#body electric ow ff

[dystopia-incognito]

Vox x OC - Day 1 - First Meeting

Vox, on his way home after a long night of clubbing is inebriated and caught off guard when being attacked by an unknown demon.

I wrote this Vox x Lila Sinclair for the @hazbinocxcanon Event Week and it contains some mild violence and cursing but is otherwise SFW.

The hard impact to his face screen had left Vox's head crackle, voice buffering and electronically distorted as he bellowed, "What the ff-f-u-uck?" His screen flashed, froze and crashed, displaying the ominous blue screen of death, street lights were snuffed out as he slumped down to the ground in the now pitch-black alleyway. The big brute of a demon that had hit him over the head towered over him, laughing as he kicked Vox sharply in the ribs. "Not so tough off camera huh, you flat-faced fuck." His menacing yellow eyes glowed with glee as he continued kicking Vox's limp body.

-

Lila's eyes flashed, and the extra six appeared and flitted around her in the now-dark street of the city as she heard someone yell from the alleyway she had passed. Her heart jumped. Should she risk it and check? Maybe someone needed help. Against all reason, she jogged back and apprehensively followed the sound of dark laughter.

Struggling to regain composure, Vox's screen flickered back to life, displaying a mix of colours before settling on its usual deep blue tone. He grunted in pain as he tried to push himself up, only to be met with another kick from the thug. "Ah fuck- You piece of shit!" He spat out, his voice still slightly garbled from the initial blow. He tried to focus his gaze on the attacker, but his vision was still blurred.

Suddenly, a new presence entered their field of vision. The young woman was a strange sight to behold; A warbling blue-green of hair shining in the dim eerie light of many glowing red eyes. The thug turned towards her, smirking cruelly. "Well, well, what have we here? A little lost kitty come to play?" He sneered, taking a step towards her.

Despite his pain and confusion, Vox mustered what strength he could to finally sit up. "I think you're better off making a run for it, toots," He chuckled bitterly addressing the newcomer, his voice regaining its usual charisma.

Lila took in the situation, the TV-headed demon in the nice suit looked pretty beat up and now his attacker had it out for her; Large, hairy and not here to make friends. She squared her shoulders and made a quick decision; "You look well off." She told the TV-demon still sitting on the floor. "If I help you, you owe me a meal. Deal?" She took a step back as the hairy thug neared her. "Think quick."

Surprised by Lila's boldness, the thug paused momentarily, considering her. Meanwhile, Vox couldn't believe his luck - this scrawny-looking woman might just save his ass! With a wry grin spreading across his screen, he nodded in agreement. "Deal," he replied coolly, managing to stand upright despite the lingering dizziness. As if sensing an opportunity, the larger demon lunged forward, growling menacingly. But just then, something unexpected happened - Light shot from Lila's many eyes, illuminating the alleyway with an ethereal glow, all of them were now a hypnotic swirling pattern of the most blinding cyan and focused on the attacker. In response, the larger demon froze – clearly taken aback by this unexpected display of power - then stiffened and fell backwards with a dull thud as he hit the pavement, paralysed. Lila blinked, now slightly dizzy herself as her eyes returned to normal and darkness surrounded them once more.

-

Seizing the chance, Vox quickly transformed into a swarm of electricity, zipping past them and straight into a security camera above.

Lila let out a small gasp as she felt the surge of energy coursing past her as she watched him go. "Hey!" She protested. "You made a promise. Don't you dare fucking off without making good on it." She glared at the camera as it fizzled with the electricity of his presence inside of its casing.

The security camera fell silent for a moment that stretched on too long for Lila's liking before it locked onto her, she could hear the demon chuckle darkly. With a flash akin to a mini lightning strike, Vox reappeared in front of her, Pentagram's lights flickered back to life as his electrified form dissipated into his battered humanoid shape once again. He smirked, admiring her audacity. "My dear, you've got quite a mouth on you." He seemed to compliment, his reasoning to come back now neatly concealed behind the unreadable mask of a placating smile as he straightened his bowtie while walking past her towards the exit. He gestured with a flourish for her to follow him. As they emerged onto the busy street, demons stopped mid-step, staring wide-eyed at the unconscious thug lying motionless on the ground but no one dared to do anything about it. "Very well then," Vox began, turning to face her once more. "To repay my debt, how would you like dinner tonight? My treat, of course." He offered nonchalantly, already scanning the crowd for potential cameras or reporters.

It wasn't just the gnawing hunger, Lila found herself strangely drawn to his magnetic charm and accepted easily despite her reservations as he led the way amidst curious looks from passersby. "So," She began, as they passed a small group of demons that immediately parted like a school of fish to let them through. "Something tells me you're kind of a big deal. My name's Lila Sinclair, and I'm new to Hell. And I should know you, why..?"

Chuckling softly, Vox inclined his head in acknowledgement. "They call me Vox, the Voice of Hell itself. And you, my dear, seem to possess quite the knack for getting yourself in and out of troubled waters." He glanced at her. "Perhaps, with a bit of guidance from yours truly there'd be room for someone like you in my circle." He said smoothly, his words carrying an almost seductive undertone. They arrived at a tall tower with pink-tinted windows decorated with red glowing LED lights, atop it three V's shone proudly in bright neon lights. Vox led her into an elevator and after punching in a passcode it arrived at a sleek dark blue room with walls that doubled as a shark tank with cybernetic sharks which swam in it. There was a long table with several black office chairs on both sides and a bigger dark blue chair at the end for Vox to sit.

Lila recognized it as a conference room and marvelled at the demonic plants potted in the corners of the room before she spotted the surrounding shark tank, all three of her visible eyes widened in awe. "Gorgeous. I didn't know there were creatures like this in these parts of hell. Must've cost you a fortune."

"Indeed, they don't come cheap," Vox admitted with a hint of pride. "But isn't everything worth having its price? Besides, keeping your mind entertained is essential for productivity." He chuckled, walking towards the table and offering her a seat. "Kitty, a Whiskey Sour, and a.." He glanced at Lila as she sat. "Martini for the lady. And bring a plate of tonight's steak au poivre with brandy cream sauce while you're at it." A little modified Fizzarolli robot zipped in and acknowledged orders before zipping away for a moment to swiftly return with the drinks and then the food she placed in front of Lila before disappearing from sight.

Lila sat there slightly stunned, overwhelmed by the change of scenery after nights of fearing for her afterlife. Vox took a seat in his chair, facing her with an expectant look and she felt pressured into taking a small bite of the food. To her pleasant surprise, it was good. Really good. Better than she remembered having in quite a while. "Not bad." She told the TV demon, savouring another bite as she tried to suppress the flood of emotions which washed over her.

Smiling triumphantly, Vox leaned back in his chair, watching her closely. "Excellent," He purred, taking a sip of his whiskey sour. "Now tell me, my dear, why did you decide to venture into such dangerous territory earlier tonight?" His voice held a note of genuine curiosity mixed with subtle threat. Around them, the sharks circled slowly, their mechanical bodies gleaming under the artificial light. Despite the luxurious surroundings, there was an undeniable air of danger lurking within the confines of this opulent chamber.

Lila met his equally red and cyan gaze with a solemn expression, "I was lost, like I said, I recently died and ended up here. I frankly barely understand where 'here' is, although I've heard it being called Pentagram City and that no one can leave. All I tried to do was find a place to stay, maybe get a job. No dice." She shrugged and took a sip of the Martini, slightly relaxing just from the taste of the alcohol.

Listening attentively, Vox considered her words carefully. This brand-new sinner seemed honest enough, perhaps even naïve. Or perhaps she was simply playing him for her own gain. Either way, there was potential in her - this power she had seemed quite useful and would fit right into his vision. Leaning forward slightly, he fixed his gaze upon hers once more. "Ah yes, the trials and tribulations of a newly deceased soul in our fair city. Well, my dear, allow me to introduce myself properly." Reaching into his pocket, he produced a business card embossed with glowing cyan letters reading 'VOXTEK'. "This is my company," he explained, handing it over to her. "Together with my associates, fellow Overlords Valentino and Velvette, we - the Vees - pull the strings of Pentagram City. News, media, its tech scene? I control the information and entertainment sinners and hellborns get to enjoy and consume. And I happen to require talented individuals such as yourself. What say you join forces with me?"

Lila looked at the card, turning over to read the back of it before throwing it onto the table with a huff. "No offence, but what would I be able to offer you and what's in it for me?"

Unfazed by her brusqueness, Vox raised an eyebrow. Clearly, this young woman possessed more fire than he initially thought. Good. That would serve him well. "Oh, my dear Lila," he drawled, leaning back in his chair once more. "Let us start with what you can offer me. "Your abilities are quite unique, aren't they?" He observed thoughtfully. "What was that light projection, a certain type of hypnosis? …and those extra floating eyes of yours could prove very handy too." He continued, leaning back in his chair. "In exchange for your loyalty and services, I propose we enter into a Soul Contract together. You'll receive protection, shelter, food, clothing - whatever else you may require." He listed matter-of-factly. "In addition, you'll have access to state-of-the-art facilities and resources at VoxTek. Not to mention," He added with a devilish grin, "I'll pay you."

Lila couldn't suppress the little guffaw escaping her. "Sorry, a Soul Contract? Now that, Sir, sounds like something I should definitely avoid." To emphasize her words she pushed away the plate of food, her appetite clearly affected by his shady offer.

Raising an eyebrow, Vox studied her reaction closely. So, she was clever indeed. But so was he. "Ah, my dear Lila," he purred, holding her gaze. "Don't mistake me for a fool. Of course, you must always remain vigilant when dealing with demons such as ourselves. However, I assure you, my intentions are pure." His tone shifted slightly, becoming more serious. "Look around you. Do you really think you can survive alone in this pit of vipers? We both know the answer to that question." He paused for effect before continuing. "Besides, who better to protect your interests than someone who knows exactly what you're capable of?" His eyes glittered with sincerity - or was it merely calculation? - as he leaned over the table towards her once more. Let me put it this way then; imagine having complete control over any situation - influencing others effortlessly, ensuring favourable outcomes every time." His voice dropped low as his left eye swirled hypnotically. "Imagine never having to worry about safety or comfort ever again; knowing that you always hold the key to success." He paused, letting his words sink in. "That, my dear, in exchange for your name on a measly little Soul Contract. See it as a promise; You keep me safe while I- protect you." He flashed her the toothiest grin she'd seen of him yet.

Lila fell silent for a moment, considering her options. And then, with a sigh of defeat, she uttered one word that would seal her future in Hell; "Fine."

Grinning widely, Vox extended a clawed hand across the table towards her. "Welcome to VoxTek, my dear." His voice resonated with excitement as he watched her hesitate before finally reaching out to accept his offer. Their palms touched, sending a jolt of electricity through both of them. For a brief moment, their eyes locked in a silent understanding – two predators recognizing each other's strengths and weaknesses as electricity crackled around them, frizzing Lila's hair and casting eerie shadows over their features. Then, without warning, Lila pulled away sharply, breaking contact with him. Her cheeks flushed as if burned by his touch.

"Alright," she muttered gruffly, attempting to regain composure as she combed her fingers through her hair. "Just give me the damned contract.

-

Thank you for taking an interest! <3

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Vox/Lila Sinclair - Vox's Serendipitous Snare

& this work can also be found here:

[omnical]

havent figured out how to do a better drawing idea for det. fareeha so... eh just take this messy as heck doodle before i go to sleep :v

detective fareeha amari, not feat. her dimples, supernatural mystery detective au for that thing im writin i sing the body electric... the next chap’s all for her legit...

[sapphicomenn]

WELCOME TO MY THOUGHTS WHILE REWATCHING THE MCU IN TIMELINE ORDER: THE AVENGERS

“the tesseract has awakened” oh you mean the glowy cube from captain america AND captain marvel? THAT glowly cube?? cool looking stairs- ew who tf are you? the grim reaper??

what the fuck is a chitauri and why does it sound like sea food. “a world will be his. the universe, yours.” STOP BLAMING THE PRONOUN GAME AND GIVE ME NAMES FFS

ooo shield base. “not a drill.” oh shits going down- COULSON. FUURRRYYY FUCK YEAH. the best marvel characters are here the movie has peaked- oldman from thor is here?? intoresting. and who the hell is this woman tryna question fury??

the glowy cube is a shE???????? HUH??????? oh hey its hawkeye the badass archer guy. oh shit things are going down. the cube is sparking and swirling??- IT OPENED A PORTAL

LOKKIII YOU BEAUTIFUL BASTARD WELCOME BACK. HE HAS A SHOOTY MAGIC SPEAR LIKE A BADASS. he just took out a bunch or shield with a shooty spe- OHMYGODS HE CAN CONTROL MINDS WITH IT.

“loki. brother of thor.” OLDMAN STFU

GUNS GO PEW PEW ALONG SIDE A GOOD OLD CAR CHASE SKSHSKKSHS. RUN FURY RUNNN. the portal imploded on itself like a moron hA

WHO TF NAMES THEIR CHILD “HILL” WTF. “we are at war.” NO SHIT SHERLOCK A NORSE GOD STOLE THE CUBE YOU WERE SUPPOST TO PROTECT

tis a train and a old building- NATASHA. how tf were you taken hostage? im so glad i have subtitles on otherwise i wouldnt understand a thing these ppl are saying. HOW TF IS SHE KICKING ASS WHILE TIED TO A CHAIR WHAT IN THE HELL-

oh his leg deff broke once he fell off the ledge tied to a chain. cut to a lil gorl running to find a doctor- who tf this is of course. THIS GUY IS BANNER??? i mean im glad they changed the actor but wtf. “theres no one that knows gamma radiation like you do.” YA DONT SAY, ROMANOFF. “STOP LYING TO ME” JESUS FUCK THAT MADE ME JUMP

oh damn shield has their own O5 council? cool. EXPLAIN WHAT PHASE2 IS ALREADY. also dont say thor is bad he is a giant puppy dog with a war-boner.

oh hi steve, working off that PTSD by beating the shit out of a punching bag ay? oh right steve knows the glowy cube. “at this point i doubt anything would surprise me.” “ten bucks says you’re wrong” welp ya owe him ten bucks steve

“is there anything you can tell us about the tesseract to help us now?” “you should’ve left it in the ocean.” WELL THAT HELPS ALOT DOESNT IT. hello there iron man, at the bottom of the ocean.? sure why the hell not

aye stark tower’s about to have clean energy, yay stark! “stark tower, is your baby.” how do you give birth to a tower.???????? KSHSJSHSKSJS COULSON BROKE INTO THE TOWER “is first name is agent.” TONY SKSHKSSHKSVSKSHSKS

*whisper whisper whisper* yeah she bribed tony with sex so he’d work on the avengers and stuff. “the guys like a stephen hawking.” “. . .” “hes like a smart person”

awh coulson is fangirling over steve- watched you while you were sleepin- man you’re awkward. you adorable dumbass. ohshit underground musky lab- OLDMAN AND LOKI

the world is breaking around loki. sea food army is restless- shut the fuck up you stupid looking eye wrapped bastard. WHO THE HELL IS THIS HE?????? welcome back to earth you smexy man

FLOATING WATER BASE

back to avenger tingz. man coulson is the biggest cap fan- oh its a giant sub- NO ITS A GIANT FLYING BASE HOLYSHIT SHIELD THATS AMAZING.

now we go into the meetings and talking related stuff :I yey. “lets vanish” wdym- IT HAD A CLOAKING DEVICE. HA STEVE JUST GAVE THE TEN HE OWED SKSHSKHSKSJS

i dont understand a word of all the science stuff they just said but yay. “i need a distraction. and an eyeball” barton what the fuck why do you need an eye.?

oh lokis in germany, at a very fancy party might i add. loki is best boy ever. even if he just bonked a the head/ OHMYGOD AND STOLE HIS FUCKING EYE JESUS CHRIST INFRONT OF ALL THOSE PEOPLE.??????

“i said. KNEEEEL” dont need to tell me twice-

blagh villain speeches are the worst. why tf did this old guy stand up “not to men like you.” shut up. SHOOT HIM- wtf. steve what the hell are you wearing? what the fuck is that- aye tonnnyyy!!!! he hacked into the jet thingy and started playing music from the speaker thats the best.

CAPSICLE SKSHSKSHKSHSKSJ- ohfuck thunder. THOR WELCOME TO THE PARTY. “im not overly fond of what follows” WKVSKSBSKSHSJS

HE JUST BROKE INTO THE JET AND STOLE LOKI FROM EM. “theres only one god ma’am. and im sure he doesnt dress like that.” cap stfu

“i thought you were dead.” “did you mourn.” damn loki thats harsh. thor is angy at his brother. “you listen well brot-ARGH” “..im listening?” STARK YOU CHOSE THAT MOMENT TO BODY SLAM THOR OFF THAT CLIFF AND LEAVE LOKI BEHIND? REALLY?

“.. tourist.” FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT KICK HIS ASS, THOR. DONT KILL HIM WITH LIGHTNING THO

if someone throwed me against a tree i wouldnt be walking. im just saying

“THATS ENOUGH.” cap did you think that would work?? and how the hell did your dinner plate stop the power of thor

loki do be in jail tho. how’s this gonna go wrong- oh he smiled at banner. THATS how it goes wrong

tell him off fury! “you have made me very disapoin-“ OH NVM HE SAYS DESPERATE IGNORE THIS

“uNlimiteD pOoWeRRRRR”

“let me know if real power wants a magazine or something.” good comeback fury. i think

“loki is beyond reason, but he is of asgard. and he is my brother” “he killed 80 people in two days.” “he’s adopted.” KSBSKSJSJSJSK

“that man is playing galaga. he thought we wouldnt notice, but we did.” TONYKANSKSHKSJSKSJ tony is a fucking legend. “finally someone who speaks english!” “is that what just happened?” steve stfu you’re a fighty man not a smart man

“i do! . . . i understood that reference.” steve nvm keep talking please. PLEASE THE MAN IS STILL PLAYING GALAGA SOSJSKSJSJKS

why is tony eating blueberrys- where the hell did he get blueberrys. “we have orders. we should start following them.” steve you tried to get into the army under fake locations for months AND broke into a german base when you were a showpony. stfu about following rules

“so you’re saying the hulk.. the other guy? saved me” yes. yes we are saying that, banner. aye steve go break into shit like you’re suppost to :D

oh hi again oldman, welcome back. yay shield saved padme, and awh oldman talked about thor alot. thor i love you alot. loki just tell nat where tf you left barton :/ oh barton was sent to KILL nat?? not hire her?? well that went downhill. whomst the hell is dreykov- sao paulo- the hospital fire???? hawkeye wtf why’d you spill it all to loki.

mewley quim wtf kind of insult is that- oh damn nat figured out the hulk is lokis next plan of attack. PHASE TWO IS TO USE THE GLOWY CUBE TO MAKE FUCKING WEAPONS? SHIELD WHAT THE HELL

HA FURY TRIED TO LIE IS WAY OUTTA IT BUT BC STARK HACKED INTO IT ALL HE JUST EXPOSED HIMSKHSKSJSKS

WAIT THEY WERE MADE FOR THOR AND ASGARDIANS? WHAT THE FUCK SHIELD- oh damn lokis staff is the reason they’re all at eachother. probably

“yeah. big man in a suit of armor. take that off what are you?.” “genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.” well you’re not wrong

guys stop fighting, HAWKEYE IS BREAKING IN. “in case you needed to kill me. but you cant. i know, i tried.” awh thats sad, i wanna hug banner so bad :(

OHSHIT AN ENTIRE WING GOT BLOWN UP THE FLYING BASE IS GOING DOWN- HULKS COMING OUT THATS NOT GOOD. the transforming is scary- RUN NAT

loki stop smiling because the plan is going your way. “it seems to run on some form of electricity.” “well you’re not wrong” tony stop being funny this isnt fair

HULK JUMPSCARE JESUS CHRIST- NAT GOT BITCHSLAPPED THROUGH A WALL- YAY THOR TO SAVE THE DAY. HAMMER TIME BABYY

*B O N K*

hulk trying to pick the hammer up is funny. BRIDGE IS UNDER ATTACK. DO YOU THINK SHOOTING HULK IS A GOOD IDEA??? HE JUST TOOK OUT FIGHTER JET AND ALMOST KILLED THE GUY FLYING IT

CAP IS KICKING ASS- OH GOD NO THE ENGINES ARE FAILING. OHGOD LOKI IS OUT- THOR YOU DUMBFUCK DID YOU FORGET LOKI CAN DO MAGIC SHIT? NOW YOU’RE STUCK IN THE GLASS CONTAINER

COULSON SAVE THOR! SHOOT LOKI DAMNIT- COULSON NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

glass cage go brrrrr

HA LOKI GOT FUCKIN SHOT BY COULSON BEFORE HE DIES( :( ) tony almost got minced by the engine thingys

im gonna cry coulson how dare your death make me sad :(( stupid heart breaking aftermath moments.

thor is stuck in a field, banner fell through the roof of a building. awh the security guard is so nice :) barton is a fucking mess right now “how’d you get him out?” “i hit you on the head really hard.” KSJSKKSSK

tony figured out lokis plan- ITS TAKING PLACE AT HIS TOWER? THE AVENGERS IS TAKING ACTION BABY LETS GOOOO

wait a fucking moment, the cards coulson has are covered in blood. so you’d think they were on him when he was stabbed- yet hill just said they were in his locker “they needed the push.” FURY YOU RUINED NEAR MINT VINTAGE COLLECTABLE CARDS TO MOTIVATE SUPER FREAKS???

o hi loki welcome to stark tower

“stalling wont change-“ “no no, threatening. no drink? ya sure? im having one.”

“i have an army.” “we have a hulk.” HE SAID IT, HE SAID THE LINE

HA LOKI CANT TAKE STARKS MIND BC HIS HEART IS SOME TECHY METAL CRAPKSJSKSJSKS- i guess choking and tossing him around works. so does throwing hik out a window

oh no the glowy cube just opened a portal for the army of seafood. they look like creatures from halo.

BROTHER FIGHT

CHAOS EVERYWHERE

PLANE DOWN PLANE DOWN

what the fuck just growled- HOLYSHIT THEY HAVE A SPACE LEVIATHAN. it looks badass ngl. loki redemption arc? nope he just stabbed thor.

SPACE BIKE GO BRRRRR

yes because arrows and guns will stop the, alien monsters with lazer arms. some how its working. “just like budapest all over again.” “you and i remember budapest very differently.” WTF HAPPENED AT BUDAPEST BARTON AND NAt, HUH?

cap just scared the shit outta some police men HAHA

“i have unfinished business with loki.” “yeah? get in line” barton is snarky right now. banner just rides up on a motercycle like “hi what i’d miss”

“im bringing the party to you.” stark says while being chased by a giant metal space whale who’s crashing and crushing everything in its path along a street

“thats my secret cap. im always angry.” FUCK YEAH BANNER MESS THAT SPACE WHALE UP. HE JUST PUNCHED A GIANT FUCKING WHALE THING.

the music, the avengers circling around. its amazing. well things are gonna get worse bc more space whales showed up

“and hulk. . . smash.”

LIGHT THEM FUCKERS UP, THOR. shield maybe instead of watching, maybe, oh i dont know. HELP THEM???

i dont know what else to say other then its alot of fighting and smashing alien faces into the ground

hulk and thor kicking ass on the back of a space whale is awesome. HULK WHY DID YOU PUNCH HIMSJSOSHSKJSKSJSKSKSKSK

i fuxking love when steve turtle shells behind his shield.

“director fury. the council has made a decision.” “i recognize the council has made a decision. but given its a stupid-ass decision, i have elected to ignore it.” fury never stop being awesome

loki thought he was so smug when he caught bartons arrow, then it blew up in his face. literally IKSKSKSKSKS

HULK FUCK LOKI UP! JSHSKSGKSHSJSHSJSJ HE JUST TOSSED LOKI AROUND LIKE A RAGDOLL “puny god.” “*pained wheezing from a smooshed loki*”

oh damn- OH DAMN, STARK. he just jonahed the fucking whale thing and blew it up from the inside. well now the city has a nuke coming for it :/

yall have a chance to shut the portal down, and tony, you want to go INTO that portal and throw the nuke in? wtf stark.

TONY GO BACK TO EARTH DAMNIT FUCKING BASTARD PASSED OUT. yay hulk saved his stupid ass. do cpr.? mayb.? or a hulk roar will wake him up KEJSKJSKSSKJS

tony. you just blew up a alien command center with a nuke, passed out and fell to earth through a portal. and you want, shawarma?

and now back to loki. “if its all the same to you, i’d like that drink now.” ISHSKSJSJSJSKSJSJ

STAN LEEE

the people love em. yey

council lady stfu about the avengers being a threat. they just said the earth and you’re worried about them going rouge??

“if we get into a situation like this again, what happens then?” “they’ll come back.” i mean theres three more avenger movies so i assume so. remodaling stark towers so its the avenger tower? neat!

NEXT MOVIE: IRON MAN 3

*MID CREDIT SCENE* oh hi again mr no eyes. do we get to see this HE? OH WE DO. o hi mr 10 chins

once again ignore the misspells it was three AM when i finally finished this and im just now rereading it

[hellzyeahthewebwieldingavenger]

10: Stay Alive

Miles has been Spider-Man (in-universe) for less than 5 years. And he’s stayed alive. That’s cute, even though him staying alive owed a lot to Molecule Man.

Ultimate Peter Parker only ‘died’ (and he didn’t even die really) because he sacrificed his life. It wasn’t like he made a mistake, he actively chose to give up his life.

Meanwhile 616 Peter Parker managed to stay alive for like 10 years before his first death in Secret Wars which was due to a literal God so...is Miles remaining alive that impressive? Is it even something to put him over Peter?

Using the argument that Miles doesn’t die whilst fighting Ultimate Goblin instead of dying is again fucking ridiculous because Peter battled and survived Ultimate Goblin multiple times before his ‘death’ in Death of Spider-Man. In that instance it was again an act of sacrifice more than anything and he was carrying a major injury from saving Captain America and taking a bullet for him or something IIRC.

So it’s a false equivalency even if you ignore the fact that the Oz drug both Peter and Miles have make them effectively immortal.

Him surviving Secret Wars isn’t that impressive either. So he manages to stow away and avoid death. How...heroic? Not to mention PETER also avoids the final incursion on his own lifeboat.

Yes Molecule Man saves Miles and brings back his mother, but he literally saves everyone too. He just happens to shunt Miles into Earth 616 and resurrect his mother. That’s not something Miles can do that Peter can’t because it was based upon Miles having a random burger on his person. Had Peter had that same difference. Uncle Ben would probably be back if Peter had a burger.

It’s not that Miles has the magic power to bring back dead people via his actions he just got lucky.

Also doesn’t him never having his loved ones remain dead kind of make him a Marty Stu?

 9) Alleged immortality

Again...Marty Stu.

But for the record Ultimate Peter, whom this video apparently wants to conflate with but also switch out for 616 Peter when convenient and not treat as a separate character. Also has that power and it’s not even alleged. Also gotta love CBR using a picture of 616 Norman Osborn who looks nothing like Ult Norman when discussing the Goblin killing Peter. Then following that up with Raimi Norman who like 616 Norman is definitely not a Hulk Goblin.

 8) Regenerate

 Miles is more durable huh?

 So...when exactly did Miles survive being crushed beneath machinery weighing a locomotive...under water?

 When did Miles survive being buried alive for 2 weeks?

 When the fuck did Miles survive a beating from Juggernaut, or Morlun, or the Hulk, or Collossus empowered by both the Juggernaut’s powers AND 1/5 of the Phoenix Force?

 More durable my ass.

 The evidence for this is also laughable.

 First of all it’s based upon being able to burst from his restraints and fight back after being drugged which...Peter has definitely done at least once or twice.

 Second of all it literally comes from a comic based upon the USM CARTOON not even the canon Miles. It’s literally cherry picking anything from any version of Miles.

 His durability is also being measured by being able to survive several thousand volts of electricity and like...does the author of this video not know who the fuck Electro is?

 Being tortured by doom and then saving his Dad is also not something Peter couldn’t do. Peter wet through worse in the MP trilogy alone.

 Same thing about being lit on fire. Shit one of those crappy #700.ONE issues showed Peter doing that!

 7) Spider Sense

So Miles spider sense allows him to predict the future when he is dreaming.

Er...Peter’s spider sense has done that in the JMS run...

Not to mention this point is ‘Miles can do this and Peter can’t because it MIGHT develop into something more later maybe’

His Spider sense intensifying isn’t that unique either. Peter’s does that too, again especially in the JMS run.

Miles’ Spider sense going off faster than Peter’s also could just be artistic licence stanning him in his own title.

 6) Speak Spanish

 This is the first legitimate point in this article.

 Too bad it ruins it by saying Peter had difficulty connection to certain residents because of language barriers.

 First of all traditionally Peter as Spider-Man is a pariah.

Second of all how many times honestly has he been shown to be disconnected due to a language barrier within NYC. MOST PEOPLE speak English like him.

Being bilingual also doesn’t give a character ‘more depth’. It’s literally just a skill. By this logic Peter being able to drive gives him more depth than Miles.

Yeah it acknowledges his community which is nice but that’s not greater or lesser depth that’s just a unique feature. And one that he technically doesn’t even need to speak Spanish to acknowledge. I barely speak Greek but I still acknowledge my culture.

 5) Learns Quickly

Yes Miles definitely learns quickly, unlike Peter Parker who

-          didn’t have a mentor or video footage upon which to learn how to be a superhero from but still owned Doc Ock early in his career.

-          Figured out a cure to the Lizard within hours of seeing his notes for the first time

-          Invented webbing in his room.

What? Miles gets the win because he was able to learn how to fight from Peter’s video footage when he was 2 years younger?

The age gap is mitigated when you literally have basically an instruction video to follow whilst Peter despite beig slightly older still figured it out entirely on his own.

Miles studying Norman’s fighting style and using that to defeat him is also not that big of a deal. Peter can and kind of has done that. he just REMEMBERS his enemies fighting styles instead of going over video footage of them. If anything THAT makes him FASTER than Miles in the learning department.

 4) Maintain a Relationship With Gwen Stacy

 Oh....fuck....you....

 First of all Miles and Peter’s relationships with Gwen are different given that Miles’ is mostly platonic and a colleague and Peter’s was romantic oh and you know THEY WERE DIFFERENT GWEN STACY’S

 Yeah Miles being able to keep a relationship with a Gwen Stacy who doesn’t die is much fucking easier when he and Gwen have the benefit of hindsight from 616 Gwen’s death AND Spider-Gwen has fucking super powers.

 If MILES was dating Gwen whilst lying to her about being Spider-Man and she had no powers and they didn’t know she could die like that how well would he have actually been able to keep her around?

 Not much better if at all.

 Bringin up Gwen’s clone is also fucking asinine. It wasn’t that Peter was UNABLE to maintain a relationship with Gwen’s clone so much as he didn’t want to. Or rather he was unable to keep a relationship with her clone because he’d moved on and was in love with Mary Jane which isn’t a matter of him lacking an ability Miles has at all.

 Also Gwen doesn’t help Miles cope with his mother’s death. At all. Because they didn’t spend any quality time together until AFTER his mother returned to life. FFS CBR!

 Saying Miles was able to save Gwen when Peter wasn’t is again bullshit because the circumstances were totally different. In particular Peter saved Gwen MULTIPLE times in the past before she eventually died due to a small but significant mistake.

 3) Be a team player/more sociable

 I will grant this article that TEENAGE Peter was less of a team player and less sociable, but that changed over time.

 The article shoots itself though by

a)      Implying Peter was an Avenger as  a teen

b)      Saying he was never truly a part of the Avengers team when he was on it. Er....yes he was. It was badly written but he was truly a member no doubt. His self doubts also rarely if ever came into play. Over all he lacked much personality whilst on the avengers

 the article is also two-faced because it ignores how Ultimate Peter WAS a team player and WAS able to have friends and accept help as a teenager.

 2) Communicate with his best friend.

 Well Ultimate and 616 Peter’s best friend is Mary jane and he communicates with her just fine...especially with his body language If yA Know wat I mEaN ;D

  Everything the article says aboiut Ganke pretty much applies to Ultimate and 616 MJ in regards to Peter.

  More than anything this point is where you REALLY see the video cherrypicking between the Ultimate Peter or 616 Peter. Literally in the last point it was quoting Captain America saying Spider-Man wasn’t ready to join the team from the Ultimate universe yet when it comes time to analyse his friendships in high school suddenly we switch to 616.

 1)      Turn invisible

Not only should this have been one of two things on this entire list but this list is so bad it literally IGNORED the one other ability Miles literally has that Peter lacks, the Venom blast.

 How do you fuck up that badly?

 0)      The ability to be falsely praised and put over undeservedly

Now THAT is an ability Miles truly has that Peter doesn’t.

[sunset-wishes-upon-hill]

Pandora Chapter 16 (UNEDITED)

Pandora: FF l Wattpad l Quotev

Pandora (Original):

Pandora (chapter 1-18) (WITH REVIEW FEEDBACK)

Pandora (chapter 1-18) (WITHOUT REVIEW FEEDBACK)

A/N: It’s around 6.5K words but might change when it goes through few editing. The chapter wil be updated sometimes this month, hopefully I can get far on chapter 17. 

So in chapter 16: Caius is mean, Demetri is extra mean, Alec..? Jane? Sort of.

=============================================================

She walked with a kind of childish languor, as if it hadn’t fully settled in that she was an adult – cognitively. Her speech tended to the monosyllabic: yes and no.

Jessica bravely but tentatively asked if she could be allowed into the garden the next day, gripping another spray of hyacint in her perspiring palms. Jane frowned, stopped before saying in crisp and matter-of-factly tone, “Do not touch anything.”

She nodded and followed her into the garden, noting some verdure have now emerged into bloom while others have faded, entering a period of dormancy as their season departed.

“Did you grow them all by yourself?”

“Yes. Mostly.”

Jessica spotted the familiar purple foliage in the seas of exotic, colourful herbage, excitedly pointing, “You re-planted them!”

“Yes.”

“I thought you’d throw it away..” Jessica muttered, looking down at the one in her hand. “I’m glad you appreciate them. More than I would have. Normally, people just throw them away.”

“Hmph.” Jane swiped the bouquet from Jessica’s hand, striding to plant them back into the soil with the rest. The amount she had given along the course of the weeks had totted to build a miniature hyacinths field, thriving and growing under the caring hand.

“So, um, where did you learn to garden?”

“Why do you want to know?”  Her sharp, mocking intensity resurfaced. Alert and defensive. As though Jessica were trying to inveigle information for sinister ulterior motive. Like hurt her.

It was like watching her cat, Grampy, puff up to twice its volume, flattened his ears, and arching his back as it hissed, spit and showed his teeth while detaching its claws – it was a frightening sight but it also conveyed how scared he was. He had been a stray when she found him in the wood, distrusting of humans’ intention. He wasn’t like her dog, who wagged its tails and licked every piece of skin to everyone she saw, he judged the entire situation before approaching and he didn’t like you just because you were a human; he’s going to like you on his term.

“Oh..I just thought now that we’re on a more amicable terms, I thought we should get to know each other.”

“We are far from being on a speaking term.” Jane replied with acidic intonation.

“So let’s change that.” Jessica smiled, “I’m horribly bad at gardening. Angela, one of my friends, gave me a cactus as a gift because its low maintenance so I put it next to my window and it died overnight! Can you believe that? I’m less nurturing than a desert! Do you know why?”

“As you have stated, you are useless than a desert.”

Jessica gaped, look of hurt crossing her face, “You’re so mean!”

“Yes, go.” She dismissed.

But Jessica wasn’t deterred, instead forming a grin, “Oh gosh, I love it! If it was possible, I’d bring you to meet Lauren! She’s a bitch that will make anyone cry but seriously, you would crush her soul into pieces with that viciousness.”

“Ow!” Jessica jolted as mild jab of pain vibrated through her body. The intensity was similar to the electric shock from the plasma globe; too lenient to be a dour punishment yet not committed in its aim to hurt. Something like..playful? She wondered feasibly.

“So..” Jessica ventured carefully, “Do you always stay in the garden?”

“Where I tend is no business of yours’.

“..The reason why I’m asking is I was wondering if you’d like to come to town with me. Someday, when you have time or not busy.”

“No.” Jane swiftly refuted, her straight brows upturned reprovingly.

“I didn’t mean in front of people. The upside of living in a town surrounded by nature is that there’s many quiet places void of humans.”

“Why are you insistence of devising friendship between us?” Jane demanded, words biting.

“I’m living in this castle and it’s better to be friends than enemies under the same roof, no? Besides I don’t have any much strong, negative feeling about you.”

“I do.” She snapped, “I would have tortured you to death.”

“Well you didn’t.”

“Orders.”

“It was mostly my fault.”

“There were better ways to deal with it.”

“I prefer you deal with it your way. Less hard feeling.”

“I do not want you near my brother.”

“You don’t have to worry; he doesn’t want me near him too.” Jessica replied despondently, “He hates me.”

“You will find earning his hatred is difficult than getting into my good grace.” Jane muttered, crimson eyes blank as it tuned into a faraway place beyond the garden, wandering to time and place removed from the current place. “He rarely expresses anything, even to me…” She trailed away, blinking, face guarded and focused. Jessica wasn’t supposed to hear that.

[softmoxymuffin]

It Started with Submission:  Chapter 2

finally wrote Chapter 2. again first chapter was supposed to be a one-shot but some people seemed to like it so here’s another chapter. i’m thinking of writing this into a 4 or 5 chapter series (hopefully) but i have an end in mind already so just pray i get this done

anyway here’s a link to chapter 1 to fully understand chapter 2

It Started with Submission

Chapter 1: Gym

Chapter 2: Showers

Chapter 3: Car

Chapter 2: Showers

Seth is not gonna do anything. There’s nothing to do, because there is nothing to do about. This was absolutely nothing. Nadda. None. Nothing has changed.

Seth is his same red-blooded straight male self. What happened was just a fluke. A stupid and misguided fluke engineered by Dean Ambrose himself.

But did he? Did he really? Seth would like to think that he knew the other man pretty well by now. He’s always been pretty creative at getting exactly what he wanted and how he wanted it. What he had done was on purpose. That’s as clear as day. But was it just for the win on some stupid bet in a gym in the middle of nowhere? Was it just so he didn’t have to do any driving for the next 20 hours? Was it just to prove a fucking point? Or was it-? No. It can’t be like he meant it. Even if he did mean anything by it, it wouldn’t matter.

He finally pushed himself off the mat. He fidgeted about as if his confusion was something he could physically shake off of him. It was the first time in a long time he’s felt uncomfortable in a ring, feeling like someone could be watching him. He made a move to check the gym before leaving for the shower. For some reason he felt like he was about to get caught for doing something he was not supposed to, which was ridiculous because nothing was happening, and nothing was going to happen, and yet Seth was stalling. What for? He shook off his anxieties one more time. Before he finally made his way out of the ring and headed for the locker room.

Seth liked women. Women with long dark hair, and pretty eyes, and pouty lips. That’s it. That’s all he’s ever wanted. He loved women. He’s only dated women. He’s only ever wanted to date women. Women with curves, soft tits, and shapely asses. That’s exactly what he wanted.

That was his last thought as he stepped into the shower and the only other man there was wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his narrow hips.

“Took you long enough,” Dean spoke as he approached the other man. “Didn’t think I hit you in the head that hard.” He teased

The younger man was frozen on the spot, his body not fully knowing exactly what to do in this situation. Does he fight? Fly? Or fu-

Just as Seth thought the other man was coming towards him, he had moved barely to the right and turned to where Seth assumed were  the showers. But not before the Armenian felt a firm smack against his own ass.

“See you in there champ.” He mocked before leaving.

What the fuck is happening to him? Seth felt hot all over. Considering the shower only had two people in it, he hardly thinks it had anything to do with the actual environment. He walked towards his own locker and fumbled with his keys, losing whatever coordination he thought he still had.

Struggling with the damn lock for what felt like 5 minutes, Seth pathetically banged his head against it and did his best to calm himself down. He was sorely tempted to leave and go back to their hotel room all on his own, when he realized Dean held the keycard in his own locker. He’d be locked out without the other man.

This was just a shower. That’s it. Just do what you always do. Go in there. Get clean. Then get out. No need for anything else.

When he finally did get his locker unlocked, he made quick work on his own clothes and wrapped his own towel around himself and made his way to the shower. Plan was to use the stalls as far away from the other man as possible. He realized that plan was futile when the sound of the shower that he assumed Dean was using was that in the very first stall.

Who the hell uses the first stall when every other stall was available? What kind of gym has showers with no doors or curtain. What was this junior high? None of this made any real sense.

Seth breathed slowly and did his best to calm down. He’s been to gyms like these before. He’s been to showers like these before. He’s been in showers with a naked Dean Ambrose before. It’s was not a big deal. It’s no big deal. It really isn’t. It’s just Dean.

He turned the corner and the first thing his eyes focused on through the steam was Dean’s naked body. His back was turned. He had his head directly under the spray, his usual brown curls now dark. His stretched his neck from side to side, grunting with each move. His strong broad shoulders rolling outwards slowly. Freckles and scars spread over his defined back like a constellation. All that broadness, tapering into his nipped waist, always smaller then anyone would expect. Then it curved down to a shapely ass, just begging for a grab.

“That’ll cost you 10 bucks.” His gruff voice said out of nowhere.

“Huh?” Seth finally looks up and realized the other man had turned his head towards him with a grin on his face. “What?”

He only chuckled and proceeded to soap himself “If you’re gonna stare at me the whole damn time, you might as well pay me for it.” He laughs, and then made a move to turn his body towards Seth.

Seth was already stomping his way to the other end of the shower stalls. He was breathing angrily from being caught staring. It was his fault anyway for staring. Seth couldn’t help the nagging voice in the back of his head telling him he was way more pissed off at himself for staring than actually being caught.

He takes off his towel and gets into his own shower stall. He proceeded to wash the sweat and the grime of his workout.

Why the fuck was he staring anyway? He asked himself. It’s just Dean. It’s just Dean naked. It’s just Dean naked and wet. What’s there to stare at.

Seth scrubbed his scalp a little harder than he really should. It’s a bad habit he’s developed since a child. He always seems to go a little to aggressive with normal everyday movements, but even more so when he’s frustrated. Which confuses Seth, as he is not frustrated. He’s not. There’s absolutely no reason for him to be frustrated. None. And his dick just happens to be half hard for the exact same reason.

The brunette suddenly stopped. His fingers in mid scrub. The suds just on the verge of reaching his eyes, almost stinging them. But he couldn’t help it. He had heard something.

“Ugh…” a moan had bounced against he tiled walls of the gym showers.

Seth’s mind again whirling with confusion; He isn’t. Is he? He wouldn’t, but he really would.

Seth being absolutely sure there was no one else in the gym in the middle of the night, and even if he had thought there were other people. No one would be blatant enough to-

“Fuuuck!” an even louder moan echoed.

“You jacking off Ambrose?” Seth asked, wanting to sound more menacingly but realized his voice sort of wavered with worry. He hoped Dean didn’t notice.

“Hehe… You ain’t just a pretty face Seth.” he teased. “You got met.”

“For fucksake Dean!” Seth exclaimed as he then turned the shower on to rinse the shampoo out of his hair.

Stopping midway when he realized he didn’t really know what to do after that. He can’t stop showering now, he’s barely done. He can’t stop Ambrose now, coz he doubt he was done. If he tried then he’d risk seeing him-

“We’re in the fucking hotel gym Dean.” he yelled out.

“Thanks for pointing out the obvious.” He replied, followed by the unmistakable sound of slicked skin. “Besides, no one else is here.”

“Anyone could walk in.” Seth pointed out.

“Then someone else will owe me 10 bucks then.” He joked.

Seth was just about to reprimand him again when he heard Dean’s guttural voice moan deeper. He��d always envied Dean’s voice. He didn’t envy how a couple of packs of cigarettes a day had resulted in that, but Seth couldn’t deny Dean’s voice reminded Seth of concert speakers blast a hypnotic rhythmic base. A sound that made Seth’s own insides rumble with excitement. He’d always loved how that music seemed to pour under his skin like liquid electricity. It took Seth a night with jacking-ff Dean Ambrose in a secluded gym shower to make him make the comparison.

“Fuck.. harder…” Dean moaned.

Like a fucking order from the heavens, Seth’s dick twitched on command. He was so fucking tempted to groan in frustration, but he had bit his lip not wanting to give the other man the wrong idea. But knowing Dean, he was sure he already was thinking he’s doing the same.

So why not? The question flashed in Seth’s head, which he quickly shook off reminding himself of the list of reasons exactly why that was a bad idea; public showers, hotel gym, gym of the same hotel he was staying at with 30 or so other performers who occasionally have the same insomniac workout schedule as he and Dean.

A loud smack boomed through the shower walls. Seth didn’t need a clear head to realize what exactly that sound was. It was the unmistakable sound of flesh hitting flesh. Seth was suddenly flooded by the thought of a hand spanking Dean’s shapely ass. A tan and manly hand just like his hitting that soft flesh hard enough to make it pretty and pink. A hand print exactly the same shape as Seth’s hand, showing him and the world who that ass belonged to.

All of the sudden, Seth couldn’t get his hand wrapped around his cock fast enough. Just the thought of doing that to Dean made him so hard he just needed to touch himself. Strong and confident strokes milking himself. The thought of his hands on Dean morphed into the thought of Dean’s hands on him. The thought of Dean’s hand on his own cock. Then the thought of Dean’s big and calloused hand wrapped around Seth’s own cock. His mind clouded with the primal need to cum, other’s be damned if they walked in on them jacking off. Together.

The sudden halt of the sound of showers that were not his made Seth freeze. His hand still wrapped around his still incredibly hard cock. The shower making it almost unbearable. He braced himself for what was to come next.

“I’m done. Meet you outside princess.” Dean said as the sound of wet footsteps leaving the showers.

Leaving Seth. Leaving Seth alone and so fucking hard.

Dean had already made him tap.

Dean had already made him hard.

Dean had made him so frustratingly hard and then just fucking left.

Seth was so fucking screwed.

***

[crispgarden]

The Shield [One-shot]

Fandom: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rating: T (touches on themes of abuse and violence) Characters: Catra, Shadow Weaver, Adora/She-Ra Word count: 4,115 Summary: While Adora goes after a sword, Catra is left to be her shield. And it doesn’t turn out the way Catra believes it should. Hints of Catradora.

Notes: As of writing this, I have only watched the first two episodes of She-Ra. I’m already in love with Catra and her dynamic with Adora! This is a brief take in Catra’s POV during the episodes “The Sword,” parts 1+2.

Story below the break! This is also posted onto my ao3 and FF. I will not post the links here for a week to give this a chance to be searched for. Links to my accounts are on my theme.

She hated being called down to Horror Hall.

It was nothing new. Catra was used to it. The robotic voice requesting Senior Cadet Catra to immediately report to Shadow Weaver’s quarters was so routine at this point that even the rookies placed bets on it. Would it happen in the morning? No, no, the afternoon! Don’t forget about the evenings, of course! The problem was that Catra was in no mood for it today. When she was called, and a group of recruits cheered as the winners of the bet, Catra hissed at them and laughed when one guy was scared out of his seat. That cheered her up. A little.

Catra didn’t know where her own squad was, and didn’t care at the moment. They would annoy her endlessly about Adora. Where was Adora? Do you think Adora’s okay? Adora’s been gone for a long time, should we go out and look for her? Come on, Catra, you know where Adora is right? Right?

Catra’s already leisurely pace to Shadow Weaver was made slower when she leapt up into the rafters and jumped from beam to beam. Her claws dug into the metal, leaving deep grooves with every pounce. It wasn’t enough to calm her down like blowing up something would, but it helped a little more. Sucked that there was no mice though.

When wake up hour came and Catra couldn’t stay at the foot of Adora’s bed any longer without being yelled at, she played a fabricated game of “hide and seek” to buy some extra time. Anyone who asked was met with awe that Adora was getting so much better with her stealth, aside from Catra herself anyway. But Catra eventually saw how folly that was when their squadron was called to report to their weekly education class. The instructor talked a solid five minutes about how Adora would not be in this section anymore because she was being transferred due to her promotion. Exemplary talent, he said. People pleaser, Catra thought. Adora, though, never reported to her area. And rumors starting going around that one of the skiffs had been taken out and damaged last night. And, well, who was first on the list of troublemakers according to Shadow Weaver?

Catra landed onto the marbled floor with her ears turned sideways. Might as well get this over with.

The heavy metal door opened to allow Catra inside before she could knock. Horror Hall never failed to give anyone the creeps, including Catra. Most were afraid of its inky darkness swallowing up any light aside from the dim reflective liquid inside Shadow Weaver’s cauldron. Most even hated the thick air inside here, like gravity would crush a person anytime Shadow Weaver willed it. Catra hated the smell most. Growing up in the Fight Zone, Catra smelled a lot of scents both good and bad. Shadow Weaver’s was the only one that reminded Catra of death. It was unpleasant, discerning, and a big, fat warning.

“Catra,” called out with an icy tone of greeting.

“Yeah,” Catra replied. She pressed her back against the wall and stayed as far away from the sorceress as possible. “What?”

I mean, you are kind of disrespectful.

Shadow Weaver, whether she had let it go this time or not, decided to stay on course. “Adora is missing.” Catra allowed the silence between them to linger. Her eyes, one blue and one yellow, lazily searched the surroundings for anything of interest. Shadow Weaver’s cauldron was casting an eerie green behind its owner making her appear to glow. The way the sorceress’s hair waved in a nonexistent wind almost made her look like she was floating. “Tell me where she is.”

“Dunno.” She held her smirk for when Shadow Weaver turned away, giving Catra her back. But just when Catra thought she could sneak away, a loud click echoed before a long shadow tendril retreated from the door and back to Shadow Weaver’s side. Catra knew how to pick a lock or two but there was no way around how quick Shadow Weaver’s magic was for the time being. Great, now she was stuck here.

“A skiff was stolen out of its bay last night and taken for an unsanctioned ride. It was returned damaged.” Shadow Weaver dipped her fingers into the cauldron and swirled its liquid methodically. “Cameras did not see who took the skiff out but audio does pick up laughter as it was speeding away.” Shadow Weaver’s mask tilted to get a brief glance behind her. “I know it was you, Catra.”

Catra stepped forward in anger. Her teeth flashed. “That wasn’t me!”

“No?” It sounded like Shadow Weaver was laughing, daring Catra to convince her that she had nothing to do with it. She didn’t bother to look back. It made Catra angrier to know that she didn’t consider her a big enough threat. “Then who else would have done this?”

Adora would have known how to have spun this. She was no telltale, but Adora would have told Shadow Weaver about hearing noises or something last night. Maybe footsteps in the hallway after hours. Maybe even hint that one of the more senior officer thugs was abusing his power again. Adora always watched Catra’s back, and now Catra had to make sure she protected Adora’s. Even if Shadow Weaver was intent on getting on her last nerve.

“Who knows? Maybe one of the rookies took it for a joy ride.” Catra made a vague gesture with her hand and rolled her eyes. Adora owed her big time when she came back. “Can I go now?”

The waves of Shadow Weaver’s hair became wild. “No!” The only hint of Catra’s uneasy was the way her tail tucked around her ankle. After what seemed like forever, the sorceress spoke again. “Did you know that Adora was promoted to Force Captain?”

Great, this again. “Yeah, what about it?”

“She was due this morning to be debriefed about a mission to Bright Moon. This is an opportunity for her to prove exactly what she is made of while on active duty. Even you know this is something she has wanted for a long time.” Catra flicked her tail in aggressive whips against the wall behind her. “And we both know who would be the only person to try to mess this up for her.”

Catra’s eyes narrowed at Shadow Weaver’s back. There were too many times when Catra dreamt of digging her claws into the sorceress's back. But she knew this game. This was who Shadow Weaver was, a bitter and manipulating woman who lived for making people feel worse than she did. There wasn’t anything to be respected about that. It didn’t even matter if she was second-in-command to Lord Hordak himself.

It didn’t matter that she was as close to a parent as she could get, and still cared about Adora more. She wasn’t going to fall for any of it. Adora was the only person here who gave more than two thoughts about Catra and Catra wasn’t giving her up for anyone. Not even Hordak.

“Where is Adora, Catra?”

Adora would do the same for her.

“Look, if you can’t keep an eye on your own precious little Force Captain then why is it suddenly my fault she’s gone?”

“Silence!”

Catra was getting tired of it. Ears bent back and teeth baring, she was ready to find an exit or claw out one of her own. But her objective took a backseat to the sudden pain that began to overwhelm her senses. Catra was tossed the short distance back into the wall and made to howl. Painful shocks of electricity surged at random all around her body. This wasn’t the worst pain she had felt from Shadow Weaver’s wrath, but it was enough to get her attention. Catra saw Shadow Weaver’s palm crackling in red sparks begin to fade into nothing. The pain stopped too but Catra was not about to be caught unaware again. She crossed her arms over her chest and tried her best, “Yes, Shadow Weaver.” The sorceress’s smell reached Catra’s nostrils again.

A warning.

“For the last time, where is Adora?” Shadow Weaver’s voice held a note of finality.

--

“Where are you going?” The surprise on Adora’s face was both cute and infuriating. Did Adora honestly think she could sneak away somewhere without Catra noticing? And from the pressed uniform on her body, Catra knew this wasn’t a midnight bathroom break. Was she going to see someone? Impossible too. Adora would have said something. Catra would have remembered.

Wait, what sword?

“Shh!” Once the robot scout came and went, and Adora’s hand uncovered Catra’s mouth (before it was licked just to gross her out), Adora explained what was bothering her. Or didn’t explain. This was something only she could do? Are you kidding?

“I’m coming too.”

“No!” No? “I don’t want you getting in trouble on my behalf.” You’re joking, Adora. Right? You’re obviously the favorite! Shadow Weaver already has it for me. You think this won’t get me into trouble if you’re caught?

...Why don’t you want me going with you?

“Cover for me, okay? I’ll be back before anyone knows I’m gone.”

But I’ll know you’re gone.

--

“And for the last time, I don’t know.” Catra stressed. She did try to sound pleasant, if exhausted from all of this back and forth. “You think I keep her on a leash?”

“I know you’re lying. You two are close. She would never depart without telling you.”

That hurt the most. Catra would have Adora’s back no matter what, even at the torture of Shadow Weaver. Adora promised to come back and didn’t. Was she hurt? In trouble? Adora was too careful for that. Too calculating and thorough. There was no way Adora would not return without it being some type of problem she needed to handle. Adora would never lie to Catra. Never. “Then I guess she let us both down, huh?” Catra didn’t try to hide the disappointment in her voice. At the very least, it would help keep Adora’s cover for a while longer.

“Have it your way. I already know where she is.” Wait, the cauldron? Catra stepped forward to try to get a better look into it. “We have been tracking her.” The sorceress was entirely too confident to be bluffing.

“Uh, then why did you ask me?” What, your little manipulation trick didn’t work? Or is is more bad news? Did the rebellion capture her?

Shadow Weaver finally turned around to let her mask met Catra’s eyes again. “Because you are going to bring her back.”

“Don’t think so.” Enough with the games! This reeked of the sorceress's own goals and Catra wasn’t about to help her get another power boost from Hordak. If Adora was in trouble then Catra would get her out on her own. If her friend was in trouble, Catra would save her. The senior cadet already had an idea of how to open the door’s lock in record time when she realized she had forgotten about the previous warning.

It was no pain this time, only pressure. A sparkling red force kept Catra from moving any part of her body. Every one of her muscles, from her eyelids to her toes, froze despite Catra’s every attempt to move. All of her limbs felt like lead. Catra could feel Shadow Weaver slinking up behind her, anxiety and fear making her skin crawl. She couldn’t even move her tail for balance. This was how Shadow Weaver demonstrated her absolute control over the Fright Zone, and Catra knew it. You are mine, this said, even when you think you’re not.

You’re mine.

And Catra hated how confused that made her feel.

“Your insolence will not protect her.” The pressure lessened when Shadow Weaver grabbed Catra’s shoulders. Her chilly voice was right in Catra’s ear, sending every hair on her body straight up. There was no compassion in her voice. “You will do as I ask.”

“Oh yeah?” Catra was happy to still have a little edge to her voice. It sounded brave. “Or what?” Or stupid.

Shadow Weaver grabbed Catra’s face with one hand and made their eyes meet. Nails dug into the cadet’s face plate with one pressed against her cheek. Catra could feel the muscles in Shadow Weaver’s hand tensing with power. She could squeeze harder if she wished. Her nail could draw blood and it wouldn’t mean anything to the sorceress. Catra was only a means to get to Adora, right? But despite knowing that, the outline of Shadow Weaver’s eyes was paralyzing.

“Or you will suffer the consequences in her place.”

Like Catra wouldn’t suffer from this anyway?

--

This was one of the few times where Catra was truly attentive during a debriefing. She stood in the back of a room full of soldiers with her back against the wall, eyes flicking between the officer in charge and the digital screen showing their attack plans. A senior officer had been abducted by the Rebellion. Her last known position was heading towards the rebel stronghold, Thaymor. Pretty much everyone was motivated to get her back, but someone had the audacity to ask why they were spending so many resources for just one person. When the cadet was swallowed by shadows right there in his seat, everyone sat a little straighter. It was weird to see Shadow Weaver so unhinged. Catra was sure this wasn’t out of genuine concern.

Catra made a mental note to tell Adora to watch her back on the way home.

“I want a tank.” She called out above the hum when the briefing was over. “You want me to help get Adora back, gimme a tank.”

Shadow Weaver narrowed her eyes threateningly, then waved her hand to dismiss Catra. The cadet’s grin grew with every step towards her chosen vehicle. Finally! She could blow something up for a change.

--

The radio inside the tank crackled to life every few seconds with locations of where Adora wasn’t. Catra allowed her vehicle to slow down enough for her to pull down the scope and take a look around. Smoke billowed out around destroyed buildings. People were still running away, trying to find cover that wasn’t already compromised. By now, her and Adora would be laughing about how easy this mission was. Thaymor wasn’t as prepared as the Horde assumed they were. This was easy pickings. But where the heck was--?

Catra couldn’t set the brakes or open the hatch quick enough. “Adora!” Standard protocol was to lock down the tank so the enemy couldn’t steal it. But since when was Catra a stickler for the rules. She climbed out and pounced on Adora, taking her to the ground to get a good look at her. Adora had the same dumb face on but no obvious signs of torture. She must have been able to escape when the Horde starting attacking this place. She was okay. She was okay, she was okay, she was--

Catra could kiss her right now.

“They let me drive a tank! Can you believe it?” Sappiness for later; they needed to high-tail it out of here. Adora looked even dumber with her questions. Why were they here? What was Adora thinking? “Uh duh! We came to find you.” Catra thought the extra tanks and robots were overkill too, but of course she’d come down here to save her best friend. “‘Cover for me, Catra. No one will even know I’m gone.’ Seriously! Did you just immediately get captured right after you snuck out, or...?” Catra’s nose caught the scent before her eyes did. Was that a plant growing out of her ear? “What are you wearing?”

“Look, there’s no time! We have to put a stop to this!”

“What?” Was that fear on Adora’s face? Concern? Some of the youngest soldiers were still pretty green, sure, but they could handle it. Or not, who cared? “Why?”

“Because this is a civilian town. Look around!” Catra did, trying to see exactly what Adora was talking about. “These people aren’t insurgents! They’re innocent people.”

Catra blew a burst of air out from between her lips. “Yeah, sure. Innocent people who kidnapped a Horde officer.” Maybe the smoke was starting to mess with Adora’s head. Or she really was brain damaged from last night. “Now c’mon! Let’s get you back to the Fright Zone.” Catra grabbed Adora’s hand and tugged her along, already with a story at her lips. “Shadow Weaver is freaking out!” She laughed at the memory of the look on the sorceress's face when she let Catra have the tank. Then her tail jerked, just like it had when Catra finally got out of Horror Hall and away from Shadow Weaver. It took half an hour for the soreness in her arms and legs to fade away. Catra let her laughter die out. “It’d be funny if she weren’t such a terrible person.”

Suddenly Adora pulled herself out of Catra’s grip. “I can’t go back! Not until the Horde leaves this town alone.” Adora was talking but, just like before Adora left last night, Catra couldn’t understand what the heck she was saying. She wanted to help this town? She wanted Catra to help her help this town?

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying this wrong! They’ve been lying to us, manipulating us. Hordak, Shadow Weaver, all of them.”

Adora had to be kidding. “DUH! Did ya just figure that out?!” And she was given that sad kitten look again, Catra started to get annoyed. “Manipulation is Shadow Weaver’s whole thing! She’s been messing with our heads since we were kids.”

“How...how could you possibly be okay with that?”

Okay, enough. What could the rebels have done to Adora in one night? She couldn’t have forgotten just how much they looked after one another. That was the whole point of putting up with this. All of this. Catra stepped up and grabbed Adora’s shoulders. She had the intense urge to shake consciousness back into Adora but decided against it.

“Because it doesn’t matter what they do.” Adora needed to remember just how far they have come together. “The two of us look out for each other.” Remember? Remember our dreams together? To get off this dump and get the heck away from here? “And soon? We’ll be the ones calling the shots.

Catra tugged Adora’s shoulders once and offered a smile. “Now, come on! Can we go home already?” Frankly, all Catra wanted to do was take a nap. And she couldn’t do that comfortably without Adora’s warmth.

Adora backed up and away from Catra’s touch. Catra resisted the urge to reach out to her. Her fingers tingled the entire time Adora spoke again. When Adora reached out to grab Catra’s hands, she felt her heart beating in her chest. We can fix this. Fix what? Since when were her and Adora broken?

Since Adora let the rebels’ talk get into her damaged brain.

“Are you kidding?!” Catra shook off Adora’s touch. “You’ve known these people for what, a-a couple hours? And now you’re gonna throw everything away for...for them?” Catra was a lot of things. Maybe she wasn’t as motivated as Adora, maybe was wasn’t as smart or as decorated either. But Catra cared about Adora past all that, and she knew that Adora cared about her. They were inseparable. Now Adora was willing to help the enemy just because of some sob story they probably told her? “What happened to you?”

“I don’t know.” Adora started to turn away. “I’m sorry, Catra.”

Me too, Adora. The wand in Catra’s belt was snatched and activated against Adora’s back. But I’m not going home without you.

You’re not leaving me again.

Adora fell hard into the dirt. The voltage was too high! She didn’t check it beforehand, damn! Aaand reflex made her zap Adora again. Double damn! “I am SO sorry! It was a reflex!”

“Why...why are you doing this?”

Anger broke the dam in her throat, held back for the entire day. “Because you left me!” And just as quick as the fire left her lips, the chill of fear craved a line down her back. “And if I don’t bring you back, Shadow Weaver will have my head!” Wake up, Adora! You know exactly how Shadow Weaver disciplines. You know exactly how Shadow Weaver disciplines me. “So enough with your weird little identity crisis and let’s go home already!” The wand in Catra’s hand felt as heavy as her tail did back in Horror Hall. Sweat gathered on her forehead. “Or do I need to zap you again?”

I’m your shield, Adora. Let me protect you from this craziness.

She had her guard down for too long. Something hit Catra in the face, forcing her attention to getting clearing her vision. Catra was able to clear her blue eye to see a blurry someone kneeling next to Adora’s body. Oh, no, they were not about to take her away again! Catra’s advance was halted by a net ensnaring her body. She shrieked and thrashed, able to get an arm out to aim her wand at the girl touching Adora. The taser fired, and was met with air when both girls disappeared from sight. “Adora!”

No. No, no, no, no!

The net was ripped open with Catra’s sharp claws. She dug them into the ground to propel herself forward, then launch at the boy to knock him off of the animal he rode. The bow he defended himself with collided with Catra’s claws over and over again. The boy kicked her off, and she kicked him back, doing everything in her power to capture him and question him. Where is Adora? Is Adora okay? You know where she is, right? Right?

The boy was able to throw Catra off again, making her roll onto on her hands and knees. He runs and Catra was relieved to see her comrades noticing their fight and coming to help. Catra pointed where the boy ran and watched as he was encircled by the Horde. If Catra couldn’t rescue Adora from the rebels, she was going to bring someone in her place. They would get her back. Catra was going to get her back no matter what.

The glowing girl walking in the middle of their siege was the mustard on the pie to Catra’s day.

Whoever this girl was, she was the exact opposite of Shadow Weaver. Her blonde hair was brighter than the gold armor that glimmered as she walked. It waved with power just like Shadow Weaver’s did. Her face was emotionless like the sorceress’s mask. The red cape gave the girl the look of a mighty warrior ready to fight against all that stood in her way. She lifted a large, bluish looking sword and stabbed it into the ground without any warning. Large cracks broke and unsettled every soldier’s footing. Even some tanks fell into large openings, unable to drive themselves out.

Catra watched as this girl took out Horde machinery one by one with seemingly no effort. The gun on a tank was slashed clean off. Soldiers were knocked back by the sword with easy flicks of the girl’s wrist. She remembered yesterday’s training evaluation, where she had broken into the training area early and took out some robots to give the squadron some help in breaking the record. Adora was promoted to Force Captain that day. They rode a borrowed skiff into the Whispering Wood. Adora mentioned some sword she found then, didn’t she? It was what Adora went back for last night. Was this girl the person who captured Adora in the first place?

Was this one of the princesses that the Horde taught them about?

The officer in charge yelled for everyone to retreat but Catra wasn’t done yet. She walked a wide circle around the glowing princess and waited for an opening. It came when the girl fell to her knees and let her sword slip. Catra walked through smoke and steeled herself to run when that familiar dumb face looked back at her, the sword nearby. Adora called out to Catra, and Catra wondered if that sword would be used against her too.

The only response Catra could make was to back away. This was unbelievable. Adora was on their side? After one night? A Horde officer, and resident favorite, deflecting to the other side? Shadow Weaver was going to kill Catra, and Catra knew it. But the witch could wait.

Catra was still trying to figure out if she lost Adora too.

[radioactive-butterfly]

Confession nigga, hear me out:

ーBeing friendzoned?

ーThat too.

ーOw.

ーBut it ain't that my confession.

ーKilled some punk ass?

ーNo! Why would I do that?

ーAye. Dunno. Whatcha got fo me?

ーBroken heart.

ーShhhheeeeeeeesh. Who caused it? Ya hun?

ーNo I... i don't have a hun.

ーYou see that's why you're heartbr-

ーNigga hear me out will ya?

ーAlright, jeez, you so ～flower gorl～

ーI ain't bullshitting mayne, this is a major heartbreak.

ーThen tell me, fuck?!

ーMy mom left me when I was a kid.

ーOuch. Cigarettes?

ーaye.

ーWhat about ya pap?

ーSaid I was a mistake in his life, an unwanted little bastard.

ーDamn.

ーSaid he would trample me with a car if I got on his way.

ーdid he do it?

ーNo, but someone else did. I really got ran over by a car when I was a kid.

ーashit

ーI also lost my dog in my arms and had to throw it in a trash bag after it shat and pissed itself right after dying.

ーyeah that happens

ーBesides, my dad kicked me out for drinking a beer, beat the shit out of me when I couldn't defend myself,

ーaye, imma pour some liquor. Go on

ーI also got homeless after being duped by someone who called themselves 'friend'. Got nowhere to sleep but the streets.

ーokay

ーI also had strokes.

ーlike a concussion of something

ーNo, electrical surges through my body.

ーWhat the fuck nigga. Is it done?

ーThe shocks? Yeah. The memories? Nu-uh.

ーimma light this cuban here. Go on

ーHad to sell what I had for a living, while also doing charity for nothing in return

ーwhat about ya community?

ーWho knows? They don't do jack shit for me. It's like I'm dead to them.

ーWhat... the fuck. Wyd for a living?

ーMostly research; sales, music, some rhymes.

ーthat keep you alive?

ーStill breathing.

ーuh-huh。

ーThere's more.

ーffs nigga. What you been through?

ーBeen tied up like an animal while I cried for my mother who wasn't there.

ーBro what the fuck. What happened.

ーI hit my dad because he also threw my gf out of the house.

ーur dad huh

ーHe's old and lame. Ain't worth the time.

ーtell me it's over

ーNa-uh. My gf also left me for a junkie punk.

ーYou can't be serious in this motherfucker。

ーI can. I am. Serious.

ーwhy are you not dead too?

ーIdk mayn, guess God is a sadistic cunt.

ーu cool tho?

ーYah, I bought myself some weights.

ーNigga, have you ever

ーNah. Never did it.

ーHow the fuck then? You not insane?

ーIdk nigga. Must have been y'all. I was fucking abandoned and you took me. And hey,

ー?

ーyou lit it.

[kuwaiti-kid]

The Best PS2 Role Playing Games (RPGs) of All Time

Action, suspense, thickening storylines, and newly advanced graphics.

The PS2 RPGs have them all rolled into a perfect gaming combination. What could possibly be better than experiencing your favorite vintage RPGs on the old school PS1?

Amazing new RPGs on an upgraded system with augmented graphics! Many of the RPG series and games we have come to love received sequels and additions to the new PS2 system. With their cult followings, unique stories, and newly upgraded visuals, these games are worthy of more than just one playthrough.

Here is our list of the 10 Best PlayStation 2 Role Playing games ever created!

The Best PS2 Role Playing Games (RPGs)

1. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King (2004)

Are you looking for a creative, adventurous journey full of vibrant color and eye-catching 3D graphics? You cannot go wrong with Dragon Quest VIII! The game begins with the court jester of the kingdom of Trodain, Dhoulmagus, stealing an ancient scepter and casting a spell on Trodain castle.

The spell turns King Trode, into a troll; the princess, Medea, into a horse; and the rest of the castle’s inhabitants into plants. The only one left unaffected is the unnamed protagonist, a Trodain guard. The guard, King Trode, and Princess Medea set out on a quest to track down Dhoulmagus and break the spell.

These battle scenes have visually changed dramatically from earlier games in the series yet retain a similar text-based menu system for battles. It continues to follow the turn-based RPG combat system, but with a shifting camera view based on who is battling the enemy.

Dragon Quest VIII is the biggest selling game ever for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. It was the first Dragon Quest game to receive a score of 39 out of 40 from Famitsu. It won both 1UP.com’s and GameSpy’s “Best RPG of E3 2005” award, ahead of runner-up Kingdom Hearts II.

Time to grab yourself a copy and pop this one into the PS2!

2. Final Fantasy XII (2006)

Encompassing both beautiful scenery and intriguing character, Final Fantasy XII lives up to the high expectations of the legendary series.

Final Fantasy XII takes place in the familiar world of Ivalice, hundreds of years after Dynast King Raithwall united its warring kingdoms in the Galtean Alliance. It follows the street urchin Vaan who becomes embroiled in a quest to save the occupied kingdom of his homeland, Dalmasca, from a war that seems imminent.

Excluding the massively multiplayer online role-playing game FF XI, FF XII is the first entry in the main Final Fantasy series not to include random encounters. Another new feature is the “gambit” system, which allows the player to program each character to perform certain commands in battle in response to specified conditions.

Final Fantasy XII does a superb job of blending a Star Wars-esque spirit with an Anime presentation. The game has it all, political intrigue and rebellion, aerial dogfighting, sleek spacecraft, and an eclectic cast of characters.

Add this one to your list! You will not be disappointed.

3. Kingdom Hearts I (2002)

What happens when you combine the magic of Disney with the unparalleled storytelling of Final Fantasy? You get something Epic, and they named it Kingdom Hearts.

The series begins with a 14-year-old boy named Sora is separated from his friends Riku and Kairi when their home Destiny Islands is consumed in darkness. Sora obtained a weapon called the Keyblade that allows him to fight the Heartless, creatures that originate from the Realm of Darkness. Sora is then transported to the infamous Traverse Town, where he teams up with Donald and Goofy.

They are two emissaries from Disney Castle sent to find the Keyblade wielder under orders from their missing king, Mickey Mouse. The three band together to travel through different worlds and battle some very familiar villains.

The games are influenced by their parent franchise, Final Fantasy, and carry its gameplay elements over into their action-based system.

Like many others, Kingdom Hearts features an experience point system that determines character development. Fans of Square’s other RPG entries will recognize some gameplay staples, such as the magic spells and summoning spells, and the whole thing truly plays like an action-adventure title.

The characters truly pull at your heartstrings as you fall in love with their good-hearted nature and perseverance. The world in which you play feels lighthearted and magical amidst the darkness.

It is impossible to put your controller down once you wield your first key blade. It is no surprise that Kingdom Hearts would become a ps2 RPG top seller that is worthy of multiple sequels.

  4. Kingdom Hearts II (2005)

Grab your key blade and get back in your Gummi Ship! It’s time to experience more amazing character-filled worlds!

The first Kingdom Hearts was such a success that it is no surprise that there would be a Kingdom Hearts II.  Full of a double dose of magic, the second story adds even more combinations of both Disney and Final Fantasy characters.

Where this game really shines is in the presentation. Even by today’s standards, it’s a great looking game, and the lush coloring and animations in the world all but beg you to adventure through it.

In Kingdom Hearts II, you reprise the role of Sora, wielder of the keyblade. The crux of the game has you, Sora, traveling from one land to another with companions Donald Duck and Goofy to dispel the heartless and to rescue friends of yours that are missing. Along the way, you’ll join forces with the heroes and heroines of Square, Disney, and The Nightmare Before Christmas.

While still an action RPG, Kingdom Hearts II gives you some freedoms, both in determining your characters’ attributes and in resigning yourself to standard combat. You can do a little bit of both or a lot of one or the other, depending on your preferences. Seasoned role-playing gamers will be able to spend time perfecting the allocation of their abilities, synthesizing new items, and grinding to level up.

For those less interested in the role-playing aspects, you can breeze through the main gameplay without paying much attention to statistics.

Kingdom Hearts II is a wonderful experience in which every character interaction allows you to live through some of the magic moments of these movies and games.

5. Shadow Hearts: Covenant (2004)

If you are looking for some realistic intrigue with a strong hint of mystical, you have come to the right place! Covenant, the sequel to Shadow Hearts, brings the reality of war mixed with the intrigue of fantasy.

The game takes place in an alternate WWI-era setting that is rife with supernatural elements, and it has a rich cast of characters, including vampires, wolves, military officers, and even a puppeteer.

The story follows six months after the events of Shadow Hearts during the time of World War I. The heroes are drawn into an intriguing plot involving the demons of demonolatry, the chief advisor of the tsar of Russia, and a man from the main character Yuri Hyuga’s past.

The battle system is unique in that it features a “judgment ring,” which acts as a timer to deliver crucial hits

Overall, this a roleplaying game that will leave a lasting legacy.

6. Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 (2008)

The intrigue of mystery, Suspense, and unsolved murder lands Persona 4 next on our list. The intriguing storyline is based on the work of mystery novelists owing to its murder mystery premise.

The plot centers on another high-school protagonist who must overcome spirits, murders, and killer fog. The rural setting was based on a town on the outskirts of Mount Fuji in the fictional town of Inaba.

We follow high school student, Yu Narukami in later media, who has recently moved from the city to attend school at Inaba. Unexplained murders have taken place in the small town, where bodies are found dangling from television antennas and their cause of death being unknown.

The main focus of the game revolves around Personas, avatars projected from one’s inner self that resembles mythological figures and represents the façades worn by individuals to face life’s hardships.

The “Shin Megami Tensei” series earned rave reviews for its willingness to break with the RPG convention. It blends traditional RPG gameplay with simulation elements. You will travel through dungeons, all based upon a victim that has been kidnapped. The player enters battle upon coming into contact with a Shadow. You engage in combat using the elements Physical, Fire, Ice, Wind, Electricity, Light, Dark, and Almighty.

“Persona 4” improves on the previous entries by delivering better animation and mechanics. It is critically acclaimed being one of the greatest games of all time.

7. Star Ocean: Till the End of Time (2003)

This installment of Star Ocean is a bit of a wildcard. While some absolutely love the game, others were not as thrilled. While having many similarities to its predecessor, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time includes many elements that make it unique among the majority of role-playing video games.

The game begins on the resort planet of Hyda IV. Fayt Leingod is on a family vacation with his parents Robert and Ryoko Leingod and his childhood friend Sophia Esteed.

Everything appears fairly normal until the galactic faction known as the Vendeeni invades the planet. Fayt and his family are forced to flee, but he is separated from them. His escape pod ends up crash-landing on the planet Vanguard III. His journey thereafter will not only reveal a few truths about himself but about the origin of their very universe.

The game inherits the recurring real-time interactive combat system from the series while presenting many new elements. Instead of random encounters, battles now occur when running into enemies on the main travel field or when certain pre-scripted events occur.

Enemy attacks can target either a player’s hit points (HP) or mental points (MP). Players will also lose HP from using special attacks or lose MP from using symbology or runeology, which is functionally equivalent to magic in other games.

Whether you love the game will truly depend on your preferences. Will you find the story to be solid or unbalanced? Will the large midway plot twist enhance or hinder your journey?

You will have t pick up a copy and find out!

8. Rogue Galaxy (2005)

Ever had the urge to become a pirate, board an airship, and fly around to save the galaxy? Who hasn’t?

Rogue Galaxy is exactly how it sounds, a vibrant story where you become a space pirate board an airship on a quest to defend the universe.

You play as Jaster Rogue, a young man with avid dreams of exploring the galaxy. The story begins on the planet Rosa, where its citizens live under their oppressive control and are forbidden from leaving the planet. Due to a series of fortunate events, Jaster is recruited by a gang of space pirates who mistake him for the legendary hunter, Desert Claw, and can leave Rosa. Jaster finds himself taking part in a galaxy-wide search with the crew for a legendary planet said to hold the secrets of a highly advanced civilization along with the immense treasure.

Rogue Galaxy is an action role-playing game played from a third-person perspective in which the player moves through a continuous environment, with no load time between overworld exploration and combat. Battles occur as random encounters like traditional role-playing video games. Unlike the traditional turn-based combat, Rogue uses a real-time hack and slash combat system in which the player fights with a party of three characters.

With its advanced graphics, range of side quests, and game scope Rogue Galaxy is worthy of a playthrough!

9. Suikoden III (2002)

With its impressive cult following, it is no surprise that Suikoden III has landed on our list.

Like other games in the series, Suikoden III features an intricate, detailed setting. However, it differs from Suikoden II in that in Suikoden III, the story is told through three different protagonists. That means gamers will play as a mercenary, a knight, and the son of a chieftain. The plot is explored through three different viewpoints, allowing events to be seen from multiple sides.

This is an excellent game for those who look to switch things up if they lose interest easily in a storyline.

The gameplay is along the lines of the traditional turn-based system we see in most RPG’s. Characters can also character can also learn specific skills; for instance, the “Parry” skill allows a character to defend against attacks more often, while other skills may increase damage output or hasten the casting of spells. Each character has their affinity for what works best for them.

Make sure to grab a copy of this one to add to your quickly growing Suikoden collection!

10. Final Fantasy X (2001)

“Listen to my story. This…may be our last chance.” -Tidus’s narrative

Last but definitely not least, we come to the beautiful, imaginative story that is Final Fantasy X.

The story of Final Fantasy X is told by Tidus, a sports star from the futuristic metropolis called Zanarkand. During a match, Tidus gets swept up to another world and joins summoner Yuna and her friends on her journey to save the world of Spira from a rampaging monster known as Sin. From here, it unfolds a wonderful story you will experience with beautiful graphics and unique characters.

Final Fantasy X introduces the Conditional Turn-Based Battle system in place of the series’ traditional Active Time Battle system first used in Final Fantasy IV. Whereas the ATB concept features real-time elements, the CTB system is a turn-based format that pauses the battle during each of the player’s turns.

The game added in the intricate sphere grid system, which is utilized for leveling up your characters. Additionally, the concept of “Limit Breaks,” highly damaging special attacks, reappear in Final Fantasy X as “Overdrives.”

Final Fantasy X is beloved for its solid story, richly layered characters, and ahead-of-its-time animation. If you haven’t played it, you need to.

Wrap Up

The best ps2 RPG video games became staples as our daily adventures. We would spend hours of our day exploring different fantasy words envisioning what life would be like on these imaginary planets. Not only were these games fully immersive, but they also became home.

These games would make you forget the real world, even if only for a moment. These are the RPG games that deserve a chance. Deserve a second playthrough. Deserve recognition from us as the ones that side quested their way into our hearts.

Where can I get these video games?

Can’t find a ps2 RPG on the list? Here are some primary locations to obtain these classics:

Playstation Store Classics – Store.Playstation.com

LukieGames – LukieGames.com

DKOldies – DKOldies.com

GameStop – Gamestop.com or In-Store Locations

Best Buy – Bestbuy.com

Want to check out the origins of some of these epic video games? Check out our list of Top PS1 RPG’s!

The post The Best PS2 Role Playing Games (RPGs) of All Time appeared first on Your Money Geek.

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[omnical]

OK

now that life has finally calmed down a bit for me, I totally promise that I will continue working on body electric. totes mcgoats :)

[omnical]

I Sing the Body Electric... (3/?)

( Previous - Next )

Summary: We find out a few things about Detective Fareeha Amari. (Previously titled Dead Bodies)

Genre: AU (Supernatural, Cyerpunk-ish elements).

Characters/Pairings: Fareeha, Pharmercy; minor: Angela, Lucio, Hanzo

Rating: T, mentions of third party violence and rock music

Links: AO3

Detective Fareeha Amari dug for her coat’s collar underneath the scarf wrapped around her neck, taking care not to jostle her injured arm.

Looking out into the pouring rain, she stepped through the medical examiner’s office entrance, its sliding doors closing behind her with a hiss of cold air. Fareeha carefully fumbled down the marble steps which lead to the sloping sidewalk, her shoes getting drenched from the wet pavement once more. She contemplated what to do next.

The roads outside were sleek; watery reflections of white streetlights and holographic shop signs dancing and glistening on uneven asphalt and dark bricks. The pavement was lined with a layer of fog, not quite thick enough to hide the gleam of her shoes. It rolled across sidewalk cracks, curling between lampposts like smoke from a cigarette. Under the cover of rain, the streets felt like a liminal space; the urban sprawl quieting down to a whisper. It almost felt like she was walking in an old 1980s music video. Fareeha bunched her shoulders up, rain falling on her like big fat pellets, plunging her in a world of filtered gray and blue. She pulled her collar further up her face with a careful tug, hoping to warm her cheeks.

But this is real, she thought, slowing her brisk march when she reached a flickering streetlight.

She looked up at the dented torch, squinting from the rain falling on her face. Fareeha leaned her shoulder against the post, and tapped a knuckle against its metal surface twice. Light shortly surrounded her like a hundred watt spotlight. Fareeha wrapped her arm around herself, and waited.

The commercial district in Bishop Street usually bustled on a normal weekday, full of grim-faced crowds too busy and harried to slow down. Today, however, Fareeha only saw a handful of strangers huddled in their own coats; different colored umbrellas casting shadows over their heads, trying to keep themselves away from the worst of the weather. Along the roads were several lined coffee shops and quiet novelty stores. Closer to the horizon, a sky bridge hovered a few blocks away near a car dealership and a vehicle maintenance office, where she could see faraway headlights gliding across the bridge.

Fareeha inhaled, filling her lungs with the city. The smog, the food wafting from diners and eateries nearby, the hot biofuel from passing cars. With her eyes closed, she imagined the good Dr. Ziegler waiting under the bus stop after a work shift, sitting on a greasy wooden bench, protected from the elements by a layer of dirty glass and metal bars…

Fareeha hated the rain. Not for the first time, she questioned her year-old decision of moving to a place which had an overabundance of it.

Rain felt oppressive, heavy and menacing; hiding the gloom, with time frozen at the tip of a decimal point. Cairo’s streets never had the problem of crime persisting under unrelenting weather, but here in King’s Row, criminals would come out like earthworms crawling out of the mud, rising as if exposed to an electrical current; ready to take advantage of lone wanderers, darker alleyways, and abandoned vehicles. While her old security job in Cairo kept her busy, criminal statistics here in King’s Row was another level altogether. It found Fareeha sleeping in her car’s backseat most nights, too exhausted and emotionally drained to drag herself back to her flat. She spent most of her wages buying fuel, and eating street-food out among her miserable fellow city dredges.

But now, as an endless row of dark and heavy clouds rolled across the sky, Fareeha found there was another malevolent side to the city. People often said that fear came from the unknown. Fareeha argued that knowing, sometimes, is worse than not knowing.

As if possessed by a desire to do something with her hands, Fareeha turned her wrist and read the time on her wristwatch. Her hand was shaking, but it was not from the cold. Two thirty-five P.M.

A red double-decker bus swept past Fareeha, its sides covered in blinking neon advertisements of current web celebrities, dwarfing her easily as it turned left. She watched it go, warmed by its hot engine as it passed.

A number of cars followed after, heading for busier highways. Their windows were black, leaving behind the sounds of humming engines and the break of wind speed as they glided towards their destinations. Her eyes idly watched as they all disappeared around the next turning signal.

Fareeha perked up when a familiar shape of another vehicle soon came into view. She stepped closer to the edge of the street to meet it.

Her car’s headlights appeared like two bright eyes in the dark as it approached its owner, the Raptora’s bulky form cutting through the curtain of rain. Its engines roared, then slowed to a stop in front of her. She gave its hood a fond pat.

“You’re late.”

Fareeha opened the car door and quickly gathered herself in the driver’s seat, the ends of her coat bundling up over her lap. Her hands already felt numb from the cold, and water from her hair trickled down to her back. Fareeha shivered. It wasn’t the best weather for a visit to Dr. Ziegler, but she had come anyway. It was sensible, even necessary, to keep everyone informed, was it not? Of course, most of their communications were through screens and encoded channels. Meeting a few times a day in her office, fascinated by the way the doctor’s mind processed information. Dr. Ziegler was… different. Good different.

What an odd woman.

She gripped the wheel and felt around its ridges for the fingerprint scanner hidden behind it. After finding the smooth glass panels, she allowed the module to scan her prints.

The vehicle’s inner-systems hummed to life, its dashboard lights, overhead LED’s, and the windshield display blinking like the eyes of a creature forced into wakefulness.

Vehicle status…

GPS…

Radio box…

She waited a moment, allowing Raptora to scan their external surroundings.

'Welcome back, Detective Amari.'

“Thank you, Raptora.”

‘There is currently nothing urgent pending, and there are no alerts from nearby city districts.'

“Good to know.” Fareeha said with a grunt, struggling to pull the seatbelt over herself with one hand, jamming it in her haste.

‘You are scheduled for an interrogation with Mrs. Eileen Finnegan at 1600 hours. No new reports for Case File: 712, 649, 447, 328…’

“Not so good to know.” She grumbled, clicking her seat belt into place after much difficulty.

With a sigh, Fareeha relaxed into her seat and reached under the passenger dashboard. She unlatched the car’s built-in laptop from underneath, pulling its sturdy metal tray towards herself. Fareeha rubbed her fingers together before opening its lid, and pressing the blinking, yellow button at the corner of its keyboard. She began to type a few keys.

‘You have a non-urgent callback from your Tracker. Patching him through.’

She chuckled. “With Hanzo? It’s always urgent.”

“Amari.”

Fareeha grimaced.

He must have heard that.

“I thought we were on first names basis now, Shimada?”

She bit the insides of her cheek, trying to stifle a laugh as Detective Shimada went silent, the grating radio static successfully expressing his displeasure.

Fareeha could almost see him glare at her from the other side of the frequency.

“Tell me.”

“We have the results from our tech’s video analysis for Case 765.”  He said, his keyboard clicking. “Quoting her report: ‘If I have to check this dumb video clip again, I will eat my equipment’. I believe her report strongly confirms she has found no further evidence of anything out of the ordinary.”

Fareeha cursed, her fingers raking through her hair. “Any good news?”

“Got a call about the wife, that Finnegan woman.”

“Eileen?”

“She cannot come for the interrogation today. I have just deleted it from your task list.”

“That’s not good news, Shimada.” She gripped the steering wheel tightly, drumming her fingers on the rim. “What happened?”

“Got the call thirty minutes ago. Neighbors and apartment staff reported she did not come home last night, and has been gone since yesterday.”

“Think she ran off before we got to her?”

“I am checking all nearby airports and train stations as we speak.” Shimada said, “Might be a good time to pay her a visit.”

“What is her address?”

Another minute of loud typing.

“I sent you the coordinates.”

“Appreciate it, Shimada”

“Don’t get shot.”

Shimada cut the audio on his side, leaving her alone with the sound of rain pelting the roof of her car, loud and cacophonous like the static of a dead television channel. Fareeha’s smile fell.

She pressed the back of her head against the leather headrest of her seat and exhaled, slow and steady, watching in a daze as her car’s wipers went back and forth across the windshield.

Stretching her numb fingers, she reached for the round metal knob of her radio and turned it on. A slow song began to play.

 Welcome, my son, welcome to the machine...

 The little girl woke up to the sight of a forest zipping by.

Her superhero posters and the toys on her desk were gone. Her desk was gone. Every morning she woke up to the sight of glow-in-the-dark stars hanging over her ceiling; her blinds half-open, allowing the morning light in. This looked nothing like her home.

Instead there were trees, yellow signposts, and guard rails blurring together into blotches of dizzying color.

She blinked, rubbing cold knuckles over her eyelids. For a moment, the girl had to take in a few seconds to remember where she was. Looking now at her surroundings, the girl’s mind caught up to her recent memories. They were not home anymore. They were so far away that girl did not know what this country was called anymore.

And there were so many trees.

The young girl did not wish to know what existed beyond the verdant landscapes; or beyond the faded blue mountains, which crested up into the sky like giant pointed specters. The view made her feel nauseous after staring at it for too long, and she had to look away, shaking her head. The girl supposed spending many days and nights riding a moving car for hours on end would make her stomach feel hollow and full of acid.

Up in the sky, the weather cast was blue and sunny from where she could see. It also looked windy, and pleasant, a good day. But the girl was starving, and she wished she could play outside with the children from back home instead. She imagined orange sunsets, drinking tea, and eating figs and nuts with her parents outside on the sandy balcony.

She hunched in her seat, watching thickets bearing spaces no wider than an inch or two apart whip past them as they drove far, far away. They have been driving for a long time, and she still did not know what day it was, or what time it was.

She hated traveling.

“We’re almost there, little one.”

The young girl frowned, looked down at her lap, and remained silent, fiddling with the hem of her jean jacket. The plastic yellow decoder ring around her thumb from yesterday’s cereal box was still sticky from the sugar and milk concoction she ate, but she found comfort in its weight. The girl took it off and worried it in her palm, turning the dials and trying to read a few random letters on the face.

“Still mad at me?” her mother asked, her voice rough from disuse. She sounded tired, and wary, but it was comforting for the girl to hear the familiar language again.

The girl said nothing. She pressed her head against the cool glass.

“I know you are, and I am sorry.” Her mother sighed. “I am so, so sorry. But we need to keep moving.”

“I want to go home.” the girl said, her voice soft, the hum of their vehicle drowning it out.

“We can’t, little one.”

“I want to know where ami is.”

“We’ll see her again soon.” her mother paused. “I know you’re afraid and confused – “

“I am not scared.”

“But you need to do exactly as I say. Okay?” The girl decided ignore how her mother’s voice shook. “I need to protect you now.”

“Thank you, but I can take care of myself.”

Fareeha slammed the car door shut, and looked up at the lush residential building.

It was an old and ancient structure, surrounded by well-trimmed trees and square hedgerows along the sides, separating it from the road. Its stern and sturdy form was unlike the grandiose arching designs of today’s modern architecture. It had stayed in the same place years after its construction in the mid-millennium, and Fareeha presumed it will stay in another twenty. Around the ancient building were newer structures, taller with narrower roofs reaching high into the sky; colorful hologram logos blinking and turning above every shop entrance. Talco Machinery. Jotunn Co. Kenwood Electronics.

Detective Amari felt out of place amongst the crowd of flashy local residents, their drab business suits and dresses well-starched and angular. Some were waiting for their valets, while the equally well-dressed residential staff kept their clients’ coiffed hair and makeup dry, lifting wide umbrellas decorated with a bright yellow logo above their heads patiently.

The well-dressed omnic who had approached Fareeha, holding up a dainty hand as if asking permission to collect her wet coat, nodded politely. “Very well, detective.” They lowered their arm. “Welcome to the Evergreen Complex.” The omnic opened an umbrella over her head with a flourish, and patiently waited for Fareeha to get out of her car and lock her vehicle. “We did not expect you would arrive this early.”

“Thanks… Mister, Miss…?”

“Mister Samwise-57, your loyal Residential Concierge, detective.” He nodded. “At your service.”

“I am Detective Fareeha Amari, King’s Row Constabulary. I believe you have spoken to my partner an hour ago?”

Samwise’s blue oculars blinked. “It has been most distressing.” he said, deflating visibly. “Especially considering what had happened to her husband. We are happy you came, detective. Please follow me.”

After making sure the Raptora was safely patrolling around the city district on its own, Detective Amari followed Mr. Samwise-57 to the building’s wide and golden entrance. Its well-kept exterior built with flared bricks fanning out in complex patterns, which made its design look rustic in its odd geometry. Rainwater gushed in mini-waterfalls from the white and yellow awning above its main entrance.

The door panels and curved handles were also colored gold, its surface was clear glass.

Another omnic opened the glass door and welcomed them with a small bow and an exaggerated sweep of an arm, their square jaw quirking as they smiled, and kindly told her to be careful of the slippery floors. Fareeha nodded back and mumbled a quick thank you in return. The lobby floors were spotless, and the carpeting was dry.

Warm air greeted her, and she shivered from the sudden shift in temperature. Her shoes squeaked over the shiny marble floors, sliding and squelching as she walked awkwardly to the reception. Miraculously, she did not slip.

The apartment’s lobby was a wide space, sparsely decorated, with minimalist sofas and a lingering smell of oranges. Two security guards sat behind a wide desk a walk away, watching her approach apprehensively. Detective Amari tugged her coat over herself, her hunched form making her look like a drowned castaway among the richer folk.

“Nice place, Samwise.”

The omnic perked up proudly. “Our staff works very hard to keep things going like a well-maintained machine, you could say.” He said.

A few of the tenants watched her, some murmuring about the detective’s sudden unsightly appearance. Some were sending her dirty looks as Detective Amari dripped puddles everywhere. Other, likely smarter individuals, noticed the embroidered badge and patch on her shoulder which read: ‘King’s Row Constabulary, Criminal Investigation Department. Nevertheless, they gave way to her tall presence, too busy reading the daily newspapers from their tablets, or hurrying to do their own businesses elsewhere.

“Do you happen to know Mrs. Finnegan in person, by any chance?” Fareeha asked, combing drooping strands of wet hair away from her face.

“She spoke to me a few times.” Samwise stuck his umbrella in a fancy copper bin nearby, which was already full of used wet umbrellas. “Lately to ask about her husband, but not much else.”

“Not a happy couple, I take it?”

“She wanted to make sure we caught her husband with a girl around his arm.” He said.

Once they approached the front desk, she signed her signature for the visitor’s record book, showing her badge to the security officers on-guard.

The elevator ride to the 54th floor took a while. Fareeha spent it in silence with the cheerful omnic by her side, who bounced along with the elevator jazz music.

In her mind, she was busy imagining Mrs. Finnegan’s daily routine. Retracing the woman’s journey every night, after coming back home from work.

The elevator was fairly spacious, and wide enough to fit ten people in. It was clean, the smell of perfume and cigarette smoke prominent, sticking on every surface. The wall behind them was covered in a large mirror, not a smudge marring its pristine surface.

Fareeha imagined Mrs. Finnegan fixing her make-up and hair in front of them every morning, every night.

The side walls were covered with a few LED display screens, which proudly advertised one ridiculously expensive product to another. Cheerful, multi-language voices from the ads rung out: perfumes, wristwatches, a fancy laundry service for the residents, and a ‘New Royal Mall on the Queen’s Walkway Boulevard! … Visit us today!’.

Fareeha lifted her eyes up, and saw a security cam overhead. Its small, red light blinking above its dark lense. She set her mouth to a thin line.

“You wouldn’t mind if I acquired copies of your security vids, would you?”

“Of course not, detective. Please feel free.”

Detective Amari mumbled a thank you, and grabbed a device from inside her coat, which looked like it could have fit around her wrist perfectly if one of her arms were not broken. It was as large as her hand, and it fit perfectly in her palm nonetheless. The front panel of the device split and slid apart, revealing a small glass screen. A few settings and actions appeared in blue letters. With difficulty, Detective Amari pressed a few keys on its panel with her thumb, sighing in annoyance when she found her fingers too short to work the device properly, but she managed to finish uploading the files to their database nonetheless.

The elevator dinged once it reached the 54th floor.

A long, and carpeted hallway greeted them. Fancy, seashell-shaped light fixtures hung in a precise row over the walls of the narrow hallway, each of them placed between an apartment door. The air was stale, and it smelt of leather, carpet shampoo, and – at one point, while passing room 5409 – the strong hint of brewing coffee.

Fareeha was also beginning to smell the stench of her sweat, fresh rain, and the streets hovering over her like a noxious aura.

They turned left.

“Mrs. Finnegan’s room is at the very end of this hallway, detective.” Samwise said.

“Didn’t expect this place to be huge.”

“Evergreen Complex is one of the oldest buildings in the district. Made of sturdy stuff, and recently renovated fifty years ago.” He said. “Quite close to the airport, with a train leading to the central hub a stop away. It is why most of our tenants never think about leaving.”

“Sounds like you’re trying to sell me a room.”

“Only if you can afford it, detective.”

“Ha.” Fareeha rubbed her nose with a finger, hiding her amusement at the omnic’s blithe response. “How long has Mrs. Finnegan been staying here with her husband?”

“Almost five years.”

“Do they have enemies? People they had an argument with that you know of?”

“Not to our knowledge, no.” Samwise paused. “They’re a quiet folk. Like to keep to themselves, not until their ‘domestic dispute’ reared its ugly head, at least.”

They reached the end of the hallway. The door facing them – room 5420 – seemed like any other door from the complex. Smooth lacquered wood, painted dark brown.

Fareeha reached for the doorbell and buzzed the room, hearing a musical bell jingle play inside. She waited, but heard no other sound. Fareeha’s eyebrows curled low in thought.

She turned to her guide. “May I?”

Samwise nodded, and took a few steps back, allowing her some space.

Detective Amari reached behind her ear – eyes taking in the sight of the door – and turned her virtual interface on, which filled her natural vision with a slight orange tinge and the glow of augmented reality. As the smart interface kicked in, it shortly began to scan her environment. A few details blinked in and out of Fareeha’s peripheral.

A collection of dirt and grime on the couple’s welcome mat.

Four different fingerprints on the doorknob, two from the husband and the wife.

The contents of the vase nearby had a layer of used cigarettes collecting at the bottom. Fareeha wrinkled her nose. It seemed like the local residents were not as disciplined as they liked to appear on the outside. She took note to check the discarded cigarette butts later.

Detective Amari waved away details she deemed unimportant with her hand, deciding to file them all in her memory banks in case they needed further inspection, and buzzed the doorbell again.

No sound, no movement. Not even a bio signature.

Damn. “She’s not here.”

“Our staff would have known anyone coming in or out of the building.” Samwise said, his computerized voice carrying a baffled tone. “Just like every morning, without fail, Mrs. Finnegan left for her workplace yesterday carrying nothing but her purse. She mentioned nothing about coming home late, or staying someplace else. None of our staff have seen her since.”

Detective Amari gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, her nose flaring as she exhaled.

“Thank you, Samwise.” Fareeha pulled the front of her coat down over herself. “You’ve been a great help.”

“You are welcome, Detective Amari.” Samwise said, angling his body away from her by a polite inch. “I hope you wouldn’t mind, but I must go back to my duties. Please do feel free to leave any time you wish. I believe you know your way to the lift?”

Detective Amari nodded, still staring at the door long after the omnic turned around and left, the sound of his loafer shoes muffled by the carpet.

Her brain was screaming.

Fareeha stretched her hand out and pressed the pads of her fingers a few inches below the eyehole.

“No.” Fareeha narrowed her eyes. “It can’t be.”

She froze. Fareeha took a peek behind her in case someone else was watching. She traced something on the wood.

Fifteen minutes later, Detective Fareeha Amari left Evergreen Complex in a hurry, her face gaunt and set in stone. The back of her coat flying behind her as if she was being chased by a ghost she did not wish to see.

Her mother held out her hand. Her eyes tired, dark, and yet still full of love.

The young girl bit her lower lip, but relented. She turned in place from where she sat on the hood of the car, and dropped the plastic decoder ring in her mother’s open palm.

“You like this cartoon?” Her mother asked, her slim finger tracing the grinning cartoon dinosaur decorated along the ring.

“I have never seen it before.”

After driving long into the evening, crossing strange red and purple landscapes which beheld giant loping shapes, they finally stopped under the protection of the glowing moon and the shade of black sky. Her mother had parked the car behind a large sign which, the girl presumed, showed directions to places she had yet to see. For now, her mother thought they were safe enough, and so they sat, and waited, and listened.

Her mother held out her palm again, as if boasting her novice showmanship, showing the girl where the ring was placed in the middle of her hand. She closed her hand into a tight fist, and with a twinkling eye, her mother twisted her wrist and waved her other hand over it. A genuine smile teased the woman’s lips, which finally replaced the lines of worry etched prominently on her face for weeks now. The girl perked up and reached for her curled fingers, prying them open. The ring was gone.

“Where did it go?” The girl asked.

Her mother chuckled.

She reached behind the side of her head, and as if plucking it from her ear, revealed the toy ring and its grinning dinosaur. Its shade now a powder blue. Her favorite color.

The girl bounced where she sat. “How did you do that?”

“Magicians never reveal their secrets.” Her mother smiled, booping her nose. “But I can make an exception for you, little wonder.”

“You will teach me someday?”

Her mother wrapped an arm around her daughter, rubbing her back. “I will, when you are ready.” She said, pressing a kiss in her messy hair.

“Mama…”

“Look at you, you have dirt all over your face. We need to find you a cozy room with a big tub, huh?”

“Mama, I’m sorry.” the girl said, ducking her head. Her mother fell silent, but the girl felt her chest hitch, making her wince. “I’m sorry that I got angry at you. I don’t hate you.”

“It’s all right, my dear.”

“I’ll be good next time.” The girl wrapped her heavy arms around her mother in a tight hug, sniffling. “I’ll be better tomorrow.”

Her mother caressed her cheek. She smoothed out the knots from her daughter’s black hair, feeling the front of her shirt grow warm from freshly spilled tears.

“You shouldn’t be ashamed to feel afraid, habibti. Your ami and I are sorry you had to go through all of this.” She enfolded the girl in her arms. Draping them desperately around her, as if trying to shield her away from the world. “Especially me. This is all my fault.”

“It’s not, mama, it’s those men…”

“Hush, don’t think of them again.” Her mother’s voice wavered, choking through her words. “Ami will come back, and the three of us will be here together, like before. Won’t that be something?”

The girl nodded, her tears burning her eyes and cooling her cheeks.

“I will always be with you. And I will never abandon you, Fareeha.” Her mother said. “I will do everything in my power to keep you safe…

“No matter what.”

Detective Shimada jumped when a paper bag almost toppled the steaming cup of tea on his keyboard.

He glared at the offending object, its lower half translucent from an unholy amount of grease seeped into the paper, while something savory and spicy wafted from the crinkled opening. He looked up at the newcomer, and raised an eyebrow. “You look like shit.”

“Thanks.” A sniffle. “You look great, by the way. Got you samosas.”

“You should follow Morrison’s advice and take a few days off.” Shimada said, curling his lip at the mess of rainwater she dripped all over his desk. He wiped them away with the bottom half of the greasy paper bag. Shimada took off his earpiece, and pushed his keyboard to the side, making small room for lunch amongst his stack of organized files. “Want some?”

“Go ahead. Already ate my share.”

He ripped the paper bag open wide, and grabbed a cold, poorly wrapped pastry. It smelled like spiced potatoes and peas.

“You forgot the chutney again, didn’t you?”

Amari grunted in reply.

She headed for her own desk, opposite his larger work station fit for a Tracker, dripping rain water and spreading puddles everywhere she went. Her leather chair squelched as she sat.

“How was the – “

Amari released a watery cough, holding her fist firmly in front of her mouth.

Shimada shook his head. “Take some time off.” He slid his tissue box over to her desk. “Make it a week. I don’t want to catch whatever you have.”

“I can feel your love and concern emanating from here, Shimada.”

Her partner muttered angrily at her in his language, before continuing to type up their report with one hand, while guiding food to his mouth with his other.

“Did you get the vids I sent you?” Fareeha asked, taking a tissue paper from the box to blow her stuffy nose with.

“Nothing there.” Shimada said. He looked up from his work, peering at her above one of his many monitors. “Unless you wish to add ‘indecent public displays of affection’ or ‘public nudity’ as one of our cases?”

Amari didn’t reply. She sat in silence for a while, her nose and eyes flushed red as she stared at her own station front of her. Her desk was sparsely decorated compared to her partner’s collection of figurines and pictures from his home life, but Fareeha supposed she preferred it that way. She had a coffee cup full of used pens at the corner, and a tray where all her memory bank chips were organized into a collection of stacks.

“I didn’t find anything, either.” She said. “No new witnesses, nothing. Her co-workers said she left early. No one else saw her.”

“Our job just keeps getting easier, no?”

“How about you, how’s your search going?”

“Still waiting for confirmation from a few airports in the country.” Shimada said, pausing to chew his food. “Otherwise, I have found no trace of her, so far.”

“Hope it’s not another dead end.”

“Morrison might throw a fit.”

Fareeha snorted.

He swallowed another bite. “What are you doing here, Amari?” He asked. “I thought you weren’t coming in until later?”

“I have to make a call.”

Shimada narrowed his eyes and made a face. He leaned sideways in his seat, tensing when he got a better look at his partner, and realized how her eyes were bloodshot and dull. He whispered. “An encrypted phone call?”

She sent him a look over one of his monitors. Shimada didn’t reply, and wisely decided to look focus back on his work while finishing his food.

Fareeha stared at the phone next to her workstation. She nibbled her lower lip and – after a moment’s hesitation – grabbed the phone and dialed a long number. Nobody answered, but she was not surprised. The call switched to voice mail.

“Hey, Jesse.” Fareeha cleared her throat when it cracked from a rising cough, and definitely not because she felt nervous. She licked her lips, turning her chair away from Shimada’s curious look. “Been a while. Listen, call me back. It’s urgent.” Fareeha swallowed and felt her chest seize up, but she managed to keep herself calm and continued to speak. “I think there’s going to be a ‘family reunion’, or something like it. Not sure if your ‘dad’ is coming. He just sent me a message, earlier. I hope he will come this time.” She doesn’t. “Anyway, call me back. Please. And not a week too late this time, or I’ll kick your ass.”

Fareeha hung up. She leaned back in her chair and grabbed the orange stress ball from inside  her coat.

“Hm.” Shimada grunted, his eyes going back to his workstation. “Family shit?”

Fareeha exhaled, and allowed herself to relax once she realized Shimada wouldn’t push her to speak. She knew they both had their fair share of secrets. Things Morrison and the others didn’t need to know, especially. She appreciated that.

“Yeah.” Fareeha said, falling into her chair, pushing it as far back as she could. She closed her eyes. “Family shit.”

A/N: ok so here’s the thing, we did not expect to give this story some cyberpunk-ish elements. This was supposed to be a one shot set in modern era with some pretty basic mystery stuff, but I guess here we are? After planning the story further along, plotting out the bits and bobs and doodads, we decided welp. Hey, why not add more and make our job a tad bit harder?

Angela will return again in the next chapter, so prepare for more dead bodies in  chap 4!

And yes, Fareeha’s Raptora is a cop car… I’m totally not thinking Knight Rider ha ha what’re you talking about…..

(also, yes, we finally decided to change the title.. did a little bit of a fic renovation, so to speak… hopefully my writing partner won’t kill me :D)Lastly, I would like to thank my writing partner in crime, best brother Tobe for his awesome help as always. (you’re the best I love you dude)

[omnical]

I Sing the Body Electric... (2/?)

( Previous - Next )

Summary: Dr. Angela Ziegler knows a few things about Detective Fareeha Amari.

Genre: AU, Romance. Dark humor, supernatural elements.

Characters/Pairings: Angela, Fareeha, Pharmercy; minor: Lucio, Mei

Rating: T, mentions of body gore and third party violence, dark humor.

Links: AO3

Dr. Angela Ziegler did not know what she was doing with her life.

To be fair, she never expected to be haunted by her own insecurities, but Angela supposed reaching her thirties was the primary culprit of her sudden change of heart. She never used to worry, and never used to wonder if she was wasting her life by focusing on her work, until she found it barely made her happy anymore. 

Sometimes Angela allowed herself to sink back into her memories. Mostly whenever feelings of intense sadness came into her mind, unbidden. Memories of when she was a child in her father’s study, wide-eyed and curious about his strange books, and colorful anatomical models with their detachable parts.

She remembered examining them with her pudgy toddler hands, lower lip sticking out as she took them apart --  cillary body, choroid, sclera, lens -- before putting the parts back together again. She liked putting them back together again.

She remembered her parents telling her how smart she was, how good she was, pride lighting their eyes. If she tried hard enough, Angela could still remember their voices. It helped lift her spirits up, sometimes.

However, her parents’ untimely passing did not exhaust love and warmth from her life. She lead a happy and carefree childhood, after her parents died. Her aunt and uncle tried their hardest to fill that silence in her heart with their own voices, and sometimes Angela thought it worked. Your mother and father would have been so proud of you, Angela.

And now, after making a living out of being smart, she became Auntie Dr. Angela, who sent the best sweets and the newest toys despite missing family gatherings for the holidays sometimes.

And birthday parties.

And weddings. Video calls.

Auntie’s funeral.

“It’s all right, my dear. Maybe you can come next year?”

...

Dr. Lindholm found Angela dissociating in front of her computer monitor one day.

He brought her hot chocolate from the coffee machine in the pantry, the beverage watery and clumped up with cheap chocolate powder. And with it, he effectively coaxed her out of her mental calisthenics. She was like a terrified critter hiding inside her burrow. “You always did think too much for your own good.” He said.

She had no one else to turn to, no one else to confide in, until Dr. Lindholm, poorly hiding the hurt he felt after Angela hesitated to tell him initially, managed to make her spill everything with one look.

“When I was your age, I ended up working myself to the bone, too.” Dr. Lindholm grumbled through his words, speaking with a gruff gentleness only a father of seven would have. “Until my poor wife knocked some sense into this hard noggin’ of mine, and I had to look back at myself and what I was missing. But that’s life.”

“Why did you decide to stay?”

“I was happy with my job and I still am.” He answered, tugging his mustache with a thumb and forefinger. “Sometimes you need to figure out what’s best for you, get your hands dirty. But it is different for everybody, Angela. Whatever worked for me might not work for you. These things don’t come with a manual.”

“I see.”

“Guess that means you can do whatever the hell you want.”

“It would be easier if I knew what I wanted to do.”

“Take a day off.” Dr. Lindholm said, patting her shoulder. “Away from all this crap. Maybe that will help clear your head?”

Angela walked to a pub that evening with some of her coworkers, some of them surprised that one of their local recluse bothered to join them at all. She holed herself up against the corner of the pub at first, until Dr. Winston invited her to throw a few darts with him, which was fun despite missing the dartboard the entire time. She also cheered for a losing football team, got into a heated debate about rugby with a baffled stranger, drinking pint after pint. Mirthful brown eyes watched her all night.

After getting ‘plenty pissed’, she went home. Angela woke up with a bad hangover, her mouth sour, and a pulsing headache, wondering if her night out helped.

She felt inclined to disagree after vomiting all over her bathroom floor. It took hours until she mustered the strength to clean up after her own mess.

The next day, Dr. Angela Ziegler deleted her resignation letter, and never thought about quitting her job again.

The steel autopsy table glinted from the bright surgical lights overhead.

When Angela closed her eyes, blinding spots shaped like surgical light bulbs flashed behind her eyelids. She blinked, long and hard, willing them to go away.

When she opened them again, she noticed Lucio was sending her a look over the autopsy table, a pair of forceps in his hand.

“Sorry, I got distracted.”

“I can see that.”

Angela looked down at their patient.

Hi .

Time to get back to work.

An assistant drone whizzed past Angela’s eyesight with a mechanical hum. Its gears and internal mechanisms whirring and clicking, its optical eye taking photographs of the cadaver, and stowing away details for the report; breaking them down into categories. Nails, skin, hair. And while the drone did its work, Angela exhaled, letting a long breath whoosh from her lips.

“February 8, 1:45 PM. Female, forty-eight years old. Found in her living room, seven hours after time of death, which was estimated at: February 7, 10 PM. According to investigation reports, she died from an unwitnessed cardiac arrest.” Angela frowned beneath her medical mask. “Her family wanted to be sure about the cause of death. As far as we know, she was alone at home. No evidence of assault or struggle.”

The patient’s feet were swollen. Taut skin stretched across sharp lines of bone. The corpse’s flesh -- once brown and aglow with the rosy hue of life -- was now ashen and cold. The patient’s face was expressionless, grim. Mrs. Tanner looked peaceful in her final rest.

I am so sorry.

“Assistant drones found some areas of her clothing were singed.” Angela said. “Very slight, almost undetectable. There were no signs of burns on the corpse, either.”

“That’s weird.”

“Very weird.”

“The police reports never mentioned anything which might have caused it.” Lucio said, “Think it’s conclusive evidence, doc?”

“Maybe. If only things can be that easy.”

Angela fiddled with the plastic shield protecting her face. She fixed her rubber gloves around her wrists, listening to it snap against her skin, as if the sound would quell the storm forming inside her heart.

“Okay, I am ready.” Angela said, “Let’s open her up.”

Lucio handed her a scalpel.

…

“Wanna order Italian later, doc?”

“That sounds great. I’m craving garlic bread.”

“I know this place that makes amazing garlic bread. They make their own bread -- fancy restaurants always make their own bread -- so you know it’s super fancy. It’s a walk away from here, but totally worth it.” Lucio said. “Better not have too much, though, people say garlic breath is a turn off for some people. If you know what I mean.”

Angela held the sternal saw aloft. She sent him a dirty look.

“Hey, I'm just saying.”

“We are recording this session, Dr. dos Santos.”

“Nobody but us listens to it, anyway, what's the harm?”

“Ugh.” Angela turned the saw on and began to cut across the sides of their patient’s rib cage.

...

“Need help there, doc?”

“Yes.” Angela nodded. “Take this to the tray, please.”

“Got it.”

“Thank you.”

Working with the dead followed a careful step-by-step scientific process.

“Checking the pericardial sac. Scalpel, please? The small one.”

The other half of the job was to understand the abstract.

“Maybe a towel, too.” she added. “There is a lot of liquid in the cavity.”

Whenever Angela got bored during her trip to and from work, she found herself watching ordinary people mill about in their daily lives. A person showing signs of nicotine addiction. An elderly woman waiting in a cafe who was probably diabetic, her coffee order later confirming Angela’s guess. A child chasing a cat after recovering from a broken leg, maybe two or three weeks ago. They were textbook and precise observations, nearly perfected after years of practice.

Since their patients did not have the ability to speak for themselves anymore, or show discomfort, or express pain, they took it upon themselves to help reveal the dead’s final words. But it was the unpredictable human mind which added tons of variables and what-ifs in the equation; something unseen from the abstract could turn a murder case around and present truths from lies. Their patient’s final meal. Their medicine intake. Past ailments. Angela had a knack for the abstract.

“What do you think so far?” Dr. dos Santos asked, helping her lift a layer of flesh with a large pair of forceps.

Dr. Ziegler, hands deep inside the body’s chest cavity, answered. “Homicide.”

“How’d you figure?”

“Let’s call it a gut feeling, doctor.” An amused wrinkle appeared around Angela’s eyes, revealing the smile under her mask.

“Ha, very funny.” Lucio said. “Are you suggesting a killer clown appeared from her television screen and scared her to death?” He chuckled, “We should send that report to the Chief of Police. Get his grouchy ass storming our office.”

"Wouldn’t that be a sight."

“Speaking of the Chief of Police--”

Angela and Lucio jumped at the new voice.

A short woman, round-faced and perky, smiled at them from behind the autopsy room doors. “I am so sorry for interrupting you guys." she said with a nervous giggle, "How is the examination going?”

“Lucio and I are still not finished with this one, Mei.” Angela said, bowing her head in apology. “Would it be possible if you told Captain Morrison we will finish this after three?”

“Okay,” Mei shrugged, throwing the pair a knowing look. “I guess I’ll tell Detective Dimples to come back another time.”

Dr. Ziegler dropped her scalpel in Mrs. Tanner’s chest.

“Oh, shit.”

Detective Amari was here.

Detective Fareeha Amari.

Fareeha Amari. She was here.

Angela skidded to a halt outside her office door, and took a moment to stare at the twisted knotholes of the wood. Blue eyes, dancing like two fading matchsticks, unable to focus where she was looking until Angela concentrated all her intent on the silver of the doorknob. She had to find the strength to open the door eventually.

Angela worried her lower lip, fingers combing the messy rat’s nest of hair on her head. She tugged at the lapels of her white coat, which smelled of antiseptic and murk from the autopsy earlier. It stank on her skin, under her nose, and her eyes had deep bags under them, as if they were two small ditches dug out by a worn trowel. The scent and look of death always clung to her, but she thought it was impossible to look nice after spending hours in the morgue.

After a few moments shifting her weight between her feet, she willed steel into her bones and pushed the door open. A beam of white light from the hallway’s fluorescent lighting escaped through the gap, and as soon as she opened the door, a person’s shadow revealed itself stretched out onto the rug. She hesitated, her eyes adjusting from the dim room after walking through the hall. Dark clouds covered the sun, the rain pelting her window, overall encompassing her office with a dreary, gray overtone.

When her eyes adjusted to the lack of lighting, Angela’s gaze followed the unmoving shadow to its source -- who was wearing a pair of soggy black shoes.

Her eyes traced up to dark trouser pants, pressed, creased, hiding a pair of elegant, long legs. A coat hung over their shoulders, limp and drenched from the afternoon rain.

Detective Fareeha Amari loomed above Angela’s desk, surveying the mass of documents and towers of folders strewn about. Her head quirked to the side, probably in curiosity, hair dripping with rain water. It was a miracle Detective Amari did not notice Angela leaning against the doorway, her knees folding over each other, wobbling like jelly.

Taking a shaky step forward, Angela closed the door behind her, careful so as not to startle her visitor. She licked her lips, mind racing over ideas on how to greet the detective without looking like a baffled idiot. Just a simple greeting. She had to sound calm, firm, use her customer service telephone voice. That always worked.

‘Fancy seeing you here, Detective Amari. You cut a dashing figure, as always.’

That was horrible.

“Dr. Ziegler,” Angela forced herself to abandon her thoughts, dragging her eyes away from the pair of long legs gracing her office, and into Detective Amari’s eyes. Dark brown eyes, almost black. It left her rooted on the spot, her knees stopped wobbling like jelly. “Glad to see you again, doctor.”

“Fancy dashing you here."

Detective Amari raised an eyebrow, the corners of her lips quirking to an amused grin. “I’m sorry?”

Angela cleared her throat. “Hi.”

“Hi.”

There were a few things Angela knew about the mysterious Detective Fareeha Amari.

First. She had a stress ball tucked inside her jacket pocket at all times. It was orange, like a basketball.

Second. She wore a lady’s suit at work, and sometimes a baggy windbreaker jacket during colder days, instead of a blazer. She wore a pair of jeans and a baseball cap during stakeouts and sting operations. She always looked perfect.

Third. She did not mind being referred to as a they, or a he, or a she. “Doesn’t matter.” Detective Amari said once, “Please call me whatever you like.”

Fourth. A week ago, Detective Amari had a cut on her cheek and a broken finger. Two weeks before that, a suspect made her long nose crooked for a while. Three months ago, she broke her leg after falling off a flight of stairs in the precinct.

Today a broken arm hung over her chest in a sling, and half of her face was swollen and purple like a bowl of bruised mangoes and grapes.

Fifth. Fareeha knew a few things about Dr. Angela Ziegler.

"Please tell me those bandages aren’t hiding anything serious.”

“Got roughed up a couple of days ago." Detective Amari said.

“You should take better care of yourself, detective.”

“I’m used to it, doctor. Occupational hazard.” She smiled, motioning at her cast. “Comes with the territory.”

Angela shook her head and scoffed, trying to keep herself from being charmed by the curve of Fareeha’s full lips, and the grin reaching her eyes. “Oh, nonsense. Let me get you something.”

Detective Amari faltered, “I hope I am not intruding, doctor?”

Angela waved away her weak excuses, and began searching for a towel, a handkerchief -- anything that could help her friend. She ignored a few empty drawers, and quickly closed the one overflowing with rubbish before Fareeha saw her shame.

Finally, she found a hand towel from her tote bag, and handed it Detective Amari with an embarrassed chuckle.

“I guess I should have been better prepared, considering the local weather.” Angela said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “It’s horrible, isn’t it? Always raining, and dark, and...” --   stop talking about the weather, Angela -- “Anyway, I hope this can help.”

“Thank you, doctor.” Fareeha smiled, and took the offered towel from Angela’s hand. “To be fair, it’s not everyday a soaked idiot comes in dripping water everywhere after forgetting to bring an umbrella.”

“Indeed. I mean, you’re not an idiot. That’s not what I meant.” Angela twisted her fingers around each other, resisting the urge to caress the bruises on Detective Amari’s cheek. “And you are free to intrude on my work any time, by the way. I don’t mind.”

Detective Amari opened her mouth, pausing as if she was about to apologize for the second time, before changing her mind. “Thank you.”

“Wuh -- ” Words, Angela. “Would you like to take a seat and tell me why you got injured, this time?”

“Just a group of guys assaulting a kid in an alleyway.” She replied with a tight smile, shaking her head. “We didn’t expect it to turn into a car chase across the square to sixth avenue. Backed them up into a building, where they had friends waiting. One of them sucker punched me.”

“Oh, goodness.”

“I broke my arm after tripping over a rubbish bin an hour later.”

“Sounds... exciting.”

“And a lot of paperwork,” Detective Amari frowned. “Which is less fun compared to a car chase, I guess.” She handed Angela the damp towel after attempting to dry her face. Detective Amari took a moment to comb her hair back with her fingers, dark strands curling over her cheek, making it look both neat and tousled and... “Maybe you should take a seat, doctor? Your knees are shaking.”

Angela felt herself fall into her leather chair, boneless -- she cleared her throat. “So, how can I help you today, Detective Amari? Is this about a case?”

The detective tensed, her mouth turning into a frown as she leaned against the edge of the desk, fingers gripping the edge. “Yes, in fact.” She pulled out a thick case file from inside her suit jacket, and Angela wondered how she kept it dry and intact after running through the rain.

“We got a video clip.”

Dr. Ziegler flipped through case file, her knuckles white as she flipped through the pages. Pictures and reported evidence spread across desk in a mess, all of which she still remembered fresh in her mind, while the newly found puzzle-piece played on her computer monitor in a loop.

“Maybe the recording was tampered?”

“Maybe.” Detective Amari scratched the bandage under her chin. “Our techie couldn’t find anything suspicious in the recording. Or the recorder, for that matter. There were no time skips, no evidence of anything being erased. No tampering, as far as we know.”

“So his wife hid the camera inside the… ?”

“She hid the camera inside his bookcase.”

“Because she suspected her husband was cheating on her.”

“I know what this looks like. Jealous wife murders husband, plants fake or tampered evidence to get us off her trail.” Detective Amari said, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “It is true Mrs. Finnegan has a clear motive, but why would she give us the recording? She could have destroyed it, and we would have never known it existed.”

“Detective,” Angela pulled her glasses from her nose. She paused, resting the spectacles on her thigh. “Are you prepared to tell me he was killed by an invisible creature?”

They shared a look.

“These strange cases have been popping up left and right.” Angela said. “We were working on another case before you came to visit, and believe me when I say I can’t wrap my head around that one either.” She leaned against her chair with a tired huff. “They all look like natural causes -- our autopsies reveal they are natural cases. Oftentimes we leave it as is and shelf it, but I’m often at a loss. It always feels wrong, somehow. Off. Like there’s something missing.”

“I know.” Detective Amari pushed herself away from Angela’s desk. “I feel the same.”

The detective stared at the wall opposite Angela, deep in thought. After a while, the square of her shoulders deflated. “I just came by to inform you, doctor. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you think of anything. Invisible men, werewolves, body-snatchers, whatever you guys figure out.” she chuckled, finding no humor in her words. “As long as there's evidence backing it, I’m willing to hear anything at this point.”

“This is something your techie can figure out more than I can.” Angela said. She smoothed down the crinkles of her dress shirt, trying to find something her fingers could be busy with while the detective stood too close in front of her. Their knees were almost touching. “Strange video recordings aren’t my forte, unless...”

Detective Amari froze.

“No.”

“Unless I -- ”

“Absolutely not.” Fareeha pivoted around her heels and began to pace, her hand expressing her words wildly. “May I remind you about the last time you took a plunge? Light bulbs exploded, things floated around, creepy voices. And I think that body moved.”

“That was completely my fault. I forgot to mention temporary reanimation can happen sometimes.”

“You fainted and you stared at your hands for an hour, doctor."

"Now, I don't remember that..."

Fareeha shot her a dry look. "You were talking about yellow eyes.”

“Sometimes they get annoyed.”

“I nearly -- ” Fareeha closed her eyes and pulled away, biting the insides of her cheek. “I won’t let you go through that again. It’s too dangerous.”

“We don’t even know if I will make contact.” Angela glanced at the door in case anyone else was listening. “Besides, last time was just a tiny, tiny oversight.”

“A tiny oversight?”

“Fareeha, please listen to me?”

Fareeha closed her mouth and shook her head in disbelief, but decided to do as Angela insisted. Instead, she grabbed the orange stress-ball from inside her jacket pocket, and squeezed it with an iron grip.

“I have lived with this curse all my life, and I wasted so much time trying to forget it ever existed. I’m out of practice, I admit, but I am ready to keep trying.” Angela said. “Two times out of ten it can get worse. Three times out of eight, nothing happens. But there is a fifty-percent chance of us getting the answers we need."

"With the remaining fifty-percent possibility of the guy’s head spinning around? I can deal with poltergeists, maybe, but not that."

“The body’s head didn’t spin.” Angela groaned. "Look, whatever, or whoever is running around in this city, innocent people are getting killed.”

“And we’ll do our best to stop them.” Fareeha said. “We’ll search for other solutions. Our techie can check the video again, she’s a genius. The toxicology report is still pending. Maybe he got stung by a bee and he’s allergic. I dunno.” she winced. “Contacting crazy spirits should be our last resort, doctor. God, I can’t believe I just said that.”

“And what if there's no other way?”

“I’ll find another way."

“I can do this.” Angela said, almost jumping up from her chair. “I know I can do this.”

“Yes, but I can’t--” Fareeha said with a frustrated sigh, squeezing the ball hard until her hand shook. “I just wanted to update you about the case and tell you what we found. I wanted to make sure I wasn't losing my mind."

"You didn't show this video to anyone else, did you?" she asked, her sentence a statement more than a question. The detective's accompanying silence was enough of a reply.

"I can’t ask you to risk your life again." Fareeha said. "If something happens to you…“

Angela’s shoulders fell.

The rain outside seemed to grow in volume as they both regarded each other, silent and tight lipped. Heavy droplets pelting the windowpane, her desktop computer whirring, thunder rolling across the dreary city.

She didn’t realize she was holding her breath until Fareeha spoke again. “I can't lose you to one of those things, doctor. You are one of the few good friends I have.”

Angela felt her heart flutter. “Well,” she mumbled, inwardly cursing herself for folding under the spell of Fareeha Amari’s words too soon. “I’m, um, same. You are the same, to me, I mean. A friend.” She breathed in awe.

Detective Amari’s lips twitched into a weary smile, tucking her stress ball back inside her coat pocket. “Don’t fret about this case too much.” Her voice deepened in confidence, and Angela felt her back stiffen in attention. “Please leave it to me. I promise we’ll figure something out. Invisible creatures or no.”

“We will.”

“Are we okay?”

“We’re okay.” Angela croaked.

“Good.” Fareeha sighed in relief, “Shit, I need to go. Busy day in the precinct.”

“Of course.”

“Please take it easy, doctor, and don’t do anything without me. My apologies for taking too much of your time.”

Fareeha gathered the case documents from Angela’s desk, shoving it back inside her coat, and began to walk away before Angela could form a coherent reply. “You have my number, Dr. Ziegler, call me any time. I mean it.” Fareeha blindly reached for the door as she turned to look at Angela. Her dark eyes gripped Angela’s attention like a vice, that it seemed to glow under the dim lighting of the room. “Give me two weeks and maybe -- if all else fails -- maybe I will consider helping you do the other thing.”

“How about next week?” Lunch? Dinner? A movie?

An early morning jog around the park?

Oh, forget that, Angela. You can’t jog even if your life depended on it.

Fareeha laughed. “You are, by far, the toughest, most stubborn woman I have ever met. I’ll give you that, doctor.” she winked. “Two weeks, tops, and I promise I will help you.”

“I will take your word for it, detective.” Angela swallowed, her throat pushing down her traitorous thoughts, as if it would spill out of her mouth if she allowed them to stray.

“I’ll be seeing you.”

Angela tensed, her fingers digging into the arm of her chair as she watched the detective pull her door open with nary a backwards glance. “Wait, Fareeha.”

“Yes, doctor?”

Angela faltered, chewing her lower lip. Her heart aching as a billion sentences rolled through her head, most of them spontaneous invitations to places she has never seen before. But wouldn't it be nice if she had? With someone like the detective?

Live a little.

“Thank you.” Angela said, “For looking out for me.”

Surprise lit up Fareeha’s face. Her smile crooked, and her eyes warm. They felt like a hearth in Angela’s cold office.

“Any time, Dr. Ziegler.”

Detective Amari was already closing the door behind her before Angela could find it in herself to speak again. The last edges of her shadow disappearing underneath the frame; and with it, the final traces of her warm presence.

Notes: This took so so damn long, I'm not gonna lie folks, we spent the entire two month hiatus to expand this little one-shot into a hopefully more proper multi-chapter. We had a lot of fun plotting and planning things out, but man... did you know you can watch human autopsies online? Yeah... you can watch human autopsies online, full and very graphic ones. Very educational!

Anyway, unfortunately, we can't promise another prompt update (though at least now I know which direction and style we're goin with this), since I'll be moving apartments sometime around next month, and things will be incredibly busy as heck, but we will most definitely do our best :D

Thank you very much for reading! Have a nice day, everyone~

Edited (24/09/17): So soon! Had to post this very late and caught a few minor errors I overlooked :)

[omnical]

a little joke parody of that dexter poster which i thought fit angela more considering her uh gift

dr. angela ziegler, forensic pathologist, from my pharmercy dark humor fic dead bodies .. yes i regret the title no i have no idea what else to re-title it to yes it has lead to very awkward sentences such as ‘i gotta focus on dead bodies’ so a title change is ideal

thank u to my brother @nopantsparade and the peridot of the seas @theofficeghey for their fab help and insight

(done while listening to that song from american gods)

[omnical]

"I am gonna write all day!"

and then he slept for a hundred years

[omnical]

i assure u whats written on det. amari's arm patch is NOT kfc

[omnical]

current hot debate in the writing (chat)room: does detective fareeha amari vape