#its also less about being ''rescued'' from the fire and him just having to put it out really

[ccaptain]

Waiting for someone to ask H:SR Kaeya "do you believe in yourself? are you still on fire? did you ever put out that fire?" so I may pack my bags and end my roleplaying career right then and there because of the "fire burning away his old identity" allegory and I may be slightly obsessed with this to the point where shooting myself in the knee would be less painful and more productive.

Because, despite everything, he's still in the middle of the house fire.

Kaeya travels with a goal that has stopped making him feel anything but obligation to completition. He can only become whole with others that bring out the good in him, and he's at a loss when alone, drifting aimlessly without a real personality that could have a chance to develope in company. Not in the way he wants to.

He never put out that fire. And there's nobody who's going to walk through the tall, raging flames to do it for him.

[starrylothcat]

2 and 11 from the most recent prompt list?

(Kisses down the neck underneath a high necked shirt (cough blacks cough)) (Kisses all over the face until.) With Crosshair? Man always is so sassy but I want a little sugar with him sometimes too.

Happily Ever After

Pairing: Crosshair x GenReader

Summary: You and Crosshair share a ‘lil cozy romantic moment.

Warnings: None? Cheesy drabble with kissing. Potential implied sexy times at the end but nothing is described or explicit. Can be read either way I think. Reader isn’t described. Established relationship.

WC: 1,000

A/N: I am filled with cheese (and sugar) after writing this. It’s getting colder where I live and I’m feeling cozy. I love writing ‘lil soft moments with this man. Also he’s totally a reader. Thanks so much for the ask! ❤️

You were curled up on the couch next to Crosshair, a small fire crackling in your fireplace.

Though Pabu was mostly tropical, the winter months dropped enough in temperature to warrant a small fire in the evenings.

Your legs were on his lap as you laid on the couch, Crosshair using them as an armrest.

You were absentmindedly watching a silly Holovid while Crosshair read on his datapad. Ever since being rescued from the Empire, Crosshair had taken up a few hobbies to keep him busy on Pabu. One of them was reading. He devoured literature, often finishing a novel in a day or two.

You were used to this routine, quiet evenings with just the two of you. You loved hearing him speak of the tales he finished, hearing his thoughts on characters and motivations.

You tried to keep up with him and read the same books, though his keen eyes were able to read and process words much faster than you.

The novels you could finish, you’d sometimes talk for hours about them with him.

You tried to focus on the Holovid, but you were distracted by his profile as he read. His sharp features have softened a bit in the time he’s been on Pabu, the delicate warmth of the fireplace adding a glow to his skin.

He looked peaceful, serene even. You knew the trials and tribulations he went through, the heartbreak and tragedy. You knew he still carried regret like stones in his heart, never quite forgiving himself for what he put his brothers through, though they have forgiven him.

You shifted, slowly sitting up. Crosshair didn’t budge, engrossed in the story. It wasn’t until you moved your legs off his lap and turned off the vid that he gave you a questioning look.

You stretched your arms above your head, readjusting yourself next to him.

You peeked at the words on his datapad, this story about a pirate who kidnaps a hot-headed princess for ransom, but ends up falling for her instead.

“Enjoying this one?” You asked, leaning your head on his shoulder.

Crosshair shrugged.

“It’s fine. Could use some more action and less romance, though.”

You snorted, flicking your eyes up to him.

“Too lovey dovey for you?”

A ghost of a smirk played at the corners of his mouth.

“The princess should kick the pirate’s ass instead of kissing them, is all I’m saying.”

You turned toward him more fully.

“But the pirate has a heart of gold and she sees straight through him! Tale old as time.”

“How do you know?” Crosshair asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I read the summary.” You replied, laughing.

Crosshair still stared at you.

“Okay, okay. I watched the Holofilm they made for this story!”

Crosshair let out a dry chuckle, setting the datapad down.

“Well, you can save me the time and just tell me the rest of the story. Let me guess, they live happily ever after?”

You snorted. “Is that so bad?”

You traced your hand over his, slowly moving up his arm.

Crosshair grunted as your hand made its way up to his shoulder, and up to his cheek. You cupped his face, gently moving his head to face you entirely.

“Is it so bad for the princess to fall for the handsome, roguish fiend?” You whispered, the fire now reflecting in his eyes as he focused on you.

You kissed his cheek, starting a slow path to his other cheek, over his nose and down to his chin.

Crosshair’s long fingers were now tracing up and down your back as you left featherlight pecks all over his face.

You felt him relax into the couch, his breath hitching slightly as you made your way from his stubbled jawline and under his ear, a highly sensitive spot only you knew about.

“It’s not so bad, I suppose.” Crosshair mumbled, his eyes closing, getting lost in the feeling of your lips on his skin.

You made your way down his neck, mentally making a note of how his breathing changed at certain spots.

You hooked a finger at the collar of his blacks, tugging them down to get more access to his skin. You took in his musky scent, how his hand was subtly pulling you closer to him as you continued your journey, relishing in this reserved moment of him letting you take control.

You left small nibbles, using your tongue to trace small patterns at the skin of his neck, which was now flushed with some color, pulling his blacks down further.

His slight grunts and labored breathing was music to your ears that you could listen to forever, his skin becoming hot under your ministrations. You finally lifted your head and topped it all off with a long, deep kiss on his lips.

Crosshair groaned as he lifted you into his lap, fully wrapping his arms around you, taking back some control as his mouth moved with yours.

His tongue danced across your lips, announcing his intention. You invited him in, letting your tongues slowly slide against one another, his hand cradling the back of your head. It was a languid kiss, perfectly matching the tone of the night.

When you finally pulled yourself away from him to catch a much-needed breath, his eyes held a mirthful glint.

“Do you really want me to tell you how the story ends?” You whispered, touching your forehead to his.

“Hmmm…” Crosshair hummed, beginning his own mission of leaving kisses on your cheeks, your forehead, your chin, and down to your neck, your own body heating up at his touch.

“I’ll have to decide that later.” Crosshair’s breath was hot on your skin, his kisses becoming more intense.

You let out a squeal as Crosshair quickly maneuvered you on your back, bouncing slightly on the plush cushions as his lithe body hovered over you.

You smiled as he continued on, leaving no part of your skin untouched by his lips.

By the time you were finished, the fire had burned to embers, and you lay entwined together, drifting off in one another’s arms enjoying the peace of the night.

Though Crosshair would never say it out loud, he did find his happily ever after, and that was in these moments with you.

Taglist: @crosshairlovebot @sev-on-kamino @kimiheartblade @wizardofrozz @clonemedickix @sunshinesdaydream @kashasenpai @freesia-writes @multi-fan-dom-madness @aconstructofamind @dreamie411 @dystopicjumpsuit @wings-and-beskar @starqueensthings @idontgetanysleep @secretthegriffin @anxiouspineapple99 @sinfulsalutations @secondaryrealm @littlemissmanga @maybethatfanfictionwriter @pb-jellybeans @wanderer-six @king-chaos-world @wolffegirlsunite @dukeoftheblackstar @523rdrebel @lune-de-miel-au-paradis @sleepingsun501 @coraex @cw80831 @dangraccoon @mythical-illustrator @eternal-transcience @the-cantina @nahoney22 @moonlightwarriorqueen @skellymom

Divider by @dystopicjumpsuit

[fighter-spirits]

watching promare again. gonna note down new things i notice under the cut. so. spoilers! (post will be continuously edited)

taking a break after galo storms off and right before lio gets to be awesome, ill reblog this and continue when im ready - i got tired of analyzing so i might not continue for a while lol

never noticed them before but the square lens flares in the establishing shots of promepolis, driving home that shape language.

our heroic burning rescue unit is unit 3, there's a LOT of 3s around the location. i never processed it despite it being on galo's PANTS too...

The map of promepolis also looks very new york

also you can see lucia ACTIVELY WORKING ON MATOI TECH

i can barely read the calendar but does anyone else think it says "uno" on the 14th?

aina's friends?

lucia has a full on vending machine and also solo cups for some reason in her locker (she grabs the lollipop too)

remi's locker. (sorry for the frame its so quick)

also i struggled to get a shot but i did know before hand, if you didnt know, galo was sleeping in the truck. maybe because it's dark? anyways, remi almost steps on him

also i JUST realized lucia is basically in a bra and labcoat. girl where's your shirt.

also varys should have the most severe whiplash in the world but ill forgive it because anime.

the cube seems hardly safe for transportation

also. burnish lightning? is this ever even relevant after the aina introduction.

what ever happened to seatbelts btw.

also i cant help but wonder how the solid flames works. (and why lio chose that foot shape.........)

ohhhh ignis is audio only because he's using his ear piece + not in a mech like aina and varys. nice attention to detail there.

is it fair to assume galo didn't bother remembering lio's name because he assumed he'd never have to see him again?

the square lens flare returns for the reveal of the freeze force :3c

vulcan has the same heel piece as kray

you also can hear so many hydraulics and shit when vulcan turns which is a hint at him being more than meets the eye (or less?)

also i feel silly for just now only processed that promare uses a colored line style. better get to reflecting that in my art (i love colored lines)

cant help but get a stupid silly smile when kray speaks for the first time tbh

also im dying to know about the prison location. are they in canada now or something. where is this that its constantly snowing. are they controlling the external climate there??

anyways. tiny

a look into the average promepolis citizen

also kray is actually not that freakishly tall bc galo is only like a few inches shorter (not including his hair)

also kray is smiling while galo talks but his fists are clenched. :3c

also it seems implied that ALL galo remembers from the fire was kray carrying him away from it. so no wonder kray feels like a hero to him. but i think kray probably only carried him because galo wouldn't let go.

i never even processed galo changed outfits from medal to pizza time. didn't even realize he was in uniform originally

also the foreshadowing of "i'm sure some of those burnish guys are pretty decent" while showing secret burnish pizza man makes a pizza

and this is the worst image of kray ive seen in this movie i think. what happened to his limbs pft

something tells me promepolis used to be new york city

not really a story thing but here's my evidence on why he can have a child /j

ALSO WHO LET HIM WEAR WHITE TO A FUNERAL. IS THE ARMBAND THE BEST HE COULD DO.

also the fact that they also seem to freeze people's throats is incredibly fucked up. too scared of someone looking to their left???

the sound effects kind of imply aina puts this chair down specifically to do this help

i dont have words just take this

[nijigasakilove]

David Production have been on a roll this season. We didn’t have the insane sakuga and fights today we’ve had the last few eps, but this was no less exciting. My GOAT Benimaru came up clutch against the white clads to rescue the 8th, AND my wife Hibana back on screen getting major focus 😩 that ending!! couldn’t ask for a better set up episode as we continue unraveling the mystery of spontaneous combustion.

I love how even the white clads were scared of Benimaru. Insane aura. Showed up in the nick of time! So the 8th are officially persona non grata in the empire all for the crime of standing up against the white clads. Luckily Asakusa has always had its own distinct identity and felt separate from the empire, so they can lay low there for a bit! Also cool that no one who actually knows the 8th is buying that story, so the Holy Sol are mainly just affecting public perception of the 8th rather than their image among the other Fire Brigades.

Burns apologising to Karim and Huo Yan Li before he left was a bittersweet detail too. Think in his heart he was hoping to die and be freed from the path he’d cornered himself into. He needed Shinra to prove him wrong since he couldn’t let go.

Hibana screentime!! I’ll never forget the chokehold she had me in back in summer 2019 😭 still just as funny as back then seeing her cool guys like Kishiri. Poor fella really thought he was hot shit just to get called ugly and told to cut his hair lmaoo. On a serious note, it’s always cool narratively when you realize a big lore reveal has been in front of your face so long. We’ve seen a lot of Iris/Hibana flashbacks over the first couple seasons, who’d have thought the secret to humanity’s greatest mystery would be right under the convent

The build up to Hibana finally piecing it together that the sisters were all human experiments for the bugs was so good. Felt just as disgusted as she did at the thought of the convent being one big infernal ant breeding ground 🤢 in many ways Sumire didn’t even try to hide it, like she talked about the ants openly, but ofc no one back then would’ve clocked what she meant.

Of course she’s been down there in the basement this whole time waiting on someone to put the clues together.. Can’t wait for next episode it’s gonna be awesome!

[megatruxfr]

A thing i think should happen in mighty monsterwheelies season 2

Oh my god i hate this show so much, but it has an interesting premise, even i will admit that. The premise, monster cars, is kinda good, its just executed poorly with bad designs, bad worldbuilding and BAD development.

Also this poster triggers me now because where are Gill -E and Axyl? I mean i watched this shit for Sonnie and i had to check any MMW source i could find so many times bc i wasnt sure what gender Gill -E was so many times (she's a girl big duh) but still.

One thing that imo would make mighty monster trash a mighty mediocre trash

(I saw someone call it a 'mediocre monster mess'. Love that so much xd.)

Anyway, i only watched Mighty Monsterwheelies once, when it just landed on Netflix and i rewatched it a while back. Dinotrux Supercharged being replaced by this show is one of the biggest reasons Monsterwheelies bothers me so much (and the fact that its badly made) but focusing less on Supercharged and more on the series itself, as much as it pains me to say it believe me i hate myself for this:

The premise of the show is good. The show itself is bad, but the premise isnt.

One thing i did notice about Mighty Monsterwheelies, even the first time, during my introduction to the series, i didnt fully 100% up and down from here to up in space hate it, even though i completely expected myself to do so. For some reason i LOVE Sonnie, i don't know what it is, but he, apart from the premise, is the only enjoyable factor in this show. I don't care about any of these characters but i love Sonnie.

What do i think season 2 should do?

Season 1 and 2 are the most important seasons. 1 introduces us to the characters, the world, the plot and the problems, and season 2 gets the best, most direct chance to solve problems with the characters, plot or world to improve the show. Mighty Monsterwheelies CAN improve, that is if season 2 is done right.

2 points that would improve the show if done correctly

(MY OPINIONS!!!!!!)

1. More interaction between the characters. What i noticed in Mighty Monsterwheelies is that the characters, except for in their missions, barely have any interaction. They barely have any friendly interaction outside of their work. I think having the Monsterwheelies behave as friends in a group instead of their constant work would work very well for development. We can learn more about their trust in one another, how they met, how long they have been friends, how each of them got into Motorvania, etc etc. Learning more about these characters as friends and not as rescue workers can make for good development. It doesnt have to be super deep because after all its for little kids, but just seeing the Monsterwheelies be friends and enjoy some friend time together would be nice. I think Dinotrux did this really well, because Ty, Dozer, Skya and Ton Ton are always on the move, they build, fight and solve other problems, but there are so many episodes where they just have fun as friends and do stupid stuff thats enjoyable to watch. One time they have to stop lava from streaming into the crater and another time the boys have fished a ball full of parts out of a lake and spend the entire episode trying to break it open. THAT is good, because it shows FRIENDLY INTERACTION BETWEEN CHARACTERS DESCRIBED AS FRIENDS. IF YOURE GONNA DESCRIBE CHARACTERS AS FRIENDS, THEY HAVE TO REALLY BE FRIENDS.

2. More emotional depth. Stuff like this can work so well in shows like this. Again its for kids, so it doesnt have to be deep like trauma or personal problems (except if its handled like in Dinotrux and Batwheels) but if kids see characters they like have a problem, they care more. For example, just a little scenario. The Monsterwheelies are called to put out a fire. The fire is really big and because Bolts is the firetruck, he is expected to do most of the work. But he has never seen a fire as big as this one and it scares him, and he fears he can't do it alone. Youre not gonna give a fire truck an ironic fear of fires, so you have the monsterwheelies TEAM UP AND HELP BOLTS SOLVE THE PROBLEM. This achieves 3 things. A character with a problem; Bolts is scared of the fire. The other characters, his friends, reassuring him, telling him he can do it and helping him get trough the shock. A heroic teamleader being shown vulnerable; Bolts is the leader, he's never been bothered by a fire, but now he's scared and he can't do it alone! See?! Its such an easy scenario but it WORKS!

Not going to deep with the second point is something i will explicitly point out here, because this is a show for kids and it would be unfair to ask a preschool show to handle such serious topics as trauma. Something as simple as a scared character CAN WORK!

Something i have not understood from the start is why the monsterwheelies are the only monster hybrids and the only ones with special powers snd amibilities. How were they made? Are they from Motorvania? If not where DID they come from?

Little thing that wont ever happen but what if their backstories had to do with the characters the wheelies are based on?

Seriously, what if Bolts was created to be the first ever living fully functioning car ever and he was like spliced together by different parts from different cars of the local car yard by some mad mechanic?! Like how Frankenstein was created by dufferent body parts by Victor?? HOW COOL WOULD THAT BE!??!

Ooooo and what if Sonnie and Mayor van Helsing actually used to hate each other and mayor used to hunt vampires back in the day but he like spared Sonnie when he noticed Sonnie was helping his people and not hurting them?! LIKE WHATT I SEE POTENTIALLLLLL

Fanfiction ideas have been summoned. They have. And they shall be here 1 day.

Oh well, its coming, lets hope s2 is at least a bit better.

[driftward]

Title: FFXIV Write 2024 - 16. Third Rate Characters: Zoissette Vauban, Lavender, Ilberd Feare Rating: Teen Summary: Hers was a third rate plan, too, but Zoissette wasn't about to admit that. Notes: Weird Wild West AU - A Desertwalkers story

In the canyon, a Thunderhead war airship sat, incomplete, tethered to the canyon wall, sitting low below the edge where it would be impossible to see from a distance despite its immense size. The ceruleum refinery on fire on the lip of the canyon, however, was rather more visible, and made for a dramatic backdrop for what was a not very impressive duel.

Zoissette was, despite her military background, not much of a fighter. In the military she had been an engineer. Now, she was a naturalist, which meant she could hold her own in most fights, between her field skills and various Pattern-enhanced gadgets. However, whoever she was fighting in that white Griffin mask was huge, powerful, and clearly had lived an entire life honing his martial prowess.

Weave crackled around his blade as he swung it around hard towards her midsection, and she chose to fold into it, kicking her legs to push herself back with the blow, blocking with her twin blades which hummed with deep Pattern energies of their own. Lightning and ice met, and she was thrown backwards, far backwards, flying through the air and tripping as she landed, rolling along the ground.

"Sloppy!" the man crowed. "I'll tear you limb from limb! And what will you have accomplished?"

"Oh, I would pay real pel to get him to stop talking," groused Zoissette quietly to the ground as she pushed herself up. It was hot up here, despite the night, as the free ceruleum around the refinery caught and blazed, creating a bluish inferno lighting up the night like a torch. It silhouetted the man, giving him the appearance of being much larger than life, the flames a dramatic outline as he cast a long shadow, the lighting dancing along his mask.

Zoissette came to her feet, unsteady. She knew her little one person airship was hidden behind some rocks not so far.

And also that she was running out of time.

Had to try to get him to run out of time first.

"More than you!" she yelled back. "This is a third rate plan by a two bit megalomaniac who cares not one whit for his people! A Thunderhead is more than just a weapons platform, it is a logistics nightmare! You will need fuel, water, people. And that contraption you had built? A fancy deathtrap for your soldiers!"

The fire roared, and so did his returning laughter. "Elegant, wouldn't you agree? Imagine! My people, at the height of their emotion, feeling the fire of revolutionary fervor! They'd give anything to carve out their freedom."

He slowly stalked towards her. "Even their lives. And that will be fuel enough to launch the Shinryu."

She frowned at him. The heat must be getting to him. He had gone mad. He was babbling. Fuel? Maybe if a bunch of very angry very agitated ghosts slamming into the Weave all at once bad enough to create an uncontrollable, unpredictable storm was fuel. The release of all that emotion would more likely blow out the entire Pattern assembly and-

Oh.

Oh, no.

She saw it now.

She had to get back to town. She had to warn everyone. And she still had to secure enough time for the people she had rescued and put on a rail cart to be able to make their escape.

On one side of her, the canyon edge. In front of her, this mad man and a refinery that was going to go up any moment. On her other side, open bushland all the way out to a very distant horizon. And behind her, less than a hundred meders away, her method of escape.

She could practically feel her options narrowing.

And what was taking Lavender so long?

"Oh, sod this," she said, sheathing her swords. The man stopped, tilting his head, holding his sword back, waiting to see what trick she had up her sleeve.

She drew her gun, crouched to one knee, and took careful aim.

He laughed.

"That won't do you any good!"

He was right.

Or at least, he would have been, if she had not spent the last bell sneaking around, locking cutoff valves in their open position, and disabling the flashback suppressors on the overpressure systems. The fire would've caught something eventually and triggered a chain explosion.

A carefully aimed pyros round would cause that to happen now.

The first pressure vessel exploded, and the man twisted in shock, watching as the fireball travelled upward. He turned and ran, springing for the edge of the canyon, throwing himself over the edge.

Zoissette was already in motion, sprinting for her craft. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Lavender at last come zooming up from the canyon, having carried out her task, and trying to return as fast as possible.

The second pressure vessel went up, and its explosion chained into the main refinery tower.

The resulting hellfire boomed out over the landscape, a blue fireball erupting up into the sky, turning night into day for a split second. The fireball curled in on itself, smoke and molten metal and ash streaking its mushroom cap as it rose slowly, a shockwave rocketing out from it, sweeping the plain clean, thundering over the canyon. The blast took out the canyon lip, and a rockslide began, the refinery and the ground it was sitting on crumbling, falling down, pelting the Thunderhead airship with debris. The sound of metal cables being pulled tight and then snapping echoed their metallic notes, reverberating amongst canyon walls, as the airship pulled free and was set adrift.

A strange rain fell, made of dirt clumps and molten metal, twirling detritus lit with ceruleum fire, peppering the ground for a malm around.

And one elf fell to the ground with a sickening crunch, rebounded, rolling into the air, and landed again, and with a final flop at last came to rest, her would-be funeral pyre still burning behind her.

Those she had helped escape would be safe. Those who would have recaptured them would now be too busy with this industrial scale catastrophe. And the launching of the Thunderhead would surely be delayed significantly.

If only someone was left who could return to town, return to proper civilization, and warn them of what a mad man was attempting to accomplish here deep in the desert, next to a long abandoned quarry, in a canyon few dared to bother to traverse.

Gods, everything hurt.

Was it worth it, in the end?

Sloppy, indeed.

She closed her eyes.

Her breathing, labored, stilled.

Her fingers twitched.

And then, she gasped.

A terrible, ghostly energy lit around her.

Broken bones reset themselves as her limbs flailed to their correct alignment. Terrible cracking noises were made as her body stitched itself back together. Blood that had pooled under her reversed its course, seeping back into its body. Muscles reknit and her body shuddered, and she rolled over onto her back, before sitting up sharply, suddenly, as though she were spring loaded. She let out a terrible groan as she stood to her feet, and at last, opened her eyes.

Eyes which now glowed with an ethereal purple energy.

She stood there for several long moments, before looking down at herself. She briskly brushed dirt and debris off herself, and patted herself down. She tested her limbs, flexing fingers and toes, arms and legs, finishing by jogging in place for a moment and doing some experimental stretches.

Satisfied that she was in one piece, or close enough, she looked around.

"Oh, mistress," said Lavender, unhappily. "What are we supposed to do now?"

Zoissette would not be answering anytime soon.

[the-s1lly-corner]

Ragatha, Jax, Kinger, Zooble x reader but one of them cant cook (real world au)

something something the tycoon im playing on roblox keeps adding more stuff and the progress bar is at 75% and i wanna see the end of it so we're still on that grind... still writing in between so!!! yeah!! i guess this is also kind of make up stuff for neglecting this blog a bit these past few weeks, since it feels like i havent been writing as much as i used to due to other stuff... sobs ran this idea through the wheel since i dont feel like writing for everyone rn

RAGATHA:

youre the one who cant cook.... you just wanted to make something nice for her but yet here you are; trying to settle down a small fire in the oil you've just started while trying to cook dinner.. of course, your loud panicking causes ragatha to rush right in while youre panicking and trying to search for the pans lid to smother the flame... but hey look at it this way, your partner has come to your rescue, snuffing out the fire before you could.. i think ragatha would lightly scold you... she knows you were trying to do something nice for her, but if this is the outcome for things... oh but dont think shes going to ban you from the kitchen! no actually i think she might offer to teach you, or maybe you guys sign up for cooking classes together, perhaps both of you will learn something new! generally a positive thing once the emotions and adrenaline die down... though youre still temporarily banned from cooking when shes not home....

JAX:

jax is the one who cant cook. like yeah sure he can read a recipe and follow it.... okay... but i think its less of him being a bad cook and more so him wanting to do his own thing in the kitchen... which leads to him going off course and making... something alright...! usually he doesnt start a fire or make something unsafe for human consumption, but boy.... he really can make..! not FOOD but he can make! i dont think cooking classes or trying to teach him are going to do much... though, cooking WITH him might be nice... even if you have to keep an eye on him to make sure hes not doing anything diabolical... i mean, hey, bonus time and interaction with your partner, plus im always soft for scenarios of both partners cooking or baking together...!

KINGER:

honestly its a coin toss to see whos the bad cook, i think it depends on whats being cooked.... like i think kinger can make a good steak. its just the dad in him... panics if you start a fire, and remains tense about it for a long while. i think he might ban you from cooking simply because hes so scared of you getting hurt (call it him hanging on to his habits from being stuck in the circus, or him simply not wanting to have the house burn down). i dont think he would purposefully make you feel bad or baby you, but you can tell he tenses up when you offer to cook dinner that night.. i think kinger, when hes the one cooking, has a few recipes he rotates through, so theres little to no risk of messing something up.. plus routine makes him feel secure

ZOOBLE:

i can honestly see zooble being a pretty good cook! and as a quick aside i think they would be a god at making snacks, and perhaps making new and unique snacks... maybe its their looks but they look like theyd make combos that sound weird in theory but work well in practice..! i think they would be really firm in keeping you from cooking, especially if youve started a fire at least once.. just that one time is enough for zooble to put their foot down... but hey, at least youre still their little taste tester for their snacks...! probably bars you from the kitchen entirely when anything flammable is involved

[waytooobsessedwithmcyt]

Silly Game Time: In honor of today, February 28th, being the last day of Black History Month, who are some of your favorite Black characters? And what do you like about them?

They can be from any media (movies, shows, books, comics, games, etc.) (OCs count, too). They can be explicitly of African descent, or they can be from a story where Earth and its continents and its history don't exist (like in many sci-fi and fantasy).

Myself, being a Star Wars fan, I quite like the two Jedi Cere Junda (a haunted survivor dedicated to rebuilding a source of light) and Mace Windu (a stern paladin of his order, fighting for civilization and democracy).

Gus from toh, I want him to kiss Matt and I don't know if that's a rare pair or not but I love them. Also Gus being the child prodigy everyone was only friends with because they wanted him to do something for them was very relatable as a gifted kid

Slightly less collected thoughts on Bigb, he's just my little baby. I forgive him for everything he's done (he's done a lot)

In OC's, I have a character named Indigo who I put through the fucking wringer. Her backstory is based on one of my friends but with more generational trauma. She was adopted after her mother died during childbirth by a rich noble family. Her mother loves her a lot, but her grandmother doesn't accept that she's her family because she's adopted. Also on her twentieth birthday her uncle was killed by assassins with their own place in the lore but then this post would be a mile long because I'd have to explain 200 years of parascom history

My second OC ever made when I was nine was Cherry, and since I made her so young, she's a little less nuanced than Indigo even though they're in the same world. She was also a trans character before I knew what trans meant or that I was trans. I wish I remembered how my thought process went when I made her

I have a lot of OCs and can't pick my favorite so I'll try to go quick

Bianca- technically the rightful heir to the throne but that's a whole story arc in my head, aromantic lesbian and probably the person Casual by Chappel Roan is about

Astra- technically she's half black half Asian but I love her so she counts, she really likes frogs and pretty women (her personality is just me but sillier)

Avina- also only technically half black and half white, she's Astra's girlfriend and the daughter of the man who overthrew Bianca's mother (they're cousins) making her the heir to the throne

Those three are in a different world to Indigo and Cherry, but back to their world

Yew and Holly- members of the assassin group that killed Indigo's uncle (still a long story)

Apollo- technically co-made by me and my friend, he's deaf and has nerve damage from his childhood home being caught on fire and barely getting rescues from the flames, long story once again

Dahlia- I think the description I wrote of her in my notes app says it best "probably sent as a divine test of patience" she's a little chaos gremlin

[amunyan]

The icy wind has brought snow flurries and buried the landscape in a thick blanket of snow.

Mereoleona looks out of the large window in her brother's office at the snow-covered front garden and the thickening snowdrift.

With a deep sight she remembers the evening of the day before and her guilt grows again.

Yes, she jumped to conclusions and hurt you a lot. She only slowly realised that after you left the house and she was alone, with no real chance of contacting you, because you also left your phone in her flat. Maybe a chance that you might come back, but maybe also a sign that you wanted nothing more to do with her.

"You are very gifted, sis. How do you manage to alienate the same person twice in the span of a week?"

"Don't lecture me. I've already received my punishment..."

"Do you mean that (Y/N) is probably gone for good now, or that you've burnt both of your palms? Where did you get such a stupid idea? Even small children know that food straight from the oven is hot and shouldn't be touched with bare hands. But my big sister thinks she can control the fire and is immune to it..."

Mereoleona just looks at her brother with a murderous glint in her eyes. But he does not react at all.

Fuegoleon wraps a final layer of bandage around her left hand and tapes the end with a plaster. "There, that's it. Bandage changed. Does it fit? You can't do much with your hands anyway, but it shouldn't be too tight."

She moves her fingers and turns her wrists. "I think so. Thank you..." she mumbles tonelessly.

But her Brother can't help but remark that he sometimes doubts that Mereoleona thinks at all.

"Otherwise you'd have thought better a week ago when you attacked (Y/N) in the shower. You're lucky Mina didn't take it too badly. And you wouldn't have taken the already burned food out of the 200 degree hot oven with your bare hands, and most of all you wouldn't have believed Leo's nonsense about (Y/N) having something going on with his PE teacher Mr. Sukehiro. Just to name a few recent examples".

Like a pile of misery, Mereoleona just lets it pass. She doesn't say anything. Not anymore. Instead, she changes the subject: "Can you at least fix the cup?" She looks over at her brother, but he just shrugs. "We'll see," he says as he goes to the sideboard in the hall to put the first aid kit back in its place.

He swallows: "I really thought my teacher was serious about him and (Y/N) being together. I mean, we saw them in the mall and he said she was his prey. But..." He trailed off. He looked away shyly. "I didn't know he just recalled your words from the christmasmarket back than. That you and she... Well, I always thought that she and our brother would get together..."

Not only that Mereo burned her hands badly the other day, she also managed to destroy the strawberry cup that had been sitting innocently on the kitchen counter. In her attempt to rescue the burnt food from the oven, which was already helplessly sending out dark smoke signals as you left the flat, she had rammed the cup with the casserole dish.

The cup, which she thought was ugly as hell despite the information that it was actually a Christmas present for her, flew in a less high curve, but straight onto the stone-tiled kitchen floor, where it shattered into dozens of pieces. 

But when she saw the shards on the floor, she felt even worse than she already did. As if this cup was a symbol of how your friendship and feelings for each other were now broken for good...

"Sorry, sister... "Leo now pushes his way ruefully out of his room into the spacious hallway, at the end of which his brother's bright office was located behind a room divider in the shape of a terrarium for Fuegoleon's pet Tatsu - a tame, somewhat overgrown iguana. Mereoleona sits on a backless stool and looks grimly at her little brother.

A bitter look meets Leo's eyes. Then an arm is put around his shoulders. "You and Mereoleona are too much alike. Neither of you thinks at least a little bit through..." Fuegoleon says in a calm voice.

"You're really mean today, brother..."

"Perhaps. But let's see the cup you brought...", he mumbles and begins to repair what can be repaired under the eagle eyes of his sister...

[cars-and-planes-dork]

So I randomly felt like quickly sharing my thoughts on all three Cars movies and both Planes movies. Quick disclaimer, no matter how I feel about certain things it's totally cool if you feel different and I respect that.

Cars:

I love Cars. This was my childhood movie that I watched over and over and over again since I was a young child. I love the characters, the plot, and I think the animation holds up really well. I also am glad to see it with adult eyes cause there's a lot of nuance and stuff that I of course didn't get as a child. Recently on a whim I needed to unwind from stress and I put on Cars (just like my parents used to do for me as a kid, lol), and it genuinely did make me feel better and woke up a part of me that had laid dormant for years. Cars is a film that almost makes me wanna take a long drive on Route 66...until I remember I'm not any good at road tripping, lol.

Cars 2:

I have a distinct memory in my mind of being a child in the theater watching Cars 2, turning to my dad and saying 'can we go now?'. I didn't watch it all the way through until recently and I can thoroughly say that I don't despise it, but I'm also not its biggest fan. It's actually something of a guilty pleasure for me now. Sometimes I'll just put it on in the background while I do things. It also makes me contemplate the inner workings of this world more than the writers themselves probably thought about, like how the heck do different makes and models come about, what is the impact of climate change on a world of vehicles, but that's probably its own post. But yeah, I accept it for what it is and even enjoy some parts of it.

Cars 3:

So confession, it took me over 6 years to work up the courage to watch this one. I don't know why I was so worried, but I finally did it. And I loved it. I really think they ended on a good note. I'll admit the first part was probably the weakest in my eyes, but I really enjoyed the tribute to Doc Hudson and I actually teared up and I was happy to learn more about his past. I liked the torch passing narrative as well. I think my biggest complaint is that I wish we could've seen more of Lightning and his friends. (I may be biased because somehow Cal Weathers worked his way into my heart).

Planes:

Planes took longer to stick in my brain than Cars did. I remember going to see it actually, the local air and space museum did a showing of it and I went to watch it with my family. My parents didn't like it much but I remember being happy with it. Upon rewatching, there's things I like, but there's a part of me wishing it was something more. I can't fully explain it. Also I find Dusty's attitude off-putting to me personally (particularly his feeling of being entitled to being trained by Skipper and essentially demanding that Skipper tell him about his clearly traumatic past strikes me as kinda callous). But I still enjoy putting it on in the background and enjoy thinking about the world itself, much like Cars 2. Also fun fact, Skipper is one of my favorite kinds of planes.

Planes Fire & Rescue:

I'm sorry but I have much less patience for this film, but like I said above, I respect those who do. I will say, I appreciate them highlighting some of the realities of firefighting (like how the general public doesn't hear about a lot of fires that are dealt with). But other than that, I don't have much positive to say about it. The characters for the most part feel underdeveloped and I can't say I'm particularly endeared to a majority of them (Blade is the exception for me, tbh). And Dipper in particular needs to chill the hell out, her behavior is pretty inappropriate and creepy while being played off as jokes. Beyond that, my aforementioned issues with Dusty remain in this movie. Honestly, he doesn't strike me as capable of doing this job and he actively creates a situation that nearly gets Blade killed. I could spend awhile talking about it, but I'd honestly rather not. To end on a positive note, I think the married RV couple are adorable and I like them.

So that's all my thoughts. I enjoy both franchises and tend to overthink the hell out of them (if I overthink something it's usually cause I enjoy it). Hopefully I didn't piss too many people in the fandom off, lol.

[the-sage-libriomancer]

Was randomly in the mood to read a Tadashi Lives/Hiro Dies au for BH6, but then I remembered that I was never able to find a good one bc all of the fics were just boring remixes or even outright retellings of the movie's plot with Tadashi in Hiro's role. So since I'm in the mood for outlining and also super bored here's my vision of what a good "Hiro dies instead of Tadashi AU" would look like:

(this is split into acts bc apparently Tumblr has a character limit and this got unspeakably long lol)

Act One

A little before the fire starts, Hiro runs back into the school for whatever reason and is in the building when it explodes. Obviously he doesn't make it and of course Tadashi is completely devastated.

Most fics I read showed Tadashi falling into a depressive funk the way Hiro did in canon. I actually think he would react the opposite way: Hiro was so brilliant that he lost motivation easily bc it was so hard to seriously challenge himself, but Tadashi strikes me as the sort of person who needs to Do Something when things go to shit. So in this AU he becomes a workaholic, working on a brand new project that requires a LOT of time and effort.

Tadashi's new project is an "emergency bot" (aka EB-1) that is basically a more proactive version of Baymax centered around search and rescue. EB-1 will be capable of saving people from car accidents, natural disasters, and yes, fires. Tadashi is obsessed with completing it and forgoes everything else.

Unfortunately Baymax is pushed to the wayside by Tadashi, as just looking at him brings up memories of Hiro that are currently painful. A small running gag is that Baymax keeps inflating when he senses Tadashi being self-destructive (ie every ten minutes) and Tadashi keeps shutting him down, until finally Tadashi brings him back to Cass's place and leaves him there.

Tadashi's friends are more heavily involved this time around since this is one of their best friends. They do everything in their power to make him take care of himself, but he's heavily resisting because he is Going Through It and refuses to relinquish his unhealthy coping mechanisms.

A couple of weeks after Hiro's death, Tadashi is snooping around town in search of a good place to field test the EB-1, and he happens upon the warehouse that's hosting Callighan's microbot making operation. Tadashi accidentally tips off Kabuki Man while getting some pictures and barely escapes Kabuki Man's clutches.

Furious that someone has apparently stolen his little brother's tech and is mass producing it, Tadashi gets his friends involved. They're initially skeptical even with the pictures (which are terrible quality lol), but Tadashi convinces them to come see the warehouse with him so he can prove himself. Since they get a jump start this time, they end up catching Kabuki Man red-handed as he's still moving the microbot-making equipment.

Obviously Kabuki Man chases Team Tadashi, and there's a brief chase scene. However, Tadashi came prepared: he brought EB-1 (hastily modified to have some fighting prowess) and unleashes it on Kabuki Man for its first "test run." EB-1 successfully fills all its initial parameters before Kabuki Man bails, which Tadashi is excited about - his invention works! His friends are considerably less excited about all this and vote to go somewhere to recuperate.

Safe at Fred's house (because we NEED that reveal), Tadashi and his friends put their heads together to figure out their options. One thing leads to another, and the five of them end up pinning Krei as a main suspect - not necessarily as Kabuki Man himself, but definitely as someone who might be involved.

One fic I read was such an unoriginal rehash that it literally repeated movie scenes verbatim with Tadashi speaking Hiro's lines (AU authors please don't do this) BUT the one place it did try to be original was by replacing Hiro's gadgets-making montage with Team Tadashi literally flying up to Krei's office on the top floor (using Baymax no less) and interrogating him, and I honestly can't think of a more ic way for the group to go about it. If you asked me "what would a bunch of tired and desperate STEM majors do when they need to talk to a rich businessman they can't contact" that would be it lmao.

Interrogating Krai goes about as well as you'd expect: he refuses to give them any information, but does make a compelling enough argument that Team Tadashi is forced to leave him alone. Tadashi still doesn't trust him but reluctantly rules him out as a Kabuki Man suspect. However, Krei accidentally drops a couple clues about Silent Sparrow that will become relevant later.

Team Tadashi dejectedly calls it quits, and the team tries to convince Tadashi to focus his energy elsewhere. But Tadashi isn't giving up just yet.

[tansyuduri]

For the Ask post you put up, I would like to hear about 4 & 5! Please and thank you!

HI I just awnsered 5 here!

How many wips do you have?  What fandoms/pairings are they for?

But of the Wips I mentioned not finishing there are two both come from my attepts to fill some squares in the Merlin Bingo (Before I realized the current fic would fill some of em) One is Merlin and some random knight being kidnaped One is Merlin and Gwen being Kidnapped and Arthur and Morgana going to rescue em. I also have one somwhere about merlin being able to turn into a dragon that I just lost steam on.

How do you choose which fics to write? Usually I kinda go for whatever is consuming my soul until its done. Then move on. While I was writing Our Stars Still Shine Together I originaly intended NOT to write a prequal arthur returns fic for it. I wanted to keep thing vauge so people could imagine what came before. But then I kept having to mention specific things, And then I started getting Ideas. So when that was done I jumped into the Prequal. I also left hints that more might come at the ending. And then one of my betas (HI @tiny-and-witchy ) Was like WHAT IF THIS! And I was like I dunwanna do that Exactly but WHAT IS THIS OH I LIKE THIS. They've helped me a lot with brainstorming. As has my little sister because the Sequal has a lot of bonus LORE and less Emotional healing beats for me to follow. Arthur and Merlin are both in pretty good places mentally at the start of it due to the two previous fics. They both gotta go though the fire for plot but there is not QUITE as much focus on therepizing them. (I might ask Betas about more thigns I can help with) And see I say this But Merlin is likley gonna go Postal soon due to events in the fic and past trauma and there is a good chance Arthur might aid him if I go though with a certain idea. Likley due to simmaler reasons. BUT I promise they are in a better place.

[who-is-shades]

raz dnd 18

parsley wakes up and is dumped by zen since zen is responsible lol. zen kneels down to try and help parsley up but he just wants to lay on the ground. parsley realizes hes in a library and just keeps laying there. zen tells him teya is researching the feywilds. teya learns that time passes differently in the feywilds.

back by wheatley hes still taking potshots on the range with senna watching. it does quite a bit of damage. fuckin lazers man. senna claps cause it looks cool. she notices its overheating and she calls out to him to cease firing so it wont explode lol. he giggles hes so happy lol.

back to parsley, he wants to go shopping! so he fucks off. zen tells teya to stay here and he goes after parsley. parsley goes up in the air trying to find his bearings. he doesnt notice anything xD he gets beamed by a lazer and zen yells at him to get down. anti air defense! big guns aiming at him lol. he quickly gets the fuck back down like wtf. zen says their for emergencies. parsley isnt registered so no flying. zen says he will escort him to the blacksmith.

senna and wheatley saw parsley get shot and hurry over there and meet up like wtf. wheatley heals parsley a bit. he says hes banned from flying and zen explains the guns. parsley says he needs new pants since it got wrecked. senna says they met a nice robot that made them some clothes. zen is taking parsley to the blacksmith first. senna points out wheatleys cool lazer gun to parsley, but zen says to not get too close cause its radioactive. wheatley freaks out and backs away.

zen reminds everyone they couldve used the tokens at anytime. it can do lots of stuff. map, lightsource, storage, shopping. senna tells wheatley he can store the lazer until its needed. thank god right? XD

wheatley tries to hold parsleys wrist and hes like "uhh no, im fine stop that." "worry is my default state of being." parsley keeps saying hes fine.

good ol smith! parsley wants a new dagger! he just gets an ordinary dagger no plus 1 for him. he then asked for a whip but smith doesnt really work with leather. check a leather worker! parsley changes his mind tho cause i dunno. as we go to leave smith says he misses his shop awwww. time to get teya!

teya however wandered off goddamn. now we have to go find her. shes getting surrounded by robots asking her stuff lol. their so excited to go back outside! teya is a little anxious getting mobbed like this. theyve never seen an organic like teya before! one of the robots notices teya is nervous and tells the other bots to back up. just in time we arrive to the rescue!

zen crosses his arms and scolds teya for leaving. she claims to have no memory of this. wheatley grabs her and says he was worried about her. zen gets the robots to leave. wheatley says they are just lonely. zen says android is waiting for us its time to go.

back to the soul jar! ANDROID GOT AN UPGRADE AND HES WEARING CLOTHES! he looks more like zen in structure now! less arms and smaller xD android says he took some steps moving forward awww. he says he doesnt like the clothes but only belts would look weird. wheatley agrees, clothes are weird xD he has a rapier and a pistol and rifle instead of just spawning weapons.

parsley is a dick and trying not to laugh. zen gives him a big hug awww. hes so proud of him. senna just says he looks nice. he thanks her??? holy shit. senna doesnt make a big deal out of it. sadly everyone else did lol. 'wow i didnt know you could say that.' senna sucker punches parsley in the shoulder. android calls him an idiot.

wheatley says goodbye to lil bro. SP also says goodbye awww. group hug for them awww. teya recalls to herself more fey facts that fey see other humanoids beneath them. entertaining but not equals.

zen sets down a portal and out we go! adventure! still by that temple and parsleys big pile of firewood. hes fucking taking the wood and putting it in the storage unit. wheatley says he thought parsley liked chopping firewood? he uh misunderstood lol.

wheatley holds sennas hand and wraps his tail around her. he just wants a pal :3 senna and teya message each other and teya is excited to sleep again :3 parsley suddenly notices wheatley is in a dress xD

as were walking we hear screaming! a small town and some bodies that got smashed! senna runs toward the screaming as parsley flies into the air to see what it is. parsley sees people running from giant...things. senna sees a giant iron golem chasing a dude. senna lobs some acid at it! hits! everyone is hurrying over to senna.

the acid begins to corrode it a bit and it turns toward senna, lumbering over. shes luring it over to the rest of the gang. parsley flies behind its head to slice it but its sword bounces off cause its METAL PARSLEY! wheatley casts branding smite!

wheatley shoots it with his pistol. the golem attacks parsley! (IT GOT A 31 WTF RAZ) parsley manages to block the attack with his shield but he still took a lot of damage and knocks him into the ground. parsley enters a rage and wild surges. a pixie appears by the golem and then parsley attacks with his handaxe. bounces off again. then the pixie explodes! senna uses spiritual weapon and summons a floating hammer and it crits! then acid splash again! teya curses it to wis save everyturn or he cant do anything.

wheatley again! heat metal! now the golem is glowing hot and its repairing itself since its melted. senna yells at wheatley for healing it. another golem shows up fucks sake. android shoots it and it lumbers toward him. good boy. zen trips it nice job. androids rapier floats in the air stabbing away. raz stop making them cool i cant NOT fuck them-

the golem were fighting failed his save so he does nothing. parsley drops his rage and tries to reduce the golem. it doesnt work its immune. another pixie appears and blows up. senna does acid again and the floating hammer force. teya vampiric touches it cause shes nuts. wheatley leaves cause parsley told him to find and rescue survivors.

oh no the golem succeeded. it fuckin sends teya flying back but her curse still sticks good. parsley casts fairyfire and the golem gets outlined with blue light and our attacks have advantage.

cutting to wheatley fast hes mostly finding smashed people. he starts running into intact buildings and yelling at people to flee. people are trapped! their afraid of wheatley though. he tries to calm them but their scared badly. they say the golems got turned against them? robots that look just like wheatley!? he keeps trying to get them to flee and then leaves. time for the next house! they all do the same thing.

senna yet again acids and hammers pog. a piece of the golem fell off nice. teya misses vampiric touch darn. then she casts hidden step sneaky. golem got loose again goddamn. smacks parsley to the ground again and he loses the fairyfire. then he smacks parsley again he broke his ribs! he chugs a potion and tries to distract the golem lol. senna lobs acid and hammers again. teya vampiric touches again and does big nice. the golem is slowing down. she hidden steps again.

golem once more cant move! parsley disengages and goes to find wheatley. senna misses the acid and hammer darn. teya also misses vampiric touch again. fuck the golem got loose and attacks senna. smacks her shield and impacts it fuck. second attack misses ha!

cutting to parsley he epically fails the invs roll while screaming for wheatley and coughing up blood. he starts going in buildings and trying to make people leave. he gives the guy a healing potion and leaves. they warn him of wheatley and parsley calls him an idiot and goes. he also drinks more potions.

back to the fight! senna lobs acid and hammers once again. it collapses again! senna immediately whips around to help zen and android! teya comes too! she misses lol. zen was astral punching it but he does look a bit beat up. the golem goes after teya lol. fuck that has to hurt but it misses the second attack.

android calls the golem a thoughtless metal can and tries to get its attention. he keeps shooting it. zen keeps punching but his attacks are low. senna once more acids and hammers pog. teya curses it pog! the golem breaks loose tho lol. its going for teya! teya is dropped to 1 holy shit her arm shouldnt be bent like that.

cutting to parsley he finds wheatley yay! wheatley looks exhausted lol and he goes to another building. parsley yells out to him and grabs him. wheatley hugs him that hurts xD parsley tells him to go back and help while he helps the people.

back to the fight! android missed every shot wtf. zen epic failed. senna healing words teya then hammers again. teya misses the vampire again then hidden steps lol. the golem goes for senna fuck. that hurts. missed the second attack again. android jumps on its back and shoots it in the head.

senna immediately begins healing teya again. wheatley just missed the fight lol. he goes about healing senna and she also heals herself. senna heals teya to full shes just sore. senna asks where parsley is. wheatley says robots that looked like him did this. senna messages teya to look after wheatley and senna goes to get parsley. wheatley tells teya the villagers tried to attack him so he cant ask for info. teya hugs him the poor guy.

parsley keeps doing what hes doing and trying to drag people out of their houses. not smart. they aint wanna go outside. parsley sighs and says he'll go with him he has experience fighting this kind of stuff. 'you think its gonna get bored and go away?' parsley is done with this guy lol. he finally agrees and leaves lol. as they exit senna runs over to parsley and tells him they did it. senna heals parsley a bit nice.

[thebibliomancer]

Essential Avengers: Avengers West Coast #49: BAPTISM of FIRE

October, 1989

Aw, geez, the Avengers West Coast Avengers are so side-lined in their own book that the Great Lakes Avengers have taken over the roster box!

John Byrne must be really proud of coming up with the Great Lakes Avengers. They've only showed up in Avengers West Coast so far and been alluded to when Hawkeye showed up to the big Avengers meeting in Avengers East Coast. I wonder if they'll show up in the Avengers East Coast book or will just be a thing to happen in the West.

I do like the type of cover that's just 'wow, look at how many things happen in this book!' and it called me a true believer so I'm in a good mood right now.

Last times in Avengers West Coast: Vision got disassembled by every government in the world. Hank Pym put him back together but now his brain doesn't emotion. None of the Avengers seemed to care so Scarlet Witch took Vision to Absolom College when they offered to help. But it was really a trap, so ancient bacteria could oozefest Wanda and use her to learn how to take over mutants.

This is really dumb. And oddly will be an echoed plot point later when Morrison does the same thing and calls it Sublime.

Anyway.

Also, last time, Captain America and She-Hulk followed a Quinjet distress signal and tried to rescue Wanda. But ooze-possessed Wanda blew them the fuck up.

Glad they bothered to guest star.

Mr. Random, the Absolom College robot department head, congratulates Black Suit Wanda for beating "two of your most powerful former colleagues in less than thirty seconds!"

While that may be the case for She-Hulk, that's kinda overselling Captain America.

Ooze Wanda clarifies that She-Hulk and Cap hesitated to attack her because they probably thought they could talk her down "not realizing there can be no reasoning with That Which Endures."

A sentiment that Mr. Random can get behind.

Mr. Random: "We stand upon the treshold of the age of mutants like yourself, Wanda. For many years it seemed as though the fates -- in the form of a cruel, genetic quirk -- had chosen to bar us from that coming age. But now, with your assistance, the stage is set for our continued endurance. As mankind falls by the wayside, we shall ride the crest into the mutant millennium!"

Have I mentioned how weird it is when Marvel comics acts like its a natural, inevitable thing that mutants ARE homo superior and will supplant humanity? Cause that's the villain position but you see a lot of the heroic mutants echoing. Their main difference with the villains is willing to let humanity just wither and die on its own rather than being proactive about it.

It's also funny how on one hand everyone acts like The Mutant Millennium is inevitable but also most Dark Futures have something Bad happen to prevent that.

Anyway, these assholes sure talk a lot for people that are supposed to be a hivemind or whatever. I'm not entirely sure I understand how it works.

Meanwhile, the true heroes of the book, the Great Lakes Avengers.

They don't have a Quinjet or even a Quinjetta so they've had to take the next best option.

Buying a private airplane with Big Bertha's money and then have Hawkeye complain incessantly about how slow it is.

I was sympathetic with him when he was being underminded out of his team but I'm back to thinking Hawkeye is a jerk.

Big Bertha even points out that the Great Lakes Avengers don't have access to any of the super cool Avengers tech.

Hey, guy who has spent years with the Avengers, maybe pull some strings and get your new team hooked up with the good stuff?

Meanwhile, Mockingbird has the private plane pointed right in the direction of the Quinjet emergency signal but but but it was so faint they only got one reading. So they can't triangulate. So they're just flying in a direction but have no idea how far to fly in that direction. They don't even have a destination. Making Hawkeye complaining about how fast they're going even more of a jerkass move.

God I suddenly hate Hawkeye.

Mr Immortal snarks that they're on a wild goose chase because now that he's conscious again he can express opinions about Hawkeye taking over his team by putting quotation marks around the word "leader."

He's the Hawkeye of the team. The heroic starscream-lite who is always waiting in the wings to tell the leader he sucks and agitate to become leader instead.

Hawkeye: "Keep the sarcasm out of your voice, buster. You and this crew of oddballs you've assembled were nothing but bush league super heroes before me an' Mockingbird hooked up with you. Now, for the first time, here's a real chance to show the rest of the Avengers what you're made of... if we can ever find 'em!"

Okay. But. Before you took over, the Great Lakes Avengers fought crime. This really seems to be more about you, Hawkeye, wanting to show up the Avengers than about helping the Great Lakes Avengers be all they can be.

Meanwhile, the Avengers West Coast return to their compound following their own wild goose chase.

Wasp calls the trip fruitless but Hank goes NUH UH its good that we talked to Professor Horton so he could tell us what we already know about Vision not being his design and Vision's backstory flashback a lie.

Wonder Man is still a little confused on how everything has changed gears. It really did seem like all that stuff the Avengers learned about Vision's backstory was true. But Hank says it only seemed true to dumb idiots who are stupid.

Is Byrne mad that people don't like this new characterization direction for Vision? Why do we keep getting the same stuff re-stated.

It was annoying enough when Byrne upended Vision's character on authorial fiat but he keeps rubbing it in and being boring.

Even if I don't like this direction, surely there's a better way to handle it than words words words.

Say, for example, the Avengers (West Coast) found the robot Human Torch. Well, shit, what does that mean for Vision? His body was supposedly remodeled from the Human Torch. If there's a Torch still around, where the hell did Vision come from?

THEN you play the mystery out further.

Anyway. Another annoying subplot, ho.

While Hank goes ahead to go do some computer work

(and takes a little rollercoaster car to fast travel to the computer room)

Wasp stays to talk to Wonder Man.

Because he's still in the dumps about Wanda hating him because he refuses to let his brain patterns be used to rebuild Vision's brain.

Simon goes more into his feelings.

His creeper feelings.

He says that it was love at first sight when he came back from the dead and saw Wanda.

Wasp claims that because Wanda had been working on getting Vision to emotionally open up, that's why Wonder Man was so attracted to her. Because... Vision is just a copy of Wonder Man? So trying to appeal to Vision made her irresistible to Wonder Man?

I hate this ship.

I was begrudgingly tolerant of it when it happened in Busiek's run. But now I hate it. I want Wonder Man to blow up. Maybe from a space laser.

Ugh. Anyway. Wonder Man never mentioned his feelings for Wanda because she was already married to Vision.

Then Wasp claims that Wanda doesn't love Vision for his body but for the sensitive soul within and that inner man is actually Wonder Man because his brain is based off Wonder Man's QED Wonder Man should date Wanda.

Wasp: "So even though she didn't know it herself, it was you Wanda was really falling in love with..."

Wasp. You're my fave. But I am getting irritated with you.

Over in the computer room, Hank is also frustrated but for his own reasons. He wanted to do Vision research to try to iron out this riddlesome enigma about Vision's origins.

But the Every Government In the World taskforce Vigilance put a computer virus in the Avengers' computers to wipe out all information about Vision. So Hank has nothing but his own memories to go off of. So even though he said he had important work to do in the computer room, he's mostly just staring at a blank screen.

I know that feel.

Instead, Hank decides to try to figure out where Wanda went.

... Why wasn't that your first priority? She stole a super-sonic jet and vanished!

Hank starts by talking to the butler, Carlos, and asking if Wanda has acted strange lately.

Carlos confirms that Wanda has been distressed since what happened to Vision but her mood seemed to change after she got a letter recently.

But Interrupting Tigra interrupts the conversation by racing by naked. And also feral.

But not Feral. Just feral.

Hank has no idea what's going on but Carlos tells him that Tigra has been acting weird and chasing mice and stuff.

I am once again just flabbergasted by how little attention the West Coast Avengers are paying lately. Seriously. It took THIS for you to notice something was weird with Tigra?

Hank fears that she's going through another phase where her feline nature becomes dominant (even though that should have been permanently cured when something something cat people cat soul something). He chases after her into the woods.

Immediately loses track of her. And then gets pounced.

Idiot.

Tigra jumps Hank and starts trying to maul him.

Hank's costumes are usually pretty durable - his original Ant-Man costume was designed to protect him from ant bites, after all. But he's got a big weak point sticking out of the collar region.

So he resorts to using his shrinking powers on Tigra. Shrinking her to a tiny widdle kitty cat.

I HAVE WAITED FOR THIS MOMENT. Ever since Hank and Tigra casually alluded to it in Avengers Academy.

I hate every bit of context that led us here but I deeply love Hank just holding Chibi Tigra and going 'uh what now?'

Meanwhile, in a Absolom College holding cell, Captain America stops pretending to be unconscious.

He was apparently pretending the whole time, having used his shield to shield himself and She-Hulk from the falling masonry. He thought it smarter to let them get captured then to risk hurting Wanda when she's clearly not herself.

And She-Hulk followed his lead.

Except, she's clearly not on the same page as him. She hoists him up and yells he must be destroyed because he's not been properly assimilated!

Okay, I guess She-Hulk has been oozed too, off-panel. Or... something. She doesn't have the ooze look.

Captain America can't figure out why She-Hulk got taken over but he didn't. And he doesn't have time to really ponder on it while she's trying to make his skull into a bowl.

But luckily? he doesn't have to dodge long because Mr. Random comes in with a zap gun and zaps Captain America. They need him alive, you see?

Elsewhere in the facility, Vision gets bored.

He has no emotions but he's been left lying on a table alone for seven hours four minutes and twenty-three seconds exactly. Logic dictates that he get off his ass and go find out what's going on.

Vision: "This is inconsistent with the alleged purpose of my being here: the reconstruction of my missing data base. Plus, it has been even longer since I last saw my wife. Logic indicates it is time to find out what has become of her. Captain America and the She-Hulk seemed concerned for her well-being."

It's funny that the evil ooze's plans have otherwise been all "everything transpires according to my plans!" and they just forgot Vision.

Now that Vision is thinking about it, Mr. Random's claim that Wanda took off after leaving Vision doesn't really fit with her previous behavior.

Buuuuut, he has no reason to think Mr. Random would just lie about it! So he's going to go find Wanda.

Goddammit Vision. This is why emotions are good, actually!

Vision flies straight up from the facility and JUST HAPPENS to do so right when the Great Lakes Avengers are flying by in their plane. And they JUST HAPPEN to spot Vision so Hawkeye has Big Bertha turn the plane around to rendezvous with Vision.

Hawkeye introduces Vision to the Great Lakes Avengers and Vision says that Midwest Avengers would be a better name. So Hawkeye defensively says the name wasn't his idea.

Then Hawkeye asks about the Quinjet distress signal and Vision doesn't really know but Cap did mention something about that.

SPEAKING OF CAP, Mr. Random and his guys are studying Cap to find out why the evil bacteria can't take him over.

There's some factor in his bio-matrix that blocks the assimilator apparently.

She-Hulk speculates that it might be the super-soldier serum, still in his bloodstream after all this time. Chemically blocking the assimilator.

WHICH MAKES ME WONDER.

Why does super-soldier serum block the assimilator. And gamma radiation do nothing?

Because the evil bacteria is in every "higher life form", it should be in Cap so it should be able to take him over. But its apparently been completely eradicated from his system.

And I just have a lot of questions about how the evil bacteria works. If the evil bacteria is in everyone, why does it mostly seem to be operating out of this college. Instead of... everywhere?

Why come up with a scheme to kidnap Wanda when you can just bacterially zonk Hank Pym and expose Wanda to the ooze under guise of a medical procedure?

Why worry about Cap and She-Hulk investigating if you could just zonk them? Was the assimilator an outside compound that had to be introduced to allow She-Hulk to be taken over? She-Hulk is now loyal to the cause but she doesn't even know what the cause is. So if the evil bacteria is controlling everything, is everyone a hive mind? They're not acting like it. She-Hulk had to be told by Mr. Random not to kill Cap.

HOPEFULLY this all gets explained.

Wanda shows up, unoozed (or looking unoozed, wearing her usual costume) to exposit the hell out of the backstory.

Blah blah blah, first cellular life split in two. One was evil and ate the other one. From then on, all lief had the evil bacteria in it. The evil bacteria guided the evolution of dinosaurs and made them masters of the world until the evil bacteria made the (wrong) decision that dinosaurs were a dead end and abandoned them for mammals.

Scarlet Witch: "Without our presence to guide them, the dinosaurs quickly died out."

Okay, well, fuck the meteor theory then. What really caused the extinction of the dinosaurs was abandonment of evil bacteria.

She-Hulk asks if the evil bacteria is conscious and making decisions. And Mr. Random finally explains some of how it works.

Mr. Random: "While it is true a form of intelligence developed in us almost immediately... for the most part, that intelligence lay dormant. It was many millions of years before we learned to control the process Charles Darwin named 'natural selection.' Once that occurred, however, we began to take an active interest in our hosts. Once every hundred thousand years our intellect manifests itself in a few... ah... random creatures. We study the progress of life. We match the adaptability of one species against another. An assessment is made. Those life forms we judge to be at their maximum potential we abandon. Our presence within their cells shrinks, dwindling eventually to nothing. And our guiding intellect turns to other, more profitable species. After all, our whole and sole purpose is to endure. Thus, we left the dinosaurs in favor of concentrating on the mammals. There we further narrowed our focus to the ultimate mammal, mankind. When Neanderthal proved unsuitable, we shifted to Cro-Magnon."

And presumably on to homo sapiens and now to homo superior.

This whole thing feels like Byrne got really interested in some junk science and wanted to shove it in the book. Like Kirby and his Chariots of the Gods obsession.

Before Mr. Random can further words words words, "Avengers" show up and assemble.

Mockingbird starts kicking college students in the face while Flatman wraps them up in his fantastically stretchy body. And Vision does that fisting thing he does.

Based on one entire page of action, Vision declares the Great Lakes Avengers "most efficient." So I guess that training was worth it.

Possessed She-Hulk tries smashing Big Bertha with a giant techno tube but she's got Blob-esque ability to absorb hits. And in response, she jumps up and crushes She-Hulk underneath her.

I bet She-Hulk is really glad she did this guest starring role now.

Doorman and Mr Immortal spot a big locked chamber that seems really important. In fact, the college student mooks are trying really hard to keep the Great Lakes Avengers away from it.

So obviously, Doorman and Mr Immortal want to see what's in there.

Doorman stands against the big locked door, forming a portal, and Mr Immortal dives through him.

And inside he finds the Assimilator. Apparently not a drug or an ooze, apparently a big piece of tech.

A big piece of tech that creates the telepathic link between all the people infested with evil bacteria. And if its busted, the evil bacteria's plans will be delayed for a hundred millennia.

So, seems like a good idea to bust it and save the day, right? Bad guys just exposed their flashing red weak point and begged the hero not to strike them in it and thwart them totally.

Well, Mr Random thought of that. The Assimilator is protected by a chamber that will flood with deadly radiation if anyone steps inside.

But no sooner can you say, "this looks like a job for Aquaman," Mr Immortal gleefully jumps into the death chamber. When a plot presents you with something tailor made to your skills, you gotta seize the day.

Mr Immortal: "All you're threatening me with is death! An' dyin' is what I do best!"

The mad lad.

Back over at the fight, She-Hulk throws Big Bertha off of her and readies a punching fist. But then suddenly is overcome by a sense of not knowing where the fuck she is or why she's doing what the fuck she's doing.

And it's not just She-Hulk. All the college people that were working for Big Bacteria suddenly start wandering around in a daze.

Mr Random himself has no idea why Vision is calling him Mr Random. His name is Charles Edison.

... Why did bacteria possessed Charles Edison change his name to Mr Random? What's the sense in that?

Anyway, Mr Edison tells the Avengers that there's a dude of theirs dead in the radiation chamber.

But despite the eulogizing the poor, deceased Mr Immortal, Hawkeye just opens up the radiation chamber (the radiation is off now although you'd think the chamber itself would still be radioactive?) and has Flatman scoop Mr Immortal up (you'd think that Mr Immortal would be radioactive?) without touching the pressure sensored flooring.

Since Mr Immortal is dead as a doornail, Big Bertha estimates he'll be back up in approximately ten minutes.

It's fun to have a dude whose power is "doesn't die" so the team can throw him at all the death traps.

Hey, now that the action is done. I have to comment.

Byrne still keeps Wanda from doing... anything.

Post-hypnotic suggestion kept her from fighting Fake Ultron. And then she was too paralyzed by feelings to fight Beserk Vision. And then Mr Random sprung a trap on her faster than she could react two issues ago. And, sure, she fought Cap and She-Hulk but it was revealed that they threw the fight and weren't even hurt. And now when the big Great Lakes Avengers rescue showed up, Scarlet Witch didn't fight any of them. She just hung around with Mr Random.

It keeps happening.

Byrne doesn't seem to want her to contribute to action scenes.

Also, as the Great Lakes Avengers first Avengers level mission where they held their own and showed their stuff... It was okay.

They showed up on page 16 out of 23 on unlimited. They basically all got to do one thing to show their stuff. The issue is titled Baptism of Fire, which I assume is referring to the Great Lakes Avengers entering the Big Times but, yeah. They got a couple pages at the end of a complicated plot and happened to find the Resolve Story button.

I'm so far not impressed with how Byrne is balancing three teams in his two interconnected team books.

Anyway, Hawkeye declares that due to bacterial possession, nobody is getting arrested for any of this.

I suspect that he doesn't really want to untangle the situation.

Charles Edison: "... Thank you for that, at least, Hawkeye. It's bad enough to realize I've lost half a lifetime and every penny I own to this thing, without having to face a jail sentence as well."

Vision explains (how does he know???) that the evil bacteria awoke in him and took over his brain. It compelled him to use his family fortune to buy Absolom University and use it as evil bacteria HQ. Also, it apparently compelled him to change his name to Mr Random.

Then, Mr Random gathered together a few hundred other people that the evil bacteria had also awoken in and they all donated DNA to build the assimilator, which I guess let them awaken other people's evil bacteria and create a telepathic link between each other.

Hence why the evil bacteria people were always verbally discussing things and weren't always on the same page.

This plot is dumb.

I understand the mechanics of it all better now. In a last page exposition dump kind of way. But its dumb.

The Evil Bacteria were supposed to be influencing evolution but it seems most of them were doing a snooze. And they needed a big technological thing despite not needing it when they ruled the dinosaurs.

This has been a stupid ass plot.

I'm pretty the last bit of it is why the plot even exists and why I think its because Byrne got enamored with junk science.

Scarlet Witch: "But... Vision... it's all so... frightening... The memories the Assimilator placed inside me... I still have them... Can it be the dinosaurs died because That Which Endures left? And if it someday leaves mankind for the mutants, as it planned..." Vision: "I am not properly programmed to consider such philosophical matters, Wanda..." Captain America: "Maybe not... but I have something to say... I don't know how much of what we've learned today I'm really prepared to accept... Maybe it's all true. Maybe without That Which Endures mankind would still be squatting in the caves, afraid of the dark, of the thunder and lightning. But I like to think there's something more to humanity than just a few pounds of flesh and bone. Something deep inside that sets us apart in the scheme of things. I hope that's true. And I hope no part of it was due to That Which Endures. For if it is... if we are no more than vehicles for this parasite... When a day comes that the Survivor does finally depart... We're going to find ourselves very much alone..."

Meh.

Also, I'm sure its fine that evil bacteria stuffed Wanda's head full of mutant superiority rhetoric and that she still has those memories at the end of this.

I'm sure that's just fine.

Follow @essential-avengers because everything is going to fine forever and nothing will be blisteringly stupid in this book ever. Like, comment, reblog, give me attention. I'm lonely. Just kidding, I've got a cat curled up against my arm as I type this. I live a good life.

[titleknown]

HELLOWEEN #20: CALOPTERA

-CHYLOPTERA is a Scribe of Hell, with 5,663 maps of the locations of Hell and 23 letters of certification to his name. He may be called to send plagues of insects, bats, fire or aether upon the sender's rivals and call strange rains for both beneficient & malicious  ends, and may grant information upon the locations of Hell for use in summoning, though this is unreliable.

He appears as a great iridescent insect with the wings of a bat. Do not ask him for information upon the affairs of Hell otherwise, as he will give it to you vociferously and speak of it even unprompted, but most of it will be lies.-

...It is interesting to note this entry because, while the author of the Last Testament is unknown (though there are some hypotheses, including my own), the fact he advises against summoning Caloptera (using one of multiple alternate spellings from other sources) for his profession in Hell but rather the areas of his expertise, and advises against using his advice, which suggests a certain level of experience and pragmatism I cannot help but respect...

...At least, as far as diabolists go I mean. Diabolism is often ill-advised and definitely dangerous, and the fact that the status quo is that mortals end up attempting summoning them first before far less dangerous and deceptive options sends me... sends me... Well, I could talk about it, but I feel as if I should have more consideration for your time, and this is afar from the topic at hand.

It has been noted numerous times that the residents of Hell have been willing to give me their secrets, a fact I feel both honored and disquieted by, but you may wonder how I plan to prevent these secrets from being revealed.

Well, according to my preference for stealth in action, I have decided on a tactic of concealment by way of misinformation, in terms of having it published by today's subject.

They are renowned as a mapmaker of Hell and as an information broker par-excellence; far beyond the reputation of Ranamah despite her generally superior skills at both (though her reach is limited). They are also known as a great and terrible liar, terrible in the ways great liars are in that they include just enough truth to convince you the rest might not be false, and just enough lies to convince you that his real lies won't blindside you.

Indeed, as they bloviated on their past, I was mainly putting pins into things to cross-reference with his records. if there's one thing the ascendant and obnoxious of Hell share with mortals, it is their love of self-aggrandizing, a fact I leveraged with simple flattery to convince him to publish my book, buoyed by his reputation of lies to obfuscate its truth within Hell (though you and I know better)

Cross-referencing the records and my other interviews, indeed his reputation preceeded him. His secrets of most of the demons I asked about were blatantly untrue unless you knew them merely from "vibes" rather than actual experience, usually flattering himself and the powerful while slandering them, the slander published about Giobella being particularly... spicy (Though she apparently found it amusing). 

Beyond his statements about certain... proclivities in Acabus, I found that one of the few things he had told the truth about was his apprenticeship with Titivillus. Titivillus the legendary Great Scribe of Hell. Titivilius... 

...OH GOD HOW I HATE HIM, I HATE HIM SO MUCH, YOU DO NOT EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH BULLSHIT THAT MOTHERFUCKER HAS CONTRIBUTED TO THE STUDY OF MONSTEROLOGY ALONE, EVERYTHING I DO TO PROPERLY CHRONICLE THE MULTIVERSE'S BESTIARY AND HE ROLLS IT BACK BY FUCKING DECADES! OOOOOH I-

...I apologize, I got slightly heated there. Needless to say, I do not like the man. But it is curious how Caloptera spoke of Titivillus as a close and dear friend who "rescued me from iniquity" despite the fact that, by all accounts, Titivillus hated him. The lies were not even necessary, as his reputation from his work with them and his genuinely honest mapmaking already seemed to be the main pillars of his reputation.

Perhaps it was simply an attempt at promoting his name, perhaps it was his way of re-writing history to pretend to be loved. I perhaps suggest the latter, given another indication of his record was that before his apprenticeship, he was quite an accomplished soldier. Working in the field mainly, but powerful and deeply feared.

I had heard about this before, but when I asked him about it, he merely said nothing and gave a thousand-yard stare before very quickly attempting to change the subject. Perhaps his lies and flattery are overcompensating for this past he seems so quick to dismiss, given his most common epithet was "Caloptis The Loveless"

An amusing antecdote before I leave, I will note that when I entered the records hall to find information, I noted a list of individuals prohibited from entering the archives. One of them was Caloptera. Multiple others appeared to be Caloptera in various states of disguise...

-Xavier X. Xolomon , Monsterologist and Understudy to The Librarian Of Babel

--------------------------------

The concept for this one came from me wanting a flying demon, and then with the parts on hand me thinking of a very specific Calvin and Hobbes storyline (BATS AREN'T BUGS) and following through with him as an overly-confident liar kinda came from there.

Also, note his insect head isn't from a "true bug," which was a concidence, but one which I am happy to take credit for!

The outburst over Titivillus (a real demon from folklore, noted for spreading misinformation) was admittedly partially inspired by Dan Backslide, partially inspired by my very real grudge against RJ Palmer for making the issue of trying to un-fuck the Creative Commons a million times worse! Because I am nothing if not petty!

As per usual the whole descriptions, designs, ectcetera from this project are free to use as you see fit under a CC-BY 4.0 license so long as I; Thomas F. Johnson, am credited as their creator!

[symphorine]

as i go through my second playthrough, i want to catalogue things i find interesting. this will be full of spoilers. im gonna tag it as #davg lb, so you can mute that if you're not interested. they'll prob be pretty long.

i've just finished the prologue with beryl and am now exploring the lighthouse for the first time. i did remember it was in much less impressive shape, but not quite how much. besides some areas not being accessible yet, there is a lot of debris and seemingly dead trees, and the lighting is less warm, more like a cloudy day (keeping in mind i upped the gamma for my game and i thiiiink photomode pics keep that in?).

i also took some screenshots of the room you wake up in, and where varric is for the rest of the game. i find it interesting that it does appear stocked, presumably with some pharmaceutic stuff as that's where harding stands to look for elfroot (and where we were put to recover). four beds - did we all sleep here at first? when did harding and neve find their little areas had activated, so to speak? how did that happen? also bianca on the bedside table near varric, with candles... is this another thing only we see, or did harding and neve set it up as some sort of makeshift shrine? actually, do they see the fourth bed? i have so many logistics questions about this.

the library. also in worse shape, debris, disorder, the not yet upgraded floating core, but overall still pretty solid. it makes sense, with it being where the core is housed, that it would be what holds its own shape best? but still. clearly in a state of disuse and neglect.

solas lived here, at least for some time during the ten years varric & co chased after him, and presumably, because he mentions both lightouse and eluvians in our first dialogue with him (just before this), has been here recently. we'll find the secret side room in a bit and i'll see if it also starts in a pretty sorry state.

did solas just not take care of it - it seems he's acting alone now, none of his numerous elven folloers mentioned in Trespasser in sight, so he had no reason to maintain a larger space? or did the lighthouse degrade immediately when he was trapped in the fade prison, which seems to be another closed portion of the fade, similar to what the lighthouse is in that sense? how much is it connected to solas?

a few other quick shots for fun i took of the hallway out of the infirmary and during the prologue. i think the environments are my favorite thing about the game tbh.

also, a codex you find under neve's room.

On Divine Imperatives The Helm of the Solar is destroyed. Elgar'nan's favorite torture is over; too many agents have been rescued with their minds burnt out by that memory of an enraged sun. I feel a lesson here. The Helm was not created to torment. But the Evanuris are not as we are. A god's ruminations carry their own will, and imperatives. Memory bleeds into their icons and transmutes them, as fire begets fire. For our Wolf-Lord, who puts so much of himself into his creations - what imperatives do they carry? The heart of a rebellion must remain hidden, yet the light of divinity is uncontainable. We must be swift. A thought linger: Even as he saves us, what does he impart upon us? Reflections by Shirahn, One Who Renounced Daern'thal

just found it interesting! also daern'thal was a forgotten one. not that we didn't know solas freed slaves from forgotten ones and evanuris both, but the forgotten ones feel like such an afterthought besides a couple of times in the game (basically just... bellara's companion storyline, iirc?), i just thought it was noteworthy. also interesting musings from the author esp in conjunction with what we learn of ancient elves later (they used to be spirits, and it's hinted that as such they still carried the characteristics of identifying strongly with a specific emotion and its counterpart. are they some of the imperatives the author alludes to? what about "Memory bleeds into their icons"? i think what is in this codex is more literal than metaphorical, but still).

also "Even as he saves us, what does he impart upon us?" is obviously a big theme with Solas. i played as an elf my first playthrough and it felt even more relevant, and i wish we could argue with solas more about it. although i suppose the idea of his character here is that he will stay stubborn and commited until the very end no matter what. he believes he is right, and that he needs to take the veil down, but also very much that it is For The Good Of The Elven People. he thinks he IS saving them, but what does that come with? he thinks the price is worth it. also "his creations" - what creations? is the lighthouse one? what else?

obviously he is ostensibly doing it For Elves (or at least it's what he says and how he gathers followers in Trespasser), but he did also consistently say that the current elves are not his people in DAI, and detaches himself from them in this game also (cant recall the exact dialogue tho). they seem more like a convenient excuse than truly the cause he is championning. the veil matters more because it was His Big Mistake than for the consequences it had, if that makes sense.