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twistedtummies2 · 9 months

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Top 10 Spirits of Chaos

Chaos is one of the most unusual concepts in the universe. It’s a difficult thing to try and understand and approach. Generally speaking, most people don’t like chaos in their lives: human beings rely on a sense of order and structure, and we typically try our best to get along harmoniously, if only for our own senses of self-preservation. We want things to go the way we plan, and we want things to work the way they should. Yet for as much as we try to fight against chaos, there are also times we feel the need to embrace it: the thrill of exploration, the joys of creativity, and the urge for celebration, many would argue, all come from our inner chaotic elements. Even science can show the fine line between these two ideals: science is a study all about finding a sense of order and understanding in the universe, but for all the study one can do, I think even the most ardent scientists will admit that there are just some things you can never properly explain. And even if you CAN, not everyone will ACCEPT that explanation, because we humans are always fascinated by the unknown and the fantastical. In fiction, just as there have been personifications of other ephemeral concepts or ideals - such as death, light, or various elementals - chaos, too, has been personified on numerous occasions. I’m not talking about characters such as the Joker, who are “Agents of Chaos,” nor am I talking about different alignments, such as “Chaotic Evil” or “Chaotic Good.” I’m talking about chaos ITSELF, personified in a character: tricksters and villains with incredible powers who exist for the sole purpose of sowing the seeds of mayhem and anarchy, with little rhyme or reason beyond that. I’ve always found such characters and creatures to be particularly fascinating, so I decided it was time to give a shout-out to some of my favorite interpretations of this concept. From the wild and the wacky to the purely destructive and wicked, these are My Top 10 Spirits of Chaos!

10. Chaos, from Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow.

Like I said before, we humans generally don’t like chaos in our organized lives, whatever we perceive that as being. As a result, it’s fairly common that chaos is depicted as an antagonistic presence. (In fact, I think almost every character on this list is or was at one point an antagonist in their respective source material.) Not all versions of chaos are outright EVIL, mind you…but this one certainly is. In “Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow,” our hero - a teenaged lad named Soma Cruz - discovers he is the reincarnation of Count Dracula himself. Many many moons before the story of the game, Dracula made a bargain with the Devil, which gave him the power to control and manipulate chaos. As a result, Chaos itself now seeks to turn Soma into Dracula proper, and use him to bring about the end of the world. The final boss of the game has Soma facing against Chaos incarnate, which first appears as a trio of strange statues, before revealing its true form, which is an abstract array of demon-like…THINGS, surrounding a black Sun. Chaos doesn’t have much actual personality in the game; it’s more of a force of nature than a proper character. However, when I think of the idea of a chaotic entity, this is one of the first things that comes to my head, so I felt it was deserving of placement, all the same.

9. Majora, from The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask.

I’ve never actually played “Majora’s Mask,” but I do know the game fairly well, from a sort of layman’s standpoint. The title, of course, comes from the main villain of the game: a mysterious entity known as Majora, who represents chaos and destruction incarnate. Possessing the mind and body of the Skull Kid, through a mask that contains their spirit, Majora uses his power to try and destroy the land of Termina, by drawing the Moon closer and closer to the surface of the world. The heroic Link thus goes on a quest to stop Majora and save Termina, before time runs out. Majora is a thoroughly motiveless villain, with a mercurial personality: a childishly amoral creature who literally creates worlds just so they can blow them up. It seeks to destroy and wreak havoc simply because that’s what it DOES, and its forms of trickery range from the relatively harmless and silly to the genuinely terrifying and cruel. A representation of primal madness, with multiple forms to do battle with, Majora’s origins are as unfathomable as its purposeless villainy. That, in a nutshell, is what makes this nefarious trickster so iconically creepy.

8. Dormammu, from Marvel.

Marvel is home to a LOT of characters who could, in some fashion or another, be seen as representatives of Chaos. Few such characters, however, are quite as powerful or ruthlessly destructive as the mighty Dormammu. The arch-enemy of Doctor Strange, Dormammu is one of the most dangerous villains in the Marvel canon: the overlord of the Dark Dimension, he has been referred to as the Great Enigma, the Dread One, the Lord of Darkness…and, yes, the Lord of Chaos. Dormammu was once a being of pure energy, who was banished to the Dark Dimension: a place where the laws of physics do not naturally function, and where mortals experience Hellish torment untold. Over time, this entity of chaotic evil assumed a corporeal form, and found a way to harness the power of the Dark Dimension. He thus made it his own kingdom in the universe. Dormammu’s ultimate goal is to conquer all worlds and make them part of his Dark Dimension, one by one, till only chaos is left. While he’s probably most famous now for his meme-worthy appearance in the MCU, Dormammu has appeared in various Marvel properties - from TV shows to video games - not to mention a great number of comics. He is one of the most unpredictably evil villains in the Marvel universe, as he is just as capable of conjuring up long-running schemes as he is impulsively destroying for the sheer sake of it. When you combine that unpredictability with incredible mystical and cosmic power, it’s no surprise he’s widely regarded as one of the most diabolical characters in supervillain history.

7. Chaos, from Aladdin.

Voiced by Matt Frewer (who actually has played a few trickster figures, including another character on this list), this incarnation of Chaos only made a single appearance in the Disney animated series “Aladdin,” a spin-off of the popular film of the same title. But while Chaos only had that one episode, many fans agree it’s one of the best and most memorable episodes of the show. Inspired by the Cheshire Cat, Chaos is a winged sphinx-like creature who is said to have “more magic in one little whisker than a palace full of genies.” It’s his level of power that makes Chaos so memorable, since, at first glance, he seems harmless: he’s small, silly, even kind of cuddly-looking. The problem is that Chaos has a temper, and when someone rubs him the wrong way, things can get nasty real fast; not even Mirage, an entity of pure evil, dares to risk making Chaos mad. On that note, while the past few characters have all been outright villains who represent evil and destruction as much as chaos itself…Chaos in “Aladdin” is different. He’s not evil, he’s just…chaotic! While he can be dangerous, he’s not necessarily out looking to deliberately harm anybody: he just doesn’t like things getting too repetitive or predictable, so he does whatever he feels is necessary to stir things up and have some fun. The issue is that what he finds “fun” isn’t necessarily always fun for everyone else, and he gets bored and/or cranky quite easily. You’re never quite sure where you stand with him, and the twist ending about his true motives in the story only adds to the uncertainty. It’s a shame he never showed up again, but I guess when your entire being revolves around not repeating the same game twice, maybe that’s the only fitting case.

6. Puck, from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

I debated whether or not Puck - a.k.a. Robin Goodfellow - really earned placement on this list or not…I didn’t debate LONG, mind you, but I DID debate it. Easily one of the most iconic tricksters in both theatre and literature, Puck is, I would argue, the prototype for characters like Chaos and a few others who have yet to appear on this list: powerful troublemakers who aren’t necessarily evil, but delight in causing mischief with their skills and abilities, and don’t seem to mind much even when things go wrong. In Shakespeare’s classic “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Puck is the jester of the fairy king, Oberon; while Oberon can be a bit of a prankster himself, Puck seems to take particularly relish in playing tricks on both mortals and fellow fairfolk alike. It doesn’t matter who it is; the Fairy Queen, a human nobleman, a dimwitted peasant…Puck will do just about anything to anybody for the sheer pleasure of it. He even has a monologue where he talks about some of his favorite ways to play pranks on mortals, and some of the things he describes (such as changing shape) sound very much like the sorts of things later chaotic tricksters would pull off with delight. While he’s never outright identified as an ACTUAL spirit of pure chaos, that’s certainly the role he fulfills; there’s a reason characters like Chaos can be described “Puckish.” So, even if it is a slight stretch, I still think he counts for this list.

5. Eris the Goddess of Chaos, from Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas. This is the last pure evil Spirit of Chaos on the list. Eris - based on the Greek Goddess of the same name - is the main antagonist of the Dreamworks picture “Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas.” Voiced by Catwoman herself, Michelle Pfeiffer, Eris is one of the most beloved villains in the Dreamworks catalogue: her whole existence revolves around causing trouble for the sheer sake of it, and anytime one plan goes awry, she always has another to back it up. Her greatest goal is seeing the entire world reduced to a chaotic wasteland, similar to her home realm of Tartarus. In the movie, she creates an elaborate scheme to steal the Book of Peace, and get the faithful Prince Proteus killed. If her dusky personality and crafty mind don’t make her an appealing villain, though, the animation on the character definitely will. Seriously, the animation on Eris is some of the most breathtaking I’ve seen in ANY animated motion picture: she’s a being seemingly made of smoke, and the way she MOVES, the way she changes her shape and size, and everything else that goes with it all just makes her so enthralling to see in action. Combine that with Pfeiffer’s glorious vocal performance, and she steals the whole show from top to bottom. This is one of my favorite Dreamworks pictures, and a big part of why is just because of Eris. There have, admittedly, been a couple of different portrayals of this strange and sinister Goddess over the years, but my guess is that when most people think of the Mistress of Chaos, this is the version they think of first…well, that or “Billy & Mandy,” but that’s another story.

4. The Cat in the Hat, from Dr. Seuss.

Much like Puck, most versions of the Cat don’t outright REFER to him as a spirit of chaos, but it is made clear that’s essentially what he IS. In the original books, he has a habit of appearing and disappearing at random, and seems to be able to do things that defy the laws of even Seussian physics and logic. Later adaptations and reimaginings of the character would continue this trend and expand on it: in “The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss,” the Cat is a seemingly omniscient figure who occasionally pops into the stories to create the conflict. “In Search of Dr. Seuss” features Matt Frewer as a mysterious Cat that others seem to fear for his power and mischief, but is generally friendly. By far my favorite example is “Seussical,” where the Cat outright IS a spirit of chaos, who acts as the main antagonist of the story by generating all sorts of problems, which the heroes then have to solve and get through. I’ll even throw the God-awful Mike Myers movie a bone (and you have no idea how SICK I feel TYPING those words), by saying even they did some interesting stuff with the concept, by giving the Cat his own chaotic pocket universe and playing with the concept of anarchy he represents in some unique ways. For everything the film did horribly, HORRIBLY wrong (which is…99% of every FRAME in that abhorrent disgrace of a motion picture), it at least understood that much about the Cat and found a way to toy with it. However, while our previous pick, Eris, is one of the most evil incarnations of this concept, I would say the Cat is the closest thing on this entire list to being a good guy: a consistent element with most versions of the character is that, no matter how chaotic he may be, he’s not by any means a villainous character. In fact, he’s an example of a character who uses chaos to teach a lesson: most stories with the Cat have him causing trouble of some sort or another, but he also always makes sure things turn out right in the end. Even his catchphrase seems to indicate this: “It is fun to have fun, but you have to know how!” For everything that goes wrong when the Cat appears, you also know it will turn out alright in the end. Chaos isn’t evil, it’s just hard to control, and that’s the best description of the Cat in the Hat one can ever offer.

3. Mr. Mxyzptlk, from DC.

One of my absolute favorite Superman characters, Mr. Mxyzptlk has been a thorn in the Man of Steel’s side almost as long as Lex Luthor (though not quite as long as two other tricky Super-Rogues, the Prankster and Toyman). A resident of the mysterious and cartoonish 5th Dimension - sometimes outright touted to be the God of Chaos (not kidding, look it up) - Mxy is a being of pure magic, and the source of many famous fables and fairy-tales. Stories of imps, leprechauns, and troublemaking genies, according to him, all stemmed from his long history of pranking people on Earth just because…well, why not? While massively powerful and usually an antagonist of the Man of Steel, Mr. Mxyzptlk isn’t necessarily an EVIL character. Some versions make him nastier or nicer depending on the needs of the creators, but even a lot of the meaner versions of Mxy make it clear that, before anything else, he’s a guy who just wants to have fun. Sometimes the ways he seeks thrills can be dangerous, sometimes they can be thoroughly harmless, but they are ALWAYS entertaining to see. He also makes for a great opponent for Superman, because he’s one of the few Superman enemies who is actually more powerful than the Last Son of Krypton will ever be: his near-omnipotent magical capabilities make him a force to be reckoned with, as he can go from just making someone slip on a banana peel to creating world cataclysms literally with the wink of an eye. Superman has to use his wits to outfox the wily Mxyzptlk, usually by making him say his name backwards, which banishes the little rascal back to the 5th Dimension for about three months. You can be sure, however, that once those three months are up, Mxy will be back in business. The character has been so popular, he’s made it into nearly every form of Superman media there is, outside of motion pictures, and various other comic book characters - such as Batman’s Bat-Mite, and the Impossible Man over at Marvel - are essentially copycats of the same concept. Mxy came first, though, and has been infinitely more popular than any later versions: when I think of hyper-powerful tricksters and spirits of chaos, this dandy gremlin is one of the first I imagine.

2. The Cheshire Cat, from Alice in Wonderland.

In the original book “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” the Cheshire Cat is an enigmatic character. He’s actually one of the more helpful and friendly figures Alice meets on her journey: he’s never rude to her, doesn’t do anything to harm her, and even gives her advice. HOWEVER, he seems to enjoy terrorizing and causing trouble for the King and Queen, doesn’t seem bothered by the lunacy of the Duchess’ house, outright claims to be insane (telling Alice, famously, “We’re All Mad Here”), and Alice admits to being a bit scared of him, mostly due to his “VERY long claws and a great many teeth.” As a result, while he SEEMS generally friendly, there’s this decidedly dangerous edge to him that makes him difficult to pin down. Later adaptations and reinterpretations of the Cheshire Cat have REALLY played with this idea: I think the version that really popularized it most, though, and brought the concept to a zenith would be Disney. In the Disney version, the Cat is a seemingly omniscient, eternally perplexing character who gets Alice into trouble just as often as he helps her out. He gives her directions, and she DOES eventually get home by FOLLOWING these directions, but it’s an extremely roundabout manner of working. It’s also worth pointing out that his directions aren’t necessarily the safest routes: going to the Mad Hatter and the March Hare eventually leads to Alice being hopelessly lost, and visiting the Queen - combined with all the tricks the Cheshire Cat pulls while there - nearly gets her KILLED. This is the Cat that most people recognize nowadays: some versions are nicer or nastier, but most of the best versions of the Cheshire Cat play with this sort of chaotic quality to the character, which was really only hinted at in the books. Again, like Puck and the Cat in the Hat, the Cat is never outright referred to as a Spirit of Chaos in the books OR the Disney movie, but that is essentially the role he plays, and other interpretations have made that element more or less overt. I frequently refer to characters who play this kind of trickster role as “Cheshire-Cat-esque,” and that fact, alone, is all this big kitty needs to get second place.

1. Discord, from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic AND Q, from Star Trek.

I decided to lump these two together in first place because a.) both are played by the same actor, and b.) it’s kind of hard to talk about one without discussing the other, in my mind. The aforementioned actor in question is John DeLancie; Q was the first of these tricksters he would portray, appearing as a major recurring antagonist in “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” Q is the member of a race of all-powerful, all-seeing beings simply referred to as “The Q Continuum.” He starts off the show as an out-and-out villain, who uses his powers to play deadly games with the crew of the Enterprise and put them through various trials. However, things changed in the episode “Deja Q,” where Q is stripped of his powers and forced to live a human life. His experiences cause him to change his ways once his powers are restored, and he becomes less of a true villain and more of a mischief-making antagonist whose attempts to help out tend to lead to conflict. Q may not LITERALLY be a Spirit of Chaos, in the truest sense, but at the same time…he actually kind of is: his powers are stripped BECAUSE he causes chaos, and he is even referred to at one point as “next to kin of Chaos.” That sounds like qualifying evidence to me! Discord in “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” is directly inspired by Q, and has a similar setup: he starts off the show as a nigh-omnipotent villain, and it’s implied throughout the series he can be a LOT more dangerous than he often seems. However, in the episode “Keep Calm and Flutter On,” he forms a friendship with one of the main characters, and this causes him to change his ways; while he remains a constant presence, and usually an antagonistic one, he goes from a pure evil monster to more of a playful trickster. DeLancie plays both characters brilliantly, each having decided similarities but also some definite differences (I would say Q is a bit more “slick” than Discord, in several ways), and when I think of chaotic entities, I usually find these two are the first ones I imagine. And, alongside Puck and the Cheshire Cat, they’re probably the most quintessential examples of the idea I can use when talking to people. It’s hard for me to say which I like more, to be honest: I prefer “Star Trek” overall, and Q is my favorite character there. However, I actually think Discord is probably my favorite visual representation of a “God of Chaos” I’ve ever seen, and while I’m not a huge fan of the show he’s from, I’ve watched and enjoyed every single episode he appears in, just about. So, yeah…considering they’re played by the same person, and considering DeLancie’s experience with these two has actually led to him playing a few other somewhat similar characters over the years (such as Mephistopheles), I can’t think of a better option than to name both Discord and Q as My Favorite Spirits of Chaos. “What fun is there in making sense?” ;)

HONORABLE MENTIONS INCLUDE…

Havik, from Mortal Kombat. (Not sure if he really counts, which is why he’s not on the list.)

The Black Guardian, from Doctor Who.

Bezel, from Chikn Nuggit (Webtoons).

Azathoth, from the Cthulhu Mythos.

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faery-the-diamond · 1 year

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"Come back once you learn something better."

Well damn, I'll try. >:)

"Dear God",

How many times have you heard goodness of these words? Spoken by the ones who loved and needed you, the ones who gave their soul and life to you, the ones who eternally trusted you with everything they were. The ones you drowned in agony and despair.

So many times you were at a crossroads, and so many times you could stop the apocalypse by simply taking control of yourself. All the power you were given, all the force of your experience, and all the strength you obtained through the centuries were not enough. Yet none of those times you were capable of making the right decision.

The one chosen to bear a great duty, the right to judge and punish, you only used it for lynching without thinking any of your actions through. You are the one who brought discord to the faith, hopelessness to the people, and mourning to the world. Because you never saw goodness in what you had.

You burned down the way this life was in a blind hope to revive a better world from the ashes. You thought goodness, but sorrowfully, you didn't realize that the promised land was burned down either.

All because of your nature, so well revealed in your monstrous eldritch form. It is not to give life, but to destroy it. To carefully watch its flame go out, painfully not understanding until it is too late, that there will be no more light and no more cure for the burns you left on your skin.

A temporary-sane lord of death, possessed by a horrible combination of recklessness and might. How could this dark side of the moon possibly reveal itself? The greatest of their mistakes was not to choose you, yet to love you. But they paid a wiseless price to stop thoughtless brandishing of your scythe. They lost their mind so you could lose your freedom. The sacrifice, which has been able to breathe life into barely warm hope but couldn't save it. Because you didn't step down.

You never spoke goodness, only spread heresy and poisoned the faith just for the sake of your disastrous wishes. And now you find yourself here. Within one other trap you were caught by the ones. Of course, you will find a way out. Just like you always do. After all, the original sin of yours was to do evil.

But for the sake of redemption, mark my words: unless you extinguish the lunacy of yours, one day that flame will finally fade away, and then nothing, not even the red light won't be able to illuminate a way out.

Amen

...phew, that was a try. :3

Nar, rate this from "heard much worse" to "make your peace now, 'cause you'll never have it in the afterlife."

(Btw, I don't blame Nari like almost at all, so what I wrote is just a try to say "something better". Actually it's not too easy to find arguments for what you don't really have in mind, so... Hope I did well. :'))

Narinder: Nice try, but you do not understand the situation to speak about it like that. Either way, I advise you to keep in check what comes out of your mouth next time, mortal.

#cult of the lamb #mercy gone wrong

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yellowocaballero · 2 years

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director's commentary on good luck, jake if you're so inclined 👀👀👀

YES I AM INCLINED BUDDY. Finally I can talk about this completely uninhibited I am vibrating.

Marc fisted his hands in his hair. With gentleness he didn’t know he possessed, with care he didn’t know he was capable of, Jake reached out and gently extricated Marc’s fingers. He held Marc’s hand tightly, pulling it down so he could grasp it with both hands.

“I’m not your fault. A lot of people and institutions and gods failed us. You always picked the option that let us survive, Marc, and I’m the part of you that wants to survive. And I’m proud to be that part. Do you get me? I’m very proud to be the part of us that wants to live.”

The intention of the last line is to recontextualize the story.

The final conversation is intended to bring the audience down to the most basic level of the story and remind them of something that is pretty easy to forget: that at the end of the day this is just Marc. It's always been Marc. Respect to DID and the truth of Jake & Steven obviously included, but at the root of this is Marc.

When writing characters I typically focus on two levels of motivation: what do they think they want? And what do they actually want? Writing the system is actually very difficult, because for Jake and Steven I included another third layer onto that motivation: what does Marc want? How does what they're doing benefit Marc? When they're doing something that Marc does not want them to do and create something that Marc does not want to happen (which is frequently if not all the time), why do they do that?

Jake's desires have always been set up as extremely disparate, if not opposite, to Marc's. He's definitely the polar opposite of Steven. He's introduced as Problematic DID Archetype Who Desires Only The Kill, and his arc in Mens Rea is about digging into that persona - including why he puts it on and where it comes from - and realizing that he's pretty much the most human out of them. All three of them want a 'normal' life, but Jake is the only one who really sincerely creates it for himself - who truly treasures the pigeons and libraries and buddies and Jeopardy nights. Steven normalcy without a true life; Jake's a true life not even bothering to pretend to be normal.

This is framed for 120k as Jake wanting his own identity. He's been sidelined most of his existence and his existence itself is depressing, and he wants to build a sense of self outside of kill. He's desperate for life. He gets a little villainous about it - putting himself and his desire for a complete life above Steven and Layla's happiness. His desires aren't evil, but they are very selfish and problematic.

What he thinks he wants is control and independence. What he actually wants is to be seen for himself and recognized as himself.

So what does Marc want?

I see some comic Moon Knight people talking about how a big difference between the comics & show Marc is that in the show he says he "doesn't know" if he wants to live, while in the comics he says "yes" and is literally reborn because he wants so fucking bad to survive. He'll do anything.

I think of that as Jake. Jake, who will do the worst things imaginable to perpetuate his existence. Who views Khonshu as a savior because he gave him life and the power to protect that life. Because of his shit life he's been forced to do shit things just to survive, but he'll do them.

The part of Marc that wants to live is ugly and cruel. It says a LOT that Marc fucking detests the part of him who wants to live. But it's the part who loves being alive. Who treasures his friends and makes their unfurnished apartment a home and ultimately acts as a caretaker. Who forgives Marc for the ugly shit he's had to do just to get by.

The part of you that wants to live loves being you. It treasures the people around you and the path you walk every day. It loves looking at the leaves on the trees or lying in the hammock. And understanding Jake in that way really recontextualizes almost everything he does. It doesn't make him a better or worse person; it doesn't justify his actions or condemn them. But it does mean something that Marc's desire to live is the most powerful part of him.

And likes Sheryl Crowe. Psychoanalyze THAT.

#my writing #keep in mind that this is just. ONE way to look at it #and you can look at it a shitton of other ways #including ways that treat them much more as completely different people #this is just the way that makes me emo #i've done similar scenes and covered similar topics in other fics im very reptitive #but man do I like the way it ended up here.

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starredforlife · 2 years

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Hii I asked the question about the Allupa header. when I see the piece I am most reminded of alexandre cabanel’s Fallen Angel (mostly because of lupa’s expression) so that really informs my reading of it. I see Fallen Angel as a humanization of the devil who looks kind of petulant, vulnerable and guarded in the painting. For me, it challenges the understanding of Lucifer as a symbol of evil. I connect this to the werewolf who is traditionally a threat/abomination. Though I did not think about this before you pointed it out in your response, I can see Al as the Angel protecting or healing Lupa as the damned/maybe traumatized creature, and though Lupa’s pose is protective/possessive there is a sense of vulnerability/defensiveness just as in fallen Angel. I would literally love for you to dig into the symbolism in their relationship in the story/how their monster-types relate in-text. I find these characters and their story very intriguing! Sorry for how long this is lol

i'm gonna cry djkfkdl thank you for an artistic analysis my life goal is complete now i love u <3 <3 and no thank you so much for keeping it long

I do love your interpretation of it a lot because, like I said, it could go either way. I didn't even have Fallen Angel in mind but I can totally see that comparison!

I don't even know where to begin with them tbh there's just so much and it's all like, a jumbled board with the strings and pictures. but not all of the dots are quite connected yet, so i will try my best to surmise here. so much under the read-more, I'm so sorry

OH AND ALSO B4 YOU READ IT ALL here is their playlist it kind of answers a couple questions as well

I think for this piece it's mostly important to know that both Lupa and Al share a fatal flaw of sorts: they are both very self-sacrificing, in their own ways. There is a periods in their stories where the other feels safer literally dying for the other person than confronting their feelings for them. They have to hold to each other, metaphorically and physically, so that they don't let themselves go. It's not necessarily healthy, these kinds of stakes, and it does sort itself out eventually. But around this time, it boils down to: If I told you how much I care, it would only hurt us both.

So they cling to each other because they can't say anything. The circumstances of plot prevent them from getting together like a normal couple, and their own complicated past prevents them from simply kissing and telling, ykwim? Al liked Lupa first, and had to overcome a million hurdles to even admit it to herself, then Lupa got a boyfriend, then she breaks up with him and Al moves on, and then Lupa falls for Al, and at the same time they're finding out that the other person sees them, fully, as they are, and it's completely overwhelming and frustrating. But through it they hold each other. They would go through hell to make sure the other person makes it out the other side. Lupa would tear into God himself to make sure Al is safe. Al would go against her own divinity to make sure Lupa remains intact. so not to be That Person but they are Running Up That Hill (Deal with God) in essence bc I'm lame and I love that song so much

Their entire relationship is a duality in my head. A wolf and a sheep or a dog and a ram, beauty and the beast, devil and angel, the divine and the sinful, lion and lamb, healing and sickness, promises and lies. Sun and Moon! ETC ETC They are not confined to one definition, and their growth comes from being loved for what the other sees in them. Lupa and Al always dance on the line between duality. So that's why this piece is ambiguous--it's really just that they are one being, almost, in their monsterhood.

What's an angel to a werewolf? It's almost the same as an alien to us--bright, and unfathomable. It's sunlight on the night of the full moon. Their touch can burn as much as it can heal, and that's the choice of the holy to make. And Al always chooses to heal.

A werewolf to an angel is what the Earth is to anyone fond of her. A representation of the indomitable human spirit--uncontrollable to any god. Lupa's stubborn pursuit of freedom and indulgence at any means terrifies Al at first, but she grows to understand and admire why Lupa chases these things. There's a wilderness to Lupa that's just as incomprehensibly addicting as Al's proximity to godhood.

SO in terms of the art piece. The point was to make it seem like Lupa is holding back--we don't know from what. She's defensive, but restrained. Without Al there, we don't know what the image would actually be. But the even more important point is that Al doesn't appear afraid at all. You could look at this and see, at a glance, damsel in distress, and the terrible wolf that took her away. But you look at the expressions and you notice that she's calm--almost in control. And under that subversion, the wolf is the one that's tamed. Maybe Al's the wolf in sheep's clothing. Maybe Lupa protects the viewer. Maybe Al's the beating heart of a beast and Lupa's the cage around it. In the end, they are entwined, body and soul and spirit.

The colors contrast, and were chosen on purpose. Green for the ties to forest and monsters, and orange for a too-bright warmth, closer to fire than the sun. Somewhat dangerous, and a little unstable. Typically Lupa has more blues and Al has more yellows, mellowing out their appearances a bit. But in this moment they're unpredictable. So they hold each other. It all comes back to that, always. Holding and clinging tight and not letting the other go. I'm going to go fuckin nuts

There's so muchharghdvjsfk like. Al was a ghost as well. A literal spirit, detached from herself, and when she met Lupa, Lupa was extremely Herself, individualized and "confident" (traumatized to the point of projecting a tough personality). And then she loses her lycanthropy and becomes, in a sense, a ghost herself. And Al returns and she's everything she ever wanted to be--a hero, a healer. It's all !! SOO MUCH that's too much to talk abt though. you'll just have to watch the show or comic or w/ever eventually <3

BUT again thank you so much for the analysis and thoughts it truly means so so much <3 I'm so happy people like digging into my art like this it really makes me happy

#star's asks #nocturnal city #long post #oc tag #im so sorry i feel like this doesnt even begin to scrape the top and also incomprehensibly answers your question #i just have to write a lot more abt them first lol

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24-guy · 2 years

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J, any thoughts on Hubert by any chance? Just curious.

Hmm. Not too many. Not too many. I can, however, whip up a few just randomly. So if they seem weird/out of place then that is why. I am doing this very much on the spot.

He took on a more of a mentor role to any of the other house staff when he was in the mansion. And by that I mean he trained everyone in what they needed to do, he was the person to go to if you needed anything.

Despite this he wasn't very stressed about anything. That is until the egg came along/started to present itself. Hubert never got possessed by the egg, instead he was forced to watch as his co workers, his friends, his borderline family, died at one another's hands. This is why he ran. He left and he ran as far away as he could. He didn't want to be the one holding that sword, nor on the other end of it.

I think he may have ran to the Wild West town if it was close enough. Took refuge there. And, since the timeline matches up, maybe he found a man that looked a little too similar to his newest co-worker. And maybe he saw a wanted poster for his employer.

I think that if this happened he would have gone to see the sheriff but not reported it as Sherman was just one week from retirement and kept letting out the cannibal anyway, what was he going to do with a rich man with some form of otherworldly evil egg?

Back to when he worked at the mansion though. I think he really enjoyed serving meals. Not making them. He would probably burn down the entire mansion making ice cream somehow. But he enjoyed serving the food his co-workers made because it gave him pride to show off their hard work to the guests.

He was especially close with Moon, I think. He knew that when he stepped down, Moon would be the one to fill his shoes and they'd probably easily outgrow him in how well they'd do.

It only hurt more when he saw that Moon was also better at obeying the egg than him. He never forgot the red eyes that had watched him go the night he left.

I think that might be all I have though.

I hope that's fine?

I hope I did this right and I'm not thinking of the entirely wrong character.

#asks #mairen marionette #j is talking again

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sutcliffe-v · 2 years

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source || @bscornersafeandaway

🌙 MOON - what is your oc's greatest wish? how far are they willing to go for it?

Answering these myself because it’s easier— His biggest wish, before meeting [insert love interest] in his route, is to destroy the White Room completely, and everything Naoya has worked towards. And complicate all of Karlheinz’s plans by association. He would go to pretty much any length for it, even embracing the ‘devilish’ nature everyone has associated him with.

Over time though, he starts to yearn for humanity . For just the ability to feel human, even if only for a while. He wants to be able to express himself, to be acknowledged and looked at, he wants to feel like he exists— Instead of just taking up space, and wandering around helplessly.

💐 BOUQUET - create a bouqet for them! what do those flowers mean? are any of the flowers their particular favourite?

Virek doesn’t have a favourite flower, though ones I would associate with him would be:

Datura. Also known as the ‘devil’s trumpets’, these flowers are a highly poisonous flower. Often used for poisons and hallucinogens, they can often cause delirium, psychosis, and even death if taken internally (amongst other life threatening conditions).

Black Dahlia. Representing evil and dishonesty, this flower can often symbolise betrayal, doom, and other negative emotions.

Lilac. Symbolising death and mourning, it also represents growth, and self development.

💢 ANGER - what are some habits they have that will take some getting used to?

Pushing people away. He is incredibly distrusting of everyone— Not only because of how sheltered he is, but he knows first hand how the human brain works. Thus knows that nearly anyone would stoop to betrayal to save their own skin, even him. So he looks solely for transactional relationships, nothing more.

Taciturn way of speaking. He was isolated by the other children, simply because they thought there was something ‘off’ with him. Especially when he spoke. He always seemed to lose them, or they always get confused or put off. So he chooses to communicate in as little words as possible, if at all.

Smoking/Chewing on anything. He doesn’t like smoking because it makes him feel good, but because it stops him from grinding his teeth/chewing on his tongue. Either this or he chews on lollipop sticks, his nails, his lips if he has to, literally anything within reason. If his mouth isn’t doing something— He’s chewing on his tongue or cheek, and running the risk of making himself bleed.

🤥 LYING - are they good liars? do they have tells to show they're lying?

He’s an exceptional liar. Not only is he just skilled in manipulating others, it’s already a challenge to figure out what is going through his head.

However it gets easier if you overwhelm him. Once he starts to panic, everything falls, including his lying acts.

👁️ EYE - what colour are their eyes? do people notice their eyes? is there anything special about them (shows emotion easily, literally magical...)?

Blood red— Though inhumanely dull. Often described as looking at death itself, a lot of people claimed to have hallucinated their own demise when looking into them. They also glow inhumanely bright during a full or blood moon (a coincidence. virek doesn’t actually possess any supernatural qualities.)

His eyes are the most noticeable, yet most unsettling part about him. Most people prefer not to look him in the eye for fear of being hypnotised or controlled.

#ask #ask game #bscornersafeandaway #virek sutcliffe #((you get 3 flowers bc i absolutely suck at that question.))#((also i posted the ask by accident like an IDIOT 😞))#((so i had to do it this way :( ))

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bewitchingbooktours · 1 year

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Witch of the Silver Locust by Maria DeVivo

Witch of the Silver Locust

Dawn of the Blood Witch

Book Three

Maria DeVivo

Genre: Occult Horror

Publisher: 4 Horsemen Publications

Date of Publication: January 24, 2023

ISBN:

ASIN:

Word Count: 59k

Tagline: Trent travels through time to find the Blodheska and open the gates of Hell.

Book Description:

Follow Trent as he unveils the origin story of the mysterious and powerful world of witches across centuries. He’s been known as the witch Trond, or even as Galen, and finally Trent, the Witch of the Silver Locust. He will seek the Blodheska no matter where or when to nurture the powers they hold.

Traversing each moment, he must face opposing forces that have their own plans for their ideal apocalypse. He will face his enemies no matter if they are human or demon--or even the Church of Satan itself. As he defends his goal, Trent will ally with both new and old friends as he tries to open the gateway to the old ones and bring about the witch utopia of New Eden on earth.

Inspired by true events, this tale follows Trent as he endures an exorcism, the Church of Satan, and the Son of Sam while moving closer to fulfilling his destiny.

Reader Advisory: Witch of the Silver Locust contains violence, gore, Satanic rituals, and graphic sexual situations

Books2Read Amazon

Excerpt:

Three moon tides had passed, and Runa remained in our care. A subject? A prisoner? I could not truly tell the difference. Sten had returned to the cave that first night with the supplies Aizel told him to procure—supplies that were just a diversion so that she could make her final judgment on what was to be done with the girl. Aizel told Sten to set up camp in our village and wait for us to call for him. He knew she was well respected and that our people would take care of him if need be, so he left our cave to go into town and patiently waited until his child was delivered from the evil that took hold of her hugr and fylgja—in essence, her soul.

Sten was obedient and did as he was told—partly because he was a doting father who wanted to see his daughter healed, and partly, because at his core, he was a weak man who fell easily under Aizel’s spell. She promised him she would do whatever she could to help Runa, and if that meant Sten had to run into a pack of snarling wolves, he would have complied. But I knew the truth. There was no intention of expelling the draugr from the girl. Aizel was stalling for time as the demon inside Runa slowly festered and consumed her bit by bit.

And as the days passed, I purposefully and consciously locked my mind like a steel cage against Aizel so she couldn’t go digging around. I hadn’t told her what I had heard Runa say—how she had called out the sacred nickname my sister had bestowed upon me, for I knew she would have forbidden me to even go near the girl after that. Nevertheless, I was intrigued. How would she have known that name unless by some divine intervention? I was certainly convinced that this was more than just the average possession we were used to dealing with, and I was determined to find out more. What was this demon, and why had it made itself known to me the night of the full moon, and more specifically during a time of my great despondency?

So, without Aizel’s knowledge of my actions, I stole away into the storage alcove where Runa had been tied up for the last three nights in hopes of getting as much information from the creature as I could. I brought my canteen of water under the assumption that maybe a drink would satisfy it and give it reason to open up. When I reached the room, the air was thick with an unnatural heat and a steamy sheen blanketed the space around us, much like the steam from the hot springs a bit south of us.

I stood in the opening and watched as Runa’s slumped body breathed in and out with those frenzied pants. Her head tilted to one side as if the weight of her long, silky black hair was pulling her down in her slumber. She looked peaceful, even with her chest heaving up and down as frantically as it was. I wondered what type of frenetic dream she must be having. Was she running in a field? Were the wolves chasing her? Was a hoard of marauders ravaging her fragile body?

I dipped my foot gingerly across the imaginary threshold of the room, and suddenly she stopped, shot up, and opened her eyes wide. “All three,” she cooed with a smirk. I froze for a moment, surprised by her abrupt actions, then continued my way inside. Runa smiled wide, and the evidence of the draugr’s hold on her was blatantly clear. The soft pink tissue of her gums was coated with a dark black substance giving her mouth the appearance of a gaping void.

A void to swallow me whole and transport me to another dimension…

“You would like that, wouldn’t you?” she blurted.

“You know I’m not afraid of you, right?” I said. “I’ve seen the likes of you before.”

She giggled. “Oh, have you?” she responded. Her voice was low and gravelly, and it echoed in the cave as if there were more than one being speaking simultaneously. I couldn’t tell if it was the acoustics or if she actually represented the power of the many. And the voice, that guttural, grinding tone was so familiar to me, yet I could not place where I’d heard it before. I approached her in the chair and held my canteen to her face. She eyed me coolly. “No,” she said. “It would just prolong the process.”

“Oh? And what process is this you speak of?”

“I know your plans. The girl is gone. There’s no use in saving her now.”

I pursed my lips together and nodded. “True. True.” I agreed. “But that doesn’t mean you still can’t serve a purpose for us.”

The draugr laughed aloud. Its voice pierced the inside of my eardrums so sharply that I winced.

“Untie me, and I’ll show you what purpose I can serve,” she said with a sly hint of seduction.

I looked down upon her and scoffed. Up close I could see the demon had begun to transform her. Runa’s visage had begun to crack. The pale skin of her once soft face had turned gray, and the dark green veins from beneath her skin pressed up close to the surface and pulsated as if they were their own living, breathing entities. Her cheeks had further sunken in, giving the sharp angles of her face an even more inhuman appearance. She grazed her thick black tongue across the surface of her dry lips. “I won’t bite,” she cooed.

I huffed and took a step back. “Do you think that’s what it would take to tempt me? I told you, I’ve done this before. You’re not the first draugr to grace this cavern. Do you even know how old I am?”

“Do you even know how old I am?” she shot back.

I knelt next to her and decided to seize the opportunity. Demons are all-knowing, or at least they think they are. And they like to talk, mainly about themselves and their powers. And it’s often their narcissism that contributes to their downfall. I remembered that from Blodwyn’s teachings. Long ago, she had guided me through my first expulsion of a draugr. I had watched her perform the ritual flawlessly on many occasions, and when it came time for me to go out on my own, it was less than a stellar effort. “Don’t worry,” Blodwyn had said, “your strengths lie elsewhere. We each have our own gifts and talents. Don’t let this one failure discourage you. And I wouldn’t even call it a failure…”

“The boy would have died anyway,” the draugr said, finishing my memory.

I pulled back a bit. “Oh. So, you’re in here?” I said, pointing to my temple.

“Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no. It comes and goes like flashes of light, like a gust of icy wind, like the paper-thin cry of the locust swelling to a crescendo then leveling off.”

My face twisted in confusion for a second. “How did you know that name?”

She closed her eyes and bowed her head forward. “I know not of what you speak,” she said with an agitated tone.

I placed my hand on her knee, and she quickly opened her eyes again. “Yes, you do. You said a name the first night you were here. You called out to me.”

She laughed again. A low and menacing rumble from her chest. “Pink Silver,” she grimaced, and her chest heaved up giving way to a wretched cough. She turned her head to the opposite side of where I knelt, spit out a gob of inky black substance, cleared her throat, and looked back at me.

“Tell me your name,” I commanded.

The draugr ‘tsked’ her thick black tongue against the back of her teeth.

“You told Aizel! Why won’t you tell me? You know my name, Trond. And you know my secret name, Ruz. It’s only fair if we’re going to continue this relationship, don’t you think?”

The draugr’s voice lowered, “I told that witch nothing!” it spat. “She stole that from me.

The girl was fighting hard, and there was a moment of weakness. I’m better now.” It smiled again, and for a split second. There were maggots weaving in and out of its teeth. I blinked rapidly, hoping it would go away. The draugr laughed.

About the Author:

Maria is the Author of the Amazon bestselling and award winning series The Coal Elf Chronicles, the YA psychological horror series The Altered Experience, and the NA Urban Fantasy series The Aestrangel Trinity.

When not writing about dark fantasy and horror, she teaches Language Arts and Journalism to middle school students in Florida. A lover of all things dark and demented, she takes pleasure in warping the comfort factor in her readers’ minds. Just when you think you’ve reached a safe space in her stories, she snaps you back into her twisted reality.

Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/mariadevivo

Website: https://www.mariadevivo.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariadevivoauthor

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@authormariadevivo

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authordevivo/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorDeVivo

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MariaDeVivo

Newsletter: https://bit.ly/MariaNewsletter

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Maria-DeVivo/e/B00CIAYHKY

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simpsavvy · 2 years

Text

City of Reminiscence Plot Pt. 1

Okay I realize I’ve only added one plot for one of the stories in the trilogy and posting pics of rpg and srpg isn’t enough info. Sorry ‘bout that.

Here is the plot of COR! *Please note that this is the longest story in the trilogy and I might separate it in parts* :) Also fun fact, every single one of my ginger stories follows the timeline of a Kirby game. They are still her own stories and events that happen to her, of course. But, because she is a “half-ling” lots of kirby things are going to occur in her stories.

_________________

In the very very beginning of COR, Ginger is studying some stuff in the CinderDream Kingdom when she discovers this book, the “Reliquar.” She learns of this ancient city, Reminor; the city holds memoirs that have been long forgotten and if one has the passion to recover them, they must complete certain trials. Obviously Ginger wants to travel to this city because her terrible past forced her to forget some things.

She and Kirby go to Reminor and once they get there, the city is just straight up rubble. There is, though, this paved circle in the center of the ruins (keep in mind this area is completely empty) and since the circle is clear of ruin they decide to stand there and check out their surroundings. Well, the sunlight of Reminor has a special affect on some people. Ginger and Kirbo stood in the center of the circle, were forced in a trance, and sent to a place called, “Reminor’s Silent Realm.” Gingie subsequently got insanely sick there and had a major migraine in the which Kirby was able to at least combine Ginger’s telepathic powers to ask their friends for help ( Sunny, Lil’ Red, Poinsettia and Isis).

As they wait for the help, somethin cool to know is that while Ginger is having this crazy internal conflict, her eyes have like this crazy bright, bright blue glimmer to them. So ig some spirit juice got seeped into her XD

Eventually they were able to get out of the Silent Realm because their friends met this hippie kirby that used a ritual to get them out (Iris).

I know that eventually they do go back to the spirit realm with Iris, but they go on the night of a Red Moon or a Strawberry Moon (Disney inspired) and Ginger acquires this “red panda spirit.” *Note this is the very naughty panda spirit. There are two versions of it--Ginger’s version which is a yellow-orange color with brown feet and crazy light blue eyes. The red panda entity is red with dark red feet and red eyes. The red panda entity is like a very clingy attachment towards Ginger and hates anybody who tries to be “friends” with her. So it HATES HATES HATES Kirby.*

Basically, Ginger decides to keep the panda entity from everyone because she doesn’t want to cause havoc more than she already has. But with the panda entity attached to her, she is noticeably more aggressive. So when Sunny asks why Ginger’s been avoiding them and talking a little less, Ginger snaps unexpectedly at her and turns into her panda form.

Hence, everyone figures out about the panda form and the entity itself shows itself more physically than hiding up in Ginger’s mind. Even with the entity attached, Ginger and Kirby become more close and the red panda has had enough. This is the part where this entity is the boss and kirby beats its ass and saves Ginger.

After Kirby banishes the red panda entity back to the moon, another spirit from the silent realm comes to talk to Ginger. It congratulates her on surviving the trial and informs her that she is free to keep a positive panda spirit form or continue to just be half kirby and half cat. The spirit reassures her that no evil spirit will be able to possess her panda spirit because of both her and Kirby’s bravery.

Ginger decides to keep the positive spirit and that is where Kirby starts training her and seeing what abilities this new shapeshift form holds.

Part 2 will be out shortly :3

#ginger #kirby fandom #plot #fandom plot #kirby #kirby oc

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halfmoonshines · 2 years

Note

Hello! I saw your post of Moon Knight and i was wondering if you can accept this idea.

Is based on the 2nd episode. Where Steven met with Harrow, but Reader (Steven's friend) is there too because she doesn't want him/them to be alone and hurt. By that Harrow sees that reader is a good soul and he wants her as a sacrifice for Ammit when they resurrect her or something like that.

So Steven gets over protective and stuff happens when he's fighting the jackal, like in the end she gets caught while she was looking for the scarab and Khonshu sees everything.

I'm sorry if this is large but i liked to share this scenario, it's okay if you don't want to make it or want to change some stuff.

Hi hello yes sorry I've been slow with prompts I have just been dog tired the last couple of days, but I love it!

Steven Grant x F!Reader, Marc Spector x F!Reader if you squint

Consequence

summary: You're selfless, always have been. You'll give the shirt off of your back and last dollar to those who need it, so when you find out that your best friend is in danger - of course you stick with him. Though, it makes you a target for something more sinister.

(Non-Layla fic ((even though shes a baddie)), reader is in possession of the scarab. This is not proof read because I'm lazy.)

"May I ask why you joined us here? I believe I only asked for Steven to be retrieved." Harrow was walking the both of you down the cobblestone path, explaining the once sordid history of the area.

He would have you fooled for a good man if you were a complete idiot.

"He's my best friend and I had the feeling that he might need my help, so here I am." Was your simple reply. The smile that Steven tossed you was brimming with appreciation.

Harrow seemed to drink your words in, eyes narrowing at the same time. "Interesting."

It only took twenty minutes for it all to fall to shit, and it had to be expected.

It started with the suggestion of a sacrifice.

"Ammit is true justice. Able to stop evil at the source. Wouldn't you want to pull the weeds in the garden before they suffocate the rest of the crop?" Harrow knew how to spew a good sermon, but you were nowhere near close to buying it.

"That seems evil in itself. People are changeable creatures, surely a millennia old god knows that." You countered.

Steven had his hand on your leg, you could feel the fear in that touch. But Harrow was just staring at you with a look you couldn't quite place."

"You seem like a very good person, Y/N. Down to your core."

A compliment was unexpected.

"Uhm, thank you?" You hesitantly replied, glancing to Steven before zeroing back in on the man across from you.

"To bring Ammit back, truly back, it would require a sacrifice. One of pure good. I'm sure you'd be willing to help with that, wouldn't you? Knowing it's for the sake of the world?

Okay now that was the unexpected part.

"What?" Steven demanded incredulously before you could even get a word out. "You steal us away, corral us here with the intent of getting us to bend to your will and have the audacity to suggest that she offer herself as a sacrifice for you?" His voice had gotten progressively louder, a hard edge you'd never heard from him before.

"Steven, I merely meant-"

"I know damn well what you mean, you old sod. We're leaving." He stood abruptly, grabbing hold of your hand to pull you up with him.

"This is unfortunate." Harrow interrupted your hasty escape, going to take a step in front of you. "Give me the scarab. I can sense it on you." An arm was outstretched while the people in the room seemed to converge on you and Steven slowly.

You swallowed thickly, mind darting to the different exits before you made a hasty plan. Tossing the scarab to Steven, you grabbed a hold of his arm and dragged him up a nearby incline, hoping to get to the second floor.

"What are we doing?" Your companions voice was almost a squeak as he hurried behind you, Harrow's chanting echoing off of the buildings walls.

"Running."

The whole two years of self defense classes you'd taken had better come in handy, because it was now or never. You threw a punch at the man approaching you two, knocking him off balance enough to kick him off of the stairs before continuing on your escape route.

"That was awesome." You heard Steven's haggard breathing behind you.

You had, unfortunately, come into a room with no discernible exit. You went over to the window to gaze down while you heard Steven.. fighting with himself? Fighting with the man who lived inside of him, at least. Having a veritable freak out while something big was pounding on the door you'd locked behind yourselves.

Walking back over to him, you latched onto his arms and directed his attention back to you. "Steven. I don't know what he's saying to you, but you've got to calm down. We can get out of this."

He decided to momentarily ignore how you seemed to know about Marc. "I can't do this."

"Yes you can." You replied firmly, trying to put all of the reassurances you could into your smile. "You've survived this before, you can do it again. You need to listen to Marc."

He was floundering, mouth sitting open while he shook his head, the beast at the door one hit from breaking through. "I'm so sorry, Y/N. So sorry. I can't."

You were out of time.

Whatever it was was... invisible to you? Just the low snarling you could hear and Steven's scream of Jackal was all you had to be sure you weren't going crazy.

Whatever it was had Steven falling out of the window in five seconds flat.

You ran over to the side, relieved to see Steven very much alive and decked out in some sort of white suit - you assumed that's what kept him from being splattered on the pavement.

You also noticed the golden glint of the scarab that had skittered across the dark road. Choosing to fight the battle you could actually see, you shimmied down the drain pipe that lined the building, landing with a dull thud.

Maybe I should start stretching in the morning, just in case we end up in some ridiculous battle. You thought wryly.

You were across the street quickly, attention half on the fight Steven was having with the air - Jackal - but you knew every other Londoner on the street must just think he was drunk.

Life's gotten weird, lately.

You bent over to pick up the scarab with a triumphant smile, but you're split attention was dangerous. You didn't hear the man approaching behind you until he had grabbed you roughly, both arms pinned behind your back with one of his as the other took the little gold scarab, handing it out to his left.

Harrow stood there, one hand on his cane and the other clutching his new prize while he looked over the other one. "Too bad poor Steven is indisposed. Ammit will be very happy with my offering."

His words sent a chill to your bones, but you didn't have long to think about it before whoever was holding you sent a blow to your head, leaving darkness behind.

Khonshu stood a few meters away, thoughts stewing as he watched Harrow take his scarab and the girl away.

He found his Avatar a few blocks away, knelt next to a fountain with sweat dripping from his brow.

"I'll find the scarab." Marc said without looking to the god, jaw clenched.

"It's too late. Harrow has it, and your companion."

"What?" Marc demanded, eyes coming up to meet the hollow holes in the gods head.

"What?" Khonshu could hear Steven parrot, panic in his voice.

The deity gave a shrug, strolling away from the pair. "I would figure it out rather quickly, if I was you."

#steven grant x reader #steven grant x f!reader #moon knight #moon knight fanfiction #mcu #my works #steven grant #marc spector

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bad4amficideas · 2 years

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Hiiiii! I absolutetly looove your writing, ita just so enchanting. Anywho, may I ask for Demons Head!Damian headcannons, or maybe a fic😙😙👌🏽

Hi! Thank you for your kind words anon dearie! Sorry this took so long... I write this with these fanarts in mind ☺ so I couldn't write this seriously without blushing even when I was thinking nothing 🤦 then this got away my hands and evil, evil, evil.

Note: English is not my language, so I hope you will be understanding of any flaws you find.

🗡️ Powerful, sexy, bad vibe check, that beautiful skin color that invites to be kissed and licked and... How can you say no to that skin and eyes combo?

🗡️ A proud king from a romance 18 rated novel walking in the 21st century... or one of these damn hot single daddies from this writer loved isekais ♡ One look from his eyes is already a saber in itself.

🗡 He walks in the Earth as if he possessed it, and although the rest of the citizens are not aware, it could be said that he does, after all the shadows of the League are spreading to every corner of the world.

🗡 LoA!Damian doesn't want to be sitting in the front row ruling the world, but that doesn't mean he doesn't in fact do it with all the people he kills or manipulates at his pleasure.

🗡️ Even without age difference, you would end up being his sugar baby because you're the star of his sistem. And the man has more moons and rings than Saturn and Jupiter together.

🗡️ Even without meeting each other "properly" you would find yourself being wooed with gifts of quality that makes you think that you are going to break the Declaration of Independence as luxuried they are and totally within your tastes (chillingly within your tastes). The only thing that keeps him from looking ToTaLLy like he's courting you the old-fashioned way is that the opinion of others but you doesn't care to him.

🗡️ If due to his position he couldn't be the one who stalked you or put cameras in your life, who did it, had that likely as their last mission (and their eyes gouged out of courtesy, if were good may be got offered seppukku)

🗡 Everyone in the League knows that they're not worthing to look at your beautiful eyes (and they must take care of how they see your body, poor stressed assassins) and that if they're ordered to take care of you and you come out with a scratch, they better kill themselves rather than inform him because thats a sentence to be tortured first and killed second.

🗡 I firmly believe that a fully trained Demon! Damian can only be defined as the Perfect Hunter, a feline one. Did you know that there are tigers in both Africa and Asia? In the end, even having been raised to succeed and lead Damian is just that, a lonely and lethal hunter. A weird desirable breed, a black one 🐈‍⬛. You will be watched for up to one year and persecuted for another if neccessary. Ra's has teached him good things take time to achieve.

🗡 At your firsts interactions he will subtly adapt his image to what makes you feel more secure. But you will go with him, the truest him he could get show you, voluntarily, willingly at the end. And you wont even notice how he's lowering his mask and actually making you adapt and accept him. He glides smoothly, invading everything without you noticing.

🗡 I don't compare him to a cat just for being a hunter. He's the type to rub or stick to you to remind you of who you are and demand your attention and warmth at totally random moments... and no matter who's watching. After all, what is the point of having the best jewelry or trinkets in the world if you don't show up or play with them at your like?

🗡️ If Damian has chosen you as his bride/groom, as his beloved, as his companion, his other self, and he has already obtained the position of DemonHead, there is no human, alien, demon or machine, anything on earth or its surroundings that's going to take you away from him. Not even his family. After all, they specifically trained him to take and keep. Sorry people but yes, the Al Ghul raised Hufflepuffs firsts, then Slytherins. Slytherpuff if you want, only look at his trademark colors. He's a keeper and you will no live to hear any noise ♡

🗡️ And remember, he has, not only money and material and human resources, but the Lazarus Pits on his side, neither time nor death is going to keep you both away, beloved.

🗡️ Personally, there are days that I think the world would be better off with 70% less of its population -vaccines and masks damnit u.u- and I have to watch faith-in-humanity videos or I in twisted days I would support the ideals of Ra's so I think a properly raised Damian could manipulate his beloved into their beliefs.

#yandere dc x reader #yandere damian wayne x reader #yandere robin x reader #yandere damian wayne #👾.txt #yandere damian al ghul #yandere damian al ghul x reader

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kirishoshego · 3 years

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Part of Me//Bakugo

Summary: You could say that Bakugo was the one that got away but now that you were about to marry things change Words. 3.1k+ TW: sfw: angst, fluff, mention of heart break (both him and you) being in a more or less unhappy relationship Whenever people would ask you how you felt about your upcoming wedding you would smile and say: ‘Really excited’ Because that’s how you were supposed to feel. Excited, happy, deeply in love, lucky, joyful, blessed, in seventh heaven, over the moon.

Your fiancé was kind and caring, he never made you doubt his love for you, at least not intentionally. If you were to tell him ‘jump’ he would ask ‘how high’, he would never tell you no, he would agree with everything you say. Whatever you wanted to do would be what he wants and apologize even before doing something wrong. Yet, you felt everything but. Don’t get it wrong: You were happy, you loved your fiancé... But if you loved him the way you were supposed to, why was the small wooden box filled with love letters of the love of your youth your most priced possession? You told yourself it was just harmless sentimental value, pale memories you don’t want to fade away completely. But you couldn’t hide the small rips nor the dried wet spots, all evidence of the many nights you read them over and over again. You couldn’t deny the tug on your heart whenever your eyes skipped over his name at the end of each letter, couldn’t help the way your body was arching for his touch every time you thought about him. Arch for the love he only ever gave to you. Have his arms wrapped around your body one last time, his lips on yours as a kiss good bye, hear his raspy voice in your ear, calling out your name to bring you peace before you leave.

Regret filled every inch of your body whenever you think back to the day you walked out of his life, walked away from your future together. It was the day after your graduation. Bakugo was on top of the class, of course he was, he had trained so hard and studied so much, it couldn’t have been any other way. You were on 6th place and Bakugo was so proud of you, even happier for you than he was for himself. He had planned to move in with you soon, even spotted a sweet apartment the two of you could share. Talking about the family you could start, about marriage. But in the night of the big party you bumped into Izuki, who congratulated the both of you and when your boyfriend walked away to grab something to drink the green haired boy turned around to you with a smile on his face. ‘I never would have though Kacchan would be able to fall for someone. He’ll even give up spot #1 just to be with you, that must be true love’ he said, kind and soft, not the tiniest hint of evil in his voice. And yet he caused more damage to Bakugo and you than the L.O.V ever did with those two sentences. That night you realized that you were being awfully selfish, keeping Katsuki away from his biggest dream in life. All he ever wanted was to be Hero #1, to be better than anyone, better than All Might. But here you were, keeping him back. Caged. Taking his precious time just for your happiness. His happiness was far more important for you than yours will ever be. So that night you disappeared. A simple note left on his nightstand, telling him you’re sorry but it’s better that way, you won’t be holding him back anymore, you promised, and the ghost of a kiss lingering on his lips was the only trace you had left behind for him when he woke up in the early morning hours.

Years have passed before the two of you met again. It was a fluke, more or less, that you were seated next to him on a plane. Yet, there was no awkwardness between the two of you, as if the night never had happened, as if you were still so familiar with one another, like you just spend hours, not years, apart. Neither one of you dared to bring the memory up though, him scared to find out why you left him, you scared to find out how much it must have hurt him. But your decision was the right one, he was on the top now. Bakugo Katsuki, Dynamight, Pro Hero #1. And you were so proud of him, you always knew he could do it, but these words never went past your lips, as if you had no right to tell him that. Of course you kept an eye on him, celebrated with him from afar, but you left him, you had no right to act as if you had supported him in anyway. That’s what you told yourself. When he asked to exchange numbers you were happy, but whenever your phone binged around your fiancé you felt shame in the pit of your stomach. Because you knew Bakugo could never be ‘just a friend’, he’ll always be more. Because it was him you called in those lone nights when your fiancé was out of town, it was him you texted first in the morning and last in the night. Because whenever you met him for a cup of coffee you told the man you’re going to marry it was just a friend you met up with, someone you knew from work. Whenever you noticed the door to him opening again you shut it close, sealing it with oh so many locks and yet they’re opened within seconds whenever his name was seen on your screen. You had to remind yourself why you kept it shut over all these years, the pain of losing him too much to bare.

The wedding was now slowly edging closer, every single day feeling dreadfully longer than the one before. And the less time you had, the more you doubted your decision to be with him for the rest of your life, as your heart was devoted to someone else. It wouldn’t be fair to him, he loved you dearly, treated you with nothing but kindness, you should do the same. But Midoriya’s voice reminded you that, without you, Bakugo was stronger, you couldn’t expect him to just take you back after what you’ve done, you couldn’t be so crude to the man you loved more than life itself. So you stayed. You told yourself you were the happiest like this. And it wasn’t like you had no love for your fiancé, you did. Otherwise you wouldn’t have accepted his proposal. It was good the way it was, changing it would just cause more chaos than necessary. It might break your heart in the progress, but that’s better than breaking the hearts of those you loved. You sucked it up, took a deep breath and put a smile on your face. Things will be just fine. But the night before your big day was spend alone, shrouded in darkness as silent tears spilled out of your sleep deprived eyes, caressing your cheek. You had opened every letter of Bakugo the very same day you got them. At first the letters started out as a joke, but there was something about them that made these written words a big part of your lives. You did text daily, of course, but (even though Bakugo would kill everyone who would dare to even think about it) he liked the romantic aspect of it. Texts can get deleted, lost within the world wide web, gone with a simple crash. Meaningless as some sort of, because everyone texted via social media today. And you weren’t everyone. You were Bakugo and Y/N, an odd couple somehow, but you weren’t bothered by the way people talked about you. Not at all. What mattered was that you had each other, for ever. Shaky hands stroked over the last letter you had received, not through him, but Kirishima. At first he pretended your meet up was nothing but an accident but when he left and you arrived home you noticed an envelope, covered in big and some smaller thumb prints, telling you that it must have been moved quite a lot. To this day you didn’t open it, couldn’t brace yourself for what was about to come. You took in a deep breath as the silvery paperknife softly gleamed in the dim light of your nightlight, gliding through the piece of paper. My Y/N, To be honest I don’t know where to start. God, I fucking hate this. You changed your number, moved away and didn’t even leave an explanation. Do you really hate me that much? To just leave me behind like I’m some sort of extra and not the man you wanted to spent the rest of your life with. I know those weren’t lies, you never were able to lie to me. So now I’m out here, looking like a fool, trying to wrap my head around the fact my person is gone without a trace. I even talked to Deku, asked him if he knew anything, but of course that extra didn’t knew shit. He offered to talk to you but I didn’t want him out of all people to contact you. Kiri told me he had run into you once, he said you looked awful. Not really his words, but from what he described you are just as torn apart as I am. Which confuses me even more. If you’re so hurt why won’t you come back? I hate giving second chances but I would do anything for you. You got me fucking whipped for you shitty woman and then you just pack your stuff and leave? The last couple of month have been awful. I haven’t slept properly, I can’t without you next to me. If you need time (even if I don’t understand for what, because we’ve been going strong since day one dipshit, if someone needs time it’s me from your annoying, cute fucking self) I can give that to you, just come back. Kirishima is trying really badly to fill in your spot and (don’t you dare to ever tell a single soul about this, I’ll kill you… maybe…) while his hugs are warm and loving and attempt to make me laugh do crag me up here and there it’s not the same. No one can ever replace you. We are young, we don’t know shit about life, but if I do know one fucking thing is that I want to wake up to your stupid angelic face every morning. I still remember the nights were you asked me what had torn me apart, the nights you held me close to you because of the awful nightmares that haunted me. I never wanted you know what they were about, never wanted you to worry, but never had I imagined that those nightmares will turn true. That I’ll lose you. Damn it, I want to marry you, have kids with you (if you want, I’m fine with sticking to practice) and turn old and grey and yell at the neighbors kids for ruining our garden. I might can’t give you everything you want but I know I’m everything you need and visa versa, I guess. Y/N I don’t want to bottle you up, but I can’t let you go either. It’s so fucking confusing and I hate it. I hate that you didn’t give me a clean cut, a proper explanation but at the same time I don’t want that, I don’t want to know why you left me, cause maybe I pushed you away, maybe it was my fault. Whatever your reason is we can work through it. I promise you, I’ll love you forever, because you are a part of me. The best. I won’t ask you to send me a letter back, as I will never send it to you. I think hearing from you, meaning you won’t come back, would just break me more. So now I have to be selfish, focus on me again, because if I won’t I’ll drown, Katsuki Lines were crossed out, some words thickened, indicating the many times he wrote them, over and over again. Like he said, he never planned for this letter to ever reach you. He didn’t knew Kirishima gave it to you and even Kirishima never knew if you found it, maybe it got lost on the way, some things better when hidden. That night, you cried yourself to sleep, torn into so many pieces you couldn’t count every small particle, even if you tried. That was the moment you realized you will never be whole again, never be home again.

You looked at yourself in the mirror, dressed in all white, the most beautiful gown you had ever laid your eyes upon. All evidence of the previous nightly events were hidden under a mask of make-up, your hair never sat more perfect than it did right now. When your eyes met the person in the mirror you couldn’t identify with her. Whoever she was, she looked like a happy bride, someone who was in love with her fiancé, in love with her life. “Hey,” a deep voice spoke up behind you, making you drop the bouquet. Turning around you were met with the most beautiful set of crimson red eyes. “Katsuki, what...” you stammered, not knowing if your mind just messed with you, the cold feet everyone warned you about now making their appearance. “You look beautiful,” he told you, walking closer to you, your nose filled with your favorite smell in the world. Softly burned caramel. You held your hand up, scared that if you touch him he’ll be gone, just a figment of your imagination. “What are you doing dumbass?” he laughed, setting of thousand of butterflies in your stomach, starting the fire that was long defunct. “Come here,” he pulled you and the moment your skin touched his you realized he was here, with you, in this room. Bakugo held you close to him, biting back the tears that threatened to spill out his eyes, because it wasn’t him you will walk to at the end of the aisle. “What are you doing here?” you whispered into his chest, your hands fisting his suit jacket, feeling complete again. Finally at home. “I promised to be with you, by your side to celebrate every milestone in your life. And marriage is a huge one, don’t you think?” he asked you as you looked up to him, lips inches away from one another. “But...” suddenly reality came crushing down, everything was not going to be just fine. Thousand knives pushed into your chest at once. Or at least that’s what it felt like. “Today is your big day Y/N. After all these years you’re still my best friend,” “Hey!” you heard Kirishima suddenly call out in the door frame, ducking down to not hit his head. “Eijiro!” you exclaimed, engulfing him into a big hug as best as you could. “Hey little one, you’re still as small as I remember!” he laughed, gently wiping away your tears that threatened to ruin your mascara. “Sorry for not answering your invitation, we were just awfully busy with Hero Work and our secretary messed up, mixing the actual mail with fan mail,” Bakugo explained after Kirishima set you down again. “I’m so happy to have the two of you by my side, my favorite men finally with me again,” you told them, looking at Bakugo. He still had the same expression on his face whenever he would look at you. Filled with love and adoration. “But I’m your absolute favorite, right?” Kirishima laughed, his smile beaming. “Of course you are,” you endorsed your tall friend standing next to you. “We will actually wait outside, the church is stuffed, so...” Eijiro trailed off, his eyes glued to his best friend. “Yeah! But we wanted to see you before, to uhm...Congratulate you,” Bakugo cleared his throat, putting on the best smile he could for you. You seemed so happy, that was all he ever wanted. “Yeah, congrats, your guy seems nice,” “Yeah, he is,” was all you could say. Because he was nice, he just wasn’t Bakugo. “I’m so glad I saw you before, I really did miss you,” your eyes couldn’t let go of the blond man in front of you and neither could his let go of you. “We better get going now,” Kirishima said after some moments draped in silence passed by. “Save a dance for me,” Katsuki told you, kissing your forehead for one last time before leaving through the door. Hours could have passed, maybe minutes, maybe seconds. You had lost track of time after his lips met your skin. When you entered the church, a small wave of Bakugo all you could really register, you weren’t present. It felt like you were in a movie, everything slow motion, watching from afar while the main character walked into her demise. The audience wasn’t applauding her, everyone screamed, asking her what the fuck she was doing. The moment you looked into your fiancé’s eyes, was the moment you snapped out of it, feeling your soul entering your body again, letting you realize what’s happening in first person. He grabbed your hand and looked at you with warm, sad eyes. He knew. “I’m sorry, I-” you whispered, even before the pastor could open up his bible. “It’s okay, go,” was all he said, rubbing his thumb over your hand, reassuring you to go for what you loved. Go for whom you loved. People gasped left and right, whispers filling the holy halls as the bride run down the aisle, pushing open the big wooden doors, her eyes immediately falling onto him. Her lover, her best friend, her other half. Bakugo Katsuki. His back was turned to you, shoulders shaking ever so gently while his best friend towered over his frame, trying his hardest to console the blond. It was Kirishima who noticed you first, pointing at you as Bakugo turned around, not a moment too late as you fell into his arms. “I love you Bakugo Katsuki, I have ever since day one. I was stupid enough to walk away from you once, I won’t do it again. If you don’t want me back I understand, but if I don’t try then-” his lips on your shut you up, first a small amount of shock pumping through your veins, the warm feeling of love and safety replacing it within seconds. “Run away with me?” he asked you, displaying his beautiful smile. “Of course I will, without you I’m just a half, because you’re a part of me, the best.”

©Kirishoshego

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cielrouge · 3 years

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YA SFF Books by Asian Authors

Ash by Malinda Lo: In this variation on the Cinderella story, Ash grows up believing in the fairy realm that the king and his philosophers have sought to suppress, until one day she must choose between a handsome fairy cursed to love her and the King’s Huntress whom she loves.

Along the Indigo by Elsie Chapman: Marsden yearns to take her sister and escape Glory, a town famous for seedy businesses, but her friendship with Jude yields secrets that may chain them to the Indigo River forever.

Alpha Goddess by Amalie Howard: In this sci-fi retelling of Ramayana, Sera is a Hindu goddess incarnate and must battle between her good and evil sides in order to save the world from becoming hell on earth.

Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days #1) by Susan Ee: It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her 17-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back. Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel, Raffe.

The Archer at Dawn (The Tiger at Midnight #2) by Swati Teerdhala: Set in an Indian & Hindu-inspired world, long-held secrets will force Kunal and Esha to reconsider their loyalties—to their country and to each other.

The Athena Protocol by Shamim Sarif: After being fired from the Athena Protocol, an organization of female spies who enact vigilante justice, Jessie Archer investigates a human trafficking case in Belgrade, while her former teammates have been tasked with bringing her down.

Blood of a Thousand Stars (Empress of a Thousand Skies #2) by Rhoda Belleza: Rhee risks her crown to negotiate peace terms with villainous media star Nero, while framed assassin Aly plots revenge and Kara seeks technology that will erase her royal past.

The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco: Tea’s gift for death magic means that she is a bone witch, a title that makes her feared and ostracized by her community, but when an older bone witch trains her to become an asha - one who can wield elemental magic - Tea will have to overcome her obstacles and make a powerful choice in the face of danger as dark forces approach.

The Bronzed Beasts (The Gilded Wolves #3) by Roshani Chokshi: With only ten days until Laila expires, the crew will face plague pits and deadly masquerades, unearthly songs, and the shining steps of a temple whose powers might offer divinity itself, but at a price they may not be willing to pay.

The Beast Player by Nahoko Uehashi: An epic YA fantasy about a girl with a special power to communicate with magical beasts and the warring kingdom only she can save.

The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh: In 19th century New Orleans where vampires hide in plain sight, half-Asian Celine Rosseau, a dressmaker from Paris, becomes embroiled in a murder mystery, connected to the glamorous supernatural cohort, known as the Court of Lions, and catching the eye of their mysterious, charismatic leader, Sèbastien Saint Germain.

Broken Web (Shamanborn #2) by Lori M. Lee: With Queen Meilyr bent on destroying the magical kingdoms, Sirscha becomes caught between a war in the east and the Soulless in the west.

The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad: Set in the city of Noor, along the Silk Road which has become a refuge for those of all faiths, Fatima becomes embroiled in a war between two clans of powerful djinn who threaten to destroy her peace in different ways, forcing her to make unlikely alliances to survive.

Caster by Elsie Chapman: In this Chinese-inspired, magical Fight Club, Earth is already at the brink of environmental disaster due to the magic overuse. And 16-year-old spell caster Aza Wu must navigate through an illegal, underground battle magic tournament, while evading local gangs and police scouts to save her family from ruin.

Catalyst by Lydia Kang: Zelia Benten has lost her father, the love of her life, and any future she might have imagined for herself. Now she, her sister, and the band of illegal genetic outcasts they’ve come to call their family are forced to run when the safety of their foster home is compromised.

A Clash of Steel (A Treasure Island Remix) by C.B. Lee: Set in 1820s China, Xiah joins Anh and her motley crew in pursuit of the hidden treasure of the legendary Dragon Fleet.

Chainbreaker (Timekeeper #2) by Tara Sim: In 1876, someone is destroying the clock towers that control India’s time. Teenage mechanics Danny Hart and half-white, half-Indian Daphne Richards as they travel to Agra to investigate a series of clock tower bombings.

The Chariot at Dusk (Tiger at Midnight #3) by Swati Teerdhala: In the final book of this epic fantasy trilogy, the lands’ fate, their people’s livelihoods, and the bond that sustains their world all depend on what Kunal and Esha can offer—to the gods and to each other.

Champion (Legend #3) by Marie Lu: June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic--and each other--and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. Just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic's border cities.

Circle of Shadows by Evelyn Skye: Love, spies, and adventure abound as apprentice warriors Sora and Daemon unravel a complex web of magic and secrets that might tear them—and the entire kingdom—apart forever.

Control by Lydia Kang: In 2150, when genetic manipulation has been outlawed, seventeen-year-old Zelia must rescue her kidnapped sister with the help of a band of outcasts with mutated genes.

Court of Lions (Mirage #2) by Somaiya Daud: After being swept up into the brutal Vathek court, Amani, the ordinary girl forced to serve as the half-Vathek princess Maram’s body double, is desperate to continue helping the rebellion But can she bear to remain separated, forever, from Maram's fiancé, Idris?

Cross Fire (Exo #2) by Fonda Lee: When the peaceful alien-run government withdraws from Earth, it seems that the terrorist group Sapience is going to get the "free" Earth it wanted; but Donovan Reyes, member of the security forces, and once a prisoner of Sapience, realizes that freedom comes with a price.

The Crown’s Game by Evelyn Skye: Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia. The Tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death.

The Crown’s Fate (The Crown’s Game #2) by Evelyn Skye: Vika struggles with dangers in her new role as the Imperial Enchanter while Pasha faces disputes about his legitimacy and Nikolai considers how far he is willing to go to return to the world.

A Crown of Wishes (Star-Touched Queen #2) by Roshani Chokshi: Gauri, princess of Bharata, has been captured by her kingdom's enemies and faces a future of exile and scorn--she has nothing left to lose. But Vikram, the notoriously cunning prince of a neighboring land, promises her freedom in exchange for her partnership on his team to win the Tournament of Wishes.

The Damned (The Beautiful #2) by Renée Ahdieh: Sébastien Saint Germain is now cursed and forever changed. The price of loving Celine Rousseau was costly. But as Bastien and Celine begin to uncover the danger around them, they learn their love could tear them apart.

Dark Goddess (Alpha Goddess #2) by Amalie Howard: In this Indian-inspired fantasy, a girl who is the avatar of the goddess Lakshmi must work to prevent the apocalypse at the hands of demons.

Dark Goddess (Templar Chronicles #2) by Sarwat Chadda: Billi SanGreal, a teenaged member of the Knights Templar, must prevent a young girl, who is being hunted by werewolves because of the dangerous powers she possesses, from falling into the hands of the ancient Russian witch, Baba Yaga.

Daughter of Dusk (Midnight Thief #2) by Livia Blackburne: After learning the truth about her bloodlines, Kyra can’t help but feel like a monster. As tensions rise within Forge’s Council, and a vicious Demon Rider attacks continue in surrounding villages, Kyra knows she must do something to save her city.

Descendant of the Crane by Joan He: In this Chinese-inspired fantasy, Princess Hesina of Yan is thrust into power when her beloved father is murdered, and she’s determined to find his killer–whatever the cost.

The Devil’s Kiss (Templar Chronicles #1) by Sarwat Chadda: 15-year-old Billi SanGreal has grown up knowing that being a member of the Knights Templar puts her in danger, but if she is to save London from catastrophe she must make sacrifices greater than she imagined.

The Devil’s Thief (The Last Magician #2) by Lisa Maxwell: Esta and Harte set off on a cross-country chase through time to steal back the elemental stones they need to save the future of magic.

Divided (Dualed #2) by Elsie Chapman: When the Board goes after West Grayer for refusing to kill her next target, West must uncover the truth of the past to survive.

Dove Arising by Karen Bao: On a lunar colony, 15-old Phaet Theta does the unthinkable and joins the Militia when her mother is imprisoned by the Moon's oppressive government.

Dove Exiled (Dove Chronicles #2) by Karen Bao: Phaet’s past catches up with her when the Lunar Bases attack the community and reveal that Phaet is a fugitive. She’s torn between staying on Earth with Wes—whom she’s just discovered her feelings for—and stowing away on a Moon-bound ship to rescue her siblings.

Dove Alight (Dove Chronicles #3) by Karen Bao: Shy, introverted Phaet Theta has gone from being a top student to an interplanetary fugitive to the reluctant but fierce leader of a revolution. But as the death tolls rise, the cost of the war weighs heavily on Phaet. Phaet started this war because she lost someone she loved. Will she have to lose another to end it?

Eclipse the Stars by Maura Milan: Criminal mastermind and unrivaled pilot Ia Ccha and her allies make unpredictable choices as they fight to keep darkness from eclipsing the skies.

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir: Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan, Laia, fighting for her family and a soldier, Elias, fighting for his freedom.

Empress of All Seasons by Emiko Jean: During a once-in-a-generation competition to find the new empress, Mari, who hides a terrible secret, Taro, the prince who would denounce the imperial throne, and Akira, a half-human outcast, will decide the fate of Honoku.

Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza: Two sisters, Rhee and Kara—sole survivors of a murdered royal lineage - must reunite from opposite ends of the galaxy to salvage what’s left of their family dynasty and save the universe from a greater threat.

End of Days (Penryn & The End of Days #3) by Susan Ee: After a daring escape, Penryn and Raffe are on the run, but a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all. When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

The Epic Crush of Genie Lo by F.C. Yee: 15-year-old Genie Lo wonders if she’s qualified enough to gain admission to an Ivy League school, then becomes powerful enough to break through the gates of Heaven with her fists.

The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2) by Julie Kagawa: Cast out of Eden and separated from the boy she dared to love, Allison Sekemoto will follow the call of blood to save her creator, Kanin, from the psychotic vampire Sarren. But when the trail leads to Allie's birthplace in New Covington, what Allie finds there will change the world forever--and possibly end human and vampire existence.

The Ever Cruel Kingdom (The Never Tilting World #2) by Rin Chupeco: To break the cycle of sacrifice, twins Haidee and Odessa need answers that lie beyond the seven gates of the underworld, within the Cruel Kingdom itself. The shadows of the underworld may hunger to tear them apart, but these two sisters are determined to heal their world—together.

Exo by Fonda Lee: For a century now, Earth has been a peaceful colony of an alien race, and Donovan Reyes is a loyal member of the security forces, while his father is the Prime Liaison–but when a routine search and seizure goes bad Donovan finds himself a captive of the human revolutionary group, Sapience, terrorists who seem to prefer war to alien rule, and killing Donovan just might be the incident they are looking for.

Fair Coin by E.C. Myers: When evil versions of himself and best friend Nate appear one day, teenaged Ephraim embarks on a dangerous odyssey through parallel worlds to make things right.

Firestarter (Timekeeper #3) by Tara Sim: Colton, Daphne, and the others must choose between those striving to take down the world’s clock towers so that time can run freely, and terrorists trying to bring back the lost god of time.

Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns #4) by Kendare Blake: In this conclusion to the Three Dark Crowns series, three dark sisters will rise to fight as the secrets of Fennbirn’s history are laid bare. Allegiances will shift. Bonds will be tested, and some broken forever.

Flame in the Mist by Renee Adhieh: The daughter of a prominent samurai, Mariko is promised to Minamoto Raiden. But en route to the imperial city of Inako, Mariko narrowly escapes a bloody ambush by the Black Clan. Dressed as a peasant boy, Mariko sets out to infiltrate the ranks of this gang. But she’s quickly captured and taken to the Black Clan’s secret hideout, where she meets their leader, the rebel ronin Takeda Ranmaru.

For A Muse of Fire by Heidi Heilig: 16-year-old shadow puppeteer Jetta Chantray performs with her family’s traveling troupe, the Ros Nai. But as rebellion seethes and as Jetta meets a young smuggler, she will face truths and decisions that she never imagined—and safety will never seem so far away.

Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee: Sirscha Ashwyn, while training to become the queen’s next royal spy, discovers she’s a rare and powerful lightwender and is summoned to the realm of the Spider King, where her newly awakened abilities are needed to cull the bloodthirsty Dead Wood.

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao: A reimagining of the evil queen from Snow White based on Asian mythology in which 18-year-old Xifeng must unleash a jealous god on the world and set free the viciousness of her own soul in order to become Empress.

The Forever Song (Blood of Eden #3) by Julie Kagawa: Allie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren. But Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions as his trail leads straight to the one place they must protect at any cost -- the last vampire-free zone on Earth.

Fury of the Phoenix (Kingdom of Xia #2) by Cindy Pon: When Ai Ling leaves her home and family to accompany Chen Yong on his quest to find his father, haunted by the ancient evil she thought she had banished to the underworld, she must use her growing supernatural powers to save Chen Yong from the curses that follow her.

Gates of Thread and Stone by Lori M. Lee: A teenage girl must keep her ability to manipulate the threads of time a secret, but when her brother goes missing, she risks getting caught up in a revolution in order to save him.

Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta: Eris Shindanai and Sona Steelcrest, two girls on opposite sides of a war fought with Windups, giant mechanizes weapons, discover they’re fighting for a common purpose–and falling for each other.

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi: Paris, 1889: Treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier, Séverin Montagnet-Alarie gets the chance of a lifetime when the all-powerful society, the Order of Babel, seeks him out for help in exchange for a priceless treasure: his true inheritance.

The Girl From Everywhere by Heidi Heilig: From modern-day New York City to nineteenth-century Hawaii to places of myth and legend, 16-year-old Nix has sailed across the globe and through centuries aboard her time-traveling father’s ship. But when he gambles with her very existence, it all may be about to end.

The Girl From the Well by Rin Chupeco: Okiku has wandered the world for centuries, but when she meets Tark she knows the moody teen with the series of intricate tattoos is not a monster and needs to be freed from the demonic malevolence that clings to him.

The Girl King by Mimi Yu: Sisters Lu and Min become unwitting rivals in a war to claim the title of Emperor.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust: As the day of her twin brother’s wedding approaches, Princess Soraya must decide if she’s willing to step outside of the shadows for the first time.

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan: When Lei, seventeen, is stolen from her home to become one of nine Paper Girls, the Demon King's concubines, she proves to be more fire than paper.

Girls of Storm and Shadow (Girls of Paper and Fire #2) by Natasha Ngan: After escaping the Hidden Palace, Lei and her warrior love Wren must travel the kingdom to gain support from the far-flung rebel clans.

Girls of Fate and Fury (Girls of Paper and Fire #3) by Natasha Ngan: The last Lei saw of the girl she loved, Wren, was fighting an army of soldiers in a furious battle to the death. With the two girls torn apart and each in terrorizing peril, will they find each other again or have their destinies diverged forever.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh: A feminist retelling of the Korean folktale The Tale of Shim Cheong, set in a town where every year a girl is sacrificed to the sea to stop torrential rains, but when a brave teen girl dives in herself to protect a loved one, she discovers a spirit kingdom in need of saving.

The Great Destroyers by Caroline Tung Richmond: set in alt-history, 1960s America where WWI & WII were fought with giant mechs, biracial Chinese American teen Jo Linden is Team USA’s most unlikely pick in the annual Pax Games, an Olympic-style competition that pits mecha pilots against each other.

The Heartforger (Bone Witch #2) by Rin Chupeco: With a thirst for vengeance, a band of terrifying daeva at her command, and her resurrected lover Kalen by her side, dark asha Tea is ready to face her adversaries.

A House of Rage and Sorrow (Celestial Trilogy #2) by Sangu Mandanna: As gods, beasts, and kingdoms choose sides, Alexi seeks out a weapon more devastating than even Titania. The House of Rey is at war. And the entire galaxy will bleed before the end.

Huntress by Malinda Lo: 17-year-olds Kaede and Taisin are called to go on a dangerous and unprecedented journey to Tanlili, the city of the Fairy Queen, in an effort to restore the balance of nature in the human world.

Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan: When outlaw Ia Ccha is captured by the Olympus Commonwealth and revealed to be a 16-year-old girl, they force her to serve them by joining the Commonwealth's military academy where new acquaintances cause Ia to question her own alliances.

The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1) by Julie Kagawa: Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city, until she too becomes an immortal vampire. Forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls, she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend -- a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

Inferno (Talon #5) by Julie Kagawa: Ember Hill has learned a shocking truth about herself: she is the blood of the Elder Wyrm, the ancient dragon who leads Talon and who is on the verge of world domination. With the stakes rising and the Elder Wyrm declaring war, time is running out for the rogues and any dragon not allied with Talon. The final battle approaches. And if Talon is victorious, the world will burn.

The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman: Japanese American teen Nami Miyamoto finds herself in a limitless world where the human consciousness goes after death, where she battles an AI entity posing as a queen that has hacked its way into the afterlife.

Isle of Blood and Stone by Makiia Lucier: Mysterious maps from opposite ends of the sea cast doubt on the whereabouts of two princes, presumed dead.

Jade Fire Gold by June C.L. Tan: A debut fantasy inspired by Chinese mythology, in which peasant girl Anh, cursed with the power to steal souls enters a tenuous alliance with exiled prince Altan, bent on taking back the dragon throne, and save the empire from a cult of dangerous priests.

Journey to the Heart of the Abyss (Light in the Abyss #2) by London Shah: Leyla McQueen has finally reunited with her father after breaking him out of Broadmoor, the illegal government prison—but his freedom comes at a terrible cost. As Leyla celebrates his return, she must grapple with the pain of losing Ari. Now labeled the nation’s number one enemy, Leyla must risk illegal travel through unchartered waters for the truth behind her father’s arrest.

Hunted by the Sky by Tanaz Bhathena: Set in a world inspired by medieval India, the story tells of a girl, Gul, with a star-shaped birthmark who is prophesied to be the downfall of a tyrant king, the warrior women who come to her aid, and the boy she falls in love with.

The Keeper of the Night by Kylie Lee Baker: set in 1890s Japan, half-British reaper, half-Japanese Shinigami Ren Scarborough flees London and enters the Japanese underworld under the service of Izanami, the goddess of death.

King (Dragon King Chronicles #3) by Ellen Oh: Girl warrior, demon slayer, Tiger spirit of the Yellow Eyes - Kira is ready for her final quest! She must save her cousin, the boy fated to be the future king, uncover the third lost treasure, and face innumerable enemies in order to fulfill the famed prophecy.

A Kingdom for the Stage (For A Muse of Fire #2) by Heidi Heilig: The rebels are eager to use Le Trépas’s and necromancer Jetta’s combined magic against the invading colonists. Soon Jetta will face the choice between saving all of Chakrana or becoming like her father, and she isn’t sure which she’ll choose.

Kingdom of the Blazing Phoenix (Rise of the Empress #2) by Julie C. Dao: Princess Jade has grown up in exile while her stepmother, the ruthless Xifeng, rules Feng Lu. Ready to reclaim her place, Jade embarks on a quest to raise the Dragon Lords and defeat Xifeng and the Serpent God once and for all.

Legend by Marie Lu: In a dark future, when North America has split into two warring nations, 15-year-olds Day, a famous criminal, and prodigy June, the brilliant soldier hired to capture him, discover that they have a common enemy.

Legion (Talon #4) by Julie Kagawa: The legions are about to be unleashed, and no human, rogue dragon or former dragon slayer can stand against the coming horde in book 4 out of the Talon series.

The Library of Fates by Aditi Khorana: Amrita must unravel the mysteries of her past to save her kingdom, but in doing so, she herself might come unraveled.

The Light At the Bottom of the World by London Shah: Set in a future where the Earth is underwater, Leyla McQueen must navigate the treacherous abyss to find her missing father, but discovers a world drowning in lies.

Live in Infamy by Caroline Tung Richmond: 80 years since the Axis won World War II, and America was divided between the victors: the Nazis in the East and Imperial Japan in the West; but now resistance is growing in the Eastern territories and 16-year-old Chinese American Ren Cabot finds himself drawn into a resistance group.

The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna: 15-year-old Eva is the clone of a girl living far, far away on another continent--and when this 'other' dies, Eva must step in and take over her life.

The Infinite (Gates of Thread and Stone #2) by Lori M. Lee: Kai always believed the only danger to the city came from within. Now, with a rebel force threatening the fragile government, the walls have become more of a prison than ever. To make matters worse, as Avan explores his new identity as an Infinite, Kai struggles to remind him what it means to be human.

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao: blending Chinese history and mecha science, Wu Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. Features a poly F/M/M main romance.

The Iron Will of Genie Lo (Epic Crush of Genie Lo #2) by F.C. Yee: Along with a few other contenders for the throne, heaven-appointed guardian Genie and her friends embark on a Heavenly quest to an in-between world.

The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen: An intergenerational story of a mother and son struggling to relate to each other—the mother an immigrant to America who wants to make a home for her family in an unfamiliar country; the son Tiế trying to figure out the best way to come out to his parents. Through telling each other fairy tales, they’re able to find common ground.

The Magnolia Sword: A Ballad of Mulan by Sherry Thomas: When her ailing father is conscripted to fight invaders from the north, Mulan dresses as a man to take his place in the army, but an old enemy and an attraction for her troop's commander complicate her mission.

The Memory Keepers by Natasha Ngan: Seven is a thief with a difference - he steals downloadable memories from banks and memoriums to sell onto London’s black market. But one night, as Seven is breaking into a private memorium in a wealthy part of London, he is caught in the act by one of its residents; Alba, the teenage daughter of London’s most famous criminal prosecutor.

The Memory Key by Liana Liu: In the not-so-distant future, everyone is implanted with a memory key to stave off a virulent form of Alzeimer's. Lora Mint fears her memories of her deceased mother are fading, but when her memory key is damaged she has perfect recall--of everything-- which brings her mother's memory vividly back--but may also drive Lora mad.

The Mermaid, The Witch, and The Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall: A desperate orphan turned pirate, Flora, and a rebellious imperial daughter, Lady Evelyn Hasegawa, find a connection on the high seas abroad the Dove, in a world divided by colonialism and threaded with magic.

The Midnight Star (Young Elites #3) by Marie Lu: Adelina is forced to revisit old wounds when a new danger appears, putting not only Adelina at risk, but every Elite. In order to save herself and preserve her empire, Adelina and her Roses must join the Daggers on a perilous quest—though this uneasy alliance may prove to be the real danger.

The Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne: Kyra, a highly skilled 17-year-old thief, joins a guild of assassins with questionable motives. Tristam, a young knight, fights against the vicious Demon Riders that are ravaging the city.

Mirage by Somaiya Daud: In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, 18-year-old Amani is forced to work as a body double for the princess who is hated by her conquered people.

The Never Tilting World by Rin Chupeco: In a world ruled by goddesses that has been split in two—one half existing in perpetual scorching Day, the other in freezing Night—twins separated at birth Odessa and Haidee embark on a quest across the great divide and rule a reunited world.

Mooncakes by Wendy Xu & Suzanne Walker: Teen witch Nova Huang runs into her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help.

Moribito, Guardian of the Spirit by Nahoko Uehashi: The wandering warrior Balsa is hired to protect Prince Chagum from both a mysterious monster and the prince's father, the Mikado.

Moribito II, Guardian of the Darkness by Nahoko Uehashi: The wandering female bodyguard Balsa returns to her native country of Kanbal, where she uncovers a conspiracy to frame her mentor and herself.

Night of the Dragon (Shadow of the Fox #3) by Julie Kagawa: As darkness rises and chaos reigns, fierce kitsune shapeshifter Yumeko and her shadowy protector Kage Tatsumi, will face down the greatest evil of all.

Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee: Resigned to a life without superpowers in a world full of them, Jess takes a paid internship where she helps a heinous supervillain and works with her longtime crush Abby, but stumbles on a massive plot.

Not Your Villain (Sidekick Squad #2) by C.B. Lee: After discovering a massive cover-up by the Heroes’ League of Heroes, shapeshifter Bells Broussard and his friends Jess, Emma, and Abby set off on a secret mission to find the Resistance.

Not Your Backup by C.B. Lee (Sidekick Squad #3): As the Resistance moves to challenge the corrupt League of Heroes, Emma Robledo realizes where her place is in this fight: at the front.

On This Unworthy Scaffold (Shadow Players #3) by Heidi Heilig: Jetta’s home is spiraling into civil war.Le Trépas—the deadly necromancer—has used his blood magic to wrest control of the country. Meanwhile, Jetta’s love interest, brother, and friend are intent on infiltrating the palace to stop the Boy King and find Le Trépas to put an end to the unleashed chaos.

The Only Thing to Fear by Caroline Tung Richmond: After 70 years since Hitler's armies won the war, 16-year-old Zara St. James lives in the Shenandoah hills, part of the Eastern American Territories, under the rule of the Nazis--but a resistance movement is growing.

The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He: In a near future when life is harsh outside of Earth’s last unpolluted place, Cee tries to leave an abandoned island while her sister, STEM prodigy Kasey Mizuhara, seeks escape from the science and home she once trusted.

One Dark Throne (Three Dark Crowns #2) by Kendare Blake: Preparing for the queens' sixteenth birthday celebration and navigating the fallout of the Quickening, sisters Arsinoe, Katharine, and Mirabella reassess their strategic paths to the throne using new understandings of their powers and destinies.

Our Violent Ends (These Violent Delights #2) by Chloe Gong: In 1927, Shanghai tethers on the edge of revolution. After sacrificing her relationship with Roma to protect him from the blood feud, Juliette has been a girl on the warpath. Then a new monstrous danger emerges in the city, and while secrets keep them apart, Juliette must secure Roma’s cooperation if they are to end this threat.

Prodigy (Legend #2) by Marie Lu: June and Day make their way to Las Vegas where they join the rebel Patriot group and become involved in an assassination plot against the Elector in hopes of saving the Republic.

Quantum Coin (Fair Coin #2) by E.C. Myers: Ephraim, Jena, and Zoe embark on a mission across multiple worlds to learn what's going wrong and how to stop it. They will have to draw on every resource available and trust in alternate versions of themselves and their friends, before it's too late for all of them.

Ravage the Dark (Scavenge the Stars #2) by Tara Sim: After escaping the city of Moray, Amaya and Cayo head to the port city of Baleine to find the mysterious Benefactor and put a stop to the counterfeit currency that is spreading Ash Fever throughout the kingdoms.

The Reader by Traci Chee: Set in a world where reading is unheard-of, Sefia makes use of a mysterious object to track down who kidnapped her aunt Nin and what really happened the night her father was murdered.

A Reaper At the Gates (An Ember in the Ashes #3) by Sabaa Tahir: Beyond the Empire and within it, the threat of war looms ever larger as the Blood Shrike, Helene Aquilla, Laia of Serra, and Elias Veturius all face increasing dangers.

Rebel (Legend #4) by Marie Lu: Brothers Eden and Daniel Wing struggle to accept who they’ve each become since their time in the Republic, but a new danger creeps into the distance that’s grown between them. Eden soon finds himself drawn so far into Ross City’s dark side, even his legendary brother can’t save him. At least not on his own.

Rebelwing by Andrea Tang: At a prestigious prep school, scholastic student Prudence Wu, who smuggles censored media in a futuristic North America divided by culture wars and becomes an unlikely revolutionary, after being imprinted by Rebelwing, a sentient cybernetic dragon.

Renegade Flight (Rebelwing #2) by Andrea Tang: Pilot-in-training Viola Park, a probationary student at GAN Academy, enters a mech combat tournament that becomes a fight for the future of Peacekeepers everywhere.

Rising Like a Storm (The Wrath of Ambar #2) by Tanaz Bhathena: Gul and Cavas must unite their magical forces―and hold onto their growing romance―to save their kingdom from tyranny.

The Righteous (The Beautiful #3) by Renée Ahdieh: Pippa Montrose is tired of losing everything she loves. When her best friend Celine disappears under mysterious circumstances, Pippa resolves to find her, even if the journey takes her into the dangerous world of the fae, where she might find more than she bargained for in the charismatic Arjun Desai.

The Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee: The never-before-told backstory of Avatar Kyoshi, from a girl of humble origins to the merciless pursuer of justice who is still feared and admired centuries after she became the Avatar.

Rogue (Talon #2) by Julie Kagawa: Unable to forget the human boy who saved her from a Talon assassin, Ember is determined to save him from execution with the help of rebel dragon Cobalt and his crew of rogues.

Rogue Heart (Rebel Seoul #2) by Axie Oh: Two years after the Battle of Neo Seoul, telepath Ama must use her telepathic abilities to infiltrate the base of the Alliance’s new war commander, Alex Kim, her first love who betrayed her.

The Rose and the Dagger (Wrath and the Dawn #2) by Renee Adhieh: Unsure who to trust, Shahrzad takes matters into her own hands to try and break the curse and reunite with her one true love.

The Rose Society (Young Elites #2) by Marie Lu: Adelina Amouteru’s heart has suffered at the hands of both family and friends, turning her down the bitter path of revenge. Now known and feared as the White Wolf, she and her sister flee Kenettra to find other Young Elites in the hopes of building her own army of allies. Her goal: to strike down the Inquisition Axis.

Ruse (Want #2) by Cindy Pon: In near-future Shanghai where society is divided between the fabulously wealthy business elite and the masses they exploit, Jason Zhou must play a dangerous cat and mouse game with the ruthless CEO of an all powerful corporation which has an ever-growing choke hold on the polluted metropolis.

Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim: In the city-state of Moray, Amaya, orphaned by a powerful merchant’s greed and condemned to seven years aboard a debtor’s ship, returns to seek revenge only to encounter the merchant’s son in this gender-swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo.

Serpentine by Cindy Pon: Although 16-year-old Skybright feels lucky to be the handmaid and companion to the daughter of a wealthy family, she is hiding a secret that threatens to destroy her position and her closest relationships.

Sacrifice (Serpertine #2) by Cindy Pon: When Zhen Ni discovers that her new husband, the strange and brutish Master Hou, may not be all he seems, Skybright and Stone must travel through the terrifying underworld to save her.

Seven Deadly Shadows by Courtney Alameda & Valynne Maetani: Set in contemporary Japan, Shinto temple priestess Kira Fujikawa, must seek the aid of seven ruthless shinigami, in order to protect Kyoto from an ancient evil.

Shatter the Sky by Rebecca Kim Wells: Maren, desperate to save her kidnapped girlfriend Kaia, plans to steal one of the emperor’s dragons and storm the Aurati stronghold, but her success depends on becoming an apprentice to the mysterious dragon trainer, which proves to be a dangerous venture.

Talon by Julie Kagawa: In a world in which near-extinct dragons pass as humans to grow their numbers secretly, siblings Ember and Dante Hill prepare for destined positions in the world of Talon only to be hunted by a dragon-slaying soldier.

The Ship Beyond Time (Girl From Everywhere #2) by Heidi Heilig: Nix has escaped her past, but when the person she loves most is at risk, even the daughter of a time traveler may not be able to outrun her fate—no matter where she goes.

The Shadow Mission (The Athena Protocol #2) by Shamim Sharif: Jessie Archer faced down death to prove her dedication to Athena, the elite organization of female spies she works for. Now she’s back on the team, in time to head to Pakistan to take down the man whose actions spurred Athena’s founders to create the secretive squad.

The Shadow of Kyoshi (Kyoshi #2) by F.C. Yee: Kyoshi’s place as the true Avatar has finally been cemented. With her mentors gone, Kyoshi voyages across the Four Nations, struggling to keep the peace. But while her reputation grows, a mysterious threat emerges from the Spirit World. To stop it, Kyoshi, Rangi, and their reluctant allies must join forces.

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa: Demons have burned the temple Yumeko was raised in to the ground, killing everyone within, including the master who trained her to both use and hide her kitsune shapeshifting powers. Yumeko escapes with the temple’s greatest treasure—one part of the ancient scroll. Fate thrusts her into the path of a mysterious samurai, Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan. Yumeko knows he seeks what she has…and is under orders to kill anything and anyone who stands between him and the scroll.

Shadow Girl by Liana Liu: When Mei arrives at the beautiful home on Arrow Island, she can't help feeling relieved. She's happy to spend the summer tutoring a rich man's daughter if it means a break from her normal life. Yet she can't shake her fear that there is danger lurking in the shadows of this beautiful house, a darkness that could destroy the family inside and out...and Mei along with them.

Shadowsong (Wintersong #2) by S. Jae-Jones: Liesl is working toward furthering both her brother’s and her own musical careers. But when troubling signs arise that the barrier between worlds is crumbling, Liesl must return to the Underground to unravel the mystery of life, death, and the Goblin King—who he was, who he is, and who he will be.

Smoke in the Sun (A Flame in the Mist #2) by Renee Ahdieh: After Okami is captured in the Jukai forest, Mariko has no choice—to rescue him, she tricks her brother, Kenshin, and betrothed, Raiden, into thinking she was being held by the Black Clan against her will. But each secret Mariko unfurls gives way to the next, ensnaring her and Okami in a political scheme that threatens their honor, their love and very the safety of the empire.

Sisters of the Snake by Sasha & Sarena Nanua: an Indian-inspired fantasy where twins separated at birth—one now a princess, the other a street thief— must switch places in a bid to stop a catastrophic war that threatens to tear their kingdom apart.

Silver Phoenix (Kingdom of Xia #1) by Cindy Pon: With her father long overdue from his journey and a lecherous merchant blackmailing her into marriage, 17-year-old Ai Ling becomes aware of a strange power within her as she goes in search of her parent.

The Silvered Serpents (The Gilded Wolves #2) by Roshani Chokshi: Séverin and his team members might have successfully thwarted the Fallen House, but at a terrible cost. Desperate to make amends, Séverin pursues a dangerous lead to find a long lost artifact rumored to grant its possessor the power of God. Their hunt lures them far from Paris, and into icy heart of Russia.

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim: The Wild Swans meets East Asian fantasy where an exiled princess, Shiori, must unweave the curse that turned her brothers into cranes, assisted by her spurned betrothed, a mercurial dragon, and a paper bird brought to life by her own magic.

A Sky Beyond the Storm (An Ember in the Ashes #4) by Sabaa Tahir: Laia of Serra is now allied with the Blood Shrike, Helen Aquilla. Determined to stop the approaching apocalypse, she throws herself into the destruction of the Nightbringer. In the process, she awakens an ancient power that could lead her to victory–or to an unimaginable doom.

Skyhunter by Marie Lu: Robbed of her voice and home, Talin Kanami knows firsthand the brutality of the Federation. Their cruelty forced her and her mother to seek asylum in Mara. When a mysterious prisoner is brought from the front, Talin senses there’s more to him than meets the eye.

The Shadow Glass (Bone Witch #3) by Rin Chupeco: Bone witch Tea’s dark magic eats away at her, but she must save the one she loves most, even while her life—and the kingdoms—are on the brink of destruction.

Song of the Abyss (Towers of Wind #2) by Makiia Lucier: When menacing raiders attack her ship, navigator Reyna must use every resource at her disposal, including placing her trust in a handsome prince from a rival kingdom.

Song of the Crimson Flower by Julie C. Dao: After cruelly rejecting Bao, the poor physician’s apprentice who loves her, Lan, a wealthy nobleman’s daughter, regrets her actions. After learning that Bao’s soul has been trapped inside a flute by a witch, Lan vows to make amends and help break the spell.

Soul of the Sword (Shadow of the Fox #2) by Julie Kagawa: As the paths of Yumeko and the possessed Tatsumi cross once again, the entire empire will be thrown into chaos.

A Spark of White Fire by Sangu Mandanna: In this sci-fi retelling of the Mahabrahata, Esmae learns that the King of Wychstar is offering the unbeatable warship Titania to the winner of his competition and she sees her chance to return home and help her brother win back his kingdom.

The Speaker (Sea of Ink and Gold #2) by Traci Chee: Having barely escaped the clutches of the Guard, Sefia and Archer are back on the run, slipping into the safety of the forest to tend to their wounds and plan their next move.

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim: 17-year-old Maia Tamarin poses as a boy to compete for the role of imperial tailor, and embarks on an impossible journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the stars, with help from the mysterious court magician, Edan.

Spell Starter (Caster #2) by Elsie Chapman: Yes, Aza Wu now has magic back, but now she’s in the employ of the gang leader, St. Willow. Who soon decides that having Aza as a fighter is much more lucrative than as a fixer.

Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar: Inspired by Hindu mythology, half-mortal, half-star Sheetal enters a celestial competition to save her human father’s life.

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi: Treated with scorn and fear in her father's kingdom because of a formidable horoscope, 16-year-old Maya commits herself to her education only to land in an arranged marriage that culminates in her sudden elevation to the throne, a situation that is threatened by dark secrets and Otherworldly magic.

Star-Touched Stories by Roshani Choski:Three lush and adventurous stories in the Star-Touched world.

Steelstriker (Skyhunter #2) by Marie Lu: After the fall of Mara, and with the fate of a broken world hanging in the balance, Talin and Red must reunite the Strikers and find their way back to one another.

Storm the Earth (Shatter the Sky #2) by Rebecca Kim Wells: Maren and her girlfriend Kaia set out to rescue Sev in Zafed, and free the dragons from the corrupt emperor.

The Storyteller (Sea of Ink and Gold #3) by Traci Chee: Sefia is determined to keep Archer out of the Guard’s clutches and their plans for war between the Five Kingdoms. As Sefia and Archer watch Kelanna start to crumble to the Guard’s will, they will have to choose between their love and joining a war that just might tear them apart.

Stronger Than A Bronze Dragon by Mary Fan: In this steampunk fantasy set in Qing dynasty-inspired China, warrior girl Anlei teams up with a thief to save her village from shadow spirits, but after arriving at the Courts of Hell, a discovery challenges everything they know about who the real enemy is.

The Suffering (Girl From the Well #2) by Rin Chupeco: When an old friend disappears in Aokigahara, Japan's infamous 'suicide forest,' Tark and the ghostly Okiku must resolve their differences and return to find her. In a strange village inside Aokigahara, old ghosts and an ancient evil lie waiting.

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong: In 1920s Shanghai, starcrossed heirs to rival gangs, Juliette Cai and Roma Montagov, must work together to face a monster that hunts the city streets before the outbreak of the Chinese Civil War.

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake: A fantasy about triplet sisters separated at birth, where one of the sisters will grow up to be queen of their magical island, but in order to ascend to the throne she must hone her magic for a dark purpose: assassinating her other two sisters before they kill her first.

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings edited by Ellen Oh & Elsie Chapman: 15 bestselling and acclaimed authors reimagine the folklore and mythology of East and South Asia in short stories that are by turns enchanting, heartbreaking, romantic, and passionate.

A Thousand Fires by Shannon Price: In modern-day San Francisco where three gangs rule the city streets, half-Filipina teen Valerie Simons enters the Red Bridge Wars to seek vengeance for her younger brother’s death, but soon finds herself torn between old love and new loyalty.

The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala: In ancient India, soldier Kunal hunts the “Viper,” rebel girl Esha accused of killing his General, embarking on a dangerous cat and mouse game and where both must decide—loyalty to their old lives or to a love that’s made them dream of new ones.

Timekeeper by Tara Sim: set in an alternate Victorian era where clock towers control time, about a teen clock mechanic who is assigned to repair a damaged tower and finds himself falling in forbidden love with the boy he mistakes for his apprentice, but is actually the tower’s clock spirit, and whose life is threatened by a mysterious attacker planting bombs in clock towers across England.

A Torch Against the Night (An Ember in the Ashes #2) by Sabaa Tahir: Laia and Elias fight their way north to liberate Laia’s brother from the horrors of Kauf Prison. Hunted by Empire soldiers, manipulated by the Commandant, and haunted by their pasts, Laia and Elias must outfox their enemies and confront the treacherousness of their own hearts.

Two Dark Reigns (Three Dark Crowns #3) by Kendare Blake: A victorious Katharine sits on the throne, Mirabella and Arsinoe are in hiding, and an unexpected renegade is about to wage a war of her own. The crown has been won, but these queens are far from done.

Unravel the Dusk (The Blood of Stars #2) by Elizabeth Lim: With a war brewing, master tailor Maia Tamarin will stop at nothing to find her love Edan, protect her family, and bring lasting peace to her country.

Vicious Spirits (Gumiho #2) by Kat Cho: With the support of Somin and Junu, Miyoung and Jihoon might just have a shot at normalcy. But Miyoung is getting sicker by the day and her friends don’t know how to save her. With few options remaining, Junu has an idea but it might require the ultimate sacrifice and, let’s be honest, Junu isn’t known for his “generosity.”

Want by Cindy Pon: Set in a teeming, pollution choked Taipei which follows a group of teens living on the seedy fringes of a highly divided society that works only for the elite as they decide to risk everything to take down the powerful company which controls the city.

Warcross by Marie Lu: When teenage coder Emika Chen hacks her way into the opening tournament of the Warcross Championships, she glitches herself into the game as well as a sinister plot with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.

Warrior (Dragon King Chronicles #2) by Ellen Oh: Kira, the yellow-eyed demon slayer of Hansong, continues her quest to find the lost treasures of the dragon king's prophecy, save her cousin, the prince, unite her kingdom, and defeat the demon lord

We Hunt the Flame (Sands of Arawiya #1) by Hafsah Faizal: In a world inspired by ancient Arabia, 17-year-old huntress Zafira must disguise herself as a man to seek a lost artifact that could return magic to her cursed world.

We Free the Stars (Sands of Arawiya #2) by Hafsah Faizal: When Zafria, the Hunter, and Nasir, the Prince of Death both embark on a quest to uncover a lost magic artifact, they encounter an ancient evil long thought destroyed - and discover that the prize they seek may be even more dangerous this time.

Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles: Showgirl Kallia, haunted by a dark past, must compete in a magician’s competition in order to secure her ambition and freedom from the handsome, enigmatic keeper of the club, Jack, even as mysterious accidents seem to plague her every move, while crossing paths with another talented magician, Demarco.

When Night Breaks (Kingdom of Hearts #2) by Janella Angeles: The competition has come to a disastrous end, and Daron Demarco’s fall from grace is now front page news. But little matters to him beyond Kallia, the contestant he fell for. With time running out, Kallia must embrace her role in a darker destiny.

Wicked Fox by Kat Cho: After 18-year-old Miyoung Gu, a nine-tailed fox surviving in modern-day Seoul by eating the souls of evil men, kills a murderous goblin to save Jihoon, she is forced to choose between her immortal life and his.

Wildcard (Warcross #2) by Marie Lu: Emika Chen barely made it out of the Warcross Championships alive. Knowing the truth behind Hideo's new NeuroLink algorithm, she is determined to put a stop to his plans.

The Wild Ones by Nafiza Azad: A a multi-perspective feminist narrative about a fierce band of magic-wielding girls—the Wild Ones—who have collectively survived unspeakable things, and together are determined to save other girls from the cruelties and tragedies they’ve had to endure in their own past lives.

Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones: After her sister is kidnapped by the Goblin King, Liesl journeys to the Underground and is faced with an impossible decision when she finds herself captivated by the strange world and its mysterious ruler.

Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco: A girl descended from Filipina mythological heroine Maria Makiling, finds herself caught up in a war between two fairy tale kingdoms, where the fate of Avalon is at stake.

Windborn by Mary Fan: With magicians hot on their trail, air nymph Kiri and magician’s apprentice Darien embark on a treacherous journey through dangerous lands to freedom.

World After (Penryn & The End of Days #2) by Susan Ee: Penryn's search for her kidnapped sister, Paige, leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans, while Raffe must choose between reclaiming his wings--and his role as the angels' leader--or helping Penryn survive.

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Adhieh: In this reimagining of The Arabian Nights, Shahrzad plans to avenge the death of her dearest friend by volunteering to marry the murderous boy-king of Khorasan but discovers not all is as it seems within the palace.

Zeroboxer by Fonda Lee: As 17-year-old Carr 'the Raptor' Luka rises to fame in the weightless combat sport of zeroboxing, he learns a devastating secret that jeopardizes not only his future in the sport, but interplanetary relations.

#authors of color #booklr #book recommendations #book recs #asian authors #yalit

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