#save our forests pls

[devine-fem]

I know a lot of people don’t read for Ra’s Al Ghul and understand because it is hard to find good characterization and solos for him period but if you need a reference here’s the complexity of Ra’s Al Ghul’s character, especially if you wish to write him.

Let’s extablish this: Ra’s Al Ghul is evil. He is a villian but not purposeless, he has motivations, ideations, as to why he does what he does. The Demon’s Head is a philosophy after all.

In the comic I’m going to talk about frequently, Ra’s aims to topple empires built upon the betterment of humans but to the destruction of animal health, habitation, ecosystem, and people who are a threat to the Earth itself, he then makes sure the next person who takes this Empire aims to either shut it down or improve it in a way that no longer allows said empire benefit from malicious means.

Batman: One Bad Day explains Ra’s Al Ghuls youth and loss of his home and family at the face of a siege, with nowhere to go and no protection, he was left defenseless until he was protected by the wolves in the wilderness which led him to believe that the forest itself protected him. This is why I have a hard time hating Ra’s personally, I could never hate someone who’s gone through every catastrophic event of our ancestory, I imagine he’s victim to a lot of historical tragedy and any attempts to find happiness in a pure, authentic way probably was snatched from him. He’s likely seen the worst of society and I couldn’t hate him for that.

It’s important to note that Ra’s Al Ghul can love within centuries of his life, then he can be abusive.

He believes all life to be just as worthy and precious as another. He believes all life is worth being saved though after all the hell that humans has put the Earth and it’s children through he has grown bitter and angry. He’s experienced the pit madness over and over, it’s likely simply a part of who he is.

Over spending hundreds of years alive, so much grief and death every single year for centries, he’s become traumatized. Now he attempts to save humanity from itself because of one bad day.

Ra’s Al Ghul has even said that Jason Todd’s unnecessary death caused him to grieve, so much so that he sought Jason’s body out and brought him back to life.

Here is Ra’s Al Ghul breaking down and tears for having to put his pet down so he’s very much not emotionless.

Here is Damian arguing with his father over whether Ra’s Al Ghul’s ideations are correct or not. Damian’s feelings toward Ra’s are likely extremely complicated but I am sure there is more bad than good but that doesn’t mean it’s all bad.

Here is Ra’s Al Ghul telling Damian that he is proud of him and has a deep respect for him. Also note that in Birth of the Demon, Ra’s Al Ghul has said that he prefers Bruce and him to be allies instead of enemies and even considers Bruce his son.

Ra’s still wishes he could be allies with Bruce and fantasizes about fighting alongside him to this day.

Ra’s threatens Damian’s life but immediately after admits that he was just bluffing, and he would not have hurt Damian.

When Ra’s mortally wounds Bruce, he lets Damian have a moment with his father given that he’s the one who fatally wounded Bruce in the first place.

Ra’s says explicitly that he was doing what he is doing for Damian’s future. He states again that he does not believe one life is more important than the other, even humans.

I think it's very important that what Ra's does is extremely traumatizing and would not make sense to a child. He functions in a way where he thinks he is right and what he is doing comes from a place of love and compassion, including the things he does to Damian.

Whether you agree with his philosophy or not is up to you, but he truly believes he's doing what he is doing for the bettering and benefit of his family.

In conclusion, he is somewhat human, he's somewhat of a madman, he believes human life is valuable but as valuable as a healthy bird soaring through the sky, his actions come from a place of love though sometimes (often) he may be abusive. He would not kill a man without reason, he would not kill an animal without reason, he says above that he thinks killing to survive is different from killing for pleasure, he believes he's doing the same as killing to survive. And finally, he has no interest in anyone or anything that does not fullfill his role as the demon’s head.

[luffysinterlude]

REMEMBER WHEN. . .

★ summary: the straw hat pirates reminisce on some fun memories while voyaging through the Grand Line.

★ warnings: chatroom au/comedic relief, mentions of pregnancy, cursing, takes place after water seven/pre thriller bark, ooc characters, use of yn + female reader in mind, flirty!yn + the crew teases yn a bit ><, zoro x reader…kinda..im biased im sorry 😞 + some things are NOT canon and i just made it up :p

★ an: hiii!! there is not enough one piece fanfic content on this app in my opinion (i feel like i’ve read almost every piece, all have been amazing), so here’s my attempt at making more!! also, i’m still pretty new to the op fandom, so some characters may be a little ooc. i’m still reading/watching thriller bark so pls bare with me! also this is a chatroom au because i don’t have access to social app anymore *cry*. anyway, please enjoy!

NOW ONLINE [9]. . .

yn: SIGHHHHHHHHHH

robin: is everything okay, yn?

chopper: yeah yn, is everything okay?

zoro: probably not

yn: just thinking

usopp: thinking about where we’ll be next? praying manifesting it isnt anywhere scary

chopper: everywhere we’ve been has been terrifying

nami: yeah usopp

nami: its like we goto hell, leave it, and then enter another part of it

nami: i think we should just start expecting the worst

zoro: maybe we should all just get a lil more stronger. starting with the blonde pervert we have as our cook

sanji: I DIDNT EVEN SAY ANYTHING YET

sanji: AND YOURE THE ONE TO TALK!

sanji: MUST I REMIND YOU THAT I LITERALLLLY JUST SAVED YOU AND USOPP AT THAT TOWER

luffy: oooooo thinking about what? tell me tell me tell me!

sanji: now, my dearest yn, please let me know if theres anyway i can assist you

zoro: she probably doesn’t want your help lmfao no offense

sanji: WHOOOO was even talking to you? I SAID YN’S NAME IN THE TEXT DAMMIT

nami: can you two idiots cut it out already? its like, i can hear your voices through my screen and i don’t like that

franky: yeah it’s actually kinda crazy i can hear you all…without actually being in your presence

chopper: soooo yn?

luffy: yeah yn what’s going on?

yn: just sitting here thinking about all of our fun adventures. like wow we actually did all of that and it was like…real life

yn: i feel like if i didnt know you guys and didn’t experience it then it wouldn’t sound real

yn: but like wow it was all real

robin: we’ve had some wild times, haven’t we?

luffy: LOL yeah that might’ve been on me

luffy: but we’ve survived this long

luffy: we’ll continue to survive because fate loves us!

nami: -.-

sanji: luffy’s right, surprisingly

sanji: sometimes i think about how fate brought us together…or atleast i think about how fate brought me nami yn and robin together

yn: watch it pretty boy

sanji: YES MA’AM

sanji: screenshotting

zoro: ignoring that dude. i think it’s amazing how we prevail every time. we get stronger without realizing

yn: i mean we did fly into the sky

yn: thats so crazy we actually like. flew. in the air. on a ship.

nami: yeah all thanks to me ;*

yn: thank u pretty i remember falling in love with you then and there

franky: WHAT THE HELL

franky: YOU GUYS FLEW IN THE AIR WITH MERRY?!

usopp: HELL YEAH MERRY FLEWWW

usopp: FRANKY YOU SHOULDVE SEEN IT

usopp: there was this gigantic whirlpool below us and everything

chopper: haha yeah that was crazy! and those giant monkeys

robin: oh! yes, the saruyama alliance. i could never forget the amount of fun i had during our time on Jaya Island

yn: robin i love u but FUNNNNNN???-?-?-!-? DID WE FORGET ABOUT THAT STUPID FOREST CRICKET HAD US GO INTO?!1? i still have nightmares of that stupid south bird and its stupid face and the way it made all those stupid bugs chase me

luffy: haha those south birds were really something else

nami: it’s funny because we had no idea what was coming next

zoro: that stupid “God” was next. what was his name again? emily? enemy….?

zoro: well shit i’ve forgot. it was somethin else though. his stupid lightning

franky: BROTHER WHAT

franky: YOU GUYS FOUGHT….A GOD?!?!1???!!!?

franky: was it like….you know…..THE GOD

chopper: not really sure what you mean but that guy enel really had some sort of crazy insane powers

chopper: him and his crazy insane priests were able to predict our moves!

robin: oh yeah. he electrocuted zoro, yn, and i.

yn: pls dont remind me TT

yn: he scares me because i feel like he somehow is still alive

yn: like what if hes reading our messages

nami: i never thought of it like that…

nami: enel if ur reading this please drop 1,000,000,000 berries down from the sky

luffy: i wish the skypeians and shandians rang the bell more often.

luffy: haha oh well! i know they’re doing just fine! :D

usopp: well thanks to yn now i’m reminscing TT

usopp: it feels like alabasta JUST happened

robin: well, we did just face the world government

robin: technically crocodile was apart of it

usopp: YEAH AND YOU WERE HIS ASSISTANT OR WHATEVER

robin: that’s the past. i had to do what i needed to do to survive. and i’m glad i was, considering i was able to find you all <3

yn: ROBINNNNNNN TT

nami: ROBINNNNN

sanji: robin i wouldve followed you to hades’ kingdom if i had to. i will always protect you (and nami and yn. the others can fend for themselves).

luffy: hahahaha i agree!! see, fate loves us

chopper: WE LOVE U ROBIN

franky: YEAH! WE LOVE SISTER ROBIN!

zoro: appreciate ya.

usopp: YEAAAA WE LOVE ROBIN!

yn: shoutout to us

yn: i love us

yn: i love being a strawhat

chopper: same!!! forever and always gonna be a strawhat!!

luffy: i love our little family!

luffy: without you all, i wouldn’t be as close as i am to reaching my dream! so thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

luffy: also sanji when is dinner gonna be ready so i know when to head back to the sunny

nami: same

nami: now i’m really reminiscing. do you guys remember when yn thought she was pregnant

usopp: i-

usopp: …

yn: NAMI

yn: alright well.

sanji: WHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT TT

sanji: also luffy dinner will be ready when its dinner time. its mid day. if you’re hungry i have snacks in the fridge or since you’re running around this island, find a food stand

sanji: BUT WHATTTTTT DID NAMI JUST SAY

chopper: HUUUUUUUUUUUUH

robin: what a naughty girl you are, nami. teasing yn about her “almost” pregnancy

nami: yk me! but i remember being soooooo worried only for the pregnancy test to come back negative

zoro: yn?

franky: LITTLE SIS YN…DOES THE DEED….BUT SHE LOOKS SO INNOCENT

luffy: oh wow cool sanji thanks!

luffy: also congrats yn? but where will the baby stay?

usopp: did you even read nami’s text

luffy: oh..right LOL that’s good! i can’t imagine yn having a baby. plus how are babies even made

chopper: :o

nami: …

robin: your innocence is apart of my will to live

yn: luffy TT

sanji: THROUGH LOVE! BABIES ARE MADE THROUGH LOVE!!!

luffy: oh sickkkkkk do you guys think we can make one?

yn: oh luffy TT

nami: well!

sanji: he’ll come around

luffy: LOL BRB

LUFFY has gone offline.

chopper: wonder what he’s up to

yn: probably found food like sanji told him to

zoro: yeah he kind of left the store we’re at and i have no desire to look for him right now

zoro: oh nevermind. he just went outside to buy meat from a vendor. he’s good, still in my eyesight

chopper: also

chopper: YN WHY DIDNT YOU TELL ME

yn: chopper >< you were still fairly new to the crew then

yn: but this happened after we left chopper’s hometown

yn: i think i was just sick because of the crazy weather changes, plus nami has just recovered and didn’t want anyone to be worried sick :p

zoro: why didnt you tell me?

zoro: you’re apart of the crew too, ya know.

usopp: interesting

sanji: you stupid ass MOSSHEAD WHY WOULD SHE TELL YOU HER BUSINESS

nami: sigh

nami: its like the most obvious thing ever

robin: i’m afraid it just isn’t clicking for him.

yn: it’s not like i didn’t wanna tell you

zoro: okay so why didn’t you

sanji: WATCH HOW YOU SPEAK TO HER DUMBASS!

yn: LMFAOOO I REMEMBER WHY I DIDNT TELL YOU

yn: YOU GOT LOST AS SOON AS WE GOT TO ALABASTA

yn: and by time i found you, i had already forgotten that i thought i was pregnant because there was a whole warlord wanting us dead so

zoro: hmm. okay. well next time..

sanji: YOU DIDNT HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO HIM YN YOURE BETTER THAN HIM IN EVERY WAY

zoro: if you ever need a safe space. you know.

yn: hehe yes i do. but i apologize for not telling you as soon as i felt…different. it’s just that we’ll always have bigger issues to worry about

franky: ummmm are we interrupting something

zoro: hm

zoro: nah. yn and i will talk later when we see each other.

zoro: for now i’m thinkin about that time luffy and i got beat up on jaya island. now i’m annoyed.

zoro: the principle of the matter was good but i really just had to sit there and take an ass beating when i could’ve handled the entire bar

zoro: ehhhh now i’m gonna go workout. if anyone needs me you know where to find me.

ZORO has gone offline.

yn: he left saying “you know where to find me” as if we’ll actually know

robin: i really hope he finds his way back to the sunny.

sanji: he can get lost for all i care

yn: it’s crazy that i really thought i was pregnant that one time

yn: even vivi thought so

nami: i was super worried

nami: so worried i was reading every book we had to find anything i could help you with

usopp: well i’m offended cause why didn’t you tell me i thought we were besties

yn: wellllllllll no offense but full offense, you have “i-can’t-seem-to-keep-my-mouth-shut” disease

yn: just yappin all day everyday

franky: so, sister yn, zoro huh?

sanji: DONT OFFEND HER LIKE THAT YOU IDIOT!

usopp: HEYYYYY!!!!! I WOULDVE KEPT A SECRET

sanji: yn my loveeeeee you know you could always tell me your secrets

yn: i cant lie i almost let it slip when i helped you with dinner that night

yn: but again, bigger fish to fry

sanji: screenshotted again

sanji: did you guys see that? shes flirting with me. might die

robin: hm not sure what part of that was flirting but whatever makes you happy.

nami: oooo franky’s quick

franky: it isn’t hard to tell

chopper: what’re you all talking about!!?

yn: nothing important you little cute doctor

chopper: >~< SHUT UP! >~< THAT DOESNT WORK ON ME!!

sanji: robin! nami! yn!!!! i will be going offline to go back to the sunny to make some snacks. would you ladies do me the pleasure of enjoying them? should they be ready before you all arrive?

robin: please do! surprise us this time :)

yn: hell yea sanji you know i’d never say no to you

nami: lol yes please! i’m kind of craving something sweet

sanji: OFF TO THE KITCHEN I GO!! GIVE ME AN HOUR!!

SANJI has gone offline.

yn: well now that those three are gone

yn: i worry about them a lot

yn: i feel like those three find trouble every where we go

chopper: same but we’re all like, insanely strong now!

chopper: and it’s not like we’re actively looking for trouble, sometimes we just want to chill

nami: yeah. but now, more than ever, i feel more secure

nami: like wow he’s really gonna be king of the pirates

yn: most definitely. we only ever get stronger

usopp: yeaaaaaaaaaaaaa obviously i’ve had my doubts but…

usopp: it’s never been because of luffy

robin: ever since i met you guys again on alabasta…

robin: i knew you all would give me a life worth living

yn: robin’s so sweet online it makes me want to cry

yn: well shes always sweet

franky: SISTER ROBIN TT

nami: robin, i’m curious. how did you find our ship?

robin: well it was just docked and i figured i’d finally take a rest somewhere. if you all hadn’t left alabasta by time i had woken up, then i wouldn’t have stayed. like luffy says, fate loves us.

franky: WHAAAAAT you just…..snuck on? O.O

chopper: oh yeah i remember!

chopper: i’m not gonna lie, i was a little intimidated by you at first

yn: OH HOW COULD I FORGETTTTTTTTT

yn: chopper wasn’t there when we first met robin!

nami: oh yeah!

yn: franky chopper omg like have i ever told the story of how i first fell in love with robin

usopp: OH YEAH she blew that guy’s ship up

usopp: i wonder how vivi’s doing

nami: VIVI TT i hope she’s okay

nami: but yeah i agree. i was scared shitless of robin but then she told me she got me treasure

franky: WOAH ROBIN BLEW SOMEONES SHIP UP?

robin: not entirely. he survived and thats what matters

franky: i mean i guess

franky: i was definitely intimidated by luffy when we first met. even though that was like three weeks ago

franky: i can’t lie he still sometimes intimidates me

yn: brother ur half machine

franky: YEAH BUT MOSTLY HUMAN!!!

franky: anyway sisters. you guys have to tell me more stories at dinner later i have to go refill the coke tanks, see ya!

FRANKY has gone offline.

usopp: well chat

usopp: i usually help him so i’ll be going back too

usopp: yn i’m expecting way more details later after dinner

usopp: or zoro. but preferably before you see zoro

chopper: i’ll help! girls if you need me for anything i’ll be with those two!!

yn: um…okay…? we’ll see u all later!!!

USOPP has gone offline.

CHOPPER has gone offline.

nami: and now it’s just us three

nami: sorry for bringing your pregnancy scare up

nami: i’m getting my nails done right now and i can’t really seem to remember our journeys

yn: its all good

yn: i kinda forgot about it

robin: we’ve been through so much our brains probably started to black out any unwanted memories. i’ve read that it happens

robin: and yn, i don’t blame you. i would’ve been worried sick if i was apart of the crew then. but since it’s just us…

yn: omg let us catch you up

yn: so basically..i had…with…and then…

nami: —.—

nami: she had sex with someone *cough* zoro *cough* and started puking the next morning

yn: NAMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

yn: TT

nami: i definitely thought it was pregnancy

robin: silly girls. you do realize pregnancy symptoms don’t happen overnight, right?

robin: also, yn. it’s obvious. i’ve seen the way you two are always the first ones missing during our celebrations

nami: well……..yeah but

nami: we can never be TOO safe

yn: mmm if you hadn’t caught on by now then i’d be surprised

yn: i was still scared

yn: i think it was more of a “wow me and zoro actually did that and it was real”

nami: it’s just….in a forest?!-?

nami: with…HIM!!!-?-?-?-??

nami: you can have any man or woman or creature you want and you stillllllllll………….

yn: i was running on adrenaline. that dude and his stupid ass candle wax drove me insane

yn: plus you both know i kinda have a little crush on the guy

yn: i can fix him

nami: okayyyyyy whatever you say.

nami: pfttt “little” and you guys are basically dating in my head

robin: i forgot his actual name but i’m assuming you guys are talking about mr. 3

robin: ah yes his wax is quite the problem. i wonder if hes alive still

nami: i was seriously stressed out

nami: but honestly, since we’re on the topic, i’m glad i joined luffy

nami: there was this one time, yn i’m sure you remember

nami: right before going to the baratie

yn: the day we went to the baratie TT

yn: but what happened before i kinda forgot

nami: WHY’RE YOU ALWAYS FORGETTING THINGS

nami: anyway when we ran into your crazy psycho ex

yn: OMG

yn: AND HE THREATENED LUFFY

yn: AND THEN LUFFY THREW HIM INTO THE OCEAN TT

robin: oh? tell me more about this ex of yours. i’m interested

yn: he kinda followed us after luffy saved me from HIM

yn: um so basically..you know my devil fruit powers…yeah he held them over my head and threatened to tell the marines about me and

nami: it was chaos. but it was the first time i’ve seen yn in combat and it was mind blowing

robin: luffy being our life saver and our little brother

robin: what would we do without him

yn: you’re right

yn: but i think at this point, we’re all strong enough to handle our own. if i ever see my ex again i’ll beat him so bad

nami: yeah me too! cause he had the crazy audacity to ask me out after i found out what he did to you!

nami: either way, i’m just happy we’re still all together. you know since we’ve been throwing the word fate around, i’m really starting to believe it. luffy has a really good sense of knowing who should join our crew

yn: he does :’)

yn: he gave me a family

robin: well we should probably go check on the boys now. i’ll meet you all at the sunny <3

robin: come back safely.

nami: yeah!! you too robin! yn, bring us some goodies! i’ll see you both later!!

yn: I LOVE YOU GUYS BE SAFE ILL SEE YOU SOON

yn: can’t wait to see u guys again

nami: ….you saw us this morning.

ROBIN has gone offline.

NAMI has gone offline.

YN has gone offline.

CHATROOM IS NOW CLOSED [0].

NOW ONLINE [1]. . .

LUFFY is now online.

luffy: HEY GUYSSSSSSS

luffy: IM BACK

luffy: i ate some meat and came back to the shop we were at but zoro isnt here anymore so i’m wondering if you guys happen to know where he is!

luffy: ….

luffy: oh the chatroom closed

luffy: well i guess i better get back to the sunny!

luffy: hopefully my friends make it back safely! we still have more adventures to take care of

luffy: wow these things are so cool i’m just talking to myself

luffy: i wonder if i can get one on the sunny…

luffy: OH WELL

LUFFY has gone offline.

CHATROOM IS NOW CLOSED [0].

★ an [2]: ahhh!! my first work is now done ☺️ honestly this was all self indulgent because i’ve been going through some personal things and right now the strawhats are my comfort zone. i decided to make it like a big groupchat because i don’t really have any friends irl or online so this makes me feel a lil better ☺️! i hope you all enjoyed.

its a lil messy because when i first started this i was about to began Thriller Bark but as I’m typing this I’m currently on the Sabaody Archipelago arc and things are getting more exciting like omg hello mr. Trafalgar Law I’ve been waiting for your debut….

if you enjoyed this please like and reblog! maybe i’ll start writing more drabbles idk. it used to be my thing when i was still using @/krazykento and jjk used to be my comfort zone. also, if you want to be friends please don’t be shy to say anything! i’d love to make new friends!!

[tafferling]

Dying Light: The Beast Demo Impression

Imagine, if you will, a Taff who finds a life saving sort of affection in a game named Dying Light, followed by nearly ten years of dedication to one Kyle Crane. If you’d told that same Taff she’d get to go to Techland HQ after Crane’s return was announced in Dying Light: The Beast, she’d have called you silly. 

And yet.

I had the privilege (the WHAT ON EARTH, how) to watch about forty minutes of Dying Light: The Beast today. It was prefaced by an in-person intro from Tymon Smektała (which was about the most heartfelt thing I’ve ever heard, genuinely), and shown to us on a big-ass screen. 

During those forty-or-so-minutes I might have shuffled in and out of this here physical realm a few times. 

The demo covered an early mission in the game. Here’s what happened:

We start in a small village and tightly forested woodland, a fading day around us. Crane is off to follow a lead, given by the new voice in our ear, named Olivia. The lead will take him to an industrial area. Eventually. But FIRST I get to feast on a gorgeous sunset, lots of smooth as heck parkour, and honestly when we ducked through a small apartment on the way, I wanted to say “Babe, pls stop I GOTTA TAKE PICTURES!”.

I don’t kid. Techland was not fibbing when they mentioned handcrafted; the attention to detail I was criminally denied the chance to rub my face all over has my hopes so far up, they’re tap dancing in the clouds. And then those very same hopes were given wings when two insanely talented artists walked us through how these environments have come together.

Seriously. I can’t wait to get absolutely nothing done in the game because I Must See All And Perceive All.

Anyhoo— back to the demo.

Night falls—as it so likes to do—and we’re warned about how the Volatiles and Freaks (at least I think I remember this right, I was often distracted by, you know, I mean, yeah) are difficult to avoid out here. All that dense woodland makes for shit sight lines and all. But Crane can be subtle and that means I will finally get to hide in the bushes with him come game release. Yay me!

One sec. Spacing out.

What was I saying?

Oh yeah. Stealth. Volatiles. 

OKAY, LISTEN— the sound design in the night-time section of the game was sublime. The snuffing and clicking of the Volatiles. The snap of twigs. The rustle of leaves. Stealth is the jam I like to put on my various bread-adjacent baked goods and this was delicious.

And pretty. Crane’ll be craning (hehe) his head up a lot ‘cause those stars need gazing.

But it’s also a night full of creepy crawlers and so we head towards the nearest safe house, which, in good old Dying Light fashion, needs a bit of TLC. Secure. Remove Infected. Find a spare fuse. Mess with a Charger and his buddies (the handgun came out at that moment and while I do not approve of wasting bullets, I approve of the reload animations). And, finally, plug the newly acquired fuse in and Let There Be Light.

The layout of the safe zone and the tasks to complete brought me back to Harran. I loved the safe zones there; each had its unique look, unique vibe; and was just different enough in what you had to do to secure it to make them their own little experiences. I hope we’ll see this make a comeback.

(Yes, I have not yet mentioned much about Crane. Stick with me. I’ll get there.)

After a snooze (well deserved), we continue to the industrial area, where the demo shifts to showing off guns even more so than before. Honestly, I liked the Dying Light (1) guns. I liked Crane with a gun. He’d always struck me as the type of man who’d know about 500+ ways to kill his fellows; and firearm mastery would’ve been right at the top. So. Yeah. I do like their inclusion.

I also fucking know he’ll keep them holstered for the majority of my game time, because pssst, the bow is right here, darling. We’re using that, quit pouting.

(Hey, she’s still not talking about Crane, is she okay? you may ask. Ha. No.)

We fight our way through a bunch of the Baron’s men, which eventually leads to one of those idiots shooting out some sorta electrical box. There’s a bit of a ruckus over something escaping, a few angry roars thrown in from a distance, and as we decide to investigate we run into a— scientist type? At least I think I’m remembering this right. 

And now I’ll talk about Crane. 

Beware: loads of personal thoughts here; not based entirely on canon. 

Kyle Crane might have once been a man who thought murder is still a big deal. Kyle Crane also might have once been a man who’d roll with the punches, always coming up swinging, but, you know. First he rolls. Then he swings. 

Now? After whatever happened to him between the Following and his capture, leading to thirteen years of being experimented on in what I suspect’ll be a cage of sorts? 

First of all, is murder still going to be a big deal? (No, henchmen don’t count; ludonarrative dissonance wants a word).

Yeah, he doesn’t straight up kill our new scientist friend. Just threatens him. Effectively. But there was a bit of disconnect in how Crane behaved leading up to the solution of the interrogation (him getting what he wanted) and what he eventually did. Namely punch the guy out, rather than kill him. 

I expected our scientist friend to die. I was surprised when he didn’t.

And I expect Crane to no longer roll, but to swing first and not give the narrative the chance to get the first lick in.

All of which I’m deducting from how they’ve leaned heavily into giving him the voice of a man who’s been thoroughly wrung out by that very same narrative. His tone is dark. Clipped. Gone are the expletives; the colourful fucks; and how everyone’s an asshole because that’s just a mood and a half.

And honestly? I don’t know how I feel about it. Yet. Sure, I’m all for the pent up anger we hear whenever he swings a weapon, but—

I love Crane because he wasn’t the moody, broody post-apo dude. You know the Imma chew some nails for breakfast and then get all growly over my (insert trauma here). The Joels, basically (and I gotta hell to the no on him). 

So, no, I don’t know how I feel about this yet. I’m approaching this with trepidation over how they might have removed what made Crane Crane; all in the pursuit of being darker and ‘more mature’, as it’s been said.

BUT— this was just forty minutes. That’s not much. And even if it ends up being true, I’ve still got, like, I dunno— at least another ten good writing years in me to bring that man back to the light. 

. . .

You know what, I am beginning to warm up to this idea. Please. Carry on.

EDIT: Since I’ve originally written this, the new dev blog came out and through that (along with what I’ve heard on site) have made me a lot less anxious about Crane having gone the way of the Complete Grouch. And just as I’ve been getting ideas.

ANYWAY

Our scientist friend got punched out, though not before he’s given us intel in how there’s a Freak here—the thing that just escaped, I presume, I was too busy collecting all the marbles I kept dropping whenever Crane opened his damn mouth to be sure—and how we can lure it.

Next stop(s): get freaky science gas, hop into a truck, drive freaky science gas around the countryside, and then jam it into a freaky science apparatus! 

(I have theories.)

But wait! Ambush! By more of the Baron’s men, no less. They, much like any other good collection of henchmen, have not learned from their rag-dolling buddies’s endless corpses and continue to think attacking Crane is a Good Idea.

Ah, well.

Then, finally, boss time! A Behemoth enters the arena (which is a junk yard, by the way) and it’s bringing with it a certain 10/10 Demolisher vibe paired with more freaky science. Someone’s obviously been tinkering on this gentle-boulder, leaving it with tubes attached to its body that give it this wonderful bioengineered look I’m so endlessly fond of. 

We fight!

It’s not going so well. 

Now I’m suspecting we’re seeing a method on how to build Crane’s fury up enough to unle— 

No. I am not writing that. You can’t make me. You cannot make me say the line, I refuse. I’ll just use increasingly silly alternatives, how’s that?

We get run over one too many times and Crane finally pops the lid off his fury. This applies the same orange filter as the one we got whenever Aiden redlined his biomarker (during a scripted sequence) and allows Crane to literally pick up a concrete barrier and lob it at the Behemoth. 

(You know, I bet that feels really good; delicious payback after getting car after car after car and fridge after fridge after fridge thrown at him before.)

Then he goes toe to toe with it, only to wrap up the fight by pulling the Behemoth’s head off its shoulders. Not cleanly, I’d like to add.

Soooo— what? We’ll be building fury in a number of different ways, then get unhinged and unlock the opportunity to finish with a flair? Cool cool. I’m in. Or so I’m thinking this’ll go. I genuinely do not know the ins and outs. 

What I do know though is that I lost all my remaining marbles after the fight. The camera fucking zooms out and I get to see the whole Crane. And, look, you can’t expect me to go to this event and be perfectly reasonable about this; about seeing this man I’ve dedicated nearly a decade to and remain normal. If you do, why are you even reading this. HAVE YOU MET ME?!

I have no clue if this means we’ll get third-person cutscenes or if this is a cinematic choice done solely for the demo, but a Taff may dream. Right?

The cutscene ends with Crane extracting something from the Freak into a jet injector. 

(Again, I have theories. Fury Power Progression? Fury Power Suppression?)

But anyway. Third-Person Cutscene. Taff is on the floor (not literally, but metaphysically) and the lights come on again and I SWEAR TO GOD, I will play this game at day one come hell and high water, and I am so, so, so unbelievably grateful to every single person ever involved in creating this franchise because you’re all a bunch of heroes to me.

:exhales:

Thanks for reading.

EDIT: I forgot to mention the weather. How did I manage to forget to mention the weather. We got so sopping wet in the rain. It reminded me of the heavy rainfall out in the countryside which I missed so terribly. Cannot wait to see how they've improved the weather system in this one.

From The Following:

[seneon]

senation lore part two : ice kingdom

WAR AFTER WARS... the kingdom of senation remains powerful and strong under the leadership and ruling of king sen, their mighty and conquering king. however, one day, the king felt silly and decided to venture away from his piles of paperworks. no weapons, no nothing. just a silly little letter addressed to his loyalest greatest servant.

so he ventured as he said he would. for hours he walked in the forest like a baka, not knowing where to go or what to do. just keep walking, tripping, and praying to the lord that he didn't even get up from his throne. he is lost. oh but! there's a giant magical portal there 😧😧😧

mighty king sen is curious. he then ventured through the magical blue / white portal in the middle of the woods. why? all out of the interest of skipping paperwork duties. he might be a might king in battle, but irl, he's lazy about paperworks. anyways.

a white light flashed before his majesty, revealing a beautiful woman in all glistening white. there is a flower in his hand, coincidentally, so he knelt down and offered the flower to the beautiful fairy. however. when she took the flower, she immediately FROZE. then the king flashed his eyes opened.

"heavens! what a realistically artistic image of a maiden in completely glorious and heavenly white garment that i just hath in my brains!!"

fast forward ⏩⏩⏩

people of the ice found the king venturing alone in the snow. of course, he is confused. however, they explained to him and said "great lord! you are our saviour! save us from cold hell!!!" and the king replied "of course! i am conquering sen overall! i shall save thee kingdom!!" he realised he has some cool gears on with an ice sword that never breaks, and realised that this.... is his time to shine. literally.

the ice people then prepared for war and they summoned their secret trump alpha monster card to assist king sen in the war. one of them then led the king to the ice palace, where the evil dark ice lord is.

together, they set out for war after regathering with the rest.

duudududud

WAAAAAARRRRRRR!!!!!!!

HIYYA

HUACKS

UEGH

EUFK

SHING

KACHING

RAAAARRGGGHHHHHH

WE FIGHT FOR FREEEDOOMMMM!!!!!

in the end... dark ice lord lost with the @saewako ice blade struck through his chest... and the ice nation...?

"MIGHTY SAVIOR SEN! MIGHTY SAVIOUR SEN! MIGHT SAVIOUR SEN!!!"

mighty and conquering sen once again saved the world (a land he didn't know how or why he got involved in but it's ok it's all good.) the ice people then thanked him and helped him prepare for his journey back to senation.

they bid each other goodbye, and that is the end of it. back in senation, general @milyz found the king stranded in the forest and immediately took king sen back to his palace. while king sen told the story to the general, the general laughed it off as the king being exposed too much poisonous plants in the forest and all that he needs is rest.

does the king know he killed the only king of the ice kingdom while all the ice people are evil...? well. that is for you to figure out.

𝖑𝖔𝖓𝖌 𝖑𝖎𝖛𝖊 𝖐𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖘𝖊𝖓𝖊𝖔𝖓.

STARRING. @milyz @saewako @amourlyns @wishmemel @saelestia @atrirose @rinzsu @omitea @hyoismbbg @todorokies @kaiser1ns @rizzmin @steleir @noirflms @peaktora @iluvies @sugurustattoo @bfajax @saturvue @honeydewsblue

note: hope u guys enjoyed pt2 of senation lore. read part one here. part two here. once again, this is pure crack 😭😭 pls don't kill me btw i spun the wheel to determine your roles mooties

[empressgeekt]

Trolls - Accidental Knight and the end of the world (Field of Forget-me-nots au - what if?) -PART 2!!!!

Okay, so this is a what if off of second movie of the FoF au (this post), where Barb won. This was inspired by the fic "The Beginning of the End" by AnimationFan2006 on Ao3. Pls go give it a read. I highly recommend that anyone go to look at the rest of the Field of Forgetmenots au. And I had to split it in half because I posted the first one at 2:00 am. Here is that first post!

Now on to the meat of the story.

Our survivalist group is now mostly formed, Floyd, john Dory, Bruce, Demo and Crimp have met up with Tresillo, Wani and Keith in the pop forest. After some explanations Tresillo and Keith take everyone (minus John Dory he needed to hide Rhonda and Wani stayed behind to help him get back), back to the bunker through the tunnel network. Bruce ever since entering the tunnel hadn't been able to take his eyes of Keith. His parental instincts going into over drive from the moment that Demo said who the trolling was. Bruce may have been out of the loop for a few years when it came to the royal family, he was fairly certain they were made up of warm colored trolls, but that doesn't mean he isn't horrified by the implications of why this poor little kid was on his own. Floyd is on the same page. They both start asking Tresillo questions and get the truth, which isn't any better then the misconception.

Tresillo: Keith isn't the prince. Queen Poppy didn't have any ninos.

Floyd: Then why did Demo call him Prince?

Tresillo: Because Chico was captured along side Queen Poppy, and Queen Barb is an idiota. I don't know the specifics, but his hermano was the chief of security for the tribe, and some how Chico ended up going with them.

Bruce: Wait, I get the brother going, but their parents let a child go?

Tresillo: Once more pop troll, I don't have all the details, but from my understanding, his Papi is long gone. All he had was his Hermano.

Floyd: Then where is his brother?

Tresillo: *sigh* where the all the héroes go. Keith's brother was the first to stand up to Queen Barb, and the first to fall to her song.

Both Floyd and Bruce are horrified. This poor kid probably watching his brother sacrifice himself while trying to save him. Bruce is just thinking of how all the parenting book he read telling him how harmful an upbringing without a stable family unit can be for a kid. It also doesn't help that Keith has the same hair and eyes that Bitty B once had. They both decide that they were going to keep Keith safe, and find away to help Bitty and get Keith his brother back (not knowing their the same person).

Once back in the Bunker, they loop John Dory in and they do try to approach Keith, and give him comfort. Telling him that Big brothers would always come back for their little ones.

Keith: Would you do that for you're little brother?

Floyd: Of course.

Keith: Then why can't I believe you?

Keith fully knows who John Dory, Bruce and Floyd are, and what they did. He's going to subtly twist that knife he put in their backs every chance he got. They had twenty years to find Branch, and now that he was gone they just show up at the bunker like they own the place. He's polite to Crimp and Demo, Branch taught Keith manners after all, but he's not going to be civil with Brozone. And he's certainly not going to tell them who Branch became.

During their stay at the bunker, John Dory and Demo join in on the excursions, to capture Zombies and round them up in a pen in a dark corner of the woods. While Bruce and Crimp stay in the bunker with the children, and Floyd while he recovers. This allows DJ to start to help more with the outside work. John tried to object at Keith going out with them, but he's quickly proven wrong when Keith proves to know the forest better then any of them. When John asked how Keith knew all this stuff, the trolling only ever answered, "My brother taught me." John feels very strongly when it comes to learning about Keith's brother. The whole situation kind of feels close to home. After all he was saddled with his brothers after his parent's death, just like Keith's brother, and from what John could tell, the brother did a fantastic job. Keith could clearly take care of himself, and he adored his brother, it took a very strong person to be able to raise a child like that after losing your parent. He was certainly stronger then John ever was, All he managed to do was break his already broken family apart further. Sometimes he would wonder if Keith knew that, and it was the reason why the trolling was so cold to him.

At some point, Floyd wouldn't have been able to sleep one night and He would stumble on to a Keith who had fallen asleep while working on a book. He picks the trolling up, and starts to take him to bed. Tresillo would be up and point out that Keith had been sleeping in his brothers room and gave his to the girls. Floyd would follow this information and tucked Keith into his brother's bed. He would put the book on the nightstand while tucking the trolling in and knock said book off of the nightstand as he turned to leave. Said book is a photo album as Floyd would soon learn, and landed open to a page with a single picture. A picture of Keith and an older blue troll cuddled up on a hospital bed asleep, the trolling's hair obscuring half of the older trolls face. At first Floyd just figures it's Keith and his brother, and find the photo cute...until he notices the green leafy vest on the bed next to them. And everything clicks.

Floyd runs out of the bedroom and wakes up his Brothers, dragging them to his room to show them the photo. John Dory and Bruce immediately recognizes the adult as Branch. Sure his hair was darker, but John and Clay's hair darkened as they got older. It's all just confirmed when they take the picture out of the album and flip it over, reading on the back, "Three Days until Branch can come home. Boys are celebrating early with snuggles! :] " Floyd would continue to to flip through the album, while Bruce and John spiral over this revelation. Their baby brother had a baby brother?! He was in the hospital at some point?! For what?! Who took care of Keith during that?! Grandma?! Who was the dad that Keith mentioned?! And they didn't know any of it. Eventually the older two siblings are pulled out of their panic with a shocked gasp from Floyd, who found the earlier pictures, from Branch's grey days. How on earth had they let their baby brother go grey....They spend the rest of the night just going through the album. Seeing Branch and Keith, Branch as grey, Branch missing and eye, their brother with a pink female troll, and an older troll that looks almost like a purple haired keith (they all assume that this was Branch's adoptive father, as Rosiepuff isn't anywhere to be seen).

In the morning the three of them confront Keith, they do so gently, at first believing that Keith simply didn't know about them, however they we're into a very rude awakening when Keith says, "I know who you are, I know what you did, but unlike you I know the aftermath. We're not family. Family doesn't abandon each other." And well, there's little they can do about that...other than try and make it up to Branch by protecting Keith and saving him.

Sadly, things aren't as safe at the bunker at they originally thought. The group had been capturing zombies and storing them away on the other side of the village, until they could find a cure. They didn't expect a Rock patrol to find where they were keeping the horde, and the group is forced to relocate, sealing up the Bunker so that the Rock trolls can't find it. Keith tries to get them to go to Bergentown but JOhn Dory is driving so that wasn't happening. They travel passed bergentown, and look for a place toe shelter. Rhonda needs a rest after two days of travel, and they stop at an old abandoned golf course. The kids immediatly want to check out the living horror movie place, the adults follow. DJ trips on a wire and the clown activates. Keith Marches up to the clown, little bow drawn, just like Branch would've done, much to Brozone's horror. Viva pops out giving Keith a giant squeeze, and pulls the group further into the putt putt course.

Keith doesn't like a the puttputts at first glance, they look feral like a predator and it makes him uncomfortable. He lived with a grey Branch he knows what paranoia looks like, this this was different then what happened to Branch. This was worse. He warns the other trollings and considering that Keith was a good judge of character, they take him seriously.

After reuniting with Clay, both him and Viva pull the brothers, Tresillo, Demo and Wani into a private meeting. While DJ and Crimp take the kids to get fries. Viva tries to should Keith off on to DJ, but the trolling follows them into the meeting room and remains stubbornly in his seat.

Viva: Look Keith sweetie, we're going to have an adult talk in here. You'd probably have more fun with your friends.

Keith: I'm not here to have fun, miss viva. I'm here to talk business.

Clay: Look kid, a lot of the stuff we're going to be talking about is, scary and very serious.

Keith: You want to talk serious fun boy? My family is currently brainwashed or imprisoned, I've lost my home to a maniac, and now I have to deal with people like you talking down to me, because I'm a child. I'm not here for fun, I'm here for progress.

Demo: *whispering to Wani* Are you sure he isn't the prince?

Demo's comment make's Viva ask questions, to which she learns that while Keith wasn't in fact Queen Poppy's heir, he was still the closest thing and considering that's what the rock empire believes their keeping up the ruse so that there's less of a chance they'll brainwash or kill Keith on sight. Viva is ecstatic to learn that her baby sister is alive, and grows horrified to learn that poppy's currently held captive in rock troll territory. Clay doesn't believe them, mostly it's his emotions regarding John Dory and now keith's jab that are making his judgement poor, but he convinces himself that what trolls would be hostile to them when there was bergens to worry about, and how could they trust what a kid is saying. Though, he holds himself as Demo, Tresillo and Wani's stories match up with Keith's.

After being convinced about the dangers of the Rock trolls, Clay and viva immediately make plans to go full on lock down. No one goes in no one goes out. Everyone objects to this. Wani, Tresillo, and Demo, knowing that the plan would never work with Rock troll weapons. While Keith and the other brothers want to go get Branch (one of the few things they can agree on).

Clay: Wait, wait, you just spent like the last twenty minutes explaining why these guys were dangerous, and now you want to go into their territory.

Keith: I want my brother back.

Clay: from what you told me kid, he's gone. You need to move on.

Keith: Just because your too much of a coward to get your brother back, doesn't mean I am! Then again I guess you're already used to throwing him to the bergens to save you're own skin!

Clay: what are you talking about?

Keith: You probably never cared about Branch in the first place, after all you left him to die once already.

Clay: WHO IS THIS KID?!

Brozone: *Share's glances*

Floyd: Clay, Branch is keith's brother.

Mean while in Volcano Rock City, Hickory finally found a way to make contact with the imprisoned Queen and remaining un-zombified pop trolls. He might not have been able to get to the cells himself, but he found someone who could. Jovi was a mixed troll (rock and celtic), who didn't under any circumstance agree with Queen Barb's conquest. It took a bit to convince him to help, but Hickory manages it. Being a nurse, with a family member on the medical board, Jovi managed to get clearance to access the prisons underneath the guise of mandatory check ups and patch jobs on minor wounds. When he finally opens the cell that held Poppy he was in for a sorry sight.

Poppy had been completely crushed by her imprisonment. Her home destroyed, her friends put in danger, and her family...Her dad had been turned but she wasn't sure what happened to him after that. Cooper is imprisoned like her and they weren't allow to see each other. No one will tell her what happened to Keith, and Branch...Branch was gone. The man she loved secretly had been warped away by the powercord. She saw him everyday, but it isn't her branch. Her Branch wouldn't taunt her with her failures. Her Branch wouldn't hold his own sword to his neck making threats to hurt himself, her Branch wouldn't lie about finally being happy after being turned. After a month she wanted Branch to turn that sword on her, or for Barb to corrupt her. Her color had long bled away, there was no hope in her prison.

That is until a dull blue troll with golden streaks in his hair comes to her cell. Jovi tells her everything, that keith escaped and that he nad Hickory were working on a way out of their. Poppy breaths a sigh of relief that Keith got away and she wants to believe him about the rest, she really does, but she can't. Jovi tells her it's okay, he just asks her to be ready to take a chance when the time comes.

The snack pack are a little more receptive to Jovi's news, and their ready help however they can. Even if waiting like Jovi asked is hard. Right now their trying to establish contact with outside help and that could take time. Smidge mentions that they used bloodhound beetles to send messages in the village and it gives Jovi an idea. Volcano Rock city didn't have bloodhound beetles, but they had something similar. Fruit bats could travel for miles, if given something to smell for. With a little help from a friend of his who trained therapy bat's and one of Demo's old bandanas that Hickory found they manage to send a message out.

Things at the putt putt course had been tense for the passed few days. Viva and Clay had held firm about their desicion to hunker down, and no one was happy about it. John managed to get viva to let Rhonda in but that was a small comfort to him. He feels like a sitting duck and he's not the only one, Tresillo and Wani are just as stir crazy as him. Bruce spends most of his time keeping the peace, Clay is hostile towards everyone but him and Floyd, and is letting his anger take control of his actions, John can't make suggestions because "he can't stand it when he's not in charge", Tresillo, Demo and Wani can't help because "they don't understand how things work here" DJ and Crimp don't even try. And Clay certainly doesn't listen to Keith. Bruce had been trying to get everyone to at least agree on a plan, and so far he felt powerless. Oringially he thought thagt Floyd would back him up, but Floyd was too busy trying to take care of that Keith kid.

Key work trying, Keith wouldn't let any of them near him. It hurt really, watching Floyd follow this kid around like a lost puppy. Bruce's theory was that Floyd thought he could redeem himself after failing to protect branch if he could keep Keith safe, keep his other little brother safe. Clay thought it was stupid, the kid wasn't their family. Sure he was close to Branch, that much was clear after he saw the photo album, but that didn't mean Keith was there brother. The kid didn't want to be their brother. Bruce had let Clay vent to him about all these harsh feelings, but he also made his younger brother swore never to tall Keith about them. Even if the kid hated them, he was still a kid that had lost all of his family, the last thing he needed was rejection.

Viva had tried to talk Clay into speaking more with his brothers, but she knows it's a losing fight. Viva had been talking more to DJ suki, trying to learn all about her sister, and slowly the DJ words have been getting to her. "Why don't you go get her" "CJ's mom, was my big sister, I knew I could count on her." "Sometimes family's worth the risk." It was starting to break her resolve. After all her dad had once, launched a full-blown escape to save poppy, why couldn't Viva do that for her sister. When she went to clay about it, he shut it down though, they had no way of planning such a mission. They didn't know where her sister was kept, they didn't have a way to get the team there and back, and they didn't know what the Rock trolls were capable of.

All this changes when a small fruit bat flutters into the golf course with a letter addressed to Demo.

----

there will be a part three.

[were-wolverine]

percy jackson ep3 live reaction

yesss the attic it looks perfect

the voice crack on “hi” i’m cackling

“oh geez” HES SO PERCY

annabeth immediately i love him.

percy’s gf requirements: has to be willing to push him down a flight of stairs without hesitation

let percy understand the horses PLEASE

“i chose you” i thought it was gonna be like ‘because you’re my best friend’ but nah he is just suspicious of grover dang. “i trust you” DAMN HE REALLY LYING HUH. poor grover totally believes him too. good thing he earns his trust back eventually and remains his best friend forever

“i’m gonna pack the best snacks” HE IS THE BEST KIND OF FRIEND

why tf are there lobster traps in the cabin. WHERE IS HIS BED???

“i think they’re canadian maybe? or from chuck e. cheese i dunno” he’s literally my favorite person ever

“these are… interesting”

thalia’s tree :(

when do they tell percy that grover was thalias protector 🤔

“the most powerful being in the universe’s best idea to save his daughter’s life… was to turn her into a tree?” YEAH FR GET HIS ASS PERCY

bro really does not know how to read the room 💀 “she met a pinecone’s fate” dude she is talking about her dead friend/sister-figure. grover’s literally like “wtf man”

how tf did they get a taxi from long island to the city bro

“i’m sorry to hear that” UR THE BEST ANNABETH

why is grover singing… THEATRE KID ENERGY

“our voting system’s broken” hgjfhdhd

BIG OOF ????

the autism makes decisions so hard very real

NOT THE TOSTITOS /j

“they smell fear” “that’s bees” EXCUSE ME? BEES WHAT NOW??

damn dodds that’s brutal

“perhaps the most formidable demigod child alive” i adore how they make 12 y/o annabeth so fucking powerful. like i really really love that they do that cuz ppl always talk about how powerful percy is but not how powerful annabeth is

defeated by shitty evacuation skills smh

…we’re lost in the woods, somewhere in new jersey

“i didn’t even know they had forests in new jersey” king. what.

ahhh i wish they just made them 13 i really cannot see them as 12 year olds

ope it is revealed. GROVER STOP TRYING TO REDIRECT THE CONVERSATION ITS NOT WORKING

annabeth IMMEDIATELY knows it’s medusa lol

thinking abt how sally used medusa’s story to teach lil percy that appearances aren’t everything and “not everything that looks like a monster is a monster”. very interested to see what they do with her in this version of pjo

“and i definitely trust my mom” percy is such a momma’s boy i love it

i hope they don’t make her evil pls pls pls. SHES NOT EVIL SHES AN SA VICTIM. “a survivor” :(

“the gift the gods gave me is i cannot be bullied anymore” yes 🙌

girl really said “it’s not a gift it’s a curse” as if she was there 💀 ilysm but clearly the story you’ve heard isn’t what really happened

“so did i” :( she was a worshipper of athena

“i wasn’t like you, i was you”

ANNABETH “that isn’t what happened” GIRL YOU WERENT THERREEEEE

you tell them medusa !! her and percy get matching “i hate poseidon” shirts

team #trust issues

oop. yeah fuck poseidon.

okay yeah i really like this characterization of her. like a good person with a skewed moral compass. or at least good intentions but not great actions

leetle snakes hiss hiss

annabeth watching percy defeat alecto… she literally has heart eyes hehe

THEY BETTER SHIP HER HEAD TO OLYMPUS I SWEAR

you tell them grover!!!!!!

oh he really did choose grover because he trusted him aw :,)

YES SHIP THE HEAD

“i am impertinent” ily

the song 💀 this is why they are besties

LIN MANUEL MIRANDA? *lip bite*

[xr0tt3nxfl3shx]

To be human (or worse, prey)

My strange roommate fic!!! (I've never writen fanfiction before lmk what you think [be nice about it though pls])

I have felt quite different lately, a feeling I was once familiar with has taken a new shape.

I live with a man, a human man, one I should’ve eaten a while ago at that. As I walk past my roommates bedroom I resist my hunger, ‘can’t eat him yet’ I thought. I go over my pre-established reasonings for keeping myself in this less than savory situation.

I need to integrate into this society somehow, my roommate is my only frame of reference for human normalcy really. As much as it’d be easier to just eat him now, I cannot understand these people on my own. Clearly there's much to learn if I ever want to move on from merely hunting forest creatures. That's not to mention the payoff, after a long week of pretending to feel things I can't, there is nothing better than fresh meat.

As always I have made it back from “work” right before dusk, and in the same way I am preparing food that I cannot eat. Though my roommate never assigned me this task, it's a necessary part of my contribution. I’ve found humans like it when you make yourself useful, and he doesn’t have the time to do this for himself.

Maneuvering this vessel is more difficult than I thought it’d be. Humans make it look so easy, moving fluidly with every action while I find myself fumbling over every little articulation. They expect you to move even when it’s unnecessary. Apparently not taking part in their hand gestures and arbitrary body language is frowned upon.

Searing pans and mixing bowls rest at the bottom of the sink. I heard his car as it pulled into the driveway, and the lock’s click as he unlocked the door. He greets me at the entrance with a small wave and a polite smile, but only polite. How passive. He still treats me as though I am a stranger. I set his plate in front of his usual seat at the dining table.

He takes his seat and I take mine right across from him and stare as I always do, though I can’t help but get lost in my thoughts. I’ve heard him on the phone, he aspires to get a job he knows is out of reach for him. He listens to music in his room when he gets ready, he says it motivates him. He cares when other people get hurt, even though it doesn’t affect him. All things that I’m constantly reminded are normal amongst people, yet completely foreign to me. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t–

“Hey, are you alright?”

He spoke uneasily.

“You’ve been staring for.. a while now.” Yes I’ve heard of this, staring is considered rude isn’t it? He looks at me pensively, like he's trying to figure me out. It’s the same look he’s been giving me since I cooked and served him his cat last week.

I don’t understand this reaction, why would he raise such a creature if not to be eaten, perhaps he was saving it for one of those special occasions. You know how they are, humans and their special occasions.

“I’m going to watch this new movie, over on the couch,” he says.

Why is he telling me this?

“... if you’d like to join me maybe.”

Oh. This is quite unexpected, maybe I misunderstood our standing. He shifts around, seemingly getting more and more uncomfortable the longer the silence stretches on.

“I’ll uh- I will be in the living room.”

I didn’t think this far ahead honestly, I thought I would’ve eaten him by now. This offer is one I would expect of an acquaintance. Are he and I acquainted?

He’s already gotten comfortable in the living room by the time I come in. “Oh! You actually came,” He wasn’t really expecting me to take him up on his offer was he? He makes room for me to sit near him on the pillow adorned couch, more for decoration than comfort. “I mean, I’m glad. Come sit!”

I sit next to him, awkward movements every step of the way, this place is one I usually only experience in passing. There was never any reason to be in here other than to enter the kitchen. I believe I’ve spent more of my time in his room than here. Admittedly I sometimes watch him at night, controlling my gluttony is no easy feat. At least I can take solace in knowing when this is all over snuffing him out will be no issue. Besides, It's his fault for leaving his door unlocked.

I sit with my hands clasped in my lap. I never know where to put those things.

With a few clicks of the remote he’s signed into some kind of account, playing some kind of film. I am technically looking at the screen but I pay no attention. I can’t while he’s here, just across the couch yet still much too close. I watch him from my peripheral vision, only about fifteen minutes in and he seems to be entranced. It's fascinating how invested he is in this.

Maybe I can settle down a little as well.

I don’t really know when but eventually I found myself invested in the movie on screen as well, and that came with a new-found serenity. Caught in a fictional world, I think for the first time I wasn’t hyper aware of my surroundings or the people in them. Just for a moment I didn’t feel the need to stalk or hunt and it wasn’t life or death. Only for a moment though.

My roommate clears his throat, the unexpected noise was jarring to me in the state I was in. I nearly forgot he was even there.

“The movie’s almost over already, huh?” he said. He’s closer than I remember him being, it would seem we got closer as we adjusted to more comfortable positions on the couch. I don’t like that.

“This is weird isn’t it?” I have no gauge for what’s ‘weird’ and what's ‘normal’ here, but I’ll go along with it.

“Me asking you to hang out with me out of the blue like this I mean. I just had a long day and-” He sighs, sounding quite dejected. It’s not like I have anything else left to do here. it's

“None of my friends have picked up the phone either, I really appreciate you, you know, being here and all that.” I watch the corners of his lips tug into a frown, muscles I haven’t quite learned to use yet, as he runs his fingers through his hair. I scoot just a bit closer, there's this look in his eyes. Something sad, vulnerable even. I try my best to soften my demeanor, to present as something that's not a threat. It does not come naturally.

He looks away, glancing back at the screen, unsure of himself I’d presume. Maybe I can be of comfort. I place my hand on his where it rests on the couch, I try to remain non threatening. This contact feels deeply strange, I can feel every inch of his warm skin from the tip of my fingers to the end of my palm. He might agree given the look on his face. He looks me up and down with widened eyes, is this not how you comfort?

The serenity I felt is long gone but something different has taken hold of me. It's a familiar feeling, quickened heartbeat, amplified senses, adrenaline pumping through me, but how can I, in fight or flight, feel so still. “Oh.. wow. I didn’t-” Hesitance laces his voice. “I didn’t take you for a very touchy person.”

I’m stuck being acutely aware of every little twitch of his hand and every little thing he does yet unable to do anything about it. Something’s changed.

My heart pumps in my chest, there's heat running up my face, a feeling rising in me with every second our skin remains touching. Something must be seriously wrong because as visceral as this feeling is I cannot for the life of me pull away. I can’t help but feel my very life is on the line as he reciprocates my touch and interlocks our fingers.

I feel so though I am suffocating as if something is gripping my heart and lungs, the air is heavy. The silence is deafening, every sensation overwhelming but with my muscles locked in place there's no end in sight. Why does he have to look at me like that, like there's always something he’s leaving unsaid.

And the hints of curiosity in his voice like he wants to know more, he thinks I don’t notice. And why does any of it have to bother me so much? Why does he have to make me care? Maybe I’m becoming weak.

What started in a moment ends just as quickly as his hand slips out of mine. I am already growing cold without his touch. “Again, thank you for being here. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He doesn’t sound so sad anymore at least. My heart is no longer pounding against my chest so hard, though I’m still left to my thoughts, and ultimately I am left feeling empty.

I’d want him to come back and make me whole again if it wasn’t for the horrible feelings that came with. But it's no matter, it shouldn’t be long before he falls asleep and he never locks his bedroom door.

—————

I'm by no means serious about the ship but i think its neat tbh, also nonhuman characters are so real to me so theres that

Hope you enjoyed X3

[vidawhump]

Dear Valentine

Masterpost

CW/TW: Captivity whump, winged whumpee, idk this one’s just fluffy

“Elias, don’t be like that. Just come down and eat your breakfast.”

Elias refused to respond to his captor, continuing to gaze out the window. The cities were right there. And just beyond that, the forests. His home, his family, his freedom, were right at his fingertips. So close, yet so far away. His life was taken away by Cassidy, and no matter how much she might romanticize the exhibitions, he hated it all. He tucked himself away in his wings, desperately trying to ignore Cassidy.

“C’mon, starling, it’s Valentine’s Day! Everyone is here to-“

“I’m not a starling. The starlings were my friends. …Don’t talk about them.”

Elias would normally bite back and start a fight with Cassidy, but he was burnt out. He would bite her in the ass tomorrow, but not today. Cassidy sighed in frustration, and Elias heard a light tap on the table below the windowsill.

“Be stage-ready by noon. Eat your food. And…” A pause. Cassidy never hesitates. “Happy Valentine’s Day. Love you.” With that, she left the room, long brown hair rippling behind her like the rivers back home. It shut with a sharp click.

Hell no. What was that? Her voice carried mild traces of… sympathy? Empathy? No. She has Elias trapped here. She’s using him. Soon. He’ll be out soon.

Elias swung out from the windowsill, angling his wings to soften the fall. Neglecting the tray of berries that Cassidy had left for him, he brought his attention to the concerningly large pile next to it. It consisted of what seemed to be hundreds of Valentine's cards, envelopes, and assorted candy hearts. And a letter opener. Of course, Cassidy wanted him to open them all. Maybe when he finished, he could shred the papers and make a mess of his room. That’s sure to piss her off.

Idly shuffling through the stacks of magentas, pinks, purples, and assorted “romantic” colors, Elias stopped at a deep maroon envelope. Unlike the others with their cheesy hearts, cupids, and pitiful declarations of love, this one had barely any details. It was dented in the corners as if it was beaten up during delivery. The outside was entirely bare, save for a matte black wax stamp, sealing it all shut. In the middle of the stamp was a crow with outspread wings. Elias’ breath caught in his throat. There was only one person who could’ve sent this.

He stumbled to fly back up to the windowsill, where the sunrise dripped in soft pinks and purples behind the cityscape. Feathers fluttering behind him, Elias scrambled his way onto the ledge with the envelope and letter opener in hand. He barely managed to open the envelope before pulling out a hastily folded loose-leaf notebook paper. Most of the paper had unrelated notes and to-do lists hastily scribbled into the corners. Between a due date reminder from months before and a dried coffee stain, were a small cluster of hearts in spotty red pen. He couldn't help but cry when he saw the familiar handwriting.

Dear Valentine

It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? Molly misses you. She’s walking all over my paper as I write this. You might see tiny bites on the paper because she literally won’t leave me alone. She knows that she can get away with anything, I swear.

New Years passed me by. I went on a walk just before midnight to stargaze under our favorite tree. And I swear, before the fireworks covered everything up, right when the clocks struck midnight, the stars glowed just a little brighter. I think between everything that’s going on, that might be a good sign. :)

The forests are quiet without you. I miss your rambunctious energy firing up the whole flock, and the way you know you were born to be a leader. The kids are asking where you went, and I can only keep up the excuse of a spontaneous solo migration for so long. I miss finding your fluffy feathers in absolutely everything I own, and the way you would make a nest of blankets on my bed and hide out in my room when you got sick. Molly likes playing with the feathers that are still lying around. She’s collecting them in a fuzzy pile in her corner. Molly wants you to come home. It’ll happen soon.

Recently, I’ve only worn your hoodies and sweaters, the ones with holes in the back for your wings. Physically, it’s colder, but it makes me feel that much closer to you. The bed is lonely without you. I miss the way I would wake up to your primary feathers all up in my face, you sprawled out all over the bad and hoarding all the blankets. If I pile up the blankets next to me with your feathers, and if I close my eyes, for just a minute, I can pretend you’re still here with me.

You’ll be out soon. I promise I’ll help you escape. I have a plan, and I know you’ll catch on fast.

Eden <3

And taped to the last page were wilted rose petals. There was a rose bush just outside his window. Elias pressed up against the window and peered down at the small bush, which was mysteriously missing a few roses. Eden was here. Eden knows exactly where he is and has a plan to get him out.

Elias felt his heart flutter, reminiscing on memories he and Eden shared. Not even the forests know what the nature of their relationship is. Romantic, platonic, does it even matter? Elias and Eden are the light of each other’s lives, so why try to label their dynamic?

Elias took a deep breath, looking out his window. The pink had slowly bled into a cloudy blue. Gripping the paper to his chest, the future was looking a little brighter for Elias.

He should probably get to opening all the other cards. Happy Valentine’s Day, indeed.

[the-ellia-west]

Hello! You asked us to talk about our WIPs, so here I go!

One of my main WIPs rn is called Song of Thorns, WIP intro here. It is a Dark Fantasy that follows the story of two protagonists: Roselyn Lethia, a girl from a struggling seaside village who gets swept into the schemes of the corrupt capital of their kingdom when her older brother and guardian, Jasen, gets kidnapped (after he accidentally found out the dark secrets the Royals were hiding, about their control of blood magic), and Renn Atrius, a dhampir teen who was once a noble but who became a thief after his family was betrayed when he was a kid, and now seeks a way to avenge the murder of his father, which traumatized him greatly in his past and caused him to develop a strong distrust towards human nobility.

Escaping the capital with the help of the youngest prince, Alaric, the nephew of the King who wishes to bring down the corrupt system his family has created, Roselyn embarks (with the prince) on a journey across the cursed forests that divide the land between human territory and vampiric fey territory. That's when they meet Renn, and befriend him in their quest to stop the royal family's schemes once and for all. Along the way, they journey to try and reach the vampiric lands and find alleys in their pursuit to expose the royals before more people fall victim to their schemes, and hopefully save Jasen in time before something worse happens to him.

There is a lot of intrigue, bloodshed, a bit of whump, some angst, and quite a lot of scheming and running from the Consequences of One's Actions lmao! Ask me anything you'd like about it, pls!

This is a really cool concept and I LOVE the ideas.

It'll definitely be really cool to explore the trauma and thought processes of all these different characters or otherwise

And WHUMP?!?@?!?

SIGN ME UP FOR A COPY BABY YES PLEASE

[peterparkers-bad-youtube-apology]

may i pls request an arvin fic with prompts 38 & 42😭🥹🤍

Hey love I hope you like it! I'm sorry it took a little while but I absolutely loved this I thought it was so so cute. Anyways I wanted to say thank you for supporting me for so long, you were one of my earliest followers and it means a lot ❤️ Also as an aside, there are 4 more summer of love prompts left in my inbox, those will be out shortly too. Let me know what you think, love u xx

The Hookman

38 - Making s'mores

42 - Getting scared while camping

Pairing: Arvin Russell x Reader

Warnings: None

Summary: You take Arvin camping for his birthday

Regular Masterlist

Summer of Love Prompts

Summer of Love Masterlist

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

Arvin didn’t care much about his birthday, he never bothered planning any sort of celebration or party, he found it all unnecessary. He loved to celebrate your birthday though, and your anniversary, and Christmas, any opportunity to spoil you really. You liked spoiling him too, but he always appreciated the gesture much more than he cared about any of the actual gifts. He just wasn’t a very materialistic person, which is why this year you’d decided to give him an experience for this birthday instead of any physical object.

You would have loved to fly him to some exotic location and have some big romantic weekend, but you couldn’t afford anything like that. So you went with something much simpler, camping. One of your friends offered the perfect spot for a romantic getaway, it was secluded in the woods, perked on top of a large hill with a great view, and less than a mile from a massive lake. You were overjoyed with the find, and the same friend helped you make a list of everything you would need. You proposed the idea to Arvin and he was excited, spending the weekend alone with you was his ideal birthday really.

Although he was a little reluctant to let you plan the trip and pay for it, you wouldn’t budge on the matter, and he was forced to concede eventually. He did double check your packing list though, just to make sure you hadn’t missed anything essential. Once you were both sure you had everything you’d need you loaded it all into his car and headed out. It was about an hour drive, and it was a bit difficult to navigate the truck to the campsite, but the view was worth the effort. You were surrounded by a circle of trees, the forest was buzzing and everything smelled fresh. Below your campsite you could see the corner of the lake, and in the middle of the campsite there was a makeshift fire pit born from the hundreds of campers who had been there before you.

You attempted at first to unload the car and set up the tent yourself, insisting Arvin relax, but there was no way he’d let you do it all yourself. So you two put up your tent and piled your things inside. By the time you had your campsite all set up the sun was starting to set, and both of you were getting hungry. For your first night you’d decided to pre pack some sandwiches for dinner, so all you had to do was gather a bit of wood and start a fire. You two snuggled up next to each other in some folding lawn chairs while you ate and watched the sun go down.

“This is incredible,” Arvin hummed contently before he looked over at you, “You know I think this is already my best birthday ever.”

You flushed, “Well it’s not actually your birthday until tomorrow, but thank you. It’s really nice out here.”

“Yeah it is,” he agreed, tracing his hand over one of yours, “We should get out the s’mores before it gets too dark.”

“Don’t you wanna save those for tomorrow?” you frowned, “I mean I didn’t bring a cake or anything so that’s kind of our only dessert.”

“I’m sure we’ll have enough for tonight and tomorrow,” he hummed, “Plus it’s my birthday trip, I think I’m entitled to some s’mores if I want them.”

You rolled your eyes and pushed yourself out of your chair, “I’ll be right back.”

You returned with graham crackers, a bag of marshmallows, several Hershey’s bars, and some metal skewers you thought would be perfect to roast the marshmallows on.

“Yummy,” Arvin hummed, ripping into the marshmallows and throwing one into his mouth.

You carefully placed one of them on your skewer and dipped it into the fire, “They’re so much better roasted.”

“They’re delicious either way,” he said with a mouthful of marshmallow, making you crinkle your nose.

“It’s rude to speak with your mouth full Arvin,” you scolded playfully.

He laughed, “Oh I forgot, you fell in love with me for my good manners,” he placed another marshmallow onto his skewer and shoved it into the fire, “Did you ever tell ghost stories when you were little?”

You knit your brows as you tried to remember, “No, I don’t think so. There was rumor that one of the houses in town was haunted, but that’s the closest I can remember.”

He nodded, “Lenora and I used to tell them to each other,” his hand slipped over your leg, squeezing your thigh before he continued, “Not just when we were camping, but that always made them scarier. They’re so cheesy, I can’t believe I used to be scared of that shit…”

“That’s cute Arvin,” you laughed, “Do you remember any of them?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, “Uh, I don’t know, I haven’t thought about them in a long time.”

You pulled your marshmallow from the fire and began assembling your s’more, “Could you try and tell me one?”

“You wanna hear a cheesy ghost story?” he chuckled.

You nodded, “Of course, I like it well you tell stories, your voice is nice.”

He blushed and bit his cheek, “I suppose I probably remember enough…”

“Yay!” you cheered and leaned back in your chair, “Well get on with it.”

He let out a low hum as he pulled his burning marshmallow away from the fire. He blew it out, the marshmallow was nearly black, “It starts with this criminal, a murderer I think. I don’t remember exactly what happened to him but basically he loses his hand and it gets replaced with a hook. So he’s this hook handed killer, and he was always going after pretty young girls,” he glanced over at you, “It took years to catch him, and when they finally did they hung him. So he dies, but since his soul was so twisted it couldn’t rest properly, and he came back as a ghost. Now he wanders all over the country looking for more pretty young girls to kill. Oh!” he cracked a big smile, “And he especially likes girls with (y/h/c).”

You rolled your eyes, “I can’t believe that used to scare you.”

“That one didn’t scare me, it scared Lenora,” he defended, “I used to tell it better.”

Arvin kept trying to recall more and more details about the story while you finished your s’mores. You were almost certain that he was making it up just to try and scare you. You humored him, nodding along with whatever new details he added, laying your head on his shoulder while he talked. You two continued like that until the fire started to sizzle out. Arvin volunteered to fully extinguish it so you could get comfy in your makeshift bed.. Inside the tent you’d laid your sleeping bags on top of each other to provide a bit of padding and brought a pile of blankets to keep yourselves warm. You wanted the tent to be as comfortable as possible so you’d brought more than a fair share of blankets and pillows.

“Fires good,” Arvin promised as he crawled into the tent, zipping it closed behind him, “You look comfy.”

You smiled, “I’ll be comfier once you’re in here with me.”

“I’m coming,” he promised as he began stripping his clothes.

He got down to his boxers and crawled under the blankets beside you, “Ready for bed kitten?”

“I’m pretty tired,” you snuggled up to his chest.

“Me too,” he wrapped his arms around you and pressed his lips to the top of your head, “Thank you for planning this, I love you.”

“I love you too,” you cooed back.

He held you close to him until you fell asleep. Admittedly it was more difficult than normal, it was harder to drift off without your comfy mattress under you. Snuggling up to Arvin helped, but you already knew you wouldn’t be sleeping as deep as you normally would. Sure enough you found yourself waking up shortly after you drifted off, Arvin was already deep asleep, but you were suddenly uncomfortable. You rolled over so your back was against Arvin’s chest. He scooted closer to you and you closed your eyes in hopes of drifting off again.

When you fell asleep the second time you were able to fall deep enough into sleep that you started to dream. You would have hoped to have some sort of sweet dream about you and Arvin, instead you were struck with the hook man. In your dream he came stalking up to your tent, ripping it open and yanking you from the inside. Luckily you were woken up before anything too gruesome could happen, the sounds of the wind grazing your tent had drawn you back to reality. Arvin was still sleeping soundly, his face buried in your neck, his lips placed against your bare skin. His tight grip helped to relax you after the bad dream. You took a deep breath and closed your eyes, sinking back into him with a smile. The adrenaline started to die down and your pounding heart relaxed.

Until the wind picked up again. This time it was more than just the wind, you heard some sort of awful, high pitched screeching that made your skin crawl. Arvin stirred but didn’t wake up. You sank under the blankets, pulling them up to your eyes, which were darting rapidly around the tent. The screeching sounded again, you tried to calm yourself but your mind was already getting irrational. Really you knew it was just a stray branch or the car, but you couldn’t help picturing the hook man from your dreams. Stalking you outside the tent, running his hook over the car, getting ready to tear you away from Arvin and murder you.

With a small squeal you flipped to face Arvin again, “Arvin,” at first your voice was quiet, still unsure if you wanted to wake him, “Arvin,” this time you were a little louder, pushing against his chest, “Arvin!” you snapped suddenly, just in time for the wind to pick up once more.

He groaned, reaching up to rub one of his eyes before he opened it, “Something wrong baby?”

Your cheeks flushed, suddenly feeling embarrassed that you’d woken him up, “I, uh, I had this kind of weird dream.”

His lips tugged to a frown, “What about?”

“The hookman…” you uttered shamefully.

He smiled and started to chuckle, “Really?”

“Yes!” you fell onto your back dramatically, “Then I woke up and I started hearing this screechy sound, it's freaking me out.”

“I’m sorry baby, I’m sure it was just a tree or something though,” he wrapped his arm around your middle and pressed his lips to your ear, “Or an owl, or anything. We’re in the woods, there are weird noises sometimes.”

“I know,” you groaned, “It’s just nerves.”

He nodded and moved right up next to you, “Well just come here. I promise it was normal forest noises, but if it was a hookman, I would protect you. You’ve got nothing to worry about, you’re always safe with me.”

You snuggled back to his chest, wanting to feel him close again, “Promise?”

“Course, I don’t care if it’s the hookman or the devil himself,” he mumbled against your forehead, “I wouldn’t let anyone hurt you, I love you too much for that.”

“I love you too Arvin,” your cheeks flushed and you smiled, “It’s probably after midnight now.”

“You think so?”

You nodded, “Yeah, so happy birthday.”

“Mmm, thank you baby,” he yawned and leaned in for a quick kiss, “I’m about to pass out again, but you can wake me up if you need me.”

“Of course, thank you hunny,” you cooed sweetly, “You always know just what to say.”

He said nothing, simply pressing his lips to your head again before sleep overtook him.

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

Taglist: 

@niallsvirgosun @roseke​ @namoreno​ @zspideyy​ @emistrash​ @andreagf956​ @tomsirishgirlx​ @peachyafshawn​ @agbspidey​ @nj01​ @sleepybesson​ @misshale21​ @prancerrparkerr​ @raajali3​ @ellabellabus07 @minjix @inthegetawaycarwithtaylah @graciexmarvel @lnmp89 @mcushvft @s-we-e-t-t-ea @liltimmyst @gloomynigvts @cest-la-vieve @afro-hispwriter

[baronaliswritingcorner]

Tales of Symphonia Stray Thoughts #11: Meltokio Sewer/Sybak Again/Gaoracchia Forest

-Zelos: ..."Well, in the end, we're of the same lot, really.

Genis: What do you mean?

Zelos: No one wanted us to be born."

There's so much to be said here. Despite having a hand in every faction, Zelos is clearly apathetic in whoever's the winning side so long as they serve his interests -- enough to even swallow his own prejudices. Cynicism born from four millennia-long theocracies will do that to you.

-Those knights at the gate are real bros.

-“I used these to sneak back home.”

...hmm, but Meltokio's a gated community. Where was he sneaking back from? I know we all use our headcanons to imaigne towns and inns populated across the landscape, but "sex clubs littered across Tethe'alla" is territory I'd rather not traverse.

-Colette stop casting judgement on those snakes. they're snakes. save that tp.

Also listen to those low-quality hissing effects HISSISHSISHSISSHSISHISS

-“…I guess so.” Isn’t a very Presea line.

-“Now I can do this and that without anyone finding out it’s me…”

Sexual harassment! Also another one of those weird vague, low-context lines they don't bother cleaning up for silent dialogue.

-man it sure is convenient how those spider webs keep popping up just in time to help solve the block puzzle huh gang

-sneaking into the mouse holes while you're tiny is a clever gimmick but uh

who's stuffing these weapons into tiny bags and shoving them into mouse holes

-That shot with the group's feet is good. Tales of Symphonia is hardly known for its chorography, but there's some good shots now and then.

-Any digs at Zelloyd aside, Zelos’s queer-coding is pretty, well, evident. You got the pink outfit, Masaya Onosaka's flamboyant performance in the JP version, annnnnd him randomly hugging Lloyd at random intervals (As seen here.)

Combined with all the women hungry for his status and good looks, and you got a classic recipe for repressed homosexuality. Not exactly a wonder that's Symphonia's most popular boy's love pairing.

-Regal’s theme is gooooooooood. Listen to that sax. Damn!

-Love how nonchalant Sebastian is about everything -- guy just doesn't give a fuq his master's wanted. Almost like that's not the first time. (Hmm...)

I channeled this quality for my Colloyd Week 2024 fic to fun results.

-Speaking of queer-coding, “bud” is good localization for “hunny.”

-"You’re pr-pr-pretty." is peak relatable. Poor Genis!

Well, then again, I guess most of us haven't tried to put the moves on victims of Exsphere parasitism.

-This is where the game does this weird habit of pointless gags/scenes with Colette, although her crickking her neck in her sleep's pretty funny.

-Man-made summon spirits…geez don’t tell me they ended with up eldritch FMA abominations lol. "Shee...na..."

-Geez, the half-elves're stuck down there too. There’s a door in the side of the lobby – at least they have beds there, right? Right? Racist bastards.

-“I thought Kuchinawa had talked to you about it, but I guess he didn’t.”

lol don’t tell me he tried to steal the freakin' EC

-Okay wait did he lock the gate at the bridge too lol that’s like the pettiest plan ever. “Yeah this’ll stop them!”

-“Are those decoration things Exspheres?”

how do these things even work. Are they like containers or something. namco pls

-Raine says the EC was a land vehicle but I dunno how that could be anything but a boat. Sheena and Zelos complain about it too but, I dunno, it looks like

-So do wing packs work like hoipoi capsules in Dragon Ball? At any rate, love the Sylvarant teen trio losing their minds over it. Such child-like innocence.

-I've mentioned before how the HD ports remove ellipses, but Presea's "...Professor?" here has the "professor" removed as opposed to said ellipses. Weird.

-The EC music is so purty. Trying to remember why I’d always get stuck here though since the port’s straight ahead LOL

-So you know those optional cutscenes where Kratos's travelling around Tethe'alla to find ingredients for the Eternal Ring? I know I've seen the Ozette one numerous times before, but while the script/descriptions for the others sound familiar, I'm not sure I ever watched them in-game? Hmm.

Anyway, uh, interesting they just had a broken machine from the Ancient War lying around the academy.

-“It seems monsters existed in the prehistoric era too”

yo then why’d you imply cruxis made them

The guy’s second line here references criminals – I could’ve found out more if I talked to him sooner. I'm dying for some lore here, man!

-“Was the warrant put out for you because you were using strange chemicals?”

what

-“Don’t misunderstand me. I’m talking about rune bottles.”

what

-“It’s not a mistake for humans, who are unable to use magic, to pursue magitechnology.”

This guy repeating history aside, they never explicitly mention magic works in the main story, do they? As in, the whole "Kratos and Zelos can only use magic thanks to Aionis" deal. You'd thiiiiiiiiiiiink that'd catch attention sooner.

“If we capture some of the monsters that have reappeared and force them to continuously use magic, we may be able to confirm the effects of pushing the limits of magic-usage”

lady

chill

-Zelos: "Hello, hunny."

Girl: “Hehe, here you go.” GIVES ME EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS.

...y'know, as fun as this gag is, I wonder if it's aged well, lol.

-The Gaoracchia Forest opens with...Colette apologizing for being too cheery. Um, okay.

-“Zelos, you are in the way of the pope.”

“Heh, I’ve known that since I was a kid.”

Hmm, how so? I demand to know the history here.

-THE BOXER IRIIIIIIIS

I could discuss Tales of Symphonia's enemy variety, but I know some of you are curious about this particular baddie following my Colloyd Week fic -- as it happens, I never had any particular affinity for them until recently when @frayed-symphony's illustration of all the Gaoracchia Forest monsters was reposted before Colloyd Week.

Somehow, my eyes fell upon the Boxer Iris with its big weepy eyeball and bulbous boppers and I just went, "...you know, that's a really fun enemy design. I gotta use that critter somehow." How that morphed into "non-verbal mugger", I dunno, but it became one of my favorite details. Now I feel kinda bad slicing it up.

Anyway, she's now living happily with Fred in one of those thorn bushes, I'm sure. They'll be back.

-Ugh I swear shining the light on those bushes drives me crazy. Y'all know what I'm talking about? why you gotta come at them from different direction

-Colette’s one-armed strength…is that how angelic senses work? Housework must be a breeze for her -- imagine her just lifting furniture around. There's a fic here!

-Ya’ll, have I ever mentioned how much I love the Recover/Resurrection sound. So heavenly. Mmm.

...Oh yeah, I didn't discuss any of the Presea and Regal stuff, huh? We'll get to that next time. Lots of ground to cover.

[shadowsight-aster]

Hello, I am very much interested in hearing you rant about River Ripple x Grey Wing, pls and thank you. 🙏

I like their interactions with each other more than the moments they have with their canon mates 😅

MY TIME HAS FINALLY COME OH MY GOD YIPPEE YIPPEE AN EXCUSE TO RANT ABOUT MY GUYS!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU ANON!!!!!!!!!!!! ok ok so all of this is going to be really reachy because i'm ill in the brain about these guys but just trust me

(dotc and riverstar's home spoilers beneath)

as i said before, they've got something going on, even from their first (minor) interactions after the fire in clear sky's forest, grey runs to the shore to yowl for his brother...and river is the first to join in, even past his dislike for clear sky. we see from river's perspective that he's worried about grey wing and his asthma after the blaze their relationship really comes out after the great battle, where river does his best to ease grey's grief (taking excerpts from both dotc and riverstar's home)

when river ripple first picks up grey wing's scent heading toward fourtrees, he feels like he *needs* to go to him

grey is literally his destiny i am not making this up

they kitty kiss. THEY CAT KISS. OUGHGHHHHHH IM SO NORMAL ! and grey wing *wants* river to come be with the rest of the mountain cats on the moor even after river declines, grey wing goes on to ask if he'll see him again at the next meeting

then, we skip ahead to the second time river finds grey wing at the grave, panicking because he believes grey to be hurt

river ripple cares about grey wing so much for a cat who makes it VERY clear that he doesn't really enjoy the company of the colony from the mountains bro literally SPEEDS DOWN THE HOLLOW TO GET TO HIM. IT'S. UGH I LOVE THEM this is when river offers grey wing a place in the island camp and. words cannot describe how much exploding i was doing while reading this oh my god

"he has to want this, too." OKAYYYYYYY. OKAY. I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE sorry. sorry he's so desperate for his love to be okay again. during these chapters, we're given an insight of grey's time living by the river istg they argue like a married couple i love them

and then, possibly one of my FAVORITE lines from the blazing star:

"you don't need to prove yourself to me." it is an affirmation, it is a confession, it is everything grey needed to hear. he doesn't have to keep pretending to be strong, to be "useful" around river. river sees him for how he is, understands that grey is more than his faults and his illness and his doubts !!!!! he takes him for who he is and expects nothing more. river is doing the bare minimum by being kind to him but like. in a world where your brother is 3 bad days away from murdering you in cold blood and there's a guy trying to take over your entire place of living (twice) and everybody's cold and hungry and mean, it can be a lot more impactful and then THEY KISS. AGAIN. GOD THESE FRUITASTIC CATS

"he'd become a good friend" YEAH. HE'S YOUR HUSBAND, FOOL and then. slate's there...which, again, not to hate the women of warriors cause they get enough flack but slate and grey wing's relationship feels very rushed (like 1-2 pages from 2 chapters rushed. they have two interactions and grey is smitten) and it's a little odd that he's so enamored by sunningrocks cause he *lived by the river* for a good while but i digress grey's our bisexual king and we love that for him and then we move into the aftermath of moth flight's vision, and the discovery of the moonstone. ohhhhh boy. let me tell you. when clear sky and thunder come to deliver the news of grey wing's passing, this is what runs through river's head:

HE'S EXPECTING TO FEEL THAT TUG THAT CALLS HIM TO GREY. THEY'RE. CONNECTED ON SOME KIND OF SPIRITUAL LEVEL AND IF THAT'S NOT SOULMATE BEHAVIOR IDK WHAT IS ! and after. ohhhhh man not only is grey one of the nine cats to grant river his lives--

--but ALSO appears for the first time after river drowns trying to save drizzle

nagging his boy because he just lost a life. stars know grey wing was rolling his eyes so hard /j

while it's true that their interactions are few and far between, their dynamic and their relationship is literally everything to me they are so sweet to each other and that is the absolute truth ! they had time to fall in love ON SCREEN, spanning multiple books and did so in a meaningful way i'd like to imagine grey wing fell after being invited to the island, that he realized just how much he loved river as he was leaving and that it only grew stronger in the time they were apart and they connect so easily because they're both striving for the same goal: peace. river understands grey wing because pacifism has been all he's ever known. he emphasizes with grey, understands how hard it is in a world where nobody is willing to listen to you. they find that peace in each other, and it's unlike any kind of calm they've felt before. they love each other like how a moth loves its guiding light, how a current loves its banks, how the sun kisses inch of the world given to it, how hawks breathe in the open sky. they are unconditional in their adoration, even after one has passed young and the other is busied with duties they never asked for. they see each other in the lands that connect them, see silver fur in the eddies of the river, and golden eyes in the sunset that paints the moor warm again. i think they're kind of neat they devistate me. they jostle me around and make me weep so hard into my hands rghghghgh erins i'm tired of crumbs. give me my gay and my lesbian and my diamoric cats NOW ! i've actually been working on an overhaul of dotc and it includes more their love for each other (AND DOESN'T KILL OFF GREY YET BECAUSE I FELT LIKE HIS DEATH WAS TOO SOON PPUNCHING THE AIR)

BY THE WAY. i have a playlist about them smiley and i just want to say they're always very sleeping at last coded but ESPECIALLY light from atlas: i

and also i was an island by john-allison weiss !!!

i will pick apart these songs and do a study on them from a greyripple viewpoint at a later date because this post? is super long. like really fucking long i've been writing this for like 3 hours now (sweats) BUT YEAH !!! those are my thoughts !!!! it's not very coherent cause it's late and i have school in the morning but whatever i will go on about them more soon, specifically in my overhaul of dotc!! which. as an aside, i really *really* love dotc and i think it's overhated and underappreciated i need more animatics about how tragic the early settlers are damn it

[jenn0wow]

Dorian x Inquisitor Trevelyan Fan Fic excerpt

Chapter 5: Dorian Hates Ferelden Chapter

Josef is an ex-assassin with a secret past who begrudgingly accepts his fate as Herald after the Conclave explodes. Having a personal grudge against Templars, Josef chooses to align himself with the mages. Once Dorian Pavus joins the inquisition, Josef finds the man frustrating but a talented mage with an affinity for death. Josef develops feelings he knows he shouldn’t be having while he attempted to save the world. Dorian also starts having these same complicated feelings.

In Dorian Hates Ferelden chapter, Dorian has been with the team (Josef, Bull, and Varrick) for several weeks now. His relationship with Josef is strained because Dorian likes to talk and Josef really doesn’t.

This is one chapter in a 100 pg fanfic I started back 2015 😀👍 Although at least 50 pages of it was written this past month lol. If you notice any more that is inaccurate pls don’t tell me or I’ll cry

———————————————————————

Another day, another “adventure.” Dorian enjoyed being a part of Josef’s most trusted team, but he was quickly becoming homesick—something he didn’t think he was capable of being. It’s not that he really missed home, it’s that he hated Fereldan. Most of it was covered in trees, mountains, rocks, mud. And now he had the misfortune of being acquainted with it all up close and personal with these little trips across the country land to save a farmer from demon wolves or some other back country nonsense.

Haven was lackluster too, no indoor water unless you counted the dingy bath hall. It was also cold. Damp. Inside and outside. Even when it was warm, he felt harassed by a wetness in the air. It made it difficult to ever keep his hair in place. If he said that out loud he was sure someone like Iron Bull would shame him for his vanity. Perhaps keeping himself preened and well kept made him feel more normal and not on a death journey against powerful demons and the occasional darkspawn.

Dorian couldn’t keep his head on straight with where they traveled. Trees all looked the same to him. All forests were just the same forest to him. This trek was no different, just point to where he should use his magic and onto the next moist, disgusting parcel of land.

“Reports say there’s a rift near some ruins past the river. I figure if it takes longer than expected, we can stop by a nearby town for supplies and make contact with some of our scouts and make camp.” Josef said, when they left the original encampment they started from.

Dorian didn’t mind the camping thing at the beginning as it felt novel and exciting. He also didn’t want to complain too early on since he knew he should be grateful for being a part of all of this, but now he couldn’t bear laying on another cot or worse the ground. He keeps waking up to bugs crawling on him, and when the missions take too long, he wouldn’t have the opportunity to shower for days. A quick rinse in a river is good for some of these men, but for Dorian, he likes to actually use soap with his water. Maybe a nice clean towel. Like a civilized person.

Dorian watched Josef as he studied the surroundings. Josef didn’t even like his job and yet he took it very seriously—barely a whine or complaint out of him unless it’s the wee hours of the morning and he’s acting funny about being the herald. It seemed so easy for him to just do it. Not that he has much of a choice. His glowing hand has him chained to this journey. Dorian didn’t have any true responsibility to be a part of this, but he’d seen too much to back out now.

Dorian had become so lost in thought and walked right in a cluster of gnats. They buzzed in his ear, went up his nose. Absolutely revolting. “This is my last fucking straw.” Dorian swatted at them and started rubbing his face on all the bug gunk.

Josef looked back. “Is everything okay?” He said, raising an inquisitive eyebrow that felt a bit demeaning if Dorian was going to be honest. “It’s only half a mile until we get to town. Can you handle that?”

Dorian scrunched his nose as he heard a snicker from the Qunari. Dorian shot him a look and then painted a smile on his face for Josef. “Everything’s super dandy.” He replied, only with a little sarcasm. He then muttered, “Like you could call anything we’re going to civilization. It’s just three log cabins and a horse farm.”

Josef stopped in his tracks. “Is this too much for you? I can leave you back at Haven…unless it’s too primitive for you.” Josef seared a glare into Dorian that the mage couldn’t figure if it scared him or turned him on more.

Dorian nervously chuckled. “And waste all my good looks and talents by sitting around and doing nothing? No thank you. I’d rather suffer here than there. Much better view here.” He said with a cheeky smile, “I'm just not very accustomed to Fereldan life and roughing it, I suppose.”

“Okay, princess,” Iron Bull chortled.

“Sparkle’s pretty valid for being uncomfortable. This kind of lifestyle isn’t for everyone.” Varrick commented. “It was a rude awakening for myself as well. But, I enjoyed my own freedom too much to complain.”

“Well, I’m not NOT going to get used to it. I’m here to stay.” Dorian tried to posture himself a bit, trying not to feel too pathetic. “I actually used to do a lot of traveling around places like these before joining the inquisition…although I made sure to charm myself a roof over my head and a warm meal most nights…Anyways son't worry about me.”

“Well, if you’re going to be here…at least stop complaining about it.” Josef’s words were cutting.

Dorian bowed. “As you wish.”

The herald sped up his walk to keep a healthy distance between him and the team. He needed to refocus.

“Actually, why did you even join us?” Varrick asked. “Not to be disrespectful, but aren’t you a little..ya know…”

“—Prissy, stuck up, spoiled.” Iron Bull interjected.

Dorian shot him yet another look and his hand went up in flames.

“I was going to say something like sophisticated or civilized. Adventuring and camping and all this doesn’t really seem like your style. Or at least from what I gathered.” Varrick shrugged. “Just curious as to why you accepted the offer. You’re still useful at Haven.”

Dorian let his flame simmer and sighed. “I don’t know. Perhaps it’s my ego wanting me to be on the front lines and a star player in all this mess, but there’s something also that tells me I should follow that man,” his gaze was tight on Josef, “even if it meant walking through demon infested pits. He saved my life, you know.”

“Okay, you’re not that special. He has sort of saved all our lives, but I get it. Josef may not want this job, but he certainly has owned it. No matter his past, you just want to follow and see what he’ll do next.” Dorian nodded in agreement with Varrick’s statement.

“And the glowy thing on his hand is so fucking cool.” Iron Bull interjected again. “Seeing him close rifts was the only reason I needed to follow him. Plus he’s good in a fight. I wouldn’t follow someone who couldn’t hold their own like that.”

Dorian watched Josef again, who clenched his sharp jaw as he concentrated on his walk. He could tell Josef didn’t see himself as the others do, as Dorian did. He was just a man, but he was becoming more than that without Josef even realizing. It must be a lot to carry.

Josef tried to drown out the rest of the party’s conversation. He didn’t care for the flattery. It wasn’t something he wanted to cling to. They were paper thin to him. However, he knew that he could not avoid the charming praises forever as his responsibility grew with the position he was forced into. He was trying to be on his best behavior. Trying to do what felt right. It’s what he’s been trying to do his whole life, but to what success…that wasn’t for him to decide. All he knew was he didn’t want to be the face of a movement, a crusade…

He swallowed those feelings down and tried to focus. Trees. Flowers. Grass. Birds. Mud.

“Maker—UGH!”

Josef looks over his shoulder to see a frustrated Dorian fallen butt first into the mud. Dorian groaned in annoyance as he slowly picked himself up. Varrick and Bull were of course uncontrollably laughing. Dorian then looked up from his now soiled pants and saw Josef looking down at him.

“I’m not complaining. I…quite like the mud….” He said, wincing a bit.

Josef scoffed and kept walking. He wasn’t going to make a fuss about it. That would just further bruise the mage’s ego.

It reminded him of when he first left home. It was a harsh transition and it was only until he was taken in by the assassin’s guild that he was able to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. They trained him hard. It was necessary and in these times he’s glad he had it.

He heard the sounds of people, civilians luckily. Not that he wasn’t prepared to take out any rogue venatori assassins or robbers, but he wasn’t focused enough for it to be a swift fight. None of them were focused enough.

As they got into town, it was exactly how Dorian described it bar a few extra log cabins. They walked through town in search of their supplies. One of the farmers allowed Dorian to use his water pump to clean off his pants.

“Great, first muddy pants and now I’ll have soaked ones that uncomfortably clinging to my body.” Dorian tried not to pout. “Everyone here is lucky I have the perfect ass or else this would be way more depressing.”

They collected their supplies and as the four men left, a smell caught their noses as they passed the local tavern.

“Mm, smells like a hot meal.” Varrick said.

“Dang, that smells good.” Bull said, “Made me remember I was hungry.”

“Aren’t you always hungry, you big cow?” Dorian spatted at him in jest. “But, I agree it does smell quite delicious.”

Josef pressed his lips together and thought for a moment. It wouldn’t hurt to get a heartier meal. Jerky, fish, and bread at camp could be a bit monotonous. For some, it wasn’t very fulfilling and for others it must not be up to their palette standards. As an assassin, he couldn’t afford to lose his cover while traveling so making any appearance in such public spaces was dangerous. As herald, it didn’t really matter as much. Actually, according to Josephine, it helped with his public image. Which was a thing he had now apparently.

Josef looked over at the lively tavern and then back at his crew. “Let’s stop to eat.” He said.

“Uh, really?” Varrick looked at Josef. “Actually, I’m not questioning and I’m gonna let this happen. Thanks, Herald!”

A big grin spread on Iron Bull’s face. “Let's clear this place out!”

The two excitedly walked to the tavern. Josef sauntered behind, with Dorian mimicking his step.

“So why are you suddenly so nice?” Dorian asked, “Not saying you’re never not nice, but from past behavior, you haven’t spontaneously decided on a leisure activity.”

“Do you have a problem with it?” Josef raised an eyebrow.

“Quite the opposite. While I’m not a superfan of Fereldan cuisine, I like it much more than the scraps we scrounge up at camp.” Dorian said, “I’m only asking because I want to better understand you. Like what goes on inside your beautiful brain and what not.”

Josef opened his mouth, words caught. “I’m…really not that complicated.” Josef quickened his stride and walked inside the tavern. He’d like to think he was keeping a simple kind of composure and impenetrable cover--but everyday it's more difficult with the responsibilities he now holds. The people of the inquisition were much more eager to question him than his old guild mates. Josef could have said he escaped the circus after selling his soul to a demon nug and they wouldn’t have questioned it. In the inquisition though, he could breathe wrong and they have at least five questions about it and sent four spies to find out more. Or they’d just sic Dorian on him and have him go insane.

Dorian huffed and smirked. “I beg to differ.”

The four men sat at a table with four large bowls of stew in front of them. Bull also ordered a handle of ale, which turned to him ordering everyone a cup as he felt it was a moment of celebration.

“And what are we celebrating?” Varrick asked.

“Dinner!” Bull let out a large billowing laughter.

It was in these moments that Josef felt a bit lucky. Anything could have happened after the chantry incident, and somehow he was lucky enough to be experiencing this--with…what he’d like to consider friends. It’s what made the title and responsibilities and world ending more manageable.

He took a sip of the ale. Much stronger than it thought it would be. He winced and coughed as it went down.

“Can’t handle liquor, Stitches?” Varrick teased.

“I haven’t drank liquor in many years.” Josef confessed. “I wasn’t allowed to in the guild.”

“That’s awful,” Bull said, “The Ben-Hassrath could be like that as well, but I do what I want now. Pleasure doesn't have to be a distraction if it’s also the goal…” he sipped on his ale. “Wait, you were allowed to have sex? You could have sex, right?” He had a worried look on his face that Josef knew was genuine worry.

Josef laughed and hid his face in his mug, letting his walls fall for a moment to try to match their energy. “Yes, we were allowed to have sex.” He sipped on his ale, a bit nervously. “Well, with most of those men, it’s not like you could stop them anyways.”

Dorian laughed. “Were you one of those men?” Dorian cocked an eyebrow. “If I may ask…”

Josef felt his face become warm either from the alcohol or the question. “Ah…” he nervously chuckled. “When I was younger…I suppose…”

He then felt himself get cold, a pulling feeling in his chest. Was that what Ervin was becoming to him? A sexual exploit of his youth? Is that what he felt comfortable telling everyone? What he felt comfortable telling himself?

Dorian watched as the herald’s face dimmed. Maybe he shouldn’t have asked the question. Usually he reveled in making others uncomfortable, but usually he instilled embarrassment in people, not a deep sadness.

Josef’s chest tightened, and he didn’t know what to do with the feeling. He took a big swig of the ale, and got up from his seat. “Excuse me,” he made his way to the door.

“Ah, there I go making things worse.” Dorian huffed as he watched him leave. “Why is it always me making him all weird and emotional?”

“Because you’re weird and emotional. It’s contagious, Pavus,” Bull laughed, “except it’s only catching to mushy humans. We feel none of that.” He clinked cups with Varrick.

Dorian crossed his arms and leaned in his seat.

“And you’re always poking and prodding around so obviously,” Varrick noted. “Maybe, and it’s just a suggestion, stop doing that.”

“I’m just curious.” Dorian said, “And don’t you want to know more about him?”

“Of course,” Varrick said.

“No,” Bull said.

“I know a lot about these hero types, and Josef is the stoic, sullen type. Poking around and being too obvious about it will usually get you on their bad side. I’m not trying to get on Josef’s bad side. And usually the stories unravel by themselves. You just gotta be patient.” Varrick shrugged and picked up his spoon to eat more of his stew.

Dorian clicked his tongue and crossed his arms in a huffy manner. There was a moment of silence at the table as Dorian pondered and the two slurped down their soups.

“I should go apologize,” Dorian said, getting up from his seat.

“Maker’s breathe…,” Varrick muttered.

Dorian opened the door to see Josef leaning against the tavern’s exterior, brooding. His arms were crossed tight around his chest, and his gaze was far off. The way the sky was colored shined nicely on his skin, which was just an observable fact that Dorian felt the need to make note of in his brain. Josef was handsome, check.

“It was not my intention to upset you with my question.” Dorian said, “I was relying too much on the ale to make you more….open.”

“You’re fine. I’m just…thinking…” Josef looked up towards the mountains.

“Don’t make me curious,” Dorian said, standing next to him. He leaned on his shoulder for a second then slid two steps away after he was reminded himself to give him space. “Don’t worry, I won’t ask what you’re thinking about even though I’m itching to know.”

There was a small silence.

“And why do you care?”

Josef turned his gaze towards him. Dorian felt a weird sense of fear as if he was digging himself into a hole perhaps. Josef looked at him like he was under a microscope, like he was studying things about Dorian that Dorian didn’t know about. It was terrifying in an exhilarating way, or at least that’s what Dorian was telling himself. A gaze like that made him ask himself why did he care so much?

“Because I like knowing who's leading me to possible death and definite danger. And as I said before, I’m always itching with curiosity,” Dorian quickly formulated.

“You can afford to be open about you and your emotions. I cannot. I cannot allow myself such vulnerability and I never have.” Josef looked away from him, and Dorian felt a weight lift off of him with the herald’s gaze elsewhere. “I can’t help but be envious.”

Dorian could see the flush of alcohol on his cheeks. Perhaps the liquor did loosen him just a smidge.

“You’re not the only person who has had to hide parts of themselves. Perhaps my openness now is because I’m appreciating the freedom you and this opportunity has given me.” Dorian responded.

“I don’t think I granted you that. You would have found it on your own.” Josef breathed out. He then looked at the sunsetting, the golden hue of the sun reflected off his dark eyes. “I’m afraid though it’s been too easy since you joined.”

Dorian felt a bit flustered by those words. At first not knowing what Josef meant until he did.

“You think there’s danger brewing in the distance.” Dorian asked, “isn’t it always?”

“When things get too easy, it never lasts too long.” Josef’s jaw seemed to harden. “I’m not superstitious, I’m just observing. And something bad is going to happen. Any day now.”

There was a cold chill with his words. Both refreshing and bone chilling.

“Well, let’s at least enjoy the peace while it’s here.” The mage tried to lighten the conversation.

Josef cracked a small smile. “That’s the thing. It feels as if we’ve enjoyed it much longer than we should have.”

[bunnyscar]

The Siliven's Request: Part 32

“Sara, can I talk with you? Alone?” Manas asked.

“Of course. What is it?” Sara followed him to the cave’s entrance, and they stood next to the pool, away from the others.

Manas opened his mouth, then shut it, frowning. Though he had spent most of the previous night deciding what to say and resolving himself to tell her, now that she stood in front of him it was a different matter. She was beautiful. Though perhaps in worldly terms she appeared rather plain, to him she was the most beautiful, most precious thing the world could offer. He didn’t deserve to be near someone as good as her. How many times had she saved him, when he had only brought her trouble? There was no way he would ever be good enough for her, yet if she really did love him….

Manas took a deep breath and said, “I wanted to thank you for all you’ve done for me. For traveling with me, for saving my life, for... accepting me. I don’t deserve the kindness you’ve shown me. You’ve gone into dangerous situations for my sake. And though it may be selfish of me, I—I want to stay with you. If we win, if I do become king, I want to live the rest of my life with you. I….” He paused uncertainly.

Sara smiled and said, “Well, I did promise I was going to keep you from becoming like your father, didn’t I? It would be rather hard to keep an eye on you if I wasn’t nearby.”

“Yes, but I mean, I, err,” Manas stammered. Uncomfortably, he turned and stared into the nearby pool’s depths. Slowly, he said, “It’s only recently that I really thought about our relationship. And if you don’t feel the same way, I understand. But I think I’m finally realizing just how important you are to me, and just how much I—I love you.”

Sara stood speechless for a moment, then a joyous smile spread across her face. She said softly, “And I love you, Manas.” They stood quietly for a moment, gazing at the pool and listening to the faint sounds of forest creatures calling to each other.

At last, Sara spoke again, “You once said that Siliven and humans can’t be together. Did something change your mind?”

“Kelsin said that there used to be some mixed marriages in the past, before all the strife between humans and Siliven started. And it’s not likely I’ll live much longer than you, if even as long, so lifespan won’t be an issue. Though...I suppose we wouldn’t be able to get married right away. Even if I am able to take the throne from my mother, there will be the treaty to arrange, corruption within the Vawaren government to fix, and more,” Manas commented.

“Then perhaps an engagement would be better,” Sara suggested. Manas nodded.

“I’m afraid I don’t have anything to give you, though. Isn’t it customary to give an engagement ring?”

Sara glanced down at the stone hanging from her neck and said, “The necklace you gave me will do for now. Even if it can't grant any more wishes, I still treasure it, and it was one of the first gifts you gave me. Just make sure you find a ring by the time we’re actually getting married.” And she winked cheekily at him. Manas raised an eyebrow, but smiled.

“You’re sure you won’t mind living in Vawaren, if we succeed? It’s a dark place,” he commented.

“Anywhere with you is fine. Even if it’s dark, the forest can be beautiful, can it not?”

“Perhaps,” Manas murmured.

“And Manas, stop talking like we ‘might’ succeed; we will succeed. I feel sure of it,” Sara said and looked up at him with a determined gaze.

Manas gave her a smirk. “If you say so, queen.”

Sara rolled her eyes. She stood and said, “Well, we’d better get ready if we’re really going to do this.”

Manas nodded and followed her back into the cave. It was time to become king.

Link to Part 31:

[kangseluigi]

Elon Musk pisses me off so much, because he wants to save the world, as long as he gets credit for it, but doesn't do anything productive!!! If I had his kinda wealth, it would be SO EASY to do it!

First of all, for climate change:

I'd just buy a goddamn piece of land in the desert, the bigger, the better, and FILL it with solar panels. A land the size of a small country, cool, lay lines to a nearby city, boom, whole city gets switched to solar, every person is charged cents per year for electricity, companies a little more. I can use that money to a) keep the panels, lines etc intact, clean and whatnot, and b) to install more panels elsewhere. Go to Vegas and cover every tall building and hotel from top to bottom with solar panel windows and will power itself AND its entire neighbourhood. Rinse and repeat in all kinds of places. Add wind turbines by the sea and in the middle of roads. Boom. Fixed. (obv we add batteries for it all, idk why anti-solar people always forget that, it's been obvious in the 90's when I was a CHILD)

All workers put out of a job because coal mines, power plants etc are closing? Whoever can retire pls do that, the rest, we offer as many as possible to be re-trained for installing and maintaining our stuff, the panels, the turbines, the lines, etc. Others can be put into re-foresting areas like were coal mines were with appropriate plants for the region, balance the ecosystem.

Improve public transport in those places, have Tesla work on GOOD public transport methods, improved subways/trains and buses, also with solar and wind power, thing that don't fucking break in the car wash or rain, and through that, have it be free! I promise every country can afford the drivers' wages and minor maintenance when you don't have to substitute 43829019384 cars and fix roads all the time, and there is 0 gasoline or electricity to be paid for, ultimately.

THEN!

I'd pester every single museum in the world. Remember the fire in the Brazilian Museum that destroyed plenty of things in it? Let's not have that happen again! Everybody give me your stuff for 3 seconds, so I can do super high quality 3D renders of it all and preserve it for all eternity, maybe in Zuckerberg's weird bunker idk, and have all museums access all scans in there through their own network, so that a) IF disaster strikes again, we won't lose as much. Even if the original may be destroyed, we still have some form of access to it. b) if some artifacts and objects can't be shipped around, you can still include them through screens or projections, or even have a goddamn VR glasses exhibition of old temples in life size! Imagine! You can only import so many Egyptian artifacts for your exhibition, it will never be truly complete, but you can include a screen that allows visitors to scroll through all the related things and view them closely. You can project the pyramids into an empty space in the room and have them digitally disassemble the thing, piece by piece, to show exactly how they were built and how the corridors inside run, what someone could expect. You can project the pyramid's corridors AROUND visitors to give them a taste of it. You can have them go into the VR room and have them walk the hallways digitally, or have them stand in the Colosseum or ancient temples, the way they looked 2000 years ago, filled with life! Maybe I would "accidentally" ship all objects back to their original owners and leave most european museums with the 3d printed copies but that's not relevant right now

With that, we could also open up websites where all objects in the catalogue can be VIEWED by anyone in the world, with a little texty-text from experts, which means more accessibility, for people across the globe who'll never get to that specific location, people who can't necessarily leave the house for whatever reason, people who simply cannot enter some museums, etc etc. It means students can more easily find in depth, high quality information. It means all people regardless of income can theorise and discuss these things. Imagine how fun Covid would have been, had we had access to all that information. If everyone had been able to make posts about how "I found this fun detail on this object/art piece and nobody seems to have talked about it EVER?!" and "So, I couldn't sleep and I was looking through the catalogue and came across this thing, and then fell down a rabbit hole. A thread 1/127" !!!!

Maybe (!?) we could also, additionally, do it similarly to archive.org and let people rent digitally, but also rent/sell non-commercial (!) licenses for the 3d renders. Eg. if someone wants to 3d print something just for their own hobby, or to let their blind relative feel the objects they cannot see, and of course wouldn't be able to touch in the real museum. Additionally, it may allow the gift shops to 3D print or otherwise model mini-versions/copies of some of the artifacts for purchase cause ??!?!? who wouldn't want a copy of whichever crown!

The same with paintings etc.

It would make history, art, and knowledge SO accessible!! It would allow anyone to really learn, to draw inspiration, to theorise! To FEEL the art, the heavy strokes of Van Gogh's paintings, build something, to understand humanity as a whole in a new light! To spark new conversations and understanding between us all.

It could be SO easy.

But no, he has to play stupid games to bring down the price of twitter, then be forced into buying it, and fuck everything up, instead ruining a source of information, just like he bought Tesla and ruined it!

[companionwolf]

Dreamscape (FIST) - Hazard Function aka the first 8 sessions of the campaign

Session 1

1/22/2024 - 3h28m - rooms cleared: 4

Context: started our fist campaign; running the players through a modified Hazard Function (a character funnel normally), which in this game is actually a VR simulation that a NPC is trying to free them from (PCs all took a job that offered lots of benefits in exhange for time spent being used by the corpo who needed testers for the sim)-- all the PCs save Silver are not FIST mercs yet (that comes after the escape)

PCs: Pierce, he/him; Kinship, they/them; Silver, he/him; Hare, she/her; Innsmouth, xe/xem; Molotov, it/its

- this hospital is Weird, and the PCs are starting off strong by realizing that

- Where Are the Nurses, ask the PCs. The Staff. Why Don't We Remember How We Got Here.

- teehee :3c says me

- SURVIVE FUNCTION. RESCUE SOON.

- enter: the pitch black parking lot

- aaaaand they initiated combat already

- YAY A BOLT ACTION RIFLE

- FIRST INJURY OF THE GAME IS A GRAZE

- flashlight to the head says bye bye to half a enemies HP

- Molotov don't die, get away from that truck.

- being lifted by the throat sounds. Painful. Sorry Hare.

- INNSMOUTH WITH THE 'RAM XERSELF INTO THE ONE HOLDING HARE' MANUVER-- WAIT WHAT THE FUCK, THAT WORKED?

- Molotov continues to get shot :/ stop

- CAR EXPLODES ALA XCOM 2, ENEMY 1 DIES

- but Innsmouth, Hare, and Molotov are alive!

- Kinship jumps on a bitch and kills them

- Molotov tries to shoot back at the last enemy, fails ofc

- KINSHIP GETS SHOT AND THEN ALSO A CAR EXPLODES BASICALLY ON TOP THEM BUT THEYRE. ALIVE. they're fine I prommy

- Silver takes the rifle from Molotov, goes -_- and kills the last enemy

- group takes a minute to examine the dead things which are androids, strip them of weapons, and then go smashing parked cars (to find anything they use to patch their injuries)

- in the distance ...

- a office building

- OH fuck a TURRET

- oh they killed it in like. 3 turns

- Molotov's big wound is treated yay

- Silver uses his TRUTH trait

- the referee is kind (+1 medkit)

- Silver helps everyone but himself

- and we begin to move through the office

- that's where we ended today

Session 2

1/23/2024 - 1hr - rooms cleared: 3 (total 7)

- OMG ANOTHER HUMAN

- oh they're hostile ):

- gun turret the second one

- CAN MOLOTOV STOP GETTING SHOT PLS

- Silver continues to be a tank

- everypne is tearing their sleeves off to make makeshift bandages for everyone else ;w;

- Hare with the gun turret killshots

- the singular other hunan they saw has fled

- YIPPEE A LAPTOP

- too bad molotovs too ouch to use it rn

- pause for medical treatment yay

- Silver continues to put others above himself

- Silver: I see a way over this electrified water to the exit door

- * Silver falls in the fucking water *

- Kinship saves his ass from death by spicy water

- Hare nearly eats shit trying to get herself and Molotov across to the exit Silver pointed out

- OH BOY A PISTOL FOR PIERCE

- everyone makes it out the door but more than half fuck up their rolls to jump out instead of walk and take damage from the spicy damage

- ooo another parking lot

- this time ft Light. And barrels

- and also some androids that will shoot the party

- Pierce takes the fucking shot

- THE DICE SAY FAILURE, cue explosion

- so.

- the explosions killed both androids.

- BUT

- it also detonated their grenades, and a car, and a explosive barrel

- SHRAPNEL HELL BE UPON THE PARTY

- ..the dice say everyone got damaged

- everyone has hp at 0 or negative now :,)

- thank God for anesthetic depth optional rules

- anyway they need a REAL hospital

- but all they have is [checks notes] more parking lot that is surrounded by a forest

- and thats where we ended today

Session 3

1/24/2023 - 1h34m - rooms cleared: 0 (7)

- the team finds a bunker in the forest

- Silver leads the group down into it

- fuck the other people in the forest ig

- YAY MEDICAL SUPPLIES

- Silver plays doctor with everyone

- things that exist in this world: portable IVs/blood infusion tech and 'repair biofoam'

- also Silver continues to put himself last

- Kinship go AAAAAA bc ouch ouch fuck ouch

- Hare: can I offer you a paw in this trying time

- Molotov you know crying is okay right

- innsmouth leads further bunker exploration

- Pierce it's okay to ask for help

- SILVER OVEREXTERTED AND PASSED OUT

- and Hare just slings him over her shoulder #BAMF

- oh thank fuck some bunk beds

- let's just. Barricade ourselves in here. For safety

- NO MAN LEFT BEHIND says Pierce

- Hare is touched by the group continuing to be normal and not cruel about her being ultrahuman

- (Molotov voice) IM IN

- ... but the computer is boring

- innsmouth starts first watch, everyone else does a eepy

- and that's where we ended today

Session 4

1/25/2024 - 1hr - rooms cleared: 0 (7)

- Silver isn't used to people caring about him

- the bathroom in the bunker works! rejoice

- Silver gazes into the bathroom sink mirror and has a #Moment

- INSTANT COFFEE YAY

- and pancake mix yay

- Molotov knows how to make pancakes

#canon

- why does everyone in this party drink coffee black (save Kinship who just dumps a lot of sugar in there)

- INNSMOUTH GOT A MEMORY

- its about how xe can't make pancakes lol

- Silver asks God why they're kind, and when that'll stops

- yaaaaay breakfast as a family <3

- OH SHIT that door has a seal on it (the lock kind not the aquatic)

- Silver resigns himself to the party opening the sealed door and going to investigate whats inside

- party resupplies (items, weapons, clothing, etc) and prepares to unseal the door

- that's where we ended today

Session 5

1/26/2024 - 1h21m - Rooms cleared: 2 (9)

- door: unsealed

- bear: present

- hotel: trivago

- Molotov and Pierce do not believe in bear

- SURPRISE BITCH THE BEAR IS REAL

- THE BEAR IS LOOSE

- innsmouth takes a bears set of claws to xer legs oof

- dm makes unintentional bear puns and laughs

- Pierce kills the bear; dm makes another joke

- person on the cot drops some LORE

- also they didn't think hybrids were real

- # of times ppl have touched hares ears: 1

- Pierce Has Opinions On This Experiment

- oh this person is also an amnesiac

- but worse

- like innsmouth really

- Silver gives the person the codename Vex

- group brings back Vex to the bunker amenities

- innsmouth stays behind as the group goes back to scout out the rest of the bunker

- and thats where we ended today

Session 6

1/30/2024 - 1hr - rooms cleared: 0 (9)

- ooooo room of storage whats in there

- oh shit tanks . we xcom 2 in this bitch

- Silver ponders if this is a hospital. fucked up if true, he thinks

- Hare has beef with tanks apparently die to being a animal human hybrid

- Kinship knocks on a tank and their own face presses up against the glass lol #jumpscared

- 'their eyes aren't human. or ultrahuman. they're inorganic. machine.' definitely not foreshadowing

- oh FUCK that says Hare

- Silver leaves the choice to Kinship as what to do as their doppelganger struggles in the tank

- Kinship releases their doppelganger

- uhhhh the doppelganger doesn't have blood (that's probably fine)

- kinships doppelganger remembers more than they do, that's...also fine (:

- Pierce argues if these are all doppelgangers of the group, each should meet their other first

- Silver releases his doppelganger; both consider this being a plot point or hook

- Silvers doppelganger says the Fucking Thing (it's an end to afterlife, the answer to true death)

- THE FINAL DISEASE BABEY (<- this is an Eclipse Phase reference sort of lmao)

- and thats where we ended that session

Session 7

2/1/2024 - 26mins - rooms cleared: 1 (10)

- still in storage releasing the doppelganger

- Hare releases hers, they briefly consider who's the original, which of them is real

- Pierce releases his, explains what the group is doing and offers the doppelganger to join up

- Molotov frees it and Innsmouths doppelganngers

- this was a super short session

Session 8

2/13/2024 - 40mins - rooms cleared: 1 (11)

- group of 10 continue down the stairs

- oh boy a reactor room

- Oh Boy Heavy Androids

- OH BOY COMBAT START

- so. the doppelgangers are constructs ala TMBD <- silver's just opened a gunport on his arm and shot a dude

- a android tries to hack Kinship's doppelganger, fails, PCs don't know this is what it was doing but . Yeah.

- Kinship: is [gestures at the robot doppelganger situation] a problem ? / Silver: nah

- also silver: GM PLS BE NICE

- Pierce will give a fuck Later. Rn is Murder Time

- Molotov is just grateful for the help

- innsmouths doppelganger freezes up so bad Silver has to yell at xer to get xem to act

- Silver + his doppelganger take out the last android together

- the gm realizes 5 pcs + 5 dmpcs vs 3 enemies is not balanced very well. Whoops

- Silver searches for useful items, as he does

- they move to go through a door--

- FLASHBANG (?) OF EVERYONES SENSES

- oh shit WE'RE all in tanks?

- who is this man yelling at us

- why is this room fancy. also alarms?

- we'll find out next time

- tldr:

- they finished the hazard function portion of this part! yay!

Total time: 7h8m - 11/22 rooms cleared - 27/24 clock - finished in: 8 sessions