atlasreign

[atlasreign]

anyway, surprise. yeah, i'm gonna make an effort to come crawling back to tumblr at least once a week. i'm still primarily focused on discord rp servers, and i'm always open to recommending them to people as i am a picky individual when it comes to spaces i write in. but yeah. i miss writing my silly man.

[atlasreign]

[atlasreign]

Doodling heads

[atlasreign]

«the best part»

[atlasreign]

Something I noticed that I REALLY don't like is just how much current borderlands seems to be trying to diminish Rhys and Fiona's personalities and achievements.

It started out with Rhys in Borderlands 3, where Vaughn implied he was fake and that they haven't spoken in years for some reason??? Then it happened again in New Tales, where Rhys was written as incompetent, and an awful boss that fires his employees for having ONE bad idea.

It also essentially calls him a warmonger that's focused entirely on profits, and has no moral compass beyond "the almighty dollar". Going as far as to explicitly state that that is literally Atlas's motto.

Aside from all that it also says that Atlas is essentially failing and that Rhys has absolutely no idea what he's doing, which is especially weird considering how in Borderlands 3 it's stated that Promethea is finally starting to do well for itself again, and through Echo logs you hear that even Marcus is impressed with how well Rhys is doing.

So for Rhys we have him losing connection with his best friend and being called an idiot, fake, being mischaracterised as a terrible person that apparently learnt nothing and has regressed as a person to a borderline unrecognisable state.

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And now we get to Fiona. Since borderlands 3 treats the female protagonist of Tales as if she just doesn't exist, Fiona's story continues in Debt or Alive so...

SPOILER WARNING FOR DEBT OR ALIVE.

Not only is Fiona characterised VERY strangely in the book but they also just give Sasha credit for some of what Fiona does, and Fiona alone tends to be the target of blame in the book. Oh and she gets compared to Handsome Jack for good measure.

To start off with, Fiona doesn't even get her wish from the Vault of the Traveller. She gives it to Sasha, and Sasha wishes for a rare Vaultlander figurine of Typhon DeLeon which is destroyed a couple of chapters later. So not only does Fiona not even get to use her wish but the product of the wish gets destroyed anyway so it's entirely pointless.

Fiona also just decides to not be a vault hunter. That conversation she can have with Rhys SECONDS before this happens, about how it suits her, about how she's sad the adventure is over? It's just ignored. She immediately gives it up because she doesn't want Sasha vault hunting and getting put in danger again. Sure she still likes vault hunting but it is immediately given up. (I could write a whole other post about why this bugs me and I probably will).

Fiona has flaws that are addressed in the books, as they should be, all characters have to have flaws, but she is the only one out of the sisters to have flaws addressed. Sasha's are treated as if they don't exist, even when they're very apparent. Fiona learns to not be overprotective, and that she can't stop Sasha from doing things she wants to BUT Sasha doesn't learn anything. She does impulsive things that endanger both her and Fiona, and her risking their safety for fun or on a whim is just never mentioned. (Again something else I'll definitely talk about in another post).

Fiona is also consistently the one who comes up with the plans in the book, while Sasha is either not doing anything or suggesting they take the easy way out. Fiona is the one to start removing the debt cuffs from people while Sasha stands there bewildered, asking what she's doing. Fiona is the one to come up with the plan to scam the billionaires so that they can use the money to free everyone from debt while Sasha suggests just funding Gaige's revenge scheme (and assumedly just abandoning the people in debt??). And Fiona is the one to figure out how to get into Holloway's panic room and save everyone.

Fiona having her moments to shine would be great if they consistently didn't end with her being called an idiot, getting badly hurt, failing, or at one point being compared to Handsome Jack of all people. (Additional point: Sasha doesn't even defend her when she's compared to Jack, which is weird and very out of character.)

This might be petty but the book also gives credit to Sasha for Fiona surviving Bossanova's murder rally in Tales. Which is really weird considering Sasha and Fiona were separated during the entirety of that event. So instead of mentioning a time where Sasha actually helped save Fiona, like in the bio-dome when she was caught by Finch and Kroger, I guess they're actively retconning an event to give Sasha the credit. For some reason.

Fiona also has to confront Sasha about how she's treating Rhys, but then like a chapter later she literally apologises for all that, despite having every right to call Sasha out for that. So again Sasha's flaws are not being recognised as actual flaws and instead it's Fiona who's somehow in the wrong and Sasha learns nothing. Sure by the end of the book she considers Rhys her boyfriend but she is never the one to tell him. Fiona is, because Sasha just doesn't bother to, because it never treats her as someone who has to grow as a person. Sasha is usually either just used as a plot device to progress things or just doing almost nothing while being given credit, instead of being developed like a proper character. I'd call her a shell of what Tales Sasha was but even that feels too generous.

I used to really want to see the Tales characters in other borderlands media, but at this point I just dread it. Because why would I want to see my favourite characters being wildly mischaracterised and mistreated by the franchise?

[atlasreign]

[atlasreign]

I love ma material boy

[atlasreign]

Thank you anon in my box. I cannot look at him without crying. Katagawa fans where are you.

[atlasreign]

SUNSET BOULEVARD PROMPTS *  assorted dialogue from the 1950 film, adjust as necessary

wait a minute, haven't i seen you before?

where you been keeping that gorgeous face of yours?

you're a writer, you said.

i said you could have my couch.

i haven't done anything.

no one ever leaves a star. that's what makes one a star.

i know your face.

you used to be big.

i am big. it's the pictures that got small.

i promise you i'll never desert you again.

you see... this is my life. it always will be. nothing else.

i'm ready for my close-up.

don't you sometimes hate yourself?

audiences don't know somebody sits down and writes a picture. they think the actors make it up as they go along.

funny how gentle people get with you once you're dead.

i didn't know you were planning a comeback.

i hate that word.

i'm sorry, [name], but i just didn't think it was any good.

i found it flat and trite.

oh, the old familiar story. you help a timid little soul cross a crowded street, she turns out to be a multimillionaire and leaves you all her money.

that's the trouble with you readers. you know all the plots.

we don't need two cars.

i'm not an executive, just a writer.

i'd always heard you had some talent.

that was last year. this year i'm trying to earn a living.

you heard him. i'm a star.

that wasn't good enough for them.

the stars are ageless, aren't they?

i want to speak to the coroner.

this is more important.

don't bother with a rewrite.

i've been hoping to run into you.

this whole place seemed to have been stricken with a kind of creeping paralysis... out of beat with the rest of the world, crumbling apart in slow motion.

i understand she was a terror to work with.

who've we got now? some nobodies!

where have you been keeping yourself?

i've got the most wonderful news for you.

sometimes it's interesting to see just how bad bad writing can be.

this is the day!

that's a lie! they still want me!

don't be silly.

i was going to give it to you at midnight.

what's the matter with you?

what right do you have to take me for granted?

do you want me to tell you?

has it ever occurred to you that i may have a life of my own?

i'm all wrong for you.

what you're trying to say is that you don't want me to love you. say it.

i had ten years of dramatic lessons, diction, dancing.

haven't they got any eyes?

i'll show them!

do you mind if i say a few words?

you don't know how much i've missed all of you.

you there! why are you so late?

why have you kept me waiting so long?

great stars have great pride!

may i say that you smell really special?

how old are you anyway?

if you need any help with the coffin, call me.

how long is a movie script these days?

there just aren't any faces like that anymore.

i just had to get out of there.

i had to hear somebody laugh again.

[atlasreign]

He hates seeing the helmet change, that happy flicker switching into something... Sad. That's the only way he can describe it and in turn it makes him sad, he isn't disappointed in Zer0 — so far from it, the assassin was making great strides in the mission because they were at least trying. Which is more than he was expecting, given the last person he considered for this mission was trying to con him before he'd even finished saying hello.

Zer0 was reliable, amongst several other very positive traits Rhys would happily list off for them, they were great at what they did. He saw that more than once, like when they saved him from Bossanova's psychos. Yeah that's a memory that really stuck, all the... Blood, when he had the sword. Yeah. Sometimes he wishes he didn't remember that specific moment.

Despite the lingering feelings he does his best to keep a smile on his face, anything to try and encourage Zer0 to do the same.

❝ Hey, it's—it's okay! No need to apologise, it's-.. Yeah it's just like Sasha, right? She.. She never really was keen on staying in one place for too long. ❞ When she'd told him about the plans to go to Eden-5, he'd tried to talk her out of it but when Sasha sets her mind to something, it's more than set. Fiona's last email established that, too. Found a cure for death. Could be in the far reaches by now, unnamed planets and moons... Wherever Sasha was, she had to be okay.

They all survived the Vault of the Traveler, she survived it... God, get out of your head for a second. Focusing back on Zer0, Rhys waves off the apology once again.

❝ When she wants us to find her, she'll.. She'll let us know, yeah, we're, it's.. It's fine. You're doin' great, Ze'! Number one employee, reckon you'll pull the Employee of the Month award at this rate. ❞ Partially said in jest, he means it when it comes to the award. Though it's more of a morale booster for the employees dipping below the 98% happiness score, Zer0 deserved it. They really deserved to be recognised for how much they've improved his life and his security.

@atlasreign | continued

Another day of scouring through hundreds of emails on a digitised screen, flicking through junk mail about Hot Skags in his Area—he swears the scam attempts are just getting lazy at this point, so out of it Rhys doesn't detect the sounds of his door hissing open. But the boots? Oh he hears that and immediately he snaps to attention. Those are the shoes worn by the one he sees as his best friend, his amigo! His pal! ...And so on and so forth. The dim glow of his ECHOeye fades off, the last remnants of yet another trashy email flickering from view. He turns on his heels, no longer is he reading some rubbish whilst trying to enjoy the view outside his office windows, oh no. He's facing Zer0 with a smile spread almost ear-to-ear, his arms raised in excitement and welcome. ❝ Zer0! Buddy.. You shouldn't have— ❞ Though he says this, the internal monologue of his is screaming thank god, I completely forgot to order food! Oh my god I could've withered away! Thankfully, Rhys is yet to have any technology to hand that'd make these somewhat tragic monologues audible. Poking his head forward, finger gingerly peeling open the take-out bag, as if he couldn't already tell what Zer0 had kindly picked up for him. ( Truly, only Zer0 and Lor knew him well enough to get it right every time, Zer0 had one up on Lor for getting the right amount of milk in his coffee... +10 points on the board for that! ) ❝ I owe you one, thank you—say have uh, have you.. You know, what-what am I asking..? ❞ The coffee, his eyes have drifted to it and he's distracted himself enough to forget his thought process. Metallic red hand is waved about near his temple as he tries to recall it, stammering along in the meantime. ❝ The—uh, oh! Sasha, yeah-I-I'd been meaning to ask, any.. Any update on her? ❞ Though they'd parted on pretty good terms, he still cared, even if it was more of a please don't die you're one of the few friends I still have now that I'm in the corporate world feeling, she was his friend first and foremost. Wherever she was, he just needed to know she was safe. Then he could go back to hiding from Katagawa Jr.

With their hands now free and impromptu delivery successful, Zer0 folds their hands behind their back. The sight of his friend's smile is all the assassin needs to know that they did well. Mission objective on the helmet HUD be damned.

And then that smile fades, and they know exactly where this is going. Sasha. They only briefly interacted with her when Zer0 was called upon to fight the Traveler (A damn fun fight, might they add.), and in that short moment they could see why Rhys cared.

The girl has such a strong spirit, that urge to fight and keep going forward. Even when faced with what should've been her end, she managed to survive. Gained a second wind like a true Vault Hunter. In Zer0's eyes, she was just as much of a Hunter as her sister, and every other Vault Hunter out there.

But.. unfortunately, someone who wishes to disappear won't be found. Zer0 would know.

❛ Negative. ❜ There's a pang of guilt from their failure. The lack of anything isn't from a lack of trying. They truly have been. But the war has been a balancing act - one that tests how much they can put into both keeping Atlas secure, as well as keeping Rhys from harm.

❛ Neither myself, nor / my spies, have found anything. / I apologize. ❜

[atlasreign]

I mean... Would you say no?

[atlasreign]

Zer0 remembers to intentionally scuff their boots on the floor after manifesting in Rhys' office. They'd rather not scare the living daylights out of Rhys for the.. however many times it has happened now.

A coffee and take-out bag are set in front of the CEO. The assassin has memorized the usual orders by now. (Even if Zer0.. greatly dislikes what said orders contain.)

❛ So you don't starve to death. ❜

[ :) ]

Another day of scouring through hundreds of emails on a digitised screen, flicking through junk mail about Hot Skags in his Area—he swears the scam attempts are just getting lazy at this point, so out of it Rhys doesn't detect the sounds of his door hissing open. But the boots? Oh he hears that and immediately he snaps to attention.

Those are the shoes worn by the one he sees as his best friend, his amigo! His pal! ...And so on and so forth. The dim glow of his ECHOeye fades off, the last remnants of yet another trashy email flickering from view. He turns on his heels, no longer is he reading some rubbish whilst trying to enjoy the view outside his office windows, oh no. He's facing Zer0 with a smile spread almost ear-to-ear, his arms raised in excitement and welcome.

❝ Zer0! Buddy.. You shouldn't have— ❞ Though he says this, the internal monologue of his is screaming thank god, I completely forgot to order food! Oh my god I could've withered away! Thankfully, Rhys is yet to have any technology to hand that'd make these somewhat tragic monologues audible.

Poking his head forward, finger gingerly peeling open the take-out bag, as if he couldn't already tell what Zer0 had kindly picked up for him. ( Truly, only Zer0 and Lor knew him well enough to get it right every time, Zer0 had one up on Lor for getting the right amount of milk in his coffee... +10 points on the board for that! )

❝ I owe you one, thank you—say have uh, have you.. You know, what-what am I asking..? ❞ The coffee, his eyes have drifted to it and he's distracted himself enough to forget his thought process. Metallic red hand is waved about near his temple as he tries to recall it, stammering along in the meantime. ❝ The—uh, oh! Sasha, yeah-I-I'd been meaning to ask, any.. Any update on her? ❞ Though they'd parted on pretty good terms, he still cared, even if it was more of a please don't die you're one of the few friends I still have now that I'm in the corporate world feeling, she was his friend first and foremost. Wherever she was, he just needed to know she was safe. Then he could go back to hiding from Katagawa Jr.

[atlasreign]

Highly recommend Debt or Alive. 😭 Such a good book.

[atlasreign]

musesfromthefifthdimension - an rp sideblog with muses from old scifi, tv muses, and more. written by marker, follows from @markershub. contains the use of deceased faceclaims out of respect for their amazing portrayals. potential triggers tagged to the best of my ability.

like or reblog if interested in interacting.

[atlasreign]

someone sent this in the DE server and like. hi yeah this is Rhys. it's so Rhys to me. at least when I play tales because I have the reaction speed of a paper bag. 😭 but just yeah this is the man who messed up Good Cop, Bad Cop so like... of course he might screw up an order instantly. it's what he does, baby!!!

[atlasreign]

🌺 send this to ten muns you think are wonderful 🌺

val !!!!! why you do this to me, why. i'm just a crying fella, a small guy. a weeping dude. WAH.

[atlasreign]