#particularly enjoy the colors & robotic parts

[iamcautiouslyoptimistic]

Call of Duty but make it 🐺werewolves🐺

{Author's Note} Inspired by @deadbranch's werewolf AU so definitely go check it out. I’ve leaned more into the supernatural aspect than her series has and thought it'd be fun to post it for October hehe. If y'all want some good werewolf/soldier content, check out the "Shape-Shifters" episode from Netflix's Love, Death, and Robots. It fits this AU perfectly and gives a good visual for how things would work. >Call of Duty Werewolves AU -> Part 2 *I’d love hearing any ideas y’all have and would be happy to answer with more headcanons if you guys want. Werewolves and werewolf AUs are my JAM*

~ ~ ~

First, some lore for this AU...

>Werewolves are usually forced into organizations like the military to keep them under control. They are feared by most of humanity and treated more as assets rather than citizens with laws put into place to make sure they don't hurt the people around them. Medication is often taken to suppress their lycanthropy and violent force is used if they ever get out of hand. There are plenty of groups who specialize in the hunting and killing of werewolves.

>Natural werewolves are born with their abilities and have an easier time with their transformations as a result. 

>Bitten werewolves gain their abilities after being bitten by another werewolf. They tend to be more vicious when transformed and often have a harder time managing themselves. 

>Transformations are not dictated by the cycles of the Moon but instead by a werewolf’s will and emotions. However, many werewolves revere the Moon and often hold celebrations as it passes through its phases each month.

>Werewolves only gain about a foot in height when they transform, due to the shape of their feet changing and their spine lengthening to allow for quadrupedal movement (ex. 6'4" -> 7'4"). Their muscle mass/weight remain about the same as it is the face and head that undergo the most dramatic changes.

>Hair length and style remain relatively the same when transformed. Bitten werewolves tend to have less hair than natural werewolves. 

>Eyes are reflective in both forms; natural werewolves keep their human eye colors when transformed, while bitten werewolves tend to have more unusual eye colors (brown to amber, blue to silver, etc.). 

>Moon madness/blindness is when a werewolf is overwhelmed by the light of a full moon and transforms without meaning to, regressing to a state of mind that is driven more by instinct rather than higher reason (werewolf equivalent to human psychosis). This is more common among bitten werewolves and can lead to violent outbursts if not properly addressed.

>Among werewolves, moonstones are said to restore a werewolf’s humanity when they’ve lost control. Because of their relative rarity, however, this belief exists only in the realm of legend rather than truth. 

🌙 🐺 🌙

💲Price is well-known for his experience and the ease with which he can transform. He commands those around him with confidence, acting as a supporting presence and capable leader. He should never be underestimated, however, as his temper frightens even the toughest werewolves.

💀Ghost was nearly killed by the werewolf who turned him and so views his lycanthropy as more of a curse. He bears numerous scars from the attack and tends to be quite vicious when transformed. He is the largest of the 141 with oversized fangs, tufted ears, and blazing amber eyes. 

🧼Soap comes from a family of Scottish werewolves who eagerly embrace their lycanthropy. He has great control over his transformations and suffers little pain as a result. His trademark Mohawk and bright blue eyes remain when shifted, making him easily identifiable.

🧢Gaz still struggles with his transformations after being bitten but he doesn't find them particularly overwhelming. Price and Soap have both been a huge help in that regard, offering their advice and companionship when needed. He's become far more confident in his abilities and enjoys the company of his fellow lycanthropic soldiers.

🦿Alex was attacked by a moon-blinded werewolf and unfortunately lost his lower left leg as a result. He's managed to find enjoyment in his new life, however, thanks in part to his association with the 141, and uses his enhanced abilities to his advantage. Laswell had a unique prosthetic made for him that adapts to his transforming body.

🪦Graves is a born-and-bred werewolf. He’s proud of his abilities and encourages use of them among his Shadows. He makes for a loyal and headstrong soldier who is known for his disarming charm and willingness to get his hands dirty. Shadow Company functions more as a tight-knit family rather than a horde of military operatives, due primarily to Graves’ leadership and his embracing of their lycanthropy.

[stupidfuckingwindow]

One NSFW hc for (almost) every character // Part one

Notes: This was my attempt at a solution for writer's block. Let's hope it worked. Also I will NOT be writing a headcanon for Jerry later on because he was a real guy and that feels.. Weird.

Word count: 789

Richard Haywood

Absolute whore at every turn or time. Oh, you're away and in class, not paying attention to your phone? Well, look at that. There's an unsolicited dick pic from Richard's contact. That, or you and whoever you're showing something to is getting an eyeful of sexts that are meant to piss you off. That, or you're going to hear all about when he snuck off to go fuck either Justin or some random girl, all to get you jealous. When pissed off during an argument, Richard probably will grab you by the throat or shoulders and lick your face out of some strange, gay little impulse. What a weirdo.

Henry Letham

A lot of painplay with Henry is expected. He'll often cry during sex and needs both a cigarette and a minute to himself. By the time you come back to check on him with a warm rag and towel, he's quiet and there's another burn to his skin. It isn't that Henry hates the touch or attention- He's just overwhelmed at sudden want and tends to overthink things. Henry often backs himself into a corner on accident, and a bit of reassurance is all that's needed to help him, even if it seems like he's not listening or doesn't respond. Henry tends to remember every little thing about you and what you do, keeping it in mind for if he ever needs that information again. Severe thigh kink. Likes fucking your thighs, painting them, and touching them. Looks yummy in thigh highs as well.

Officer K

Considering that he's a robot, there's so much potential here. His dick vibrates, for one, and his cum is just neon colored lube. It takes a little while for him to get hard, and a fuck ton of stimulation is going to be needed. K also prefers sleepy sex, being able to hold you and have his cock warmed while the two of you just quietly unwind in one another's presence. He also enjoys long, hot showers with you for the same reason of getting to relax and being able to feel you close to him. You'll often cockwarm him while he works, especially when you're both not feeling particularly up to actually fucking. Sex with K is rare, and when it does ever happen, he takes his time.

Colt Seavers

Thick, tall, and heavy. Hoooh boy, Colt is big. He's muscular in his arms and thighs, with a belly and hip dips. Colt has a lot of hair, as well, and you best believe it's long and messy. He's so warm. Colt also has to eat a lot to maintain his energy, and his metabolism is high. He's the one who introduced food play into the bedroom, liking how it combined many of his interests. Colt loves it when you ride him. He knows he barely fits, and foreplay is always needed before anything happens between the two of you. Sex usually ends in him getting overly excited and a little rough. Colt falls asleep pretty quickly afterwards, and needs a little help staying awake long enough for Aftercare.

Noah Calhoun

Smells like pine, tree sap, and sawdust. Expect long, slow, and sleepy sex on the couch with a blanket thrown over the two of you. He usually does this with you late at night or in the afternoon, when neither of you have responsibilities. He likes moving your hips while you bury your face in his neck. That, or fucking you to sleep until he's too tired to keep going. Constantly touching you, whether that be your hips or tracing patterns into your skin or simply holding you. Noah likes feeling strong, and often carries you around the house for fun all while making excuses. The floor’s too cold for your feet, you'll freeze to death! even though it's hot as hell outside. Also makes excuses to take care of you at all times. You're getting his god awful ‘random things found in the fridge’ soup when sick whether you like it or not.

Julian Thompson

Number one bondage fan right here. Julian likes the restraint put upon either you, or himself. He feels safe when you tie him up, and revels in the rare control he can get when you're tied up instead. It's a common joke that Julian sits in the corner and stays quiet, but the cuck chair was made for him. You're usually tying him to the chair while he watches you touch yourself, or touching him while he's restrained. Julian also isn't opposed to you leaving him with just a vibrator for hours at a time, as well as having a cock cage outside of the bedroom. He feels secure whenever he's restrained.

[feluka]

The line “I wanted you to know more about me” has NEVER left me because I don’t think I’ve ever seen the experience of loneliness summed up better.

All characters’ backstories have been revealed to Sigma as background context to more crucial information that Sigma needed to know, aside from Quark who wanted Sigma to know about Tenmyouji true character.

But this bit.. isn’t even in Luna’s ending! It’s in Sigma’s! And doesn’t particularly tie up to more crucial plot lines, not until she brings up the laws of robotics, at least.

In face, a lot of Luna’s ambient dialogue in escape rooms pertains to facts about herself and has very little to do with the puzzles. She casually tells you that her favourite color is green, and that she would like to wear a wedding dress one day.

Luna just wanted to feel seen and known.

And if that isn’t the summary of the plight of loneliness, I don’t know what is. Because that’s the scariest part, really, that you feel unknown. And that feels like you’re a speck of dust floating alone in a big, big world with nothing tethered to you. And it feels so, so good when someone knows things about you, when someone knows what your favourite color is, when someone knows your favourite place is, when someone walks by a shop window and thinks of you, thinks that you’d enjoy this thing.. this is what makes you feel anchored and safe, like you’re being held in place and aren’t just going to drift away.

Everything Luna says makes me feel like there’s a lump in my throat that won’t go away.

[happysadyoyo]

@pillowspace So... this isn't the time loop au but I thought you might enjoy something a little different considering I'm going to be spending my next few ficlets doubling down on the whump. I really really like dangerous Moon and exploring the cruelty of turning a daycare attendant into an assistant murderer.

So to counterbalance that I'm gonna write a little bit of clone au, and am tagging you in it for the love and maintenance of caring for your resident DCA. If you don't want to be tagged or see the other parts it's okay to let me know!

____

When you applied, it'd been for a laugh. You'd never expected to be standing outside a large plexi and metal cylinder, watching as a seven foot (eight foot? You've never been particularly good at guessing sizes) jester animatronic be tested by a diagnostic robot.

Honestly, you have no idea what you're doing, really.

The computer in front of you dings, and you glance at it. Everything had gone green except for a part in the animatronic's chest. You squint and check your notes on what to do before opening the service chamber.

"Hello! How does everything look doc?" The animatronics' personalities aren't shut down during maintenance, a fact that had startled you the first time you'd been tasked to touch up the paint on the wolf's nails. Roxy? She wasn't one of the originals, so you found it harder to remember her name.

This one is new too. A sun themed jester for the daycare with flexible rays that softly flutter as it watches you pick up a wrench. It doesn't have pupils, possibly so the children don't know where it's looking and discourage misbehaviour. You're not sure how it wouldn't be off-putting.

Then again, this animatronic was designed by the same company who hired a biologist in place of a mechanic, so maybe you shouldn't be so surprised. Fazbear seems like a company that failed upwards despite shooting itself in both feet and eyes.

Ha, your sense of humor is coming back. Your therapist will be pleased.

You stand in front of the animatronic now, tapping the wrench lightly against its front panel. "Oh, are you hoping for a surprise? Sorry, but we don't have a cake hatch like the glamrocks." It does help with unlatching it's hatch, pulling the ruffle around its neck up, the sun rays retracting as you feel for the indentations along the smooth ridge of metal. It had to be hidden and baby proofed since it was a daycare attendant.

The hatch swings open and the smell of burning plastic is accompanied by an outpouring of glitter, falling over your hands and apron, the operating table and onto your shoes and the grubby floor below. You stare at the rainbow of color before looking up at the animatronic blankly.

It has released its ruffle and waves its hands apologetically. "I am so sorry. Of course I'll help clean it up but ---" Your blank stare comes across as unnerving for most people, but you're surprised when it seems to affect the animatronic as well. "A little one decided they wanted to make me pretty since it's been awhile since I've had the chance to clean up. I must've forgotten all about it with how busy I've been. How bad is it inside?" It tries to peer inside, but the rays get in the way.

You look too, covering your mouth and nose with one hand. It's not too bad, you guess. Most of the glitter has melted around the hottest moving parts, and the fan was clogged, making it all the worse. You snap a picture before showing it to the animatronic. It wasn't. A conscious thing to do. Later, you would reason it out as a way to document your work. There was no way the higher ups would like you tinkering so much otherwise.

"Oh! Well, that is bad I suppose. Thank you for showing me." The animatronic watches you curiously as you set down your wrench, going back to the table in search of something. "I've not caught your name friend. I'm Sun! Or Sunny to friends. I'd like to think we're friends, since you're going inside me."

There's a moment of hesitation, and you take the time to test the can you've found. It hisses sluggishly, making you frown. You can feel the animatronic's eyes on you. Sun, Sunny. Your hand twitches involuntarily, and you drop the can.

"Oh!" You hear Sunny move, and turn in time to see him taking one long stride to bend and fetch the can. It holds the hatch still, keeping it from smacking into your arm. "Here you go. I saw you don't like bending down so..."

You're face to plate with it now, and you can hear the mechanics in its head clicking and whirring softly. You can't shake the feeling that it's looking past your skin and inside you, all the way down into your marrow. You shiver and push it back, rubbing your arms and looking to the side. Ignoring its apologies as it returns to the table, still holding the can of air.

You find a new can and test it as well. It hisses sharply, blowing specks of glitter off your sleeve. When you return to the table, you hold out your phone again. Typed out on it is your name.

Delicate long fingers wrap around yours so the animatronic can read the small text. They're warm and smooth and it surprises you how softly it holds you. "Ah, that is a lovely name. It's like sunshine."

When it lets go, you can't help the heat creeping up your neck from the compliment. Or, more rightly so, the very genuine sounding warmth that came from Sunny's voice. How could that be programmed in?

[everydaydg]

Some thoughts on Mazinkaiser! (2001)

I was expecting a fun time and I sure got one.

Mazinkaiser is short 7 episode mecha OVA animated by Brain's Base (Well known for their works on Getter Robo, Natsume's Book of Friends, "Durarara!!" and so on) that is an absolute love letter to Go Nagai's work, bringing an beautifully animated thrill ride of a series.

Mazinkaiser is just... a joy to watch. Its not too deep, its not too complicated, its just... koji kabuto gets his ass beat and then finds a robot with the power to become a god or a demon. While I do enjoy when my mecha delves into deeper themes using the big robot as a narrative device... its fun seeing when the robot is just a big robot and just a simple simbol of hope.

Mazinkaiser doesnt really go too deep on the idea of becoming a god or demon thing as much as Mazinger Zero, and it doesnt really have to honestly, but the theme is kinda present.

So in a runtime of arround 210 minutes (This is just a rough estimate assuming that every episode is 30 minutes long, most hover arround the 25-27 minute mark so that number is pretty off), how does it fare? pretty damm well

Its really enjoyable, kinda episodic in a way. It doesnt really shoot for a sequencial story like that of "Change! Getter Robo!" but there are elements that carry over from one episode to the next.

It is mostly a monster of the week type of deal which is neato!

Ya get to see this big hulking robot defeat things with increasing stakes with some jawdropping animation.

I know saying Brain's Base animations are fantastic has a similar energy to saying water is wet but god damm it, Water IS wet

Its a treat to the eyes

Fantastic use of color, particularly black. Using strong shadows while not shying away from beautifully vibrant reds.

Its all fantastic. Heres a small clip of it in action.

Beautiful.

Another thing I have to give to Mazinkaiser is its great sense of scale on the robots.

The mechabeast are bigger than buildings, alot of damage is done to houses, hotels, towers and so on.

Mazinkaiser is often presented as this huge hulking beast of a robot and I LOVE IT! They give it great presence and an amazing silouhette that is often used to create some of the best shots of the OVA.

I might as well go ahead and talk about one of my favorite parts of the OVA while im at it... Mazinkaiser itself.

Absolutely striking design, Brain's Base did slight tweaks to its SRW F design in order to create this machine with a menacing presence, you can feel the power it has by the way it looks

and I feel the way its portrayed in the OVA itself is great! Working towards making it feel like an unbeatable beast in an exiting way that does not make the entire thing boring.

Lemme give a different example so you have an idea of what I mean.

Getter Robo. Most Getter OVAs portray the titular robot as a glass cannon that recieves mayor damage but can in turn dish out insane damage and that is very clearly seen in the multiple shots dedicated to the damaged robot. This often creates desperate scenes where the main characters have to fight in dire situacions as the machine is falling appart. This is quite engaging for the viewer as the result of the fights is often uncertain with this in mind.

Well Mazinkaiser goes ahead and showcases... a robot with no weaknesses

This in paper might create a boring experience where the viewer will always expect the invincible robot to win. Brain's Base had to walk a fine line of making the unbeatable robot beatable and unbeatable at the same time... yet they somehow did it... by not making the robot beatable

Koji being a human makes for some scenes where its not about the survival of the robot... but its pilot

and thats how they get the element of uncertainty and the exitement of the viewer.

The power of the robot is often too much to handle for him, the fact that a ship has to be inserted at the top of the machine to work leaves him vulnerable for prollonged periods of time, electric attacks get to the cockpit, Koji passes out in the damm robot like twice.

Koji being the only pilot for such a machine and him being so vulnerable adds stakes to everything and the OVA uses this idea to its fullest, presenting ordeals with Koji outside of Kaiser that are incredibly tense (the bike fight against the androids come to mind)

Sidenote: A smart choise that I apreciate is the fact that the only visible sign of mayor damage done to Kaiser is on the final battle. It makes the final beast even more threatening, setting the scene. "Oh god this thing can actually damage the robot, it even broke Koji's manual controls!"

I love it! its a great way to make the experience thrilling while not sacrificing the concept of a robot with no weaknesses

The story itself is not much to talk about. As I said, is as deep as Koji blowing up and getting a cool new robot. While it does have serious moments, its often lighthearted and hopeful with some great touches of comedy, mazinkaiser can be a really funny OVA some times... emphasis on sometimes, some jokes dont hit (Not a big fan of EP.4) but it has more hits than misses imo

Imo what trully makes the simple premise click is the characters.

Koji is such a fun guy to have as your protagonist, arrogant and passionate in the best way possible, very much inline with his other appearances in media.

Its an absolute joy seeing his chemistry with Boss and Sayaka! who are also an absolute joy here.

Boss, despite mostly being comic relief, is a great character! He is being a bit of an ass at times, you can genuinely tell he cares for his friends.

While yes I am not too happy about how much boss gets shit on at times... he does deserve it sometimes ngl and he does get a huge role in episode 6 which works as a bit of a redemption for him. (I absolutely love what they did with boss in ep.6)

Sayaka is a bit of the straightman of the group, keeping Kouji and Boss in check and giving them crap at times (for good reason most of the time).

Despite it, all that you can tell that she deeply cares for these two and wants to see them safe.

Confident and bold always wanting to help in battle, shes great

(also Its always fun seeing when Koji and Sayaka hang out as a couple, they are cute.)

The three have always had alot of chemistry together and Mazinkaiser does a good job with em

The background characters are also a joy! The scientists, Lori and Loru, Prof. Yumi, Mucha, Nuke, they are all great.

The whole thing goes to great lenghts to create a genuinely enjoyable cast of characters that are all brought to life by an incredible cast of voice actors

We have:

Hiroya Ishimaru who gave a great performance as Koji (This was his last role as the character and what a great way to go out on), Ai Uchikawa as Sayaka, Fumihiko Tachiki as Boss (Voice of Gendo Ikari from Evangelion), Haruko Kitahama and Hidekatsu Shibata as Baron Ashura and it goes on and on.

They all give a fantastic performance (ASHURA SPECIALLY LIKE GOD DAMM- THEY WENT OFF.

May you rest in peace Haruko)

Only complain here is that Tetsuya kinda just leaves for... most of the story which makes me sad, I wanted to see what they did with him but I understand how it would be hard to fit him in (specially without great mazinger)

Alright, lets move on to another aspect I quite enjoyed! The Soundtrack!

Kazuo Nobuta (Composer for Shin Getter Robo vs Neo Getter Robo and New Getter Robo) and JAM Project made the soundtrack for this and they went above and beyond for this!

Creating a score that perfectly compliments every scene... they did it again god damm it.

I became an absolute fan of their work after Shin vs Neo and my god... Mazinkaiser is right next to Shin vs Neo in terms of score and mayor themes.

Lets start with the Opening and Ending themes and then move on to the score

"FIRE WARS" is a FANTASTIC opening theme

I absolutely love the small period of time JAM Project had were they were leaning hard into rock, it lead to some killer songs. Id say Fire Wars is the poster child of this period.

"TORNADO"... fantastic ending theme, starting with a fantastic piano, then hitting you with a sudden rise followed up by a beautiful acoustic guitar... and then it hits ya with the drums and violins that go along with the hopeful lyrics.

Even if the future is uncertain, even if the night is ever restless, there is reason to fight on. Fight for those that you love.

With bonds as strong as steel, we will fly again. Spirit as strong as a Tornado.

The entire thing is amazing and it feeds into Mazinkaiser being a symbol of hope, emphasing Koji's endless fight for everything he loves.

Fantastic

While this isnt an OP or Ending theme... Its still necesary to bring up:

"THEME OF MAZINKAISER"

HooHOOO... this song is used as the backdrop to some of the best fights. What a wonderful theme

Ichiro was KILLING it in the studio for this soundtrack!!

They killed it with the three mayor themes!

And it just keeps going with the score!

Take a listen!

You can easly hear Nobuta's style come through in all of the mayor compositions.

Distress, Passion, Hope.

Perfectly encapsulating the feelings of each scene... even the goofy ones!

Its a total treat to the ears!

I could keep going and going on some aspects I thoroughly enjoyed but I think you get the idea.

My only mayor problem with it is the Episode 4 in leaning too hard on beach tropes and... well the escape scene... eghhhh I dunno

Maybe Getter Robo conditioned me into expecting great hand to hand combat (especially New Getter) so seeing Koji just use Sayaka- eghhhh thats a no for me chief.

If you know you know.

Anyway.

Mazinkaiser is another hit by Brain's Base! Creating a fantastic action OVA that pays respect to its source (Mazinger Z) by mainting good character writting and by creating greatly choreographed mecha fights.

A thrilling ride that any fan of mecha has to check out!

Trully amazing! I don't regret checking it out one bit

Not even gonna proof read this, its just a whole lotta hoey from me as per usual and its like 12 am in the morning lmao. Apologies if some things are hard to read, english aint my first language and I often go by how some words are pronounced instead of how they are actually written so some errors slip by. Thank you for reading.

[staticl0ve]

The Boy Next Door: Watermelon Sugar Pt.2 *

A human AU series featuring the RK boys.

Parings: Human!Connor / Female Reader Rating: Explicit/ NSWF 18+ Chapters (AO3): [ Part 1 ] [ Part 2 ] Word Count: 2.8k Warnings: Smut, oral (f!receiving), breeding kink if you squint Summary: He’s known you all your life. He’s the boy next door: sweet, considerate, and he’s absolutely head over heels and you are the densest best friend he’s ever had. A/N: This was such a fun alt universe to write! The next one up is: Sixty 💙✨

This wasn’t a date.

You repeated that like a mantra while Connor was busy annihilating targets in a sling shot game. It was increasingly harder to believe your little mantra when he turned to you, all bright-eyed and proud with a stuffed bear in his arms. This one looked a lot like the one in your room but with a little pink bow.

“A friend for Sumo,” he said, his cheeks flushed as pink as the bow.

It looked more like a girlfriend for the bear you secretly called Connor in your time away but gender color stereotypes aside, you grinned at him while accepting the gift.

“Thank you,” you replied with a mouth still full of cotton candy and now an armful of soft teddy bear. “You’re way too good at that game.”

“All those visits to the shooting range with my dad has finally paid off,” he joked.

“With skills like that, do you ever regret not joining the police academy?”

Instead of answering you first, he leaned over, his eyes narrowed in focus. Your face twisted in mock anger when he stole a bite of your cotton candy. Connor glanced up, his tongue slowly and sensually dragging across his lips, like he was savoring every molecule of the melting sugar. Your eyes widened marginally, your heart leaping up into your throat. If he noticed, you couldn’t tell, the corner of his mouth twitching out of sight.

“Mmm, strawberry,” he noted before answering you, sounding suspiciously too innocent and ignorant of the effects he was having on you. “The police academy wasn’t right for me. I really enjoy what I’m working on now.”

Besides having been a soccer captain hunk, he was also a really into engineering and had spent a few college summers as an intern at a cutting edge tech company: Cyberlife. Robotics engineering was a little out of your wheel house of understanding but you did catch that it wasn’t as exciting as building the kind of robot that movies all alluded to. The company did offer a variety of smart devices to make household chores a thing of the past.

“You mean designing stuff so that a smart vacuum can detect dog poop?”

“Hey, the new model does have a better mapping feature,” he mused.

A loud pop made you jump, your arms clutching onto the bear for dear life. Colorful lights showered down from the sky, your jaw dropping in surprise.

“Fireworks!” You exclaimed before looking at him. “You said there was a Ferris Wheel right?”

Much to your delight, the Ferris Wheel was a front row seat for watching the sparks of color explode and streak over the park. And much to Connor’s delight, his seat had a slightly better view which meant you were leaning on him with your chin propped on his shoulder. A particularly colorful display lit the skies in red and gold, fading into blue and green.

“Wow, it’s so pretty,” you commented.

He hummed in agreement, his head dipping down until his forehead rested on yours.

“You’re so pretty,” he said with a cheeky grin like he knew how cheesy it sounded.

It should have been the most god awful line you’ve ever heard in your history of terribly timed pick up lines but it was Connor who said it. The boy you’ve been in love with since you danced with him once upon a homecoming eve.

“Connor…”

His hand slipped gently around your face pulling you closer until his lips pressed softly against yours. It felt feather light, like dipping a toe in lake water and slowly building up into a roaring fire. You tasted like strawberries, of summers full of laughter, of home. If he had known it would be like this, he would have kissed you in your little glittery dress all those years ago. He was eager to make up for lost time, his hands wandering up over your body until one tangled in your hair with a light grip and you moaned.

“Fuck,” he whispered when you both separated.

He looked breathless, eyes half lidded, brain full fantasies playing in his head as he drank in your equally eager expression. The ride came to its conclusion and he helped you out of your seat by pulling you into another kiss, apologizing when you laughed into his lips.

“Do you want to get out of here?” You asked.

“I thought you wanted to ride the carousel. For old times sake?”

You pulled him down by his shirt collar and whispered into his ear, “I can think of better things to ride.”

-

The full sized bed of your childhood room was not the most ideal size for two people, but you weren’t even sure if you’d make it to your room. Especially not when you were dealing with Mr. Grabby-Hands.

“Oh my god, Connor-“ you barely had a chance to laugh, your protest swallowed by a pair of eager lips.

He was all over you the moment the front door to your home shut, shedding his clothes and pulling at yours while you both half stumbled through hallways and stairs. The adorable teddy with a pink bow was carelessly discarded on some spot beside your other bear. Your bedroom was dim, save for one bedside lamp lighting up the upper half of your body. You were perfectly fine with no lights but Connor had some opinions on the matter.

“Please, I need to see you,” he said.

He was on his knees kneeling on top of you, nestled comfortably between your thighs. Dark eyes raked over your body, his fingers skimming across your skin in faint, ticklish touches. His hands gently kneaded your breasts, his thumb and index finger lightly pinching a nipple. Your hand ran down the pillar of his chest like a cat, nails digging into his firm pecs, his tensing abs, your thumb mindlessly following one freckle to another.

“You’re unbelievable,” you muttered to him.

An ocean roared in his ears, his heart singing in joy and disbelief. He was sure if he shut his big brown eyes that this would all be another hopeless dream of his. You felt so present, skin hot and legs draped around his waist, his weeping tip drawing a wet trail all over your belly. He was so wound up, cock burning against your soft skin, all sophisticated forms of thought dissolved into one singular need.

“Connor…” you sounded as equally rapt as he was, your voice low and sultry, the vowels of his name rolling off your tongue like a purr.

He cursed, his lips cutting off the sound by sucking at your pulse. This wasn’t a dream and you were driving him wild with your moans. Your thighs opened up wider, hips shifting in an invitation and he damn near came when he ran his length past your dripping, welcoming folds. He heard you mumble something about being on the pill earlier, not that he didn’t come prepared but knowing that inspired a lot of ideas, a lifetime backlog of them and the night had barely begun.

“I’ve wanted to do this for so long,” he muttered while trailing sloppy, wet kisses and love bites along your neck and jaw.

“Me, too,” you replied.

That sobered him up like a splash of ice water. He straightened up, propped his head on one arm and stared at you incredulously.

“What?”

You blinked innocently back at him, confused.

“I…have always wanted to do this?”

“I have been in love with you for my whole childhood and…” he laughed, “…you’re telling me that we’ve both been complete idiots?”

Oh.

“Connor,” you sighed, your lips spreading into a bright smile. “How have we been so blind?”

His nose lined up to yours, his eyes closing with a shake of his head. He surprised you when he recovered from the shock of the reveal by crushing his lips on yours. Your tongues met in the middle, but he was a man starved and pushed into your mouth. He explored every crevice, mapped every detail and didn’t part until you were panting and gasping for air.

“We have so much to make up for,” he murmured against your lips.

“Is that so?” You challenged.

Your hips rose until you could feel him almost pressing into you, his breath hot and heavy in your face while he let out a desperate moan.

“Let me taste you first. I need to,” he said.

At your nod, he managed to pull away from you, his face moving to burrow between your thighs. With a sigh, you ran your hand through his soft hair, giggling when the faintest bit of his stubble tickled your skin. He was so warm, his tongue comparatively rough on the silky texture of your clit. You didn’t expect him to be so loud — scandalous, wet squishing sounds joining the moans and groans from you both. You’ve never been more grateful to have the house to yourselves. 

“Oh my go-“ your cry broke out into a series of whimpers.

His thumb replaced his tongue, his mouth lowering further. He licked a stripe through your folds, hot saliva mixing with your slick until he decided he needed more, thrusting his tongue slowly into you. You rewarded him with little whimpers and moans the more starved and rougher he got, the sounds vibrating down his spine and ricocheting to his crotch.

Your bed was a little too small for his tall frame, the mattress sinking from his weight was something he only dreamed of. Now, he was here and could finally taste that which was sweeter than watermelon sugar, hear you scream his name and writhe in his arms. He was so tuned into being between your thighs, tongue plunging into your pulsing walls that he almost didn’t notice you were begging, pleading something to him.

“C-Connor. I-I can’t.”

The way you said his name so desperately though, didn’t make him stop initially. Your hands were feebly gripping his hair, your hips torn between trying to buck him off or give him more access. He realized you were making those sweet sounds because you’d already climaxed and he was torturing your sensitive nerves.

“M’sorry,” Connor slurred with a smirk while wiping his chin. “You taste so good.”

He came up to you, lips colliding with yours to give you a sample of the sweetness.

“You have no idea…how often I’ve imagined what that would be like,” he said, trailing hot kisses across your cheek. “Do you remember that camping trip after college graduation?”

How could you forget? The temperatures dropped significantly and he was the smarter one that packed a winter sleeping bag so it was the longest night of your life sharing his — platonically.

His lips were now at your ear, his teeth pulling gently at your earlobe.

“I think about it all the time,” he bit harder before continuing, “…about how I could have kept you warm without the sleeping bag.”

He was still so hard and so impossibly close to being in you, the tip of his cock rubbing into your clit instead and drawing little sparks up your abdomen.

“Would you have wanted me to?”

“Yes! God, Connor-“

His hips pulled back to line himself up to you, his arms moving to prop his body up by his elbows beside your head. You looked wild, your hair a mess on the pillow beneath you, sweat brimming at the top of your forehead and so needy for him. Your hands went straight into his brunette locks, pushing the back of his head until his face was low enough for you to kiss. He heard you whisper a plea with his name and he finally pushed into you.

Your nails dug into his shoulders, feeling your walls stretch and mold around every hot ridge of his length. Years of pining — mutual pining — as it would turn out, melting away with every inch he gave, and every bit you took. Connor went stiff above you, limbs locking like he short circuited. He was only capable of holding his mouth open in a silent moan, his nose digging into your cheek, eyes pinched shut.

God, he didn’t think it’d feel this good. To be completely lost in another person, engulfed by their love. He’d taken on other lovers before, girlfriends that he liked but his love for you was a weight that kept them at an arms length. Countless of explanations for why he’d travel miles to see a friend, just a friend, wearing any relationship thin. He should have realized it through the fog of his anxieties, he could kick himself for not seeing it. Over the years you gave him lingering touches, bolder and more flirtatious interactions…it wasn’t just in his head, it was real and he was so caught up in the land of what ifs to see it all.

His cock was burning hot between your legs, your muscles fluttering and relaxing around him. He slowly eased out of you, the thick head of him throbbing at the edges of your core. A small smile grew on his lips at your moan of frustration. Your calves tightening around his waist and butt did nothing to move the marble statue above you, a chuckle ripping through his chest.

“Please. You’re driving me insane,” you said.

“I’m sorry, I just…I just needed to see it for myself,” he apologized while stretching you back open for the harsh forward snap of his hips.

“See, ah — w-what?”

“See how much you want this.“

He didn’t leave room for you to talk back, let alone breathe, his hips setting a much rougher pace. Your nails clawed into the skin along his shoulder blades, leaving little marks that he’ll wear proudly in the morning. He pulled you up by your hips at some point, almost mindlessly fucking into you until all you could do was cling onto him for the ride of your life.

“I’ve always wanted it to be you, Connor,” you managed between moans. “It was always you.”

“F-fuck,” he breathed, his hips losing rhythm.

One of his hands left your hips and dove straight for the nub between your thighs. He groaned louder when you clenched around him tighter, the muscles of his thighs flexing to drive his cock deeper. Sweat beaded down his spine, your bodies melding together in heat and flesh. The words you were pleading to him weren’t very coherent, but his heart almost stopped when he heard your little request.

“I want…I want you to cum inside me, please.”

Yes. A thousand times, yes.

With one last circle drawn across your clit, your world shattered, became a blinding world of light as he pulled another scream out of you. You were practically milking him, your walls pulsing and eagerly coaxing him to paint you with his seed. His teeth were on your shoulder, your name a muffled moan on your skin as his cum spurted deep into you. He rocked his hips forward a few times, pushing his release in deeper before finally slipping out of you.

You didn’t get much respite, his fingers plunging in like plugs to push his cum back into you, his tall frame slipping down your body to your thighs, again. A feeble protest was on the tip of your tongue. Connor seemed to have sensed that and with practiced ease, sucked your clit while his fingers curled into you.

“W-what are you up to?” You asked between pants.

“I’m going to clean you,” he said it like it was some average Friday night activity of his.

He did more than that, but it was him who drew the line at over stimulation when you sat on his lap and wouldn’t stop grinding onto him long after he came. You eventually got tackled back into the bed, the sheets damp and sticky. Not that it mattered since you were both equally filthy. A shower was needed, but that could wait until after a short cuddle. His face fell onto a pillow next to yours, his arms wrapping you tightly in a bear hug.

He didn’t think he could ever let you go, his heart expanding in his chest as you snuggled closer. When he was younger, Hank used to always bemoan the passing of time, how fleeting it was. The early years of Connor’s childhood had become faint memories that he rarely shared when meeting new people. Like black and white film bursting into color, those moments were much more vibrant around you. He could close his eyes and see the disco lights spinning over your skin, the romantic lure of an old love song that would ultimately be a song you’d hear again.

The words slipped past his mouth before he even considered if it would be too soon to say it, given the lifetime he had already waited.

“I love you,” Connor said.

You didn’t skip a beat, your face rising to kiss his lips.

“I love you too,” you replied.

He had a dream one day of you years later in a white dress, and even later of a home in a suburb, of holding you underneath an oak tree, only to be interrupted by the playful screams of a child. You had looked at him with eyes full of wonder and awe, poking him in the chest.

“Whenever you’re done daydreaming, it’s your turn to be bad cop,” you said with a wink.

Connor blinked.

You were beaming up at him with a bright smile before squealing as he kissed you hard, the taste of strawberries on his tongue.

No more daydreams.

He was already awake.

[beefriender]

Today i went to a lego convention that was in town, but i lacked the foresight to actually sign up to display anything. So instead i will be posting photos i took at home of the stuff i brought there to display online

now this first one is perhaps my largest moc whom i built roughly exactly a year ago. i had been watching gundam with a couple friends and. really. really liked the guntank. his shoulders can open up and this thing is by no means complete, as evidenced by the haphazard color placement and awkward leg joints (he can transform, kinda.) i am mostly proud of his arms and especially his gun. he weighs like 5 pounds hes a really really big guy

next one and maybe my favorite is an old bionicle MOC i had created 2-3 years prior, in the spirit of halloween actually. can you tell that skullman is one of my favorite robot masters? i think its kinda obvious. im particularly fond of the shape i was able to make with his whole like spine ribcage thing going on, but it doesnt hold up spectacularly to time as i have to replace some of the parts frequently. such is the life of style

as for this one, this is my oldest moc, and what got me ultimately back full swing into lego again. he is (heavily) based on swordman from megaman 8 as i think he just has an awesome concept and design. this is especially apparent in the VERY unusual way his torso and hips connect, as to kindof mimic the weird magnet thing sword man has for his body and of course his giant sword arm. i dont really display it here but his hands are fun and can kinda articulate but they never make "natural" looking poses, but they make one hell of a fist shape and can hold objects. i mentioned this guy is my oldest but that is merely "the oldest moc i havent scrapped apart" and has a very long (relatively) history. i built him long ago in mid 2016 and he actually had most of the same looks as he does now. his legs for instance havent actually been changed once since i built them and the right arm shares the same fate. his torso used to be one big part but i completely rebuilt it with a bunch of smaller parts in 2019 and even though it looks basically the same im satisfied i was able to accomplish that look completely on my own. and of course his strange connection in the middle has always been there, though they used to not have those friction extensions, which made him hilariously floppy, but he still could stand on his own with good balancing. his sword arm used to be a regular arm and he just carried two very large swords, that sword arm i actually finally built much later in 2019 when i finally had the cash that let me buy a sword worthy of such an important build in my life. he likely will persist through my life and i will never be truly done but this is a great milestone to show off to others right now

coming off of that massive block of text for a time long gone, we have a silly little ride armor once again inspired by megaman that i quite enjoy. there isnt a whole lot to say but that gun can spin and i think that is the most important thing any toy could have and finally.

crab

[trickstarbrave]

hey guys do u wanna see it so far. bc its breaking my heart and i am. suffering.

wip based on an au from @mulberrycafe, set in vivi’s story where a reincarnation of vivec is the dragonborn, but this one featuring nerevar and voryn’s reincarnations finding each other again

cw for depression and thoughts of suicide

Nerevar smiled as he finished another lecture at the temple, though the smile did not reach his eyes. 

He had walked as Nerevar so long as the Nerevarine that he became Nerevar in body as well. His dunmer skin faded, the curse of Azura being washed away to reveal stunning chimer gold once more. It was a great honor, one he thought that maybe, as the years went on, his people could enjoy as well. He fought hard for them, for their safety, and to reform Morrowind as the Hortator once more. No longer did anyone dare call him ‘outlander’ after his accent took on the full dunmeri accent and the truth was known across every corner of Morrowind. 

And then the Red Year came, ravaging across the land. Baar Dau came crashing down after Vivec suddenly vanished, and Red Mountain erupted. Most of mainland Morrowind was plagued with tidal waves and raging ash storms that destroyed villages, and barely anything remained of the former island of Vvardenfell. Refugees came to Mournhold, then pooled out into Solstheim after the empire gave it to Morrowind, and then further into Skyrim in desperation. 

Still, the people had hope so long as Nerevar was there, sun glinting off his skin and proclaiming their people were going to survive. Worship of the Good Daedra was reinstated, and slowly they began their recovery. Nerevar was a beacon of hope once more. 

And yet, Nerevar didn’t have it in him to be truly happy. 

He should be. His people survived and were slowly overcoming the challenges in front of them--first the Red Year and then the argonian invasion. Yet there was still an emptiness in his chest that haunted him, a pain that only grew, like a piece of him was missing. 

His memories of Nerevar no longer brought him comfort in the quiet of the night. Because in the end, he was alone. Almalexia and Sotha Sil were dead. Vivec was gone, likely dead himself given Baar Dau’s fall. And…

And Voryn was gone. He’d been gone for some time. 

He didn’t want to call Dagoth Ur by Voryn’s name. Dagoth Ur was certainly part of Voryn, but a twisted part of him that was driven mad by the heart. In truth, Voryn Dagoth had died in the days of Resdayn, shortly before Nerevar was killed in turn. Voryn’s body laid there in the heart chamber as Nerevar laid beside him, bleeding out after being stabbed while the tribunal mutilated his body. As much as he reached for Voryn, trying to find comfort in at least holding his dead friend’s hand as they killed him, the Tribunal never gave him the privilege, not even as his last dying wish. 

He never got a chance to tell Voryn how much he loved him. A fact that felt like it was slowly killing him every day. 

His movement had become stiff and robot as the years went on. He got up. He dressed. He ate. He went to meetings. He went to speak in front of the temple. He helped his people and tended to their needs. And then he retired to his room to stare up at the ceiling utterly and completely alone. 

Nerevar had even begun to resent Azura on some level, in the corner of his heart. It didn’t seem like an honor to be brought back to life and given an extended lifespan anymore. All he wanted was to at least join the man he loved in the afterlife, but he wasn’t allowed that either. There were days, particularly hard days where he could barely pull himself out of bed, where he debated just ending it all. But he knew he didn’t have it in him--how would the dunmer people react if they found out their hero and king had killed himself? They would fall into despair, lost in the world. 

As much as it was torture, Nerevar had to keep living, even as the light from his eyes began to fade and the world began to lose it’s color, even as the flowers began to lose their scent and his food became tasteless on his tongue, he persisted. He would live on for them and them alone. 

Voryn would want him to, after all. And he would do anything for Voryn--for his closest friend and the love of his life. He’d even live this hellish existence, if only for him. 

Most of the people filed out after his talk, taking a few rations or giving donations according to need or what they could give. Nerevar smiled and greeted the few brave dunmer who bowed their heads and thanked him for his services, as the temple began to get quiet. 

There was only one person remaining, a tall dunmer in the back with a masculine build, wearing a chitin helm and heavy, ragged cloak. He looked certainly worse for wear, but Nerevar had seen him come in regularly now, yet never take any rations. 

“Come here, stranger.” Nerevar motioned him over. The dunmer jumped before slowly and hesitantly approaching. “Are you hungry? We still have plenty of rations.” 

The dunmer paused, looking over at them before shaking his head no. 

Nerevar smiled again. “It’s no trouble. I’ve done this for our people, so you are more than welcome to take some.” Nerevar handed him a bundle, shoving it into his arms before the man had a chance to refuse again. “Do you have a family who needs some as well?” 

The dunmer slowly placed the rations into his bag before shaking his head again. 

“... Are you unable to speak?” Nerevar asked, raising an eyebrow. With all the injuries after the Red Year, it was quiet possible. Some people choked on ash so much they lost their voices completely, or assassination attempts gone wrong could have severed their vocal cords. At his question, the dunmer nodded his head. 

“Wait right here.” Nerevar turned to grab some parchment and a piece of charcoal, before handing it to the dunmer. “Here, you can write your responses. I see you come in here every day, so surely there must be something on your mind.” 

The dunmer looked at the paper for a long time, before sitting on one of the benches and began to write. Nerevar took a seat next to him, waiting patiently. 

“I only wanted to see you, Hortator.” The writing read, a bit messy but with a certain charm that tugged at Nerevar’s heart. The hortator chuckled softly.

“Well you’ve seen me. I’m always here to help my people, sera.” Nerevar smiled, trying to force it to follow up to his eyes. “If you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll do anything in my power to help you. All you need to do is write it down and I shall.” 

--

That was how the two of them met, the stranger in chitin armor and rags and hortator. At least it gave him something new to do, outside his usual routine. The dunmer asked him many questions about Azura and the good daedra, and Nerevar answered them the best he could. Sometimes Nerevar would sing hymns to Azura, sometimes they both would just sit and pray, and sometimes the stranger would ask him random questions about what meals he enjoyed eating. 

It was nice. At least as nice as it would get for Nerevar. He knew very well to uphold his duties as king and keep the dunmer at arms length, but it was nice to have someone he could talk to one on one. Someone who wasn’t a politician trying to get something from him, at least. They talked like that for weeks, and then weeks turned to months, before Nerevar finally pushed him into telling the chimer his name.

“It’s Ryn.” The parchment read, writing slightly smudged from the charcoal thoroughly embedded in his gloves. 

“Ryn, hm?” Nerevar smiled. “It’s a nice name. Very soft and yet strong.” 

Of course, Nerevar particularly enjoyed it since it was so similar to Voryn’s name, but that would be rude to say. The people of Morrowind were still getting used to the idea that House Dagoth should be mourned and honored, people coming out of the woodwork to admit their heritage and take up the house’s colors once more. A dunmer man with ragged clothes would probably not enjoy being compared to the man many, especially former Tribunal worshippers, cursed as the sharmat. And it wouldn’t be good for Nerevar’s heart if he thought too long about his old friend. 

“Thank you.” Came the reply. Nerevar smiled again, still not quite reaching his eyes which were growing to be a duller shade of blue every passing day. 

“No thanks is needed, Ryn. You should be thankful to your parents for giving you such a nice name.” He chuckled. 

“I don’t have any parents.”

Nerevar felt like smacking himself from how badly he put his foot in his mouth just then. 

“I’m very sorry, Ryn.” Nerevar apologized. “I shouldn’t have made such a careless comment with the Red Year and all.” He rubbed the back of his head, trying to figure out a way to save the conversation. 

“It wasn’t the Red Year.” Ryn wrote. “They disowned me shortly after I was born.” Nerevar looked even more horrified. 

“They disowned an infant?” 

“I was born a bit disfigured.” Ryn admitted. “They were looking out for themselves and wouldn’t have been able to provide for me. I hold no ill will towards them.”

“Well perhaps you should.” Nerevar felt anger in him. “How could they just carelessly abandon their own child for something he can’t help?” At least it explained why Ryn refused to remove his helm in front of anyone else. He probably grew up ashamed of how his face looked, even though he shouldn’t. “Look, don’t let that sort of thing harm you, Ryn. You deserved parents who loved you, no matter the circumstances. I’m so sorry you went through that.” 

There was a long pause, Ryn staring at him, before he wrote his reply. 

“I thank you from the bottom of my heart for those kind words, Hortator.”

--

Nerevar wasn’t sure if he should call them friends or not. 

Could they be? It seemed unlikely given he was the hortator and Ryn was a very poor dunmer who came to the temple seeking advice and solace. Yet, it seemed too weird to call them strangers, not when they’d known each other so long now, as the years passed. Acquaintances maybe? 

Yet, that too seemed like it was far too distant. 

Nerevar sighed as he prepared to enter the temple room again. 

There was still much pain and agony in his heart, an emptiness he couldn’t fill, but with Ryn around it was soothed somewhat. The edges were not longer rubbed raw, the wound no longer bleeding out like he was dying. Eating and sleeping were still chores, as was pulling himself out of bed in the morning, but it was slightly better. 

Ryn brought him some comfort. More than the other would ever know or understand, and more than Nerevar wanted to burden him with the knowledge of. His heart still ached him loneliness, from missing the man he loved more than anything, but he could continue on with a bit more ease remembering Ryn would likely worry about him if he was gone. After all, when Nerevar was ever called away from the temple Ryn would tell him he worried about the hortator every time. It even brought a genuine smile to his lips for the first time in years, however small of a smile it was. 

Maybe it was because, as much as he hated admitting it, Ryn’s little habits reminded him of Voryn. The little quirks, the way he held the charcoal in his gloved hand, the way he shrugged his shoulders… Little things that only Nerevar would ever remember. But it would be poison to indulge in them too much, after all. Ryn deserved to be cared for as his own person after all, not have Nerevar’s affections for Voryn shoved onto him against his will. Not to mention no one could ever replace Voryn and it would only be all the more painful if he deluded himself into thinking he could. 

He talked about Azura once more and told stories from the days of Resdayn, before the usual routine. People came, and collected their rations or gave donations, a few people gossiped in the back, and then once they were alone Ryn came to sit beside him. 

Nerevar was feeling tired and just wanted to retreat back to his room to lay in the comfort of his bed for the rest of the day, but he could push through it to speak to Ryn, at least. 

“How have you been?” Nerevar smiled, giving him a pat on the shoulder. “Your clothes seem to be in better condition at least.”

“I used the coin you gave me to patch them up better. Thank you.”

“Of course. I can’t have one of my most loyal followers suffering now can I?” Nerevar chuckled, but it still had a hallow tone. He was acting as usual, acting like the strong, joyful king who had nothing but love in his heart. But for everyone else they didn’t ever notice--how would they? 

Nerevar was more of a symbol than a person after all. If he acted well enough and did his duties well, they would believe his lie. And all of those little white lies would give them comfort and solace, which in turn meant Nerevar had the strength to wake up and do it all over again the next day. 

There was silence that followed as Ryn looked at the shrine of Azura for some time. Nerevar looked as well, letting the fake smile continue to grace his lips as he did so. 

“Did you want to pray?” Nerevar offered. “If you want to, I can also help you to write a petition. I’m sure Azura would reward you for your faithfulness.” It would be good if Ryn lived a better life after all. Even if it meant he no longer needed to come to the temple, Nerevar could find some joy in helping a poor dunmer find his place in the world. 

Nerevar couldn’t help Voryn, but he could help Ryn. And maybe that could be the next best thing for now. 

Ryn began writing on the parchment slowly, hesitating slightly. 

“Have you been alright, Hortator?” The question asked. Nerevar chuckled lightly, having long since forgotten how to make his laugh sound truly genuine. 

“Why yes I have.” Nerevar replied. “The Great House leaders have been squabbling less lately since we have gotten more trade coming into Morrowind. And I’ve heard some of our people have settled well in one of the holds of Skyrim, though I can’t say for certain how the conditions are…” Nerevar stroked his face, humming. “Perhaps one day I’ll have to go see for myself. Make sure everyone is doing well.” 

Ryn stared at him for some time, until even Nerevar could feel his eyes boring into him. 

“You just don’t seem happy.” The writing read. “There’s never been any light in your eyes whenever I visit.”

Nerevar’s jaw went tight as he read those words, a bitter taste filling his mouth as the false smile faded from his lips. 

Then, just as soon as it vanished, he replaced it once more. 

“I’m a man with worries of my own from time to time.” He explained. “My heart is always heavy since the Red Year, worrying about all of my people. But I know in time we will overcome this and the pain will fade from my heart.”

It was another lie, Nerevar’s index finger on his right hand tapping twice as he talked, a little quirk not many people knew was an obvious tell from Nerevar when he was being dishonest. But it was a good enough lie that couldn’t be challenged by someone like Ryn. After all, why wouldn’t Nerevar be saddened that his people were suffering? What else could possibly burden his heart? He was the hortator. Azura’s champion. A symbol of hope for the dunmer people. A leader. 

He was no longer Nerevar Mora, the childhood friend of Voryn Dagoth who eventually got adopted into House Indoril against his will. He was no longer Nerevar, the chimer hopelessly in love with Voryn. He was no longer a man who had any luxury of sharing his pain and grief. He was just the hortator, stripped down of every former identity he had. 

Ryn clenched the charcoal tightly. 

“You can share your troubles with me, always.” Ryn wrote back. Nerevar chuckled again like he wasn’t getting stabbed in the chest. Like he didn’t have to learn to fight back tears every day of this life. 

“Thank you for your kindness, Ryn. I appreciate you being willing to share my burdens.” He patted him on the shoulder. Now the light in his eyes had completely faded as the pain of Voryn’s death hit him again and again, somehow more painful than Vivec’s spear ramming itself through his chest or his face and feet being carved off. Part of him wanted to scream and weep--of course he wasn’t okay! He was a man who was missing part of himself, a man who was so painfully alone that every single day felt like his own personal torture. That he missed Voryn, the love of his life, the man he never got to confess his feelings for, more than anything. That he longed to see his face just one last time and got to tell Voryn how much he meant to Nerevar, how Nerevar lived for him and accomplished so much just so he could be worthy of standing at Voryn’s side. 

But he couldn’t. So Nerevar would lie, just as he always did. 

“If it ever gets unbearable, I will tell you about it.” Nerevar patted his shoulder to reassure him. “For now though the greatest comfort will be you living a nice, fulfilling life for me.”

Ryn’s shoulders were tense under his hand, before he stood up and briskly walked out. 

Nerevar watched him go, the pain in his heart only growing heavier.

[republiccommando1138]

A Day at the Shop

Here's my Portal Secret Santa 2022 for @genericdragon, she said she really likes cores, especially fan made ones, so I decided to make a thing about Virgil. I have a bunch of headcanons about Rick and Craig, so I incorporated them into this as well. Finally I had to add Ego core too, since she mentioned him a few times.

AO3 Link

Full Text Below:

Virgil stretched his handles. 

Not really for any useful reason, to be truthful. They hadn’t been rusted over, and stretching them wouldn’t have fixed that anyway. He remembered hearing somewhere that in humans, stretching was a good way of moving around muscle fibers and keeping joints flexible. That might have been applicable here, but the only way cores could increase their handle flexibility was with some grease, and maybe a motor upgrade. Stretching would probably just wear out the hinge.

No, Virgil was stretching because he was tired. It didn’t make much sense, but that was the modus operandi aperturae . Aperture’s way of doing things. More specifically, Aperture would design robots with humans in mind, so much so that when they acted like robots instead of humans, it was seen as a failure. It was why cores could yawn and shiver, despite not having any need for either function. Fortunately, they had been decent enough to program a sense of humor into some of the robots. Un fortunately, Virgil did not appear to be one of them.

Looking up at the clock, Virgil sighed. 2:00 AM. Cores didn’t really need to sleep, at least not for more than 10 minutes while their CPU cooled down and their drivers updated. But Virgil really felt like he could use a long human nap. Usually a visit to the enCORE Club or some TV with Craig would do the job. But it didn’t make the shift any easier.

The testing bots had been particularly obnoxious, according to Her. Not only did they decide to destroy each other a record breaking 11 times in one test chamber, one of the Oranges got caught in the gears of a crusher mechanism, jamming a gear and blowing out part of the test chamber. And it was one of Her favorites too. Then came Glitchy, Caroline bless him , who had his eye fall out at random, and then blew up right after. In his workshop. So that was fun.

He’d almost gone up with Mel. At times he wished he had. Maybe he could have seen what was out there. Whether all those rumors were true. He’d built a rig that made cores able to fly, like a helicopter, but hadn’t tested it much. Either way, he couldn’t bring himself to actually go with her. Maybe it was nervousness, maybe he was afraid of burdening her. Whatever it was, he hoped that she was okay.

But griping about it wouldn’t fix anything. And besides, Virgil enjoyed what he did, if for no other reason than that he was programmed to. And with that stretch-and-ponder out of the way, he went and looked over at his next client. 

 This core had seen better days. Its eye was open, but its optic was deactivated. Its lower handle was disconnected on one of its hinges, leaving it hanging by a thread. One of its main hull pieces - that was the best non-technical term the scientists had a chance to come up with before getting gassed - had come loose. 

It looked beyond repair. But as far as Virgil was concerned, looks meant nothing. Well, except for when they did. First order of business was to hook it up to an external power supply. After finding the right socket, Virgil flipped the switch on the external battery pack. Before long, the seemingly deceased core began to move.

Virgil was usually a little bit excited to guess what color and pattern the optic would be if the core in question was unpainted and deactivated. There were occasionally little details that would help him figure out before he actually saw, but even he had been wrong before. Besides, it put a little joy into seeing what was effectively a corpse of himself. This time around, however, Virgil let out a groan as the optic flashed green, and displayed a square grid pattern with a decidedly large black rectangle in the middle.

“iIIIIIiiIIi Dint MEEeANta LAuch YA I SWEaR!” The core finally finished whatever he had meant to say before deactivating. “Oh shoot, I’m back here. How’s it hangin’ doc?”

Virgil sighed. “Hello… Rick. How have you been?”

“Shoot, I’ve been good. Been a while, ain’t it?” 

“It’s been… two days. Which, for you, is a lot, yes.”

“Ain’t that the truth. Anyway, you able to fix me up?”

“Wouldn’t be here if I couldn’t.” Virgil’s optic reset to default, and began spinning. “There we go, you won’t feel a thing.”

Virgil paused for a second. He hated to pry, but knowing Rick, he just had to know what led him here every time. “So… what kind of adventures have you had recently?”

“Shoot, I don’t remember much, but Pinkie and I did stop by the club a while back. Saw my ex Lydia there. Next I remember, I was singin’ along the tunes and then I wake up here.”

Virgil’s upper eyelid plate lowered. “Uh-huh, and how about you…. ‘Pinkie’?” He looked upwards towards the adventure sphere’s pink eyed companion turned documentary filmmaker, who had been noticeably silent until now. 

Without moving his optic, the fact sphere replied, “The adventure sphere received several hits of Volt Supreme™ at the enCORE club, and tried to improvise an unsolicited solo during one of Loose-Screws Louis’ songs. After being kicked out, he spotted his fifth ex-partner, Avery, who he mistook for his seventh ex-partner, Lydia, despite multiple attempts at correcting him. In an attempt to show off his “rail spinning” skills, he collided into Avery, incapacitating both cores.”

Virgil sighed. That explained the similarly damaged red painted core next to him. So much for an easy break. “You know, Rick, I wonder if maybe you should take a different approach to dating. Not much of a point of having partners if they keep dumping you, y’know?”

“I mean, I guess you ain’t wrong, but a lil’ somethin’ new is always fun. ‘Sides, I can flirt just fine. Speakin’ of, how’s ol’ Rainy?”

Virgil’s lower eyelid plate raised, and he chuckled nervously. “Ah, haha, yes. Uh, Rainbow Core and I are doing well. He touched up my paint job the other day.”

“Shoot, ain’t that something. Still though, you guys got it easy. It’s tough when you’re designed for danger.”

“Whatever you say, Rick.” Before Rick could elaborate any further, another voice from the shop entrance chimed in, “Indeed, dating is never an easy thing. You never quite find a partner that’s as good as you are.”

Virgil looked over, only to see a purple eyed core wearing a large button. He sighed audibly. “What’s the issue today, Onathan?”

“Oh, it’s pretty serious if I do say so myself. Take a look at my button.”

Virgil squinted. “I don’t see anything wrong with it.”

“Isn’t it obvious? There’s a smidge of oil on the left side. It’s blocking the number sign, this is a major identity crisis! How will other cores know I’m number one?!”

Virgil sighed again, and briefly reflected on the irony of how often he did it despite not having lungs. “For Caroline’s sake… seriously, Onathan? Just wash it off. Find a tap or something. Geez.” Onathan pulled back and slid out of the door, nervously mumbling to himself.

Pulling back, Virgil then looked over at the adventure sphere. “Looks like you’re all set and ready to go. And, just a tip, maybe go easy on the volt shots. I’m sure you don’t want to have to see Chuck about railing while intoxicated again.”

Rick tilted his optic. “Eh, I ain’t afraid of him. But actually, I gotta go see Ray about another adventure course I’m buildin’, so see ya.” The management rail connector lowered and attached itself to Rick, who sped off past Onathan, out of the repair wing.

Virgil looked down at Avery’s hull, and back up at Craig. “I think after this last one, I’m gonna take a break. You interested?”

“Usually the adventure sphere spends several hours with the testing core at a time. In other words, I think I’ll be free for a while.”

“Perfect. You have no idea how long I’ve needed this. Oh, and by the way, remind me to tune you up whenever you start working on that next episode of your documentary.”

[ramblrthebloghog]

Total Eclipse ‘Review’

Just like with Shadow Fall, I will be going through Reboot Archie’s ‘Total Eclipse’ arc to see if Ian is in the right regarding Shadow or if maybe he just isn’t great with him. While I’m primarily looking at Shadow, I’ll also be looking at other things that stood out that I found incompatible with game lore or with game characterizations. Not posting a page means I didn’t really find something worth bringing up or praising. I did read through The Great Chaos Caper since that arc comes between Shadow Fall and this one, and I can safely say it was pretty good aside from the quirks of handling Tikal and Chaos, and having to sit through Ian’s Deadpool Bean. But I’m not really interested in talking about that one critically.

I addressed Team Brand and GUN last time, but in short, my stance is that there’s no problem with them working for GUN as a team here, but it’s also not bad or wrong for Sega to reject it today. Shadow is off to a good start. Omega isn’t. I can see and understand the easy comedy, but like, scroll for a minute through something like Colors DS’ script. Omega does nothing there but speak factually in his robotic way, yet the situations and scenarios are still funny, like Orbot and Cubot panicking. The comedy is placed on them in that instance. Him muttering the way he does in this page could be argued as humanizing, but it’s anti-Omega in my book. What’s interesting is that a comedic panel later with Fixit describing his function achieved this pretty well. As I’ve gone through Shadow Fall and now this story, I realize I probably should’ve gone back and added from the start that this was going to be a criticism of Ian’s Omega as well. Sorry if this gets redundant. As for Snively… I don’t particularly care for Reboot Snively, because Preboot Snively was more interesting, and I know that Reboot Snively had to be different from previous incarnations, so it would be kinda silly to judge him for “not matching up to SatAM Snively” or something. So I guess we can mostly ignore him unless it’s in regards to another character that matters. 

Which comes up in the page after as he tries to order Shadow around. I appreciate Shadow’s response both to Snively and to the implication of needing Knuckles’ cooperation. Rouge is done pretty good. I can appreciate the meta humor of Omega destroying the Barrel of Doom, or the cool factor of seeing Shadow’s legs spin like Sonic’s running or Shadow zooming across water. The next few pages are all pretty good so far, actually. Knuckles is done well. Relic is one of my favorite Archie OCs, she’s a cute and lowkey addition and gives Knux someone to bounce off of.

The Omega and Fixit panels I was referring to earlier. This is good comedic Omega.

This page could go either way. Shadow would usually not have anyone sway him in his goal (as seen earlier in this very issue), but Rouge IS one of the few people who can wrangle him, I suppose. Even IDW works off of this logic during Chao Races and Badnik Bases. So it’s not bad per say, but walking a fine line on interpretation. Eclipse is also great in the next few pages. I enjoy how much he cares about the Dark Arms, and I chuckle at him calling Rouge and Omega “Shadow’s minions.” Great little imp. He once again is able to play some mind games on Shadow, but it’s excusable as part of his anti-Shadow repertoire, I suppose. 

Onto Issue 2, and there it is. The page starts off strong with a heartfelt plea from Eclipse, and then just goes down the drain as Shadow recites yet again that his reason for fighting is Gerald and Maria. That extra reference box down there really throws salt in the wound by adding “Shadow the Hedgehog”. Adding it in there is almost thoughtless, like either the writer/editor did not understand Shad05’s ending if they knew of it, or simply didn’t care because their perception of Shadow is strictly “Maria”.

Rouge and Knuckles begin to have a conversation about Knuckles’ being shackled to Angel Island and the Master Emerald, a hot topic amongst the fandom for years that persists even today. In our present 2023, Sonic Frontiers has come out, and the English script pushes the notion that Knuckles will be more open to taking breaks from his duty (the Japanese script doesn’t align with it, but that’s irrelevant to my larger point). This itself is in-line with the idea that Knuckles is envious of Sonic’s free adventurous lifestyle despite his commitment to his duty.

I’ve always considered Ian someone that understands Knuckles and does him well. And I’m not expecting this 2014 comic to be in line with the ideas from a game that came out 8 years later. But the arc right before this one referenced that Knuckles is a treasure hunter, although rather jokingly. Knuckles does want more for himself, but he answers to a higher calling. And this page isn’t treated as him coping, either. He’s portrayed as content. And don’t get me wrong, Knuckles doesn’t dislike his job or staying on his island. But to say he doesn’t want more is wrong.

I like Monster Form and all, but it’s just dumb to have Shadow try to use Chaos Control when he knows he can’t in Eclipse’s presence. And then they go out of their way to have Eclipse explain that “it wasn’t the new Black Comet”, but that was literally not in question.

This page from the second issue of Shadow Fall shows us everything we need to know. Shadow is made aware that it’s Eclipse’s doing and asks how, and Eclipse gives him an explanation. If this was about portraying this power to a potentially unfamiliar audience, which I doubt it was but whatever, then you could’ve simply had either one of them say a line about Shadow not being able to rely on his Chaos abilities when fighting Eclipse as he usually would, as opposed to him trying, failing, and getting punished for it. To be clear, I’m not mad about the optics of Shadow jobbing to Eclipse. I’m mad that this is the manner they chose to execute it, where Shadow is stupid instead of just overpowered, which I would’ve had no problem with because I liked their clash in Shadow Fall.

This page is mixed. On the one hand, the Master Emerald isn’t for just anyone to use. It’s not just a giant Chaos Emerald, contrary to popular belief. That’s why Sonic can’t actually go Super off of it. Sonic can’t use the Master Emerald, and Knuckles can’t use the Chaos Emeralds. That being said, this *kinda* feels like it’s in the realm of possibility, since it’s using Chaos Control. And there’s no denying the pure cool factor. So I wouldn’t be opposed to giving this idea another shot with modern, hands-on Sega. Though, Shadow’s Chaos Blast doesn’t line up with what it’s actually supposed to be like, but I guess we can say they were working off Chronicles or something and didn’t know better. This also establishes that Eclipse’s block can be overpowered if Shadow has a big source like that, which is neat confirmation to have.

Onto Issue 3. I don’t love the cocktease of this cover, because Eclipse doesn’t end up using the Master Emerald. I know it’s comic’s industry, but still, that would’ve been cool to see.

Shadow decides the Master Emerald needs to be moved. I enjoy that callous pragmatism from him and it’ll of course lead us to Shadow vs. Knuckles. I also enjoy that Shadow initially tries not to waste time fighting before he’s forced back into it. Beyond the earlier speed bumps, Shadow and Knuckles have mostly been pretty good. And Rouge as well, seen now.

Rouge has been great the whole time. And she’s not bad in IDW either, so it’s funny how that works out. Omega on the other hand… yeah. And while Knuckles and Shadow’s fight is nothing short of awesome, with Knuckles’ determination, sensing Shadow’s Chaos Snaps, and setting him off with a Sonic comment, Omega continues to be… yeah.

First Monster Form, now Dark Arms, and that’s on top of Chaos Control and anti-Shadow power. Eclipse is stacked and I’m here for it.

Anyway, Omega here is powered by a Chaos Drive. In the games, his power source isn’t revealed, which is pretty common for character robots like Metal Sonic or Gemerl. I would’ve preferred they kept it vague and just had Eclipse tear him up, because either way, Fixit was going to fix him. Omega debuted in Heroes, so having a Power Core might not have been out of place, but I assume he was given a Chaos Drive to match GUN’s other robots, which are all powered by Chaos Drives.

Onto Issue 4. This page is an ambitious one. Knuckles delves into his purpose, and Shadow says he can find a new one. And it’s ironic because Shadow isn’t consciously written like that in this take on Sonic. He’s written like his purpose is still Muhria’s wish and keeping her promise, as seen in this very arc, which means that this otherwise decent effort comes out hollow.

I think it’s safe to say this is just inaccurate fanfic, though I’m sure this was part of some bigger plan or something.

There was no need to use Tikal’s Prayer here. I get it was just trying to be cool or focus his energy or whatever but when Knuckles punched the Master Emerald in SA2, it didn’t need all that. I see the appeal of Shadow questioning if it was Chaos Control, but it’s ultimately kinda forced. That being said, the statement and apology he tells the Emerald itself is sweet.

A minor nitpick, but it’s annoying to see them reference ‘Sonic 3&K - the game’ as if Snively was a part of it. I get he was part of that adventure in this verse, but it’s just kinda disingenuous and tacked on. Otherwise, I’m glad Rouge comforted Knuckles here. 

Last thing I wanted to say, but I think the decision to shatter the Master Emerald was incredibly smart on Ian’s part. Nowadays he complains on the podcast about “getting him off the island” (because Knuckles palling around with Sonic is just top priority for his character and the story), but this was an excellent compromise that allowed him to travel and adventure around while maintaining his duty and purpose. A lot of times, when people say that Knuckles should ditch the Master Emerald and Angel Island, or he should just get someone to watch it for him, it makes me feel that these supposed fans don’t truly value Knuckles and just want him as a toy in the box. If that’s the case, so be it, but don’t pretend it’s a matter of critical discussion at that rate.

In regards to Shadow, this arc was slightly a step up, but as a whole, I think I enjoyed it a lot more and it overall had less “problems”, or at least, what I considered to be problems as listed here. I guess that’s obvious from the difference in lengths between this review and Shadow Fall’s.

[victorluvsalice]

We have reached the second Building Interlude this week -- and this time, it’s actually relevant to what’s been happening in the main Chill Valicer save, as it’s a small makeover of the Valicer farmhouse! A makeover that was inspired by the following things:

1. My desire to clean out the household inventory so I didn’t have to go scrolling through all their various holiday decorations and whatnot whenever I wanted them to recycle a trash pile

2. My desire to also clean out their PERSONAL inventories -- particularly Victor’s, as he’s always carrying around loads of fruit and flowers and whatnot from the greenhouse to have on-hand for juicing and whatnot

3. “My Sims have over $100K in the bank? Time to jazz the place up a little!”

So yes, with all that in mind, I went ahead and, well, jazzed the place up a little. XD Here’s a list of all the most major changes:

Kitchen: I decided it was a little too brown in there and changed out the counters to ones with at least slightly more colorful tops (the Realm of Magic counters, if I recall correctly!), darkening up the wood-tones of the cabinets to match. I also replaced the fridge and the stove with Schmapple-brand ones to match their coffee maker and microwave (like I said, they have money now!), recoloring them all to the red swatch as I liked that best. After that, I got a longer side table to store both the VIP bucket and the picnic basket --

And then moved the entire dining table in slightly, because ta-da, we have an archway into the kitchen now! Yeah, I took another look at that wall and realized that the door kind of looked weird next to the arches into the front foyer and the study, so I put another archway to match. Now the downstairs feels more cohesive!

Study: Just one quick change in here -- I changed the wallpaper color to the blue with green trim swatch, as I decided I wanted a little more color in the room. I think it looks nice, and fits well with the rugs!

Front Foyer: A little rearranging FINALLY allowed me to put the coat-and-hat pegs that I had on a side wall beside the door, where they could actually be SEEN. Naturally, the shoe rack went underneath them, and the umbrella stand got moved to the far corner. Looks good! (I -- am reasonably certain the clock was there before, as part of an earlier upgrade, but if not, look, colorful clock.)

Living Room: As you can see, I went heavy on the Movie Hangout Stuff furniture in here -- replacing the downstairs couch with this nice wooden seat that has a nice colorful cushion AND matches the bookcases, and the side tables with these brightly painted variations. :) The coffee table also got a more colorful upgrade (pretty sure that’s the Paranormal Stuff one) -- but, of course, the biggest upgrade was to the TV, with me selling off the old Fallout 4 CC one to get a proper big screen for them to enjoy, along with a cute yellow trunk TV table for it to sit on. They may not watch TV often, but they might as well enjoy a proper-sized screen. The bizarre idol Smiler got recently watches over it all in her own little house shelf above said TV. :)

Crafting/Party Barn: The whole thing is ever so slightly bigger now, and that is to accommodate something new in Smiler’s party space -- namely, I have traded out the bubble blower (which none of Smiler’s guests seemed to like the one time I had them give it a spin) for their ping-pong table! Technically it fit in the smaller version of the barn, but I felt like it blocked the radio a bit too much, so I expanded things out to keep the “dance floor.” I also took the opportunity to rearrange the downstairs a bit -- adding some extra columns to “support” the party level, then moving the more technical crafting stuff (Smiler’s robotics bench and the Fabricator) to the front while the more low-tech crafty stuff (the woodworking bench and the candle maker) went in the back, with Victor’s alchemy cauldron in the middle. :) I even got to put the cool magical stone circle in there -- sized down slightly, of course. :p

(Oh, and outside, you may notice that the chicken coop pen is now flush with the corner of the barn, and that I’ve gotten rid of the large livestock barn. The gang seems to have enough to do with just remembering to take care of the chickens -- I don’t think they’re gonna get a cow or llama anytime soon!)

Greenhouse: Victor’s greenhouse actually got moved back slightly on the lot -- a somewhat fiddly process that involved enlarging the roof before adjusting the walls so that the plants stayed under cover the whole time. I also added a new shelf from Cottage Living beside the door to go with his other tools, and put his selfie with his first oversized pumpkin on it. :)  The biggest change, though, was to the crafting side of the greenhouse -- namely, there’s now STORAGE! The flower-arranging bench can already have flowers stored in it, so that wasn’t a big deal, but now there is an Eco Lifestyle cardboard storage box next to the cauldron grill for Victor’s herbalism plants, and a Discover University mini-fridge so he can store and access his fruits and veggies for juicing next to the juice fizzer! Which makes life so much easier -- his inventory isn’t PERFECT yet, but it’s looking a hell of a lot better, let me tell you!

[autumnslance]

How much do your characters go into a 'combat frenzy?' Like, are any of them a straight-up cackling menace on the battlefield, while out-of-combat being well-spoken and well-adjusted?

Not specifically; I'll describe the quartet better individually below (Aeryn almost has shades of this), but for most of my characters, combat is a grim reality that must be done. If any of them do act in such ways, it’s usually a calculated action based on the situation and enemy.

I haven't really done much with that "cackling madman who loves to fight" trope. Closest were the various World of Darkness werewolves and vampires I've played, as violence and frenzies are part of their nature and actual gameplay, so I guess I've never seen a "need" to apply it to others. I don't play many barbarians in D&D either, and it's rarely "fit" the personalities or archetypes I tend to gravitate toward in characters.

There's an early scene from Oath of Gold, the final novel in the original The Deed of Paksenarrion trilogy by Elizabeth Moon, where the eponymous character, trying to get over her trauma and curses from the second novel, talks to the druid helping her about how she wishes to feel joy in her war craft again:

"Sir, I have had enough experience to know what comes of fighting for the joy of it alone. It is not that. But I still wish I could feel the joy when it's needed. Or perhaps I should not say needed, since I can do without it, but--I heard a woodworker, sir, say how much he liked the feel of his plane slipping along the grain of the wood, and the smell of the shavings. My father liked being out with his sheep--I can remember him standing on the moor, drawing in great breaths of that wind and smiling. Isn't that natural, in a craftsman, to enjoy his work as well? And I wish for that, to enjoy it sometimes. To pick up a sword with pleasure in its balance, not always overcoming fear of it."

Paks's story is quite formative for how I view fantasy heroes (particularly my old WoW paladin) and shades of it color my characters' development.

(Also if you want a good traditional fantasy series that's not in the grimdark vein though terrible things do happen, written by a former marine with science degrees and is a horse person who understands those animals, writing a story about military life, growing into a true hero, beating back the "lawful stupid" rep of old school D&D paladins, intricate world building and politics between the action, featuring an explicitly AroAce woman lead who has close and meaningful friendships while other characters get their own romances, written initially as a short story gift for a young friend and now grown into a couple series and stories in a rich fantasy world, I will always recommend the Deed and its followup series, Paladin's Legacy)

Iyna shuts down into more of a cold robotic mode after decades in the Imperial system. Procedural, efficient. She doesn't tend to remember many, if any, details later.

Dark handles things with her usual outward practical calm, in some ways engaging similar concepts as her hunting; quick, efficient, clean as possible. Just get it done. She sticks to her songs when with allies. She might be screaming terrified inside, even all these years and the intense treatments and care post-Carteneau.

C'oretta varies between attempting to maintain her cheerful joker facade to buckling down into seriousness, depending on the situation and the stakes. They're more ways of coping with her own fears and concerns.

Aeryn may occasionally throw a snarky quip, but she's usually silent except for her spellcasting and songs. There IS a bit of gremlin to Aeryn; she won't be a frenzied cackler in battle, but her healers and tanks might call her a "menace" given the risks she takes and her impetuous, impatient nature, while seeming so refined and collected to many people (who don't know her well) out of combat.

Speaking of, it's Sunday and time to frazzle my FC healers and tanks in Eureka by having Aeryn wander off and pull all the things...

[etaleah]

Thoughts on Sci-Fi and What I Want from It

I’ve been pondering why, exactly, I’m often unable to enjoy sci-fi and why the genre as a whole tends to disappoint me. Today I believe I have hit upon the answer.

First off, a disclaimer that this is not me trying to say that dystopian fiction or any sci-fi with a negative tone is bad or not worth writing/reading. Those stories are important too, and I can recognize the literary or cinematic significance of them even if I don’t particularly like them. I can understand why it’s vital to have stories about the dark side of the scientific community and its history (eugenics, racial science, nuclear weapons, experiments and clinical trials on unwilling participants, forced abortion/sterilization, classifying homosexuality as a disease, etc.) because obviously we want to learn from the past and avoid repeating it. That’s all fine. Good, even. But I feel like they, along with dystopian/apocalypse fiction, government conspiracies, nuclear war, and climate doom stories, make up a huge chunk of the sci-fi genre. Concepts like killer aliens, killer robots or other machines, killer zombies, and killer plants are also staples of sci-fi.

And I’m just…kinda tired of it.

The only time I really remember being excited about science was when I was in elementary school. Because back then, we weren’t learning about all the awful things science could lead to or had discovered. We were learning about dinosaurs and animals and flowers and outer space and what happens when you put Mentos in soda. We were learning about the cool parts of science and were encouraged to want to be part of it. We were watching Bill Nye the Science Guy and The Magic School Bus and I remember thinking that science was so much FUN! Even as an adult, I love going to zoos and aquariums because it’s so nice to read interesting info about grizzly bears and sea turtles.

That’s what I really wish the sci-fi genre had more of. Stories that are celebrations of science and the natural world with all of their possibilities rather than warnings and grim predictions. Stories where the characters are having fun, the creatures are friendly or at least not malicious, and it’s just a nice adventure. There’s still conflict, sure, but the tone of the story is a light one and the message isn’t all about how cruel the world can be.

Weirdly enough, some of the sci-fi that I’ve enjoyed the most has been Pinky & the Brain and Kirby games. I’ll admit I’m stretching the definition on the latter since Kirby may be more fantasy, but I’d like to think it could also count as sci-fi since Kirby is technically an alien from another planet. What both of these media have in common is that they’re fun. Every planet Kirby goes to is a beautiful place with stunning visuals and Lisa Frank levels of color. Instead of barren desert wastelands, there’s lots of forests and beaches and starry nights. There’s still conflict, but it’s not doomer, end-of-the-world conflict most of the time and the tone is still lighthearted and happy. It isn’t trying to have a cynical commentary about human nature and technology or anything like that, it’s just “Here’s a pretty planet with cute-looking creatures, go run around and have a blast! See what this pink little alien can do!”

And with Pinky & the Brain, it does occasionally show the dark side of animal testing like when Brain is mistreated by the scientists, but that isn’t the focus of the show. It’s about his relationship with Pinky and their adventures together. There’s still lots of comedy and fun even if it isn’t all sugar and rainbows. Them being genetically altered lab mice isn’t even presented as a bad thing, it’s more neutral. It’s just what they are. The show doesn’t have any bigger point to make about that.

An even better example is the Fullmetal Alchemist manga series. There’s PLENTY of horrible actions in there, much of it reflecting real-world atrocities, but it’s still not a dystopian or tragic story. It shows the positive parts of what science can do and has more good things to say about humanity than bad. The ending is happy. There’s tons of comedy. The characters get to have nice, positive moments. And with the exception of the villains, the characters are all good people who want good things. Hell, even the villains aren’t all one-dimensionally bad.

That’s what I want. I deeply wish that positive sci-fi and scientific content wasn’t mostly aimed at kids. To be fair, there probably is some out there for adults that I just haven’t found yet (feel free to suggest recommendations!), but it feels like every time I see a sci-fi story advertised or browse the sci-fi section of a bookstore, it’s all about the darkness.

I just want to feel as excited about science as an adult as I did when I was a kid.

And I wish the stories that feature science made that easier to do.

[44gamez]

Planet of Lana Review (Switch eShop)

The cinematic platformer: though some nice examples have emerged over the many years, the style maybe under-celebrated, with its followers particularly under-served for an extended stretch within the 2000s. It has nonetheless offered some really legendary video games: Prince of Persia, One other World, Flashback, and Inside. Planet of Lana gathers collectively essentially the most interesting parts of all of those – together with different notable examples of the style – and rolls them up into one thing trendy and fascinating, if not fully authentic. Planet of Lana, the debut title from indie developer Wishfully Studios, is a visually hanging puzzle-driven platformer. It has shades of Studio Ghibli in its muted palette and nature-versus-technology themes; it additionally maintains a low-stress environment via its mild problem, sweeping surroundings and wealthy musical rating. The story begins with Lana enjoying video games with a pal. A sudden robotic invasion results in her pal’s seize and kicks off a quest to rescue her. Alongside the best way, Lana is joined by an alien sidekick, with whom she cooperates to beat obstacles and stealthily evade baddies. Gameplay Assists Controls Visible Audio Full Accessibility Report Knowledge by Family Gaming Database Whereas feeling and looking trendy and accessible, Planet of Lana makes some neat callbacks to traditional cinematic platformers. One characteristic of these early video games, for instance, was a sort of modularity. Prince of Persia and the like achieved cutting-edge animations by shifting their characters in little chunks. Every unit of the slick, rotoscoped animations all the time performed out, with the participant’s subsequent transfer – altering course or timing a bounce – solely following after a step of the animation. A facet impact of this was a form of “bounce help”, the place the lag within the controls gave beneficiant home windows wherein to manoeuvre. Though Planet of Lana is rather more trendy, resembling marrying its flowing visuals with larger responsiveness, it fortunately replicates that forgiving nature by permitting a really beneficiant “coyote time” – a wide-open alternative to hit bounce even simply after operating off a platform. A facet impact of the flowing however fastened animations in older cinematic platformers was an equally modular degree design: Lester in One other World, Conrad in Flashback, and the Prince of Persia all moved in predefined chunks, so the degrees have been composed of items of a corresponding dimension. Flashback’s gun fight additionally operated in discrete items of motion, so scenes performed out like a sequence of pre-calculated puzzles. Planet of Lana completely harks again to this, the world being constructed of a sequence of set items, constructed round a traditional moveset of runs and jumps, ledge-grabbing, and rolling. The general result's a extremely playable mixture of contemporary fluidity and retro specificity, with a concentrate on gentle, sequential puzzling over exploration.

Traversal is sleek and satisfying, too, extra like Playdead’s Inside than the abstracted controls of the classics, constrained by these animations. Once you’re operating, leaping, climbing, or swinging on ropes, all of it feels strong and enjoyable. If there’s one criticism, it’s that there's a bit an excessive amount of time spent simply operating proper, with out vital obstacles or any want for different inputs. It made us consider Beethoven & Dinosaur’s The Suave Escape, which used a easy – even foolish – however fairly ingenious thought of including a single button press to play a guitar whereas the hero runs. In need of a guitar, Planet of Lana may need benefitted from a extra playful bounce or roll to toy with whereas operating. “Simply operating proper” is a symptom of the cinematic platformer's trendy drive for spectacle. Because the background and foreground explode with colors, flashes and world-enriching depth and scale, operating proper is a option to have it play out in a manner that the participant can sit again and admire. Planet of Lana opts with confidence for that low-difficulty design method, releasing you to drink within the spectacular surroundings and soundtrack. It does imply all of the occasions lack a component of peril – not like, say, Adrian Lazar’s Planet Alpha, which used skill- and patience-testing challenges to provide the visible set items a little bit of oomph. Planet of Lana’s straightforward operating is tons of enjoyable in case you’re comfortable to play fairly passively at instances.

And the spectacular presentation helps construct the story – to an extent. The narrative is imprecise, to say the least, so whereas the beautiful vistas add flavour, it’s not all the time clear what they’re including flavour to. The less-is-more method nearly works, and we loved the reminder of One other World with its alien helper. Calling the alien in an unknown language and dealing to assist one another, the connection is moderately like guiding Yorda in Ico, with some comparable, if spatially extra simplistic, puzzles. There may be, in actual fact, one other free Ico connection: composer Takeshi Furukawa gives the rating, as he did for Fumito Ueda’s Ico descendent The Last Guardian. The music sits quietly within the background for the regular play of the sport, spinning up the stress successfully for the motion and stealth interludes, shifting from gentle piano to highly effective orchestra, even breaking at one level for a vocal set piece. Lana’s critter companion does a bit greater than comply with alongside and obey orders, too. By means of it, Lana can management enemies for sure puzzles, paying homage to 2023’s One other World-callback Full Void, from OutOfTheBit. These are a number of the extra attention-grabbing and difficult puzzles amongst a reasonably gentle assortment. When ordering your companion, manipulating the atmosphere, steering enemies and platforming all mix, the world feels richly interactive. Nonetheless, these moments are scarcer than the bits the place you simply run proper.

Conclusion

Planet of Lana intelligently combines parts of traditional cinematic platformers to make one thing distinctive and characterful. For a decent 5 hours or so, it retains up the tempo, with only a few taxing puzzles or tough motion segments to gradual progress. Leaning into simpler gameplay in favour of visible and auditory spectacle, it seems to be the half and runs constantly properly. It’s a deal with for the long-suffering cinematic platforming fan – maybe even destined to affix that quick record of classics. Source link Read the full article

[blackberry-gingham]

Molina’s Otto Octavius?

Sksksksksks this is so so late, but sksksksk. Sorry, trying to get back to writing tho 😭

Enjoy this 😌🤲🏻

Favorite Thing:

I like that, in his core, he's actually a sweet and loving guy. Like, he's complex and it's a different spin on the character. Otto is usually a well meaning guy in his other interpretations, but this one is specifically very romantic 💖

Least favorite thing:

His appearance and dialogue in no way home 💀 Like... What is going on with that color palette??? That and the cheesy, over the top lines. It's very "Saturday morning, hand wringing mustache twirling cartoon villain"

Blegh

Favorite line:

Oof, another hard one!

I'd have to say it's close between the part where he's talking about how he doesn't understand T S Eliot, and thus Rosie is very smart and intelligent in his eyes bc she does, and the "I will not die a monster" line at the very end of the movie.

The first one is actually a really great look at his characterization. It shows that he's humble and doesn't feel that technical smarts are the be all, end all. Kind of like the Einstein quote, "if you judge a fish's intelligence on its ability to climb trees, it'll go it's while life thinking it's stupid", meaning that everyone is talented in their own way, and he sees that. Also bc its just another little detail of how he adores his wife.

The second one is great, not so much for the dialogue line itself, but more so bc of the context that it's in. When you consider the fact that, after all the pain and destruction and like robot arm mind control he's been under, he's accessing mental clarity on sheer willpower alone right now, that's impressive enough. But also bc he knows that even though saving the day here will kill him, we get that glimpse again that the Otto we met at the start of the movie is still there and just as strong.

Kind of like an "incorruptible integrity" type of character. Even against all odds, he still does what he knows is right.

BrOTP:

Obviously him and Peter lol

OTP:

I would say me lol, but I think I'll give it to Rosie. They deserve each other

nOTP:

Favorite Picture:

Probably him and Norman. That's a ship only good for laughs imo, but definitely not for anything serious

Random HC:

Before becoming doctor octopus, Otto had never smoked a day in his life. Influence from the arms just made him more willing to give into things he previously thought weren't very great ideas.

Unpopular opinion:

Probably that I don't like how they characterized him in no way home lol. Like, I get that he's technically not the same Otto from the Raimi movies, but still like smsmssmsk

Idk. No excuses, just my opinion

Song I associate:

My Brave Face by Paul McCartney or maybe If I Can't Change Your Mind by Sugar

My Brave Face tracks the slow mental breakdown of a man who's been dumped by his girl and he basically says as much that he can't handle being alone bc all he can think about is her. Despite his best efforts, he keeps getting worse and worse and during each chorus he begs, "Take me to that place... where I can find my brave face". Peak "I miss my wife" content

The second one is about a guy who is being relentlessly accused of being unfaithful by his partner despite his seemingly very genuine insistence that he hasn't, even to the point that he swears he won't find another partner until his original one sees the light and comes back. I just like the angsty idea of doc trying to convince his s/o that's he's back in control again and maybe his partner doesn't believe him/can't accept him.

Particularly for the "How can I explain away something that I haven't done? / And if you can't trust me now, you'll never trust in anyone / with all the crazy doubts you've got, I love you even still / but if I can't change your mind then no one will" part

So hard to pick just one tbh, but I do like this one a whole lot. I like his wrinkles 😌

[l-sincline]

OC + OC Interaction post

Valorant OC Week day 3 - Besties

If you want to give me permission to use your oc for the post please do and I’ll add them when I can !!

Nuniq - @flooficandii

Definitely starts out as cautious interaction

01 comes from the future just as Kay/o does, so there’s some curiosity there

01 enjoys Nuniq’s passion for her cause, she finds it formidable and is extremely impressed by it

01 feels for Nuniq through Kingdom’s destruction of her village, she understands what it’s like to lose a part of oneself, she also understands the pain of knowing what was once beautiful is to be turned into a battleground.

She probably turns to Nuniq for help on better understanding the agents, I can imagine Nuniq was probably in the protocol before her and 01 trusts her knowledge of the others to a general extent, especially since they both dislike Reyna and Nuniq seems to be pretty straight forward. 

Wants to pet the dog. Constantly. 

“Sorry to bother, but I fear your snow has accidently frozen one of my joints.” 

Lakan - @starstainedarts

Hello there...

Their relationship can be a bit funny because 01 is mostly oblivious to any sort of flirtatious quip or sly move- a lot of anything that 01 does that could come off as flirtatious tends to be purely by accident. Girl needs serious help

01′s body is advances technology from the future that mixes human, robot, and minor amounts of radianite, any scientist is going to be extremely interested in what it has to offer, and she’s often not bothered by the probing

01 is particularly interested by Lakan’s tattoos, she thinks they’re cool

Lakan’s relationships with the protocol make 01′s head spin a bit. Lakan and Chamber have something... but so does Lakan and Omen... but Lakan also talks suggestively with the rest of the team... what tactic is this? 

In the beginning 01 would often simply watch Lakan, she soon grew out of the habit of watching and just moved on to talking 

There is a lot to Lakan that interests 01, specifically their current condition seeing as she too lost her original body in a way

“My blood? I’m not sure there’s much left.”

Circe - @henridda

01 is pretty friendly with Phoenix and sees the way Circe interacts with him. She wholeheartedly enjoys sitting back and watching. It’s very interesting.

Circe is pretty motherly... what is this... mommy issues.... coming through

Jokes aside 01 remembers literally nothing about her mom so sometimes Circe’s actions can confuse her, that level of care is just not something she’s used to

give me more info on circe so I can make their interaction longer *gun emoji*

“Stay safe? My body is metal, I’m not sure I can be any safer.” 

Zero - @solitudexviii

Hello tech woman

01 is partially interested to see what Zero would do with her own cybernetics, but is also like ‘mmm maybe stay away from that’ so she tends to keep herself at an arm’s length. 

Silver/white hair buddies

While 01 was more active in battle than in technology, Zero seems to be the opposite. It’s interesting to consider that they might’ve been more similar should they have been in similar careers

01 admires her sense of fashion

01 feels similarity to Zero in the way that they both mostly favor work over emotions, though 01 finds that Zero acts in a self-interest that was more like 01 as the commander in comparison to 01 in the protocol

Due to this she tends to watch Zero closely, always wanting to know how she handles herself, how she carries herself. 

“You seem so on top of everything all the time... whats going on in that head of yours?” 

Koi - @niagaragrape

Small... so small

Seriously, 01 is 5′9″, she’s borderline impressed

Koi is so colorful, 01 loves it. She loves how bright her outfit is and she loves all the art that she does and how she works with paint

Has absolutely zero clue how anyone could be interested in Yoru though, she is concerned

01 really loves her personality. She enjoys how lighthearted Koi can be. People like Koi tend to lift 01′s mood significantly, it also just helps her feel more comfortable.

01 is almost offended at the idea of Koi doing others paperwork. As a previous commander she’s used to paperwork and believes everyone should do their own, she’s the type of person to badger Koi to stop letting others give her their paperwork, likewise she’s the type of person to tell off other agents if they try to do so. She’ll likely be nicer to Koi about it than she will be to the others, though. 

“Do you think you could paint my door? I’ll buy you lunch.” 

Cub - @fishincherrycola

01 is interested by her frequent French speaking- she hasn’t been around many different languages until she came to the protocol, but realizes that Cub speaks French seemingly more often than not.

Oftentimes, 01 tries to pick up what Cub is saying and has figured out a few words (She’s familiar with Bonjour/Salut particularly, and tries to use them to greet Cub when she can. She’s also now familiar with ‘ca va’ as well as ‘bien’)

Otherwise, 01 and Cub probably don’t interact terribly often. Neither of them are very outgoing nor the type of person to talk first. 

01 loves her piano playing. 01 loves music and seeing someone play music in front of her is very impressive. She could listen to it for hours.

“Ah, Salut, Cub. Did I say that right? I enjoyed your music this morning.”

Rift - @shmoodles

Isn’t quite sure what to make of him

Rift travels in between spaces- ‘rifts’- which makes 01 think of her travel back in time, but knows the two things are very different. She also knows that she didn’t choose to be sent back in time, but Rift chooses to use these spaces to travel.

give me more Rift content so I can make this longer *shakes you*

Trojan - @kath-trashh

Another case where 01 is cautious because she’s not sure what a hacker’s intentions with her cybernetic body might be.

She thinks he dresses really cool. 

You too. More Trojan content. Chop chop.

Ukiyo - @melonnmiru

Oh lawd here she comes

Like in most cases, 01 finds herself able to be more relaxed around Ukiyo due to her upbeat personality, though the energy might wear her out occasionally.

Mentioned in an earlier Ukyio post, she apparently trips a lot, and I can see 01 being on constant catching duty as her mind and body tend to move and react very fast.

100% introduced 01 to k-pop. She unapologetically enjoys it a lot, especially when its upbeat and fun

The ghosts were a bit of a shock. 01 has never really been a really spiritual person or anything of the sorts. 

“Please walk more carefully... I would hate to slip up and miss you.” 

And that’s it for now! I’ll definitely come and expand on some of these later and add on to them. There were also a few that just didn’t have enough information for me to add them, so I’ll be watching u quietly to see when there’s enough for me to write some more. I look forward to adding more to the sheet in both new and just in expanding as I learn more about everyone’s ocs !!