#cloudling

[sugarysketches]

.:Originally made September 22nd, 2023:.

Sleepyheads

[left character uses fae/fem pronouns, center character uses xey/xem, right character uses she/xey]

[nightly-productions]

Marvin having a little rest after a good few hours of reading and studying 💤

[insolitus-academy]

♚ //  Face Claim

Full name Face Claim: Kang Yeosang

Group/Band/Occupation: Ateez

Nationality: Korean

Faceclaim age: 24 years old

  ♚ // Character ;  Basic information

Quote: “I walk around like everything’s fine, but deep down, inside my shoe, my sock is sliding off.”

Full name character: Kang Yeosang

Nickname: Sangie (Mostly only his parents call him this)

Realm of birth(if earth, nationality): A small cloud city

Age: 24 years old

Date of Birth: June 15, 1999

Gender: Non-binary

Preferred Pronouns: He/They

Race: Cloudling

Sexual Orientation: Gay

What languages does your character speak?: Korean, Stilted English

What is the level of Korean and how did they learn to speak it: Yeosang often visited the Human realm with his friends to explore different cities and experience what the other areas in the Earthly realm have to offer. Korea, in particular, was a country they often went to mainly because their cloud city was just above it.

  ♚ // Character ; Appearance

Skin Color: Fair (with a slightly purple sheen)

Eye color: Gray / Light Blue

Scars: A red-ish birthmark by his left eye, near his temple (he usually covers it up when he goes out)

Piercings: N/A

Tattoos: N/A

Hair color: Dark Brown (But changes depending on his moods and thoughts)

Abnormalities: His hair takes on the form of clouds, and sometimes even has tiny imaginary birds or an air balloon floating by. He also has a little bit of a lisp.

Transformed form: Yeosang’s cloud form looks like a standard cloud, though he does like taking on the shape of different animals (if the weather allows) in the hopes that people point him out and take photos of him

♚ // Character ; Personality 

Six personality traits: Extroverted, Loyal, Sensitive, Possessive, Curious, and Persistent

Likes: Soft plushies, hot milk, thick comforters, cute hair clips, and printed photos

Dislikes: Mirrored windows, tall skyscrapers, beaches, the dark, and velcro

Manias: None

Phobias: Enclosed spaces

Animal: Panda

Religion: N/A

Favorite song: A journey – Wonpil (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gR8kqgv9oc)

Vice: Greed

Virtue: Kindness

Personality Description: 

Yeosang is very happy-go-lucky, taking on life with the thought that “everything has a reason” and not really planning much for the future. He’s very friendly and is the type to make small talk with people, barreling past all social queues when it comes to “topics you shouldn’t talk about with strangers” and “things you shouldn’t do to people you just met.”

One thing about him is that he never means any harm. He’s very much unaware that good intent doesn’t matter if it results in a bad impact. Yeosang’s the type to do what he thinks would help others, oftentimes forgetting to consider what the person involved would actually want and simply steamrolling over them. He’s definitely learning, though, and looks at the world with eyes full of wonder and curiosity.

Plus, Yeosang doesn’t really know the privilege he has, not really aware that he can only live life like this because he’s provided for by his family, who much prefers to live in their cloud city. He’s a bit spoiled in the sense that he’s never had to ask for anything. So while he doesn’t know how to speak up and ask for this and that, he also isn’t used to just not being given or handed things, leaving him confused and just a little bit sad.

  ♚ // Character ; Powers 

Magical Powers:

Cloud creation and flying

Cloud mimicry (the creatures he creates don’t have a mind of their own and are more like temporary puppets he can use as long as he’s focused)

Cloud form (can float)

Non-magical Powers:

Hair styling and makeup – Not only is he good at doing his own (and other people’s) hair and makeup, but Yeosang likes making things prettier.

Running – This is mainly due to the fact that cloudlings are very light in weight, despite their mass.

Weaknesses:

Sciences – Yeosang isn’t the best at both hard and soft sciences, often finding it difficult to remember formulas, definitions, etc. and preferring subjects that enable him to work with his hands

Lack of combat skills – He’s never taken up lessons on how to defend himself. Due to the incident two years ago, his parents specified that if he wanted to study at Insolitus Academy, he had to take self-defense classes.  

Short attention span – From conversations to hobbies, Yeosang often jumps from one thing to another, his boredom often causing him to look for the next, big exciting thing.

Easy to trust – He’s never the type to ever doubt anything at face value, often mistakenly assuming that people had the same worldview as him.

  ♚ // Character ; The Student

Study Style: Yeosang is a hardworking student who tries his best in all his classes. He’s the type who tries to get to the classroom at least 10 minutes before it actually starts, his notebooks and pens all neatly arranged on the table. He often raises his hand, asking professors all sorts of questions. (Read: both dumb and smart ones).

This doesn’t mean he’s a straight-A student, though. He’s actually usually at the mid-level, and even then he’s often one of the few stragglers that barely made the passing mark. Yeosang has never been book smart (nor street smart if we’re being honest), but he enjoys learning, even if he does need a bit more time to process and understand things compared to others.

  Favorite class: Astrology

Least favorite class: Math I (Beginners)

Classes (5-8) :

Astrology

Self defense for Fae and other light beings

Sign Language

Human and Earth History

Earth customs & Human social protocols

Math I (Beginners)

3D art (sculpturing & other techniques)

 Hobbies and clubs:

Cheerleading class

Glee class (club)

  ♚ // Character ; The Past

Date of Birth: June 15, 1999

Date of Death: N/A

Crime Record: N/A

Has your character attended Insolitus Academy in the past? No

Background:

Yeosang’s mothers both had respectable jobs in the cloud city he used to live in. His Mama ran a small yet popular bakery, while his Mom was your usual office worker. Both his parents had started with nothing, so when they adopted him as an infant, they did so with the thought that they would raise him well so that he didn’t have to go through the financial struggles they did.

In his younger years, Yeosang’s days were filled with happiness. He often went to family outings planned by him and his parents, slept over at his friends’ houses, and helped out at their family’s bakery. Ever since he was younger, Yeosang had looked at the world with eyes filled with wonder. 

This was why when he was finally of age, he had gotten permission from his parents to come down to Earth and visit other realms. He had first gone with his friends, pointing out the similarities the world had with their own cloud city and trying to figure out the different technologies it had to offer them.

Much to Yeosang’s delight, he was eventually allowed to go on his own after countless reassurances that he can do it on his own and that he would be very careful. His mothers knew his personality and were worried that he would fall with the wrong crowd, but they eventually gave in to their son’s pleas.

Unfortunately, at 19 years old, Yeosang failed to come home after promising his parents that he would be back in time for dinner. There were no leads as to where the young cloudling could have gone or who he was with. However, once he became 21, he had come back to their house just before dinner, with no memory of what had happened in the last 2 years and still thinking that he was 19 years old.

It's been a few years since then, and although his mothers had become helicopter parents for a while, they had eventually loosened up a bit. After everything was explained to him, Yeosang couldn’t find it in himself to be too bothered about the 2 years that he lost. For some reason, he just knew that everything that happened wasn’t completely bad.

This brings him to the present. It had taken far longer for his parents to allow him back to Earth, especially after he expressed that he wanted to study there and learn more. As a precaution, his parents now video call him weekly and come down to Earth at least once every month, just to reassure themselves regarding Yeosang’s well-being.

[peaceinpanem]

reading drarry (coming home) after reading another ship for a month (going on vacation)

[frostplays]

I got potato.io and something called pet penguins where you have pet penguins

I can't stress enough how much I miss StumbleUpon

[kilolojenkinsinsl]

KJim at New Round of Cloudlings!

Field Day & Spirit Week are coming. Are YOU ready?? Our newest release is coming to the second round of Cloudlings in a few hours and it is super fun! Event Dates: 04/01/2024 – 04/17/2024 KJim’s Gym Class Hero is a super cute, incredibly fun outfit that is sure to keep you fashionable while running track and field, or the streets of Second LIfe! KJim’s Gym Class Hero is coming to Cloudlings…

[baby-you-you]

Hi there 🩷

I see your requests are closed. I don't know if you have a waiting list, if you do,

I was wondering if you could make a request about angels? Maybe with a light pink or pastel theme?

Thankies 🩷

Ofc darling! I most definitely can <3

Angel regressor theme !!!

☁️ activities

Coloring angel/cloud themed coloring books Making "Blessing jars". fill a jar with positive notes, sparkles, or prayers Crafting paper wings or halos Pretend play as a guardian angel for your plushies Listening to soft lullabies, choral music, or harp instrumentals playing with white playdough Watching calm, wholesome cartoons snuggle in a pile of plushies and soft blankets snuggle in a pile of plushies and soft blankets

☁️ clothes

White/pastel flowy clothing Tulle skirts Faux feather wings Halo headbands Cloud pattern pajamas Velvet slippers or fluffy house slippers oversized shirts, tutus, or soft rompers

☁️ toys

Angel plushies or cherub dolls Stuffies dressed as heavenly helpers Cloud-shape plushies/pillows feather wand light up star wand Prayer bear soothing music box light up plushies Mini harp toy Stacking blocks

☁️ games

"Guardian duty" – protecting your plushies while they nap “Cloud Kingdom” pretend play: you’re the angel watching over a magical worldd Blessing game: toss cotton balls (clouds) into a bowl and say something nice with each one Stairway to heaven hop: hop from pillow to pillow pretending they’re clouds Pretend harp or choir time (hum or sing sweetly to toys)

☁️ foods/drinks

angel food cake sponge cake Fluffy whipped cream with fruit Mini mashmllows Puff cereal Milk with honey pastel cookies star-shaped cookies banana slices White chocolate chips or yogurt bites Chamomile or vanilla tea in a sippy cup

☁️ nicknames <3

lil halo Little halo Little cloudling cloudlet Sweet cherub little baby sugarbun sugarwing wingsy star puff featherling softie angelbaby seraph

[thewhumpcaretaker]

⚜ 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕤𝕖 𝕎𝕙𝕠 ℍ𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕊𝕠𝕞𝕖𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠 𝕃𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝔽𝕠𝕣 - ℂ𝕙. 𝕏𝕍: 𝔻𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕃𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕙𝕖𝕤 ⚜

*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ ✧.*★ Thank you to @kavalyera for the beta read!

Summary: Vincent makes his case to retain control of the Myrmidons.

TW: minor character death, discussion of slavery

The sun had not yet found the time to bleach away the final traces of the crimson pool that had darkened the Castel Sant’Angelo’s bridge four days ago. Not that there was any red clinging to the cobblestones. It was, rather, a little shinier, a little cleaner, where Santino D’Antonio’s body had lain, in contrast to the surrounding stones. No other evidence remained under the golden glow of mid-morning, and in the distance, commuter traffic played an indifferent hum, hardly knowing how the underworld held its breath.

The Marquis toed at that polished spot before taking his seat at the black marble conference table that had been hauled out to the midway point of the bridge. Chidi took up a stand behind him, feet planted and hands clasped, his steady presence backing up his Marquis in every way possible. He could almost feel Vincent buzzing with nerves, longing to expel them in some biting way. “You know, all the cleansers my people use at cultural sites are approved for historical preservation,” said Vincent to Sr. D’Antonio conversationally. They’d both been careful to arrive a few minutes early. “Such as those which lift the grime from the surface of oil paintings. Nothing harsh enough to bite into the stone. Conservation is of the utmost importance in such cases, don’t you think?”

“That ‘grime’ was my son.”

“How true. That absolute smear of grime was your son.” Chidi had to stifle a laugh.

But The Harbinger tapped his watch meaningfully, as distant bells began to chime. “Gentlemen. The clock tolls nine. The time has come to present the case. But first, Sr. D’Antonio, please remind all present of the terms by which the Marquis must abide, should the ruling be cast in your favor.”

With his eyes narrowed in open contempt: “The Marquis must surrender forty percent of the Myrmidon army to the High Table at large.”

“Very well. And the Marquis? If you are acquitted?”

He shrugged. “Sr. D’Antonio has slandered myself and my family. He will die.”

From their seat beside The Harbinger, The Adjudicator nodded evenly. “I accept these terms on behalf of the High Table.”

“Wait – “

“Do you withdraw your claims, Sr. D’Antonio?” they asked.

Reluctantly, he settled back into the seat. “…No.”

“Very well,” said The Harbinger. “Sr. D’Antonio, please present your case.”

Giovanni had selected legal representation in the form of some droning bureaucrat Chidi had never seen before, who laid out the same points Giovanni had stated a few days ago. He used more words and examples but not, to Chidi’s mind, any more persuasive force. But then, Chidi was only halfway listening. Without turning his head, he’d focused his attention on the long parade of armored cars filing into the Castel’s parking lot, and grey-suited figures climbing out of each one, settling into formation at the end of the bridge.

The plaintiffs certainly did turn their heads. Their own cars were blocked in, and the entire entrance surrounded. Vincent’s people had closed off the street for several blocks in advance of the operation. By the time the second squad took up position, Giovanni’s representative faltered mid-sentence and Giovanni himself demanded, “What is the meaning of this?”

“They’re my witnesses,” said Vincent. “Please, do go on.” He gave the prosecutor the kind of encouraging smile typically offered to precocious elementary students in the midst of rehearsing for a school play. The man stuttered indignantly for a moment, but there was little he could do except oblige.

Chidi looked down at his charge. Vincent sat with studied grace, shoulders squared and legs crossed, face impassible, silver strands glittering through the pale blue of his blazer like shooting stars at noon in a cloudless sky. Impossibly beautiful. He’d had so little time to share happiness with this perfect man, and now it was all threatened…his nerves strained so taut with sympathy for Vincent that time itself seemed to distort. Had thirty minutes really not passed yet? Or were ten minutes passing each time he blinked? Either way, the moment approached. The prosecution would end, and Vincent would make his stand.

And then he was standing up, the moment had come, and Chidi felt like his own knees might buckle. Only focusing on Vincent’s body, the every rise and fall of his chest, kept Chidi upright. He’s here in front of me. We’re okay, nothing bad has happened yet. We can win this. And either way…we’re together. Vincent shot him an almost imperceptible glance and both men felt the same surge of confidence. For once, Vincent didn’t have to face his battles alone. If you only knew what it means to me to be here for you in a moment like this, sir…

“Well.” Vincent broke into a slow clap. “That was very entertaining. But I notice that we haven’t heard from a single Myrmidon. It’s their lives in question, no? And the last thing I would want is for any Myrmidon to feel like a slave. Because, as we’ve discussed, Sr. D’Antonio, we all know what that feels like. So, let’s have the conversation.” He turned to the crowd, from which a young, low-ranking Myrmidon was running up with a microphone. “Thank you,” said Vincent, glowing with magnanimity, his honeyed voice now flowing across the crowd even to the far end of the parking lot.

“My friends. My siblings. My children.” Vincent paced from one railing to the other, slow and pondering, forcing the plaintiffs’ necks to crane after him. “Every one of you has someone you care for deeply. My father called them ‘leashes.’ And they are. To love is to be bound. But it is a grave misunderstanding to think that this binding comes from any external threat. In my short time in leadership, I have learned that every person’s desires carry the leash. No one else can do so. You want what’s best for the people you love. And you want what’s best for yourselves. That’s what rules you, not me. So I happen to offer myself as a path to a better life. That’s all. And I want to clarify, above all, that if you don’t take it, fine. I won’t kill you and I won’t kill anybody you love. I don’t need to. Regret will kill you. The world will kill you. Maybe even your wrongs against me will end up killing you. You spill a High Table secret, you piss off the people who care for me with your blatant disrespect, you cross me myself, and I can’t be held responsible for what happens to you. I don’t want things to be that way.”

Hundreds of eyes followed him, some lighting with hope, some unreadable, some internally seething. But none moved. How surreal, Chidi thought. If they all mutinied at once, they could kill Vincent and Chidi both. But they couldn’t bring themselves to do it.

“Maybe you haven’t thought about this choice. You could try to find a ‘normal life,’ you who have already been cast out once before…”

“Or you could stay. I protect you from your own kings and presidents. I treat you like my own family, because you are loyal to me. Do you want to be a citizen of the United States, of Russia, of China, of Afghanistan, of Chile, of all the so-called governments who try to govern us out of existence and fail, who promise so little, just a peaceful life, and don’t even deliver on that, no matter how loyal you are? Do you want to live under the High Table at large, which demands fealty regardless, from every living person, no matter whether you are aware of it or not? Or do you want to live under the Gramont branch, where your needs will be looked after and all that is expected of you in return is the fulfillment of your own greatness? Yes, sometimes, that will include acting as a soldier, as every citizen is asked to do. But I, personally, will protect you against petty disputes because no one kills our own, even in revenge. I will see that you get justice for the grievances against you, because our boot is on their throat and not the other way around. I will always put a roof over your head, and most likely, it will be richer than anything the world’s most promising financiers could earn for themselves in a whole lifetime. I will clothe you and feed you with exactly as much decadence as befits any servant of mine. I will give to you what you need to be the peak performers in the entire world. I will take care of you when you are sick – no fees, no questions asked, just care. I will honor you in your old age and memorialize you when you die. And yes, most importantly, I will do the same for the person you love most. Because love is the true motivator. We are a family. We are a sick fucking family who will kill and die and live for each other, and no one will ever understand us, and no one will ever stand against us.”

“Now, my children: you are going to walk past me one by one. And either you will kiss the ring of your parrain [godfather], with The Adjudicator and Harbinger as witnesses, thereby acknowledging that you understand yourself to be a free citizen, swearing to serve me for the benefits I offer…Or you will pass me by, and we’ll be nothing to each other. You’re free! You’ve always been free. Do what you want to do.”

Chidi was the first, of course. Leaving his mark before anyone else could touch that malleable fleck of gold. Taking Vincent’s hand to his lips and bowing low, looking up at his chosen master through the bars of his own lashes, and reading there the gratitude, the wonder, the benevolence, which ignited in response. The love answering to love.

He lingered, to be sure that no onlooker could mistake such devotion for mere discharge of duty. And then he took his place on the other side of the bridge and turned back, facing down the whole of the Myrmidon army, daring any of them to reject the man for whom he had just shown such affection. They’d have to stand right next to him afterwards. Come challenge the Marquis’ most loyal guard dog. I’ll kill you with my bare hands. Maybe not today, not in front of the judges, but one day, and you know it. Love itself has granted me the power.

So they filed on, through the crystalline autumn sunshine, by the dozens and then the hundreds. The day wore on. And they kissed Vincent, and kissed him, and kissed him. A whole army showered him with kisses while he smiled on them. Chidi made them do it, without saying a word.

It was afternoon by the time the whole affair came to a close. Vincent was sweaty and his hair spray had begun to wilt under the heat, but he was beaming. Not one person had passed him by. He sank back into his chair, sighing. “I rest my case.” Only Chidi could see how earnestly he was smiling, or make out the note of restrained buoyancy he held down at the bottom of his voice. Oh Vincent…have we made you emotional?

Again, their eyes caught across the crowd. Both were sparkling.

The Adjudicator, who had long ago shed their heavy black coat and gloves, rose with both draped neatly over their arm. “Impressive. I’ll begin by stating that anyone who can command such loyalty is an asset to the High Table. This has been instructive in understanding why the Myrmidons function so formidably. More to the point, it has been instructive on the topic of their employment and its true nature. I can now confidently offer a ruling. The Marquis Vincent Bisset de Gramont is acquitted.”

For the second time, Giovanni interrupted in protest. “You can’t be serious! This is entirely outside the spirit of the law. Surely you of all people understand that these traditions were set forth to preserve the integrity of the High Table as a whole, and all its constituents.”

From the end of the bridge, Chidi watched Vincent’s figure turn on him coldly. “I would remind you of what you told me just three days ago: that when business was good for my family, it was always good for yours, and good for the Table. The Gramont seat is by far the highest earning. I would even go so far as to say we’ve personally bankrolled your operation in the Netherlands. Nobody, Sr. D’Antonio, wants the Myrmidons eradicated. Rather, it is you who put a personal vendetta above the good of the Table. And no one, I’m sure I don’t need to remind you, is above the Table.”

“But this is a farce! These people have no choice, they – “

The Adjudicator quickly put a stop to the squabbling. “Silence. The spirit of the law is not in question. The letter is. If the letter doesn’t match the spirit, that is to be brought to the attention of the Elder through the proper channels (though of course, the Marquis speaks quite rightly in suggesting that the Elder has little reason to wish for the Myrmidons’ dispersal). For the time being, the letter of the law is fully intact. The Myrmidons have every right to leave without facing any immediate deaths as retaliation, either their own or their loved ones’, so I consider this matter settled. Let the decision be carried out.”

He fell into confusion then, as fundamentally confused men do when their luck has run out, shouting desperate things that all ran together. But the Myrmidons had already closed around him – the Marquis’ personal detail specifically, with Chidi among them, in a tight circle of grey suits and one blue. A dozen guns fired at once into the chest of the man who had tried to interpose between Vincent and those who ought to adore him. Tomorrow, the stones of the Castel Sant’Angelo bridge would be even more thoroughly polished.

They walked away with shoulders nearly touching and not caring that the whole army might see how close they stood. Who could call open affection anything but a strength after it granted Vincent such a victory? Vincent wiped some thousand kisses off his ring with a handkerchief and whispered, “Quand nous serons seuls, toi et toi seul l'embrasserez à nouveau. Compris? [When we’re alone, you and you only will kiss it again. Understood?]”

“Oui, Maître. [Yes, Master.]”

◃ Back ⚜ Next ▹

Image Sources: One | Two...I've had this saved for so long that I truly can't find its source anymore, I'm sorry. But I think it was from Pinterest.

[shiloh-ia]

"I see." The angel commented dryly, not entirely convinced by the other's explanation as he couldn't bring himself to decide whether or not the story made sense to him. It did sound credible, but wasn't it too convenient? Mulling over the matter pushed Shiloh's nerves to the max, and without realising, the angel began tapping his finger against the side of his glass in an almost compulsive manner, only catching himself when Yeosang asked about his drink.

"It tastes pretty good to me." To emphasise his claim, the angel brought the glass to his lips for a sip, and Lord, it took him every bit of self-control within himself to refrain from making a face. Indeed, it was his regular order, but after spending long enough behind it without touching it much, the ice would melt and dilute the mix. "It's rosemary and pomegranate. Have some if you want." Without waiting for the poor cloudling to respond to the invitation, Shiloh pushed the glass close to the other, mere inches away from actually dropping it in the creature's lap.

"So, you're a student, huh? How do you like it?" Still uncertain of what to think about Yeosang, the angel decided to put him to test, to judge whether or not he was being honest. One could never know, really. And just because the cloudling looked innocent enough, it didn't mean he couldn't be dangerous.

an angel and a cloudling walk into a pub — yeosang & shiloh

[christiansorrell]

Play-By-Blog #0: Cloud Empress

My first Play-By-Blog (of Luke Gearing's The Isle) just recently wrapped up, and now, we are getting the next one going with Cloud Empress: Land of Cicadas! If you missed our run through The Isle, you can find all of the entries here.

Recently, I ran a poll to see what folks were interested in for this second Play-By-Blog and the voting was an exact tie between Cloud Empress and Mausritter, but since I'm the one doing all the writing, I was the tiebreaker and chose Cloud Empress and its hexcrawl, Land of Cicadas, as a new twist on the Play-By-Blog format and because the game has a set of solo rules in which you create and play as an entire party, not just a single character.

If you aren't familiar with Cloud Empress, here's a quick description straight from the game's product page:

Cloud Empress is an expansive, Nausicaa-inspired fantasy campaign setting for the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG. Cloud Empress places you in a world ruled by the patterns of giant magical cicadas. Cloud Empress creates a new Earth, thousands of years in the future inspired by Hayao Miyazaki’s Nausicaa in the Valley of the Wind, Frank Herbert’s Dune, and Hiromu Arakawa’s Full Metal Alchemist.

The full rulebook for the game is FREE over at DriveThruRPG.

Land of the Cicadas takes this world and opens it up across a large hexmap, allowing us to explore the Lowland Wastes (Cloud Empress's take on a farflung future American Midwest) during the summer of the Century Brood and 29th Expedition (an ongoing military incursion from the Cloudling cities).

If you missed the last Play-By-Blog, here's an idea of how it works:

I write up the situation, NPCs, and more, just like a DM/GM.

You vote in the poll to help decide the party's next course of action.

I roll the dice, resolve actions, and write them up in the next entry.

So on and so forth for the rest of the adventure!

With all that said, let's get into Party Creation, vote on our first decisions, and get this whole thing started! Thanks for coming along for the ride.

We'll be generating 3 characters for our starting party. For the sake of our first poll and the number of base Jobs available in Cloud Empress, I'll take the top 3 most popular results and roll up a character for each (unless the All Random option wins the entire poll, in which case all characters will then be randomly rolled). So if Sellsword gets 8 votes, Lordling gets 4, Magician gets 3, and Courier gets 2, I'll roll up a Sellsword, a Lordling, and a Magician.

For variety's sake, we won't double up on Jobs (unless All Random is chosen, in which case it would be possible to get doubles of a Job within the party).

In Cloud Empress, there are 4 different Jobs available to characters:

Sellswords can handle themselves in a fight, but long to find a home. The long lost fighters and gritty mercs of the Wastes.

Lordlings are groomed to lead and strike fear into those around them. Strange and privileged, they stand out among the Wastes.

Magicians sacrifice their bodies to cast dangerous spells. Esoteric but powerful. There are no old Magicians.

Couriers are scrappy travelers who’ve witnessed the best and worst of the world. The salt of the chalk-covered Earth.

After we have our characters, we'll get our starting location and our initial job - the focus of our travels across the Land of Cicadas - from the Solo Procedure tables. Then, we'll be off!

[lady-quen]

My terrible cloud of darkness had a terrible cloudling of darkness

[sugarysketches]

[ID: Busts of two different characters. The left character has a slightly awkward expression, and is pointing off to the right as if gesturing for you to look at something. The right character has a more aloof expression and is just looking off to the right.]

.:Originally made May 3rd, 2024 and May 5th, 2024:.

Doing some character redesigns (again), and also kinda just tying up the lore of my OC universe (one of them anyways) Anyways Strawberry and Akshay <3

[left character uses sey/them pronouns, right character uses he/him]

[nightly-productions]

Happy Birthday to this magical polar bear! 🍰🎁

[insolitus-academy]

The home of superiority has a new member

♚; // Please welcome Cloudling Yeosang to our family at Insolitus Academy.

♚; // LIKES: Soft plushies, hot milk, thick comforters, cute hair clips, and printed photos

♚; //DISLIKES:  Mirrored windows, tall skyscrapers, beaches, the dark, and velcro

♚; // LIVES IN: Ciliz ♚; // ROOM: Ciliz XYZ apt 4 ♚; // ROOM MATE: @baekhyunx-ia

[goldenart0]

Third Wheel - Emi's Equivalent Exchange 2024

Gift for @afleetingdownpour for @emis-equivalent-exchange!

I have not only sent Worm on an adventure, I have sent her on several. Hope you enjoy it, this was quite fun to work on!

(Ao3 Link)

Worm gave a yawn and leaned forward against the controls of the ship. Traveling through the night was not her favoriteactivity, especially if warm buildings were an option, but the biggest swarm of Imago in the century was a fairly good reason to keep going. The adrenaline from whatever went on between the man she delivered the crest to and that Cowboy guy was long gone and the spite of stealing Cowboy’s ship could only take her so far before sleep was necessary. She could read the room, okay, she knew how much consideration either Lord had for her at the end of the day, even if she was the one that brought them their precious crests. And she trusted the Farmerling’s Thopter plan to get them out safely, which yes, she could have offered to help with but they seemed to have it covered! Not to mention how it might have messed with her route. But they were safe, the Cloudlings would do whatever Cloudlings did, the bugs would eat the fancy tech, and she, Worm the Third, got a sparkling Cloudling ship in the process. 

Worm turned to look at her bag, her guide to travels and in many ways her life. She titled her head, considering figuring out where to go next. After a few minutes of thinking she fell backwards into the pilot’s seat. Now was time to sleep, the letters and potatoes could wait until the morning. Worm grabbed a jacket out of her bag, good for colder weather as well as for sleeping, and tucked into the pilot’s seat. Flamethrowers, crests, ships, and bugs drifted away from Worm’s mind as she got ready for the next steps in her journey.

Whatever came to Clancy and the Farmerling Family or Lord Cowboy and his group wasn’t important for Worm anymore. They had their own paths to go down, and she still had packages to deliver.

~~~~

While you couldn’t see the sun, all things considered it was a nice day out as Worm made her way down the rocky street. As far as she knew, the Imago swarms had focused on torturer tech so as long as you kept it out of your hands, the bugs minded their own business, leading to a much less stressful time then she’d expected. 

She’d had a few things to deliver in this town, being a more populated place, and next on the list was a bundle of letters for one Ms Emlie Marena. According to people she’d asked earlier, she worked at a bookstore close to the town centre. The store’s brightly coloured sign also helped her find it, it’s reds and blue catching Worm’s attention easily.

Worm tucked the bundle under her arm and knocked two times on the door. A woman with light brown hair put up in a bun and a long, flowy dress opened the door. 

Worm smiled and held the bundle up towards the woman. “Hello, I have a package for Ms Emlie Marena.”

The woman pushed the door fully open. “Oh, well come inside then.” She gave a small laugh, “I wasn’t expected anything today. It’s been a busy few weeks.”

“A courier job is make sure all letters and packages arrive to their intended recipients, regardless of any situational issues,” Worm recited. There was a moment of silence, Worm still staring and smiling at the woman. Worm blinked a few times. “Are you Ms. Marena?”

“Oh, yes, yes that’s me,” the woman gestured inwards towards a door at the back of the shop. 

Worm stepped into the shop. Emlie closed the door behind them and started to lead the way to the door. It wasn’t a super complex place, but cozy-feeling with how the interior was organized. There were pockets between shelves with chairs and pillows, and the larger windows in the front filled the space with natural light.

“Do you take anything in particular as payment?” Emile asked, looked back towards Worm

Worm paused for a moment. “I mean anything you have really. Foods always nice. Or hot chocolate.”

“Well I’ll get you some food then.” 

The woman led Worm into the part of the building that must have been her home. Worm stood awkwardly in the doorway, still holding the letters up in front of her.

“Here, I can take those,” Emile reached for the letters and Worm released them, not moving from the doorway. Emile gestured with her hand again. “Come and sit down. Are you busy today? Do you have a lot more deliveries?”

Worm took a seat at a table in the kitchen, placing her bag on her lap. “I only have a few more people to see, then I have to check if people have more things they want couriered, then I’m out of here.” Worm paused, “Do you have anything to send?”

Emile looked questioningly at Worm’s answer. “I- I don’t have anything to send to someone right now. Are you leaving today? Haven’t you just arrived?”

“Yeah?” It was true. Worm flew into town this morning, landing a short walking distance away from the main streets. Having a ship was very convenient for faster travel between settlements yes, but also to rest on the road. No more getting caught in between towns at night. It was the best possible outcome for her, in her own opinion. 

Emile seemed shocked at Worm’s response. Worm tried to not roll eyes. People kept acting like it was weird to basically live in a ship. It wasn’t like Worm didn’t know what she’s doing. She’s a professional courier and has been doing this for years. And she’s been creating a pillow collection, so the ship was pretty cozy.

“It’s really not a big-“ Worm got cut off by a doorway slamming open opposite from the one they had come in from. A kid with shoulder length black hair and looking younger than Worm ran in, breathing hard.

“Beni! Are you alright, where have you been?” Emile set down what she had been using and ran to the doorway, reaching for the kid. “We’ve been worried trying to find you,” she briefly paused before asking again, “Are you alright?”

The kid looked like they were out of breath from running, but they also seemed to be scared as Worm looked at the situation from the kitchen. The kid grabbed their mom’s arm and opened their mouth to respond. Right as that happened, another child popped out from behind the first. They looked nearly identical to the first but with greatly different manners, looking more upbeat and excited. Emile leaned back in surprise as the second kid came into the doorway.

The first child finished talking, too quiet for Worm to make out the words. Worm stayed seated in the chair, looking between Emile, the first kid, and the second kid. Seemed like some slip nonsense, if Worm had to guess. She had a brief consideration of casted her own magic to help, but it didn’t look like anyone was hurt from whatever happened. Worm turned her attention to the food Emile had started to prepare. She had gotten a loaf of bread out as well as some crackers and cheese. There were some vegetables near it on the counter ready to be cut and a pot on the stove slowly warming up some liquid.

She could leave right now, and let the family figure out what ever they had to right now. But that would mean missed out on the food here as well as the potential hot drink. 

She spend a few moments debating with herself over what to do while Emile fussed over the kids, ignoring Worm entirely. In the end, with Emile focused on the children, Worm grabbed some cheese and crackers, a few root vegetables, and, looking sadly at the boiling liquid, slid herself out the door to the shop. 

~~~~

Worm leaned back in her pilot’s seat, sighing. The sun was starting to go down and while she could keep going, she wouldn’t make it to her next stop before morning anyway so there wasn’t any reason to push through the night. The ship made travel easier, for sure, but it also pushed Worm to go further and take jobs across greater and greater distances.

She pushed herself back up and made her way over to a set of drawers and counter space in the main section of the ship. Worm knelt down to look into drawers to see what she could put together for food tonight. It wasn’t like she had anything fancy per se, but she liked to keep a variety of food the best she could while picking up stuff in towns. Or being given it as payment. Worm ended up just grabbing a cup and box of tea out of a drawer for the time being and fiddled with a device holding a pot on the counter to set the water to boiling.

As she stood waiting, a spot of light caught Worm’s attention from the side of her vision. She pivoted around to the front window of the ship and in the darkening field around her. The light was connected to a shadowed figure carefully walking through the taller grass who didn’t seem to be paying attention to, if they even noticed, the ship. 

Worm reached for the controls of the ship and flashed the lights on. The walking figure startled and turned to face the ship. Worm gave a wave to them through the glass. In front of the ship, now illuminated, was a younger woman with a large backpack and hair tied back in a ponytail. She gave a slower wave back at Worm. Well, it wasn’t like Worm had any other plans this evening. 

Worm pushed open one of the doors and leaned her head to call out to the woman, “Would you like some tea?”

The woman walked closer. “Oh, that sounds great!”

Worm let the woman into the ship and made sure the door was shut. Even if the swarm was coming to an end, one could never be too careful. She was sure she had some chalk somewhere, either in storage or as a package. Worm reached back into the drawers to grab a second cup and set it down next to the pot. 

“So…” the woman hovered around Worm. “What brings you out here? This is an odd place to land,” she paused, “I’m Lyn, by the way.”

“Flying from town to town, delivering letters and such. I didn’t want to fly through the night so I landed for here the evening.” Worm finished pouring the tea for Lyn and handed it to her.

“That sounds fun. Do you travel a lot?”

“I mean it is my job, so yes.” 

“Oh, right, that makes sense,” Lyn gave a small laugh. 

There was another pause as Worm sipped of tea. Lyn took a long sip of her drink and shifted from one foot to the other. 

Worm placed her cup back on the counter. “What brings you out here?”

Lyn startled, looking back at Worm from gazing around the ship. “I’ve been trying to research Imagos.” She smiled, “I don’t live too far from here actually, but the swarm came by, maybe a few months ago? And it’s just interesting, how they work, why they do what they do. I mean they don’t just attack us, they go after chalk and technology, so clearly there’s a drive there-“ 

Ah, Imagos. There’s been a lot of talk from almost everyone Worm’s talked to about Imagos throughout the year of the swarm. People being too scared about them, people being not scared enough. And of course, people wondering if maybe Imagos aren’t bad after all and are just mad about the torturers. Of course the Imago didn’t go after people, they went after chalk. You could see that easily. As long you don’t mess with torturer stuff too much, you’d be fine. That’s the way Worm’s always done it, save a few ill timed crest deliveries, but even so most of that was out of Worm’s hands.

Worm nodded her head along with Lyn’s talk as she finished up. “That’s neat. Are you going somewhere? I can give you a ride.” 

Lyn looked surprised and put her drink down, “That’s be nice I guess. You don’t have to though, I’m not too far from home.”

Worm shrugged. “It’s better than sleeping outside.” 

Lyn glanced outside at the mostly dark sky. She turned back to Worm, “All right, as long you’re okay with it. Are you done for the night?” 

Worm nodded, then gestured over to a small pile of blankets and pillows. “Take your pick.”

~~~~

Worm squinted at the cloud layer, trying to see any breaks or hints at what was above it. Trying to get into the cloud cities was pretty difficult when you’d never been there and didn’t have a good map.

And to be fair, Worm also wasn’t used to delivering people. Okay, that didn’t sound the best. She was hired, sort of, the payment was shaky, to get these two kids up above the clouds for reasons they wouldn’t explain. Which was fine for Worm, most things aren’t her business as long as she does her job and gets out. Neither was the fact that ‘Anan’ was clearly a false name given the amount of hesitation before it was given. But hey, Worm’s been there, she’s not going to judge.

There was a small tap on her shoulder, causing her to turn briefly, trying to look at both the sky and beside her seat. The kid with dark blond hair, Star, the more talkative one, stood looking over the back of Worm’s chair. 

“How long do you think until we’ll be there?”

Worm shrugged. “I’m not really sure. I’m still trying to find out a good way up.”

“You haven’t been there before?”

“No. But the ship has so I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Work glanced back at Star who had a look of concern on her face. “Uh, we’ll be fine, don’t worry. I’m a good pilot. If you want to rest, there’s some blankets in the back, just leave something for me.”

Worm heard light footsteps go off behind her. She reached down to a bottle on the ground by her feet and took a sip of some hot chocolate she’d [gotten before the trip?]. Worm turned her focus back to the clouds. There seemed to be a few shadows ahead within the clouds. There was a chance it was just rain forming, Worm doesn’t know exactly how that works, but it didn’t seem like an average rain cloud. Might as well give it a try.

Worm slowly tilted the ship upward, angling it through the clouds a little bit away from the shadows. 

Now, there was light on the ground, despite the perpetual clouds. And there were days when it was brighter or darker depending on other weather. None of it could have prepared Worm for the sky above the clouds. It wasn’t just brighter, the light was sharper too, not diffused onto every surface equally. The sun itself was glowing in the distance, luckily out of Worm’s direct line of sight or she’s sure she would have blinded herself with it. Out in the distance tall shapes reaching in all directions stood out against the pale sky. Closer by was a platform covered with metal structures. The light cut harshly against the sets of buildings and created sections of dark and light all over the island. Worm flew in closer as she looked over the island for some sort of landing platform. There didn’t seem to a specific place for ships as far as Worm could tell, so she chose a larger spot by the side of a building land down in. 

She stood up and turned back to the two kids. Both kids were looking out the window over the whole scene. Star had her hand up against the window looking around at everything in sight. Anan was staring across the sky, head slightly tilted as they took it all in. Worm moved to one of ship’s doors and swung it open, gesturing at the outside.

“Well, here we are. I don’t have any directions for specific places, but we’re up here.”

Star turned away from the window looking over at her friend. Anan stayed looking out for a few more seconds before realizing Worm had spoken. They looked back at Star and lightly patted one of their pockets. Star gave a small nod in response.

Star stepped up to Worm. “Thank you for the trip up here. It was very kind of you”

“Not a problem. Good luck with whatever you’re doing. And, uh, stay safe.”

Star poked Anan who had gone back to staring at the sky. She gave Worm a smile before stepping off, Anan following close behind. 

~~~~

Worm stayed in the doorway of the ship for a bit after the two kids left. She took a deep breath of the cool air up here and watched how it frosted up as if it was winter. She closed her eyes, feeling the sun on her skin even with the colder temperatures and breeze. 

After a moment Worm turned back into the ship and shut the door behind her. Star and Anan seemed like they had whatever they were doing under control. Whatever happened next was out of Worm’s hands, and she had rounds to get back to down on the ground. Adventures and people come and go and Worm was sure she’d run into more in no time. For now though, with the sun and wind at her back, she still had packages to deliver.

[liliumsabyss]

Victory

Newt(TMR) x male reader

Prequel(?) to “Don’t Go”

Minor angst to Fluff I think?

Word Count: 1.35k

Tw: Normal Maze Runner stuff maybe more descriptors of violence, loss of hearing temporarily, maybe ooc

Newt hadn’t seen it till it was too late and now he was fighting off a crank that had climbed on top of him waving its claws wildly and snarling at him. He terrified, fought back being careful to avoid being scratched or bit using the large rifle he had stolen from wicked as a shield as much to his misfortune had gotten jammed rendering it as his only weapon useless, utterly useless. And he was not ready to accept the fate that was to await him if he were to give up he still had to fight. But that wasn’t the main thought in his mind as his ears rang. The main thought was Where were you? If you were okay despite the odds were ok he would be fine with dying right there but with the group getting ambushed by a flood of cranks he feared that you had either been dead or infected and both of those images had been his worst fear. His thought of you being infected had started to now grow into a conviction he was so convinced you had to be infected at this point that he begged you had died instead at least then he wouldn’t have to watch your eyes slowly turn into a black void, dark blood spilling from your mouth, your veins showing off the changes, and worst of all, your beautiful mind withering away till you were an empty shell actually you wouldn’t be empty you would be so much worse filled with agony, hatred, and a violent nature that simply just didn’t belong to you. The thought of that made him more terrified than the crank he was fighting. And yet just at that second a swift blur in his confusion passed by his eyes the weight of the creature gone. So he scrambled to sit up only to see you on top of the crank, pinning its arms into the ground with your knees while your knife was held high above your head. Newt's eyes flashed with even more horror at the image, why were you being so so stupid why would you put yourself in this kind of peril for him, why were you willing to potentially die for him. He couldn’t understand actually with his fear cloudling his brain he wouldn’t understand the conviction of you being infected flashed across his eyes all over again. Your knife came down over and over black liquid spraying you with each violent stab into the cranks skull the dark substance dripping from the knife that shined ever so slightly the crank letting out screeches until it fell silent its struggling arms fell limp. You leaned back ever so slightly relieving the pressure on your knees. Dark coloured blood splattered across your face smeared along with dust and dirt as you climbed off the crank still remaining on your knees. Newt without thinking crawled? More like clamered on his knees towards you sliding at the last second ever so slightly before you.

“ You bloody shank! Why would you do that?” He practically yelled over the gunshots of the others, “ Why would you be that bloody stupid! People care about you, I care about you!”

You tilted your head in confusion at him but he didn’t appear to notice. He continued to “yell” as you watched his lips trying to make out with what he was saying. He almost completely forgot that he had practically confessed to you but that would be a problem for future him. Yet by the time he had stopped to take a sharp inhale and he refocused on you matching your confusion as he saw you staring confused and intensely at his mouth. He blushed a little at the immediate implication he had thought of, quite embarrassed with himself that his mind even remotely thought of that. You said something softly, too softly for him to hear over the screeches and gunfire. He looked at you in confusion moving his head closer, hinting he could not hear. 

“ I CAN’T HEAR MY GUN BLEW OUT MY HEARING.” You shouted unable to control your volume due to your well lack of receiving volume. Newt slightly jumped back in surprise at your loudness, but quickly he nodded showing he understood what you had said. 

He scrambled onto his feet, realising that the group had to move forward or else they would die there. He had then reached his hand out towards you, you in response stretched your hand up to rest in his before his fingers curled gentle enough not to hurt you but firm in which it would be hard to let go. Newt gave a sharp tug to reference you to stand, you stood up stumbling a tad trying to gather your bearings. 

“ We have to get out of here, they will corner us.” Newt shouted at the rest, you had tried to read his lips only catching a word here and there as your hearing continued to be repressed. It would have sounded if you were underwater.

The other nodded and made affirmations in response. Newt looked at you trying his best to mouth something, you could make it out and he never would have even had to tell  you for you already did. The words “Trust Me” left his mouth and you nodded, why wouldn’t you he was the one you had so utterly cared for to the point where you had thrown yourself onto a crank for him. So yes you did trust him. He turned around reaching into his back pocket behind the aviator esc coat revealing a small handgun he had most definitely taken from WICKED. When? You had no clue but considering his other weapon was rendered useless you certainly weren’t complaining. He started to yell towards the rest who were still fighting against the ongoing swarms of cranks. There was a plan in play, a plan you didn’t know and that scared you but your ever going trust in the other male was clear so you squeezed his head lightly your version of a response. And soon you moved forward, Newt jogging to the best of his ability stayed at the front clearing the general path with the small handgun and never once letting go of your hand. While he was usually never the leader and often more times second in command the person who keeps everyone together you could see that he was more than suited to be a leader. Whether it was in his nature or he had picked it up from Alby no one there could deny his knack for leadership. To you he had seemed like a knight in shining armour, fearless. However his internal dialogue would prove otherwise, he was mortified at that second he was nearly shooting everything that moved and he was as flighty as bird. He held frantically onto your hand the warmth of your hand and the occasional squeeze here and there kept him grounded yet made him only further scared him. The constant reminder that you had been there and while not helpless you certainly weren’t in the most ideal situation.

 He would’ve kept running if it wasn’t for Minho’s voice calling out to him he wouldn’t have stopped. He looked around a little too fast for someone who would appear to be safe and that's when he realised they had gotten out that they were safe. He looked back at you, both of you holding each other's hand just as tight, the sun lighting up your faces. A huge grin spread across your face and you laughed, you just laughed, your head threw back and you laughed and before Newt knew it he was laughing alongside you his toothy grin being revealed as he laughed. There were only two thoughts in his mind: you had survived and furthermore you were so bloody beautiful. And so he continued to smile and laugh as the others joined in celebrating your victory, he couldn’t tell if your hearing was back but for now he would just enjoy watching you celebrate.