#btw all my ideas are open source so if anyone wants to scoop up this concept and do something different with it feel free

[redladydeath]

re: your vox mindbreak au, it's such a fascinating scenario with so many avenues of interest.

does vox definitively become one of alastor's thralls. you know, just like nifty is even though we're not sure her soul is alastor.

what sort of conflicts of interests would occur if he's still — if not commercially then emotionally, to them — part of the vees?

would alastor drag him to the hotel, making him a reluctant staff member, even though it fails to capture his interest? what surprising dynamics would crop up?

and if it occurs during/post-canon, and the hotel ensemble knew who vox used to be, would this irrevocably change his relationship with the cast who do not know alastor's cruelty? does vox have dysphoria when he remembers his head isn't a CRT, and then forgets, and then remembers, and then forgets, and then—? please reply asap im going insane.

Oh gosh, thank you. It's really flattering when people show interest in my weird little ideas.

does vox definitively become one of alastor's thralls

Not definitely. I have two avenues for this AU: One where the mindbreak happens in the 1960s, when Alastor and Vox have their first big fight, and one where it happens in the modern day, when Vox is part of the Vees. In the 60s route, he's one of Al's thralls; in the modern route, Alastor vanishes (possibly for seven years) immediately after breaking him and Val and Velvette are left to deal with the aftermath.

what sort of conflicts of interests would occur if he's still part of the vees?

Oh God, the subconscious yearning. Vox can't remember why he cares so much about these two random overlords, but he demonstrably does. He wouldn't feel so drawn to them and their products if they weren't important in some way. If Alastor ever ordered him to hurt them, he'd probably refuse (or at least try to talk his way out of it), which never happens anymore.

would alastor drag him to the hotel, making him a reluctant staff member, even though it fails to capture his interest? what surprising dynamics would crop up?

Of course! He's basically Alastor's loyal pet now– no reason not to bring him along! The hotel is novel enough that he's not particularly bored (always some wacky nonsense happening there!), even if the whole redemption thing is a bit out of his depth and doesn't feel possible.

Vox scares the absolute crap out of Husk. Knowing Niffty wasn't just a one-off and that Alastor is willing to do this to someone he considered a friend just because he didn't like his attitude is terrifying. Vox would also end up pretty close with Niffty, not because of their shared situation (neither of them are really aware of that), but because her 1950s sensibilities are comforting and familiar to him– she always makes sense to him in a way the rest of the world just doesn't. She also wouldn't even be remotely bothered by the constant out-of-nowhere topic changes or the short-term memory loss, so that's a plus.

and if it occurs during/post-canon, and the hotel ensemble knew who vox used to be, would this irrevocably change his relationship with the cast who do not know alastor's cruelty?

Oh yeah. I think seeing Alastor do something this extreme and unnecessary would be the final straw for Charlie. She's not even comfortable with killing genocidal freaks like Adam; no matter what Vox did, she wouldn't be okay with this. Plus, actually seeing him do this would make it click for everyone that maybe Niffty's not just some funny little creature, which would feel incredibly violating in retrospect given how much they've all come to care about her. Charlie would kick Alastor out of the hotel, which he'd be thrilled about, although he might end up back on their doorstep due to the constraints of his contract.

does vox have dysphoria when he remembers his head isn't a CRT, and then forgets, and then remembers, and then forgets, and then—?

Imo, in both routes he'd probably go back to the original 1950s set that he manifested with. It's just something he feels compelled to do– it's what Alastor would want him to do, after all. He'd probably need help making the change, but Alastor would do so happily / Velvette would do so reluctantly if that's what'll make him feel comfortable. I have a mental image where, when he first wakes up after The Incident, the first sign that something's wrong is that his display is fully black and white, despite the fact he's still using the modern flatscreen. But yeah, I imagine there'd be a lot of loops of "something is wrong– nevermind!– something is wrong– nevermind!" about various things, whether it's his body, the situation, or the presence/absence of certain people.

[coreastories]

Royal Panic: The Queen was lost--and found-- in Seoul

With the preparations for Queens Day at peak, it’s no wonder the queen might want to get away. And that apparently included her Unbreakable Sword and her team. Poor Mr Jang. 

Or did she miss the king, who had gone to Seoul for the day for the opening of parliament? 

The queen wasn’t completely alone-- she was accompanied by Myeong Seung-ah, of the Royal Public Affairs Office

Ms Myeong is the one who finally tipped the Royal Guard about the queen’s whereabouts

This author will bet gold bullion she gave the tip to Jo Yeong, the king’s Unbreakable Sword, captain of the Royal Guard and Ms Myeong’s reported flame 

At around 10pm last night, the Seoul skyline was cut by three very official looking helicopters flying side by side. A few minutes later, a horde of assault vehicles thundered past in the almost-empty streets, and military armored SUVs and vans also rolled to or from somewhere. 

A few minutes after that, there was a whine of a jet engine overhead and we were stunned in our beds by the whistle and pop of warning shots. Harmless but still menacing. 

Of course, I was immediately curious, but when I called them, our press office thought it was perhaps part of the security starting to manifest for Queens Day 

(No matter, dear reader, I didn’t accept that answer, so I have the juicy scoop for you!). 

Now we know these were actually the Corean Armed Forces making their presence felt in all its might so that anyone stupid enough to have done the unthinkable would piss themselves in fear and surrender. 

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, according to the Royal Public Affairs Office, the Royal Guard and the Corean Armed Forces have a protocol in place that should any of the royal family go missing, all forces are mobilized immediately, whether or not a threat was confirmed. 

We have reports from other cities that they all experienced the same demonstration from the Armed Forces, with confirmed reports of the Royal Navy and the Royal Marines lighting up the coast. 

Oh, my heart is all aflutter. This country is too wealthy and too dramatic sometimes. 

The queen is safe

From the packet of the Royal Public Affairs Office, the queen had complained of a headache and retired to her room in the afternoon. She was undisturbed until palace staff checked on her to ask if she wouldn’t have dinner. The king wasn’t home, and the queen hadn’t gone to their kitchen to fix herself anything. 

When she was nowhere to be found in the palace and the grounds, and unreachable with her phone left behind in her bed, well, this author can only imagine the two Unbreakable Swords breaking sweat and summoning the armed forces of Corea for backup. 

The king found the queen

After getting the location from Ms Myeong, it was also relayed to the king, who beat everyone else in getting to the queen. 

Here’s an exclusive account from the chicken place owner (because we also beat everyone else in getting to him), who asked that we not mention his name and his business, even though this would have shot his sales to the stratosphere. 

Asked to tell us what happened from the queen’s arrival to the king’s subsequent arrival, our source said:

“I didn’t know it was the queen. I should have known. But it was very late-- why would I expect the queen to come for chicken at that time of night? Her Majesty ordered banban. The queen and that other woman ate. Then sometime after that, His Majesty arrived and he looked like he ran out of his hotel-- His Majesty didn’t even have a coat on. That’s when it clicked that that was the queen I just served. Because His Majesty looked at her like he-- uh--wanted to kiss her and uh--lock her up.” 

Awww, soyuja-nim is a romantic. 

The reunion between king and queen was private, unfortunately. According to the chicken place owner, he can’t tell us anything more. The king and queen soon left, but he saw them spend a bit of time by the water.

That’s Misa Lake Park. 

As you can clearly see here in the photo released by the Royal Public Affairs Office. 

These two are so adorable. Seeing those smiles, you wouldn’t think they’d just mobilized the Corean Armed Forces. The king does look less happy.  

We do wonder what happened. Surely the palace can serve banban!

Stay tuned, darlings.

----------------------—-------—---------

Here’s the chicken place idea from anon lol 😂🍗

This is my headcanon for Lee Gon riding in with the armed forces and an actual honest-to-goodness cavalry on Episode 11-12. Not that he can’t command them to come, I made it actual protocol. After all, that was the future Queen of Corea. Swoon.

Btw, the cavalry unit is part of the Royal Guard. As much as I wanted a repeat of the cavalry riding, they did get the confirmation from Seung-ah, so they didn't actually have to get mounted this time. 😂

Companion fic to follow.