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respectable-username · 3 years ago

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Because I'm obsessed with Hivemind Etho, here's another little story with them for the @hermitcraftheadcanons Hermitopia AU. As before, this is just a quick piece that's only been lightly edited because of the time constraints of this community AU.

This is also some setup for a potential future confrontation for somebody else to write.

---

The two Ethos stood at the door to the apartment, waiting for the hour to strike.

It was all they could do to not to brush the hastily cut and dyed hair away from one of their selves' forehead, or fight against the overly tight suit and tie, or scratch at the cheap surgical mask that sat in place of their regular cloth face covering, or the makeup that tried to conceal their prominent eye scar. The other self pulled their jacket closer, trying to extract enough comfort from it for the both of them.

The clock struck 7am. Etho knocked.

A few minutes later, the door was pulled open by a bleary-eyed Mumbo in a dressing gown.

"Hello– oh no what are you doing here please don't hurt me please don't hurt me."

The undisguised Etho pushed through the doorway as Mumbo backed away from the Unrestrained villain, now fully awake.

"Your ID card," said the Etho, entering the room.

"What?" said Mumbo.

"Your ConCorp ID pass," clarified the Etho, holding out their hand. "Give it to us. Now."

"Um, I don't think I'm supposed to do that," said Mumbo, desperately searching for something to grab.

The Etho's eyes bore into Mumbo, cold, unflinching, unwavering. One looked right at him while the other seemed to look right through him.

"Um, right, ok," said Mumbo. "Uh, can you pass me my bag? It's in there."

The disguised Etho entered the apartment and grabbed the briefcase sitting by the door, opening it and grabbing the pass inside, clipping it onto their own trousers. They closed the bag and held it beside them.

"Um, ok," said Mumbo. "I– is that all you wanted?"

"Your phone too," said the undisguised Etho.

"Please no!" Mumbo pleaded. "I can't lose that. What if there's an emergency and I need to call for help but I don't have my phone so the apartment burns down or if somebody gets hurt and I can't call an ambulance or–"

The Etho took a step forward. "Your phone," they repeated.

"Ok ok please don't hurt me," said Mumbo, retrieving his phone from his pocket and holding up both hands.

The Etho grabbed the phone and tossed it over their shoulder at their other self, who caught it flawlessly.

The Etho looked between the cowering Mumbo before them and their other, disguised self. About the same height. Hair roughly similar enough to pass. The ConCorp-issued suit didn't fit quite the same, and the face mask was an obvious difference, but it was close enough if nobody gave them a second glance.

And, having been observing Mumbo for the last few weeks, there didn't seem to be anybody who would give Mumbo a second glance.

The disguised Etho turned silently and left. The other Etho shut the front door and turned the lock, trapping them and Mumbo inside.

***

The disguised Etho walked up to the ConCorp entrance at 8:53am. This seemed to be the average time of Mumbo's arrivals. They walked towards the turnstiles and swiped Mumbo's pass.

"Everything alright?" asked a receptionist behind the main desk, presumably concerned by the face mask.

The Etho coughed. "I'll be fine," they croaked.

"Sweetie, if you're feeling unwell, you should be at home, resting," she said.

"Got stuff to do," croaked Etho, walking forward into the elevator before any further questions could be asked.

"Where's your office?" the Etho at Mumbo's apartment asked, sitting in a corner of Mumbo's couch from which they could see the whole room.

"Um, at ConCorp HQ," said Mumbo, fiddling with a teabag.

Etho sighed. "Precise directions from the elevator please," they said.

"Oh, uh, straight ahead down the corridor, last door on the left," Mumbo said.

The "Mumbo" Etho followed the described path and scanned their pass to enter the room.

The kettle clicked. Mumbo poured the boiling water out into the mug. The Etho in the apartment tensed, ready to spring away at any sign the hot contents would be flung towards them.

"And what's your password?" asked Etho.

"For what?" said Mumbo.

"Your ConCorp laptop," said Etho, the faintest wisps of exasperation creeping into their otherwise carefully controlled voice.

"I am so getting fired for this," sighed Mumbo.

"Better your job than your life," Etho replied flippantly.

"Of course," said Mumbo hurriedly. "It's – oh gosh I can't believe I'm saying this aloud – it's BMX4lyfe95!"

The Etho at the office typed it in. Finally, the internal network was open to them.

They started working to set up a reverse proxy to tunnel out from behind the firewall. Another of their selves at home was already positioned to connect to the network tunnel as soon as it was opened.

Mumbo poured milk into his mug, throwing away the teabag and walking over to the lounge. The Etho already on a couch got ready to jump, but Mumbo just sat down across from them and took a sip.

Mumbo stared down into his mug. "You're a hacker, right?" he asked, his eyes not looking up.

"One of my talents," said Etho cautiously.

"Since they're gonna fire me anyway, can I ask a small favour?" said Mumbo, still acting like his tea was the most fascinating thing in the room.

"Depends," said Etho.

Mumbo drummed his fingers against the mug. "I have this friend, Iskall," Mumbo said. "He's one of the office workers at ConCorp. I made his cybernetics after he got injured. But they keep breaking in weird ways and I don't know why. His explanations don't make sense! The metal I use doesn't melt like that from accidentally touching a stove. They shouldn't buckle like that from tripping into a wall. They shouldn't shatter from falling down a flight of stairs. I'm... I'm just worried for him. Is he in danger? What isn't he telling me?"

The Etho on the couch was quiet for a few seconds. "You only have partial access to the VEX files," they said. "There's a lot I can't find here."

"It's so creepy how you do that," said Mumbo.

Etho ignored him.

The Etho at home let out a quiet cheer as they managed to connect through the tunnel into the ConCorp network. They started browsing, collecting, and saving as much information as possible.

The Etho in the office switched their focus to finding some sort of privilege escalation vulnerability that would let them access the more secure files.

"Erm, I probably should have asked before," said Mumbo. "Would you like some tea? Some breakfast?"

"I'm fine," said the Etho in the apartment.

"So, uh, do you have any hobbies?" asked Mumbo.

"Please don't small talk," said Etho. "I'm busy."

"Oh, ok," said Mumbo. "Can I go grab a book or something then? Since, y'know, I don't have my phone or laptop or anything."

Etho nodded. "But if you call for help," they said, "I will know about it and I will make you regret it."

"Of course," said Mumbo.

The Etho in the office kept prodding at the ConCorp intranet. What they needed were the credentials of a superior, maybe even the Director himself. Hmm, it seemed from this directory structure that the Director was Mumbo's direct supervisor. It would only take a few hours to set up some sort of spear phishing attempt that would let them pivot directly onto the Director's computer. As long as they didn't get caught first, of course.

Etho opened Mumbo's calendar and declined all meetings that day that wouldn't look suspicious to avoid. There weren't many meetings to sort through.

"How often do you get visitors to your office?" Etho asked Mumbo.

"Iskall usually comes for lunch when he's not swamped by a project," said Mumbo. "Otherwise, nobody else just pops 'round usually."

"How about your boss?" asked Etho.

"He's busy," Mumbo said. "I have to go to him if we ever talk."

The Etho in the apartment nodded, settling back to focus on what their other selves were doing.

***

Hi Cub, Etho typed. Can you review this interface I made? It should let us remotely view what's happening with our heroes through their cybernetics. With some extra work, we could get actual video from their perspective to send to the media!

Etho sent the message, then sent the file with their exploit. The exploit was covered by a very quickly and poorly thrown together interface which returned the live location of a GPS receiver they had found in the lab.

They left it a few minutes, stretching back in Mumbo's desk chair as they waited for a reply.

Finally, one came through.

Hey Mumbo. Great prototype! We'll probably need to pass off development to the actual software engineering team, but this is a great initiative. I'm proud to have a thinker like you on our team!

Etho allowed themselves a smile as they checked to see if their exploit had worked. There it was, a tunnel open on the expected port right into the Director's machine. Jackpot.

The Etho at home pivoted through the new tunnel and started scraping as much information as they could.

"Your friend is a mercenary," the Etho in Mumbo's apartment said, making Mumbo jump at the sudden sound.

"Wait what?" said Mumbo.

"Iskall is a mercenary and assassin for ConCorp, working for them in exchange for ConCorp saving his life," clarified Etho.

"Iskall, a mercenary?" Mumbo said. "No no no no no. That can't be!"

"That's what his file says," Etho said with a shrug. "Either way, I've got what I need. I've called you in sick for the next week, and I'm keeping your pass to enforce that. Your phone will be returned, but I've programmed it to inform me if you let any part of today slip. I hope you understand."

"Uh, thank you, I guess," said Mumbo.

"I'll be here with your belongings in half an hour," Etho continued, standing up.

"What do– oh, right," said Mumbo.

"And don't do anything stupid," said Etho, opening the door to leave. "As thanks for your assistance, the nHo will try to keep you safe from any upcoming confrontation. But if you break this trust, that guarantee will not hold."

"I understand," said Mumbo, gulping at the idea of having to further betray his company, his friends.

The Etho left his apartment.

#hermitopia au #ethoslab #etho #mumbo #mumbo jumbo #res writes

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rayveewrites · 4 years ago

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Ray Hijacks the Team ZIT Ghostbuster AU Again

So @shadeswift99 made a few posts a while ago about a Team ZIT(S) ghostbuster AU, And then I may or may not have hijacked the post to add in ideas for most of the other hermits because why not.

Now, back then I was spitballing ideas and making them up on the spot, which is admittedly my usual writing process, but hey.

That said, I've had more time to think about it, and then last night I blacked out for a few hours and came to with a Google Doc filled with short bios for all of the hermits and a handful of hermit-adjacents. Now, this rapidly turned into an urban fantasy AU in my hands, but hey. It's fun.

This is in alphabetical order, with alternate personas (EX, Helsknight, Beetlejhost) beneath their original counterparts when applicable:

Bdubs

Lives in an old mansion in the woods alongside Doc for reasons known only to them. Bdubs works as an interior designer, with a side gig as a freelance hairdresser. His eyes are unnaturally large, similar to Keralis’, and he is at least partially a plant. Completely feral and frequently gets in trouble for having knives on him at all times. He and Cleo have a thing called Knife Club which makes everyone else nervous. Nobody messes with Knife Club. It’s not worth it. Sunbathes frequently.

Beef

Is a perfectly normal human being. He works as a butcher with a side gig as a graphic designer specializing in album covers and spends his free time playing pokemon and dragging Etho along to social events. He was the first person to spot the cryptid, and the first person who Etho approached of his own accord.

Biffa

Is a ghost possessing a robotic shell. Biffa is from the future. While initially his main goal was to get back home to his own time, Biffa has since made friends and settled down into a new life running a cafe specializing in a wide range of teas. He’s quite content with this, and has actually found himself far happier than he was in his own time. While his nature means he can see, hear and touch ghosts, his body was built specifically for a disembodied soul to be in the driver’s seat, and he doesn’t want to risk another taking control. Also, he has more important things to do than have fistfights with ghosts.

Cleo

Is a ghost possessing her own dead corpse. Her nature allows her to see, hear and touch ghosts. Can and will fistfight spirits. She works as a teacher, so she’s usually busy, but occasionally in really nasty situations the Beetlejhost will drag her in to break a ghost’s legs. Does sculpture in her free time, and is actually really good. The only one who can wrangle Beetle to any real capacity, and she’s learned to keep him on a fairly short leash. Housemates with Joe, and Keralis also pops in pretty frequently. Has Knife Club with Bdubs. Has an enchanted flower crown that prevents her from decaying further; a gift from Beetle. Recently started learning magic in the form of necromancy and illusions. Has an ongoing ‘feud’ with Zloy, in which she temporarily traps his soul in random inanimate objects every now and then.

Cub

A bit of a ‘mad scientist’ archetype, Cub’s experiments are not exactly the most ethical, though they’re at least more professional than Doc’s. Responsible for the creation of Jevin. Cub gets possessed stupidly easily- sometimes willingly- and can usually handle it himself but sometimes has to call for help. Has a magical method of communication with Scar for exactly this reason. Has a day job as co-owner of a business called ConCorp, which he started with Scar. Has probably broken the Geneva Convention.

Doc

Was presumably human at one point. Now an abomination. Repeated experiments on himself have resulted in a massively changed facial and foot structure, a body covered in mottled green scales, claws, and goat horns. He lost half his face in one of his experiments, and constructed a new cybernetic one. He lost his right arm fighting God. Killed said god and would do it again. Lives in a mansion in the woods with Bdubs, though nobody’s really sure why. Owns a casino because of course he does. Also a living crime against fashion, because the man refuses to wear anything other than his tattered lab coat, torn jeans, and crocs.

Ely

Runs the local radio station. Nobody’s ever seen him in person, and nobody knows where he gets people’s voice clips for his remixes. Probably a cryptid. Maybe a ghost. Seems pretty chill, despite the blatant invasions of privacy.

Etho

Is a cryptid. Lives out in the woods in an abomination that can barely be called a house. Has never been seen in anything other than full Kakashi cosplay. Tends to keep to himself, but occasionally lets Beef drag him along to social events, often with Doc and Bdubs. Nobody really knows what his deal is. Probably not human. Probably.

False

Used to be part of an illegal underground cage fighting ring, until she earned enough to buy her way out. Having grown up in said ring, she struggles to adjust to normal life, but living in a town where the barista is a robot and the local tailor has wings makes it easier. She now has a job as security at Doc’s casino, alongside Iskall.

Grian

Is either an angel or a demigod, but nobody knows which. Has wings. Is both a tailor and an architect. A complete gremlin who has elaborate masks of various birds and will wear them to commit crimes. Eats seeds. Messes with everyone else’s plants. Lives in Jungle Wood Flats. Volunteers at the local theatre.

Hypno

Has three eyes, but hides the third one under a bandanna at all times. Can see ghosts with it. Had problems with sections of plumbing randomly getting clogged and also making very weird noises, and eventually called Team ZIT when the plumbers couldn’t find the source. Was prepared for ghosts, but wound up with a slime creature instead. Works in a $2 store for some reason.

Impulse

Is fully human. The most sensible member of Team ZIT (which admittedly isn’t saying much), Impulse has a day job as a freelancer building custom PCs and fixing broken tech. Agreed to the whole ghostbusting deal because he was bored, mostly. Was the first one to meet Skizz face-to-face, and is the one to own that particular place outright. Gets possessed every now and then, usually by larger spirits. Used to run solely on caffeine and chronic anxiety until Zedaph started getting on his case about his sleep schedule. Now he runs on less caffeine, more sleep, and the same amount of chronic anxiety.

Iskall

Was part of a cloning experiment to create the ultimate hitman, and was the only known one to both survive and escape before the whole thing was shut down by the authorities. Their eye and arm were replaced with cybernetics in order to increase their already enhanced abilities, and they were chased by said authorities, eventually winding up on Mumbo’s doorstep and becoming Mumbo’s problem. Now works as security at Doc’s casino, alongside False. Lives at Jungle Wood flats. Occasionally volunteers at the local theatre. Does bonsai as a hobby.

Jevin

Is the slime creature in the pipes. Hypno lets him live with him under the condition he stops blocking the plumbing and making weird noises at 3 AM (Jevin still blocks the plumbing and makes weird noises at 3 AM, just not as much as he was). Has taught himself to take a humanoid shape, and likes having fingers. Sleeps in the bathtub because he can. Was created from a vat of chemicals in a secret lab underneath the house, which used to be owned by Cub. Doesn’t really talk to the man in question that much, but will occasionally refer to Cub as his father for the sole reason of watching him go through eight existential crises in three minutes. Has a glock.

Joe

Head librarian at the local public library, and has read a lot of books on Supernatural Things. Is a veritable fountain of exposition if you can figure out what he’s saying or have Cleo along with you to threaten the integrity of his shins. Has never been seen in the same place as the Beetlejhost. Are they the same person? Are they entirely separate beings? Is there a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde-type situation going on? Who knows!

Beetlejhost

Literally nobody really knows what his deal is. Nobody. Team ZIT ran into him on a call that they expected to be a false alarm and then he decided to follow them home. Spends most of his time being a minor nuisance in the most bizarre ways possible. Is implied to be responsible for the Ever Given getting lodged in the Suez Canal, but never confirmed. When he’s not bothering Team ZIT or getting them out of tight spots, he’s usually pestering Cleo, the only one who can keep him in line. It’s not really known if he and Cleo have a history or if they’re just Like That.

Keralis

Is a ghost haunting an architecture firm, and is mostly bound to the building, though he can travel to other buildings the firm has built, which is, uh, most of them. Initially only able to do small things- mostly writing notes or drawing diagrams- he eventually meets the Beetlejhost when the latter follows Mumbo to work one day for shits and giggles (he wanted to see how long he could mess with Mumbo before the man noticed. As it turned out, about a week, and by the end it was Iskall who noticed). After a couple of days in which Beetle teaches Keralis Ghost Things™, he scares half the office when he finally manifests for the first time. Has unnaturally large eyes and nicknames for most of the workers. Has no idea how he died or what his unfinished business might be. Very knowledgeable about architecture, and his input is usually very much appreciated.

Mumbo

Is a perfectly normal human being who does IT at Keralis’ architecture firm. Lives at Jungle Wood flats and spends most of his free time tinkering with tech and trying to keep Grian and Iskall out of trouble, which is a losing battle. Has a large, beating golden heart in his flat. He’s not really sure what its deal is, but if he feeds it apples it produces enough power for the entire building. Oh, and if he forgets to feed it for an extended period of time it starts draining his bank account. It’s really weird.

Pixlriffs

Was a perfectly normal human being until he died protecting a certain Russian zombie and became a perfectly normal ghost. Was a reporter in life and is a reporter in death. Runs a blog alongside Zloy about the local goings-on, supernatural or not. The blog’s the type where unless you live in/near the town you most likely won’t stumble across it, but they do have a small following of outsiders who assume the blog’s just a work of fiction. His unfinished business is to prevent Zloy from doing anything particularly stupid, a constant battle. Is able to go more places than Zloy due to being incorporeal, but respects people’s privacy. He’s bound to Zloy to a certain degree, not being able to go beyond a certain range of his friend. The range is pretty big, though, and he has plenty freedom of movement.

Python

Had a run-in with the fae as a kid, in which he accidentally pissed one off. In retribution, the faerie challenged him to answer a riddle or he’d be turned into a snake. Python’s answer was partially correct, so the faerie only transformed him partially. Python is fairly chill, though he strongly dislikes the cold and starts hissing if anyone disturbs him during Sun Time™. Sometimes Bdubs, being partially flora, joins Python for Sun Time™. He’s not venomous, because, you know...python. Also, he has a mildly disturbing habit of strangling rats and mice and then eating them whole, but he can’t help it and just tries not to do so when he has company.

Ren

Is a werewolf. He’s pretty chill regardless of form, though it’s only been recently he’s been comfortable enough leaving his ears and tail visible. He works as a lumberjack. One time Pixl introduced him to Monty Python’s Lumberjack Song and it quickly became his favourite thing. He spends most of his free time volunteering at the local theatre because Ren is absolutely a theatre kid and nobody can convince me otherwise. Gets possessed every now and then. Lives in Jungle Wood flats.

Scar

Works as a landscape developer. Gets possessed absurdly easily, though not quite as frequently as Cub. Has a magical method of communication with him. Technically co-owns ConCorp, but isn’t as involved. His cat, Jellie, is very obviously an eldritch abomination in feline form and he is comedically unaware of this. Lives in Jungle Wood Flats with Grian, Iskall, Mumbo, Stress, and Ren.

Skizz

Is the ghost haunting Team ZIT’s office. He was murdered by someone he’d thought was a friend who was trying to use his place to hide from the cops, and he’s stuck around, haunting the building. His unfinished business is to make sure nobody else uses the building for anyone shady, but the ghost rumours tended to chase most people off. Eventually he gets used to having Team ZIT around, and when Tango admits he doesn’t really have anywhere to go one day, Skizz eventually makes the decision to finally unlock the still-furnished upper floor for him. He’s bound to the building, but Impulse learns that carrying Skizz’s old vest with them allows him to leave. After that, Skizz sometimes accompanies them on missions and occasionally just hanging out. He’s usually more helpful than the Beetlejhost is.

Stress

Is a witch. Stress lives in Jungle Wood Flats and works as a doctor who specializes in supernaturally caused injuries- Team ZIT are some of her best customers. She also sells magic potions of various kinds, and has a side gig as a florist. She’s 90% of the Jungle inhabitants’ impulse control. Also has cryokinesis.

Tango

The Team ZIT member with a car. He gets possessed with frankly ridiculous frequency, but claims not to believe in ghosts for a long time (and keeps up the bit for even longer). Has developed various signals to indicate when he’s being possessed again. The strongest one, a rather nasty demon Cleo and the Beetlejhost had to team up on, left him with his glowing red eyes. He didn’t really have anywhere to go before Impulse bought the office, and tended to sleep on the couch or in his car until Skizz decided to let him into the upper floor, where he now lives alongside Zedaph and Impulse.

TFC

A now-retired ghostbuster, TFC calls in Team ZIT one night when he finds himself in over his head against a ghost with a grudge. He winds up becoming a bit of a mentor figure to the trio, usually coaching them over the phone if they’re not sure how to deal with one of the stranger spirits. Lost his leg years ago in a fight with a poltergeist that could have gone better, and now has a robotic prosthetic made by Doc.

Wels

While Team ZIT was out investigating some rumour or another in the woods, they came across a large stone box. Following video game logic, I guess, they then decided opening this large stone box sounded like a fun idea. Well, Tango and Zedaph did. Impulse was a bit more hesitant. The box actually held a medieval knight who’d been put in an enchanted sleep for centuries by his demonic doppelgänger, and was very much not prepared for modern life. Team ZIT took him to Xisuma, who happened to live closest, and Wels is currently helping out on the farm and trying to adjust to life in the 21st century. He can understand and speak modern English just fine because magic. Volunteers at the local theatre quite a lot.

Hels

Is Wels’ doppelgänger. Technically a minor demon. Won a fight with Wels and sealed him away for centuries as a result. A recurring problem. His real motivation is that he really desperately doesn’t want to go back to Hell, but he’s too proud to admit it. Lives in the woods with EX, who’s basically his only friend, though the weirdo with the brown cardigan keeps pestering him about his backstory and feelings for some reason. Has minor pyrokinesis.

Like Biffa, XB is also a ghost from the future, though it seems to be a different timeline than Biffa’s. His unfinished business is preventing the apocalypse, but he has no idea how to do that, no idea if he’s in the right timeline, and is pretty sure he’s gone back a lot farther than he probably should’ve. Also, there’s the whole paradox issue, where if he prevents the apocalypse he never has a reason to go back and prevent the apocalypse, so he doesn’t prevent the apocalypse, so he has to go back and- he tries not to think about it too much. He mostly just hangs out in an abandoned house on the edge of town and vibes.

Xisuma

Is a beekeeper. Nobody’s ever seen his face; when he’s not in his beekeeping outfit, he’s either wearing a helmet, or (more recently) an extremely lifelike and detailed animal mask (is it a mask?). Actually a shapeshifting alien, he crashed down to Earth after a scuffle with his evil clone and was stranded because Earth doesn’t have the right tools or resources to repair a spaceship. These days he’s actually found he’s happier tending to his bees, selling honey, and helping his friends out, and probably wouldn’t leave Earth even if he could. It’s a simpler life, but a pleasant one. He bonds with Biffa over a shared love of tea and being stranded in a technologically inferior world and finding a home.

Evil Xisuma

Is Xisuma’s clone. Feels that if everyone’s going to call him ‘Evil’ he may as well own it. Shot his original’s spaceship down in a scuffle but wound up being brought down with him. Currently hides in the woods. Generally more of a minor nuisance than an actual danger. Used to spend his free time bothering X but has gotten put off by Wels, who has a problem when it comes to evil clones. His friends consist of Hels, who is a terrible role model, and Zedaph, who’s trying to help him work through his problems behind everyone’s backs. Can summon lightning because he deserves it.

Zedaph

Is the reason Team ZIT is ghostbusting in the first place. He’s a sheep shearer by trade, but that’s a fairly seasonal thing and ghostbusting is more fun anyway. Has somehow never been possessed, and claims it’s because he’s always standing next to Tango. He makes sure the other two gets enough sleep Because we all know they can’t be trusted to do it. Probably has some sort of really bizarre and situational magical powers he is thoroughly unaware of. Qualified to be a licensed therapist. Made friends with Evil X at one point, somehow.

Zloy

Like Cleo, he’s a ghost possessing a corpse. Unlike Cleo, there’s a good chance it’s not his corpse. Eh, it’s not like anyone else was using it. Runs a blog with Pixl, because why not. Was already a zombie when he met Pixl, who was still alive at the time. His body is a bit more decayed than Cleo’s, but it’s fine. His goggles are enchanted with the same preservation spell; it’s not really ever explained where he got them from. Has no regard for privacy but is fortunately unable to turn invisible or phase through walls due to inhabiting a physical body. Both can theoretically physically fight ghosts and has enough time to physically fight ghosts, meaning he would be a valuable ally if he could be bothered. Lives in a graveyard. Has an ongoing ‘feud’ with Cleo, in which he puts jabs at her on the blog. Once spent a week as a (very sarcastic) floating potato.

Hermiton

Is the name of the place they all live in/near. Located in an ambiguous location in an ambiguous country, Hermiton is technically large enough to be considered a city but has Town VibesTM. Supernatural going-ons are a fairly normal part of life, and a good number of inhabitants aren’t humans. Despite this, the wider world seems mostly ignorant of the existence of ghosts, magic, etc. I’m not too sure about geography, but it’s surrounded by forest in most directions and in a warm enough climate to not have snow in the winter (so Python doesn’t, you know, freeze to death). Most people don’t tend to bat an eyelid at strange-looking people walking down the street or serving them at the store; they’re used to it by now. There are several theories as to why Hermiton specifically has so much going on when it comes to the supernatural- ley lines, secretly the resting place of some long-forgotten god, et cetera- but it’s actually more of a case of ‘people who have supernatural traits hear rumours of a place where a lot of people have supernatural traits and go there in search of answers/a place to belong’. This doesn’t exactly explain where all the ghosts came from, but hey. Nothing’s perfect.

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frogmanwritings · 6 years ago

Link

Chapters: 3/?

Fandom: Teen Titans (Comics), Teen Titans (Animated Series), Teen Titans - All Media Types,

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Relationships: Beast Boy/Starfire, Garfield Logan/Koriand'r

Characters: Garfield Logan, Beast Boy, Starfire, Koriand'r (DCU), Slade, Slade Wilson, Deathstroke, Robin, Robin (DCU), Dick Grayson, Cyborg (Character), Victor Stone, Raven (DCU), Rachel Roth

Additional Tags: Angst, Romance, Villains to Heroes, Fluff, Smut, Violence, Alternate Universe - Teen Titans (Animated Series) Setting, AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Evil

Summary: Garfield Wilson has lived with his adoptive father, Slade, since his parents died. Finally, after 5 years, Slade is sending him out to try and take down his rivals, the Teen Titans. How will a dark and mistreated Garfield react to them upon meeting them? How will he deal with their bright alien bringing a shine of positivity and joy to his life that he had hidden from him behind angst and abuse?

Links:

Ao3

Fanfiction

Wattpad

" It seems that there is a new supervillain in Jump City, California. Last night at one of Jeffery Hughman's laboratories, someone had infiltrated and stolen classified property from the facility, workers tell JC News. "

The news anchor's voice just seemed to taunt Robin, his gloved fingers digging into the leather fabric of the couch in the Common Room. The pain of defeat almost never stung this bad before, making his body shake in rage, which only fed into the pain of his wounds over his back scream even more. How could he let himself get fooled like that? How had he never found out about this 'Garfield' before?

" Lab workers have remained silent on just what has been stolen, but have assured they are working with police in order to try and get it back. But if the reports coming from the Teen Titans are true, that will be no easy task. According to their leader and former apprentice to Gotham's Batman, the thief in question is aligned with perhaps the most mysterious villain in Jump City, Slade. "

His lucky cape hadn't been able to protect him from the glass shrapnel that pierced his skin and left several cuts over his back, his stomach was aching in pain after a gorilla powered gut punch and he had twisted his knee after being tossed around like a ragdoll straight afterwards. Whoever this 'Garfield' was, he was certainly a cut above the usual criminals Jump City got. Mumbo Jumbo, Doctor Light, Doctor Chang, Control Freak... they were annoying, but never did they cause such injuries to the team like the apprentice did.

" But it seems that this thief isn't just that. On the scene of the crime, a police officer by the name of Dwayne Colton was found dead, shot to death with his own pistol. Nothing is known for sure on how he had died, but early reports say that he had been in the nearby area when alarms first went off and went to investigate, only to be attacked and murdered by this villain. "

Raven was the first one to find the body, though it wasn't like she was looking for it. After being kicked up into the second level of the laboratory, she landed just feet away from the cop's corpse. She ended up with a cracked rib, along with others being bruised and a broken nose. Thankfully she heals quick thanks to her powers, but even then, she wasn't going to available for the next day or so. Robin could glance over to the kitchen area and see her with two tissues stuffed into her nose, idly stirring a cup of tea.

" The Teen Titan's primary mechanic and builder, Cyborg, found signs of the extremely rare disease, Sakutia, in the blood of this villain. He has primarily green skin, hair and eyes, and was seen wearing black and orange. If you see someone fitting this description, it is advised you contact police forces immediately, as the mayor of Jump City has been adamant in declaring that he doesn't want any outbreak of the deadly disease to come over the city. "

Cyborg was probably the one who was going to miss the most time. His entire circuitry was damaged after their battle, thanks to the electric-induced overload that struck his power grid. He had to carry around a large battery that hooked up to his chest in order to keep his power levels in check and not risk any sort of outage until he could verify that all his functions had returned to normal. Not only that, but his arm had been ripped off of him, which he himself described as something that would take him days to fully repair, in conjunction with his power shortages. And given how his injuries were all purely related to his robotics, Raven couldn't even try to heal him with her powers. In the meantime, Cyborg was sitting at the dining table, the large battery sat next to his bowl of ramen, barely touched as he continued to work on the circuitry in his shoulder.

" We were able to have an interview with the leader, Robin, about the battle that ensued with this villain. He says that he goes by the name of 'Garfield Logan', though Logan is only his middle name. All Titans were injured in the battle, but are fully capable of stopping any sort of attacks that go in the city like normal. "

Starfire, being the most durable of the Titans, was the most healthy of the four. Her bruises had all but subsided at this point, and her injuries mostly come with the side effects of the flashbang that went off under her. She couldn't handle bright lights, which is why the lights were dimmed around the Tower, along with the fact that she had to wear earplugs for the time-being to help combat the constant ringing in her eardrums.

Robin was infuriated by her condition, something that he could've easily prevented had he knocked out the apprentice of Slade's, or handcuffed him immediately, instead of trying to interrogate him in a fit of rage after finding out that Slade was back. Not only that, he couldn't protect her when the menace stood over her, staff in hand and ready to finish off the weakened Tamaranean. Just why he didn't was unclear, with Starfire's senses still rattled from the effects of the flashbang, she could only make out the sharp red color of the explosive tip of the shaft pointed right at her face, and then.. it wasn't.

Did Slade want her alive? Then why didn't he capture her? Was it purely for intimidation?

Whatever it was, Robin was working endlessly on tracking down this Garfield, the supposed son of Slade, to try and find a connection between the two in anyway he could in order to try and get the true name of his arch-nemesis. He had found a few leads on signs of Sakutia in Africa, but it was all contained and no one has gotten the fatal disease in half a decade, and that was when the son of two rangers had gotten bit by a Sakuta-infected monkey. He was looking more into that, most recently getting the names of the two parents, Mark and Marie Logan.

" The reemergence of Slade in Jump City only means bad things, if anyone has any leads on the villain's whereabouts, along with his supposed apprentice in 'Garfield', both the police force and the Teen Titans urges you to immediately contact them. And now we move on to the story of Dwayne Colton, not only was he a veteran of the Jump City Police Force, but also a loving husband and a caring father... "

The radio was cut off as the news went to transition into a tribute for the cop who was killed, turned off by Garfield's own father, Slade. The tall, secretive man had forced his son to stay the night elsewhere, somewhere far away from their home in case he was being tracked or got caught up with law enforcements. But after having arrived back in home in the early morning, the changeling couldn't be happier to see his unmasked father with a smirk on his face upon seeing him.

A part of Garfield felt superior to everyone else, knowing what the most elusive villain in Jump City looked like while no one else did. Chiseled face with a few wrinkles, he wore an eye-patch over his right eye, had silver-gray hair that ran down to the middle of his neck, along with spotless sideburns, all going down to a thick enough goatee.

"Good work." Was his simple words when Garfield had returned home, but that was the most praise he had received in over a year, and he was elated to hand over the top-secret staff over to his father who examined it for a brief moments before sheathing it. The apprentice explained everything that happened during his heist, including how he had fought and defeated each of the Titans, but he did hide his plot to kill the Tamaranean, Starfire. A part of him thought of this as weakness, that he should stand up for his own plans and ideas, but it was his first mission and he didn't want to disobey his father, who specified that all Titans remained alive. But another part of him was relieved he had an excuse to not talk about the alien, knowing just why he didn't end up finishing her off...

Of course, Slade wasn't quite satisfied with that, and he went into his office alone to verify Garfield's story, and this made the changeling nervous. He knew that his father was a master of hacking and probably had access to all security cameras in the area of where the fight commenced, and what he'd think when he nearly killed Starfire, something he specifically forbid. So while that happened, he turned on the radio just outside of the assassin's office, listening to the news covering his theft and attack to occupy his mind. Slade's home was very comfy, auburn-colored wood was laid on the floor, shining enough to practically see your reflection in. Tasteful dark red was painted over the walls, with several paintings of the wealthy assassin, all of which of course of him unmasked. Just outside of the office, there was a small end table with a radio on-top, mostly for decoration but it still could pick up the local radio stations, including the news.

And now Logan looked up at the man that raised him, trying his best to hide his anxiety and meet the man's one-eyed gaze with confidence and intensity. But if a man could read emotions, it was Slade, and he could tell that his father wasn't exactly convinced by his bravado.

"Excellent."

Or maybe he was? Garfield had expected some sort of chewing out, but instead, the assassin looked quite pleased with his son, running a gloved hand through his green, oily hair and petting him, like a dog. An act considered humiliating to most was amazing for the changeling. Physical appreciation was something he NEVER received, usually getting 'Acceptable' or 'Decent', maybe a 'Good' if he was lucky whenever he did something good, but an 'Excellent' and physical gratification? It was something he never actually thought he'd receive!

And while it didn't last long, it was more than Garfield could ask for in terms of a reward. "Now, with the Titans out of commission, or at least weakened for the day, I want you to accompany me somewhere." And it just kept getting better, if he had a tail, it'd be wagging like crazy right now. "A scientist by the name of Professor Chang is willing to negotiate on a lucrative amount of Xenothium. However, he is also known to not exactly hold up on his side of deals, and while I am confident I could take him should he ever do that, You are to come with me just in case."

"Of course!" Garfield almost yelled, letting out a cough afterwards and clearing his voice, not wanting to seem too excited about the mission. He had already been plenty elated when he heard about his lab-robbing, why was this mission so special compared to that? A snort came out of Slade's nostrils, and the apprentice couldn't quite read if it was out of annoyance or amusement before the man spoke once more. "I wasn't asking, Garfield. Now, hand over your utility belt."

A moment of hesitation passed before the teen complied, unbuckling and holding out his belt to his father who took it. "Why?" Garfield made sure to ask AFTER he had handed it over, as to make sure he didn't seem to be defying. "I wish to see what you can do without these tools. Your defeat of the Teen Titans was very impressive and you did good with what you were given, so I want to see what you can do without these tools." The grizzled villain explained thoroughly, walking back into his office to place the belt down on an weapons' chest, and when he came back out, his signature black and bronze mask was held under his arm.

It was true, while he did defeat the Titans, he did have to use most of the weapons in his arsenal, and if he didn't have that smokebomb and flashbang, he probably wouldn't have won that battle, and would've to at least retreated. "Now, let's get going. Chang wants this transaction to be done as soon as possible, so let us not disappoint the Professor."

Garfield was forced to follow his father from the skies as a crow, watching his white Ferrari 812 drive casually along the road. They were set to meet up only blocks away, which made the changeling confident if Slade was willing to do something like this so close to his personal home. And bring such an expensive vehicle nonetheless. Then again, the assassin wasn't really attached to cars, since he rarely drove when not on a job, and when he was on a job, his clients usually had already paid for his travel and for any vehicle use he may need.

It didn't take long until the expensive Ford pulled up and parked on the curb just outside of the lone warehouse. A second later, the classic Slade opened up and walked out of the car, wearing his signature mask and suit, an odd sight to see in broad daylight, but with no one else around, it wasn't exactly risky. And when the black-covered man opened up the door to the abandoned place of storage, Garfield took that as his queue to follow, dropping down and shifting back into his human form, catching the door just before it closed and following his father inside.

"... Aaah, and this must be Garfield!" An elderly voice greeted the changeling as he walked in, doing so while a man dressed in laboratory whites was speaking. On his face was black, three-eyed goggles, lenses shining with scarlet red. And while his wrinkles told of his age, he was the shortest in the room, with Garfield noting that the man couldn't be taller than 5'6". Standing at his sides were two tall, muscular guards, wearing similarly colored white jumpsuits that were akin to hazard suits. Tinted glass on their helmets covered their faces and the two of them each carried weapons. The one on the right held a long staff, red electricity dancing off the fork-shaped end of it, while the one of the left held a gun similar to that of an assault rifle, but a cool gray coloring and a shining rid tip.

"The Toppler of the Titans, the Hunter of the Heroes, the Beast of the Brats! Glad to meet you, boy." Professor Chang went on, extending a gloved hand out for a handshake, but he was quickly rebutted by a swift glare from the apprentice's master. "Not a fan of the nicknames, are you Slade? And here I thought 'The Terminator' would welcome such taglines!"

"If I were to have pleasantries, I'd choose to do them with someone much more my sort of caliber." Was Slade's simple answer, not a hint of malice in his tone despite what he just said, that cold, calculating eye staring a hole through the professor. "Oh, you hurt me, Wilson! But if you wish, we will do business without any of the 'pleasantries'." The elder said with a bow, nodding towards his two guards who gripped each side of a large, metal chest and lifted it open.

It was nearly overflowing with crates of red radiating Xenothium, almost hurting Garfield's eyes to look at with how much of it was glowing. Slade's eye and body language didn't change, except for him walking forward and kneeling down to get a closer look of the compound. "A joy to look at, isn't it? My mind wanders endlessly of just what you would use all of this wondrous ore for." Chang said in a dandy manner as the assassin picked up a singular vial of the power source, twisting it around in his two fingers.

Curiosity set in for Garfield and he made two large steps forward, wanting to get a closer look as well and asking his father for permission to do so without words. Slade simply nodded his head, instantly understanding his son's steps and thus the changeling walked over fully, picking up a vial as well and squinting his eyes as he examined it. "Careful now, green one. It is quite the unstable chemical, if just a small bit of it touches your already messed up skin, who knows what would happen.." Chang's voice was starting to annoy the apprentice now, looking upward to give the professor a hard glare after he heard his skin being called 'messed up'.

It wasn't exactly false, but he at least thought there was a level of respect between the two since he defeated the Teen Titans, something that Chang himself hadn't done. If he wanted, he could point out the amount of wrinkles the professor had in his ugly face, or how he had stump legs, or the fact that he had a hunchback, or- "So, do we have a deal, Mr. Slade?" The old man eventually asked of the villain, who glanced up at Chang, his single eye narrowing down in thought before eventually, Slade stood up. "What's your price, Professor?"

Suddenly, a red blast struck Garfield's shoulder, sending him crashing into the nearest wall. But instead of a burning or sharp pain, the only discomfort he felt was a sore back after it landed directly on the wall, and the fact that a sticky substance was seemingly glued to his arm. Taking a look, a large web of scarlet was stuck to his shoulder and the wall behind him, and a couple of hard jerks wasn't enough to free him. And then glancing up, he saw one of Chang's guards with that rifle pointed at him, while the professor watched on with a grin. "The sheriff was very clear on his priorities to take in your pet, Slade."

"How much is he offering?" Slade asked, his one eye showing surprise but not... urgency. He just stood there, arms behind his back as if this was just a normal business transaction. "Oh, nothing concrete yet. The news of Sakutia being in him is driving it up, but the possibilities of keeping him for a good while, maybe have him sent out to do a few jobs to up his price, get them desperate, it's also a tempting decision." The professor responded with a sinister smirk, causing Garfield to furrow his brow. "Father, help me out here!" He growled, kicking and tugging at the red web that ensnared his arm, but to no avail.

But, he didn't. He just stood there. "Tempting, but not smart. The police will forget about him in due time. If you truly want him as your price, then I suggest calling them in now." Slade advised the shorter man, who gave a nod of his head and tapped a few buttons on what looked like a small radio box on his belt. That singular mysterious eye of his father bore into the trapped changeling, as Chang had a sinister smirk on his face, guards by his side. It was... taunting, like he was daring him to do anything about his condition, to try and fight back in his helpless position.

"Or.. perhaps a man of your scientific expertise could find another way to make use of him." Slade continued to talk to the professor, that narrowed eye never leaving his son. "The DNA of the entire animal kingdom is in his blood. Just imagine the possibilities..."

A panicked huff escaped Garfield's mouth as he heard that, his eyes pleading with his father, trying to snap him out of this, to realize that he is far more valuable than some dumb red glowsticks, but nothing. Why? After all those years, he was going to toss him away like this? After saving his life and raising him, he was going to be abandoned? ...No, he wasn't going to allow that! Confusion turned to grief, and that grief turned to anger. He struggled more and more, until eventually realizing that he wasn't going to break through that special glue. Whatever it was, he wasn't going to get it off of him with one arm. But the thin wall however...

Transforming into a gorilla, or at least, as most of one as he could with his left arm completely entrapped and thus remained human. Swinging a huge arm towards the wall behind the goo, his fist was easily able to break through the wooden structure. He then gripped down on the outpointing wood, yanking down hard until eventually, his body landed down onto the asphalt floor of the warehouse. A large chunk of wood was still stuck to his arm thanks to the red goop that was glued to him, but at least he wasn't restricted to the wall now and his eyes was set on Professor Chang.

Slade seemed to have ran away or something, as his only opposition between him and the professor was his two guards. Several shots of red adhesive was fired in his direction, but thankfully for Garfield, the wood stuck to his arm was just large enough to act as a shield to absorb the glue-like substance while he closed the distance. His thunderous stomps didn't slow down as the guard kept firing, and the man in the white radioactive suit seemed to realize that this wasn't going to work out for him, as he tried to turn his back and get some distance between the two again, but the changeling wasn't going to allow that, grabbing him by the arm and tossing him into a nearby crate.

An electric shock ran through Garfield's body, the cold feeling of steel pressing against his side and his vision blacked out for a moment, causing him to kneel over. Turning his gaze to his right, the second bodyguard stood, static staff in hand and looking to shock him again. At the last second, the gorilla ducked down, avoiding the electric stab by mere hairs, and at the same time, shifting back into his human form and kicking out a leg to sweep and trip the guard. The man dropped his staff in the process, the metal pole bouncing and rolling far away from him.

Before the faceless guard could try and make a move, Garfield was atop of him, using the wood stuck to his arm to slam down onto his adversary's protected face, not stopping as the sound of glass breaking and wood splintering indicated the damage that the changeling was dealing, and even the screams of fear from the man didn't stop him. Only when there was silence and his arms were properly covered in blood did he pant and stop, looking down at the gruesome mess he made on the face of the security guard of-

"Stupid boy!" -Professor Chang's, his voice followed by another paralyzing and painful shock running through Logan's body, this time causing the changeling to fully fall over, asphalt digging into his sweat-soaked top and his blurry gaze looking up at the ugly scientist who stood over him with that electric staff. "At least your DNA will be valuable.."

And what happened next, Garfield could barely even see, but the sound... a gunshot echoed in his eardrums, earning a pained grunt and for him to raise a stone-weighted hand to plug one of them. His gaze seemed like he was looking through fogged glass, but he could make out the spurt of scarlet that escaped Chang's cranium, followed by an unpleasant *thump* and the professor falling out of sight.

His ears still ringing, Logan took several seconds, up to a minute before beginning to get back up, his muscles feeling gravitated towards the ground making it a somewhat difficult action, but eventually, as his vision cleared, his eyes fell onto Slade staring at him with that sinister eye, a smoking pistol in his hands. "Not bad, you cannot let your rage get in the way of taking out all opposition however." His silky voice evaluated his son, letting the wounded boy slowly wobble his way over to him.

"Wh... You..." Garfield was at a lost of breath, along with the fact that the situation was just so.. confusing. His father was just about to sell him off, but now... But eventually, his fried brain connected the dots and tears began to well up in his eyes. He... was testing him, to see if he could handle himself. He didn't have any intention to leave him to some crazed professor, he just wanted to see what his son was capable of in person. "I... thought you were going to abandon me..." He half-whined, his face pressing against the metal plating of his father's chestpiece, a soft hand placed on his shoulder.

"You are my son, are you not?" Slade's tone never changed, Garfield's exhausted body and brain unable to contain all the emotion that was running through him, sobs clawing out of his lungs and tears falling from his flustered cheeks onto the black jumpsuit of the assassin's. "I l-love you.." The changeling heaved, and he only received a gentle pat to his upper back in response, but it was still oh so comforting all the same. "Let's get out of here now.."

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