#and split that world in half and lost the doctor to the reapers in the process

[nerdie-faerie]

Actually love that they called the parallel universe Pete's World :) they could've named it after something related to how it differentiates from their universe. Something related to Lumic or Cybus industries, but no, they named it Pete's World, something that is only relevant to Rose and the Doctor by extension. What separates this universe from their one? The fact that cybermen started on earth by an ailing inventor rather than mondas? No. It's the fact that Rose Tyler's father lived in this one without any world ending paradoxes :) that's what the Doctor decided was relevant to differentiate them :)

[chronal-anomaly]

Talon AU

Finally getting around to writing out some new AUs and verses. This one will focus on the Talon verse, which will be by request and plotted out only. TW for mentions of brainwashing below.

Lena was selected for the Slipstream project at 21, just as in the typical verse. She's sent off at 25, crashes, and is lost at 26.

This is where the verses start to split. Winston, with his hands tied with red tape, lack of funding, and lack of support, is trying and failing to establish an Time Isolation Chamber, and an accelerator. Due to the lack of support and "too much work to save one girl who is probably dead anyway", he can't get the chamber up in time.

Meanwhile, Sigma, whose research was used while creating the Slipstream, could feel the disturbance in the fabric that holds the universe together. It wasn't difficult for him to pluck her out of the timeline and engineer a chronal accelerator for her.

Lena, by this point, was driven half mad. Between trying to understand the world on a cosmic level, to being the witness to all of Time's tragedies and victories, watching her friends fall in love and move on, watched alternative timelines where people don't even join Overwatch. Terrible deaths and beautiful creations. The beginning and end, the ouroboros of everything. I'll touch a little bit more on that in another headcanon, but she was non-speaking, barely moving.

Talon had an opportunity. While the Slipstream wasn't exactly advertised, there was enough of a stir that they knew who she was and what had happened. Given her shattered status, it wasn't difficult to begin to feed her information.

Now, there are two different kinds of "brainwashing". There's mind control, which is where someone takes control of the person's body, typically through a mechanical or chemical process. The person doesn't typically want to be committing these acts, but are forced to by the process. Examples of these include the Winter Soldier and Widowmaker.

On the other hand, you have brainwashing as more of a manipulation tactic. This is what Talon used with her. They played the "good cop", providing food and a soft place for her to rest. They were careful to avoid exposing her to any of the headliners ( Doomfist, Max, etc. Reaper and Moira wouldn't be a part of Talon by now ). As they did so, they carefully sowed the seeds of rebellion against Overwatch through offhanded comments and selective news channels being 'left on' so she could hear it from her cell.

As Lena recovered physically, the rage she felt at Overwatch was compounded by the manipulation. She sought vengeance for "what they had done to her" ( even if it wasn't true. ) Talon continued this brainwashing as they allowed her to gain some independence.

Eventually, Lena walked freely around the Talon base. She was given the option of the accelerator, which she accepted without question. And after a while, she was able to start PT and working out again under the observation of some doctors that worked with Talon.

Her powers are similar as a Talon operative. The Blinks, Recalls, and physical prowess is the same. Her mission now is revenge, still general anger and rage at Overwatch as a whole rather than individual people, which makes accomplishing that revenge goal... difficult, at times.

Coming face to face with someone she once considered a friend would lead to a huge crisis of identity. Lena has the ability to stay her hand, to not kill someone, but that conflicts with her sense of self now. So say, if her and Genji came face to face, she can make the choice to kill or spare him, but act of fighting someone she considered close to her would likely send her into a spiral resulting in a necessary retreat.

Talon has methods of controlling if she gets out of hand. There's a killswitch in the accelerator if it's needed that is unknown to her. It can be set to disable or kill, depending on the needs of the situation. Additional corruption can take place, with Lena being sequestered Talon HQ and manipulated further if necessary.

Her codename for Talon is Spectre, known for being a silent and deadly killer. Her personality changes substantially, with Lena become withdrawn and angry. There's much less chatter on the battlefield and even around fellow Talon members, she's much quieter in the base verse.

[thornstocutyouwith]

Name:  Quindell Nicholas Parker VI

Meaning of Name: Quindell: The Great, Nicholas: Victory of the people, Parker: Park Keeper

Nickname(s):  Quin, Nick, Quincy, Wendell, Wendy, Nicky, Parker, Cole, Sleeping Beauty, Prince P.I.T.A., The Prince of Nothing, Pauper Prince, Dell, Ker, Nico, Prince Quin (Or any other nickname), Kindle,

Age: 33

Birthday: December 18

Species/Nationality:  Human(?)/American, Polish, Slovene, Romanian, Welsh, Icelandic, Serbian

Accent: No

Language spoken: English, Italian, German, French, Dutch, Spanish

Powers:

Unknown

Weaknesses/Illness/Allergies: Allergic to fish, Traumatic Brain Injury, 

Pet: Cinnamon Ferret (Sonic, Male)

Occupation: Captain in a local well known mafia (Rivals to Noah Bellamy) and owner of a popular Spa

Faceclaim: Tom Payne

Description:  

Outfit/Accessories/Jewelry:

Height: 5′ 7″

Weight: 123

Body Build: Athletic (Formerly), Underweight/thin (Currently)

Backstory/Background:

Past

Quindell VI was born out of wedlock to Alis and his father, Quindell V. His mother was mostly a stripper who had tended to get around town quite a lot. While his father had been the heir to a popular and wealthy company at the time he met Alis. Alis had been the young Quindell V’s favorite stripper and would treat her almost like a girlfriend, perhaps in a futile attempt to break Alis’ wild, slutty ways. Alis toyed with this special attention, as his wealth seen that she could want for nothing. That was until he had proposed to her after a night of wild sex.

The next day she skipped town and Quindell V would be nothing more than a blip in time of her life, or so Alis had thought. Nearly three months later she had found that she was pregnant. By then she had already gotten into a relationship with another man, as she was not the ideal weight she had been to appeal to most costumers she was used to picking up, her fling was less than ideal. Abusive, even. When it was found that she was pregnant with Quindell VI, she was beaten.

Months later Quindell Jr would be born into the world, it was a lackluster affair. Alis grew bored with her new son very quickly. To deal with her abusive boyfriend she would often abandon the baby to get lost in drink or drugs for hours. That was until child protective services caught wind of what was going on. On and off Quindell would be taken from his mother’s care only to be returned until he was about six years of age. When after being severely beaten by a belt across the back, Quindell could not show up for his usual check ins. This was the final straw, despite the clear need for him to be taken out of that home sooner, to finally get him removed.

Nearly a year later he was placed in a home with a couple who wanted to foster him. It was during this time where he was discovered to have a talent for musical instruments, especially in the cello. Not long after, because of his skill and adaption to the instrument, he was viewed as something of a ‘prodigy’. However, it seemed that his stroke of bad luck continued as he again suffered abuse, both in sexual nature and mentally with his foster parents. They were arrested and Quindell was again placed into the system, before again being returned to his mother Alis when he was a teenager. She had remained destitute and now looked scarred and older than her actual age. Quindell would again face abuse with Alis’ new husband, who was a man that was strict, and if any of his rules were broken, you knew about it with a fist to the face.

One thing Quindell did have to rely on in his life was his talent for playing the cello, however. Alis and her husband had only seen him as a piggy bank, which was the only reason they fought to bring him back into their care after discovering that he was riding on a full scholarship by a local newspaper in the Miami news. This had brought him some fame and attention, as well as his attention attending a wealthy private school most of his school days. Quindell’s money he would earn in his performances were forcibly handed over to his mother who, with her husband. would often spend on drugs and other wasteful things for themselves, only leaving Quindell with the bare essentials.

By the time Quindell graduated high school he had been tired of playing the cello and not being able to reap from its rewards. He had, essentially, become so depressed by these circumstances he was in that he gave up on anything that made him unique, or truly fulfilled and happy. He settled for just being another cog in the machine. This would lead to him falling into a life of crime first in selling drugs, then in poisoning people, which had caught the eye of the Ivory Serpents recruiter who found him.

Once he had gotten into the gang Quindell quickly, with his knack for knife throwing and poisons, began to kill his way up in the rankings of the gang. He managed to make Captain after a couple of years and had managed to keep that position solid over the course of the next years of his life. He was quickly known to be one of the members of the gang that you did not fuck with because of his tendency for sudden hostilities and violent outbursts. Oh, and the murdering of his own. That would probably play plenty of factors of his scope of intimidation within the organization. He sees everyone as fair game.

When Quindell was around thirty or so years of age he fell in love with a man who was persistent in capturing his affection, to the point Quindell would say they were obsessed with him. The two would start an affair with one another, Quindell, being wealthy from his former drug dealing and eventual owning a a massage business in Miami, often liked to lavish his lover in finer things. Then came one night where the two were in his apartment fooling around before dinner. When it came to eating his fling served the meal. Quindell got a few bites in before realizing something was wrong with his dish.

What had been wrong with it was that there had been fish disguised with the rest of the meal in it, a food he was allergic to. While he started to gasp his lover walked over toward him, spewing some nonsense about how he had killed someone they deeply cared about, and how he would pay for it then, there, and now. Laughing at the man, Quindell asked ‘who’ before he was grabbed by the throat and slammed onto the ground. As the man he thought loved him tightened their fingers around his throat, leaving him gasping for breath, they promised to make his death ‘fit for a king’. Quindell had momentarily passed out after that.

When he woke up next, mere seconds after his would be assassin stepped away, he managed to get onto his side and look around for one of his weapons. Finally getting to his feet he ran toward a dresser yanking the drawer open and pulling out a throwing knife laced in a deadly poison of his own concoction, just as the assassin ran toward him, he threw it deep into their chest. Only to be grabbed and thrown around like a rag doll. The pair struggled, Quindell managing to finally get the upper hand, throwing the other into his large living room window/ sliding door.

The window gave way under both their weights, shattering and sending them falling onto the balcony. Quindell took out another knife and tried to throw it at the assassin, only to be tackled by them and thrown over the edge of the balcony. However, he had managed to stab his knife deep into the assassin’s back, managing to catch himself before falling completely when the knife got lodged into the assassin’s body. He only had a split second to attempt to come up with a plan before suddenly they were both tipping over the balcony and falling down toward concrete three floors below. The last thing he heard for nearly two years was his body hitting something hard.

Present

Over the next two years Quindell’s affairs and business were handled by his lawyers. For those two years he was, as was written in his files, left on life support. With no one being able to decide whether to pull the plug on his life support, he mostly faded back into obscurity, forgotten. The doctors predicted that he would possibly never wake up from his vegetative state. However, early in December of 2020 he suddenly woke up. Since then Quindell has been working on his release from the hospital and therapy overall, not making much contact with his former gang as he was recovering. Though he has nearly finished with the required half of his recovery, seemingly regaining full functions over his body and mind to their near normal functions once more.

However, through this incident his biological father has managed to locate his son and has made contact with his son, leaving Quindell with a new sense of superiority over everyone, more than he already had.

Future

(Work In Progress)

Criminal History:

Quindell’s criminal traits began at an early age. He was notably violent as a child, beating up other kids in his school or doing other harmful and cruel things. He would often steal from his peers, but then graduated to stealing from stores. He’d pick fights intentionally and beat the hell out of anyone who so much as looked at him wrong, just for fun.

His reputation got around fast, even faster when he got into selling drugs for a living for a while. He almost completely made his own drug empire; however, before he could do so, he was approached by an Ivory Serpent recruiter who ‘liked his style’ and soon he became a soldier of the gang. Quindell wasn’t satisfied with that though, so he started working his way up the ladder as quick as he could to get more money.

This led him to an initiation mission of killing a Crimson Reaper. He poisoned them with a paralyzes before shooting them in the head execution style. Then the body was buried for him by other gang members while he dealt with the trauma of his first kill. It did not take him long to learn to deal with this sickening feeling of killing, as his thirst for wealth outweighed it at the end of the day. He set his eyes on climbing the ladder within the gang with a new sense of viciousness to him.

Personality:

Erratic, Adaptable, Hostile, Seraphic(Angelic), Empathetic, Patient, Reliable, Orderly, Cheerful, Logical, Vague, Treacherous,  Accessible, Captivating, Fun-loving, Physical, Insensitive, Strict, Emotional, Moody, Stubborn,Vindictive,  Outspoken, Cute, Superstitious, Malicious, Excitable, Snobbish, Extreme, Irrational, Arbitrary, Insulting, Silly, Tense, Venomous,  Tactless, Crazy, Aloof, Intimidating, Delusional,

Quirks/Savvies/Other: Left brained, Left handed, 126 IQ, Blood Type: B-, He has had sex with more people than he has seriously dated, Is in it (Ivory Serpents) for the money, Has a talent for throwing knives,  Quin has an extremely low tolerance to alcohol, Played the cello professionally (Child prodigy), Practices kyusho jitsu (Black Belt), Wears glasses/contacts, Never went to further his education after high school because he was too busy making SO much money and buying The Rub Down already, Has a bit of brain damage from a devastating fall he suffered nearly 3 years prior to current events( of the year 2020) which left him in a two year coma that he has woken up from in the last month or so, Is distantly related to a now dead royal dynasty,

Likes: Throwing knives, Playing the cello, Being dramatic, Sex, Drinking, Drugs, Making poisons, Herbalism, Kyusho Jitsu, Racing cars, Motorcycles, Philosophy, Math, Economics, Relaxing, Cooking, Plays, Bargain hunting, jigsaw puzzles, Practicing martial arts, Practicing instruments, Training in weapons, Ice cream, Dog grooming, Chocolate, Hiking, Musicals, Paleontology, Dinosaurs, Dogs, Reading, Pretending he grew up wealthy and spoiled, Acting like his sliver of a link to royalty is more important than it actually is,

Dislikes: Fish, Checkers, Toads, Dolphins, Modern art, Trains, Puppets,

Fears: Kind of afraid of cats, Achluophobia, Zombies, That everyone hates him, Haphephobia

Personality Tests: ENTJ-A, The Individualist (Primary), The Achiever (Secondary), The Enthusiast (Thirdly), 4w3 (The Enthusiast), Neutral Evil, Slytherin, Slytherdor, Horned Serpent, Abraxan Winged Horse Patronus, Element: Fire, Temperament: Choleric/Sanguine,

Other: Sagittarius, Chines Zodiac: Fire Rabbit, Mayan Zodiac: Serpent, Celtic Zodiac: Hawk,

Parent(s):

 -> Father: Quindell Parker V

-> Mother: Alis Zabłocki

Sibling(s): Only Child

Starters

Chat’s

Para’s

Face

Stuff

Information

Asks

All

                                                                              Alternate Universes

[recentanimenews]

ESSAY: Stranger in a Stranger Land — How Chiaki J. Konaka Made Aughties Anime Terrifying

  If you were watching anime in the early 2000s, you know who Chiaki J. Konaka is. If you didn’t know him by name, you were probably familiar with his work on cult classics like Serial Experiments Lain or Digimon Tamers. With other influential series like Texhnolyze, Air Gear, and Mononoke under his belt, Konaka’s work has no doubt become some of the major hallmarks of anime available to English-speaking audiences in the early aughts.

  That being said, Konaka’s work has a reputation for pushing boundaries against the convention of genre. An avid fan of horror, Konaka’s career began in live-action home video movies and television, where he explored topics such as the supernatural, extraterrestrials, and cults. By the time Konaka began working on anime, he already had made a name for himself appealing to a broad demographic. Having written everything from episodes for the popular Gakkou Kaiden (Ghost Stories) live-action television series to niche monster movies, he demonstrated a sharp eye for conventions of each particular genre and more importantly, why they worked so well. One thing has remained consistent throughout Konaka's career: his commitment to a uniquely private brand of horror.

  Girl, Interrupted

  Lain in her room (Source: Funimation)

  One of Konaka’s most prevalent themes is being a stranger in a strange land. Whether for the sake of narrative convenience or simplicity, many of Konaka’s protagonists — regardless of the material's genre — often find themselves in bizarre down-the-rabbit-hole scenarios. The most famous example of this is, of course, Serial Experiments Lain, a cyberpunk series about a deeply isolated girl who discovers an internet world called “The Wired.” Following the later-end of a cyberpunk boom in Japan with directors such as Shinya Tsukamoto and Mamoru Oshii accumulating international cult-followings, the verge of the new millennia couldn’t have been a better time for Konaka’s most iconic work to debut.

  Lain confronts the fake Lain inside The Wired (Source: Funimation)

  In an entry on his personal blog, Konaka writes that Lain was initially planned as an interface-heavy game for the PlayStation, which didn’t offer him many scenario writing opportunities. It was decided a 1998 late-night anime would be produced to promote the game, which would offer Konaka ample space to explore Lain’s world with fewer constraints. This approach to scriptwriting led to Lain’s infamously ambiguous story structure, which centered on Lain gaining access to The Wired and the various anonymous organizations vying for power within it. Unlike the PlayStation game, which relied heavily on players navigating a complex system of computer files about Lain, Konaka’s anime adaptation provides an intimate over-the-shoulder perspective. Lain, an introverted young girl, is quick to embrace a myriad of “other” Lain personae online. In episode 8 "Rumors," Lain returns to her own reality after confronting and attempting to kill one of the fake Lains in The Wired — only to find yet another "fake" Lain has somehow planted herself among her friend group. Whether it's a hallucination or not, it's a jarring moment of emotional whiplash and confirms Lain's fears aren't just online, but that her anxieties over her identity are becoming very real.

  A "fake" Lain from The Wired among her real-world school friends (Source: Funimation)

  For Lain, it becomes increasingly difficult to determine whether or not people like her or the internet's perverted image of her. The uncanniness Lain experiences isn’t a fear or helplessness to an almighty force or evil corporation like other cyberpunk stories. Rather, Lain’s biggest fears are these alarming encounters with her split virtual personalities — a stark reminder of who she may become after the inevitable collision between The Wired and reality. In the end, she is her own worst fear.

  The Lovecraftian Connection

  Gatomon watches Kairi "glitch" as she wanders across the street in a daze (Source: Hulu)

  Although Konaka has certainly gained a reputation for his work flirting with cyberpunk, it’s by far no means the only format capable of unpacking these complicated themes of self-realization. Like many fascinated by the weird, Konaka is famously fixated on the works of American horror writer H.P. Lovecraft. It could even be argued Konaka is just a horror writer flirting with hybrid supernatural science-fiction. Much like the genre-omnivore his early writing credits would imply him to be, the way Konaka has approached a score of fantasy and cosmic-horror lend themselves to a far more liberal application of Lovecraftian tropes. This, of course, has given us some of the most unlikely mash-ups of thematic material, such as his episode “The Call of Dragomon” in Digimon Adventure's follow-up, Digimon Adventure 02.

  The cave beside the mysterious Dark Ocean (Source: Hulu)

  Obviously, a reference to Lovecraft’s 1926 short story “The Call of Cthulhu,” this episode was initially conceived as the starting point for an eventually abandoned story arc about the mysterious Dragomon entity. As if this didn’t make the episode interesting enough, it’s significantly darker in tone compared to the series’ typical upbeat mood. Kairi, an otherwise confident and outspoken girl, suddenly develops strange dreams and Lain-reminiscent behavior. Kairi eventually begins to develop hallucinations about being underwater and being watched. Eventually, she finds herself staring out at an ocean and exploring a dark cave — somewhere neither in the Digital World nor the real world. This is when things get uncomfortable — even in a reality where traveling between cyberspace and the real world is possible, there are still unknowable “in-betweens” yet to discover. Again, the slow unraveling of horror isn’t the reveal of Dragomon, but rather Kairi’s atmospheric aloneness in realizing the reality she’s taken for granted can suddenly be uprooted without warning. Classic existentialist cognitive dissonance. But, y'know. For the kids.

  No One Can Hear You Scream in Cyberspace

  Jeri is psychologically tormented by the D-Reapers and relives her mother's death in the hospital (Source: Hulu)

  After Digimon Adventure 02, Konaka would continue exploring this theme of protagonists inadvertently entering “new worlds” and having to reconcile their identities as a consequence. Like Lovecraft’s characters uprooted by the mere knowledge of cosmic horrors in isolation, Konaka’s characters must sink or swim when it comes to reality-shattering revelations. Konaka’s writing on 2001’s Digimon Tamers strongly flirts with these ideas, going beyond a simple “deconstruction” of the series’ basic premises toward a more psychological direction. Although Tamers' main protagonist Takato is himself an idealistic fan of an in-universe Digimon franchise, Tamers doesn’t forego the very real consequences of abruptly being spirited away to a violent new world. The kids aren't simply away at summer camp anymore — after a few dozen encounters with god-like creatures, the mental strain begins to slowly creep up on the DigiDestined. Rather than escaping without consequences, Konaka’s DigiDestined have to face the music and realize their escapist fantasies about Digimon aren’t what they imagined. This version of the Digital World isn’t morally flat, but something borderline Eldritch that becomes fully realized in the series finale.

  Jeri captured by the D-Reapers with Calumon (Source: Hulu)

  In Tamers' climatic arc, Jeri, Takato’s eccentric classmate and fellow Digidestined, is abducted by man-made programs called “D-Reapers” as they take over the city. The D-Reapers, who intend to eliminate both the human and Digimon world, attempt to transform Jeri into the “Mother D-Reaper” by channeling the traumatic memories of her mother’s death. As notorious as Tamers' ending has become, it's perhaps not as brutal in the broader context of Konaka’s work. While captured, the D-Reapers keep Jeri in a Nyarlathotep-like cyber-flesh tower — similar to Tsukamoto’s half-man, half-machine character from Tetsuo: The Iron Man. Jeri doesn't have the intermediary of a Digimon to help — her partner Leomon is gone — and therefore has to face the unintelligible cosmic-cyberpunk D-Reapers alone. The “real” Jeri is momentarily gone. Like Lain’s lost identities in The Wired. Again, an adolescent protagonist must face the horror of losing one's self in a world with no logic. For a moment, she becomes truly hopeless, believing that this is "fate," recalling the phrasing doctors used described her mother's death. Thankfully, Jeri recovers and reunites with her friends as the equilibrium between the Digital World and reality are stabilized. But the point still stands: Our most intimate fears far surpass anything else we can face in the most alienating of scenarios.

  The Petty Exorcist

  Genkei confides to The Medicine Seller aboard the ship

  Beyond flights of cyberpunk cognitive dissonance fancy, Konaka’s work on the 2007 series Mononoke draws a more direct line back to his origins in Japanese horror cinema. A spin-off of the Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales series, Mononoke focuses on a pointy-eared man known as the “Medicine Seller” and his mission to terminate malicious spirits called “mononoke” across feudal Japan. Konaka’s story-arc “Sea Bishop” pays homage to classic funayūrei (boat spirit) ghost stories with a whodunit twist after someone sabotages the ship's navigation. Having wandered into the Dragon Triangle, a dangerous part of the Pacific Ocean full of evil spirits, a monk aboard named Genkei is suspected of the deed. Rather than immediately deal with any suspected mononoke, the Medicine Seller must decipher the true reason Genkei led them astray — his challenge isn’t an exorcism, but rather distinguishing petty human lies from truths. Genkei explains he did so to free his sister's spirit, who was supposedly sent to sea in his stead as a human sacrifice. Up to this point, Genkei’s intentions seem noble until his manipulative past is revealed: He had been fighting incestuous thoughts and guilt for years, having only become a monk to cope with his feelings. His sister died in vain.

  The True Face of Horror Is Your Own

  After the Medicine Seller reveals he knows someone is lying on the ship, Genkei gives his confession

  Satisfied with Genkei's understanding he has been living a lie, the ship's mononoke finally emerges to be slain. It’s only this expulsion of a private fear that allows the Medicine Seller to finish his work. This time, no one is being manipulated by spirits or supernatural entities — all that remains is one person's terrifying inability to see beyond the lies they forced themselves to believe. The "real" you is worse than anything you can imagine.

  Konaka’s fiction rarely gives us easy answers. While his work may seem oblique and impenetrable at first, these are fundamentally stories about people’s biggest fears being themselves and what they believe they know to be true. Although the novelty of being whisked to a fantastical world is alluring, Konaka doesn't downplay the expected alienation and anxieties of his characters. For as wide-ranging and genre-agnostic as his many series are, they never lose track of what fundamentally makes this flavor of horror unique: an embrace of the uncanny, the bizarre, and unflinching honesty.

    What spooky anime gives you nightmares? Let us know in the comments!

      Blake P. is a weekly columnist for Crunchyroll Features. Impmon did nothing wrong. His twitter is @_dispossessed. His bylines include Fanbyte, VRV, Unwinnable, and more.

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[flyingicecreamtruck]

Hard Left Turn: Thane Part 1

Notes: Thane Lives AU! Several lines of dialog and the contents of letters from the game are used verbatim. I'm also fudging the time line of the game slightly.

Disclaimer: Mass Effect and its characters are not mine.

Summary: They hit Earth first. The Reapers came for Shepard.

Siha,

As always I write this letter knowing that it will not reach you. All lines of communication that I have tried remain closed: official diplomatic inquiries, the Shadow Broker; I have even tried a false identity to get a message through, yet none have yielded any results. What little information I have of you comes from the news reports from Earth: you have been stripped of your rank and are under house arrest, awaiting trial for the events at Aratoht.

While I do not wish to rehash an old argument I find it abhorrent that the Alliance would hold you responsible for the deaths of 300,000 Batarians. If you had not destroyed that relay the galaxy would have fallen to the Reapers before we are fully prepared. I hope the Alliance will listen to your warnings. I pray that they are treating you well.

I miss you. More and more I find myself lost in memories. I cannot forget you. That is what humans say. With us it is a state called tu-fira: lost in another. I told you once that when a memory feels as real as life, it is as valid as life. But the memories of you will never be enough.

Forgive me, I do not want you to think I am wasting the “new lease on life” I have been given. I know how angry it would make you. The doctors at Huerta Memorial are impressed with my progress and have have recently cleared me to return to my normal level of activity. In thanks for all they have done I have begun to volunteer my time at the hospital. It is good to give back.

Though I have lost contact with the rest of the crew, Dr. Chakwas has remained on the Citadel. We meet once a week for dinner. She tells me of your adventures on the SR-1. I would not believe half of what she tells me if I had not seen your methods with my own eyes.

Sometimes we are joined by Commander Bailey. Other times the Commander and I will retire to his office to speak of our families and our failures as fathers and husbands. He has not seen his own family in many years. Perhaps this why he has taken such an interest in Kolyat. I will forever be grateful to the Commander for the part he has played in helping my son.

I am so proud of him, Siha. Kolyat has changed so much from the sullen, moody boy you rescued a year ago. His work in C-Sec has given him purpose, allowed him channel his energies in to making a difference in the galaxy. Every day I see more of Irikah emerge in him.

“Father!” Thane glances up from his data pad to see Kolyat hurrying towards him still dressed in his C-Sec uniform. He smiles. Yes, he is very proud of his son. Thane stands and tucks the pad away. “I apologize for being late. A situation came up and I wanted to stay until it was resolved.”

“It is no trouble. I trust it was nothing serious?”

Kolyat shakes his head as they climb the stairs from the Presidium courtyard to Apollo's Cafe. At early afternoon the restaurant is nearly deserted and they quickly find a table. A waiter hurries over to take their order.

“While I was out on patrol I came across a young Asari girl that had been separated from her mother. I wanted to wait with her until she was found. I know it is a small thing Father but I'm glad I was able to help that little girl.”

“It is no small thing to the girl or her mother. They will always remember the drell who reunited their family and be grateful. I'm very proud of the work you are doing.”

Kolyat straightens under the praise. “Thank you Father.”

The waiter returns with their food and a comfortable silence falls between them as they eat. It is a far cry from their first few stilted dinners after his release from the hospital. Though his separation from Shepard chaffes at him, Thane can never bring himself to regret his time on the Citadel. He and Kolyat grow closer every day.

During the months Thane had been confined to the hospital, recovering from his lung transplant, he and Kolyat had spoken often of Irikah's death and his abandonment at Thane's hands. Though it would never make up for those lost years, it seemed that Kolyat at least understood why Thane had disappeared from his life. Now he could begin to heal. In time Thane hopes for his son's forgiveness.

“How have your studies been going?” It seemed that the first step towards forgiveness for Kolyat was to begin to study with the small contingent of Drell priests on the Citadel.

“It is going well. The Brothers have-”

A horrified cry cut Kolyat off. It sounded human. Thane's head snaps up, searching for a disturbance, yet... no one is moving. The entire presidium seems frozen in place. Other voices join the first; orange flickered rapidly in his vision as dozens of Omni-tools flare to life around the Presidium.

“Father, what is happening?”

Kolyat starts to stand. Thane grabs his arm to keep him still. People were beginning to move, several fled the Presidium. He can hear crying. Dread settles in his chest, squeezing his lungs. Something catastrophic has happened.

Thane glances up as a group of humans moved past him towards the front of the cafe. They stop in front of the large vid screen next to the counter. Something cold slithers through Thane's chest.  No, he thinks, no. Unable to stop himself he moves to join them, Kolyat a step behind him. A split second before he sees the screen, Thane knows what he would see. It in no way prepares him for the reality.

EARTH FALLS TO INVADING FORCE the scroll read.  Though the footage was grainy and slightly out of focus, Thane can see the outline of a burning city. Amid the ruins, and in the air, are the unmistakable shapes of dozens of Reaper ships.

For a brief moment, and only the second time in his life, Thane's mind goes blank. No training, no memories, just an swirling, black void of rage and grief. A low hissing sound intrudes. It is the sound of a drell in distress. Kolyat? No, that is him-

-Irikah's body, broken and bloody on the floor of their home, the hanar officer flashing a deep, mournful gray-

“-breath!” Fingers dig sharply into his arm. The pain brings the world back into focus. Thane sucks air into screaming lungs as he is pushed down into the nearest chair. His scales twitch in disgust at the feel of Kolyat's hand on his bare arm. It takes every ounce of control he has not to shove his son away.

They hit Earth first. The Reapers came for Shepard. Oh Siha...Had she survived the initial attack?  Was she already dead? No one had listened to her warnings. Thane can feel his pulse pounding in his temples. Why had he not done more to help her? He should have-

Thane hissed again as pain lances through his chest, so sharp and hot that his vision dims around the edges. He presses a hand to his chest. It feels as if his entire body is throbbing in time to his pulse. He can vaguely hear Kolyat shouting. Thane glances up into his son's face. The scales around his eyes have gone white and his second eyelids are visible. He is terrified.

Shame washes through him. With a deep breath Thane reaches inside himself for the training that has guided him for most of his life. He presses down the rage and grief and fear. They are useless right now. He needs to keep a clear head. Thane could not think of Commander Shepard now, not when Kolyat is standing in front of him. I will not fail our son again Irikah, he vows.

Thane forces himself to stand. “I am all right Kolyat.”

The look his son gives him clearly said how ridiculous that statement is. “I'm taking you to the hospital Father. Dr. Tozon is waiting for us.” He opens his mouth to object but Kolyat shakes his head. “You are getting cold. Remember your promise.”

Yes, his promise. He had sworn to Shepard, and later to Kolyat, that he would do all that was required to maintain his health. He had too much to live for. With a nod Thane allows himself to be guided out of the cafe. An oppressive silence has fallen over the entire Presidium. He can hear every step they take. The elevator door is so loud that Thane flinches. Kolyat follows him inside, slamming the button for Huerta Memorial.

“Those were Reaper ships. This is what Commander Shepard tried to warn everyone about.” Thane nods, chest aching. Kolyat let out a sob. “Father, what do we do?”

With a conviction he does not feel Thane takes his son's face in his hands, brushing away his tears. “We live. That is all we can do. We live and we help where we can. When the Reapers come, we will fight. And when it is time we will all be reunited across the sea.” Was Shepard already waiting for him? He had never considered the possibility of her death.

That seems to ease some of the tension in his son's shoulders. Kolyat takes a deep breath and nods, pulling away as the door opens to admit them to Huerta.

Word has reached the hospital. The patient lounge is full of crying, frightened people, most of whom are grouped around the reception desk, shouting at the harried-looking asari behind the desk. Thane recognizes her; Vessna, another volunteer. They have often taken their breaks together.

She catches his eye, jerking her head towards the door to the in patient area. Thane nods his thanks and follows Kolyat. Dr. Tozon is waiting for them on the other side. The salarian takes one look at him and quickly ushers him into an exam room. He frowns down at his omi-tool, clearly not liking the readings he sees.

“Mild shock. Body temperature is too low. Respiration is too rapid.” Dr. Tozon inputs something into his omni-tool. “Please complete an entire cycle of breathing exercises.  I will be back in a few minutes with a UV lamp.”

The first breath Thane takes made his lungs hitch. He doubles over in a coughing fit, trying to get enough air to try again. Hands gently catch him, pressing between his shoulder blades to force him to sit straight.

“Like the therapist showed you, Father. Back straight. Deep breath and hold for 5 seconds.”

Thane takes another breath. It makes his chest ache but he feels his lungs expand. He holds it for a count of five and exhales. Kolyat drops his hands as he finds his rhythm. Slowly Thane feels his pulse return to normal. He lets out a long breath before looking over at his son.

“I am sorry for my outburst. I know I frightened you.”

Kolyat's fists clench at his side. After a moment he relaxes. “You did but I understand. I am sorry about...do you think Commander Shepard-” Thane is saved from answering by the beeping of Kolyat's omni-tool. He glances down with a frown. “It's Commander Bailey. Everyone is being recalled.” Kolyat dropped his arm with a groan. “The Council is issuing a lock down for evening hours.”

Thane winced. A lock down was a logistical nightmare. All non-essential personnel had to be off the streets in a matter of hours. C-Sec was in for a long day. “Go. I will return home immediately once Dr. Tozon releases me.” His son hesitates for a moment and then nods. Thane stands and touches his shoulder. “Stay safe. I love you.”

“I will. I love you too, Father.” With head held high Kolyat leaves the exam room, dodging Dr. Tozon.

Thane strips down to his under clothes as the doctor sets up the UV lamp. As he stretches out on the bed, Dr. Tozon takes another scan. “Better. Please remain under the lamp for one hour. I will be back to check on you. If everything looks fine, I will let you return home.”

“Thank you Doctor.”

As soon as he is alone, Thane's defenses fall. He presses his fists to his eyes, forcing back the tears that threaten. Had it all been for nothing? The lung transplant, the separation and silence? He had been so sure that he would fight this war at his siha's side. Why else had he lived through the Omega 4 relay? What else had it been but Kalahira's favor, a sign that he had been forgiven, when Miranda had handed him the data pad with a medical plan to save his life? Had he assumed too much?

Kalahira, Mistress of Inscrutable Depths, I beg your forgiveness. Please, show me my path that I might serve you faithfully. An aching silence is his only answer. Oh Siha, I am so sorry.

Memories threaten to overtake him. Thane pushes them aside, ignoring the throbbing in his head, and stares blankly up at the ceiling until Dr. Tozon returns and releases him.

[thebibliomancer]

100 Days of Comics! 084/100: Batman #237 (1971)

Today’s pull from the box of ever decreasing mystery is a Batman! From 1971!

This particular physical copy of the book is missing its cover. But I can’t be too upset. Its older than I am. I’m holding paper that is older than me. Also its a big beefy book with not only 25 pages of comic but a reprint from Detective Comics #37 from 1940. Content!

Also, this specific issue is a special Rutland Halloween story. I’ve covered Rutland, Vermont’s Halloween celebrations a couple times from the Marvel end so its neat to see how the other half lives.

We start with a dead Batman, staked to a tree. Is this Red Rain?

But on the next page, Dick Grayson and his college chums are taking in the Rutlan Halloween Parade, with one becoming increasingly fascinated by the parade floats. Granted, he’s been up three days cramming for an art exam.

Also, you may remember that on Marvel’s side of things, they use thinly veiled expies the Squadron Supreme to stand in for the DC characters that people will be dressed as at the parade.

DC just up and puts Marvel characters in the parade. There’s an off-brand Captain America, a Quicksilver mostly hid behind a float, and just Havok.

Dick and pals are headed to Tom Fagan’s Halloween party when they see some thugs beating up a fellow dressed as Robin. Dick and co intervene and Dick almost managed to beat up the thugs without coming off too Robinish but the float obsessed art major gets in his way to demand if he saw those outasight floats.

Still, the thugs are chased off. Costume party Robin says the thugs seemed convinced that he was the real Robin. But something seems fishy so on the pretext of hunting down the float maniac, Dick splits off from his friends to go investigate as TEEN/YOUNG ADULT WONDER, ROBIN.

And that’s when he finds dead Batman. Or rather, dead someone in a Batman Halloween costume.

And then the Grim Reaper bursts out of the darkness and menaces Robin with a scythe. This is less whimsical than Marvel’s Rutland stories tend to be.

While dodging, Robin trips over a rock and falls off a cliff, knocks himself unconscious, and starts drowning in a very shallow stream.

And the float maniac wanders by blissfully unaware, trying to find someone who will talk floats with him. 

Luckily the real Batman is really in the area for reals and happens to spot the hapless college-aged boy wonder. He takes Robin to the mansion of Tom Fagan to be ministered by Doctor Gruener.

Gruener is in fact the reason Batman is in town. He was once an inmate of a concentration camp run by Nazi Colonel Kurt Schloss, aka the Butcher. Obviously a real bad dude who did a lot of torture and killing.

Gruener happened to spot Schloss while shopping for a gift for his daughter. The store clerk told Gruener that Schloss had retned a pirate costume to be delivered to Rutland, Vermont. Schloss apparently really loves masquerade parties.

Obviously, Gruner alerted the authorities. Hence why Batman is here.

As for the thugs beating up Robins and murdering Batmen. Well, some of Schloss’ ex-underlings are hunting him for the Nazi gold he stole. They must be trying to take care of Batman and Robin before they can interfere.

But since Robin is too injured, now it is Batman time.

He heads downstairs and runs into Tom Fagan who praises his Batman costume and the muscles that go with it. A nonplussed Batman just stammers that he exercises a lot.

And at the party we see Havok again, claw-hammer collander-helmet variant Thor and someone just dressed as Spider-Man but calling himself Webslinger Lad.

Someone once told me that the Squadron Supreme seemed a really disrespectful way to spoof DC but at least Marvel tried to put some layers between spoof and thing being spoofed.

Outside, float obsessed art student tries asking the Grim Reaper if he digs floats and then realizes its the Grim Reaper and runs screaming for help.

Float Guy runs into Batman who examines the body the Grim Reaper left and tells Float Boy to hide somewhere but not to breath word of the murders. If a panic gets out, they’ll lose their chance of nabbing Schloss. And if you can’t bring in Nazis to face justice for their crimes then civilization is a farce. And that’s from Batman.

Batman notices that the light in the tower of Fagan’s mansion is blinking in morse code and realizes it must be the thugs. He runs upstairs, missing a man in a pirate suit hidden in a cupboard and beats up some thugs.

The thug spills the beans with Batman implicitly threatens to drop him off the roof. They observed Schloss arrive in a yellow car so they rigged it up to explode.

And before Batman can warn Schloss the car explodes.

So three people have died, including an innocent man whose only mistake was dressing up as Batman. But the case still isn’t closed. The Reaper is still out there and responsible for killing the man in the woods.

And Batman knows who it is and goes to the site where the fake Batman was killed.

Oh, hi Thor, Spider-Man, and Havok again.

Batman confronts the Reaper. The men chasing Schloss had no reason to know Batman was around, not unless someone told them. And Doctor Gruener told them after having a change of heart and deciding to take personal vengeance on Schloss.

Gruener lost his parents and sisters in the concentration camp and watched Schloss laugh as they died. He still awakes from sleep screaming even after all these years.

Batman says he has no right to judge but neither does Gruener. And there’s not enough water in that stream to wash the blood from the hands of anyone who takes a life! Better way! Etc!

Gruener swings his scythe around, smacks Batman in the chin and then runs off. A part of Batman wants to let Gruener go, seeing some of himself in him. BUT NO HIS WAY IS WRONG!

Meanwhile, Float Guy is on top of the dam telling his college chums about meeting Batman and the Reaper and he’s at least stopped talking about Floats. Also his name is apparently Alan. Which I’d probably know if I read issues before this about Robin’s college adventures.

Then Gruenereaper comes charging along and demands that Alan get out of his way. In frustration over Alan not moving fast enough, he goes to swing the scythe at him but notices a star of david necklace that Alan was wearing.

And ashamed of what he has become, Gruener involuntarily takes a step back. Right off the damn. Where he falls and dies. He’s dead. That’s how this issue ends. Gruener dead lying on the dry side of the dam, star of david necklace conspicuously wrapped around one of the handles of his scythe so its framed obviously in the panel.

Apparently this issue was inspired by two things. A real life spooky occurrence at Tom Fagan’s real life spooky Halloween party when Berni Wrightson tried to scare the other DC staffers when they were exploring the forest by positing that someone in an orange wig from the party was hunting them through the forest because he hated comics artists and writers. And then they heard rustlings in the underbrush...

The other half of it was Denny O’Neil’s friend Harlan Ellison suggesting he do a story about Nazi war criminals. Put ‘em together and what have you got? Bippity boppity boo.

I don’t want to go longer by covering the reprint. I’ll just say that Batman investigates a conspiracy to create an international incident that he coincidentally overhears when he gets lost and stops for directions at a spooky house. World’s Greatest Detective.

He also kills a man, indirectly. The guy threw his sword, Batman blocked it with a door, and later punches the dude so he stumbles into the sticking out blade part and dies. And Batman basically says ‘good, I’m glad he’s dead.’

But this reprint was from Detective Comics #37. And in Detective Comics #38, Robin was introduced. Batman probably stops murdering so much when he has an impressionable child around.