#feeling very cut off and isolated and then playing this game about coming out of isolation and making connections

[floral-hex]

Anyway, I finished Death Stranding, and by finished I mean I sat and watched 2 hours of cut scenes with the occasional walking around

and I loved it.

[arabellasleopardcoat]

 A Thousand Words (Daemon Targaryen x Reader) 

Summary: You want to marry him. He wants to fuck you. The two things are not as incompatible as they sound. 

Requested: Yes! Predator/Prey with Daemon.

Warnings: Smut. Vaginal unprotected sex. Animalistic sex? Sadistic Daemon. Toxic relationship. Mentions of breeding kink. PWP with baby plot.

You leaned down, examining a few bergamot flowers more closely. Asking for permission in a low voice, you cut three of them. They would be enough to soothe the children’s bee stings. 

As you placed them in your basket, you heard a twig snap, followed by leaves crunching. You straightened up immediately, flowers forgotten by your feet. Your eyes glanced towards the tree line. There were no animals near you, apart from a few birds. Yet, the noise had been loud. As if the twig had snapped from something heavy stepping on it. 

You knew these forests like the palm of your hand. You had grown up here, after all. There were no animals heavy enough to make such a noise around this area. 

“Is someone there?” You asked, feeling a bit silly for doing so. Other than the chirping of birds and the soft murmur of a river near, you heard nothing. But if there was someone there with ill intent, they weren’t about to announce themselves. 

Keeping your movements very slow, you picked up your basket and kept picking flowers. Despite always enjoying long treks in these woods, you were unable to concentrate on the beauty surrounding you. Uneasiness pooled in your stomach, all the hairs on your body standing up to attention. You couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. Every few steps, you looked over your shoulder, but there was nothing there. 

This outing was meant to be meditative for you, and you were clearly not reaching that goal. The pressure of being the Lady of your household sometimes got to you. When you were a woman, it was as if you had to do twice as much to prove yourself worthy. Nature had always been a respite for you, yet today, peace seemed to evade you.  You felt too anxious, too nervous, to be able to tune in with yourself. The ambience had been ruined by the sound, triggering all your paranoia. 

You decided to head back towards the castle. Since you were still uneasy, you decided to take a few confusing laps, just in case you were being followed. You walked towards the darker part of the forest, where the trees were older and taller, their branches overlapping and obscuring the view of the sky. To anyone who was unfamiliar with the place, the twists and turns you were taking would throw them off. 

Unfortunately for you, whoever was after you was not unfamiliar with the place. Now that you were in the more isolated part of the forest, you could hear footsteps after you, even with your pulse beating loudly in your ears. With a muttered curse at your own idiocy, you hiked up your skirts and started to run. 

It went badly. You tripped over a root, going down hard. The skin of your palms lifted, slowly starting to bleed. And someone pounced on you from behind. Hands wrapped around your waist, pulling you flush against a solid chest. 

“Have I startled you so much you forgot your way in your own lands?” You recognized the voice just as you were about to shriek. Daemon Targaryen and you didn’t have much in common. In fact, you were total opposites. While he preferred the noise of the city, you enjoyed the calm of the woods. He liked dornish red, while you much favored arbor gold. He liked bedding a new woman every night, you liked compromise. And, of course, how could you forget? Daemon liked chasing, and you liked running. 

“My Prince!” You tried to sound scandalized. This game of yours was one of your favorites to play, and you guessed this was why the Rogue Prince kept coming back to you. He enjoyed the thrill of the chase too much to not give in to it.  “You aren’t meant to be here.”

“I can’t stay away from you. You know that.” 

“You should.” You frown at him, playing your part. Despite it, you cannot help the teasing tone that your words take next.  “It’s not proper, for a Lady and a Prince to be alone together, so far from other people.”

Daemon doesn’t answer. Instead, he pulls you more into his body, your back flush to his chest. He starts to press lavish kisses to your nape and shoulders. You nearly moan. Nearly. Because you have a part to play. 

“Don’t. No. We could get caught.” You mutter, urgently trying to get him off you. So far, getting him into your bed had proven a piece of cake. Getting him to come back to it, slightly harder. Getting him to offer you marriage, damn near impossible. 

In the eyes of others, you were nothing more than friends. Not even courting, despite his constants visits to your household. It certainly got tongues rolling among the realm, but there was nothing official yet. 

“Come on. Just let me have you.” Daemon bites down on your shoulder, softly. “You know you want to.” 

“Out in a forest?” You laugh. “Don’t be ridiculous.” 

“It’s not ridiculous if we both want it.” He pushes your dress slightly lower, tracing nonsensical patterns on your back.  “Don’t tell me you haven’t thought about it, with how much you like the outdoors.” 

“No.” You are lying through your teeth, and he knows it. Knows you. But it’s such a sweet game, that the two of you play. For you, it’s the high of getting to scream and bite and be as wild as you wish to, away from the stiffness of your everyday life. For him, you guess it is part of being a conqueror and getting to rough you up a little. 

You are at a stalemate. You will never admit it to him, how much you enjoy this. Not only are you too proud, but you feel slightly embarrassed by it. There is a certain pride in being different, in not conforming to the role society has decided was yours to fill. Fate bends to your will, after all. You are someone who makes things happen, not someone that has things happen to her. Be it your own marriage plans, to commanding your household with an iron fist. Yet, you crave being made to feel helpless. 

Daemon is not about to budge, either. When he thinks he is right about something, he is right about it and there is no room for arguing. His grip on your waist gets more restrictive. You stay like that, kneeling on the floor as he sits patiently behind you. 

“What about a… Friendly wager?” Daemon kisses your earlobe as he speaks, softly. “If you win, you can leave. I won't bother you again.” 

“And if you win?” You know already that Daemon is going to win. Not only is he competitive, but you don’t want him to leave you alone. Like, ever. You would marry him in a heartbeat, were he to ask. So if it is necessary, you will lose on purpose. It’s not the first time the two of you played like this. You have gotten talented at it. The key is in not making it too obvious, less you anger him. The male ego is such a fragile thing, and Daemon needs to be handled with care. He is as proud as you are. 

“I get to take you. Here. As you are, in this forest.” He whispers, as he leaves behind soft, wet bites over your shoulders. Already, your blood is warming. You feel hot all over. Were it not madness, you would slip out of your cloak and dress and try to cool down. 

You ponder on it for a few seconds, distracted by the feel of his mouth and the way his skilled fingers pull down your bodice. It’s a bad idea. A terrible one, in fact. But it does sound tantalizing. To be run down by Daemon, held down and fucked as if the two of you were nothing more than animals in heat is… Well, it’s certainly something. You don’t know if it’s the moon, or the way he seems to have a talent for convincing you of bad ideas, but you cannot help the way your cunt pulses when you think of it. 

“Fine.” You say, in an annoyed tone. As if you are not as aroused as he is by the idea.  “What do I have to do?” 

Daemon’s breath hitches. You can hear it and feel it, pressed this close to him. He takes the tiniest intake of air, chest moving softly against your back, before stuttering a little. 

Surprised. You know even without looking at him. Out of all the games the two of you play, this one has to be the one that has taken it further. It’s risky, and he probably offered it on a whim, knowing the odds were not in his favor. But you said yes. And that changes everything. 

“Try to get out of the forest before I catch you.” His voice sounds dazed. It’s clear Daemon is still in disbelief. Yet, he is clearly eager to play because you can feel his hardness pressing into your lower back. 

“I assume I will get a head start.” You tilted your head back and gave him a cheeky smile. The sort of smile that drove him mad. Daemon gave you a rare, soft smile, before kissing you. It was warm and demanding, forcing you to open up to him. When you parted, you were the one feeling nearly drunk on sensation. He was back in control. 

“I’m feeling generous, so I will count to twenty before giving chase.” Daemon spoke, but the words didn’t really register in your mind. You blinked at him, slowly. Your brain had been turned into mush thanks to the amazing kiss. He smirked and spanked your arse.  “Starting now. One.” 

Jolted out of your trance, you stood abruptly. Your clock was running and you wanted so badly to complain you were not ready, but there was simply no time.  Beside you, Daemon kept counting. 

“Three… Four… Five…”  Bewildered at the injustice of it all, you scowled. But Daemon's face remained smug, and so you had no choice. You stood up, wiping your palms on your dress, and ran off as fast as you could. You got a bit tangled in your skirts and had to stop to hike them up properly. 

“Seven… Eight… Nine…” It was pronounced with a hint of laughter. Almost halfway. You wanted to scream, but you knew Daemon. He never played fair. Instead, you chose to duck behind some trees, so hopefully he would lose your trail. 

You kept running, until you no longer heard his voice. The only noise you could hear now were your own agitated breaths and the soft sounds of the forest. If you were to make it out, you still had a long way to go. 

Since you didn’t really want to make it out, and you were getting more agitated the more you ran, you stopped.  Deciding to remain still until you heard his footsteps again, you sat down on the grass. But soon, you could hear the tell-tale sound branches make when being pulled apart, twigs and leaves crunching under a pair of boots.  

It was not as long as you thought it would be, and so, you startled a little. There was a bit of panic gripping you, as well as excitement. You were pretty sure he would tackle you into the ground when he saw you, and you were not anticipating that pain. That this was happening made you feel small in all the right ways. As if you were no more than something to be conquered, to be caught, by a much bigger predator. 

Crouching, you sprung out, your movements louder than you would have liked. You thought you had more time. This was not going how you expected it to go, not at all. You had barely calmed your breathing down when you were running again. 

“Come here!” You heard him scream, and you resisted the urge to look over your shoulder and watch just how close he was. You sprinted, pushing your body harder. But your body was already tired from your earlier run, when you thought someone was following you. You were slower than usual. 

“Come on. Give in.” Daemon’s voice sounded too close. He was not running after you, from what you could hear. Merely walking. Circling you, closer and closer, until he was ready to pounce on his prey. 

The thought made you embarrassingly wet. Your thighs clenched, trying to get some friction on your cunt, but with how you were moving, it was nearly impossible. 

“You boast a lot, my Prince. But I don’t see you doing anything.” You answer, cheekily. This time, you do turn around and look at him. His eyes are dark with hunger. It makes you feel small and powerless.

You remind yourself this is why Prince Daemon likes you so much. He loves how submissive you can be, how willing to play his game. You let your face show everything you are feeling, face contorted between arousal and fear, eyes darting restlessly searching for a way out. 

Daemon walks calmly towards you. Instead of running, you remain rooted in place. It seems fear has frozen you. You let your skirts fall back down around your ankles, dropping all pretense to keep running. 

He takes his time, circling you like a hound would do with a bunny. Waiting for the right time to sink his teeth and tear apart, until you are no more than exposed tendons and flesh. 

“Now, now. Don’t look so fearful.” Daemon brushes your hair behind your ears. The touch is tender, a contrast to the sadistic glee shining in his eyes. It's clear the chase has been as exciting for him as it was for you. “I am a gracious winner. I won’t hurt you. Too much.” And with a dark grin, he is pulling your cloak open, tearing at the bodice of your dress, pushing you down. It all happens in a flurry of movement, too fast to follow where his hands are, too brutal to realize when it is that you end up on your knees.  

Without needing to be told to, you go to your hands and knees. Daemon chuckles, pulling your skirts up and your undergarments out of the way. 

“This was what you needed, wasn’t it?” You can feel his hand making its way between your thighs, checking your wetness. Your face heats up in shame when you hear the loud squelching noise his finger makes when entering you. Never have you been so aroused from looks and words alone. And Daemon can definitely tell. 

You fix your eyes on the grass beneath you. You can hear how Daemon unbuckles his belt and shrugs off his pants. Then, you feel his weight on top of you, as he goes on his hands and knees too. His legs bracket yours as he forces you to lower your chest, pushing your face into the earth. 

More shame and arousal twist on your belly. This is not how a lady should be treated, taken on her hands and knees, teats out and hanging out of her dress on a forest floor. Daemon is about to fuck you as if you were a common whore, and you can't help the gush of wetness that floods your center when you think of it. 

“You did.” He gives an incredulous laugh, noticing how you are absolutely dripping. He rubs the tip of his member against your folds, coating himself on your slick. The feel of it against your hole, firm and scorching hotel, makes you squirm with the need to take him in. “You really did.” 

“Stop teasing.” You complain, trying to move your hips and chase him. It's useless. The position Daemon has you in lets you do little but be smothered by him. 

Suddenly, there is a pull in your hair, making you shriek. Your roots hurt, so you arch your neck, going with the movement his fisted hand is imposing. 

“And who do you think you are, little girl? To order a Prince?” It's nasty and menacing, whispered in your ear as he forces your body to bow. “It must be so hard, acting so tough all the time. So collected, so proper. When, in reality, you just need someone to take you as the wanton whore you are.” 

You can only gasp, seeing white stars reflected on your eyelids, the stinging pain of the pull heating your poor scalp and neck. 

“I hunted you down. I brought you to your knees. I own you.” Daemon pushes forward in a single, punishing thrust. You scream, desperately scratching the grass for purchase. He is not very deep, but he feels huge, splitting you open in all the right ways. Often, when Daemon and you go to bed together, your foreplay is much longer. He is not as young as he used to be, or so he says. Despite it, Daemon finds ways to prolong your encounters even when his body doesn't cooperate. You are not used to taking him without preparation and it shows. 

 “I am in charge.” His voice comes out strained, through gritted teeth. He pulls at your hair, just for the sake of it. You feel sweat start to gather at your temples and lower back, both from the strain and how heated your blood feels.  “Do you understand?” 

 “Yes.” You mutter, struggling to form a coherent thought thanks to the way he is fucking you. 

“Louder.” Daemon snaps his hips against yours. His grip on your hair gets even more punishing. “Tell me you understand.” 

“I understand.” It comes out in a sob, as you try to hold on to the grass, the earth, anything. Your fingers hurt from clawing at the dirt, your face slowly getting squished against the grass. Despite how much you struggle to stay somewhat upright, you are no match for his strength. 

“What was that, my Lady?” The smell of moss and sweat fills your nose, as Daemon presses you down in an even more brutal way. He kneads at one of your breasts, cruelly. “I didn’t catch it.” 

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” You scream, voice hoarse. Your words melt off into a litany of moans, punched out little noises that seem to come out from so deep in your chest that they are more like sobs.  

He lets go of your hair, encouraging you to lift your hips instead. 

“Raise your hips.” His hand rubs at your hipbones, demanding. You obey, too weak to fight him. This is the part you like the most when you play like this. The way your mind goes blank, and you can focus only on obeying him. “Good girl. What would your servants think if they saw you like this? Their lady, reduced to a breeding bitch.” 

The demeaning words bring you out of your haze. He can’t… Surely, he wouldn’t. You won’t allow him to ruin your reputation, not like this.  You try to get up and fight his grip, but Daemon lowers his hand and starts rubbing at your pearl until you are a trembling mess. The last thing in your mind is getting away from him. 

“You take me so well, little girl.” He coaxes more and more pleasure out of your body, forcing it to rise to impossible heights. You feel like you are about to fall off the edge, stomach tensing, knees buckling until you are face down in the dirt. His hands on your hips are the only thing keeping you upright, as you scream and scream, whole world blooming into pleasure.  “You were made for me.” 

No matter how much your cunt flutters and twitches in pleasure, Daemon keeps fucking you. He doesn’t seem to care that you are overstimulated, that it’s too much. He chases his peak unashamedly, losing all inhibitions. 

“I’ll fill you up with my seed. Put a bastard in your belly." The words are spoken in a frustrated tone, probably not even meant for your ears. "You won’t be able to keep running, then."

While you have insisted on previous encounters that Daemon pulls out, you find yourself curious about his words.  Is he really going to spill inside you? Being one to avoid compromise so badly, you would not have expected Daemon to even think of doing so. Has your teasing driven him so mad he is unable to contain himself? 

Never before have you felt so smug. You have him. Finally. The satisfaction is too much to bear, so you decide to reward him by clenching around his member.  

The reaction is immediate. Daemon curses and his hips lose all rhythm. He muffles his scream on your shoulder, panting wildly. 

You get to marry him not even a month later. After all, returning to your castle in a grass stained dress, with the Prince in similar conditions, is a picture that speaks for itself. 

[bouncybongfairy]

Hello I have an idea. I don’t know if I already sent you something but I don’t think I did so anyways here is my idea

So void gets into stiles body and he’s walking around thinking about his plans until his friend y/n and asks what’s wrong with him they figure out that stiles is actually void and they start talking back in forth until void says something that’s makes y/n’s werwolf suddenly come out and I mean like eyes glowing and fangs come out and then they start talking about y/n’s werewolf power and that she is a hybrid werewolf and then void asks what y/n does with there “prey” and they say I like to play with my food. He says do to me what you do to your “prey” and she does just that and she pins him to the ground and starts to claw at his back and bits his shoulder but he likes it and it just goes down from there.

If you do it then thank you but if you don’t it’s okay, you probably have better things to worry about :) :)

Cat and Mouse Games

Void Stiles x Werewolf Reader

Summary: Thinking Stiles asked you to hang out excited you. After going on a late night hike, he reveals himself to be Void. He teases and gaslights you into letting him fuck the shit out of you.

Word Count: 2.0k+

TW: Rough Smut, Blood Kink, CNC kink.

Account Ref: @kaionyx

<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3

It was Friday and you could barely keep your eyes open on the bus. Sleep deprived, also mentally exhausted from the academic and social aspects of school. Regardless of your exhaustion, Stiles invited you to hang out tonight, lately he’s been his own little world. Isolating himself and acting quite withdrawn when he did converse with you. That being said, you didn’t want to brush him off. After getting home you jumped in the shower. Welcoming the hot water burning your shoulders and back. Hoping it would loosen the tightness in your muscles. You cut the water off and stepped out of the tub. After wrapping your hair in a towel, you sit down at your vanity. Drawing a deep breath in and letting it out with a sigh, you start doing your make-up. Of course you wanted to impress, up until a couple weeks ago you thought there was something between the two of you. So now that he was showing interest in you again, it was important that you made your feelings clear. Not to mention Stiles was already so familiar with the supernatural. Once you were ready you texted him to come pick you up. Scrambling to gather your things together while waiting. He texted you a simple: here. Normally he would have called but you brushed that off and made your way outside. 

“Hey, what’s up?” you asked, climbing into the passenger seat of his beat up Jeep.

“How are you?” he asked without looking over. 

“I’m pretty good, tired but good. What about you? I feel like we haven’t hung out in forever,” you chuckled, clicking your seatbelt into place.

“Yeah sorry, I just been discovered new things about myself,” he said. 

“Oooo, so mysterious,” you laugh before continuing, “are you okay though, like mentally? Sorry I don’t mean to pry and you don’t have to answer, I just noticed you’ve been kinda withdrawn lately. Even from Scott,” you said, treading very lightly. 

“I appreciated the concern but like I said, I’ve just been in my own head lately. Realizing things about myself that I needed to deal with, you know?” he asked. 

“Well, I’m just glad that you’re doing better than I thought. I totally understand what you mean, when I get in my head a lot, I usually go on a hike and it really helps. You know, like the fresh air and everything,” you said. 

“That’s crazy because I’ve been doing the same lately. Like nightly walks and stuff to clear my head, can I show you a cool trail I found? It’s one of my favorites,” he suggested and you agreed. 

The ride was pretty chill, just making small talk while the radio played quietly in the background. Even though there was nothing that really stuck out, something was off. Stiles was normally very bubbly and bright. Tonight he was anything but that. Extremely still and calm, never looking over at you when speaking. Keeping his eyes steadily on the road. All his laughs and chuckles seemed forced and dry. Not only that but it was just a feeling in your gut. Finally getting to the hiking trail, your suspicions only grew from there. The conversation was just so surface level, commenting on different plants and random shit. Another thing you noticed, was how unaffected he seemed to be by the cold weather. Eventually you stop entertaining the conversation, just walking in slightly uncomfortable silence.

“It’s a really nice trail right?” he asks. 

“Yeah there are a lot of little critters running around, it’s nice to see how lively it is tonight,” you said. 

“Yeah it’s real unfortunate,” he sighed which made your brows furrow. 

“Unfortunate?” you asked. 

“Well of course, all this prey, just going to waste,” he said, your heart began to race. 

“I’m confused, what do you mean by that,” you asked, slowing your pace down. 

“Oh it’s no secret that you’ve been confused this whole time. Do you think you were good at hiding it? It’s obvious that you think something is off about me, have you come to a conclusion as to why?” he asked, voiced laced with condescension. 

Immediately the realization hits you like a truck; he was Void. Your brain starts flooding with worse case scenarios and questions. Involuntarily your eyes begin to glow and claws come out. Unsure of what to do you just stand and watch him. Nothing in his body language indicated to you that he would try to hurt you. At the same time, you knew what Void was capable of. 

“You know Stiles is still in here and I can’t deny the sexual fantasies he has about you are truly a sight to behold. He is a nasty little guy. He likes the fact that you’re stronger than him. He’s never told you this but watching you hunt gives him a rush like no other. Can’t say I don’t agree-” he tried to continue but was interrupted. 

“What’s your point? Honestly, like… seriously are you just gonna ramble till we both drop dead?” you asked

“Egar are we? Well, like I said I would be lying if I didn’t indulge myself in his fantasies. I mean, look how powerful you are, quite literally an apex predator. Teeth sharper than daggers, claws that can shred flesh like it’s paper. Don’t you wanna give in to your natural instincts?” he asked, making such strong eye contact that you were getting uncomfortable. Shifting back and forth, the fight or flight reflex tethering on the edge of uncontrollable. When you didn’t respond, he continued,

“When you first got turned, it took you a couple months until you could control your impulses right? I just wanna see those instincts in person, how do you normally kill your prey?” he asks. 

“I like to play with it before going for the kill, like hobbling it before finishing the job,” you say quietly, fearing the silence would make you appear weak.

“Say it with your chest, why are you so ashamed of your biological instincts?” he asks, tilting his head to the side a bit, “Show me how you hunt, like i’m your prey,” he half demands half asks. 

“You want me to attack you?” your heart was beating out of your chest, “that’s- I’m not doing that, why would you even want that?” you ask, taking a few steps back. 

“I want to feel your internal conflict, the shift from the good girl persona you sell to well and pull out what’s underneath. A whore that gets off on the most shameful activities. You may fool yourself, however I’m not so easily persuaded,” he said approaching you, he was trying to taunt you and it was working. 

Scott had warned you about how dangerous Void was, that he was the definition of toxicity. Now that he was standing here, inviting you to tear him up the way you would a deer. You felt disgusted that you were actually tempted to attack him. It was true, when you hunted you felt powerful. Like there was nothing that could stop your reign of terror on your chosen prey or target. He was now only a foot away from you, eyes were completely black. Jaw was clenched, indicating that he was getting impatient. Your eyes were locked on him, pushing him back which only hummored him. Becoming irritated with the anxiety building up inside, you turn and walk away. Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of having a second more of your attention. This infuriated him, an all powerful Nogitsune such as himself was never to be ignored. To be denied a request; seeing you walk away from him only made him watch you unravel you more. 

“You think you can ignore me? The same way you’ve ignored all the urges and needs swarming in your brain on a full moon? I will get what I want out of you, making you act on every sinful desire you have. Even if I have to reach down your throat and rip it out myself!” he roared, stomping towards you while shaking in anger. 

Something in you snapped, the taunting was enough to make you go crazy. All you wanted was for him to shut the fuck up. Jumping on top of him, you use your claws and swipe at his chest. Blood starts seeping through his cotton shirt, taking a look at his face to catch the reaction. To your dismay, he chuckles letting his head fall back. It wasn’t until then that you realized what he meant when saying he wanted to see your internal conflict. This was conflicting; expecting to look up to see him damaged. Normally giving you a satisfied feeling but this was different, normally content in a platonic way. The way his head fell back and the smirk on his face. You couldn’t deny being turned on by how twisted he was. How unaffected he seemed to be by your attacks. Adding another slash across his chest, it felt so good being vicious. For so long you’d bent your instincts to Scott’s mission of keeping the peace in Beacon Hills. Letting your mind be wrapped in a foggy daze while letting your urges run wild was an intoxicating feeling. He pulled his shirt off, hands becoming soaked in blood. He reaches up and takes your face into his hands. Leaving bloody hand prints on your cheeks. Pulling you down so your lips were hovering over one another. You could feel the blood from his chest seep into your shirt. Starting to fall deeper into the kiss, you let your full body weight press onto him. He suddenly flips the two of you over swiftly, now keeping a tight hold on your hair. His hands were sticky with blood, only making for a better grip. 

“Did you really think I'd let you use me to satisfy yourself without a fight?” he asked, holding you down with his body weight. 

Feeling a little too vulnerable, you bite down on his shoulder. Feeling his skin pop as your canines break through. He lets out a loud groan, leaning into the bite which makes your lower stomach burn with pleasure. He pulls your head up slightly by the hair and pulls it back down, indicating he wanted you to let go after a while. You refuse; after realizing he was caught in your jaw, he moves his hands from your hair to your throat. Hair still stuck to his hands, which covered your face as he changed hand placement. At first it seemed like you’d be able to keep this up. Until his grip became tighter and your breathing became strained. Towering over you and focusing most of his weight on your throat. Your vision was becoming blurry and cloudy, you scratched at his shoulders. When this doesn't phase him, you rake your claws down his back. Trying to put in the last of your strength into shredding his back before passing out. 

Void watched as your eyes become glossy, the feeling of your nails in his back making him rock hard. Chuckling as your arms went limp, falling off his back and to the ground. He let go of your throat and turned his attention to your body. He lifted your skirt and pulled your panties to the side. Muttering a couple curses as he uses his fingers to feel how wet you were. Even your thighs were wet and sticky from you leaking desperately for his cock. He uses one hand to rub himself against your entrance and the other hand to start slapping your chest. Watching you bounce as he tried waking you up. Once you started coming to, he began fucking himself into you. Moaning as you started becoming more aware of what was happening. Blood drips from his back and shoulder onto your body. The only thing you were focused on was chasing your orgasm. Rocking your hips into him, trying to get him as deep as possible. Noticing this, his thrusts become rough and fast. His hip bones piercing into your ass painfully. Gripping your hips hard enough to embed his nails into your skin. 

“What kind of whore gets off on this? Are you that desperate for attention?” he taunted as he destroyed your pussy. 

You let your body go limp, enjoying and accepting anything he had to offer. He moved his hands back to your throat. Seeing your face turn red and gasping for air was what sent him over the edge. His climax racking through his body, you came slightly before him. Seeing how your helplessness and pain was enough to make him cum was what made you climax. By the time both of you rode out the highs, you felt completely worn out. Like your body was carrying the weight of a ton, forcing you to stay on the ground. His shoes walking away were the last thing you saw before losing consciousness.

[theresattrpgforthat]

how many ttrpgs do you know of that came with soundtracks?

THEME: TTRPGs With Soundtracks

Hello friend! I knew of a few off the top of my head, and went searching for some more. Many of these soundtracks are playlists of already-created songs, hosted on streaming apps like Spotify, but a few are designed specifically for a certain roleplaying game. Either way I hope you find something up your alley!

Monster Care Squad, by Sandy Pug Games and The Fox in the Flowers.

Long after the crowns have fallen, long after greed has had it's day, long after war, poverty, hunger, and tyranny passed into memory, Ald-Amura's peace is broken by The False Gold, a terrible sickness spreading through its greatest guardians and most beautiful Monsters.

Unified by community and driven by a love for the planet and each other, The Monster Care Squad rises. Do you heed their call?

A game about caring for monsters in a fantastical world is already probably enough to sell a lot of folks on the pitch, but the love for this game shines through in the third-party work available, including Sounds of Ald-Amura, by The Fox in The Flowers. Sandy Pug Games is a creative collective that prioritizes support for the entire team behind any given project, which is probably why their games are so beautiful and so well-crafted.

Long Haul 1983, by SPC. (Spotify Soundtrack)

It’s 1983, and the world feels hollowed out.

LONG HAUL 1983 tells the story of a dangerous journey through an empty world. 

You play a long-haul truck driver trying to make their way home. Every day, you’ll hit the road, navigating treacherous highways, fleeing from menacing threats, and dealing with the psychological impacts of isolation.

And at the end of each day, you’ll find a payphone, make a call, and leave a message for the most important person in your life. 

They never pick up. You never stop calling.

This is a solo game, where the soundtrack is designed to enhance the experience of loneliness and isolation, using ambient sounds and hits from the time period this game is set in. The game comes with a list of songs meant to be played during certain moments, as well as a list of songs that are designed to be background atmospheric pieces. If you want something that elevates your solo journaling experience, this game might be for you.

Orbital Blues, by Soul Muppet Games. (Soundtrack)

It is an intergalactic age of cowboys, outlaws and bandits playing on an interstellar stage. It is a time of hyper-capitalism and a cut-throat gig economy. Unreliable trash-heaps carry scrappy underdogs to their next gig, and corporation freighters lumber across the horizon laden with an empire’s bounty.

These are the music-fuelled, moon-age daydreams of a rebel space age. 

These are your ORBITAL BLUES.

Games inspired by tv shows and movies have a great starting point in finding music that really fits the tone - you can start with the soundtrack of the things that inspired you. But Chris Bissette was not happy to simply show you the soundtracks for Cowboy Bebop and Firefly and call it a day. They created a custom album to play alongside the game that’s a little soulful, and a little rock n’ roll. A soulful space-western kind of game lends itself really well to music to evoke melancholy and loss, so I definitely recommend listening to some of this if you want to play Orbital Blues or any other game inspired by the same sorts of media.

The Wildsea, by Felix Isaacs, and Songs of the Lignin Tide, by Liam Peregrine Vaughan.

Your character is a wildsailor, part of a crew cutting their way across the island-studded wilderness of the treetop sea on a vessel of your very own. You’ll clash with survivor cultures and wild beasts, scavenge and salvage for wreckage and trade-goods, chase rumours, and uncover secrets. The focus of this game is on exploration, progress, and change - you’ll define the world of the Wildsea as you sail it.

I’ve talked about The Wildsea extensively in the past, so I’m just going to talk a little bit about Songs of the Lignin Tide. The Wildsea community is dedicated, inspired, and creative, and that leads to some amazing work created by players, for other players. Songs of the Lignin Tide is one of those examples. It uses a wealth of different sounds to add richness and texture to this unique and verdant setting, and it feels like the creator drew heavily from their own experiences of playing the game. I highly recommend you check it out if you want more Wildsea in your life.

Quietus, by Sinister Beard Games. (Spotify Playlist)

QUIETUS is a one shot, prep-less RPG of melancholy horror. It’s a game for a GM and one or two players, and emulates tragic horror movies like Oculus, The Strangers, The Babadook, Inside and the Netflix version of The Haunting of Hill House. If a piece of fiction can make you cry and scream, then it’s a great model for the sort of stories that you can tell with QUIETUS.

The music for Quietus is also a Spotify playlist, with a collection of songs that fit the tone of a tragic horror game. It’s an hour and forty-three minutes long, and since Quietus is meant to be a one-shot, I have a feeling you might have to play through it more than once, or let Spotify generate similar songs after the playlist finishes up.

GoblinMixtape’s Soundtracks, by Sam Leigh.

While creating a soundtrack on your own might be a daunting task, using established songs to fit the vibe of your ttrpg is much easier, and GoblinMixtape (aka Sam Leigh) has connected many designers to playlists designed to emulate the feeling of their games. There’s quite a few playlists already created by them, so I’d recommend checking out this list of playlists if you want to see the games she’s worked on before.

[duskspring]

Just Can’t Sleep - Rain/Chain

Domestic December - Day 13

Summary: Rain can’t sleep and makes a new acquaintance

Content (do let me know if I forgot anything!): Playfighting turned flirty, nudity, mention of weed

Word count: ~1.5k

Rain’s steps were aimless. There was a storm shaking up the area, the world outside getting thoroughly drenched. He was very sensitive to those things, as were most water ghouls. His elemental powers were stronger at times like these, but it oftentimes left him unable to sleep.

He usually liked spending time with his fellow water ghouls during this weather, but didn’t fully feel like it this time around. He didn’t feel energetic enough to make the night fun, just wanting to sleep it all away. Once he’d accepted that that wasn’t in the cards, he thought maybe he could find a place to experience the next best thing.

The rain came down harshly, but it didn’t bother him. It only served to quicken his steps. Maybe, just maybe, he’d find some rest at the bottom of the lake. Cold and isolated. Awake but calm.

He had barely stripped off his sweater and pants before walking straight in, having to come back out to remove the socks he’d forgotten about. With his back turned, he didn’t notice the ripples in the water he and the rain had not been the cause of.

Once his soaked socks had been peeled off of his feet, he made a beeline back into the lake. The water was cold, but in a comfortable way. It shook him awake a bit. Right as he prepared to fully dive in, he let out an involuntary scream as something- someone- grabbed his ankle.

A figure raised before him, letting go of him again. Water dripped from their hair onto and down their shirtless chest. In actuality, they were fully naked, but Rain didn’t notice as he wasn’t exactly focused on looking down at their crotch area. They towered over him, tall and broad with a heavy looking, slightly rusted metal chain hanging around their neck.

The lightbulb in Rain’s mind lit up with recognition at that last detail. It was the appropriately named Chain, Papa Primo’s original water ghoul. He hadn’t been in the band for long, but still served in a position as one of the antipope’s most loyal ghouls. More importantly in the moment, Rain didn’t know if he should be scared or not. Chain never really interacted with anyone outside of his old bandmates and Papa I, if that.

“You scared me.” Chain’s voice was rough and deep, just as intimidating as he looked.

“I scared you?” Rain was appalled, “You nearly gave me a heart attack!”

His head cocked to the side, “Then I guess we’re even.” His voice was monotone. Without sparing another glance, the old ghoul turned around and made his way back into the water.

Rain didn’t make a move. He wasn’t nearly as comfortable getting in now. He was heavily considering leaving, cutting his losses and finding some video game to play all night, when Chain spoke again.

“Aren’t you coming? The storm is strong. You’ll stay restless.”

Rain felt unable to respond. He knew the other guy was right, but was still left uneasy.

Chain seemed to notice, turning his body back in Rain’s direction, “I’m sorry for scaring you, but there’s nothing to worry about.” When Rain still didn’t respond, he stepped further out of the water again, holding out his hand to shake, “I’m Chain. And you are Rain, if I’m not mistaken. A pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

He hesitantly reached out for the handshake, “Yeah, that’s me. You know me.” It sounded like a question, yet simultaneously it didn’t.

“I know all the ghouls summoned to the ministry. Even if they don’t know me,” He explained, his grip strong and wet, “Now come.”

Chain pulled Rain with him into the water like it was nothing. They sank to the bottom together, the pressure of the water acting almost like a weighted blanket. The rain hitting the top of the lake through the trees sounded muffled under its surface. It provided some rhythmic background noise. Rain felt more at ease the second he got down there.

He breathed in deeply through his gills. The water all around him felt like a warm hug. As much as he loved all the things offered above water, nothing felt quite like home like being soaked underwater.

His calm serenity lasted all but a minute before a childish, fun loving side of him took over. He swam around happily near the floor, calmly at first. He inspected the muddy dirt and the little pebbles that rested on it with his eyes and hands, before eventually picking up his speed. He twisted in circles, enjoying how the water flowed past his limbs, tickling his fingers and toes.

Meanwhile, Chain sat unmovingly with his legs crossed. The chain seemed to anker him down, allowing him to stay there without the struggle of floating upwards. At first, Rain was worried he was disrupting the other guy’s peace, but he figured Chain could call him out if he was bothered. He didn’t even want to try resting anymore. Just sitting still wasn’t Rain’s style during storms.

After a little while, Chain apparently gave up himself, removing the weight from around his shoulders to swim towards Rain. He experimentally moved his arm to cause a ripple in the water to tickle the smaller ghoul’s stomach. Rain giggled, as much as he could underwater, and returned a similar motion. The two built up a rhythm, swimming around each other like dolphins, playfully wrestling around. Their webbed hands and feet helped them move underwater faster than humans ever could.

Rain smiled, his mood improved, fully energized and awake at last. He swam up to Chain, managing to softly bite him on the arm.

The bigger ghoul pulled back, determinedly growling before he rushed towards his playmate. Rain tried escaping, pushing his feet off the ground to make his way halfway onto the lake’s shore before his ankle was grabbed for a second time that night. He yelped as Chain pulled him back slightly, climbing over him and grabbing his wrists to pin him down.

“I win.” He proudly proclaimed, baring his teeth. He was having the time of his life. He hadn’t playfought with anyone in years, preferring to be in his solitude most of the time. Add to that how most of his old bandmates didn’t have the same youthful energy this new ghoul had. He’d never realized before how much he had missed the feeling.

Rain, while he greatly enjoyed the game as well, couldn’t deny how his face was heating up at the close proximity between them. Especially since he’d become painfully aware of Chain’s lack of clothing, “Yeah,” He panted, suddenly out of breath, “Yeah, you got me.”

Neither of them made an effort to move or change position. Rain looked at Chain expectantly, though he wasn’t sure what he was waiting for. Or perhaps he did, and he simply refused to admit it.

Chain was hesitant himself, not wanting to ruin what fun they’d had that night but tired of living his lonely life at the bottom of the lake. He didn’t want to be the ministry’s cryptid anymore, tonight cemented that in his mind.

He didn’t really have anything to lose. At least, that’s what he told himself when he leaned in ever so slightly closer.

“Rain..!” Chain froze as the called for ghoul looked up. The shout had been distant, the noise barely travelling all the way through the heavy droplets plummeting down upon the earth.

“You’re expected.” Chain leaned up a little higher, looking in the general direction of where the shout had come from.

“You can always come with me if you’d like.” Rain offered, hoping to spend a little more time with his new acquaintance.

The response he got was a disagreeing shake of the head, “I can only handle so much in one night.” Chain sat up a little further, moving to sit right next to Rain, their legs still touching, “I’m sorry.”

“No, no, don’t be,” The younger ghoul quickly sat up, “I get it.”

“Rain..!” The shout sounded closer, now clearly identifiable as Mist.

“Go. Spent the night with your friends,” With a quiet sigh, he stood up straight, his ankles submerged in the lake, “You’ll know where to find me.”

Rain watched speechlessly as the big ghoul made his way back towards the bottom of the lake, only looking back right before his head went under, sending him a quick grin before disappearing.

“Dude, there you are,” Mist ran up, having missed Chain by barely a second, “Delta just nicked some of Primo’s personal supply. We may actually be able to sleep tonight.” She said quickly, her voice enthusiastic by her standards.

“...Cool,” Rain still hadn’t looked away from the lake, his gaze transfixed on where Chain had been just a moment before. Mist putting a hand on his shoulder was the thing to finally snap him out of it. He turned his head, speaking before she could, “Let’s go.”

[My Main Masterlist | Domestic December Masterlist]

[good-beans]

hi i'd like to know about your transfem fuuta thoughts please. if that's ok

"if that's ok" as if I haven't been rotating transfem fuuta in my mind for a long time and dying for an excuse to post something 👀👀👀 Thank you so much Ah!! I was able to format my little ideas and headcanons into an actual write-up, I just love this concept so much! All the big murderous twists in the series and I’ll never get over it is what it is...

So, as much as I enjoy headcanons about some big revelation moment, I think that Fuuta Terminally Online Kajiyama has been very aware of his identity for a while. He just never really got the motivation to do anything about it. He knows he's not completely satisfied with his gender, but isn't constantly suffering over it, so he thinks telling people/transitioning would be way too much of a hassle at that point in his life. He also struggles with people taking him seriously given his height, attitude, etc -- unconsciously he's also worried it will only make matters worse in that area.

He wouldn't dare say anything to his parents, and wants to avoid hassle with his friends. People paint them as judgy incels sometimes, but if they were really calling out ‘bad guys’ online, I always got the vibe they were those annoying type of progressives who will harass people for not being accepting in the perfect correct way, you know? They'd be outwardly supportive but there's still a level of high expectations and performance that comes with it, and so deep down Fuuta understands there'd be a "hassle," but can't really define why.

I mentioned in another hc post that Fuuta and his sister have a silent supportive relationship. I feel like she's the one person in his life who knows everything and is super accepting -- this is understood even though neither have said anything out loud. (When he was younger, she definitely forced him into skirts, dresses, and accessories "to check something for her beautician work.") She's noticed all the times he's picked a female avatar in games, or cosplayed in ambiguous outfits.

Then, Milgram. Thinking his life will be over soon anyway, he opens up to a few of the prisoners about himself. Their unexpected openness keeps it on his mind more often than before. Still, nothing changes. Through some rocky verdicts, he's declared innocent and released.

Back in the real world, he's pretty fucked up from the whole ordeal, and starts off extremely isolated. He's in touch with his family, but distant. He maintains contact with some of the other released prisoners, but it starts off only over the phone. He changes schools or maybe drops out completely. Having deleted all online accounts after the incident, he gets to work setting up a new online presence. He was planning on using an alias anyways, and goes with something gender neutral. "To be extra safe that no one guesses it's me," he tells himself.

Letting his hair grow out begins as an accident -- just a side effect of never going out or minding his appearance. One day he realizes how long he's let it go and grabs some scissors to cut it. He makes a comment in his chat, and someone begs him to send a picture first. He goes to take it, but is suddenly disgusted and ashamed of his self-neglect. He's forced to make himself selfie presentable first: brushing his hair and throwing on something clean real quick. When he goes to take the picture, he realizes it looks good. It feels good. He puts the scissors away.

Soon, the prisoners/some new online friends coax Fuuta to hang out more. That's when she decides to reintroduce herself into society as someone new. She ventures out with the name of a favorite video game character. (I'm going to continue saying Fuuta because I genuinely can't name a single popular character from games she'd play, but just picture the most painfully obvious one you can. The kind you hear and go "oh okay. You play X too much, huh." And please send me your thoughts so I can work them into my own personal canon 👀) 

She doesn't have any hatred towards her deadname, it's more the pain of association: she remembers it said accusingly from the mouths of ex-friends. She remembers that name being called a murderer. She's not trying to deny/run from that past, she just wants to be someone better. Well, some days it is her way of running away, but most of the time it's a healthy separation from the past.

Encouraged by the positive reception and abundance of privacy in her isolation, she finally starts to explore her appearance more. Mikoto left behind some earrings during a visit -- she pierces her ears herself and tries them on. (If she doesn't like them, the holes will just heal, right? She's not weak, she can take a little pain...) Yuno/Mahiru stayed over once, and left a bit of makeup in the bathroom. She tries that on too. With a beautician in the family, this self-styling comes very easily. Fuuta's cowardly tendencies have her torn between embarrassment and her typical 'fuck you' attitude that she can do whatever she wants.

You know when you solve a tiny problem and suddenly you're smacked with how much of a huge problem it actually was? Fuuta never believed she had any issues before, but all of the sudden she's happier. Every day is easier. She has more friends. True friends. She does better with school/work. Her personality is still fiery, but it's more passion than irritability now. Self-hatred she didn't recognize starts melting away. She smiles more. She laughs more. She has plans for her future. She's excited about her future. 

(Shameless art plug hehe, before I had the timeline nailed down I did a little drawing of that selfie Fuuta takes when she realizes she's satisfied with this appearance, and now has newfound motivation to move forward in life.)

Over time she experiments with other elements of transitioning, and maybe changes her name to something a bit more subtle lol.

Unfortunately, I don't think it would go over well with her parents, but she never much cared for their opinions, anyway. One day a bit in the future, she bumps into her old friends in the street. Once recovering from panic, she's pleasantly surprised that they don't recognize her. Fuuta thought her appearance/fashion wasn't that different, but to fair, the friends figured they'd remember a stunning redhead with a very noticeable eye injury if they'd met before...

And just a few quick prisoner reactions (because in my heart they're all making it out ;--;):

Yuno has similar relationship as Fuuta's sister, offering immense help without unnecessary words. She's Fuuta’s go-to contact for trying new things and asking questions. 

When Mahiru first finds out, she goes a bit overboard with a makeover attempt. She and Muu provide their most frilly, glimmering outfits. They paint her nails and do makeup. They style her hair. This obviously turns out to be way too much, earning them a Fuuta-typical rant. Still, she's secretly moved by their enthusiasm and kindness. 

After that, designer Mikoto tries his hand at helping. Fuuta had been really worried the two of them would lose their guys nights out and relaxed friendship, but their relationship never changes.

Shidou is very accepting and very awkward. He's trying!! He gets excited, sending her all this information and help for medically transitioning.

Fuuta invites Kazui to their first pride parade <3

Though there's no return address on the package, Fuuta receives a gift of miscellaneous earrings and piercings in the mail with a note that they'd suit her well…

[nihilnovisubsole]

oh, right, shadowbringers! i'm overdue for another ffxiv bullet point vibe check. i actually finished it a couple of weeks ago, and then my sink exploded [long story] and i wanted to chew on it for a while. it's clear that this expac is an overwhelming fan favorite, so i figured i should formulate some more intelligent thoughts about it.

part of me worries that my shadowbringers experience was colored by how badly i missed the people and places on the source. more than the aether and gods and soul transference and all that stuff, what i really took away was a sense of loneliness. the first isn't my world. its citizens are strangers to me, though i recognize on a philosophical level that i should help them. even the scions - in theory, my closest comrades - have lived for years in the blink of my eye and become very different people. when did thancred become responsible? when did the twins grow up? i wondered what other NPCs were doing without me. all i wanted was to go home.

on the other hand, i read a theory that this is the point. the story wants you to feel cut loose from everything you know. are you still a hero in an emotional vacuum? will you still put yourself on the line to do the right thing? sure, your world will be doomed if theirs falls, but that possibility seems so huge and far-off that it doesn't register in your gut. i don't think that's the writing failing to connect with me or anything. if that's the intent, it's an interesting feeling for a game to evoke.

i may have also exacerbated that feeling by keeping my actual avatar isolated on norvrandt for so long. i mentioned earlier that i play around the game's day-night cycle, running missions based on when they'll feel most immersive. that extends to maps, too: if the story says i'm stuck in a place, i stay around that place until the story carries me elsewhere. i mean, i'll dip out for wondrous tails and daily cactpot and stuff, but i don't take big story vacations to jet around eorzea. i didn't "come back" from the far east in stormblood until doma was free. that's a lot of MSQ to just spend alone with your thoughts.

there's a storytelling paradox at work: the first's problems are so large and so bad that it's smaller and more personal when you become invested in someone's plight. i expected to care a lot about liberating ala mhigo because i'm so fond of raubahn as a character, and i did. i didn't expect to feel the pity that i felt for, say, kai-shirr, or runar's unrequited crush on y'shtola. it comes on slowly and quietly.

i don't know. it's a curious story. it's a melancholy story. it's a lot more experimental than the expacs that came before it. it'd probably be worth it to new-game-plus it at some point to pay closer attention to the individual character arcs.

same goes for emet-selch. he's a curious villain. i don't sympathize with his methods, and i obviously have no romantic interest in him. but i keep mulling him over. he keeps lurking in the back of my mind, which means that his writing succeeds by virtue of being memorable.

to my mind, everything around amaurot contributes to that success. amaurot is where it all starts to come together for me. it's a beautiful, odd place - art deco in final fantasy? who knew? - and the pinnacle of the arc's surreal "this is a dream, but tangible" tone. you can tell the team wanted to go all out with the ascian reveals they'd been building up to for years. i wonder if they had fun designing it.

even if it is. i. hm. no i shan't say it

all right, i'll say it

I AM EMET-SELCH AND I AM HERE TO ASK YOU A QUESTION

there, it's out of my system. on a less ridiculous note, i finally got royce's canon armor! now i can gpose freely. i wish there were an in-engine way to pose with NPCs, but them's the breaks. who knows? maybe we'll get it eventually. it is a live service game.

[thetombedspirit]

So, I just finished the main story of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora - WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD!

First off, I want to talk about the cons of the game before jumping into the pros, but to be honest with ya, the cons are few and far in between and were more about personal preference then the performance of the game itself.

For starters:

1. The Glitches - Like literally, during a few quests, there will be some dialogue, but it'll randomly cut out with the excuse that enemies are near by, when that is absolutely not the case. It was only so bad that I had to exit to the main menu and then get back on in order for it to fix, so this was minor in comparison to other glitches like falling through the map randomly (which happened to me once during my play through of Far Cry 4 :p)

2. The Language - This is just a little peeve of mine, but I wish that the Na'vi, at least when talking amongst themselves and to us, spoke in Na'vi. Like, if Ubisoft could record a whole 'nother language for Far Cry Primal, they could have done it here. And I also wish that the animals, especially the Palulukan, were referred to by it's Na'vi names rather then human names.

3. The Main Character's Name - This is minor really, but I don't like how we are not given a name. Like, I get that it's fun coming up with names for our original character, but it's a bit isolating to only be referred to as 'the Sarentu'.

Not only does it make it seem like our identity as a member of a respected clan matters more then our identity as our own complex individual, but it feels weird when you read notes and listen to audio logs about the other Sarentu kids and not one thing about us, especially when Alma talks about how they're acclimation to life in the Resistance. Like how we're developing doesn't matter at all in comparison to how Ri'nela is coming into the role of leader and Tsahìk.

Not even a mention of our relation to Aha'ri when she writes about her murder and how it could be affecting us.

Like, just a gender-neutral name to tie things in, like Dani in Far Cry 6, would go a long way to make our character feel like a part of the story and not just a nameless side character doing all the hard work, like the Rookie from Far Cry 5.

4. The Villain - This is more of a 'meh' thing for me. Like yeah, Mercer was an asshole, but again, pulling from Far Cry here, who had amazing, complex villains like Vaas Montenegro or Pagan Min, and what we get is... a entitled, racist narcissist whose barely there, and therefore we get zero from this guy. He was more annoying then anything, like literally every time he talk, my eyes rolled into the back of my skull.

Like, could you imagine if AFOP made Mercer like Pagan Min, the tyrant king of Kyrat who had a relationship with Ajay Ghale's mother to the point where he was sympathetic to the loss of his mother. Pagan Min would just randomly call Ajay on his radio like an eccentric father-figure, and in two endings of the game, he'll actually help you out, taking you to Lakshamana so that you can place your mother's ashes beside her, just like she wanted, which is very generous considering that in one of those endings, it's after you lead a massive rebellion right to his door-step, taking out his generals and so-on! (Pagan is my favourite Far Cry villain is you haven't figured that, Vaas is a close second)

If you gave Mercer that kind of depth, then maybe you can actually understand why Teylan would believe Mercer wouldn't hurt anybody when he gave the location of the Resistance Base away.

Harding as well was mediocre. Just a hard-as-nails general that's running a pouching operation on the side. Like, if you made her even a fraction of insane like you did Vaas, I could actually be into it.

So anyway, on to the pros!

1. The Gameplay - I know people moaned about the mechanics being too similar to Far Cry, but honestly, that was what drew me to it when I first saw the trailer for it! Far Cry is my favourite first-person shooter franchise (Far Cry 4 and Far Cry Primal being my favourites). The crafting of weapons, the hunting for food, skins and ingredients and the little things what made it unique was amazing to me,

The hunting was a pain, because half the time (for me anyway) I could almost never get a clean kill for the smaller or quick-moving animals, but I think it was done super well. When you hit an animal in the old Far Cry games, they either just drop dead or run away and bleed out quietly. But here, when it's an unclean kill, the animal squirms and writhes in pain before succumbing to it's wounds, really driving in the whole point of the Na'vi way of life (that's how I saw it anyway).

And the Memory Paintings, though tedious at most times, was another fun and unique mechanic to the game and felt very Na'vi to me and I enjoyed concentrating on them all and hearing the MC's interpretations of the Memory Paintings and the Sarentu Totems.

And the moments when you're flying on your Ikran or Pa'li made me feel like I was in an RPG, like Horizon, so that was a nice little touch. It was like they mashed two of my favorite games into one.

And in the end, it's not the gameplay that makes me play the game. It's the story.

2. The Harmful Effects of the RDA - There was not a minute within this story where it's quests and stories didn't resonate with me.

How the Kinglor of the Aranahe forest was displaced by the RDA's actions, giving us a Yellowstone situation where a key member of the ecosystem was being pushed out and it was causing all sorts of problems for the local flora and fauna.

The aforementioned poaching in Zeswa territory, where the Zakru were being hunted and killed for their tusks and how even their long deceased skeletons were being pilfered, very similar to elephant and rhino poaching, especially as Zakru are sacred animals to the Zeswa.

And then the Yavä, the green fog that brought sickness to the Kame'tire, something that happened, by the way, because the RDA disposed of the Sarentu's bodies by using caustic chemicals!!! (like, what the FUCK, Alma!) but anyway, is very reminiscent to the diseases that European settlers brought in to the native populace, who never had to build up immune systems for it and suffered because of it.

What I'm getting at here, is how big of a problem the RDA is, not just for going to war with Jake and the Omaticaya, but also by causing the exact same problems that people did on Earth and are still doing to Earth. In so many, seemingly innocuous way, the RDA are negatively effecting the ecosystem, the wildlife and the locals in their pursuit of a paycheck that, realistically, would never be able to use until they get off planet, and that is if they don't die on an alien moon because of all those problems.

3. The Efforts of the Resistance

Every time I got to talk with the Resistance members was a highlight for me. I truly do not understand how some people don't like Priya. I found her adorable, and she gave me Penelope Garcia vibes from Criminal Minds. And her budding romance with Resistance Pilot Anqa, whose history with incursion on her desert homeland inspired her to take action against the RDA.

Or Hajir's regrets for playing part in the Severeds origins, concluding how they are in a constant state of anger and sadness.

Or Billy, who break-dances as he's helping you escape imprisonment, before sacrificing himself to save what's left of the Resistance.

And then there's the Na'vi Clans that I just loved and each and every one of it's characters had me giddy. The playful old grandmother in Nefika and her immediate action to take us in and show us around the Hometree, the Zeswa sisters and their rightous anger over the poaching, the eccentricities of Okul and their faith in the Kame'tire's tradtions.

Honestly I could go on and on about every single character in this game. Nalin and her tentative offer to fill in the void of mother during the party, the Burden Carrier and the Milk Crafter who got drunk off their ass, saying the zakru can fly while we're trying to warn them of impending danger and Mosaka, who not only gave our clan's location away to the RDA, but used their deaths to manipulate his way into power and control over the clan by framing Anufi for their demise. (BTW, fuck you Mosaka)

That's all I got for now, but once the DLCs come in, I am defiantly playing through the whole game again and I may come back to this post with an update when that happens, along with my stance on said DLCs.

So, hope your all having a good day and buh-bye!

[gravity-barbie]

Being an Umbrella and choosing The Sparrows over your siblings HCs

Request

This can be read as platonic or romantic

Masterlist

Marcus Hargreeves

-You first catch Marcus’ attention during the battle with your competence and restraint, instead of swinging wildly like most of your siblings or being unnecessarily brutal like most the sparrows -himself included- and he finds himself wishing he had someone like you on his team

-So when Viktor approaches him to make peace he’s more willing to listen just because you’re accompanying him, and he tries to get to know you a bit better amidst that, leaving an impression on you too with his charisma

-Of course your family treats you like you’re crazy for wanting to make peace with the sparrows, let alone sneaking out to see one, which is very isolating, especially since Viktor has a lot on his mind and is pretty busy with Allison

-So when Marcus reaches out to you again for an update there’s nothing stopping you from meeting up with him, sneaking into the mansion this time, where you talk about the briefcase for about five minutes and then spend another thirty not saying anything relevant to either of your goals but getting to know each other a bit better

-Eventually you admit that your buying time because you don’t want to go back to your siblings who are still pissed at you, which he’s fairly kind about and quite smoothly tells you that you don’t have to

-While his siblings aren’t thrilled, they respects his authority enough to not give you crap (the rest of the umbrellas are fair game though), but when your families finally meet up most your siblings take the opposite approach, openly hostile to the sparrows, but also you for sneaking around with them

-Marcus doesn’t put up with this for long, asserting that as long as they want access to the mansions basement they better play nice with the sparrows, and you because you’re with them for the time being

Ben Hargreeves

-Like all your siblings you had a soft spot for your Ben, because of that ever since you found out that Klaus lied about ghosts not being able to time travel you’ve felt betrayed and resented him, you also feel a lot of anger towards Viktor for the loss of Ben’s ghost even though logically you know it’s not his fault

-The first thing Ben notices about you is your lack of sympathy for Klaus when he knocks him across the room, an action that really riled up the rest of your family, then how throughout the ensuing battle you’d deliver snark to certain siblings just as cutting as anything the sparrows were saying

-Your new attitude does make you pretty unpopular with your family so by the time you guys join forces with the sparrows you’re pretty much the centrist of the team up, giving the sparrows a fair shake, coming to their defence when your siblings are being unreasonable, but mostly just keeping your distance from everyone

-Ben makes a couple attempts to strike up a conversation with you in this time, though his signature meanness is firmly intact so you two are far from developing the close bond you had with your Ben

-By the time you set up in the hotel you start to feel bad for Ben though and try to offer him some kind of comfort over all the family he’s lost, which he gets pissed about, as if you’re looking down on him, but you defuse that by bringing up your own grief, which he truly can’t relate to yet he finds himself feeling compassion for you, not that he’d admit to that

-So next time you start bickering with one of your siblings and they -in his opinion- cross a line, he can’t stop himself from butting in and telling them that, albeit with much harsher wording, to the shock of everyone in the room, though he’s quick to aggressively brush the attention off

-In your short time together your relationship with Ben weirdly becomes the most amicable one you have, compelling you to take his side (and thus Reginalds) in deciding to go to save the universe

Fei Hargreeves

-Fei isn’t interested in playing nice with the umbrellas if she can help it, but that’s what draws her to you because after spending days trying to convince them not to attack the sparrow academy, or Harlan, or anyone else, and failing in every case, neither are you

-Her intentions aren’t pure, really she thinks you’re probably a bit naive to be attempting pacifism, but she also thinks she might be able to prey on your conflict with your family to use you against them, especially since she’s quite impressed with your power and would like it in her arsenal

-She’s cunning, and not half-bad at further driving you away from your family and towards her through really just minding her own business while your siblings unveil their own dysfunction, and then swooping in to offer you some sympathy and fein agreement

-But the more time you two spend together the more she gets to know you and unfortunately she actually starts to really like you, you show her so much genuine kindness and trust that she isn’t really used to and she doesn’t know if she can bring herself to betray it

-So when your siblings start their usual bickering and have the audacity to drag you into it, she won’t sit it out, quickly jumping in to point out the logic and validity of your standpoint, along with a reminder of what her birds would be doing to them if you all hadn’t formed this alliance, which you were the biggest advocate for

-Maybe it’s just a phase but she actually wants to attempt living up to your moral code, which Ben doesn’t buy for a second, questioning her thoroughly but she keeps her cards close to her chest

-Meanwhile your siblings try to convince you Fei is playing you, an accusation you resent as she’s treated you better than they ever have, so you blow them off to spend your remaining days with her, who you actually trust

Alphonso Hargreeves

-You wouldn’t assume you’d end up bonding with Alphonso, not after the vicious attitude you gave him upon meeting the sparrows, but he was actually quick to laugh that off and finds you to be the only memorable umbrella because of it

-His interest in you only doubles down a couple days later when you bust into the academy, all alone, looking for your kidnapped brother, though your righteous anger is dramatically undercut when you find Luther just chilling out, and you soon follow suit, reluctantly buying into the academy’s pretence of civility, but he’s still beyond impressed at the set on you

-While you’re there Alphonso is eager to get a conversation going with you, and since you want someone to vent to, you eventually admit that the rest of your siblings -who didn’t even realise Luther was missing- voted to wait and see if the sparrows reached out to them, which you thought was bullshit so you went behind their back, bringing you where you are now

-He’s not the most devoted sparrow but he reckons he’d do the same thing in your position if it was Jayme missing and gives you props, which makes your perception of him improve some and you’re able to bond

-So when the two of you reunite as your families finally start working together you gravitate towards him, to the surprise and weariness of the umbrellas and sparrows alike but you don’t let them influence you

-The fact that he has a way with casual verbal brutality combined with the fact that he knows you’re at odds with your siblings leads him to constantly piping in when you bicker to back you up and emotionally obliterate them

-The other Umbrellas get to the point where they expect you to say something, since he’s definitely crossing some lines and you’re the only one he seems to have any respect for, but you’re honestly on board with his attitude, and return the favour he’s been doing for you by taking his side

Sloane Hargreeves

-You’re not the biggest sparrow sympathiser in the world by any means, but during your initial battle with them you notice that Sloane has the opportunity to attack you and she doesn’t take it, which you can’t get out of your head

-So when the sparrows show up at the hotel to attack you (which she clearly doesn’t want to be a part of) and the tables turn and she ends up trapped with you and your angry siblings, you try your hardest to advocate for her, which escalates to a fight with Allison that gets out of hand fast until she’s trying to rumour you into compliance, which would’ve worked if Diego hadn’t drawn the line there and stepped in to calm her down, not before you’ve been really shaken up though

-Then you’re left alone with Sloane (who you’re supposed to be keeping an eye on) and she expresses her gratitude, as well as concern since you’re clearly a bit rattled, and maybe it’s because she’s sweeter than anyone in your family, especially these days, or maybe you just know it’s the right thing to do but you decide you’re sneaking her out of this place, she actually hesitates, not wanting you to endanger yourself for her, but she’s incredibly moved when you insist

-Despite the risk, you’re not ready to deal with your families disapproval, so you go to the sparrow academy with Sloane, her siblings are obviously seconds away from killing you on sight but Sloane guards you and pleads your case, and the others begrudgingly decide they may be able to use you and allow you to stick around, not without plenty of warnings though

-Your time there is incredibly awkward at first, even you and Sloane are practically strangers, but she makes an effort to make you feel welcome and you’re able to get to know each other better, on top of that, the other sparrows kind of get used to you, they’re not exactly friendly but they don’t mind seeing you around

-By the time your two academies come together, you and Sloane have gotten a lot closer, so when your siblings reveal their animosity towards you for jumping ship she’s compelled to come to your defence, she’s not rude about it (although she almost wants to be), she just interrupts and brings up the more pressing matter while rubbing your back consolingly

-Despite your relationships with your siblings being far from unsalvageable, when you learn the end is coming you focus more on Sloane, partially because she has almost no one left but also because you just like each other and you want to make the most of that while you can

Jayme Hargreeves

-You make an attempt to avoid fighting Jayme in your first confrontation with the sparrows, but after she meets your half-hearted mediation with a punch to the face you abandon that plan quickly and match her hostility

-You see her again very soon, when you and Luther get kidnapped by the sparrows (you for basically being in the wrong place at the wrong time), and at first you and Jayme just continue sharing barbs, but honestly despite or maybe partially because of your attitude, she finds something about you charming, and tends to end your verbal spars smiling to herself

-So when things get a bit much for you between the kidnapping, the threats, and dealing with this new Ben, and you’re understandably starting to panic, she offers you some very casual reassurance that you’re gonna be fine, then later even suggests you should be let go when the sparrows consider keeping one of you as leverage, gaining your favour

-Just as your siblings start to lose your favour when you get back to find none of them realised you or Luther were missing, worse still is the fact that despite you two being the only ones that really know the sparrows, your family completely dismisses your pleas to make peace with them, causing a lot of bickering, which somehow doesn’t even stop when you do actually team up with the sparrow academy

-Your attempts to mediate the groups discussions are met with aggression from the sparrows and umbrellas alike but thankfully you basically have your own sparrow bodyguard, as Jayme is quick to come to your defence, not actually agreeing with you, but insulting the others back when they question you

-She convinces you to sneak off somewhere private with her during your families debate for a chance to talk, granted she doesn’t say all that much, but she does advise you to stick to the sidelines of all the family drama and just watch out for your own self-interest like she does, an admittedly tempting idea

-So you decide to try things her way, taking a backseat on all the negotiations and arguments, and focusing more on making the most of your last days on earth, easy to do with Jayme keeping you company

Christopher Hargreeves

-You make an incredibly noteworthy first impression on Christopher when you literally come to his rescue, using your powers to stop Viktor from going too far when he attacks the sparrows, because as mean as they are, their too similar to your family for you to remove empathy towards them completely

-Which is a very unpopular decision with your family, but Allison and Viktor at least decide you may have earned the sparrows good will so let you tag along to negotiate with them, not without Allison warning you not to pull another stunt like that

-You and Viktor are really the only ones there trying to make peace, but between that and the fact that you saved him, Christopher starts to trust you, so when Ben later sicks him on you and the others like an attack dog, he hesitates

-Unfortunately Alphonso and Jayme don’t, and even though they fry trying to kill you, you can’t help feeling bad for the sparrows, sure you don’t agree with handing Harlan over, but you make it no secret that you understand where they’re coming from, and Christopher for one appreciates your empathy

-Even though you haven’t talked one on one much, he starts to grow fond of you, so when your two families are arguing like crazy and dragging you into it, he doesn’t hesitate to interject with his brutal sass and defend you

-Partially because you’re just worried, and partially because you’re starting to like Christopher back, you decide to express concern over the groups plan to have him absorb the kugelblitz, trying to convince him to think it through more, which of course your remaining group is annoyed by but he is actually swayed by your advice

-Which leaves the two of you as pariahs when the rest of the world starts crumbling, but at least you’re alive and have each other

[deafeninggardenerpanda]

franflam (they are not sisters)

ahahahahaHAHA this is exactly what i was expecting people to send in when i said "controversial ships". no one is ready for one of my signature franflam tangents

under the cut:

you know the last time i did this ship bingo thing someone asked me about franflam too and i just flat out refused to respond because i didnt want to touch the discourse with a ten foot pole. either me putting my opinions here will get me cancelled or it will summon some people hopefully sane about this discourse. i love gambling

to preface, my honest opinions on the matter are that whatever the hell those two got going on in canon is queerbaiting. i say this as someone who bought star allies on a whim at gamestop as their very first kirb game like two years after it released, not even knowing kirby still made games at that time, and thus played the game with zero biases towards anything but yeah those two were written with a weird attachment to each other and it would be stupid to outright deny that. do i think franflam is canon though?: absolutely not and also i hate everyone who claims that with a passion. you could make a claim with a reasonable amount of evidence for either side of the argument and the fact that its even remotely possible both could be true at once, along with kumazaki himself either refusing to elaborate or confirm, or giving even More support to Either side is absolute bullshit and any sort of grey area here is totally his and the writers faults so hey can we all stop arguing about what the "correct" answer is when there literally isnt really one

anyways with that out of the way, heres all of the reasons i hate franflam without mentioning "potential incest" as a concern even once

their dynamic in canon is stereotypical angry black woman is overprotective of stereotypical dainty elegant white woman. hate that. gives me bad vibes. the whole "to show one character is in love with the other, they talk about their love interest nonstop every half second" trope is absolutely HANDS DOWN my absolute least favorite romance trope EVER. it drives me absolutely insane. thats the #1 way to get me to hate both of the characters and their relationship the fastest. holy shit shut up and focus on the story and whats happening around you instead of shoehorning mention of the other person into your words nonstop. hate that. i also hate the "person a is overprotective of their love interest" trope too, esp when it extends into jealously of the other person hanging out with others (sparkling pupupu world does this, for example). feels gross. can feel infantizing. if people see that as romantic good for you but i can not see it ever. its overly possessive. i think having a trio of mages and having two of them being separated and off fucking around on their own all the time as their "happy ending" is bad writing, especially when it comes to zans character being so heavily affected by her isolation from others and how hyness treated her AND YOU JUST GO AND SEPERATE THEM INTO FRAN+FLAM AND ZAN+HYNESS ALL THE TIME FOR SOME REASON HELLO. JUST MAKE ONE MAGE CHARACTER IN THAT CASE IF TWO OF THE TRIO HAVE NO DEVELOPMENT OR PURPOSE OTHER THAN TO FUCK OFF BY THEMSELVES. and then people who ship franflam also often end up shipping hynzan cause of that EWWWWWW GROSSSSSSS. also fran+flam being more close because the jambacult is a broken family that needs to heal Or them being more close because flam is an overprotective older sibling are INFINITELY more interesting to me as concepts than: "fran+flam are closer to each other and not zan because theyre dating and thus inherently dont care about zan as much because platonic relationships are always secondary to romantic". hate that. and the fandom. oh my God as people might be able to tell by all of the arrows on the bingo sheet i have fucking FEELINGS about this this needs a whole new paragraph

okay so. so 😍. i have this thing i call "red flag ships" where the ships are fine as a concept on paper but for some reason the shippers are just absolutely Rancid and that throws me off from liking the ship in its entirely and i get really sussed out by anyone who ships it. franflam is a red flag ship. i think the shippers have gotten so used to being yelled at by people who think theyre siblings that theyve pavlov'd themselves into being insanely hostile and aggressive to anyone who doesn't ship them. at least thats what i can tell from anyone whos Open and remotely loud about shipping them. istg i am not joking in the slightest when i say 95% of my interactions with people who Happen to be big or even decently into shipping franflam have been godawful. the convos dont even have to be around franflam i just think the ship inherently attracts awful people because its only aggressive toxic people who arent scared about shipping it openly. is that generalizing?: Yeah but thats just my personal experience. i have never met someone loud about liking franflam or who makes content for it that wasnt an awful asshole or yikes person in some way

that said, people who really like the ship but are quiet or lowkey about it usually end up being super chill and cool. its just the goddamn Fandom i have an issue with really. so anyone whos normal about it i am so sorry for you lmao

in a somewhat unrelated manner, i used to be somewhat close with someone who had franflam as their ultimate otp and God they fucking sucked. apart from redirecting every convo ever to be about franflam, they were also insanely nasty to anyone who even remotely saw them as siblings because they inherently saw it as an attack against franflam, so theyd always be making comments like "can you believe anyones stupid enough to see them as siblings" and "kinda misogynistic and lesbiophobic that metadede and marxolor are more popular than franflam when franflam is so blatantly canon" and yadayadayada they would say that shit completely unironically even right in front of me when they knew i hc'd them as siblings. i could complain up enough of a storm about that person and all of the insane things they said and did to fill up another 10 paragraphs but in general they were awful and really awful to me and multiple friends and you know what. i fucking hate the ship because of that too. sue me i cant stand seeing it around and i get grossed out by it.

on another note if i see anyone trying to push franflam as canon i will kick your ass. it might seem like im complaining about a problem that doesnt exist since tumblr is very anti-franflam, but on other sites its the opposite and if i had a nickel for every stupid "franflam is definitely canon and the only canon option and here's why" argument ive ever heard and could Easily debunk i could buy a fucking mansion. how to tell franflam shipppers its Okay if their ship isnt canon challenge: impossible (generalizing ofc, this whole rant is generalizing. take with a grain of salt. man i hate franflam)

[sylvaridreams]

i have to ramble about gw2 tumblr and why i like it and how much i appreciate you guys hold on. long + a minor vent maybe below the cut.

I was in the community like 8 and 9 years back, pretty active in... 2014-2016 maybe? and *I* had a lot of fun just sharing stuff and reblogging and gushing about things and how much I liked other peoples' characters, but always felt a wall of separation with other bloggers who Did Not seem to appreciate it or want to be near me so it was like. simultaneously a lot of fun and also very isolating at times. anyway didn't play for a bit then couldn't play for a long while... coming back to the game, and then later the community early this year, I feel like I found all the right people to follow and lurk around and talk to. like for the most part it feels like people are as excited to be here as i was and am, it feels like everyone's having a similar amount of fun as opposed to just like, tolerating me silently. and I really like being able to share stuff that I make here sometimes.

I have a complex about being too much/ too annoying to others, and with being ignored, and my friends are aware that I have this kind of issue and that being ignored hurts me a lot. And several of them have similar complexes resulting from being ignored and mocked as children so I know they get how painful it is to have those feelings set off. But I've been told that it's selfish and unrealistic that I want my friends to care about things I say and do so it's. I dunno it doesn't make sense to me but I'm viewing it from my own perspective so maybe they see something else... but it's frustrating and hurts to talk about my stuff and post things especially art I'm really proud of and it'll be dead silent for like 3 days, and then someone else will post art and the chat will blow up with everyone discussing their art instead. 🧍‍♂️ I don't know. feels selfish just to say. I can get friends not reading my writing or what I say on chats or not wanting to come to my streams, or a cold shoulder to a certain point... I just don't really share stuff with friends anymore, because knowing that they don't care about my stuff and that it's wrong to want them to care about it doesn't make it hurt less for me. I'm working on that to try to change that about myself but it's slow.

Anyway all this to say I really appreciate having the gw2 community u_u I live a pretty isolating existence and I don't get to go crazy and talk about my stuff often or show people what I've made. And I love seeing everyone else get to do the same. It's a lot of fun even like. Holding myself back to not be too ? weird about everything in the world. I'm having a lot of fun and I enjoy seeing peoples' characters and reading their lore and reading AU stuff, and just looking at your posts with my big eyes. I'd love to play with more of you in game too. Um but that's basically it, thanks for being cool and letting me hang out and blorbo post among you. it means a lot that so many people get excited about Alba for me. like at the April art party when I showed up and people came running at me to see me it was startling and I clammed up out of nerves but also it was? reaffirming that people actually like him and wanted to come see him! 😊 OK wrapping it up cool community, having a good time. meow. alba image for whoever reads this.

[illarian-rambling]

📙 and 🍋 for the Jumbo Ask Game?

📙 What kind of subjects (of conversation, of discussion, in school or whatever) does your OC find interesting or engaging or that they can talk for hours about? What kind of stuff do they just find fun?

God, I could talk about Twenari or Astra here, but I'll go with Twenari. Her darling in life, her purpose, is magic. She loves sorcery and knows just about everything there is to know about it, even at her young age. She's intensely curious about book magic - runes and potions and stuff - and wants to go to school for it, even though a sorcerer of her talent would usually never stoop to study the 'material magics.' The things she's most interested in, though, is the Araunian desert.

To start, the Araunian desert is weird and there's never an explanation for why it is the way it is. It's a blasted desert on top of the ruins of an ancient empire of the same name, and it's utterly saturated with rotting magic. Rotting magic is the runoff energy from spells that slowly decays into reality in the form of radiation. There's a massive pool of it across the Araunian desert, which means anyone who enters better be wearing protective runes or they're getting magic cancer.

The other weird thing about the desert is that the rotting magic, sometimes just called the corpse, might be sentient. Twenari has drawn on its decaying power twice in her life. Once, it tried to influence her into using it all up, which would've killed her. The second time, it tried the same thing, which prompted Sepo to come up with audio runes, an entirely novel form of magic. There's also the fact that only in Araun do automatons spontaneously become sentient.

Twenari is utterly fascinated by all of this and eventually dedicates her life to discovering the desert's secrets. She can talk for hours about Araunian ruins, runoff signatures, and robot sentience. Often, she seeks to study it even in her free time by reading all that's been written on it and parsing through any legends that have survived from the old empire.

🍋 Does your OC act petty and jealous easily? What sort of things make them feel like this and do they experience guilt for getting so worked up? How do they deal with these emotions when they get them? If your OC doesn’t feel like this often, why not?

Let's go with Sepo, since he's the king of petty. He's the type of guy to tailgate someone with his brights on after they cut him off in traffic. He's the type to spit in a customer's food if they were rude. He can hold a grudge into literal eternity - he practically collects the things. So yes, very petty.

Another very petty character of mine is Djek. He's more cheerful than Sepo, so his ability to hold a grudge tends to get looked over, but he's holding them just the same. When he loses his temper, he tends to lash out with insults. He usually feels guilty about this, with one exception.

Sepo and Djek have a sort of grumpy older brother/annoying younger brother dynamic. Djek takes genuine joy in irritating the siren, and though he'd never admit it, Sepo wouldn't know how to live if he didn't have someone to complain about. They're constantly trading jabs as payback for some comment or another, constantly playing small pranks, constantly taking innocuous remarks as insults.

But honestly? They both have fun. The insults are petty and the pranks are many, but they both know where the other's buttons are and avoid pressing them. Djek knows not to joke about Sepo's brother, and Sepo knows not to joke about Djek’s parents. So yeah, they're two very petty, irritating men who use each other as a sort of social isolation chamber so their mean streaks don't spill out on other people as much.

Thanks for the ask!

[gammaliminal]

Who are we? What are we?

we are gammaliminal, or liminal creatives. we are an account run by two entities, with a shared interest in obscure & mainstream source games and source itself, theory-crafting fan work & concepts as a love-letter of sorts to the work that inspires us, and are indie enthusiasts.

our two members are close. this statement will not be elaborated on.

ΔΘ | she/it - a brief introduction.

i am ΔΘ. i am a therian, neurodivergent and disabled queer game enthusiast with interests in old competitive titles such as classic tetris & melee, casual titles like minecraft & animal crossing, and source titles, including team fortress 2, counter-strike, half life (the source versions), fistful of frags and others. For miscellaneous game interests, i enjoy games such as combat master, celeste, ultrakill, vrchat and any game produced by stress level zero.

i created this blog for me and Ξλ to have a shared space to post about our ideas, and also for us to just casually lurk through tumblr. partially due to account restrictions on post viewing.

notes

- i did not come up with the idea of associating ΔΘ with an indicator of being therian. I am simply using that tag as a self-indicator here due to how significant being therian is to me.

- contrary to Ξλ's notes, it did not bother me for this page. it just kept lightly asking for a lil while because i kept forgetting :3c

- i may accidentally ignore questions, responses or anything of the sort. i forget to respond to those things a lot due to recurring memory problems o-o

Ξλ | it/its - a brief introduction².

i am Ξλ! a self-described "mad artist" who's heavily neurodivergent and very queer with a from-birth enthusiasm with games. examples of favorites include anything source engine related*, rivals of aether, darkwood, most frictional games stuff, deep rock galactic, receiver 1 and receiver 2, world of horror, ftl and into the breach, gloomwood, and alien: isolation.

if you don't know some or any of those, then yeah that's expected >:3c

i bothered ΔΘ for us having a shared space to post and share our weiirrrddd ideas. also, to let us be able to browse tumblr without being accosted, by tumblr.

notes

- Ξλ is a tag i came up with by myself, i have no idea if it means anything beyond as my tag.

- *does not include the cautionary tale of Hunt Down the Freeman.

Current Projects

- Neon Troupe

- heavily inspired by OW and TF2, basically ripping off the feel of playing TF2 since no game has done it before, also will be built in source - we are heavily underqualified - project intro

- Project Theta

- potentially a half-life fangame? currently ironing out things like the campaign, different NPC's and weapons. - meant to be more so a scrappy survival-horror upward battle

- Unnamed TF2C Projects

- team fortress 2 classic mods that add various bits of content! including cut content that will be revived, our own regular custom content ideas, and absolutely outrageous, silly shit.

- Project Strangelove

- inspired by the tone of tf2, this is a spoof on spy thrillers set in an alternate 60s where you are assembling a conspiracy! also may be known later as How to Stop Worrying.

- Project Liminality (finally something relating to liminal spaces /lh)

- a 90s corporate cosmic horror roguelike job survival sim inspired by amnesia: the bunker and alien: isolation.

- Project Spite

- a strategy-horror game based around being a ragtag group of survivors, surviving a S.T.A.L.K.E.R.-style zone of magical shit (TM). - main theme is surviving with your comrades no matter what, subsisting on spite alone if nothing else.

- A Catastrophe, In Hindsight

- a retrofuturistic coop class-based game about surviving the workday hopefully unscathed - Has a social-deduction-style gamemode layered on top of it with most traitors still wanting to get through the day - project intro

[thesubtextis]

Could we hear about the royalty au for the wip ask game please?

YES!!

This one has been very fun for me to play with, and the only reason that I haven't devoted myself to it entirely is because I promised that the next thing I posted would be an update to Conquered By Love.

So for this one, we have a (historically inaccurate, because I am too lazy to do real research) Regency ABO type setting. Omega Dick, Alpha Slade, etc etc.

Dick is titled, through Bruce, and should be a catch, except that he knows there's no way Bruce is ever going to approve of a match for him. Bruce keeps him around to raise the younger kids, since Bruce doesn't have an omega of his own (he courted Selina, but she was already widowed and had the privilege of remaining single. He's technically mated to Talia, but she lives with her family of origin in another country. It's generally considered that he "put her away" by the ton, because they are unfamiliar with Talia's culture, and the fact that they (society) annoyed her too much for her to find it worth staying with Bruce. Being both rich and foreign, she had the power to leave him in the way local omega did not). Assuming that Bruce stops adopting kids, by the time the youngest child is raised and out in society, Dick will be considered a spinster, despite being attractive, likable, talented, and rich. He doesn't expect that he will ever marry, and he is sad about it. He tries to be grateful to Bruce for taking him in, despite it coming the apparent price of raising a nearly infinite stream of other people's children, and never getting to shine on his own.

The story starts during Tim's first season. At this point, the fact that Tim is out in society and Dick is still neither married nor courting (despite several offers for him) is cluing people into the fact that he's destined to never marry, and he's feeling the beginnings of social isolation from his former peers.

Enter Slade. Slade is "newly" (like 15 years ago) titled by the King, and somewhat lacking in the refined ways of the rest of the Ton, even though he's just as (if not more) rich as the rest of them. His kids, unfortunately, are also lacking in some of the base education of society manners, in part because Slade can't be bothered and in part because Adeline died before they could learn. The Wilsons usually keep to themselves, but Grant (alpha) has decided that he wants a wife/omega, and so Slade has to return to society to help him make that happen.

Grant says something with Dick takes as an insult, and so Dick responds by openly cutting him. Slade takes notice, gets into a polite verbal battle with Dick, and rather than it ending with Dick's humilation (as Slade intended), Slade is reluctantly impressed and kind of wants to court Dick himself. He makes overtures, and is rejected by Bruce, as all of Dick's suitors have been.

This only makes Slade want him more. He starts watching for Dick, and is more and more taken (obsessed) with him.

In watching Dick, he starts watching the Waynes. He sees Roy (omega) and Jason (beta) go off together, and catches them in a compromising position. This is a significant scandal, because Roy is married to Kory (alpha). Dick catches Slade when Slade catches them, and begs Slade to keep it quiet. They're all in love, but society doesn't allow for throuples, so Jason is unfortunately stuck as a secret third. Slade tries to use this as blackmail to get Dick to agree to marry him, thinking that Dick's reluctance is why Bruce said no. Dick reveals that (while he doesn't want to marry a blackmailer), Bruce would have said no to Slade even if Dick were madly in love with him.

Slade manages to maneuver the conversation so that now the two of them are (inappropriately) alone. Dick is frustrated, and Slade encourages him to get physical, provoking Dick into trying to hit him so that he has an excuse to manhandle Dick in return. Dick is so focused on helping Jason that he doesn't realize that Slade has intentionally isolated him and made him look debauched. At least, he doesn't realize it until Slade "accidentally" knocks something over, and the loud noise leads to them being discovered.

Bruce is forced to agree to the match to avoid scandal. Slade is smug, and content to keep Jason's secrets. Dick is horrified, and humiliated. He quickly determines that he's traded Bruce, who wanted to use him to raise his kids, but who at least loved him, for Slade, a relative stranger who wants to fuck him, but who also wants to use him to raise his kids.

Insert their trainwreck of a marriage here. Slade is constantly manipulative, but does genuinely like Dick, and is more or less willing to be benevolent in his victory. Dick is fucking furious, and resentful, and honestly pretty scared of how far Slade will go to achieve his goals, but also upset because... this is kind of what he secretly wanted? He just needs to figure out how to manipulate Slade back.

Most of the fic that I have written/ outlined is the early days of their marriage, with Dick struggling to find his place, and to decide whether or not he hates Slade, wants to fuck him, or both, and Slade realizing that yes, he *has* Dick now, but also, his life would be a whole lot less hellish if he could convince his omega to like him.

[seancamerons]

Mia Jones

so mia's life post degrassi isn't very simple there is a life beyond degrassi community school. (under the cut!)

so its like what? 2009? 2010 if i remember correctly she went to paris so from paris onward. she was working there for a time but it's different than growing up where she did and maybe she wants to do things beyond modeling. holding that thought on the back burner but it comes in and out her consciousness.

she's isolated or with the party scenes and such maybe she experiments a lot left to own devices goes a little bit overboard in a lot of ways. after some clarity or fear of losing everything, eventually maybe if things dry up or things are changing going in other directions job opportunities aren't so much of a pay off just getting generally bored and exhausting and competition and it all becomes too much maybe she gets homesick or something? whatever it may be, maybe she wants to focus on her lifetime responsibilities. so before all that realization and looking inside of herself and her life big picture, aiming high but being realistic of course say initially her mom and Isabella pack up and move and join her in pairs where the damage was done and mama jones regrets the whole thing, and sees mia is either depressed, addicted to drugs, maybe drinking to much or a combination and maybe something huge happens where she hides it for a long time and then by the third or fourth week it appears to be what it is and mama jones and mia talk rehab, talk about maybe making changes, and mia is disillusioned self conscious and like it or not tired. the money and vices that come with modeling perhaps come up they have to devise a new game plan, for the best interest of everyone. mama jones (name?) maybe wants more stability for isabella, while she can't live with irresponsible lucas, and jane has since skipped town and eventually traveled and did run into mia and updated her in the 411 back at home. what became of peter and their other friends and lucas came up naturally or whatever. he seemed to never really launch or aspire to be anything and still lives with their mom. who does continue to keep in touch with mama jones and mia and of course always sends her love and gifts and such.

lucas had since been kind of on the outside of mia's life and Isabella's. but now that he's older he feels guilty, but also doesn't want to do anything with his life either. with his former friends in varying things such as working, or in jail, or bad boy turned good johnny dimarco distantcing himself from his bad boy past.

like mia and all avoiding that kind of stuff too the difference between mia and lucas is that mia clawed her way out in contrast, lucas stayed pretty much the same and got by coasted on videogames and weed self medicating and in the last 10 years has not communicated much. he signs moms cards. he doesn't go out of his way. isabella stopped caring or expecting anything from lucas.

she doesnt even call him dad but by his first name. legally he's not even responsible because something I'll explain later. obviously he's not really dad material so mia as always picked up the slack with the help of mia's mom obviously.

we know mia's mom did double duty but mia is ready to give Isabella stability. we all know the modeling gigs she got in France were lucrative. she did jetset for a time to Milan and became a muse for a start up fashionline and it was the most she'd been paid for anything ever but felt tempted again and started inching her way toward the allure of the lifestyle that almost killed her career and had to take a step back.

by this time, she's getting older now, she wants to leave that part of her life behind. she's not so keen on returning back to degrassi/toronto so she settled in california and with her earnings she saved up over time. she did it smart, played it safe but for good reason. she always knew it wasn't going to last forever but it was a fun experience while it lasted and something she was immensely she's grateful for. modeling was sometimes good, but ultimately it wasn't for her.

between the consequential nature of her first gig (t-bombz) there were several smear campaigns (fans of tom of course) that caught wind of the less than clean-cut contradicting image of tom who was embroiled in scandals after a while when people started tipping off the press to his less than innocent sex parties with minors it landed in him in hot water naturally metoo movement decimated his career and he was hurting in his wallet. he allegedly was injured around this time and all these things were coming out and none of it looked good for him or mia, and his career dried but he has money like mia, but he's low profile. he'll do anything for the limelight he's cashing in and worked on some memoir where he dished.

so he does some interviews for promoting the new book on tv and it was all over the place, inescapable and the fall out was AWFUL and like holly j in the past the receipts and past caught up to mia and her now teenage daughter by this time in life.

she sues for defamation, he countersues but eventually they both settle it's rough on both of them this lasts a long while, Isabella is discovers this about her mom and thinks back to her limited memories and finds it horrifying and their relationship isn't the best and they go thru a rift and low point in their dynamic. she really didn't know her mom, raised by her grandma for over a year while mia was first starting out with her modeling career obviously, so she became more accustomed to that. mia made sacrifices but claimed it was mostly for them, issy doesn't buy it. mia and her daughter fall out privately, now that was all in vain because issy doesn't want her mom around her, she needs time to heal from that and is closer to grandma anyway.

so with her deadbeat dad, mom's bad reputation and sordid rep, grandma seems the best option. they relocate back to toronto and she even goes to degrassi for a time but mia stays in California for commercials, modeling, influencer culture and tries to put the past behind her. a roller coaster esque uphill and downhill battle.

she really never intended to be a mom anyhow and doesn't feel the motherly connection she did when she was full-time mom part-time student, pre-modeling.

she and peter reconnect and they make beautiful music together literally and figuratively. he too lives out in la and works for various music outlets as a producer and mia was signed to one of these record companies, he helped her cultivate her image, hire staff and they eventually though late night recording sessions made a love story of their own working on mia's album. they lived pretty happily ever after and eventually got married a year or two later.

her mom's upcoming marriage to her former high school flame prompted Isabella to want to be close to mom once again, mend fences and such both suffered a lot. maybe they didn't have the traditional mother-and-daughter relationship at any point in their lives but Isabella decided to accept peter as a father figure and reclaim her place with mia once again. mia put her mom in a motherinlaw suite by their pool house to take care of her mom so she's still close. she approves of peter. lucas' life tragically continued going downward and he stayed in toronto watching mia continue to rise, their daughter being taken care of by mia's family and he feels hurt. jane's mom chooses to be more active and visits Isabella and mia with jane sometimes. lucas on the other hand does nothing about it accepts it, and signs over his parental rights and neglects to tell them.

So Jane and of course their hs friends and former studz members even spinner and such visit peter and mia from time to time a few times out of the year and its nice. sometimes it truly takes a village, absence makes the heart grow fonder. sometimes found families are the best families. nobody has it completely together, teen moms can live productive lives, sometimes the career you initially pursue realsiticly isn't the best fit. sometimes people struggle. sometimes with the best intentions, you can't control the feelings and reactions of others such as Isabella and mia's struggle to find peace and comfort in their later years and eventually can rebuild their relationships. some people even if you push them, they got to want to be successful or try and fail, instead of remaining complacent and doing nothing to improve their situation. all people are valid, all of this is some people's reality perhaps not the modeling and singing and peter' (i can't believe this is peter) but some version of a guy who started one way and grew up to be admirable, sweet and responsible with goals and passions and living sober and working hard every day to remain that way and be a good example to friends, family and success isn't linear

blady blah. this is rooough, and long and all but here ya go! thank you! TLDR mia models for a long time but grows disinterests and tries on many careers before finally moving on and up and reconnects with peter and they later marry. her relationship with Isabella is rocky and inconsistent and eventually become better than ever and mama jones lucas' mom, jane and old friends often visit and take big roles in Isabella, mia and her mom share a property and mia takes care of her mom and is thankful for her and Isabella. lucas' life tragically never becomes much of anything and is essentially a bum, a footnote and not involved, signed over his rights and Isabella doesn't take him seriously being burned by his neglect and does not really talk or keep in touch. it's not all perfect.

💌 ask me about a degrassi character/fictional character to rewrite/expand upon

[sayonaramidnight]

And so, they begin a tour of the Hawkers' Alley, with particular attention to shinies, flowers, clothing (the more frills, the better!) and model ships in bottles. Not much shopping is actually done; the very sight of the multitude of wares on display leaves Arya starry-eyed and breathless.

"I didn't think making new memories would be so much fun," she confesses, as they move on to jewellery stands and Helvi names all the precious stones for her. "I might have lived all my life in this city, but in a way, I'm seeing all this for the first time. And it feels amazing!"

One of the jewellers, a dark-skinned woman in her early thirties, gives an unimpressed stare when they approach her stand. "Well, well. I thought you would show up sooner or later."

"Were we expected? Do you often check up on your competition here, Helvi?" Arya asks with a giggle.

"You could say that, girl," the jeweller cuts in before Helvi can answer the question; her accent is familiar, albeit quite uncommon in Limsa Lominsa. "My name is Enid and I believe you met my son Elstan last night. He claimed you unleashed a swarm of angry wespes at his silly crybaby of a friend."

"I bet he did." Helvi stares back at her. Running into one doting mother while fleeing from another - of course it was bound to happen. "He struck me as a lad who had a lot to say about everything."

"Ha! My boy is indeed talkative and his imagination runs wild when not restrained. But he should be smart enough to recognize your gear. I thought I taught him well of the history of my homeland."

"Homeland? Are you... Gyr Abanian, madam?" Arya asks timidly.

"I was... once. Which is why I know what you're trying to do there - and I wonder what for. Are you playing pretend without knowing the true meaning of your game?"

"We're not playing any game!" Arya raises her voice with indignation, all timidness instantly gone. "You should have seen Helvi fight off all those wespes, while X'rhun was working hard to heal H'nethi and me! With real red magic!"

"So you say. Elstan did mention a Miqo'te man - the leader? Another red mage wanna-be?"

"Not a wanna-be, but a true Crimson Duelist who's been teaching us all he knows!"

"The Crimson Duelists were freedom fighters. How can a sheltered princess like you relate to that?" Enid's voice drips with bitterness and something else - regret? Spite? "That's an experience which can only be gained, not taught. What does he expect from the likes of you?"

"And what do you know about my experience? Or Helvi's?" It is plain to see Arya is intent on having the last word in this argument. "If our mentor deems us worthy of his teachings, it's all that matters!"

"She's right, you know," Helvi's voice sounds calm in contrast, but no less firm. "We may not share a history, but is that supposed to stop him from sharing his experience? Would you rather see the tradition die?"

"I'd rather see it live on where it belongs, that's all. Among those who truly understand it."

That's the point, lady: most of them are long dead. That's what she should say. That's what she is going to say. And yet, she clenches the hilt of her rapier and spews out something else entirely. "If you're so fond of your homeland, then why are you here, instead of going back and fighting for it?" And there it is. This time there's no armour-clad figure to stick around and say these lines for her. As she finishes speaking, she closes her eyes to isolate herself from Enid's shocked stare.

So much red behind the eyelids.

"I... Hmph." The jeweller's voice seems to come from afar. "You've changed, Herlfryd. Now that you're some sort of adventurer, you think everything is that easy and simple, don't you?"

The Warrior of Light opens her eyes and looks around, at the streets of the city she used to call home. "No," she says quietly before she walks away. "On the contrary."

The mood for shopping is all gone and there's no point of staying at the market. As they are leaving, Arya takes her friend's arm with a worried expression; Helvi notices it and gently pats her hand.

"Mistress Enid spoke as if she was quite familiar with you. Do you know her?"

"Gods damn me if I remember." Helvi shakes her head with a mirthless chuckle. How many more Lominsans who knew her in the past have the same opinion about her as that woman does? Hells, what if they used to be good friends? What if she was right and they play red mages like ignorant children?...

No.

"Before you ask," Helvi says after a long, heavy sigh, "I, too, lost my memories several years ago and some of them still haven't come back."

"You-?!" Arya's eyes widen in shock. "How did it happen? Were you drugged, like me?"

"No, I..." A long pause; should she tell this girl who relies on her so much that she shut off and rejected her past? "It might've had something to do with magic. You see, I had no magic abilities; they only appeared after the memory loss and-"

"I wouldn't have thought we had this much in common... Is that why you're being so caring? Because you can relate?"

"I'm helping you, because I can relate. I'm caring, because you're adorable." Helvi corrects her with a smirk. "And you've got quite a spirit, after all, talking back at her like that. Shall I tell X'rhun what a devoted defender he's got?"

"Please, there's no need for that!... Unless I tell him I wasn't the only one?"

"No, thanks. I didn't say those things for the applause."

"Neither did I. Now that I know what a kind and honourable man he is, I couldn't bear to hear someone judge him without even meeting him in person." Arya lets out a sigh that turns into a chuckle. "I know he thinks I'm afraid of him, but I'm honestly not - it's just that at our first meeting, he seemed so intense and... intimidating."

"You can say that again," Helvi replies with a smile, recalling her own first impression of her mentor, which has remained unchanged. Truly, there is intensity in everything he does - and passion, the kind of passion she herself once had - and, ironically, his icy blue eyes could burn one to ashes as easily as warm one's heart. Perhaps that was what made her follow him in the first place - not the magic, not even the hat?

Follow even if uninvited, damn it.

-

(AO3)