlock, you should know I am quite the scholar. But these ‘reset charges,’ they ‘prune’ a branched timeline which ‘allows time to heal all wounds.’”

Mobius made an odd gesture towards him, “he’s on it.”

Within the dark, torch-lit tent, limp minutemen laid about the displays which held real weapons and a large, stepped seating construct. Their bodies were splayed out in obvious struggle. Unactivated batons laid around as well, a few clenched in hands. A helmet bearing “C-20” laid, discarded within the scene. Loki hovered a hand over one display as he passed and they grouped around the scene.

“So he's taking hostages now?” B-15 spat.

“The Variant's never taken a hostage before,” Mobus returned.

“Maybe he's upping his game.”

“Or he pruned her,” a minuteman remarked.

“A Loki couldn't have gotten the jump on C-20.” B-15 returned.

“Fan out and search for her. And hurry up, we're at three units until red line.” B-15 ordered, her minutemen immediately moving to obey.

“Let's go. She's right.” A peon echoed.

Mobius concurred, “Come on.”

“Wait….” Loki said, brow knit as he studied the scene.

“What do you see?” Mobius asked as he stepped away from the entrance.

“I see wolf’s teeth.”

“Yeah, ok,” Mobius motioned for him to hurry and Loki got brief satisfaction that the human had no idea what he was talking about.

“‘Where there are wolf’s ears, there are wolf’s teeth,’” Loki echoed one of many sayings he heard during his childhood, especially before bed. He swallowed down the thought of a certain story about blue, darkly lined and vicious monsters.

“Ridiculous, really,” he laughed hallowly, “my people are gullible fools by nature. You remind me of them; the Time Variance Authority and the great gods of Asgard. One and the same. Drunk with power, blinded to the truth. Those you underestimate will devour you, and we’ve just walked into a wolf’s mouth.” He raked his eyes across his audience as he spoke, kneeling down in front of the helmet and stroking his hand in the grassy turf. The minutemen seemed to falter ever so slightly, B-15 rolled her eyes, and Mobius stared.

A TemPad beeped, “two units, he’s wasting our time.”

“No, step outside this tent and my other Variant will devour you,” Loki stated plainly. It was easy, nearly in a terrifying way, how he fell into the usual routine he had had with his oaf of a brother and his lackeys, who, similarly, never headed his words.

“We need to look for C-20.” B-15 repeated.

“Come on, Loki, we don’t have time for your lies.”

“Oh, I am not lying, and out of curiosity, when you find them, will you prune us both seeing as you will not have any need of me?”

Mobius sighed and gesticulated like a frustrated middle-aged Midguardian, “he’s lying.”

Loki’s head turned to the side minutely, in a ghost of a head shake. His stomach turned the way it usually did when he knew things were about to--.

“Aghr!” A minuteman had exited and had been consequently slaughtered. A brawl broke out just outside the small entrance. Innocent event-goers made exclamations outside as well. Batons revved, and B-15 and Mobius stalked to the opening. Loki walked behind them.

“The charge!” Someone yelled. The fight continued. A cloaked figure with amazing skill in combat fought them all while a crowd of civilians formed around them. There were a few smiles and jeers, no doubt thinking it was all a show.

“On behalf of t-... the Time Va-...Variance Authority, I hereby-... arrest you for-... for crimes against the… Sacred Timeline, V-… Variant!” B-15 huffed between blows.

“Ergh!” A minuteman got pruned. Loki’s cloaked variant said nothing, only continued fighting. He backed back into the tent, took aloft a jousting lance, broke it half and reemerged. For all their combined ability, the TVA was losing. The glow of pruning swung around arbitrarily. He dipped into the fight and caught his counterpart’s cutlass in the cross the two ends of the lance made.

“Pardon me, I mean no intrusion,” he said calmly to his other self, noticing a similar collar of metal that had adorned his own garments. He could feel the other’s tension as they reclaimed their sword and focused solely on him. It proved more of a poor decision than anticipated and he found himself holding his breath in pain more than he’d wanted. The wood was also useless and even though both it and he put up a valiant fight, his other self had taken hold of a baton along the line. His weapons were useless as they continued to share blows. He lowered the stubs of wood and opened his arms. The glowing end came close.

Then it wasn’t.

The grunting that followed was B-15 and Mobius disarming the variant of the baton and nearly restraining them.

“About to redline!” A remaining minuteman nearly yelled. B-15 and Mobius shared a look. A door was opened and Loki found the cloaked figure disappearing into a flurry of gold.

“What in the Rolling Stones was that, Blue-Raz?!” Mobius had him hard by the shoulder of both his jacket and dress shirt.

Loki blinked once then made eye contact with Mobius, “what ever do you mean?”

“He was about to kill you!”

“Prune,” Loki politely corrected. Mobius gawked.

“I kno--what were you thinking?!”

“Your only use of me is to capture me, I was assisting in that.”

“By letting you be killed by yourself?!”

“A mere distraction to the larger goal, Mobius.”

“And it almost worked,” B-15 piped from somewhere beside them. Her voice had dropped a tone or two.

“Yeah… almost had ‘im too.” Mobius admitted, letting Loki go. “But seriously, man, what was that?”

“Nearly fulfilling my role, as you yourself stated.” Loki replied pleasantly.

“We also barely pruned it in time and got outta there with our lives.” B-15 stated.

“Yeah…” Mobius rubbed the back of his head with his other hand on his hip as he stared at the floor. I was not lying, Loki wanted to say. To push. To scream. But he instead focused on the ache in his back. It should be fine in a matter of a few more hours given the time he had for recovery before the Tesseract opened the portal in New York and he was knocked from the Mind Stone’s, and thus Thanos’, direct influence.

~~~@%*^*%@~~~

Loki subconsciously touched his hideously blue palm as he waited outside of the judge’s office for his handler. The doors were decorated with sandglasses. How quaint .

Mobius finally emerged, stalking right past him. Loki fell in step behind him. He realized such only after he’d done it.

An angry finger wagged in front of him as they walked, “one thing, Loki, that’s all I asked.”

“The ‘talk’ from earlier.”

“No! Catching the superior version of yourself. We lost guys out there today-- good guys!” Good, yes, ‘good guys’ who also happened to have erased who knows how many people from existence.

“There would have been a lot more had I not been there and, likewise, a lot less had I been heeded.”

“And there you go again. That narcissism! Do you ever stop? Get tired of yourself?”

Loki didn’t respond as Mobius stopped and whirled on him, only gave him his schooled expression.

“I’m on thin ice ‘cause of you. I saved you, remember that? Didn’t that mean anything to your Asguardian standards or personal morals or anything?”

“If you recall, I was about to meet that fate regardless as I helped you bring in my Variant. I also have little doubt you will delete me if I survive assisting you in their arrest either way.”

“Oh, so I’m the bad guy? Ok. Well that other you is worse, remember that. He’s killed a lot of people--more than you. You’re just a little blue ice runt, crying in the cold.”

Loki chuckled and didn’t even need to bite back the urge to correct this “Loki expert.”

“Ever get tired of playing this same old part?” Mobius continued bitterly, “I’m getting sick of your constant need for sympathy, Loki!”

“Mobius?” He asked after allowing a few minutes to pass.

“What?” Mobius mumbled.

“This other Variant is after reset charges, why not supervise another ‘pruning’ in case we find the correct branch they target. How many happen in a day, usually?”

~~~@%*^*%@~~~

Loki almost choked when they entered into an Aguardian hall. The was beautiful and towering and held stones and architecture he could rewrite the books about. For one blissful second, he closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of his homeland--or the place he was raised. His glamor fell over him unconsciously.

Then he had to play follow-the-leader with the TVA peons. He rounded a large corner and immediately knew how many steps it would take to get to his room, his mother’s and Thor’s.

“Loki?” A familiar voice boomed. Loki tensed. Mobius cast him a “good luck” glance and mumbled, “I’ll be back for ya, Blue-Raz”

Loki had the urge to run him through followed by his brother who should not—it didn’t matter, the timeline would be reset. The Thor bounding up behind him would be pruned with everything else… why did that hurt? He turned to face his adopted sibling.

“Loki, it is you? Isn’t it? I mean you look horrendous in that getup, but it’s you!” Thor held his hands out in what could only be described as reverence. But the esteemed Asguardian Prince was wearing dirty Midguardian clothes and had a beer gut to match. How? Barely any time had elapsed between that moment and when they were facing down in New York.

“It is me but what happened to you, brother?”

A shadow came over Thor’s face. His hands lowered and he reached out to Loki.

“Tell me the truth,” he whispered, “did you just escape the dungeons?”

Loki held his gaze for a few long moments. The timeline will be reset. There is no harm in it.

“No, Thor, I never—this me never went to the dungeons. Never came back to Asguard.”

Thor hissed an inhalation of breath as his eyes widened.

“Thor what happened to you? Why do you have mismatched eyes? Where is your armor? Or Mjolnir?”

“Oh, Loki! Loki. Loki. Loki.” Thor’s voice trembled with false laughter and an emotion Loki didn’t know, “what--you look horrendous. What in the Nine Realms are you wearing?”

“Thor, it is good to see you, but I’m afraid I don’t have the time for a chat.” Loki returned, clipped. Redline grew ever nearer.

Thor’s face fell again, “Loki… just tell me you’re alive. That I didn’t fail you on the Statesmen--Thanos is dead now, I-I killed him! I-... I killed him… I avenged you.”

“Oh, Thor,” Loki found himself saying as Thor’s eyes shined and tears spilled onto his cheeks. He allowed himself to be squeezed in the other’s arms… and found it to be the best hug he’d ever received… or the only hug….

“Thor… Thor, are you listening?” Thor only sobbed into his shoulder, holding Loki up against his beer gut and off of the actual floor.

“Y-yes?”

“Very soon, this timeline will be reset which means you will have never seen me here. So tell me, what happened to you?”

Thor whined in the back of his throat and plopped Loki back down, it was just hard enough to make pain spike up his nearly healed spine.

“I--You--Thanos--.”

Loki laid his arms on Thor’s biceps, squeezing gently, Thor shuttered then took a breath and smiled fondly at him. Fondly. Thor never did that. What sort of--how is he not the Variation?

“So after Ragnarok, Thanos… had all the Stones and killed half of what was left of Asguard including you. I wasn’t able to--I’m sorry.”

“Just tell me, Thor, I am right here.”

“Then I was found by the space morons and went to Nidevelir to forge Storm Breaker because Hela broke Mjolnir before Sakaar--Ragnarok happened because of her. Then we battled with the Avengers in Wakanda and… I didn’t go for the head! How could I have not gone for the head?! Thanos snapped and…. It was horrible, brother. Absolutely horrible. The whole universe. And so many extinctions followed and more tragedies. I-....” He hung his head. “I tried to drown my worries like the ‘oaf’ I am….”

“I thought your annoying little group was the ‘Avengers’ not the ‘Alcoholics.’”

“... Ha!” Thor slapped him on the back. The statement seemed to have brought about the intended reaction.

“Yes! Of course! So five years later, we found him and I slayed him! But Tony and Scott found a way to move through time to get the stones to undo it all, and so we did, and we succeeded! But still, Thanos haunted us and we had a final battle--which we won!” Thor seemed to have noticed himself that he was about to go into one of his long winded stories of victory, and cut it short.

Then his smile abated and his beard fell, “Loki, Steve and Tony lost the Tesseract in 2012 to you…?”

“Yes, yes, that would be me, brother.”

A gasp of breath as Thor readied himself for the most bone crushing hug in the universe was all that was afforded to Loki.

“Thor,” he wheezed slightly, “I know I was not kindest to you but must you kill me prematurely?”

“Oh, Loki! I never threw you off the Bifrost, and I-!”

“Charge is set, we gotta boogie!” Mobius interrupted, jogging over.

Thor allowed the interruption if only to interrogate him, “and who are you? How and why do you command my brother? If you are with Tha-!”

To Loki’s astonishment, a few electrical charges emanate off of his brother.

“No, time to talk. Put Loki down We gotta get outta Dodge.”

Thor’s grip tightened, “Thor, just do it!” Loki groused. Thor did. Mobius opened the portal.

“Sorry, big guy, big fan but I need your Buddy. You ever think of trying Old Spice?”

“Ah--I just--Loki just returned to me as he always does and you expect me to just give up?!”

“Thor, do not follow us, I would rather not see you get deleted.”

Heavy feet crossed through the yellow threshold and left 2023 Thor in 2014 with a gaping mouth and tear stained cheeks.

“So no Loki!” Mobius announced as he clapped his hands together, “that means we gotta get to work!” He went on to walk at a brisk pace. Loki trailed after, blinking back the stinging in his now red eyes.

“I was of the understanding that is what we were doing,” he put a hand over his throat while he cleared it.

“I need you to go over each and every one of this Variant's case files, and then, give me your... How do I put it?... Your unique Loki perspective. And who knows? Maybe there's something that we missed.”

Seeing as how you are so hypocritical, I would be surprised if you had not missed anything. Honestly, “all you Lokis are the same” yet in the same breath, “no Loki variant is exactly alike.” I think as I do.

“You are the expert, I trust your judgement” Loki said instead.

“That's why I'm lucky I got ya for a little bit longer. Let me park ya at this desk. And don't be afraid to really lean into this work. Here's a good trick for you: pretend your life depends on it. I'm gonna get a snack.”

For all his countless hours spent in not only the Grand Library, but others around Asguard and the other Realms, he found himself having little interest in sifting through all the instances in which that other version of him overcame the great TVA and triggered more animosity against themselves--and all other Lokis.

“Any motive, Sherlock?” He asked dryly.

“That’s what you’re for!” The agent chuckled, poked at his chest and walked away.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched the agent walk away then turned his attention to the paperwork. The pattern was known to begin with but became… inane the more pages he flipped through: nexus event, dispensed TVA agents, the team goes silent, they’re found dead and without the reset charge, Mobius, the expert, is called in for investigation and then the branch is reset before redline.

One Loki… only one to best their happy little teams. I was bested, but I also have extenuating circumstances of the past year. Without Thanos’ interruption, could I have?... Yes, I fought alongside Thor and his foolish troup of warriors, I would have been able to exact my own damage. For a ‘timeline protection force,’ how are they schooled in combat?

“Pardon me,” he tapped the librarian’s bell. She turned to him with a nonplussed expression.

“Could you show me to the combat regimens of our dear agents?”

“No.”

“Infographics?”

“No.”

“Battle end-games?”

“No.”

“Well, you have been very helpful, thank you.” It was still a library after all and he more than knew his way around one seidr or not; his mind was still intact--somewhat intact and that had always been his greatest weapon.

So he sat back down at the table to form a plan of action, so to speak, of how he could find the files he wanted in the fastest and most assured way. But, he still had all the paperwork of this other Loki, dripping in red. Oozing. Gushing. Like Thor’s cape as yet more enemies were put to ruin under his brother’s sheer might. He never envied that red; never thought he could own it or have it become him… yet this other version had jumped--leapt into that pool of blood and ended all who stood in their way. Incapacitation would have sufficed. Has sufficed in innumerable cases. He’d both saved lives of his comrades and stupid brother, and saw the end goal in such a way.

He gasped and leapt up, running along the railing of the library.

“Mobius--.”

“No, I said, ‘don’t bother me until you’ve read all the files,’ and I know you don’t read that fast.” Mobius set his Js\osta down with a hard thonk .

“I have, but unimportant--.” Loki slid into the seat across from the agent in the cafeteria.

“No, read every file pertaining to the Variant.”

“The answer does not lie in the files, it lies on the timeline!” Mobius gave him a dangerous look at the slight raising of his voice. Loki took a breath.

“Look,” Loki began again with his arms fanning over the table, “they’re hiding in apocalypses.”

“Which one? There’s, like, a million?”

“Take Ragnarok, I assume you are familiar?”

“Yeah, total destruction of your weird coin planet and most of its people because of your sister Hela. I’m sorry.”

Sister? Hela? Thor mentioned her--unimportant now.

“Yes, well, that recent visit with Thor got me thinking…?”

Mobius regarded him but eventually sighed and sat back, making a small gesture, “yeah, sure, ok.”

“Nexus events happen when someone does something that is not meant to happen--.”

“A bit more complicated but yeah.”

“These can culminate into entire other timelines--.”

“Chaotic alterations of a predetermined outcome.” Loki did his best to ignore the interruptions. He forced animation into his movements as if trying to explain it to Thor. That was best, pretend he was explaining something that now seemed so basic to the warrior.

“Alright! So this is Asgard,” he plundered the agent’s salad bowl. Said agent gave sad push back. Loki continued.

“I could travel back to Asgard preceding Ragnarok and do whatever I wished; switch crowns, resoil linens, topple some columns. I could destroy the Rainbow Bridge.” He grabbed the small salt shaker and started pouring some in. Mobius mourned his food. Loki was not fed.

“None of this would matter. Not if I set fire to the courtyard. Or even killed the Allfather!”

“Why--Lo--God, Loki!”

“Excuse me,” Loki greeted Casey kindly at an adjacent table, “are you finished with this?”

Casey, who had his bunched napkin thrown on his plate in clear sign of being finished looked from his crumpled juice box to Loki, “you!”

“Yes, very nice to see you again,” Loki took the drink container and poured it into the salad, secretly relishing how the agent utterly deflated.

“Due to Surtur!” Loki finished.

Mobius rubbed his hand down his face, “what am I lookin’ at?”

“Apocalypses, Holmes.”

“Loki, you just apocalypse my lunch, I wanted to eat that!”

“You want my other Variant.”

Mobius leaned onto the table, “cut to the chase.”

“That is how they have escaped you for so long; no matter what happens, an apocalypse negates anything that would otherwise summon the TVA.”

“Oh, not bad. Not Bad. Hey, so, how do you weigh over five hundred pounds?”

That was a “jackknife”--as Midgaurdians may say--that he did not expect.

Mobius raised his hands, “hey, I’m not judging, just curious.”

“Focus, Mobius, please.”

“Ok, ok. My salad. Destroyed.” Another despondent hand waved at the bowl.

“I can show you my theory is true.”

Mobius laughed, “I’m not letting you go.”

“You come with me, naturally,” Loki pushed.

“Well, I’ve had enough of your troublemaking for one day.”

“No one has to know unless I am correct--which I am.”

“TVA agents can’t just go running around anyway. Waltzing into the White House would be a Nexus event.”

You are not listening!

“Pompeii, for instance, you Midguardians like talking about that catastrophe, we could go there!”

“Pompeii?”

“Pompeii. Everyone died and that town was not even the worst hit of the eruption of Vesuvius.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Talk, talk, talk. Oh, you’re so smart!” Mobius sneered and wiped his mouth with his napkin despite not having spilled anything much less eaten enough to make a mess of his face. No food for either of them it seemed.

“If I go along with this and you stab me in the back, you’re getting erased. Capische?”

“Understood,” I am fully expecting that regardless.

#loki #loki series #loki show #Loki Show Rewrite #loki series rewrite project #loki series rewrite fanfic #loki fanfic #loki fanfiction #cannon non-compliant #gentle reminder that just because a character says something doesn't make it true

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theonyxpath · 5 years ago

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Now available in PDF from DriveThruRPG: Vigil Watch Chapter 4: The Iron Court!

Ghelspad Expanded!

Ghelspad is a massive and diverse land. Once a paradise, this continent is now scarred by the ravages of the Titanswar. In the wake of divine bloodshed, and beset on all sides by titanspawn, the people of Ghelspad survive and thrive on this befouled continent. Vigil Watch explores six different locations across Ghelspad.

From the bloody shores of the Toe Islands in the east to the Sweltering Plains of the west, Vigil Watch provides an in-depth look at a variety of locales and cultures.

Vigil Watch Part Four details the roving city of the Iron Court, home to the Ironbred, and provides the first deep dive into Ironbred culture in the Scarred Lands!

Also available for Astral Tabletop: the Gauntlet of Spiragos! Load up Astral, log in, and you should see Gauntlet among the New Quickstart Games to the right.

For centuries, titans bestrode the world, colossal heads and shoulders lost in the clouds, carelessly smashing and crushing all beneath. When the youngest of them had enough and declared war on their ancient parents, even the land itself suffered. These scars of the Divine War, which ended less than 200 years ago, have still not healed.

One such scar is the Chasm of Flies, a rent in the earth created when the titan Spiragos the Ambusher was smitten down by one of the young gods, Vangal the Ravager. Now, the Chasm is inhabited by spider-eye goblins and their spider allies, but it is also thought to be the resting place of powerful artifacts from that elder age.

“Gauntlet of Spiragos” is a Scarred Lands adventure designed for 1st level characters, although it can be easily modified for characters of up to 5th level.

Merch

Now you can go out with these vitakinetic-approved fabric face masks, available from our RedBubble store:

Æsculapian Order (fabric masks)

Chitra Bhanu (fabric masks)

ISRA (fabric masks)

Legions (fabric masks)

Ministry of Noetic Affairs (fabric masks)

Norça (fabric masks)

Orgotek (fabric masks)

Upeo wa Macho (fabric masks)

Æon Trinity (fabric masks)

Sales

The Dog Days of Summer sale continues on Indie Press Revolution until the end of August, or while supplies last. Get 50% off your favourite WoD deluxe editions!

Kickstarter Update

Our latest Kickstarter, They Came from Beyond the Grave!, ended last week, and funded in under five hours! We closed out at $56,188 of our $20,000 goal, or 281%, thanks to our 1072 backers, and we’ve hit several stretch goals:

Director’s Screen

Monsters from the Crypt!: Gruesome creatures x3

Backer T-Shirt

Digital Wallpaper

Tales of Depravity!: Supplemental scenarios x3

Enter a World of Horror!: Ready-made PCs

Coming up next: Scion: Demigod

Did you miss one of our previous Kickstarters? The following Kickstarted products are still open for preorders via BackerKit:

Trinity Continuum: Trinity Continuum: Aberrant

Vampire: The Masquerade: Cults of the Blood Gods

Mage: The Ascension: Technocracy Reloaded

Chronicles of Darkness: The Contagion Chronicle

Chronicles of Darkness: Deviant: The Renegades

Chronicles of Darkness: Hunter: The Vigil 2nd Edition

Chronicles of Darkness: Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition

Community Spotlight

The following community-created content for Scarred Lands has been added to the Slarecian Vault in the last week:

Your product could be here! Have you considered creating your own to sell?

The following community-created content for Realms of Pugmire has been added to Canis Minor in the last week:

Your product could be here! Have you considered creating your own to sell?

The following community-created content for Storypath has been added to the Storypath Nexus in the last week:

Scion: Mysteries of the Otherworld

Scion: Imperium

Trinity Continuum: Ride or Die: A Compendium of Modern Vehicles

Trinity Continuum: House Rules: The Basics

Your product could be here! Have you considered creating your own to sell?

#Onyx Path Publishing

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borderlore · 6 years ago

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Customization Skins Drop Guide: Claptrap the Fragtrap

Continued in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel! was the ability to customize the player’s character with a variety of Skins and Heads. With numerous Heads and Skins to choose from, it should be an obvious answer that not all of these are immediately obtainable by the player. A large majority of both are found by looting, killing, and completing Challenges. From having to fight Raid Bosses to turning in Missions, this guide is meant to inform the player on who to kill, where to loot, and which Challenges to complete in order to further customize their favorite Vault Hunters to their liking.

Carmine and Yours

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Space Dead

Rank: 3

Scarlet Text

Drop Source: Corporal Bob

Enemy Location: Hyperion Hub of Heroism

Dark Side

Drop Source: Red Belly

Enemy Location: Crisis Scar

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “A New Direction”

The Mission “A New Direction” must be turned in to farm RedBelly.

Marooned

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Martial Marshal

Rank: 3

Overclocking

Drop Souce: Powersuit Noob

Enemy Location: Lunar Launching Station

Mission Location: Lunar Launching Station

Mission: “Red, Then Dead”

The Mission “Red, Then Dead” must be turned in to farm Powersuit Noob.

Turquoise Finish

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “Grinders”

Acrid Green

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Barrel of Laughs

Rank: 3

Ooh Sparkly

Drop Source: Tiny Destroyer

Enemy Location: Research and Development

Mission Location: Research and Development

Mission: “Lab 19″

The Mission “Lab 19″ must be turned in to farm the Tiny Destroyer.

Tender Green

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Nova Say Die

Rank: 3

Cat Eye

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: A Chunk of Purest Green

Rank: 3

Primaries

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Unt at Zem

Rank: 5

Blue Screen

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Abandoned Training Facility

Mission: “DAHL Combat Training: Round 4″

The Shock Drop Slaughter Pit is required to access the Abandoned Training Facility.

Blue Light

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Battle Star

Rank: 5

Shiny Shiny

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Research and Development

Mission: “Fresh Air”

Deep Blue

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Drive For Miles

Rank: 3

Retro Stylin

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Outlands Canyon

Mission: “Boomshakalaka”

Daisy Daisy

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Master Chef

Mission: 3

Safety First Claptrap

Drop Source: Boomer

Enemy Location: Outlands Spur

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “Nothing Is Never an Option”

The Mission “Nothing Is Never an Option” must be turned in to farm Boomer.

Sun Bleached

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Splat’n’Slide

Rank: 3

Bold Gold

Drop Source: X-STLK-23

Enemy Location: Research and Development

Mission Location: Research and Development

Mission: “Science and Violence”

The Mission “Science and Violence” must be turned in to farm X-STLK-23.

Orangeade

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Crash & Burn

Rank: 3

Sunset

Drop Source: Not Cute Badass Tork

Enemy Location: Stanton’s Liver

Mission Location: Triton Flats

Mission: “All the Little Creatures”

The Mission “All the Little Creatures” must be turned in to farm the Not Cute Badass Tork.

Retro Cyber

Drop Source: Iwajira

Enemy Location: Serenity’s Waste

Amber Fluid

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Slayer of Titans

Rank: 3

Sour Apricot

Drop Source: Rooster Booster

Enemy Location: Stanton’s Liver

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “Grinders”

The Mission “Grinders” must be turned in to farm Rooster Booster.

Eco Friendly

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Home Nade Cookin’

Rank: 5

Mudflap

Drop Source: Badass Tork

Enemy Locations: Stanton’s Liver, Outlands Canyon, Sub-Level 13, Titan Industrial Facility, & Research and Development

Gym Clothes

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: There Can Be Only...Me

Rank: 5

Happy Blue

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Over The Moon

Rank: 3

Metal Highlights

Drop Source: Giant Shuggurath of Ice

Enemy Location: Triton Flats

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “Bunch of Ice Holes”

The Mission “Bunch of Ice Holes” must be turned in to farm the Giant Shuggurath of Ice.

Hazey

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Big MIRV

Rank: 3

Patched Up Purple

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Scrounging Around

Rank: 3

Indi Go Go

Drop Source: Deadlift

Enemy Location: Regolith Range

Mission Location: Serenity’s Waste

Mission: “Marooned”

The Mission “Marooned” must be turned in to farm Deadlift.

UltraViolent

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Regolith Range

Mission: “Last Requests”

Black Box

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Veins of Helios

Mission: “Trouble with Space Hurps”

Toner Low

Drop Source: The Bosun

Enemy Location: Pity’s Fall

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “Intelligences of the Artificial Persuasion”

The Mission “Intelligences of the Artificial Persuasion” must be turned in to farm The Bosun.

Oh So Sassy

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: The Happiest Colour

Rank: 5

One Red Sock

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: More Where That Came From

Rank: 3

Magenta Who

Drop Source: Colonel Zarpedon & The Empyrean Sentinel

Enemy Locations: Eye of Helios & Eleseer

Mission Locations: Lunar Launching Station

Mission: “Eye to Eye” & “The Beginning of the End”

Colonel Zarpedon will not respawn after killing her.

The Mission “The Beginning of the End” must be turned in to farm The Empyrean Sentinel.

Hint of Lavender

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Home Nade Cookin’

Rank: 3

Scav Rustbukkit

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Scav Oxidyze

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Boomstick Boogie

Rank: 3

Scav Skorch

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Projectile Proliferation

Rank: 5

Dahl Fatigues

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Dahl NCO

Drop Source: Felicity Rampant

Enemy Location: Titan Robot Production Plant

Mission Location: Concordia

Mission: “Let’s Build a Robot Army”

The Mission “Let’s Build a Robot Army” must be turned in to farm Felicity Rampant.

Dahl Stencil

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Crouch Potato

Rank: 5

Hyperion Boldness

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Hyperion Courage

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Spray Job

Rank: 3

Hyperion Defender

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Penetrating Wound

Rank: 5

Jakobs Values

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Jakobs Ideals

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Trigger Happy

Rank: 3

Jakobs Quality

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Gun Slinger

Rank: 5

Spirit by Maliwan

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Sophistication by Maliwan

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Pew Pew

Rank: 3

Solace by Maliwan

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Some Like it Hot

Rank: 5

Tediore Economical

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Tediore After Market

Drop Source: Slot Machines

Slot Combination: 777

Tediore Top Shelf

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Throw Me the Money

Rank: 5

Torgue Nitrous

Drop Source: Slot Machines

Slot Combination: 777

Torgue Blast Point

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Assault with a Deadly Weapon

Rank: 3

Torgue Shock Front

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Missile Magnet

Rank: 5

Vladof Worker

Drop Source: Item of the Day/Vending Machines

Vladof Hammer

Drop Source: Challenge Reward & Slot Machines

Challenge: Sharp Shooter

Rank: 3

Slot Combination: 777

Vladof Comradeship

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Ammo Eater

Rank: 5

Snick-It Whites

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Vorago Solitude

Mission: “The Don”

DLC Skins:

Eridian Mistaken

Drop Source: Mission Reward & Guardian Pondors

Mission Location: The Holodome

Enemy Location: The Holodome

Mission: “Digistructed Madness: Round 1″

The Holodome is only available in The Holodome Onslaught.

N-D-GO

Drop Source: Teh Earworm

Enemy Location: Cluster 99002 0V3RL00K

Mission Location: The Nexus

Mission: “You Can Stop the Music”

The Mission “You Can Stop the Music” must be turned in to farm Teh Earworm.

The Nexus is only available in Claptastic Voyage.

Too Violet for TV

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: Claptomaniac

Rank: 3

The Challenge Claptomaniac is only available in Claptastic Voyage.

Digi-Kam

Drop Source: Challenge Reward

Challenge: 99 Problems and a Glitch Ain’t One

Rank: 5

The Challenge 99 Problems and a Glitch Ain’t One is only available in Claptastic Voyage.

Couch Cushion

Drop Source: The Sponx

Enemy Location: Subconscious

Mission Location: Subconscious

Mission: “The Temple of Boom”

The Mission “The Temple of Boom” must be turned in to farm The Sponx.

The Subconscious is only available in Claptastic Voyage.

Och Aye!

Drop Source: Mission Reward

Mission Location: Motherlessboard

Mission: “Corrosion of Dignity”

The Motherlessboard is only available in Claptastic Voyage.

Saturday Morning

Drop Source: LootBug.awesome

Enemy Locations: Motherlessboard, Cluster 00773 P4ND0R4, Cluster 99002 0V3RL00K, & Subconscious

The LootBug.awesome is only available in Claptastic Voyage.

#Borderlands #Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!#Customization #Claptrap the Fragtrap #Drop Guide

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trashpandaorigins · 6 years ago

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Infinity War Abuse and Trauma: A Call for Accountability

Infinity War. This movie is exhausting to watch. It is an ordeal to sit through and left my stomach turning for days after seeing it.I had trouble sleeping, in the pit of my guts twisted with tumultuous anxiety and I couldn’t exactly figure out why. People would ask me how the movie was and I’d answer shortly that “it was terrible.” I didn’t want to talk about it. But why? I’d been looking forward to this movie for years! Yet for the life of me I could not articulate what it was about this film that left me deeply uncomfortable. It has taken me over a year to fully reckon with why Infinity War made me feel so disturbed and frankly, gross. Finally after many discussions with friends and reading reviews and watching video essays (most notably Movie’s With Mikey’s Let’s Talk About Thanos video which I will link to at the bottom of this page). But now can finally share with you what it was about IW that profoundly affected me. I am not the first person to criticize IW, I’m not the first person to write about the ways in which this movie is damaging, nor should I be. I just want to contribute my own insight and point of view to the conversation. As a fan, as a woman, as a person who has survived abuse and trauma. We will get to that. Hopefully I’ll still have followers when this is done. Deep breath friends, in...good. Out….okay, let’s go.

Call me a pansy, but I do not like watching characters whom I love and have grown attached to suffer insentient misery without reprieve or reward. It’s not fun, it’s not thrilling and it certainly isn’t entertaining. We go to these Marvel movies because they are fun and they give us hope. If we don’t have a sense of wonder and adventure then why are we even watching these movies? Captain America, Thor Ragnarok Winter Soldier, GOTG, these films were good because they gave us people to route for. Interesting fun stories, not to mention stakes that aligned with the narratives to boot.

Because these are our heroes however flawed they may be. Marvel literally built an empire off this nostalgia from comic books and good ole’ good guys vs. bad guys. I already touched on this concept in the very first (mostly emotion driven keyboard pounding blurb Infinity War Was Tragedy Porn). I won’t harp on the point but let’s just say that there is enough pain and grief in the world already. We know people who persevere still loose in the end. We know because we live it every day. So watching our favorite characters like Steve, Bucky, Natasha, Thor and others suffer relentlessly is not something people necessarily want to see. It isn’t compelling or interesting it’s just...a lot.

For me it really came down to two characters in particular. Gamora and Rocket. The mangy little raccoonoid has always been my favorite guardian and certainly my favorite Marvel character. This is in part, because of his relatability. (A talking enhanced raccoon relatable? Oh don’t worry I already wrote that little essay: Coping Healing and Physical Trauma or Why This Trash Panda is So Damn Relatable). Let’s cut right to the chase because we have a lot to get through here-bare with me I’m gonna get real for a second. I have poured a lot of my own pain, my own sorrow and my own trauma into this racoucious ringtail. Is this healthy? Probably not. Is it better than the numerous other ways I could cope? Undoubtedly.

I’m not alone in doing this either. Most fans relate to and project their own lived experiences on to fictional characters. In my case, Rocket’s journey throughout GOTG Vols 1 & 2 very much mirrors my own story. So when I sat in the theatre watching him loose Groot (again), I felt physically ill. To watch a character who has come so far, who has had to do some serious soul searching and endure incredible grief and pain, be kicked down back to where he was before GOTGVol1; alone and scared and trying to exist in a world where his own existence is an anomaly? That hurt. It made me feel hopeless and helpless and that is not why I watch Marvel films. Rocket is a character who has suffered and lost but he has kept going. Relentlessly surviving and that is inspirational but the fact that the writers had him loose not only Groot, (again) but the only people who have ever loved him and stood by him despite of his flaws was really hard to watch. He cannot escape loneliness and isolation even after finding a family. He is back to square one. More like square -1 because at least when we first meet him he has a partner. Watching Rocket loose everything after working so hard to get something anything, it made me feel like the own struggles in my life and my own efforts to grow and heal...were useless and worthless. If watching Rocket loose Groot and subsequently the rest of the guardians made me feel like vomiting in the theatre then Gamora’s death was near unbearable to witness.

Gamora’s death was wrong in so...so many ways. I hope I can articulate some semblance of that here. When we are first introduced to her she has successfully escaped her abuser. She is beginning to establish her own identity and find her own self worth apart from her past apart from being “the lackey of a genocidal maniac.” Throughout GOTGVol1&2 Gamora shows that she is a deeply compassionate person who empathizes with others so much that she would readily risk her own life to protect a planet she has no attachment to. Like Rocket she too finds a family with the Guardians. She found people who accept her for herself, apart from her attachment to Thanos. Gamora is healing from her abuse while coming to grips with the abhorrent actions she’s committed. She has come so incredibly far and then...then she is killed and not just killed, murdered, brutally by her abuser. Infinity War glorifies abuse and violence using it as a plot device. It is obviously not the first film to do this, far from it but the issue is that this act of brutality is intended to make us feel sympathetic, not for Gamora. For Thanos. That is beyond sickening and it is not lost on me that the two people Thanos tortures the most are women. While the mad titan himself is a charactercher of masculinity. A hyperbolic representation of a self-proclaimed genius authoritarian. A man who is willing to do what it takes for the good of the universe, and isn’t it just so sad that no one understands him? He’s painted as a martyr. Infinity War plays with not only brutal tragedy but the violence and suffering of women; using it as leverage for shock value.

I have talked about this movie with many, many people and so far the only people who leap to Thano’s defense are men. I have yet to hear any woman argue on his behalf. “But he’s crazy!” They argue, leaping to his defense with disturbing readiness sometimes eagerness. “That just shows how evil he is!” If that is true then why did the soul stone reveal itself after Gamora’s death? If that was truly the intention then the stone would not have worked showing us that no Thanos did not actually love Gamora. But it did work and the very fact that it did proves the point. “She’ll come baaack,” they chide. That is not the point. The point is that for many of us who have survived abuse watching Thanos torture Nebula and murder Gamora shows us an abuser who wins.

I can’t help but wonder if this story would be different were Infinity War had a more diverse creative team behind it. Another argument I often hear is “it’s for the plot! They needed to have a big dramatic sacrifice! It’s just a superhero movie!” This really irks me because there in exists an implicit ignorance and selfishness. An unwillingness to fully understand or at the very least acknowledge the larger contextual nexus of political, social, gender and sexual issues going in our world right now. Infinity War ignores the very world in which it is created and consumed and ignores the very fans it strives to appeal for. You cannot separate reality from fantasy, not so long people who live in reality reading, watching and consuming that fantasy. The Marvel movies don’t have to be socio political commentaries but they do have a responsibility to be aware of different lived experiences of their fans. It’s not about whether or not Marvel has a psychotherapist or if there are trauma informed screen plays. It’s about the people sitting in the director's chair and in the writers room. People who have different lived experiences making the decisions about these movies. How many women oversaw the writing, direction and production of Infinity War? How many people of color and queer people?

My guess is not many. Infinity War was indifferent to the impact that it had upon its viewers and must be held accountable. They must come to grips with the fact that the choices they made and the pain they chose to thrust upon beloved characters has had a coercive effect on many of their fans because it was directed primarily by men who hold enough privilege in our society that they don’t have to think about these things. This film is, as so many other forms of media still are-despite recent efforts to move forward-created by and for men. A specific type of white heterosexual man. A many who has never been abused.

For those of us who are not straight white men Infinity War is a kick in the guts. It shows us that our struggles are futile, our trauma a spectacle to be exploited and in the worst cases mocked. The misery and unyielding destitute hopelessness of our beloved characters tells us that there is no hope. With particular attention to Gamora and Nebula Infinity War teaches us that abuse is love and that people who abuse are the ones to be sympathized with and understood. Do Anthony and Richard Russo or Kevin Feige care about this? I highly doubt it. Otherwise they would not push for and celebrate the narratives of an psychopathic abuser. They would not herald Thanos as sympathetic and praise worthy. They are trying to be edgy and different when all it really is is myopic, egotistical and downright cruel and zealous. I don’t think that the Russo’s or Fiege or any man involved in the production of Infinity War is a bad person or that they intentionally did this. But they are insensitive ignorant and they must be held accountable by fans, by other creatives in the industry and they must do better with End Game.

This is especially frustrating coming off the heels of movies like Black Panther, Wonder Woman, Into The Spider Verse. Movies that were cognizant of the realities in which they were made and the experiences of their fans and actively used that to create powerful stories. Infinity War just feels dates and ignorant. A product of the gamergate culture we are still steeped in.

I am going to see End Game next Saturday and I will do my best to see it with an open mind. Ultimately I will judge the next Avengers movie by how, as another fan worded it, how they treat Nebula and Gamora; the who who are incidentally the only two people who truly deserve to kill Thanos in my opinion. If they are able to construct a well written narrative that gives them agency I will count End Game as a success. I will also judge it by how they wrap up the endings of our other favorite characters. Giving Steve and Bucky, Thor, Tony, Bruce, Natasha and the rest of them an ending that they deserve. A satisfying conclusion to their journeys and rewarding payoff for all that they have gone through and endured for over ten years and a satisfying conclusion for us too.

So where does this leave us? The subject of accountability. The creators behind Infinity War must be held accountable for their ignorance. I would encourage you as you are willing and able to write, post on social media and make known your honest feelings about this movie. As fans we hold tremendous power, by speaking up, signing petitions, etc we can continue to push for more diverse stories that are sensitive, adventurous and appealing. We can advocate for more women, people of color and LGBTQIA+ representation not just on the screen but behind it as well. In the production and the directors chair. The industry is changing...slowly and not completely but it is. Look again at the past few Marvel movies. We can make a difference and we can hold people accountable for their ignorance. We can stop watching movies or TV shows, (take the Walking Dead for example, I know many people who ceased watching that show after Glen’s grotesquely miserable death). We can make a difference in who gets to write/direct/produce movies. We’ve already come a long way, but we can go further. Whatever it takes!

#my writing #infinity war #mcu #marvel #gotg #avengers #end game #the russos #personal #gamora #gamora deserved better #nebula #rocket raccoon #groot #steve rogers better get a happy ending god dammit

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lycosa83 · 6 years ago

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Posthumous review of “The Order”

Show: The Order

Genre: Supernatural Drama

Network: Netflix Original

Premiered: March 7, 2019

From Buffy the Vampire Slayer down through The Vampire Diaries and the host of its descendants, few television genres can claim the same degree of bloated over-extension as the tangled web of productions known collectively as "the paranormal drama." Whether we’re talking vampires or werewolves, ghosts or witches, or all of the above, you can’t throw a stone anywhere in TV Land without hitting someone baring fangs or weaving a magical incantation while tenaciously necking with a gorgeous co-star in between P.E. and Chemistry 101. Netflix, of course, had long ago planted its bi-colored flag atop this mound of fecund dollar returns, with The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Stranger Things but the more circulated shows in this genre falling under its established corporate stamp. And into this nexus of internet savvy, media business, and supernatural fantasy they toss yet another original series: The Order, created by Dennis Heaton, which premiered on March 7th and aims for a slice of the lucrative paranormal pie with an attractive cast and a little twist on the supernatural drama which adds some pop to its wardrobe. Okay, so I’m a little late to the party — as in, nearly a month late — and I'm sure everyone who’d been hellbent on watching it had probably binged it the very weekend it came out. But to the one or two of you out there who missed the memo, or have been buried under Netflix recommends for the past several fortnights, if you’ve missed this little morsel in your lists, it may be worth taking up now and giving the old college look-see.

Synopsis

We're introduced to Jack Morton (Jake Manley), a baby-faced freshman who's “fresh” in every sense, standing over his mother’s grave while he reads aloud a letter fulfilling his apparent lifelong ambition of getting into the illustrious Belgrave University, a school with old money rules and more than a few dark secrets. But for Jack and his maternal grandfather (Matt Frewer), his acceptance isn’t a cue to start a four-year binge of parties and student life. They are men on one peculiar mission: enter Belgrave, infiltrate a secret and powerful fraternal society centered in the campus known as "the Order," and find a way to strike at its mysterious leader Edward Coventry (Max Martini), who also happens to be Jack’s biological father and the supposed nefarious scoundrel behind his mother's demise. But there’s more afoot than mere skulduggery from an oligarchic secret society; the Order hides a darkly magical secret, and as Jack falls deeper into a web of supernatural intrigue, he gets locked in a paranormal conflict way outside what he signed up for.

The Good

The best thing The Order has going for it is a delightful and irreverent sense of humor. Unlike the flood of supernatural series spilling over Netflix and other stations’ time slots, The Order approaches the supernatural with a casual air and a delightful sense of whimsy that somehow avoids reducing or trivializing its inherent danger. Jack doesn’t stumble into the paranormal ring as a hopelessly naive newcomer; though the world of magic and werewolves slips a teensy bit outside his grandfather’s preparations, Jack takes it, if not quite in stride, than with a great deal more grace and wit than the average schmoe. I know “likeable” is about as bland and nondescript a compliment as you can make of a character these days, but the glove definitely fits, and watching him bumble his way through college is more joy than irritation thanks in no small part to Manley's effortless charisma. Jack's misadventures merely sets the beat to this deliciously off-key drummer, where the supernatural gets introduced and incorporated with all the flare and gravitas of a dorm inspection, and several tense moments defuse on a cheeky quip or turn of the phrase. Rather than grounds for pulling my hair out, these moments of lightness add flavor to the broth, like the comically PC tour of the modern college campus where freshmen receive both a rape whistle, and a “how not to rape” pamphlet. The show knows not to take itself too seriously, and yet avoids falling into the trap of (overt) self-aware pastiche like the million or so similar series gunking up the airwaves and interwebs. In that happy medium, The Order finds a contrasting voice to the myriad of dark, paranormal, Grimmified fairy tales littering the market.

The Bad

Unfortunately, this lighter shade does come with a few bad palettes. For one, there’s the all-encompassing cheese factor to consider whenever anything like this series pops up. The dialogue, while whimsical and pleasant most of the time, can veer into the obnoxious on occasion. This mainly comes to the fore with Jack’s awkward and janky “romantic” slog with Alyssa Drake, a fellow Belgrave student, campus tour guide, and his eventual superior once he joins the Order, who's played by the generally charming Sasha Grey. Their dynamic fells forced and stiff, like two neophyte thespians reading their lines and the implied emotion thereof on each others’ foreheads. I know they’re supposed to be in college, and trust me, I remember just how little the maturity level of an inbound freshman can differ from the high school knuckleheads they evolve from. But their chemistry sizzles with all the pop of a damp towel, and as entertaining as they are separately, they looked the polar opposite of dazzling at every turn of their screen time together. Thankfully, this little gaffe remains the only stink I’m willing to point out. Adjusting your expectations for this series (it is a paranormal teen drama/thriller, after all) means letting go a bit of the critical scalpel and suspending any comparisons to genre titans and path breakers, like the aforementioned Buffy or The Vampire Diaries.

The Ugly

Good lord, you may as well call this show Your Mileage May Vary: the Series. Though The Order is low-key and innocuous enough to escape the type of hard-nosed scrutiny that leads fans along divisive extremes, so much of its content can be a hit or miss for practically everyone. Is Jack a funny, enjoyable main lead, or an irritating, bland, cookie-cutter protagonist; does the mystery of the plot invite intrigue and speculation, or is it a snooze fest out of place with the rest of the story? The fact that it doesn’t take itself as seriously as other shows of its kind, while a supreme strength in my eyes, may invite legitimate accusations of derailment due to breaking the atmosphere and heaping piles of cheese atop it. Seriously, there’s something for everyone to love or hate in equal measure, with only your mood to decide which way the windsock blows at any given moment.

To Bing or Not to Binge

Knock yourself out and Binge to your heart’s content. Yes, the show’s derivative, and yes, it's a hot ticket to Cheesyville at its very worst, but that’s as close to a nadir as you’ll likely get. There’s no ground to break here or new paradigms a-shifting; just good, old fashioned comedy-drama, with a refreshingly irreverent eye on the paranormal. Speaking as someone a little miffed by the borderline apocalyptic tone so many of these series flash like a Boy Scout badge, I find it The Order's fresh humor and fresher protagonists must welcomed divergence.

#the order #review #shows #netflix #original #supernatural #werewolves #witches

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