#based on a skeleton with gun image i found

[thehorrorhole]

highest honor i can bestow upon a character

[luketaluketa]

i was organizing some files and found all the wip stuff from the previous secret samol for @/seamonsterart (go check out their work!), and these are two of my favorite illustrations ever, so here's some insight into how i made these!

for starters i already had a pretty much finished design for pickman that i had first drawn back in 2021

she has a completely wrong gun in this version because i did not remember how it was supposed to look like and couldn't find a description of it anywhere. she's wearing a hat because i forgot it was supposed to be a helm and so i ended up giving her the large hat just because the long horns coming through it are a fun image, though today i cannot imagine her wearing anything else. she already has the sword she takes from the lake skeletons, also. her armor is based on the armor the torumekian soldiers and kushana wear in nausicaa of the valley of the wind, with the incredible neck guard and long cape covering their entire body

i've always loved these designs and how the plates are evocative of insects, but also how mysterious they look with covered faces and bodies. matter of fact, at this point i had no fucking idea what pickman looked like below the cape.

the second inspiration is the young man from angel's egg.

OK, STAY WITH ME. i cannot explain this other that in my head pickman and him are VERY similar characters. the image of the half pulled cape while he holds his sword-cross-thing over his shoulder and the quiet demeanor are pretty fundamental to how i try to make pickman FEEL. i actually wanted her armor to have more piping, pulling from the biomechanical appearance of his sword-cross, but it didn't feel quite right

and the third inspiration is less inspiration and more reference work, the book "arms & armor, a pictorial archive" by carol grafton

it's a compilation of illustration works sourced from several books from the 19th century. VERY cool book to take a look at historical armor. it's on the internet archive for free!

there was also a fair ammount of looking at goats and sheep, but eventually i reached this after learning i suck at drawing furry designs. big shoutout to the furry community for making so many tutorials available btw. in highlight a very important study of the character.

now that i kinda knew what pickman looked like i entered the wonderful phase of "i don't know what the fuck i'm doing" which resulted in a bunch of bad doodles now sitting in a folder dubbed "dev hell". at this point i kinda had an idea for a relaxed scene based on one of the prompts, which i developed for a while on blender but eventually gave up on.

i then moved on to the second prompt, of pickman being badass. i decided on a low angle to make pickman look incredibly tall but the low angle of a goat's head legitimately kicked my ass so i eventually made a goat head on blender and used it to generate references with the help of designdoll. here i made her design a lot more muscular and fat, also, eventually coming to her final design.

the valve on her chestplate looks WRONG to me now, but at the time i was so tired i just rolled with it. the first pass of her armor was in a completely wrong color, which i corrected later on photoshop. i added the little metal forks pulling from her 2021 design, and the idea of little musical forks for atunning to the shape was cool to me. i also corrected her gun after actually learning what the fuck it was supposed to look like. i already knew i wanted her to be standing on the field of canola flowers, and the sky in the background was the last thing i added, also the time when i decided to really make the picture tall.

i liked the final result so much i went back and started working on the first prompt again. had a horrible time drawing the horns in the second image which led to this hell cage for building the perspective. im still not confident on the horns on the side of the head. i wanted to bring the atmosphere of a cold winter or fall morning in the second one, and to make pickman seem tired but relaxed. i overall like the second picture a lot more than the first and was very happy with how it came out.

AND THAT'S HOW THE SAUSAGE IS MADE I GUESS. if you read this whole thing then thank you for your time!

[direwombat]

tagged by @natesofrellis and @funkypoacher for a wip whenever! Thank you lovelies!!! 💕💕

tagging: @harmonyowl, @thomrainer, @aceghosts, @confidentandgood, @socially-awkward-skeleton, @poeti-kat, @schoute and blanket-tagging anyone who has something they wanna share :) (but as always, no pressure)

Here’s a slightly-over-500-word blurb from fragile creatures, chapter 4 

(just for context, Cooper is sixteen, his little sister is eight, they lost their parents in the Reaping, and have been hiding in a bunker ever since).

“Look, I know you wanna fight back. Hell, you’ve been doin’ a good fucken’ job at it, but you have someone who needs you. You can’t stay here and keep doing this on your own if you want to keep her safe.”

Cooper falls silent, gently pulling his younger sister, who remains soundly asleep curled up in his lap, tighter against his chest. He frowns, his brow furrowing thoughtfully as he considers Rook’s words. “Where would we go?” he says eventually. “We don’t got family anywhere else. It was just us here.”

She thinks for a moment. Dutch is closer and more secure. Also, based on the notes from his family she found scattered in his bunker, it seems he isn’t terrible with kids. But she also worries that he’d only enable the boy -- encourage him to take up his Pa’s gun and get himself killed on the side of the road. Taking them to Whitehorse is the wiser choice. “There’s a safehouse in the Valley,” she tells him. “It’s guarded by the Sheriff and another Deputy. They’ll keep you both safe.” 

Cooper’s eyes snap up when she mentions another deputy. “Staci?” he asks.

“No,” Rook says, and it’s her turn to furrow her brows. “Joey Hudson.”

His shoulders slump. “Oh.” 

She looks at him curiously, her head cocked to the side. “You know Deputy Pratt?”

“Yeah,” Cooper nods. “He babysat me when I was like...six. He was cool.” A small smile tugs at the corners of his lips, his eyes unfocusing ever so slightly, lost in a memory. It’s the first time she’s seen him look anything even adjacent to happy. “I ain’t seen him much since he graduated, but Ma said he started workin’ for the Sheriff’s Department.”

She can’t help but return a fond smile. The thought of Pratt looking after someone’s kids is so at odds with the image she’s had of him. Reckless and constantly running his mouth, it’s a wonder he managed to become a public servant. She can’t fathom any adult trusting him with their children now, let alone when he was a teenager. But he must have been good at it, at least from Cooper’s perspective, judging by the expression on his face. 

And then it sours. He looks back at her, swallowing thickly. “Where --” he starts, but then he stops himself. “Is he okay?”

She hesitates, worrying her lower lip between her teeth. It pains her to tell the truth. She wants to lie so bad, protect him from all the terrible shit happening in the County. Reassure him that Staci’s fine, that everything will be okay. But the boy is perceptive. He barely trusts her as is, and if she wants to keep him safe, she can’t risk breaking it.

“I don’t know. Last I saw him he was…” She can’t say ‘good.’ Hell, she can’t even say ‘alright.’ The glimpses she caught of him through the dirt-caked window of the ranger’s station were concerning. Pale skin littered with cuts and bruises. Gaunt cheeks. Greasy hair. Sunken eyes. He looked like a zombie. A shell of the bright and vivacious man she’d come to know. “He’s hanging in there.”

She just hopes he can hang on a little longer.

[lady-lessobian]

tell me about your dnd characters

Mwah mesh kissing u proposing for this!!!! 💖💖💖

My main dnd character is miss Severance Lee, my poor little meow meow. Gods poor little meow meow. Tiefling arcane trickster rogue/cleric of life and death. She grew up as the messiah in a murder cult for the goddess Lilybell, meant to lead them to greatness. Before the ritual on her 18th birthday, she found out she was supposed to kill the love of her life, so instead, she fled. Ran out of no man's land.

Eventually, she found a new city and started a life with a firbolg, Petrichor, who ran a halfway house. At first she was staying with Just Them because she was too shy around people after the whole cult thing, but they ended up falling in love. Unfortunately, Petrichor was very sick for a fair bit of their time together, and they managed to get married before they passed. The members of the halfway house supported her in her grieving, but staying there was too painful, so she traveled off to Karna in search of A 3rd chance. That's where the campaign began!

She got some jobs from a Faceless Friend to try and catch a master thief, and after various adventures, she (and the other playeres) ended up in the underground city or Rozm- a city at the crossing of two key lines and supported mostly by a giant magic orb. Which is starting to fail btw that's the plot of the campaign. And its revealed that all of the pcs are a champion chosen by one of the gods. Recently, Lilybell has shown up to bless Severance Lily personally so you can imagine that's soso good for her mental health. Shes doing. Great <3

My other characters aren't as detailed lol

After that, I have a character who I LOVE but has never gotten a proper chance to be played. Mezzatier's an aasimar bard of eloquence. Her parents were busy so she was kinda raised by a village. Grew up to be a hard worker and a runner of information for local revolutionaries. Worked mostly with a news stand when one day they were ambushed and gunned down. She was one of the deaths.

Come 20 years later, she wakes up in an alleyway, slightly different than she remembers, and with one goal in mind- to pull herself up by her bootstraps and hunt down the descendant of the tycoon who ruined her beloved community. The campaign was pirate stuff so shes a cowboy pirate bard lol. Her big thing was whether or not she'd become the full on god of revolution or pass as she got what she set out for.

Also shes not Technically the original Mezzatier, just made in her image. She could technically find her own grave and skeleton because I love it when my characters are mentally healthy. She's based off a broad wing hawk and the halo on her hat becomes the head of her cello banjo, and the dips on her wings are eyes. Also sorry this art is old and sucks ass she needs a new ref (plus a shitty animation)

One of of my more recent ones is Ginnel Abettor, or Gin! She's the god of the alleyway and in between spaces! A minor god, she exists with no witches on a planet where the more belief there is in you, the stronger a god you are. She exists, instead, out of necessity, getting power from the people and witches of other gods who travel through her domain. She's rather impartial, helping anyone who comes through regardless of who as long as they have the right offerings (a note and a trinket). Doesn't mean she doesn't have opinions though.

Because she's a much smaller god, she interacts more closely with humans, to the point where sometimes she isnt recognized as a god but a local myth. Can guide you or trap you. She loves tight spaces and is agoraphobic. Big supporter of the hole in the wall businesses of the alleys and will lead people to them. Always has a lighter for the workers on breaks. Patron saint of stragglers and vagabonds. I hope to do more with her soon!!

All of these characters are in @goosejeans 's world Lux, they DM!

I have some other characters too! Like Candette, the Night Mare, a unicorn tiefling death cleric. She was held captive by a royal family because unicorn blood is supposed to be healing, but hers is corrupted so it appears to work at first but then Rots you. She is a Haver of Visions and gives nightmares to those who sleep around her :(

Or Sickle, an Aaismar Forge Cleric who was raised on a small farm but believes herself to Actually Be a war forged after Traumatic Events, and is setting out to become more machine and also a victim of her hubris. Shes a parrot and is based off an old belief that a parrots caw sounded like "Ave Maria", so there were Angel's painted with parrot wings!

Or Solstice who I wanna play sosososoososososo bad you don't even know! A human way of the sun soul monk who has an intense fear of fire so they focus on the other elements of the sun (light, gravity, nuclear fusion.) Basically a starmaker but as a dnd character.

I only have sketches of the last two (I've been toiling over Solstice's design,,,). Not gonna bother getting into my characters from other games like Kitty in MOTW and Ruby Reprise in Blood and Bone. I also dm my own game with my own lore in Traveler!

Thanks to anyone who's made it this far and sorry that it's so long! My ocs are my biggest passion and I'm hoping to make some big stuff with them soon 👀

But fr tho, people have been so untalkative while I've been feeling super social along with me feeling kinda down on my art lately so it means a lot to be asked about them! All I'm doing here tho is revealing how much I like god themes lol. Also btw every character mentioned here is a lesbian

[therewasatale]

stormy night

On Ao3.

Summary:  Sans is scared of the storm and thunder, but luckily you're here to help him out.

You had to fight a real battle with exhaustion but you always managed to turn your closing eyes into a blink at the last minute. The light from the TV filled the room, and the constantly alternating images and flashes were keeping you on the edge of sleep. You blinked a couple of times and moved your slightly numb left shoulder.

Well, the flickering was one of the things keeping you awake, the other was skeleton leaning on your shoulder slowly breathing.

You glanced down at the silently sleeping Sans, and a tiny smile appeared on your face as you listened to his steady and calm breathing. Every part of your soul was sure that you didn’t want to move a bit, your body parts, on the other hand weren't that sure, for example your arm, with the dull throbbing coming from it indicated that you will have to pay for this romantic notion in the future. Regardless, you wanted to extend this cuddly evening as long as possible.

Sans and Papyrus have been your guests many times, and Frisk too appeared a couple of times, but for this was the first time you two spent so much time alone.

You two weren't together, at least there was nothing said out loud, you didn't want to make a big thing about it, and you were sure neither he. Every time you were with Sans felt like warm, you loved his humor, and that you were able to talk with him about almost anything, and despite him making countless puns, you knew deep down that he was listening to you. There wasn't any kind of uncomfortable silent even when you two just sat next to each other, while Papyrus made his unique spaghettis. There was something in the skeleton that calmed you down, and you suspected the feeling was mutual.

You glanced at him.

In fact, you were pretty sure of it.

Beyond the window, lightning-streaked trough the sky, illuminating the walls of a nearby buildings. Your heart missed a beat, and you didn’t have to wait long before the sound exploded trough the sky. You could almost feel the echo of thunder in your bones. Outside the wind change in just moment into a gale and began to shake the branches of the trees violently. A real autumn thunderstorm rolled over the city.

Sans immediately pushed himself into a sitting position.

*what? where...?

It took him a few moments until he realized that you were next to him in the gloom. He rubbed his face, and huffed.

*…(Y/N)?

"Hey, it's okay, we just fell asleep in front of the TV." Reaching out, you turned on the floor lamp next to you. "Hey," you smiled softly at the skeleton and he answered the same way.

* hey. so I fell asleep, eh?

"Yeah, maybe this movie wasn't-" Your sentence was cut short by another flash and the room fell into complete darkness. "Damn, bloody storm."

*...storm?

Sans's voice seemed quieter now, muffled by the rumble of the storm, which was much closer now.

"I think the lightning must have blown something up or the wind knocked down a tree that fell on the power lines. It sometimes happens up here, when a major storm strikes in the early fall, but it's usually fixed right away."

*I...

The voice of the skeleton seemed uncertain now.

*I should go home.

"Sans?"

Reaching out, you gently touched his arm. "It's okay, it's just me." You said when you felt him wince. "Come on, well look for a couple of candles, based on how quickly the storm rolled over us, it's going to be over soon, I'll accompany you home then, all right?"

You picked up your cell phone and muttered a thanks to the heavens that it was almost fully charged. Turning on the flashlight feature, you turned the light towards the ceiling so you could see as much of the room as possible.

Sans gripped the side of his hoody and glanced nervously towards the window. He focused only the noises for a few moments, but when he felt your attention, he tore himself away from the storm.

*I...okay...

He stood up with you and stayed right next to you all the way to the kitchen.

"Everything will be all right; every window is shut." You patted his shoulders as you passed in front of your bath- and bedroom. "You don't like storms, do you?" asked him gently as you entered your kitchen.

*not really...the noises…

His hand shook as the thunder boomed so close it felt like ceiling was about to rupture any moment.

*down there were never such noises…mostly just silence.

You glanced at his hand, then at his tense shoulders. You wanted to do something, somehow help him relax. But hugging him felt wrong, maybe he wouldn’t like it, or he would become more uncomfortable. With a small sighed you just stepped the kitchen.

"I'm sorry, I think you still have to get used to everything new up here. Come on, the matches might be next to the sink, I'll find some of those candles in the meantime."

*ok…

Your cell phone’s tiny built-in flashlight has somewhat filled your kitchenette with light, and in the gloom, you began to rummage through your cupboards. Sometimes you glanced over your shoulder to see if Sans was okay. You wanted to move as fast as possible, but at the same time you had to make sure he was all right, at least all right in these circumstances.

Sometimes a flash from a lightning filled the room.

"Ah, I found them!" You turned back with three smaller ones in your hand.

*and here are the matches.

He said, raising and shaking a matchbox which based on the sound was at least half-full.

"Okay, let's go back to the living room. I hope it's not a problem that these are scented candles... I think chocolate, vanilla and raspberries."

As you stepped through the doorway to your living room, the rain began to pour outside. Hundreds of droplets pattered into the window glass like machine gun fire.

"Oh, crap. I'll be right there." You handed your cell phone and candles to Sans, then rushed to the windows and pulled down the shutters to muffle the noise from outside.

*I've never seen such a storm before.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Going back to him, you placed the candles on the table and lit them one by one. "It's quite rare, it happens maybe two or three times a year." You smiled gently, but Sans's gaze was still focused on your window. He folded his arms in front of him, as he tried to hug himself, or more like protect himself from something.

"Hey, Sans, come on." You sat down on the couch and held out your hand towards him, you weren’t sure he would accept it.

He looked at you for a few moments and maybe he didn't know what to do at first either, but in the end, he took your hand and sat down next to you. You gently put your arm around his shoulder and pulled him closer to yourself. Even though he was full of bones, you still felt how tense his body was.

"I'll protect you," you said a bit awkwardly, but you meant it completely seriously. "It's just a quick storm."

*a quick storm.

He repeated slowly and took a slow breath.

"You don't like thunder, or it’s the rain too?"

*...the thunder...the rain is only annoying when I fall asleep outside and wake up drenched to the bone. but the storm, it always makes me jump out of my skin.

You snorted softly and put a kiss on his forehead. Glancing at him, you would have sworn bluish blush appeared on the monster's face.

He smiled very faintly, but as he looked back at the window, his smile disappeared.

*just the thunder...you know…it reminds me of something.

You waited quietly for him to continue, but he didn't. So first you drew tiny circles on his arm with your fingers and slowly pulled him closer. "Something?"

Another thunder interrupted your conversations.

"Damn thunder, I'm here, everything's fine." You said softly and continued to caress his arm. "What does it remind you of? Something happened down there?"

The answer came after a long pause.

*no...I don't remember...I just know.

He looked at you helplessly.

"Um," you kissed his forehead, and his left eye glowed bluish for a second. He looked away after a sharp breath.

*sorry.

You tilted your head to the side.

"Are you okay?"

*yes...

He squirmed between your arms not knowing where to look and what to do or say.

*you just surprised me.

A tiny smile appeared on your face and snuggling closer you gave a few tiny kisses to his skull. He gave out the same surprised breath and you were sure his eye sockets widened in surprise.

*(Y/N)...what are you doing?

"Distracting you," you replied with complete honesty, then while kissing his forehead you turned his head towards you.

The bluish glow didn't fade now as he looked at you.

"Your eyes are really beautiful." You said it as you caressed his face with your hand.

The glow of embarrassment spread trough under his eyes, as the left one began to sparkle in an azure blue color.

*no, they're not...these are just...because my soul...

"I'm sure it's just as beautiful too."

*don't say things like that.

He tried to hide his face with his hands, but the blue light escaped between his fingers. You couldn't stop yourself from having a short giggle.

"I'm sorry, I just haven't had a chance to see you like this." You pulled him very carefully into your arms and hugged him to yourself. He squeaked in surprise, but he didn't object when you pulled him down to the couch, he just snuggled up to you.

"I hope it's okay," you said hesitantly after a while. Your heart was pounding fiercely and with all your strength you were trying to calm it, to stop the pounding in your ear.

*no...just make sure I won't fall asleep on you.

"I will gladly watch over you."

He looked up at you and it was enough to just locks eyes with you to know you were serious about what you said. The candles were not really necessary anymore, as Sans eye was a perfect and infinitely more beautiful light source.

The raindrops were still falling fiercely out there, but the sounds could barely reach the two of you.

*are you sure? won't you be uncomfortable?

"Stay" you asked, kissing his forehead, but seeing his troubled face you reached for your phone and checked it. "Mh, even the lines are working now, so if you want, I'll call a taxi and we'll go home. But according to the forecast the storm will pass in a quarter of an hour or so, and we can walk home."

He squinted at your cell phone and just watched in silence for a while.

You slowly stroked his back, drawing gentle circles on it. You wanted him to stay, but you didn’t want to make the evening even more uncomfortable for him.

"I understand if you'd rather be at home and feel safer there. Maybe Papyrus can come here to get you..."

Sans took a couple of slow breaths and then buried his face into your clothes.

*no...no need.

"Hm?"

*I text to Papyrus that I'll stay and then go home in the morning.

"All right." You carefully wrapped your hand around him. "Take your time, my dear skeleton."

He once again began to glow faintly between your arms.

Outside, the storm seemed to slowly subside. Your shutters were no longer tugged on by the howling wind and you no longer had to fear that your windows might not hold up. Even the roar of thunder seemed to quiet into a grumpy growl.

*its not that so scary anymore.

"Yeah, these storms are always like that. They show up suddenly, they strike, then they keep going. Luckily, the air is always pleasantly fresh afterwards."

*mh ...

He answered while slowly yawning.

"Shall we sleep? Or should we just talk?"

*i can fall sleep at any time I want.

He said with some pride and for the first time in the evening he gave you a sincere smile.

"I believe you, but I think I should have some rest too." You stretched, letting your legs hung down from the edge of the couch.

*hm...i will send a message to Papyrus that I will stay here."

"Here, use my mobile since its already close."

Moments later, he nodded glancing down at the phone and looked up at you.

*he sends his greetings and thanks for taking care of me.

"Really kind of him, he is a really good brother." You smiled caressing his back gently.

*yeah, he's the coolest.

"Um, should we sleep in my room? There's more than enough space for two of us on the bed." You rubbed your eyes trying to delay the sleepiness for a while. "I'll be right there...I'm just gathering some resolve."

*well, maybe I can help. close your eyes, please.

You looked down at him in confusion, but there was something in his eyes that made you do what he said. He put his arms around you. For a moment you felt you were falling, then you landed on something soft.

*okay, you can open it now.

You glanced out the window of your bedroom and then at your bedside table, the clock on which showed nine pm.

"Teleportation?"

*maybe.

The skeleton slid under the blanket next to you with a cheeky smile and the confidence of someone at his own home.

"I could be pissed at such an answer, but damn you're amazing." You followed his example but gave him a small kiss on his skull at the end.

*no...I'm just a lazy skeleton.

"An amazing skeleton."

*lazy.

"That too." You yawned and gently caressed his face. "And pretty."

*(Y/N)...

"And kind." You chuckled gently as he tried to hide his face under your pillow.

*good night, (Y/N).

"And lovely." Raising the pillow, you kissed his cheekbone. "Good night, Sans."

*mh, yeah.

Yawning, he wiggled closer to you and fell asleep almost immediately. Maybe because it was the stress that made him this tired, or he just tried to get away from your gentle teasing.

"Good night" you stretched beside him and yawned gently, listening to his breathing. It didn’t take long for you to fall asleep next to him too.

[avoutput]

Mario Mario & Luigi Mario || Super Mario Bros.

The beginning of any quest has its starting pains. In the early 90’s, Hollywood set out to begin getting a cut of that sweet video game money. At the time, video games were mostly considered toys, and they were advertised as such. As the medium grew more adult, so did its films. Still, they had to begin somewhere, and why not with the biggest gaming property on the planet past and present: Super Mario Bros. This provided an unknowingly impossible challenge for creatives, one that is still a topic of intense discussion to this day. How does one balance the adaptation of a property from a completely different format into film? At the time, other films that looked similar to what Super Mario Bros would become had succeeded despite the challenges of adapting comics for film. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the first re-imagination of Batman since the 60’s went on to invigorate their respective properties. Today, comic book movie adaptations are the tent pole of every major movie studio. In the case of Super Mario Bros, despite its critical failure at the time, I honestly feel like the creatives succeeded. The ire this film would glean over time from both fans and the people behind the camera fuel its bad reception to this day. In my opinion, it is actually a success story in the world of video game adaptations, and a great place to start if you plan on watching every Hollywood attempt. I promise you this: it could be so much worse. And for later attempts, it was! But, does Super Mario Bros thwomp?

In my initial argument, I raised that these films should be broken down into categories including: Originality, Preservation, Construction, Delivery, and Fanservice. Originality and Preservation can be at complete odds with one another. In the case of Super Mario Bros, it turns out to be a good combination of both. They offset each other just enough to find a balance between the reality of our world and the fantasy of the mushroom kingdom. Sit back in your chair and imagine the real world of 1993, what films looked like back then, the landscape of video game culture. I think the creators had this very much in mind when they penned this movie. The very first thing that happens in the Super Mario Bros movie is the NES theme song with all the depth a stereo sound system can provide. It really sets your little gamer heart aflutter. It conjures up images of the brightly colored games. Using narration, they make promises of dinosaurs, meteors, and other dimensions. If you don’t think too hard, it kind of sounds like a version of Super Mario Bros that was advertised via the game manuals and cartoon show. If you are familiar with either, a pair of New York plumbers essentially get sucked down a drain pipe. This process is a little more drawn out in the film, but It turns out more or less exactly as good as could have been expected in 1993. In fact, the film really isn’t above sucking them down a drain pipe, they do crazier things, but I suspect that they wanted the plumbers to have a more direct conflict that would lead them to try and save princess Daisy.

The plot of the film is par for the course in a children's film and a direct consequence of the game itself, especially if you consider the 3rd entry. A good king and an evil military general, betrayals and coups, princesses sent to live in another realm only to return home with a pair of knights to dethrone the evil king. A tale as old as time, one that continues to be retold because it resonates with us. The filmmakers were really focused on this being a performance of realism meets fantasy This would come to be the major struggle that other video game movies would continue to have problems balancing. They took concepts from the game and gave them an original spin and most within the framework of the original work. Their creative license is often challenged for these choices, but in the context of making a live action Super Mario Bros movie in 1993, those challengers should check themselves. The real question you should ask yourself is, in this context, what would you have done differently? And would it really have been better? I struggled to find a way to truly make the concepts of this movie any MORE appealing, but it was surprisingly easy to make it worse. In one way, this film was a by the numbers kids adventure story, but it's being held to task mostly for failing to be a good adaptation of the game, a bar which didn’t exist when they made it, but one they set and cleared simply by attempting to do so much. All the Mario concepts are easily recognizable, which should be applauded, even in the face of them being a little wacky.

Despite its failings in authenticity, it actually packs quite a lot of fanservice into almost every frame. If you pay attention once they enter Bowser’s domain, the walls are littered with little ads and jokes all based on Mario properties. This is all in an effort to please fans, but the film does tend to leave these little things in the background, the camera more focused on the characters and plot, so blink and you miss them. If anything, this duty to fanservice seems somewhat creatively arresting. Had this film not been an adaptation of another work, they may have opted to skip a few things, like how Mario and Luigi employ the use of mushrooms. In the game, these would make the bros bigger, but this would have been a bit at odds with the backdrop of the grimmy New York City analogy they chose, not to mention technically difficult. People have been squashing miniatures for years, but I just don’t see this being a good use of the film’s time given every other decision. The film's overwhelming attempt to create entirely new flesh on the skeleton of an animated game is really only hampered by the audience's willingness to enjoy it for what it is, by questioning every creative decision. A lot of effort was taken to make the world feel cohesive, especially in its attempt to be parallel to existing New York City. They even take time on some more clever jokes that go somewhat unspoken. Everything in Bowser City runs on electricity, including the cars. The idea here is that fossil fuels do not exist because the dinosaurs of this world haven’t ever fossilized. Or maybe the dinosaurs knew it was bad for their planet? The film is constructed and delivered in such a way as to not take itself too seriously, but to appear parallel to something familiar to our own world in conjunction with the Super Mario world.

After having sat through the film with an earnest critical eye, I am not going to tell you the film is greater than the sum of its parts or that it's fantastic because it set out on an uncharted path. Instead, what I will attest to is that it was truly competent. It made every attempt to give you what you wanted and also took a few of their own twists on the formula. Bullet Bills turned into fuel for jumping, Bomb-oms wear Reeboks, shoes facilitate their ability to jump but also satisfy the boot you wear in Super Mario Bros 3. They even use the lightgun from the NES to navigate screens much like a mouse and the SNES super gun as a weapon! All this and still they found a way to make it all fit within the italian brothers from Brooklyn framing. Unfortunately, it would seem no one really learned anything from the success or the failures of this film. If the 90’s game films are any indication, the only thing they learned is that the box office is fickle and to double down on fan service even when it doesn't make sense, and in some cases, abandon everything about the game entirely and simply slap the name on a completely original film. And yet, despite all the bad press and internal struggles the Super Mario Bros production had, they came out the other end with an inoffensive, enjoyable film that both kids and adults can enjoy. Especially if they forgive the film any perceived sins, a gift that all film adaptations deserve, and just try to recognize what they really accomplished. Bringing to life a world that only existed in your Nintendo. It may not have been pretty, but damn if it wasn’t entertaining.

[hughiecampbelle]

Achilles Heel (Thomas Shelby Oneshot)

Character/s: Thomas

Word Count: 1,068

Inspired By: Liability by Lorde

Tag List: @dontdowhatisayandnobodygetshurt @myriadimagines @lilyswritings @encounterthepast @writerdream22 @death-of-a-mermaid @lotsoffandomrecs @woahitslucyylu @obsessedunicorn24 @thedarkqueenofavalon @fangirlsarah16 @theshelbyclan @captivatedbycillianmurphy @creativemayhems @soleil-dor @thegirlwithoutaname87 @fifty-shadesof-tommyshelby @riana-jannat

A/N: I'm tired of being called "too sensitive" so I wrote about it. I'll get back to the fic requests this weekend, I just needed this to get it all out before I can focus on anything. This sort of got away from me, being a lot longer than I anticipated, and though I know it could be better, I quite like it :) Anyways hope you like it my loves!!! Feedback is always appreciated 💜💖💜

Summary: Where Thomas sees weakness, you see strength 💕

Gif Credit: @nofckingfighting :)

FIC MASTERLIST PART ONE. / PART TWO. / PART THREE.

WANNA BE ADDED TO THE TAG LIST?

From the moment he saw you, he knew. The ways in which God herself sewed you, and him, and the rest of the world, were different. She made you in her image, her divine, and yet the things in the world, her child, the people on it, turned you into who you are. What you are. Mass casualties. Not in the same sense, though. You were enemies at war, not allies. Where he was jaded, jagged, sharp, his body a myriad of tense angles and tight muscles, you were nothing of the sort. Your skin made thin, wanting, begging to be torn apart by the slights look, the harshest word. The sorrows of the world turned your insides black, toxic, poisoned, leaving you a crumbled, coughing up your own tainted heart in your hands. Your eyes an inky pool, tears streaming down your face. The criticisms of others were arrows, puncturing deep within your spinal chord. Every where you went you bruised easily, effortlessly, without a second thought. Pieces of you catching on corners, punctured by nails in the floorboards, shredded by the weight of what was to come.

Behind that desk, Thomas Shelby expected nothing of you: his first mistake.

This life of yours could be a painful one, the difference was he was ready and you were not. Encased, a bullet in his own right, flinching softly, instead of the violent ways you reached for yourself. A show, a ballet, of movements, eyes shut, cries loud, your prayers spoken softly. She would not help though, she couldn't. There was nothing of you to fix. Only the first day. A glass shattering, slipping from its silver platter. The rest only stared. Sometimes it seemed you were the only one to ever understand what had happened, to hear it for what it is and not what they assume. Smashing glass, a glittering, shimmering puddle at your feet, sticky with whiskey. Your face on fire. Determined, nonetheless. Picking yourself up, cleaning it off, steadying the shaking in your hands. A job offer. Word spread quick in a place like this. You, with those scared eyes, those nervous, writhing hands, all the ways in which you held yourself with care, tenderness, too aware of the way they could see right through you, stood in that line among many. Stepping through those doors, heavy against your paper skeleton. It wouldn't take more than a rainy day to ruin you. Something he couldn't help but noting.

It wasn't the gun, or the man behind the gun that got you killed in this business, but feeling too much. Letting your emotions get the best of you. Wearing your heart on your fucking sleeve.

The rest questioned why you were accepted on the spot, the rest turned away before they had the chance to prove themselves. Some thought he was sweet on you, others joked you reminded him of his mother. Fragile. But the war had done something to him, and in return, he would do it to you. A man as arrogant as himself believing there is one way to be. That the spikes under his skin and the bite of his teeth were superior to your kind smiles and soft touches. If you were going to be part of this job, no matter how small a role you played, you had to be resilient. He had no time for tears, especially bit by his assistant. The glass left the pads of your fingers shredded, but the shame you carried from then on out would only grow. He was not an easy man to please, but he picked your every breath apart. It became a living nightmare. The others, in response, were far kinder, standing up for you behind closed doors, their tones pounding on his closed office door. The words were muffled, suffocated, but you understood nothing about you was said with bad intentions.

At least, not by them.

The words he plucked were made of razors, intending to slice you right down the middle. You weren't sure what he liked more. Seeing the pain in your eyes as if you'd been slapped across the face, holding your stinging skin, or the way, after, you straightened your back and held your head high in response, turning the other cheek, daring him to do it again. Those malleable pieces of yourself weren't hardening. The care you felt towards everyone regardless of who they were or what they did couldn't change because of a bully. He wasn't changing anything about you the way he anticipated, you were simply putting on a better act. The way you slumped in your chair didn't go unnoticed. The thought of quitting dug itself into your mind daily. Waking up, getting ready, you fought the impulse to lash out, tell that man to fuck off, and never see him again. But that meant waving your white flag, and one thing you were not was a quitter. Nothing would you make you kneel and kiss his feet.

It was in your nature, to bleed when others did, to mourn the dead of which you did not know, to feel the pain others neglected. He was no different. So no, he did not respect this. He looked down on you, and anyone else alike, because of this. There was no changing his stubborn, small mind. But he turned a blind eye to all the times he take solace in this. A late night, a regular occurrence, Thomas bent over his desk, eyes heavy, head pounding. There was no end in sight. You knocked on the door with hesitation, not wanting to startle him, intending to wish him a goodnight. What you found should not be left alone. Instead, with grace, and care, you slipped his coat over his shoulders, placing the papers just out of reach. Without effort his head fell in his arms, sound asleep in seconds. You locked every door and window, turning the lights low, making your chair a bed for the night. No one should sleep alone. He never mentioned that night, nor was he any less harsh because of it, but you knew it was something he thought about often, appreciating in his own way. . . .

Think what he might, say what he might, assume the worst based on nothing but a characteristic, but there was absolutely fault or flaw in being too sensitive.

[ladyaudentium]

Devil Trigger (Rewritten)

Summary:  Escaping my imprisonment had been my only goal, making friends- and perhaps something more- was never something I thought I would ever experience again. But freedom and happiness always come with a price. Mine is watching and waiting, carefully pulling strings from the shadows. (pre-canon)

Characters: Marco, Thatch, Izo, Whitebeard, Whitebeard Pirates, Doflamingo Donquixote, Female OC

Pairing: MarcoxOC

Rating: T/M (Graphic depictions of violence/abuse)

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece.

On both FF.net and A03 under the title above and the username LadyAudentium.

Chapter 1: Escape

A thin figure in a ragged cloak dashed down a dimly lit hallway. Dark stone lined the walls and floors, uninviting and cold. Bare feet slapped against the floor, and breathing came in rapid, hoarse wheezes.

The figure crouched at the next corner, so far everything was progressing smoothly, but that could change at any minute. The guard that had been drugged to allow their escape could be found at any minute. Even though the escape plan had been planned carefully, if anything went wrong, it would be all over.

Footsteps approached the corner, and the figure tensed, preparing for a fight.

Launching their weight around the corner, they attempted to catch the approaching person off guard. Skeletal-like fingers reached for the throat, to silence the potential assailant before an alarm could be raised.

“Ack!” the person choked, “Ardyn, it’s me. Let go!”

Grey blue eyes widened in shock, and the skeletal fingers released their death grip on the new comers throat, “Kensei!” they whispered hoarsely, “Thank goodness, I thought you were a regular guard.” the mysterious figure pulled down the ratty hood to reveal the face of a young woman.

Her head was shaved bald, but strawberry tinted eyebrows suggested her hair would be pink if allowed to grow. Stormy blue eyes stared up hopefully at her friend.

He grinned widely, revealing pearly white teeth, as his bright green eyes sparkled with amusement, “Hee hee, well I guess I’d be out cold right now if I was. I can’t believe the grip you had on me there!” the grin fell from his face as he checked the surroundings, “we don’t have much time though. We need to get out of here now, it won’t be long before they find that guard in your place. Come on, this way!”

Grabbing her hand, chains jingled dully, their noise muffled by the cloth that had been weaved into the links. They were horrible things, they drained her strength and made her feel sick, but they were a necessary evil. They were the only thing able to stave off the demon that lived inside her.

The two dashed through the hallways of the base, seemingly endless and winding, but Kensei knew the way. Ardyn trusted him firmly. The white coat around his shoulders identified him as a guard, but he was different than the others. He took no pleasure in her pain or suffering like the rest, he harboured no resentment towards her because of the demon she carried. He was the only good thing about this hell.

“Alright, we should be good now, just around that corner, and we’re home free!” Kensei announced excitedly and the young woman was practically vibrating with excitement. It didn’t seem real. Surely it was just a dream, and any second now she would wake up back in the cold, dirty cell.

Suddenly, an alarm blared loudly, the sound echoing off the walls as red and yellow lights flashed. “Red alert! Red alert! Subject Zero-Five has escaped! All personnel on high alert, recapture is the number one priority!”

Ardyn’s heart sunk deep in her chest. The dream had ended.

“Shit,” Kensei cursed, as he took hold of the young woman’s arm and began to run.

Pandemonium erupted in the base as the hallways flooded with white coats, “There it is!” they cried as they caught sight of the young woman and her blonde partner.

Tears began to stream from her eyes, freedom was so close.  

“Ardyn, look, that’s the front door! We can make it!” Kensei called back to her.

A wrenching tug on the thin, ragged cloak choked her.  It was followed by a man calling, “I’ve got it!” he pulled back, tearing the fabric, but it was enough to break Kensei’s grip on her hand.

“Kensei!!” Ardyn called, fearfully. Images of the deathly cold cell flashed across her eyes. She couldn’t, wouldn’t go back after this. She would rather die than go back to that windowless room.

Turning around, green eyes narrowed in rage as he levelled a pistol at the guard holding her, “No you don’t!” he cried, as a gunshot rang out in the main hall.

Ardyn’s ears rang loudly as the gun fired and the cloak come free before she was once again being pulled along.

“Kensei, there’s no way we’re going to make it! Look! The door!”

Sure, enough the heavy main doors had begun to shut and the white light at the end of the tunnel began to slowly disappear. Reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out several round objects and with his teeth pulled the tabs on them causing them to start sparking. “Oh yes we are!” he cried before throwing them as far as he could. There was a moment where they bounced off the doors with an innocent ‘ting’ before there was a huge flash of light and a wave of scalding heat before the bang.

Throwing his free arm around Ardyn, the young man used his body to shield her from the blast of the bombs. Screams of the soldiers around us before the young woman was once again being pulled roughly by the arm. Rubble and stone continued to fall all around them. The light continued to dim as rubble piled up in front of the door, until only a single ray of light shone down through the dust that hung in the air.

‘Kensei was right,’ Ardyn allowed herself to smile, ‘they were going to make it!’

The smoke cleared in a great sweep of a staff to reveal the guard Captain between them and freedom. His coat, worn off his shoulders like a cape, billowed in the breeze he’d created. The strong jawline eerily backlit by the light created a sharp outline of his face. The hollows of his deep-set eyes and cheeks gave him a skull like appearance and she felt a deep-seated cold fear take hold of her. Here was the prime source of her suffering. This one man had taken it upon himself to make sure his subordinates hated her fully.

“You have made a valiant effort, Kensei, clearly you hold some sort of demented feelings for this creature. But this is as far as you go. You will pay for your betrayal with your life.” The large man spoke in a deep commanding voice exuding an intimidating air like none Ardyn had ever felt before. “Return Zero-Five to us, and I will ensure your death is a painless one.” the butt of the stave was levelled towards Kensei’s face and the last of the smoke cleared to show that we were surrounded by more men in white outfits armed with rifles and swords alike.

Clinging fearfully to the man beside her, Ardyn looked up to him. She didn’t want Kensei to die for her, if she’d known that would be the punishment he’d been facing, she never would have agreed to his escape plan.

“Hey, Ardyn,” Kensei beamed, his smile lighting up her whole world, “why don’t we run away together?”

Tears welled in her eyes at the memory. He was willing to put his life on the line to help her. The least she could do, would be to at least make sure he didn’t suffer in his death.

Squeezing her hands reassuringly, Kensei looked down towards the young woman. “Don’t worry, Ardyn, we’ll be getting out of this together. I won’t die here.” turning towards the guard captain, Kensei addressed him, “You can’t stop what I’ve done here! This will all end one way or another!” his hand left mine and with a great flourish of his coat, he revealed a belt full of explosives. In one smooth motion he lit them all, “Run, Ardyn!” he cried before throwing the explosives behind them.

“I won’t let you!” the captain cried before lunging towards them, arm extended to grab the young woman and staff raised to hit her blonde partner. For a moment she was stunned in fear until a gunshot ring through the air. The Captain dodged to the side and the bullet whizzed past to embed in the rubble ahead.

Kensei’s voice rang out true in the aftermath “RUN!” and Ardyn didn’t question it any further before her legs propelled her forwards, adrenaline pumping hard. The chaos seemed to happen in slow motion as men screamed and began to panic from the explosions. Only a few of them seemed to be focused on the escaping woman as they all began to flee for their lives in all directions, trampling and hindering their still focused colleagues in the process.

“Keep running! Don’t look back!” the young man called as the bald girl reached the rubble that remained of the front door. Unable to resist, she looked back and immediately wished she hadn’t.

Kensei had the Captain pinned underneath him, a small crater cracking the ground around them. The remaining bombs on his belt were sparking wildly. Green eyes met gray, and Ardyn could see the anger and regret deep inside.

No, he couldn’t die here! He wouldn’t! he promised!

“KENSEI!” she screamed

The young man softened his gaze, and smiled genuinely, “Don’t worry, Ardyn I won’t be dying here.”

The young woman made a move towards him but was blinded by a flash of light and an explosion that rocked the entire building. The heat seared her face as the blast blew her out into the courtyard. Ardyn’s ears were ringing as she tumbled ass over teakettle into the dry grass. Rocks and bits of stone peppered the grounds as well as her unprotected body. Curling into a tight ball, she tried to protect herself as best she could

A moment passed with her face buried in her arms and after a moment of safety, she allowed herself a careful glance up. Stormy eyes widened in shock when only a bare skeleton remained of the building that had once caused her so much agony. The once imposing stone fortress was ablaze with flames reaching all the way up to the very top of the tallest tower.

Guards and white lab coats alike scrambled for their lives and desperately searched for a way to quench the hungry flames. Ardyn sat in shock and awe at the awesome sight before she felt her eyes begin to burn. ‘How on earth could Kensei have survived that blast? There’s no possible way, he was right in the middle of it.’

Leaping to her feet, she absolved to search the wreckage. She couldn’t leave without him! The rubble that had taken the brunt of the explosion were still hot and scalded her hands as she attempted to move them. Her arms shook with the effort to lift some of the bigger pieces, but to no avail, she was too weak.

Tears blurred her vision as she desperately tried to find even a trace of her dear friend. A sob wracked her chest a moment before a skinny man with overly thick glasses spotted her, “Kyaaa! Do not let Zero-Five escape! Our research must be continued!” he screeched in a reedy, almost pre-pubescent voice even though he was old enough to be her grandfather.

Steeling herself, Ardyn glared hatefully at the old man as guards surged towards her. She now had a choice; stay, and attempt to avenge her friend, or run and fulfill his dying wish to help her escape.

As the guards closed in, the young woman cursed her weakness and selfishness. She turned and fled.

Heart beating hard enough to burst from her chest, the young woman ran as fast as she could. The road down the hill was uneven and full of gravel with tiny sharp rocks that dug into the soft soles of her feet. She could not afford to stop, however as the pursuant clamor of armed guards hot on her heels.

The chains around her wrists sapped her strength and continue to take a heavy toll on her body as her legs began to give way beneath her weight. A particularly bad stumble sent the young woman staggering dangerously close to the edge of the road that was bordered by a steep cliff. Desperately, Ardyn attempted to steer away from its unforgiving edge but her legs gave out and with a scream of terror she tumbled over the edge.

Curling into a tight ball she attempted to avoid injury as much as possible could, but the sharp rocks dug into every bit of her body. The ground was unforgiving as she landed heavily, the wind knocked from her lungs. Her body spasmed as she attempted to take in a breath, but her lungs refused to work.

A distance voice cursed, “Shit! It fell! We’ll go down and trap it against the cliff, come on!”

“It’s a miracle, It’s still alive!” called another as they ran off.

A ragged breath finally entered Ardyn’s lungs before a violent, hacking cough overtook her.  Rolling over, she clawed her way up onto all fours and pushed herself up. They were coming for her, she had to keep moving.

Glancing up, Ardyn found her salvation.

A town.

Stumbling into a shuffling, limping run she made her way over to where there would be other people. Ones that weren’t employed under the so called “scientists” who worked up in the newly destroyed lab.

As she got closer, Ardyn could see the townsfolk milling all about the edge of their houses and shops, watching with horror as the large building atop the mountain burned to ash. A few women noticed her and covered their mouths in shock.

“Help! Please help me.” The young woman begged, approaching the closest woman, her voice ragged and weak.

Her brown eyes stared at me in horror, “My poor dear, what on earth has happened to you?” she asked me, terrified. The motherly concern radiated off her in waves, and Ardyn felt some of the fear leave her.

“The Lab blew up and I was finally able to escape, please help me. Don’t let those men get me.” she pointed to the guards who had finally reached the bottom of the road and were sprinting towards them at full speed. It would only be another moment or two before they arrived.

“Young lady what were you doing up there? And why are you--?”

“She’s got a demon in her! Look! She’s wearing those special chains!” a man cried from my left and roughly grabbed me by the wrist and held my arms above my head to show the other villagers. The cloth that had been weaved through the links to prevent them from making noise fell out, and the chains rattled loudly, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Please,” Ardyn choked, “please don’t let me be taken back, I promise I won’t hurt anybody!” hope was dying in her chest. Her salvation quickly turned to damnation.

“Demon! Go back to hell!” another man from the crowd cried as the guards approached en masse.

Panicked, Ardyn began to struggle, desperate to escape. “Let me go!” she cried, tears streaming down her face. In desperation, she glanced to the woman who’d first spoken to her, but her face carried the same hatred as the rest of the villagers.

Without warning, the man threw the young woman down at the feet of the guards who were waiting patiently to see what would happen. “Here,” the man spat, “keep this under better watch, It put us all in danger. Just look what It did to your base!”

Ardyn lay on the ground where she’d been thrown, curled up in a ball trying to hide from the word and hoping against hope that if she curled up small enough that she would just disappear into the ground. The pain from her injuries began to ache and throb throughout her body, combined with the special cuffs, the young woman wasn’t sure if she could muster the strength to continue running. Her feet felt like they were on fire, no doubt shredded from all the sharp rocks and gravel. “Yes, It is very dangerous, your assistance in catching it is greatly appreciated. We’ll make sure It’s locked up nice and tight.” rough hands grabbed her arms and shoulders and without a care for her well being, hauled her up onto her feet. “It won’t be seeing the daylight again for a very long time after what it pulled today.”

The man speaking grinned cruelly, and Ardyn recognized him as the Lieutenant. A horrible, sadistic man who was second only to the now dead Captain when it came to enjoyment from her suffering. Unlike the late-Captain, who had taken pleasure in physical beating, this one preferred withholding food and water until the young woman had nearly died.

“That wasn’t m--!”

*SLAP!*

Her cheek burned with the sting of the backhanded slap.

“You can’t afford to let it speak; it talks of nothing but lies.” The Lieutenant lied, as the crowd hummed in agreement.

A coppery taste drifted into her mouth and Ardyn could tell that the inside of her cheek was bleeding. The last of her resolve slowly dissolved, it was over. They had caught her, maybe if she was good now, they wouldn’t be too horrible to her again.

Thick silent tears rolled down her cheeks. So, this was it then was it… this is how she would spend the rest of her life. A caged lab rat.

A lone voice spoke up from the crowd, “I can’t sit by and watch this anymore,” the click of a pistol cocking caught Ardyn’s attention as her head snapped up, “Let the girl go, now.”

Her savior was adorned in a pink kimono and their hair was done up in a womanly fashion. They levelled a gun at the Lieutenant’s temple and fiercely stared him down, daring him to disagree. The crowd stepped away from them, creating a wide berth to avoid association.

“This demon isn’t a girl; it just takes the form of one. You’ve been fooled by its lies.” the Lieutenant answered shakily, clearly intimated by the person holding a gun to his head. Ardyn stared in awe, she had never seen him scared before.

“People like you disgust me.” the mysterious figure, pushed the gun against the Lieutenant’s skin, and his throat bobbed as he swallowed nervously. “Let her go, I won’t ask again.” the rage was clear in the newcomer’s voice and the young woman felt hope surging in her heart once again.

“I would listen to him, boys. Izo isn’t one to make idle threats,” another male voice spoke up and the two holding me turned to another figure in a white suit and a very tall, brown pompadour hairstyle. He was holding twin blades and stood with a lazy confidence.

Using the distraction of yet another newcomer, Ardyn renewed her struggle to escape. Planting her feet, and thrusting upwards with all her strength, the young woman felt her skull collide with the noses of her captors. They cried out in pain; their grip momentarily weakened. She surged forward, attempting to run, but before she could take a full step, they had recomposed themselves. An arm wrapped around her neck and pulled her back into a solid chest, his grip constricted until she was choking.

“Filthy demon, hold still.”

The Lieutenant grit his teeth until a vein popped on his forehead, “How dare you interfere in our business? Don’t you know who we’re funded by?”

“I think you got bigger problems if you don’t know who we are, yoi.” a third man called from a rooftop, he wore a purple shirt and had a shock of blonde hair atop his head. Across his chest was emblazoned a blue cross with a half moon curving upwards through the center. Ardyn watched in awe as blue flames engulfed him.

As quickly as she’d been grabbed, she was released. The one holding her crying out in fear, “W-Whitebeard Pirates!”

At his exclamation, everyone scattered in panic. The guards forgot about me in their panic, and the townspeople created pandemonium as they pushed and shoved at their neighbors, desperate to be the first into the safety of their homes.

Ardyn covered her head to protect herself from the dust and debris that was thrown up in the wake of the panicking villagers.

Footsteps approached her back, and with a panicked glance over her shoulder, Ardyn saw the one dressed in white standing over her, “I think you boys understand the predicament you’re in now, yeah?” as he spoke, his gaze drifted down to the young woman at his feet. Blue gray eyes widened in fear, frozen where she lay. He smiled warmly, but it wasn’t until his attention returned to the Lieutenant that she could breathe properly again.

“So, we’ll give you a choice, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. But either way the girl will be coming with us.” the pink robed figure stated plainly, without any room left for argument.

“L-lieutenant, what do we do?” one of the grunts asked, fear clear in his voice even though he was still one of the braver (or more foolish guards) to have stayed.

There was a beat of tense silence as the newly appointed leader weighed his very limited options. Ardyn glanced up to see the lieutenant was still on the dangerous end of the pistol pointed at his head, while sweat bulleted down his temples. The sound of his teeth grinding was clearly audible even from where she lay.

“It’s not worthwhile to fight here and die for that… thing, boys.”

“But sir--!” cried one of the others.

“DO NOT QUESTION ME, PRIVATE! Our employers wouldn’t want to cross Whitebeard. Plus, this isn’t a fight we will win. Not against three Commanders,” he ground out clearly displeased with being overpowered in this situation.

The one in the kimono pulled his gun away with a small, triumphant smirk but he did not step away, nor did he disarm the weapon. The young woman watched with only minimal relief as the troupe of soldiers retreated up to the ruined lab. It was only once they were gone, did she realize the pirates themselves hadn’t moved.

The closest one in the pink kimono turned towards her and upon making eye contact her body flew back into a panic. Heart racing, and breathing fast, he scrambled to get on her feet and turn to crawl away. Traitorous arms failed her in that moment as they gave way beneath her, the shackles digging painfully into her skin.

“Woah, hey now,” the voice of the one in white reminded her that he was closer than she would have liked and renewed her struggle once more. Desperately kicking her legs, Ardyn attempted to stand, but her legs were too weak to support her further. All she gained were bloodied feet. A warm hand appeared on her back and instinctively, she curled tightly into a ball, expecting the worst. Shocked, the hand disappeared, but she refused to uncurl and expose herself, any second now, the blow would hit. Gravel crunched under someone’s shoes as another of the three approached.

“It’s okay, you’re safe now. We aren’t going to hurt you.” the voice of the pink robed one spoke gently, “You’re injured, come with us, we can help you.”

Ardyn curled tighter, this was surely too good to be true. What horrors awaited her on the pirate ship?

“Izo, look, she has sea stone cuffs.”

“A Fruit user…” Izo confirmed as Ardyn felt the chains jostle around her wrists. A trembling started up in her body, the terror finally taking hold of her.

A thud, and the crackle of flame caught her attention. The young woman dared a peek up to see the third member of the group land on the ground as blue flames dissipated from around him.

“Oh, and the little mouse pokes her head out to see the pretty birdy.” The one in white joked, a cheery grin breaking over his features. The one he was talking to glowered back at him and there might have been a retort of “Oi, I’m not a ‘pretty birdy, yoi.” But she took no heed, instead she saw another face flash over her eyes in that moment.

Kensei.

A deep ache took root in her heart as the brown-haired man turned to laugh at his compatriot in the purple shirt who returned his grin with a stoic mask. Ardyn could only stare at the man in white as he turned back to face her, the grin softened as he caught her gaze, “see? Nothing to be afraid of here, girlie. My name’s Thatch, that’s Izo” -he pointed to the one in pink- “and that’s Marco,” -he pointed to the one in the purple shirt- “we’re here to help you now, okay? you don’t need to be afraid anymore. You’re safe with us now. What’s your name, girlie?”

A large, scarred hand extended towards her, offering to help her stand. The young woman hesitated for a moment, surely if they were going to hurt her, they would have done so already. She had known evil and cruelty, it wasn’t something that could be hidden. It seeped through the pores of those infected with it, tainted their words. There was no evil from these three.

“Ardyn…” she replied weakly as she cautiously accepted the offered hand, gingerly placing her skeletal thin hand in his. Thatch’s grin widened, pleased that she had accepted his help. In one smooth motion he stood and pulled her along with him.

The raw, open wounds burned against the ground, and with a wince, she stumbled. Strong arms caught her and held her securely to a firm chest.

“Her feet are injured, Thatch you should carry her back to the ship, Marco fly ahead and warn Pops we’re brining someone back with us.” Izo delegated and Ardyn watched as blue flames once again engulf Marco. She didn’t realize they were wings, until he surged upwards and they extended to either side of him.

‘Oh, that’s what Thatch meant about ‘birdy.’’

“So your name is Ardyn? A good strong name for a girlie. Hold on now,” Thatch commented good naturedly as he whisked her feet out from underneath her, “and up we go!” the brown-haired man grunted as he straightened and she squeaked in surprise. “Sheesh, you’re naught but skin and bone! When did you last eat, girlie?”

His blunt question caught her off guard, and she could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks. Tears of shame pricked at her eyes as she dropped her gaze.

“Ah, I understand… I’m sorry, girlie.” The once boisterous man murmured quietly as he began walking down the path, his grin faltering only for a moment, “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure you’re well fed from now on.”

Ardyn couldn’t do much more but blink and nod wordlessly in agreement.

Izo followed as he muttered to himself, “how horrible. It’s a shame that base is already destroyed, I know I would have loved to do the honors.”

Another stab of pain lanced through her heart, that too had been a result of Kensei’s sacrifice. A hot tear dropped onto her chest as she once again attempted to curl into a ball. Thatch remained blissfully silent and said nothing about her behavior in his arms.

As they made their way through the town, Ardyn could feel the eyes of townsfolk on her as they passed, but she didn’t dare look up.

Thatch and Izo talked quietly to each other, but the young woman wasn’t listening to the specifics of the words. The soft rumble of the brown-haired man’s chest was soothing, and he was warm, immeasurably so. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been so comfortable.

Slowly, she began to relax. The tension slipping from her muscles, and by the time Ardyn heard footsteps on wood, she was nearly asleep. Not even the metal jingle of keys roused her. It wasn’t until the cuffs on her wrists dropped away did she fully realize what was happening.

“NO!” she cried, leaping from Thatch’s grip to land heavily on the wooden deck.

The shocked faces of Izo and Thatch were the last things she remembered before her vision exploded in white.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the new and improved first chapter!

Please leave me a review if you’d like! I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback!

[samiii-p]

miss temptation (I don’t think you know) 1/?

aka The Maryan Roommate AU no one asked for 🙃 ao3

“You need a home address by next week or I’m writing you up.”

Fuck

Scratching an 'X' over another available apartment listing in the newspaper, Ryan grunts, blacking it out in her frustration. This one was her last true option within her price range and it was about the size of a walk-in closet with a communal bathroom to boot.

And no, just no. God no.

At least the last one had a view. It was a brick wall of the neighboring apartment but one nonetheless.

“You know for someone who needed this job, you sure don’t look the part.”

Sucking her teeth, Ryan glances up from her troubles, spots Luke in his custom three piece suit, grumbles and glances back at the paper where the only options left cost an arm and a leg to stay. Gotham wasn’t cheap by any stretch of the imagination, but selling her organs on a monthly basis just to get by didn’t seem all that appealing either.

“What do you want, Luke?”

“Can’t a guy just stop by?”

“Sure.” Ryan says, flipping the newspaper to the next page, maybe she could find something outside of town. The commute would be hell, but at least she’d have an address and her parole officer would finally get off her back. “I take it that’s not what you’re here for though.”

She hears him harrumph and nothing else. He does it a second later, again … and again.

“Okay, how can I help you?” She asks, sliding her current issues down the counter. Another 18 months in jail won’t hurt, let alone leaving the city in shambles when Batwoman disappears again .

Luke tilts his chin, hard line forming between his brows, a look Ryan has grown accustomed to over the past few weeks. Even though he’s apologized and promised to give her a chance until Kate’s return, there's still a tiny bit of friction lying beneath the surface no matter how much they both try to ignore it.

Reaching into his breast pocket he unearths a photo and slides it across the bar into Ryan’s line of vision. A picture of a black mask, outlined like a skeleton, stares up at her with cold hard eyes. In the corner a coiled snake is drawn with Luke’s handwriting underneath.

Snakebite - fear toxin/mushrooms

“Um, who or what am I looking at?”

He thumps the photo twice. “I was hoping you could tell me. You said you run in similar circles-”

“- ran.”

“As Victor Zsasz, I was hoping you could tell me a little about our friend here.”

“Sorry to tell you this but, no.” She pushes off the bar with a huff, nodding at the photo. “Whoever this person is, is new in town. At least to me.”

“Yeah, well his snakebite is hitting the streets like a plague and no one knows its source. There’s only this photo as a possible supplier but there’s no name, no facial recognition, no origin or leaks, no nothing.”

“So what do we do?”

“You suit up.”

Heat signature enabled, Ryan takes a look around the abandoned building noting two low level street hands Luke identifies as TJ Pillar: 1 to 3 strike for armed robbery and Curtis Armstrong: out on parole for possession.

“Come on, dude.”

She totally gets how uneasy it is to get back on your feet after spending a little over a year incarcerated but at least try to do better.

“What?” Luke asks through the coms, Ryan ignores him, scouting more of the building. It’s been over an hour and nothing. They wouldn’t be here if no one was coming but it’s growing closer to midnight and she has to be back at work at nine.

“Can’t I just bring them in? It’s late.”

“I mean you could, but it’ll be a waste of time. The guys on the street don’t know anything except to wait for the drop here.”

“And we couldn’t call in Gotham PD or the Crows for surveillance because..?”

“Hey, you wanted the job, this is what it entails.”

Behind the mask, Ryan’s eyes roll, mocking this is what the job entails meh meh, like she's a child grounded for the night, which, all things considered…

“Besides, it’s not like you have anything better to do.”

“Okay! Okay!” Over the coms, Ryan hears hushed voices arguing, a muffled ‘no’ then the sound of chairs being switched, Luke’s voice replaced by Mary’s, “heeey, girl. How ya’ doing?”

She smirks, attitude vanishing the moment the heiress speaks. Call it a general preference to all things sans-Luke based but she’d one hundred present rather talk to Mary until the butt crack of dawn instead of Mr. Kate would do it like this and Kate would do it like that. For starters Mary’s a lot nicer. Calmer. Funnier, I mean the girl’s one liners are top tier, bone tickling funny.

And well, she was a hell of a lot prettier too.

“Oh, you know, just pulling an all-nighter right before my day shift.”

A hiss sounds dramatically over the intercoms, the image of Mary’s twisted face pops up and Ryan can almost see the apple of her cheeks bunching and her eyes closing in that cute ass scrunchy face she makes when she’s thinking hard or embarrassed clear as day.

“Don’t worry about it, you can always come in later.”

“You enable her by making exceptions.”

“Luke!”

“What!?”

More muffled noises, a bang and yelp later Mary comes back on. “What I was getting at is that if you want to come in a little bit late, it’s totally fine or we can even change your schedule to mid-day, as your boss and fellow bat accomplice, I would totally understand.”

The corner of Ryan lips quirks up, “you don’t have to do that.”

“I do. We don’t know for sure how long you’ll be out tonight. Coming in afterwards is going to be draining-”

“It’ll be draining for all of us.” Luke yells.

“Shh!”

Unfortunately, Luke has a point. It's not fair on the team if she’s the only one taking the easy way out when they all have lives and responsibilities outside of the cave to adhere to, and a mid-day shift would never work anyway. Mid-day is Officer Steven’s favorite time of day to intrude on Ryan’s life.

“No that’s okay,” Ryan says, “Luke’s right. I have to put on my big girl panties and suck it up like everyone else, besides, I’m going to be too busy selling body parts for an overpriced cardboard box in the foreseeable future or it's a one way ticket back to Black Gate-”

“Wait, what-?”

“Oh, hold up.” An engine alerts Ryan to an incoming vehicle speeding into the warehouse disrupting their conversation. “We got action.”

Censors pick up on a lone body inside, facial recognition scanners kick on and work to identify the driver’s profile as well as the car’s make, model design, vehicle number and license plate number are all shot over to home base for further analysis. She twitches them off once complete just in time to see a window roll down and a hand throw two duffle bags out the window before speeding off.

“Did we get anything?”

A beat passes before Mary’s back on, “Not yet. Gotham PD and the Crows database has no facial identification, Luke’s expanding the search but the car is unmarked, plates false, even the tires vin numbers have been scrubbed. Whoever this person is, really doesn’t want to be found.”

From Ryan’s personal experience, news like that is never good. Someone that deep undercover either has a checkbook large enough to make themselves disappear or an iron grip so ruthless the utter mention of their name is probable cause for permanent removal. This was going to be harder than any of them expected.

“Keep me posted.”

Kicking off the beam she leaps down sticking another perfect grand entrance; hoping the acclaimed symbol printed on her chest will be enough to scare off the bad guys for once.

She is really tired after all.

Unfortunately, Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dumb both reach for guns, shooting before she can warn them to stand down. And there goes her ‘early’ night. Figures.

“Ya’ll know I’m fucking bullet proof, right?”

Another bullet ricochets off the suit as she takes a step forward. Idiots. Surprisingly they keep at it until the clip clinks, empty, and Ryan comes face to face with Curtis who tries throwing a punch she easily ducks, coming back up to head butt him so hard his knees crumple. His coworker steps up and he’s a bit more of a challenge throwing blow for blow with her until she ducks up under him and comes back with a roundhouse kick to his Adams apple. He clutches his windpipe, now down on one knee she delivers the final blow to the bridge of his nose.

She picks up the bags and hightails it out of there, latching onto a high beam for an easy escape, and heads towards G.C.P.D where she drops the contraband with a note attached of where they can find the assailants tied up and ready for arrest.

“Why didn’t you tell me you’re homeless!?”

Ryan wonders if disrupting her day as a civilian was going to become normal protocol for Luke and Mary going forward and on a recurring basis.

“I wouldn’t say homeless.”

“How else would you classify living out of your van down by the docks?”

“Surviving on wheels – ow!” Ryan giggles, rubbing her shoulder and doesn’t know whether to cower or soothe the frustrating scowl rapidly spreading across her friend’s face. “How’d you find out?”

“I had Luke track you after you left last night.”

“Wow, talk about invasion of privacy.”

“And for good reason, why didn’t you say anything?”

Ryan flips an empty glass, dries it out before placing it on the rack and considers how to move the conversation forward, possibly far, far away from this topic all together. The best she comes up with is, “it’s handled.”

Handled ends up being a 200 square feet one room apartment Mary demands to see. The bedroom, kitchen and living room are all one in the same but at least she has her own bathroom. The walls are paper thin, she’s pretty certain the constant dripping sound is coming from the kitchen, one she can easily fix after a YouTube tutorial or two, and a hotter than hell furnace the landlord warns her not to touch when the temperature is anywhere over 60 F unless she enjoys suffocating.

She watches Mary take in the room, the petite brunette moving in a slow swirl on her heels, lip turned down and Ryan just knows it’s not good when they make eye contact.

“Nu-uh.”

“What do you mean nu-uh?” Confused, Ryan watches Mary storm past her and out the door. “Mary! Mary, what does that mean? Mary!?”

Mary breaks her housing contract. When Ryan tries to object she quickly learns that all 5’2 of Mary Hamilton-Kane is nothing to play against and a powerhouse forced to be reckoned with.

… It kind of gets Ryan hot under the collar watching Mary tell her landlord exactly what’s about to happen, and cutting a check like it's nothing in the process.

Assertive has always kinda been her type.

“You’ll be staying here.”

Mary says, showing Ryan around her penthouse in the upper echelon of Gotham City. The apartment is just shy the size of a department store, the lounge being big enough to take up most of the square footage, built in with four bedrooms, one now officially hers, one for guests and another used for office space and three huge bathrooms big enough to house a football team.

“Jesus,” the name slips under her breath as she takes it all in. This place is – is. It’s too much. “I can’t afford this.”

The carpet under her feet probably cost more money than she'll ever see in her lifetime.

“Well, it’s a good thing I’m not asking you to pay anything.” Ryan quickly gets shut down as Mary carries on, “until you can save enough money to get back on your feet. It’s the least I can do. Being this city’s vigilante is hard work. The last thing you need to worry about is where you’re going to lay your head at night.”

It makes sense, but still. “I’m not comfortable asking you - I won’t use you.”

“You’re not.” The med student emphasizes. Mary takes the box out of her hands and places it on a dresser. “My home is yours now, bestie. Stay as long as you want to.” And before Ryan can prepare herself, Mary’s arms are snug around her waist and her cover girl smile is beaming up at her.

This is going to be terrible.

It’s worse.

Far worse than Ryan could have ever predicted. Not only is Mary super considerate of her new roommate, but she makes her resources Ryan’s own. She’s never slept so good, ate so well or drank water so delicious for that matter. Until recently she thought water was just water but Mary’s fridge is full of this alkaline stuff straight from the mountains, and Ryan swears she can never look back.

“You want pickles?”

Ryan visibly gulps, sitting on the couch, eyes focused on anything other than Mary prancing around the kitchen in her underwear. Mary’s always been super comfortable in her skin but especially at home when she’s surrounded by her things in her place of peace and why shouldn’t she be, this is her home. Ryan wants her to go about as she normally would, actually prefers if Mary pretended Ryan wasn't there altogether. The last thing she wants is to intrude or take up space but she can only take so much. It’s been nearly a month of coming home to Mary asking how her day was, waking up to Mary smiling at her over homemade breakfast or passing out on the couch cuddled together after another failed movie night. There’s only so much she can take.

What they’re doing is borderline domestic. And Ryan’s too gay for this.

“…pickles?”

“Hmm – what?”

“I asked if you want pickles on your sandwich?”

"Uh, sure."

Handing her a plate, Mary plops down on the couch leaving no space between the two and licks the pad of her thumb, humming pleasantly at the taste.

Ryan bites the inside of her cheek. “So, what are we watching?”

Hopefully something gory, and bloody staring a cis-het white male. Anything to take Ryan’s mind off of Mary Hamilton.

Mary chooses Its Okay Not to be Okay on Netflix and by the end of episode 2 both girls are huddled together, simping hard for all the three leading actors. Mary is obsessed with Kim Soo-Hyun's entire face and Ryan’s pretty sure if Seo Ye-Ji stomped on her in six inch heels and dragged her through the mud, she’d thank her.

At least they can agree Oh Jung-se is a freaking king and is killing his role as Moon Sang Tae.

It's nearly midnight before they start to turn in, cleaning up the little mess they made, Ryan shuts off the lights and walks Mary to her room; the first door to the right.

“Night.”

It kind of feels like a date, which is absurd. She knows. But can you blame her when pillow soft lips press against her cheek and Mary breathes, “sleep tight, Ryan” in her ear. Its stupid. She’s being stupid, and seeing things that arent there. Or maybe she needs to get laid. Whatever she needs to do, Mary can’t be a part of it.

After weeks of failed interrogations the team finally manages to catch a break. A source looking to get out and start over leaks the warehouse location where a scheduled supply of ingredients are due to be shipped in at any day now. Niko of course makes Batwoman promise to protect him at all cost and that means working with the Crows.

“Where’s the shipment being dropped?” Sophie asks.

“Unimportant.”

The lieutenant cocks her head to the side, unsurprised at how this conversation is going. The Bat has never worked well with authority in this town, no matter who dons the emblem.

“The only thing I need is for you to make sure Niko is somewhere safe, undetected.”

“Is he at least willing to stand trial in the event you manage to catch this guy?”

“I think that all depends on if your team can keep him alive. Crow.”

The alley is dark, damp and the chill fogs Sophie’s breath as she sighs. “You're going to get yourself killed. I know you have something against my badge and everything it stands for, but it can do some good if you let it. Now, tell me where the shipment is and I can have my team there as back up in seconds. We can get this drug and these thugs off the street.”

That word makes Ryan's jaw tingle. Thug. Of course a Crow wouldn't understand that sometimes people do bad things to make ends meet, but it doesn't make them bad people. To a Crow they’re all the same and need to be locked away never to see the light of day again. Including her.

“Focus on our informant. If I need you for anything else I know how to find you.” And she’s gone, vanished in a cloud of fog.

“Nice job pissing off potential allies.” Ryan switches her coms off.

The warehouse is guarded heavily by six men up top, double the number at the bottom not including the others unloading trucks full of supplies. Photo analysis identifies them and sends the information to Gotham P.D. before she strikes.

“Hope you’re ready for this. If we’re lucky this can all be over tonight.”

“Don’t I know it.”

Taking it as his cue, Luke hits the lights covering the warehouse in complete darkness. Motion sensors switch on and Batwoman moves into action. The training her team insists she go through pans out as she’s able to take out four guys twice her size in fast compact moves. One guy goes over the railing after she cracks him in the nuts with the steel toe of her boot. His strangled whimper is heard all the way down, but hey, no one ever said this was going to be a fair fight.

The team at the bottom catches on and gun fire immediately follows, running across the bridge Ryan spreads her arms and flies through the air, her red and black cape bellows behind her as she sticks another perfect superhero landing. All at once it seems like twenty people are coming at her from all different angles but as always she's quick on her feet tying a handful of them up by their ankles and running through the rest with a non lethal taser, just enough to subdue until she can contain everyone before she starts asking questions.

“We ain’t telling you shit!”

Another guy spits on her shoe, the red of his blood splattering against her boot and she rolls her eyes. There’s no need to be nasty.

“Look, I’m trying to help you guys out here.” Spotting a pair of boobs in the corner, she course corrects, “and girls - theys? Whatever! I’m trying to help you all out here. This thing,” she holds up a box of snakebite, “is killing the community and while it may bring you all brief satisfaction, financially, what’s it going to do for your futures when you get caught, to your families?”

“Who knew the new edition of the Bat came with such a bleeding heart?”

“Well, she does. So if anyone here is willing to tell me anything that’ll point me in the right direction of your boss, I promise I can protect you, get you somewhere safe.”

From the little the authorities have been able to dig up about this gang, anyone willing to betray their leader either winds up dead or living their last days in a vegetative state. That’s why it’s so important to have Niko, no matter the length it takes to protect him, it was for the sake of Gotham.

“I said-!”

“I heard you the first time,” Ryan says, cutting him off, “And I don’t know what you’re used to but I’m only going to tell you how this is played once. I ask the questions and you give me the answers, if you don’t, have fun rotting in jail or better yet … I can let the little I do know out onto the streets.” She bends down right in front of the man and lifts his rabbit mask, exposing his face. In seconds she knows his name. “I’m sure your boss would love to know who’s ratting him out, huh, Robert Michael Humprey?”

The terror in his eyes says it all.

[dragonrajafanfiction]

Shandy Gaff

fic request for @gothlebedev

“Nono, the troops are coming back. We can hold them back easily, but I hear them calling reinforcements. I don’t know what ‘the Bomb is’ but it doesn’t sound good.”

Nono was in a records room in a German lab. She was almost invisible in her black bodysuit, skin tight to allow her to crawl through the tunnel necessary to find this place. Years ago it was used for research on dragons and hybrids and had spawned projects like “Delta” that produced the horrors of Black Swan. At this point, Nono was looking for a very specific record that might lead to the Dark King. She was standing in the basement hall below what was the building’s original foundation with a pin light. Her Profiling skill was active and her mind ran with ideas. They wouldn’t have such sensitive information in such an obvious place as a file cabinet or a desk drawer.

As she scanned around the room, her eyes fell on art and then they narrowed. It wasn’t unheard of for works of art to have important documents on the back. In fact, she remembered someone accidently finding a copy of the Declaration of Independence on the back of a painting. 

But which painting? 

“Nono, you have about 10 minutes.”

“Don't worry. I’m close.”  Her eyes fell on the image of a devil being thrown from heaven. It had to be that one. She removed the picture from the wall and cut into the backing with her pin knife. Sure enough, files began to fall out. What she saw made her eyes widen in terror. It wasn’t files but photographs.

“Nono, did you find anything? You have to get out. The troops are retreating!” Caesar was yelling in her ear but she couldn’t respond.

The person in the pictures was Lu Mingfei. But the pictures were dated decades ago. She hesitates, unsure of what to do. She suddenly realizes that she wasn’t supposed to find this information. Lu Mingfei is closely related to the Dark King? There was no way Anjou couldn’t know this.

“Nono! Where are you?” Caesar asked.

She stood up. Part of her wanted to destroy all this information. At the beginning of the mission, she thought that what she would find was information on a Dragon King’s awakening. She imagined an egg or some sort of influx of Dead Slave monsters. Not her lackey.

Not him.

A sudden feeling of danger! Nono’s eyes widened and she jumped to the side just for some sort of black shadow of a small person to follow her! The wall where she was standing collapsed completely in a cloud of dust as this shadow collided with it. She staggered back and pulled her pistol, but the black shadow pounced, ignoring the flash of the muzzle. It’s eyes were blazing gold, it looked like it was nothing but a skeleton, but the bullets deflected harmlessly off its dark skin. It arced its claws right at her throat. Nono stopped shooting and leaped back. She lifted her foot in a savage kick but it latched onto her leg with all four limbs and bit down hard.

“Nono! Answer!”

Her leg was burning. The creature wasn’t releasing her leg but biting again and again! Nono lifted her pistol and fired point blank mercury rounds into its temple. Black pieces of flesh flew away from its head, exposing the brain to mercury and it flopped over and died.

Nono’s breath was accelerated beyond normal. She raised a shaking hand to her temple. Her heart was fluttering in her chest. She was going to black out. It was poison. It had poisoned her. She’d been bitten four? Maybe five times? Each time those fangs filled her with poison.

Gasping into the communication channel she forced her numbing tongue to move. She wanted to tell him that she loved him. That she was sorry. But all she managed to say was … “Caesar…” Before her lungs suddenly stopped. 

“Where is she?!”

“I’m still showing her in the basement.” Lu Mingfei’s nervous and quiet response came over. 

“I’m going in. Chu Zihang. Cover me.”

Her comm was full of the sounds of gunfire.

“Nono, I’m coming, just hang in there. Stay where you are!”

Her diaphragm was paralyzed. By the time Caesar arrived she would have suffocated. Even without oxygen, Nono’s mind raced, putting out the calculations. Even if he managed to obtain a vehicle, her brain would be hypoxic for several minutes. Unless he had an antidote for a strange poison in his pocket… she wouldn’t be able to breathe. CPR won’t work… if the blood has no oxygen….

Outside, Lu Mingfei got nervous. “Caesar! Come in Caesar! The retreat was false! They’re coming back with reinforcements!” Black trucks filled with vehicles were returning. “I don’t think I have enough ammunition for all of them!”

Lu Mingfei leaned on his sniper rifle. From his position, he could see the compound. It wasn’t that large, surrounded by a relatively simple perimeter fence. “Chu Zihang. What’s your position?”

“There’s a munitions depot. But all I have here are heavy explosives…”

Caesar’s voice was heavy. “Then that’s enough. Let them enter the facility and set them off.”

Chu Zihang paled. “These people aren’t dragons… school rules dictate…”

“If you won’t do it, then get out of my way.”

Chu Zihang fell silent, coming to the grim conclusion. “Mingfei, get out of range. You’re still in the blast radius.”

“Get out? But… you’re not serious about setting off all those explosions and killing all the soldiers? They’re just people-”

“Nono’s dead.”

“No… that's not possible.”

Chu Zihang sprinted across the facility where a truck was under a tarp. It was armored but there were no keys. He immediately got to work trying to hotwire the thing.

The soldiers flooded the facility looking for targets, aiming their black guns, looking for anything that moved.

A sudden powerful shot and a man fell despite wearing full body armor. Then his body caught on fire! Chu Zihang could see that the bullet was an alchemy round! Caesar had used alchemy rounds on a regular human!

The man’s body filled with evaporated fluids, swelled and burst apart. Caesar stood in the smoking ruin. The body of Nono was still in his arms, still limp, not yet seized by rigor mortis. In an instant, Scythe Itachi went out and he was aware of the position of every enemy soldier.

Chu Zihang scrambled to work faster on the truck. “Mingfei! Go! He’s not going to leave anyone here alive!”

“No! I can still save her!” Mingfei’s voice was a shrill scream.

“You can’t! Mingfei!” 

No response.

Caesar’s skill with a gun was unnatural especially when using Scythe. He didn't have to move his head, just his arms, slight changes in the position of his wrist. His eyes were closed and his guns did not stop firing. Soldiers ran up to him and fell to the ground as though they were running into an invisible wall, or as though they were struck with a sudden sleepiness and lay down where they stood, each one killed by a neat bullet to the forehead. Caesar made his slow and steady progression to the weapon Depot.

The truck roared to life and Chu Zihang sat up and pushed the pedal to the floor. The soldiers fired but their bullets couldn’t pierce the vehicle. He smashed through the gate and onto the exit road. The lone figure of Lu Mingfei was recklessly running in the open towards the military base. Chu Zihang spun the steering wheel and blocked him. “Lu Mingfei!”

Chu Zihang’s heart stills. Mingfei’s eyes were blazing golden. He’d never seen that before in his life. Even though he had golden eyes and he could intimidate others, the eyes of Mingfei were otherworldly, something beyond even him. He was filled with fear and, while he worried about the coming explosion from the military base, he feared getting in the way of Mingfei Lu even more. He redirected the truck and kept going.

Not a single soldier survived that day. Not even the base survived. It was obliterated in a blinding flash of light. Every building was turned rubble down to the foundation and all the information in the basement was destroyed.

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

“Next item on the list, we have the preliminary budget for the lacrosse team. We had a stellar year last year and we’re looking forward to an amazing performance now that we’ve drafted Ignius von Merrida from Morocco to the team. He's a two time champion on his home turf and so far his career shows no sign of slowing down…”

Caesar’s eyes slipped from the screen in front of him to look at the photo at the end of his desk. Nono stood in a white sundress with a large straw hat. She hadn’t wanted him to take that picture but the sun was going down on the Gulf of Genoa and her eyes were so bright they outshined it. The photo didn’t do it justice. 

Three years had passed. People had watched to see if Caesar would retire. While Nono was the love of his life, his life had a motivation outside her. He was still, at heart, a dragonslayer. He was still a family rebel. He still had his goals.

But Nono had brought a certain spark, a bright light and excitement into his life that was now lacking. Before she showed up sing-songing her challenging invitation to join her to go see Chicago, there was nothing truly special about his life. Other people had money, strength, property and prestige. But no one had her besides him.

His phone chimed. “Ceasar you won’t believe what I found. Look at this!”

It was a message with a photo from MC. She was standing in front of an X-Men arcade cabinet.

“I haven’t seen one of these since forever. Come on, come play with me!”

Caesar felt something inside him stir. He took one last look at the screen and turned off his video and muted himself and simply walked away from the meeting. He texted. “I’m on my way.”

When Caesar showed up at the half abandoned mall, his car turned heads. He walked in. Half the shops were empty and there were no customers. How MC found this place he’d never know. She was the only one in the arcade in cut off Daisy Dukes and a tanktop that showed off her muscular arms. She waved enthusiastically. “Yes! I’m so excited! Let’s get a bunch of tokens.”

“Heh. I’ll only need one.” 

She rolled her eyes. “I know you’re good at games. But I also know arcade games are built and designed to eat quarters. I can’t wait to see you die to arcade BS.”

Caesar stood in front of the well worn cabinet. “Who are you playing?” He peered around. They had other classics like Mortal Combat and Galaga, but they also had The Simpsons and Turok. 

“Storm. You?”

“Wolverine.” He turned back to the screen. “This is a pretty nice place.”

“It’s like… 50 years old.”

“It has good games though.” They moved through the character select screen.

For the better part of an hour, they jerked on joysticks and bashed on buttons and fought Sentinels and Sabertooth and other classic Xmen enemies. 

“I haven’t died yet.”

“You will when we get to Magneto.” She said, shoving in another token for a Continue.

She wasn’t wrong. Caesar hissed in fury. “Okay I dodged that.”

“Told you!” MC cackled, flipping him another coin.

Caesar caught it, paused momentarily, and looked at the coin before shoving it in.

Finally, they defeated Magneto and leaned against the cabinet. 

“Um…” The timid teenager who was running the place spoke up. “We’re closing in ten minutes.”

“After all that hard work, I could use a drink.” MC stretched. “There’s no good places here but right down the street there’s a pretty good bar. It’s a bit crowded though.”

“Sure.” 

MC paused and looked up at him. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“Nope. Let’s take my car. Leave yours here.”

The bar was crowded and Caesar and MC took a seat on the outdoor patio with a great view of a Target parking lot. The heat was radiating from it like it was a hot grill.

“So what were you up to when I was texting?” MC asked.

Caesar shrugged. “Just another Student Union meeting.”

“You left in the middle of the meeting?” She huffed. “Wow, thanks.”

“No, thank you.”

“Ha! Don’t give me that. I mean, it’s not like I have anyone else to play arcade with. Who else will meet me in the middle of the urban desert to play some million year old video game?”

Caesar looked at her in silence for several seconds.

What a lonely thing to say. But she had a point. MC had always been alone.

The server came with their drinks, one of them was something called Shandy Gaff, a mix of beer and Ginger Ale. MC took a deep drink of it and sighed. 

“Can I try that?” Caesar asked. 

MC blinked. “Uh… sure.”

Caesar took one sip and wrinkled his nose, handing it back to her. “Too sweet.”

“It’s a cheap drink, what do you expect? Nuance?” She glanced away, a slight pink hue came to her cheeks and Caesar realized he was meeting her eyes a lot more than normal.

“What to expect indeed. No, I should thank you. This is probably the spontaneous thing I’ve done… in a while.” He pulled out a cigar and she gave him her lighter.

He was still staring at her.

“Caesar… you’re making me nervous…” She looked askance.

“Why?” He huffed and leaned back, stretching his legs under the table. “I think you know what’s on my mind and that’s what makes this so annoying.”

MC hadn’t distanced herself from him after Nono’s death. She was never jealous of Nono and always supported their relationship and never made so much as a pass at him. He was comfortable in their friendship and that comfort was what he needed most in the years since. Other women glared at her because they viewed her as a potential rival for his attention. Other women were happy to take Nono’s place and MC’s presence was a shield of platonic intimacy. They were never sure where she stood and she prudently kept it that way, answering questions like, “So are you and Caesar together?” with a discreet silence. 

If they didn’t know, they didn’t care enough about him to date him anyway.

The rumors flew and, as far as the grapevine was concerned, they were already a couple. So he resisted saying anything to her because it would just be one more layer added to the terrible predictability that had settled into his life since Nono had gone.

But now, sitting in the middle of the decay of suburban America he decided it was time to finally ask her.

“I hate predictability. I hate routine. You pulled me out of it. And it’s not the first time you’ve done it either. Are you okay with us… being official?”

She looked up at him, her black eyes sparkling. “Sure.”

[profoundsheepbarbarian]

A Beginner's Guide To Acoustic Treatment

An account of an acoustic newbie's journey from bare walls to a well‑balanced, sonically pleasant space.

The physics of the propagation of sound is immensely complicated, and when the assortment of materials that make up the walls, floors and ceiling (plus any windows, doors and furniture) are added to the equation, it's very difficult to predict what will happen to sound waves once they've left their source. What's more, every room is different, and it's not just the dimensions that will dictate how the room will sound... Imagine two rooms of the same shape and size. One has two‑metre-thick concrete walls, and the other a single‑layer plasterboard stud-wall. Even with those brief, albeit extreme descriptions, you probably know already that the two rooms will sound very different. Add in the multitude of room shapes, sizes, wall‑construction methods and surfaces found in home studios, and it becomes impossible to provide a one-size-fits-all guide to acoustic panel treatment.

The subject of acoustics is regularly discussed in SOS, but plenty of readers still ask for the subject to be covered from a much more basic starting point. What follows is a look at installing acoustic treatment from a complete beginner's perspective: some basic, essential information, along with a bit of advice from acoustics professionals that should give you the confidence to get started. I'll follow this up by taking you step by step through my own recent experience of treating a room.

Why Bother With Acoustic Treatment?

Untreated rooms have an uneven frequency response, which means that any mixing decisions you make are being based on a sound that is 'coloured', because you can't accurately hear what's being played. In short, you can't possibly tell how your mix will sound when played back anywhere else. It isn't just an issue for mixing, though, because any recordings you make of acoustic instruments will bear all the hallmarks of the space in which you record them. That may be a good thing if the space in question is Ocean Way or SARM West, but probably preposterously bad if it's your living room or bedroom. So, if you want your mixes to transfer well, and your recordings to be free of room 'honk', you need to pay attention to the acoustic properties of your environment — no matter how good the gear you're using.

First Things First

The first thing to grasp is the outcome you want to achieve. It's a common misconception that acoustic treatment with acoustic ceilings or acoustic baffles should kill all reverberation, and that you want a room covered floor‑to‑ceiling with foam tiles: this isn't what you're aiming for. You also need to bear in mind the limitations imposed by space and budget: most home studios are small in comparison with the Abbey Roads and AIR Lyndhursts of this world, and many home‑studio owners simply don't have the funds for bespoke treatment solutions.

So what is the aim? Andy Munro, acoustic design specialist, remarks, "acoustic design is the science that restores a neutral sound balance”. Applying that science means interfering with the path of sound to control the sound energy. Jorge Castro, chief acoustician at Vicoustic, says that "in the case of affordable treatment, we need to control the energy of the sound first. Then we can take care of the sound quality. With small spaces, bass frequencies are always a problem, and we should control the low frequencies as much as we can.” In fact, he continues, "In small rooms, I've never heard people saying they have too much absorption of low frequencies.”

Absorption & Diffusion: What, Where, Why?

To achieve the right balance, there are two main approaches: absorption and diffusion. Products that have absorptive properties include foam and rigid mineral-wool (see the 'DIY & Rockwool' box), and they 'soak up' the sound energy, turning it into heat, through friction. Most effective on high‑frequencies, absorption is essential for reducing flutter echoes and for taming bright‑sounding or 'ringy' rooms. Bass trapping is also a type of absorption, but is specifically designed to absorb low‑frequency energy. A clever combination of soft, hard, thick and thin materials, including air, is used to make the most efficient bass trap, and an empty gap between the wall and the back of the trap helps to make it even more effective.

Diffusion is the scattering of sound energy using multi‑faceted surfaces. Diffusers are commonly made of wood, plastic, or even polystyrene. Jorge Castro explains: "diffusion helps in energy control and improves the sound quality in frequencies throughout the middle and high range of the spectrum, and also improves sweet‑spot image.” The 'sweet spot' is the place between the speakers where you should be sitting to get the best stereo image (imagine that your head and the two speakers form an equilateral triangle). That pretty much concludes the theory: now for the practice!

Getting Started

Before undertaking this project, I'd read plenty about acoustics, but had never attempted to properly treat a room myself: the nearest I'd come was propping foam panels against the walls to tame flutter in the spare‑room‑cum‑studio of my rented house. I hadn't been able to glue or screw anything to the walls, for fear of incurring my landlord's wrath, and the thought of retouching the paintwork after tearing strips of self‑adhesive velcro pained me too! So this was very much a learning experience.

The space in question included an area that would provide a reasonable‑sized live room, and another that would serve as a small control room, and although both were important, I really wanted to get the performance space right. I decided that I'd buy commercially available panels, because I simply didn't have the time, space or inclination for the DIY option. Most manufacturers of acoustic products also offer a consultation service, and they often have free on‑line calculators to help you decide on a suitable treatment option, too, so even if you choose the DIY route this can be a sensible place to start, and fabric acoustic panels are also available.

I chose to get my treatment from Vicoustic, a company relatively new to the UK acoustic‑treatment market who make a range of products for studios and home theatres. I told them that, as this was the only live room for a small project studio, it needed to be quite versatile, with both a 'dead' corner for dry recordings and a more ambient space to liven up acoustic recordings where needed. I'd expected a solution with almost complete wall coverage, foam panels and diffusers covering every square inch, but Vicoustic came back with a plan that surprised me, which suggested that total coverage wasn't necessary.

In fact, Jorge says that the typical home studio needs only between 30 and 40 percent coverage to adequately treat it. So don't go over the top: remember that we're trying to control the energy, or "restore the natural sound balance,” and not to kill the sound completely.

As for the proportion of diffusion to absorption, Jorge says, "some believe it should be 50 percent absorption and 50 percent diffusion. In the home studio, because of budget and space constraints, the actual proportion can vary considerably.”

Planning

So, you've decided on your acoustic foam treatment, you've had it delivered, and it's piled in the middle of the room. The next step is sticking it up on the walls, right? Well yes... but you also want to make sure that it goes in the right place, partly to optimise its acoustic performance, and partly because you don't want it to look like it's been put up by a two‑year old! As a first‑timer, I found it useful to have the 3D drawings Vicoustic had supplied, as they enabled me to plan precisely where each panel would go. You can create a computer‑generated version of your room yourself using a freeware 3D drawing programme such as Google Sketchup (http://sketchup.google.com). This may seem a bit over the top (sketches on the back of an envelope would do the job), but it can provide a useful guide to print out and use like a map during installation. What's more, you can plan the look of a room, moving tiles and panels around on the computer instead of having to rip them off the wall if they look silly.

Measure Twice, Stick Once

With my 'map' in hand, it was time to mark up the walls. The Vicoustic plans showed the panels equally spaced along the walls, but without any dimensions or measurements to indicate how to space the tiles, so I measured the whole room and planned the position of all the panels supplied. A quick and easy formula for plotting the position of a row of equally spaced panels soon emerged. To calculate the distance between each panel, and between the end panels and the walls, you just measure the length of the wall, subtract the total width of all the panels to be fixed to it, then divide that figure by the number of gaps between panels (or by the number of panels plus one). Marking up is then a cinch, but to get things looking good, you'll need to mark the corner points and will require a spirit level and a spare pair of hands. Once plotted and marked, it's also a good idea to double‑check that you have the same number of actual panels as you have on your plan!

Stick 'Em Up!

With the planning done, it's time to stick the panels to the walls and ceiling. The way you do this depends on the type of treatment you're applying. Large, framed panels will come with brackets and (hopefully) sturdy fixings, whereas foam‑based tiles will need to be glued, using an aerosol‑based product or a tube of paste‑like glue that needs a skeleton gun. Spray‑mounting can often give less than satisfactory results, so I was glad to discover that the Vicoustic delivery included the tube variety. With just two tubes supplied, though, I soon had to resort to alternatives, and found that the sticky gunk used to fix mirrors to walls worked exceptionally well.

To prevent the glue squidging out from the sides of the panels, I piped the glue on no less than an inch from the guide line on the wall and on the back of the panel itself, in different patterns, to increase the adhesion. With this kind of glue, I found that it would begin to set in about a minute, allowing just enough time to pull the panel off and turn it if it was the wrong way up. When sticking panels to the ceiling, I took the same approach. It was a textured ceiling, which called for lots of glue and a firm hand to seat the panels: again, it's useful if you can get a friend to lend a hand.

Hearing The Result

Once in place, the Vicoustic treatment worked very well. The main part of the room is now nicely controlled, if a bit on the 'live' side, and the diffusers ensure excellent intelligibility of speech: a sure‑fire sign of good acoustic control. I had a few spare corner traps, which were put into the dry corner, to make it even more 'dead', and it will be easy to add a few smaller foam tiles to dampen the sound further if it's found to be too 'roomy' further down the line.

Having tried some recordings in the room, I'm happy to say that excellent sound barrier can be achieved between acoustic instruments and vocals by using the different areas of the room. Because the sound inside the room is controlled, the ambience can be used to good effect if a roomy sound is desired on the recording.

Ultimate Control

So far, I've only addressed the dedicated live/recording space, and most home studios are single rooms, with both the monitoring and performance areas in the same space, so I asked Andy Munro to explain how to approach treating such a space. "The best approach,” he said, "is to sketch the room out, then divide each dimension into thirds. If the mixing position is on a third ratio, and so are the speakers, they will not stand on any of the half or quarter 'standing' wavelengths that cause a peak or trough in the bass [see the 'Standing Waves' box for more information]. The result will be a smoother sound, with fewer problems when the acoustic absorption and sound barrier is added. Ironically, most professional rooms are set up about the centre line, which tends to result in a 'hole' at certain frequencies.”

Also important in monitoring rooms is the control of early reflections. When a speaker cone is driven, it disperses acoustic energy to the listener's ears directly, and also to the walls and ceiling of the room, and the best example may be acoustic diffuser. Uncontrolled, these early reflections bounce back into the room and reach the listener a few milliseconds later than the direct sounds, because of the additional distance they've had to travel. Unless in a large room, this delay is not perceivable as a different sound; instead it disturbs the phase, and therefore the clarity, of the sound. To keep early reflections on a tight leash, the 'mirror points' of the room should be identified and treated. To do this, sit in the listening position and 'guesstimate' where a mirror would have to be placed to enable you to see each monitor cone from the sweet spot. Then apply absorption to these points. A 'ceiling cloud' can be positioned in a similar way, to control vertical reflections.

Conclusion

No matter how much you spend on instruments, amps, speakers and recording gear, you still need to pay attention to the space in which you use them. The treatment of home studios is tricky, because of their size and the construction materials used, not to mention the budget of the average home‑studio owner. It's impossible to get a 'pro-studio sound' from a space that's built as a spare bedroom, mainly due to the laws of physics, but also because 'proper' studios might have big bucks spent on acoustic design with soundproof materials. But if you can get your head around what you're trying to achieve, you can still make such a space perfectly usable, with only a small amount of money, some forward planning and a little bit of knowledge.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

 LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

October 6, 2020

Heather Cox Richardson

In the past three years, it has so often felt like things were reaching the breaking point. But the image of Trump on the balcony of the White House last night, defiantly taking off his mask as he gasped for breath, truly looked to me like the beginning of the final chapter.

Today coronavirus infections continued to mount in the vicinity of the White House. At least 34 people near Trump have contracted the virus in the past few days. The press corps near the White House is down to a skeleton crew as the White House press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, and four press aides have tested positive. So have top aide Stephen Miller and Admiral Charles Ray, the vice commandant of the Coast Guard Admiral.

Along with other military leaders, Ray attended an event celebrating Gold Star families last Sunday at the White House. That event included some of the same people who had been at the event the previous day in honor of Amy Coney Barrett, whom Trump nominated to take the seat of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court. Those who attended both events included Trump and the First Lady.

Senior military leaders attended meetings with Ray last week in a secure room at the Pentagon, and now are self-quarantining. They include the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley; the Vice Chairman; the Army chief of staff; the Naval Operations Chief; the Air Force chief of staff; the CyberCom Commander; the SpaceForce operations chief; the director of the U.S. National Security Agency, Gen. Paul Nakasone; the Chief of the National Guard, Gen. Daniel Hokanson; and the deputy commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Gary Thomas.

The White House has apparently not done any contact tracing, and it declined the help of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to do it.

The administration appears to be committed to a strategy of community spread, rejecting the use of masks and of distancing. Deputy press secretary Brian Morganstern told NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly that the White House still does not require masks because “everyone needs to take personal responsibility.”

That the White House appears to be the center of a coronavirus hotspot has hurt Trump’s reelection campaign. The infections in the face of the fact that the administration refused to take the virus seriously, the ride around the hospital to wave at supporters while endangering Secret Service agents, the struggle to the balcony in a strongman scene, all appear to have demonstrated not Trump’s strength, but his weakness.

His behavior today has reinforced that sense. Trump left the hospital last night and returned to a locked-down White House. The few aides who met with him were dressed in PPE, while the West Wing is virtually abandoned as people have decamped to work from home. Trump has been on a Twitter spree today, tweeting and retweeting his old material, “the Russia Hoax” and Hillary Clinton’s emails, which now feel like ancient history, disconnected from today’s pressing crisis. Tonight, he tweeted: “I have fully authorized the total Declassification of any & all documents pertaining to the single greatest political CRIME in American History, the Russia Hoax. Likewise, the Hillary Clinton Email Scandal. No redactions!” He hit the same points again in another tweet: “All Russia Hoax Scandal information was Declassified by me long ago. Unfortunately for our Country, people have acted very slowly, especially since it is perhaps the biggest political crime in the history of our Country. Act!!!”

He sounds desperate. And on the heels of his tweets, Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA) tweeted to the Justice Department “Per the President’s orders, can you please provide the [House Judiciary] Committee the full unredacted Mueller Report immediately? Thank you.”

Other dropping stories make it look like the tide is running against Trump.

Patricia and Mark McCloskey, the St. Louis, Missouri, couple who held guns on protesters in June, were indicted today by a grand jury on charges of exhibiting guns and tampering with evidence. Trump invited the McCloskeys to speak at the Republican National Convention. “What you are witnessing here is just an opportunity for the government, the leftist, democrat government of the City of St. Louis to persecute us for doing no more than exercising our Second Amendment rights,” McCloskey said.

Two weeks ago, the administration blocked strict guidelines for a coronavirus vaccine, but today the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released those guidelines over White House objections. This will make a vaccine before the election unlikely. Trump tweeted “New F.D.A. Rules make it more difficult for them to speed up vaccines for approval before Election Day. Just another political hit job!”

Today, the New York Times revealed the findings of an internal investigation by the Justice Department’s inspector general Michael Horowitz into the policy of separating children from their parents at our southern border. The policy was engineered by Stephen Miller, but the Justice Department has tended to blame then-Department of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen for the policy. Horowitz’s investigation has established that then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein were far keener on the policy than she was. In a sign of changing times, a 32-page response to the Horowitz’s investigation, written by Miller’s ally Gene Hamilton, said that Justice Department officials had simply followed orders from the president.

Facebook, too, sees the writing on the wall, and has announced that it will ban all QAnon conspiracy theory accounts. These accounts spread disinformation, including the idea that a heroic Trump is secretly leading an effort to round up a ring of pedophiles and cannibals based in the nation’s entertainment and political elites. The ban is one of the broadest Facebook has ever enacted.

Today, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that a new coronavirus relief bill is imperative, but just hours later, Trump announced on Twitter that he was cancelling further talks between the White House and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Stocks dropped 600 points, and vulnerable Republican senators panicked. Biden released a statement including a pithy condemnation: “Make no mistake: if you are out of work, if your business is closed, if your child’s school is shut down, if you are seeing layoffs in your community, Donald Trump decided today that none of that — none of it — matters to him. There will be no help from Washington for the foreseeable future. Instead, he wants the Senate to use its time to confirm his Supreme Court Justice nominee before the election, in a mad dash to make sure that the Court takes away your health care coverage as quickly as possible.” A few hours later, Trump changed his tune.

Today both the New York Times and the Boston Globe endorsed Biden, and General Michael Hayden, the retired four-star general who served as the Director of the CIA under President George W. Bush, released a video not just endorsing Biden, but also warning that "If there is another term for Trump, I don't know what happens to America." “Biden is a good man,” Hayden says. “Trump is not.”

Financial services company Goldman Sachs today forecast that the Democrats will take both the White House and the Senate, and said a Democratic sweep would mean a faster recovery and thus would be good for the economy. Moody’s Analytics, a subsidiary of another financial services company, recently found that Biden’s plans would add 7.4 million more jobs to the economy than Trump’s would.

Today in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, a town hallowed by history, Biden gave a blockbuster speech calling for the nation to put aside division and come together. He talked about race: “Think about what it takes for a Black person to love America. That is a deep love for this country that for far too long we have never fully recognized.” He talked about disparities of wealth: “Working people and their kids deserve an opportunity.”

And he talked about Lincoln, and how, at Gettysburg, he called for Americans to dedicate themselves to a “new birth of freedom” so that the men who had died for that cause “shall not have died in vain.”

“Today we are engaged once again in a battle for the soul of the nation,” Biden said. “After all that America has accomplished, after all the years we have stood as a beacon of light to the world, it cannot be that here and now, in 2020, we will allow government of the people, by the people, and for the people to perish from this earth.

“You and I are part of a great covenant, a common story of divisions overcome and of hope renewed," he said. "If we do our part, if we stand together, if we keep faith with the past and with each other, then the divisions of our time can give way to the dreams of a brighter, better, future.”

—-

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

Heather Cox Richardson

[troped-fanfic-challenge]

Chopped Madness Masterlist

To say we are overwhelmed would be the understatement of the year for sure. This challenge was so incredible, the fics we received were spectacular and we couldn’t have been more pleased with the positive and supportive space that we were able to create with your help. During such a crazy time in the world, we hope that this was able to distract you, even just a little, from the harshness of reality, and bring you some level of joy. We received an astounding forty-seven (47!!!!!!) fics in our anonymous collection, that were submitted for voting, as well as four (4) amazing fics that were added to our non anonymous collection following prompts from this event, bringing our fic total to a mind blowing FIFTY ONE (51!!!!!) fics! We honestly cannot even begin to express our thanks to all of you for putting in the time and hard work to share such creative, exciting, well written pieces of fan fiction for this event, and we hope that you all enjoyed it as much as we did! If you haven’t had a chance to read all of the brilliant fics shared with us for Chopped Madness, you can find them all below, or in our AO3 collections, which will be linked at the bottom of this post.

To all of our writers, for Chopped Madness and all other Chopped events, Chopped would not be what it is without you. You take our ideas and turn them into beautiful stories that we are privileged to read and share with this fandom, and we owe you all a huge thanks for everything you do.

We hope you all (and all your loved ones) are staying safe during this uncertain time. Keep being creative, positive, and sharing your art with the world. And dont forget to keep your eyes pealed for the next Chopped events ;)

And obviously, a huge congratulations to our CHOPPED CHAMPION, the lovely @the-most-beautiful-broom​!

We love you all,

Sara & Bailey <3

The image above is not an entirely accurate representation of how each writer was paired up, it was the best we could do considering we shifted the order each round based on the rankings. The number next to the authors name in each bracket is their rank for that round!

———

Qualifying Round

Character Focus: Bellamy Blake

Theme: Canonverse

Tropes:

Fairy Tale AU

Write a Good Guy as a Villain or a Villain as a Good Guy

When the party’s over (Rated T) [Bellamy & Octavia] by safeandsound13 @captaindaddykru​

Summary: Bellamy goes into the anomaly to save Octavia. What he finds, is a trail of bodies. {Or: a canonverse take on Hansel & Gretel}

don’t be who you were (Rated T) [Bellamy & Diyoza] by sapphictomaz @iexasheart​

Summary: Bellamy’s forced to stay in the bunker, alone, for six years. Diyoza trapped alone on her ship. They find a way to help each other survive, because that’s what they know how to do.

Straight On Until Morning (Rated G) [Bellamy & Kane] by she_who_the_river_could_not_hold @she-who-the-river-could-not-hold​

Summary: Bellamy and his unruly band of Delinquents have been living life as they wish. Their days are filled with games and exploring while their nights are spent coordinating attacks against the dreaded Wanheda and her Mountain Men. It’s all fun and games in a world where no one gets older. But then a strange man appears one day and Marcus Kane provides a reality check to Bellamy that he’s not prepared to accept.

Where is the path to Wonderland? (Rated T) [Bellamy x Clarke] by myonetruelove @justwalkedaway​

Summary: Separated from their friends in the Anomaly, Clarke and Bellamy find themselves lost in a world so different from their own.

The Sixth Bride (Rated M) [Bellamy x Roan] by Shen_Gong_Oops @shen-gong-oops​

Summary: For their wedding, Roan gifted him an antique skeleton key attached to a thin, leather cord. Rough, callous fingertips grazed the base of his neck as they secured the necklace in place. While his husband allowed him full reign of the tower, the key provided access to the only room he barred Bellamy from entering. He was never to set foot in the sole room on the highest floor. Into Roan’s private reprieve from the world. And to be fair, Bellamy respected Roan’s right to privacy - for a while.

Gunning for Glory (Rated T) [Bellamy x Gina] by teeandrainbows @teeandsnowflakes​

Summary: While on a routine mission for Kane, Bellamy comes across a mystery girl who points him towards a treasure trove that might prove useful for Arkadia, but danger lurks up every spiraling staircase. It may just be the distraction he needs, though, to get over Clarke leaving.

On the Ground and What Bellamy Found There (Rated G) [General] by elle_stone @kinetic-elaboration​

Summary: Bellamy has a prophetic dream. An Alice in Wonderland AU.

to dream about a life (where you’re the shining star) (Rated T) [Bellamy x Murphy] by ProbablyVoldemort @probably-voldemort​

Summary: Bellamy has been dreaming about going to the coalition’s annual Camp Rock since he was a kid. The chance to escape his life and his step-father and spend his days travelling between clans and singing. This year, he finally has a chance to go–as a chef. Murphy hated what came of Clarke’s treaty with the Grounders, but even he knew it could’ve been worse. But that didn’t mean he wanted to spend his time performing for the people who had kidnapped and tortured him. He could do it, though. He could sing at whatever the fuck Camp Rock was, and he could help pick whichever winner the Grounders wanted him to pick. He could play nice. That didn’t mean he had to like it.

There’s Gonna Be a Party When the Wolf Comes Home (Rated T) [General] by kuklash @kuklash​

Summary: “Dante?” she asks, her voice a mixture of confusion and surprise. Bellamy straightens the nameplate on his desk, and the gold plaque reflects the dim fluorescent lights above him. He taps it twice, drawing her attention to the words “Dante Wallace” written in a fancy script. “That’s what they call me.” A Canon Divergent Fairy Tale AU staring Bellamy Blake

No Ordinary Apple (Rated T) [Bellamy & Josephine] by andthelightbulbclicks @andthelightbulbclicks​

Summary: When Josephine awakens in Clarke Griffin’s body, she has no reason to believe anything about her reincarnation is anything out of the ordinary. Then she learns that Clarke was far from a willing host and meets Bellamy Blake. She doesn’t expect to become invested in their love story, and she certainly doesn’t plan on risking her own like to make things right. And yet, here she is. All in the name of true love.

Brother Knows Best (Rated G) [Bellamy & Octavia] by Dylanobrienisbatman @dylanobrienisbatman​

Summary: Octavia grew up in a cave, hidden from the world, with only her brother to care for her. He kept her safe, safe from a world where people like her, where nightbloods, were hunted and slaughtered. But even with so much danger, she longs to see the world, so when a handsome stranger stumbles into their cave, she makes her escape to spend one night out under the stars. But in just one night, she begins to wonder if everything she’d grown up believing was true after all.

seeds in silence (exploded in riot) (Rated T) [Bellamy & Clarke] by justbecauseyoubelievesomething @justbecauseyoubelievesomething 

Summary: Seeds. Not the modified seeds Farm Station constantly churns out in unending batches. Genuine seeds. Earth seeds. The kind of seeds that the scientists from Alpha will sell their souls for. Doctor Griffin talks a lot about genetics and lost patterns, but Bellamy’s mind is a million miles away. He can get anything he wants for Octavia and his mom. He can make it so Octavia doesn’t have to live in hiding. He can bring the chancellor himself to his knees, if he’s careful enough.

i’ve got a heart in me (i swear) (Rating T) [Bellamy x Murphy] by hopskipaway @hopskipaway​

Summary: Belonging was not a familiar word in the Book of John Murphy. That was a fact that seemed grounded in concrete; what he wouldn’t give to stumble upon a sledgehammer someday and be reunited with his bruised and feeble, but still beating, heart.

2199 Nights (Rated M) [Bellamy x Clarke] by Mobi_On_A_Mission @mobi-on-a-mission​

Summary: Every day, the Commander Bellamy took a new wife and executed her the next morning, until one day his fleimkepa’s daughter volunteered. She kept him entertained with tales of far-off places, sword fights, magic spells, a prince in disguise…

we’d up and fly (if there were wings for flying) (Rated G) [Bellamy x Clarke] by the-most-beautiful-broom @the-most-beautiful-broom​

Summary: Bellamy and Wells are held captive and interrogated by the Grounders, and when he returns to Arkadia, Bellamy finds some things have changed.

The Storyteller (Rated T) [Bellamy x Clarke] by thelittlefanpire @thelittlefanpire​

Summary: A heartbroken Commander, betrayed by her beloved, vows to slay each and every one of her future lovers after they’ve spent their first night together. Bellamy Blake, the latest to be taken into the Commander of Death’s chambers, will try to save his life by weaving a succession of tales to the woman that lasts for one thousand and one nights.

How to Kill a Two-Headed Turkey (Rated T) [Bellamy & Octavia] by vmreed @vmreed​

Summary: After everyone at camp collapses from a mysterious illness (thanks Murphy), Bellamy and Octavia are sent to hunt enough food for 100 sick teenagers. When they find themselves lost, far from camp, what else can they do but move forward? Thankfully, a kind woman took them in, but all is not as it seems. Anya’s been waiting to meet these Skaikru…

simmer, simmer, simmer (Rated M) [Bellamy x Clarke] by Pawprinter @pawprinterfanfic​

Summary: When Sanctum falls to starvation, it is up to Bellamy and Clarke to find a solution. They aren’t prepared for the horrors beyond the Sanctum barrier.

So Familiar a Gleam (Rated T) [Bellamy x Clarke, Bellamy & Octavia] by Anonymous

Summary: When the dropship first lands, Bellamy is hopeful. It doesn't last. After all, the humans who were left behind, they've been on there own for a while. Things have changed. (Maleficent meets The 100 meets the author's glaring ignorance about either franchise.)

———

Round 1

Character Focus: Harper McIntyre

Theme: Angst

Tropes:

Strangers to Lovers

Road Trip AU

into a cloven pine (Rated T) [Harper/Maya] by justbecauseyoubelievesomething @justbecauseyoubelievesomething

Summary: Maya starts sitting with her at meals, shrugging aside the judgmental looks of delinquents and Mountain Men alike. When Harper tries to delicately suggest that she sit somewhere else for her own good, Maya levels her with an icy glare and threatens to kick her under the table. For some reason, that makes Harper giggle and she figures that someone who makes her giggle must be alright to sit with. So, she ignores Miller’s warning head shakes and Fox’s teary-eyed frowns and she plays footsie with Maya Vie. Life is weird. She might as well just go with it.

I Need You (Like I Need a Gaping Head Wound) (Rated T) [Harper/Echo] *Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death* by kuklash @kuklash​

Summary: “And that was the new track from Lou Bega: ‘Mambo No. 5’ off his new album ‘A Little Bit of Mambo’. Stay tuned for Backstreet, Britney Spears, and The Red Hot Chili Peppers comin’ at’cha in the next hour.” Harper shuts off the radio and leans back in the driver’s seat, taking her hands off the wheel and rubbing her temples. Traffic is worse than normal today, meaning she’s gonna be late. She’s already 45 minutes late getting back from lunch, meaning that Roan will probably call her into his office. That’s the last thing she needs today. Harper nearly jumps out of her skin when the passenger door opens and a tall, brunette woman vaults into the car. “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU D–” “Drive,” the woman says, voice barely above a whisper.

venus, planet of love was destroyed by global warming (Rated G) [Harper/Monty] by safeandsound13 @captaindaddykru​

Summary: In a world tainted by darkness, Harper meets Monty.

Take back my life (Prove I’m alright) (Rated T) [Harper/Monty] by myonetruelove @justwalkedaway​

Summary: Harper and Monty have been married for ten years and she is beginning to notice the cracks in their marriage. Will a road trip for a job interview be able to save their marriage?

Like dust behind the wagon (Rated T) [Harper/Monre] *Major Character Death* by teeandrainbows @teeandsnowflakes​

Summary: Harper and her family were in search of a better life in Oregon when tragedy struck. She didn’t think she would ever recover, and then she met Monroe, a lone traveler looking for a ride to Fort Bridger.

you can bloom again (Rated T) [Harper/Clarke] by sapphictomaz @iexasheart​

Summary: Harper’s always been a survivor. She’s survived an orphaned childhood, kidnapping, and torture. When a wave of fire stretches across the sky, she knows that she’ll survive this, too - but when she meets a girl with a smile brighter than the sun, Harper wonders if surviving alone is what she really wants.

The Hardest Thing (Rated T) [Harper/Emori] by Mobi_On_A_Mission @mobi-on-a-mission​

Summary: After shooting Baylis and escaping to the woods, Emori was utterly alone. She travelled through the lands of the Coalition, stealing from anyone and everyone. All of that changed when she met the last sky girl after the Mountain Men wiped out the rest of her people. Harper had a map to a peaceful village across the sea, and Emori had nothing to lose.

Release (Rated T) [Harper/Murphy] by elle_stone @kinetic-elaboration​

Summary: Her whole body is still tense, but this long habit of distrust has been formed in her, is not native to her, and his lazy, laconic air tempts her to put herself at ease. And she is curious. Behind them, the Detention Center is teeming, yet the desolation of the dim light and barren highway makes Harper feel as if they were the only two on the wide Earth. Upon being released from the Arkadia Juvenile Detention Center, Harper takes a road trip to California with an old friend, his boyfriend, and another recently released delinquent.

What the Hell is a Pulmonary Embolism? (Rated T) [Harper & Clarke/Murphy] by vmreed @vmreed​

Summary: Harper McIntyre wasn’t trained for this. She was just a tour guide, how was she supposed to deal with the bus crashing in the middle of nowhere?

something more than momentary (Rated T) [Harper/Murphy] by ProbablyVoldemort @probably-voldemort​

Summary: The first rule of working for the Princess Protection Program was, well, keep your princess safe no matter the cost. The second rule was don’t get attached. Agent Murphy had followed that rule to the letter for years and never had an issue. But now he’s stuck in a car for the foreseeable future with a princess and a gunshot wound, and everything he’s ever believed in just might be changing.

and the road gets tough (Rated M) [Harper/Monty] by she-who-the-river-could-not-hold​ @she-who-the-river-could-not-hold

Summary: It’s the end of the world and Harper McIntyre is done running. She’s done fighting against a life that relentlessly keeps pushing her down. But she has her son to worry about and she desperately wants him to have a new life and to experience it all. When they hit the road, she’s helped by a kind stranger who changes the course of things. Monty Green represents a life she wished she had been able to have, but it might still be too late.

everyone’s a different flower (Rated T) [Harper/Monty] by andthelightbulbclicks @andthelightbulbclicks​

Summary: Harper McIntyre’s life on Earth has been a simple one, and she’s always been happy with that. But with a single diagnosis, her simple life is completely upended. Her best friends think that an intergalactic trip across the universe is just what she needs to get her mind off of things. Raven thinks the change in scenery will do Harper some good. Clarke thinks the girl time will help. (Harper thinks the cute space-botanist she meets might just do the trick.)

I wanna shoot the whole day down (Rated T) [Harper/Monty] *Major Character Death* by hopskipaway @hopskipaway​

Summary: Tell me why I don’t like Mondays...Or Tuesdays, or Wednesdays, or any day since you left us.

Never Gonna Give You Up (Rated T) [Harper/Raven] by Shen_Gong_Oops @shen-gong-oops​

Summary: Unknown: Hey, Monty guilted me into a road trip with those damned puppy dog eyes and seeing as neither of you can be in the same car, I am your road trip Uber. Name’s Raven. Harper: Rookie mistake, you never look Monty in the eyes. That’s how you lose. A road trip, huh?

Macushla (Rated T) [Harper/Monty] by the-most-beautiful-broom @the-most-beautiful-broom​

Summary: Harper Noelle Margaret McIntyre, Countess of Rothes, must survive the unthinkable, when the unsinkable ship hits an iceberg in the middle of the Atlantic // aka the Titanic AU that isn’t Jack and Rose

Both (Rated T) [Harper/Monty] by the-most-beautiful-broom @the-most-beautiful-broom​

Summary: “Emori doesn’t understand why I’d want to go back up.” Their backs are against the wicker, just waiting now, as the balloon floats downward. “Emori’s my sister,” Harper clarifies. “She thinks I should be scared, and just leave it behind. But if I left, if I never went up again, then everything I’ve lost would be for nothing.” It hovers in the air, like the snow, like a balloon. “All my life,” Monty says, “I’ve found certainty in science. In numbers, quantifying things. But...this has shown me. You have, I mean. There’s a beauty in the most barren of science, and my equipment and notes cannot account for it. And I thought it was science, logic, before, but now I see: the only person that could’ve taken me to the stars was you.” {a marper Aeronauts AU based heavily off the 2019 movie}

———

Round 2

Character Focus: John Murphy

Theme: Dystopia

Tropes:

Partners In Crime

Bed Sharing

poison but tasty (Rated M) [Murphy & Josephine, Murphy/Emori] by safeandsound13 @captaindaddykru​

Summary: In a world where genetics and individual resilience decide who gets to procreate and who doesn’t, babies are a rare breed. That’s why Murphy gets the lucrative idea to steal one, and sell it. In comes Josie, who kind of, sort of? Maybe? Has the same idea? He figures, what the hell. Might as well combine their efforts and split the profits. or, Two Psychopaths and a Baby.

even heroes have the right to dream (Rated M) [Muprhy/Emori] by justbecauseyoubelievesomething @justbecauseyoubelievesomething

Summary: He doesn’t deal with people one-on-one anymore. He works his shift at the factory. He comes home. Takes his pills. Drinks himself to sleep. He doesn’t go on road trips. Or smuggle little girls under the cover of darkness. Or make small talk with his ex.

don’t mess with the flow, oh no (stick to the status quo) (Rated T) [Murphy/Clarke] by ProbablyVoldemort @probably-voldemort​

Summary: Harper and Monty tried out for the spring musical, and now everything is going to shit. Jocks think they can bake. Nerds think they can dance. Stoners think they can play cello. And Harper and Monty, Jock and Nerd respectively, think they can get callbacks for Murphy’s part. This is not what he wants. This is not what he planned. And, he’s just gotta say, he does not understand.

Good to be Back (Rated G) [Murphy/Emori] by the-most-beautiful-broom @the-most-beautiful-broom​

Summary: Murphy has been out of the wet work game for years now, but when someone from the past shows up at his bar, he doesn’t think twice before diving back in.

make a wish (count to three) (Rated T) [Murphy/Emori] by teeandrainbows @teeandsnowflakes​

Summary: In Alpha City, anyone who isn’t a Prime, the top tier of society, is claimed by a factory to work for a meager living at the age of 18. When Murphy is selected for the factory overseen by the mysterious Alie, he thinks life might finally be getting better…

The Taste of Hope (Rated T) [Murphy/Raven] by elle_stone @kinetic-elaboration​

Summary: Murphy has lived his whole life on Factory 6, stripping the planet of its resources for the benefit of the elite ruling class on The Jewel. His existence has never been more than work, sleep, and the mindless distractions of gossip, drinking, and parties. Until he and his girlfriend, Raven, start to wonder: could there be more?

Survivor’s Move (Rated G) [Muprhy/Emori] by she_who_the_river_could_not_hold @she-who-the-river-could-not-hold​

Summary: In a dying society ruled by an iron fist, it’s crucial to stay low. John Murphy has mastered that, an ex-thief doing what he can to stay out of trouble. But trouble finds him with the arrival of another ex-thief, and more importantly, his ex-girlfriend. Emori needs his help and he finds himself confronting their breakup while also trying to express to her the importance she has in his heart.

Complex Wiring (Rated T) [Murphy/Raven] by andthelightbulbclicks @andthelightbulbclicks​

Summary: According to the Commonwealth of Arkadian, cyborgs have been wiped out from the nation for years, any scientists willing to do the surgeries arrested or worse. John Murphy, whose primary goal in life is to be a general nuisance to the guards in his crummy village, has no reason to believe otherwise. That is, until he unexpectedly meets a group of cyborgs in hiding who are looking for “the Cockroach” to do a job for them.

———

Round 3

Character Focus: Raven Reyes

Theme: Modern

Tropes:

Superpowers

Found Family

if you choose to fly (Rated M) [Raven/Bellamy/Echo] by teeandrainbows @teeandsnowflakes​

Summary: It’s always been the three of them, for as long as she can remember, and she’s happy. Bellamy kisses her forehead and Echo raises a hand to her cheek, reaching across and pressing a featherlight kiss to her lips. A week later, she finds herself missing the tranquility of the moment. or the origin story of Raven Reyes

Hands That Burn (Rated T) [Raven/Clarke] by elle_stone @kinetic-elaboration​

Summary: WELCOME, reads a large banner, hung up between two poles in front of her, TO FLOUKRU RETREAT. The font on the banner matches the font on the invitation Raven received two months ago. Why she decided to attend this particular event, she cannot entirely explain, even to herself. Six ex-superheroes, and ex-best friends, meet for a weekend retreat, ready to confront their feelings and the past tragedy that tore them apart.

Into the Blue (Rated G) [Raven/Zeke] by the-most-beautiful-broom @the-most-beautiful-broom​

Summary: Her name is Raven Reyes. She was bitten by a radioactive spider her senior year of college; for the last two years, she’s been the one and only Spider-Woman. She joined a band, saved her dad, couldn’t save her best friend, so now she saves everyone else. She doesn’t really do the friends thing, not since her last best friend was turned into a giant lizard and she had to kill him, but things are mostly fine, going solo. Until a kaleidoscope opens in the ceiling. She’s suddenly in Times Square, but it’s not, it’s like some Other Times Square. There’s a billboard for Cocoa Kola (what even?) and there’s a Spider-Man (typical) here, and on the Other Times Square screens, she watches Zeke die again, this time as Spider-Man. // or a zaven!into the spiderverse AU

the color of truth is gray (Rated T) [Raven/Murphy] by andthelightbulbclicks @andthelightbulbclicks​

Summary: Raven’s firm beliefs on super villains have held true for as long as she can remember. And she prides herself in being a part of the Spacekru team, protecting their territory in Polis and bringing those villains to justice. But slowly, she comes to realize that maybe their super-powered world isn’t as black and white as she’s always chosen to believe. And maybe a certain villain isn’t really a villain at all. (Or: Three times Raven fights a villain, and one time she saves him.)

And It May Sound Absurd, But Don't Be Naive (Rated T) [Raven/Zeke] by Anonymous 

Summary: "Yeah, well, if life were to suddenly get fair, I doubt it would happen in high school." A Sky High AU where Raven just wants to sit there and do her Mad Science homework in peace, but life has a funny habit of removing that as an option.

———

Round 4

Character Focus: Luna kom Floukru

Theme: Thriller

Tropes:

Parallel Universe

Doppelgängers

Excuse me, where are the dinosaurs? (Rating M) [Luna/Raven/Roan] *Graphic Depictions of Violence* by ​andthelightbulbclicks @andthelightbulbclicks​

Summary: Luna is living her life on the island of Floukru with two goals in mind. 1. Keep her animal rescue up and running. 2. (Somehow) turn her relationship with her two roommates into a romantic one. When the three of them find themselves on a very different version of Floukru where living, breathing dinosaurs still exist, she supposes she should add two more to the list: 3. Avoid the psychopaths who inexplicably look exactly like them. 4. Make sure no one gets eaten by a T-Rex.

we cross our bridges and burn them behind us (Rating T) [Luna/Lincoln] by the-most-beautiful-broom @the-most-beautiful-broom​

Summary: When SHRDR powers up and tears a hole in the world, Luna watches Lincoln die. Three years later, he steps out of thin air and asks for her help. So yeah, that's how her day is going. It's fine. Everything is fine.

Promise (Rated M) [Lincoln & Luna] *Graphic Depictions Of Violence Major Character Death* by teeandrainbows @teeandsnowflakes​

Summary: During the Conclave, Luna and Octavia find themselves in another version of Polis where vampires have been terrorizing what's left of humanity.

Please take a read of all these incredible fics! Leave the authors some kudos/comments! They worked so hard this whole event. Thanks so much!

Just as a reminder, our non-anon collection is always open and we are always so excited to receive any submissions! The Chopped Madness official collection has been CLOSED but if any of our prompts inspire you, please share your fics with us in our non-anon collection! Simple put ‘Chopped_Non_Anonymous’ where it asks for the collection name, and be sure to put what round you are writing for in your notes so we can be sure to tag it appropriately when we share! Also, just as a note, fics submitted to the non-anon collection do not have to follow the word limit and do not require the same strict adherence to the tropes, though we do ask that you comply with our other rules regarding no rape, incest, negativity, and things like that! Happy writing!

Chopped Madness AO3 Collection: https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Chopped_Madness

Chopped Non-Anon AO3 Collection: https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Chopped_Non_Anonymous

[maaaaarveeeeel]

They Can’t See Us If We Move

Summary: Alexander Pierce is in the process of opening a new park. However, after a horrible accident the safety of the park has raised some serious questions. Now, in order for his beloved park to open, he must get the opinions of three renowned experts, Dr. Steve Rogers, Dr. Bucky Barnes and Dr. Tony Stark, to sign off on the safety of the park. But what happens when everything doesn’t go as planned. And what happens when his grandchildren are in the middle of it all?

A/N: So I got excited and decided to post chapter 1 early. I’m going to work on this more tomorrow. Few things, anyone that only knows the movie you’ll notice I stole a lot of dialogue from it in this first chapter (I promise I don’t do that in the later ones, just this first part has a lot of science stuff that I’m not about to fake.) Anyone that knows both the book AND movie, I’m sure you can appreciate why I picked Pierce for Hammond (he was actually a huge ass in the book.) As for the deaths, remember this is an au, so just because it says “lives/dies both” doesn’t mean I’ll actually follow that, or have to. Enjooooooooooooy! (I’ll add tags and warnings as I post chapters)

Warnings: Only one in this is Pierce being an ass and slightly transphobic towards Bucky (it’s very subtle) 

Characters:

Grant (paleontologist, lives both)- Steve Rogers 

Ellie(paleobotanist, lives both)- James Buchanan Barnes (trans, woman to man)

Malcolm (chaotician, lives both)- Tony Stark

Hammond (InGen CEO, dies book, lives movie)- Alexander Pierce 

Muldoon (game warden, lives book, dies movie)- Sam Wilson 

Gennaro (lawyer lives book, dies movie)- Bruce Banner

Wu (chief geneticist, dies book, lives movie)- Dr. Stephen Strange 

Tim (kid dino knowledge, lives both)- Peter

Lex (kid hacker, lives both)- Morgan 

Arnold (chief engineer, dies both)- Nick Fury

Nedry (computer programer, dies both)- Brock Rumlow 

____________________________________

Chapter 1

Steve wiped the dirt off his face and gave a happy sigh as he looked down at the newly dug skeleton. It was a big find for them, an important one too. 

"They're ready to try again babe." 

Steve turned towards the voice and smiled. Bucky, his boyfriend, was walking towards him with a small smile on his face. He grunted and started walking towards the man, letting the diggers know where he was going. 

"Think it'll work this time?" Steve mumbled.

"One can only hope." Bucky sighed, rubbing Steve's back and kissing his cheek. 

As they approach where their team was set up Steve frowns. Some of the volunteers have, once again, brought their kids with them. He doesn't understand why they feel the need to bring them. It's not like the kids are allowed to do anything. The bones are far too fragile for them to be handling. In Steve's opinion they shouldn't even be here, but Bucky says if he wants the volunteers to come help he has to accept the kids. 

"Ready to try again?" One of the volunteers, he thinks his name is Clint, asks from where he's sitting in the chair. 

Steve just nods and turns where two others are standing with the machine. A moment later a loud noise, like a gunshot, echoes through the canyon. 

"How long does it usually take?" Bucky asks, looking at the screen.

"Should have an immediate response," Clint replies, "shoot the radar in the ground, then the image bounces back."

Suddenly the screen lights up with an image, and the group lets out sighs of relief. 

"Amazing," a volunteer shouths, "in a couple years we won't have to dig anymore."

Steve frowns at this. "Where's the fun in that?"

Bucky smiles and pats the man's arm before looking back at the screen. "Postmortem contraction of the posterior neck ligaments." He turns and looks at Steve. "Velociraptor?" 

"Yes, good shape too." Steve smiles and points at the screen, then frowns as it goes fuzzy. 

"What happened?" Clint asks. 

"Dr. Rogers isn't machine compatible." Bucky chuckles.

"They've got it in for me." Steve mumbles. "Look at the half-moon shaped bone. Hard to believe they never learned to fly." The group behind him laughed and he rolled his eyes before turning towards them. "Well, we've found that dinosaurs have more in common with present-day birds than they do reptiles. See, look at the pubic bone," he turns and points at the screen, "it's turned backwards, just like a bird. The vertebrae is full of hollows and air sacs, just like a bird."

A kid steps forward and looks at the screen then towards Steve with an unimpressed look. "That really doesn't look all that scary. It looks more like a six-foot turkey."

The group's eyes go wide and Bucky sighs. Steve's jaw clenches and he steps forward, eyeing the kid. 

"Alright. Let's try something. Try to imagine yourself in the Jurassic Period. You get your first look at the, what'd you call it? Oh yes, the six-foot turkey! As you move into a clearing, but the raptor, he knew you were there a long time ago. He moves like a bird; lightly, bobbing his head. You keep still, because you think that, like a T-rex, his visual acuity's based on movement, and he'll lose you if you don't move. You're wrong though. Not with a VELOCIRAPTOR. You stare at him, and he just stares right back at you. That's when the attack happens. Not from the front, oh no, from the side, from the other two raptors that you didn't even know were there." Steve walks around the kid and wipes his face. "See, Velociraptor's are pack hunters. They use coordinated attack patterns, and they'd slash at you with this," he takes a claw from his pocket and holds it in front of the kids face, "a six-inch retractable claw, like a razor, on the middle toe. They don't bother to bite the jugular, like a lion, they just slash here," he uses the claw to fake slash at the kid's chest and thigh, "or maybe across the belly, spilling your intestines. Point is, you're alive when they start to eat you. So, you know, try to show a little respect." 

The kid held back tears and just nodded. Steve smiled then turned and started walking back to the dig site, Bucky close behind. 

"If you wanted to scare the kid you could've pulled a gun." Bucky chuckled. 

"You want one of those?" Steve snorted. 

"Not that one, but a breed of Dr. Rogers would be interesting." Bucky laughed. 

Steve stopped and looked at Bucky. "Buck, you're a man, you can't have kids."

Bucky smiled and leaned up and placed a small kiss on Steve's lips. "While I appreciate the endless support, I was born in a woman's body. Might as well make use of it." 

Steve snorted, but before he could say anything Bucky stopped him. "Women aren't just baby makers, I know Rogers. Don't get started, you know what I meant."

Steve rolled his eyes and opened his mouth but was cut off by the sound of a helicopter. The two spun around and started running towards the dig site. 

"Cover anything that's exposed!" Bucky shouts. 

Steve runs towards the helicopter and yells at the pilot that just stepped out, he just points to a trailer on the other side of camp. Steve then turns and runs there. 

He slams the door open and growls when he sees a man rummaging through the fridge. The man turns and smiles at him, popping the cork of a bottle of expensive champagne.

"Hey, we were saving that!" Steve growls. 

"For today, I guarantee it." The man says with a smile. 

Steve steps forward and points at the man's chest. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Alexander Pierce, and I'm pleased to finally meet you in person, Dr. Rogers." He shakes Steve's finger, then blows the dirt off and turns back towards the kitchen area. "I'm glad to see my fifty thousand a year is being well spent." 

The door slams open once more and Bucky walks in yelling about the asshole who just covered their bones. 

Steve quickly turns and grabs his arm. "Uh, this is our paleobotanist, Dr. James…"

"Barnes." Bucky finishes, raising an eyebrow at Steve. 

Pierce raises an eyebrow at that. "I thought Dr. Barnes was a woman?"

Bucky's jaw clenches. "I'm a man."

Pierce raises his eyebrows. "Well someone back at the company is going to get an earful for that one." He says as he pours the champagne in his cup. 

"Buck, this is Alexander Pierce." Steve whispers. 

Bucky's eyes go wide at this. "Um, hello Mr. Pierce, I'm sorry for my outburst-"

"It's fine," Pierce smiled, "I can't imagine my entrance was all that good. Anyhow, I'm in need of your assistance." Pierce offered a glass to Steve. 

"What kind?" Steve asked, accepting the glass. 

"Well, I'll get right to the point. I like you," he looked at Bucky," Both of you. I can tell instantly with people; it's a gift." He sipped his drink before continuing, "I own an island, off the coast of Costa Rica. Leased it from the government, and I've spent the last five years setting up a kind of a biological preserve down there. It's really spectacular.  I spared no expense." He sighed, and leaned against the sink. "No doubt that sooner or later our attractions will drive kids right out of their minds." 

"What are those?" Steve asked. 

"Small versions of adults, baby." Bucky chuckled. 

"Not just for kids, adults too. We have plans to open next year. If the damn lawyers don't kill me first. I don't like them. Do you?" Pierce laughed. 

Steve and Bucky looked at one another and shrugged. "We don't know any."

Pierce laughed again. "Count yourselves lucky. I have a particular one that represents my investors, and he says they insist on outside opinions."

"What kind?" Bucky asks. 

"Well, your kind." Pierce says. 

"Why would they care what we think?" Steve asks.

"Well, it's right up your alley. Why don't you both come down for the weekend? Have a look around? I'd love to have the opinion of a paleobotanist as well. I've got a plane standing by." 

Bucky and Steve looked at each other. They weren't all that impressed with the vague answer. 

"Now isn't really the best time. We just dug up a new skeleton." Steve said. 

"I could compensate you by fully funding your dig." Pierce said, pouring himself another drink. 

"This is an awfully unusual time…" Bucky mumbled.

"For a further three years." 

Bucky and Steve look at each other with wide eyes and smiles then instantly hug one another and cheer at this. Pierce smiled and sipped his drink when he heard Bucky ask where the plane was.

Tags (open):

@xblackboard-monitor-vimes

@buckyssbabyy

@honestly-dontknow

[autobuttonsanddeceptistitches]

Viper’s Vengeance Chapter 3: Peril Among the Stars

Chapter 1

So, its been almost six months since I updated this story. Primus it feels like so long ago. I had so much going on in my life, I’m happy this is over, now I can start working on the next chapter!

~

Ten years since the incident. Program updating, systems operational, protocols online, activation, begin. The eternal darkness ended for the longest time. A figure stood there, bearing a skull for a face. Scanners indicating an unrecognizable soldier. Not of any origin. The prototype stared, a life hidden behind black glass, leaving worry in the samurai. Bludgeon stepped back, pointing a katana's tip at the symbol on the failure's chest.

“State your designation.” The mech ordered, leaving confusion on the Rattler.

No reply, instead, the machine pushed the sword away and walked towards the exit. The skeleton sneered, noticing the warnings going off all around them. “Alert, unknown enemy detected, alert.” Said in such calmness that didn't seem to care.

“You'd better prove yourself whatever your name is. I don't want to return to base with a defect for spare parts!” That seemed to trigger something in the dark blue mech's systems, and off he ran...

“Viper?” Her voice broke the processor's glitch. Viper blinked a few times, turning to face her. “Are you sure you're okay here? I do remember that your processor acts up in certain locations.” She reminded, glancing at the lights bringing the place back up into operation.

“This is where Cobra sealed me after my malfunction. Ten years after that, Luca revealed this location to Megatron. He grew impatient of the human's failures, so the human spat out this. Bludgeon found me right as an Autobot got too close to the area. Took care of Sideswipe, which was all that bone face needed to prove that I was worth the time.” Viper walked past the femme and towards a large machine. “Here, this is where my new life began.” The mech gave a swift kick, then tearing apart the rest of the stasis pod.

The femme ninja listened to the denting metal and shattering glass. Standing still as this continued for a bit. Yellow optics took notice of the interior, finding old forgotten machinery. No wonder Cobra dumped their failed prototype here. What was the first mission she took on in the Earth Wars? Ah yes, when she had to face Arcee who hid secret codes. Far simpler times, before the Prime Cores, Demigods, Deathsarus, GI Joe, and Cobra. Such insanity in a few short years. That voice in her helm kept repeating that confession, yet, she couldn't say. Why is it so difficult to talk?

She waited until Viper finished crushing the stasis machine apart. His wings flared, back hunched over. The snake got up, turning to face her. “I'm better now, sorry about that, there are some things I never want to see active again.” Viper trailed off, heading over to a big computer. “In this, it houses the answers I am seeking. From what I can know, this system has a lot of Cobra plans and projects. Bludgeon insisted that we leave this place soon so I could meet Megatron. I couldn't uncover its secrets at that moment. I want to know why Cobra created me, it's impossible for someone to come up with an insane idea. A whole organization going along with it. A robot soldier wearing the shell of a Rattler.” His bulky digits pressed on the small keyboard, being careful to ensure not to break the source of his past.

Words scrolled by which showed so many forgotten ideas. Nightbird listened to the swearing before tugging him aside. Then she typed it out herself. “I'll handle this, I'm used to tiny keys.” The Japanese fembot interjected, finding it to be easier for her to do this. Odd, nothing on Viper, yet the name Rattler and Transformer did appear a few times.

After a bit of digging around, a file appeared with top secret reports. The two read through them, both taking it all in. How could the American government know so much about Cybertronian technology? Its documentation came thirty years before the Autobots and Decepticons arrived to Earth. It didn't make any sense, nor the live specimen documented. The identity lost, making it difficult to guess who would give up their body for them to research.

Viper took a while to say anything, left in silence over all the materials they read. “Those documents, they must've been the blueprints Cobra used to create me... Nightbird, can you find anything about who wrote this?” He whispered, optics glued to the screen as they found a picture file.

A bunch of humans, all posed by a piece of machinery that appeared advanced for the time based on their clothes. Some men and women, all in Triple-I: Intelligence and Information Institute. Nightbird typed around a few files, noticing how their names appeared.

“I recognize some of them from my collected memories, and all their names are in the files. They're the ones behind how Cobra created you.” She trailed off, yellow optics glanced at the dark blue mech. He stared at the humans in their thirty year old days.

“Do you know where they are now?” Viper came up to the screen, taking in the details.

“A quick search on the internet gave me everything I needed, oh how clumsy they are to use this 'social media'. I assume this was a long forgotten program, happened in North Dakota, August 16th, 1986. No one knows of this as they retired from the military. All this time, America had access to those of the stars. Why do you ask?”

“I may have killed my creators, but knowing this, I cannot let more of me be born by their hands. I'm not yet done with my thirst for revenge. Nightbird, I'd suggest you go back with the others. There's a high risk that I will die once this task is complete. All hiding in America and other parts, they forget, not knowing that their pasts will haunt them once again.” The mech copied the data, making the best route based on where the humans live. They'll all pay for their foolishness. Their thirst for eternal knowledge will destroy them.

Nightbird held his shoulder, her optics narrowed. “Its not easy to complete a task solo. I'll come along, you've already shown me your second birthplace. Before you complain about how I can't because of the water, I'll find my ways. Where are you heading first?”

“Los Palmos Observatory, located in Texas close to Mexico. Two of the scientists at the Triple I worked at North Dakota. They wrote a bit about Cybertronians ability to travel through the stars. Nothing too major, but its a start. Think your tires can handle that? Its farther than from here back to base at Arizona.” He chuckled, wings twitching and ready to leave this trash heap.

“Sounds good, will meet you there when I can. Take care Viper, we're going to be dancing with death soon.” She flipped her body, transforming and driving out of the hidden base.

Why is she so intent on helping him? All the dark blue jet knew is that he's the only Cybertronian created by humans. Viper waited till she's far away to dim the computer's screen. He turned to stare at the scar embedded into his helmet and face. Primus he felt tired, unsure what to think knowing how right she is. Its a suicide mission to enrage the American government and the Autobots, but this has to happen. Taking a few deep vents, the mech connected a few cables to his helmet and lied down. Gotta leave one last present to those who documented the creation...

Data, so many pieces swirled around the unconscious mind. Downloading into his helm, awakening those old memories that most forgot. Humanity stole the gift of those from the stars. Living aliens, mastering the ability to change shape. Documenting entire histories far before the first man sharpened a rock. Yet, as Viper continued this, strange images began to form. Among them, the complete blueprints of the Rattler Transforming Soldier. Bright blue optics widened, noticing something wrong. It has no face underneath the visor and mouthplate... The Decepticon stared, before touching his own mouthplate and broken visor. The dates don't add up, these can't be the complete ones! He stared before deleting the information once its registered into his helm.

After a while going through the tediousness, its over now. Viper forced his processor out of this self inflicted slumber. Now no one can look up those old documents anymore. No human deserves to know the existence of Cybertronian life, not if they gave birth to imitations. Those who are fakes, that shamed upon. Yet, that empty face remained etched into his optics. More questions came than answers, leaving the mech in silence. As the snake got out of his forced slumber, he noticed an acid gun lying by his side. The same weapon left behind after Cobra's demise. Fingers touched the aged metal, knowing how good it is to wield this old weapon once more. Must've been a gift from Nightbird, who seemed to get it all fixed up. “Canary, I'll figure out why you hide so much from me.” Came a chuckle, before he got out of the old place once again.

Back in the harsh sunlight, why is the western coast so darn hot? No wonder there isn't that much greenery around here. Why couldn't the Decepticons set up a base somewhere nice? Rather than the remains of human activity. Still, the images he saw made his tanks clench. How could those blueprints show no face? Processor in a daze, forgetting Nightbird as she drove beneath him. They traveled across the shadows of the canyons once leaving civilization. So many lives passing by, children at a school, people buying at stores, watching movies. Oh the movies; such strange concepts that Cybertronians never got into until the war. Easiest way to document any traitors or secret plans. That's from what he recalled listening to the others when they got overcharged off their afts.

Oh what fun times to hear the cheery voices that everyone gave out after a successful raid. Also when a new bot comes over from wherever. Moon, Earth, any planet, depends on if they're liked among the others to care. Why is Earth such a gathering place for these guys? There are other planets too, yet they stay on what they called the 'dirtball'. Viper never felt right to call his home the dirtball. This planet is where his creators got the materials to create him. The mech exhaled, noticing how the Sun began to set. The yellow sphere that rotates around this planet. Cybertron didn't have any light up above, nor any oxygen. Three moons which the Autobots claimed as their own. The Rattler remembered how happy he felt to be on the metal moon, that its the home far away from home. Due to their technology, both could move across the deserts further than a regular car on a road trip. The suburban family riding out to somewhere like Palm Springs or Las Vegas.

It took a long time to travel from California to Texas. Baking in the hot sun never helped his mood as music kept playing from his radio. A lot of Spanish songs, getting closer to the border. What a strange choice for an advanced observatory's location, but no matter what. They'll be the first to pay for their crimes. Down below, a stylish black and white car drove on the road. Nightbird is quite durable, but that makes sense for everyone. Cybertronians are able to handle the heat. Viper’s quite lucky that he won’t have to endure any pain in the Summer warmth. Still nothing back from Megatron or the rest of his soldiers. Its good, no reason to worry as he must’ve taken the request for a break for granted. Never easy to obliterate an entire army by oneself. The rest of the flight is a blank, with the dust devils coming and going. Once the mission is over, he’ll try to visit Tijuana to eat some barbecued iguana. Whatever that may taste like.

The misery ended in the night sky’s greeting. A lone observatory lay still, lens continuing to observe what may be out there. Los Palmos has seen better days, forgotten to the world beyond the science community. Hiding a sin, that desire to find life beyond the Earth. Two life forms detected in the scanners, the files state for them to be Jack and Sue Richards. Two astronomers who’ve spent long lives exploring across the world. To the most exotic places for the greatest lens to observe the distant nebulae. Before their journeys, they accepted being members of the Triple I, which meant a piece of his birth. Los Palmos is their home, far up in the mountains that could show much more of the desert had the sun blessed them.

Viper landed on the rocky top, bright blue optics stared for a long time. His turbines slowed down to reduce the heavy noises. Acid gun clenched in a firm hold. So, this is how revenge grows, to slaughter them, their work is the reason he grew in the Cobra’s nest. To awaken as an abomination, there is nothing left they can give to the Earth that will matter. Time’s left them old and weak. No matter how old or young, its time to never return from the path he once stepped on. Their intense craving will be their undoing, thirty years later.

Sue finished another cup of coffee, heavy bags underneath those brown eyes. Weary eyes glanced up to the old photographs of so many places she once been to. Jack is nearby, back to work on their favorite machinery. A telescope meant their lives, the reason Triple I came to them with their suggestions. To work with them for extra payment and free vacations, oh how perfect it seemed to be. Until that one day… Sue waited for the drink to kick in, an influence rushing through weakened veins. No longer a thought about what may come next, unless it’d be an old family member or friend. Their nephew, an old photo showed said child gripping a diploma while enveloped in blues. “Its been a good life, hasn’t it Jack?”

A man stepped away from the large telescope, coming down to her. “Are you thinking about the Grim Reaper again?”

“Why would I dream of a snake bearing those dark ominous robes?”

“Sue, you should cut the caffeine out, the doc did say it’ll influence your medication.”

“But, we still need to record a few more sights. Los Palmos is our home. I miss those days, and I wished we never got involved with Triple I. To know that aliens exist, to hide that from everyone.” The woman trailed off, taking a large gulp. A nearby candle burned among the heavy lights above which gave light to this dark dome. Silence, a gentle breeze brushing the exterior as always, a hope to bury away the past.

Nightbird transformed, finding Viper standing still. “Once I begin, I cannot go back. Think of your choice Nightbird, I know the consequences of my actions.” He came closer to the observatory as the ninja watched, remaining still.

The Cobra prototype slammed his body against the large building, causing it to shake. He rammed into it a few more times, breaking away the concrete and storming into the building. Something shattered, it must be where they are! Viper prowled into the hallway, kneeling down to ensure he wouldn’t damage his wings.

Sue and Jack ran, a broken mug lay on the floor as the alarms blared. A large shadow emerged from a hallway, causing them to hide in a spare room. Lying on the walls were a few guns, a pitiful attempt to save themselves, but what else could they rely on? Faraway help? They waited in the darkness, holding onto each other and weapons as their ears rang. Hearts racing faster once seeing blue staring back at them.

“Sue and Jack Richards, Triple I, you've chosen a grave mistake for both Cybertronians, and me. The atonement is death.”

Sue fired a few shots at the mech's face, each bullet bouncing off of the mouthplate. The gun slipped from shaking hands, as Jack tried firing back, but with no effect. “Please, don’t do this! We have a nephew who always visits us!” Sue gripped her husband’s jacket, tears coming down the wrinkled face.

“Then he’ll understand.” He aimed the gun, shooting the two with a powerful blast of acid. Emotion drained from blue optics as they screamed. Bodies melting down into puddles of decaying flesh. A rush of energy came to the mech once hearing nothing but alarms. Without warning, he tore through more of the observatory. Acid gun put to use getting rid of everything. “What do you think Cobra Commander!? Do you believe me to be a failure now!?” His roar echoed through the bleak sky.

Nightbird remained still, staring as the building melted into concrete and steel puddles. Yellow noticed the mech walking up to her. She stared up at his optics, finding nothing but a blank blue. “We need to leave before the humans get here.” The femme transformed, driving across the mountain range.

Viper glanced back before running over to the edge of the cliffside and transforming. Soaring through the darkened canyon, dark blue blending in with the darkened oranges. That’s it, no way back once the candle burned bright. A flame that will never die. The flier followed yellow headlights as she swerved across the mountain's paths. In the distance, bright red and blue lights glowed through a known road. ::We’ll need to find a place to hide, I can see the humans coming this way!:: He messaged her.

::I’ll find my way down, we can’t hide here! Go get to somewhere safe and message me when you do!:: She kept driving, never speaking as the Rattler vanished in the night sky.

The ninja femme touched the ground, sprinting away before the vehicles could find her. On the enhanced tires, she didn’t strain under the pressure. A rush of wind graced her back, must've been the human vehicles driving by. So they were going that way too. Nightbird stared at the large puffs of smoke from what remained of the building. Viper did this, but its for a greater good, was it?

After roaming through the darkness, she’d soon slip into a hidden cave. She took a few minutes to relax, then noticed a small fire in the larger part. Nightbird crawled in, finding Viper illuminated by the reds and oranges. Blue optics staring up at an opening in the ceiling.

“I got worried the humans found you.” Not a sign of damage on him, so strange since he’d went through a mess earlier. A bit dusty, but nothing wrong with that. She sat down on the other side, tossing him a cube.

“They’re not meant for speed, they're for emergencies. I’m amazed at how fast they were to arrive, we need to find the best time to get out of here.” The femme leaned back, exhaling a deep vent. “We’ll need to wait until the event dies down before we can head over to our next destination. Do you know where we will go?”

“I’m thinking about it, since the other targets are in further parts of America.” He brushed off the dust, blue optics glimmered alongside the fire burning bright. “You’d better get some rest, you’ve been driving everywhere to tag along with me. I’ll make sure nothing happens.” Viper waited, putting his gun down.

“What about you? Weren't you the one who destroyed the observatory in one swoop? I'm sure none of them will find us, they're too concerned about the two who died. How many more do we need to hunt down?”

“A few more, they kept it a secret. The document states how eight made contact with the Cybertronian on that fateful day. Two are dead, leaving the rest still hiding in their regular lives. Most are in America, yet two aren't. We'll find them, but must keep secret, because the Autobots will find out.”

“But once its over, we'll return to the others, won't we?”

“Depends on if I can survive long enough. But, if I do die, then I will be okay with that once their dead. I do wonder though, will I go to the Allspark? I am human made, wouldn't Primus consider me to not be one of his? It makes me wonder if there is an afterlife for me.” He opened his chest, showing the lack of a Spark.

“I'm sure there is, don't you remember what Starscream said? He saw something after death, and is alive with us now to tell us.”

“He wouldn't stop talking about it, after the death of Unicron.” Viper looked up, hearing the sirens get louder. “Looks like its time to rest.” The mech grabbed a clump of dirt, dropping it over the flames and letting them die down. “We leave as soon as the morning comes.” He lay down, dimming the lights on his armor and entering into a soft recharge, closing the chest.

Nightbird stared before following his orders. She kept to the shadows as the investigation began further away from them. “Six more, you're quite risky to do this.” Came a soft chuckle before joining him in the rest.

Darkness, that's how life begins, doesn't it? Something strange is happening. Whirling machinery, a rush of Energon, dripping, praying, is this where life comes from? Its quiet, what is this? A dream? But, I can't have dreams, I'm not real...

Someone's calling for a name? What is this name? Who's name is it? Why can I hear it? I don't remember it...

My optics opened up, I don't remember this. I'm not at the Cobra base? Its some sort of lab, but not one I recognize. I sat up, taking in my surroundings. Its all Cybertronian, no sign of humanity's work. What's going on? My helm moved down to my body, no. Its not mine! I got off the table, shaking before finding other mechs staring at me. All seemed to be joyous at the sight of my movements. Some came closer to me, speaking about their troubles and what they hope my awakening will mean. If I can concentrate enough, I should be able to move, or speak. Why can't I do this? My controls are gone, I'm lost in this mech's body. Why aren't I scared? This is a dream, I'll wake up when my processor decides to. But, pure Cybertronians can dream, I'm a fake, I can't dream.

A mech came up to me, bearing blue and white armor, a grand smile on his face. He seemed to be talking, but under deaf audio receptors.

Everything flashed white, I now faced an open door to Cybertron? Its golden, much like the mysterious cities of gold on Earth. Cybertronians walked in the streets, speaking among themselves. None bore any symbols, speaking of their lives. I watched this dream run far from the door, exploring this new world. Life, I felt alive, that this was me. No, what I saw wasn't who I am. I will wake up, then forget. Yet, I wished I lived in this Cybertron before the war. Everyone's in union, its so different compared to the one I stepped upon. Gold glimmered alongside the orange lights. If I was human, I would've shed tears upon sight of this marvelous wonder.

Another flash, taking me away from the rushing views, I'm staring up at the stars in some sort of crystal garden? Its so beautiful, much like the sky when I first awoke. They glimmered among the stars, leading me to wondering why I'm here. Then, someone came into view. She stared at me, or this body I'm residing within. A rush of something came back, I couldn't recall why I felt this way, yet, I wanted it to last forever. The femme spoke to me, yet I couldn't hear what the words meant. I wanted to know what this meant, it hurt so much. She's... pretty, I like how she looks in those soft colors. She smiled, cupping this body's cheek, meaning no visor or mouthplate. But, it faded away to white... Wait, don't go! I want to know who you are, who this body belongs too. I'm not real, I'm an imitation... Please, stay...

Blue lights came back online, finding himself in the cave. Nightbird is still asleep, a dream. Yet, what was it about? What body did he see himself in? He lowered his helm, noticing the sounds of sirens are gone. They must've chose to wait for the morning to inspect for the damage. Optics inspected the opening of the cave above, finding glimpses of morning. Its' time to go. He crawled over to the femme, holding her shoulder.

“Wake up Canary, we've got to go before they find us.” He muttered, causing her to stir.

“Ah, so they're gone?”

“Yep, we don't have to worry about them for a while. Gotta get going now before they come back. Our next stop is over in Florida, so I hope you brought your sunscreen.” Viper chuckled, earning a glare from the femme.

“Don't make me report you in for that.” Said with a playful gesture before leaping up onto the ground above.

Viper jumped up as well, soon the two were off again on their long journey. Yet, in this morning light, it brought back the sight of Cybertron when it bore gold. At first, it wasn't good to dwell on strange dreams, yet, now, he wanted it more. How he craved to step into that other mech's life, how he wished it was his. But, life proved to be cold and cruel, leaving him to lash at those who lost trust. Yet, Nightbird so far, she seemed nice, but no one can tell if a ninja has other motives until revealed later. For now, its best to keep his guard up, and prepare himself for the next target of his past.

[bapyess1r]

Sunny Daze

WARNINGS: violence, cursing

Pairings: Team Drake x OC, Sam x OC

Tags: @desertvvitch , @unchartedterritoria, @peakymarvels, @marshmallow--3

Author’s Note: I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far 🥰

Chapter 13

Sunny’s POV

We climbed the massive steps to the tower and I was absolutely in shock. I had only ever seen buildings this tall in New York. And the fact that it was this old made it all the more magical to me. I stood at its rocky, caved in base, shielding my eyes from the sun as I looked up at it. “Fuck I hope I don’t have to climb that…” I said aloud. I didn’t notice I had until a trill of laughter exploded from Sam’s mouth behind me. He thought I was kidding but I was oh so serious about that. “I’m deadass, Sam. I’m not climbin’ that.” I smiled as I listened to Sam continue to laugh at my lack of trust in heights, shaking my head.

“Sam! Come gimme a hand with this.” Nathan called from a little shack with weak wooden doors. Sully and I approached them cautiously as they drove their masses into the doors until they broke open, revealing a dark hallway leading into a staircase. They both take a flashlight off their belts and shine them on the underground darkness. Sam looked back at me, suppressing a smile as I threw my head back. Sully chuckled and patted my back as he entered the dark hall.

“Let’s hope there’s no skeletons in there, sweetheart.” He said as another laugh spilled out. I stalked over to punch him in his arm, snatching the flashlight from his hands and powering down the stairs with the rest. “Ow!” He exclaimed, massaging the spot where he’d been hit and following close behind me.

I walked very carefully to make sure a step wouldn’t break beneath me and shrieked when Nathan fell before me suddenly. Sully put an arm out to stop us from falling too. There was a large chunk of stairs missing halfway through. “Shit- Nathan!” Sam shouted, worriedly.

“I’m good!” We heard him say and I sighed in relief. Sully and I shined a light down below us and it actually happened to be a decent little drop. The old man jumped first. Then Sam insisted on jumping next so that he could catch me. He stared up at me with a small smile as he stretched his arms out to me. I chuckled before letting myself fall into his arms. It wasn’t a big jump and I could’ve done it myself but I just couldn’t bring myself to take away his moment. He set me down as we walked into a dark and dirty room full of empty shelving. Sully and I hung back while the brothers scouted the room and we held a conversation amongst ourselves.

“So uh…. you and Sam, huh?” He asked me as he lit himself a cigar. My heart skipped and I turned to look at him with widened eyes. “Don’t look at me like that, Sunny. As old as they may be, I do have eyes.” He spoke in a fatherly tone. Though my lips parted, words just couldn’t come out. “All…I have to say is what I’m always tellin’ ya, kid. Be careful. Sam’s been away a long time and he’s not the same man I used to know. Things could get kinda hinky.”

“First of all, there is no Sam and I… It was just a kiss… One we didn’t even talk about. We trust each other and so far he hasn’t given me a reason not to.” I told him, crossing my arms as a mosquito bite began to itch on my shoulder as I watched the boys move a shelf over to reveal a bricked over opening. Sully groaned and rubbed his temples as if he were conversing with a hard headed teenager.

“Sunny, I-” Sully began but he was cut off by the sight of the boys taking cover.

“HEADS UP!” Nathan shouted before tossing a grenade at the partially eroded brickwork; a loud bang sounded through the small quarters, sending Sully and I flying back into the wall a bit from the pressure.

“Are you alright?” I asked Sully with worry.

“I’m alright, kid.” He told me, coughing for the harsh smoke and dust that had kicked up in the room. I shot Nathan a raised brow and he shrugged.

“I told you ‘heads up’.” He said simply before entering yet another dark hallway. I made a face before reluctantly following him in. I look over at Sam and he’s quite literally shaking with excitement. This could possibly be it and we were so close. ‘Thank god. I could use a real shower.’ I thought as we approached a gate. As soon as Nathan cranked it even just a little bit open, Sam was racing to crawl under. He ran up ahead of us with an anxious smile.

“And he’s off…” Sully commented as Sam started off into the next room.

“C’mon! Keep up slow pokes!” He shouted before dipping behind a corner. Something was off to me. The deeper we got, the more I began to get those bad vibes.

“Sam, slow down!” I said, running after him like an idiot. It was now occurring to me that one day he might get me killed, running off like this and me going after him.

Almost like it was too good to be true, there was a stairwell spiraling into the floor with Avery’s sigil near it. Sam flew down the flight before we could even step in the room. I hesitated a moment before going down the steps as well. “Sam! Sam, wait up!” Nathan called out to his brother.

“Guys! This way!” We heard Sam shout back, clearly miles ahead of us. We found ourselves going down a stoney, dark flight of stairs and up a mound of dirt that left very little space between it and the caved-in ceiling. We crouched through the opening and slid down a dirt slide. Just as we landed, Sam had dipped around another corner.

“Jesus H…” I wheezed, running forward trying my best to keep up with him.

“He seems excited.” Sully mentioned.

“He’s got a lot riding on this. Just let him be.” Nathan chortled.

“How is it that he can be this big and that fast? That shit defies the laws of nature.” I grumbled to Nathan.

“He was always this fast. I mean always.” He replied as we caught up to him. His lanky limbs slipping through a crack in the wall, a bright light on the other side.

“C’mon!” Sam exclaimed excitedly. And with that, we were slipping into the bright sunlight room. I shook my head with a laugh as I entered the room behind them, looking up at the ceiling that seemed to loom over us greatly with a hole blown through it. Likely some old battle damage. I realized suddenly that we were inside that tower.

‘And I didn’t have to climb a damn thing…’ I thought with a smile, resting my fists on my hips triumphantly as I watched Sam and Nathan gravitate towards what looked like a large stone map. Although I don’t think the boys got that right away.

“Magnificent…” Sully said, marveling at the insides of the largest watchtower on the volcano.

“I’m not seein’ any treasure though.” I sighed. That meant we were far from done with this expedition.

“Nathan! Come check this out!” Sam called out as he looked at the elaborate stone carving. “There’s gotta be a way through here.” He said anxiously.

“Alright, just hold your horses. Let’s take a look… There’s Avery, Thomas Tew…” Nathan’s voice trailed off when he couldn’t remember the other pirates. Obviously Sam picked it up.

“Adam Baldridge, that’s Joseph Farrell, and there’s Richard Want…” He said. Nathan grinned and tapped his brother on the shoulder.

“Pirate captains! I told you-” he gloated.

“Alright, alright. So maybe your little pirate pool theory wasn’t so crazy after all.” Sam smirked as he ran his eyes over the carvings before him.

“So what do you think the trick here is… press a button? Pull somethin’ maybe…” Nathan asked as he examined the statue before him.

“Check the arms.” Sam said, pulling on the stoney likeness of the ancient penitent thief. Sully and I stood back to watch as the two men fondled poor St. Dismas with an amused grin. I coughed to interrupt their moment and they both turned to look at us.

“When you boys are done feeling up the poor man, why don’t you step back and actually look at this thing.” Sully chuckled.

“Can’t always be the brains…” I smirked as the boys took a few steps back to where we stood.

“The trapezoid is obviously the volcano.” Sully began. “The crown, that’s King’s Bay…. We got ourselves a map, gentlemen… and Sunny.” I snorted as I, too, marveled at the stoney depiction of the land. Sam gave a chuckle and stared in wonder.

“Victor, you’re a goddamn genius.” He said. Sully seemed to perk up and patted Nathan on the back.

“Ha! You hear that, Nate?! Genius.” Sully chuckled, pleased by the compliment. I watched the men work out where we needed to go next, using a coin that we’d found from a trial in Scotland when we found the map of King’s Bay. They narrowed it down to two towers but the image on the coin was kind of faded so it was hard to tell which one actually contained the treasure. As I listened, I walked around the room, admiring the handy work of these pirates. They were so ahead of their time. That’s when a familiar smell crossed my nostrils. Cigarette smoke. I looked back at Sam and he wasn’t smoking at the moment. I obviously wasn’t smoking…

“Sully,” I called out as I picked up the filter, still burning just a tad. The group turned to look at me a moment. “You didn’t happen to… start smoking cigarettes by any chance?” I asked cautiously.

“No….” Sully answered. And at the moment all of us knew exactly what was about to happen. I tossed the filter and ran to the group, pulling on my gun and my knife.

“Ah shit.” I grumbled, taking a good look at my surroundings.

“Looks like we’re not the first ones here…” he said in a low tone as they began to draw their weapons as well.

“FIRE IN THE HOLE!” I heard from above us. And just like that, the ceiling came crashing down with a massive explosion and a shootout ensued.

We cleared at least two waves of mercenaries before the fight stopped. I leaned against a slab of stone to catch my breath. My arm stinging a bit from a graze I’d gotten in battle, my ears ringing from the gunfire in close range. “Y’know… Even though she’s hot, this Nadine chick and her people are seriously getting on my last nerves.” I grunted as I glanced at my bleeding arm. This fight was much harder than the last few. They had armored men this time; much harder to kill. I sighed as I slipped my weapons back into their holsters and picked the fallen bodies for ammo as the men went back to the map to figure out what to do. “Are you guys okay?!” I shouted from across the massive room as I straddled a dead man and took his bullets.

“All good here!” I heard from Nathan and Sully.

“Sam?!” I shouted looking around.

“Yeah! I’m over here.” He said and I saw him wandering towards the map again. I crossed the room as I watched him pat down a body that had fallen in front of the map.

“Whatcha doin’?” I asked as Nathan and Sully approached as well.

“Just confirming a suspicion…” he mumbled before pulling a piece of paper from the man’s vest pocket. “Shit. Take a look at this.” He held out the paper to Nathan and the group drew closer a bit together. It was a digital map with twelve locations circled along King’s Bay. ‘Shit…’ I thought to myself with a huff. “They’ve figured it all out already. The sigils, the locations, the works…” Sam said shaking his head and walking about as if he’d been defeated. I could feel the anger and disappointment radiating off of him as he gripped the sheet in his hands.

“So now what?” Sully asked.

“‘Now what’? Now we’re screwed. Okay, and you know why? Because there’s four of us and god knows how many of them. And they have a head start-” Sam snapped and I rushed to him to put a hand on his shoulder.

“Okay, sure, but they don’t know where to go.” I said gently. Expecting him to snap back, he turned to me and spoke in the same tone as I, only more disappointed.

“Neither do we, doll. We narrowed it to two locations and we still don’t know which is what.” He sighed, hanging his head. I dashed in front of him and picked his head up, staring into his saddened hazel eyes.

“So then, we’ll do the obvious. We split up. We’ve come too far to just…. quit.” I said simply. He lifted his head with a nod as if it was the best idea he’d ever heard. For a smart man, he could be really stupid sometimes as I’d come to realize.

“Alright then. That might just work.” He turned to face the other two men and held out the paper to them. “You guys check out this tower and I’ll get the other.” He said pointing to the locations on the map. “It’s not too far from here. I can make it.” I could see that twinkle sparking up in his eyes again. But worry started to fill my chest at the mention of him with no back up.

“No, no, no-” Nathan began.

“Like hell you're goin’ by yourself!” I snapped and Sam looked at me incredulously. “I’m comin’ with you. Rafe and Nadine’s gotta have guys all over these towers by now-” I suggested rather forcefully but he stopped me.

“Exactly. So if we wanna catch them, then we need to split- sweetheart, this was your idea…” he argued.

“Yeah, ‘split!’ As in ‘evenly!’” I emphasized. He gave an annoyed huff and pulled me aside from the group by my arm like I was a spoiled child. I was fuming.

“Sunny-”

“What?” I snapped. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath before he started again.

“Sunny… If you can’t already tell… I care, alright. And if I’m stuck with those feelings then you gotta deal with the consequences, sweetheart- which means…. listening to me when I’m trying to keep you safe.” He told me, staring into my eyes with what seemed like good intent. But I wasn’t having it. I lowered my voice, mocking him with my arms crossed; accent and all.

“‘Uh, if you wanted safe, then you’re in the wrong line of work, sweetheart-’” I said, furrowing my brows, using his own words against him. He stared quietly for a moment before shaking his head.

“Sunny, please!” He snapped before returning to his hushed tone, placing his hands on my shoulders as he towered over me. “Please… I’d feel better knowing you were with Nathan and Victor.” I looked at him with narrowed eyes as I fixed my mouth to speak again but he ran his fingers through my hair quickly and held my face in his hands. “Please.” My nostrils flared as my eyes locked with his. I puffed, tearing my gaze from his as I chewed the inside of my cheek, shaking my head and tapping my foot. I stomped before turning away to join the other men. “Thank you…” I heard him say.

“Mhm.” I mumbled passive aggressively in response.

We left the tower the same way we entered. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t glad to be above ground again. We walked Sam over to one of the spare Shoreline Jeeps and I shook my head as he climbed inside. Nathan put a hand on the door as we all stood by. “If you run into any of those Shoreline guys, you call me immediately.” He said.

“Will do.” Sam nodded.

“You be careful out there, Sam.” Sully said to him.

“Always am.” Sam replied. Then he brought his gaze to me. “Sunny…” I only looked at him for a second, my arms crossed with an annoyed pout playing on my face. He didn’t say anything though. He just glanced over my face. I snorted and looked away. The dirt seemed more interesting than him going off by himself at the moment. He just chuckled and smiled before putting the car in drive. “See you soon.” He told us all before speeding off. I watched go until he was out of sight, my arms crossed and my brows knitted together. In my peripheral, I could see Nathan and Sully heading for our 4x4. I walked over slowly, passing the extra Shoreline Jeep just lost in thought. He was going to get himself killed. There was just no way I could let him go out there like that by himself. His dumb ass didn’t even take another gun with him. It was when I put a hand on the car that I had made my decision.

“Let’s go Sun-” I heard Nathan say but I had already made up plans of my own.

“I’m not goin’ with you.” I said as I glanced at the pile of artillery in the trunk, trying to decide what I’d take.

“Sunny, now goddammit-” Sully started. He already knew what I was gonna say.

“Sully, I’m goin’ after him and that’s that, dammit! He is gonna get himself killed and he’s too damn stupid to see that! Nathan, I’m goin’ and you can’t stop me.” I said, grabbing a .9mm and spare deserter bullets. Nathan opened his mouth to speak but the older man cut him off.

“You’ll get yourself killed goin’ after him, Sunny!” Sully shouted at me. He never said it to me out loud but I knew he thought of me as one of his own kids. And because of that he had a tendency to be a bit overbearing. I loved him a lot for it though. He cared more about me than my own father. I could die today and he would never know; probably wouldn’t even care.

“Sully, c’mon…. it’s Sunny. I don’t like it any more than you do but if anyone is good at self perseveration, it’s her. She can keep herself safe until she meets up with Sam.” Nathan said in a calming voice. Sully just stared at me.

“I’ll be fine.” I said, looking at him with a nod. He just shook his head and lit himself a cigar.

“That boy is gonna be the death of you, Sunny Spurrs…” he mumbled. I smirked as I started off for the other car.

“Trust me. I’m aware.” I said shaking my head.

“You let me know when you reach the tower. I’m so serious, Sunny.” Nathan shouted to me.

“Of course.” I said. I hopped into the 4x4 and turned the key that was left in the ignition. I drove up next to Nathan and Sully’s car and sighed.

“If you stay on his tracks, you might just be able to catch up with him. Be safe. Steer clear of the big trucks-”

“Nate, I got it.” I replied.

“Ok. Go. Hurry up.” He said, finally backing off. And with that, I floored it, watching out for the tracks to Sam’s car. He was gonna be pissed but I didn’t care. With his life on the line, he couldn’t afford to be stupid right now.

I followed his tracks to a tower just like the one I had left. Parked right out front was the Shoreline Jeep he’d taken. ‘Well….good… This is good.’ I thought as I released my seatbelt and climbed out of my vehicle. When I arrived at the door, it had already been riddled with bullet holes and kicked in. He definitely wasn’t the cleanest executor of the two brothers but at least it was efficient. I turned on my flashlight with a squeal and shined its glow on the darkness before me. Lined along the walls were skeletons tied to the wooden beams that supported the structure. I suddenly wished I had stayed with Nathan and Sully. ‘God dammit….’ I thought as I descended the stairway with haste. ‘Please Jesus, if you love me, don’t lemme die…. Like for real…’ I shook my head as I stared into the darkness before me, trying my best to keep as far away from the wrapped skeletons as possible.

So far, I hadn’t had to do much. I had gone down a full flight of stairs, doorways had already been opened, all of which practically lined floor to ceiling with the bare-bones of old pirates. The more bodies I saw, the more disturbed I became. This Henry Avery guy was not somebody to mess with. I walked by a slew of caged skeletons all with the sign “thief” hanging around their necks. ‘Fuck that’s horrible….’ I thought with a shiver. As I walked into a room, I detected a faint scent of cigarettes. ‘Please let that be you.’ I thought as I noticed a bright orange filter still burning a bit. I came across a massive hole in the wall that led into another tunnel of darkness and sighed. That’s when I heard a loud bang.

I jumped, digging my nails into my palms nervously. I walked down the tunnel, the smell of cigarettes getting more intense by the second when I heard another loud bang. “Shit!” I heard a panicked voice say. It sounded like Sam. He could be in trouble. I began to sprint towards the rapid bangs, running through several rooms filled with singular skeletal parts; jaws, rib cages, hands. Although with Sam possibly being in danger, I couldn’t think about that. As I passed through a room with more tied up bodies, I collided into something hard and with a scream I was snatched up several feet in the air trapped in a roped net. I found my cheek squished against a warm chest, the scent thick with smoke and sweat. When I looked up, I was met with the familiar set of hazel eyes and furrowed brows. He grunted in frustration as he looked upon my face. I smiled awkwardly with a shaky laugh.

“Heeeyyyy….” I said showing my gums. He wasn’t amused in the slightest. He just raised a thick brow at me and growled a little. “I- I can uh….. I can get us out of this!” I stuttered reaching for my knife. His nostrils flared as his lips curled into something sassy. That’s when the bodies around us began to spark up, the embers running up a string slowly, like a timer. These weren’t just some dead bodies… These were bombs. “Oh shit…” I mumbled as I began to quickly cut the ropes, racing against the clock. He shook his head and forced a brief but fake laugh as I reached up to cut the thick ropes that bound us.

“Didn’t I tell you to go with Victor and Nath- because I specifically remember telling you to stay with Victor and Nathan- why don’t you listen?!” He grumbled in annoyance. I huffed, rolling my eyes as a few pieces of rope snapped at the slice of my blade.

“Sam, now is really not the time to have this argument-” I began but he just couldn’t hold it in.

“Why don’t you listen?!” He shouted dramatically.

“You’re gonna find out real fast that I never listen. To anybody. Ever-”

“I’m tryin’ to keep you from getting yourself killed-” he snapped frustratingly, interrupting me.

“I can take care of myself, dammit!” I hissed. “You’re the dummy who ran off by himself.”

“I didn’t need you here-” he retorted. I scoffed as a few more ropes snapped.

“And if I hadn’t been here, what in the everloving fuck would you be doing right now, huh? Tell me that, Sam-” I was beginning to lose my patience with him. I scrunched up my nose as he stuttered a moment, the weight of our bodies dropping us a bit as we hung by four more ropes.

“I would’ve… I would’ve um…” he didn’t have any damn idea what he’d do. I snickered as I cut us free and our bodies fell to the dusty ground with a loud thud. Quickly, we jumped into the hallway before the room could explode. Our bodies landed in the gravel just as more skeletons lit up.

“Oh you’ve gotta be kidding me-”

“We gotta go, Sunny!” Sam sang as he rose to his feet quickly, grabbing me by the hand and pulling me with him as he started to bolt down the tunnel. We ran quite a distance from the onslaught of exploding mummies until we reached the entrance of the tower. The both of us threw ourselves onto the hot red dirt, just as the last mummy had blown up, the doorway caving in on itself.

I turned over to lay on my back, catching my breath as the sun beat down on us. I couldn’t believe I had just done that. My nervousness turned into some kind of dissociative laugh. I was going to be insane by the end of this trip. I looked over at Sam as he sat up to stare at the now blocked entrance, a look of annoyance still playing on his features. We had to cut the bullshit now before we went any further or else we weren’t going to get anything done. ‘Let’s hash it out now, big boy…’ I thought with smirk.

“You have a lighter. You could burn the ropes, idiot.” I said poking his chest with a small finger to break the silence. He rolled his eyes as he stood and lit himself a cigarette. I scoffed, shaking my head as I rose to my feet as well. “Let’s hope all that noise didn’t attract Shoreline.” I commented but he still refused to answer me. I forced out a quick breath before speaking. “So this is the thanks I get for saving your ass?”

“I didn’t need to be saved-” he snapped. I opened my arms to him and flexed my lip.

“Holy shit- welcome to my world-”

“Sunny, you’re not getting it!” He shouted, rubbing his thick fingers on his temple and wiping away a thin sheen of sweat. I set back on my heel and crossed my arms.

“What am I not getting, Sam?” I asked.

“I can’t lose you!” He snapped. And there it was. The crux of the problem. “I am… fully aware that you can hold your own but I’ll be damned if you died on account of me. Because of my mistakes. Okay, then I have to live with that and I don’t wanna.” He told me, his fingers nervously tapping on his cigarette. I knitted my brows together and held his face in my hands.

“Samuel Drake. I’m only gonna say this once so you better listen up and listen real good.” I began, staring him deep in his eyes. “I am a grown ass woman. And I will do whatever the hell I please. If that means risking my life to save you, then goddammit that’s what I’m gonna do. Not because I have to, not because of Nate- because of me. Because I want to.” I told him.

“Sun-” he started but I placed a finger on his plush chapped lips.

“Don’t interrupt me. I’m not done.” I said authoritatively, and he shut his mouth with a deep sigh. “Unfortunately for you, I care, too. Which means…. if you’re in trouble… I’m gonna come runnin’.” I said with a gentle smile. A slow grin threatened to pull on his lips as his shoulders seemed to relax and he inched closer to me.

“Y’know… there were an awful lot of skeletons in that tower… and it was pretty dark, too…” he said letting his hand rest on my hip to pull them to his, a rough thumb stroking the exposed skin under my tank top. My heart started to speed up as his nose brushed against mine.

“What about it?” I asked in a breathy tone.

“You braved all that for little ol’ me, sweetheart?” He smirked, hooking a finger under my chin and pressing his lips over mine slow and sweet. I betrayed myself with a soft moan into his mouth as his tongue darted across my lower lip. “Thank you…” he mumbled against my lips. That surge of euphoria coursed through my body as his thick arms wrapped around my waist.

Suddenly, he’d lifted me up in his arms and sat me on the hood of the Jeep, his hands roaming my body as he deepened the kiss. The fact that I was absolutely soiled with sweat and covered in dirt didn’t seem to matter to him when he kissed along my neck and collarbone. I ran my hands through his damp hair as he rolled his hips into mine. I most certainly wasn’t against screwing on the hood of a car in the middle of nowhere. Just as I had tugged on his shirt, suddenly Sam’s smartphone rang. He ignored it the first time but as it continued to ring, he groaned into my mouth and rested his forehead on mine. He pulled out his phone and sighed with a smile. “It’s Nate. I should probably take it, huh?” He chuckled before kissing me again. We broke the kiss, heaving in a needy fashion as he answered his phone. “Hey, little brother. You find somethin’?” He asked. I could hear my best friend’s muffled voice panicking on the other end and suddenly I grew concerned. “Woah, woah, slow down- he what?!.... Shit. Alright, hang tight we’ll be right-” he was cut off by the sound of bullets flying by us. He pushed me down on the hood quickly, ducking his head and covering my body with his own as he hung up the phone immediately. I could hear the sounds of multiple engines approaching and gunshots firing off towards us. The beat of my heart sped up from arousal and adrenaline as he pulled me off of the car and ducked down in front of the car grill. “Rain check?” He asked me with a smirk. I just smiled and pulled my gun and knife from their holders, ready to take some people down.

A truck had come, full of ten mercenaries. “Did they really need that many? Jesus lord…” I mumbled as I watched the men begin to surround us. Sam just shrugged with a chuckle. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they’re feelin’ a little threatened.” I smirked. It genuinely pleased me to know that Rafe Adler couldn’t get what he wanted just because he threw his money around.

“Wanna piss him off some more?” He asked me as he tugged on the pistol wedged in its holder on the back of his dirty jeans. I grinned and wiggled my eyebrows.

“Absolutely. You take five, I take five?” I smirked.

“Let’s do this, sweetheart.” He said with a shit eating grin. He stood to fire two headshots and I ran from cover to slice a man’s throat and use his body as a shield when I fired shots at the other four. And we were off….