matsunoluvr · 3 months ago
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୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ love and deepspace men and their random habits
warnings: none!!
characters: rayafel, xavier, zayne, sylus
link to master list here!
author’s note: feeling like a short and sweet one today, sometimes writing more than i want can take the fun out of writing so i’ll stick true to myself this time 🗣️
more below the cut! ☆〜(ゝ。∂)
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he like, drums his fingers a lot. you know like that rhythmic tapping on desks?
rafayel enjoys moving around his fingers and stimulating his brain in little ways whilst he’s waiting for some paint to dry to paint another layer or when waiting for you to finish an activity.
he also picks at things, paint on the wall or at scabs (bad habit, you tell him but he never stops) - he complains and says it doesn’t hurt when you bandage it up
rafayel hates growing out his fingernails but he doesn’t bite them, he tends to pick them until they peel shorter then clip them neat with nail clippers
how to combat both his picking habit and nail peeling at the same time? slap on some nail polish, he gets to peel to his hearts content and look amazing at the same time!
“Cutie, come here. I peeled off all my nail polish, can you redo it?”
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i feel like in game xavier already blinks quite a lot more than all the LIs, but i can see him also doing those like, long hard reset blinks
he’ll blink loads at once then do this longer blink and then be fine, i can just see him doing this
maybe it’s because his hair looks like it’d get in and irritate his eyes lolol
when you and him get plushies he keeps the ones he keeps on his bed, i feel like he’s usually minimalistic when designing his house but his bed??
it’s like a plushie fortress, when you visit you could literally drown in them
“I like sleep, and I like you. It’s the best of both worlds, want to join me?”
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zayne is the type of person to ACTUALLY rub his temples, like what person actually does that? zayne of course.
he also subconsciously clicks pens a lot, not loud and at a high frequency - but if you pay attention to his hands you’ll notice he gently clicks and then un-clicks the pen when in deep thought
he definitely does this more when he’s stressed, the feeling of the pen popping out against his thumb is therapeutic
zayne keeps around fake plants and a watering can because he somehow found a sick sense of amusement watching you water them every time you came to his office.
“Why am I smiling? No reason.”
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he genuinely rubs his hands together and it makes sylus look like a fly, he just looks so sinister and mischievous when he does it
if you ask him why he rubs his hands together he just shrugs his shoulders
“Just habit, sweetheart.”
really it’s because he has sweaty palms LMAOO and he’s an old man, of course he’s gonna do old man things
i feel like sylus likes to chew on things, imagine one time you catch him clenching his jaw and decide to give him some gum
it’s not like he doesn’t know what gum is he just never really though about buying some
after that you find stacks of gum in his draws and he’s always chewing a piece, the only thing he dislikes is discarding gum.
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AN; silly silly men doing silly silly things, i didn’t think too much about these just slurred random ideas and wrote them down LMAO
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euphoricfilter · 1 year ago
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domestic daydreams:
[cheese sandwiches at the park tomorrow]
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pairing: influencer! jungkook x f. reader
genre: fluff || established relationship || non-idol au ||
summary: a window into the life of jeon jungkook
word count: 1.2k
tags/ warnings: just lots and lots of fluff its sickening
notes: am slightly tempted to turn this into a mini series because there's so much to talk about...
where you can find all my other stuff!!
.  . • ☆ . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ☆.
Jungkook thinks both you and himself had always been connected by the delicate knots of the red string of fate. Possibly a constrictor knot, because it only ever seemed to grow tighter with every moment you spent together, impossible to untie as your souls start to intertwine and lives mingle into one.
His ever-growing infatuation with you, evident to his online audience.
Because he had no issue showing you off, talking about you in videos and sharing you with the wider world. He thinks it must be a tingly sort of satisfaction he gets, knowing that no matter how many faceless people love you, he will forever love you more. No matter how many people compliment you with how pretty you are, comments flooded with praise for your mere existence, he will forever appreciate you the most. Your entire being a precious little thing that he has sewn into his fragile human heart, yours forever to keep.
He knows he’s able to touch you in ways no one else can. He knows he’s able to wake up to you each morning, press soft lips to soft skin, warm under calloused hands as eye lashes tickle tender skin as the sun leaks through the curtains. Each passing moment peacefully quiet until you murmur his name, fingers pressing into his skin as you pull him closer for a kiss.
He’d started posting online only months before meeting you, a little creative outlet to get rid of that itch of not taking media, but rather choosing game design. A subject he loved dearly, though desperate to visualise his life through moving image and all the cool things that come with that.
And during the months of you talking, his presence online slowly started to take off. What had once been only a creative outlet morphing into such a huge part of his life. Something he had wanted to keep from you for so long, a little whisper in his brain worried it would send you running. With some of the comments he received, dms from both men and women alike, he wasn’t exactly sure how to bring it up to you.
And he knows in hindsight it was a silly little worry because you loved every part of him. Loved that he shared little parts of his life with so many people. Passions clipped into videos, well-loved equipment laying around his apartment, something so wholly Jungkook you found yourself beaming whenever he would get the tripod out to film himself cooking, or planning a design for an assignment, or just little clips of nature when the both of you go on walks.
Because what had once been a video diary for Jungkook had slowly become a video diary for you too, perfectly crafted memories that you find yourself watching when you’re alone. Always so hard to keep the smile off your face as you see how happy you are. Because that’s what Jungkook makes you; incredibly happy.
You watch as he tries to balance his phone against a bag of pasta neither of you had wanted to put away the night before, chin resting on the palm of your hand as you watch him struggle.
“Why don’t you get the tripod?” you murmur, catching his attention.
Jungkook turns to look at you, eyes a little wide, “Because I just want to film me making our lunch” he tells you.
“Besides—” he continues, “that would mean I have to go into the bedroom, and I don’t feel like being apart from you today” he says as he turns back to his phone, fiddling around with the settings a little so the light from the kitchen window wouldn’t look so harsh.
Your lips quirk up into a smile, toes curling into the floor.
“I would come with you” you sit up a little straighter, catching a glimpse of his face on the screen of his phone, “we could even hold hands too”
Jungkook pauses, hands pressing into the counter as he narrows his eyes at you over his shoulder, “Are you patronising me?”
Your nose scrunches up at that, “No” you start, “just so you know, I love holding your hand”
He hums, “Well then I guess you’re lucky… I like holding your hand too”
“Oh—” your eyes widen, “It’s gonna fall”
Jungkook winces when his phone tips forward, bottom lip tucked between your teeth as he lifts it back up again.
You push the chair away from the table, slipping your own phone out of your pocket, laying it flat against the counter so his will stop slipping.
“Thank you, baby” he leans down, pressing a kiss to your cheek, face only an inches away from yours when he decides it isn’t enough and presses a firm kiss to your lips too.
“Now,” he nods, “let’s make us lunch”
You push yourself to sit on the counter by his phone as he hits record, smiling up at you as he starts talking.
“Me and Y/n went shopping earlier and saw this new cheese I wanted to try, so I’m gonna make us sandwiches for lunch” he says, pulling the chopping board closer to himself as he pulls the drawer open to get a knife.
“Cucumber” he shows the camera, quick as he cuts it up, “and today we’re having tomatoes, but none for the pretty girl because she doesn’t like them” he explains, showing off the produce his dad had been growing in their garden, proud smile on his face as he hands you a slice of cucumber to eat while he finishes preparing lunch.
You slip off the counter when he calls you over, hesitant to step in frame and see yourself on camera. Jungkook steps a little closer to you, arms slipping out of frame to hold your hands as he looks down at you, so much adoration in his eyes.
“I wish you could see yourself through my eyes” he whispers, already knowing where your hesitation stems from, “always such a pretty little thing”
You glance over at the camera, video still recording, “Jungkook… your video” you murmur.
“Doesn’t matter” he shakes his head, “you know you don’t have to be in it if you don’t want to” he tells you, “Whatever you’re comfortable with, yeah?”
“We could film something tomorrow” you say, “we should go to that park again, maybe have a picnic?”
His lips quirk up into a smile, “I’d like that” he nods, “And if this cheese is any good, we can make even better sandwiches”
“Good point” you nod, “I’ll have to take you up on that offer if you make a solid lunch today” you step away from him, eyeing the finished sandwich sat on the chopping board.
“I always make the best lunches” he tells you, reaching into a cupboard for two plates.
“Our favourite girl doesn’t want to be on camera today” Jungkook mumbles, mouth half full of food as he looks at himself before glancing at you on the opposite side of the table, “But what’s the verdict, baby?”
You chew, nodding as you give him a thumbs up, Jungkook returning the gesture as his eyes curl up into a smile.
“Love you” he swallows.
“Love you too” you pucker your lips, watching as he leans over the table to press a kiss to your lips.
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impishjesters · 1 year ago
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Mafia Boss Jax x Reader
warning(s): gun mentioned, stalking mentioned, domestic/soft Jax, marriage mentioned note(s): Honestly couldn't really see much worth tagging, it's all just stuff you'd expect to see mentioned in a mafia/gang headcanon... A/N: So I saw a fanart thingie (and I've had it on the brain anyway) and it made me thirsty for some mafia boss Jax and I just... I might have to write up a one-shot (or series) at some point but this was enough to quench my thirst...temporarily. I can definitely see myself building a universe around this idea though. I'm excited as you can tell because I just kept fuckin' going in writing this out... Also feast upon domestic Jax in the latter half, I got mushy...
Jax is a tricky boss, it’s hard to get a solid read on him, as an enemy or an ally. He’s almost always sporting a grin, making it difficult to gauge unless you can tell those smiles apart. If he’s frowning? Ha.
He’s that fine middle ground of laid-back yet strict. His word is law, get shit done and do it right and he doesn’t particularly care about the rest.
This person needs to be killed, but before that, they need to be tortured for information. How you torture or kill them doesn’t matter, you get that information or else.
Rabbits are his motif design, not originally by choice but it stuck. Purple rabbit head, his signature grin, it’s childish—which is why it’s perfect, only idiots see that childish design and think “Oh this will be easy” and then it’s fuckin not.
Working for him means nobody is an exception to his little pranks and fuckery. Nothin’ too bad—not intentionally anyways. Bunch of wackos with guns, who thought they’d get trigger-happy when startled?
If you work for him, chances are he finds you a fun target for his mischief.
He might seem buddy buddy with you, but remember he’s your boss. Chances are you are acquaintances at best, not friends. At least for now—who knows?
If you’re dating him, well howdy hey aren’t you a pretty little thing on his arm?
Just kidding, regardless of whether you work under him or not you are given standard gun training as protection for yourself and him, but mainly yourself.
He does like it when you are his date for any events, though he’ll never say it. Jax is the type to bring up an event and do the whole shtick of “guess I’ll need to find a date” sorta guy.
Back on the topic of dating him and gun training—on the off chance you are dating and don’t know about his little crew and lifestyle… What the fuck’s wrong with you? Are you that blind? His position isn’t some well-kept secret, well not to anyone who knows anything.
Jax is pretty straightforward about it, except with his track record of joking there’s like a 97% chance you thought he was kidding when he said he’s a mafia boss. Ha, surprise.
Now if the two of you are dating, and you aren’t part of his little world then he does do his best to keep you out of it. This means that there are periods when you won’t see him, whether it’s because he’s busy or for safety reasons.
You aren’t safe from spam texts, calls, and video chats though. Nah, that’s all fair game to him baby.
Oh, you got work in the morning? Tough, he’ll stay on the phone/video with you until you pass out—he might go a step further and stay on the call for hours even if you are unconscious.
He does it for one of three reasons…
One, it gives him fuel to use whatever shit you say or do in your sleep to tease you with later.
Two, your company, albeit silent and unaware that you’re keeping him company, makes him feel less alone. Moments like this are often when he’s not working and at home, alone. Hearing you breathe, babble, and shuffle around on speaker has him feeling less alone in that big home of his.
Three, it gives him some piece of mind that you are okay, he can see and hear you, and no guns or glass are breaking to be heard. You’re safe. Moments like this are usually after stressful events, whether it’s a job gone wrong, someone injured, etc.
Those calls usually last through the night into the morning and you wake up and see the call still on or see him on the screen. He’s never told you about why some calls continue into the morning, or rather why he’s still awake when he should’ve been sleeping. Though it doesn’t take a genius to figure out it’s not just him being a stalker, but something more serious—if the oddly sweet tone he uses when telling you good morning and asking how you slept is anything to go by.
That said, Jax is not a morning person—even to you. Though if he’s awake before you or has yet to sleep, he’s oddly tender and domestic when it’s just the two of you.
“How’d ya sleep, angel? Dream of me? Nah, don’t answer that, I know ya did.”
“Hey sleepyhead, got ya coffee and breakfast ready. No, I didn’t put anything suspicious in it. I’m wounded doll, ya think I’d put in all that effort to make you breakfast just to ruin it?”
Okay so he’s still a little shit, but he’s got an unspoken soft spot for you.
Speaking of soft spots, if he’s truly down bad for you then that means you are his weakness. He can’t have those—no he’s not gonna kill ya Christ calm down—that means you’re at risk of getting hurt if word gets out.
So if the two of you aren’t at that level yet and are still living apart, he tries hard to keep his distance to keep the attention off you.
But if you are living together? You’re still at risk but he’s got his security measures, and bodyguards galore—even if you don’t live together he always has someone watching you—sure it’s a little creepy but just don’t think about it alright?
I said don’t think about it.
Jax does yet doesn’t understand the line of stalking. To him he’s keeping you safe, to you it’s likely an invasion of your privacy—but if you are anything like me then as long as there’s no malicious intent he can do his own thing. I dunno bout you but I’d rather him have eyes on me than something bad happen to me.
While living together it doesn’t take a genius to tell you that Jax visibly relaxes in your presence, especially when he comes home and gets into bed with you. He’s such a domestic sucker deep down, but you don’t need words to see that.
Overall, I feel like Jax wouldn’t date you if he didn’t have serious feelings for you. His lifestyle isn’t for everyone and he doesn’t open up to just anyone, it could take years before he finally allows himself to even ask you out on a date before considering more. But once the two of you are together he sees the two of you in for the long run, he’ll probably be upfront about it and say if you aren’t in this for the long run and potential marriage then he can’t do it.
Your Jax’s ride or die, please allow him to be yours too.
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demphix · 24 days ago
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hhi please talk about this ... you get me i think
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Hi sorry this took so long I got my brain rewired and hijacked by Ceroba again. Anyways. Ralsei. That fuckin freak goat
Where do I even start? I could go the route of his design and how inconsistently he (and uniquely him as opposed to a more wide-spread lack of consistency) is portrayed both in and out of game and why I find that interesting, but I should probably do that separately.
Because I'm really here to ramble about him as a character, and what sides of him tend to be forgotten and ignored.
Most of the fandom that I've seen sorta reduces Ralsei down to what he is on the surface, a walking plushie who wants to make everyone happy, and while I understand WHY it's so common, it leaves me really unsatisfied with how he's presented in the fandom. He's more than that, he's not just the toy he tries to act as.
And I emphasize the "act as" there, because it's important to note how often he does this. He (and the game) gives you a million offers to hug him, if not that he'll talk about baking a cake for you, or you'll get to call him cute, ect.. Little acts of comfort he'll lean on a lot. On top of that, he'll always encourage you and Susie to be pacifists in Chapter 1 no matter what you do. Keep this in mind.
The next thing I wanna mention is his whole deal with "purpose." He's introduced by reading off a prophecy to you, and his whole conflict with Susie in Chapter 1 is trying to get her to be a hero with him and Kris for the sake of said prophecy. Later on he states that Darkners exist to serve Lightners and make them happy, and adds that it's supposedly the only way they can feel fulfilled. In Chapter 2, he objects to learning S-ACT and R-ACT because that's supposed to be Kris's special talent. There's probably more examples I'm blanking on at the moment, but those stick out to me the most here.
On top of all that, he really lets you walk all over him (sometimes literally). You mentioned before how he goes "If you want to hit me, that's okay, too!" and like. Yeah that's kind of the perfect summary of it he really did just Say That. What's wrong with you goatboy why are you like that???
Expanding on that more, despite encouraging pacifism he's perfectly compliant in letting you attack everyone and making him do it too; yet he still snaps (or as close as he can get to snapping right now) at Susie for doing the exact same thing. It's weird. He's fine when Kris does it, but when Susie does it's a problem? Why? He even suggests fighting as a way to get stronger in Chapter 2 (though I suppose that is at least after him being nice to King backfired on everyone).
It all fascinates me. It feels like he's trying to stick to a script while also letting you completely disregard it. He wants to be cute and lovable and wants to bring people comfort, but the only way he ever tries to comfort others is through hugs and baking or giving them a nice spot in his castle. Ironically for his thing with ACTing, he doesn't really "talk" about issues often.
Which leads me to his identity, Kris, the Player, and the way those may intersect.
Let's start off with Kris and the Player. A lot of what Ralsei gives you leeway on really feels like stuff for the player's enjoyment. He'll let you do things he doesn't want Susie to (fighting in Chapter 1, choosing who goes with who, ACTing, ect..) and use him for it when needed. He's famously VERY quick to disregard any meaning Spamton NEO's fight could have had and (again) relies on using himself as a plushie or making some cake or whatever to comfort Kris instead (which doesn't even work). I also like to note how he responds to any negative or silent choices from you in the Acid Tunnel of Love scene. He turns away from the camera (away from the player before turning opposite to Kris) in the first choice before going "ahahaha just kidding!! sarcasm!!! haaahhahahahaha!!!!, and in the second he fumbles on his words and tries to pass it off as "you-like" to be silent.
He also pans us over to Susie's POV in both chapters, and with the "So that's why..." at the end of both, it feels like he was trying to explain something to Kris during it??? Additionally: Weird Route. Do you remember the 1 in 20 chance he stares at the camera during the scene where he should be panning us over to Susie's POV? He just looks right at us. It has a unique sprite but it's disguised in name and appearance to look like an in-between frame from his dance animation at the start of Chapter 2. What the fuck does that mean. Huh. Why.
Oh also the him blushing easter-egg only happens when he and Kris's sprites overlap to a point where he'd be touching the sprite of the soul when made visible. Which sure is something I think
So like. Bro knows about us right . Am I crazy I think he knows. I feel like he's too focused on following the prophecy and being liked by us to not right?? Bro wants to play the role he was given in his script even if its uncomfortable or painful and panics when it doesn't go how it should too often right am I stupid or am I on to something please help me
Ok fuckin. Last bit. I'm gonna try to be quick I am tired.
Why He Goat
He resembles Kris's family, his name is an anagram of Asriel, you know the drill. I'm not so concerned with the "why" of that (I think he's the horned headband Kris wore as a kid, and his resemblance to the Boss Monsters is reflective of how that item represents Kris wanting to resemble their family), I wanna see how that ties into his identity. He states he doesn't know what being "ralsei-like" even means, and. Yeah that's probably adding a lot to it. It's also probably making how affectionate he tries to be very uncomfortable for Kris (almost like he's going despite that because they weren't originally who he was being this way towards Ooo Vessel Allusion Ooo).
I don't know how to wrap this up uhhh
I think Ralsei is more than the uwu babygirl fluffball this fandom makes him, he's a character with depth. He puts on a persona to be perfect for the player because that's his "purpose." It's his role in the story to teach you and do whatever you want while keeping the plot moving as it should. He cares, but he doesn't know how to comfort because he doesn't know how any of this works (like how he talks about friendship in the Acid Tunnel).
He tries to be perfect, but deep down he's still just. The lonely prince the prophecy needs.
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mismatchedtwins · 19 days ago
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Mismatched Twins - Take Five
“I cannot believe you’re blaming me for this.”
Donnie ducks under a low point in the metal where the roof caves, running a hand along the vines as they go deeper still. More appear the longer that they travel, clinging to the walls and lying at their feet. He hadn’t sensed a trace of any Krang creatures since they’d stood outside. He doesn’t know whether to be disappointed or grateful.
Leon’s voice carries on endlessly as he trails behind him, always with the same accusing note, so Donnie doesn’t feel the least bit guilty for the past several minutes of silent treatment. Donnie offered to let him rest. He’s the only reason that he’s not. He wants to be a liar and cheat then he can take his punishment like a man.
Then again, if he’d been right about that creature…
Donnie rubs his arms for the tenth time. The last thing that he wants to deal with is anything else altering his body against his will.
Not to mention his poor, brilliant brain.
The rocks that patter in front of his feet pause before they resume noise from a distance, so Donnie crouches.
He flings an arm out when Leon tries to walk past, knocking his momentum back. His companion flails before falling on his butt, barely missing a breath of complaint, “-the one who designed it! So- so really, you did this! Who locks his phone for fourty-six hours! On purpose! Huh?! Who does that?!”
“It’s a security precaution.” He snaps as he glares in the direction of the increasingly pathetic whines. “I have important stuff on there that not just anyone can get their hands on.”
“But two days?!”
“I need the time to track it down and get it back.” He gets out his grapple. “Or blow it up.” He aims randomly. “Which ever comes first.”
“Stuff like what? Game scores?” He gasps, affronted. “You’re being unreasonably cruel over videogame scores?!”
“Like GPS locations that I’d rather the creeps’s trying to kill us didn’t get their hands on?” The grapple hits the ground. “Hmm. Okay, get your shell over here.”
“Why? So you can shove me again?”
“I didn’t shove you.” He mutters. “You were about to walk off a drop. You’re welcome.”
“You could have been nicer about it.” The misery in his voice shifts to mild curiosity. Now Donnie’s forced to wonder if he was intentionally being that annoying. “How deep is it?”
“Not too far.” The grapple clicks into place. “But I wouldn’t recommend jumping in your condition.”
“So we turn back?”
“Of course not.” Donnie clicks on the phone light. Leon hisses and rolls away from it, crouching like some kind of feral creature. “I’m seeing where the vines lead. It’s the first source of life that I’ve seen. I’m going to find out how it’s thriving.”
“What if we don't?” Leon volunteers as he crawls over and peeks down the drop. “I don’t think these things like turtles.”
“It’s vegetation.” Donnie dismisses as he points the phone. There are more vines curled at the bottom, but they don’t look very threatening. “Oooh, spooky. Do you need a nightlight?”
He holds out the phone and Leon swipes it back. “Yeah, you joke about it now, but we’ll see who’s laughing when they slither into your skin and try to kill you.”
He smirks. "I thought you weren't scared?"
"I'm not!"
“Uh huh. You know, you sound exactly like my brother when he talks about cockroaches.” Donnie tugs on a vine. It doesn't react in the slightest. It also feels sturdy, so he follows it to the end, bracing his feet against the rock edge. “Look. See? They’re harmless.”
“I think you misspoke deadly. Dead-ly.”
“They haven’t hurt us yet.” Donnie teases, amused by the lost bravo. “Where’s your sense of adventure?”
“Outside the cave.” Leon points the light. “Let’s go get it.”
Donnie raises an eye ridge and then jumps. Leon yelps and the light momentarily scatters above as Donnie hops his way down. Leon shouts after him, and then keeps shouting, but he’s happily ignored as Donnie makes contact with the ground. He rubs his aching shoulder, feet crushing something that crunches with each step.
Donnie crouches to run three fingers over the suddenly brittle texture, debating the nest of vines beneath his feet. He looks up as Leon slides down beside him, gripping the vine with one hand, and Donnie plucks the phone from his grasp.
“Oh, good. You conquered your fears. Congrats.”
“Well, when nothing tried to eat you…” Leon shrugs as Donnie examines the area and then shines the light upward.
The drop is too deep to not include some kind of way back up. Nothing looks broken or bent, so it must be intentional. The metal is completely smooth, difficult for hands or tentacles to climb up, and the tunnel behind them is too small for one of the Krang suits. Unless they have especially sticky secreting glandular hairs, but even then, it’s highly irregular to have this kind of pathway in a functioning-
“Hey, does this look weird to you?”
Leon squints up. Donnie levels him with a deadpan.
“Can’t just be me.” His companion insists. “This feel trap-y. Way trap-y. It’s like… in the air. You have to feel that.”
“It’s a mix of the dark and the silence.” He informs. “Your brain is trying to fill it by assuming there’s something else present and, right now, the adrenaline in your system is triggering a threat response.”
It’s simple science. Comforting. Reasonable.
Donnie points the light down the tunnel. There’s an opening too far to see. Anything could be there. Waiting. Lurking. “But… I think I’ll keep the light on. Just in case.”
Leon nods rapidly. “Good call.”
Neither of them move.
Leon bows, a hand outstretched. “Ladies first.”
“Cowards second.” Donnie returns easily, taking the first step. Leon scoffs and grumbles, but he follows with uneasy tracks.
“This battery is actually lasting longer than expected.” Donnie admits to keep the silence from descending. He’d much rather something jump out at him with noise than without it. He settles in his safe place: theories and facts. “The percentage hasn’t even changed. Even with the conserving, I’d have expected some decrease…”
“Oh, yeah, Donnie designed these special.” Leon steps a bit closer as he allows himself to get preoccupied by the phone. “Haven’t charged that bad boy in two days.”
“What?” He gawks and Leon smirks. “When you’re as chronically online as Donnie, he wouldn’t dare let Donnie brand engineering die before he gets at least three days of constant scrolling out of it.” Something in his voice changes. “He gave me his old one. Think his newest can go, like, a week or something without charging.”
“Wow.” Donnie breathes, super conscious of every movement as he lowers the phone instead of taking it apart like he really, really, really wants to. No one can understand his woes. “That’s… impressive.”
“That’s Don.”
Donnie looks at him, trying to place the emotion. His tone is mocking and his smirk is dry, but his shoulders have slumped low.
The wall of anger that he’s constructing cracks as his eyes soften.
He’s not the only turtle separated from his family. They’d both been abandoned here by people that they care about. At least Leon did what his team thought was best to save his New York. If they're too scared to risk using some 'key', if their new York really was overrun by this- body dominating Krang species... It must have been dire. The fate of the world and all that.
What's Donnie's excuse?
Sensei warned him. And he still ran after her without thinking.
Now his family has to face her alone.
He should have reached out to Leo.
He would have come up with a better plan.
Leon glances at him, bringing a hand to brush over his red marks. “Something on my face?”
“Blood and bruises.” Donnie looks ahead. “Nothing new.”
They exit the tunnel and enter a massive room, eyes widening in sync. Donnie keeps going as Leon gasps, “Vine central.”
Donnie couldn’t have put it better himself. They overtake every inch of the middle room, sparse near the sides, many converging on the entryway. There are pillars of them among the new nest. Like a firm stroke of paint, they all flow upwards in perfect lines, tangled into many different shapes at the very top.
“Pretty dead in here.” Leon quips as he comes to the same conclusion as Donnie’s starting to. Like the bottom of the drop, many of the vines have already begun decay, and others are in the obvious stages. If something was providing them with life, it’s not anymore.
Donnie pokes the ground. It no longer feels like metal, but it’s not dirt either. What exactly were these things growing in?
“The Krang creature could have been… Feeding? Off of these things?” Donnie guesses. “Or, at least it had lair in here. Must have used the vines to climb…”
He stands up, attention caught by a shadow on the side wall.
A massive, blocky shadow. Curious, he heads toward it.
“Doesn’t explain what this place is.” Leon’s voice is loud enough to echo over to Donnie’s position, blanketing the silence. “Other than creep-tastic.”
When Donnie glances in his direction, he’s standing in the shadows that the light is leaving behind, squinting at one of the vine structures. “I think these things need some pruning.”
“Let me know if you find a weed whacker.”
"All I got is a handy-dandy sword. Not sure if it'll cut it." He snickers. "Get it? Get it? Cut? Wait, no, I can do better-"
"Save yourself the embarrassment."
"Wouldn't be much of a point! Wits to sharp for you?"
"Yep. That won't get old fast."
"Bah! My puns are cutting-edge!"
He shakes his head and continues on. "Focus please?"
"I am so focused. I am- the most focused."
"Good. Then feel free to take a stab at it any day now."
"Don’t gotta tell me twi- HEY!"
Leon laughs and Donnie grins to himself. It fades into frustration as he watches the strange, blocky area become larger with every step.
Yeesh, that is a lot bigger up close.
He really doesn’t want to climb anything, so he searches along the wall for an opening. Leon has apparently taken up swinging his blade like an axe. Donnie can hear each time that it makes an impact on the trunk composed of vines. It doesn’t seem like the smartest move for someone with likely bruised ribs, but as long as it keeps him busy, Donnie’s not about to complain.
He almost trips on an area where the vines gain entrance to the box-like wall, and when he catches himself, he cringes when his hand comes away sticky. He pokes it, twice for good measure.
He flings a bit of the gross off before looking to Leon. “It looks like the vines are… Interconnected with some kind of biological mass.”
“Krang like fleshy ships.” Leon sounds out of breath. “Technodrome was a big mess of ew.” He shudders. “Especially the command station. Ditched that place quick. Was muy nasteh.”
The structure tilts. Leon scrambles back. “TIMBEEER!”
Donnie hurries over as it lands. Leon hugs his hilt. “Talk about tightly wound. Junior got this in one swipe.”
Donnie… Will ask later. He leans over curiously as Leon slices through the vines, watching the weaker ones snap open before it slides apart like a rotten peel, revealing… Nothing.
It sits empty.
“Got a dud.” Leon reports unhelpfully. “You do the next one. But I call dibs on timber. I am the timberer.”
“If I’m going to go through all the work, then I expect the reward.” Donnie drops the phone in his free hand, walking up to another one as his companion sputters his disagreements.
He sets a hand on his hip. "Light?"
Leon begrudgingly points the light upward. Donnie walks up to the intriguingly crafted trunk and checks to make sure the twisted vines are compact enough to hold his weight.
Then he starts climbing.
Leon gives him about a minute of peace.
Not surprising. All good things come to an end.
"Do I want to know?"
"Think smarter." Donnie hefts himself up. "Not harder."
"So... Is that a no...?"
"It... Is... A..." Donnie reaches the top. "Throw me your sword."
Donnie doesn't expect much from Leon, but he definitely thought that he'd pretend to aim. Instead, he does a little twirl and flings it.
For the second time that day, Donnie finds himself inches from a spinning blade. He can actually see his reflection with how close it lands, practically taking off his beak.
He looks down, furious. "LEON!"
"You said-"
"I DIDN'T MEAN TAKE OFF MY HEAD!"
"Your head's fiiiine."
With a low growl, Donnie steadies his other three limbs and then yanks the blade free. He goes for the thinner vines, stabbing the sword a few inches in and then dragging it down. They peel open easily and Donnie spots small objects at the bottom. He drops the blade and then shuffles closer to the opening. He reaches in.
And pulls out a bone.
A yelp escapes his throat. His pushes back in surprise, throwing it back in and upsetting his balance in the process. He hits his carapace, crushing vines as he lands. Leon doesn't move. "See, this is one of those times where I just know I'm going to regret asking." Donnie gets to his feet. He points over his shoulder. "Wanna skip to the part where we both agree to leave?"
"Good idea." Donnie grabs the blade. "I suddenly have a really bad feeling about this place."
"Yeah, no kidd-" The smirks freezes on Leon’s face.
Donnie pauses, the light aimed at his plastron. “What?”
His eyes are dots, locking on him. “I can’t move my legs.”
“Can’t move your…”
Leon shines the light downward. It reveals two-toed feet planted on the pile of vines, and the very not-dead vines pushing their way into the flesh around his ankle.
It seems like the appropriate time to scream.
He steps forward and a large vine shoots at him. He slashes at it fast, diving to his triggered screaming companion and slicing him free. He grabs his arm and tosses him to create distance from the pile, ducking as two vines shoot over his head.
He spins to separate them from their roots, hurrying away to watch them hit the ground. He stumbles into Leon. Hands lock around the top lip of his shell, peeking at the small vine tendrils slithering out from the not-dirt. His eyes dart to Donnie and then the exit.
"Any ideas?" Donnie demands. Leon turns frazzled. "Me?! You're the one-"
Donnie's brain glitches. "Are you not a leader?"
"Well, yeah, but-!" Donnie surges forward to meet the vines that want to try their luck. "GREAT! SO LEAD!"
He doesn't dare look back until Leon is grabbing his arm and dragging him the opposite direction of the exit.
"Where're we-!"
"I lead! You follow!"
Leon holds out his hand. Donnie bites back a retort and hands him his sword. The young, infuriating leader continues his sprint, bringing Donnie along with him. "Do I get to know the plan?!"
"Don't touch the vines!"
"THAT'S NOT A PLAN!"
Donnie tears his arm away, both for rebllion's sake and to obediantly flip over the connection between the strange mass and the vine nest. Leon carefully bounces around the vines on the ground as the nest grows thicker along this side of the room. The vines are still shuffling around each other like snakes, hiding amongst the dead ones.
It occurs to him that they're no longer attacking.
He looks down as he hops over an entwined pair that have latched onto the wall across from them. Of course. They're plants.
Creepy, haunted alien plants. Limited senses. Likely can't see or hear anything. But if someone steps on the lives ones...
They both slide to a stop near the tunnel. He meets the calculating gaze. “They don’t know where we are.”
“They will.” Leon looks down the vine pathway and then lowers the light, asking, "Ready partner?"
Donnie nods. "Let's make this quick."
Leons shakes out his arms. Donnie readies his stance.
Then they run for their lives.
“Leon.” Donnie keeps his eyes on the prize as he senses movement behind them. The brittle texture that signifies death crunches beneath his feet. “What, exactly, is your history with these things?”
Leon swallows. "Long story?"
"Abridged version now."
Leon pushes them both to the ground as vines launch overhead. "Nothing helpful! They were on Krang's ship! He used them to restrain me and my bros!"
They bound back to their feet. "And you didn't think that was something you should share with the class?!"
"I didn't think it mattered if he's not here!"
"It DOESN'T MATTER?!" Donnie shrieks as he ducks into the wall. Leon slashes the vine that comes between them. "EVERYTHING MATTERS! And NEXT TIME the guy with the permanent information should think, ‘oh, hey, maybe I should tell my fellow turtle why I think the den of evil vines is EVIL’?!”
"Maybe next Mr Mock Donatello should ask-!"
"MOCK DONATELLO?!"
They reach the dropping point as Donnie furiously whirls on him. Leon doesn't look back, more preoccupied with the vines that are launching off the walls, which, is annoyingly the more valid concern.
But they are so not done-!
Donnie goes for his belt.
He aims above them and shoots the grapple.
It doesn’t lock, falling to him. It's bound to happen at some point, but he doesn't know why it always has to be at the worst moments.
He spins towards Leon as he cries out. The vines have somehow managed to wrap themselves around his blade, holding tight even as it tries to cut into them. They yank at it and he loses his footing with a cry, frantically trying to regain it as they attempt to pull him through the tunnel. Donnie spots the ones that shoot for his legs.
Donnie gets three seconds to panic and two more to plan.
He grabs his throwing stars and tosses them at the vines attempting the hidden assault, abandoning his position to slip to his side. Leon looks at him as he grabs his arms and uses both their weight against them. The blade slices through, freeing his sword. Donnie lands on Leon's plastron, ignoring the pained cry.
The phone must be on the floor now because the area is lit up. He doesn’t waste time looking for it. He grabs the blade from his loose hold and shoves the grapple into his hands, flipping to his feet to swipe at the incoming enemy.
He uses one last second to look back. "MOVE!"
Leon is already on his knees, arm cupped around his chest and fingers locked over the phone case. Eyes wide, he sprints to his feet at the command.
Donnie turns to face the threat as the grapple fires and the vines surge for him. He dodges the first assault and then rushes forward to cut off their reach, hating how unsteady the blade is in bo-adapted hands. He really should have taken the switching weapons lessons more seriously-
"I did it! Hey, I- no!"
Donnie whirls.
Leon's reaches out.
He feels them latch on.
His heart skips. The hilt flies from his hands.
Donnie hits his carapace with a choked cry as the vine closes around his neck to drag him down. He manages to grab a throwing star from his belt, but the vines snagged his wrist too, throwing it down to the ground. He hears the star swirls against the floor.
The panic stalls his racing heart, and that’s all the leverage they need to wrap around his torso. His shoulder burns as his free hand claws at the vine around his throat, suddenly getting a weak inhale in when it comes loose. In the next moment, it’s locking against his chin and his carapace scrapes the ground.
“NO!”
Horrfied eyes lock.
Everything goes black.
Not because he goes unconscious, which in retrospect would be a serious blessing, but because the vines have encased his body and have taken it upon themselves to pull him back through the tunnel.
His head rams something. His shell skids. Air rushes past his body.
He thrashes and squirms and bucks- and suddenly, he stops.
Nothing beneath his feet, his carapace, or his head. He manages to tear at the vines around one leg and kick out. Nothing.
How is there nothing?!
His arms are locked down at his side as the vines regain their hold around his lower limbs. A frantic sound escapes his throat when he can feel the pressure against his scales, shuddering as they slither up his plastron and press into his bridge. They fail to find a purchase against his shell, but they succeed with skin.
His muscles tense as he endures the pricks when the vines slip in and move beneath flesh.
A subtle thud from the dark. His fingers flex and his muscles tense as he tries to continue the struggle, but his attention is drawn to the brief flicker of light. A vine finds its way into the back of his neck and he hisses when it shoves further down.
The rest decide to follow its lead.
They all thrust at once and hot fire burns across his skin when they keep pushing. He screams. The vines don't stop.
His heart pulsates and the room flickers with light.
He blinks, whoozy, as the cage that the vines are forming comes into view. The room goes dark. He can feel every weak tremor, every breathless pant, every twitch of the mass beneath his skin.
A steady thud reverberates. His body is on fire.
His head lolls against his chest. The roof flickers.
A steady thud and then light.
Donnie's vision goes dark.
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divineintervention-comics · 4 months ago
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When did you first read the myth of Ganymede? And why did you chose to make a comic for this myth?
its a long and convoluted story but im happy to share. in 2015, i was in middle school, i made horror character designs based on the zodiac signs and those later became OCs (i have never read homestuck, everything i know about it was forced upon me by my friends in school). i used the myths as backstories for the characters when they are living constellations. i wanted to make a RPG and they were stars that fell to earth when the gods got too caught up in their bullshit and neglected humanity and the earth and now they have to save the world.
i was immediately attached to Aquarius (who is now Ganymede), he was always an androgynous perpetually dissociated character even before i knew the backstory. i was a teenager myself at this point when i really got into it, and i found the Zeus and Ganymede myth to be disturbing since i was his age. it stuck with me, to the point where i struggled to find the other constellations myths less compelling.
i dont know how to code and didnt know how to make games, i already felt like i was losing it bc its been in production hell since i was 12 and i was 17 at the time. i felt like before i make the game, i should make backstory comics for ALL 12 CHARACTERS (how i thought i would be able to do that when i only cared about 2-3 of the characters in the series who knows). i couldnt stop thinking about Ganymede, i couldnt stop thinking about a story where he is a character and not just an object in the narrative.
in 2020-2021, i made my first draft beta version, it wasnt called "Cupbearers", it was "Divine Intervention: Cupbearer". i just found the myth so compelling in a "i need to make a horror story out of this" way, i needed to cope with my own fears of kidnapping, sexual abuse, human trafficking, loss of bodily autonomy, transformations, immortality, and being stuck through this myth inspired comic.
Ganymede, even as Aquarius, has always been a cathartic character for me, both as a 12 year old and now as a 21 year old. i grow up but he is cursed with immortality, cursed with eternal youth, the world keeps moving on and he will never be able to catch up. stuck in the same spot, never moving forward, never moving backwards, just stuck working for the man who stole his life until the end of time, eternal punishment viewed as a gift by those who bestowed it upon him. how could you be so ungrateful? we gave you a gift. we took you away from everything you've ever known, we've taken away ownership of your body, we've turned you into a beast like us, being tortured by me is a gift, it is a privilege that i chose you, you ungrateful meat-thing.
but he is just a kid, i want to protect him, i want to draw him having fun, i want to draw him enjoying a good meal, i want to see him find any comfort in the horror that is immortality. he's only a kid. just a baby, barely even though puberty, his brain isnt done developing, he had a future, he could have grown up and chose his own life. i think about that a lot.
i just generally have a lot of thoughts, everything i write and draw for this project has a point, it has a purpose, its not just needless suffering i dont write despair. (some zeus x ganymede shipper vagueposted about cupbearers being needless wallowing without purpose bc i dont write fluff fics between a grown man and his child slave)
i really appreciate this ask!!! thanks for asking me about my thought process, i have so much going on in my head and i need to get it out somehow
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tyrantisterror · 5 months ago
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Top ten favorite Orcs? Either specific characters or a given setting’s take on the species as a whole.
I'm not sure I have enough strong feelings about Orcs to really make an interesting list of ten, but what the hell I'll try.
Tolkien's orcs - not just LOTR orcs, but specifically orcs as written by J.R.R. Tolkien - are pretty high up there for me. I've probably mentioned this more than enough on this blog, but I'm still moved by the moment in The Lord of the Rings where we get this conversation between two orcs when their bosses aren't around, where both of them commiserate with each other about how shitty being drafted into Sauron's war is, how they long to go back to their simpler life as mountain bandits, and how, maybe, if they could find a way to escape being caught by their superiors, they could run off and find someplace far from the war to settle down together. Their names are Shagrat and Gorbag, and later in the book one of the heroes finds them among a pile of dead orcs, their dream of a simpler life tragically unfulfilled. I bring this up because, for all the flak Tolkien's cosmology gets for codifying the fantasy trope of "Always Chaotic Evil" races, there's a lot more moral complexity to his "evil" races than most people think. The orcs we meet in his stories are universally pretty nasty people - even Gorbag and Shagrat can't conceive of a simple life that doesn't involve killing people for their valuables - but it's very clear this is a result of the culture they are living in, which, if you get nerdy and read up on the Lore (TM), is one that has been specifically designed by the Middle Earth equivalent of Satan to turn all living things in it into tools of warfare - a world that exists solely to serve as a vast machine of industrialized conquest and mass murder. And it makes them miserable. Orcs don't like living this way, even though it's the only way they know how to live. They are at once victim and villain, and that's explicitly the canon way to look at them in the text. So it kind of sucks that their reputation in pop culture - and how they're presented in most adaptations, including good ol' PJ's film trilogy - is as one-dimensional evil henchmen, because they do have more going on than that in the books themselves, and it enriches the themes of the story when those dimensions are included.
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The orcs in Rune Factory are probably my favorite from a design standpoint. I'm kind of neutral at best with the standard "green skinned humans with optional tusks" look of most orcs. There's nothing wrong with it, but it doesn't thrill me either, existing in the same nebulous space as, like, traditional fantasy elves, dwarves, and hobbit expies - I understand why they're classics, but they feel kind of boring when you've got other options on the table. So seeing these guys when I booted up my first Rune Factory game was a revelation - finally, orcs that look INTERESTING! And they're so cute, these gnarly little Jim Hensen/Brian Froud style pig people. And they'll help you water your plants! A+ Tier orcs as far as I'm concerned.
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Dungeon Meshi found a good middle ground between "gnarly boar people" and "humans with tusks" that I really like, and while the orcs aren't given a whole lot of focus, what world building we do get about them is pretty great, taking a lot of the classic orc tropes and giving them that Ryoko Kui caliber thought and detail that makes them so wonderful.
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What else... well, ok, my brain still categorizes these guys as "goblins" rather than "orcs," but since the two are more or less synonymized in both Tolkien and the Rankin Bass adaptations of his work, I guess I can include them. They're one of my favorite designs for goblins of all time, and since I generally like goblins more than orcs, I guess this makes them my favorite orc design by default? I just love them, nasty little toad people.
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The 1980 Return of the King movie in particular is one of the few adaptations that keeps Tolkien's sympathy for the orcs in tact, with Frodo even having a dream sequence about living in a world where his run in with orcs is fully pleasant, each of them waving at each other as they cross paths, content to share a beautiful world together.
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And while it adapts the parts of the text that take place after the deaths of poor Shagrat and Gorbag, it still manages to work in a moment where the orcs lament their lot in life by way of the infamous "Where There's a Whip There's a Way" song written just for the film. I know this song is generally viewed as "bad" and corny and whatever, fuck that, I unironically love it. It's my wakeup alarm for workdays. I am these orcs five days out of the week.
What else...
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So, like, kind of a cheat I suppose, but the Darkspawn in Dragon Age take a lot of cues from Tolkien's take on orcs, right down to seeming like they're just always chaotic evil at first glance, and also being the product of Supernatural Crimes Against Nature by semi-divine powers. And indeed, in Dragon Age Origins you're basically given no reason to view them as anything but evil obstacles to destroy, especially when you learn the body-horror involved in how they reproduce (it's more in the vein of Slither than Goblin Slayer, for those unaware - grotesque but, thankfully, not in that way).
But the big ol' DLC for the same game, called Dragon Age Awakening, throws a big monkey wrench in that view of them. We meet Darkspawn who are capable of speech - ones that have been broken free of the evil hivemind their species is ruled by, and, like freed borg drones, are now at a loss of what to do with themselves. They are, like Tolkien's orcs before them, a people who were made for war and violence, and yet still crave something more than that when given the chance to think about it. It's something that hasn't been followed up on much since, sadly, but it's a damn cool take.
What else...
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I'm probably the only person who still remembers this movie, especially with any fondness, but I liked the orcs in the Warcraft movie directed by David Bowie's son. They were given a lot of nuance and I honestly think their parts of the film were by the far the best. Actually I remember liking that movie a lot despite some of its pacing issues, I should revisit it.
Ok that's not ten takes but I feel like there are at least 10 designs on display here so I'm calling this done.
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starlitjasper · 2 years ago
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Thoughts on the Architect Hivemind
I have a theory about the Architect Hivemind and how their culture surrounding other intelligent species affects the explanation given in the game. I’ll be basing the timeline off the Dialogues as listed in the wiki to make it more uniform.
When Al-An first introduces himself, he paints the Architects as much more of a hivemind than they turn out to be. He says: “ We do not think of ourselves as individual, distinct.”
But he disproves this several times. While the easy switch to “I” is easily explained by English being a foreign language Al-An uses for convenience, he switches it without being asked to or even saying  it’s for Robin’s convenience.
Now, I may have missed Robin’s tone when she asked “Why don't you start by telling me who you are?” so this isn’t 100% but the reply Al-An gives is “You may append your seed code to my species designation.”
He then says he has been disconnected from his network, which immediately designates him as an individual.
Another dialogue has Al-An say the Architects do not perceive the difference between who you are and who you work for, and that there was only working in or against the interest of the collective. But when Robin asks whether the architects always agree on everything, he immediately admits that no, they don’t. An individual-less hivemind would not disagree with itself.
When Robin finds an Architect skeleton, she asks if said place is a sanctuary since it looks different from the usual Architect buildings found in the game. Al-An answers it’s meant to be a place to reflect - but a hivemind without the concept of individuals would, in my opinion, probably not need a special place to reflect.
Now, while building Al-An’s body, he keeps dodging the subject and subtly disses Robin’s scientific contribution, but admits everything slowly. The points that stand out is that he lead the research, which implies there is a hierarchy - but an individual-less hivemind would not need such a thing. They would simply research in perfect unison. There would also be no need to make amends as the hivemind would simply calculate this as the entire collective’s mistake, rather than an individual’s, which Al-An says he’s not at the start. He admits to disobeying the network’s directive. If there were no individuals, this would also be impossible. How can the hivemind disobey itself?
But as for the reason Al-An first presents himself as a final stage hivemind with no individuals, I have a theory:
Perhaps, Al-An presents the Architects as an individual-less hivemind because he doesn’t know whether Robin can be trusted - a united front in front of a potential threat. The tiny population (10 000, according to Al-An) is in less danger of getting their members killed off if they don’t have members to kill off. If Al-An presents himself as the entirety of the hivemind, why would Alterra seek out more?
While Al-An trusts Robin more than he does Alterra, she is still a wildcard. Yes, he is in her brain, but that doesn’t mean he suddenly knows the entirety of her mind, as proved by the fact he has to ask her what dreams are, whether all humans like working and a myriad of other things he finds himself confused about. And he lets her know more about his kind as he gets to know her more and begins to trust her (though I wish we got more of the dialogue leading up to it than we did), leading up to him admitting he was the cause of the outbreak on 4546B and even letting her go with him to the Precursor Home Planet. He shows her he was hiding the phasegates from Alterra, which further proves he had a reason to pretend he spoke for the entirety of his race when he wasn’t 100% sure Robin wouldn’t turn on him and hand him over to the company.
Whether this is Al-An’s decision alone or a protocol to follow and part of his culture is unclear. The Architects remain mysterious for the most part, though we do get to know more about them in both Below Zero and the original Subnautica - there, we learn mostly from their own devices issuing various warnings they upload them to their mind (which makes me think the Network is more like internet in their mind, further supported by them being more or less Alien Cyborgs) and from the Sea Emperor’s account. Maybe we will learn more about Architects in Subnautica 3.
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natsumesakasaki666 · 2 months ago
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Prologue
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< During the first year of ES’s establishment; Mid February; On the day of the Chocofes>
<somewhere in Cyber Space’s “Candy house”>
Sora: HaHa~�� Happy Valentine’s Day!
Hello everyone! Sora is doing great as ever! Are you all doing well too?
???: Yes. Hello Sora-kun!
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Sora: Senpai!
HiHi~♪ As usual, “this” Senpai here is so fluffy and adorable~!
???: Is that so? I think its more of a spiteful intended design though…
Why is there such a large emphasis on the fuzzy mop-like characteristics?! And why is name field locked, for some reason I can’t change it from “Mojacko”?!
Honestly speaking, this is more like a monster. If you were to encounter something like this in real life, wouldn’t it be normal to find it so scary and disgusting that you’d have nightmares about it?
Sora: Not at all! Senpai looks cute! Have some confidence!
Mojacko (Tsumugi): Is it cute? Well… it’s whatever I guess~ I don’t care how I look
Sora: But didn’t Shisho~ say that Senpai is always looking so unkempt, so Senpai should pay more attention to his appearance?
Mojacko (tsumugi): Aha, I see now! Natsume-kun is forcing me to look like this in order to make my not so fashionable self become aware of such things!
In other words, it’s one of Natsume-kun’s ways of expressing his love towards me!
Sora: That’s right! Shisho~ loves Senpai!
Mojacko (Tsumugi): When you put it that way, I can’t help but start to feel attached to this monster-like appearance.
Im feeling so happy right now, I’ll send him a message! “Thank you for being so considerate! I love you too,Natsume-kun!”
And sent!
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Natsume: *ding* —huh I just received some creepy spam maiL, should I go ahead and report it to the poliCE?
Mojacko (Tsumugi): Spam mail? That sounds like trouble, Natsume-kun! It’s alright to rely on the police but shouldn’t you consult with us first?
We’ll always be here for you Natsume-kun!
Natsume: Don’t you understand sarcasM…? WhAT-, who’s this monsTER? Can you please stay awAY?
Tsumugi: Eh!? Natsume-kun weren’t you the one who forced me to look this way!?
Sora: HuHu~♪ Speaking of Shisho~, look who it is! Happy Valentine’s Day to you too Shisho~!☆
Natsume: mhm, Happy Valentine’s DAY, Sora♪
….You seem strangely exciteD. Considering what you’re planning on doing sOON, isnt it a bit unnatural for you to be this hapPY?
Do you think of all of this as just a game because it’s happening here in CyberspaCE? You’re worrying mE…
Mojacko (Tsumugi): I think getting too absorbed into the internet and video games isn’t something we should we praising Sora-kun for.
It’s unhealthy and we need to pay attention to what’s happening in reality too.
Natsume: that’s rich coming from someone who’s the definition of unhealTHY…… The ability to concentrate on events happening digitally is one of Sora’s strengths so let’s keep things on a positive outlOOK.
I doubt this “anomaly” could’ve been solved if it weren’t for Sora’s peculiariTY.
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Sora: HeHe~♪ So Sora being a “strange kid” can be helpful sometimes?
Natsume: Yup. There's no need to feel guilty or ashamed of being different from othERS, Sora.
You certainly have better vision than us ordinary peOPLE. Your eyes can read the reflection of things that aren’t supposed to be visible in this wORLD.
HoweVER, even dreams can be seen as“reality” to those whose brain can perceive it as sO. So likewISE, it’s a “reality” that shouldn’t be denied as wELL.
What has occurred this time is so incomprehensible and mysterious that someone using common sense would laugh it off sayING “probably someone mistook it as something they saw while half aslEEP”.
Sora, we believe in yOU. We believe in you and will support yOU.
However, loving someone doesn’t mean justifying everything they dO. Im saying this because we love yOU.
When I look at you with my unblinded eyES, I realize you really do have the best smILE.
Sora: Yes! Sora also wants to keep smiling. That’s why—
Mojacko (Tsumugi): I’ve thought this before too but somehow Sora-kun always immediately understands your strange conceptual statements, Natsume-kun.
Natsume: You’re thinking of this the wrong wAY. I choose to convey my words in a way that’s easiest for Sora to compreHEND.
Although you act like an experienced big brothER, you’re still trash at magIC. Isn’t that riGHT, Senpai?
You should follow Sora’s example and be more diliGENT.
Sora: That’s right. And Sora will give it his all and work hard too!
Sora will do his best and at least with a smile—
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Sora: —he’ll put an end to this world.
All Chapters | Next
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wachtelspinat · 8 months ago
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Heya~
I often find it very difficult to find the right words, so I apologize in advance if any of what I have to say sounds dry or wrong, but I write it from the heart, I promise🧡
I know how you feel now and how much you get lost when that realization comes along. I learn art all my life, but I don’t succeed anywhere. No matter how long I try to do it, I still keep thinking “well I’m not good enough”. To be honest it scares the shit out of me every day, because if I’ll give up here… well there’s nothing I can do for life than. When I was in school, I was desperately clung to every fandom I had as my last hope to get rid of bad thoughts and I found those two silly characters that stole my heart immediately so of course it’s weird to say but since then Overwatch has become my “home”. It was not the perfect game but it was fun until Ow2 was released. Even if my love for OW is died, I understood that Junkrat and Roadhog took a much more bigger part in my live that I could ever imagine. I thought it was stupid, like come on that’s just a characters from the old and dead game but it turns out they’re not just characters, but in a way, my family or friends that helped me go through a lot of dark times, so it’s okey to love them deeply even if they are not real~
I always wondered, why do I make art? Is it what I really like and enjoy? Is it cost all the struggles and tears? But I found you and I fall in love with your arts immediately. I could have a really bad day in university but then I remember how I just go to your page to rewatch, for only gods knows how many times, your works. I love everything about them, how you can build a perfect shape with just one line, how many expressions and ideas your works have. Your knowledge of the anatomy is just… freaking olympic🤌🏻✨ you gave me the second breath in my path of an artist because looking at your works I was wondering if I ever be able to achieve such a high level and here I’m speaking not only about arts with Junkrat and Roadhog, I speak about every single one that I could find🧡 and I understood that art in general have much much more power in it that anyone thinks. It gives hope, inspiration, safety, emotions and so on~ even without knowing it, you can make another person’s life a little better.
All I wanted to say is - you are a fantastic person, highly talented and hard working. I’m sure everyone who follows your work will support every of your decision. I just wanted to say a big thank you from myself personally for everything you do🧡
hey ! i'm really sorry that it took me so long to respond, last week was just hell on earth. the sheer amount of words you put into this hit me right in the heart, and what you said made me tear up even more.
having a really hard time here to form my words, not only because my brain feels so fried, but because your ask is so sincere and i don't think i can possibly thank you enough. it's so weird, there is this constant battle in my head that everything is futile and trivial and i'm having a hard time seeing some kind of point behind my actions (not only art related). on the other hand, i know that WE give meaning to something. that it's the small things that tends to move mountains. i don't know if i'm making any sense here. point is. by telling me that - in my opinion - my irrelevant art has given you sth, if it's just a smile, new energy to try sth yourself, inspiration... you are shaking my world. and i'm grateful for that in a way i cannot describe.
and seriously, i don't know why we make art. because as you mentioned yourself it is always connected with doubts and despair. before i entered graphic design school back when i was super young i thought drawing was me. the one integral part that made me so ~special~. just to learn that a bunch of people draw, all around the world, and they often draw even better than i could ever achieve! in the last months of being in university i relied a lot on defining myself through my art again. because it immensely helped with my self-concept when everything around me just felt like i wasn't good enough. i'm kind of re-learning again that doing art is not the one thing that defines me. because i tend to heavily lean into that. it is after all the one thing i actually like about myself.
so yeah, thank you so much for reaching out. i love your art and the love you put into it, so i'm hoping that - despite the struggles we all share while being creative - you continue to draw, as so will i <3
(and junkrat and roadhog, man... yeah they're not just characters, they stopped being just characters from a game a long time ago for me. i know i'm a broken record at this point BUT their codependency and independency, the balance between grit and gross and sweet and off-kilter, sweat, tears, blood and some ice-cream on the side, begrudging and thankful - it seems stupid to me too because i know most people just see these comic relief mad max rip-offs but every time i think about their dynamics and some of the stories i've read in fan works it grips my heart and i think "holy shit i love them so. much." - i'm still not done drawing them by a long shot i think, it just feels like i've reached a dead end of some kind? because with little time at hand and even less energy left i struggle to form my thoughts into drawings. but i'm working on that. i'm working on doing some kind of tribute, like a zine with my art from 2016 up to today and some more stuff i've yet to draw (had this idea since 2022 and i've just recently learned SO MUCH about zine making and printing and i finally started putting the first files together). because that feels right, like a proper "here look at this i hope this explains why i love them so much")
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thelikesoffinn · 5 months ago
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Hi friend! I have an question because of your DID post. I read a lot of stuff about DID end I watches something on Youtube to learn more about DID and now I'm agreeing that Astorian really don't have DID. But now after learning I'm thinking that maybe Durge could? What do you say?
Both spoilers and talks of DID symptoms ahead!
Oooooh, hiya babes!
I love that you went and looked up some stuff after reading my post so that you could come to your own conclusion. That's exactly what I want to achieve! I want to encourage people to learn more about the things I mention instead of taking them at face value, so I'm happy to hear that it works for some of you!
Also: Bad anon! Very bad! *posh people "nonono" finger shake* Please do not drag Durge into the DID community. They already have many a homicidal bastard in their rep ranks, and they do not need one more.
(Tone: Humorous but also really, please don't! For those who haven't yet: You can read a rough why here!)
But, as always, let's treat this as the discussion you meant it to be and chat about it!
With Durge - as opposed to that wildy idiotic Astarion tiktok theory we've talked about before - I can actually kind of see why you reached this conclusion.
Now, that doesn't mean I agree with the take that Durge has DID, but alas, I do see where you're coming from.
Durge actually does show some symptoms that we do commonly associate with DID as opposed to Astarion, who doesn't really show any.
There's the ever-present mood swings we see - some of them left to the players' choice - which are a common symptom many DID systems deal with. (As do patients with all sorts of other disorders, but let's stay on topic for the sake of brevity.)
One example of that would be barking at Isobel like a rabid dog and then immediately changing your tune and apologising straight after.
Disordered sleep is another symptom that is rather common in DID and also something we find in Durge. I don't think there's much to be said, we can see how restless their sleep is every long rest and, later on, Astarion even mentions that he hasn't seen them "sleep through the night once in the past days".
Lastly, and probably the most "glaring" symptoms we could potentially find are fainting spells and, mostly connected to those, fugue.
The fugue is most obvious after Durge first slaughters Alfira, seeing as they wake up bloodied and next to a corpse and don't even remember how it got there or what happened to it.
The fainting spells are shown a little later in Act 2, after we fail to kill Isobel and Sceleritas, the little chum!, tasks Durge to kill whoever they love the most. Durge barely manages to wake their beloved and inform them of what is happening before fainting and turning into that rabid beast we see throughout the night.
Oh, and one thing that is definitely there, but I'd still like to kind of push aside is Durge's headaches. I know they mention it A LOT - "I have such a headache." 'nough said. - and that it is a common somatic symptom in DID, but we have to keep in mind that Orin pretty much scrambled Durges' brain AND that they have a tadpole worming around in there.
Both of those are likely to cause headaches, so I'm hesitant to count them.
So now, with all of these symptoms that can serve as potential indicators, would I say that Durge has DID?
No.
I do think that you could easily headcannon that into your own character design if you were so inclined, since there's some bases that are covered.
I won't stand in anyone's way in that regard! It is your game and your creativity, but I don't believe that Durge has DID for multiple reasons.
Firstly, the symptoms are just too lax. They're really spread out, they shift like the tide, they're often untriggered, and they really only revolve around murder and mayhem. Nothing else.
While we have what we could generally mistake for a shift of conscience, it's less an actual shift and more Durge being overcome by their murderous urges. That is a really, really big difference.
Durge has these Urges all the time - often displayed as some sort of intrusive thought. It's just that in the few moments we see, they win.
It's like rice or kitty litter. You walk past those giant bags at the shops on a day to day basis and something in you just WANTS to slap that bag. Just a good smack. You can see yourself do it and that little voice is there every time you see those bags.
You resist most days, but on a random Tuesday, you give in and slap that bag.
With Durge, it's similar. Only instead of slapping a bag of rice, they kick a squirrel against a tree. That's not a shift in conscience. That's simply an Urge winning.
Plainly stated: There's no evil Alter that comes to and randomly goes off to kill innocent Bards and Clerics. It is still all Durge, and, for the most part, Durge can remember what they did.
I say, for the most part, because the Alfira incident seems to be the exception to that. We have no other incident where Durge can't remember what they did. It is only with Alfira, as far as I'm aware. (I suspect this is done for suspense rather than because Durge is plural.)
So there's apparently no amnesic walls between the mad dog and normal Durge and amnesic walls are pretty much why DID even exists since without those, there can be no Alter.
As I said in my other post, DID is the result of intense early childhood trauma. Amnesic walls are the protective measure the brain takes to keep the child alive.
It serves to separate the child from their trauma by basically shoving that trauma into one specific part of the brain and locking it away, which then creates an Alter since the child has yet to develop a set personality.
So the missing of those amnesic walls is pretty much the biggest indicator that there is no DID here.
Then there's the fact that Durge is immediately cured of everything once they are disowned by Bhaal, and that is, unsurprisingly, not how DID works. The creation of Alters becomes a third addition to the natural fight or flight. From then on out, it's fight, flight, or dissociate, which is why people with DID can develop further Alters later in life.
And lastly, my absolute favourite hill: Narratively, it just doesn't make any sense whatsoever. DID is a very specific disorder that holds a lot of storytelling potential, tragic as it is. In fact, the tragedy behind that disorder is where the potential often comes from - that and its rarity - since tragedy has always inspired creative minds all throughout history.
No one would go through the trouble of implementing that and then just discard it and never mention it.
So, to sum it up, I would say what Durge suffers from is called "Bhaal" and not DID! But once again, I do see how one could come to that conclusion, so there's no shame there.
(Also, I do hope everyone can now see why I said Astarion really doesn't show any signs of DID. Really none. If Durge doesn't have it, he doesn't either. Stop that tiktok nonsense, please.)
Anyway, babes! You have a lovely day now, and feel free to hit me up whenever you want to chat! Even if you have a different opinion or take on this, I'd be happy to hear all about it!
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ravenkinnie · 5 months ago
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For the character ranking thing, jinx, caitlyn, ellie, raven, cassandra cain
5 ellie - I loved the show I like the games but when I know a character first through my grilfriend I consider them a blorb9 in law, like claire redfield and alice liddell are also my blorbos in law. my girlfriend could take them in the divorce and for the rest of my life I would resent seeing any mention of these games because I'm a scorpio so that lowers ellies ranking
4 raven - I love raven, her and batman are my ogs, they both changed something permanently in my elementary school brain and it never recovered. however, i hate modern raven so much, like fellow mutual momo strongest raven fan warrior is able to keep up but I dont have her powerful autism so i only feel hate and i wish dc the worst for that. god i fucking hate bbrae too i would stage a coup at the hq just to fix raven. I wish somebody brought back the new teen titans design, keep the saris and keep everything, just make her desi, people will complain and get over it like they got over miles and we got spiderverse out of that so. take her out of the titans cause im sorry, I'm a titans fan but this is a sinking ship, every book is a heavier flop than the previous one, im going to save my girl. have her cameo in other shit and be like omg im on my own whatever and test her dynamic with other characters, find her a new place in dc universe and then i think you could have a banger team book on your hands because she does the best in teams. I do selfishly wish that place was more near magic users books because i think that would be so much more slay for her to show her powers than having her faint all the time because she could easily defeat a divorcee in spandex and we have 20 pages to fill
3 caitlyn - caitlyn is my OG main which you might not realise because in so jinxpilled these days but I played her through high school (never left bronze <3 still haven't left bronze <3). so you can only imagine my joy when they made her a 6'1 dyke with a tooth gap AND they kept her big boobs, I've been winning ever since. I think I'm one of like five caitlyn stans maybe tho, every caitvi shipper seems to either like vi more or want to fuck vi more and outside caitvi circles no one really likes caitlyn. which is fair because she's rich and a cop so i can't defend her but I like that she's always struggling because of her own stupidity and is constantly challenged. when someone says she's wrong and she does that frowny face, she's so sexy to me, I love a stubborn bitch. she's also autistic to me, I'm just saying it because no one ever has caitlyn headcanons. I also LOVE league caitlyn, i think league caitlyn is 80% of the reason why domme mommy caitlyn is so popular because she IS a domme mommy. fantastic legend of runeterra card too
2 jinx - i know its a travesty she's not #1 but the tea is, i just didnt like her in like 2014 dhshsj i don't like jokeresque characters usually, i think it's a noring iverused tropes that only pretends to be interesting with fake depth and quirky randomness, I'm sorry. but you CAN make it good and i think arcane gave her such a strong comeback for me, I'm fond of league jinx too now, like I've grown to appreciate her even if I dont find her OG release that good. jinx gets the best promo materials tho, maybe outside of KDA girlies. GREAT legends of runeterra card, i maxed out her skill in the path of champions and I've played with many other decks in this game so believe me when I say, level 3 jinx is so OP its baffling. play her path of champions before they nerf her cause they just nerfed her in league a lil shshjsis. I have to stop typing because i took an edible and i could talk about jinx all day like the way they balance her storyline perfectly, the fact that every storyline goes back to jinx, her energy like im biased but sorry she is a scene stealer. her potential, the way every single dynamic she has with every character could be so good BECAUSE she has those plot connections, also i think her voice lines and arcane dialogue are really good, she has a very distinct style of speaking. both voice acting in the game and the show are great (pls look up her death voicelines they are so funny) but ella purnell??? I had no clue who she was before arcane and now i watch everything she's in. get jinxed was made by djerv which is a GREAT band too
1 cassandra cain - she is forever my dc rising star like i see who you are, i see your potential and i will blow up dc headquarters for you. I'm keeping her at #1 cause she deserves it but I'm so sorry when I recommend you the solo and the art looks like that, in my head it doesn't, love is blind. PLEASE look up the batgirl vs joker issue drawn by bill sienkiewicz tho, she is so beautiful in it kiss kiss. she is literally just if batman served extreme levels of cunt in every move. her backstory is batshit, she is my favorite portrayal of suicidality because it proves you can write those themes without being corny as fuck, just like jinx she has great fascinating dynamics with every other character. unlike jinx, it's because she stands out, she's barely connected to other characters which I think makes her kind of cooler like she's this super weird shadowy being you're kind of friends or coworkers with. pure cuntress
and the thing that hurts the most is that if that solo launched with modern art now I think it would find a good market because hear me out. every comic book is cursed now because no one knows how to write dialogue or understand cinematography or design but they sure know how to write monologues so you lose eyesight trying to read a lot of words about nothing on tiny panels. which cass' solo does not do becauee the dialogue is quite minimal even later on, it relies on visually striking and easy to read panels which are fantastically shareable on social media to entice people to read the book. plus I just watched mad max furiosa in the cinema and I was thinking we really have a trend of feral young women with an older mentor figure that sucks as a person and cass. CASS HAS THREE. and a cunty as fuck mother. I know this shit would sell and if it found a good market maybe it wouldn't end so fucking badly
give me five ships, characters, or shows and I will rank them from my favorite to my least favorite.
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blackjackkent · 8 months ago
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For only the second time that I can recall in the game, we now get a cutscene entirely without Hector's presence or input - this time of Gale's conversation with Mystra. We have no control over this; presumably we would if we were playing as Origin Gale, but otherwise we just get to watch.
And here she is, in the godly flesh:
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"Gale of Waterdeep. You look well."
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"As do you. But I assume we're not here solely to exchange compliments. So why *am* I here?"
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"You discovered what lies at the Heart of the Absolute - the Crown of Karsus - and you disobeyed my instruction. Why?"
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"Because you had no right to ask that of me. You cast me out, remember?"
Atta boy, Gale.
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"You were my lover, my Chosen. Yet still you know so little of me. The past cannot be undone with self-pity, nor can a future be forged. Only with the truth will you see the way ahead. The fragment of magic you tried to return to me was not of my creation. It was the Karsite Weave. It is a corrupted, half-born magic wrought in the brief moment Karsus ascended to godhood. It hungers for power just as he did, and it can *never* be sated. You unleashed something that would consume all magic in existence, and yet you thought only of preserving yourself."
Aha. Interesting. So Gale's mistake went beyond simple hubris of trying to reach Mystra's level; the orb straight up wasn't what he thought it was at all, and it's massively dangerous. Not really surprising, I guess.
(On a more prosaic note, I am not really a fan of Mystra's design here at all. The goddess of all magic feels like she should be something far more elaborate, but she just kind of looks like a barbie doll in a Lisa Frank light show. I think they could have done something more interesting with this. Honestly would have rather just had her be a voice thundering from nowhere.)
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"So that's what you're scared of. With the Crown of Karsus reforged, I could take control of the Karsite Weave."
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"You can no more control the Karsite Weave than a weather vane could control a storm. That it entered your body and consumed no more than your powers was a miracle. But we will not be granted another. The only reason the 'orb' sleeps is because I have allowed it to feed on the true Weave - a temporary measure, but one that will not be enough to save us. With each day that passes, the elder brain threatens to become a new kind of god, its worshippers a scourge of soulless illithids. If you will not use the orb to end this abomination, then you must find a way to separate Crown and host. When you've done this, you must surrender the Crown of Karsus to me."
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"A great ask indeed. You've given me much to think on - as you always did."
(I suspect this line would probably be different if Hector hadn't advised him to keep his cards close to the chest.)
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"So be it. Follow the needle of your own wisdom. We shall see how truly it leads you."
------
Gale flashes back into being in the middle of the Tabernacle next to Hector after what seems only a few seconds of absence. But it's obvious that something has happened, as Hector can tell from the way his eyes are wide, from the rapidity of his breathing.
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"Back on mortal soil once more," he gasps out. A strained smile is pulling at his lips. "I can't believe I saw her, after all this time..."
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Hector reaches out a hand to his friend's shoulder, steadying him. "How do you feel now you've done it?" he asks gently.
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"Relieved. Drained. Proud of myself, for summoning the courage to go to her in the first place. And, if I'm being totally honest - a bit lightheaded." His smile fades. "As if it wasn't enough to have seen her again, she didn't exactly summon me there for small talk. The Karsite Weave, within me this whole time... I knew the orb was no ordinary ball of magic, but for it to be Karsus's malignant creation-- gods!" He slams his fist into his opposite palm in irritation. "How did I not see that?"
"It's all too easy to miss things when we're blinded by desire," Hector says, as delicately as possible.
"True enough. There's a reason such unwitting heroes have been the backbone of lyric and legend for as long as both have existed," Gale says ruefully. "Even so - I was hardly some naive apprentice at the time. I considered myself an archmage, and yet was fool enough to b mistaken for a common conjurer."
He lets out a heavy, bitter sigh, then straightens with an air of new determination. "At least now I'm armed with the truth, and Mystra's expectations. It sounds like the door to redemption is open at last. All I have to do is walk through it, carrying the Crown of Karsus."
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Hector shifts uneasily. Are those the only two options, then? For Gale to take the Crown's power for himself or run back to chasing after Mystra's good opinion? Surely there is some middle ground... "Is that what you want?" he asks slowly.
"Perhaps," Gale says, not quite meeting his eyes. "I see few other options open to me, if I ever want to reclaim those parts of myself the orb snatched away. If I ever want to be *me* again..."
A sudden wave of compassion for him goes through Hector. Poor blighter, he thinks sadly. The actions of Gale's younger self were foolish, to be sure, and they have caused great potential harm. But Gale has lived with that knowledge for years now; he's been punished greatly for it. And going back to Mystra, however unhealthy that relationship was, means that at least he would be free of that punishment again.
"You're a great man, Gale," he says quietly - and he means it. "With or without the orb."
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"I'll have to disagree with you there," Gale says, shaking his head. "Having not one but two parasitic entities within your body does very little for one's faith in one's personality." A pause. Then his expression softens and he smiles a little. "Still. I should take the compliment with the same generosity it was given. So - thank you."
He turns to face Hector squarely, with the air of a man taking a sacred oath. "If i can promise you one thing in return for your faith in me, it's this - I will use everything in my power to ensure we defeat this evil. I will not let you down."
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prodigal-explorer · 10 months ago
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my thoughts after playing omori for the first time ever
(spoilers for omori down below! specifically good ending because that's the one i ended up getting.)
-so i expressed hating basil from the very start even before i knew his whole deal with mari just because i thought his vibes were off and i thought it was annoying how he was constantly playing the victim and the innocent uwu baby thing. i just hate when characters do that. and after finding out everything and the whole truth...i still hate him. i don't think he's evil or anything but come on he has such a victim complex it's so annoying. i spent the whole game slandering him even though i kept saving him. but he is far and away my least favorite character. i LOVE him as a character design-wise, though, he's a super interesting character with an amazing concept that is so creative. but uh i still hate him.
-i cannot choose a favorite character holy shit. if i had to pick with a gun to my head (or a knife LMAO) i would say aubrey. she's so complex and i love her to death, her whole journey and her personality and her design AHH, though the character who is the most like me is definitely kel.
-the music is GORGEOUS especially when the violin starts up.
-the entire game is so creative and the way it discusses grief, mental health, trauma, it's so genius. i'm obsessed and i will never see my life the same way ever again ever.
-i have so many fanfic ideas in my brain. i am going to write so many "mari lives" aus. i am going to write so many "basil falls off a cliff woohoo" aus (/hj). i am going to write so many "kel and omori go to college together and have fun" aus.
-does the fandom call omori sunny? is that like a thing? i keep seeing it and i'm wondering if it's a fandom thing! is it like chara and frisk where like the "bad" omori is omori and the "good" omori is sunny? is that what that is? i'm just a bit lost.
-i am OBSESSED with the way they handle moral greyness with omori/sunny/whatever the fuck his name is. it's done so well and executed beautifully. you don't feel bad for him entirely, but you also understand why he did everything he did, and you always find yourself rooting for him. it really teaches the audience that you shouldn't be a raging asshole who expects forgiveness just because you want it, but when you make mistakes, there's a chance at forgiveness and you can fight for that chance, even if it seems hopeless. i think omori does a much better job at teaching this than basil because to me, it seemed like basil just sort of expected forgiveness while omori didn't expect it but still chose to fight for it (at least in my ending).
-yeah i just love this game so much and i need people to talk to about it, preferably people who won't try to defend basil because i don't really care and i don't wanna hear it i am a proud hater LMAO.
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inkdemonapologist · 2 years ago
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what did you think of batdr?
So, grain of salt, at time of writing, I have not played or watched BatDR all the way through; I got it liveblogged to me by a friend (which honestly was an ideal experience) and then watched some cutscenes. INITIAL FEELINGS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
When BatDR’s release date was announced, I told friends that I thought it was going to be a pretty tight balancing act – if BatDR was REALLY GOOD, it could kill the enthusiasm for the fandom; yknow, a lot of times when you get what you actually want out of a story, the fervour fades. If BatDR was REALLY BAD, I could become too embarrassed about this franchise and not enjoy playing in it anymore. It has to be the perfect balance of messy and unresolved, but not TOO sloppy or thoughtless, and unfortunately for my ability to stop thinking about it, I think it kinda nailed it. BatDR has some heartfelt and startlingly compelling ideas that it executes sort of incoherently, which makes it FASCINATING.
The joke I keep making is that it’s not a sequel, it’s not a prequel, it’s a fanfiction. And I don’t mean that as a diss – it has a fanfic off-the-rails willingness to commit to a wild, self-indulgent take and just go with it, and I think that’s great. But it’s also sort of… disconnected from the original BatIM, in a way? It doesn’t follow BatIM’s themes at all when you think about it. Conflicts and questions in the original game (the downfall of the Studio, Who Was The True Creator Of Bendy, etc.) are strangely brushed aside in this game, rather than developed or resolved. 
Which is why you get weird things like, there’s a REAL ACTUAL NEAR-PERFECT TOON BENDY wandering around, but the original BatIM characters (Joey, Henry, Sammy; people you’d expect to have some kind of big feelings about a true toon Bendy) don’t ever get to interact with him because their feelings on toon Bendy aren’t the point here. BatDR explains what the loop in BatIM was, but that’s not something you discover yourself, because the loop is obsolete now – it’s just explained briefly in order to get to the real focus of this game, Joey Drew having a daughter. Even before you get to timeline questions/possible inconsistencies, the game feels less to me like an actual sequel that builds on the previous game, and more like a neat AU with its own headcanons bouncing off of and interpreting the previous game. 
Anyway, some random specific thoughts that come to mind:
They really coulda done something with the family theme if they’d just had Wilson go ahead and say who he was early on. Why did that have to be a surprise? I don’t think saving it really added anything.
Everything about Audrey being Joey’s daughter is AMAZING and I can’t stop thinking about this. Absolutely fascinating development. Have a lot of conflicting feelings on how this was handled but THATS FOR ANOTHER POST; I really do like this, though.
"Something he had always wanted, but could never have: A family." SO JOEY'S LIKE, CANONICALLY GAY IN THE GAMES TOO NOW, RIGHT??? THAT'S PRETTY CLEAR CUT????? LIKE ITS THE MOST OBVIOUS REASON JOEY COULDNT HAVE A FAMILY BEFORE??? HES A GAY SINGLE DAD!!!!
I RLY LIKE THE DESIGNS FOR HENRY AND JOEY. I was surprised to find that the way my brain parsed them was like, they’re the designs for the BatDR AU. Like BatDR is a new fan showing off their designs for their crew, and I’m drawing fanart for their cool AU.
The Ink Demon/ Bendy stuff uh, resolved very strangely. Am very into Bendy and the Ink Demon being the same entity but wish that had been explored a little more!
I actually like Sammy’s cameo(s). I’ve always gotten the feeling that the creators of BatIM were never entirely sure what we all saw in Sammy, so if they didn’t have anything they were particularly hyped to do with him, I think cameos were the right call. The Subject 418 moment is PERFECT. NO NOTES. His 5 seconds before getting shot at the end is like, it’s silly that he died immediately and we all joke about it, but also there’s an element of OH, IM SO GLAD HE GOT TO BE HERE FOR THIS for me, too.
GENT being all OOOOO LOOK AT ALL THEIR SUPER UNETHICAL SCIENCE, LOOK HOW SINISTER THEY ARE is kinda uninteresting to me. Something like, a single audiolog going “huh, that’s weird, when GENT left for their new building, all the ink left, too….” would be way more unsettling than explicit confirmation of GENT taking over and doing lethal human experimentation. And like, idk, I feel one of the things that made BatIM compelling was that it had all these spooky tropes, but motivated by a startlingly mundane desire – people believing in a cartoon so strongly that it accidentally veers into unhinged science and dark occult worship along the way. As soon as they’re just doing normal unethical science with ambiguous motives that seem totally disconnected from the studio, it becomes kinda generic.
Nothing about Wilson is coherent, to the extent that I honestly wonder if the original plan for Wilson was different and he had to be shuffled around for some reason.
What else happened in this game….. Im glad alice got a murder party but I don’t know why she’s here. That One Scene with her and Allison feels very fanservicey but not in a bad way lmao.
Probably other stuff but I think this post is long enough!!
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marshmallowloves · 1 month ago
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🧵🎵🩺🕯️ for Cordula!! (@frankmillerturnonyourlocation :D)
@frankmillerturnonyourlocation
HELLO FRIEND I am so sorry I got to this so late 😭 I was gone for the whole week and my brain's kinda fried... but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things again skjdfg okay umm! Cordula! Haven't thought about her in a minute actually... or a billion sdjfghdf lemme see if I can't come up with some answers for you 👀
🧵Thread: What would you/your self-insert wear in the source your f/o is from? It can be multiple outfits or just one! Bonus: Do you have a weapon? If so, describe it or show it!
oh wait hang on this actually gave me the perfect opportunity to update/draw a new ref for her!
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I've tried to design her a couple times, but she still always had some sort of white dress and red ribbons. I'm really liking how she turned out this time!
Also, I've always pictured her using the Angel Bow from the game! Maybe some other time I'll play around with the design to fit her more specifically, but honestly, it's quite fitting already~ (sorry this is just the whole AR card, it's the biggest image I could find kjdhfg)
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🎵Music: If you/your self-insert had a theme song, what would it be? Bonus:An extra song that fits you/your self-insert and your f/o!
honestly I kinda struggle thinking of songs for my self inserts specifically -u-;; it's hard to find lyrical songs that I like! Though for both Cordula and Pit, I will say I have thought about Stupid Cupid a non-zero amount of times kjfhg
🩺Doctor: What is the worst injury that you/your self-insert has sustained in canon? If so, what was the cause and did you recover? What was your f/os reaction?
I have not actually thought about this before 🤔 so I kinda just. made this answer up just now for this ask sdkjfg
Cordula isn't as strong as Pit, so when Mistress Aphrodite suggests that she help him and Lady Palutena when Hades starts causing problems, Cordula does her best to lend him her (largely non-combative) support without getting too close. But after Hades tricks the humans into fighting each other, her job becomes much more dangerous - she's tasked with trying to soothe the warring humans by hitting them with special arrows crafted by the goddess of love herself.
During one of these trips below, as she's frantically flying about and trying to pacify as many people as she can, one of her wings is struck by a stray projectile. She loses control and tumbles to the ground, narrowly avoiding getting trampled in the chaos...but soon, one of the frenzied humans catches up to her and backs her into a corner, thinking that they could use an angel like her to turn the battle in their favor. But before they can hurt her further, Aphrodite sends some of her power to her little cherub, which dazes the human long enough for Cordula to escape to a safe place where Aphrodite could retrieve her.
Naturally, since they had known each other for a while at this point, Pit worried for her until he knew she was safe back at her home (and encouraged by both Aphrodite and Palutena to help while she recovered... but he really didn't need to be encouraged to do that anyway dkfjgh). But they both understood that hers was an important job she still had to do, so they got right back into it... after they made each other promise to be careful dkjfg
🕯️Candle: Do you/your self-insert have a secret? If so, what is it and why do they keep it to themselves? Is it dark and mysterious or something small, yet impactful?
Cordula's only real secret, which is barely a secret to anyone at this point, is how she feels about Pit. Aphrodite was the first one to learn it - naturally, as the goddess of love and Cordula's boss, she'd know when her little love cherub was...well, in love ksjdfhg
But the way Cordula would act around Pit the first few times they spoke to each other - kind and sweet as always but clearly held back by an unusual shyness - didn't escape Palutena's keen eye either. The two goddesses have lot of fun not-so-subtly trying to set their favorite angels up together and watching the awkward magic unfold as Cordula and Pit continuously fail to realize they like each other 😂
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