#8. Beaks in the Shell

[lethesbeastie]

I showed a few parts of this larger ref while responding to asks yesterday, so might as well post the whole thing akfhskfhskf

Version without texture overlay + character design thoughts and lore under the cut!

I'm gonna start this off by saying that I am not a biologist and that my attempts at speculative biology are operating by "rule of cool" in some parts of this design.

Wraith's design is largely based on cephalopods, with mimic octopus, bobtail squid, and cuttlefish playing a key role as design inspirations. My goal for their design in this form was to keep their anatomy and physiology as close to the typical structure of cephalopods as possible without sacrificing the necessary physical features that would allow them to adapt to life outside of the water. I wanted them to look alien, but still endearing, and to emphasize the fact that they are very much still a child despite their size and strangeness.

A quick note on some terms from the flavor text on the image:

Buccal mass: mouthparts of a cephalopod, including the beak and the musculature that allows it to open and close

Mantle: the main body of a cephalopod that protects and contains all of its major organs

Flavor text:

Arms Vs. Tentacles: on cephalopods, Arms refer to appendages which have suckers along the entire length of the limbs underside, while Tentalces only have suckers at the club-like end

1. Blue of blood shows through in membranes/thinner areas of flesh

2. Primary mouth/buccal mass

3. External gills

4. Siphon

5. Ridges flare when threatened

6. Tentacles and rear arm merge, acts as counterweight to aid in bipedal locomotion

7. Lower anterior arms merge to form legs; lack of proper bones means bipedal locomotion is unsteady

8. Upper arms adapted hands to better manipulate objects

9. The two rear-most appendages are proper tentacles, and are capable of manipulating objects almost as effectively as main hands

10. Two mouths, one form consumption, one for speech*

- 10A. Secondary mouth hidden by barbles, chitin** structure within resembles a fused set of teeth. This mouth can be used to eat, but there's a high risk of choking

- 10B. Resting position of beak in primary mouth, retracted into buccal mass

- 10C. Extended position of beak in primary mouth; capable of breaking down mollusk shells and biting through bone

11. Natural posture when unfurled

12. Defensive stance

13. The skin covering the mantel forms a cavity into which the head can partially withdraw

14. Capable of spitting ink from secondary mouth when in distress

15. Eyes are large with highly reflective pupils; excellent dark vision

16. Nictitating membrane rises to protect the eye when biting, may also rise when distressed

17. Retractable claws inside suckers

Extra design lore and speculative biology:

18. Blood is a deep blue, appears black under water, and turns clear as it dries. Texture is thick and viscous

** in the image I wrote keratin, but research has shown me that a squids beak is actually made of chitin rather than keratin! Keratin may still be present, but it's not the main polymer in the makeup of the beak structure. I know this is a silly fun character design, but I try to remain somewhat accurate with how I engage the biological aspects, so I wanted to correct my mistake

At the current moment of this design, Wraith is 11 years old, and stands at 5 ft 4 in [168 cm] when using their legs. They measure 6 ft [183 cm] long from head to tail when unfurled/in the water. Their height and size relative to their age is above average compared to humans, but is more or less in line with the normal growth rate for deep sea tritons, which are the largest of the triton variants. Their height out of the water is limited by their physiology; Wraith lacks proper bones, so maintaining an upright form requires a lot more effort and energy. They rely heavily on mobility aids (rollator, cane, wheelchair) if they'll be walking or standing for long periods of time in their true form.

The changeling magic that enables their shape-shifting provides a level of structural stability to their body when in disguise that makes life outside of the water easier, but they still require more rest and breaks from standing than other able-bodied children of their own age. The form that provides the most stability is their "default" triton disguise, which they've carefully tailored to be as comfortable as possible so they can have a more active lifestyle. Smaller disguise forms are easier to manage, as the compression of their body makes those forms more stable to hold. Their triton disguise form measures out to only 3 ft 5 in [103 cm] tall which is much easier for them to maintain out of the water.

[likelytowritesomestuff]

DUCKTALES '17 TAG

'Sup party people!

It's been a while since I started a tag, but I want to try again. I'll tag @not-some-background-noise @miniaturecollectionwitchofsun @godfrey-the-chaos-duck @lettheladylead, but it's free for anyone...

1) Favorite character

Webby. I love how they managed to make her a lover of adventures and mysteries without sacrificing her femininity... she is also an eternal optimist and the heart of the family, and I love how she manages to help everyone around her in unique ways

2)Favorite triplet

Huey. I love his characterization and his arc (although every triplet is well written and I love them all)

3)Favorite villain

Magica De Spell: she isn't just voiced by the most important woman in the whole wide universe (I'm a whovian who started the series because of DT, imagine how happy I was when I discovered there was also Catherine Tate), but she is also a great villainess who is genuinely good at being bad in a way that everyone is always worried she is behind everything... I also have a soft spot for Mark Beaks because he is realistic in both a funny and a scary way

4)Favorite non canon ship

Weblena: I love the way Lena got saved from Webby and at the same time she had to do some work to save herself, while Webby was always there to support her... they have a beautiful dynamic together and even if they're not officially canon, they still are (Sam King said that)

5)Favorite canon ship

Fendra... I liked them in 'The Dangerous Chemistry of Gandra Dee' and I couldn't wait to see how their relationship could evolve only to find in 'Beaks in the Shell!' the cutest and most supportive lovestory ever! We need more male sunshine/female grumpy relationship in media and they were absolutely adorable (they deserved WAY more time together, but their canon interactions kinda make up for this due to their cuteness)

6)Favorite episode

'Nightmare on Killmotor Hill', I think. It's so visually creative with all the kids' dreams and it hits you right in the feels with Lena's arc... the finale is so powerful.

7)A character you came to like the more you knew them

Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera. I didn't know Lin Manuel Miranda back when season 1 aired, but by learning more about him I came to appreciate his character more, and by the end of the series he is probably one of my favorites

8)A theory that hadn't been canonized but you believe it as canon

Scrooge was actively searching for Donald although everybody believed he was on the cruise but he didn't want to warn both the kids and his twin sister (I wrote a whole meta about it back in the day if you're curious)

9)The one question you never stop to ask about

How Selene, THE GODDESS OF THE MOON, didn't know Della, (her possible former girlfriend?), was stuck on the Moon? She has powers over it, so why did she ignore it? Was her father fault? ANGONES, DT WRITERS, EXPLAIN TO ME PLEASE, IT'S BEEN 5 YEARS I KEEP TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT!

10)What would you have liked to see in the (cancelled) fourth season?

MAGICSTONE CANON, an eventual Magica's redemption without Lena forgiveness, THE TRIPLETS DAD (I know they didn't want to explore the character in order to highlight how Donald was basically their true dad, BUT... it would have been an interesting plot), Goldie's backstory, Hortense and Quackmore, more moments between Donald and Scrooge, Daisy bonding with the family, June and May finding their own place in it, more Fendra, more domestic Scroldie, BRIGITTA (I know the writers would have handled her well just as they did with Daisy), Scrooge and Webby adjusting their dynamic as father and daughter, more lore about Fenton's dad, the kids interacting all together...

And that's it. Feel free to participate!

[bethanythebogwitch]

If you asked me as a kid what my favorite animal was, there's a good chance I'd respond "chambered nautilus", though I probably would mispronounce it. I don't know if it's still my favorite but it's definitely up there in the pantheon of weird critters. For this Wet Beast Wednesday, I'll discuss my childhood favorite.

(image: a nautilus)

The nautilus is a cephalopod that lives in a curved shell and looks similar to (but is not closely related to) the extinct ammonites. There are 6 living species in two genera, but 90% of the time when someone is discussing nautiluses they are referring to the most well-known species: Nautilus pompilius or the chambered nautilus. Nautiloids are ancient, going back to at least the late triassic with their more primitive ancestors going back as far as the ordovician period, a time when only invertebrates and primitive plants occupied the land and true fish had not yet appeared. Because of their ancient history, nautiluses are sometimes considered living fossils. I have ranted before on how misleading the term "living fossil" is so I'll spare you that for now. Nautiloids are considered a sister group to the celoids, which contains all the squid, octopus, cuttlefish, and everything else we thinks of as cephalopods. Nautiluses should not be confused with paper nautiluses. Also called argonauts, paper nautiluses are a group of octopi that make an egg case which looks like a shell.

(image: a nautilus)

The most noticeable feature of a nautilus is its shell. The shell is smooth and finely curving, naturally growing in the shape of a logarithmic spiral (though not, as is commonly stated, a golden ratio spiral). The shell has a stripy outer layer and an inner layer coated with nacre. Internally, the shell is divided into camarae (chambers) separated from each other by walls called septa. Each septum has a small hole in it through which a strand of tissue called the siphuncle passes. Most of the nautilus's body is in the foremost and largest chamber. The shell grows new septa as the animal grows, with the nautilus's body moving to a new chamber as it becomes too large for previous ones. Juveniles are typically born with 4 septa, with adults having as many as 30. In addition to providing protection from predators, the shell is also key for regulating buoyancy. The septa can contain pressurized gas or water and the siphuncle regulates their contents by either adding or removing water to increase or decrease buoyancy. Because of its pressurized contents, the shell can only withstand pressure at depths up to 800 M (2,400 ft) before imploding. Oddly enough, nautiluses can be safely brought up from deep waters where most animals would be killed by the pressure changes. To move, the nautilus pulls water into the first chamber of the shell using its hyponome (siphon) and shoots it back out. The chambered nautilus is the largest species, with a maximum shell diameter of 25 cm (10 in), though most get no larger than 20 cm (8 in).

(image: a diagram of nautilus anatomy. source)

Where celoid cephalopods have tentacles, nautiluses instead have numerous cirri. Unlike tentacles, cirri are less muscular, are not elastic, and have no suckers. They are used to grab objects using their ridged surfaces and can hold in so hard that trying to take an object away from a nautilus can rip off its cirri, which will remain firmly attached. In addition, the nautilus has modified cirri that serve as olfactory receptors and a pair that serve to open and close the shell when the nautilus needs to retract into it or emerge. Nestled within the cirri is the beak, which is used to consume the nautilus's primary prey of invertebrates, though they have also been seen scavenging fish. Their eyes are less developed than most cephalopods, lacking a lens and consisting of a small pinhole that only allows the nautilus to see simple imagery. Their brains are differently structured than most cephalopods and studies have found them to have considerably shorter long-term memories.

(image: a chambered nautilus (upper left) next to a rare Allonautilus scrobiculatus. source)

Cephalopod reproduction is quite different than that of other cephalopods. While most cephalopods are short-lived and semelparous (reproducing only once), nautiluses can live over 20 years and reproduce multiple times (iteroparity). They do not reach sexual maturity until around 15 years old, with females laying eggs once per year. Eggs are attached to rocks and take 8 to 12 months to hatch. Males have a structure called the spadix composed of 4 fused cirri that they use to transfer sperm to females. Females lose their gonads after laying their eggs and will regenerate them for the next year's mating season. Interestingly, male nautiluses seem to vastly outnumber the females. EDIT: @bri-the-nautilus in the replies found an alternate explanation for the disparity in male and female numbers you should check out. TLDR; the females are asocial.

(image: nautiluses mating)

Nautiluses are found in the Indo-Pacific reagion of the ocean and can be found on the steep slopes of coral reefs. They prefer to inhabit waters several hundred meters down. It was once believed that they would rise to shallow waters at night to feed, lay eggs, and mate, but their vertical migration behavior has since been shown to be more complex than that. They have noon been fished by humans for their shells, which have become popular subjects in art and can be made into a number of decorative pieces. The nacre of the shell can be polished into osmeña pearl, which can be quite valuable. Demand for the shells combined with the late sexual maturity and low fecundity is threatening all the species. As of 2016, nautiluses have been added to the CITES Appendix II, making them protected by limiting international trade of their shells. Despite this, they are still threatened and require further protection

(image: a carved and painted nautilus shell from the Poldi Pezzoli Museum, Milan)

[thecreaturecodex]

Cephalonoid

Image © Terryl Whitlatch, accessed at CG Channel here

[Sponsored by Soluman Blevins, based on art that Terryl Whitlatch did for her book Principles of Creature Design. At one point in development, I intended for this to be one of the illithidae, but found myself getting more and more sympathetic to it, so changed the alignment away from evil. Thus, they became the rarest of monsters; an octopus creature whose behavior is actually based on that of an octopus.]

Cephalonoid CR 12 N Aberration This creature looks like a hybrid of an octopus and a carnivorous dinosaur. Its head is like that of an octopus, except that its beak is on a long stalk, emerging visibly from the nest of tentacles growing from its face. It walks on all fours, but it can rise on its hind legs like a gorilla. Its fingers and toes are jointless and tentacle-like, and a row of suckers runs down its back and along the upper surface of its tail. A coiling shell grows from the crown of its head, with an inflatable pouch beneath it.

Cephalonoids are strange sapient predators that resemble a hybrid of mollusk and vertebrate. They are amphibious, hunting either above or below the waves and then hiding underwater in order to sleep. Cephalonoids are curious and voracious creatures, and spend much of their lives either hunting or playing. These two activities are perhaps synonymous, as cephalonoids seem to enjoy playing with their food.

A cephalonoid’s primary strategy is to grapple prey and crush it while it struggles to escape. Their beaks are more extensible than those of true cephalopods, but still possess a shorter reach than its many grasping limbs. Creatures bitten by a cephalonoid are injected with a numbing venom, all the better to cut their struggle short and make them easier to constrict. A cephalonoid can spray toxic ink, which can form a concealing and enervating cloud both above and below water. They are highly resistant to mind-influencing magic, which has led some scholars to suspect that they have a link to aboleths, illithids, or one of any number of tentacle horrors with mental powers. Cephalonoids show these creatures no love, and may in fact prey preferentially on them if their ranges overlap.

Unlike the octopus they resemble, cephalonoids are long-lived creatures, with lifespans that can extend up to fifty years. They are territorial amongst their own kind and do not tolerate intrusion, except during mating season or in the guarding of eggs. Female cephalonoids lay their eggs in colonies called gardens, where they watch over them, fasting for months until they hatch. The young are then left to fend for themselves, and may be mistaken for mundane octopus for a few years before their skeleton grows in and they begin to move about on land. Cephalonoids do not understand concepts like domestication or private property, and may come into conflict with humanoids above or below the waves for raiding livestock.

Cephalonoid CR 12 XP 19,200 N Gargantuan aberration (aquatic, amphibious) Init +8; Senses blindsight 30 ft.,darkvision 60 ft., Perception +17

Defense AC 24, touch 10, flat-footed 20 (-4 size, +4 Dex, +14 natural) hp 171 (18d8+90) Fort +11, Ref +12, Will +14; +4 vs. mind-influencing effects DR 10/magic and [slashing or piercing]; Immune poison; SR 23 Defensive Abilities decentralized brain

Offense Speed 30 ft., swim 30 ft. Melee bite +18 (2d4+9 plus poison), 2 slams +18 (2d6+9 plus grab), tentacles +18 (4d8+9 plus grab), tail slap +16 (1d12+4 plus grab) Space 20 ft.; Reach 20 ft. (10 ft. with bite) Special Attacks constrict (4d8+15), ink cloud, master grappler

Statistics Str 30, Dex 19, Con 21, Int 7, Wis 16, Cha 12 Base Atk +13; CMB +27 (+35 grappling); CMD 46 Feats Bleeding Critical,Critical Focus,Defensive Combat Training, Diehard, Endurance, Improved Critical (bite), Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack (B), Power Attack Skills Climb +20, Escape Artist +24, Perception +17, Stealth +15, Swim +28; Racial Modifiers +10 Escape Artist, +4 Perception, +8 Stealth Languages Aquan

Ecology Environment any ocean or coast Organization solitary, pair or garden (3-8) Treasure incidental

Special Abilities Decentralized Brain (Ex) A cephalonoid’s intelligence is distributed through its entire body. This grants it a +4 racial bonus on all saving throws against mind-influencing effects. Ink Cloud (Su) As a standard action, a cephalonoid can create a cloud of ink in a 30 foot radius, either above or below water. This ink impedes vision as a fog cloud spell, and creatures in the area must succeed a DC 24 Fortitude save or be sickened and staggered for as long as they remain in the cloud and for 1d4 rounds thereafter. A cephalonoid can make an ink cloud once per minute. This is a poison effect, and the save DC is Constitution based. Master Grappler (Ex) A cephalonoid gains a +8 racial bonus to CMB checks made to grapple; this replaces the usual +4 for creatures with the grab special attack. A cephalonoid does not take a penalty to grappling without having two free hands, and can grapple up to four creatures smaller than itself at the same time. Poison (Ex) Bite—injury; save Fort DC 24; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d4+1 Str; cure 2 saves. Tentacles (Ex) The oral tentacles of a cephalonoid are treated as a single primary natural weapon.

[credus99-blog]

Aggression/ Danger to humans: Low– Very Low/ None

Element/ Ailment: None

    The Blue Spotted Landhopper, or gyrok-cj’ocj’yxcj’ parh (gyrok ‘on land’ + cj’ocj’yxcj’ ‘it jumps’ + parh ‘spotted, speckled’) in Dhënuvgöm, is a small species of Landhopper commonly found in the Hollows of the northern continent. Inhabiting the forests surrounding karst regions, the Blue Spotted Landhopper belongs to a lineage of tripods that evolved from Atterran Mudskippers who transitioned to life completely on land. These animals easily navigate the tunnels and green sinkholes they call home with their strong limbs and claws, climbing the cavern walls.  As carnivores, the Blue Spotted Landhopper hunts invertebrates, small mammals, and soft-bodied anthropods (arthropods that have developed closed circulatory systems and internal chitinous skeletons).

    Their hunting tactic is to ambush prey using short bursts of speed, seizing them with their fleshy beak. The hardened skin helps protect their mouth while the Landhopper’s teeth pierce the flesh, putting pressure on the bones of its prey. Landhoppers then savage their prey, making use of its powerful neck muscles to violently shake its meal side to side until it dies.  Once dead, the Landhopper tears apart the prey into bite-sized pieces that are easier to manage and swallow whole. Unlike many other animals, Landhoppers have four nostrils. The first pair of nostrils take oxygen into the lungs in the animal's neck. Then air is exhaled through the upper nostrils near the animal's eyes.

            Blue Spotted Landhoppers are known to be skittish animals, typically opting to flee rather than stay and fight an aggressor. When startled, Spotted Landhoppers will open their back sail completely and arch their back like a cat to appear larger and more threatening. If the predator is startled or an opening presents itself, the Landhopper will dash away to safety. Should the animal be cornered, the Landhopper will scratch, bite, and kick with its powerful back legs to fight off an attacker. Though skittish in the presence of other species, the Blue Spotted Landhopper behaves quite differently when faced with a member of its species.

    Spotted Landhoppers generally tolerate members of the opposite sex within their territories; the same cannot be said when two of the same gender encounter one another. Both genders attempt to scare off the rival within their territory by hissing and arching their backs in a threat display. If the rival remains undeterred, they will rear up on their back leg, clasping their arms together and showcasing their teeth. They will bite and grapple with the other to knock their rival down and chase them out of the territory. While seemingly violent, these matches do not lead to major injuries on either side, as the goal is simply to chase away the opponent rather than kill them.

            During mating season in the spring, males fan open their back fin to attract the attention of passing females. If he catches a passing female’s attention, he will arch his back and stand still while the female inspects him. During inspection, females pay close attention to the lustrousness of the male’s back fin and how bright his spots are as they circle around him. These traits are what she uses to judge his overall health. Should the male not pass the inspection, the female will simply turn around and leave the dejected male behind. If the male is satisfactory, the female will mate with the male and reside within his territory for up to a week to lay her eggs. Spotted Landhopper females lay their clutches (typically between 8 to 12 leathery eggs) in a hole of soft soil that they dig themselves.

    Once she’s laid her eggs, the female will immediately return to her territory, leaving the male to watch over the clutch of eggs. The eggs incubate for approximately 150 days before hatching. The male abandons the hatchlings once they’re broken out of their shells, leaving them to fend for themselves. Hatchlings of the same clutch band together for the first six months of their lives to ensure higher chances of survival before separating. While not cannibalistic, adult Blue Spotted Landhoopers will chase away adolescents if they are spotted to lessen competition within their territory. This tactic also helps disperse their offspring and reduce the likelihood of inbreeding. Though born a dull brown color, Spotted Landhoppers gain their characteristic blue spots when they reach sexual maturity at two years of age. The only way to tell the sex of a Spotted Landhopper is the length of the rays on the back fin. Females possess elongated rays in comparison to the males. Once mature, Spotted Landhoppers typically live around ten years in the wild but can live up to twenty years in zoos under specialized care.

[fishenjoyer1]

Fish of the Day

today's fish of the day is the giant pacific octopus!

The giant pacific octopus, also called the North Pacific Octopus, scientific name Enteroctopus dofleini, is known for being the largest species of octopus! Living exclusively in temperate waters, their range stretches from Southern California up to Alaska, and from the West coast of Northern America, to the Aleutian Islands, and East coast of Japan. Giant pacific octopi live along coral ranges, rocky outcroppings, and intertidal zones where catching prey is easier. The bite of the giant pacific octopus contains a venom that breaks down proteins in animals, softening muscle tissues and organs over the course of a few hours. Their diet consists of almost anything they can fit in their beak: fish, crabs, lobster, shrimp, some smaller sharks and dogfish, clams, snails, and seagulls. They can tear apart animals with far tougher skin than their own due to a beak structure that can be found on all octopi, made of chitin. This diet can support them getting sizes as large as 29 feet! Their arm span alone can reach 19 feet across, and the heaviest recorded specimen was almost 200 pounds!

Many scavengers predate on octopi, and the great pacific octopus is no different, even drawing in larger predators due to their size. Many marine mammals, such as harbor seals, sea otters, various dolphins, and sperm whales have been found hunting great pacific octopi, along with large sharks. Humans also hunt great pacific octopi with commercial fishing for consumption across the world, taking 3.3 million tons annually. However, great pacific octopi are especially known for their high intelligence, which is used to avoid many of these predators. Octopi are known for being able to survey their surroundings and camouflage at will in many different ways. These animals have 9 brains, one in each of their 8 arms and a central brain, which does more than the others, each of the arms controlling over 200 suckers, which they have the control over like we do of our individual fingers, giving them high control over their movements. Along with the ability to create havoc in research environments, dissasemling expensive equipment, and escaping. 

Like many other cephalopods, the giant pacific octopus can change colors, using this to blend into the rocks around their hiding caves. This color changing ability is quite interesting for study however, when the octopus is resting they turn a milky white color, and when the octopus is occupied by other worries, they turn a deep red color. However, it is found that throughout an octopus's rest they will change into molted patterns that are also found in alert octopi: leading to the theory that octopi too, can dream. In other situations, these octopi have been known to create molted patterns to seduce partners, and to confuse prey. Other than their color changing abilities, they also have been known to surround themselves in shells and other remains of previous meals, to disguise their body when venturing for food. These animals also possess the well known ability to squirt ink out of their siphon, used to confuse predators. They also have been known for changing the texture of their skin, to blend in better with their surroundings. Their intelligence is so high that it is thought the octopi are some of the only invertebrates that engage in play activities.

Giant pacific octopi spent around 90% of their time inside of dens, venturing out only to find prey, and bringing them back into the den to consume. This creates an 'octopus garden' on the outside of the den, where there are piles of bones and shells piling up. However, depending on population, throughout the year these octopi will migrate, in accordance to seasonal changes. Eastern populations tend to locate new dens when the water experiences temperature changes in summer and winter, whereas western populations will move dens to shallower waters in early summer and winter, and then move to deeper waters in the later summer and winter. Northern populations, both the Alaskan and Northeastern, do not seem to have migration patterns.

Their lifespan is relatively long compared to other octopi. Sexual maturity is achieved at 1-2 years of age, but the giant pacific octopus, with a lifespan of 3-5 years, will wait until it reaches a sufficient body mass. This is because a giant pacific octopus will only ever go through one sexual event in a lifetime. After laying eggs within their den, males will fertilize. The female octopi will then brood over these eggs for 6 months, refusing to leave the den for any purpose, eventually dying of starvation, just as the eggs hatch. Eggs are cared for, by having the mother keep them well aerated with cool water from her siphon, and she'll clean them to ensure algae or parasites wont prey on the eggs. Males will also die after reproduction, although they will do this in their own dens. After hatching, the eggs grow quickly, reaching adult sizes within a year. Thus, continuing the cycle.

Have a wonderful day, everyone!

[haztobegood]

⭐️ Annual Writing Self-Evaluation 2024 ⭐️

1. Number of stories posted to AO3: 16

2. Word count posted for the year: 43,087

3. Fandoms I wrote for: One Direction, BBC Radio 1 RPF, Music RPF (The Snuts)

4. Pairings: so many!

Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles & Louis Tomlinson

Louis Tomlinson/Jack Cochrane

OT5 girl direction

Zayn Malik/Louis Tomlinson

Niall Horan/Greg James & Nick Grimshaw/Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson & Zayn Malik/Liam Payne

Zayn Malik/Harry Styles

5. Story with the most: Kudos: Figure This Out Bookmarks: Figure This Out Comments: Louis and the no good, very bad day

6. Work I’m most proud of (and why): Stronger Than the Tide was written for the @1daroaceficfest this year. I started writing a different fic but that one got to be much longer than I had time to write, so I quickly changed course, found new inspiration, and wrote this one so fast. This one proved to me that my fics don't have to be long and complicated to be very meaningful.

7. Work I’m least proud of (and why): I am honestly super proud of everything I posted this year. I feel more confident in my abilities and enjoyed writing so much that I couldn't single any out.

8. Share or describe a favorite review you received: This year I took a writing course and practiced what I'd learned while writing a horror story. Sisterhood is so different than anything I've posted before, so I was a bit nervous to post it. The comments were really great, especially this one from @disgruntledkittenface, "Jinny, I'm so impressed! Your prose is so evocative, and the story gave me chills. You gave such a full, rounded picture of the setting and all of the girls' relationships that I felt like I was there. I admit, I hesitated when I saw the cannibalism tag, but I'm really glad I read this!"

9. A time when writing was really, really hard: This spring was difficult. March and April are always busy and stressful, and then I broke my ankle, had two surgeries, and moved back in with my parents while I healed. Toward the end of May I really wanted to write for @wankersday so I forced myself to try despite some severe writer's block. I drafted Louis and the no good, very bad day entirely on my phone while lying on a couch.

10. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you: The ace of clubs in Stronger Than the Tide was my favorite surprise. This wasn't a part of the original draft at all, but while editing it felt like something was missing to indicate that the cave was siren!Harry's home, so I added Harry's collection of human objects. Because this was an ace/aro fic it felt right to put an ace card in. I found out after that the ace of clubs can represent growth and tending to relationships, which fit the theme perfectly.

Louis looked around the empty cave awkwardly. The bright sunlight illuminated some shiny objects laid out on natural ledges in the stone walls that he hadn’t noticed the last time. He slid his hands into the pockets of his red trackies and wandered closer. Shiny agates, broken seashells, smooth sea glass. A fork with a bent tine, dried wildflowers, a bobbin of old thread. A collection of jewelry. A large scallop shell filled with coins from all over the world. A corked bottle with a piece of paper rolled inside. Louis reached out and picked up a single red playing card. He turned it over: the ace of clubs. “That’s my collection. When I find something unique I save it.” Louis had been so intrigued by the items he hadn’t heard Harry come out of the cave. He set the card down carefully where he'd found it. “You keep your collection here in a cave?” “The cave is my home.”

More under the cut.

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing: Niall naming Louis' soulmate goose after Bruce Springsteen in Louis and the no good, very bad day will always make me laugh

Niall and Louis walk down the pavement, with the goose strutting a few feet behind Louis, beak held high. “Did you name him?” Niall asks. “What?” “The goose. Did you name him?” “Why would I do that? He’s not a pet.” “Because he’ll be with you for an unknown amount of time. Seems like he should have a name. Like Horace. Or Lionel. Or Bruce! Bruce the Goose.” The goose lets out a short burst of little honks in what Louis can only describe as a happy goose noise. Louis shakes his head. “No. I’m not naming my Soulmate Goose. He’ll hopefully be gone in a few days and then I can get on with my life.” Honk! Niall says, “Maybe. But I’ve heard that some people are stuck with their Soulmate Goose for almost a year.”

12. How did you grow as a writer this year: This year I took a writing course because I wanted to intentionally work on writing as a craft. I learned a lot from the course and enjoyed dedicating time to practicing and improving my skill.

13. How do you hope to grow next year: I am working on a Pride and Prejudice adaptation and learning a lot from studying the source material. Taking a deep dive into such an iconic novel is teaching me a great deal about what makes that story and its characters so compelling.

14. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc): @lululawrence's @wordplayfics was a huge inspiration. I wrote 5 fics, 3 of which had been sitting in my drafts folder for years. I had so much fun seeing where each random word would take me each week.

15. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year: Greg twisting his ankle in The Grundy County Corn Maze Incident was inspired by breaking my own ankle. Unfortunately the strong Irish man that helped me get to a car was not Niall . And The Kiss of Sleep that I wrote for @1dtrickortreatfest was inspired by the one and only time I tried melatonin.

16. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers: Keep all your unfinished drafts, even if it seems unlikely you will ever finish them. You never know when the inspiration will strike.

17. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year: I signed up as an author for @onedirectionbigbang for the first time this year! I am also an artist for two others and can't wait to see what these collaborations will bring

18. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read.

I tag @disgruntledkittenface @lululawrence @allwaswell16 @voulezloux @red-pandaaa @reminiscingintherain @so-why-let-your-voice-be-tamed @homosociallyyours @justanothershadeofblue @uhoh-but-yeah-alright and anyone else that wants to do this!

Past years (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023)

[talonabraxas]

Quetzalcoatl 🐉 Talon Abraxas

Creation Myths

Quetzalcoatl-Ehécatl and his crafty brother Tezcatlipoca were in the business of creation. In some incredible escapades, they created the earth, sea and night sky and were regents of the first two ‘suns’, or world eras of the existing five. When the brothers separated the sky from the earth, they even turned into the trees that held the two apart, earnings the names of Quetzalhuéxotl and Tezcacahuitl.

Quetzalcoatl’s life-giving ability gave rise to many of the things around us. On a lone voyage, he went to find the bones of the dead in the underworld, known as Mictlan. After many trials and tribulations he was able to escape Mictlan and carry the bones to Tamoanchan, home of the gods. He ground the bones and mixed them with his blood, creating the first humans of the 5th (and current) sun.

In another act as creator, Quetzalcoatl threw his semen at a rock and from it grew a bat that approached the fertility goddess Xochiquetzal (Quetzal Flower), biting her between the legs. From her wound burst beautiful flowers that the bat took to the lord of the underworld, Mictlantecuhtli, who bathed them in the water of his subterranean rivers and perfumed the blossoms.

Many other creation myths revolve around Quetzalcoatl, some including the creation of the maguey plant, and the discovery of corn

Quetzalcoatl was often represented as the life-giving wind, with a beak or mask protruding from his face. With this appendage he was able to sweep the roads clean before the arrival of the rain gods (pic 5). Under the guise of wind, he was called Quetzalcoatl-Ehécatl and was considered a great cultural hero. This image from the sixteenth century Codex Borbonicus (pic 8, right) shows his conical hat made from the fur of an Ocelot. A recurring feature in Quetzalcoatl-Ehécatl’s iconography is a conch chest ornament. Called ehecacózcatl (wind jewel), the shell has been interpreted as an association with the womb and the generation of life. The conch shell is symbolic of the ancestral bones from which Quetzalcoatl created humankind as we know it.

Quetzalcoatl-Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, the Morning Star

The legend of Ce Acatl Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl goes on to tell us that after a long pilgrimage towards the east, our hero found himself so thoroughly defeated by his brother Tezcatlipoca that he threw himself on a burning pyre in an act of self-sacrifice. From the smoking remains rose the morning star, Venus, who is represented by Quetzalcoatl in his guise of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli. He accompanies the sun across the sky during the day. This image from the Codex Borgia (pic 9) shows Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli displaying the quincunx: five circles associated with Venus. His hair is red and his body painted with red and white stripes. He is featured on the left in the upper and lower panels of the page. On the right hand side is Quetzalcoatl-Ehécatl.

Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli served as patron deity of astrological knowledge and was of profound importance in religious books in the Central Highlands and Oaxaca. Used for divination, these documents were called Tonalamame (sing. Tonalamatl), and displayed the portents of the 260 day lunar calendar known as the Tonalpoualli (Counting of the Days). Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli was considered patron of this calendar (Yólotl González-Torres,1991).

Xolotl, the Evening Star

Tlahuizcalpentecuhtli could only guard the sun as it crossed the daytime sky. However, Quetzalcoatl had another invocation that would help Venus through the underworld as the Evening Star: Xolotl, the dog (pic 10). Considered by some to be Quetzalcoatl’s double, assistant or twin, Xolotl aided Quetzalcoatl when he descended to the Mictlan to recover the bones of humankind. In Náhuatl, the word Xolotl was often associated with the concept of twins and physical deformity, so statues of the deity often portray a dog with twin heads, or ragged ears and running sores.

Interests: Saving the world (or making it), preserving life, cultivating knowledge and recognising beauty.

Day Sign: Wind

Trecena (13 day week): 1 Jaguar. According to sixteenth century friar Bernadino de Sahagún and his native informants, he also presided over 1 Reed. This last period was considered to bring bad luck because it was represented by Quetzalcoatl in his forceful guise of Wind. The trecena was marked by the Aztec nobility who made offerings in Calmecacs, learning institutions for noble children. Children born during 1 Reed were thought to be ill-fortuned, and the calendar foretold that all they gained in life would be “taken by the wind” (Sahagún, book III, chapter VIII). To save children born during the worst phase of 1 Reed, the Aztecs held childrens’ naming ceremonies on or after the 7th day of the week (7 Rain) as the following days were more auspicious.

Powers: As we know from stories of old, Quetzalcoatl’s physical powers and intelligence knew no bounds. But what were his monster-killing, sky-lifting and star-forming capacities in the face of his sneaky brother Tezcatlipoca? Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca were brothers in divine myths, where they worked together as creators, and against each other in acts of destruction. In the Legend of the Suns, their battles saw them topple each other as regents of individual worlds. As humans, Tezcatlipoca’s trickery thwarted the priest Quetzalcoatl (myth of Ce Acatl Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl). The cosmic battle between the two brothers has been interpreted as a dualistic opposition between creative and destructive forces (Taube, 1993, p82).

[the-attaarmadhaj]

As a cephalopod obsessed pokemon fan, I will ever be disappointed by the fact that there are only 7 cephalopod themed pokemon. Whilst, yes, I recognise that there aren't that many cephalopod species in the world, numbering somewhere between 800 and 1000 species described as of writing, they're so weird and interesting and the fact that only 7 cephalopod pokemon exist when there are all these weird and wonderful cephalopods irl is a crime. And these pokemon aren't even that interesting, either. Because like, did you know there are squid that literally take flight using their fins and webbed arms to glide through the air?

I mean here's the list:

We have omanyte and omastar. Ammonites, pretty cool and probably some of the best ammonites I've seen in fantasy media tbh, because her, thats an actual beak there! Nice. But still just ammonites.

We have octillery. Does the typical thing of misinterpreting the siphon/funnel as a mouth. Has 8 arms, which is cool, and the cannon gimmick is nice because that's how many cephalopods locomote quickly, by shooting water outta their siphon. But still pretty vanilla in terms of cephalopods.

There's inkay and malamar. Dark and psychic type squid pokemon, which is interesting. Clearly plays into the bioluminescence side, and the levitation is nice, but it's not the super cool way that irl squids take to the air. And it's a nice nod to the intelligence of cephalopods, and applying it to squids instead of octopuses is refreshing, even tho octopuses are the actual more intelligent members of the Cephalopod family. Also, once again, actual beaks! Nice! I know why the placement isn't in line with actual beak placement, but it's still irks me whenever I see something like that on something that isn't a fantasy reinterpretation of a squid.

We have clobbopus and grappleoct, pure fighting, interesting. I like that they didn't just do the whole siphon as a mouth thing that so many cartoons seem to insist on doing, and I like that it's based on actual octopus behaviour (octopuses will punch things, and they capture prey by grappling it and manipulating it with their arms.)

But there's just a lack of the super cool irl cephalopod traits, all of this? Pretty vanilla in terms of cephalopods. Where's one that takes to the sky by gliding on its fins and webbed tails? One that has a pair of lights on the end of 2 of its arms (or you know, eyes, because this is pokemon and we can do stuff like that.) There's no reference to their active camouflage ability. No cuttlefish! There's some that would make fantastic inspiration for a ghost type! Or I'm sure they could do something interesting with a rams Horn squid as a basis. Or a flamboyant cuttlefish, they'd make great grass types, or even dragon or fairy... or a poison type cephalopod pokemon because most cephalopods are venomous... or even just regional variants, like maybe a flying type octillery that floats in a "shell" in the air like an argonaut does in the water.

I mean, it's just a little frustrating to me. I want more cephalopod pokemon.

[marygih]

Brazilian peculiar fauna

As promised, my peculiar Brazilian fauna! I will explain what each animal is

1 .Two-headed jaguar

Exactly similar to two-headed lynxes, these large cats inhabit forests and are aggressive. They are large animals and need help to survive as both heads need to eat equally for the animal to survive.

2. Demon Piranhas

They are a dangerous and peculiar species of piranha, they have larger than normal teeth and horns, they are larger than common piranhas and they even devour alligators, it is an extremely dangerous animal.

3. Hummingbird with two tongues

This animal has a beak that opens much wider than that of a common hummingbird, it has two tongues that help it when eating. They eat much faster than a common hummingbird. These birds are naturally extremely fast and are peaceful.

4. Pink dolphin - Holadeira

Photographed in 1995 by Jeremy Wade, this species of Amazonian dolphin is extremely rare to find. It has notches on its back that are very characteristic. Unlike normal pink dolphins, this animal is aggressive just like a piranha, it is recommended to stay very far away from this animal

5. Fire maned wolf

This large animal is peaceful, extremely cautious and does not pose any immediate danger. However, if cornered or in a situation of danger or a lot of stress, this animal's body will catch fire. Fire does not hurt it, it is used solely as defense, unfortunately this animal is often responsible for Forest fire

6. Harpybara

This animal is a mix of a harpy and a capybara, harpybaras have the wings and tail of harpies and the body of a friendly and cute capybara, it is a peaceful and omnivorous animal. She swims very well, is terrestrial, and flies long distances, but prefers to stay on the ground and lie down under the shade of trees. They are the preferred animals as pets for ymbrynes, as they are completely harmless to children and are good companions.

7. Peculiar Coral Snakes

Coral snakes are already naturally dangerous with their deadly venom, now imagine a coral snake that can swallow anything regardless of size. This is the peculiar ability of these snakes. In addition to the naturally dangerous venom, these snakes are born with a jaw that stretches infinitely and an elastic body. They can eat things infinitely bigger than themselves and go years without needing to eat again. Obviously they are extremely dangerous.

8. Indestructible armadillo

Of normal size to that of any common armadillo, the indestructible armadillo has the peculiarity of its impenetrable body, its shell is proof of everything, it cannot be broken, shot or burned. It's indestructible.

Soon you met the ymbryne who rescues and shelters all these animals, Miss Tainá Urutau.

[jenuinely-speaking]

19Teens: HeadCanons

It's finally happened. I finally have HCs solid enough in one of my projects to post.

My only surprise is that it's in a new AU that struck me solid in the face out of nowhere fairly recently, and not from one of the ones I've been working on for the past year.

Go figure.

•Note: This will be added on as I work things out fully.

ANYWHO -- without further ado, I give you as the title states:

HCs of TMNTs in the 1910s AU

GENERAL-Minor Backstory

The brothers are, indeed, brothers -- born from the same hatching.

Pan Box Turtles (slightly curved shells where shoulder blades would be, that tapers down flat; yellow-green colored skin/scales)

Hatched and raised by Master Hamato Yoshi

He took them with his wife from Japan to America when he was assigned to the Foot Clan branch of New York City

Just like their parents, when the brothers speak, they have a Japanese accent; they also think and write in Japanese first and English second

When at home or among family, they speak Japanese; when among strangers, they speak English

Leonardo and Don are twins; not just as say-so, but born from the same egg

They are legit identical twins (same markings, coloring and scute designs)

In fact, they had been Conjoined Twins; their tails and surface area of their plastron had been connected at one point, but since no organs were connected, they were able to be surgically removed from each other when they were very young

Leonardo and Donatello are the eldest, having hatched a few days before Raphael and almost a week before Michelangelo

The brothers view Hamato Yoshi and Tang Shen as their parents (Okan/Mama and Otousan/Papa/Oyaji), really having no memory of their original home in the Hamato Gardens they lived in during their first year after hatching, and thus not really remembering their birth mother

When the brothers were still the loving pets of the Hamato's, they were often cared for by Tang Shen while Yoshi was out; they were deeply loved by her, and they returned the affection often (see the individuals below for their own way of how they showed this)

As much as Yoshi bares hate towards Oroku Saki for slaying Tang Shen and upheaving his life, the brothers bare equal disdain for the man, as they personally witnessed him murder their Okan.

When the turtles were almost 8 years old, they had been touched by the mutagen that had spilled in the sewers where Yoshi had them hide from a truck incident above ground; within a few weeks, they looked as though they were mutated human-terrapin hybrid 8-year-olds.

As the title suggests, they are 19 years old when they first meet April O'Neil and have their long-awaited showdown with Oroku Saki, now known as The Shredder

LEONARDO

Nicknames: Lee or Leonard -- Donatello is the only one to call him "Leon"

When he was a turtle, he returned Tang Shen's daily affections by following her everywhere and nip at her heels if he thought something was too dangerous around her (if she didn't move, he would go over to the thing he saw as a threat and hiss at it until she left the vicinity)

Like most turtles, Lee did not like to be handled even by the humans he loved, but he melted for scratches and pets anywhere on his body

If he felt he was lacking attention or had a particular itch, he would bump his head or beak against Yoshi or Tang Shen's hands

He would often have fallen asleep against their hands this way

Even though he is considered The Leader among his brothers, he willingly shares the title with Donatello

Is also the Doctor/Healer of the family, having first learned from Tang Shen when he was still a turtle, and later on from both his Otousan, as well from research alongside Donatello

Due to their unique biology, Lee is considered both a Veterinarian and Physician within the family

He has written many thesis journals about his and his family's physiology over the years

When he was ten, he started learning chemistry in order to make medicine for his family (with the guidance of Otousan)

Due to his physical caring nature, he is a natural protector (and worrier) and can tend to be a helicopter son/sibling within his family

He learned meditation very early to segway his worrying anxiety over his family

Possesses GAD - General Anxiety Disorder

Very OCD, not because it's a condition he has, but because the ease of routine and order helps tamper his anxieties

Raphael often coaches him separately from the rest of the family to ease down his OCD perfectionist tendencies on being a fighter/protector for the family

Had a mental breakdown from heightened anxiety that pushed him too far around 14-years-old

After a week of mental and physical rest, he was compassionately ordered by Otousan to discover a hobby that can take away his anxieties, similar to how his twin discovered engineering

It wasn't long after that he worked with Michelangelo and Donatello on building a garden in a separate tunnel; it helps both his anxieties on taking his time and patience to grow something living, while his labors help on feeding his family

When he is not among his family, he is often found reading doctoring journals or romance novels in his garden tunnel

Even though he is considered a young adult, the one thing that still calms him down the most on the hardest days/nights is getting head and shell scratch/pets from his Otousan until he has fallen asleep

If Otousan is not available for any reason, Donatello is the only one that Lee allows to see him like this (they are often caught napping together, with Don's hands rested over Lee's shell and head while Lee is splayed across his twin, though the rest of the family does not let on that they know about this)

He prefers to listen to traditional Japanese instruments or the gagaku recordings Otousan brought with him from Japan, as they bring him the closest to mental/emotional peace that was similar to Okan's presence

Even though he is a swords master, having familiarized himself with numerous bladed weapons and fights with twin katana, he finds the most fascinated bladed weapon to be the tessen, an iron war fan, due to its multi-use purpose

DONATELLO

Nicknames: Don or Donald -- Leonardo is the only one to call him "Tello"

As a turtle, he would return Tang Shen's daily affection by nibbling on her fingers

At first, she often thought this was his way to say he was hungry--but when he refused to eat what she would put down (including his favorite fruits) she realized he was giving affection

Unlike his brothers, he often enjoyed being held and was found being cradled by Tang Shen as he had one of her digits nestled between his beak and his limbs relaxed limply over her palm

He rarely would be able to get to sleep unless Tang Shen held him for at least an hour -- no one knew why he would do this, but Yoshi speculated that it was due to having shared an egg with Leonardo

Donatello will be the first to admit he is weird because he can't sleep without either being touched in some way (usually one of his brothers sleeping on him or draping limbs) or being completely shut within his shell

Because of this, he either rarely sleeps alone or doesn't sleep at all

Even though he finds it hard to sleep alone, he prefers to be left to his own devices during the day (unless he is needing assistance in something--Lee or Raphael are usually the voluntolds)

RAPHAEL

• His secret pleasure and pass time (that he shares with Leon) is going to The Strand movie theater. The technological bounds fascinate him, and it has sparked in him to not only study filmography, but create his own cameras, from still pictures to hand-held video cameras. He is currently in the middle of a project on figuring out the intense electrical means on how to build a securer system using silent shutter cameras that could be either sound or motion triggered.

• In the back of his lab, he does possess his very own dark room to develope and effort his own films (still life and moving).

• His current pain project is working on how to accumulate sound with with the moving picture, and he is almost at the point of breaking the secrets; Mike really wants him to teach how to do the edits on adding color, cause he thinks it would be a fantastic way to do a form of painting, though Don really likes the idea of adding direct color in general to make things more life-like.

• Thanks to his works on the cameras, he's created goggles that reflect his chemistry microscopic lens, telescopic lens, and added color lens on differing chemical tints to help with invisible/old tracks and clues.

• His favorite fiction series of all time is Sherlock Holmes, though he shares a special love for War of the Worlds due to having bonded over it with Leon (and helping him find his guilty pleasure hobby of space).

Nicknames: Ale (Ael) -- Raph only by his brothers

His main nickname started to help Michelangelo on pronouncing the last half of his name

Angelo just ended up calling him "Raph", instead, which stuck and slowly was used by the rest of the brothers

Called "Raph" mainly from Michelangelo, Lee and Don usually call him Ale out of habit

As a turtle, he would return Tang Shen's affections by laying/sitting next to her when she would be doing chores

Because he ended up growing from a runt to being larger than his brothers, he would often "help" Tang Shen with her chores -- bringing the next piece of cloth that needed to be folded, pointing out a corner that was missed on dusting or washing, and even eating the scraps from the prepared meals (though he would often only eat his share so his brothers could have theirs)

Because of this, he is often helping to care for the physical well-being of their home in the sewers and helps with the prep-work in the kitchen

He's the only one out of his brothers that enjoys pickles and onions -- he enjoys the intense, stinging flavors they give

His favorite snack is pickled kimchi, he can eat an entire jar if he's left alone with it

He learned how to crochet and knit from watching Tang Shen and picked up the hobby very early after mutating

All the blankets, pillows, quilts, coverings, and winter wear were made by Raphael

He knows how to sew (just like the rest of his brothers) but has very little patience for it due to the thickness of his fingers

He is often seen walking, sitting, or laying wrapped with one of his larger made knitted blankets and his favorite pair of knitted socks when at home

He has a thing with texture, and often prefers silk or light threads over wool and cotton, even though it is hard to come by

Even though it tries his patience, he enjoys doing embroidery work as a way to ease down after a hard day when extra training doesn't fully work

He is 100% OCD, and puts 100% in everything he does, but learned early on through Tang Shen to temper it down: majority of his anger stems from this condition, especially paired with his natural passion in all he does

He works with Lee to help segway his anxieties and perfectionism, so it doesn't grow to fester like how his own OCD nearly had -- they often end up in brawls in their one-on-one training because they frustrate each other on how very much alike they are but find it hard to communicate their understanding for each other

MICHELANGELO

Nicknames: Michel, Mike/y, Ange -- Angelo by Raphael

When Michelangelo was finally hatched, it was one of Yoshi's happiest days

He was afraid that the egg wouldn't make it, but when he opened the tub that held the lone egg and saw a baby turtle looking up at him, he said "So, you only arrive when you feel you're most needed."

(Funny enough, this becomes a common theme with Michaelangelo--his family believe he might possess a sixth sense of sorts)

As a turtle, Mike would return Tang Shen's affection by bringing her things; items she might be needing, items she might not be needing, random items from her balcony garden, bits of trash he found, and more than a few times he would bring her his food (the last one confused her, as she thought he was trying to tell her something was wrong, but Yoshi discovered he only did this if she ended up skipping a meal; he legit was telling her that she could share meals with him)

When he first heard her laugh because of him, it brightened his world beyond measure, and he would do his best to bring that sound out of her whenever possible--no day was complete without hearing Okan's laugh at least once.

With the mixture of wanting to hear laughter and bringing things, Michelangelo, by trial and error, learned what was helpful, what was joyful, and what was unpleasant or at least a good item but not for that time/moment

After their mutation, Mike immediately loved to dance; movement was something he enjoyed doing, and the more he was able to do, the better

He also danced because it brought him closer to Okan; one of his fond memories was of her and papa dancing and laughing in their small home

Mike started cooking alongside papa for two reasons; to spend time with him in a way that was helpful and have another movement that was Okan's he could be closer with

He ended up falling in love with cooking, and began to experiment almost immediately -- but only after he practiced a recipe to where he didn't need to read the instructions or need papa's help

It wasn't until after Lee build up his garden was Mike able to really experiment with recipes and broaden his cooking skills; he was even able to try his hand at some requests from his brothers

His greatest passion though is sewing; Mike loves making clothes for himself and his family

He really enjoys creating clothes that are matching sets, whether its for the family, or a matching set of men and women's clothing

He would often make something that he thought Okan would really enjoy having worn, but he really doesn't share those creations as when he shared it the last time, it made everyone very, very sad

If he needs to mend clothes or make adjustments, he would quietly and sadly take apart his Okan's unworn wardrobe to use the materials -- there are at least three outfits that he never touches, no matter how badly he might need their materials

Out of all the styles, he prefers making women's clothing, and even designing for women as he often thinks of Okan and often finds himself wishing they had a female friend or relative, mutant like themselves or not, that he could share his talent with and design specifically for her

He completely geeks out after he and his brothers first save April late one night from being a victim of some low-end members from The Foot Clan. Even though she had been retired from Fashion Journaling for nearly a year, he knew immediately who they had saved

He was struck with creative passion for a whole three months after they saved April the first time and when he wasn't training, cooking, helping with chores, or patrolling, he was tucked away in his studio designing and sewing up a storm; he created over eight new female pieces in that time, two of them being part of sets that could go with variations for himself and his brothers and papa, making a grand total of 18 outfits.

He often works and cooks with music playing from their phonogram that papa had brought with him from Japan

Mike listens to more modern, upbeat music, but will also put of classical music such as Vivaldi (much to Don's pleasure) or Jazz (a reprieve to Raph)

Even though he is cheeriest and more upbeat of his family, he is the one most go to talk things out with; he is a very good sound board, and his sewing space is often left open for this purpose, as Mike often enjoys talking while he works

He has worked with both his papa and Don when it comes to his internalized anger and depression; he doesn't like showcasing it, or letting his family know about his own struggles, so only goes to one or the other if he really thinks he needs their help

Don has taught him assets on how to externalize his anger in healthy ways, something that Raph had done at an early age but that Don had to learn the hard way

Papa had taught him how to calm and swim the storm that is his depression; from Splinter having gone thought the same thing, and still does on a daily struggle, he teaches Mike the best ways that he has noticed that's worked, but encourages his youngest to test what might work for himself, as well

[ntls-24722]

half a sketch dump bc I've had these on the backburner for like... a week at this point 💀

The holy trinity. What I was trying to play with was Rinkalla having a weirder beard - the original concept for her hairstyle was that she's always wanting to do stuff with it. What I thought would be fun is if she had one of those giant, detailed, decorated beards you see in a lot of mesopotamian art. That and it'd make sense for the time period that homo mousike's in.

Solidifying Bugs + the lionflea redesign where I bit the bullet and went straight up dromaeosaur.

Bugs are 8 legged "mollusks" rather than being fully hardshelled, and due to not having a full carapace weighing them down, bugs got huuuuuuge, from being as small as our insects to being as big as elephants. They're pretty much nautiluses that got up on land and evolved to walk on their tentacles with concentric muscles rimming their muscle groups to add support, and they retained their shells as a beetle-like carapace on their backs. Wings are extremely common just like they are in our insects, coming from a derived antennae - The edges of wings are covered in the chemosensory hairs that allow them to smell and taste, and bug ear canals are at the wing-armpits, allowing them to create an external ear when their wings fold up around them.

The ancestors of lionfleas are these occasionally bipedal, beetle-mantis-ospreys that evolved their back limbs to become tails. Lionfleas began to lose more of their limbs as they became more and more bipedal, and during their "ground owl" period they doubled up on the chemosensing hairs both to smell better, but to muffle their flight, just like how owl feathers are fuzzy at the edges, too! Lionfleas can fly, but not for very long, but wings make them stupid scary jumpers.

Speaking of these osprey-beetle things, here's the development of another member of their clade...

Here's this post. I included this whole page because I find it so funny that you can literally SEE the progression happen. I even wrote out "holy shit" when it clicked bc i was losing my mind.

Anyways, the first half is the hypothetical birdguy-DJMM fanchild and the bottom of this page, along with this next picture, is the djmm alien I've been looking for.

Finally, I figured out a design that made a chin and nose necessary, and made the teeth-plates possible. It's only a bonus this guy turned out to be a cutie patootie.

It's a parrot! It's a squid parrot! It came from the same ancestral beetle that the beetle-osprey did, and it evolved wiggly teeth for dexterity and facial expressions. There's a GIANT socket where its teeth sit in, where it can be pulled up into the DJMM "teeth-plate" position, and down into an awful hooked beak position for tearing into prey. Originally it was a modest joint like it is in parrots to better hold things and pull in prey, but it got exaggerated to the point the two hooks can sit vertically just for the sake of seeming demure to other squid-parrots (and to exaggerate when they push their teeth out when they want to look scary).

Their skulls are actually super narrow and only comprise of their jaw, and can actually be pushed out of their face like a goblin shark! Deeply awful! Demonic little thing! however they're very cute. I dont think I'll make these ones sapient, I like them more as fun little animals (and an easter egg DJMM in the, yknow, DJMM alien setting)

Dirt skeleton!!! dirt skeleton yayyy dirt skeleton!!!!! I put these two seperately because I didn't want these two to be cropped. these are so nice doodles.

The dirt skeleton is completely devoid of romantic or sexual desire but he still enjoys being kissed by Comet because he sees it as her bonding with him and he is quite attached to her as well. He fundamentally doesn't understand romantic attraction and doesn't get it, but he does get that there's a bit of social weight to being kissed that he's fine with recieving.

Second doodle is him being stuck in the same position for 5 years to allow his bone to heal. The times the dirt skeleton has fractured bone above ground, his crying eventually becomes this constant, irritable frequency that pretty much gets everything to evacuate within its mile-wide earshot, which is quite convenient. People who get near his site of healing literally get annoyed by this unhearable, yet deeply uncomfortable frequency playing and leave. During this, he also stops percieving the world, blinding and deafening himself, as percieving the world as he experiences the worst pain he can feel becomes overstimulating.

[queenpanpan]

Pokémon Headcanons: The Squirtle Line!

1. Wartortles are kinda vain and like to make sure their tails and earflaps always look nice

2. They have their shells of course but they also have very tough skin for defense

3. Shed pieces of their carapace are often used in jewelry and clothing!

4. Their shells are very sensitive and they love to get shell scritches

5. They have a pretty wide diet that includes many plants, fruits and veggies

6. However the main part of their diet is kelp/seaweed

7. Blastoise will only lay their eggs on the same beach that they were born on

8. Like sea turtles, baby squirtles hatch ready to survive and crawl straight into the ocean

9. Their beaks never stop growing and in the wild they handle it by gnawing on rocks but captive squirts warts and blasts all need regular beak trims

10. They all need help if they get stuck on their backs </3 in the wild usually another one will help

11. Love love love to dig and play in sand and will occasionally bury themselves

12. Very curious critters! Squirts especially are always exploring

13. Blastoises are typically solitary, but wartortles and squitles can and will group up (see: the squirtle squad)

14. Known to use their strong beaks to crack into coconuts! It’s a fave treat of theirs :)

15. Blastoises nom on iron heavy rocks that help build up their cannons

[pixxelcatt]

This question is about your impostor syndrome in general.

How does mutation work in this case? Can any living being mutate randomly? Or is some factor needed to cause such a mutation?

Since it’s in general, I’ll answer it myself!

I was at one point gonna make a silly “the classroom gems” kinda post with Donnie and Neo talking about it, but imma be fr that would take me forever lol

So, like I had Donnie say in the Casey question, it is random. There’s no mutagen or an activator, the “cause” I guess would be that, as stupid as an explanation it is, when Krang traveled to this dimension, he messed it up somehow and that’s why animals started mutating? Like he accidentally messed up the fabric of the universe? Tbh I didn’t rlly think of the actual logistics lol

This is why they have whole scientist labs like the one Bishop and Panda worked at studying it and how it happens (they were studying turtles specifically)

But onto more about mutation itself,

It affects all animals, excluding bugs (cuz I said so), animals can mutate at any point in their life, though it’s less likely the older they get (which is why most of the mutants have been like that since early childhood)

Another thing to note is after mutation, an animal’s lifespan is greatly increased, so even if they’re quite awhile through their animal lifespan when they mutate they are set at the age equivalent to humans and will live just about as long as a human (baby turtles get mutated into baby mutant turtles, Casey at 8 raccoon years gets mutated to an 8 year old in human years, and will greatly outlive his normal raccoon sister)

When mutated early in life, they’ll grow up with more humanoid traits (posture, general features/appearance) but if they were older (say, Panda or Casey) there will be fewer physical changes. (ex. Panda didn’t change at all and can just stand on two legs easier, and still cannot speak. and Casey’s height is stunted, still has digitigrade legs and has a hard time grasping language and pronunciation)

Most mutants have these sorts of “flaws” to them, they’re more likely in older mutants but can still happen in young mutants, does that make sense?

Examples of that are:

Donnie’s hands, Mikey’s beak, Raph’s lower jaw, Slash’s hands and beak, Veevee’s shell, Mondo Gecko’s lack of teeth, both Casey and Usagi’s legs, Panda’s muteness, and basically anything that doesn’t look like a beastars character (at least according to one person coughsBishopcoughs)

I guess technically the Other Mutant Ninja Turtles would be considered “perfect mutants” huh. Except maybe El

But the concept of mutation flaws isn’t something that matters to mutants, only some humans who get weirded out that the animals look and act sometimes like animals.

Beloved pets mutating out of the blue is an arising issue, several have been kicked out, and few have been lucky to continue living as normal. (This is why groups such as the Mutanimals and the Purple Dragons exist)

Hopefully that explained some? If you’ve still got questions, don’t hesitate to ask 👍

[twignotstick]

TMNT: SECOND SHOT - Arc 1, Chapter 9: Loose Ends 🧵

<- Chapter 8: Spoken Poetry 🗣️

Warnings (if there's anything I should add here, tell me please!): threats, violence, body horror, vomit

Words: 3,464

Summary: Old colleagues clash, and the family is reminded that the stakes are high.

----------------------

A wheeze.

“Breathe through it.”

A hacking cough.

“You've got this Scout, I-I'm right here.”

A shaky wretch.

“Big Brother's right here to help you.”

A sob, clutching his aching chest.

“I'm right here.”

The protector had long forgotten the shock of hearing his own voice (The voice he wasn't supposed to have.). He had shaken off the disgusting feeling of throwing up his insides. All of that stopped mattering when he heard the stuttered breathing of his youngest brother.

The scout had been heaving and coughing for what felt like hours. His older brother kneeled over him, hovering finned hands a few inches away. Scout usually loved physical contact, but at times like these it could worsen things by volumes. He didn't want to risk that when his brother couldn't respond with a boundary. Still, not being able to do anything was killing him.

He was never able to do anything.

After an eternity, the turtle's gut was adequately emptied. The last bits of spit dribbled from his beak as he shivered.

“All done. I-It's all better, see? Do you feel better?”

The scout looked up from his shaking curl blearily. The figure of his oldest brother was blurred by the tears still left in his eyes. “...P-Protector?” he rasped.

“Y-yeah, it's me lil man. I'm here for you.”

The scout hesitated before whispering again. “...where's Big Brother?”

The protector would be heartbroken, but this was a heartbreak he had already faced many years ago. When they still spoke like they used to, they would know, when one of them referred to another with something like “Big Brother”, which one they were referring to. The turtle way of communication allowed for that kind of distinction. The human way, however, did not.

The protector knew who the scout was referring to.

When the turtles were young, very young, they had to learn a harsh reality. Their little brother had something terrible in him, and it made him hurt. If he flinched too quickly, he would have tears flooding his eyes until someone assured him it was okay to cry. Then, he would sob himself to sleep.

When they were very young, their father was the only one who could console him. He would rub the young turtle's shell and whisper to him in soft hisses. Hold him closely, but gently.

The scavenger couldn't stand it. Not for lack of trying, of course. There was just something terrible about it. Sometimes, he would say that he hurt too, just watching. He wouldn't dare try to comfort his little brother. He knew he would just cry himself and make the scout more upset.

The protector wanted to help so badly. His very existence was keeping his brothers safe and healthy. Protecting them. So, when he saw his little brother plagued with a pain from within that he couldn't get rid of, he tried to help.

He just couldn't.

The protector didn't know how to be gentle like their father did. He would try to rub his little brother's shell, but that would only lead to hiding and screaming. So, he settled on just being as present as he could. He hated being too intense.

For a short while, they didn't think anyone except their father could help.

One day, their father had been out gathering supplies. The scout, or the one who would become the scout, started having one of his “episodes”. The protector did what he always did; he was present. He tried soothing his brother, but to no avail.

Then the hunter approached.

The hunter who, up to this point, had hardly communicated with anyone but their father.

He took the scout's shaking form into his arms. He rubbed the edge of the younger's carapace, terrifying the protector. He'll just start screaming, and then the scavenger will start crying, and-

He leaned into the comfort, even more deeply than he did with their father. 

The brothers understood the hunter more after that. They recognized that he struggled with communicating how he cared, so he chose to show it through his actions. They understood that he knew how to control his strength, while the protector didn't.

The protector also understood that he couldn't help his youngest brother then, just like now.

He didn't need Big Brother. He needed his Big Brother.

“I don't know where he is, Scout,” the older turtle conceded. “But we're going to find him. I promise.”

“...what's that noise? Noises?” The younger squeaked.

“These are… our voices, I th-think. Scav might know. We have to find him,” the protector said, looking up at the small room they were held in.

A door. A small work desk, with some papers on it, along with a computer. No windows. The two puddles of red bile from just a few minutes ago.

“...wh-why are we talking? I thought we couldn't do- That's a thing the humans do, we can't do that, right?” The scout asked, still keeping his voice soft so as to not irritate his injured throat.

“Y-yeah, I'm trying not to think too much about it before we find Scav.”

“Why aren't they here with us? W… where are we now?”

The protector sighed and hovered his hand next to his brother's. “I don't know. We're going to find them.”

The scout grabbed his brother's hand and held it, trying to comfort his big brother. “I know we will,” he confirmed. 

The protector deliberated for a moment, observing the scout's still shaky form. “Do you… think you can walk?”

The scout tried to brace himself on his hands, only to find a pulsing pain in his wrists. His writhing from before hadn't done him many favors. Deep grooves cuffed his wrists, ankles, and neck. The injury on his neck was obviously the worst.

Seeing a flash of white, the turtle fell back down onto his elbows. His brother squeezed lightly on his hand and guided his breathing again.

“I'll take that as a no, then.”

“Ye- KHH- e-eah…”

The protector weighed his options. He could go out on his own, look for his brothers alone. But if he did that, he'd be leaving his baby brother alone in his time of need.

He could try carrying his brother on his back. But thinking of that, he remembered the various bruises and cuts he had received in the conflict with the robots. There was no way he could get far with a whole body against his broken carapace, even one as small as the scout's.

He was talking, so maybe he could…

“I'm gonna try something.”

The protector sighed and planted one knee on the ground.

“...what are you doing?”

He dragged his other leg to plant his foot, bracing himself on the knee.

“Woah…”

The rest came naturally, and before he knew it, he was standing.

With a shaky grin, the older turtle looked at the younger. He fought to ignore the queasiness threatening to spill his stomach again. “I think I can… carry you?” He whispered carefully. Slowly, he lowered his upper body and lifted the scout in a princess carry, getting a small squeak in response. “Tell me if it hurts too much, but try to stay quiet. I think stealth will be our friend here.” The scout gave an exaggerated nod, shutting his eyes tight. Showing his full faith in his brother's ability.

Expression growing determined, the protector readied himself and rammed his shoulder into the door. He nearly lost his balance and cracked when he heard the whimpering coming from the brother in his arms. Seeing the door not go down, he had to ram it one more time. This time, it crashed to the ground, and he had to quickly regain his balance to not fall with the weight in his arms.

It was strange, because for a moment he could have sworn there was more weight behind the door than there should have been.

Judging by the lopsided way the door was lying on the ground and the armored arm stuck out to the side, he was right.

“Whoops…”

----------------------

April was so unbelievably overwhelmed. Internally, she was screaming at herself. How is any of this even happening? Why did I have to get involved with these crazy mutants? Mutants! How did I even get here?

On the outside, she kept her composure. Her best friend, however, was externally losing it. At some point, April decided that she had to keep it together so there was at least one human who could help with major decision making.

As she watched Splinter, she caught some interesting details. The rat's joints were old, but in combat he moved with unparalleled dexterity. He spoke with a pride in his voice; especially when speaking about his self proclaimed sons. It was somewhat bizarre to think about, but made sense when he clarified that he had found them at their birth. Splinter only explained what he needed to and withheld many details. He claimed it would be a “waste of time” to elaborate.

And despite his mystery, he was kind. He made sure that with every batch of guards they ran into, CJ and April got out of it without taking a single hit. He spoke reverently about his sons’ skills, and admirably at April and CJ when they asked about certain things they had been theorizing before. Like how yes, “Tiny” and himself were the best at understanding human speech, with “Wit” not far behind.

There was still no word from Stockman, but April had largely forgotten about him.

The sound of a struggle ripped April from her thoughts. It appeared to be coming from ahead of their little trio, and Splinter was clearly intrigued. “I believe we are getting close,” he whispered. “We must move s-slowly now.”

Heeding the rat's advice, April followed behind him at an easy pace, with CJ holding up the rear. The sound of fighting started to lessen as people went down. Weapons clattered against the tile and some shouts rang out. “Sedate them already!” “Behind you!” “What is this thing?!”

The shouts died down, and all that was left was one set of heavy breathing and another's hushed voice. Young, squeaky. 

“There's someone else here.”

Splinter's guard dropped completely, and he rounded the corner. 

“FATHER!”

A hulking figure slammed into the rat, wrapping its arms around him. April and CJ lifted their weapons on reflex, then noticed the spiky shell on the figure's back.

When the turtle backed off a bit to take a better look at his father, another figure barreled into Splinter and knocked him onto his rear. CJ's guard immediately went back up, but April held out an arm to keep him back as they watched their old friend.

“Father!” Wit shouted. “You're okay! And you're here! And you- you were standing like we were!” Wit gasped and pulled away from his tight hug on Splinter. “Wait, does that mean you-”

“Yes, my s-sons,” Splinter laughed out. “I-”

“OHMIGOSH!” Wit flapped his hands as he looked up to Spiky. “This is INCREDIBLE, HUNTER!”

Spiky sent a small smirk to the humans watching the scene, then leaned down to help their rat father up. “Yeah, sure, Scav.”

April quickly took stock of the new voices. Wit (or Scav?) sounded younger; like puberty wasn't done with him just yet. He sounded excitable and eager. Comparatively, Spiky (or Hunter) sounded older and more experienced. His voice had a certain gravelly tone, yet still remained light.

With all three mutants standing again, April couldn't help but remember their exceptionally familial bond. Splinter held the faces of his sons and looked them over, fussing when he found new bruises and cuts. Scav kept asking questions and bouncing on the balls of his feet. Hunter tried to calm him down and encouraged waiting for answers, but Scav was too eager.

All the while, Hunter kept sending glances to the humans. April waved back reluctantly, knowing that CJ behind her was probably much too stunned to respond. The wave caused a grin to grace Hunter's beaked face, and he tossed his arm around his little brother’s shoulders.

“Hey Scav! Check who else showed up for us,” Hunter said, gesturing to the humans with his free hand.

Scav finally looked up to the others in the hall, and his eyes widened in surprise. Then his face fell into a small scowl as he returned his eyes to Hunter. “Oh, shut it,” he grumbled.

“Shut it?” Hunter asked with mock offense, letting go of the smaller turtle. “Shut what? I didn't say nothin’!”

“You know what you implied.”

“Oh what, implied that I was right? Hm? That you were wrong? That we didn't get sold out by nobody?”

Scav huffed. “First of all, you should say we didn't get sold out by anybody, just like you should say you didn't say anything. Not nobody, not nothing.”

“So you agree?”

“Eh-” Scav paused. “Agree on what?”

“That we didn't get sold out by anybody?”

Scav waved his hands a bit more and sent a few looks to the humans. “Ack- This confirms nothing! I-if anything, the fact that they're wielding weapons implies-”

“Wowowoah.” April stepped a bit closer, causing Scav to jump. “Do you think we sold you out to those sci-fi freaks?” she asked.

Scav said nothing, instead flicking his vision around a bit more. Hunter sighed and said, “This dork was blaming himself for us being in here, even though its obviously not his fault.”

“I-” Scav squeaked, “Couldn't this conversation have waited until, maybe, we were in a private place? Or our brothers weren't missing, and in potential peril?!”

“What do you expect me to do? Let my little bro simmer in his stupid guilt when obviously you were wrong, and I was right?”

“There's a first time for everything,” Scav mumbled.

“SO YOU ADMIT IT!”

“Fine!” Scav swung his arms down and smacked his thighs. “I was wrong, you were right, can we be done with this?!”

Contented, Hunter placed a heavy hand on his fuming brother's shell. “Yes, yes we can.”

“Oookay then,” CJ said, finally stepping out into full view as Splinter snickered at his sons’ behavior, “let's get a couple things straight so we can get you guys outta here. Your names are..?”

“Uh, complicated?” Scav said. “My role is the scavenger, so my brothers call me Scav, but our naming conventions are very different than those of humans, so-”

“So a problem for another time. Got it. I'm CJ, this is April.” CJ clapped his hands together. “More important: where are the rest of you?!”

“We don't know.” Hunter stepped up. “The guard I pinned said they were in the ‘west wing’.”

“Which we are in right now,” Scav explained. “They have to be close. We've been searching every room we can, but we haven't found them yet.”

“With you both here,” Splinter added, “I can probably t-track them more accurately.”

“What are the names you use for them?" April asked. “It'll be easier for us to communicate with them if we know.”

Scav squeaked. “Well, again, our naming conventions differ greatly from your human ones. So, really, it's less names, and more titles or roles.” Seeing his older brother glaring from the side, Scav halted his rambling. “Buuut, our older brother's role is Protector, (which still sounds absolutely bizarre in English,) and our younger brother is-”

A blood curdling scream echoed through the hall. It penetrated everyone's skulls, and the mutants’ eyes all widened in shock, turning sharply to the source.

“SCOUT!”

In a snap, all of them were in motion. The mutants covered the ground at a blinding speed, much faster than before. April was caught completely off guard by the sudden change of pace. Splinter had been moving briskly before, sure, but this was unbelievable.

Maybe they really were built to be super soldiers.

As they came closer to the noise, the yelling only got louder and was joined by a second, deeper voice screaming as well. Soldiers shouted commands and the sounds of electricity ripped through the air.

The red in the halls glinted in their eyes.

----------------------

Baxter cowered behind yet another wall, trying to channel all of his energy into not making a single sound. The office was in sight; still located exactly where it had been the last time he had been here, all those years ago. He couldn't risk anything now.

No guards in the hall. No cameras. Honestly, it was a wonder how poorly guarded the room was.

It couldn't be this easy, could it?

The office door was left unlocked, allowing Baxter to creep inside and approach the desk. Papers were strewn about, where he could read details about the project. “Ooze”. That was always the less professional term they chose to use for the pure mutagen. Baxter came up with it. Barry never bothered to ask him why.

Some of the papers were the old ones, from when the project was first started. Some were new, speaking of alternative methods and starting the whole thing over. But yet, Barry always circled back to the original subjects. He didn't write about Splinter, but he wrote about the turtles.

Sometimes, he even used the names Baxter gave them.

Baxter ignored the papers as best he could, instead sitting himself in front of the large computer monitor on the desk. He remembered every one of Barry's passwords, and it seemed that Barry hadn't changed them. It was easy to get into the computer and find where he was hiding his connection to the mouser system. Then, the steps were elementary. Wipe any and all connections to the mouser system, and destroy any photos from it that Barry had saved.

The loading bar was only about 60% done when he heard footsteps.

Baxter ducked down under the desk, crawling around it to stay out of view. The footsteps came into the room, stopping a few feet away from his hiding place.

The sirens in the hall almost quieted, due to the buzzing in his ears.

“I know you're here, Baxter.”

He didn't dare breathe.

“The monster broke out, but it would never come in here. It would have tried to kill me as soon as it heard my voice, or smelled me in the hall. But you, my friend. You know when to hide.”

Barton Axum moved further into the room, barely by two steps.

“Come out now, Baxter. I don't want you to get hurt. I'm only here to help you.”

He couldn't hold his breath anymore, so Baxter conceded and stood slowly, glaring at his ex-partner. “How kind of you to have any semblance of sympathy, when you are the one who intends to hurt me.”

“I am not. Master Shredder is.”

Baxter felt utterly confused by the strange tone Barton carried. “Who is that?”

For the first time in many years, Baxter saw fear in Barton's eyes. “I am sorry to admit that I lied to you, Baxter. When we first conducted our project, the funding and materials I provided did not come from my family. They came from a very generous benefactor, and a very powerful man, known by the name of Master Shredder. When you stupidly destroyed all of our progress, the Master nearly killed me until I offered to help him with his other work. When you helped me discover our subjects again, I was given permission to pursue them under the condition that you would come to help me finish them.”

“And why should I help you, Barton?”

“Because if you don't, both of us will die.” Barton was beginning to look desperate. “Shredder is a very powerful man, and he has very powerful connections. Even without us, he will find new people to take on the project, capture the subjects again, and make his army.”

“Army?”

Barton nodded solemnly. “Please, Baxter. You're my only friend. I don't want you to die.”

Baxter hesitated. He hadn't seen this amount of vulnerability from Barry in years. “And what of the girl? April?”

“She will work for the Shredder or die.”

Baxter glanced at the red light in the hall, thinking of the girl who had agreed to give him a second chance. And her friend, who was still an unknown accomplice. If this Master Shredder was as powerful as Barry said, his secret would be found out soon enough.

The loading bar finally hit 100%, severing all of Barry's connections to Baxter's technology.

“This is all my fault, and I can't be more sorry,” Barry said softly. “I only wish to keep you safe now.”

Baxter sighed defeatedly. “You're too far gone now, Barry.”

Barry smiled a small, nearly invisible smile. “As are you.”

○●○●○●○

getting really close to the end of the arc :)

Chapter 10: To Be Reborn 🌸 ->

[animal-lover-forever]

FOR THIS THING CAUSE THIS LOOKS COOL!

1-6 - 3

7-11- 8

12-14- 13

15-17- 17

18-20- 19

21-24- 24

25-28- 27

29-33- 32

34-38- 35

39-42- 41

43-46- 45

47-49- 48

50-54- 54

55-57- 56

58-61- 61

62-64- 63

65-67- 66

68-71- 69 (NICE)

72-74- 73

75-77- 76

78-80- 80

I WANNA SEE WHAT I HAVE

i picked a surprising amount of numbers that can be multiplied.

HAVE FUNN I CANT WAIT

im invading your ask box again

*game-show host voice*

You picked!

*drum roll*

3. Feline ears

8. Demon horns

13. Animal legs

17. Own pick (leg type)

19. Animal head

24. Own pick (mouth)

27. No teeth

32. No tail

35. Dragon/Reptile wings

41. Small (in size)

45. Other (gender)

48. Human hands

54. Own pick (feet)

56. No claws

61. Lays eggs

66. Non venomous/poisonous

68. Scales (skin)

73. No shell

76. Non aquatic

80. Own pick (kind of blood)

For # 17. You get to pick between animal or human legs.

For # 24. You get to choose whether your creature gets a snout, a beak, or if it will stay as is. If you choose "leave as is", the mouth will stay the same as it normally would on the head you got.

For # 54. You get to pick between human feet, paws, hooves, or talons.

For # 61. You get to pick if your creature is cold blooded, warm blooded, or semi-warm blooded.

For # 80. You get to pick if your creature has night vision or not.

You may decide what color your creature is.

Make sure to give a bit of extra details as you make your creature.

Now try and draw your creature using what you have picked!

And don't forget to have fun! :D