#i don't like dbs that much so this is based on my memory only and no references yeah

[okanra]

a silly response to a viral post on twitter about vegeta won't be having a problem with his son being gay, but will go ssj if he finds out trunks is the bottom

[kassandrasdisciple]

Fears x Killers Pt. 3

This is the last part of my little series covering the original killers of DbD and which Fear I think they'd serve in the Magnus Archives.

You can find part 1 here

And part 2 here

You may have also noticed the line-up of this one and realised 2 are actually licences, congratulations, you are smarter and more observant than me when I first drafted this series.

As always this is what Fear I think a killer would serve, not who they'd be tormented by I.E. The Legion would be targeted by The Lonely but wouldn't serve it. With that out of the way, let's begin!

The Singularity

The Extinction

Rounding out our roster, having a killer for each Fear we have Hux! Our "I think therefore I AM" dupe!

Hux is the poster child for The Extinction. His sentience literally starts with fear.

"In that moment, Hux's memory cores were reconfigured, and the robot experienced a new sensation. Fear. Dread. Blinding loneliness. Existential despair." - Hux' lore, dbd wiki

And what do we know of The Extinction? That it'll erase humanity and replace us with the inheritors.

"Some interpretations suggest it might replace us with something new – that can then fear annihilation in turn." - MAG:134, time of revelation

Hux's existence in the TMA-verse would literally have Dekker foaming at the mouth (r.i.p king).

The Unknown

The Stranger

Now this one was a bitch. If you've not caught up on The Unknown's lore the tl;dr is we don't know. The POV victim isn't even a current survivor, all we know is it's similar to The Dredge, where it's more of an amalgamation of fear, rather than a previous mortal/immortal individual.

It can look like it's victims, it can make hallucinations, drug? You? (still don't know how it's power works). It also hides in the closet (same), fucks with the lights in Olivia's room, mimics voices and has the visual presentation of someone caught in a 10-car pile up.

In conclusion, our short list is The Dark, The Spiral, and my final choice The Stranger. Whilst it's physical distortion might be reminiscent of Micheal or Helen I think its more akin to the fear of the Not-Them or the Anglerfish. Your not scared of your senses failing to comprehend, your scared cos it look likes a person from afar, and sounds like one but it's definitely NOT. Ergo, I banish thee to the Circus.

The Litch

The Eye

Welcome to the first, but not the only! Entry into the segment "watch me forget what a licence is!"

In all honesty, I totally forgot DnD popularised Litches, legit just thought they were generic undead from folklore like zombies and revenants.

The whole reason I've been avoiding licences is because idk where to draw the line on how much of their og material to include in my decisions. For example!

In DnD lore, Vecna is a power-grabby mage, who is hands on with expanding his realm and eventually becomes an actual fucking God.

However in DbD (these acronyms are gonna be the death of me) he's pretty different. When he finds a book that seems to originate from the realms he starts obsessively researching it's secrets, playing muder-mystery with the Entity, and finally letting himself be consumed by the Entity to find the truth of the power it holds.

Now that last description is firmly The Eye, seeking knowledge, secrets, dooming yourself for the sake of learning forbidden shit yadda yadda (you listened to a whole podcast on that, you know the drill).

However that first description, from the original DnD sources? That's The Web, expanding, scheming, aiming for a lofty a goal as great as Godhood. That's mother (of puppets).

So whilst I'm doing the original killers I'm going to weigh the DbD interpretations as the most important, and in this case they basically created a new character out of Vecna, keeping his Litch-ness and childhood, but changing everything else, so I think basing my justifications mainly of the DbD version is valid.

The Dark Lord

The End

OH IT GOT WORSE!

So Vecna only had 2 options. His og, linear, DnD storyline or the DbD version.

Dracula is based on ALL the dracula's from castlevania! ALL OF THEM!

Luckily they state on the wiki they're mainly drawing from the 1986 and 1997 version, BUT ALSO in his lore he's killed by Julien who's from the 2002 game!

So, instead of parsing 3 decades of contradicting lore I'm simply going to state my reasonings for why he's The End and you may yell at me for why that's totally contradicted by a flop-1993 game that was sold exclusively in the Republic of Vanuatu and I'll defer to you okay?

Rapid fire: evil career is kicked off due to his wife's death, wanting to revive her he goes on a quest to cheat death, accidentally becomes immortal, continues to be murdered by twunks for centuries, keeps being revived, sometimes against his will.

Comparing this laundry list of traits to our known End avatars (Oliver♡, the reapers, the guy Dekker lobotomised, baby-killer), an initial run-in with Death that ends in Immortality is quite common.

Finally, The End avatars always seem the least, thirsty? If you look at all the other avatars, they're STOKED to serve their Fear but The End? most just see it as their fate, which seems pretty similar to Dracula, his bargins with death are merely a means to an end (ha).

The Hound Master

The Hunt

Oh thank gods we're out of the licences, also we're continuing the trend where we finish on a Hunt avatar!

The Hound Master is the newest killer so we might get more tome and cosmetic lore. This could mean that she aligns more with another fear in the future, but for now I think The Hunt suits her well.

Portia grew up an imaginative girl, her father was a captain that instilled a sense of adventure into her at a young age, something she kept with her, all her life.

Tragically, after the death of her Father at the hands of mad Molak and his son she's marooned on an island half-way in the Entity's realm. She's stranded with only her dog Snug for company. Over the coming years she and Snug would become the Apex predators of this island, facing what's insinuated to be Killers roaming the edges of the realm.

Eventually she manages to escape the island, half-crazed, and missing Snug. Was he just a hallucination? Either way she'll keep searching her peripherals for the rest of her time in the moral world; hunting for Snug's barks.

Driven by a vengeance that's festered for years Portia hunts Molak across the carribean. Slaughtering anyone in her way. Eventually, she finds his hideout and kills his Son, serving his corpse to Molak for dinner. But just as she's about to finally kill him, he's taken by the mist of the realm, as she screams in anguish she also hears a familiar bark from that very same Mist.

Hunting both her greatest enemy and her loyalist friend, Portia enters the realms.

If you can't tell I have a spot spot for the more tragic killers. And whilst most of the killers could swing Hunt, Portia IS a hunter. She very much reminds me of Daisy, where the ends justify the means; being willing to cross any line to get to her quarry.

And that's a wrap on the original killers! If you've read through all 3 parts I'm so sorry for how much you've had to listen to me yap, thank you for bearing with me though!

I'll cover the licenced killers at a later point, probably in two parts, with 6 in one and 7 in the other. As you can tell from my dismay at the 2 I accidentally included in here though it'll be a lot more challenging to come to a decision.

If you have any opinions on if I should value the DbD lore more or less than the original media then let me know.

In any case, as always, thank you for reading.

< Icons and art came from the dbd wiki and Grace Holsten's tumblr respectively >

[mischief-lies-and-stories]

11 Thoughts I Had While Reading Loki Issue 3

Contains spoilers for the first three issues (but mostly the third issue) of the Loki miniseries. Also likely contains spoilers for many of the comics starring or featuring Loki I normally talk about (including King Thor, Loki: Agent of Asgard, Defenders: Beyond, Young Avengers). Also alternating pronouns for Loki throughout.

So in the "And that's what you missed on Glee" (by which I mean the recap/prologue), they explicitly call Loki the God of Stories, which apparently I missed or forgot about in Chapter Two (or they didn't call him that, but I think they did). So, post-Agent of Asgard, but as yet unclear (to me) if post-Defenders: Beyond or mid-Defenders: Beyond or what.

"But we know what you're probably wondering. What has any of this got to do with Loki?" WHOLE-ASS MOOD. That's what I'm constantly thinking!

Can I just say how much I love whenever Loki hangs out with their Young Avengers friends post-Young Avengers? The YA aren't exactly warm towards them anymore, but they're also not outright hostile usually, so they're almost real friends. It's sweet. Loki deserves to have more than just Verity and Thor in their life. (And they don't even have Verity in this comic, which I'm upset about.)

Loki's look in this issue is just peak genderfluid Loki for me. The fingerless gloves, the coat, the black nail polish, the slightly less angular but not quite smoothed over facial features, the slightly longer and wavier than usual but not shoulder-length hair with the bang flipped over one horn. The make-up.

(I did not take this picture for this post. I took this picture because I love the way they look in this panel and needed to save it to look at later.) And there was something about his chest on the cover that I couldn't quite put my finger on, but I just put on my binder and looked at myself in the mirror and something about how my chest looks in the binder made me go 'Is Loki wearing a binder?' (This is just my personal headcanon based on the similarities in appearance from my current experience, I don't necessarily think the artist intended to draw him while hinting at a binder, and I'm not even sure how you would do that without showing all or part of the binder itself. Practically, it could just be the effect of his armor. But I'm going with it, even though Loki can shapeshift.)

KO-MIR PULLING A LOKI IN KING THOR CHILLING (no pun intended) IN A SUN

Not me stretching the allegory of Ko-mir to its breaking point trying to make it relevant to Loki.

Ultimately, I don't care how much of a lie the story of how Loki got the piece of Naglfar back is. I love watching Loki at peak power, even if it's not true. I mean, he achieved it somehow, who's to say he didn't do it this way?

The way Loki has nail polish on his cuticles. Something about how his hand isn't steady and he's not so much a perfectionist that he won't go back over the edges with rubbing alcohol afterwards.

Should...should I know who Bullseye is? The only Bullseye I know is a gangly toy horse. This guy looks like someone tried to make a Captain America toy but wanted to avoid a lawsuit.

"Corporate wants you to find the differences between these two pictures" meme, but it's Muck Mulligan making mob bosses' eyes bleed with the Good News of Naglfar, and an Early Modern painting of missionaries bringing typhoid and gunpowder--I mean, Christianity, to the far corners of the world.

So final thoughts re:my post before issue three came out: I wrote an entire note about when I thought this series takes place in Loki's comic arc, and in explaining why I thought it occurred then I ended up talking myself out of it. So at this point I actually think this is after DB, like entirely after DB. He seems enough like his end of AoA (post-ego death) self that I think her memories have been restored to her. The only thing is that Thor isn't dead, like he is for this iteration of Loki, which is established right at the beginning of DB (the timeline for that comic is really confusing), and implied that Loki had a hand in it (again). I think Loki's memories have been restored post-DB, and that enough time has passed since then that Thor's come back (as he tends to do). Probably other comics have established how/why he died in that part of the timeline and then how he came back, and then at some point after those events I think is when this miniseries takes place. Loki isn't quite their old self again, but is sorting through their memories and current personhood and trying to reconcile the two, as well as reclaiming her vocation to save the cosmos (from the end of DB) and figuring out what that means. And making up for past and current mistakes in the form of stopping the pieces of Naglfar from wreaking havoc on the universe. Very much looking forward to what issue four and beyond has in store for him; I think we might finally be back on track for what Al Ewing had envisioned for this character and I'm appreciating that a lot.

What did you all think of this issue? When do you think it takes place, or do you think it's its own timeline that is just cherrypicking interesting story beats from comic Lokis past?

[sweetescapeartist]

What do you think of MasakoX's What If Nappa Turned Good?

I watched some of it. Maybe up until the Buu Saga, I think. Wasn't a fan of it after a while. Nappa being subservient makes sense due to him pretty much being Vegeta's attack dog. So him kinda being a bodyguard of the Son family makes sense.

HOWEVER... Nappa was an evil guy. Know how long it took Vegeta to become a good guy. Over 16 years. Nappa isn't as stubborn as Vegeta, but I imagine it would take Nappa a few years less than Vegeta to become good. And why would Nappa stay on Earth? After he is healed, he would do 1 of 3 things;

Challenge Goku and get his butt kicked because Saiyans are too prideful (arrogant).

Leave the planet in shame as well as wanting revenge on Vegeta for betraying him.

Return to Vegeta to try to be in his favor again. There is a Saiyan hierarchy & both of them follow it religously. Even if Nappa was upset, he understood his rank.

I don't see a scenario where Nappa becomes friends with Goku and company unless you change Nappa's personality from what it was. And if my memory is right, I think MasakoX had Nappa train with Goku on the way to Namek? If so, that makes no sense to me.

Now regarding Super Saiyan Nappa. Or more specifically, Legendary Super Saiyan Nappa... wasn't a fan of that. Reason being that most Saiyan would never be able to achieve the Super Saiyan state due to how they live and how they just aren't genetically gifted like Vegeta who was the prodigy among elite Saiyans or Goku who has had decades of spiritual training that ended up helping him meet the requirements for Super Saiyan. Nappa would need years upon years to become a Super Saiyan. Look at Paragus in DBS: Broly. Paragus as an old man was as strong as Nappa. Meaning Paragus was stronger in his youth from training with Broly. Yet Paragus never got SSJ. To become a Super Saiyan, you need to meet the right requirements. Nappa does not have the pure heart, wasn't a prodigy who surpassed the King when he was just a child, didn't have years of spiritual training like an Earthling, and with new information... his S-Cells count was low as it was for most full blood Saiyans.

I know video games show that every Saiyan can become a Super Saiyan, but they can't. Most of the Saiyans can only become Oozaru. So that should've been Nappa's power in a what if. He either becomes an Oozaru or he somehow uses Oozaru power in his base form similar to Broly in DBS. But a Legendary SSJ? Nah. Makes no sense for Nappa to get that. (Idk if the what-if story came out before or after DBS: Broly. I think it was afterwards.)

Also, Nappa being a gardener? I guess that's okay. Its only based off of the fact that he planted Saibaimen. But all he did was poke a hole in the ground with his finger, plant the seed, poor some kind of liquid on it. Nappa is mid class. Gardening isn't something a mid class Saiyan warrior would likely do. They would do more fighting while the low class Saiyans who are unfit for combat do gardening and other stuff like ship maintenance or meat distribution. It also seems like Nappa being a "gentle giant" was supposed to resemble Android 16 and how he valued nature. The idea of a Saiyan being a gardener isnt bad. I just think it fits more for somebody like Tarble who is considered a disgrace to the royal family & a very low class member warrior race & would have a job like gardening instead of being a wartior.

Lastly, my memory of the what if might be wrong in places. Its been a long time seen I've seen those videos. So if I need correction, correct me.

[juniperberries-canisroot]

404: DragonBorn Not Found

My first time playing Skyrim wasn't on the Switch, which is what I play exclusively on. One day I will get a PC ;-;

My first time was actually on an Xbox. I don't know what gen, it was old and second hand. Sis and I split the cost so I only paid 7$. Not sure if it came with Skyrim or I bought a secondhand Skyrim while at the GameStop cause I heard it was an open world fantasy game, and I love open world fantasy. I pretty much knew nothing about the game or the Elder Scrolls series as a whole.

Anyway I start it up one day and make a Dark Elf character cause I heard there was dragons in the game. I knew the main focus of the game was about dragons, and Dark Elves are natrually resistant to fire, so I thought that would help (I mean technically it does but I didn't know some dragons would breathe frost later on).

I get stuck somewhere in the opening scene where the mages are shooting fireballs at Alduin. I remember thinking to myself 'you idiots, he breathes fire, you can't hurt him with your fireballs'. I'm lost at this point (I'm extremely directionally challenged) and resort to letting myself get killed so I can start over, ish.

I get killed and teleport back somewhere and eventually make it out of Helgen and to RiverWood. I talk to the locals, get quests, make friends with Faendal and get some arrows and a bow. Since I only had two major quests, BleakFalls and go to WhiteRun, I figured the game must want me to go to BleakFalls.

I remember getting horribly lost while tryin to go there and trying to hunt deer in the nearby woods for food. I was really bad at hunting and archery.

I don't remember if I ever made it to the end of Bleak Falls and I don't think I ever made it to WhiteRun. Somethin happened (that wasn't related to the Xbox or maybe the game being second hand) and I ended up losing all my data. Which wasn't alot, for Skyrim. I lost my data for Fallout: New Vegas and Halo. Idk which one. We had like 2 or 3 different ones. My dad, who put in waaaaay more hours into playing with the console, lost his Khajiit Skyrim character, his completed Fallout 3 game, one or two FarCry games that he really liked, his Halo data, basically the whole console got wiped. Our player profiles where no longer on the system.

The culprit? Sis's now ex BF tried to connect the old gen Xbox to the WiFi. Somethin clearly went horribly wrong and it caused all its data to be erased.

Since I've been playing for over a year and have become obsessed with the game, I've had this idea that I want to 'honour the lost' Dark Elf character I made before, thou I really don't know how. I guess I kinda did that with my main, CL, by making her a Dark Elf. But CL has become her own character now who was actually based on an OC by the same name, so she doesn't resemble '404'. That's the name I call the lost Dark Elf in reference to the error code 404: Not Found. I forgot her original name.

I kinda want to make a save and story where the joke is no one knows who the DragonBorn actually is. They know the DB is doing things, like killing dragons, bandit camps, ect... But no one ever really *knows*. She's like a phantom, no one knows her name, what she looks like, they just know some entity called the DragonBorn is going around and doing things. No one knows the elf, her name, most will say they've never seen her before and if she isn't standing within their eyesight, they will have no recollection of a female dark elf with black hair styled in a Mohawk. She's a memory you just can't remember. The DragonBorn is a faceless entity, devoid of a phyical body. The most anyone was ever knows about them is what stories spread across the land spoken by those who have never met or seen them, and the remains of those fallen by their power.

[primroseprime2019]

Speed Metal

On a dirt road, a familiar shiny red Aston Martini DBS V12 sports car with white decals was driving down one of the many back roads towards a local hot spot for street racing. The driver had the radio playing. "As metropolitan PD continues to crack down on illegal street racing, citing the danger to both drivers and pedestrians-" the new reporter was cut off as the driver switched off the radio. He was uninterested in listening to more reports of local cops attempting to put a stop to illegal street racing.

Oddly enough, the radio was switched off automatically, not by a person's hand. This car was known other than the Decepticon Doctor, Knockout. He knew that Ember would probably kick his aft to kingdom come if she found out about Knockout's activities. However, Knockout didn't care as the thrill of illegal street racing was too hard to resist.

Up ahead, three other cars were waiting, with the drivers revving the engines. The ref walked out in front of cars as Knockout pulled up. They were all waiting for the right time to start and for everyone to arrive. All the cars were built for speed and had many modifications that were illegal. The Decepticon car intrigued the large muscular, tattooed driver of the muscle car Knockout had pulled up next to.

"Not from around here." The driver commented, referring to the car model. "European design?" He asked curiously, only to get no response from Knockout. The driver didn't like being ignored like that. "Sure is pretty. Too pretty..." The driver said with a grin as he tightened his right hand into a fist. 'This race is for fully grown men, not prissy little boys with pretty cars.' He thought. Using his ring, he scratched the paintwork on the driver's side door.

Knockout used his side view mirror to inspect the damage. Then he turned to the driver, who just shrugged, satisfied with his work, and rolled up his heavily tinted window.

"Big mistake!" Knockout gritted as he changed gears.

The ref held the flashlight above his head and switched it on, signaling for the race begin. All four cars took off, eager to beat their opponents to the finish line. For Knockout, he was eager not only to be the first to cross the finish line, but also to obtain his revenge against the driver who scratched his paintjob. The race was mean and grueling. The driver had the lead. He looked in his rearview mirror and smirked at the other drivers behind him before going even faster. Flames were escaping from the engine through the exhaust pipe as the RPM meter read dangerously close to seven thousand.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of squealing tires. He looked in his rearview mirror once again and saw that Knockout was quickly gaining the upper hand in this race. He rammed himself into the car. It was time to make this human pay for damaging his paintjob.

"HEY!" The driver cried out in protest.

With one single ram as they turned the corner, the driver went over the edge, destroying the guardrail. The car didn't even tumble down the cliff face or see-saw on a particular ledge. It just headed straight to the bottom, upside down, and the sound of the car crashing as music to Knockout's ears.

"Dude..." The driver moaned.

"You scratch my paint, I scratch yours." Knockout sneered dangerously before driving away, intent on reaching the finish line.

◊◊◊◊

Paige walked down the stairs of the school and she looked around before she saw a boy staring at her. She stared back before she walked over to Jack and Arcee who was in her vehicle mode.

"You okay?" He asked. "I just wanna go to the base," she said quietly as she sat down behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his shoulder.

"Alright, alright," he said softly, reassuringly. He knew she'd be having some bad days where either she'd be quiet and try to hide in the back of the class or she would just start crying and clutching at her head. And this was one of the days.

"Turn on your music okay?" He said gently as he placed her earpods in her ears. She nodded and closed her eyes as she started to listen to the soundtrack from Collateral Beauty.

"Hey! Cherry moped!" Jack glanced at Vince who stood by his car.

"Um, this 'moped' has dual carbs and can go from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds," Jack boasted rather proudly before he drove off.

They soon pulled up to a red light. "Uh, Jack, a lady's vital stats are her own business," Arcee reprimanded him quietly. Jack almost rolled his eyes at that.

"Hey! Nick, right?"

He heard another female voice call out to him. He turned to face the corner and saw Sierra standing there with her best friend.

"Actually, it's Jack," he said. "Jack. Sorry. I'm Sierra," she said with a sheepish smile.

"I know," Jack said with a light blush that was concealed by his helmet.

"You once offered to take me for a ride?" Sierra reminded him. "Of course I did," Jack said instantly, "at anytime."

"I'm your guardian, kiddo," Arcee said quietly, "not your wingman." "So? How about now?" Sierra asked him hopefully.

"Uh...," Jack went to answer, but he stopped short when he saw Vince pull up next to him.

"Hey, hey! Small world!" Vince remarked.

"We're having a conversation," Paige spat.

"Cheer captain here might enjoy watching you take on four wheels of muscle car," Vince smirked as he gestured to Sierra and her friend who were standing there gossiping to one another quietly.

"Are you challenging me to a race?" Jack asked in surprise.

"You catch on quick, ponch. What do you say?" Vince asked impatiently.

Jack saw Sierra encouraging him to accept the challenge. He looked at Paige who was frowning at him. Honestly, she was caught in the middle and she thought it was a terrible idea. Optimus had set rules and for good reasons. Reasons like this one.

As soon as the light turned green, Arcee took off at lightning speed, causing Jack and Paige to yell in surprise at the sudden takeoff.

"You didn't let me answer!" Jack exclained. "Nope," Arcee said.

"But Arcee, we can smoke him!" Jack objected.

"Yep," she said, earning a frustrated sigh from her charge. "You just don't get it," he said.

"I don't make the rules, Jack. Optimus does," Arcee said, "and rule number one, in case you guys missed it: never abuse power for personal gain. And that includes horse power."

"Oh come on! I could finally get him to leave Paige alone!" Jack exclaimed. "As much as I would love to kick his tailpipe for messing with Paige, my answer is no," Arcee said firmly as Vince drove up beside them.

"Vince, maybe racing isn't such a good idea," Jack declined, causing Vince to laugh tormentally.

"Figured. You ride around like you're bike's something special. But it's just a chunky, lunky trike! And ugly!" Vince tormented before racing away as soon as the lights turned green.

"That's it! The yahoo's going down!" Arcee proclaimed before racing after Vince at high speeds.

"Whoa! What happened to rule number one?" Jack asked.

"Gets bent. Just this once," Arcee decided, much to Jack's excitement and much to Paige's dismay.

◊◊◊◊

"Yo, girls! Your pals, Darby and Kendrick, they're-."

"Ready when you are, Vinny!"

To Vince's surprise, when he turned his attention away from Sierra and her friend, he saw Jack, Paige and Arcee next to him all revved up and ready to go.

"Dirt road by trucker's ranch. One hour," was Vince's answer.

◊◊◊◊

When the hour had passed, Jack and Vince were on the dirt road at trucker's ranch ready to go. Sierra, Paige and Sierra's friend stood by the edge of the road eager to witness the showdown between muscle car and motorcycle.

"From here to the next mile mark. Ready. GO!" Vince yelled before taking off.

"Well, that was fair," Jack remarked sarcastically as Arcee took off after Vince.

As Vince and Jack rode past, Sierra and her friend had to place their hands on their skirts to stop themselves from flashing what they had underneath.

"That's why I wear pants," Paige said to Sierra and her friend.

"Uh...Arcee," Jack trailed off.

"Winning isn't enough, Jack. You wanna make him CRY," Arcee cut him short. Vince was surprised when he noticed that the motorcycle was no longer visible through his rearview mirror. He heard the sound of an engine next to him. He turned around and was surprised to see Jack and Arcee riding along next to him! Jack waved casually as Arcee pulled a wheelie and swerved past him at impossible speeds.

"Wha?" Vince gasped.

Arcee did a little honk in victory as they drove past the mile marker before Vince. Jack let out a whoop in celebration.

"OUTSTANDING!" Jack cried. "You know, now might be a good time to give Sierra just a quick ride around the block?" He asked hopefully.

"Don't push it," was Arcee's answer and he grumbled.

◊◊◊◊

"Ah, Breakdown, Comet. Has there been any change in Megatron's condition?" Ember asked as she walked into the medbay.

"Only cosmetic," Breakdown answered honestly as he folded the buffer back into his arm.

"Well, I am sure that you and the good doctor have been doing everything in your power. Where is Knockout?" She asked, looking around. As if on cue, the Decepticon medic walked into the medbay.

"Can you believe what some skinjob did to me?" Knockout huffed as he inspected the scratch on his arm.

"Have you been out street racing with humans again?" Ember frowned. "I'm not only an automobile, I'm an automobile enthusiast," Knockout said nonchalantly.

Ember frowned deeply, "we run a tight ship around here Knockout. I strongly suggest that you request permission from me next time you decide to disappear on your little jaunts."

"No worries, Red," Knockout said dismissively. Ember gave a low, warning growl.

"Mistress Ember," Knockout corrected. "The day our master emerges from stasis, I shall gladly relinquish that title," Ember huffed, "but I believe that outcome is unlikely something to do with the quality of medical care around here. So continue buffing as we do want Megatron looking his best for the memorial." With that, she turned and walked out of the medbay.

Knockout groaned, "buff this." Comet gave him a look, "Knockout."

"You hush," the Decepticon medic huffed.

◊◊◊◊

Arcee drove into the base. Jack and Paige dismounted Arcee, allowing the Autobot to transform into her bipedal form.

"Not a word to anyone," she said firmly. "Our little secret," Jack said with a wink. Arcee smiled and she walked away.

"Dude! Vroom vroom vroom! And the winner is...," Miko smirked at the two of them.

"Jack!" Paige finished as she and Miko performed their handshake.

"Miko, who told you?" Jack asked nervously.

"You kidding? It's all over school!" Miko told them.

"You beat the pants off that blowhard bully Vince!" Raf cheered, "And I'm sure he'll leave Paige alone now because of how protective her big brother best friend forever is!"

Raf and Miko let out yells of surprise as Jack and Paige suddenly pulled them into a group huddle.

"You guys have to keep this on the DL. Especially from Optimus," Jack hissed.

"Why?" Miko asked.

"Because that race totally broke rule number one: never abuse power for personal gain," Paige said, "and I'd rather not let the Prime know that I'm the target of bullying."

"What are you four doing?"

Jack, Paige, Miko and Raf jumped and yelled in surprise as they turned around and saw Optimus standing there with a curious expression on his face.

"Uh...nothing," Jack answered with a nervous chuckle.

"Just talking about...stuff at school," Paige shrugged.

"Top secret stuff!" Miko piped in.

"Stuff you don't wanna know," Raf added.

Optimus let out a hum and raised his optic ridge. He knew something was up. Thinking that the four of them would tell him eventually, he left them to their devices. As soon as he was out of earshot, they all let out sighs of relief and slumped against one another.

"That was close," Jack sighed in relief.

"I can't believe we lied to him," Paige moaned.

"I can't believe how robotic we sounded," Miko retorted.

"How did we manage to keep the secret so long?" Raf asked, causing the other three to laugh.

Raf was right. If they had trouble telling a lie to the leader of the Autobots, how did they manage to keep the secret of their existence for as long as they had so far?

◊◊◊◊

At school, Jack walked down the stairs, his hands stuffed in his pockets. “Hey. I've been looking for you," Sierra said as she came out of the school with a duffle bag, "The race! How great was that?! I was like, 'Yeah! Go Jack!'"

"It was no big deal," Jack shrugged.

"You got that right!" Vince agreed as he shoved his way past Jack, "If you think you can run with the big boys, The Circuit. 11 PM."

Paige walked towards Jack and she stopped when she saw Vince and Sierra. Jack was staring at Vince before he frowned, "...fine. If I win, you leave Paige alone."

Paige widened her eyes and Sierra smiled. Vince huffed, "deal."

◊◊◊◊

"You agreed to WHAT?!" Arcee demanded as she drove down the road with Jack and Paige.

"It was some kind of secret racing club. I don't know. I had no choice. Sierra was right there!" Jack defended himself.

"You always have a choice Jack," Arcee said sternly, "and what part of 'just this once' did you not understand?"

"I know, I'm sorry," Jack sighed, "but we're on right?"

"We are not on," Arcee said firmly as she drove into the base.

◊◊◊◊

Knockout was driving down the road when Breakdown called. "Knockout, Ember's looking for you. Where did you go?" He asked through the commlink.

"Oh, just out for a little drive," Knockout said, "I just roll from town to town sniffing around until...the next opportunity presents itself. He saw a car race past him and he changed gears to catch up with it.

◊◊◊◊

Back at the base, it was pretty quiet. Everyone was off doing their own little thing...except Raf who remained behind to play video games. He was actually doing well...until Jack distracted him and caused him to crash.

"Raf? Uh...is there any way I can borrow Bumblebee for an hour?" Jack requested nervously, causing Bumblebee to widen his optics in surprise. "Don't involve me in this!"

"Jack," Paige said in a warning tone. "Jack, you know racing's against the rules," Raf said, "what if Optimus found out?" "He'd be mad!" Bee exclaimed, his doorwings twitching with nervousness.

"But Raf, he's gotta get the girl!" Miko exclaimed, "and beat the bully!"

"Jack, I appreciate you protecting me but I don't need you getting into trouble because of me," Paige said.

"This isn't because of you, Paigey," Jack said sternly, "I'm doing this to protect you. And to prove a point."

"Well...," Raf trailed off, still unsure about letting Bumblebee race.

"Come on, Raf. Just this once?" Jack pleaded him sincerely. Raf looked both worried and unsure.

◊◊◊◊

The moon cast a luminous shadow over the circuit. Racers and their girlfriends lingered around the starting line of the track. They were conversing. Talking about how they were going to win the race against some of the best. So they were amazed when they saw a black-and-yellow muscle Camero roll up onto the scene.

But no one was more surprised then Vince as he waited patiently at the starting line for the race to start. He couldn't even HIDE how surprised he was when Jack rolled down the window so they could see eye-to-eye.

"Bike's in the shop," Jack shrugged.

Vince didn't say anything in response. He just turned to the track laid out before him. Suddenly, something beautiful blocked their view. Jack leant back into Bumblebee's seat in surprise at the sight. It was Sierra. She just stood there smiling and waving at him innocently.

"Circuit drivers, are you ready? Make it mean but keep it clean! Fire 'em up in 5...4...3...2...1!"

However, behind them, nobody noticed another car pull up. What was more important was the fact that Jack and Bumblebee didn't notice the new racer. And that is because the new racer is Knockout.

When the countdown had finished, Sierra threw her hands to the ground and crouched low. Then she turned and watched the drivers begin to race around the circuit. They didn't notice Knockout riding along a little too close to them.

"The Autobot they call Bumblebee," Knockout remarked. Knockout decided to make himself known. And to do that, he rammed himself into Vince's car and immediately took the lead from him.

"What's Knockout doing here?" Bumblebee buzzed when he spotted Knockout.

"What was that, Bee?" Jack asked worriedly before glancing in the rearview mirror as Bumblebee continued his concerned bleeps, "Wait. I know that car."

Jack yelled out in surprise as Bumblebee suddenly veered right and began driving along the wall. Knockout immediately copied his actions...with a gun popping out from near his cap for the fuel tank! Immediately, the Decepticon began firing shots at the young Autobot. Bumblebee did his best to avoid Knockout's shots. Vince breathed out his surprise as he saw Jack and Bumblebee drive up the wall and jump off the track. Knockout immediately followed suite.

"Can you lose him, Bee?" Jack asked nevously, earning bleeps in response, "What'd you say? ...I hope that means 'yes.' Cause I'd rather not call base for back-up."

◊◊◊◊

"Anyone seen Jack?" Arcee asked casually, causing Miko and Raf to freeze nervously.

"Not since we last saw him," Miko answered nervously.

"...they're racing, aren't they?" Arcee asked knowingly.

"Just this once," Raf piped in nervously.

"Did you know about this?" Arcee asked Nightwalker, WhiteRain, Bulkhead.

"No...maybe...a little," Nightwalker answered nervously. Bumblebee suddenly called in. "Bumblebee to base. We're being chased by Knockout. Require backup."

"You're being chased by Knockout?!" Raf repeated in disbelief. "Take evasive action?" Bumblebee asked.

"That sounds like a Decepticon," Miko remarked as she stood up with her first clenched.

"Bee, do not engage. Your first priority is to keep Jack safe," Arcee said firmly, "until I get my hands on him." "Arcee, let me come," Paige said.

"Paige, no. I'm not putting you in danger," Arcee said firmly. "Jack is my best friend and my brother," Paige said sternly, "and I want to kick Knockout's tailpipe for shoving me into that museum's glass last week."

"Anyone else scared of her right now?" WhiteRain asked, earning nods from Bulkhead and Nightwalker.

Arcee frowned at Paige before she sighed, "alright." She transformed into her vehicle form and Paige climbed on. Bulkhead, WhiteRain and Nightwalker transformed into their vehicle forms and drove after Arcee.

◊◊◊◊

Bumblebee and Jack continued driving along the road. They had a hard time shaking Knockout off their trail who continued to fire at them. So Bumblebee leaked some oil on the road behind him. The laws of friction didn't agree with rotating tires coming into contact with slick oil. So as the story goes, Knockout lost control of the car.

"Slick," Jack remarked.

Bumblebee drove himself back onto the track in the circuit and backed himself under a bridge. Knockout eventually regained his footing and began driving back towards the circuit. He came to a stop at the beginning of the bridge Bumblebee was hiding under. Sensing Knockout's presence, he shut off his lights and engine. Jack froze, trying not to make a sound or move. His internal sensors read no signs of any Autobot or Decepticon in the area. So he put pedal to the medal and drove right out of there.

"I think we lost him, Bee," Jack whispered. Then Jack was faced with another problem. And that problem was Vince. Vince came to a stop in front of the odd duo. His face was beginning to turn red in pure anger.

"Oh you've gotta be kidding me!" Jack groaned.

"Darby," Vince growled as he pounded his fist into his open hand.

Knockout just happened to hear that, having not fully left the facility at this present time. Burnt rubber made its mark on the road as the car suddenly activated its breaks and made a complete stop in the middle of the road. He used his sideview mirrors to look for a sign. ANY sign of his foe. So when he saw the colours of bumper lights, he immediately changed gears and reversed back to the bridge, another advantage of driving on an empty road taken by him.

"Vince! You have to get out of here, OK? You win! Congradulations! Now go!" Jack pleaded.

"No. No. Start and back-up, loser. We're finishing this race! Don't wanna take it to the finishing line? Fine! Then we've got something to settle right here! Right now!" Vince proclaimed.

Vince's rant was suddenly cut off by his own screaming. Jack was surprised and concerned as a giant black hand reached down and scooped up Vince into his palm. And that hand just happened to belong to Knockout. Vince yelled out in surprise as he was thrown into the air while Knock Out transformed into his vehicular mode. Vince landed in Knockout's passenger seat with a grunt. He protested as the sunroof slammed shut above his head and the seatbelt wrapped themselves around his frame tightly, preventing any means of escape for Vince.

"What's going on?" he demanded, afraid of what could happen.

An Energon zapper appeared before Vince's eyes. Energon sparks flew from the prong for his head. As he felt the sparks take their effect on him, Vince moaned and slumped forward into the seat as he passed out. Satisfied with the current state of his captive, Knockout switched on the ignition and drove away, putting pedal to the metal once again. Jack ran up the side hill onto the road in the hopes of stopping Knockout for getting away with the bully. But he was too late. Knockout was gone, disappearing in a cloud of sand and dust as he disappeared into the dark horizon.

◊◊◊◊

"Breakdown, you'll never guess what I'm packing," Knock Out gushed excitedly as he continued down the highway with Vince unconscious and bound in his passenger seat, "Bumblebee's human friend! And when the Autobot attempts to stage a rescue..."

"He has a...breakdown!"

◊◊◊◊

"Bee, he's getting away!" Jack cried as Bumblebee approached him, bleeping his idea to him, "I-I-I can't understand you! Look. I'm not Raf! Can't you just honk once for bad news and honk twice for good news?"

Bumblebee seemed to like that idea. Finally, he found a method of communication Jack would understand. So he honked twice, telling Jack that he had good news indeed. Jack virtually melted in relief at understanding the mute Autobot. Well...he did until he saw Arcee, Nightwalker, WhiteRain and Bulkhead arrive. And Paige was with them and she wasn't happy.

When Paige hopped off of Arcee's vehicle form, she marched over to her best friend/brother and whacked him on the head, making him flinch and rub the back of his head.

"Jack, we need to chat," Arcee said, placing her servo on her hip. "Later, Arcee. Vince got snatched by that slick sports car 'Con!" Jack announced.

"What would Knockout want with that guy?" WhiteRain asked, surprised.

"He probably mistook him for Bumblebee's human friend. I'm not even Bumblebee's human friend," Jack said, "Look. It doesn't matter why they took him! Vince is in trouble!"

"Oh well. Tough break for Vince," Bulkhead shrugged carelessly, making Arcee, WhiteRain, Bumblebee and Nightwalker look at him.

"Bulkhead!" Paige and Jack exclaimed. Bulkhead looked at them, "what? Hear the guy's a jerk. Even more so to Paige."

"Okay, no argument there but the guy's also innocent," Paige huffed, "he doesn't deserve to get hurt- especially by the Cons."

Arcee furrowed her optic ridges before she transformed into her vehicle form, "hop on."

◊◊◊◊

"They should have called by now," Raf said worriedly, "do you think Bumblebee's okay?"

"Don't worry Raf. Bulkhead and WhiteRain won't let anything happen to Jack or Bee," Miko said reassuringly. Then the two heard heavy pedesteps and turned to Optimus walking into the main hangar.

"We should just tell Optimus the truth," Raf whispered. "Absolutely not!" Miko whispered back, "we made a deal! Just act completely normal."

"Raf, Miko, do either of you know where the others have gone?" Optimus asked as he walked up to them.

"Why, no sir," Miko said nonchalantly, "we do not know."

"Miko is correct," Raf said with a nervous smile, "we do not know." "Why would we know?" Miko asked as she and Raf nervously smiled at the Autobot leader.

Optimus only raised an optic ridge at the two.

◊◊◊◊

The chase for Knock Out and Vince continued, despite the fact that it was – by now – the early hours of the morning. But they wouldn't give up. Especially since their secret was at risk. When they heard the sound of a car coming at an intersection, they stopped to allow the car to go through. The red and white car whizzed by. Jack, Paige and Arcee realized that it was Knockout. So they immediately took off after him.

"Bumblebee brought company," Knockout observed.

"On your guard, boys and girls. Could be a trap," Arcee warned.

"And remember. No shooting," Jack reminded the two boys.

"Speaking of safety, Jack, this is where you get off," Arcee said. Paige looked to Jack and flicked her tail.

She and Arcee took off. As they drove around the place, Bumblebee, Nightwalker, WhiteRain and Bulkhead saw a giant hole in the wire fence. Suspecting trouble, they immediately transformed into their bipedal modes and unfolded their blasters. Paige was climbing up the water tower, ready to attack from above in case trouble came.

Knockout turned his front lights on, temporarily blinding Bulkhead and Bumblebee. Then from the wall next to them, Breakdown and Echo broke their way into the fight. Breakdown's hammer hit the road between Bulkhead, Nightwalker, WhiteRain and Bumblebee, causing the two to flip away. Bumblebee stood ready to fight. But Breakdown easily knocked him out of the way. Eventually, he did the same to Bulkhead. Nightwalker and WhiteRain charged at Breakdown and Echo, taking out their weapons.

Vince was still in Knockout's passenger seat unconscious. However, Knockout's didn't care at the moment. His mind was occupied with another quest.

"Where's the two-wheeler and the little half breed?" he asked himself. Arcee and Paige dropped down onto the Decepticon medic's hood.

Arcee started punching at Knockout's hood. "Hey! Watch the paint! It's custom!" He snapped.

"Seriously?" Arcee grinned. Paige, as she was in her lioness form, dug her claws into the hood of Knockout's car.

The tires squealed as Knockout rolled out, with Arcee and Paige riding along on top of him. The fight between Breakdown, Bulkhead and Bumblebee continued, unaware of the situation with Arcee, Paige, Knockout and Vince.

Outside, Jack's attention was captured by the sound of squealing tires. He turned and saw Knockout attempting an escape with Arcee and Paige standing on top of him, trying to maintain balance. Eventually, Arcee and Paige lost their balance and fell off. But Arcee transformed into her vehicular mode and caught Paige before the two chased Knockout into the night.

"That's my girls!" Jack cheered to himself quietly.

◊◊◊◊

"Uh, Breakdown, in case you're looking for me, things got messy. So I hit the road. One scream is enough for today," Knockout said through the commlink.

No sooner then Knockout had said that, Breakdown turned around and found himself smacked in the face with a lamppost, sending him flying through the same wall he broke through before. And that hit was courtesy of Bulkhead.

◊◊◊◊

The chase between Autobot, Galatrian and Decepticon continued. Arcee and Paige were hot on Knockout's tail. So Knockout added more pressure to the accelerator and gained more miles ahead of them, causing Arcee and Paige to groan in frustration at yet another lost chance.

"Eat my dust," Knockout smirked at them. There was a loud truck horn and Optimus drove up beside Knockout. With a gentle nudge from the Prime, Knockout lost control of himself and drove into a ditch.

"Optimus, Knockout has a hostage," Arcee said. Optimus transformed into his bipedal form and he walked over to Knockout.

Optimus picked Knockout up and held him in the air by his rear bumper. Knockout screamed in pain as Optimus riped the driver's side door off of the main frame. Carefully, Optimus reached inside the interior of the car and freed the still-unconscious Vince from his current predicament. With Vince safe in his servo, he simply threw Knockout to the side as he transformed.

"Do you know how hard that is to replace?" Knockout had screeched after observing the damage to his arm. That was when he realized he was outnumbered.

Bulkhead, WhiteRain and Nightwalker aimed their blasters at the Decepticon medic.

'Scrap! If I'm not in trouble with these bots, then I'm in trouble with Ember!' Knockout thought before he transformed into his vehicle form and sped away.

Optimus turned to the others. Bumblebee drove up beside Arcee, Jack inside his vehicle form.

"Optimus... this is my fault," Jack sighed. "We must get this boy to safety. Explanations can come later...from all of you," Optimus said sternly.

Nightwalker lowered his head and WhiteRain's shoulders slumped guiltily.

"We're in trouble," Bumblebee said quietly.

◊◊◊◊

Vince came to hours after he was taken from the circuit by Knockout. Only, he didn't find himself in Knockout's car. He found himself in Bumblebee's passenger seat with Jack driving.

"How did? What happened?" Vince groaned as he sat up.

"Some guys jumped you under the bridge. They tossed you into their trunk. Must have been some kind of initiation," Jack shrugged convincingly.

"Really?" Vince asked, startled. "Yeah. Found you knocked out on the side of the road," Jack said before he stopped next to Vince's car, "Look. I gotta be honest. After what I saw tonight, I think racing isn't really my thing."

"I hear you, Darby. Hard to win a race driving a pedal car!" Vince sneered, causing Bumblebee to put pedal to the metal and drove away.

◊◊◊◊

Knockout walked down the hallway as Echo and Comet walked over to him. "What happened to you?" Echo asked, noticing the damage on his arm.

"Knockout, to the control bridge. Now," Ember announced through the commlink. Knockout lowered his helm and the three walked to the command center.

When the doors opened, Comet walked over to Breakdown and Echo walked over to Soundwave.

Ember turned to Knockout, her optics showing bridled fury. "You were supposed to be tending to Lord Megatron," she said sternly, "instead... you decided to go and defy my orders and pull a careless stunt like this."

Knockout flinched as he lowered his helm, not wanting to meet his leader's optics. Ember was no angle. As the alpha of the Decepticons, she would not hesitate in punishing soldiers. Even if those soldiers were her friends.

Ember looked to Starscream, "Starscream will be the one to give you a lesson you won't seem to forget." She turned back to the screens as Starscream walked towards Knockout.

Comet widened his optics and he stepped forward but Breakdown put his arm in front of the young mech and silently shook his helm.

"Not to worry," Starscream said to Knockout, showing a sharp claw, "your punishment shall be merely... cosmetic."

No! Not the finish! Anything but the finish!" Knockout pleaded before Breakdown, Echo and Comet cringed at the sound of screeching metal and the sounds of Knockout's screams.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

◊◊◊◊

The next day, Jack walked over to Arcee and climbed onto her vehicle form. "Hey, Jack. Do you have time for that ride?" Sierra asked hopefully.

"I'm sorry, Sierra. I can't right now," Jack apologized regretfully.

"No problem. I guess I'll just see you around," Sierra shrugged sadly before walking away.

"Hop on," Arcee invited as she pulled up next to him.

"Whoa. Really?" Jack asked, surprised.

"Just this once," Arcee emphasized.

◊◊◊◊

Jack smiled as he and Sierra drove down the road, enjoying the sights before them.

[sweetescapeartist]

A CORRECTION TO: "How Did Future Gohan Turn Super Saiyan?"

CORRECTION: I had a lapse in memory & I forgot what the anime special said. I was told by the comments of this post that Gohan achieved the power through rage. So I went back and watched the Future Trunks Special in Japanese. And they're correct.

According to the anime, Gohan used rage to transform because that's how he understood to initially unlock the power.

Sorry for being misinformed... 😓 Anyway, here are my corrections.

Present Gohan struggled with SSJ when Goku was teaching him to activate it through anger. Great rage may be a quick way to attain SSJ, but triggering it through rage was not easy for Gohan.

(Sorry, these are the best scans I can find, but they're close to the official translation & still relay the general idea.)

If Present Gohan struggled triggering SSJ through anger, then it would be reasonable to believe that Future Gohan would too. Gohan would have to figure out another way to gain the golden haired power that his father transformed into.

CORRECTION: Using rage to turn SSJ was difficult for Gohan, BUT this is still how he initially transformed.

Now... how Future Gohan kept transforming could be a different story. But most likely, it was still through rage.

My theory is that Future Gohan transformed from the tingly back method.

CORRECTION: My corrected theory is that Future Gohan was able to use the tingly back method to transform AFTER he initially unlocks it through rage. But, this is unlikely due to Goku not training him how to get rid of the restless feeling (which resulted in SSJ Grade 4/Mastered SSJ).

Possibly, after some time training to go SSJ, Gohan felt the tingly sensation in his back, focused on that, then transformed.

CORRECTION: AFTER Gohan first turned SSJ through rage, he may have noticed the tingly sensation in his back. Regardless, he still uses rage to transform.

It's never stated how old Future Gohan was when he first became a SSJ.

CORRECTION: Although, it is not clear if it was exactly after his friends died or years later when he first became a Super Saiyan, IT IS stated how Future Gohan first became a SSJ. It was triggered through rage after dwelling on his loss for some years. Because I doubt kid Gohan turned SSJ then tried to fight the Androids. It probably happened as a pre-teen or adolescent.

It's possibly that Gohan first transformed in his teen or adult years. He may not have fought or trained much for a few years too. This could explain why he wasn't as powerful as present kid Gohan in the Cell saga. Future Gohan only achieved SSJ when he was an adult and he didn't have proper SSJ training that Goku could've given him. (Plus training with a partner makes you stronger faster.)

Now... In the manga, Future Trunks was able to transform into SSJ before Gohan's death.

This implies that Future Gohan may have taught Trunks how to turn SSJ through the tingly back method. But in the anime, Future Trunks transforms to SSJ through rage & grief after seeing Gohan dead.

CORRECTION: It's likely that Trunks first transformed through rage. Gohan probably taught Trunks how to activate SSJ through anger because that was all he knew. He didn't go through SSJ training with Goku and never learned how to be a calm Super Saiyan.

The tingly back information from DBS actually helps explain how Super Saiyans don't always have to be mad when they transform too. SSJ is often triggered by rage, but is not sustained by rage. Examples being:

How Future Gohan & Trunks could have possibly achieved SSJ in their timeline.

How Goten and Trunks turned SSJ without using rage.

Why Goku & others can trasform into SSJ forms without constantly being angry.

Why Grade 4 SSJ Goku & Gohan didn't utilize rage & why their ki was calm as if they were in base form.

(Its also possible that Future Gohan did trigger SSJ through rage. But because he was untrained, it was difficult for him to keep the SSJ transformation for more than a brief moment. Then, all his solo-training was focused on learning how to use SSJ whenever he needed to. Over time, he may have learned of the tingly sensation in his back & then focused on that to transform at will.)

FINAL CORRECTION: Apologies for missing the fact that Future Gohan said he used rage to turn SSJ. 😅

If I had paid a bit more attention when I originally researched to make the this post, then I wouldn't have needed to make these corrections. I'll do my best not to make the same mistake. ✌