#markus floats

[jacobwren]

Markus Floats | Meditation Piece 2 Take 3 | Live in Concrete

[freesidexjunkie]

love when tumblr fic writers play with canon events like dolls

[siryl]

"The Floating Columns of Qa" by Markus Stadlober.

[feenmies]

every day i fight the urge to talk about me and rk's aus on here . you guys are Lucky i have some kind of self-restraint

[words-in-starless-skies]

Summary: Tommy's helicopter crashes. He survives but is too injured to move. It takes a while until Tommy is found and while he's waiting, some ghosts come to visit. (Tw for injuries, blood, homophobic language)

The birds are singing. Their unsuspecting chirrup turns into an orchestra of countless echo voices. A soft breeze makes the leaves rustle and Tommy feels it wander over his face, pleasantly fresh on his heated skin. Under his hands, the grass is warm and soft. Feels nice. He could lay here forever, peacefully listening to nature and thinking about nothing at all.

But a voice floating in the background of his confused mind disturbs his peace. Tommy can’t make out the words at first, but suddenly, they push forward, push through the darkness, sharp and rough like breaking glass: Get up!

Tommy frowns. He knows that voice …

Come on. Get up. Get up and stop crying like a girl! I didn’t raise a fucking princess, did I? 

Dad? That can’t be. His Dad is dead. Still … It’s hard to ignore the words. Their phantom ache makes him shudder and he tries to open his eyes. They are heavy. So heavy. Not the only thing that feels like a weight pulling him down. His body … What’s wrong with it? Every muscle aches and there’s a numb pulsing feeling in his side. And his head … There’s a steady shattering pounding. Feels like someone is swinging a hammer against his brain.

Tommy groans and tries to reach for his head, but he’s too weak to even raise his hand. When he grimaces, he feels something hot and sticky clinging to his skin. Blood?

What happened? 

With a groan of pain, Tommy raises his head a fraction that feels like a whole damn mile. All he can see are tree tops, towering around him in a perfect circle.

And … the sun. He sees the sun. It’s right above him. White, hot and blazing. Tommy wishes he could move away from it. A bit of shade would be nice. But he still can’t get his body to function.

He swallows and coughs. His throat feels raw and when he licks his lips, they are completely dry. Confusion pulls him into a maelstrom in which time has no meaning at all. Is he in the desert? Was he shot down? What about his team? God. Markus was shot in the chest, wasn’t he? He bled out in the helicopter, begging for some water …

Tommy blinks. No. No, that was years ago. He isn’t in the army anymore.

God. His brain is really messed up right now. He tries so hard to reach a single coherent thought. He was flying, wasn’t he? He was flying and … There was a problem, Tommy vaguely remembers. A technical problem with the main rotor control. Might have hit a tree after … after putting out the wildfire? There was a big fire. Orange flames growing and consuming the forest.

There’s more … Memories start to trickle through the fog in Tommy’s brain. Black smoke. Ear piercing beeping. The nausea-inducing sensation of losing control. 

Did he crash? Obviously. Tommy understands now. He’s injured but somehow he must have made it out of the helicopter. But only to bleed out on some clearing apparently. Alone. Great. 

Tommy feels resignation settling in. A crushing weight pressing down on his weakly beating heart. He can’t move. He can’t scream. He can only lay there, underneath the merciless sun, and feel life trickling out of him steadily.

“There you are.”

Tommy flinches. That voice. He knows that one too.

Sal’s grinning face appears in his field of vision. Sal … Tommy hasn’t seen the man in years, hasn’t even thought about him. But there he stands, his hands shoved into the pockets of his turnouts. “What? Were you expecting your boyfriend?” He asks, raising a brow.

Tommy can only stare at Sal. He doesn’t understand … Where is he coming from? Why is he here? How … 

It doesn’t matter. His eyes start to fall again. He’s so damn tired …

“Hey!” Sal says sharply and suddenly, he’s crouching beside Tommy, shaking him by his shoulder. Can ghosts shake you? “You need to stay awake. Don’t want your pretty boy to find your lifeless corpse, do you? You know, I always had a feeling you were into guys. You were in Team Jacob after all, huh?"

Tommy wants to tell him he’s an asshole. But he’s too exhausted. His vision flickers and when he manages to focus again, Sal is gone. He was never really there. A few birds circle on the piece of blue sky above Tommy and the sun is still there, radiating unbearable heat.

He has no idea how much time passed until steps approach him. Phantom-Sal is gone. Someone else's face hovers above him. It’s Gerrard this time, with his cold piercing eyes that always seem to judge what they see. 

“Look at you,” Gerrard says, his mouth pulling down into a disdainful scowl. “You’re pathetic. I was there for you, Tommy. I gave you what you were so desperately seeking. A team. A family. A purpose. And after everything I did for you, you filed a complaint behind my back? For what, huh?”

We weren’t a family, Tommy thinks weakly, closing his eyes. And you were never a real Captain. I was too blind, too stupid, to see it. But Hen opened my eyes …

“You might think they care about you,” Gerrard bites, “But I don’t think they do. Not really. They just want you as long as you can be useful. And that boyfriend of yours … I don’t think he really loves you. Why would he? You’re just this exciting new thing he discovered and he is going to ditch you, as soon as he comes across something - someone - better. You could have had it all, Tommy. With my support, you could have been someone important. Instead, you chose to live in fairytale land. Well, good luck with that, son.”

Silence comes back.

When Tommy opens his eyes again, Gerrard is gone. Fortunately. Tommy sighs and stares at the treetops, which are gently swaying in the wind. They are blurry. Not long anymore, maybe. Not much longer, he imagines, until he can finally sleep in peace …

“Tommy.”

Evan. Evan?! Tommy forces his eyes to focus and he gasps when he sees Evan kneeling by his side, looking down at him with open worry in his eyes. “Oh, Tommy. What happened?”

Too much. “Evan,” Tommy breathes, finding his voice again. “Evan. It hurts.”

“I know.” Evan takes his hand. “Hold on. Just a little longer.”

I don’t know if I can, Tommy thinks, already feeling darkness reaching for him again. I’m so tired, Evan. 

Evan squeezes his hand gently. “Hold on,” he repeats. And then he lets go. No … Tommy feels a sob dying on his chapped lips. Please stay. Please. Don’t you leave me too …

But Evan is already gone. He wasn’t real. Of course, he wasn’t. Tommy is alone. He’s going to die here alone. He was always supposed to be alone.

Tommy closes his eyes and this time, he doesn’t even try to stay awake. He just wants to not feel anything anymore.

“Tommy!”

Evan’s voice cuts through the silence like a knife.

Tommy groans. Not again …

“Tommy!”

“You’re not here,” Tommy whispers. “You’re not here …”

And I’m not here anymore either.

A wave of relief rushes through Buck, followed by immediate, heart-aching horror. 

“God. Oh God,” he mutters, sliding down a slope, not caring about the branches and thorns that scratch him. His eyes are on Tommy, who’s lying down there, stretched out in the grass, exposed to the blazing sun. “I found him,” he pants into his mic. “I found Tommy. Hurry.”

Tommy is not moving and Buck doesn’t even see if he’s breathing. He fights back the tears, stumbling towards his boyfriend, sinking to his knees beside him and reaching out to check for a pulse. His trembling fingers find it and he exhales in relief, but … there’s so much blood. It’s on Tommy’s face and soaks his clothes and turns into a puddle in the grass.

“Tommy!” Buck frantically reaches for one of Tommy’s hands, squeezing it. “Tommy, wake up! Please …”

Tommy’s eyes flutter, but barely open. He whispers something inaudible. Buck bends over and strains to hear Tommy’s words. When he does, he feels like a fist curls around his heart and crushes it slowly. 

“I wish you’d be real,” Tommy is muttering, his voice fading fast. “Don’t want to … to be alone. Wish you were here … with me …”

Tears run over Buck’s face. “I am here, Tommy. I am. You’re not alone. See?” He cups Tommy’s face with his free hand, ignoring the blood. “I’m here! Open your eyes! Look at me!”

But Tommy’s eyes remain closed and instead of words, a last groan comes over his lips, before he falls completely silent and Buck freezes, wails in horror and he doesn’t know what to do, this can’t be the end, this can’t be -

“Buck!” Hen appears, grabs him by his shoulders and shakes him a little. “Snap out of it and move, let us take care of him!”

Buck blinks, taking a deep breath. “Yeah. Sure … I …” He lets go of Tommy’s lifeless hand, scrambles to his feet and stumbles backwards, staring at the blood on his hands. He feels numb. Feels like he’s being pulled down into a freezing ocean. Deeper and deeper, until the light of the surface disappears …

Tears blur his vision and he barely sees what’s happening. Barely sees them working on Tommy. His Tommy. Buck finally sits on a stone and hides his face in his hands, until Hen approaches him and puts a hand on his shoulder. “Buck. We’re taking him to the hospital now. You’re going to go with him, okay?” Buck swallows. “Okay.” He looks up, seeing Tommy on a stretcher, his shallow breaths fogging the oxygen mask on his bloody, scratched-up, sunburnt face. “He thought I’m not real …,” he breathes. “He thought he was alone.”

Hen looks at him, her eyes softening. Her hand stays on Buck’s shoulder, rubbing gentle circles there. “He’s dehydrated, lost a lot of blood, was exposed to the heat and clearly has a concussion. He really was not able to think clearly at that moment, Buck.”

Buck takes a deep, shaking breath. “Okay. Alright. But … But he’s gonna be fine right? Right?!”

“Everyone’s doing what they can, Buck,” Hen says gently. “You know that.” But in the end, she doesn’t say, nothing is certain.

That’s just life.

+++

Buck gets it now. He really does. All the times he was in a hospital bed, with everyone worrying about him. He has no idea how they survived this. It hurts so damn much.

Time passes barely noticeable around him. Feels like honey, slowly and thickly dripping out of a bottle.

Buck sits on his plastic chair, holds Tommy’s hand and stares at his boyfriend’s face, waiting. For something. For a sign. All he gets are random twitches of a muscle. Tommy looks too small in that bed. He looks too vulnerable. Buck feels the urge to cover him from the world.

Come on, he thinks desperately. Wake up. Please wake up. I need you to wake up.

At the same time, he knows Tommy’s body needs the rest. It’s been through a lot. Severe dehydration, concussion, broken ribs, blood loss from an open gash in his side, sunburn, signs of sunstroke, several scratches and bruises … Buck felt a bit lightheaded when he heard the doctor rambling down that overwhelming list.

But Tommy will live. He’s stable and recovering. He’ll live. Buck wasn’t always sure about that. Especially not in the first few moments of his nightmare, when they had confirmation that it was indeed Tommy’s helicopter that crashed.

For a long horrible moment, Buck thought he would never talk to Tommy again. Would never get to touch or kiss him again. Would never smile and laugh and cry with him. And the abyss inside his chest seemed to have no bottom. He was falling. Helplessly tumbling down into the darkness - until he found Tommy. Alive.

Buck sighs and yawns. Maddie told him to get some rest. Everyone told him so. But he can’t. 

In the end, he falls asleep on that chair, still holding onto Tommy’s hand and listening to the steady beeping of the heart monitor.

+++

When Tommy opens his eyes, he sees white. But this time, it’s not the sun. It’s ceiling and walls and the blanket of a hospital bed. Hospital. Ah. So he survived. He doesn’t even know how to feel about that. He was so sure that he would die on that clearing … But then, there was more than one moment in his life, when he was ready to accept death. Tommy carefully sits up and groans at the shoot of pain in his side. He raises a hand to rub at the bandage wrapped around his head, sighs and then realizes he's not alone.

Evan is sleeping on a chair beside the bed, his head tilted backwards at a clearly painful angle and his mouth slightly open. He looks … stressed. Tommy takes him in and his heart aches. Evan is here. Evan was in the clearing. He was real. He came.

Tommy can’t help himself, so he reaches out to touch Evan’s hand, which is lying on the bed, as if he’s even reaching out to Tommy in his sleep. Evan winces and wakes up, his eyes a bit hazy, until they fall on Tommy and widen. “You’re awake!” Evan rubs the sleep out of his eyes and face, then smiles at Tommy lopsidedly. “How are you feeling?”

Loved. Saved. Not alone, Tommy thinks. “Like I crashed my helicopter and almost turned into a roasted chicken nugget again,” he says.

Evan chuckles. He takes Tommy’s hand in his, mindful of the IV line, and squeezes gently. “I’m so glad to see your eyes,” he says seriously. And Tommy feels like his throat is suddenly too tight for his breaths. “I’m glad to see you too, Evan. I … I’m sorry you had to worry about me.”

Evan shakes his head. “I’m just so glad, you’re okay, Tommy. We’re all glad. Uh, the flowers are from Hen and Karen. And everyone brought a card.” He points at the night table and Tommy’s throat feels even tighter when he discovers a bunch of flowers cards and … a teddy bear. A huge teddy bear, hugging a little plush tiger. “Wow,” Tommy breathes, tears burning in his eyes. “That’s … Wow.”

“Yeah. That teddy is from Christopher. And the tiger is from Denny and Mara. Mara said you’re just as brave as her tiger,” Evan says, smiling.

Tommy really can’t breathe. He swallows heavily. “I … I don’t even know what to say.”

I’m glad to be alive. I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad I have a family now.

Family. Tommy remembers ghost-Gerrard and shudders. “You’re okay?” Evan asks worriedly, as always picking up fast.

“Uh, yeah. I … When I was laying there, dying, I … I saw a bunch of people. Hallucinations. It was scary,” Tommy admits.

“You can tell me all about it,” Evan says. “Ghosts get less scary when you let them go. That’s what I learned in therapy at least.”

Tommy nods. Letting ghosts go. He likes that image. But right now, he feels really tired. He thinks he wants to go back to sleep. And with Evan here, he feels safe enough, to do just that. “I’m tired.”

“Alright,” Evan says, giving Tommy’s hand a gentle squeeze again before letting go and standing up. “You’re taking a nap, and I’m going to get your doctor, okay? Just so she can take a look at you.”

“Kay,” Tommy mutters, already half-asleep. He smiles when he feels Evan give him a gentle kiss on his bandaged head. “Love you.”

“I love you too,” Evan says, his voice breaking a bit. “I’ll be back in a moment.”

And Tommy believes him. Now, he believes him.

It’s all real.

Find it on AO3

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in March 2024 🌈

🌈 Good afternoon, my bookish bats! Struggling to keep up with all the amazing queer books coming out this month? Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Remember to #readqueerallyear! Happy reading!

[ Release dates may have changed. ]

❤️ Shift: A Memoir of Identity and Other Illusions - Penny Guisinger 🧡 Tempting Olivia - Clare Ashton 💛 Monilinia - Free Mints 💚 Guillaume - Aurora Dimitre 💙 The Marble Queen - Anna Kopp & Gabrielle Kari 💜 The Baker & the Bard - Fern Haught ❤️ Rainbow! - Sunny & Gloom 🧡 The Safe Zone - Amy Marsden 💛 The Weavers of Alamaxa - Hadeer Elsbai 💙 The No-Girlfriend Rule - Christen Randall 💜 A Different Kind of Brave by Lee Wind 🌈 Cirque du Slay - Rob Osler ❤️ Wizard’s Debt - Niranjan 🧡 One Last Breath - Ginny Myers Sain 💛 Nothing Special - Katie Cook 💚 I Feel Awful, Thanks - Lara Pickle 💙 The Tower - Flora Carr 💜 Be the Sea - Clara Ward ❤️ What Grows in the Dark - Jaq Evans 🧡 Heirs of Bone and Sea - Kay Adams 💛 The Haunting of Velkwood - Gwendolyn Kiste 💙 Thunder Song - Sasha taqwšəblu LaPointe 💜 Mona of the Manor - Armistead Maupin 🌈 Like Happiness - Ursula Villarreal-Moura

❤️ Ellipses - Vanessa Lawrence 🧡 Saint, Sorrow, Sinner - Freydís Moon 💛 Blood & Brujas - Mikayla D. Hornedo 💚 Infinity Kings - Adam Silvera 💙 Really Cute People - Markus Harwood-Jones 💜 How You Were Born - Kate Cayley ❤️ These Bodies Between Us - Sarah Van Name 🧡 Icarus - K. Ancrum 💛 The Emperor and the Endless Palace - Justinian Huang 💙 How Not to Date an Angel - Lana Kole 💜 Enemy Colours - R.M. Olson 🌈 Broken Parts Included - Alyson Root

❤️ Who's Afraid of Gender? - Judith Butler 🧡 The Duke’s Cowboy - Andrew Grey 💛 The Secret Something - Emily Wright 💚 Colstead & Andie - Olivia Janae 💙 Play It Again, Ma’am - Sienna Waters 💜 Love Is…? - K.J. Wrights ❤️ Welcome to Forever - Nathan Tavares 🧡 Just Another Epic Love Poem - Parisa Akhbari 💛 The Phoenix Bride - Natasha Siegel 💙 These Letters End in Tears - Musih Tedji Xaviere 💜 Truly Home - J.J. Hale 🌈 Monster Mixer - Robin Jo Margaret

❤️ The House of Hidden Meanings - RuPaul 🧡 Promised to the Queen - Barbara Winkes 💛 A Conclave of Crimson - Nicole Eigener & Beverley Lee 💚 A Hunt of Blood and Iron - Cara Nox 💙 The Fealty of Monsters - Ladz 💜 Ariel Crashes a Train - Olivia A. Cole ❤️ Those Beyond the Wall - Micaiah Johnson 🧡 Dancing Toward Stardust - Julia Underwood 💛 Heir to Dreams & Darkness - Ben Alderson 💙 Comet Cruise - Niska Morrow 💜 Dead Girls Walking - Sami Ellis 🌈 Blackout - Carlos E. Rivera

❤️ Monster Crush - Erin Ellie Franey 🧡 Blessed Water - Margot Douaihy 💛 These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart - Izzy Wasserstein 💚 Kiss of Seduction - Rawnie Sabor 💙 Sunbringer - Hannah Kaner 💜 Evacuation to Love - C.A. Popovich ❤️ Sin - Brooke Matthews 🧡 Falls from Grace - Ruby Landers 💛 Lean in to Love - Catherine Lane 💙 A Small Apocalypse - Laura Chow Reeve 💜 Cascade Failure - L.M. Sagas 🌈 The Mars House - Natasha Pulley

❤️ All This Time - Sage Donnell 🧡 The Romance Lovers Book Club - MA Binfield 💛 View from the Top - Morgan Adams 💚 Number Call - Nagisa Furuya 💙 Crossing Bridges - Chelsey Lynford 💜 The Boyfriend Subscription - Steven Salvatore ❤️ Love the World or Get Killed Trying - Alvina Chamberland 🧡 Synthetic Sea - Franklyn S. Newton 💛 The Prince & His Stolen Groom - J.E. Ridge 💙 Chrysalis and Requiem - Quinton Li 💜 Where Sleeping Girls Lie - Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé 🌈 A Botanical Daughter - Noah Medlock

❤️ Wednesday Nights - by Donna Jay 🧡 The Woods All Black - Lee Mandelo 💛 Song of the Huntress - Lucy Holland 💚 Rainbow Black - Maggie Thrash 💙 Spirits & Sunflowers - A.D. Armistead & Austin Daniel 💜 Floating Hotel - Grace Curtis ❤️ Far From Camelot - Rylee Hale 🧡 This Way to Change - Jezz Chung 💛 Mexican Bird - Luis Lopez-Maldonado 💙 Android Affection: Unveiling - Beau Van Dalen 💜 Welcome to the Damned - Astraea Long 🌈 She Came for Blood - Darva Green

❤️ Cover Story - Rachel Lacey 🧡 The Poisons We Drink - Bethany Baptiste 💛 The Perfect Guy Doesn't Exist - Sophie Gonzales 💚 In Walked Trouble - Dana Hawkins 💙 Never Leave, Never Lie - Thea Verdone 💜 Guardian: Zhen Hun - Priest ❤️ All the World Beside - Garrard Conley 🧡 Rainbows, Unicorns, and Triangles - Jessica Kingsley Publishers 💛 The Feast Makers - H.A. Clarke 💙 Synthetic Sea - Franklyn S. Newton 💜 All the Painted Stars - Emma Denny 🌈 A Hard Sell - Jennifer Moffatt

[lilacargent]

This is an add on to my previous idea of old weapons being redundant and everything being rays/plasma/energy based. But humans are weird little things that like hoarding weapons…

This story plays on a spaceship called the Serpentine.

Important crew:

Primoz, captain -Limoyh a four armed species-Krag, second in command (brother of Primoz)

Kit, dokter -avian, bird like, she has feathers like a swallow-

Ortez, ASR (all species resources, human resources in space) -kiltak, insectoid species, think ants but exoskeleton-

Lugea, helmsperson (does the steering) -rock like alien-

Artex, engineer/mechanic 1 -also Kiltak-

And then our humans:

Kamari, navigator -Eritrean woman- (has cat named Sidra)

Markus, weapons expert (knows how to use them and upkeep, also shields) -Swedish man-

Petrus, mechanic/engineer 2 - Italian man-

Lilly, administrator/note keeper (learns languages for fun)-english woman-

~~~~~~

Ouroboros

The mood on the Serpentine is at an all time low. Right now they were supposed to be on planet earth, getting a tour from the deathworld residents. Krag was very disappointed that the humans celebration for their 15 year tenure on the ship had to be cancelled, after all the stories he had really wanted to see the planet, at least more than the embassy or a space travel base.

Sadly this had to be put on hold, as the Counsel is at war. The big four armed alienwas looking at his brother, the captain, pacing the bridge while they slowly moved to the deserted front lines of the attack, hoping to maybe find something that gives the Unity an edge.

This had started no more than a month ago, an exploratory vessel had found a planet beyond the borders of Avian territory, on the southern side of Unity (direction is always measured from Unity as that is the point of convergence for most species and space faring) now new planets were interesting but not usually to the average person. The last message received was a voice note screaming about a wormhole in the planet the sent hundreds of ships and the ship it self failing on all fronts and shutting down.

From that day a line of dark crude ships started eating away at the Avian territory, within a week they had lost 19 colonies. Nothing is stopping them, ships that got too close shut down for no reason and were never recovered as the unstoppable line of enemy ships progressed. Weapons fired from far away did nothing as whatever beam they threw vanished when it gets close.

All that and the Unity still kept sending forces, because what else were they going to do?

So here they are, on their way to a probable death sentence with no clue about the enemy. Through his somber thoughts Krag hears laughing from the mess hall, yes, these are the moments he is extra thankful for the humans. After 15 years they were pillars in the crew, right now Lilly and Petrus were teaching the crew human “sea shanties” which were apparently doing their job of lifting spirits as the humans had explained, Lilly is writing the english words down for Kit who is learning the language in her analog book, one of her human oddities. Markus is showing some of the newer recruits the ins and outs of the weapon systems. Lastly Kamari, their leader and confidant, she has made herself indispensable to Ortez over the years. Now she was sitting in a corner listening to people pour their hearts out, giving the best advice she can.

As the ship is approaching the seemingly desolate piece of space where 23 ships float without direction or crew, hulls torn open and ransacked, the crew of the Serpentine watches in horror as there are only Unity ships, non of their enemy.

Artex and Petrus helm the out board arms in trying to get any information or remnants that are usable, when the ship shivers and stills. As the sound of something attaching to the outer hull comes through, the ships lights and computers shut down.

“DO NOT PANIC” the captain yells, “grab your weapons, and prepare for battle” as everyone prepares Markus grabs a weapon from his bag, a long gun, which Primoz recognises as an old earth weapon. “Why would you carry that?” Primoz grabs Markus’ arm, who contorts his face in one of the more terrifying human grins, one usually reserved for enemies “well we know the blasters don’t work. I thought let’s try this!” Now that the captain is looking he sees that the humans are all carrying an old weapon, Kamari seems to have a smaller version of Markus’ gun, Petrus has a sword on his hip and Lilly had several sheets with daggers strapped to her hips. Primoz turns around as Krag grabs his shoulder “if it gives them hope, let it go, what are they gonna do?”

Lugea catches their attention “something is boarding in sector three!” Immediately the armed crew members ran toward the sector, Markus directing people into an ambush formation. Blasters ready they wait.

The doors as everything else have lost power, but with a flash electricity runs through it the doors open and two tall lanky aliens skitter in (the silence from doctor who but in body armour) with voices that sound like nails on a chalk board they use the captains language “sssurendderrr, and youuu won’t ssssssufffer. Yourrr weaponsssss aree ussssseelll-“ with a swoosh Lilly’s knife flew past the ranks and embedded itself a bit in the body armour. Three blaster shots follow her knife but dissipate in mid air. Kamari’s eyes light up as she grabs her glock “looks like old does the trick!” A big bang makes the other crew members cover their ears. But the bullet hits its target, and dark yellow blood pours from a head wound.

“Thats it!” Petrus runs in and goes for a decapitation, sadly no such luck as the left over alien grabs his sword and not caring for life and limb tries to touch the human. Before he can a second loud shot rings out, Markus got a good aim.

Now there are two dead aliens but still no power. Through some investigation Kit figures out the aliens are like leeches for energy, electricity and a lot of what their stuff runs on. The ship the creatures came with is empty and sending out a signal, worried more enemy troops are coming the crew discusses. No useful ideas come up until Petrus starts speaking: “what if we make thrusters like the old ones on earth? Y’know like a fire powered one. Heck i know we have several things that are flammable in high quantities. If we put that behind the other ship we could propel ourselves away maybe find council ship? And while we are at it we could Ouroboros this ship when those leech man comeback. right Markus?" Markus gets a pensive look on his face “yea we probably could, but even if we can propel the other ship far enough how do we stop our people from trying to blow us up?’ Now Lilly speaks up ‘we can paint it? I have paints in my room, our space suit will still keep the pressure out but won’t supply oxygen. We could hold our breath.’ Rumbling Lugea intercepts ‘while i do need a little oxygen i can survive up to 58 kliks without it, i could do it?’ More and more of the crew start to speak up, Artez offers to help Petrus with the thrusters. Kit knows several flammable liquids she keeps in the med bay and has enough chemical knowledge to know what can be used as fuel so she is in on gathering the necessary ingredients. The two brothers started with decking out Lugea, and gathered several steel ropes to pull the ship in so people could get on with as little exposure as possible.

Ortez realises noone asked what ‘ouroboros’ meant and finds Kamari in a fight with Markus ‘you’re right that we’re gonna need the push if we want to get anywhere but there has to be another way?!’ The dark woman whisper shouts with a resigned look Markus grabs her flailing arm ‘we have no electricity to make a remote to do it from a distance moon, I don’t see another option.’ The fact that Markus is using Kamaris nickname and gets no scolding look makes the insectoid realise this is very serious ‘what about Lilly then? You know she won’t let you.’ Now the man looks stern ‘we dont tell her until it is too late.’ Skittering into the light Ortez speaks up ‘what exactly does ‘ouroboros’ a ship mean and why can’t you tell Lilly?’ Startled the two humans look at him, Kamari takes the word ‘ouroboros is a plan we made up for blowing the ship up, without power source. Ya know- serpentine -serpent -ouroboros is a serpent eating its own tail’ as she is speaking Ortez gets more anxious ‘okay several things 1, you made plans to blow up the ship?! 2, you just said you don’t have a remote which means you are planning on staying behind’ focussing all six eyes on Marks. Who squares his shoulders and nods.

It took two hours to get things in place, another hour to prepare and calculate the blast range.

Almost everyone has boarded the enemy ship, save for Primoz, Kamari, Krag and Markus. With tears in her eyes Kamari hugs him, Primoz grabs him by the shoulders ‘are you aure? The thrusters might be enough.’ A sad smile crosses his face ‘but it most likely won’t be captain. It was an honour serving with you.’ The three salute him while he walks to the bridge so he can see the ship and calculate when to start the chain reaction.

As the captain and his brother close the secondary doors behind Kamari, Lilly realises what has happened ‘NO,’ running for the door Petrus grabs her ‘PLEASE NO,’ as she fights and struggles the man starts whispering to her while she screams for Markus. Krag looks away towards Artez ‘start the thrusters’ now weeping Lilly cries out ‘WE LEAVE NO ONE BEHIND, we leave no one behind.’ the ships starts moving and as calculated their beautiful Serpentine blows up the shock wave propelling the now brightly coloured ship to safety.

It takes 5 hours for them to be found, after explaining the situation they are immediately transported to Unity. Where the group of humans show Lillies notes and the enemy ship. Plans are made and the human civilisation shows exactly why they are so scary when in les than a week they mass produce weapons that can hurt the newly dubbed leeches.

With the crew on the frontlines scattered over separate ships they beat back the leeches, destroying the wormhole and any stragglers are mercilessly killed off.

Humans are terrifying if you hurt them, because they never come after you alone.

~~~~~~~~~

This is technically the end of the serpentine but much room for stories in the 15 years before.

Hopefully people enjoy this.

[thisisnotthenerd]

most unhinged way to connect the world of elna and the world of spyre: the elves are the same, and efink was the elven oracle before eleminthindriel, who preceded adaine. think about it. fallinel is a parody of valinor and the undying lands, where elna is middle earth, and spyre is the evolution after the age of evil and the reign of leiland jr. technically we’ve only seen one continent of the world of spyre. elna could be on the other side. or the place could have just reorganized.

kei lumennura is kind of the thing this hinges on, since it kind of functions as a horny teen lothlorien. hallariel is celebrían if she married a pirate and then a tragically unlucky vice principal. there’s a ton of references to elven nonsense in fallinel. it just makes sense.

speaking of pirates, think about markus st. vincent and the sky kingdom of cael stuppe/kaelstoop. feels like a fun way to lead to a pirate city floating on the waters of the celestine.

ok wait i’m contextualizing this further: solace was a nation of halflings before it was settled by highcourt. need i remind anyone of ruckland? galfast hamhead’s energy tracks with the halflings of solace, which is a group that includes both the anarcho-socialist cubby family, and the luckstones, most notably penny. working class halflings are an established thread.

also deeply funny to imagine the gukgaks as descendants of the goblins of gorgar. with all the new arcanotech, who’s to say riz isn’t rigged to explode.

obviously eftbk and fantasy high are not happening at the same time. but really, we’ve been given info on <1000 years of spyre’s history. there’s time before that for the rise and fall and rise again of the evil kingdom of gorgar, that’s run by a set of evil coworkers. kalvaxus who. if you go by ages/eras, the reign of leiland jr over gorgar could mark the fourth age, which eventually culminated in the destruction of the goddess of sylvaire, and with the rise of the nightmare king began the fifth age, assuming we’re paralleling lotr.

also imagine arthur aguefort interacting with any of the vile villains. just any of them.

[thetistaboveall]

The Ghost Of The Fire House 1-2

My name is Ryan Lucas Lyle James a former firefighter of this station who has not moved on from this place or time for some reason it is my position. Two firefighters are now walking in to work very early shifting up to the barracks they take a nap but one of them Markus is laying in bed.I laugh a bit floating our of the wall circling him round and round as I meet the mirror with a simple touch my hand goes through it.On the other side of the mirror I watch him get up walking toward the hallway giving me ample time to set up as his bathroom door closes. I close my eyes as I begin pressing my hands on to the mirror energizing it with this pure power and it shines glowing with a blue aura. The door swings open to the side as he walks in to the hallway descending to the room back in to the main bedroom as the aura color catches his eyes and yanks him to face it. The man sees his image backing up to the wall the fear is very apparent to me which gives me my in and I knew then it was time as I leap out. My body rushes ever forward in to his as he falls back to the floor in utter pain and his body soon accommodates both of ours spreading as it fills upwards and also downward. He puffs up as his feet are leaping on to his feet coming alive with a big smile that a could light up the room with white teeth galore.

“God! I am hot”

“Who? Who are you?”

“I am you “

“No you are not”

“I am me”

“Stop lying”

“Look at this ass”

“Get your hands”

“I mean my hands “

“Now you get it”

“Hands off the merchandise “

“This is my property now”

“It would be so much easier “

“If what?”

“You give me everything “

“It’s my life “

“I am your new owner “

“I rule my body “

“Fuck you !”

“Fuck off!”

“I will live this life”

“It’s all mine”

“Nothing you can do about it”

“You sure about it”

“Damn right “

“Feel this ass”

“It’s tight “

“America’s ass”

“Lay off”

“Or what?”

“I love you “

“What?”

“I said I love you “

“This is my body “

“Let’s go party”

“Motherfucker “

“Hey Bud”

“He’s here jump in”

The end

[kikis-works]

"Promise me you'll take care of him."

Summary: Markus takes Simon to see an old friend.

Trigger Warnings: None.

The moon illuminated the driveway as the two androids stepped off the bus and into the snow. White particles floated around them and the snow crunched beneath their feet. “Are you sure it was a good idea…bringing me?” The blonde looked up at the newfound rebellion leader, anxiety swirling in his chest.

“I want you to meet him. And I think he can help with our cause, he’s always been a great mentor.”

The blonde nodded and allowed his friend to lead the way, taking in the sight of snow covered trees and hedges. If Simon zoomed in his optical vision enough, he could see the different shapes of snowflakes around them. As the pair approached the wooden front doors, they opened automatically, Simon assumed at Markus’s command, or possibly because Markus used to be Carl’s android. 

“Welcome home, Markus.”

The large mansion chimed to the brunette as he made his way up the large wooden stairs. He turned to look at Simon who was looking around the entrance. He seemed enthralled with the tiny robotic singing birds, the chandelier that illuminated the foyer, the library that sat through the second set of doors, and the general warmth that the home gave off. The blonde quickly joined his counterpart on the stairs as the two overlooked the foyer from above. Markus led the way to Carl’s room to find an android standing outside his bedroom. The unknown android looked at the pair and began to ask questions. “Who are you? How did you get in?”

“We need to see Carl.” Markus spoke as Simon watched the interaction. 

“Carl isn’t seeing anyone. You need to leave.”

Markus walked forward and grabbed the android by his arm, interfacing. “Please. I need to see him.”

“He’s very weak. I’m not sure he’ll be able to talk to you.” The android stepped aside and allowed the two men to walk inside. Carl was in a hospital bed now, hooked up to monitors, and a soft beeping filled the room. Markus rushed over, sitting on the bed. “Carl…no…hey.”

“Markus…I was hoping you’d come. And I see you brought a friend with you.” Markus smiled and held Carl’s hand in his own while Simon waited patiently by the door.

“This is Simon, he’s one of the people helping me lead the cause. I’ve missed you so much, Carl. You don’t know how much I’ve missed you…” Markus sniffled, and Simon suddenly became aware of how emotional this truly was. This wasn’t simply Markus reuniting with an old friend, no. This was a son reuniting with his father.

“What’s wrong, Markus?”

“I’m completely lost, Carl. Completely lost… the whole world’s falling apart around me and…I tried to do the right thing. I looked for answers…instead I just find more doubts and more uncertainty.” Carl sighed and gripped Markus’s hand with as much strength as he could muster. “The world is ruled by fear, Markus. Fear of others, fear of the future. It’s like me, too old. It’s time for it to end.” Markus suddenly stood up and faced away from his father.

“Oh, what should I do? Carl, they’re killing my people. I don’t want to answer violence with violence, but tell me, what choice do they give?” The leader turned back to the human whose life was slowly being taken by age. The elder spoke, “Being alive is making choices. Between love and hate, holding out your hand or closing it as a fist. I don’t have any easy answers, Markus. You have to accept the world as it is, or fight to change it.” 

Markus sat back down beside his father as the weight of the android future truly began to weigh on him, or the first time he let it show. Simon did not know the amount of pressure that Markus was under, but he admired him for how well he was handling being under so much pressure and still making the best decisions for all androids worldwide. 

“You’re my son, Markus. Our blood isn’t the same color, but I know a part of me is in you. When the world falls into darkness, some men have the courage to lead it out. You’re one of those men. Face the abyss, but don’t let it consume you.” Simon’s chest tightened at Carl’s words. He had never met such a good hearted human. Markus nodded as Carl looked over to the blonde by the door.

“Come over here, son.” Simon was confused and surprised by the older man suddenly speaking to him, but he walked over and Markus stood, allowing Simon to take his spot on the bed. “Markus, will you bring me some water from downstairs please?”

The brunette nodded and smiled, leaving the room and leaving the other two alone.

“Your name is Simon, right?” The blonde nodded nervously, and the older man laughed softly. 

“I’m not so old I can’t see how Markus looks at you, Simon. And I won’t be around to guide him for much longer, so I need you to promise me that you won’t let him get into any trouble. That you’ll look after him.” Carl held Simon’s hands as the android’s thirium pump began working quicker. Had he been so transparent?

“I promise.” A small blue tint began to form on his cheeks. 

Markus returned with the water in hand, setting it on Carl’s bedside table. Simon looked up at Markus from where he sat, and smiled. Carl watched as he sipped on his water, watched the look in his son’s eyes when he was with Simon. He knew that look, he had wore that look with his late wife. He handed the cold glass back to his son and watched as the two androids left quietly. The old man closed his eyes and smiled. His son was going to be loved after he was gone. And that’s all he needed.

[grits-galraisedinthesouth]

I remember when this aired in 2019. I submitted an ASK @skippyv20 "I'll Take 1 for the Team." The lies made me so angry! I walked on the treadmill while watching just to keep myself from screaming "LIAR!" Today I can let the clips roll off my back because everyone sees what frauds they are as individuals and as a couple. Truly they sit on a BENCH of LIES. Unfortunately there are 3-4 additional parts floating around streaming platforms like Tubi. People who dont follow the BRF might initially accept her fictional accounts until they realize her "facts" like to evolve and change w/time. Nice try MEgain but we see you.

Rewriting History

Also RMM: Having a man doesn't define me

Also RMM: I just want to fulfill my potential

MM was still living with Chef Cory and they recently returned from Mexico before the launch of her Reitman's promotion. She blindsided him with the request to move out of her Suits rental (to make room for Sparry).

Meghan didn't need to get out of town, she was on hiatus from Suits, traveling to a Hen party in Greece and multiple meetings with Gina in London.

Meghan & Sperry knew one another through Markus Anderson, but she was desperate to arrange a reputable matchmaker.

Meghan contacted Violet to request a free tic to Wimbledon and work to merch for RL during the match.

Face to face she asked Violet to introduce her to Sparry. Hence the puppy dog photo. Guess that would ring a bell from their time together in Istanbul Turkey.

Meghan never wanted to be seen with Cory in public.

Violet was never MEgain's stylist in Toronto or in London! MEgain telephoned Violet to request a FREE ticket to Wimbledon in exchange for merching a black suede WINTER season RL/brand ambassador dress for the event.

[raccoonfallsharder]

the raccoon, the witch, & the roadtrip. part two. pennsylvania. ohio. indiana.

the raccoon, the witch, & the roadtrip masterlist previous part | next part | main masterlist

angst, comfort, friendship, & fluff for @hibatasblog rocket & wanda | part 2/6 | word count: 806.

rocket appreciates the turnpikes. the heroes discuss music, memories, and state-of-the-art tech.

During a watch party for Avengers: Endgame on Twitter, Markus revealed the idea to team Wanda with the Guardian of the Galaxy captain actually made it into several versions of the film's script. "We had whole drafts with Wanda on a road trip with Rocket," Markus wrote, "but after the Vision plot in Infinity War, nothing we came up with was anything but wheel spinning for her character." CBR

“What’s this place?”

Wanda glances over at Rocket from behind the steering wheel. He looks like a child: sitting on three hardbound textbooks the Hulk had dug out of somewhere, legs swinging casually over the edge of the chair. He’d spent the first two hours fussing with his seatbelt, muttering about how Terran transport vehicles are deathtraps before either satisfying or resigning himself. 

The car is currently gliding through a twisting crevasse, cut deep into old mountains. Outside, the spring thaw is melting snow into little waterfalls that cascade off the manufactured cliffsides, carefully funneled away from the road. A sign warning of rockslides floats past. The trees are budding and there are little pink and yellow sprays of wildflowers peeking through the patches of grass.

“The Pennsylvania Turnpike?” Wanda offers uncertainly. 

“Huh.” The Captain of the Guardians of the Galaxy — down from six but up to three — swings his feet again. She can see his face reflected in the passenger window. His ruby-flecked, bourbon-brown eyes glow, wide and thoughtful. “It’s kinda pretty.”

Wanda blinks at the road ahead.

“You like music?” Rocket asks, feet still swinging.

She cants another sideways glance down in his direction. “I do.”

“What kind?”

She lets out a huff of air — almost a laugh. It feels strange. It’s been a while. About five years, actually. “Sokovian rock,” she tells him archly. “Some metal.” She raises a brow at him. “You know Sokovian music?”

Of course, she already knows the answer. 

Still, he’s looking at her with nothing but open intrigue. “No,” he says frankly, and his eyes are hungry. “You got some?”

It’s not quite the response she’d expected. She tries to remember the last time anyone other than Vis had asked about — home. Had wanted to share her memories, know her life.Had wanted to hear the music she’d grown up with, and listen to it together. 

Only Pietro, she thinks.

“No,” she says quietly. “I haven’t got anything.”

Rocket’s not sure how this planet goes from lush mountain forest into the flat nothingness of the Ohio Turnpike, but it does. As far as he’s concerned, this only confirms that every good thing on Terra has to be followed by a bad one. 

And also, what the fuck is a turnpike? It doesn’t register in his damn translator. 

Still, Cleveland’s not terrible when they stop for food — there’s some little cafe where they can eat outside, though Rocket’s surprised the witch doesn’t want to go in; it’s still kinda cold out for a baldbody, afterall. But it’s a good break in the monotony — especially before they start driving through an even more boring region that Wanda tells him is Indiana. 

Thank fuck he’s got something to tinker with now, though.

He’d chewed on her response to his question about Sokovian music for a while. It had sounded like a sentiment that had lived in his own head for years — I ain’t got nothin’ — and he hadn’t even realized the sound of it had faded until he’d stood at the edge of a dead star and pretended to be some kind of captain.

I could lose a lot. Me, personally — I could lose a lot. 

Then he’d asked Wanda if she’d had a zune.

The witch had blinked. “I — no. Nobody has zunes anymore.”

He’d scoffed. “I do.” He’d pulled Pete’s zune from his pocket and wagged it at her. “State-of-the-art music-portation and listening device,” he’d taunted, and something in the corner of her mouth had flickered.

“Most people use their smartphones nowadays,” she’d said — and her voice had been sort of mild instead of flat, which he’d counted as a win. “They’re a little newer,” she’d added apologetically. “Better tech.”

He’d dipped his head and stared at the zune. For some reason, the words had felt like a bruise in his heart, and he’d scrubbed his knuckles against his metal breastbone. “Better, how?”

She’d glanced at him again and shrugged one shoulder. “Faster. Sleeker. They hold more data, and they can access the Internet. Make calls, send texts. All sorts of things.” She’d shrugged again.

He’d dug his knuckles in hard  to his sternum, trying to relieve — or maybe counterbalance — some of the pressure there, and he’d stared down at the zune. “This was Pete’s.” The words had come out before he’d been able to drag them back. He’d never intended to say them in the first place.

The witch hadn’t said anything, and he’d slid his tongue over the front of his teeth, then had cast a sideways look up at her, trying to keep his face nonchalant.

“Those smartphones ain’t got more than three hundred songs on ‘em though, right?”

Her eyes had flicked to him, then back to the road. “Oh, absolutely not,” she’d said, so confidently that he’d immediately felt smug. “Fewer, I think.”

the raccoon, the witch, & the roadtrip masterlist previous part | next part [est may 28] | main masterlist

[pixelmensupremacy]

Hello!

Could I request a Markus x human gn reader oneshot. Maybe reader is similar to Natasha Romanoff in personality, and they are always keeping other humans away from Jericho and protecting the deviants. And one occasion Reader slipped into a small coma and had to get taken back to Jericho to be cared for.

(you can changed anything in this to make it better)

A/N: This turned out to be sappier than I originally anticipated.

Word count: 1.k

Warnings: Sappy hours in the household, hurt I guess and comfort, GN!reader, not proof read

Freedom, the sacred space Markus strived to reach, wasn't easily achievable. He was are of that.

He was also aware of the fact he and the fellow deviants he found in Jericho were far from prepared to achieve it. Misery and hopelessness had fallen upon the lucky few, who managed to find the safe haven that Jericho was expected to be. Most were moments away from death with just some naive delusions keeping the dim spark within them ablaze. The others, who were in good physical condition, lacked faith in a bright future, spending their days in isolation, waiting for their inevitable end in peace far from what their past used to be.

It was almost devastating for Markus; all of his hopes were shattered in a matter of seconds after finally finding Jericho. Surprisingly enough, a human managed to but only bring back his faith but enhance it.

(Y/N) knew Markus for a while, long before he deviated, and even then, they knew there was something to him. Maybe it was that he was a prototype, a unique model they have not gotten used to. Yet they couldn't deny the sympathy for him that naturally occurred. He just felt so real, so authentic, so human.

Since meeting Markus, (Y/N) grew a great fascination with androids that manifested in sympathizing with them. Once finding out about what happened with Markus, they weren't hesitant to help him.

Despite being human, (Y/N) earned his trust, making them the second person after Carl Manfred to get close to the unique RK model. Although it proved to be more of a challenge to blend in with his fellow deviants at Jericho, (Y/N) was more than willing to aid them however they could, helping with stealing biocomponents and thirium included.

As midnight was nearing with each passing second, the darkness clutched the lonely, tiny alleyways of Detroit, and bright neon lights shone throw the shadowy atmosphere of the city. Fog, akin to a soft cloud, floated in the night sky, absorbing the lights of the city and generously illuminating them on the moist, cold concrete of the darkened alleyways. The atmosphere was eerie and mystic- perfect for the cyber they were about to commit.

Using their abilities to their advantage, the android minded quickly without being noticed; they took cover in the spots humans would be too lazy to even bother to check. Against the group's expectations, (Y/N) kept up with their pace, following close behind them with seemingly no effort. Though Markus wasn't surprised for he knew he could trust his judgment and then even more.

Getting to the containers with the necessary loot was suspiciously easy, causing suspicion to arise in (Y/N) and then their best dropped, irises widening in two dark pits. Immediately, they pushed Markus out of the security's sight; the other three androids caught up and they too hid from the surveillance cameras.

"Just great. The human's attention is the last thing we need." North murmured, emphasizing the word humans. (Y/N) paid her no mind, for their attention was focused on the two policemen, guarding the area.

"I'll distract them, you guys take what's necessary." They spoke with certitude as if that was the group's only option.

"No."- Markus' voice was low and clear- "That's too risky." His gaze flashed with worry.

"I assure you I can handle myself." They gave him a bright smile before heading to the...

"That's our only option, Markus."- Josh reassured him as if he heard Markus' thoughts- "If any of us were to go in there the outcome could've been fatal." Though Josh's words brought little to no condolence to Markus. He couldn't risk (Y/N)'s life.

Rushing in the direction of security, he ignored the whispers of his fellow androids and instead entered the building. Inside (Y/N) held one cop at gunpoint, with the corner of his eye he noticed another one knocked unconscious on the floor.

"What are you-" Sudden force crashed on their head, bringing them to the ground; gunshots echoed in their ears, and their vision got blurry. As warmth gently enveloped their face, they caught a glimpse of his face; his lips moved though (Y/N) could barely hear anything except the piercing ringing sound in their ears.

(Y/N) fluttered their eyes open, a sharp pain pierced their skull. Joyful voices rang in their ears.

"(Y/N) is conscious!" Lazily, their gaze followed the source of the noise and as their vision cleared up they were met with Markus’ face; a tired smile was written on his features, his eyes contained a sea of colors- each interpreting a different emotion.

“How are you feeling?” He gently sat beside them, careful to harm them as if they could break apart at any second.

“I’ve been better. What happened?” They placed their elbow in an attempt to sit up but was shortly interrupted by his firm, yet delicate grip.

“You’re still too weak. You need to rest a bit more.”

“For how long have I been unconscious? Did you manage to take the biocomponents?” (Y/N) attacked him with questions.

“Don’t worry about that."- he reassured them, his voice ever so soft and comforting, successfully drawing their attention away from the subject of their interest- "I’m just glad you are alive.”  

Silence fell upon the two, and just as Markus was about to retrieve (Y/N) spoke up.

“Why did you come after me?” He looked away, knowing their curious, prying eyes were going to search for the answer in his own.

“I..."- he paused for a moment, in search for the right words to describe how he felt- "I guess I couldn’t risk loosing you.” The words were quiet, akin to a whisper, a prayer, a promise not meant to be heard by anyone else except for him, yet (Y/N) heard him clearly. Their heart thumped against their ribcage, sending a rush of blood to their face. They uttered his name, their hand grasped his, causing his gaze to fall upon theirs; shiny droplets, reminding them of tiny gems, glistered in the corners of his eyes.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily."- their words brought a smile to his face, which in return caused them to smile back- "Though you really should’ve trusted me with handling the situation. And I would have if only you didn’t distract me.”

“I didn’t know I have such an effect on you.”

“Now you do.”

[theinstagrahame]

It's been a minute since I talked about a game, so I wanted to talk Trash... Land.

Trashland. It's a game I made.

Trashland is a hack of Down We Go, from Plus One EXP and Markus Linderum. It's set on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch after a climate event melts the polar ice caps most of humanity lives on boats or garbage piles, scrounging off of fish they can catch and anything they can find in the piles of garbage.

Admittedly, because I haven't played a ton of DWG, Trashland is mostly a reskin of that game's moves with my custom setting elements and a mechanic for finding random garbage. It's also the first time I set out to make a two-page RPG and actually succeeded!

I did create a small dungeon to go with it, based around the USS Constitution floating past, and dealing with a faction split among its crew. I had some plans to make a mall in a blimp, and create a dungeon based on SkyMall, but haven't had the time to go back.

But really, I kinda want to talk about the Hugo-nominated novella The Past is Red, by Catherynne Valenti which the game is based on.

The Past is Red is a fantastic piece of fiction that follows The Luckist Person in the World, Tetley Abednego, as she grows up on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It's bittersweet, as she finds love, learns of loss, and uncovers a greater truth about the human race.

I think about it a lot, because *gestures broadly at the world*. I definitely don't want to live on the Garbage Patch, but Tetley is content there. In part because she doesn't know any better, but in part because she's a fighter.

It contains that bittersweet hopepunk aspect that I like in my Post-Apocalyptic fiction. I appreciate that people are resilient, but also always feel strongly for what our generation (in the context of those stories) robbed them of.

If you liked the book, I hope you'd also like the game. But if you have to pick one, I think Valenti's book does more than I could do in 4 pages (plus a supplemental dungeon!)

[my-chaos-radio]

Release: October 29, 2001

Lyrics:

La

La la la la la la

La la la la la la

La

La la la la la la

La la la la la la

The night I laid my eyes on you

Felt everything around me move

Got nervous when you looked my way

But you knew all the words to say

Then your love slowly moved right in

All this time, oh my love where you been

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

La

La la la la la la

La la la la la la

La

La la la la la la

La la la la la la

I'm mesmerized in every way

You keep me in a state of daze

You're kisses make my skin feel weak

I'm always melting in your heat

Then I soar like a bird in the wind

Oh, I glide as I'm flying through heaven

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

Since we connect behind closed doors

Spark this fire even more

No telling where we will be next

Surrender to your rapture arrest

Lay your head, let the slumber float

Can't resist, that's why words were wrote

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so, yeah

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

Mi amore, don't you know

Mi amore, don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar, you make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet

Songwriter:

Ali Nadia / Markus Moser

SongFacts:

👉📖

[unstablerk800]

Markus moved to climb into the bed beside Connor, arms wrapping around him without a word said. His face buried into the other androids chest, eyes closed. ( @mxrvelouscreations

Resting mode.

It was such a new concept for him as he hadn't had it before the revolution - before actual androids were added to CyberLife's engineers and coders.

Connor was curious to try it. It was just a minor update that let him mimick sleep as much as possible. He wasn't completely offline, like when he was recharging, but he wasn't completely aware of his surroundings, either. He was somewhere in-between, floating - half-asleep.

That was when he felt the bed dip beside him, and he smiled when he felt arms wrap themselves around him. Connor hummed, analyzing the scents in the air, the temperature of the other. He knew a microsecond later that it was Markus. Couldn't be anybody else.

"Hello, Markus", he murmured sleepily, hugging the other closer to himself. "How are you feeling?"