#defiance chronicles

[enchantingepics]

Story Prompt 44

In a city cloaked in shadows and secrets, there existed a group of friends who danced on the edge of the law. They moved like shadows in the night, their laughter a blend of mischief and recklessness. But beneath their camaraderie lay a darker truth - a heinous crime committed on a fateful evening that would bind them together in ways they never imagined.

It was a night like any other, the air thick with anticipation and the streets alive with whispered promises. The friends gathered, their hearts pounding in unison as they embarked on a dangerous escapade. Among them stood a figure, the quiet observer who would unknowingly become the linchpin of their fate.

As they ventured deeper into the night, their actions spoke louder than words. They were rebels without a cause, seeking thrills in the darkness that threatened to consume them. And when the moment of reckoning came, it was the quiet one who found themselves behind the wheel, a silent accomplice to the chaos that ensued.

But as the sirens wailed and the handcuffs clicked into place, there was no protest, no defiance. For in the eyes of society, they were all guilty by association, bound by the threads of loyalty and betrayal.

The trial passed like a blur, the weight of their actions heavy upon their shoulders. Yet amidst the whispers of condemnation, there remained a sense of solidarity among them. They had chosen their path, and together they would face the consequences.

As they emerged from the courthouse, the world outside seemed to blur into a haze of flashing lights and probing questions. The quiet one, their gaze unwavering, met the glare of a journalist with a smirk.

"For our cause," they declared, their voice cutting through the chaos, "it was worth it."

And so, as they were ushered into the darkness of confinement, their journey had only just begun.

Years passed like grains of sand slipping through an hourglass, and the once-forgotten friends found themselves thrust into a world that bore little resemblance to the one they left behind. Technology had advanced, society had changed, and they were but relics of a bygone era.

Yet amidst the chaos, they found a glimmer of hope. For in the ashes of their past, they discovered a new purpose - to defy the very system that had cast them aside. And as they stood on the threshold of freedom once more, they knew that their journey was far from over.

"Looks like we're the villains now," one of them remarked, their voice tinged with bitter irony.

"But maybe," another replied, their gaze fixed on the horizon, "it's time for the villains to save the world."

[dedalvs]

San Diego Comic-Con Panel (2024)

If you're heading to SDCC this year Jessie and I will be there giving a presentation on language creation in Room 11 on Thursday (7/25) at 7:00 p.m. We'd love to see you there!

[will80sbyers]

So much potential… All cancelled

[completeoveranalysis]

[3]

WE LOVE AND SUPPORT MOKONA GIVING PASSIONATE SPEECHES ABOUT SAKURA!

MOKONA SO EMOTIONAL ABOUT THIS THAT SHE'S YELLING, SO LOUD THAT FAI AND KUROGANE CAN HEAR HER ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE PORTAL AS THEY STARE DOWN EVIL WOLVERINE

I mean the Reservoir may just have great acoustics but I also think one of Mokona's secret techniques might be Amazing Vocal Amplification. I'm so proud of her.

YES GO OFF MOKONA!

Mokona knowing that the WATER ITSELF knew that a piece of Sakura was protecting it all this time, and that it genuinely cared for her in return. I LOVE THIS. I LOVE THAT THE WATER IS ITS OWN THING.

Also go Lava Lamp go! YOU'RE SO CLOSE.

I know I've said it before but let Mokona say fuck.

She deserves it.

[loisfreakinglane]

What's that bracelet on your arm? My sister gave it to me for my birthday. July 22nd... I had a party in Griffith Park. All my friends were there.

[prophecyofgray]

i know i say this like every time i consume a new media but guys. guyyys. in other lands is somethign that can be soooo the underland chronicles

[blueeyesfilledwithpassion]

Lestat de Lioncourt

THE BRAT PRINCE. 🫅 🧛 🩸

[the-great-lightwood-bane]

unconquerable soul

Malec | Rated general | tw captivity, implied/referenced torture via sleep deprivation, gore

Day 29: Sleep Deprivation | Defiance

Summary: Captured by Valentine, Alec’s been kept awake for days on end, and the world is growing blurry. He refuses to die like this.

Read it on AO3 or below the cut.

Valentine’s base is at the seaside, at the top of a cliff, a concrete structure full of cells and experimentation rooms. Two weeks ago, Alec would have killed for that knowledge. 

Now, it’s useless to him, because there’s no way he’s getting out of here. 

His mind is blurry, thoughts scattered and trickling around his mind like a cracked egg. The cell he’s in is empty of any visible torture devices; when he first saw it, he was relieved, hoping his captivity wouldn’t be too bad. 

How wrong he was. 

The cell’s equipped with lights and speakers that go on whenever Alec’s nearing sleep. For the first four days, that was enough; he couldn’t sleep with the blaring lights and sounds. But after that he nearly fell asleep despite it all, body desperately craving rest. He was immediately jerked back to wakefulness by an electric shock running through the cell. 

He hasn’t slept in two weeks. 

Alec isn’t sure if he knows what sleep is anymore. He doesn’t really know anything at all; the world is a confused mess of noise and light and he can’t think clearly through his blurred vision. He’s sore from the shocks he’s regularly dealt to keep him awake; every joint is a mess of pain, and he can’t ignore it long enough to rest. He doesn’t know why Valentine is doing this, if it’s meant to be some sort of experiment or if it’s just sadism or if it’s something of  both. He doesn’t know when it’ll end. He wants it to end. 

There’s a window in his cell, a surprisingly big one. He can look out of it and see bits of the building out of the corner of his eye, the grass in front of the building, the cliff beyond it, then the sea. He can see a vague shimmer in the air just beyond the edge of the cliff, likely where the wards around the building end — if he could get beyond that point, past it or below it, then Magnus could track him and find him and he’d be safe. There’re probably rocks at the foot of the cliff, vicious enough to impale himself on if he jumped, but he still wants to leap off that last bit of grass and fall away from all this. Whether he lived or died, at least he’d be able to rest. 

Perhaps the only reason he hasn’t done so is because he hasn’t been able to escape his cell. Part of Shadowhunter training is in how to get out of imprisonment, but Valentine’s got the same lessons as Alec in escape, and he’s built a prison specifically to circumvent a Shadowhunter’s training. Alec’s constantly being watched, his door is guarded, the bars on the window don’t bend beneath Alec’s Shadowhunter strength. He’s stuck here until Valentine sees fit to take him out. 

As if his thoughts have preempted reality, the door swings open and three guards step through. There’d been six to escort Alec into his cell when he first came here; now, sleep-deprived and exhausted, apparently three is deemed enough. 

They take him out of his cell, for the first time in two weeks, and he feels his muscles loosen at the knowledge that there’s no longer electricity to run through his body if he sleeps. The guards force him to walk, so it’s not like he can rest properly, but it’s still better than being in that cell. 

He’s brought outside of the building, to the grass lawn he could see from his window. He’s not sure which of the windows he can see from here is his; that’s a sign of his discombobulation if anything is. He should be able to orient himself better than this. 

Valentine’s standing in front of him — Alec tries to make himself focus properly, despite his pulsing headache and the exhaustion weighing down his limbs. What does Valentine want? 

“I’m surprised you’re still on your feet, little Lightwood,” Valentine says nonchalantly. “Most of the others died before now.”

Alec stays silent, since that doesn’t seem to require a response. 

“Unfortunately,” Valentine goes on, “the attempts to find you are putting quite a bit of stress on my wards. I didn’t expect a warlock to be so tenacious.” 

Alec blinks. Magnus is still looking for him — and putting enough power into it that the wards are struggling to hide this place. The news might’ve made Alec smile if he wasn’t busy worrying about what Valentine will say next. 

“In short, I’m going to have to kill you so he’ll stop,” Valentine concludes with a smile. “Nothing personal, I do assure you. I would’ve liked to keep you and see how long you last without sleep, but as it is—” He shrugs, almost apologetic. 

Alec had thought about jumping off the cliff, before, but faced with the reality of his death, there’s a rebellious anger rising in his chest. Anger that he hasn’t managed to do anything with his life, anger that it’s all over now. Alec’s weak, exhausted and half-starved and barely conscious, and he hasn’t got a chance at escaping. The edge of the cliff isn’t far away, but from this angle, Alec can see the rocks beneath it; there’s no chance he could survive that fall. To get around to the other side of the building, he’d have to not only break away from his well-rested guards but run faster than them, and there are more guards stationed around the building. He can’t get away. 

Alec’s going to die like this. 

He raises his eyes to meet Valentine’s, even as the other man sighs like he’s really disappointed to lose Alec as his science experiment. 

Alec doesn’t want to die like this. 

Valentine raises his sword. 

Alec refuses to die like this. 

As the sword swings through the air, Alec lunges forward, so abruptly that the three guards around him can’t hold him in time. He slams into Valentine and sends the two of them toppling backwards, back and back over the green grass until the grass is gone and there’s nothing beneath their feet but empty air. 

They fall, spinning through the air. Valentine’s face is a frozen mask of terrified anger, and Alec feels a surge of triumph at the knowledge that his life isn’t wasted, that he’s done something, that he’s ended the life of this madman who’s intent on destroying the world. That, to whatever small extent, he’s helped Magnus. 

They’re beneath the wards, he notes distantly, catching a glimpse of the apparently bare hillside above them in the dizzying swirl that is their tumbling fall. 

For a moment, he wishes that he could see Magnus one last time. 

The rocks are rushing up to meet them. Alec closes his eyes—

—but the impact doesn’t come. 

He’s hovering in the air barely a foot above a spike of rock that would’ve impaled him if he hadn’t somehow stopped falling. Valentine’s body is shattered on the rocks beside him, limbs at impossible angles, head cracked open like an egg. 

“Alec!” 

Alec knows that voice, knows that he’s not supposed to hear it ever again — but then again, he’s supposed to die, and unless this is some odd afterlife, he’s still alive. 

And Magnus is standing right there, eyes wide, a portal closing behind him, magic streaming from his fingers and curling around Alec to hold him up. 

“Magnus,” Alec says, and then he’s on the same bit of flat ground as Magnus, his feet touching the ground, Magnus’ arms closing around him. This is — he doesn’t know what to do with this, with the realisation that he’s still alive, that he’s been saved. The world is all fuzzy thanks to his lack of sleep. He holds Magnus close. 

“Alexander,” Magnus whispers, brushing Alec’s hair from his face. “When I stepped through and saw you falling—” He breaks off, shaking his head. 

“Magnus,” Alec says again, savouring the word on his tongue. “You saved me.” 

“I love you,” Magnus replies, smiling tremulously. 

“I love you too,” Alec tells him, although his eyelids are feeling heavy. He can’t fall asleep yet, though. “Valentine’s base,” he manages. “It’s — above. At the top of the cliff. Warded.” 

“We’ll deal with it,” Magnus says soothingly, stroking his fingers through Alec’s hair again. Alec sees him cataloguing Alec’s features, searching for any sign of harm done — sees his eyes catch on the bags that are surely dark under Alec’s eyes, the likely paleness of his face. “Oh, my love. What have they done to you?” 

“Wouldn’t let me sleep,” Alec mumbles, clinging to wakefulness by the very tips of his fingers. “Haven’t — haven’t slept since they took me…” 

Magnus’ sharp inhale seems like it’s coming from far away. “Alexander.”

They’re no longer crouching at the base of the cliff, but lying on their familiar bed. A portal, Alec’s mind supplies belatedly, though he hadn’t felt it pass over him. He hums, relaxing into the quiet peace of the loft, into Magnus’ warmth. 

He falls asleep safe in Magnus’ arms.

[g4zdtechtv]

THE PILE PRESENTS: X-Play - Let Sleeping Dogs Wield Giant Swords | 4/18/12

This is the Monado's Power!

(4GTV - 24/7. LIVE. WATCH NOW.)

[the-starlight-papers]

We’re getting to the point in the summer where all I have to do to get my head counselors to have a mental breakdown is walk out into the hallway with a kid and stop at the parent table.

On the bright side, we made butter today at camp, and while we were prepping I realized we had sugar and vanilla extract, so our junior counselors got to make whipped cream instead.

[cresvalkyrie]

Yeah, that idea isn't leaving my head now

[sword-dad-fukuzawa]

I think there’s something important to be said as to how strongly the narrative puts Meryl in the role of the witness.

From the start, she’s a reporter. Roberto emphasizes this over and over again: they’re journalists. They don’t get involved. They’re there to bear witness, to chronicle history, but not to actively participate in it. And I think that grates on Meryl for most of the anime. She’s got a bleeding heart, same as Vash, and greenhorn reporter she is, she’s not accustomed to the role of the passive observer.

So, Meryl being Meryl, she rejects the role. She helps stop the sand ship in direct defiance of the idea that she should just watch and record.

The narrative punishes her for it. A direct consequence of getting too involved: Roberto dying in a scene so pivotal to her character arc that you can see her break a little. And then in episode 11, with her newfound resolve, what does she do?

Bear witness. She doesn’t shoot a single bullet, dramatic derringer reloading scene aside. She watches, in mounting horror. She screams ineffectually at the glass, at Conrad, at Knives. No one pays her any mind.

There’s nothing for her to shoot. There’s no action for her to take. Meryl, stripped of her agency, has to watch as the same violation is perpetrated on Vash, just to an even worse degree. It’s a study on helplessness and disempowerment in microcosm.

And it’s part of Trigun’s larger exploration of gender and the dynamics of power. I wish Meryl had more agency, too, but I can’t help but think it’s written this way on purpose. Choosing her backstory to be “journalist” was a very deliberate one on the part of the writers, so I hope they do something interesting and impactful with it in the final episode.

[dedalvs]

For those going to LA Comic Con, @quothalinguist and I will be doing a presentation Sunday at 4:00 p.m. in room 405. Hope to see you there!

[creativewaygrace]

Bible Verses About Witchcraft

1 Chronicles 10:13- Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the Lord because he did not keep the Lord's word He even consulted a medium for guidance.

1 Samuel 15:23- For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and defiance is like wickedness and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.

1 Samuel 22:23- Stay with me. Don't be afraid, for the one who wants to take my life wants to take your life. You will be safe with me.

2 Chronicles 33:6- He passed his sons through the fire in Ben Hinnom Valley. He practiced witchcraft, divination, and sorcery, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did a huge amount of evil in the Lord's sight, angering him.

Leviticus 19:31- Do not turn to mediums, or consult spiritists, or you will be defiled by them, I am the Lord your God.

Leviticus 20:6- Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists and prostitutes' himself with them, I will turn against that person and cut him off from his people.

Leviticus 20:27- A man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritists must be put to death. They are to be stoned; their death is their own fault.

Revelation 18:23- The light of a lamp will never shine in you again and the voice of a groom and bride will never be heard in you again. All this will happen because your merchants were the nobility of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.

Revelation 21:8- But the cowards, faithless, detestable, murderers, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.

Galatians 5:19-20- Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions.

Galatians 5:19-21- Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing and anything similar. I am warning you about these things, as I warned you before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Micha 5:10-12- In that day, this is the Lord's declaration, I will remove your horses from you and wreck your chariots. I will remove the cities of your land and tear down all your fortresses. I will remove sorceries from your hands, and you will not have any more fortune tellers.

Acts 19:17-20- When this became known to everyone who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, they became afraid, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high esteem. And many who had become believers came confessing and disclosing their practices, while many of those who had practiced magic collected their books and burned them in front of everyone. So they calculated their value and found it to be fifty thousand pieces of silver, in this way the word of the Lord flourished and prevailed.

Isaiah 8:19-22- When they say to you, "Inquire of the mediums and the spiritists who chirp and mutter, shouldn't a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead, on behalf of the living? Go to God's instruction and testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, there will be no dawn for them. They will wander through the land, dejected and hungry. When they are famished, they will become enraged, and looking upward, will curse their king and their God. They will look toward the earth and see only distress, darkness, and the gloom of affliction, and they will be driven into thick darkness.

Isaiah 19: 1-4- A pronouncement concerning Egypt: Look, the Lord rides on a swift cloud and is coming to Egypt. Egypt's idols will tremble before him, and Egypt will loose heart. I will provoke Egyptians against Egyptians, each will fight against his brother and each against his friend, city against city, kingdom against kingdom. Egypt's spirit will be disturbed within it, and I will frustrate it's plans. Then they will inquire of idols, ghosts, and spiritists. I will hand over Egypt to harsh masters, and a strong king will rule it. This is the declaration of the Lord of Armies.

Acts 8:9-13- A man named Simon had previously practiced sorcery in that city and amazed the Samaritan people, while calming to be somebody great. They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest and they said, "This man is called the Great Power of God". They were attentive to him because he had amazed them with his sorceries for a long time, but when they believed Philip, as he proclaimed

Deuteronomy 18:10-14- No one among you is to sacrifice his son or daughter in the fire, practice divination, tell fortunes, interpret omens, practice sorcery, cast spells, consult a medium or spiritists, or inquire of the dead. Everyone who does these acts is detestable to the Lord, and the Lord your God is driving out the nations before you because of these detestable acts. You must be blameless before the Lord your God. Though these nations you are about to drive out listen to fortune-tellers and diviners, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do this.

Isaiah 47: 8-14- So now hear this, lover of luxury, who sits securely, who says to herself, I am, and there is no one else. I will never be a widow or know the loss of children. These two things will happen to you suddenly, in one day, loss of children and widowhood. They will happen to you in their entirety, in spite of your many sorceries and potency of your spells. You were secure in your wickedness, you said No one sees me. Your wisdom and knowledge led astray. You said it yourself, I am, and there is no one else. But disaster will happen to you, you will not know how to avert it. And it will fall on you, but you will be unable to ward it off . Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly. So take your stand with your spells and your many sorceries, which you have wearied yourself with from your youth. Perhaps you will be able to succeed, perhaps you will inspire terror! You are worn out with your many consultations. So let the astrologers stand and save you, those who observe the stars, those predict monthly what will happen to you. Look, they are like stubble, fire burns them. They cannot rescue themselves from the power of the flame. This is not a coal for warming themselves, or a fire to sit beside!

[whumpofalltime]

whump of all time

SEMIFINALS!

Find links and propaganda under the cut. Quarterfinalist and later match-ups are untagged, so your votes and reblogs matter!

Once Upon A Time:

(gifset 1, gifset 2)

"There's blood, wounds, captivity, bondage, a slow-dipping-mechanism, a big rescue, and excellent acting by Colin O'Donoghue - who delivers the tiniest whimper and the most delectable of trembles for our whump-loving eyes to devour!" ~ @killian-whump

"[...] Killian was BROKEN. Absolutely and heart-wrenchingly devastated. He was tortured within an inch of his life (… or death, I guess) and practically left to slowly drop into a pit of eternal despair.

Killian was not easy to break. He would get injured and get back up with a sneer and an "I'm alright love you should see the other guy".

But to reach that point? The point of telling Emma she should have kept herself safe instead of saving him from this torment, to hold on to her like she was his lifeline, to SMILE that small smile from the first bit of hope he'd gotten since he ended up there?

The relief upon watching this episode for the first time was visceral. For two episodes we knew Hook was being tortured, we saw him try and fail to limp to safety, we saw his resolve and defiance desperately hold on, we saw him accept his fate, we saw him preferring to be tortured further than hurt his friends… And then he got saved! And he had no witty comeback, no effort to hide his pain. He just fucking collapsed in the arms of his beloved, of his saviour, and held on for a moment to realize that it was real, she was there, he was finally safe.

Add to that some amazing, jaw-dropping, emotional acting by Colin O'Donoghue, how can you get any better than that?

Anyway vote for ouat. Because this whole torture mini arc existing is probably what caused a chain reaction of me understanding and accepting I love whump, so. I wouldn't be here torturing blorbos if it weren't for it 🤣" @piracytheorist

"god tier acting" ~ @caliburn-the-sword

The Young Blood Chronicles (Save Rock and Roll's music videos, Fall Out Boy):

(link)

"Everyone gets bloodied, bruised, beaten up, tortured, rescued, limbs are amputated - it's brutal. Alone Together is particularly strong."

sorry for being late, but you want YBC propaganda? then you're getting YBC propaganda. I know you're a FOB fan, but I will be writing this for the benefit of those who don't know what YBC is, for better propaganda purposes! and yeah this is gonna be LONG. sorry.

So! The Youngblood Chronicles (shortened to YBC) is a series of 11 music videos made by the band Fall Out Boy, for their album Save Rock And Roll (you know this album, it's the one with My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark on it). The whole thing is quite short, less than fifty minutes long (even shorter if you don't count the uncut version's credits!!), and every single music video has some element of whump in it. This propaganda is gonna break down each individual music vid, and at i'll also talk a little bit about the irl context the album was written in, and why even THAT can be a little bit whumpy if you're insane like me!

(note: i'm going in the original release order over the uncut order, hence why i'm starting with MSKWYDITD instead of The Phoenix)

My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark: Arguably the least whump-y out of all of them, but man, seeing all of Fall Out Boy's discography and memorabilia be burnt while people are dancing around the destruction? Man, when you know the real life stuff (the reception the band had in 2009, leading to them to take a three year hiatus)... and at the end, you see four guys bound in the back of a van!! And that van is getting burnt!! Burn everything you love and burn the... ashes.

The Phoenix: NOW here's the first of MANY whump tastes you'll get. Patrick Stump, the singer/cutie of the band, gets kidnapped, tied to a chair, has his hand CHOPPED OFF and mailed to his bandmate/best friend Pete Wentz, then gets tied down and utterly tortured by women who are laughing at his misery the entire time, getting prodded and stabbed by tools for... well, you'll see. By the end of the video, Pete and the other two members of FOB (Joe Trohman and Andy Hurley) have been kidnapped by these mysterious women too, with Pete specifically getting kidnapped by the blonde woman he was in bed with when Patrick's hand got delivered to him. If you enjoy cute boys getting tied down, covered in blood, and writhing around like worms while getting tortured... well you'll enjoy all of YBC but specifically you'll enjoy this!! I did :D! The war is won, before it's begun, release the doves, surrender love...

Young Volcanoes: Good news, FOB has been reunited! Bad news, by the women who dismembered Patrick! And now all the band members are tied to chairs, hooked up to IVs full of god knows what types of drugs, and blindfolded (all except Patrick). They are then forced to drink, snort hard drugs, and are force fed Patrick's organs! Yep, all four of them are forced to eat their lead singer's guts, and are so fucking drugged up they don't even realize what's happening (and now you know what the women were doing to him in the last mv, and you even get a nice little shot of the hack job of stitching him back up)!! Patrick hallucinates everyone having fun, but of course, at the end, all of them are knocked out because of the drugs. Americana, exotica, do you wanna feel a little beautiful baby?

Alone Together: This is the song the OG propaganda mentioned, and for good reason. All four of them are shipped off into little personalized torture rooms, and, well, tortured! Pete is able to break out and even steals the hook from the girl who was torturing him, but little does he know that'll be his own undoing... also, in general, this song has some whumpy elements, specifically the line "my heart is like a stallion/they love it more when it's broke-in"... but notice how easy it is to hear "broke-in" as "broken"! At the end of the video, Pete is at least able to find Patrick (Joe and Andy have NOT been having a good time, either!! But sadly, they aren't found by Pete, but Pete DOES find Big Sean), and is even able to attach the hook to the stump (ha!) where his hand used to be. But something is clearly wrong with Patrick now. His eyes are yellow, and as the song ends, we hold on him, sneering and twitching. This is the road to ruin - and we're started at the end...

The Mighty Fall: First off if you say this is the worst song off of SRAR I will hunt you for sport. OKAY ANYWAYS, chronologically this comes after MSKWYDITD, and yeah, the four guys are the members of FOB. Pete is able to free himself with Patrick's new hook hand, and is able to get the other three out while Pete is hacking up a lung from the fire they just barely escaped. But they're not done getting their shit rocked yet. A gang of children show up (the leader being the kid Patrick waved at right before he was kidnapped back in the Phoenix MV), and proceed to separate them and beat the living shit out of them. The leader kid who's chasing Patrick plays something on a boombox... which triggers Patrick to go yellow-eyed again (from here on out i'll call it "going Youngblood" or "Youngblood self"). It was confirmed in the commentary track that ANY music would cause him to go Youngblood. And knowing Patrick IRL fucking loves to create/compose music... yeah! Take something he loves and turn it into something that drives him insane!! I'm normal!! And also the irl parallel you could draw to his solo career doing the same thing to him (on a less uh Dramatic level but you know)!!! Ouch!!!! Big Sean is able to save Patrick, but at the cost of his own life (and a killer rap verse... HELL YEAH I'M A DICK GIRL, ADDICTED TO YOU). Oh, how the mighty fall in love...

Just One Yesterday: The last vestiges of comfort you're gonna get for a WHILE. The four are separated, getting even more beaten up, Pete vomits up a snake, Andy gets his shit rocked by a homeless guy, Joe has to use white sheets as a makeshift tourniquet bc his leg got fucked up in The Mighty Fall MV, and Patrick is picked up by a kind stranger (hi Foxes! you have a very pretty voice! PLEASE KEEP YOUR HANDS ON THE STEERING WHEEL!). And finally, finally we get a hope spot. Fall Out Boy is reunited (the part where Andy just grabs onto Patrick's arm, in disbelief they're both alive... augh!!! AUGH!!!!), and for a moment, it seems they've been delivered to a hospital... before Foxes' eyes go completely black, looking at Patrick... and turns on the radio. She's able to trigger the Youngblood. And now Patrick is gone. The other three scramble into the hospital, Patrick not far behind, determined to kill them to stop the noise in his head. If Heaven's grief brings Hell's reign, then I'd trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday...

Where Did The Party Go: Patrick, now fully consumed by the Youngblood brainwashing, is now stalking his bandmates in a hospital. Patrick is seeing visions of the hospital as an abandoned party, Andy has to painfully disinfect the wounds he's gotten, Pete is able to call for the police, and Joe... oh, poor Joe. He barricades himself into a room, but not well enough. Patrick finds him, and kills him, slitting his throat with the hook hand, showing no remorse at all... until Andy and Pete find them. The Youngblood wears off, and Patrick looks to what he's done, and is horrified at what he's done to his friend. And, bad news for him, the police are here, ready to arrest the murderer. All Andy and Pete can do is watch as tears roll down Patrick's eyes. And for the extra IRL context, this was the first song written for the album that made Pete and Patrick realize they had to get FOB back together... so lets match that with a music video where the member who helped get the band together in the first place dies. By the hands of the kid he found. Let's fade away together, one dream at a time...

Death Valley: Joe gets... uh, a little comfort? I mean, he thinks he's getting sent to heaven but goes to hell, buuuuut I think doing drugs in rock and roll hell with Tommy Lee is actually a pretty sweet deal, better than the deal the other three got! Pete and Andy are being interrogated while Patrick is in a jail cell. We find out that the cult that kidnapped them, Silence the Noise, is lead by Pete's girlfriend from WAAAAY back in the Phoenix MV, Courtney Love. And at the end of the MV... Patrick is bailed out of jail by Silence the Noise. They have him again. And this time, they're not gonna let him walk out until he's fully under their control. 'Cause tonight it's just fire alarms and losing you...

Rat a Tat: Silence the Noise has Patrick, and they utterly brainwash him, A Clockwork Orange style, with electroshock stimulation to keep him from looking away or closing his eyes, until there is nothing left. Patrick Stump does not exist anymore. Only the Youngblood, pliant under the control of Silence the Noise, tasked to destroy what he once loved; music. Andy dies at the hands of the cult, and now Pete has to protect a briefcase, the thing that got them into this mess, and keep it away from Silence the Noise, all while his best friend hunts him down. Are you ready for another bad poem?

Miss Missing You: THE WHUMPIEST OF THE WHUMP. What if we were best friends but you've been driven insane and I know the only way to stop you is to kill you and it was my fault you got into this mess and I was the one who gave you the weapon that will be my own undoing. What if we both died at the same time. What if we died, both of us failing the mission we had before us. What if that was a reference to one of their first music videos. What if this song was originally written for Patrick's solo album but he realized it was more of a Fall Out Boy song so it was scrapped until now. What if there's a legit argument to be made that half the lyrics for this song was written by Patrick. What if we were both boys. Grips walls, yeha i'm normal. If you don't watch ANY other music vid, watch Miss Missing You. Sometimes before it gets better, the darkness gets bigger. The person that you'd take a bullet for is behind the trigger.

Save Rock And Roll: And our final track gives us a final bit of comfort. Patrick is able to overcome the Youngblood, and gets into heaven, where all of FOB is finally, finally reunited. God (aka Elton John) gives them new instruments and brings them back to earth, so they can do what they love; play music together. Which just so happens to release people from the control of Silence the Noise! But, because we can't have nice things, a cult within Silence the Noise got a hold of the briefcase, and summoned a spirit that starts to kill everyone. FOB stands together, and blasts the evil spirit, the blood coming up to the gates of heaven and covering Elton John in it. And... that's how it ends. No true resolution. Just Elton John covered in blood, as the song fades out. Oh, no! Wherever I go, go! Trouble seems to follow! I only plugged in to save rock and roll!

UH. AGAIN I APOLOGIZE FOR THE LENGTH. but i really wanted to express just how much WHUMP they manage to fit into less than fifty minutes, all backed by an amazing album colored by the three years they were apart. colored by how they grew, colored by how bad the hiatus was for Patrick specifically, colored by how Confessions of a Pariah got Pete to reach out to help him, and this album came out of it, Fall Out Boy came back out of it, and now here we are, ten years later, with the title track being performed every night for their concert, with all the band singing the final lines together, and the line you are what you love, not who loves you hitting every single night.

SORRY. LISTEN TO FALL OUT BOY. thanks for letting me rant.

[jilyawards]

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