#int -> raiden.

[rhysdasiorarchive]

But I got the job anyway, didn’t I? The retort stayed locked behind Rhys’ better judgement as Raiden reeled off his displeasures surrounding Rhys’ employment and, arguably, existence and the witch glowered at the councilman before him as he steadily counted down from ten in his mind to ensure he kept his temper under control and didn’t risk anything due to not being able to hold his tongue. Heads of departments were expected to act in such a way, weren’t they? Even if Raiden felt a certain type of way about it, Rhys saw no reason not to continue on as he was. “I’d like to remind you that you sought me out, Raiden. Not the other way around.” Rhys’ tone was clipped, measured and wholly disapproving. “You don’t want me as a pet and I wouldn’t wish being your pet upon my worst enemy, so at least we’re seeing eye to eye on something here.”

Through some miracle, Raiden cut the session short far sooner than anticipated and Rhys’ irritation melted into surprise as the sheer mass of the councilman shoved past him. No second chances? Fine by Rhys. So long as that meant he could stagger out of this godawful arrangement with his life force intact and no healing magic required to patch himself back up afterwards, Rhys had no complaints whatsoever. Rhys made no attempt to halt him, merely ducking his head with a nod to show his understanding as the distance between them increased. “Very well. Choice is yours. It was a pleasure doing business with you.” The thinly veiled threat bothered Rhys less than the repeated inclusion of Roland into this equation and the witch’s brow furrowed into a reproachful frown at Belgium’s ominous mention. “Noted, noted. Best of luck with your tutelage elsewhere, Raiden.”

"Problem is, you think you can say a buncha shit and I'm going to ignore the rest. Too fuckin young. Too fuckin stupid. Never should have got the job you did. Told them should be an age limit for head of anything." Raiden moved to the young witch again. "You don't seem to get it. The only shit stopping me from killing you right now is how much it'll cost me. You think I want you as a fuckin pet? Your worth is in what I can get from Belgium and there ain't much in that." Raiden shook his head.

"My fault. Would do better fuckin with De Luca than you. Can drop the contract. Shit ain't gonna work. You aren't going to work. You aren't good at your job. Stay clear of me Daisor. I don't give second chances." Raiden pushed past the lesser thing. "Belgium can't save you from me." He was sure to make clear, in case the other didn't get it since he didn't seem to register a lot in that small brain of his.

[helsensm]

but I Fry-squint with love

that's a perfect squint to look at these crunchy 144p Saoirse magma doodles I did a while ago 😊👍

with additional railao (tall!Raiden AU) and mysterious OCs kameo 👀

[nahim]

closed starter for @raidenproulx

returning to the castle full-time meant familiarising himself with less… chipper company than he’d been surrounded with in malta and one such favoured target remained raiden proulx. he'd been accosted by the ghoul during his first week (which, coincidentally, had also been heat week) as malta’s vampiric representative and the event had remained a fond memory of nahim’s in all the time that had come to pass and instead of satiating the centuries-long infatuation he'd had for the beast of a being, the bloodied tryst had only served to deepen it. knowing his fellow councilman’s penchant for ferality at the best of times, nahim leaned heavily into passive antagonism throughout a council meeting that no one had seemed particularly invested in and had fixed his attention entirely upon raiden throughout, his gaze only shifting occasionally to concur or fix a levelled stare of disappointment at any points raised that he vehemently disagreed with. if he was going to settle back into the swing of things around the castle, he saw no reason not to lean into tradition to do so.

by the time the meeting wrapped, nahim was content with the level of simmering irritation present in raiden's demeanour and he flashed a small, sharp smile in the the other's direction as he finally broke from his doll-like reverie, springing to life as he rose from his seat to bid farewell to the rest of the council and spared a fleeting glance at raiden from over his shoulder as he slunk through the meeting room doors – he had time to spare and a little hide and seek wouldn’t go amiss. judging by the state of him, the poor thing could do with a little enrichment time.

[domnamewoman]

I was wondering if I could request an angst we’re all of the MK 2023 characters S/O get turned injured severely by Titian Shang Tsung (could have a happy end, could not…up too you!)

Characters: Liu Kang, Raiden, Kung Lao, Johnny Cage, Kenshi Takahashi, Kitana, Mileena, Tanya, Sub-Zero, Scorpion, Smoke, Reptile, Baraka, Shang Tsung, Rain

Warnings: Angst 😭, Canon-Typical Violence

Masterlist

Requests Are Open

Liu Kang’s heart stopped as he saw your body lying there, lifeless on the ground. He bent down to cradle you in his arms as tears fell from his eyes. He couldn’t believe it, the love of his life was now gone. He blamed himself for not getting there in time. Why was fate always so cruel, was he really destined to be alone? No, no he wouldn’t accept it. He was the Keeper of Time. He would reverse time and make sure that he is here to prevent such a horrid outcome. He would end Titan Shang Tsung once and for all.

Raiden felt as though he could throw up as he looked at your unconscious body lying in the bed. Titan Shang Tsung had blasted you off a cliff and you hit your head on a rock when you landed. The physician told Raiden that you were in a coma from the head injury. There was no telling when you would wake up or if you ever would. Raiden held your hand and rested his forehead on it as he let his tears fall. All he could do was stay by your side and wait. And he would, even if it was forever.

Kung Lao was angry. At himself for not being there, at the physicians for not being able to save you, but mostly at Titan Shang Tsung. He was the cause of all of this. Kung Lao placed one last kiss on your lips as he promised you to get revenge. He would stop at nothing to see Titan Shang Tsung taken down. He pushed his grief to the side and focused on making a plan to get to Titan Shang Tsung. He would grieve once his promise to you was fulfilled.

Johnny Cage struggled to find meaning in anything anymore. Without you, there just wasn’t any point to life for Johnny. Who cared about the movies, or the awards, or even saving Earthrealm from destruction? He couldn’t bring you back by doing any of it so he deemed it all useless. Johnny stopped trying, losing his arrogance and bravado. How great is “Johnny Cage” if he can’t even save his love? He was nothing but a failure in his eyes now and that’s how he would live.

Kenshi Takahashi felt all the joy in his life slipping away as he felt your blood slip through his fingers where he was applying pressure to your wound. He tried to smile and reassure you that the physician was on their way and you would make it out alive but he knew it was too late. He knelt there, helpless as you exhaled your final breath, going completely limp. Kenshi sat there with you in his arms for hours, pushing away Johnny and Kung Lao as they tried to get him to let you go. He couldn’t, not ever.

Kitana released a scream as she heard your neck snap at the hands of Titan Shang Tsung. Why? Why did it have to be you to charge at him? Why didn’t you listen to her when she told you to wait? Why couldn’t she move fast enough to prevent this from happening? Kitana gripped your shirt and cried into your chest as the fight continued around her. How was she supposed to go on? But she had to, for you. It’s what you would have wanted her to do. She vows to you as she grabs her bladed fans that she will avenge your death.

Mileena spent all of her time trying to find someone to help you. She was the Empress and she would spare no cost of getting the best physicians, the best medicine, whatever was needed to accelerate your healing process. The court could be mad all they wanted, but she didn’t care about her duties. Her only priority right now was seeing you healthy and back on your feet again. The only thing that could distract her from this is any updates on Titan Shang Tsung’s whereabouts. She would make sure that he died by her hands for harming her love.

Tanya watched in unbelief as Titan Shang Tsung stuck his claws deep into your abdomen. You crumpled to the ground, coughing up blood. Tanya rushed over and held you in her arms. She didn’t know how could she let this happen. She was Umgadi for goodness sake. And yet, she could protect her love from danger. She pulled you out of the path of battle, making sure you were as comfortable as you could be as she applied pressure to your wounds. She would make sure that you survived no matter what.

Bi-Han was filled with rage. Titan Shang Tsung dared to take his love away from him. How could Bi-Han call himself Earthrealm’s protector when he couldn’t even protect you? No, he would make Titan Shang Tsung pay for what he did. Bi-Han would gather all of the Lin Kuei and hunt him down. No longer was their purpose protecting Earthrealm. Their only mission was to kill Titan Shang Tsung to avenge the death of his lover. Nothing else mattered or was more important to him.

Kuai Liang couldn’t control the fire rolling off of his body as he saw you there unmoving, at Titan Shang Tsung’s feet. He rushed toward him, swinging out his chained knives aiming for his head. Kuai Liang fought with everything in him, letting his anger fuel his fire. He didn’t worry about his own well-being, what was the point now that you were gone? He ignored all the pain from his injuries and pressed on. He would put an end to Titan Shang Tsung, or he would die trying.

Tomas ran with all his might holding on to your limp body. He had to get you to a physician and quick. He couldn’t, no, he wouldn’t lose another family member. After his family was killed and he joined the Lin Kuei, he thought he would never have to go through heartache like that again. He couldn’t imagine a world without you. He pleaded with you to stay with him as he looked down at you taking shallow breaths. He ignored the burning in his legs and he pushed himself to run faster. He won’t lose you too.

Syzoth didn’t believe what they told him when he arrived at the palace. How could you be dead? It wasn’t possible. While he was out on a mission Titan Shang Tsung attacked? No, no that couldn’t be. He continued to deny it until they brought him to see your body. This couldn’t be happening to him again. Why could he never protect his loved ones? Why did he always have to be left completely alone? He will get his revenge. He will take away everything that Titan Shang Tsung has ever held dear.

Baraka knew that fate could be cruel when he got infected with Tarkat. But he thought he would be allowed some form of happiness in his life. That proved to be wrong when you were killed, leaving him all alone. Baraka could feel his sanity slipping. He was left with nothing yet again. The only one he loved was taken from him. All he could think about was shredding Titan Shang Tsung into pieces. He would turn into the savage beast everyone thought he was. He had nothing more to lose.

Shang Tsung couldn’t believe you were killed. To make matters worse, it was at the hands of his doppelganger. Shang Tsung would question what type of person he was for there to be a version of himself out there that would commit such a heinous act. Shang Tsung would practice all the sorcery in the world to find a way to bring you back. He didn’t care how many souls he had to steal. Starting with the soul of Titan Shang Tsung. He would prove that he was the best version in all timelines.

Zeffeero dropped to his knees in front of your lifeless body. What was it all for? He spent all his time trying to get power and status and for what? Just for the beloved to no longer be a part of his life? Zeffeero looked up, no one seemed to notice you, the most important person to him, lying on the cold ground. No, they didn’t get to go on with their lives like nothing happened. He would ruin their lives just like his now was. He would rain down an endless flood and drown them all.

[daybreakrising]

okay, quest thoughts under the cut, but again, i'm not really saying anything other people on my dash haven't already said-

i'm gonna get the negatives out of the way first, bc i like to end things on a positive note. i promise you, i do have positive things to say, but-

genshin peaked at fontaine. i'm sorry, maybe there's a little bias involved there, but i genuinely believe that. i'd accept an argument for sumeru to be included too - the storytelling in both of those regions was amazing.

nothing in this story has grabbed me the way fontaine's did. i had zero emotional connection to any of the characters, most of whom i found to be severely lacking in any distinctive personalities beyond surface level traits. i just had no reason to care about them except that the story was basically telling me to, which... is very bad storytelling. if you want me to care about these people and their stories, then give me a reason to, show me why i should be invested in them and their stories. i had more emotional connection to the saurians than the people. as for the archon... listen, i may not have found raiden all that interesting, personally (in comparison to other archons, that is), but i could still connect with her and her story. mavuika? eh. i'm sorry, but she's just boring to me. yes, she's kind, she's strong, but is that... it ?? for her personality ??? and sure, it's sad that she said goodbye to her family so she could come back in 500 years but to me that's nothing compared to the sacrifices or the losses that other archons have faced. in my tier list of archons, she's at the very bottom with no competition. we'll see if her story quest changes anything, but based solely on what we get in the archo quest? i just don't care. i know some people love her but for me there's just not enough there to care about.

and the story itself... is boring. the idea behind it is interesting, some of the execution of it has been fantastic, but as an overall plot... ehhh. being force-fed "friendship is magic" themes over and over, the constant introduction of frankly pointless interludes that add nothing to the plot, the pacing of the story itself... it made me tune out and skip dialogue (by this i mean: i read the subtitles and skipped the voiced lines once i was done) and it felt like such a drag to get through. i saw this last act described as a 'slog' and honestly.... that's so accurate. it was.

that first half didn't need to be included, or if they had to shove it in there, why wasn't it part of the equally pointless (and very short) interlude quest last patch? it would have made more sense to have the 'post-war downtime' elements in the interlude so you can start off the final act with the actual action. i know i began playing when i was already exhausted, but it isn't the first time i've picked up an archon quest on little to no sleep and i've never before had to put down the controller and take a break because i was bored. nothing pulled me in, nothing gave me the motivation or the drive to finish it (or at least get as far as i could before i had to cave to exhaustion). i literally got to the point of "wait 2 more days" (again) and went: i cannot be fucking bothered with this. it honestly felt like a means of 'padding out' the story for the sake of content, and just frustrated me because i wanted to get to the point of the plot.

side note: i'm getting so tired of the constant "wait x amount of days" quest objectives. you can show the passing of time with a simply cutscene, or even just one of those black screens with text genshin likes to throw at us a lot. that and the "walk three steps, cutscene, walk two steps, cutscene, walk-" elements that are prevalent throughout hyv games but seem to be more frequent in current storylines are just... killing it for me. it's unnecessary and interrupts the pacing of the plot too much.

i have many issues with the storytelling in this region, some i've talked about before, some other people have put into finer words than i can produce right now, but it does come down to: there's no conflict, there's no real consequence, and it's not real enough. "but lauri, 2000 people died in this quest, how is that not a consequence?" - this is one of the positives i have about natlan because yes, we see actual consequence of war but at the same time... that's it. we get one act with consequences and then magically the world is all back to normal. i saw a video that touched on this exact issue: during that act, we saw the region torn apart and contaminated by the abyss, we saw people and saurians dead or dying - but then once we complete that part of the story, there's no follow-up (i do not count that pathetic interlude. it had promise and it failed to deliver imo) - and to prove this isn't entirely based on bias, fontaine did have the same problem. there was a huge ass flood and other than poisson, nowhere needed rebuilding?? there was no lasting damage??? genshin pls we know you can alter the state of the world around us - do better. and as much as i hated the trope of 'dead sister = awakened power', we should have seen more of how that affected chasca after it happened. instead, we got a few lines of dialogue and that was it. and idk if it's gonna come up again in a later quest of some kind but her whole "tainted by the abyss" deal just... never became relevant outside of her briefly losing control in her grief. i honestly expected that to play a part in the archon quest somehow and it... didn't.

because there's no conflict. & i'm not referring to the actual physical conflict of war, but conflict between characters, between elements of the plot, etc. everyone is just perfectly happy buddies that all magically get along and that is just.... not real at all. even when people band together against a common enemy, join forces to fight for their people and their home, you're not going to magically work together perfectly. there will be clashes, opposing opinions on how to move forward, etc. if there's conflict between characters, it makes it more meaningful when they do come together and fight for a common cause, it makes the victory even more impactful because of it. instead it just felt... empty. lacklustre.

i have never before finished an archon quest's story and gone: is that it? i did with this one.

i've rambled enough about the negatives so i'll close on one final thing regarding capitano and his story: there wasn't enough of it. there wasn't enough of him. again, other people have already touched on this with far more eloquence than i can muster at this moment, but as one of the only genuinely interesting characters in this quest, i was very disappointed that he was just... nowhere to be seen until the very end. 'but he didn't have an ancient name, he couldn't help with the final fight' - so wtf was he doing while it went on then? idk man i just think they could have showcased him a little more, especially since he's the first harbinger.

and now for the positives!

natlan as a region has a lot going for it from my perspective. i love the landscape, i love the saurians, i love the music (though it doesn't always fit the tone of the scenes happening in some of the quests), i love the different tribes and the culture of natlan as a whole. i may not like some of the playable character designs but some of the npc designs are fire (pun intended). the lore is fantastic too, and i've really enjoyed the world quests (which makes me sad they aren't voiced, bc i prefer them to the archon quest in this instance)

capitano saying a big fuck you to the lord of death was *chef's kiss*. i'm sad that his character has essentially come to a close now, but it was definitely clearly leading to that and it is a very fitting end to him. i loved that he was nothing like anyone really expected him to be & he's definitely up there amongst my favourite harbingers. the fact he asked to removed from the mission to collect the gnosis was a nice touch - further establishing the honour he upheld (i'm also curious who will be sent instead - given the new area incoming, perhaps dottore again? it's a shame the one i want to see the most canonically doesn't leave snezhnaya-)

and i didn't hate the story entirely, don't get me wrong. i know i've complained a lot about many elements, but that's only because i know they can do better. and some of the small things - vichama's sub-plot & the fact he does eventually get to reunite with his friend at last, people you've helped in the tribes or in world quests coming to your aid, etc - were very nicely done. it had such a good premise that was simply let down by bad storytelling and a lack of investment into making the main characters interesting enough and important enough for you to care about what happens to them. and i'm sure not everyone will feel that way - people will connect to characters for a multitude of reasons and that's very valid, but for me i just. i needed more.

i enjoyed it, but i enjoyed it in the way i enjoy a book with a plot that sounded promising but didn't quite hit the mark: i finished it, but it's not going to a memorable story that i'll come back to. it's gonna sit on the shelf next to inazuma and gather dust, whilst fontaine gets taken down and experienced again and again.

i can only hope snezhnaya brings it back around

[gh0stiefac3]

Ghostface Kills - MK Fanfic

Chapter 3 - Something Red

Raiden has been hiding at the Shirai Ryu for the past week. No news on who the Ghostface killer is or what their motive is. Raiden has been trying to remain optimistic, though with the death of his best friends is very hard to even get up out of bed. Scorpion has been very busy scouting the area to make sure the Lin Kuei or this Ghostface killer shows up.

Smoke tends to training the young Hanzo Hasashi, now a teenager. Raiden assists as much as he can. Nights and Days went by, the cold morning wind blew through the gardens. Smoke was on his way to Outworld to help assist the Empress with a task.

“What will you be doing in Outworld?” Raiden asked

“I was summoned by Empress Mileena to help assist in rehabilitation the former mage who gave himself up” Smoke says

“Why you may I ask?” Raiden questioned, unsure of why his presence was needed

“During last year, we encountered each other and I guess I made a good impression on Rain” Smoke answered.

Raiden nodded before letting Smoke leave to Outworld. Hanzo grunts as he punches and kicks the training wooden dummies on the training field. Scorpion watches from aside, taking in the young boy’s kombat form. “Remember to raise your knees higher for a harder impact!” Scorpion states. Hanzo taking his word in immediately and destroying the dummy in one kick.

Raiden walks over to see the destroyed training dummy “good job Hanzo” Scorpion says applauding the boy “you can go rest before we have lunch”

“Scorpion, I feel trapped here” Raiden confesses to Scorpion. Hanzo leaves the two to go to his room. Scorpion looks at Earthrealm’s champion

“I see…do you not feel safe here?” Scorpion asked

“No it’s not that, I do but I just can’t stay here doing nothing…I need to be back in Fenjian and find out who did this…” Raiden says. Scorpion thinks about it for mere moments

“I would suggest you stay safe here but I know that’s not what’s best for you…you can go but do let Liu Kang know” Scorpion crosses his arms.

“Thank you Scorpion, I’ll go talk to him now” Raiden spun around and left to make his way to the Hour Glass.

Scorpion sighed as he wanders around going to look for Harumi.

Meanwhile in Outworld, Smoke arrived in the dungeons. Criminals slept on the hard ground got Rain however had his own cell and a bed for good behaviour. Ever since Rain turned himself in, he was going to accept execution but at the last second Mileena changed her mind and states that Rain must remain in jail until he’s proven he has changed for the better.

Smoke knocks on the cell door to announce his arrival before entering. The Former mage sat up from his bed looking over at the ex Lin Kuei “I didn’t think you would actually show up” Rain says.

“I keep to my words, always” Smoke says closing the spoke behind him. Leaning on the wall he asks “so what do you like from me?”

“I just want to talk…it gets boring being here by myself…” Rain says “the talk we had at the Ice Temple last year when you saw me…I need to talk to you” he confesses

Smoke sits down on the bed next to him “what should we talk about?”

“Anything” Rain says looking at Smoke.

Smoke looked back and says “let’s brainstorm”

Smoke grabbed the back of Rain’s head, together they smashed their lips together in passion. Grabbing at each others body, both fell onto the bed to begin ‘brainstorming’

Back in Japan, outside the outskirts of the Shirai Ryu. Bi-Han hid in the bushes, finding ways to ambush Kuai Liang. “You wanted to betray your grandmaster…betray your clan and you were hiding here this entire time…” Bi-Han whispered to himself “should’ve known you’d be here”.

Kuai Liang has entered almost every room but Harumi was no where to be seen. So Kuai assumes she had went to the garden, Kuai walked for a few minutes before reaching the gardens.

Harumi wasn’t there either. Kuai Liang inspected the area before noticing a slash of blood on few of the flowers. Kuai Liang’s heart dropped as he noticed a trail leading into the woods.

“HARUMI!” He ran into the woods. From afar Bi-Han heard and so he begins travelling that way. Kuai Liang ran for gods know how long before he tripped over a rock. Face planting into mud, he uses his arm to wipe the mud off. Looking up he sees the brutalised corpse of Harumi. Stabbed to death on her abdomen and chest.

Kuai Liang wanted to cry and scream, but an aura so familiar calls out to him. He looked around, feeling the air getting colder. He assumes it was his former grandmaster. “BI-HAN!!” He screamed. Hearing a twig break, he looked up above to see Bi-Han leaping down to tackle him.

Kuai Liang fights Bi-Han off before kicking him back “YOU KILLED MY WIFE!” Kuai Liang screams but Bi-Han tilted his head in confusion “I never touched your wife! Nor even went near her!” Bi-Han says.

“LIAR!” The two brothers fights hand to hand Kombat. Both brothers almost brutalising each other out of anger. Bi-Han soon pushes and pins Kuai Liang against a tree

“I DIDN’T KILL HER! IM ONLY HERE TO KILL YOU!” Bi-Han pushes Kuai Liang down.

Kuai Liang looks up with hatred in his eyes “then who killed….” His face slowly went from hate to a sudden realisation “they’re here…”

Bi-Han still confused asked “and who’s here?”

Suddenly a cellphone beings ringing, where Harumi is. Kuai Liang stands up and walking over to the corpse to see a flip phone wedged in between Harumi’s hand.

“Someone has killed three of earthrealm’s warriors…Raiden was here but he left…Tomas also left” Kuai said met with an immediate groan from Bi-Han from hearing Tomàs.

Kuai Liang picks up the phone which has been ringing non stop. Kuai Liang looks at Bi-Han who snatches the phone and answers

“What?” Bi-Han snapped

“Now that’s not very nice, fighting with your own brother” the Ghostface killer says

Bi-Han raise a brow before being the phone to Kuai Liang so they could both hear

“Did you kill my wife?” Kuai Liang asked, already knowing the answer

“I didn’t mean to, she tripped and fell into my knife 53 times” GhostFace laughs

Kuai Liang clenches his fists. “Where are you now? Afraid to fight us?”

“Do you want to fight in front of your son?” GhostFace asks

Bi-Han and Kuai Liang both looked confused. Kuai Liang says “I don’t have a son”

“Then what am I doing outside of Hanzo’s room? Gonna see some Rex” GhostFace says

Kuai Liang in an instant began springing back to the Shirai Ryu base. Bi-Han soon smashing the phone and chasing after Kuai Liang.

Back in Outworld, Smoke and Rain were fixing themselves up. Rain laid back on the bed “so figured out what we’re gonna talk about?” Rain asked.

Smoke smiled before nodding “there’s been some incidents happening in earthrealmer…you know Johnny…Kenshi…and Kung Lao…they’ve been murdered”

Rain within an instant sat back up “what?!” He looked concerned “do you know who did this?” Rain asked

Smoke shook his head “no, but Raiden is with scorpion at the Shirai Ryu, he’s safe there”

Rain holds Smoke’s hand “please be careful”

Smoke squeezes Rain’s hand gently “I will” he smiled more and nuzzled his face against Rains.

Kuai Liang bursts into Hanzo’s room. He wasn’t there, no sign of any struggle. Bi-Han looks at Kuai “this is your land, what do you want to do?” Sub-Zero asked

Kuai Liang leaves the room with him “find the killer, their name is Ghostface” Kuai looks at Bi-Han “after this, our feud continues but for now I need your help”

Bi-Han huffed but agreed “fine, let’s find the killer”

“You won’t have to look that long!” GhostFace says as he jumped out from the closet, Slashing Kuai Liang’s face. Kicking Bi-Han out the door.

Kuai Liang held his face feeling the blood drip from his face. He looks up and stops the knife from going into his neck. Ghostface and Kuai Liang struggles for the knife.

Bi-Han gets back up and looks at the Ghostface mask “GET OFF HIM!” Bi-Han tackles Ghostface and pushes them out the window. Kuai Liang looked at Bi-Han, giving him a nod as a gesture of thanks.

Both leave and went around the building to see Ghostface unconscious. Bi-Han stayed back as Kuai Liang walks up close to make sure the killer is dead. But he then goes for the mask instead when suddenly in an instant, Ghostface plunges the knife into Kuai Liang’s neck.

“BROTHER!” Bi-Han screamed as he summoned an Ice Dagger and goes to attack Ghostface.

Kuai Liang clings to his neck trying to stop himself from choking on his own blood.

Bi-Han swings Ghostface into the wall, the tree and the ground in anger. Bi-Han soon looked back in time to see his younger brother take his last breath. “NO!” He crawls over to hold his brother. Seeing his brother dead, he’s filled with remorse and regret from being his brother’s enemy.

Ghostface stands up and stumbles over to Bi-Han “now I see something red” he brings the knife to Bi-Han’s throat and slashes deep.

Bi-Han chokes on his own blood, gasping for air but in his last attempts he mutters the words “I’m sorry brother…” he falls over dead next Kuai Liang.

“Fuck he’s strong” GhostFace stumbles away “now where’s that thunder boy…”

[xarrixii]

Chapter_45 : "From Afar"

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CW: mentions to abuse archive masterlist | masterlist

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“Relax,” Raiden waves off Harlow’s objections, roughly a minute before all of the highschool kids were meant to be let into the building. “Just stick your earbuds in most of the time if you don’t want to know my name that badly.”

“That doesn’t negate the possibility,”

“It’s not that important anyway. Look, I have a plan. They won’t even know some random dude’s walked in.”

“This is stupid,” Harlow hisses.

Raiden shakes their head. “I’m hellbent on winning this bet with my dad. If you want to back out, I’ll get you out of here. Whenever. Promise.”

It’s not like Harlow’s never wanted to be inside of a public school. Surrounded by other people his age who also struggled being themselves. Captured by problems not nearly as heavy as what time to return home at to avoid confrontation.

Breaking into a government institution for the feeling was just a bit… different.

With a heavy sigh, “What’s the plan?”

“The plan,” Raiden’s winner smile creeps up, digging out a pair of wired earbuds to stick into the cracked screen of a phone that was Raiden’s-now-Harlow’s. “Is a Yugenztch accent.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I am not. I now dub thee the farlander my dad is hosting from Yugenztch who is trying to learn English. Come on, you have a pretty good accent. You also know, like, a few words.”

“Yeah, from the pawn owners. That doesn’t mean it’s a good plan.”

“Nobody’s gonna know.” Raiden nods as people start to shuffle inside the building.

“Someone will.”

“Music. Trust me, I’m proving this place could give less of a shit about who and what is inside it as long as they sit down and shut up.”

Harlow admits defeat, sticking the earbuds into his ears and blasting his favorite song while allowing Raiden to take his arm and lead him in, letting go once the bulk of student body to get washed away in was dispersed along winding brick hallways.

Raiden stopped them both in front of a locker and tapped their ear while opening the door. They shrugged off their backpack as Harlow took out one of the earbuds.

“No backpacks in the classrooms.”

“Really?”

Raiden rolls their eyes as subtly as possible. “ ‘Tripping hazard.’ ”

Harlow snickered and put the earbud back in before setting the backpack on the ground and taking out a laptop, notepad, and mechanical pencil. When his eyes returned upward again to hand Raiden his backpack, Raiden was in conversation with someone.

The person waved at him.

He took the earbud out again, mentally preparing to go with Raiden’s plan.

“Hello! Annabeth, she/her,” said while the girl was tying up her long hair. “Usually it’s just Beth.”

“ ‘Cause it rhymes with Meth.” Another person walks up, multi-colored sleeves on a black hoodie one of their hands was stuck in. “Reggie. He/they.”

“Reginald,” Beth corrects.

“The fifteenth,” Raiden juts at Harlow’s arm.

Harlow stands in a stunned silence, not really sure what to do about this. Say. Would someone who barely speaks English respond in the same way? How would he even apply the accent to his own name?

“Need help?” Raiden ends up suggesting.

“No, no. Sorry.” Harlow says a curse in Yugenztch under his breath. “Harlow. He/him.”

Beth beams. “Shy is okay. We’ll do most of the talking.”

Raiden politely shoves Harlow’s backpack into their locker and starts walking. Everyone follows.

“So, where you from, Harlow?” Reggie makes some finger guns. “Mayland? Alandor? Khiefan?”

“Scotthoue?” Beth adds to the list.

Harlow takes note that they aren’t going to notice as much if he screws up the accent. “Yugenztch.”

“Oh. Wait, you’re not a telepath, are you?”

“Beth!” Reggie lightly punches her between the shoulderblades, setting his other hand on top of Harlow’s shoulder. It takes a lot of Harlow to keep from smacking the hand away.

Raiden turns around and moves Reggie’s hand away a little too passive-aggressively. “No, he’s not.”

“Shit! You don’t like being touched, do you? My bad.” Reggie’s arms fling into the air.

“You’re… good.” Harlow paused in the middle as if he was deciding on the right word, picking up the earbud strewn over his shoulder.

Raiden gives him a thumbs-up before leading the conversation away. “While he may not be able to read anyone’s mind, he is wildly good at playing Flash…”

Harlow cut off the world by sticking the music back into his ear, instead focusing on following Raiden to the first class of the day. If any of them tried to talk to him, he didn’t notice.

“One more hour. Think you can make it?” Raiden takes off their dark green jacket and holds out their hand for Harlow to toss his into.

“Probably. I don’t think running around a track is the most sociable activity.”

“Well, I don’t know. Beth and Reggie are in this class too. They just like showing up late to it.”

Harlow looked down at the gym floor they were both walking around on after handing off his jacket to Raiden. They’d made sure to walk out of overhearing distance from everyone else, not that they’d care.

A group of slower-walking girls kept giving him glances though.

“It’s not like I can’t just manually separate myself.”

“You sure? Beth does soccer and Reggie does basketball.”

“That might complicate things.”

Raiden shrugs. “You’ve got earbuds. I won’t bother you.”

“I think I can do it,” Harlow gets out his phone and turns it off, effectively pausing the music. Then he wrenches the earbuds out and hands Raiden the phone-earbud combo to put away with the jackets. “Talk.”

“You sure?”

Harlow didn’t get a chance to answer, as Beth and Reggie had finally made their way into the gym. Raiden left to go put the stuff into the locker room as the gym teacher led everyone outside to the track.

Raiden caught up while the teacher was unlocking the gate.

“Hey, Harlow. You wanna set the pace?” Beth’s eyes light up with a competitive spark when they switch from his to Reggie’s. “We don’t wanna leave you behind.”

“I’d take any excuse to beat her time, actually,” Reggie returns the competitive glaring.

“Raiden’s got more stamina than you do. If I don’t kick your ass, they will.”

Harlow gets taken aback for a moment.

“Oh,” Raiden catches it too. “They call me that too, you’ve actually heard them over the game before. So they don’t slip up while I’m online.”

Harlow sends Raiden a look screaming, Would’ve been nice to know earlier.

Beth and Reggie didn’t seem to catch it, arguing over who was faster.

“I can… set the pace. Yes.” Harlow mentally cringes at himself.

That, Beth and Reggie listen to. Beth’s the first onto the track regardless. “Well, then after you, mysterious Yugenztch exchangee. As fast as you can go, don’t hold back.”

Harlow takes in a deep breath, thinking about it. Like you’re running home.

Then he takes off.

“Holy shit.” Beth says. “Could’ve used a warning!”

He slows down to let them all catch up.

“You, my friend,” Reggie laughs, “Are exceptionally fast. What do you do back home? Besides video games?”

“Run,” Harlow says automatically. “Walk. I don’t own a car.”

“Not even a bike?” Beth relates.

“No.”

Raiden, though, seems the most surprised. “You’ve been holding back on me?”

“You said they were ‘chill runs,’” Harlow has to remind himself about the accent a little too much.

“How long has he actually been here?” Beth exasperates. “Have you been keeping him to yourself, Raiden?”

“Don’t say it like that.” Raiden makes a lax face of… disgust? Embarrassment?

Harlow isn’t given time to dwell on the matter of Raiden’s facial expression.

“Oooh, not every day you see hot rich women walk up to the track,” Beth is practically craning her head to look toward the entrance, where a police uniform, the gym teacher, and a blonde woman stood.

Harlow stopped dead in his tracks.

“Dad!” Raiden yelled after looking over. “What are you doing here?”

Raiden jogged up to the edge of the track. People stopped running to watch, including Beth and Reggie.

Harlow’s breath caught.

People were speaking. He could see it. He couldn’t hear it.

Raiden turned back to look at him. Then their dad did. Then the teacher.

And finally, his mother stared into him.

He barely felt the time passing as she walked up, preparing for the electric shock. To show it wasn’t happening, to pretend to be fine, to prove he was normal. Normal around her, normal around people, normal being himself when he wasn’t.

She placed her hand on his shoulder. He didn’t even move, just stared back at her.

And it didn’t come.

Of course it wouldn’t. She’s not stupid. She wouldn’t attempt to in front of the police. She knows it’s illegal, she knows she hurts me.

He tore his eyes away for a moment, watching Reggie’s widen.

“Let’s go home,” his mother finally delivered. “Away from this bullshit. What were you thinking?”

She let him stand in silence beneath her grip before he found enough courage to finally speak. “I don’t know.”

“Don’t know what?”

“Don’t know what I was thinking. Doing.”

She bends down to whisper in his ear, “My son does not stoop to talking with the trash.”

“Yes, mother.”

And then she pulls away, and he follows as she walks him out.

“So he’s not from Yugenztch, is he?” He hears Beth asking Raiden.

Raiden took a moment to respond, “No.”

“Where’s the phone, Harlow?”

“What?” It takes him a second to realize his mother is talking to him.

“The one I tracked to find you. Where is it?”

“The locker room. In one of the lockers.”

“I have the keys, Mrs. Collins. There’ll be no trouble,” the gym teacher is the last one to speak until they get back into the building.

The gym teacher clears his throat as Harlow opens the locker, “Hey, kid. If you ever wanted to join the track team, I wouldn’t blabber to nobody. You run good.”

“No thank you,” Harlow shakes his head. “I’m not available most of the time.”

“I understand.” Harlow shuts his eyes as he puts on his jacket again. You never will.

next chapter

━━━━━━━━━━━━ ▲ missing a content warning? let me know

kind of a slightly sillier fanfiction style.

[scaramews]

KAIN xx BELIAL

he/it/they, aroacespec transmasc bi, 20s, did/bpd

no set dni but don't int if you frequently post and/or kin raiden ei lol. i'll block if i don't like you or want you here. follow my kae. don't call me belial unless ik you. 18+ only

banner cred | icon cred | header by @dreamcrush

[sageofjustice]

"Yes, i had a feeling she was trying to pull my leg, it surely wouldn't be the first a kitsune tried to trick me." There was an event so long ago, when he encountered Kitsune Hakushin, she had attempted to trick the outlander into eating sweets meant for the Shogun, he was grateful that Raiden Makoto was a kind god, eating the food of a dea was consider bad luck and int he realm of lightning of which said god reigned over was bad news to have her on their bad side... to his surprise the the shogun invited him and Hakushin for tea and a friendship was formed.

Kitsune were tricksters but perhaps that was what was needed to get the wheels of destiny in motion. Angel then leans onto Itto and sighs "Was i. Awfully ridiculous? "

Guuji Yae had suggested other things, but they were far too odd for him to attempt, as it was stated he was not a yokai nor was he going to pretend to be one, yet he was certain that Itto would have found such things funny other than weird...and yet he would not risk it... he was not exactly a licker...but he would attempt it for Itto. "The time we spent together brings me so much joy, after centuries of wandering Teyvat alone... i never though id be this happy again."

[rvidenz]

cuchillo que se había obligado a tomar minutos atrás descansa en su mano.persona de bando opuesto lo utilizó para desquitarse la ira que tenía encima, con patadas, con puños y agradece que persona que lo ataca no contaba con ninguna arma que pudiese hacer de sus heridas peores porque al darse cuenta que no se iba a defender terminó por seguir su camino. no duele, ningún golpe le dolía.  ‘  chaleco negro. pantalones de camuflaje, si te lo encuentras corre.   ’  advierte a primer jugadore que le pasa por el camino.  ‘  al momento que encuentre un arma va a matar como si nada, mejor ve por la izquierda, se acaba de ir por allá.   ’  señala lado derecho donde se había ido. 

[sonodaten]

And Unto You I Bestow

“And in the journey of life, we will live, laugh, love, and cry with no control, or explanation why.”—John Newman feat. Idris Elba, “Revolve”//“No man is an island unto himself.”—John Donne//“What is a legacy? It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.”—Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton, “The World Was Wide Enough”//“I am the Alpha and the Omega; The Beginning and the End.”—Revelations 22:13//“The first great gift we can bestow upon others is a good example.”—Thomas Morell

I originally drew this as penance to Elysia for good luck on my HoHE draws, and since I managed to get her, her stigmata, her weapon, AND Elf Elysia without having to fish out my wallet, I’d say she enjoyed it even though I finished late! The alternative title for this series is “hits you over the head with how obvious it was the artist was raised catholic” with how much halo imagery I squeezed in here! But I think it was appropriate given what happened in Ch 31 (🥲) and just…everything that’s dropped in terms of info for the game the past few days. Six more years of Honkai? Yeah, I think I can manage that just fine 😂

[kinships]

“you’ll be okay.” Thoma to Setsuna

Three Words (ACCEPTING)

"I haven't been okay in years, Thoma.... Hard t'when you didn't get to have your revenge...."

[nahimarchive]

the growl instantly pulled a delighted chirp of laughter from nahim, his eyes brightening at the sound before the threat was levelled. “hubris is a foreign concept to you, isn’t it?” his amusement remained crystal clear as he regarded the beast before him, his smile widening a fraction despite the very real possibility of raiden staying true to his word and flattening malta to a mere reminder of what it once was. “don’t. you’re above that, raiden. have a little faith in me and my word.” it was clear that there was still significant work to be done – both as a new councilman and as marcellino’s replacement – to establish beneficial bonds. it was a process nahim was still working on wrapping his head properly around and though raiden’s unpredictability and complete lack of awareness for anything but ensuring his own successes made the process challenging, it did little to deter nahim from establishing something here; it was just going to take a bit of extra work.

a sharp gasp of surprise left nahim as raiden’s talons embedded themselves deep into the muscle of his thighs to manhandle him into place and for a moment, the vampire chastised himself mentally for letting his guard slip so easily around something like raiden. he reacted on impulse, his fangs bearing instinctively at the initial jolt of pain and hissed his discomfort (even if it wasn’t entirely genuine), locking his ankles around raiden’s waist to keep himself secure for his own peace of mind as he pitched forward to bury his face against raiden’s neck with a whine as an experimental roll of his hips followed as he adjusted to the change in pace. “is it going to hurt?” the smile decorating nahim’s features as the question was mumbled against raiden’s neck directly contradicted the innocence of his words and he muffled a laugh against raiden’s flesh as he squirmed in the other councilman’s hold again. “it better. don’t disappoint me.”

The growl that left Raiden made the door reverberate. Little shit liked to test him. Not many had the balls to. Naive and ignorant he had to remind himself. Nahim was playing a game that was far too advanced for him. A game he'd watched from the sidelines so thought likely thought he was going to be good at, or good enough at. Raiden knew well who got him where he was. Paid a lot more attention than most gave him credit, had to considering he was only one monster in a sea of them. A powerful one, which put a target on him big as any on all councilmen. He had ambitions though, which not all had. Few shared the desire to rule over it all. Took a certain kind of narcissist to want to be a tyrant. Raiden was a tyrant through and through. Bred and built to be one. He didn't like to share. Eventually he wouldn't have to, but he could play the long game now. Course the thing was creatures like him were more than willing to collapse the house of cards everything was built on to make a point. War was an inevitability and things like Raiden thrived in war.

"Careful Malta, hate to see that island of yours disappear." Leveling that kind of land mass for him wouldn't be an issue. A day trip. But an act of war, not likely this early on, which made it worthless. No one was on Malta's side save Italy and even De Luca wasn't stupid enough to throw down for a piece of ass. Little shit was too new to have any allies to make it interesting. However long Nahim wanted to last was inconsequential to him. He was only there for one reason.

"Now, where was I?" The question rhetorical, his sage colored eyes glaring into the dark hue of Malta's while he sunk his talon's back in the meat of the younger's thighs once more pulling them around his larger waist.

[fortuneslipslash]

archonsmuses replied ; ⚜︎

she was aware her own nation was filled with different kinds of creatures, and humans for that matter. the treasure hoarders and ronin weren't exactly much of a bigger threat to her when she was told of them. after she had finally left her own plane of euthymia, and took her role as her nation's archon - she took matters into her own hands; protecting the nation she truly cared for.

she wasn't exactly expecting another outlander in her nation, however...upon taking sight of the unconscious blonde, she was quick enough to carry him in her arms and rush into treatment for the boy.

reminded her of another certain traveler she's met...

in the past, whenever she were to be injured; she would treat her own wounds with the right materials given. of course, small scolding would be given to her if she were to be hurt, being called reckless as such - but she saw it as a job for her. she was a martial artist, and even if she were to be scathed, she needn't stumble.

escaping the thoughts she had in her mind, the boy's voice was enough to make her come back once again into reality.

" do not move, your injuries still must be bandaged. " her voice was soft, quiet in a more comforting tone in reassurance to the blonde when she wrapped the bandages in a small ribbon, making sure they were in place - not to fall, and to only be a little tight.

she seemed so focused...

[la-li-lu-le-lol]

Mgs2 deleted scene

"Since no one can kill me, I may as well kill everyone I can," Fortune hefts her railgun against her hip as she glares daggers at the man who killed her father. "Starting with you, Snake."

"You want eternal rest? I got it right here." Snake growls as he stares down the barrel of his SMG at Fortune. He tells Raiden to go on ahead. It was gonna get bloody, he didn't need to see this.

Fortune glares at him, ready. They both walk cautiously towards eachother.

Fortune reaches into her purse and pulls out a box of Connect Four.

And then they play several rounds of very quiet, very intense Connect Four and just glare at eachother the whole time. xD

[wargcdess]

NUEVA NOTIFICACIÓN:   📲   mensaje entrante para @texxgreen

ares: se puso color rojo cuando le dije mea piscinas istg

ares: momento favorito del viaje, ojalá lo hubiera podido grabar

ares: ains