#form creator

[shinesurge]

happy pride instead of throwing money in the garbage buying crappy pride shit from target or pining away for mainstream franchises that only give you table scraps when it's convenient please consider directly supporting literally any of the queer indie shit being made accessible online by queer indie creators ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ your money OR your fanwork OR whatever form of support you feel compelled to offer will be so so much more impactful; marvel movies will keep coming out no matter what, but making cool fanart for that queer webcomic you've been checking in on for years could reach new readers to help the artist make rent so they can keep posting! It all helps!! Please Consider It.

[ysther]

vat7k fandom will you accept me

[nori-no-name]

This is what I imagine the frontline Supreme Removers' team dynamic as (please tell me someone still remembers this meme, I couldn't find the original for the life of me)

I gave alt!Ladybug her Toxinelle hairstyle so it's more clear it's her, also I just like the space buns much better.

[biggest-gaudiest-patronuses]

got a worm nibbling my brain. can someone help me find a piece of obscure media?

webcomic/indie comic from the 2010s. basically a sci-fi short story about a young girl (with red hair?) who was being raised by scientists as part of an experiment. she receives a haircut/has her head shaved, in preparation for her annual brain scan/testing. it is revealed that while her body is human, her "brain" is artificial, made of computer implants throughout her skull and spine. at some point her biological mother (also a scientist on the same campus?) encounters her and is repulsed, viewing her as a machine who has murdered her daughter.

it was very poignant and it bruised my heart and i can NOT find it anywhere

[choccy-milky]

K I love your art and story so much you don’t understand.

Clora is an absolute angel child that Jo will adopt and take everywhere on little Ravenclaw dates while Seb can go pout.

Also Your Sebastian….does things to me.

But to be faithful to my lovely darling Ominis I just have to say I love him in your art style, he looks so pretty and I would literally die if you did more of him.

ILY 🫶

i love YOU so much you are such a ray of sunshine and you make everyone in this fandom feel so included with how much you interact and contribute, its amazing...as an introvert ass hermit i admire you so much PLS NEVER CHANGE💖💖

and since you wanted more ominis HAVE HIM GIVING HAND SMOOCHES TO JO!!!🥰 ALSO YES absolutely 10000% jo and clora need to do cute ravenclaw things together NO BOYS ALLOWED

(tho in the end i think clora just yapped to jo about sherlock the entire time LMAO...sorry jo🙏)

[kalwithatrenchcoat]

Checkmate. Bon Appetit.

Below is the initial sketch done traditionally, a cinematic version of the illustration, and a brief addendum.

"Things did not end well. He was utterly hungry, so he did what he needed to do."

|| Addendum ||

Exploring his figure here; for instance—Food gathering, if the meal in mind is putting up the "hard way" route resulting to some sort of brawl with him, I would imagine Doey having to freely stretch his arms, forming "hardened spikes" (with some "viscous" texture) up to his hands and fingers to, perhaps, pierce on his meal.

He may also liquify his arms so that it will spread and form hardened spikes on the floor and direct it to a certain direction he intends to lead it to.

The spikes form on his neck to his back, arms, and hands as well. The color coats on his midriff, arms, legs, and back will be more splotched and swashed—not of a solid coat—simply just to add to his "fight response." Adding tension to the character and to their situation I suppose.

Sort of like an "Elsa-esque" ability is what I have in mind that he can do. Got to make good use of that clay dough body of his.

[tayview]

i've rewatched this edit like a thousand times by now, it's perfect

[thereisbeautyinflight]

Simulacrums of Luck Day 6: Relevation

@sillysiluriforme

Creation’s chosen

Ascends beyond her own fate

That poor mortal girl

[kindaasrikal]

I love imagining the most tragically evil characters with features that remind you they were once innocent.

Garmadon with dimples, and wrinkles around his eyes from how much he smiles.

Morro with wide innocent eyes and a resting face that looks like a clueless child.

Harumi with rosy pink cheeks and laugh lines.

Arin with bushy brows that furrowed when he was concentrated and glittering eyes every time he’s excited.

And Oni Lloyd with soft green eyes as the rest of him is morphed into a monster no one can recognise.

And its sad to think that during the phase of their life where they were at their worst, when hope was no longer an option and they had to hold their fate and morph it with their own hands, that you could only ever see the shadow of those features.

Yet, when they are given a hand to reach for and a chance to grow and a chance to be the person they really want to be, everyone ends up blinded by the glimmers of a fleeting past they no longer remember. So much stronger, as if the dust was being removed and masks were being broken.

[buried-in-stardust]

Cosplay of the women of TGCF

[eng by me]

[shannonsketches]

Sometimes I see this panel and laugh so hard that Toriyama didn't think anyone would like Vegeta and fully planned to kill him off permanently but the fandom just put this whole tiny man in their mouth immediately and he stayed in the story until Toriyama fell in love with him too

That's real power, baby

[qadmonster]

I don't wanna brag but before gen 3 even came out I had Necrondor. Mandibuzz, eat your heart out (that's a scavenger joke).

[quibbs126]

Okay, I have…a design for Lux here

Honestly, it still isn’t the best. Probably on me for spending all of today trying to make a design that worked and not taking more time

Probably should have also colored those practice sketches of Megatron and Optimus, and maybe drawn more of them too, probably would have helped in the long run, as well as let me figure out their colors again since it has apparently been a long time since I drew them

But oh well, I have something, so at least now I can tell you about Lux herself

These are the other previous sketches relating to her by the way, just for posterity’s sake

I thought giving her this younger design based on the cogless bots would have been easier than working out her adult, alt mode based design, since the cogless bots don’t have alt modes. But the problem is, their frames are still based on parts of their alt mode, just not to any extent that it’s actual kibble, just alluding to it, if that makes sense. So you know, I had to have an idea of how her normal frame looks. Which I didn’t. So it was harder than I wanted it to be, and this is what I got in the end

I need to figure out a proper full design for her I think. I still have TFA and TFE Megatron for my inspirations, along with some copters, I just need to figure out how to put them all together

She very much looks like a D-16 painted blue like this, but whatevs

Her trapezoid and arm circles are supposed to be the few references to her alt mode I have, that being her front with the trapezoid, and potentially where her propellers go on her body. I don’t actually know where to put them realistically, but I think it’d be cool if she could use them like blades in combat

For now, I think I’m sticking with that blue, grey and black color scheme for her, and the yellow eyes work fine

Design’s serviceable enough for now, but needs work I think

But anyways, on to the real thing I wanted to discuss here, her lore. Or I suppose more accurately, her relationship with Megatron, since that’s most of what I have on her honestly

Okay, so first off, Megatron was the one to carry her, which I’m noticing is a running theme of mine. Now I’m not sure when exactly he would have been sparked, but let’s say for the sake of things, between getting their T-cogs and meeting the High Guard. The main thing is that this would have been just before Orion and D-16 fell out and Megatron was banished

Some weeks or so after, particularly during moments where he’s feeling incredibly distraught over everything that happened and feels incredibly isolated, Megatron started to feel something else around his spark. He couldn’t quite place what it was, it was too vague and small to be able to tell, like a very faint pulse on his spark, but something about it gave him comfort, while giving it back to the strange feeling. He wasn’t sure what this thing was, but he figured he either made it up as a coping mechanism, or it might be because the cog he had used to belong to someone else, and it was affecting him weirdly. But he didn’t really tell anyone, since he didn’t want to admit it made him feel better like some immature child, and again, he didn’t think it was anything important. He just considered it the “little light” on his spark

Only to find out much later, on complete accident, that that “light” he was feeling was in fact, a sparkling. His and Orion’s at that. No one knew he was carrying, pretty much because he had grown too big for it to make a noticeable impact on his body (and anything that did was assumed because of his enormous rapid growth spurt), and because also no one was looking for it. But one accident a bit too damaging led to him needing a full body scan for all his injuries, and a close to fully formed sparklet was revealed to be in his forge

And unfortunately because of how late anyone found it, as well as the fact that the Decepticons are very lacking in proper medical equipment, Megatron pretty much has to carry the thing to term now, much to his frustration. I needed a reason for him to not deletus that fetus. He hates the idea of this at first, hating Orion/Optimus for putting him in this situation, hating the High Guard for being ignorant enough to have not found this sooner when he could have gotten rid of it (which they kind of have to concede the point there), and hating the universe for this fate

But he does eventually start to come around more to the idea, particularly when he realizes that this sparkling was the same thing that’s been giving him comfort in these turbulent times, and when it comes to mind that this is the last thing he has of Orion, not really choosing to see Optimus as Orion, just who came back after his death. The best idea the Decepticons had for what to do with the sparkling after it was born was to just send it to Iacon, making the Prime deal with his mistake, but Megatron grew more and more hesitant of the idea

And then when the day came that the sparkling was born, he was more conflicted than ever, now that he could actually hold it in his hands and see her for himself. While he didn’t give an answer at first as to whether he wanted to get rid of her, he eventually decided that he indeed wanted to keep her, naming her Lux

It wasn’t the ideal option for the Decepticons, sending her to Iacon would have been the best choice, but during the time before the sparkling was born, they figured that since they no longer had an Energon shortage and weren’t being hunted down, it wasn’t impossible for them to care for a sparkling should that be the decision, though the lack of medical supplies would be a worry

But basically after Lux was born, plenty of the Decepticons pitched in to try and help Megatron with her, since he’s their very young leader and now single parent, and again, kind of their fault for not noticing. Also they haven’t seen a sparkling in ages and she’s cute. Thundercracker happens to be her favorite babysitter. Soundwave is another top tier babysitter, but she just likes him more

This is also what gets Megatron to finally properly start opening up and trusting the High Guard, since he knows he can’t take care of Lux all by himself, especially since he knows very little about sparklings. And if they can be proven trusted with her, maybe he can trust them with other things as well

But one other thing, Megatron does not tell Optimus that Lux exists whatsoever, and he doesn’t want him to know. Part of it is to spite Optimus, excluding him from something he too would probably find so precious. But another part that progressively grows bigger is fear; the fear that if he knew, he would take Lux away from Megatron, never to see her again

While part of it is paranoia, it’s not entirely unreasonable either. Optimus lives in a giant city while Megatron lives out in the wild, Optimus has access to everything she might need or want, Megatron and the High Guard are essentially criminals and could be considered dangerous to a young sparkling, and Optimus is the Prime and ruler of Iacon. Even if he might have the decency to consider letting Megatron keep his sparkling, someone else in Iacon might try to fight for Lux to stay in Iacon instead, possibly even taking matters into their own hands. So he won’t tell Optimus, for as long as he possibly can

Megatron does genuinely care for and love Lux, but he’s also not the best parent either. He’s a bit emotionally dependent on her, with her being that last bit of Orion, and someone who unconditionally loves him, and it does feed a bit into his fear of her being taken from him; he also doesn’t really want her to leave. It may be something he eventually learns to grow out of, as it’s really not healthy for either of them, but it could also not. But at least for now, this dependency isn’t too egregious, nor is it something Lux takes notice of, or something the other Decepticons warn Megatron about

I suppose I should actually get into Lux herself. Though to be honest, I don’t have a lot on her anyways, outside of her backstory

I do have that she’s generally a cheery little bot, and she really likes the surface, particularly the animals up there. Thundercracker is her favorite guy, outside of her carrier, and them both being blue possibly has something to do with it. She’s also probably a little too okay with violence for someone her age, due to the company she finds herself in. They may be her responsible guardians, but they’re definitely teaching her ways to kill

She also has this thing of, if she does not understand why a rule exists, she does not listen to it. It made the first few cycles with her very difficult, and a testament to Megatron that she really was Orion’s sparkling. She has a habit of sneaking out a lot, though usually it’s just to watch animals or something harmless

Though this could extend to her being prohibited from ever going to or near Iacon. She may not go now, accepting the explanation that dangerous enemies live there, but that explanation may not hold up the longer she observes it, and she may one day decide the rule’s worth breaking. But will she go to Iacon and what chaos will ensue if she does? I don’t know

I mean I imagine at some point Optimus eventually learns of Lux’s existence, I just don’t know the specific circumstances as to how yet, or when. She could sneak into Iacon as a child, it could be a Quintesson attack mixed with a Decepticon encounter that weeds her out via Megatron trying to protect her, it could be Airachnid kidnapping her, or they don’t encounter until she’s properly grown. I’m not sure yet

But yeah, I think that’s all I have on her lore for now, and honestly it’s getting pretty late, so I should probably just end things here

She needs more working, but I have a lot about Lux, so I just needed to share

[that-foul-legacy-lover]

Bruh

I know he very likely would avoid it, but how would FL/Ajax react to Melusine Creator seeing him in human form? Would they be scared because he's a vision user, much like the ones that hurt him?

hehehehe Melusine Creator continues to be a favorite i see

see, you haven't entirely forgotten where you came from or what happened. it's something you'd rather not think about, pushing the memories to the back of your mind most of the time. Neuvillette recommends facing them only when you're ready, bit by bit, so you don't get overwhelmed- healing is a slow process, after all, both physically and mentally. vaguely you remember that Foul Legacy does have a human form, back when Teyvat was just a bundle of pixels on a screen, but you don't pay much thought to it, not when you have a wonderful Abyssal friend already here with you. it's only when his latest trip to the outside world goes several days over that you begin to worry, nervously skipping and pacing back and forth in front of your little shell cottage as you wait

you don't dare venture out of Merusea, but you're brave enough to check with Cosanzeana every day, and today, she's not alone, instead talking to a human with bright ginger hair and blue eyes as lightless as the deep sea

fear grips your heart as you scramble backwards, two pairs of eyes landing on your trembling form, the faint, glittery markings on your arms and legs and torso aching when you catch a glimpse of a Hydro Vision. but the human holds up his hands, an expression of concern written all over his strangely familiar face as Cosanzeana attempts to calm you

"Hey, hey, it's me! Foul Legacy!"

you pause, calming just enough to carefully examine him, the coppery hair and blue eyes and many, many freckles oh- oh! Ajax! Foul Legacy's human self! your antennae perk up as you run to him, tail waving as you curiously examine him from all angles, his gray Fatui uniform faintly familiar. Ajax grins as you shake his hand the same way you did for Foul Legacy, calling all your siblings over to meet him. soon he's completely surrounded by a crowd of curious Melusine, chatter filling the village. you have another friend- or is he the same friend, only different? he has a Vision, like their sister Sigewinne! is he going to stay? Ajax laughs, patting your head like Foul Legacy does and apologizing for being gone so long, the exhaustion of his previous mission sapping away the energy he needs to transform into Legacy. but you don't mind, he's still your friend! and you can hold hands with him much easier now, if you're both on your feet!

[iirulancorrino]

The Green brothers are doing effective altruism better than maybe 95% of people who identify online as effective altruists.

[hyperlexichypatia]

It's not just about the word "sentient" -- most speculative fiction reads like it's written by someone who's never heard of animals, and once I notice this, I can never unnotice it.

So many fictional stories center on "What if there were these beings who were different from humans? Like aliens, or elves, or talking rabbits who wear clothes?" And yeah! I love stories like that!

But there are also literally millions of non-human species right here on Earth!

We just don't understand them. We want to think about "What if there were a species of life forms that weren't humans?" but we're so locked into our cholesterol-based human brains that we can't really imagine being one of these other species. So we either imagine other species in an anthropomorphic way ("What if a fox wore clothes and had a job and spoke English?") or imagine a completely fictional type of life form ("What if there were beings that were like humans, but they could live for hundreds of years or more, or they could read minds, or they could teleport, or?") and I, once again I must reiterate, I love stories like that.

But the appeal of these stories is that it's easier for us, as humans, to imagine and empathize with a robot, or an alien, or a mermaid, with human-like thought processes, than it is for us to imagine or empathize with an octopus, or a canary, or a beetle. Let alone a tree, or a lichen, or a mushroom. I find it so disappointing when a story featuring nonhuman beings just reifies the human/animal binary by reframing it as "higher creatures/lower creatures" or "sentient/non-sentient" or "intelligent/non-intelligent."

Usually when I mention this to people, their response is, "Okay, if 'sentient' is the wrong word, what word is better? Sapient? Intelligent?" and no. I'm not saying you're using the wrong vocabulary word with the wrong precise meaning. I'm saying you need to radically, fundamentally reexamine your base assumptions about the human/animal binary. You don't need to find a different word to express the assumption that non-human animals don't think, feel, communicate, learn, or solve problems; you need to actually start understanding that non-human animals do, in fact, think, feel, communicate, learn, and solve problems.

I only started thinking about the human/animal binary as an outgrowth of my interest in disability rights and youth rights, since so many of the purported things that make humans essentially different from "animals" are also things that exclude children and some disabled people. Oh, humans can talk and animals can't? So preverbal children and nonverbal disabled people aren't human?

Sometimes animal people invite this comparison themselves, saying things like "A dog is as intelligent as a 3 year old child." I mean, no, that's not true, a 3 year old human isn't as good at, say, scent tracking, as a dog of any age, but more fundamentally, a 3 year old human child is, in fact, human. And then some animal people like Peter Singer will actively spell out that a nonhuman animal should have more human rights than a disabled human child. The fact that "intelligence" is a concept always invoked in animal discussions, and that pet-keepers often self-identify as "parents," is proof that we can't seriously build the underpinnings of disability and youth liberation without problematizing the human/animal binary.

One time in a fandom group my partner pointed out that nonhuman animals are, in fact, sentient, and somebody responded sneeringly "You must be a vegan." Now, they're not a vegan (neither am I), but what a comeback. "You only acknowledge that animals have thoughts and feelings because you don't eat them!" My man, my dude, if acknowledging the reality that animals are thinking, feeling beings makes you feel weird about eating them, that's something you have to reconcile within yourself. You don't get to deny reality about it.

And ultimately, I do understand why stories about humans interacting with nonhumans tend to anthropomorphize the nonhumans -- because these stories are written by humans, read by humans, interpreted through the lens of human understanding. We really can't understand what it's like to be a frog or a salmon or a hippopotamus. I can't really know what it's like to feel the air change with my antennae, or process information through my octopus arm. That's our limitation. But I wish we would be more aware that we don't know what we don't know.

The best story I've read that really confronts the human/animal binary in all its existential absurdity is the Animal Man volume by Grant Morrison. Animal Man realizes that the human/animal binary is meaningless, becomes an eco-terrorist about it, has an existential crisis, realizes he's a fictional character in someone else's story, and confronts his creator. We're all God's creatures, and xe's fucking with us. Only logical reaction, really.