#or just evolve it to resemble new game races more

[silenceoflink]

Back in 2017, back when I was a baby artist, I drew something to celebrate the release of Breath of the Wild, the most recent and groundbreaking Zelda Game. Well, with Tears of the Kingdom fast approaching, I decided to re-draw it. Paying tribute to the first 3D Zelda game, Ocarina of Time, I celebrate the new game.

[pixelgrotto]

Karate History & Box Art Redemption

About a year and a half ago, I mentioned Jordan Mechner's seminal 1984 game Karateka in a post about Sifu, a newly-released beat ‘em up with a similar martial arts theme and tough-as-nails difficulty level. Sifu's a good game that garnered a certain amount of scrutiny from people who pointed out that it was an interactive experience steeped in Chinese culture but developed by a predominantly white team. This is not inherently a bad thing (Sifu’s devs did a respectful job), but considering Western media’s track record of misrepresenting Asia as an exotic place full of Fu Manchu-mustachioed bad guys and subservient women, it’s always worthwhile to be cautious. At any rate, Sifu reminded me a lot of Karateka, another game by a non-Asian creator that owed its lifeblood to Asian culture...and even featured the main protagonist and his love interest as white on the box art, despite the fact that the game clearly takes place in medieval Japan.

The Making of Karateka, a just-released interactive documentary by Digital Eclipse, explains the logic behind this decision via extensive notes that detail every step of the game's creation. From what I can discern, the box art design doesn’t appear to have been Jordan Mechner’s call. (Though the playable Karateka beta included in this package reveals that Mechner had some wacky non-Japanese names in mind for the game’s villain and damsel in distress... Akuma and Mariko were once dubbed “Kratang” and “Tiger Lily.” Yikes!) Rather, publisher Brøderbund’s marketing team seems to have been the division that assigned artist Thomas Blackshear II to paint the cover, instructing him that the titular Karateka was supposed to look like "a young Chuck Norris" or "Luke Skywalker" while Mariko should resemble an "American blonde." Meanwhile, only Akuma was specified as "Japanese."

Brøderbund’s promotional strategy followed the typical American metality of the era: it's okay to portray a bad guy as a foreign race, but leading men and ladies should be white and ideally blonde. It didn't have to be this way, since Bruce Lee had dominated cinemas with Enter the Dragon only a decade earlier and proved that audiences could accept an Asian hero. But Brøderbund decided to go the safe route, despite the fact that Thomas Blackshear is a person of color renowned for his Black and American Indian paintings. (He also portrayed a decidedly unblonde and possibly Asian main character in his early cover sketches.)

My intention here is not to hate on Karateka or any of the individuals involved. The original Karateka game for the Apple II did, after all, feature white hair for its leading man's sprite that could easily be interpreted as blonde (though that was likely due to hardware color limitations more than anything else), and Brøderbund justified their decision by claiming they were inspired by the multicolored hair of Japanese manga characters. (Eh, sure.) Also, if we're being honest about it, Blackshear's final art is a beautiful composition even with the questionable racial depictions.

Rather, I'm fascinated with Karateka's box as an example of mildly problematic '80s promotion, and I love how we gain insight into its development thanks to Digital Eclipse' painstaking efforts with what they call the first in their "Gold Master Series" of playable documentaries. Aside from these marketing details, The Making of Karateka delves into Jordan Mechner's early life in precise timeline fashion, letting us explore planning documents, early rotoscoping footage and prototypes of not only Karateka, but the games that preceded it, including Mechner's take on Asteroids and a shooter he was trying to develop called Deathbounce. There's even glimpses at the bones of a platforming puzzle game that started out as Karateka II and would later evolve into Prince of Persia.

Just about every review of The Making of Karateka stresses how this package sets a new standard for preservation in the video game industry, a business that is terrible at chronicling its own past. I won't repeat these arguments too much other than to say that I fullheartedly agree. Behind the scenes featurettes used to be a thing when it came to games — as a kid, I remember being utterly absorbed with the "Making of King's Quest VI" footage that came included on the CD-ROM — but these days you're unlikely to see too many of them, especially for titles that were released decades ago. In a world where Nintendo has yet to localize Mother 3 and customers need to rely on emulation and all types of hacks to revisit old games, Digital Eclipse's commitment to curating digital museums dedicated to works like Karateka is an incredible worthy goal — possibly one of the most important goals that a video game company has ever embarked upon. I can't wait to see more volumes in the Gold Master Series, and can think of many potential entries off the top of my head. Pitfall! Ultima! Doom! Maybe even one day...Sifu? (Likely a stretch, but stranger things have happened.)

But going back to the discusson of art for a moment, one of the most monumental things that The Making of Karateka does is offer a "remastered" version of its title game, complete with impressive graphical flairs, a more managable difficulty level, and even...revised box art. While Thomas Blackshear's original Karateka painting is still displayed prominently throughout the package, when you go to select Karateka Remastered under the list of playable games, you'll see a new mockup box. No longer is Akuma a dehumanized Japanese baddie, no longer is Mariko an all-American girl, no longer is the titular Karateka Luke Skywalker. All three characters are Asian...and get this, the central Karateka is not only Asian, but blonde too.

In one swift stroke, The Making of Karateka not only captures history and chronicles its mistakes, but also revises them for a bright future. Take that, 1984 marketing.

Update: An earlier version of this article stated that the new mockup cover art was illustrated by Digital Eclipse in-house artist Mae Livingston. Mike Mika, the president of Digital Eclipse, reached out to me on Twitter to explain that while Mae was responsible for Karateka Remastered's in-game artwork, the actual box image was made via Midjourney, and the characters were tweaked multiple times to look more culturally appropriate. He added that this methodology was an experiment that Digital Eclipse does not intend to rely on in the future.

I have very mixed opinions on AI art, and I do wish this box had been created by a human. I don't know if I would've written this piece if I'd known that the artwork was made by Midjourney, frankly. Nevertheless, I appreciate Mike actually reaching out to me, and the ultimate message of this article still stands. I hope Digital Eclipse considers the power that an image like this holds — especially for multiracial people like myself — and chooses human artists in the future.

[aigfgm]

The Biggest Trends In Online Gaming

Two years ago, the biggest thing in gaming was next-gen consoles. Now that they’re all gone, it’s all about online gaming. The competition to be the king of virtual gaming is heating up.

Companies that once dominated the market are losing out to new startups. Things that were once thought to be lost are gaining traction. Furthermore, the gaming audience is evolving. Some of the biggest trends in online gaming are:

Cloud Gaming

Online gaming is moving to Cloud-based games and will become more popular in 2023. It’s easy to see why – you don’t have to worry about downloading them on your PC or smartphone. Plus, you don’t need a ton of hardware to play your favorite games.

In the case of cloud games, all you have to do is sign up at a platform that offers the service. The top providers include Sony’s PlayStation Now service, NVIDIA’s GeForce Now service, Xbox and Steam.

The only downside is that if you want to enjoy online gaming, you need to have a good connection to the internet. If your connection is slow, you’ll get frustrated on sites that are prone to lag, like GeForce Now or Google Stadia. 

Another thing to keep in mind is that each platform offers a certain number of games. For example, PlayStation now offers a limited number of exclusive games, and so does Microsoft. As a result, you may need to sign up for several platforms to enjoy unlimited online gaming.

The Rise of Casual Gaming

Online gaming is becoming more and more popular because it’s no longer just for hardcore gamers. Most of the games available on Steam, Google and Apple Store cater to casual gamers of all kinds.

Think about Candy Crush Saga. It’s a game about crushing candy. It’s fun and you can play it over and over again. That’s one of the reasons why Candy Crush fans spent over $2.1 billion last year on in-products items.

Mobile Gaming

The popularity of mobile gaming has grown so much that some manufacturers are now selling gaming-centric phones. These gaming-centric phones have been designed from scratch to cater to gaming fans.

When it comes to Play Store games, there are thousands of different types of mobile games available on both Google and Apple. Whether you want to play a casual game like Subway Surfers or Candy Crush, or you want to choose a pro-sports game like Fortnite or Call of Duty Mobile, you have plenty of options for online gaming.

VR and AR

Mark Zuckerberg thinks Virtual Reality is the way of the future for online gaming. He’s invested in Metaverse games and has VR products for gamers, and some people think he’s a bit crazy about VR.

Virtual Reality (VR) has not yet been widely adopted by the general public, however, there has been considerable development in the past few years. A growing number of publishers are producing VR titles, such as Tetris: Effect; Beat Saber; Superhot VR; No Man’s Sky; and Star Wars: Squadrons.

Virtual Reality’s closest competitor is augmented reality (AR), and it’s doing just as well. Since Pokémon Go’s success, more AR-enabled games have been released, including Angry Birds Jurassic World Alive Ingress Prime

VR and AR are expected to gain traction over the next few years. But this will only be possible if content providers deliver high-quality experiences. Hardware manufacturers must also create cost-effective headsets.

Diversity in Gaming

Online gaming is no longer limited to young men. According to statistics, women account for 65% of mobile gamers. The racial makeup of gamers is also changing.

If you look at the most popular Twitch streamers, you will see that there are a lot of Asian, Black, and Latino gamers. In this context, developers are changing their approach to in-game characters.

Most games now allow you to select an avatar based on gender or race. Developers are also releasing games with multiple characters. This allows you to choose a video game character that resembles you for online gaming.

Esports

Electronic sports has grown from a niche sport in North America into a multi-billion-dollar global industry. By 2023, nearly every gamer has played an online game or is watching gaming content from a professional streamer.

Esports gaming is a collective of highly skilled players who collaborate to showcase their skills in exchange for monetary rewards. The remuneration is often so high that gaming has become an integral part of a person’s day-to-day life.

Play to Earn Games

Online gaming is getting even more exciting with play-to-earn games. For instance, Axie Infinity rewards you with AXS coins for successfully breeding Axie characters. It also provides you with another coin named SLP which you can trade for genuine money on crypto exchanges.

More details visit us 

[leupagus]

RICHMOND OWNER WELTON 'COMMITTED TO FUTURE,' HIRES AMERICAN AND MODEL

While its season is already mired in relegation-ready mediocrity on the pitch, much of the media attention around AFC Richmond has shifted to the club's behind-the-scenes machinations, which at times seems more befitting of paparazzi car-chasers than any person attempting to cover professional sport.

Image description: Rebecca smiling at charity gala Caption: Welton's appearance at a charity gala was a rousing success.

The tabloid tattle revolves around an evolving love/hate triangle between Hounds owner Rebecca Welton, the eccentric American manager she inexplicably hired, Ted Lasso, and model/arch-WAG Keeley Jones who, although star striker Jamie Tartt's now-ex, has remained a Nelson Road Stadium fixture as Richmond's media liaison, hand-picked by Welton.

Although a successful businesswoman in her own right, Welton only inherited Richmond in a divorce settlement with its popular previous owner, Rupert Mannion.  One of her first acts in charge was to masochistically recruit Lasso and his longtime sidekick Coach Beard, both of whom had experience only in the unsophisticated, violent pervsion of "football" played stateside.

Perhaps best known for an ostentatious lifestyle and messy marriage to serial philanderer Mannion, Welton had never expressed much interest in football prior to Richmond falling into her lap.  Nor, come to think of it, since.  And she seems to have been willing, if not rooting, for Lasso to fail from the get-go.

"I feel like she's been in our corner the whole time," the disconcertingly affable Lasso insisted, denying any rumors of a chilly relationship.  "And I if ever find out I'm wrong about that then, y'know, I'll give you two quid."

But lately Welton, a woman who seemingly preferred private jets and heels higher than Richmond's league position, has shown new enthusiasm for her club.  My insider sources attribute this to an unlikely kinship with the considerably younger, bubbly Jones - who ironically, bears more than a passing resemblance to some of the very women who (allegedly) ended Welton's marriage.

"I'm mostly confused why you feel any friendship's unlikely," Lasso told me. "We get along just fine, me and you!"

--

"WE FEEL A STRONG OBLIGATION TO MAKE SURE THAT THE DRESSING ROOM SMELLS NICE."

-Ted Lasso on owner Welton --

The only reason to pay even lip service to such peripheral gossip is that Jones, who displays an oddly Lasso-like belief in the human race, is said to have instilled in Welton a newfound respect for her hapless gaffer.  If true, this could in turn impact Richmond's fortunes on the field.

"I'm a couple of inches shorter," mused Lasso, of Welton.  "And a few pounds heavier, from the fish and chips."

Image description: Rebecca and Higgins in the clubhouse hallway, Rebecca smiling at Higgins Caption: Welton's relationship with newly anointed Ops chief Higgins has been called "worrisome."

Assistant Beard denied that Jones could have any real influence on the team, unless she "has a better right foot than I'm aware of."

While Welton has largely cleaned house since taking over at Nelson Road, she puzzlingly retained the services of one male voice in her boardroom, Leslie Higgins: an obsequious former Mannion minion who she promoted to Director of Football Operations.

Is hapless Higgins, who was rumored to have spent his Richmond tenure ushering in conquests for Welton's ex-husband, integral to her "lose now, lose later" strategy?  On game day, Higgins was seen carousing with Lasso, Beard and recently vocal kit man Nathan Shelley in the manager's office, and it remains to be seen what impact, if any, he will have on the fortunes of the Hounds.

Yet the charming Lasso refutes any hearsay of tanking and seems to take no concern with having Welton at the helm.  It has made no difference to his day-to-day coaching he said, save for one offhand remark he offered me:

"We feel a strong obligation to make sure that the dressing room smells nice," he said. "Just in case she pops down."

--Trent Crimm, Special Correspondent

Image description: Keeley standing in the Richmond clubhouse Caption: Hot WAG Keeley Jones has a place in the Richmond front office and in the clubhouse.

[nb: transcribed by the awesome Kalinara, because: awesome]

(Source)

[shnowbilicat]

Human Abathur and Human Anub'Arak

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While playing Heroes of the Storm I got the idea of drawing my main Heroes as humans! Cuz apparently I only play monsterns and creatures and aliens X'D

I decided to start with Abathur, cuz he has been on mind about this since I got the idea aaaand I love myself sum hoods and dark characters :'3

You guys have no idea how much time I spend on Abathur's and Anub'Arak's Wiki pages just reading through ther bios and what not X'D

Down below is more information if ya wanna check it out but tl;dr I adore these two and I lowkey ship them too huehuehue~ ewe

So to keep it short and simple, Abathur is the 'Evolution Master' of the Zerg's, aka he's the guy you go to for upgrades in game ... and that's basically his whole character!

Abathur is pretty much obsessed with evolving his race into more efficient deadlier creatures, even going so far as intentionally trying to wage war against the other races in Starcraft and going against the wishes of the new queen Zerg. He knows perfection is impossible, but he can at least try to get very close to it.

This also reflects in his mannerisms and speech; he speaks just using the most important words, everything else is a waste of time. He even explicitly says he dislikes using pronouns X'D

He's not a fighter, in HOTS he's a support character that specializes in enhancing his teammates to the max, while he sits somewhere hidden.

He's a calm and collected guy, but thanks to the Blizzard charme some of his in game actions and voicelines to reveal a silly side of the character ... which I intend on using 100% ewe

As a human, Abathur still has his rather calm and collected personality, but spiced up with a straight forward approach to others and a little bit of snark as well! He likes to kidnap his teammates into his lab to do experiments on and try to improve them.

Speaking of his lab, instead of the fleshy, boney style the Zerg have going on, in this AU Zerg's have something called 'BioTech', a technology that runs on Zerg essence to function, being alive to an extend too. Fluids, pods and pipes everywhere, dark and black colors and harsh metal machines that are spiky and everything is about in the same style like Abathur's stingers (See reference picture above thxx)

Abathur is basically the crazy scientist in this Human AU and Zagara (The current Zerg queen), Dehaka, Artanis and Anub'Arak have to put up with his antics while spending time with each other cuz idk the Nexus either forced them to or the Zerg's rescued Artanis and Anub'Arak from their death and they owe the Zergs something idk X'D

Anub'Arak is a character from Warcraft and if I read it correctly Anub was once I proud King of a land called Narub. After daring to stand against the Lich King he sadly died, but got resurrected as an undead by said Lich King to serve as an unstopable force of nature.

As far as I understood it Anub did die at least once more and yet again brought back to life, now serving another Lich King. He even killed his own people while serving the Lich King, against his own will of course.

I personally only got to play Warcraft 3 as a small child and always went with Anub as my Hero character cuz ... giant beetle go brrr ewe

And's what he is in game too! A tanky power machine and poops out bbys now and again pfft X'D

Even with his brainwash, Anub is a proud and strong character personality vise. He's a proud Nerubian and King and even though I sadly haven't seen a lot about his personality on wikis, his voice lines are funny and quirky and URGH luv him <33

While thinking of a Human Abathur design and already imagining funny situations Anub has to go through while living with the Zerg's I started to brainstorm Anub's design ... which was difficult af :'3

Anub is a giant beetle monster and pharaoh inspired. Love the concept to death, but making it into a more modern-ish aestheticly pleasing design that doesn't go overboard, easy to draw and still looks coolio was tough ...

I spend some time googling pharaoh costumes and even looked up what modern egyptians would probably wear and it gave me the confidence to try some things out! I decided to go with what comes to my mind first and it worked out well! Though I had difficulty deciding on the color shades as Anub has surprisingly a lot of details and colors, but I'm happy with what I decided for now.

Espacially his hair and skin. I wanted him to have deep purple hair and darker skin, cuz he's basically an egyptian mummy and I wanted to try myself on darker skinned characters ... he's so handsome I'm literally having a crush on him qwq

Anub in this AU is picking up on his personality in game; proud, strong, calm, a good sense of humor and a small dislike for Abathur; in a voice line when Anub'Arak would kill an Abathur he says 'I eat worms like you for breakfast' sooo I like taking that as a nice relationship starter for the two ewe

Of course Abathur is intrigued by Anub's undead-ness and always bugs the Nerubian for experiments and samples of his blood and what not.

In battle Anub mostly either uses scythes or gloves that resemble his ingame claws. He of course can also summon small beetles to aid him in battle and even creat two pairs of beetle wings under his cape and his skirt for better mobility and flight. He can also use his bandages to wrap people up in place (Compared to his nets and cocoons in game) and under his bandages he bares his scars for his fight against the Lich King.

I really adore him, both because I kinda grew up with him and his design, he and Abathur are now my bbys and I adore and love them so so much qWq

I do plan on creating Dehaka, Zagara and Artanis in the future hopefully, but I just wanted to upload my two favs cuz I love them already and mmmmgh they so gud :'33

[aces-drew]

a christmas rini hc bc the hsmtmts special revived me <3

just a cute lil christmas rini fim my bros, just some mushy christmas love shit for y’all hehehhe (not proofread sorry, it was just a braindump lmao)

ricky loved mistletoe growing up.

no seriously, he loved it. 

ever since he was little, year after year, mistletoe was associated with everything that made him the happiest - the holidays, winter, ugly sweaters, being snug with someone you love, his parents happy and in love, and the best kind of warmth to overwhelm all the cold

his earliest memory of his parents truly in love was when he held some mistletoe up to their knees and they kissed above him with smiles on their faces and teeth clashing.

it seemed to evolve as sort of a tradition. every year since ricky was 5 years old, he held up the mistletoe for his mom and dad while the entire house smelled of nutmeg while the cinnamon rolls and chocolate chip cookies baked in the oven;

eventually his dad nagging him to do it once he hit double digits while he visibly (fake) gagged at how endearing his parents were for kissing under the mistletoe 

until this year, there was nothing that could ruin the innocence of a kiss under the mistletoe 

but here he was, winter break of junior year, with half a christmas tree up, his parent’s divorce finalised, his mom celebrating christmas with ted in chicago, his dad drunk on his days off work, and him eating microwaved thanksgiving turkey lunches (that are somehow still a thing) alone 

if he wasn’t so fucking angry at all the exhaustion and sadness he was feeling, he might’ve has the emotional availability to cry about it (hint: he didn’t)

so he just resorted to the monotony of waking up every day, doing his homework (yeah it surprised him too dw), facetiming nini, and gaming to keep himself as distracted as he could, actively avoiding the holidays all together

and obviously nini knew the extent to which this all sucked for ricky :( 

in addition to the guilt she was feeling leaving for denver in a few weeks, she hated the way ricky’s festive spirit was non-existent this year 

she remembered them every year growing up, ricky resembling a puppy getting ready for a walk in the park with each day they got closer to christmas

ricky, even before them dating, having 4 christmas movie marathons planned for every saturday of the month for them to watch on nini’s couch

(die hard of course being one of them because YES, it is a christmas movie, and no, he didn’t take criticism) 

her excitedly looking forward to cuddling with him underneath the only non-christmas coloured blanket he didn’t complain about nini keeping on the couch because he knew that it was her favourite blanket that they would inevitably end up cuddled under together

her moms obviously found them passed out on the couch snuggling, nini resting almost on top of ricky, them soundly sleeping with their stomachs full of hot cocoa and their hearts filled with love for each other (and yes the cheesiest and warmest christmas cheer)

god, they fucking loved each before they even knew what love was; if nini wasn’t already the hopelessly hopeless romantic she was, she could scream into a pillow about it

she was so thankful for ricky and the holidays, and ricky during the holidays. she always thought her favourite season was spring but seeing how much ricky loved winter, it was hard for it not to slowly become her’s too

so now as she sat facetiming him and he looked the saddest he’s ever looked, it was impossible for her not to scheme

after a few searches on pinterest and a re-watch of all the new girl christmas and thanksgiving episodes, she got her plan together

===========================================================

two days later, while ej, kourtney and big red took ricky out for a movie and some pizza, unbeknown to ricky, she used the hidden spare key to get in (break in) to his house

she knew that his dad had been working pretty late everyday this winter so she bet that some quality time with ricky was highly likely 

after raiding ricky’s gummy worm stash from the second last drawer beside his kitchen counter, she got everything ready 

===========================================================

‘this really is so nice of you guys, really’ 

ricky was incredibly thankful for his friends. he didn’t even know what he would do without them, but it was hard not to feel the sting of nini foregoing the movies for a workshop that her denver school was hosting

and of course he tried not to be bitter about it, he was so incredibly happy for her, she was the most talented person he knew, but it also sucked that he would have to do the rest of high school without his girlfriend, the person he loved most in the entire world

‘dude, don’t even sweat it... we know it’s been a rough winter’

and again, if two months ago you were going to tell ricky that ej was more an acquaintance to him, let alone a friend, he’d think something was perpetually wrong with the universe

but here he was, even empathetic

they had eaten, watched an overplayed zombie movie at the theatre and spend some good time together. and even though he was incredibly grateful for the quality time he’d spent with his friends, his social battery was low and his tiredness unrelenting.

so within twenty minutes, he was back on his driveway, taking a deep breath before bracing the Utah snow

===========================================================

once he walked through the door, he didn’t really even realise the entire living room re-arranged until the smell of his mom’s cinnamon rolls hit him

and then he processed all of it at once; a fort was set up in the middle of the room, the fully decorated christmas tree gleaming in its designated corner and christmas decor uplifting the entire space. fairy lights hung around the fort and the tv had been moved to level with it as muffled christmas sintra rung through the air

the entire gesture winded ricky. 

‘hi’ nini’s voice piped shyly from the kitchen

‘hi’ 

it was safe to say that rick was indeed short-circuiting right now

‘oh my-’ ‘ricky i-’

he didn’t really wait, ‘no me first. what the actual fuck nini? what the actual he-? oh my- i don’t eve- oh my-’

luckily, nini wasn’t as winded, ‘i know christmas sucks this year, i know that everything seems wrong. but i love you and gina, ej, big red and kourtney love you, we’re here. i’m here. i wanted to something for the holidays, ya know? take some agency and plan the festivities for once.’

ricky was still pretty starstruck, ‘by the looks of it, i should definitely do this more.’

her soft giggles were only matched with tears pooling in ricky’s eyes. tears he was desperately trying to control from sliding down his cheeks. nothing had managed to lift this unnerving pressure he had pressed up on his chest till now. and now? now, he was elated. he felt like a fucking cloud. he was so relieved, and so so fucking thankful.

‘this-nini this? this is everything.’ and he meant it. the earnestness in his voice seemed to surprise nini, her eyes suddenly matching his glossy ones. 

‘i love you.’ was all he managed to say as he rested his forehead on hers after hugging her, breathing in more of the nutmeg candles she’d lit. 

‘one more thing.’

‘what?’

‘look up!’

and surely enough, mistletoe stared right back at ricky, ‘i know this is hard. i know it is,’ she said almost reading his mind, ‘so we make our own traditions y’know, new ones. happy ones. so i thought i’d start with this.’

and that was enough for him to kiss her; he tried to convey all the love and great-fullness and integrity and warmth and honesty he felt, how much she made him feel like he had a home in her, how comfortable she was, how indispensable. most of all, he wanted her to know how lucky he was to be loved by her.

when they finally broke apart, nini raced to the kitchen counter, and when she returned with her favourite non-christmas sunshine yellow blanket and a copy of the die hard dvd, he knew that this winter break was something he could survive. 

[turtletimewriting]

Bonding

Summary: A soulmate au’s perspective on tickling! 

Note: A tickle fic if you couldn’t guess! Also, still somewhat new to writing for Sanders Sides so prepare for some shoddiness haha! 

_._._

Virgil woke up feeling his chest almost glowing with emotion. A warmth that settled in front of his ribs that made his eyes flutter open and a smile naturally curl on to his face. The quiet warmth tried its hardest to lull him into sleep again but his slowly wakening mind was starting to ask questions. What were the others doing that meant they was radiating with happiness? 

He had stumbled upon his soulmates just a little under sixth months ago. Tracking down soulmates had always felt like an impossible task. Hell, it took years before he even realised that he had three of them! Feeling their emotions obviously doesn’t make them easy to find- he could be having the happiest day of his life but that wouldn’t mean he’d be dancing down the streets or smiling proudly. He had found Patton first. He suspected him when they were partnered together for a project at work. The sinking heavy feeling in his chest to the rapid glow of excitement matched Patton’s expression when the project was announced and then when he realised that Virgil was his partner. Thankfully, Patton had found his other soulmates and so saved Virgil the heart attacks of trying to find the others. 

Virgil slowly and quietly crept out of their guest bedroom and peered through the stairs. He wasn’t surprised by the sight of them all piled on top of each other, like a bunch of spilt over kittens, it was a familiar sight. The surprise was the frantic laughter. 

Logan’s laugh was distinct. It was somehow both squeaky but also bellowing loud. Like he was throwing his whole self into his laugh. Roman was laying across him and was giving him the most sickening love sick eyes to his upturned laughing face. Roman’s hands were squeezing his sides leisurely, squeezing  followed by quick poking. Patton was lying underneath Logan but his hands still had access to his armpits and occasionally his neck. 

“Rohohoho-Romaaaaanahahaha!” He uselessly cried out but his flailing hands never seemed to push Roman away. Patton never even faced any opposition. He was free to tickle away at whatever was free to him. 

“What, Specs? I’m right here! No need to yell, what do you want?” 

“I bet he needs some more tickles! Look! He’s not even blushing that much, he definitely needs some more tickly tickly tickles!” Patton squeaked with his own giggles escaping. 

“No no nahaa! Hahahaha, tickleeeeehehehehahahaha!” 

“So what’s going on here?” Virgil smirked as he dramatically leaned over the stair banister as he menacingly tapped his fingers. He couldn’t help but huff a laugh when all three heads immediately whipped round to face him. 

That laugh quickly died though when he felt that warmth in his chest freeze over. It was now sharp and settled into a dull ache. Three sets of dread, fear and worry. 

“Woah, wait. I didn't interrupt anything did I?”

“No! We just didn't expect you to be up yet,” Patton chuckled as he looked over at the others.

“Yeah! You’re up! Like, before ten o’ clock? I’m honestly impressed!” Roman gasped as he flounced off the sofa and approached him. “What’s the special occasion? Big plans for the day?” 

“Roman,” Logan warned as he sat back up while scrubbing at his mused up hair. His face burned red already but he felt extra squirmy at the thought to having this conversation without any planning or prep. They were going to have this conversation at some point! When Logan had carefully constructed a script! But he had to do it now. He could feel Virgil’s anxiety. The familiar burn had erupted into an all consuming fire. If they tried to hide this away then Virgil would only just spiral. 

All this worry caused by tickling. This was just illogical. 

“Virgil, don’t worry. I... have a particular fondness for t-tic... tickling. For some unknown reason!” Logan grimaced as he spoke, that was immediately unclear, unspecific and defensive. His mind scrambled for more words before reviewing them, “But, Patton and Roman also revealed that they shared this fondness and so it’s been present within our relationship for a while,” 

“Oh,” Virgil hummed with a sickly sweet tone. His own thoughts racing with a small glow of anticipating excitement. 

“We didn’t hide it from you for any reason! We just know that some people can find this weird... We know you wanted to go slow,” Patton smiled as he stood up and walked up to Virgil. He gently held his hands. 

“You all shouldn’t be embarrassed. I’m sorry that you felt the need to hide that! You shouldn’t have to hide parts of yo-”

“No! Virgil, none of us are wording this adequately. We were embarrassed, yes. And that’s why we hid this. Not because we didn’t trust you or because you gave us reason not to. This is a problem on us. Not you.” 

“Ok. Ok, thanks for telling me that. Even though I kinda just walked into it. I-I don’t have a problem with... that.” Virgil hinted.

The room seemed to stop as they all took a deeper breath. Virgil’s fiery intense anxiety settled back into a smaller burn like normal. The others’ emotions had settled back into a normal neutral presence. 

“So... does this mean you want to help us tickle Logan to pieces?” Roman cheered. 

Logan squeaked but sat still as Virgil rigidly sat down beside him. He slowly reached his hands out as if Logan was going to flinch away but seeing no complaints... Virgil broke out into an evil smirk. 

That same rigid worry wasn’t present at all the second his hands reached his ribs. Logan didn’t have much time to think about that though as Roman quickly followed his lead. Virgil skittering all over his ribs and Roman’s squeezing thigh tickles only felt all the worse when Patton’s whispered teases joined the lot. 

After thoroughly tickling Logan to pieces, the others got up to finally start breakfast while Logan was left frantically giggling on the sofa. The others were practically glowing with the brand new intense warmth and happiness nestling in their chests. “So is Logan the only lee?” Virgil asked as he finally sat down at the table. 

“Oh, I think we all tend to switch,” Roman responded without too much thought but the other two had frozen in their tasks. 

“Wait, you know what a lee is!” Patton squealed. Logan himself was standing with his own powerful evil smirk. Virgil was now frozen himself. He wanted to hint at just how fine he was with their... fondness. But he never wanted to outright say it!

“Uh...” 

“Unless you absolutely don’t want this, I would encourage you to flee,” Logan smirked before running up to the table. 

“Too late!” Roman cheered as he caught Virgil round his middle before he could even flee from the table. His immediately curled his fingers into his sides. Smiling wider when Virgil’s excited anticipation blossom in chest. Excitement! Logan leaned down at them and tauntingly raised his wiggling fingers to Virgil’s tummy. 

Once they touched down, Virgil tried his best to school his expression into something resembling nonchalance. But... it had been awhile since he was last tickled and he had forgotten what it felt like. He immediately squealed and so the dam broke instantly. Logan’s fingers danced gracefully over his tummy leaving trails of tickly tingles. It felt like the longer he tickled, the more tickles Virgil had to just take. 

“Logaahahahaha! Ahahehehehaahaha! Rohohoahahahaha!” Virgil simply folded in half as if that would protect his tickly tummy but Roman kept him balanced upright. 

“Aww Virgie-poo! Are you a little lee yourself? A little tickle craving lee! Oh, if only we knew earlier! You deserve all the tickles you can take! All of the tickly tickly tickles! Soft tickles, hard tickles, feather tickles, tummy tickles...” Patton cooed from the kitchen while keeping an eye on the eggs. What, someone has to be responsible and make breakfast! 

Virgil had yet to put on his make up and so his blush was on full display. His rarely heard laugh rang and echoed through the house. But his laughter had a wheezy quality. Plus, he was barely awake as it was. They couldn’t really tickle him for long. 

“How about this! If you admit where you fit into the tickle community, we’ll free you!” Roman cooed as he pulled Virgil into his lap as he sat down himself. Logan caught on and slowed his tickling down to simple tracing around his belly button through his pyjama shirt. Like he was playing a silent game of round and round the garden. 

“Eheheheeeee! Noooooo!” Virgil now started to flail but he knew that no judgement would come from his newly revealed switch boyfriends, “Ehehahahaha, I’mmmahehehehe a leeeee I think hehehehe!” 

And it was since that morning that their relationship evolved to be a lot more tickly. 

The switch comment Roman had made was quickly debunked. Patton and Logan were typically the lers of the household with Roman and Virgil lees for most of the time. Logan and Patton were both comfortably switches but they were more often than not the ticklers thanks to how tickle hungry Roman and Virgil typically were. Not that Virgil and Roman didn’t get their fair share of revenge! But... it was usually them who would start not so obviously hinting for tickles. 

But their soul link and their new tickling was going to drive Virgil insane.

If he felt his chest explode in playful dancing warmth then he knew that he should run and hide. That special feeling belonged to Patton alone. For when he was in the most evil tickle monster mode. Any time he felt that emotion, it would soon be followed by someone’s frantic bursting laughter. Sometimes it lingered until Patton would give in and hunt someone. Sometimes it would erupt suddenly. Like if he saw Virgil standing on his tip toes with his arms outstretched to reach the highest cupboard. Or if he saw Logan sitting with his feet resting on the coffee table which no one was allowed to have their feet on. Both times, neither one could react to the emotion quick enough before they felt the tickle attack. 

He was walking home while failing to hide his wobbly smiley. That same playfulness had been shining for the past half an hour. And none of the others were home. 

Meaning Virgil was walking home to a frustrated Ler who’s been wanting to tickle someone for the past half an hour...

And Patton famously preferred to tickle Virgil.

Even just that soul link emotion was enough to have Virgil practically giggling down the streets. That feeling was becoming worse than any whispered tickly teases. He couldn’t school his expression so this was made all the worse because that meant Patton and the others could also feel that Virgil was in a lee mood. Virgil’s excited anticipating lee moods felt like a mix between his anxious burn and the most joyous warmth. The others were all smiling knowing that his lee mood started shortly after Patton’s ler mood started. 

Patton had harnessed all the patience in the world to stop himself from immediately attacking Virgil as he walked in. He waited carefully ducked behind the living room door and as his lee walked through with a confused frown. Then he struck! 

“Pat? I’m back- oh goaahhahahahahahAHAHAAAA!” Patton’s hands latched on to his sides to then guide him to the sofa. 

“Hey Virge! Sorry but Patton’s not here right now, guess who’s here in his place though?” 

“PAAAATTON! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! No! You’reeehahahAHAHAA you’re ahaha! You’re not ahahahahaha! Patton!” Virgil threw his head back once he was sat on the sofa. Patton was now just holding his sides with a teasy grin! The gentle pressure enough to spark endless giggles. 

“No guesses? I’m not who? You can’t even say my name? My name is...” Patton leaned down close and Virgil flinched anticipating neck tickles, “My name is the tickle monster!” 

In a flash, he turned around to Virgil’s socked feet. His ultimate tickle spot! And boy did it look like they needed some good old tickles after such a long day at work. 

Virgil desperately curled up but was blocked by Patton’s back. It almost looked like Virgil was cuddling into him as thanks for the tickle monster’s tickles scuttling over his soles. Patton was just tickling over his socks but it felt just as bad as bare soles. 

“PAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAAA! NOOHOHOHHAHAHAHAHA!” 

Roman and Logan had to spend the next hour awkwardly avoiding their co-workers questions about their own proud wobbly smiles. Their soul link was bursting with such joyful happiness. 

[slapshot-to-the-heart]

Flatbush & Atlantic: part ix

part i part ii part iii part iv part v part vi part vii part viii

And here we’ve got part ix! This will be the second-to-last part of the series, I’ve got some thoughts also running around for a possible epilogue if that’s something anyone would be interested in reading. As always, there’s literally nothing writers love more than hearing from you all, so don’t be afraid to come and tell me what you think - my inbox is open, comment on the post, reblog with your thoughts!

part ix

April 27 (tues)

Mat’s mind was racing. If he was honest, he hadn’t been able to concentrate worth a damn since Cass had dropped the news about her job offer. Hong Kong? He knew she was brilliant, knew that her skills could and should take her anywhere in the world she wanted to go; the thought that she might leave New York, leave him, was still terrifying. Becoming more worried by the minute, he pulled out his phone, dialing the first person he could think of that might be able to help. 

Tito answered on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Hey, Tito. What’s up?” Mat asked nervously. 

“What’s wrong, Mat?” He immediately asked. Mat cursed under his breath; even over the phone, Beau was always able to read him like a book. 

Mat grimaced. “That obvious, huh?”

“Mat, we see each other pretty much every day. Not to be a jerk or something, but you don’t really call me unless something’s wrong. What is it? Did you and Cass have a fight?” Mat could imagine him crossing his arms on the other end. 

“Not exactly,” he said, scratching his head as he wandered aimlessly around the park. “She got this job offer, and it sounds like a really exciting opportunity, but…” He trailed off. 

“But?”

“It’s all the way in Asia. It’s in Hong Kong.” 

Tito sucked in a breath. “Oh, wow. That’s a big one. Big move. Has she said if she’s going to take it?”

“Not really, she hasn’t decided.” Mat shook his head, not realizing Tito wouldn’t be able to see. “We talked through it a little, they’re offering a really good starting salary and she likes the company values, but it’s such a huge jump that she’s not ready to make the call yet.” 

“Did you talk about what it would mean for you as a couple?”

“A little, though not as much as we probably should have,” Mat admitted. “Neither of us would want to break it off just because it would be long distance, but logistically it would just be a nightmare. It’s something like a 15 hour flight from New York, so it’s not like either of us would ever be able to make that more than once or twice a year. Did you know that it’s a twelve hour time difference from here?”

“No,” Tito said, “and it’s obviously not like I know exactly what you’re going through. Paige is a kindergarten teacher, so it’s not exactly like her job would suddenly pick up and move to another country. But it’s obviously a different story with me.”

As distracted as he was, Mat felt compelled to respond. “You know they’re going to resign you, right? It would be a terrible move for them if they didn’t.”

“Yeah, I mean that’s what I’ve figured,” Beau responded. “And my agent told me to expect negotiations to start in the next month or so, but still. I could be sent to Winnipeg or Phoenix or Vancouver pretty much without notice, and I wouldn’t want to ask her to just pick up her whole life and follow me. So, I get the feeling.” He paused for a moment. “How do you feel about it?”

“Mixed feelings,” Mat answered honestly. “I’d never want to hold her back from anything, that’s not the kind of person I am and it’d be a dick move regardless. She’s her own person and deserves to be able to make her own decisions. And I would never want her to grow to resent me if she decided to stay for my sake. That would almost be worse. I just..I really love her, Tito, and I would hate for us to never be able to see eachother because of her job. Or worse, for this to mean the end of us because the distance was too hard to deal with.”

It took Tito a minute to respond. “I know you love her, Mat. It’s pretty obvious. You look at her like she hung the moon. But if they all say that things will work out if you love each other and talk it through, then what are you so worried about?”

Mat took a deep breath before answering, trying to gather his thoughts as best he could. When he spoke, his voice wavered. “Because I’ve never been this gone for a girl, Tito. What Cass and I have...I don’t even know how to describe it. I’d stop the Earth turning if it made her happy. It’s just...she’s it for me. I’m done looking. And the idea that I could be 13,000 kilometers away from her isn’t even something I had considered. I wouldn’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do.”

“Wow. That’s...that’s big, Mat. You serious?”

“As a heart attack,” he replied. 

“When do they need to hear back by?” Tito asked.

Mat looked down at his watch, checking the time. “Not for a few weeks. She’s got some time to decide, which is almost worst.”

Tito hummed sympathetically. “Just talk it through. I can’t pretend like I know what’s going to happen, but I have faith in you. It’s going to work out.”

“I hope so.”

 May 13 (thurs)

 It was nine days before Cass graduated, and if she was being honest, her time may have objectively been better spent studying for her finals, the first of which was Monday. But this was Mat, and this was the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and she supposed that her studies could wait for a night while she spent her evening at Barclays. It was Game 5 of the Eastern Conference final, and there was no way she was going to miss her team’s chance at the Wales trophy. The tone in the arena was tense from the moment she stepped in; ever the optimist, Cass liked the Islanders’ chances, but the fact remained that they were down 3-1 in the series after a 4-0 rout by the Lightning in Game 4. The series had started off with forward momentum after winning the first game at home, but the three-game losing streak had done little for the fans’ hopes and even less for the team’s morale. 

The only bright spot, if she could call it that, was Mat’s return to the ice. He knew as well as anything that the recovery time was for his own good, but he wasn’t made to be cooped up in his apartment for nearly two weeks straight, save only doctor’s appointments and short trips to the complex gym. Per his usual dramatic fashion, Mat had been cleared in time for Game 7 of the second round, returning to raucous cheers and scoring two goals in the eventual 4-2 win over the Capitals. She had caught up enough on her work to be able to make the game, and it was one of the great joys of her life to be up in a box surrounded by her friends when the love of her life scored the goal that sent the Islanders to the conference finals for the first time in nearly thirty years. 

That kind of a dramatic win had made the losing streak that much harder. Game sevens are always exciting, especially with someone coming back off of injured reserve. While the win hadn’t made the team cocky by any means, the confidence had carried over into something more closely resembling complacency. They won Game 7, they won the first of the next series, so some of the team — mostly the younger players who hadn’t yet cut their teeth in the league — had made the mistake of assuming that the rest of the round would be smooth sailing. They should have known better, Cass thought ruefully as the Lightning scored two minutes before the first intermission to even the score at 1-1. Why couldn’t this be the round before, filled with confidence and coordination and laser-focused passing on every line? Why couldn’t it have been the celebration after? 

---

May 3 (tues)

 Winning a game sometimes called for going out. Winning a series almost definitely called for going out. And winning a series in Game 7 that sent your team to the conference finals for the first time in recent memory called for going out, and going out hard. As much as Cass would have loved to get as hammered as the rest of the group, especially considering the stress she was under with finals and graduation and her job offer piling up, they didn’t want a repeat of the afterparty from the All-Star Game, and Cass still had school the next day. So, she had committed to limiting herself to three drinks. “I want to be tipsy, not shitfaced,” she had explained to Paige on the drive over. Tito had driven his car over, Paige volunteering to DD so the boys could let loose and everyone could let off some much-needed steam. 

Someone had already opened up a tab for everyone by the time their car had gotten there, and it wasn’t ten minutes before they had claimed a few couches in the corner and Cass had a caipirinha in her hand. She was a little worried that Mat’s tolerance had tanked in the past few weeks; he hadn’t really drank since before the concussion and it was their first time at a bar in a few weeks regardless. Mat noticed her nervous glances out of the corner of his eye. “I’m fine,” he reassured her. “I specifically asked the doctors if I was good to drink at my last appointment and they said I was in the clear.”

Cass giggled, sipping her drink. “You asked your doctors if you could drink alcohol?”

“What can I say?” Mat shrugged. “I wanted to go out and get lit with friends, can you blame me?”

Cass’ giggles had evolved into full-on belly laughs. “Lit? What are you, sixteen?”

Mat’s cheeks reddened in what was probably a combination of alcohol and embarrassment. “My cousin said it once.”

Cass headed back over to the bar a few minutes later for another drink, leaving the boys to talk amongst themselves with the occasional interruption from an excited fan. On a high from the win, the team were more than happy to take photos and have quick chats with anyone who stopped them, and thankfully weren’t mobbed by the crowd inside the bar. For the most part, Cass and her relationship with Mat had been able to fly under the radar — well, as much as she could being Mat Barzal’s other half. Her Instagram hadn’t been private since college, and while a fair few fans and fanpages followed her, it had all remained mercifully low-key. Waiting at the bar, she resigned herself to scroll through Twitter for a few minutes, knowing it would be a little while before the bartender got to her. 

“Are you Cassidy Shaw?” Cass’ head turned slowly towards her right, where a short blonde girl looked at her with a shocked expression. 

“Cabrera Shaw, but yes?” She answered slowly. 

“Sorry!” The girl apologized, “I didn’t mean to be weird or anything. I follow you on Instagram, it’s just so weird to finally see you in person.” Cass gave a nervous laugh. She had fans? On Instagram? Who were excited if they met her in real life? 

“One Southside and whatever your favorite IPA on tap is, please,” Cass said to the bartender who had just leaned over the counter to get her order. “Thank you? You’re welcome?” Cass smiled awkwardly.

“I just wanted to say that I think it’s super cool how you’re not a typical WAG or anything. My name’s Sierra, I’m a junior at St. John’s. I’m applying for law school next year. It’s just, like, awesome to see a woman being successful in her own right apart from her partner, especially when they’re in such a visible position and it’s not what’s expected of them. I’m sorry — I’m rambling, aren’t I?” 

Cass laughed, a genuine one this time. “No, you’re totally good. Don’t worry. That’s really sweet of you to say, thanks a lot!” She sipped the Southside the bartender had just handed her, sliding Mat’s beer over. “Yeah, I have so much respect for the other women who choose to do more philanthropic work or be stay-at-home moms, but that’s not what I feel pulled to. Right now, at least.” 

“Right, totally,” Julia said, grabbing what looked like a rum and coke from the other bartender. “Anyways, I should let you get back to the celebration. Tell the team congratulations, it was a great game to watch!” 

Cass picked up the other glass, nodding. “I will. Thank you for your kind words, that was sweet of you to say.”

“Anytime!” Julia chirped happily. 

Cass walked carefully back over to the group, keeping an eye on the drinks. She handed Mat’s beer to him. He looked up curiously, taking a sip. “Something hold you up at the bar?”

She shook her head, then nodded, then shook it again. “Kind of? I think I just had my first fan encounter.”

He laughed, leaning over to plant a kiss on her cheek. “Comes with the territory, babe.”

---

The game was scoreless through the second period, which didn’t help the tension in the stadium or Cass’ blood pressure. She and Paige had decided to get actual seats for the game, which Mat and Tito were more than happy to arrange. The Islanders were doing well through the first half of the third period, other than a little bit of messy passing the lines were good. But good wasn’t good enough sometimes, good wasn’t close enough to score and give them the lead. Cass’ heart sank as soon as one of the defensemen, she wasn’t sure who, made a turnover in the neutral zone to give the Lightning the puck. Kucherov picked it off, skating past the defenders and around the goal while the rest of the line nearly tripped over themselves trying to skate back in time. 

She was on the edge of her seat as he wrapped around the goal, silently praying that Varlamov would somehow be able to get a piece of the puck with his blocker or that it would have one of those one-in-a-million deflections off of the post. You could hear a pin drop in the stadium as everyone waited for the shot; tall of the sudden, time seemed to move like molasses. And then the puck went in, the red light went on, and the scattered sections of blue-and-white clad Lightning fans threw their arms up in celebration. 

Cass allowed herself exactly ten seconds to hold her head in her hands. There was still seven minutes, thirty nine seconds left. There was still time. Then there was five minutes, forty-two seconds left, and Maroon got two minutes for tripping, and that was their chance. That was supposed to be their chance. But then the penalty came and went, and it was three minutes left. Two minutes left. They pulled Varlamov at one minutes fifty-eight seconds left, and then it was the last shift. Forty-nine seconds left, and it was time for a Hail Mary. Out of habit, Cass’s lips began moving in the prayer. Hail Mary, full of grace...It was a holdover from her lacrosse days, when they were down in the last quarter with seemingly no hope in sight. It didn’t always work, but it sometimes did. It didn’t work that night. It didn’t work because the clock ticked down to zero, the score was still 2-1, and the Islanders had lost. They were out of the playoffs. Fans began shuffling out of the rink, shoulders slumped and heads down, as Cass bit her lip and tried not to cry. The team had worked so hard for this. God, they had worked so hard. And if she was taking it this badly, if it was affecting her this much, then she couldn’t even begin to imagine what it was like for the guys on the team. 

Paige turned to her after a few minutes, when there were only a handful of people still left in their seats and the Zambonis had come out to resurface the ice one last time. “We should probably get down there, do you think?” She asked softly. Cass nodded. She was referring to the tunnel, outside the locker room where everyone usually got to greet their partners with kisses and hugs and words of congratulations, but where the mood would be profoundly different on that night. Cass grabbed her bag and straightened out her jersey, squeezing Paige’s hand. Neither of them really knew what the environment was going to be like after such a devastating knockout; Paige had started dating Anthony the summer before, and Cass obviously had even less experience. They had dealt with losses, they had dealt with disappointments and losing streaks and points droughts, but this was something new entirely.

They rode the elevator in silence before walking down the corridors to the room, where the rest of the WAGs and other family had congregated. Kerry rubbed her shoulder sympathetically as Lauren walked over. “We in the Islanders family have a lot of experience with getting knocked out of the playoffs,” she said with a weak smile, trying to crack a joke, “so here is how it usually goes. The guys should be coming out in a few, it takes longer than usual because the media typically has some end-of-the-season wrapup questions and Trotz and Anders will probably make speeches or say something. Some others might too.” The two women nodded. “Don’t treat it like just another loss, but it’s also no good to hover too much. It’s obviously a real disappointment, so it usually takes a week or so before most of them bounce back to being their normal selves. They know what coping mechanisms work best for them. Most will hit the gym more, read or cook if they’re into that, something to get their mind off of it. Obviously they’re still players and still want to know how they can get better, so they might want to go over tapes of the games and make notes of where they went wrong. That’s fine, but don’t let them beat themselves up about it too much. This was a hard series, and Mat especially,” she gestured towards Cass, “tends to be more than a little bit of a perfectionist.”

“I’ve noticed,” Cass said. 

“One last thing,” she continued. “Let them process, let them cope, but a loss not an excuse for them to treat you any worse, any less kindly. Be understanding, of course. But don’t take any crap from them, regardless of the circumstance.”

“Thank you,” Paige said gratefully. Cass echoed her sentiment. The next ten minutes were filled with checking emails and making half-hearted conversation before the team started to trail out of the room. Embracing their partners and families, most couples exchanged no more than a few words before turning down the hall that led to the players’ parking lot. Paige left with a squeeze to her shoulder and a promise to get coffee the next week before grabbing Tito’s hand and guiding him towards the cars. 

Unsurprisingly, Mat followed right behind. He hadn’t combed his hair after his shower, the top button of his dress shirt was undone and only haphazardly tucked into his pants. Mat had been on the shift when Kucherov scored, and if there was anything she knew about her boyfriend, it was that he’d take it personally. He dropped his bag on the ground as she embraced him, and the thud against the concrete floor felt as if it could echo all the way across the Long Island Sound. 

“I’m so proud of you, Mat. So, so proud. I know this didn’t end how you wanted it to, but you worked so fucking hard to get here, and that’s what I see. That’s all I see,” she whispered. 

Mat wasn’t crying, but his breathing was labored nonetheless. “I just feel...I feel like I let everyone down. I wasn’t supposed to be that far up on the ice, and if I hadn’t, maybe I would have gotten back in time to steal the puck, or check him or something, or…” He trailed off. 

Cass sighed. “I know, chou, I know how you feel. But just try to remember that this is a team sport. You win with the boys, you lose with the boys. Do you get mad at Tito when he makes a bad play? Or Jordan, or Anders?” Mat shook his head. “It’s the same way with you. They don’t stop being proud of you or think you’re any less of an incredible player because you made a bad decision. Bad decisions get made all the time, and it doesn’t have to reflect on the person who made them. It’s a hard game, love, but you did your best and that’s all anyone ever has a right to ask of you.” 

Mat’s thumb rubbed against the small of her back. “I know I’ll be fine, eventually. I mean, we’ve all dealt with this before. It just seems different this time, because we were so close to actually making the finals. It seems kind of silly to say since I know I’m only 23 and I know I’ve got so much time left to play, but,” he took a shaky breath, “I look at all the veterans, all the amazing players whose entire careers have gone by without ever having gotten the Cup. Lundqvist and Thornton and Marleau and all of these legends. And it sounds kind of selfish and naive, but I don’t want to be one of them.” 

They stood like that for a few more minutes, just holding each other, before either spoke again. “Do you want me to stay with you tonight?” Cass murmured to Mat as she carded her hands through his hair. She felt a tiny, almost imperceptible nod against her shoulder. Her bag had her laptop, books, and chargers. She had a whole drawer in Mat’s room by then, a combination of stray shirts that were his-turned-hers, a few pairs of leggings — they took up an entire drawer of their own back at her apartment — and balled-up socks from her one unsuccessful attempt at doing the laundry in his building. She had a spare box of tampons in his bathroom, her floral shampoo next to his 2-in-1 Old Spice. No matter how hard she pushed, Mat remained oblivious to the benefits of having separate shampoo and conditioner. 

He pulled away, reaching into his pocket and handing over his keys. “Do you mind driving?”

She shook her head. “Not at all. Whatever you need.”

The ride back home was about forty minutes, and it was almost halfway through before either of them spoke, the lull of the 80s rock channel filling in the silence. “Where’s your head at, Mat?” She asked carefully. 

He was looking out the window, distracted. “Hm?”

She repeated the question and he tensed slightly, leaning back into the passenger seat. “Just feeling kind of...confused about the whole thing. Seems like I’m being pulled in a thousand different directions one day, but then all of the sudden something like this happens and I’ve got nothing. It’s overwhelming. I know I have a life outside of hockey, I know it’s not all of who I am, but sometimes it seems hard to believe that when it seems like that’s all I’m recognized for.” Keeping one hand on the wheel, Cass reached over to cover his hand with her own. His fingers held onto hers like a lifeline. 

“You’re right, you know?” She said as they passed into the Queens-Midtown tunnel. 

“About?”

“Being so much more than people perceive you to be. I get that, it’s like that for me too sometimes. And Mat, you are so much more than ‘just a hockey player.’ You’re a good son and an amazing brother to Liana, and an awesome friend to Tito and the guys on the team and everyone back home. And,” she added, cracking a smile, “you’re a pretty good boyfriend too.”

The corner of his mouth twitched. “Just pretty good?”

“I didn’t want to fluff your ego too much,” Cass said. “But seriously, Mat. You’re incredible entirely on your own merit. You care so deeply for the people in your life and you love so hard, and it’s an honor and a privilege to be able to witness that firsthand.” 

Mat bent down to the center console, brushing a kiss over her hand. “How do you do it?”

Now it was her turn to question. “Do what?”

“Always know the right thing to say.”

“I don’t,” Cass admitted. “And sometimes I get it wrong. But I know I love you, and I don’t want to see you hurting if there’s anything I can do about it.” The car exited the tunnel into the dotted lights of a Manhattan evening. 

“Well,” he cleared his throat, “if there was an Oscar for pep talks, I’d have to give it to you, hands down. No offense to any of the guys on the team.”

She laughed, stopping at the light. Right on red wasn’t legal in New York City, a rule she found out the hard way two months after moving. “I’m glad it helps.”

“It does,” Mat said softly. “It means the world to me that you care enough to do it. You mean the world to me.”

Her cheeks heated. “You sure know how to flatter a girl, eh, Barzal?”

“I meant every word.”

---

May 20 (thurs)

 She was done. After three years, six semesters, dozens of classes, and hundreds of hours studying, Cass had just finished her last final of law school. Her classmates stumbled out of the lecture hall, not entirely believing that all of their tears and heartache and hard work had come to a head in such an anticlimactic fashion. Turning on her heel, she walked south. It was just before seven, and her friends had a group reservation at some ridiculously extravagant French wine bar. It was Les’ idea, who had a penchant for all things expensive and who had made the reservation months prior because “you never know, John Mayer could book the whole place up and as much as I love dollar slices, we don’t want that to be our only option for what’s supposed to be a very prestigious celebratory dinner.” Les, Fiona, and Samaira were coming, along with Daniel, another editor on the law review, and Robin, one of Cass’ friends from first-year criminal law and the president of the Women’s Law Association. She had initially been wary about inviting Mat; it wasn’t that she didn’t think he’d get along with her law school friends, but she didn’t want him to feel out of the loop. After Les had announced that he was bringing his boyfriend, Xavier, Cass had extended the invite to Mat as well. 

It was only a ten minute walk, and the hostess directed Cass to their table, where she realized that she was the last one to arrive. “Don’t worry,” Robin said, “we’ve just been interrogating your man.” 

Cass scooted in next to Mat, kissing him quickly before rolling her eyes. “I hope you haven’t been too hard on him.”

Mat smiled. “Nah, they’ve been good. But being questioned by six lawyers who all seem very adamant that I don’t deserve you —”

“You don’t,” Samaira cut in, though it was clear she was joking. 

“Was more than a little intimidating,” Mat finished, handing Cass the menu. 

“Order whatever you want, I’m paying,” Daniel said as he flicked through the wine menu. “Well, technically, my parents are.” Daniel came from money; his mom was a partner at a firm in Chicago and his dad was a law professor at the University of Chicago. “If they’re going to insist on sending me to law school and sheltering me my whole life, the least I could do is take advantage of their generosity,” Daniel said, plunking his credit card onto the table. Fifteen minutes later, the group was sharing plates of escargots, crab tartine, and roasted cauliflower; twenty minutes after that, entrées were served. Mat had recognized the waitress’ accent and was chatting to her in French in between plates. Cass sipped on her wine, a pinot noir, and took a moment to look around the room, a moment to relax. Two more days, and she graduated. Everything that she had worked so hard for was finally coming to fruition. She still had to pass the bar in July, sure, but for one night — for a few days, really — she was going to let herself finally rest in the ability of her accomplishments. 

Dessert was maple bourbon crème brûlée with Sauternes, and Mat may have had a little too much fun breaking the caramelized sugar. Cass was full of good food and conversation; after everyone was done it was after nine. Les, Daniel, and Xavier had decided to get drinks, but Robin had barely slept at all that week, Samaira was going to watch a movie at her boyfriend’s, and Cass and Mat had to wake up early to get her grandparents from the airport. Mat took her hand as they walked towards the subway station. He had parked a few blocks away and offered to drive Cass back to her apartment, but she didn’t want him to go out of his way and all things considered, taking the subway at night had become something of a routine for her. 

They walked down Manhattan Avenue, resting in the kind of comfortable silence that only came with being with someone who really gets you. Cass had decided not to take the Hong Kong job the week prior. It was just too much distance from her family and Mat, and while the job seemed interesting enough, it wasn’t the kind of position she thought she could really be happy in long-term. “Have you figured out what you’re doing yet?” Mat asked as they turned the corner. “I’d say you should just move in with me and become a full-time housewife, but something’s telling me that’s not exactly the kind of opportunity you’re searching for.”

 Cass laughed, bumping him with her shoulder. “Tempting offer, the housewife thing, but I think I’m going to have to pass. Plus that would necessitate you wifing me up.” 

Mat kissed her head. “All in due time, pretty girl.” “But anyways, about the job search.” Cass said, a smile playing on her lips. “I was going to wait until graduation to surprise you, but since you asked…” She paused for dramatic effect. “Chris offered me a job. Permanently.” 

Mat stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. “Chris? Like Islanders Chris? Lawyer Chris?” 

She giggled. “Yes. Islanders lawyer Chris. You’re looking at the new Associate Counsel for the New York Islanders, Mat.” Mat damn near hollered in celebration, picking Cass up and spinning her around before pulling her into what was very possibly one of the best kisses of her life. Cass barely took notice of the tourists watching them from the side or her own public display of affection. It was New York City. They had seen weirder. 

It felt like a weight had been lifted off of Mat’s chest. He was being honest when he said that he wouldn’t have done anything to get Cass to stay, it just wasn’t his place. But he also would have been lying if he had said it would be anything but heartbreaking to see her leave. It was like he told Tito. Not even giving the future a chance to work itself out would be worse than a breakup. And with any luck, they’d never have one of those either. They rounded the last corner, steps down to the subway in sight, when Mat remembered what he had wanted to ask her but had been interrupted by her news. Her incredible, perfect news. “What would you think about spending some time in Canada this summer?”

Cass, seemingly oblivious, answered, “Oh? Like as a vacation?”

He shook his head. “No, like in Coquitlam with my family.”

“You want me to spend the summer with you and your family?” Cass asked, eyes wide.

“Yeah, only if you want to, of course. And I’m not sure when the job with the team starts, or…” He looked down.

Cass smiled. “I’d love to, but are you sure it isn’t too much? I don’t want to feel like I’m intruding on family time, I know you don’t get a lot of time with them since you’re here most of the year. I don’t want you to feel like you’re obligated to bring me around just because we’re together.”

They stopped by a lamp. Cass leaned up against the post. “Cass. My parents have made it very clear to me that you’re family, and that they’ll have my head if I’m ever dumb enough to let you go.” She snickered. “Just so we’re clear, I don’t intend on ever letting that happen. My family loves you, my sister thinks you’re way cooler than me.” 

“She’s got good taste,” Cass said, tilting her head.  

Mat laughed. “She does. She told me you guys were texting the other day about the guy she’s interested in, giving her advice. Sure, it was my idea to invite you, but they were so on board from the moment I mentioned it. Plus, my friends back home are getting annoyed with me because they haven’t met you yet with how often I talk about you.” 

She bit her lip. “How long were you thinking of staying?”

Mat shrugged. “Leave in a couple weeks, I usually stay two months or so, so until sometime in August?”

“I’d have to fly back to take the bar in July, and I’d still need some time to study while we’re over, but my contract doesn’t start until the end of August, so…”

“You’ll come?” Mat smiled hopefully.

She nodded. “I’ll come. I’ve never been to Canada before, did you know that?”

He shook his head, leaning in and brushing a kiss on her hairline. “You’re going to love it.”

[scoutception]

Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim review

After the release of Ys II, and the conclusion of the original story of the Ys games, the series went through a bit of a rough period, as the next three entries were, less than ideal. Ys III: Wanderers from Ys changed the gameplay from the topdown, bump combat gameplay to a sidescroller reminiscent of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and rather fittingly ended up as the black sheep of the series. Ys IV went back to the bump system, but rather confusingly released as two separate games by two separate developers, neither of them Falcom; The Dawn of Ys by Hudson Soft for the PC Engine CD, and the far inferior Mask of the Sun by Tonkin House for the SNES. Finally, Ys V: Lost Kefin, Kingdom of Sand was released for the SNES, by Falcom themselves, and in its attempts to evolve from the bump combat, had become something that barely resembled Ys in gameplay, graphics, or music. While none of these games were outright bad, and The Dawn of Ys in particular is held up as the best of the classic Ys games, the series just couldn’t properly commit to a direction to take the series next, and Falcom put the series to rest after V’s release for a while, barring the Ys I and II Eternal remakes. Finally, though, in 2003, 8 years after Ys V’s release, the series was finally given a new game, one that would finally carve out the evolution of the series’ gameplay, and allow it to confidently continue even to the present day. This is Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim, easily the most important game in the series other than the original two. As for how it pulled it off, and how it holds up, that’s what we’re checking out today. The version I played is the PC version, available through Steam and GOG.

Story: 6 years since the events of Ys I and II, Adol Christin, accompanied by his now long time companion Dogi, has since become a legend throughout the continent of Eresia for his exploits. One day, Adol is reunited with Terra, an ally of his from Ys V, who has since become a member of a pirate crew led by her father, Ladock. Adol and Dogi accompany the pirate crew to investigate the Canaan Islands, a mysterious set of islands surrounded by the Great Vortex, a perpetual vortex that destroys any ship that draws near (basically just the Bermuda Triangle). Unfortunately, the ship is attacked by the fleet of the Romun Empire (no guesses as to who they’re based off of), and Adol is swept into the Great Vortex while saving Terra during the chaos, once again proving Adol should never be trusted to get on a boat. Adol washes up on Quatera Island, which is inhabited by the Rehda, a race of long eared and tailed people who worship the goddess Alma, who is of the same race as the goddesses of Ys. Adol is saved by Olha, the priestess of the Rehda, and Isha, Olha’s little sister, but soon discover that outsiders such as him, several of whom have built a town on a neighboring island, are distrusted by the Rehda, and that leaving the Canaan Islands is impossible due to the Great Vortex. After saving Isha from a strange monster known as a “Wandering Calamity”, however, Adol gains the respect of the Rehda and is gifted a sword made of emelas, a magical ore used extensively by the Rehda. Setting out to the Eresian made town of Port Rimorge and meeting with Raba, a returning ally from Ys I, Adol sets out to discover the secrets of the Canaan Islands and find a way to dispel the Great Vortex, soon encountering three malicious fairies with control over monsters, and a mysterious mercenary named Geis, who seems to know far more about the islands than he lets on.

While it’s actually a pretty unusual plot setup compared to most RPG stories, it’s pretty lacking in execution, simply because the plot just isn’t present for most of the game. By the time the main antagonist, Ernst, makes an appearance, and things besides just running around collecting plot items are happening, it’s just too little, too late, which leaves the ending of the game more than a bit unmemorable. Still, the writing has the typical Falcom charm, and the various NPCs actually have a lot to say over the course of the game, if you care about that sort of thing, like me. There’s not much more for me to say, so let’s just move right on.

Gameplay: Ys VI, as the first 3D game in the series, plays quite a bit different from the games that came before, yet unlike previous games, finally makes it feel like a proper evolution from the original duology, though it’s actually based heavily on Ys V. The bump combat is gone for good, with Adol now having a dedicated attack button, along with a jump button for some rather meager platforming. Adol’s moveset isn’t very impressive at first, only consisting of a 3 slash combo, a jump slash, a down thrust, and a lunge attack, but over the course of the game, he acquires 3 different elemental swords, each with an additional move and magical spell after being charged up. While shields and armor can be bought or found as usual, the swords instead need to be upgraded at Port Rimorge with emel, a resource dropped by enemies. Upgrading the swords not only increase their attack power, but gradually unlock new abilities as well. There are also accessories, with effects ranging from a simple boost to attack and defense, to increasing the amount of gold or emel dropped by enemies, to providing immunity to status effects, and so forth. While Adol only has one accessory slot to start, certain treasure chests throughout the game will bestow additional slots, up to a max of 5.

Unlike the original duology, Adol can no longer regenerate health by standing still, barring the use of an endgame accessory, nor can you save anywhere. Instead, saving is done at monuments scattered out all across the different areas of the game, which also restore Adol’s health to max and cures him of any status effects. Beyond that, however, Adol can carry several different healing items of varying strengths, which can either be purchased from merchants or dropped by enemies, and you’ll be needing them. Even on nightmare difficulty, Ys VI is on the easier side compared to a lot of other Ys games, but it’s still a struggle in its own right, just for the exact wrong reasons, mostly due to the lack of the refinements found in the other Ys games that use Ys VI’s engine. There are many enemies that utterly obnoxious, whether from flying in the air and being difficult to hit, using projectiles, or dealing very difficult to avoid collision damage, and Adol’s moveset isn’t versatile enough to deal with this, meaning, in classic Ys fashion, you’re going to be doing a lot of grinding to get anywhere, whether it be grinding levels or emel. The grinding isn’t nearly as long or boring as in a lot of RPGs, but it can still be irritating, especially in nightmare mode, where you need to do an absolutely unreasonable amount of it to get anywhere due to how much health even the lowliest enemies have. Status effects can also be an annoyance. They consist of poison, which saps health over time, heavy, which severely reduces Adol’s running speed and jumping height, confusion, which reverses your controls, and curse, which reduces Adol’s attack power. All of these except curse fade over time, can be prevented or cured with accessories, and can be cured with certain items, but the problem is that enemies that can inflict these effects do so way too often, and most often appear at a point where you have a good deal of more useful accessories, and too few slots to really manage them on top of this. Hardly a game breaking issue, but still one you’ll likely feel, especially since heavy can outright stunlock you, depending on the enemy.

The areas and dungeons you go through aren’t anything special, for the most part, being pretty linear and basic in design, but there are a few that stick out negatively, namely the Ruins of Lost Time, with some very aggressive and dangerous enemies, along with items that can only be reached with the very finicky dash jump technique, something’s nearly impossible to perform using the mouse, with keyboard or controller being the only reasonable options, along with the overly long and mazelike Limewater Cave, containing many of the game’s most annoying enemies. Bosses, on the other hand, tend to be a much more enjoyable time, thanks to having actual, understandable patterns that make them much more reasonable to take on, and there’s some pretty interesting and fun concepts among them, from a giant hopping, spinning robot that gradually destroys the safe ground as the fight goes on, to an ancient statue that hangs out in the background and can only be significantly damaged by magic, to the difficult multi phase fight with Galba-Roa, and especially the duel with the empowered Ernst. They’re legitimately intense fights, yet rarely feel unfair, and are by far the biggest highlight of the game. There’s even some optional bosses that reward you with accessories, or simply give you a large boost in EXP, though they’re among the less well designed fights.

Finally, some of the changes made by Xseed for the English PC version are worth taking note of. Firstly, and most importantly, the item Alma’s Wing, which was formerly merely an item used for escaping dungeons, has instead been given the functionality of warping between monuments, something that saves a tremendous amount of backtracking, especially during the actually quite rewarding sidequests. Secondly, a new gameplay mode is available, separate from difficulty options, called Catastrophe mode. In  Catastrophe mode, healing items cannot be kept in the inventory, and any normally found in treasure chests have been replaced. Instead, any that are dropped by enemies are used automatically on pickup, making the gameplay a bit more like The Oath in Felghana and Ys Origin. As compensation for this loss, stat boosting seeds are available to purchase from merchants in unlimited quantities, allowing you to boost your stats far past what you’d be able to achieve normally, if you have the patience to grind the money for them. While it’s an interesting mode in concept, the game really isn’t balanced around not having inventory healing items, which can make for a pretty frustrating time. Overall, though, while there’s certainly a good deal of flaws that were ironed out in later games, the gameplay of Ys VI is still quite a bit of fun. It successfully translates the simple fun of blazing through a bunch of enemies, and despite the annoyances, it’s surprisingly addicting.

Graphics: Ys VI uses a mix of prerendered sprites for characters and enemies and polygonal environments, a style also used in the Trails in the Sky games. While it’s hardly aged the best, it has a charm to it that keeps it appealing. Bosses, on the other hand, are rendered in surprisingly decent polygonal graphics. The artstyle used for character portraits isn’t anything special, but they’re well drawn nonetheless, and every NPC gets one of their own, which definitely adds some more life to them all.

Music: Ys VI’s soundtrack, composed by members of the Music Sound Team jdk, namely Wataru Ishibashi and Hayato Sonoda, at least according to the credits, is, in Falcom tradition, a blast. While on an overall, it’s not quite as memorable as, say, the soundtracks to the original games, or The Oath in Felghana, the tracks that stand out are fantastic. Some of my favorites are Quatera Woods, the titular theme for the first area in the game, Mighty Obstacle, the standard boss theme, Mountain Zone, the theme of the first dungeon, Defend! And Escape!, the theme for the game’s obligatory escort mission, and Ernst’s titular boss theme.

Conclusion: Overall, Ys VI makes for a rather odd game in the series, even to write about. In a way, it’s an odd jack of all trades, at least among the games using its engine. It’s not as difficult as most in the series, and is still much more accessible than the games made before it, but its lack of polish and plain frustrating design compared to later games can make it difficult to recommend in comparison, especially to newcomers. Overall, however, I’d still give it a recommended. It still manages to be a fun ride on its own that doesn’t overstay its welcome, and if nothing else absolutely deserves appreciation for putting the series on the right path forward. Till next time. -Scout

[tysonbaerrie]

stay (i missed you)

For a friend who isn’t even in the fandom but deals with me begging for prompts anyway. She requested “they only had one bed” so here’s 1k of melodrama and angst. Also, yes, i continue to name characters after my hockey babes. 

“What do you mean there’s no more rooms?” Jamie can hear Jill, one of the team’s management, from across the lobby as he and Tyler stand awkwardly, the only members of the team that haven’t received room keys. 

“There was a glitch in our system, I am so sorry.” The concierge replies, looking increasingly flustered under Jill’s withering stare. “I have one room left that I can give you.”

“Give one of them my room, me and my roommate will stay somewhere else.” Jill tells them, and the concierge shakes her head. 

“There’s a medical conference in town, every room in Toronto is booked.”

“Jill,” Jamie calls out, dragging Tyler with him until they are standing at the front desk. “We can share, it’s fine.”

“You’re the captain, you’re supposed to have your own room.” Jill points out, and Jamie shrugs.

“It’s only two nights, we’ll be fine.”

“If you’re sure…” She trails off, and Tyler looks at Jamie for a moment before shrugging. 

“It’ll be like the good old days.” Tyler replies, referring to the early days of Tyler’s time with the Stars, when he had shared a room with Jamie so the captain could keep an eye on the troublemaking new kid. 

Minutes later, they’re stepping into the room, suitcases in hand and exhausted from the flight. Jamie wants to bash his head against the wall when he moves further into the room and finds that there’s only one bed. 

“Shit.” He grumbles, and rolls his eyes when he hears Tyler chuckle. 

“We are literally living out a romcom.” Tyler jokes, but simply moves further into the room and collapses onto the bed face first with his suit still on. “I’m too fucking tired to care.”

Jamie’s suddenly thrown back to the so-called ‘good old days,’ when he hadn’t thought twice about sharing a bed with Tyler, when roadies meant quick handjobs while riding the high of a win or Jamie going to his knees in the shower the morning after as they raced to get off and get dressed before team breakfast. When friends-with-benefits had evolved into spending the night in each other’s apartments and lazy morning afters with breakfast and cuddling and naps between rounds of video games. When Jamie had fallen in love and, by the time he realized it, it was too late to avoid getting his heart broken. When he had pushed Tyler away because that was easier than waiting for Tyler to do it to him. When he had been forced to watch as Tyler got the picture, his eyes tinged with hurt for months before they slowly got back to something resembling their previous friendship.

It’s been years, and they’ve both moved on, even if they both happen to be single for the first time in years. Jamie stares at Tyler stretched across the bed and wonders if this is karma finally coming to bite him in the ass for being a coward and running away from his own feelings. He tugs off his jacket and tie and slips into the bathroom to change and brush his teeth. When he returns, Tyler’s suit is in a pile on the side of the bed and he’s burrowed underneath the covers. Jamie slides in carefully, putting as much space between them as he can. He worries about his ability to fall asleep knowing that Tyler is so close, but he must be more tired than he expected because the next thing he knows he’s dead to the world. 

Jamie’s awoken by his alarm, and scrunches his nose when he feels soft curls brush across his face. He pulls back enough to recognize that he’s wrapped around Tyler, his face pressed into his neck, one arm underneath him and the other wrapped around Tyler’s waist. It’s so comfortable and familiar and Jamie’s heart hurts because it’s everything he can’t have. He pulls away and grabs blindly at his phone until he shuts the alarm off. Tyler follows him as he rolls onto his back, collapsing onto Jamie’s chest with a groan. 

“We need to get up.” Jamie tells him, and Tyler presses his face further into Jamie’s shirt. 

“Few more minutes.”

“Ty…” Jamie begins to pull away and Tyler’s arm latches onto his chest, holding him tightly. 

“Stay. Please.” Tyler’s voice is tinged with something like desperation, and Jamie lets his hand that’s trapped under Tyler reach up, threading his fingers through Tyler’s curls. “Let me pretend for a few more minutes.”

“Pretend what?” Jamie’s voice is deeper to his own ears, rough with sleep and emotion.

“You know what.”

“I don’t.” Jamie lies. 

“Goddamn it, Jamie.” Tyler snaps, but he doesn’t move. “Let me pretend that you love me. That you ever loved me the way I do.”

Jamie feels like he can’t breathe.

“I promise I’ll go back to normal, but while we’re in this bed I just…I need this.”

Jamie doesn’t say anything, because no matter what he’ll always do his best to give Tyler what he wants. He tightens his arm around Tyler’s shoulders until Tyler turns further into his embrace. He feels more than he hears the shaky exhale from Tyler, but they say nothing else until Tyler pulls away, refusing to look at Jamie as he gathers his toiletries and escapes into the bathroom. Jamie stays in the bed for a moment as panic fills him, fear that he’s just let an opportunity pass. An important moment. Potentially life-changing. 

He flies from the bed and gives only a cursory knock on the bathroom door before throwing it open. He freezes when he finds Tyler hunched over the sink, his eyes red-rimmed when he looks up at Jamie in surprise. 

“I do love you.” Jamie confesses before he can stop himself. 

“Jamie…”

“No, let me finish. I’m sorry I was a coward all those years ago. I never should have run away from what we had. I was just…so in love with you, and convinced you couldn’t possibly love me back so…I pushed you away before you could break my heart. But I hate that you think I didn’t love you, because I did then. I do now.”

Jamie watches as Tyler sniffles before diving toward Jamie, face planting into his chest. Jamie responds instinctively, bringing his arms around Tyler and pulling until he’s flush against Jamie.

It feels like coming home, and Jamie doesn’t hesitate in dragging Tyler back to the bed. 

[duhragonball]

[FIC] Luffa: The Legendary Super Saiyan (137/?)

Disclaimer: This story features characters and concepts based on Dragon Ball, which is a trademark of Bird Studio/Shueisha and Toei Animation.   This is an unauthorized work, and no profit is being made on this work by me. This story is copyright of me. Download if you like, but please don’t archive it without my permission. Don’t be shy.

Continuity Note: About 1000 years before the events of Dragon Ball Z.

[15 November, 233 Before Age. Nagaoka.]

Less then six hours ago, King Rehval III Trismegistus had prevailed against all of his enemies and united the Saiyan race under his rule. An invasion fleet led by the Super Saiyan Luffa had tried and failed to destroy his stronghold on Nagaoka, and he boldly commanded them to choose surrender or death. The Federation ships withdrew, while those of the Saiyan Free Company landed on Nagaoka to join him. For Rehval's followers in the Jindan Cult, this was cause for a great celebration. The festivities were carefully regulated by the priesthood, but the mood was still very joyful within the subterranean compound where they all lived.

Treekul was the only sapient being on the planet who wasn't a Saiyan, and so she didn't understand the importance of this victory until someone else explained it to her. The Saiyans were all very powerful, but their population was small, with current estimates at less than fifty thousand. There were some neutrals scattered throughout the galaxy, but the bulk of their species had been divided between Rehval's cult and Seltiss' Saiyan Free Company. With Seltiss' capitulation, King Rehval could rule the Saiyan people unopposed. And once the Free Companions were formally initiated into the cult, the Jindan potion would bind them to Rehval, body and soul, for all time.

"What about the Super Saiyan?" Treekul had asked. "Did she surrender too?"

"Hah! The minute she saw her fleet break apart, she turned and fled!" That was the way one of the acolytes had explained it. Treekul had asked others, and they all interpreted it the same way: Luffa was no longer a threat. Her power was no match for Rehval's alchemical bond with Planet Nagaoka, and he held too many other planets hostage for her to oppose him anywhere else. In time, he would brand Luffa an outlaw, and it would be a crime for any civilization to assist her in any way. Luffa would have no choice but to roam the stars as an exile until her ship ran out of fuel. Or she could settle down on some uncharted world. Or she could return to Nagaoka and beg to be admitted into the cult, but no one seemed to take that possibility very seriously.

Treekul saw it differently, since she had never intended to join the cult. She had only accompanied a group of Saiyans as a consultant, but Rehval had taken a liking to her and made her an official priestess, and his apprentice in the alchemical arts. Despite these lofty titles, and the privileges that came with them, she knew she was little more than a plaything to him. She had managed to avoid his romantic advances so far, but this was becoming increasingly difficult, and now, it was beginning to seem like there was no point to resisting him. Before, his claims of becoming an invincible ruler of the universe sounded like the ravings of a madman, but now it looked like he had been right all along. She hadn't learned much alchemy from him, but he had shared enough of his secrets to prove that he knew what he was doing. He had real power, and he seemed willing to share a portion of it with her.

Since arriving on Nagaoka, Treekul's only objective had been to escape, but she was finding it harder to want to leave. Where could she go? And even if escape from the cult was possible, what would be waiting for her on the outside? In Rehval's new dominion, all power would flow from the ranks of his followers. As a civilian, she was nothing but a minor archaeologist, roaming the stars for academic glory. Here, she was respected and feared. She had the ear of the most powerful man in the universe, and maybe a little more than just his ear, if she wanted. Would it be worth running away from all of that, just to try to go back to her normal life? A life that might not even be possible under Rehval's New Order?

Despite her dilemma, Treekul still searched for ways to leave the planet. It gave her something to do in her downtime, and knowing more about her surroundings gave her a feeling of control over her predicament. The ongoing celebrations allowed her to trespass into places she normally wouldn't have dared to explore. An overeager cultist actually took her to the surface for the first time. They all wanted to watch the SFC ships that flew in from high orbit, and Treekul was able to sweet talk one of them into bringing her along. Then she excused herself, and scouted around for a while on her own.

Treekul had learned about "the junkyard" some time ago, but never had a chance to visit it until today. Access to the cult's shipyard was nearly impossible for her, but the junkyard was less secure. None of the ships here were spaceworthy. Freighters without engines, shuttles with broken hulls, cruisers without life support. For a time, Treekul had considered the possibility of cobbling something together from these pieces, but she needed a technician from the cult to do the work, and the one she had been grooming for the job had been sent off to die in Rehval's war with the Federation. At least now, she could see the wreckage for herself, even if she wasn't sure what to do with it.

The thought had occurred to her that she might not need a life support system. In recent lessons, Rehval had mentioned ways of keeping a living subject in tact through otherwise fatal conditions. If she could learn those techniques and apply them to her own body, then it might be possible to travel to another planet without air or water. But how long would that take? And if she was willing to wait that long, was it even worth trying to escape at all?

On some level, she had to admit, she liked the challenge of it. When she first met Rehval, she wrote him off as a madman with an inferiority complex. But now that she had seen his plans come to fruition, she began to respect his sanity more. Matching wits with him seemed more like a friendly game than a struggle for survival. As she climbed into the cockpit of the damaged shuttle to study its controls, she considered that the real appeal of her scheme wasn't the escape itself, but the thrill of imagining how Rehval would respond. He wouldn't just let her go. He was far too possessive for that. She pictured a desperate chase, with her trying to stay one step ahead of his minions, only to be recaptured and brought back before him. And then he would lecture her on the futility of escape and order her back to his laboratory to resume her lessons.

A year ago, she would have thought such a game would be terrifying, but now it seemed almost romantic to her. Treekul knew that this should bother her, that it was a sign that life among the cultists had taken a toll on her mental health. But she couldn't find it in herself to care. Too many things made sense on Nagaoka now, and even the longing to escape seemed to be just one more parlor game in Rehval's menagerie.

Satisfied with today's outing, Treekul left the yard and started back. Even the grey clouds in the sky seemed cheerful somehow. Knowing that Rehval had merged his consciousness with the planet had given her a new perspective on it. She wondered if he could see her now, or if he could feel her feet treading across the fields that surrounded the compound. And if he couldn't sense her, how long would it be before he could...?

*******

Much of Rehval's settlement on Nagaoka was a network of underground carvers, some natural, with artificial tunnels branching off from these. This living space resembled a vast catacomb, and the cultists accepted this gloomy dwelling as part of the price for their enhanced power. There were, however, more technologically advanced parts of the complex. The command center overlooking the shipyard looked as though it had been transplanted from some bustling metropolis on a major hubworld. Rehval himself spent little time here, preferring the sanctity of his bedchamber and laboratory, but he occasionally paid visits to the command center, if only to check on things and to remind the crew what they were fighting for. Today, he was giving his daughter a tour.

"Endive is one of my finest Executants," he said, careful to qualify his praise. She stood at attention while he presented her to his guests, and he noticed the slightest wince in her expression when he used the words "one of my finest."

"Right, I'm sure she is," Seltiss said without even looking at her. He didn't need mystic powers or alchemical wisdom to sense the bitterness in her voice. Days earlier, she had believed herself to be a successful leader, commanding a free company of Saiyans, and a reasonably strong warrior in her own right. Now, she had submitted to the inevitability of his rule, and she was surrounded by his followers, whose powers dwarfed her own.

"You can learn a lot from women like Endive," he said. "She resisted me once, too, much like your 'free companions'. But she's turned away from her wickedness, and now she prospers under my new order."

"As if. She looks terrified, dad," Seltiss said to him. Then to Endive, she asked: "When's the last time you got any sleep?"

"Two days ago, my lady," Endive replied, but only after glancing to Rehval first for approval to speak. This was not lost on Seltiss, who snorted with contempt.

"Is this what I'm supposed to learn?" Seltiss asked. "To know my place?"

"That's right," Rehval said. "I know this is a difficult time for you, Seltiss. You grew up believing you would inherit my throne. And now that I've... evolved, I no longer need a successor. Hm. I've never tried to put it into words before. Somehow, 'evolved' seems like too small a term."

Physically, he looked no different than before. Since completing the ritual that connected him to the planet, he decided to dispense with the flowing red robes, and walked around in simple cotton pajamas. No physical connection to the planet's surface was necessary. He only had to stay within its atmosphere to make it work, though he did enjoy the peculiar sensation he felt when he walked barefoot through the caverns. Even the artificial tile of the command center interior was pleasing, as the facility was rooted to the ground, and the geomantic energies conducted through it. Rehval had privately decided that he would never wear shoes again. There was nothing that could hurt him here. He was the planet, and everything and everyone on it belong to him. Even his daughter's insolence seemed cozy and soothing somehow.

Seltiss groaned with embarrassment as he put his hand on her shoulder.

"The point I'm trying to make," Rehval continued, "is that I still need my daughter, even if I don't need an heir. There's a lot you can do for my reign, Seltiss. You and your children, and your children's children..."

She reached for his hand and removed it from her shoulder like it was a dead rat. "That's all you want from me, isn't it?" she asked. "Xibuyas and I are nothing but breeding stock to you. Just like your 'finest Executant' over there, I'll bet."

"Don't be ridiculous," Rehval said. "Your pedigree puts you on a higher level than any Saiyan on this planet. Far above Endive or anyone else. Your offspring will be the provincial governors of my eternal empire."

Seltiss didn't understand, and perhaps she never would, but she had already been extremely useful to him by assembling the Saiyan Free Company in the first place. As his enemy, she had assembled and delivered to him thousands of Saiayans who would have been his fiercest opponents. As he led her on the tour, his priests were processing her followers as they arrived. The ones who still had their tails would need to remove them as a show of loyalty, and then later they would receive the Jindan potion and be formally inducted into the cult. It would have taken decades to gather these loose ends, and Rehval had been willing to spend those decades, but his daughter had completed the task for him in less than a year. And that was Seltiss being his foe. How much more she could do for him as an ally! He could only imagine the sort of wonders her great-grandchildren would be performing for him in a century or two.

"A puppet is still a puppet, dad," Seltiss said. "No matter how many crowns you put on its head. That's what you used to tell me."

"You still think of me as mortal," he said with a laugh. "It's true, you'll forever be second to my glory, but that's how it is for every temporal king. Even the grandest of rulers know better than to envy the heavens."

"Like you, dad?" Seltiss asked.

He laughed again. "It's good to have you back at my side, Seltiss. I look forward to many more of these spirited debates. What about you, Xibuyas? Don't tell me you're going to be a sore loser about all this."

The young Saiyan had remained quietly by Seltiss' side from the moment she disembarked from her command ship. Rehval had considered Luffa's son to be a useful catspaw, until the boy's failure at Pflaume City. Meeting Rehval again seemed to remind the boy of his shortcomings, and so he had been very pensive during the tour.

"I only want to know when Luffa dies," Xibuyas said. "You say you have the power. Why did allow her to leave the system?"

"Because I'm in no particular hurry with her," Rehval said. "Not anymore. With your group now added to my own, I can afford to take my time. The galaxy will surrender to me whether she interferes or not. Eventually, she'll die in isolation, or she'll make some mad attempt to go down in a blaze of glory. Personally, I hope she comes back groveling for my forgiveness, but it doesn't make much difference anymore. Now then, I think we've seen enough of the command center, so let's move on to the aqueducts, where--"

"Master!" cried one of the cultists sitting at a tactical station. "There's a ship entering the system! It's headed for the planet!"

"Hm? That's odd. Maybe they were part of the Federation fleet and got lost," Rehval said. "Oh well."

"You aren't going to scramble your fighters to intercept it?" Xibuyas asked.

"Whatever for?" Rehval asked. "Or did you already forget how easily I repelled the last attack on this planet? Dozens of warships, including your own, Xibuyas. They couldn't scratch Nagaoka. What can one cruiser possibly do?"

"Even so," Seltiss said, "it would be foolish to, like, ignore it--"

He sighed. "I get it. I really do. You were both always so stubborn, even as children. You still haven't accepted what I've become, so you probe for weaknesses, vulnerabilities that you can exploit later. 'Did you notice that? He doesn't intercept ships that stray into his system. We can use that somehow...' Is that what this is? Fine."

He turned to Endive, who somehow stood even more rigidly at attention than before. "Go," he said. "Handle this."

"At once!" Endive said with an eager smile. She turned to the tactical station and asked for a full report. Rehval spared a moment to admire the fit of Endive's Executant armor. He almost regretted poisoning her father all those years ago. How it would have pained him to see her like this, a devoted soldier of the Saiyan King.

"I'm picking up only one life sign on board," the soldier announced. "It's a Saiyan."

"There, you see?" Rehval said to his guests. "Another lost soul seeking to join my fellowship. You thought he was a threat, but once he's initiated in our fellowship, he'll only make me stronger. Now that Guwar has told the outside universe where to find me, I guess I'll just have to get used to Saiyans seeking me out directly from now on--"

"Master," Endive said. "The ship isn't slowing down! If it hits the field at this speed, the pilot will be killed!"

"Curious," Rehval said. "Now what could be the point of such a stunt? My power shields the planet from any bombardment, whether by conventional arms or ki blasts."

"That energy," Xibuyas suddenly said. "Do you sense it? That's no Saiyan... it's her."

"What are you talking about?" Rehval said, more annoyed than concerned.

"The ship has collided with the Jindan field surrounding the planet, Master," Endive announced. By now she had simply shoved the soldier away from the tactical station and had taken his seat for herself.

"Yes, I just felt the collision," Rehval said. "Let's not forget whose field it is, after all."

"Forgive me, Blessed One," Endive said, "but... I show something has broken through!"

Rehval was about to ask what it was, and then the ground shook beneath their feet.

"It's Luffa," Xibuyas said in a low voice. "She's returned."

He was right. Rehval could sense the ki now. Earlier, when the fleet's attack had failed, Luffa had managed to penetrate the clouds of Nagaoka with a focused ki blast. Her attack had done no damage, and in theory a vessel could have slipped through the hole she had briefly opened up, but there was no point in sending a single ship to attack the planet, so he hadn't worried about it.

Rehval still wasn't worried, though he was perplexed.

"It doesn't make any sense," Seltiss said, apparently reaching the same conclusion. "She couldn't put a dent in that field when she had the whole alliance at her back, so why come alone?"

"She knew she couldn't disrupt the entire field, so she passed through it," Rehval said. "The ship was just to get her close enough to it so she could force her way through. Interesting."

He could feel the impact Luffa had made. Miles away, a grassy field had been reduced to a large crater. The damage would have been much worse than that, but Rehval's power over Nagaoka had absorbed the brunt of the attack. At best, an enemy could only hope to damage the biosphere of Nagaoka, but nothing below the surface.

"Why would she come here? It's insane!" Seltiss said. "She can't fight all of us at once, and with her ship destroyed, she's given up her only means of escape!"

"She didn't come here to escape," Rehval said. "No, I think young Luffa came here to die. How very noble. She's so humiliated by the last defeat that she's chosen to end her life in a hopeless battle rather than live with the shame. Endive, let's do what we can to grant Luffa's wish."

"Yes, Master," Endive said. "A hundred of our warriors should be more than enough to defeat her."

"I agree," Rehval said. "Well? Does this satisfy you, Xibuyas?"

"Let me go with them, Your Majesty" he pleaded. "I want to see her death with my own eyes!"

"Ah-ah!" Rehval said. "You already had your chance on Planet Pflaume, remember? I think denying you here would be good for your character, Xibuyas. Besides, you need to learn the importance of delegation. You're going to be a very important provincial governor for me some day, and it would be inefficient for you to handle all the busywork personally."

The boy fell silent, and Rehval decided to pause their tour while they waited for the hundred to report in. He ordered a meal to be served in the main conference room, so his family and the S.F.C. generals could watch the crew of the command center as they followed the battle. They were barely into the main course when Endive relayed the report from the field.

"I sent my troops to the impact site as ordered," she said. "They searched, but found no one... dead or alive."

"What?" Rehval gasped.

"Hah!" Xibuyas laughed. "Just like a woman! The coward ran away!"

"Be quiet," Rehval snapped. He hadn't been taking this seriously, but Luffa had his attention now. "She didn't maroon herself behind enemy lines just to hide. She's up to something, but what? She can't be planning to attack our stronghold. She'd be walking into tens of thousands of cultists instead of a mere hundred. And there's no other strategic objectives on the planet."

He couldn't sense Luffa's ki either. His bond with the planet had enabled him to sense things all over Nagaoka, but the footsteps of a single woman were too subtle. It was like expecting to notice motes of dust landing on one's skin. His ki senses had increased dramatically, however. And yet, he found nothing, until suddenly, for only a moment...!

A split second later, they heard an explosion outside. One of the other crewmen reported the damage. "It's the spaceport," he called out. Someone's taken one of the ships!"

They could all sense her now. Earlier, Luffa's ki had seemed to vanish, but now she was acting with her full strength. This time, Rehval was provoked enough to want to see for himself what was going on. He rushed to the door, and levitated himself to an altitude that offered a view of the shipyard. For a moment, he saw the hijacked cruiser floating over the the other ships, firing its guns as it circled the yard.

And then, just as his followers began to converge on the location, the cruiser exploded in a ball of yellow fire. Even at this distance, he could hear laughter. That maddening laugh.

Luffa only attacked once, firing a thin crimson beam into the mass of warriors that converged on her position. Then, with blinding speed, she turned and fled, retreating into the thick grey clouds like a bolt of golden lightning.

Rehval made his way to the shipyard, where he bade his followers to stand down. Soon enough, Endive, Seltiss, and Xibuyas joined them. The entire hardstand was in flames, with secondary explosions going off as the heat ruptured volatile components in the wreckage.

"Only one casualty," Endive reported. "Her beam went right through his heart."

"What is she doing?" Xibuyas asked. "First she destroys her own ship, and now all of these! What good does it do her?"

"Look!" Seltiss called out. She was pointing at a section of the hardstand that hadn't been burned. "She left... a message."

Rehval had already spotted it as he descended, but he let the others see it for themselves. It looked like Luffa had carved it out of the pavement by hand.

NO ONE LEAVES

"She means to destroy us all," Rehval said.

"But she can't destroy the planet," Seltiss said. "You already proved that. Your power makes it impervious to that sort of damage."

"Yes," Rehval said. "But I lack the speed and offensive power to catch her. She's seems to think she can pick us off, one by one if she has to."

"Impossible," Endive said. "She may be powerful, but she can't possibly hold out long enough to win a war of attrition."

"I agree," Rehval said. "Either way, it looks like we're going to find out. But it's brilliant, in a way. By infiltrating this planet, she's removed my earthen avatars from the equation. I placed them on planets all over the galaxy, so that if she dared to interfere with my plans, I could destroy a few billion people to punish her. Only now, I don't dare carry out that threat, because I need to focus my energies here. I could use my avatars here, of course. Summoning a few dozen on Nagaokan soil would be child's play for me now, but they're much too slow. She can simply outrun them, and attack me where I'm vulnerable. So, if nothing else, she's saved the galaxy... for the time being, at least."

"I can send out search teams," Endive suggested. "We can track her down--"

"No, my dear, spreading out our forces will only play into her hands," he said. "We need to approach this very carefully. Luffa's brilliant, yes, but this still smacks of desperation. She has nowhere else to go, and I have already proven myself as the conqueror of the universe. This planet and its people are all extensions of my power. She won't last long. For all her power, she's just one woman."

NEXT: One Against All

[rimurutempestslime]

About

A partner and best friend of the True Dragon Veldora Tempest, Rimuru is the founder and King of the monster country Tempest of the Jura Forest. He is regarded as one of the strongest Demon Lords among the mighty Eight Star Demon Lords if not, He is the Strongest Demon Lord that ever exist and also the only proper Great Demon Lord currently. Consisting of Twelve Demon Lords named Subordinates under his Command.

Slime:

Rimuru initially appears as a blue-bodied slime, but upon becoming a Demon Slime, his body turns silver with streaks of gold.

As a slime, since his body is androgynous, anything he mimics takes on an androgynous form of the respective creatures, while still bearing huge resemblances to the individual creatures as well.

His mass also grew over time, allowing him to accommodate larger mimicry forms without using extra magic to compensate for the additional mass. Towards the beginning of the story, he only has enough mass to appear as a human child, but by the time he becomes an Ultimate Slime, he has enough mass to appear as a 16-year-old.

Mimicry: Human

In this form, Rimuru possesses silver (blue in the Light Novel, Manga, and Anime) hair. There are no visible sex characteristics; however, he is often mistaken for a young girl due to the fact that the original form belonged to Shizue Izawa. But when he wears the anti-demon mask he kept as a memento from Shizu, his speech pattern can also make him seem like a prepubescent boy to others.

Unlike Rimuru's other Mimics, his hair changes color to one similar to that of his original slime body. It is unknown if this is just for convenience's sake, but it may also be possible this is because he was once human before and has a special connection to the form.

Since his slime body is equal in mass to his human form, he fills this body with solid shape instead of black fog. Without the black fog, there is no additional magic consumption required to maintain the form. There is no discomfort when he assumes this form. If he uses the black fog, he can also assume the form of an adult.

His fine motor capabilities improve when he is in his human form, and he finds it easier to move in than his slime form. Even though it appears to be human, this form has no need for breathing, excretion, and reproductive organs. However, he can freely eat, taste, and drink.

In his human form, he wears a black (blue in the Manga and Anime) fur coat and a scarf. Under the coat, he wears the kimono and pants that Shuna had made for him. He also wears the steel thread underwear he makes himself. He often wears Shizue’s old mask to hide his demonic powers.

Since eating the Orc Disaster, his human form grew a bit. He now assumes the form of a pre-teen with feminine features. In this form, he is around 150 cm in height. In addition, he has obtained a devil transformation.

Upon becoming a True Demon Lord and changing his race change to Demon Slime, Rimuru has been depicted wearing a black overcoat. His nails also appear sharper and his overall human form appears slightly older.

Upon evolving further into an Ultimate Slime, Rimuru's human form ages to 16-17 years old. This form is described by Velgurind as appearing gender-less (as she saw it nude upon creation) but with dangerously cute features. By simply willing it, Rimuru can generate clothes from his own mass and magic power.

Personality:

He has a kind heart and a quirky personality. Even though he is quite laid back and wants to avoid troublesome situations as much as possible, he actually works very diligently when there is a task needed to be taken care of.

With the heart of a hardworking salaryman and a beloved senior co-worker, Rimuru has a hard time rejecting someone if they plead him to help, leading in him often ending up with more work than he can handle, which his boss from his previous life used to reprimand him for.

Being the very Satoru Mikami himself, he also believes himself to be a KY-person (Kuuki Yomenai) who makes jokes at the wrong time.

Rimuru tends to react very severely when there's a danger to his close ones, such as his countrymen, subordinates, (possibly due to the soul-link he shares with them), good friends, and students (he can't stand children suffering). One might say he overreacts to these cases, but it simply shows how deeply he cares for them, as a stark contrast with his usual cheerful self.

Unlike many other shounen protagonists, he has no problems with decimating any forces who dare to harm his subordinates and his country, regardless of their numbers, realizing full-well about the deed he's done.

After a mishap of subsidies, Rimuru tends to quickly revert back to his laid back self and mentally (or even in actuality) scratches his head at the scenery he caused.

He is described as cautious and cunning by other fellow Demon Lords, unaware that it is simply a means of him trying to prevent troublesome situations from going out of hand. As he progresses through the story, he slowly becomes more and more like an actual Demon Lord, and as he adjusts to the rules of the new world and understands the capabilities of his subordinates, he begins to let them handle tough situations on their own instead of voluntarily diving in first to patch stuff up.

He seems to have a lot of knowledge about video games and manga.

[digimonadventuretimelines]

The skies were darker as they invaded the territory of the enemy, a secret mission filled with a tenacious bravery, kind and determined to lead them to the happy ending. However, as he was willing to avoid conflict…

… He had detected by the enemy’s air squad. The Airdramon group chased them in the skies, with the blue phantom dragon dashing in a risky attempt to vanish thru the clouds. It was all in vain, sadly, because those flying lizards with no hands nor feet had fired against them.

“ARGH!!”

They got hit. the digivice in his pocket kept acting like a phone. He heard then some voices:

“Whoa, they got hit!! I heard it!! KABOOM!” said an energetic feminine voice

“H-hey!! A-are you two OK?!” someone tough yet concerned boyish voice babbled “D-don’t dare to die here!!”

“You all, calm down and try to find them…!” a shy boy voice replied with some hesitation “Please, he won’t… like us to get panicked…!”

“Oh C’mon, kids. He’s strong” a fourth and female voice responded them all “... You know that, right?”

“Are you listening to us, big bro??” the energetic girl spoke.

“Hurry, hurry! We need to find them!” the first boy kept yelling.

“I don’t need to see your faces to know that you two are quite nervous right now” the shy boy sighed “They might be OK, but let’s not get panicked or we will be captured…!”

“You three, be quiet!” ordered the older girl “I’m trying to call him! Are you here, did you get hurt...? Please answer…!! You’re strong. Much more than you think…! If weren’t for your tenacious soul, we would haven’t evolved…!! Hurry up..!! Answer me...”

[01 - The World’s Future]

“Hey you two,” A familiar yet older voice called someone “Don’t you have school and work today?!”

The room was in the dark and the only source of light was a TV. Sounds of a racing game from an old rodent’s video game series was blocking the voice of a mother, who kept staring at a male adult and his children playing on an old Game Cube console.

“Did you hear me?” she asked again, “or am I being ignored by?”

It’s 2025, spring to be exact. Flowers are blooming and birds are singing. On days like these…

“I won!! Haha yes!” a kid raised his fist as laughed cheerfully about the nice sweet victory over his father.

“What-- How did you--?!” the man gasped as response.

The kids father then realized something odd and when he looked to the room’s entrance he saw his wife there, staring at him.

“Oops, are we--”

“Yes,” the woman closed her eyes and said in a very annoyed voice “You. Two. Are. Late. Again.”

“Haha, sorry!” the kid scratched his neck, smiling “This old game is exciting, mom!”

This kid, you may ask… It’s your protagonist. He might not be that different from his father or mother, but hey. He’s his own individual. His name? Motomiya Daichi.

Son of Daisuke and Miyako. Wait, are you confused? You will understand everything later.

“Time for school!” The kid exclaimed and left the room, took his backpack and moved towards the entrance.

“Have a nice day!” Miyako wished him, smiling at the boy.

“Thanks mom!” he replied and left the house.

“Wait what do you mean that I’m late to work?!” Daisuke shouted panicky.

The goggles in Daichi’s head reflected the sunshine when he goes chatting with his best friend about the game he had been playing with his father before school.

However, a younger child silently observes Daichi. He has a wild haircut as someone you know very well -- brown eyes, tan skin, a shade of brown more orange-ish… He stared at Daichi, but kept avoiding interacting with the older boy.

Later on the end of that day, Daichi opened the door with a happy smile. Excepting to have his dad & mom to welcome him as usual happens, he started talking:

“Mom, dad I’m home! Kiyoko’s at a friend’s house--”

But once he saw the empty living room and  his mother alone, with some bandages and talking to someone on phone…

“... Mom?” he asked with a frown on his face “Is something wrong? Where’s dad?”

His mother let a silent gasp escape from her mouth. She then turns back to the phone and tells the person on the call about the actual scene:

“I… I talk to you later, Ken. Daichi’s home, I will explain it to him.”

Daichi threw his backpack on the floor and hugged Miyako tightly, lying his head on her stomach. She watched him for a while til ruffle his hair. With a smile, she says:

“It’s okay, I just got hurt at work. Your father is fine, just had to travel to New York, again.”

… I couldn’t accept that. It was all a lie. I was sure, he had vanished. Probably died, and no one wanted to admit that. But… they can’t fool me.

Two years later… On Summer 2027…

“Hey, big bro.” “Big bro…!” “Brother!”

She was getting so so DONE with him ignoring her…!!

“Motomiya. Freakin’. Daichi.”

She was there, hands on her hips and glaring at him. In front of the couch where he was sitting and reading a book.

“Are you listening to?! What is your problem?!”

That girl is, as you expected, his sister. Daichi shifted his attention from the book to the girl. Her having a rose-ish long hair, amber eyes, a pair of pink sunglasses in his head and a hairpin of the said color a la Hikari (when Hikari was young, of course)

In confusion, Daichi tilted his head. She was about to spit fire on him if she had superpowers. She rolled her eyes.

“You’re reading. Again. On a sunny day. Inside. Like, studying on summer vacations.”

“Reading and studying are indeed important,” he closed his book with one hand, and he said calmly yet colder than the winter, “Especially because that would’ve been his last wish.”

“No no,” she was getting upset with that ol’ talk about their dad’s status and whereabouts “don’t talk like our dad were dead. He’s in New York, okay?!”

“I don’t think so, Kiyoko. But I’ll spare you from all of my assumptions.”

She tilted her her in silence. That was so uncalled for! No, her dad is not dead! Sure, he’s super duper famous and has to get some bodyguards like a couple of humans and digimons, but… Why on earth would someone try to kill Motomiya Daisuke, the man everyone adores and feels blessed for his kindness and high spirits?!

“Listen here, Daichi” she started “Our dad IS alive because--”

“Help. Help me. Miyako…!” a mysterious voice echoed in the room “I… I need you. And The Digichosen. Hurry…!!”

“W-what was that voice?!” Kiyoko looked to the ceiling, and when she looked back at Daichi… He had gotten up and passed by her side, following that voice.

“Kiyoko, go stay with your friends,” he said.

The voice led him to a room. The same room he used to play games with his father. Once the door was open, he saw a small pink bunny digimon (who looked like similar to a Chibimon) lying on the floor.

“A… Digimon?”

Another look in the room and he realized the old computer was mysteriously on. It had passed three years from the day his father had (suddenly) disappeared. That room kept closed for most of the time. Has that digimon invaded the room while no one had been paying attention to their surroundings?

Oh, it moved. It woke up and her green eyes met him. Due to the tension, the small digimon switched forms… to a woman. A very familiar woman to Daichi.

“N-Natsu?!” the boy was surprised yet confused

She glanced at the boy, then started looking around to make sure no one had followed her. But why? Why is Natsu a digimon? What’s happening here?!

“Daichan… I need to find your mother, and the rest of the group, very quickly.”

Daichi blinked. A ‘group’ of what? Friends? Adults? Maybe he could just call Taichi and ask for help, but…

“Mom’s at work right now. And I don’t know about this group you’re talking about.”

“The Chosen Children! Don’t you know?”

“My parents and their friends told us some stories about them, but mom is a regular Digimon researcher and not a  legend heroine.”

Oops, she forgot that Taichi and Daisuke alongside the others had decided to make it a secret from their children. Not like they don’t enjoy their glorious past, but they definitely do not desire their kids to risk their lives. Chosen Children -- Or just like they decided to change the term for ‘Digichosen’ -- will always exist no matter what happens.

But, they will fight to keep their children safe and live a happy life. That world already is a chaos with both worlds connected, with both human and digimon groups living in each other’s world.

“I have to tell you a secret” Natsu showed some determination with her words. She had decided to trust that kid, despite Daisuke’s wishes, “Your parents are part of that group. And some of their friends too.”

“W-wait, my late father too?!” it was too much information for him.

“He’s not dead!” Natsu went a bit defensive, but calmed down “He’s… lost in the Digital World. I know I can find him, but I need your mother’s help. Any adult Chosen is fine though.”

Daichi felt strange, his eyes were lively after three years of wild theories and despair. He had lost hope for so much time that he had admitted defeat.

“Can I help you…?” he asked with some excitement “I’m a hero’s child! And I’m good at lots of things, like--”

“I can’t let you help, Daichan” she avoided look at his eyes “Your parents, especially your mother, would’ve killed me if I let you do that.”

“Mom’s not home, I don’t know who’re the other heroes, Kiyoko is with her friends right now… I’m the only one here and if you are in trouble…”

“L-Listen, I can’t let you--!!”

“Besides, the legendary Chosen Children were around my age when they saved the world. Are you saying a kid can’t save his own father?”

Oh, he’s got some kind of Miyako in it…

“... No but-- Miyako’s gonna be mad at me--”

“My father would’ve let me help you because he knows I’d be safe with you~”

“He-- He wouldn’t--” she felt conflicted, imagining Daisuke telling her he was proud of her for taking care of his children while he hadn’t been around.

Natsu felt totally defeated by that fantasy. Daichi laughed, smirking and resembling very much his father.

“O-Ok! Motomiya Daisuke would’ve been so much happy to have his own son adventuring into the DigiWorld and saving him and it!” she was quite noisy now “Daichan, I’ll protect you with my life! I’m going to die for you!!”

“C-Cut out the part of ‘dying for me’ and let’s go!” he had regrets… oh boy.

She opened the gate with the computer and then… Both her and Daichi were absorbed by the screen’s light.

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

“Your brother is annoying.”

Kiyoko had to agree with the short boy, while the second boy had been there in silence, just watching them chatting.

“I know that” she seemed a little upset yet “Like, what’s wrong going to play some sport or game OUTSIDE?! Or I dunno, read a book but in the park?!”

“That’s why he’s a sore loser.”

“I’d have preferred he was the same Daichi from years ago!”

“Yeah, at least he wasn’t annoying and goody-two-shoes like now!”

“Can you believe he thinks my dad is dead?! No, not just that, he definitely talks like if my dad is dead!”

“Tch, how insensitive he is… My dad would’ve said something if mr. Motomiya had been dead for a long time!”

“My father would’ve said too” the third kid said with a quiet voice “He’s not only an officer but also a best friend for your father, Kiyoko...”

“I know, I know!” she snorted “Daichi’s definitely upset because it’s taking too much time for our dad’s return.”

“At least he’s going home someday…” the first boy clenched his hand.

“Please don’t like if uncle Taichi were dead, Taisuke…”  the other boy asked.

“M-my bad, Eiji…!” Taisuke babbled “I meant like… N-Never mind!!”

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

“W-where are we?”

“Daichan, this is the Digital World, or DigiWorld to make it short.”

Exotic plants with bizarre formats and colors… The skies being like a watercolor paint… A few data and circuits running through the scenario, strange vending machines in the middle of the florest…

Everything was new for him, like if he had opened the door for a brand new experience. It was different from books and photos, seemed much more better to live in. He had heard a lot about the DigiWorld, except his parents never let him go there and always said he had to wait a little more. When was this “little more” if not now? He’s good at surviving the summer camp, interacting with the digimon as well. How can it go wrong?

“Now listen,” Natsu looked at the kid with a serious glare “Whatever you heard about this place, know that there’s an actual civil war happening here, your father and the others had been dealing with. Stay closer and do not go walk alone.”

“What’s… What’s happening?”

“So, you’ve heard about that one time Yggdrasil went nuts and tried to separate humans and digimons from each other? Your father and mother discovered it and tried to stop, but they, Ken and Iori got captured instead. Taichi and the other seven saved us all but… Something went off.”

“I… I didn’t know that-- Wait a minute!? Taichi… Yagami Taichi?!”

“You have to learn a lot of things I guess.”

“Why didn’t dad tell me before…?”

“He…” Natsu looked found some difficulty to word that answer, “He was going tell you a little later.”

“Was he…?”

“... When you were about to turn ten, he had decided to tell you but… A little unfortunate event happened. But I’m sure I can find him, I can…!”

She was acting suspicious, like avoiding to say something. What was the ‘secret’ she’s keeping away from him…? Did something happen to his dad?

“What happened to him…? Do you know something, Natsu...?”

She didn’t answer and avoided look at him during their walk in the forest. It got on Daichi’s nerves so much because he wanted to know, he really wanted to help there but Natsu’s silence was worse than passing through years thinking his father had been dead.

And when he finally got some concrete clue about that mystery…

“Natsu! Tell me now!” his voice sounded serious, he definitely gritted his teeth like when Daisuke does when angry “I’m his son, I have to know!”

“I… I can’t tell you now!” she babbled “I’m sorry but maybe we should go home--”

A lightning needle has passed through them and all she could do was rise a pinkish forcefield around her and the boy. She knew… The one hunting her down, the one she had been trying to hide from... was there. Now some regret hit her conscience, putting Daichi in danger like that! He does not have a digimon partner! And she’s not partnered to him! Plus, she’s not even Daisuke’s partner but just a mere ally digimon who had ‘adopted’ by Daisuke a long time ago.

“Wha-what was that?!” the kid gasped “Is it… A digimon attack?!”

“Stay quiet, please! And run…!” she grabbed Daichi’s hand and left the place, with a shadow following them in the woods.

[ryuspike]

DnD 5e Race: Vulpine

Here it is. The race information for my version of fox-folk. I designed most of them off of their real life counterparts and what they are associated with most. I also went through a lot of balancing so that the subraces don’t feel over- or under-powered compared to the others. Though one subrace is clearly a bit more powerful for obvious reasons.

I originally created this because a friend of mine wanted to play a fox character but the best they can find are reskinned Tabaxi race traits. Feel free to try these out in your own games (with DM consent) and see how it plays out. I’ll love to hear your thoughts.

Vulpine Race

Terminology. Vulpine have special terms for each other. Vulp is a shorthand for vulpine and vulps is the plural tense of that word. Vulpine children are often called kits or cubs. A female vulpine is usually referred to as a vixen and a male vulpine is called a tod.

Lore. Long ago, spiritual beings that take the form of foxes ran wild in the world. The gods discovered these creatures, and some have tamed them as their personal messengers to the mortal realm. The constant contact between them and mortal led to some of these foxes to start families with them. Children sired by these foxes tend to carry on their traits like long noses, narrow faces, or squinted eyes. The most extreme, however, bore foxlike appendages and some even looked entirely like the animal. This led to many of them being shunned by families and neighbors as they are driven out from society. Not even the gods shown them much mercy as they leave these outcasts in fate’s hands.

Not many of fox spirits went out of their way to protect their children as they were either too scared of the mortals’ or gods’ wrath, or just too selfish to care about their offspring’s misfortune. Eventually, a goddess and an entourage of caring fox parents gathered the forsaken fox children and led them into a hidden paradise. There, the people lived in peace and harmony. Their vulpine traits became unified as they formed families together and inherited their parents’ fox appearance. Several centuries gone by and their numbers grew too great for the paradise to sustain them forever. The gods knew that it was time for their chosen children to make an important decision: stay hidden in their paradise and risk over population or go out into the world and endure the hardships it brings.

Many had argued over what is the right choice to make. Those that wanted to stay still remember the hatred their families were subjected to and refused to be part of that world. Countless others, however, felt like they are ready to rejoin the world and sate their growing wander lust. Arguments raged on until it was finally decided that the vulpine people will split off from each other. Those that wanted to stay and those who chose to leave for knew lands. The pilgrims soon after built boats and set off into new lands as they left their home behind.  Many of them splitting off from each other as they seek to populate across the new world.

Age. All vulpine live an average lifespan of 90 to 100 years. The zao vulpine, however, are said to live up to 150 years due to their close connection to the vulpine gods.

Language. All vulpine can speak common and their ancestral language of Vulpanese. The dialect is often different between cultures little change in the actual language. (If DM doesn’t agree with this language choose, the language can be anything else of your choice)

Darkvision. Nocturnal by nature, you have excellent vision in dark places. You can see dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Fox’s Cunning. Your keen mind gives you proficiency with Perception and one of the following: Deception, Survival, or Stealth.  

Fox’s Claws. Your claws are a natural weapon, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, you deal slashing damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of bludgeoning damage normal for unarmed strikes. Russet and arctic vulpine can use their claws to move with 20 feet of climbing and 10 feet of burrowing speed. Fennec vulpine claws give them climbing speed of 10 feet and burrowing speed of 20 feet.

Russet Vulpine

Lore. The most common of the vulpine races, the russet vulpine had integrated themselves among the other races of the world. They still had to face with plenty of prejudice as many races assumed that the vulpine are not trustworthy due to their more angular and sly features. Others saw they as much larger foxes whose fur would fetch a high price on the market. During the early years of some countries, it was legal to hunt and kill vulpine for their fur. As society grew, such barbaric practices were treated like sporting events for noble families. This led to the russet vulpine to learn how to adapt quickly with their surroundings so to better escape from these hunts.

Due to being foreign travelers, it was rare to see a russet vulpine given a high-ranking position in any government that wasn’t headed by their own people. This makes vulpine one of the largest members of the lower class in the world. Many of them either forced to live in the streets of cities or out in the wilderness or rural areas. The vulpine are often given jobs that do not give out much pay so a good number of them resort to stealing in order to feed their families. The few vulpine that find themselves in noble or governing positions tend to either attempt to use their position of power to aid their people, or allow the unfair system to continue as the live a life of luxury.

Russet vulpine are solitary creatures. Sticking to small family units and protecting their own. Thanks to the constant hunting of their people, they learned to be craftier and faster those seeking to take their fur. Parents often instructing their children the layout of the land so that they can always have an escape route to head for. Common vulpine children games are used as learning tools as they involve one child trying to hunt down the others until they either give up or all the other children are “dead”. These cautionary games helped many young vulps survive out in a harsh world that seeks to harm them.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Intelligence score increases by 1.

Alignment. Most of your kind are neutral good as they want to benefit their societies. Some will branch out depending on their life choices.

Appearance. You resemble the most common of fox breeds with a fur coat that falls under the warmer shades of color like red, orange, yellow, brown, and gray. Various black and white markings can often be found around your ears, muzzle, chest, arms, legs, and tail. You have a long, bushy tail that is highly coveted by others.

Size. Your adult height is often found between 4 and 5 feet. You weigh as much as an average humanoid of that size. Your size is Medium.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet

Terrain Traveler. When taking your Dash action, difficult terrain doesn’t cost you any extra movement. Climbing, swimming, and burrowing use normal movement.

Leaping Dodge. When a creature targets you for an attack that requires an attack roll, use your reaction to move to an unoccupied 5-foot square space adjacent to you. If the path to that space is not blocked by anything, the attacking creature automatically misses and attacks of opportunity are at a disadvantage while you move to that space. You can’t use this trait again until after a short or long rest.

Arctic Vulpine

Lore. Up in the far north, early vulpine settlers were met with a harsh environment that killed many of them. Those that survived kept themselves alive as they learned to combat the cold and avoid its dangerous creatures. Over generations, these vulpine evolved to survive the cold and rugged terrain. They developed tribes and soon fully functioning villages. Some became travelling nomads who move with the hunt while those that settled learned to raise cattle to sustain themselves. The two groups are often friendly and would trade among each other so to improve both their lifestyles.

Arctic vulpine are solitary creatures, more so than others of their race, and do not traditional have large family groups. After a vulpine has become of age, they are immediately thrusted out into the world. They are encouraged to either take on a job that will benefit their community or go out on their own to discover their own purpose. This fast track to adulthood causes many arctic to seemingly mature faster than most other races as they come to value independence for the sake of their own survival in a harsh world.

While arctic vulpine families are not often living together, they do still hold a bond with each other like many other races. During the winter solstice, there is a tradition amongst their people to have families gather to celebrate the longest winter together. Families often travelling great distances to the homes of their eldest family members. If that elder or family member had passed away since the last solstice, the gathered families would hold a ceremony to honor all who had past before moving on to more joyous festivities.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Constitution score increases by 1.

Alignment. The harsh tundra climate has made these vulpine true neutral creatures. Survival is a large part of their society and only strong personal connections are valued over strangers.

Appearance. You resemble the arctic fox and share many traits with it. In colder climates, you gain a thick coat of white fur that often blends in with the snow. During summer seasons or warmer climates, your coat with turn a gray or brown color. Some rare individuals keep their white fur all year around no mater the climate they are in.

Size. Your adult height is often found between 4 and 5 feet. You weigh as much as an average humanoid of that size. Your size is Medium.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet

Tundra Coat. You have resistance to cold damage due to your thick fur coat. You also have advantage on Stealth checks when in snowy terrain while your fur is white and rocky terrain while your fur is gray or brown.

Arctic Endurance. You have advantage against saving throws from spells with cold effects or from extremely cold weather conditions. You are unable to die from exhaustion caused by cold weather.

Fennec Vulpine

Lore. In the harsh, dry lands of the desert, the fennec had made a home among the rock and sand. Ever since their people first traversed these sands, they learned the plentiful bounties that lay hidden in the hot sands. Over the generations, they adapted to better survive in these harsh lands. Their ears had grown to great size so to allow them to hear what lays underneath. Their bodies changed so that they don’t suffer from thirst during long treks across endless dunes. They can still drink water if they wish, they mostly retrieve their hydration through the food that they eat. This amazing biology made them perfect desert dwellers.

Fennec vulpine do not tend to settle in one location. They are nomadic by nature and move from place to place after several seasons. In their travels, they would put their ears to the ground and listen carefully to the sound of the earth. Most nomads are treasure hunters who dig up rare artifacts and sell them to highest bidder. Due to dealing with all types of people, the fennec vulpine have a strong deal making sense. They can always tell who has the most coin in their purse thanks to their giant ears. Shifting from super friendly to extremely aggressive at a drop of a hat if it suits their negotiations.

Their small size and large ears tend to make them the most beloved of the vulpine races. People finding both features to be very adorable. Some fennec find this insulting while others take advantage of their cuteness to get what they want. Either way, they found a niche area in society that gives them a social advantage above other vulpine. The fennec vulpines developed two different “faces” it wears in social situations. One worn when with their own kind or those they are close to, and the one they wear for everyone else.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 1, and your Wisdom score increases by 2.

Alignment. Your kind are traders and nomads by nature. They are often lawful good or neutral as they believe in following the one’s own beliefs over the beliefs of others.

Appearance. Your appearance is that of a fennec fox. You are small with large bat-like ears, and small dark colored eyes. You have short, sand colored fur with little distinguishing marks. Your tail is less bushy than other vulpine.

Size. The fennec vulps are much smaller than their medium sized cousins. As adults, they are about 2 to 3 feet tall and weigh between 25 to 40 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Bat Ears. You have advantage on all Perception checks that require hearing.

Desert Survivor. Due to fennec vulpines living in such a dry environment, you do not require to drink water to survive. When travelling through a desert or any terrain with similar environmental conditions, you do not suffer any exhaustion from it.

Zao Vulpine (aka the Kitsune subrace)

Lore. Many years ago, the vulpine race was given the choice of staying in their hidden home or explore the open world. Those that stayed continued in their traditions and ancient practices. Over time, they began to resemble more and more of their spiritual ancestors that first created them. The zao vulpine had begun the practice of channeling their divine power that was granted to them by their bloodline. Over the generations, young vulps were taught how to access this spiritual energy and manipulate it to do their will. Only a gifted few have learned to master it to the point of achieving abilities and traits that their mystical ancestors possessed.

At a young age, vulpine are trained to tap into their ancestor’s power, and the first sign of a potential candidate is the creation of fox fire. It is when this happens, the youth is brought forth to their elders and given a path to follow in life. Most become devote followers to their gods at a sacred shrine while others are given the path of the warrior. Some are even tasked to become weavers of magic or scholars. Once their path has been chosen, they are immediately sent off to be trained by a master to improve their skills.

Zao society is layered with strict guidelines and traditions that are expected to be followed. Those that do no follow these expectations are often treated like outcasts while those who are deemed “honorable” are often the most highly regarded members of their society. Large and influential families often maintain their strength by having a tight grip on these traditions. Family members that often don’t live up to their own families’ expectations find themselves in desperate situations. It is not uncommon to hear rumors of children of such families either being disowned or sent far away until they can prove themselves worthy. Often or not, they are sent out on quest to the outside world to retrieve a lost artifact and return it to their people as a form of restoring their family’s honor.

Vulpine that live in the hidden homeland of their people are forbidden to ever leave it. The older generation believe that their kind has no place among those that once shunned them. Others developed a sense of superiority over the outsiders due to their close attachment to their ancient ancestors. The only times when any of their kind is allowed to leave is either to retrieve something that had been lost, or they were banished. Some curious young folk would sneak out on their own to satisfy their curiosity. This is often met with anger from the elders who would often bar them from ever returning home. Only those from a highly regarded family with strong political ties are allowed back inside. Often, trained seekers would go after and forcefully return them to their families.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 1, and your Charisma score increases by 2.      

Alignment. You have a deep connection with your celestial ancestors and therefore share your alignment with their own. Fox spirits that work alongside gods tend to be extremely lawful towards that god’s alignment while the wilder spirits lean on being chaotic.

Appearance. You appear to be like any other fox with some key differences. Your fur is attuned to the weave of magic and easily manipulated to take on many colors. Common base colors among your race is gold, silver, black, white, and other bright colors. Young kits often have their parents paint their fur with a magic brush so to match their family’s colors and insignia. As they get older, a vulpine can decide on how they should appear.

Size. You are slightly taller than most other vulpine, ranging between 5 and 6 feet at adult size. You weigh as much as an average humanoid of that size. You are a Medium sized creature.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet

Splintered Tails. Through your spiritual ancestry, you inherited a tail with mystical properties. Starting at 5th level, a new tail will split off from your original that is either visible or invisible from everyone except those with true sight or other zao vulpine. Theses tails can move independently or in unison. A new tail will grow every two levels after the 5th (levels 5, 7, 9, etc.) to a maximum of nine tails.

Fox Magic. You have the innate ability to cast certain spells with Charisma as your spellcasting ability. At 1st level, you know the Dancing Lights cantrip. When cast with this trait, the spell assumes the form of ghostly fire that when combined takes on either a humaniod or fox shape. When touched by other creatures, the flames deal 1d4 fire damage unless you will them to be harmless. At 3rd level, you can use a leaf to cast Disguise Self and appear as either a person or object. If you turn into a weapon, you have the heavy property and deal 1d8 bludgeoning damage. When inspected, your illusion can be touched by another creature, but it doesn’t feel natural. Your ears and tail will immediately appear for all to see if you are discovered, damaged, intoxicated, frightened, exhausted, or unconscious. At 5th level, you can learn to cast either Phantasmal Force or Mirror Image as part of this trait. You can use both Disguise Self and your chosen spell up to a max number of times equal to 1 + your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1) before needing a long rest.

Hoshi no Tama. At 3rd level, you will manifest a magic item that appears to be a shining round jewel containing your spiritual essence. This “star ball” can be used as an arcane focus which allows you to exhaust one of its charges to cast a 3rd level or lower spell at its lowest level instead of a spell slot. You can also exhaust a charge to cast a spell from your Fox Magic trait if you ran out of uses for it. The max amount of charges this item can hold is equal to the number of tails you possess from your Splintered Tails trait (to max of 9 charges). During a short rest, you can spend Hit Dice to recharge this item by one charge per die spent. This item can only be used by the one who manifested it, and if it is destroyed, its creator will suffer three levels of exhaustion (to max of 5 levels). A new star ball is manifested 1d12 days after its initial destruction.

So again, feel free to use this in your own games. If you don’t like some of the traits I’ve given, let me know which ones and tell me why. I plan to add this race to the DnD Beyond site and I want to have the best version of this race represented on it. So your comments will help me consider what I need to do to improve this race.

As for why I named the kitsune subrace “Zao”, it is because their home in the lore has been heavily based on Japan’s Miyagi Zao Fox Village. A place in Japan where foxes are rescued from being slaughtered. Figured that would be an appropriate tribute for in-game lore.  You can, however, refer to them as Kitsune on your character sheets.

[winterfurst]

[it’s time for that

MIQO.TE LORE POST........

-Miqo.te are descendants of the M.ithra (a very feline race from FF 11).

-they’re split into two separate ethnicities (seeker of the sun and keeper of the moon

Satoshi is half and half. he has more seeker of the sun in him but he has things of his father’s half too (such as the more pronounced canine teeth and his reverence for Menphin.a

Sun Seekers worship Azeyma the Warden and Moon Keepers worship Menphina the Lover

Satoshi worships Menphina

Due to their exposure to light, the pupils of a Seeker of the Sun Miqo'te are vertically aligned slits with irises faintly colored. It is common for their eyes to be disparately colored from birth, a trait considered auspicious among their kind.

In contrast, due to their exposure to darkness, the pupils of a Keeper of the Moon Miqo'te are large and round with little iris exposure. They are distinguishable from their diurnal cousins by their darker fur, larger ears, rounder eyes, more pronounced canines, and longer, skinnier tails.

The groups share a superb sense of smell and powerful leg muscles, results of a long evolution geared towards hunting and predation.

the Seeker of the Sun Miqo'te's ears are wider with thick hair, while the Keeper of the Moon Miqo'te have stylized ears with short hair and are slightly longer and thinner.

Sun Seekers are diasporized across Eor/zea

sun seekers are mostly found in Limsa Lom.insa. many of them do not follow the clan hierarchy closely or at all 

satoshi is one of those and if you tried to get him to join back with a clan he will go no

theres also a clan down in Thana.lan in the Sagoli desert. The U Tribe 

Moon Keepers can be found in the Shroud. Some of them get a long with the Gridanians and some of them are poachers 

female Miqo'te vastly outnumber males, a unique trait among Eorzea's races

A few facts about the Seeker of the Suns

Roughly a head shorter and smaller of body than the average Hyur, the Seekers are blessed with a wiry strength, surpassing agility, and the stamina to run for hours under the blazing sun—a combination of traits that makes them uncommonly suited to hunting in arid climes. As many Seekers are adept at climbing and diving, they also make for excellent sailors

The Seekers of the Sun are a highly patriarchal culture, with each tribe centered around a strong breeding male (nunh) whose duty is to form a harem and lead his people to glory and prosperity. Young males are born and raised as "tia," and must either assume the position of nunh by challenging and defeating an existing nunh in single combat, or leave the community to find a harem of his own. In particularly large tribes, multiple nunh may coexist in the same community, though such cases are rare

Satsuki challenged this. A lot. And she ended up becoming the first woman leader of ANY Miqo.te tribe. She was stronger than most males and she shunned the patriarchal culture that existed in the clan before she took over. When Satoshi was born, she and Miles sought to make sure that he wasn’t going to end up like his ancestors. 

While not impossible, a Seeker of the Sun choosing his mother's name to be his last, would amount to shunning his culture and adopting the rules of the Keepers of the Moon. There will be some Seekers of the Sun who will respect this, but others who frown upon it

Satoshi straight up did this and he is looked down on by a  LOT of of his kind that are not the ones that he knows in Limsa L.ominsa

There’s 26 Miqo.te clans for each letter of the Eor.zean alphabet. 

Satsuki’s clan was most likely an offshoot of either the S or K clan. Which happens often with males. Again, Satsuki is just weird. She took a Moon Keeper (Miles) as a husband so...

Some male miqo.te leave the tribe to try and become breeding males for themselves and establish a new clan. most females don’t follow tho so they die out

Satoshi kinda did this? but he left because he couldn’t deal with the grief of losing his parents. no one followed him because they perceived him as weak. 

About names... 

Technically Satoshi and Satsuki should, well, be S’toshi and S’tsuki cause probably of the S tribe bull shit but again, Sats tribe was weird and she was weird and since her tribe was an offshoot, I’m sure she had leeway to screw with some stuff. 

A few facts about the Keeper of the Moon

Roughly a head shorter and smaller of body than the average Hyur, the Keepers of the Moon are distinguishable from their diurnal cousins by their fur, dark as fog, and rounder eyes with large pupils. They also have larger ears, more pronounced canines, and longer, skinnier tails

Though lacking the physical stamina of the Seekers, they make up for this with a fierce strength of will and unerring instincts. With their keen intuition, Keeper hunters have been known to easily snare even targets concealed in the gloom of night.[3] Keepers are known for their reticent and brooding personalities, but are also respected and sometimes feared for their tenacity

Though lacking the physical stamina of the Seekers, they make up for this with a fierce strength of will and unerring instincts. With their keen intuition, Keeper hunters have been known to easily snare even targets concealed in the gloom of night. Keepers are known for their reticent and brooding personalities, but are also respected and sometimes feared for their tenacity

In contrast to the Seekers of the Sun with their male-dominated tribes and harems, the fundamental unit of Keeper of the Moon society is the family, centered around a strong mother figure and her children. Keepers are known to form small communities composed of two or three families who hunt together

Now ya’ll know why Miles miqo.te was so attracted to Satsuki miqo.te. she pretty much embodied everything that the keepers of the moon loved. and im sure miles fell hard and fast. 

satoshi physically resembles seekers of the sun but he absolutely 100 percent loves his keepers brethren outlook more 

satsuki was everything to satoshi

The men of the Keepers of the moon live a wanderer's life, and the women generally believe that men are at their best in small doses. Keepers of the Moon are not raised with a father, and so women and children keep the hearth, ply various trades, and accept game and visits from the menfolk.

idk this just makes me laugh lmfao 

i bet miles tried to leave and satsuki was just “wtf are u doing dumbass’ 

I don’t know much about the mit/hra personally but it does sound like that the keepers of the moon take after them more than the seekers of the sun do 

what follows are my own personal headcanons i guess

evolution wise, miqo.te evolved from the mith.ra and they lost many of the cat like appearance that the mi.thra had. such as the feline like face 

miqo.te can still do things such as pur and they LOVE raw fish. catnip is their worst enemy 

many different clans have various different tattoos for their faces 

their ears are indicative of their mood. 

so is their tail. 

their ears are sensitive! but not in a bad way. some miqo.te dont like it when you touch them but most of the time? they really do

and head scratches ;v;

dont touch their tail tho 

[dmsden]

Worldbuilding 5 – Race to the Finish

Hullo, Gentle Readers. Once again, I’m here to continue work on the Beyond the Borderlands campaign for D&D 5E. After looking at the traditional four races in my last article, I want to look in the section about Unusual Races. There are some old favorites in there, as well as some races that’ve become more prevalent in more recent editions. Let’s take a look and find a home for them. Bear in mind that an earlier version of this article was written when 5E was still the playtest for D&D Next, so some of my choices to outline here might seem curious.

Dragonborn have a very different origin story in 5E, if the playtest package is any indication. They are the children of dragons, literally, when the draconic deities did not give their blessing. For people who prefer 4E dragonborn, there’s a mention that, on some worlds, they breed true as a separate race. 

My first instinct is to adopt the 4E model, but then I think about the potential of dragonborn as the children of true dragons. They can resemble their parent dragons, physically…but would they have similar personalities, as well? Imagine the prejudice leveled at someone who was born a red dragonborn or a blue dragonborn but who’s trying to be a good person. Also, I can see this as a great way to introduce a dragon parent NPC as a mentor figure to the group, or as a ruthless manipulator. 

Drow have held a fascination to many players for ages, and the popularity of Drizzt Do’Urden makes it clear there will be a place for dark elves in D&D for a long time. The 5E drow are clearly the same drow we’ve always known. They have a problem with sunlight, most of the elven racial abilities, and a reference to Lolth in their powers. Given all this, I don’t see the point in messing with a proven formula, so I’ll go with a lot of the classic feel of drow. 

Gnomes are divided into two subspecies – Forest Gnomes (who seem to specialize in illusion) and Rock Gnomes (who seem to be tinkers and artificers.) I had a lot of ideas in 4E about gnomes having been servants to the eladrin in the Feywild and then seeking liberation in the Normal World. I want to do something really different. 

I’m thinking that gnomes might be the “hidden people” of this campaign, sort of analogous to the Picts in England. This gives me some interesting ideas around gnomes being very secretive (hence the illusions) but I’m having trouble meshing this with the Rock Gnomes and their technology. Perhaps the Gnomes wandered here from “somewhere else” (such as the Feywild). The ones that settled in the woods befriended the elves and became more like them, while the Rock Gnomes settled near the dwarves and took on more of their qualities. This could certainly explain the disparity between this race’s two sides. 

The latest version of them game gives us Half-Elves and Half-Orcs. These two races have been staples of D&D for many years, both having evolved from their Tolkien roots.  

Half-Elves are intriguing because they have a bonus to Charisma. That suggests that both humans and elves find the average Half-Elf generally more compelling than average members of even their own races. I will conjecture that each race sees in Half-Elves something that they are not – perhaps elves are attracted to the vitality of the young human race, and humans are attracted to the refinement of the ancient elves. This suggests that Half-Elves can still fulfill the role of natural diplomats, especially between their parent races. It also makes them seem different than previous versions, when they are often shunned by elves.

Half-Orcs are incredibly strong and very menacing. Since they’re more likely to be around their human parents and other civilized races when they’re adventurers, this suggests that humans and others find them very scary. While I’ve done some pretty unique takes on Half-Orcs in the past, I’m thinking I might want to take them back to their roots as a rare and frightening outsider among humankind and its allies. I don’t want to go back to Tolkien’s “race created by a wizard” roots, but it’s sort of intriguing to ponder as a possibility. 

The phrase “the Forsaken People” was what inspired one of 4E’s conceptual artists in reference to the Tieflings. I was happy to see that Tieflings would continue as a part of D&D 5E, as they definitely found a place in my heart. I think I want to take things back to that evocative phrase, reimagining the Tieflings as a people on the bad end of a bargain with Devils. Perhaps they bargained for power but were somehow betrayed.  

From this idea, I come up with a tale about a Warlock-King who wanted the legacy of his kingdom to never be forgotten. He made a deal with Asmodeus and turned himself and his people into the ancestors of Tieflings. In honor for what he had done, the Gods turned their backs on him and his people, who embraced their new Infernal nature. Although the kingdom is all but forgotten (perhaps destroyed by a cataclysm, borrowing a bit from Dragonlance?), its legacy remains stamped on the features of its descendants. 

Glancing at some of the Unearthed Arcana articles, one race jumps out at me as something I want to include. I adore the Eberron setting, and one of the things that setting gave us that stands as an iconic and exciting example of how you can really do something different in D&D is the Warforged, a race that I really love.

I’m thinking that the Warforged were made to protect the Civilized Lands against the dangers of the Borderlands. They represent a combination of the arts of the various civilized folk: dwarven metalwork, gnomish tinkering, elven magic, human imagination, and more. Perhaps at first, they were more primitive, but they’ve been perfected and improved, and then, slowly, they became alive. I also think it might be interesting to have this development have occurred within very recent time – perhaps it’s only just happening now. 

I think this offers and exciting roleplaying possibility, as some of the first Warforged to be self-aware. People might react nervously to them. Are they malfunctioning? Possessed? There’s a lot of meat in this possibility, and I know I’d respond positively as a player.  

All of these races offer some intriguing possibilities, and they’re beginning to suggest elements of my setting’s history. Next time, I’ll begin to look at the classes and how they might offer their own insights.