#kyoto cryptids

[kyotocryptids]

new reaction meme just dropped

[stefaniewhat]

Popping in to share our most recent publication over at Kyoto Cryptids 👀If you'd like a little Kyoto-based whimsical horror in your life, please consider giving our literary magazine a peek!

[ryqoshay]

Putting on Hairs: Post Production - Vampiric Powers?

Primary Pairing: N/A Starring: Shioriko Also Starring: Lanzhu, Kasumi, Shizuku, Rina Words: 657 Rating: T AU: Monsters, Angels, Vampires Time Frame: Long before the main story Prompt: Puppet Content Warning: Depictions of battle, Major Character Death (?)

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Author's Note: Primary entry for 19th

Summary: Shioriko fights another vampire

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How had it come to this? Shioriko thought for the umpteenth time since the battle began.

Lanzhu.

Of course it had started with Lanzhu.

Shioriko raked her claws across yet another vampiric spawn.

A nice getaway. Lanzhu had insisted. Just the two of them. Surely they could find some peace out in the forest.

She parried the claws of another spawn before punishing her attacker by severing the limb.

Or maybe they could find someone to join them again, the greedy angel had suggested.

Another spawn tried to tackle Shioriko, so she bit its throat. She then spat out the putrid flesh and blood. Disgusting.

Japan, as a nation, was in chaos in the years following the war. Many Hunters had been drafted into the normal military and many who were not left the organization as funding flagged. Monsters, cryptids and other supernatural beings across the land began to rebel against the notion of fitting into a civil human society. And far too many went unopposed.

Lanzhu and Shioriko had fled Kyoto, flew up and over Moun Hiei, and out into the wilderness west of Lake Biwa.

And right into a small squad of Hunters staking out the stronghold of a vampire lord.

After a tense interaction, the group was convinced not to attempt to destroy Shioriko. Instead, they asked for aid from the former Hunters. And the pair agreed.

So here they were, angel and vampire, fighting alongside a few human Hunters against what was becoming obvious to be a poorly assessed foe. And the spawn kept coming. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could continue. Glancing over toward Lanzhu, she could see fatigue in the angel’s features as well.

There. Shioriko finally sensed the Vampire Lord. He waded through the carnage like he was strolling through a park. Straight towards her.

“What kind of vampire defends mortals?” The Lord sneered.

“The kind that still remembers her time as one.” Shioriko responded.

He snarled some ancient curse, then charged. Shioriko deflected and countered.

“Shioriko!” Lanzhu called, spreading her wings and lunging across the battlefield.

The Lord sent a powerful blast of dark energy toward the angel, battering her to the ground, where she was immediately swarmed by spawn.

“You.” He attacked Shioriko again. “You have power within you. I can sense it. Why do you not use it to rule these pathetic creatures?”

“No.” Shioriko replied.

She did not see a reason to explain to an enemy that she saw her power as a curse that she could never cleanse from herself. But she could occasionally try to do some good with it.

She dodged a strike from a spawn, however, in doing so, gave an opening to the Lord. He capitalized on it and caught her by the throat, lifting her into the air.

“Fine.” The Lord snarled. “Then you shall serve me.”

Shioriko grimaced. Was this it? The Lord was powerful, and she had been fighting gods only knew how many spawn, but… She scoured her mind for something. Anything.

A soft, white glow appeared in her hands.

What.

That… shouldn’t be possible. And yet…

She focused everything she had on that impossibility.

Brilliant, Holy light exploded around Shioriko.

The Lord, and at least twenty nearby spawn disintegrated.

Shioriko’s feet touched the ground.

Across the battlefield, the remaining spawn collapsed like puppets with severed strings.

Hunters slowly stood, staring at themselves where fatal wounds had once been.

Shioriko coughed, sending out a spray of blood.

“Shioriko!” Lanzhu’s voice called.

The vampire fell to her knees, then to the ground. She coughed again and convulsed.

“Shioriko!”

Her world went dark.

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“Wow…” Kasumi said. “Did you die?”

Shizuku sighed. “Obviously she didn’t, or she wouldn’t be here to tell us the story.”

“Oh… right.”

“It depends on how you define die.” Shioriko stated. “I am undead after all.”

“So…”

“However, I am not a normal vampire.”

“Huh…”

“May I continue?”

“Please do.” Rina said.

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Author's Note Continued: I must thank my DM again for always being willing to let me brainstorm lore bending/breaking ideas, and also giving me a lot of other good ideas in return.

This is another one I would very much like to expand on sometime after Promptober has concluded. I liked the idea of having Shioriko wake up sometime later and maybe discuss things with Lanzhu and the Hunters. But I wasn't sure I had enough space for all that in what was left after I had her cast her mega cure spell. As such, I did a little omake type bit to tie it into my prior event entries where the "Niji 1st years" invite Shioriko out for a night of bonding.

Also, Twenty was the prompt from '21 and Forest was '22. Well past the halfway point with my self challenge.

[zodiacoracle]

Sometimes I think about music in term of genres. Genres can be a tricky thing, so this topic often worms its way into my idle thoughts.

Today it's Asaki. I've been on an Asaki kick again recently. Rock and metal are obvious, but if you look at it closer there's an undeniable visual kei roots in the sound. Gekkou Chou's genre label in pop'n is Visual. Also, he was in a visual kei band way back in college. Heck, some people still call his music visual kei today, despite the person himself not identifying with it (preferring "kyoto metal" instead).

Now, I don't know the exact reason why he doesn't, but I think the reason may be as simple as if it was visual kei, it's lacking the visual. Hiding his face has been his entire shtick since GFDM and MRXG days. They literally got a rando white guy to play as him in Bemani Private Academy (and 96 played along and got a rando too, because).

And behold, the self-portrait of Bemani's beloved visual kei artist.

Tentei was one of the rare exceptions where he did show his face. This was the closest he ever got to having a visual aspect in his 20 years of professional music career, and it's still reserved compared to what the scene can get up to.

He still got that emo fashion smell though. (Sick guitar btw.)

So when you take away the visual from visual kei, all you have left is rock and metal. And damn good rock and metal, in Asaki's case.

Anyway all of this to say I listened to Madeth Gray'll today because I heard from a little bird their music was similar to Asaki. I can definitely hear the similarities there, though this v-kei is too old school for my taste today. They also played with some vocal noises like Asaki's own cryptid vocals, so it's pretty fun. (Although from what I've sampled, Asaki's cryptid vocals are still more adventurous, both from taking full advantage of studio recording and just from being a lovely weirdo in general.)

[peysk]

need some kyoto animation boy meets girl shit to happen to me in 2023 or i'm covering myself in sap and leaves and turning into a local cryptid

[cryptids-of-the-world]

The Oboroguruma is a Yokai found in Kyoto Japan. The Oboroguruma is described as an oxcart with a giant face on it. The Oboroguruma was created when in the older days of Kyoto, noble people would get into carriage fights to good spots for festivals in the capital and they lost the fight, their anger and resentment could manifest itself as an Oboroguruma. Oboroguruma means “Hazy Cart.”

[crownedcryptid]

Watched Violet Evergarden The Movie. This is the pinnacle of animated storytelling. A series about what it means to love, and what it means to live. Emotional, but in inspiring, hopeful ways. It may change your view point on life, and teach empathy. Please check it out.

Yes I finished watching it at 2:30am after rewatching the entire series. I cried dozens of times, but not because of sadness, but because the series reminds you what's important. Being true to yourself, and expressing love.

The way the movie uses “the future” and progression of technology as a focus was so surprising and interesting, it adds so much because it’s almost meta. You watch a girl learn the story of Violet, and be inspired to change herself thanks to the story...and wishing for that kind of positive change in people, is exactly why art like this is made.

A masterwork for certain.

It hurts knowing what this studio went through while this movie was in development...but they left their footprint with this, and everything they did before, that’s what matters.

Themes covered here are present in Kyoto Animations other works, but Violet is just so visually beautiful, poetic, and somewhat direct, that it makes it really appealing to anyone, even people who “don’t like anime.” The stories crafted here are just so wonderful, and deserve to be seen by everyone.

💌

[dokhtar]

i can’t believe i’m gonna say this but i’m gonna miss going to school

[bittermoonswrites]

Tag Game: 10 Favorite Female Characters

Tagged by @juurensha!

Rules: List your 10 favorite female characters, one per fandom, then tag 10 people.

Thanks for actually making me post on tumblr for once! These characters are in no particular order since I am incredibly indecisive and like a lot of characters.

1. )  Riko Aida (KnB)

I love sports anime, but most of them have a conspicuous lack of female characters. Riko is the coach of our heroes’ team, and I admire her ability to keep cool even in the most insane of basketball matches. (I personally would’ve gone crazy dealing with Kuroko and Kagami alone, let alone face the entire Generation of Miracles.)

2.) Anonymous/Somebody (Our Dreams At Dusk/Shimanami Tasogare)

For those who haven’t read Our Dreams At Dusk, it’s a great slice of life, coming of age manga that’s only 4 volumes long about a gay teenage boy learning to just exist as himself after stumbling across a discussion lounge with other queer folk run by a mysterious woman known only as Somebody/Anonymous (she’s Somebody in the official translations and Anonymous in the scans). Somebody’s a rare example of an aro-ace character in manga and an extremely perceptive person who helps many of the characters live their best lives by asking the important questions.

3.) Jolyne Kujo (JJBA Pt 6, Stone Ocean)

Jolyne is a freakin’ badass who doesn’t take no for an answer and is all around awesome. Enough said. 

Plus, she and Hermes are the best ship of Stone Ocean. Best battle lesbian power couple right there.

4.) The Black-Haired Girl (The Night Is Short, Walk on Girl)

My profile picture! I am an unabashed Masaaki Yuasa fangirl and am always looking for other people to convert since his works need more love (my personal favorite of his works is Ping Pong, but, again, there aren’t many female characters). I really like the nameless protagonist of The Night Is Short, Walk on Girl because she doesn’t take anything too seriously and just has a lot of fun taking even the most craziest things in stride. She doesn’t blink an eye when random gods show up in Ponto-cho, Kyoto, and she slows down other people’s perception of time during the long night because she has this way of bringing people into the present.

The movie’s surreal and fun, and if you’re interested, I’d recommend watching its spiritual predecessor, The Tatami Galaxy first. 

5.) Haruhi Fujioka (Ouran)

I liked the manga a lot better than the anime, but Haruhi is headstrong and speaks her mind. She takes no shit from the rest of the Host Club and is super freaking cool.

6.) Sansa Stark (ASOIAF/Game of Thrones)

I strongly disliked Sansa at the beginning of A Game of Thrones because she was so naive, but by the end of A Feast for Crows I was totally converted. She’s become a schemer in her own right, and I can’t wait to see where GRRM takes her in the last two books of ASOIAF.

7.) Hermione Granger (HP)

Like every nerdy kid, I wanted to be just like Hermione when reading the Harry Potter books for the first time. Yeah, she has her flaws, but she’s cool and really damn smart. Plus, Emma Watson plays her in the movies :)

8.) Morgiana (Magi)

Morgiana is another badass with a tragic backstory, having been a slave. She’s the sanest one between her, Aladdin, and Alibaba and has awesome fight scenes. I love Magi’s worldbuilding and think it needs way more love. It’s way overdue for another anime season.  

9.) Eleanor Young (Crazy Rich Asians)

Okay, Eleanor is 100% the villain of Crazy Rich Asians. Still, I admire her tenacity a lot and the way she doesn’t let anything stop at her goals. Michelle Yeoh did an incredible job playing her in the movie version, and I can’t wait to see the movie for China Rich Girlfriend.

10.) Sayaka Kanamori (Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!)

‘That Tall Girl’ in the Eizouken. She’s no-nonsense, practical, to the point, and very funny. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! is another Masaaki Yuasa anime, and you can feel how much he and the folks at Science Saru had making this show from the very first few minutes of Episode 1. 

Honorable Mention: 

Mutsu (Gintama)

The mysterious, badass #2 of the Kaientai and a former space pirate. I like how she took her agency in her own hands and ended up joining Sakamoto. It’s too bad you can only include 1 character per fandom, because there are so many good characters in Gintama—Kagura, Kyuubei Yagyuu, Tsukuyo, and I know I’m only scratching the tip of the iceberg. Gintama will always have a special place in my heart because at its core, it’s a story about how to live a good life.

Whew, we’re done! I am a tumblr cryptid who rarely uses this site for things other than to reblog pretty art and sometimes talk about fic, so I guess I’ll just tag @soysaucemachine and @ultra-uh-oh-spaghetti-os. Have fun, friends :))))))

[psychohelmet]

2, 9, 11, 36 pls and thank

2: Do I have any nicknames?

I have a few like: aidurh, salty side kick and lipstick cryptid

9: Favourite flavour of anything?

coffee, milk tea, orange, lemon and lime. lmao my tastes are weird

11: Favourite song?

just looking at my most played songs on my phone JUST TO NAME A FEW

last stardust - aimeryava! - babymetalchase - battakill ‘em all - crossfaithxeno - crossfaithcast your shell - fear and loathing in las vegasla devotee - panic! at the discoreel - oldcodexignis heart - nocturnal bloodlustbeginning - one ok rockwherever you are - one ok

36: My current obsession?

the ao no exorcist kyoto saga opening theme itteki no eikyou by uverworld

Want to know me better? Send me any number!

[kyotocryptids]

Hey you!

Yeah, you!

Can you do me a favor this holiday season?

Go to our Gumroad page and download our arts and literature magazine about Kyoto!

It’s our best issue yet, but we’ve only had 2 sales so far…

We’d love any feedback you have if you do download it!

Thank you, and Happy Holidays!

[stefaniewhat]

Update on Kyoto Cryptids, since it’s been a hot minute!

[kyotocryptids]

Where is he going?

To download Kyoto Cryptids of course!

/Image from the cover of the December 1978 issue of Cycle Sport magazine. For more images like this, try the #cyclesport0252 hashtag on Instagram

[kyotocryptids]

Teaser for our fourth issue!

Like what you see? Download here!

Kyoto Cryptids is rated PG-13 for whimsical horror and supernatural elements

[kyotocryptids]

MAGAZINE IS LIVE

Say hello to our biggest and creepiest issue yet! Bundle up, get cozy, and download Kyoto Cryptids at our Gumroad store! PDF is available as a pay-what-you-can download!

[kyotocryptids]

Teaser from our fourth issue!

Like what you see? Download here!

Kyoto Cryptids is rated PG-13 for whimsical horror and supernatural elements