#natemare (mentioned)

[th3w00ds]

Natemare headcanon (my interpretation of him): He’s at least a little resentful of the other dark side egos for getting more attention from fans than he pretty much ever has. It isn’t just some “Oh I don’t like that you are more popular than me!” thing, but since attention from fans is what allows egos to exist and live and grow more powerful, he views it as the fans telling him to die, in a way. This includes Phantom, as he arguably was more popular than Mare for a time and they were even considered to be the same ego by some fans at first.

[red-balloon12]

Hot Takes/Random Thoughts #IDK

Am I the only one that’s a bit….tired of Natemare being associated with just FNAF? Like…if Nate’s able to detach himself from FNAF and if Phantom’s able to stand on his own as a character despite being based off on Alastor from Hazbin Hotel, why can’t Mare do the same?

(Don’t get me wrong I love Mangled but…my boi deserves a makeover)

[bookwormscififan]

Date Night

Read on AO3!

A/N: Just a little fluffy PhantomHero date for you all. If you want, I'll consider writing a continuation.

Jackie stood in the closet, frowning at his clothes as he dried his hair with a towel. He pulled a pair of dark blue jeans off a shelf, then stepped sideways to look at his shirts, skimming over the options before moving to his collection of hoodies.

He dropped his towel to the floor, shaking his relatively dry hair out of his eyes, then took a copper-coloured hoodie off the rack, running his fingers over the material before slipping it over his head. He pushed the hood off his head and tugged on his jeans, fastening them before pulling on some socks and stepping out of the closet.

He had a bounce in his stride as he headed out of his room, hopping down the stairs and picking up a bouquet of dark red roses, tossing it into the air and catching it over the kitchen island. With a short cheer, Jackie grabbed his keys from the front entrance and slipped on his shoes, then he opened the front door and stepped outside.

--

Phantom hummed to himself as he slid his arms into the sleeves of his red shirt, watching his reflection as he buttoned the shirt before tucking it into his black slacks, fastening them and smoothing down the shirt. He flashed the mirror a smile before turning around, flicking his vest off the back of the chair and shrugging it on.

He continued to hum a light-hearted tune as he made his way down the hall, rolling his eyes at Mare’s teasing smile and picking up a bouquet of red and blue lilies, tapping it to his chest before sending himself away, the sound of Mare’s laughter echoing in his mind.

--

“Good evening,” Jackie greeted as he leaned against the tree, smiling at Phantom and extending his hand to offer him the flowers, letting out a nervous chuckle when Phantom held out his own bouquet.

“Roses? They’re lovely, thank you,” Phantom said, taking the flowers from Jackie with his free hand and holding them to his nose, breathing in the scent before leaning forward to give Jackie a brief peck on the cheek.

“You didn’t have to get me flowers,” Jackie replied, looking at the lilies in awe, cheeks a soft pink from the kiss. “But they are nice. I like them,” he continued when Phantom gave him a look, tilting his head to the side before beginning to walk, finding a spot in the grass to sit and pulling Phantom down by his arm.

Phantom broke his fall with a hand, slowly sitting beside Jackie and leaning into his side, turning his face to kiss Jackie’s cheek again.

“Did you have anything planned when you asked to meet here tonight?” Jackie asked, rubbing the tip of his nose with the back of his hand. “Or do you just want to sit and kiss my cheeks?” he yelped when Phantom cupped his cheek, turning him so they could kiss properly, and Jackie leaned back as Phantom deepened the kiss, arms wrapping around Phantom’s waist when he climbed into his lap.

“I did want to watch the stars,” Phantom replied against Jackie’s lips with a giggle, sliding his hands to hold Jackie’s shoulder and the back of his neck. “But now I kind of want to go home and finish this lovely date night.”

Jackie laughed, kissing Phantom again before standing, picking up the flowers and taking Phantom’s hand, leading them out of the park, blinking when they were suddenly inside Jackie’s house, Phantom pressing Jackie against the front door to kiss him.

“Phan, let me at least put the flowers in water,” Jackie chuckled, pushing Phantom away and moving to the kitchen, setting the flowers in a vase of water with one hand because Phantom was holding his hand tightly, sucking marks into the side of his neck.

Once the vase of flowers was set safely on the coffee table, Phantom pulled Jackie close, pressing their hips together and connecting their lips, sliding his tongue into Jackie’s mouth to muffle his moan before leading him up the stairs to the room.

-------

@iamvegorott @brokentimewatch

[colourfulmes]

Colourfulmess’s Headcannons For…

PHANTOM SHARP “Take a bite and feed your satisfaction guaranteed!” Successful businessman and Demon of sin!

@th3w00ds @mayorundertheplumtree @nwtbobsessedemo @starchyeah

< Natemare HCs || Character!Nate >

Pronouns: He/They

Approx 29 years old

Phantom is a reserved yet charismatic person, being social and friendly to those he chats to, though hides his irritation if there's an issue.

He’s a workaholic, obsessed with constantly working to ensure everything is to his high standards…when was the last time he slept? Does…does he ever sleep?

He uses his staff as a proper cane! He can’t go a long time standing without support, it’s very important to him

local con-man, well known for his successful Bar and Emporium

Bit of a hoarder! He collects things and puts them around his office as personal trophies, either from his clients or just stuff he’s found to like

Enjoys a variety of music, but enjoys electro-swing and classical the most

Phantom likes snakes, they seem to represent him most

He’s a con-demon, a type of demon that gets their energy and feed through making deals in exchange for souls

He uses his staff for his magic and to capture and consume souls, it helps aid control of his power too!

Using the souls he collects he extracts their energy either for himself or forces them to work within his businesses

If he doesn’t get enough energy he practically eats himself from the inside out…

He can make all your dreams come true! All for a price of course…

His past being a demon has been a very rough one

He used to have more pairs of wings…but he traded them for a price of his own.

Considered to be the most powerful in magic out of the other brothers/egos 

Never mention his real name.

- .... . .-. . .-..-. ... / .- / -- . ... ... .- --. . / .. .-..-. ...- . / -... . . -. / -- . .- -. .. -. --. / - --- / - . .-.. .-.. --..-- / .. / -. . . -.. / - --- / .-- .- .-. -. / -.-- --- ..-

[phant0mh34rt]

Ghost Town

A/N: Random idea I got from a pinterest quote with the nwtb egos…enjoy! Also sorry if there are spelling errors, It’s midnight as I write this.

Three years.

Natemare Battle had seen some stuff in three years, but nothing to this scale. Mass destruction, chaos, and loss..how he and Skelly were still alive was a mystery to even him. Correction, how he was still alive. NateSkellington, called Skelly by the others and known by all as “The King of Halloween”, was severely ill. He couldn’t be closer to death…somehow he was still here. Phantom and Sharper had left two years ago to persue their own interests, Jessi and Bones were missing, and the others..? Dead.

As the puppet ego walked the empty streets, he couldn’t help but wonder why this had all happened. I mean surely Nathan wouldn’t let this happen to his egos!! Why hadn’t he come to see us? He asked himself this daily, yet deep down he knew the answer: Nathan didn’t care, and the reason they were all gone was because he forgot about us, THEY forgot about us..he kept walking. Mare wouldn’t let that bother them for now.

Imagine his surprise when they ran straight into Nathan. Stumbling back, he took a look at the man who stared right back. “Well, haven’t you changed?”, he asked helping Mare. “Yeah. That happens.” Natemare responded coldly to his comment. How was he supposed to react? He’d ignored them all for years and then he just shows up again. The other male looked around. “What happened here…? Looks like a Ghost Town-where’s Heathen? And Christmas? What about Skelly??”

Natemare stared at him. He…he didn’t know. Of course he didn’t. “Dead. No thanks to you.” “What’s that supposed to mean-“ He got cut off. “YOU LEFT US ALONE FOR YEARS, NATHAN. FORGOT ABOUT HALF OF US. AND BECAUSE OF THAT PEOPLE DIED. PEOPLE LEFT. I HAVEN’T SEEN PHANTOM IN YEARS. SKELLY COULD DIE ANY DAY NOW. WHY DID YOU LEAVE US? WHY??” Mare snapped. He was so tired of loosing everyone he cared about. Nathan stared at him with a far off look, as if he wasn’t there.

“Hello??? ANSWER ME. YOU OWE ME THAT AT LEAST.” Nathan looked at him and sighed. “Any time I look at you, I wonder where the hell I went wrong, and then I remember. You’re the reason my lifes a mess. You’re my failure.” The other had no reaction at first, as Nathan started to apologize, but it was too late. Words had been spoken, too late to take back now. Nate kept apologizing, before returning to his spaced out self, his eyes glassed over and staring straight into Mares soul.

“Stop staring at me like that, with fake ‘pity’ in your eyes. All I am to you is a failure, right?” No response, just the same stare. He was getting tired of this. “Stop it. Stop fucking looking at me like that. Do you even hear me??”. No response. Nathan muttered a simple sorry and walked off, despite Mare’s curses at him to come back.

The sooner he left his failures behind, the sooner he could get back to normal.

——————————————————————

TAGS AND MENTIONS:

@war-never-ends

[ghostlykestrel525]

i have been giggling at this for way too long. (bear with me here-)

So this is a headcanon within a headcanon I guess? NWTB egos, specifically Mare, but like-- I like to imagine that collectively, the battle beans just consider each other as a sibling pod. Some of them actually being related because why not, but mostly it's just. Mfs adopted each other, and I can so see all of them looking to Nate as a dad figure. Worth mentioning I reckon Mare's a whole-ass demon. It just fits somehow-- anyway- Scribble time. Here's how I reckon Mare started off referring to Nate as his parental figure. Completely by accident. In short: Nate accidentally used a dad-esque tone when scolding this dumbass, and Mare decides to run with it. -=-=-=-

“For fuck’s sake—” Twelfth time this week. Twelfth. God knows how many times he’d told that damned demon not to do exactly this, and yet, it was still happening. The yell was impressive, even for Nate’s standards. “NATEMARE, GET YOUR ASS IN HERE, NOW,” That probably wasn’t the demon’s actual name, but it worked. He answered to it, at least. The explosion of dark smoke, solidifying into a fairly tall, broad-shouldered figure – one with an annoyingly cocky smirk on his face – was infuriating confirmation of that. He gestured angrily at the mess left behind, and Mare arched his eyebrows slightly as if to say; ‘yeah, and?’ If it weren’t a terrible idea to punch the demon – something he’d found out by accident when the bastard jump-scared him into trying it. Nate didn’t fancy shattering his hand again, or he’d have tried to smack the smug look off of the idiot’s face himself. Then again, he also knew Mare’s reflexes were lightning-fast – he probably wouldn’t be able to land the hit anyway. “You’ve gotta stop doing this, man,” Nate complained, folding his arms, and glaring at the demon as he smirked, clearly not taking this seriously. Who knew a powerful, several-thousand-year-old entity would turn out to be such a little shit? Exasperation flared up, and without paying quite enough attention to his tone, he glared at the demon, trying to set a solid boundary. “You moved yourself into my place; you’re under my roof. Is it really so hard to respect my rules?” Oops. He’d really done it now. The demon hunched his shoulders, stuck his bottom lip out like a child, and adopted a surprisingly high-pitched whine, sounding almost exactly like a plaintive teenager.

“But, daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad-” -=-=-=-=-=-

[myneckmybackmyanxietyattack]

Partners, Phantom (NWTB) x Bill Cypher-esque! Reader

I made a fic!!!! First reader-insert, feedback is much appreciated. I made this in a one hour moment of inspiration at 10:30. It has been proofread, but probably not very well. This is based off a Thought I had, so, enjoy!

TW: mentions of murder + a vague description of a dead body. Don’t read if this could trigger you!

Summary: A soul-stealer meets a daemon murderer. What could go wrong?

WC: 1,108

Key: (Y/N): your name. (E/C): eye colour. (E/H/N): eldritch horror name.

Something was wrong. Phantom sat in his office, staring at the empty chair across from him. He hadn’t had a deal in, what, a week now? It was unheard of for him. The bar had its usual customers, sure, but he had no people preforming when they were there. It was bad for business. 

The lack of souls was starting to drain him. You can only use so much power with limited resources after all. Phantom was a business man first and foremost, so why he couldn’t get contracts anymore was beyond him. Worse, crime rate was increasing in his city. Mainly murder charges, which was even weirder. Phantom sighed, and stood up from his desk. The show must go on after all.

Somewhere… else. 

‘I’ stood up, wiping off ‘my’ face with a handkerchief. Well, not really me, just the poor sod’s body I happened to be inhabiting for the time being. Mortals. They never learn, do they? I chuckled to myself, admiring my handiwork. 

“Beautiful, isn’t it? I haven’t done a good old fashioned axe-murder in such a long time.” The man in the corner sobbed, his translucent body unable to touch his wife. “Aw, don’t be like that,” I teased. “You made the deal after all. You let me in.”

“You didn’t say you’d HURT anyone! I wouldn’t have even interacted with you had I’d known, you psychopath!” my host’s spirit screamed, tears still rolling down his face.

A laugh escaped my lips. “I told you there would be a price to pay for the work I do. Helping you get away with stealing the money your customers people trust you with?” I tsked. “That is quite a hefty fee.” Before he could respond, sirens started blaring, quickly approaching our building. “Ahhhh, I guess the Mrs. was a little too loud. What a shame. Well, have fun dealing with the popo.” 

“You can’t just leave! I didn’t do this! You did!”

“Oh but darling, I’m leaving right now. Nice doing business with ya.” I slipped out of his body, watching him stumble as he came back into control. This was the best part. 

Third Person POV

The police stormed into the room, guns at the ready. “Put the axe down!” The man just stared at the dead body, reportedly his wife’s. “I said, PUT THE AXE DOWN! HANDS BEHIND YOUR HEAD ON YOUR KNEES!” The criminal complied silently, no emotion on his face. 

A different officer stepped forward as the murderer was handcuffed. “You are being charged with murder of the first degree. Anything to say for yourself, Mr. Brody?” Chase Brody did not reply. As the officer listed his rights, Chase was practically dragged out of the room. And for just a second, behind all the noise, a faint laugh echoed across the building.

Back to Phantom

“I figured it out!”

Natemare jumped as his brother slammed his hands on his desk. “What, why you’re such a buzzkill? Took you long enough.” 

Phantom rolled his eyes. “No, you idiot. The lack of contracts! The murder rates! It’s all connected!” 

“Good for you? I thought you were just past your prime.” Natemare shrugged, ignoring the deadly glare Phantom sent his way. 

“I think someone summoned a daemon.”

Mare choked on his martini.  (A/N: yes I headcanon that Mare drinks martinis. Shut up.) “What! Your wrong. No one would be stupid enough to summon a daemon Phan.” Phantom opened his mouth to speak, but Natemare cut him off. “This isn’t like one of your contracts! That’s just mortals not reading the fine print like the stupid little apes they are. Daemons take ages of preparation to summon, along with a very complex ritual that would fry most human brains. Nobody, not even a mortal, would summon one.”

Phantom groaned softly, running his hands through his hair. “You got a better idea? I don’t know who summoned one, I just know that it is the only sensible explanation for this.”

“And if it is a daemon? What then?

“I confront it. Don’t give me that look! This thing, whatever it may be, is bad for the bar. My number one priority is to get rid of it as soon as possible. Now leave.” Mare mumbled something under his breath and walked out. Suddenly, the room became warm. Almost unbearably warm. Phantom looked around, eye narrowed. A giggle slipped right by his ear.

“So close Phan! I’m so proud of you for figuring that out. Just missing one piece though.” A figure stepped out of the shadows. (E/C) eyes gleamed mischievously, a crooked grin on its face. “I wasn’t summoned.”

(Y/N) POV

I stared at the soul—stealer in front of me. Easy on the eyes, I thought to myself as he stared, jaw dropped in shock. “Close your mouth darling, we wouldn’t want any flies in there now would we?” 

“Wh- who are you?” He stuttered. 

“Names (E/H/N), just call me (Y/N). I do apologize for stealing customers, I wasn’t aware of your little establishment here.” A sickly-sweet grin covered my face as he nodded softly to himself.

“Pleasure to meet you (Y/N). May I ask how you arrived on this Plane if not by summoning? Assuming you are a daemon of course.” 

“I am! In truth, I simply walked in. The Mortal Plane is so interesting, I just had to check it out. No guards as well, which is odd. Not that I’m complaining.”

Phan stood, crossing the room. I tilted my head as got closer, looking him over with a smirk. In truth, I had started to follow his work when I learned about it. I had gained a small crush on the man, but he didn’t need to know that. Satan knows that soul-stealers had a big enough ego as it is. “I have a proposal,” he finally said after several moments of silence. 

I raised my eyebrows. “Oh really? And what would this proposal be?”

Phan smiled softly. “Business partners. I get souls through contracts, you take out those who stand in my way. We split the pay in the end.” 

“Sounds wonderful. Where do I sign?” He guided me over to his desk, waving his hand vaguely. As I sat down, the contract appeared, along with a pen. I read carefully, then signed. Phantom signed without even looking it over, and words cannot describe how much I hated him for it. As the paper disappeared, I looked Phan in the eyes, and stuck out my hand. “Looking forward to working with you partner.”

He grinned and took my hand, shaking it. “Likewise, partner.” 

[riotlain]

Youtuber Egos Masterlist

Youtubers may be mentioned but these are just their characters

Natewantstobattle

Phantom

Natemare

Natpai

Bones

Echo

Sharper

Jacksepticeye

Anti

Marvin

Robbie

JBM

Jameson

Chase

Shneeple

Markiplier

Darkiplier

Wilford Warfstache

Host

Google(all of them)

Bing

Murdoc

Yandereiplier

Eric Derekson

Actor

Captain Magnum

The uh- Space Mark

Illinois

Yancy

[shockwavezstimz]

hi! :)

(@queeniesretrozone is my main)

stimboard sideblog!

(some of) my fandoms!

Animaniacs (both versions)

Bluey

The Ghost And Molly Mcgee

Ducktales (both versions)

the amazing digital circus

HSM:TM:TS

Sonic the hedgehog

fnaf

the back to the future trilogy

tally hall + others

will do: animatronics, obscure characters, songs, any of the fandoms/things mentioned on my carrd linked on my main blog or anything not listed on the won't do section (if I'm uncomfy tho ill ignore the ask!) and album covers! (I might not do them depending on the ask tho)

won't do: 18+ media/characters, certain fandoms, controversial ppl and/or youtubers, irl people* (only their characters, not the ppl.), horror, (unless its the fnaf movie and similar stuff with not a lot of blood) media with body horror, ship stimboards*, and similar things!

* (1: although if someone requests a specific color related to a band I might include a photo of the band member, ie: someone requests a tally hall related stimboard with blue things I’d probably include a photo of Zubin or his youtooz. Depends on the ask tho ☺️ 2: when I say only their characters I’m referring to. for example: darkiplier, natemare, fnaf the musical! matpat/William Afton, etc. )

* (depends on the ship.)

also fyi like I’ve said on my main blog I don’t support what some people connected to my fandoms have done/said/retweeted/etc. 😊

[lildevyl]

FebuWhump Day 18: Forced To Watch

DSMP Superhero AU

Summary 2: Wilbur knows there’s something very wrong, he can feel it. It feels like someone's watching him. Like there’s someone in the room that he shares with his younger brother, Tommy. Wilbur opens his eyes and sees a demon standing over his brother. Wilbur goes to say something and get to his brother, only to find out that he can’t move and he can’t even make a sound. He’s forced to watch the entire encounter between this Demon and his brother.

TW: Dark Magic, Making a deal with a Demon, Mention of Child Neglect, Drugging? (A Villain uses their power to put them in a deep sleep).

Part One Here

Part Two Here

Part Three Here

Working Title for this AU is Phoenix or Phoenix Rising

(The Craft’s House)

Something was wrong, Wilbur could just feel it! He felt it all day. It’s hard to explain to someone what this feeling was or how to put it into words. But it’s just - when you feel like someone’s watching you or you get that, “I got a bad feeling” kind of sense. His Dad always told him that he’ll develop a sixth sense when you’ve been a hero for so long. And when you do, you just follow your instinct.

Unfortunately, for Wilbur, he just doesn’t know what this feeling was or what it meant! All he knew was something bad was going to happen and he couldn’t let his guard down. Wilbur tried to explain it to his Dad and his brother Techno but all he got in response was that he was just being paranoid over nothing. Maybe they’re right, but something just told Wilbur that something was going to happen and he couldn’t shake this feeling when Tommy finally got home.

(Tommy and Wilbur’s Room)

Wilbur knew something was going to happen! He just wasn’t expecting this! Two people were in the house but not just in the house of his family of Superheroes. Oh no! They were standing in the middle of the shared bedroom of him and Tommy! Wilbur hadn’t moved yet, not wanting to alter the two intruders that he was awake but at the same time he didn’t want something to happen to his brother! So, Wilbur laid there, completely still, pretending to sleep.

“Are the other two taken care of?” One of the intruders said. They had a crystal diamond like staff, short dark hair, glowing red eyes and horns. From what Wilbur could see without using his enhancement and altering the two was the one who spoke also wore a red dress shirt, and dark pants.

“Yeah, Phantom, they’re taken care of. I used my Sleep Mist. So, they’re in a deep slumber. No one’s going to interrupt us.” The other one said. He wore a dark trench coat, had dark hair and style similar to Phantom and dark eye makeup from his eyes to his cheeks.

“Good Nightmare. Now, make sure Ghostbur has the same deep sleep. Wouldn’t want big brother interrupting our deal now would we?”

Nightmare came over to Wilbur’s bed and Wilbur didn’t have time to react. All Wilbur could do was shut his eyes and hold his breath and just in time too! No sooner did he do that then he felt the cooling mist on his face. Wilbur suddenly noticed just how heavy and exhausted his entire body felt.

“What the - H-how did you get in?!”

Tommy! Tommy’s in danger! He needs to help his brother!

But Wilbur couldn’t move! His entire body felt like he just ran five miles after coming back from a month long mission. His body told him to sleep but his mind was screaming to stay awake.

The sound of something being dragged across the floor was heard and Wilbur saw Phantom take a seat in front of Tommy in the desk chair.

“Oh, it’s quite easy when your brother can control dreams and hallucinations,” Phantom explained. “But that’s not why we’re here.”

“Then why are you fuckers here?” Tommy demanded. “If you did anything to my family -”

“Relax kid. All I did was put them in a deep sleep. They’ll be really sluggish and groggy in the morning.” Nightmare said.

“Then why are you here?!”

“For you actually. You survived which means, I get to hold up my end of the deal.”

Deal? What deal? Did Tommy make a deal with this Demon without realizing it? Primes, why can’t he move?

“What deal? I didn’t make a deal!” So, Tommy came to the same conclusion that Wilbur did.

“Oh, I know, you were unconscious at the time when I made it. But I did make a deal, and the deal was, ‘If you survive then I’ll grant you your wish.’”

“Look, I’m nothing special!”

“Oh, Tommy, you are so wrong! You see your entire family are idiots! Literally, what kind of a family ignores the one family member because they’re human but praise the others and put them first?”

No! That wasn’t true! No, no, no, no! Tommy! Tommy don’t listen to him! Tommy! I’m so sorry if we ever made you feel like that! Why can’t I move? Why can’t I make a sound?

“Oh don’t give me that look! A blind person could see the neglect and bitterness weighing on you! I’m here to help with that. You’re special Tommy. Whether you realize that or not, you’re special. You have this - this fire in you! This - burning desire to prove yourself, to be something. I can help with that.”

During this little speech something snuck into Phantom’s voice. Wilbur’s eyes widened as realization kicked in. He knew what that was, that was a variation of Charm Speak. Charm Speak was some kind of alluring mind control that was said to be used by the Sirens back in Ancient Greek and now it appears that even Demons have it too!

“But - I’m not - I’m human! No powers! Not even a lame useless enhancement! I’m normal! There’s nothing special about me!” Tommy tried to dismiss this.

“Oh, Tommy, that’s where you’re wrong! That kind of fire doesn’t just burn in anyone! And lucky for you, I can help you . . . bring that fire to life. I can give you everything you ever wanted! You want your family to finally notice you. You want to finally be and feel special. You want to be a Hero! Or a Villain. Or Vigilante. Quite honestly it doesn’t bother me, on which. But the point is, I can help you with that.” Phantom held out his hand for Tommy to shake.

No! Tommy! Don’t! Don’t do it!

Nightmare came over to Wilbur’s bed with an amused smile on his face. “How did you not be under? Sorry, can’t risk you ruining this!”

(The Next Day)

Wilbur woke up the next morning groggy and extremely tired, it felt like he didn’t sleep at all last night but he knew he did. But what confused Wilbur was that the room was empty. Usually he’s the one that’s up first and has to wake Tommy up. Did Tommy sneak out without him knowing? Checking his alarm clock, Wilbur quickly got out of bed and ready himself for the day. He really slept in today!

“Morning, sleep head!” Tommy called.

“Morning,” Wilbur replied.

“Didn’t sleep well?”

“I don’t - know? Did I? I know I slept in but it just feels like I didn’t get any rest? If that makes any sense at all.”

Tommy nodded and finished his breakfast. Wilbur looked around and everything seemed alright. Techno’s on his phone with his plate already empty. Phil’s fixing his plate for breakfast. And Tommy just finished his and is probably off to hang with his friends to see what kind of mischief they can get into. So why does it feel like Wilbur’s forgetting something very important?

***

Tagging: @febuwhump, @weirdmixofweirdness, @dezzydynamite, @nightfuryobsessed, @isa-ghost, @bonesandthebees, @wolfythewitch, @huffletrax

[th3w00ds]

Siren - (Natemare, Wings of Fire AU)

Siren is a NightWing/SeaWing hybrid, and was not born under any of the moons, so he does not possess the rare NightWing powers of mind reading or future sight. His brother is Phantom, a pure NightWing, who is an animus dragon. At Siren’s request, Phantom enchanted him so that he could control/influence other dragons with his voice.

[huffle-dork]

Curiosity Killed the Cat: Chapter 10

What Swallows the Light 

Chapter 9: [x] Read from the beginning: [x]

(AN: IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG I HATE THAT WRITING IS SO HARD FOR ME RN AHHH I LOVE Y’ALL THANKS FOR STICKING WITH THIS- THE END IS NEAR!! LIkE MAYBE 3-4 MORE CHAPTERS!! EEEEE!!) 

The boys regrouped at Chase’s studio- exhausted and spent but determined to look for Marvin using any means necessary. Well… most of them.

Jackie was desperate- desperate to do anything but resort to Jameson’s suggestion… he was not ready to face Phantom again.

His limbs still ached from the abuse he suffered at the hand of the mad conman. But, he wasn’t scared. Superheroes don’t get scared.

Chase groaned loudly and flopped his weight onto the back of the couch. “Jackie, c’monnn! We’re getting nowhere with all this!” He gestures to the collection of trackers and electronic devices Jackie’s collected- all beeping or malfunctioning. “Marvin knows you too well man! He’s probably using some freaky magic shit to block himself!”

Jackie grumbled and refused to acknowledge Chase, stubbornly tapping on the tablet he was trying to program. When it refuses to work, he suddenly yells in frustration and throws the thing hard against the wall. It cracks through the surface- the screen shattered and sparking. The hero then grips his hair and suppresses an even louder yell.

Schneep and Jameson exchange worried looks with each other. The doctor tries to speak up,” Jackie-”

“Shut up! I know!” The hero hisses through clenched teeth. “I know this isn’t working! But there has to be something! Something we’re missing.. Something that doesn’t involve-!” He seems to choke slightly, swallowing thickly.

A static laced laugh breaks the tense silence as Anti- who’s splayed across one of the couches like a lazy cat- finally speaks. “Woowww Spandex- it’s so rare to see you so scared shitless-”

Jackie turns to shout at the glitch, his eyes burning with blue power. “Shut the fuck up, you lazy bitch! I ain’t scared-”

“Righttt and the refusal to just- go do the easy thing and see the guy who might actually have the answers to whiskers’ problem is…? What? A super secret strategy of yours? Stubbornness? Stupidity? You are good at that last one-”

Chase has to grab Jackie and hold him back as the hero almost throws himself at the glitch to strangle him. Anti laughs madly, the air around him fizzling with glitches and static.

“Someone’s gotta length your fuse big guy! Hate to see what’ll happen when you finally explode~” Anti’s eyes darken to pits. “Then again… maybe it’ll be fun to watch~!”

“Anti for the love of god- stop antagonizing him!” Jameson huffs in exasperation, making sure his speech slide appears in right in front of Anti’s face so he can’t ignore it. Anti simply laughs and pushes it away- but luckily he doesn’t push the hero anymore.

The others look to Jackie with sympathetic faces. The hero shoves Chase off him with his elbow before looking away, clearly conflicted.

Schneep coughs then carefully walks up to Jackie, using his quiet bedside manner voice, “Jackie… we all know you are… hesitant. About seeing Phantom again. But we also cannot waste our time… we do not know what Marvin could be doing to Jack right of now.” Jackie cringes slightly at this, anxiously starting to pick at the skin beneath his gloves. Schneep looks to his brother with kind and worried eyes. He steps closer and gently places a hand on his then whispers to him low. “It is okay to be scared, you know.” The doctor’s eyes shift to the lounging glitch and Jackie can see the spark of fear in his eyes. “We all understand… but- you cannot let your fears keep you from moving forward, yes?” He squeezes the older brother’s hand tighter, “We all need to work together to stop this… you will not face this alone. And we do not think lesser of you for it.”

Jackie is quiet for a beat- but slowly he nods. He meets Schneep’s eyes and smiles softly. “Thanks Hen…”

Then he sighs and squares his chest before addressing the rest of the room.

“Alright… time to go pay Phantom a visit.” 

The door to the tackily clad Phantom’s emporium opened effortlessly with a little bell. The egos all walk in-and are greeted with a dark and abandoned shop. 

“It’s awful dark in here…” Jameson comments, his speech slide adding a small burst of light. 

Chase squints and whistles under his breath, “Yeah- jesus… you’d think the guy could afford more lights in this creepy-as-fuck shop-”

He then shouts and suddenly falls to the floor.

There’s the sound of glitchy laughter from Jameson’s phone while Schneep digs out his and turns on the flashlight.

“Mein gott Chase- are you okay?”

There’s a groan as Chase pushes himself up and rubs at his head,” Y-Yeah- Yeah I’m okay- I  just stepped on something-”

Suddenly there’s the sound of muffled yelling that has all the boys turning to look at the floor. “N-No way…” Jackie gasps as he goes to inspect the object, then he brings it up for the other boys to see. It’s one of phantom’s crystal orbs- only it’s occupied by the con artist himself and his brother, Mare. Mare is kneeling, one hand knocking against the glass while the other cradles a pale and spent looking Phantom.

Schneep’s eyes widen, “wh- how… how did this happen?” He whispers in disbelief. Jameson is covering up his mouth. Chase is massaging his calf before he looks up and yells, “Woah!” 

Mare inside the orb scowls and knocks against the glass again. There’s a large crack on its side- like it might have been smashed against a corner of something. “Would you stop gawking and help us?!”

Jackie’s face falls slightly. Even if these guys were villains… this wasn’t right. So he nods and goes to try to smash the orb on the ground.

But quickly, Schneep yelps and goes to stop Jackie. “Wait!”

Jackie blinks in confusion and Schneep breathes before whispering to his brother, “Let’s… let's think this through, Jackieboy- if we free them now… we might not get the information we need.”

The doctor raises an eyebrow at Jackie and it slowly dawns on the hero. Jackie hisses back low to Henrik, “You want us to use their imprisonment to get info on Marvin?” His eyes glow slightly, “That’s not right, Schneep!”

Schneep pushes back against Jackie and whispers back, “If we do not- they will just poof away and will not get the info we need to save Marvin! Do you want to help him or not?!”

Jackie’s mouth opens and closes before he scowls and looks away. Schneep tries to hide a triumphant smirk. He then takes the orb from Jackie’s palm and holds it out before announcing, “We will release you… but only if you swear to tell us everything you know about what is happening to Marvin. If you do not and try to escape… we will treat you as the criminals you are and take the actions necessary to put you both back in jail.” Mare rolled his eyes, “Yeah yeah, stiff- whatever! Just get us out of here! My brother is fucking dying!”

Jackie and Schneep make eye contact before the doctor gives the okay. Jackie readies to smash the orb on the floor-But Jamie quickly stops him. He then signs, “Perhaps I can offer some assistance?”

The hero looks confused but he offers the ball to Jameson regardless. The gentleman smiles in appreciation then holds both his hands over the glass. He closes his eyes and focuses- teal light travels up the glass and coats the orb. Then, a flash of teal light rockets across to the empty space in the room and from the light forms Mare and Phantom in the same position they were in inside the orb.

Chase whistles, “Nice work J! ...now we won’t have to step on broken glass!”

Mare takes in a deep breath and looks over his extremely pale brother, who is breathing heavily and can barely keep open his dull eyes. He then shoots up to his feet and tries to make it to the back rooms of the shop.

Jackie beats him though and holds out his arms to stop him, his eyes flaring blue. “Where do you think you’re going?”

The dark ego bares his teeth ferally and pushes into Jackie’s face. “Out of my fucking way. Hero! You might not care but we were in there for a week! And those orbs absorb magic- it’s been sucking my brother dry for days! So- if you’ll excuse me I’m gonna get him something to make sure he’s alive for your fucking interrogation- is that okay with you?!”

The red hooded hero stands speechless and just steps aside, letting his arms fall as he nods. Mare doesn’t waste a second to rush past him.

There’s the sound of rustling and glass bottles hitting the floor before NateMare rushes back out and skids on his knees to be back by Phantom’s side. He cradles the other figment’s head and gently lowers a bright red glowing potion to his lips. The second the liquid meets his lips, Phantom’s eyes shoot open and glow red as he gasps. His back arches and he almost seems like he’s in pain but Mare just holds on tighter and dumps the rest of the potion into his mouth.

“I know…” He whispers, “Just- hold on, okay Phan? This will help, I promise…”

The other egos watch with bated breath.

Eventually the last drop falls into Phantom’s mouth and Mare takes the bottle away. Phantom pants like a man dehydrated finally offered a drink. His eyes burn red and for a second it seems like nothing happened. Then, the red blooms on his skin- in his veins, and travels across his body. The demon shudders and grits his teeth but as the magic flows, his pallor returning to normal. Finally, he sags in Mare’s grip and starts to breathe at a more regular pace. He weakly smiles up to his brother. They don’t exchange words, just simple nods but… it seems like Phantom was trying to say thank you. Phantom then turns and seems to remember they have company. He sighs and groans as he pushes himself up. He’s a bit unsteady but soon he’s standing tall again. He opens up his palm and from the ground, his staff comes rushing out and into his grip. He spins it then slams it to the ground to lean on. He eyes the company of Septic egos as he pushes back his hair.

“Forgive my… haggard appearance. Your brother… managed to do quite a number on me.”

“So, you know what happened to him? He was here?” Jackie asks eagerly. Phantom raises a hand to silence him.

“I will answer all your questions… but only if you let Mare go to rest. He does not have any answers for you and... He hasn’t been able to eat or drink since we were imprisoned… I did what I could but.. I survive on magic. He does not.”

The egos look at each other before nodding in understanding. Phantom nods to his brother, “Go. I’ll check up on you later.”

Mare seems hesitant to leave- but after a stern look from his brother he purses his lips but retreats to the back rooms regardless.

Jackie quickly pipes back up as soon as the curtains close behind him, “So- Marvin? He was here?”

Phantom nods, “Yes, he was here. He was the one who trapped us.” He then looks to Jackie and raises an eyebrow, “Said the act was… what you would call Justice.” He then shrugs and sighs, going to fall against one of the armchairs in the room. “Which I guess is fair-”

The hero’s gaze hardens as he hisses, “He doesn’t speak for me. I wouldn’t have done something like that.”

The red demon raises his head in slight surprise, then he smirks, “Oh~ I sense a bit of in-fighting?”

The air in the room gets tense as all the egos shuffle and cough. “Uh.. you could definitely say that-” Chase mutters.

Phantom hums and goes to lean forward in his chair, tapping his fingers against his orb. “...I already had my suspicions… and since you all are here for answers… why don’t you fill me in on what mischief my darling little apprentice has gotten himself into?”

“Don’t call him that-” A speech slide darts in front of Phantom’s vision followed by a serious looking Jameson. He frowns and pops up another slide once he’s gotten Phantom’s attention, “He is not yours. Not anymore.”

The demon blinks then chuckles and shakes his head, “I suppose you’re right, Jackson.”

Suddenly, the air turns electric as a groan of annoyance sounds from Jameson’s phone. Glitches fly out of his pocket and soon Anti’s fizzly form splays across one of the couches as he throws out his limbs in exasperation. “Jesus christ yall can blabber! Can we get on with this already?! Or need I remind you kitten whiskers literally has all our lives on the line?!”

Phantom jumps and somewhat curls up in his chair, trying to hide the fear in his eyes. “...w...what is he doing here?”

Anti blinks then grins wolfishly at Phantom, “Well hello to you too pretty boy- still not over our last encounter I see?” He laughs madly.

Jackie sighs then points to Anti with his thumb, “He’s the start of this whole thing. Plus… Marvin is targeting him.”

This peaks the con-man’s interest. He knits his eyebrows together and gathers his composure, leaning all his weight on his staff and linking his fingers. “...Enlighten me.”

The Septic egos then take their time to explain everything: Anti’s kidnapping of Marvin. The state of Jack. Marvin’s memory loss- his behavior after being rescued. How all that changed suddenly. His manipulation of Jameson. The book- the nighttime encounter in Jackie’s apartment. Jackie and Marvin’s fight. The criminals he killed. The veins and purple magic and eyes- the smoke that seemed to coat everything black. The hospital… how Marvin took Jack. Phantom listens intently. After they’re done he sighs and brushes back in his hair, looking towards the bookshelf behind him. “..it’s as I feared.”

He looks over the boys then stands up to address them, “... this time I am not the source of Marvin’s problem. In fact… I fear the problem may have sprouted from inside him.”

“What?” Henrik asks, “What does that mean?”

“Yeah- this… this doesn’t seem like Marvin’s magic at all! He.. he’s good! That’s how Jack made him- so how could this come from him?” Jackie shouts, looking angry.

Phantom holds up a hand to silence them. “I’m not saying this just happened randomly… but you must know this. Magic deals in absolutes.”

He then holds his hand over his orb and starts to dance his fingers in the air over it. White light comes from the orb and starts to dance in the air.

“In our world- Light magic is the prominent force. All magic stems from it. Because typically, magic is used to help or heal. Like… superpowers. They are a form of light magic. When magic first began… it was only used for good. However, humanity is selfish. And with selfishness comes the other side of magic… dark magic… black magic. Black magic is an invader- it was not made to exist here. But- through selfish desires and evil intentions it entered into our world. And… black magic is not like the light. It is constantly hungry- because it knows it does not belong here. It seeks to devour all sources of light and life. Even it’s users… it either devours them whole- or uses them to draw more people into darkness.”

Anti rolls his eyes, “Alright Merlin, thanks for the magic lesson. What’s all this bullshit gotta do with this?”

Phantom huffs and grips his staff, “I’m getting to that. But since you so kindly interrupted me, I’ll be blunt with you.” He points his staff at Anti. “You, glitch, are the catalyst for Marvin’s transformation.”

The glitch sputters, his form buzzing with static as he sits up, “What the fuck?! How is this my fault- I didn’t do anything to whisker’s magic! I’m not even magic myself!”

Phantom laughs and shakes his head, “All figments are filled with some form of magic. Or we wouldn’t exist.

But that’s besides the point for now. Remind me again, Anti, what is it you had Marvin do while in your capture?”

All the egos turn cold eyes on Anti. The glitch almost looks guilty as he crosses his arms and looks away from his audience. “I… forced him to put Jack to sleep.” Then he shakes his head and throws out his hands, “But that’s it! I didn’t touch him- I didn’t possess him or corrupt him or anything!”

Phantom nods and floats fingers through the white light still floating in the air. “Perhaps you didn’t… but you provided the spark.”

He opens his arms to the light, “Pretend if you will- this is Marvin’s core. His center of magic- his soul. Jackie mentioned earlier- your creator made Marvin to be good. So- that’s what his core is. A source of light magic.”

He then snaps and a pure black flame ignites on his fingertip. “Now- if I add a spark of black magic…” He lowers the black flame into the white light.

The light almost instantly begins to be eaten by the black. The black spears through the light like a hungry predator until all that’s left floating in the air in a bubble of black, sparking with purple power.

The septics watch with horror.

“...that’s... what's happening to Marvin?” Chase asks in a small voice.

“...it is a slower process but yes.” Phantom nods. He leans back into his chair and snaps the magic out of the air.

“Since Marvin’s core is good, any type of spell that goes against his nature could possibly change his entire magical alignment. What most likely happened is… whatever spell he used on Jack was enough to spark a dark magic takeover.”

“...But- Marvin has used darker magic before.” Jameson points out, “**Like when he’s been possessed by Antisepticeye- or… his last encounter with you. How come that didn’t trigger his magic to change?” **

Phantom hums with a smile, “A good question, Jackson. While under possession, Marvin’s magic is not entirely his own. When under my control- I fueled him with my own magic. It’s like… dye in water. It can leave the water stained sure- but eventually it will return to what it was because of the constant flow. Magic is fueled by the soul- so as long as Marvin is alive, his magic refuels itself. So even if it was changed momentarily by an outside source- it should go back to what his core was.”

“...the community-” Anti suddenly mumbles. Everyone looks to him with curiosity.

“...yes, Anti?” Phantom raises an eyebrow.

The glitch scowls then turns to face the other demon. “Jack’s community. Does that count as an outside source? Because I swear that Magician’s purpose has been flip-flopping around so much because they can’t make up their goddamn minds on what side he should be on. All this magic bullshit- does it really matter when Jack and the community has so much pull on our characters?”

The air is silent while the room takes in this information. Phantom smiles and leans back. “Hm- I can’t say for certain… though me and Mare are influenced by our community as well- each figments story is different. Me and Mare were made to be evil so… there’s not much we can do to change that.”

He then points his staff at some of the septics, partially Jameson and Schneep. “However- that is why I’ve found you septics so… fascinating. Even if Jack made you one way… the fandom can change you. Like how our beloved Doctor was once considered to be on the Glitch’s side… or how Mr. Jackson seemed to be free of corruption because of the fandom’s love… until it was revealed he was a puppet all along.”

Schneep nervously rubs his neck and looks away, shuddering at the memories from that time. “...that… I..I do remember… being changed by them. Forced to be someone else… until Jack set the record straight.”

Jamie is silent, playing with his hands and looking at the ground. His wrists hidden under his sleeves- his strings out of sight. Phantom smiles to himself, “That’s why I’ve always been so fascinated by my Magnificent… he’s so easily swayed. His alignment is so back and forth. He could be anything. He could become anyone.” 

“Okay so- why isn’t this they’re fault, magic man?” Anti suddenly sneers, “Why isn’t this debacle their fault?! They almost have as much power as Jack does! Why aren’t they responsible?”

Phantom scratches his chin and taps his specter thoughtfully, “...I don’t think we can rule out their influence entirely. But… Marvin hasn’t been the star of the show for a quite a long time, yes? So… a change this sudden could only be explained by new lore from Jack. and… since he’s asleep.” The demon looks pointedly at Anti and raises an eyebrow. Anti grumbles and folds his arms again, sinking into the couch.

Jackie sighs and sits down, holding out his hands, “Okay so- let’s recap… because Anti made Marvin put Jack to sleep- that magic he used started to change his core. It went from light magic to black magic because black magic is a greedy bastard- so it’s changing Marvin… which is why he… he did all the things he did… right?”

The red clad demon nods, “Correct. Since the magic is an invader… one could say it’s possessing your brother. But- it won’t take much for it to grab control and change him permanently. He was already starting… what he was doing to those thugs is classic black magic. Feeding off life forces helps to fuel the black magic even faster. There’s nothing more selfish or evil than taking a life. ...Marvin’s actions might not entirely be his own- this all could be the black magic working to take over Marvin’s core faster. Especially since he did not choose to use that magic that sparked this in the first place… It’s manipulating him.”

Jackie seems to light up slightly. He smiles to himself and whispers, “...i..I knew it- I knew this couldn’t be Marvin… not really.”

“So what can we do to stop this? To save him?” Chase brings up. “We gotta stop him before this thing eats him- or Jack!”

Phantom is quiet for a second before sighing, “...that.. I do not know.”

“What?!” Jackie exclaims as he jumps to his feet, eyes burning. “You- You know all of this but you don’t know how to save him?! What the fuck?!”

The demon just raises an eyebrow, “Hero. I collect souls to survive. My core thrives off dark magic. I may know how it works… but I don’t know how to stop the process.” He then sighs and looks around. “I can give you advice though… that book. He stole it from me. It is a source of black magic itself- and it reacts to the user. It will do anything in its power to keep Marvin reliant on its spells. It will only hasten his corruption so… try to keep it away from him. Seal it away… it can’t be destroyed except by the purest of light magic.

Also- beware him collecting a large group of people. The magic inside him is going to be looking for the largest amount of souls it can corrupt. And… if he succeeds…. It will be too late. Your brother will be consumed. And they’ll be no going back.”

The air grows heavy at this news and the others exchange worried glances. The con-man watches before rising to his feet. “I’ve given you all the information I can… I would use it quickly if you want to save Marvin. Every second wasted is him getting closer to being consumed.”

The others look at each other then nod. “Alright… thank you Phantom.”

“As promised… we will not bother you and Natemare.” Schneep adds, adjusting his coat as he gets to his feet. He gestures to the others and starts to head for the door. Anti watches from the couch, seeming to be deep in thought.

Before Jackie can join the others however, Phantom lightly grabs his wrist to stop him. The hero looks back with confusion. The dark magician looks… almost bashful. He opens and closes his mouth several times before whispering out in sincerity, “... I know there is a lot at stake but… please Jackieboy… save my Magnificent.”

Jackie balks at this- then slowly his eyes start to burn with anger. He throws Phantom’s hand off him and grabs the figment by his vest and throws him against one of the pillars making up the walls.

“Are you fucking serious?! Your magnificent?! He isn’t your property asshole! After all of this- after all he’s been through you still think you get to stand here and be selfish?! To think about how you’re going to use him next?! If you so much as breathe near him again I swear to god i’ll-!”

Phantom just sits there and takes it- looking Jackie in the face. Jackie pants and growls, pushing Phantom more up against the wall when words fail him. The demon winces then opens one eye to look at Jackie.

“Are you done? Can i say my piece now?”

Jackie bares his teeth, ‘What could you possibly have to say to that? Gonna manipulate me with your fucking smoke to make me think you were in the right all this time? That you were helping him? That you ever cared for him at all as an apprentice?!”

“I DID CARE!” Phantom suddenly shouts, pushing back in Jackie’s face and blasting out enough magic to get Jackie to let go. Jackie stumbles back and narrows his eyes at Phantom as the demon dusts himself off and straightens his vest.

“...or… I do care. ...I think-” He sighs and lowers his gaze to the hero. “...I’m not like you and your family, Jackie. I wasn’t made to be good. I was made to manipulate and to steal. To trick. So… of course that was my purpose when I first took your brother in all those years ago…

However, despite my nature… i believe I developed a… soft spot for him. I… didn’t know how to interpret those feelings. I thought it was a need to fully control him- to make him mine. But… even that wasn’t enough. I couldn’t understand.”

He then sighs and picks his specter off the ground, going to twist it thoughtfully between his fingers. “But… all that time spent in that orb… enduring the same thing I made him endure… I was able to think. ...to maybe realize it was more than that need of control. That… maybe- the very small part of me that’s human… maybe that part actually cared for him. ...like how I care for Mare.”

Jackie’s hard expression softens slightly, looking to Phantom in confusion. The demon doesn’t meet his eyes as he chuckles bitterly.

“...I fought it for a while but… he was different than my other cons. He was… the first one just like me. A fellow figment just...looking for a place in the world. Of course… my purpose had to be fulfilled… a creation can’t deny its reason for existing. But… for a while… I couldn’t. Not to him. Maybe that’s why it took me so many years to finally hunt him down…”

He shakes his head then ventures to his bookshelf, going to open a small ornate chest. He digs inside then pulls out a white object and holds it in his hands while turned away from Jackie, rubbing his fingers against the surface.

“You know… there’s one thing I know about light magic… why you heroes and goody-two-shoes always best us in the end.” He laughs and turns to Jackie, handing the item to him.

It’s a blank white cat mask.

Jackie’s eyes widen as he takes it and then he looks to Phantom, who’s smiling bitterly.

“...it’s your ability to be positive. To believe in each other. To have things and memories that… keep the darkness away. ...perhaps that can help you.”

The demon looks to the ceiling almost wistfully, “I know… anything involved with me is tainted now. And… Marvin will never want anything to do with me again. I’m.. okay with that. But… maybe that mask… can remind him of when magic was good to him. When his love for magic was pure and child-like… perhaps it can save him from the dark.”

Jackie is speechless once again. He looks down at the mask and rubs his thumb against the edge. He can imagine Marvin when he first met him- when he first took off his distrustful shell and started to open up. How happy and mischievous and carefree he was. Did he actually feel that way with Phantom once?

“...you really do care about him..” Jackie pipes up quietly. Phantom smiles and shrugs.

“...I can’t say for sure. But… i do hope you save him. Really…” He sighs and looks back to Jackie seriously, “If he survives… I will leave him be. I will not hunt him down again… I will consider all his debts paid.”

Jackie’s eyebrows raise in surprise. Then, he laughs slightly and puts the mask in his backpack. He straightens the straps and turns to go- but not before giving one last look to Phantom.

“Hey- maybe there’s a little light in you after all Phantom.”

Phantom snorts, “Don’t get mushy on me, hero. You’ll make me more sick than I already am.”

Jackie laughs and shrugs, “Fair enough. Well… thanks.”

“Just get out of here, Jackieboy- don’t waste what little time you have with pleasantries.” Phantom grumbles, going to head towards the back room. “And… good luck.”

The hero nods and grins before hurrying out of the store and back into daylight.

However, he’s quickly met with a panicking Schneep and Chase who are on him in a second.

“Jackie! Oh god- oh shit this is bad!” Chase whimpers.

“What? What happened? What’s wrong??”

Schneep meets Jackie’s eyes, his own filled with fear.

“...Anti has disappeared. And he took Jameson with him.”

“...son of a bitch-?!”

[madhare0512]

Mare as one of the furies (greek myths they hunted down murderes and were winged creatures with claws) he is sent to hunt down Mad who killed someone in self defese but ends up giving up his job to be wiht him

yes, please! I love this concept.

content warning: mentions of death and torture

"You can't be with me, Mare. I've killed someone, your boss would torture you to the end of time," Mad protests.

Mare kisses him soundly, careful of his fangs so they didn't hurt Mad. "You killed someone in self defense," he replies, "They can try to come find me. I am a Fury, a hunter and a predator in its purest form. They can't torture what they can't find."

"But, Mare-" Mad cuts off as Mare's eyes flash. Then he continues, "Mare, I don't want you hurt because you won't hunt me down."

"I can handle myself, pretty boy, trust me." Mare taps Mad on the nose and presses a kiss to his cheek. "They can't hurt me. Not here. They can't hurt you either, not while I'm around. You're part of me now. Okay?"

Mad, who's loved Mare since the moment they met, nods. "Okay."

"Now. I'm going to tell Lord Hades. You," he taps Mad's nose again, "Will go home and nap because I know you didn't sleep last night. I'll be home soon, okay?"

Mad sighs, smiling at the Fury with a love-sick expression. "See you soon," he murmurs.

Mare presses one last kiss to Mad's forehead, then backs away and spreads his wings. He's gone between one moment and the next. Mad finds himself eagerly awaiting Mare's return and while he does, he will sleep.

thank you so much. please never stop asking about these. also, if you guys wanna mix up the ships, I've been looking to expand beyond my usual writing. thanks again! @theprinceofflies

[bookwormscififan]

Open Mic

Read on AO3!

A/N: The prequel to 'Home Late', as told from Phantom's POV because writing from Mare's POV didn't work out.

--

Phantom sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose to stop the headache growing behind his eyes. He crossed his arms and shifted his weight on his feet as he listened to Mare venting, taking a deep breath before opening his mouth to speak.

“I’m sorry, Mare, but I can’t have you perform before the band I booked. Most of the people here are waiting for the band to play.” He adjusted his sleeves, rolling them up to his elbows and handing a drink across the bar to a patron, then looked at his brother.

“You booked a band to play on your usual open mic night,” Mare replied impatiently, shoving his hair out of his eyes. “If you wanted the band to be the only entertainment here, you should have booked them on a different day. I don’t see why I can’t play until they arrive,” he muttered, wiping the bar in front of him and giving Phantom a sideways glance. He handed a bottle of water to a patron with a forced smile, watching the patron walk to a table near the stage before turning and leaning against the bar.

“There is a roster on the wall by the door,” Phantom explained slowly, struggling to keep his temper. “That is the order of the people playing tonight. I’m not changing the order because the band I booked is running late.” Pressing his lips into a thin line, Phantom walked away from Mare to keep an eye on the rest of the place, paying attention to particularly loud patrons and glancing back to watch Mare tend the bar.

--

The band arrived an hour later, apologising profusely for taking so long, and Phantom watched as they set up and began to perform, mood lifting as the crowd cheered on the band. Phantom ignored the glares Mare shot him from the bar as the band played encore after encore, tilting his head when he caught his brother checking his watch.

He gave Mare an apologetic shrug when the band finally finished, nodding at him to begin his set and paying the band for their performance. Mare’s set seemed flat, his mood deflated from exhaustion, and his songs lacked their usual spirit. Phantom swallowed back the wave of guilt settling in his stomach, scrubbing at a suspicious spot of grime on the bar with a frown.

--

“Mare, can you help put the chairs up?” Phantom winced at Mare’s glare, whispering a thanks when his brother started to put up the chairs. He dried off the last glass, tossing his dishcloth onto a shelf before noting his inventory and moving to help Mare tidy up.

“Listen, I’m really grateful that you stayed back to help,” Phantom said quietly, patting Mare’s shoulder as they headed for the office to get ready to leave. “And I’m really sorry about all the delays. I didn’t expect things to go so terribly tonight.”

“It’s fine,” Mare grumbled, slinging his bag over his shoulder and twirling his keys around his finger. “No guarantees I’ll play at your open mics again, but at least I helped out.” He waited for Phantom to lock up, tapping his toe against the curb before heading to his car.

“I understand,” Phantom replied, knocking on the roof of Mare’s car and leaning down to look into his eyes when Mare climbed in. “Tell Mad I’m sorry.”

“If Mad’s still awake,” Mare stated, starting the car and driving off, leaving Phantom alone in the parking lot to reflect on the night’s events. Shaking his head with a sigh, Phantom stuck a hand into his pocket and headed for his car, taking a deep breath before driving home.

----------

@iamvegorott @brokentimewatch

[inkribbon796]

Like a House of Cards Ch. 1: Showtime

Summary: Four heroes have been replaced and their intentions are less than pure. The city is dangling on a knife’s edge over a precipice. Dominoes knocked over as the city tumbles like a house of cards.

Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

It was a long time coming. A long time coming.

It was early, almost sunrise when Logan and Ethan walked into the base. The door opening like the curtains of a show for them. It was early, the only people who saw them walking in who weren’t already gone on the early patrol were Chase and J.J.

So needless to say, they weren’t in danger of getting caught.

Because the four of them weren’t who they were pretending to be. They were the Suits, sent to replace and impersonate certain heroes they were similar to.

Hearts, Diamonds, Spades, and Clubs. Disguised as heroes meant to protect and save people.

Logan and Ethan walked in, Logan casting a glance to the hidden camera he knew for a certainty was in the entry hall, his pupils displaying with robotic precision and aura tapping against the barriers Marvin and Nate had long since set up as a defense, but since Mare and Lunky had passed by the sensors so many times it didn’t trip an alarm.

Chase and J.J watched them from the communications room, not altering the cameras so that Bing wasn’t tipped off. He’d been conducting his private investigations recently and none of them wanted to tip him off while he was so suspicious of all of them. Since talking to Joan, the android had cleared those in Dark’s family, and Jackie but that was it.

Ethan went into the kitchen to make some coffee as Logan relieved Chase and J.J from the watch and slid into the seat where he performed the duties that the real Logan was supposed to do. This close to their mission point precision was crucial, and any time wasted fighting Bing was a detrimental loss.

Logan was sitting in the communications room, working at one of the computers, when Ethan brought him a coffee. The room was empty except for him.

Ethan walked in, sipping on his coffee, smiling as he set one down for Logan, “So, how’s it going?”

“Without incident,” Logan answered. “You should get to bed, get ready for the next mission?”

“Geez, Sargent Frowns, it’ll all be taken care of,” Ethan took another sip. “Bastards won’t know what hit them.”

Ethan chuckled as he took a couple sips of his coffee, “Well if you don’t mind me I’ll just “go to bed” or whatever.”

Logan nodded and as Ethan was leaving the room, Joan was coming up the hallway.

“You seen any of the Sides recently?” Joan asked Ethan, looking worried.

“Yeah,” Ethan pointed to the door, “Logan’s in the comms room.”

“Is Patton in there with him?” Joan looked a little bit relieved.

“I saw him while I was out on patrol,” Ethan lied to them. “Why? Is something wrong?”

“Get everyone in the base together, we’ve got a security problem,” Joan explained.

“Got it,” Ethan hurried away as Joan walked into the comma room.

“Fucker’s gonna get us caught,” Ethan muttered angrily under his breath, tipping back the rest of his coffee.

Bing and Jackie joined Joan in the comms room with “Logan” and they started talking about another sighting of Spade in downtown Brighton and they wanted to compile information.

Something that was eyebrow raising to Spade because he’d been making his way from Janus and Remus’s house to the heroes’ base. But the real Logan wouldn’t be privy to that information so Spade, pretending to be Logan, did a pretty good impression of being surprised as he exchanged places with Bing so the android could take a seat in front of the computer.

“An’[1] that’s the report,” Jackie concluded.

“It certainly is good information to have if they’re becoming more active again,” Logan told them.

“My thoughts exactly,” Bing pointed some finger guns at Logan. “Here, I’ll get some images I got of the guy.”

“Hey Logan,” Joan smiled at him as Bing was integrating himself with the computer to look for something. “How have things been?”

“They could certainly be improved upon,” Logan commented, turning towards Joan and letting out a long, tired sigh.

“Yeah, I bet they could,” Joan agreed before a blast of magic hit Logan square in the back. Pain rocketed up the Suit’s body and his nanites glitched as Joan and Jackie threw down a disc on either side and Bing’s nanites came up and wrapped around Logan so that when the Suit stopped feeling like he was being used as a live wire, he was trapped.

When Logan turned his head he saw that Marvin was standing at the door, magic at his fingertips. The Suit was literally and figuratively surrounded. His eyes and glasses glitched, “Something always gets in the way.”

“He’s covered in nanites,” Bing warned.

“My spell should have ripped his illusion off,” Marvin told them. “I can hit him again.”

Logan looked down at the nanite constructed wires and cords trapping him and rolled his eyes, then he looked up at Joan, “Do you mind telling me what gave me away, for data correlation’s sake?”

Joan held up their phone, “Morality doesn’t use punctuation when he types, he barely uses words at all.”

“Ahh,” Logan commented cooly, smiling. “My mistake. I always tend to forget his atrocious insistence against punctuation is the only awful part of him.”

“Where’s Logic?” Jackie demanded. “Why are yeh here? Are yeh Spade or some demon? ‘Cause this is a shite time ta do this.”[2]

“Now why would I tell any of you,” Logan threatened.

“Yeh can tell us or we’ll beat the shite outta yah,”[3] Jackie threatened right back. “Logic’s been through enough shite lately ta e’en tolerate this.”[4]

“Oh trust me,” “Logan” frowned. “He hasn’t even begun to suffer.”

“An’[1] why should we trust yeh[5]?” Jackie demanded. “What’d yah do ta the real Logic?”[6]

The false Logan let out an amused chuckle, “You all have never even met the real Logan. I’m doing all of you a favor.”

“It’s Spade, fry ‘em[7],” Joan decided.

The snare lit up and electricity began coursing through the Suit’s nanite body, frying his nanite shell by inches.

Locket Payload: Critical Failure Imminent!

In a panic, that was visible on his face, Logan let out a scream as he curled around his chest and an EMP blast came from him that fried almost every electronic in the room, Bing only managing to not have to reset himself. By the time Bing was recovering, he was able to watch with the other three organic beings in the room as “Logan” burst into pixels and a cloud of nanites and shot into the light switch to hide. The young glitch demon curled around a central point of aura protectively in case Bing came after him.

Those precious seconds of hiding let Bing force the controls back on line and initiate a complete physical and electrical lockdown of the base. People, texts, calls, all unable to leave the base.

“Emergency lockdown engaged,” Bing’s voice rang out through the base just as an explosion rocked the building.

It was a small explosive charge that had been placed by Hearts, not enough to blow a hole in the side of the base but enough for the contents of the bomb to set the room on fire.

To set Marvin’s library on fire.

To Marvin’s good luck, Wade was close by and saw the fire starting up as magical tomes and spell ingredients, turning a normal fire into a popping magical one that was threatening to burn the entire base down.

The fire alarm and the sprinkles kicked up, causing further damage to the books.

Wade swore as he tried putting out the magical fire.

At the sound of the explosion, Marvin and Jackie raced over and Marvin screamed in agony as he helped put out the fire. Nate racing in to help. J.J, Chase, and Ethan came over to help but were pushed back by the others.

It took another minute to get the fire contained and Marvin was kneeling in front of the doorway to his library and looking at the ash and burnt books in horror.

“Sorry, Marv,” Jackie sat down next to his friend.

“They burned my library down,” Marvin said in grief.

“What is going on?” Wade demanded. “Last I heard there was some kind of meeting but when met with Crank, Nate, Average, and J.J the fire alarm went off. Who called the meeting?”

“We did,” Jackie told him, standing up. “It was just bad fookin’ timin’. Spade’s in the base, he got in. It must’a been him who caused the explosions.”[8]

“It’s not Spade,” Bing shouted as he ran down the halls, his nanites still fixing up the patches of metal and wires that had died in the EMP blast. “Or if it is the situation just got much worse ‘cause[9] that’s Logic.”

“What do you mean that’s Logic?” Joan demanded in a panic.

“Either Logic’s been Spade the whole time or Spade infected him with somethin’ ‘cause he’s been actin’ weird for a while,”[10] Bing said. “Lo’s still in the base. I’ve got him cornered in the sprinkler system, but he won’t stay there.”

“How could it possibly be Logan?” Joan demanded in irritated frustration. “He would never.”

“We might not be dealing with the actual Logan,” Nate spoke up, his mind already racing with possibilities. “We might be dealing with the same guy who attack me outside of a bar over a camera of all fucking things.”

“That was his suit right, Logic’s fine,” Joan defended.

Then Nate thought about that, it had been a question that Logan had always been dodgy and evasive on how the logical and scientific hero had wound up with a cursed soul splitter that didn’t work . . .

“Either way he’s got my nanites,” Bing interrupted. “Which explains how Spade got them in the first place. His suit is laced with them.”

“Are yeh[5] sure?” Jackie demanded.

“I’d recognize them anywhere, my Bluetooth was even tryin’[11] ta[12] connect with them,” Bing asserted.

. . . That didn’t . . . Nate was still trying to reason in his head.

“Which is weird because humans can’t use nanites raw,” Bing replied. “Only the Googles an’[1] Anti have the ability ta[12] use my nanites like that.”

“Shit, he’s a glitch!” Mare warned internally. “A damn smart one since he was covering his tracks as he was turning. I knew something smelt off about him. He always smelt like burnt wires and electricity.”

You tell me this now? Nate cursed himself for not realizing it sooner. While Nate was thinking the rest of the heroes were talking.

Nate felt the eye roll, “I always forget you sacks of meat can’t smell aura. I just figured, since he was supposed to be a null, that some other demon or one of the other Sides had their claws in him. The rest of them are dripping with aura.”

“Joan,” Nate spoke up, his voice soft and almost scared.

“Yeah?” Joan sat up.

“How long has Logic been Logic?” Nate asked desperately.

“Always, what kind of question is that?” They asked in return.

“I just have to rule it out, does Logic come from a family of mages? Is anyone else in his family magical.”

Joan paused for an abnormally long amount of time. “No.”

“Okay, that makes sense, being null is recessive,” Nate reasoned. You needed and aura and magic for a soul to become a demon. Logic didn’t have that, ergo he wasn’t a demon.

“Nate,” Mare tried to urge.

“He only targeted Marvin, nothing was stolen, nothing was taken from the computers, he just impersonated him and took off,” Wade reminded.

“The Sides are still gone, what are we gonna do?” Jackie demanded.

“Well when we find him, we’ll ask,” Joan reassured. “Logic’s a level-headed guy, I wish I knew where Morality was, or Princey. They’re able to calm him down.”

“Nate, let me go, and I can scent Logic out, if I don’t find him, then I’m wrong and he’s clear,” Mare tried to bargain.

“Fine,” Nate agreed and Mare broke free and looked around.

“Great,” Marvin growled.

“I’ll be back soon,” Mare didn’t spare Marvin a glance, “sorry about your cache.”

Then Mare stopped and looked at a corner of the wall and floated up to tap at it. “Hey there, don’t think I don’t see you.”

Then he ripped a camera out of the wall.

“Mine are visible,” Bing told him as the demon tossed the camera to the android.

Mare stood next to Nate, “I know, bet you that there are more, and there’s a glitch in the walls. Probably has been for a while now.”

“Is it Anti?” Jackie asked.

“Nah, Anti smells like a thunderstorm that was cooked in the oven too long,” Mare reported. “Young, likes to identify as a male; so King’s kid is out. It’s Logic, I’ve picked up that scent on him before. Maybe it’s a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde thing, or Logic’s always been a spy. Can’t say.”

“Maybe that soul splitter did work after all,” Nate reasoned. “Which means that he’s not wanting to come out ‘cause[9] he’s scared, so I can’t blame him. Just where’d he find the camera? That probably turned him, which makes sense why he likes to hover around the thing, he probably wants the fragments of his soul back.”

“First off, morbid,” Joan held up one of their hands. “And second, I found it at an estate sale. I gave it to Thomas, who—”

Joan trailed off, already knowing they’d made a mistake.

Nate stared at him, “Logic’s name is Logan, who’s Thomas? Is that Princey or Anxiety?”

“Not exactly,” Joan tried to evade.

“What does that mean? Is Logan like a middle name or a name he just prefers more?” Mare asked. “Or was Thomas, Logic’s name before he was split?”

Joan really didn’t want to have this discussion without any of the Sides, but Logan was apparently hiding in the walls and the other Sides were all missing. So maybe this was as good a time as any. “Look, if you’re right and Lo is some kind of demon, which he’s not because Logic is a harmless sweetheart, then we didn’t know because a soul splitter is only supposed to make one demon right?”

The room descended into chilling silence.

“The fook yeh mean one, Logic got like a twin or somethin’?”[13] Marvin demanded.

“More like septuplets,” Joan admitted, holding up seven fingers.

“Oh shit,” Mare realized.

“They all came from the same person?” Nate gasped. Logic. Morality. Creativity. Deceit. Anxiety . . . A glitch. Two showmen. Two empaths. A deal maker. And whatever the hell Orange is.

“I’ve never seen a spilt this clean, or create so many, usually a splitter just makes one and it can’t even do that right,” Nate commented. “But they’re all so lifelike. How powerful of a mage was Thomas?”

“He wasn’t,” Joan tried to explain. “Or at least, I never saw him do anything.”

“Well, at least we know where the other Sides went,” Mare spat through clenched teeth.

“No, no,” Nate cut him off. “That’s not a fight a glitch can win, not on their own. We should just focus on finding Logic and containing him before we accuse him of anything.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea,” Joan agreed.

The heroes and Mare began completely cleaning the room of any cameras or listening devices, whether they were Bing’s or not. Then they made a plan to ensnare Logan. They started by taking out the cameras and bugs in the major room before Bing began actively trying to catch Logan.

It was an endeavor that Bing was not successful in. But the Suit saw an opening and went for the unlocked front door.

When he did, Logan slammed into an invisible barrier, sparks and magic arcing everywhere.

Nate quickly moved in to seal off the containment circle with more salt as Logan was picking himself up.

“Hey, Lo,” Nate knelt down, “rough week?”

~~~~~~~~~~~

Accessibility Translations

1. And

2. Why are you here? Are you Spade or some demon? Because this is a shit time to do this.

3. You can tell us or we’ll beat the shit out of you

4. Logic’s been through enough shit lately to even tolerate this.

5. you

6. What did you do to the real Logic?

7. them

8. It was just bad fucking timing. Spade’s in the base, he got in. It must have been him who caused the explosion.

9. because

10. Either Logic’s been Spade the whole time or Spade infected him with something because he’s been acting weird for a while

11. trying

12. to

13. The fuck you mean one, does Logic have like a twin or something?

[its-miinty]

Can I jus,,,,,,, go smoke with Natemare at 3am in some slightly shady Denny’s parking lot?