#this is so important. We HAVE to fight for our right of free speech

[bear-cubs-art-things]

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

-Evelyn Beatrice Hall, The Friends of Voltaire

The first amendment allows us to say what we want, whenever we want, without our government punishing us for our words. KOSA, therefore, is violating our first amendment rights. It's mass censorship of the internet, and our right to freedom of speech is being suppressed BY THE GOVERNMENT. Our founding fathers created this as THE FIRST AMENDMENT, and clearly thought this was important. Oh, wouldn't they be disappointed to see what their descendants are doing now. KOSA, a mass censorship bill that will contradict our constitution as we know it. KOSA, which instead of protecting the kids is in fact putting them in harms way. KOSA, which will put so so many people in danger. And we can stop it, but we have to fight. We MUST fight

To hear one voice clearly, we must have the freedom to hear them all

[thefallenangelsgang]

Fuck it, I'm throwing my hat on the ring about the Emil announcing Nate from Fallout 4 is the bystander Soldier in the Fallout 1 opener.

First and foremost, it was a stupid thing to say. As he backtracks to later, the conceit of Fallout's protags is they are supposed to be anyone (and that issue is precisely why some people hate the extensive prewar character background given to you in Fallout 4). For the lead writer to pull a JK Rowling (why would you do that? None of those went over well) is such a major marketing misstep that it wouldn't surprise me if Emil gets reprimanded for it before we even get into the implication of what he said.

Emil your voice is as good as God when it comes to the canon. You can't just say shit like that and expect it to go well. Especially considering the implications.

Speaking of the implications, I'm not mad about Nate being a war criminal. It's a coloring I actually would welcome if the games discussed concepts like Capitalism, Racism, and War in any meaningful way anymore. And if Emil also didn't say this.

Fallout's canon is rooted in reality. That is part of its whole thing. It's fun to do goofy shit like becoming the Silver Shroud and having a make believe superhero fight with the Mechanist or write a woman obsessed with Nuka Cola so much she traverses two games to basically kidnap the CEO's cryogenically preserved head so she can talk to him for all eternity, but the setting is very much rooted in reality.

You aren't dealing with fictional countries, you aren't dealing with fictional races, you aren't dealing with fictional hypotheticals. That is The Elder Scrolls job. You are dealing with actual countries, actual racism, actual history, and actual fucking politics. You have to be mindful of what you are doing and saying. You can't just do things because it's an interesting plot device without first thinking about the implications.

Fallout's world is a heightened version of our own, a path we seem to stumble towards with ever passing year unless we do something about it. It fucking sucks. I'm sure writing it feels like prophesizing the future and eats your soul a bit. It would mine. But that doesn't mean Fallout can just take a sharp left in terms of story and reality and get away with it.

To have Nate be the bystander Soldier and then meet him when he has a very good thing going for him (an expensive house during an inflation crisis, a robot butler, he gets into a vault for free for fucks sake) very much speaks to life rewarding him for his crimes. There is no hatred in his words when he looks at the flag of the country that made him kill innocents. His speech is speaks of remorse for leaving his family and the cycle of war, it does not speak of the horrors. Of watching you comrades bleed out in the Anchorage snow. Of the scream of shells overhead. Of the fear in civilians eyes as your buddy puts a bullet between them.

You all have to see how it looks like the man is fine with what he had to do during the war, right?

Not interacting with these concepts enough paints a picture of apathy and acceptance. In this day and age where being keeping the government honest and responsible for their actions is so important, that isn't going to slide without it being EXTREMELY purposeful, which it is not. It's tone deaf and lazy.

I respect a lot of what Emil has done in the past, but I am not above keeping him culpable when he has something so delicate in his hands. I hope this situation is what he needed to get his head on straight, or is the light bulb moment where he realizes he needs to pass the torch onwards. There is no shame in subject matter becoming too much as time goes on. There is shame in letting a previously critical series become the very thing it was criticizing.

He is going to keep getting dragged until he realizes that or he manages to convince the fans to be complicit in the degradation of setting. In doing so he is going to lose Bethesda most of its biggest fans who well and truly love the series and what it stands for.

But that's just my take, and I'm just a kid who studies polisci and history and can't shield myself from the inherent horror of nuclear war no matter how much I try.

War really never changes

[piglet26]

Reylo Scene: TLJ Part 2

Kylo Ren and Rey go through this intense, exhilarating experience with one another. The fight for each other and he's find a way to save her by winging this shit. Solo style. Her belief in him is awarded. He kills his master and becomes a traitor to the First Order for her.

Then it falls apart as soon as they break each contact with each. Why?

Rey rushes to the telescope and wants to save the resistance (her friends). A resistance Kylo Ren, not Ben, wants to die.

Rey may have been right in putting her faith in Ben, but her mistake is that she does not understand that ultimately this is a damaged man she's falling for. He's an abused, complicated and damaged man. She's been inside of his head and still doesn't understand this. He just killed his abuser and he's in shock. He's still in pain over what he did to his father.

Ren is lonely. It's one of his defining traits. Ben Solo was probably very lonely. For the first time he has someone who can meet him on his level. He has a person who put her life on the line for him.... he wants this person by his side. Which is why he goes to such manipulative lengths to get her there.

The reality of their force bond is while they can't hide from one another, everything is open to inspection, but because of that they feel seen and then accepted. It's a painful and fulfilling gift.

Even the room. Where the fire in the hut was warm, safe and nurturing. The fire in this scene represent chaos and destruction.

Ren is being harsh, but he's giving her what she needs which is to free herself from the denial about her parents. She needs to step out of her childhood and embrace her womanhood. She needs to begin to leave elements of her past behind. Rey also served to free Ren/Ben. Her belief in him and her conviction that there is good in him allows him to free himself from a part of his childhood, He kills Snoke and step into his adulthood.

While the Reylo connection isn't all flowers and rainbows it does say something that Ben/Ren connection to Rey strengthened him in a way his connections to his parents and Luke just didn't.

Ren and Rey, our hero and villain, want this connection so badly, but both are frustrated by others way of thinking. Ren wants to burn it all down and forget. Rey wants somebody he's not ready to be yet. It's important to mention that while he's being manipulative - he wants her to believe that he's all she has, like in this moment she is all he has.

Most people missed the finesse of this scene. "You're nothing, but not to me." He's manipulative and he's something very raw to a woman already in a raw state, but he's not being abusive. He wants her to believe that he's all she has, like in this moment she is all he has. What he's saying in the later part of his speech is “What other people would think of you isn't important and I don't care about your background. I can see how amazing you are and you are the most important person in the galaxy to me." Ben Solo would say that. Not Kylo Ren.

Just because Kylo Ren sucks at expressing himself does not mean Rey should accept it. She doesn't.

It's actually a sad scene to watch. Ren and Rey want this connection so badly, but both are frustrated by the others way of thinking. Ren wants to burn it all down and forget. Rey wants somebody he's not ready to be yet.

Kylo understands Rey in a way no one ever has or will. He just doesn't understand her healthy attachments or the way she's chosen to cope with her abandonment. Women fear the lost of connections. Women will be hurt on a deeper level losing a close friend than we will ever be hurt by breaking up with a romantic partner. The hardest thing for Rey to admit to herself was the truth about her partners, but she coped with denial and then finally acceptance. While Rey had a good connection with Han and good ones within the resistance her healthiest connection is with Finn. Finn and Rey believe in one another, they fight for one another and find themselves within a true supportive friendship. Temped to join him as she might be she won't join him like this. She won't abandon her friends. More importantly she won't enable him like Padme did. Kylo needs healthy boundaries and consequences.

Rey is also just not ready. She has some growing up to do and she needs to become a more fully developed person. She doesn't fully understand the his path yet. In the novelization she comes to that awareness like, "I thought this would be simpler for him, it's not, and that's my mistake."

Another cookie for Rian Johnson is the scene above. Most writers would have had her refuse his proposal verbally and they would've argued. Instead we see her reach for the lightsaber and he reaches for it back and it get's stuck between them. There was so much symbolism in this scene without a word of dialogue. Literally they are at an impasse. Their powers within the force are equal to one another so they're stuck. It's a great visual. They actually slide further from one another. The saber breaking is literally their nature, once so powerful in harmony is equally powerful in disharmony.

They both are knocked out. She wakes before him, takes a moment to contemplate him and then sneaks off with the lightsaber. He wakes wondered why she left him alive but then trails off the Crete to kick resistance ass, now the boss and salty as hell.

He feels rejected and he has a right to be angry. He put it all on he line for Rey. He killed his master, he betrayed the first order and he made an emotional plea. She turned him down.

Kylo Ren is now the most powerful person in the galaxy, he achieved a level of freedom not even Darth Vader knew. He is the son of legends (might not be happy about) He looks miserable in the scene when he goes into the resistance bunker. It's bad enough that he got played by Luke, but he lost the girl.

In their final forceskype, he's looking up at her as she's kneeling holding his father's dice while she's onboard the falcon helping get away. He's not happy and despite the anger he expressed about her in front of Luke....... he looks at her longing and with sadness. He's not happy about where they are. She's not happy either. She's disappointed in him so there back to a confusion.

While she's disappointment in Ben she's also melancholy. The passing of Luke, the pitiful state of the resistance and she's sad she broke up with Ben. She closes in the door on that matter, for now, it's a pause. It's actually growth for Rey.

"I wanna be with you, but not like this so until you're I'll wait over here."

I love this film. Haters be damned. Also, finding GIFs, damn. Also found the one I needed when I was looking for it. Spent two minutes trying to find the gif I needed when I was looking for it.

Random Reylo gif for the hell of it. Ren looking for his girl and thigh grab.

[mariacallous]

On Tuesday, the Senate passed a massive foreign aid package that included an ultimatum for TikTok: Divest or be banned from operating within the US. The package was approved by the House of Representatives on Saturday, and President Joe Biden said that he intends to sign the bill on Wednesday.

“Even as our social media platforms have fumbled in their response to foreign influence operations, there was never any concern that these platforms are operating at the direction of foreign adversaries,” Mark Warner, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said ahead of the vote on Tuesday. “I cannot say the same for TikTok.”

For more than four years, Congress has threatened to ban TikTok, citing potential risks to national security. Last month, the House approved a separate divestiture bill, but the measure stalled out in the Senate after lawmakers like Senator Maria Cantwell argued that giving TikTok six months to find a new owner was too little time. The new bill extends the deadline for up to an additional six months, giving TikTok a year to sell.

“It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign aid and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans,” TikTok said in a statement shortly after Saturday’s vote. The company did not immediately respond to the Senate’s vote on Tuesday.

The effort to ban TikTok has become politically fraught, especially as more politicians join the platform to campaign in the 2024 election. For years, the Biden administration and campaign avoided creating their own accounts on the app, opting to build out a network of influencers to fill the void. But in February, Biden’s reelection campaign joined TikTok. In March, Biden told reporters that he would sign the bill.

Responding to this revived divestment effort, former president Donald Trump blamed Biden for attacks against the app. “Just so everyone knows, especially the young people, Crooked Joe Biden is responsible for banning TikTok,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday. “He is the one pushing it to close, and doing it to help his friends over at Facebook become richer and more dominant, and able to continue to fight, perhaps illegally, the Republican Party.”

The Trump administration was the first to go after TikTok. In 2020, Trump signed a series of executive orders banning apps like TikTok, Alipay, and WeChat. Court challenges prevented these orders from going into place. Last year, Montana lawmakers voted to ban the app, but a federal judge blocked the law from taking effect, saying that it “likely violates the First Amendment.” After the bill passed the House on Saturday, the company’s head of public policy, Michael Beckerman, told staff in an email that if the bill were signed into law, “we will move to the courts for a legal challenge.”

Many lawmakers have cited national security and data privacy concerns as their primary motivation for supporting the bill.

"Congress is not acting to punish ByteDance, TikTok or any other individual company,” Democratic senator Maria Cantwell, said in a floor speech on Tuesday. “Congress is acting to prevent foreign adversaries from conducting espionage, surveillance, maligned operations, harming vulnerable Americans, our servicemen and women, and our U.S. government personnel.”

Critics of a ban have long argued that passing a sweeping data privacy bill could satisfy most of the complaints lawmakers have over TikTok’s security, as well as those posed by US-based companies.

“Congress could pass comprehensive consumer privacy legislation, which would, I think, take more meaningful steps toward addressing a lot of the data privacy concerns that have been raised about TikTok,” says Kate Ruane, director of the Center for Democracy and Technology's Free Expression Project. “And I do not think that there is public evidence that is currently available to demonstrate that extreme, serious, immediate harm exists.”

[fiikaela]

By the Blades We Meet

*mysteriously reappears* *drops a random chapter*

yoo this time we finally get to see and interact with our boi ganondorf more!! Semi-long chapter ig...?

Chapter two if you feel like it; feel free to skip Chapter one since nothing really happens

--

Chapter three

"We sincerely welcome all the leaders of our diverse nation to attend this important meeting. On behalf of our glorious King..."

The snobby, short Hylian's sentence dragged on, saying the most grandiose but empty things that one would ever have the pleasure to listen to. Ganondorf sat at the fancy, unnecessarily long table, boredom already sneaking up his head.

It was such a nuisance to have him--and virtually every other leader of the nations--rush over first thing in the morning only to be greeted with such a pretentious speech. He had set out from the desert before the break of the dawn, bringing a small troupe of close guards. It was so rushed that he didn't even have time to wait around and give that to you himself.

Right, you.

The mysterious young woman whose power and strength not only matched his, but has the formidable potential to overpower him; whose blade might as well cut through his own if he wasn't as careful. His hand trailed over to his chest subconsciously at the thought, the scars from yesterday's fight were gone thanks to a few fairy tonics, but the sting of it was still reminiscent. Someone who could truly match his own power without any help from others... that idea brings such an odd flavor of excitement in his chest. You bring such an odd feeling in his chest.

Plus, you didn't look bad for a Sheikah either.

He'd seen lots of women throughout his lifetime--apart from the fact that he was literally born into a tribe where he's the only male--you probably couldn't be counted as the most physically attractive out of all of them. You are, however, one of the scarce few that had ever piqued his genuine interest. Was it the way you had so confidently faced him as an opponent? Was it the way you had danced your way through all the other fights without breaking a single sweat? Was it the determination and seriousness that seemed to still the air around you once you realized how strong he was? Or was it that fleeting moment as he claimed his victory, his blade pointing at your neck as you looked up to him like he was the one thing you had looked for all your life?

That brief instant of softness that had thawed your stoic expression and melted the sharp look in your eyes... He can't help but to wonder if you'll behave the same way towards a lover: would that momentary gentleness be solidified as a permanent fondness? Would you lean against your lover, with a gentleness that will dissolve every single negativity? His mind wandered, trying to picture it onto your face. A smile that's like the warmth of the sun? A surprise that seem to put stars in your eyes? A blush that dusts even over your sharp ears?

He chewed on that idea, somehow being more fascinated by it than he originally thought. What expressions can he prompt you to make? What would your reaction be, if he were to ask something out of the blue, like your hand in marriage as half a joke? What would your reaction be, if he'd decided to lean just a bit closer, to-

A quiet cough to his right snapped him back to reality. Slightly annoyed, he turned to look at the red shark who had interrupted his--well, he wouldn't necessarily call it a fantasy--his train of thought. The king of the Zora motioned behind him at the servant who was holding something over their extended hands ceremoniously.

Listen. The shark mouthed, nudging his head slightly towards the Hyrulean King, who is slowly standing up from his seat. All the others quickly followed suit, watching him curiously.

"King Ganondorf." The Hyrulean king spoke up, raising one arm to gesture towards Ganondorf, "for that valiant endeavor you had done to protect us from a group of infiltrators the other day, I hereby humbly present you a gift as an honor for your bravery. Please accept it, it would be the most gracious of you."

Oh... it was that time when he defended the king when a group of Yiga Clan barged into the castle. The fight was child's play, they were a bunch of idiots anyways. Even though all Ganondorf did was throwing off the five masked men who jumped on him and proceeded to knock them away with the handle of his own blade, that somehow went past the Hylian king's head who thought it was a "dangerously close assassination attempt". Ganondorf isn't too interested in correct him.

It was quite funny to hear the prideful king of Hyrule spoke so humbly, as if he was scared of Ganondorf. Well, it appears that a lot of people seem to hold him at a high esteem after the news that he was found, apparently, unconscious beside a forest by a passing traveler. He eventually became the king of the Gerudo again for the honor of tradition, but the feared whispered across some of the people didn't go unheard from his ears. It seems that he'd done something bad, but he can't place his hands on exactly what. The majority of his memories were almost wiped clean, with nothing but foggy, blurry scenes that sometimes came to haunt him. Well, that's what he presumed those recurring nightmares to be, like the one staring up at the ceiling of a cave for thousands of years.

It felt so real. He'd felt each day pass by, unable to move, with every second that turned into swirling green and occasional drops of water. Something kept being conjured up inside of him and taken away. He would get bored, so bored he'd started to count the days as time slowly trickled by.

The servant walked over solemnly, handing him something small and heavy. Ganondorf unwrapped the cloth to find a small dagger, heavy with delicate ornaments and designs, lying motionlessly on the servant's outstretched hands.

It is pretty, but utterly useless in battle.

He felt the admiring gazes all across the room, even the usual grumpy Goron leader seemed to look at him in awe. The amount of respect he saw in everyone's eyes were quite foreign, but not unwelcome.

He always got the feeling that he shouldn't be looked up with respect, but fear. It was almost on an instinctual level, incomprehensible to his logical mind, but out of almost a habit. It tugged at something deep inside his head that he can't recall, it felt like war, conflict, euphoria, and rage. All mixed up into a confusing jumble.

All that aside, he took the blade in both hands, and bowed his head. The king said something, and after so much formalities he finally sat down.

Much to his own amusement, his thoughts wandered back to you out of everything. He can't wait for this to be over and return to his home, where he would find you somewhere.

...  ...  ...

You sat on the very top of Gerudo Town, your beloved flute in hand as you watched the last sliver of colors fade into the night. Soft notes flowed off your fingertips, dissolving in the gentle winds of the evening. You can be as lost in the scene as you want, years of practice granting you the convenience of playing pieces automatically without thought.

You seemed to have become some kind of celebrity for challenging the king, all the adults inviting you to drinks and all the little kids surrounding you and asking you to teach them sword techniques. You don't dislike the attention, but you don't like it either. A part of you just wanted to be left alone as a stranger, a part of you wanted to seek out Ganondorf. You aren't sure why, but maybe just to talk about random things or spar once more would suffice. Unfortunately he's out of town for the whole day on some business thing in Hyrule. Busy guy, you thought with a hint of bitterness.

It's just a little boring without him, you supposed.

The melody came to a conclusion, with the stop of the last note you lowered the flute, head slowly whirring out of the trance. Quiet claps sounded, and only then when you snapped your head to that direction you realized that you had an audience who sat right beside you that giant rock.

"Ganondorf?" You almost jumped, not knowing when he came here or when he even came back to town. You had expected some loud commotion and such when the king comes back, but you heard nothing; perhaps you have been too focused on your playing. He smirked at you, clearly satisfied with your reaction.

"Yes, you remembered my name," he said, rolling his eyes jokingly, "congratulations."

You gave him a deadpanned look, "it's not polite to sneak up on someone."

"It is impolite to give no formalities for a king, either." He retorted, cocking a fiery eyebrow at you, his lips curled playfully.

To be honest, it didn't look bad on him.

"Well then, I guess we are both even." You said lightly, turning away to make you sure you accidentally stare.

"Very well. But not even get a warm welcome from my dear opponent?" His huffed, tilting his head down to peer at you.

"Welcome back." You sighed, unsure if it was the same snarky and confident person who had won you in a duel yesterday. He snickered at your exasperated response, a sound that made your heart skip a beat.

"Good girl." He hummed, the eyes boring into you had a weird look you can't name. It's almost testing, but also dark, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared, making you doubt whether it was a trick of the light.

You nodded, slightly caught off guard by this comment. Maybe it's a Gerudo traditional thing to say to someone, you never know.

"So... How was it in Hyrule today? You left awfully early." You started, diverging the conversation before it could go south.

"Ah. I'm glad you asked. Seems like my little bird cares about my sleep schedule?"

Hylia. Does he have to make everything sound so... flirtatious? He studied your expression for a second, before continuing on.

"Just the usual, calling us over for some 'important meeting' but actually the king wanting an active audience." He grinned in his own humor, gaining a small smile from you. "How have you been doing? Not too sore from yesterday, I hope?"

"Nah," you ignored his not-so-clever wordplay, "just hanging around in town."

"Sounds relaxing."

"Sure."

He chuckled at your dry reply. You seemed to relax around him, your shoulders easing off and your legs started to swing lightly over the ledge. For some reason, he finds this version of you to be very endearing.

"By the way, you are not only a talented fighter, you are also a good flautist," he grinned warmly at you, "you should showcase this during our festivals, if you ever feel the desire to, I'm sure my sisters will all enjoy it very much."

"Thanks." You brushed away a strand of hair, slightly flattered by the unexpected compliment. Though to such a flirty person like him, it's probably something he'd do to everyone he meets.

"Though, I won't mind to have you all to myself."

You looked up at him, slightly confused at the lack of context. You saw that that same, almost possessive look flitting over his eyes, then melted back to the glowing amber they were before, making you doubt again if it was a trick of the light. He looked at you expectantly, as if waiting for a response that you had missed. You could also swear that he is now a bit closer to you than before.

"Pardon?" You asked, secretly glad the way the night wind rushed over your ears, relieving the heat that threatened to come up.

"I would be most pleased to enjoy your music a little longer," he gestured to the flute, then back at you with a slightly tip of his head. "Anything you like."

Ah... so he meant the flute, not whatever else you thought you heard. You sighed in relief, raising the instrument to your lips, allowing your hands to take over the melody.

You did not, however, know was that Ganondorf meant exactly what he said. It was more of a little test to see your response, though to his slight disappointment and amusement, you didn't seem to catch the hint. Well, it just means he have to try harder.

The music unwind itself, the airy flute sighed along with the wind. It was a sad tune, almost nostalgic as if he had heard this somewhere before, in a life long forgotten. Your eyes were closed, light tainting your eyelashes as if they were covered in snowflakes. He couldn't help but to stare.

Moonlight bounced off your silvery locks, kissing your features with an otherworldly grace. Your features were, in his words, delicate, but not that fragile kind of delicacy carved by a skilled hand on glass, no. It was the kind of delicacy that held the subtlety that wields both strength and elegance. One that he finds himself to be somehow entranced with.

He may as well have mistaken you for a goddess.

His view shifted to your hands, at the fingers that danced so adeptly over the instrument. A proficiency that can be only sculptured by years of practice, and he admires it so much. Maybe he'll even ask you to teach him someday.

Before either of you know it, the music winded to the last note, you stopped, allowing the silence to linger just a bit longer. You can feel his eyes boring into you this entire time, and for the first time in your life, you aren't sure how to approach it. Did he like the music? Was it too simple of a tune?

"Beautiful. You truly are a wonderful musician."

His breath seemed to tickle your ear as he murmured those words. You felt a shiver running down your spine, the dawning realization of how close you two are washed over you.

You could feel his shoulder brushing against yours, could hear the soft dangling jewels that hang around his toned biceps, could feel the strands of red locks brushing against the thin Gerudo fabric on you. You could almost feel the heat that radiated off his large stature. Your heartbeat quickened, hand instinctively wanting to grab onto your katana.

"You flatter me." You said simply, in an attempt to cover your restlessness.

"On another note--no pun intended-- did you like the gift I sent in earlier today?"

You huffed a small laugh at his joke, feeling the atmosphere relax once more.

Ah, he must be talking about that pretty, unnecessarily heavy ring with a giant ruby fixed in the middle. You even thought of selling it until the guard who handed to you said it was sent by "King Ganondorf, and he hopes that you have had a restful night." Deadpanned, you pocketed that thing in hope of returning it to its sender today. Who does he thing he's joking around with?

"Right, I want to return it to you." You fished around your pockets, handing the ring back to him. "I appreciate your thoughtfulness, however."

"Why?" He tilted his head curiously, "I choose to gift it to you, it is yours to keep, no need to be shy about it." 

You were never the one who loves extravagant gifts anyways. What use would something be, if all it's meant for was to be displayed and showcased for nothing but its appearance?

"It's just... I don't think I'll have much use of this, you know." Since this is inefficient anyways.

"Isn't it beautiful, though?" He took over the ring, twirling it under the moonlight, making the light reflect in all kinds of ways, "if you want me to take back such a nice gift to you, you have to at least give me a convincing reason, hm?"

His voice dropped to a soft purr, you could hear the way his breath sounded, quiet in his chest, which almost vibrated against your shoulder.

"You won't be offended?" Funny, people usually would've either blown up or sulked by now.

"I would be offended if you didn't be honest with me."

You looked at him skeptically, but saw no deceit in those golden eyes.

"It's just quite... impractical, you know. I wouldn't want to wear this ring while I'm holding a sword, a flute, or whatever." You said, "even though I think it's pretty, there's nothing beyond that."

He seems to be chewing on your response. You supposed that he didn't expect your taste to be so low. But honestly, what did he expect?

A hearty laugh boomed from his chest, it rumbled like storm clouds in his chest, giving you a slight jump in its suddenness. You glanced up curiously, hearing the way the gold jingled in his laughter.

"What irony! I just received a similar gift today!" He reached around the other side and pulled out an exquisitely embroidered dagger. It had a golden handle, and a white blade that looks like it's made out of jade. Not to mention the uncountable number of jewels that glimmered in the night like stars. "What do you think?" He asked, you can still hear the smile in his voice.

"Inefficient." You mumbled, which was responded with another laughter and a pat on your back.

"Exactly! That was my first thought as well! What a huge coincidence!"

You laughed awkward along with him, "this looks really expensive, where did you get it?"

"It was a gift by the Hyrulean King. I defended him from a group of Yiga Clans."

Your immediate look of disappointment was golden.

"The Yiga Clan?" You repeated, "must've been a notoriously difficult fight."

He grinned in your sarcasm, giving you an almost appreciative glance, "they are quite the clowns though," he agreed.

"Yeah."

He paused, as if thinking something.

"How about... we both keep our gifts as a memory for this... ironic coincidence?" He nudged your arm lightly, mischief twinkling in his eyes.

Such a witty offer to solve this problem.

"Sure." You mumbled, secretly complimenting him for such a clever idea. You took over the ring and pocketed again, leaning back onto the stone. "But please, no more of this. I don't even know where I can keep it." You added quickly, in case he's getting new ideas of toying with you again.

He chuckled, muttering some assurances that he wouldn't send those anymore.

Maybe it's time to adjust his plans a little bit.

Maybe asking your hand in marriage wouldn't be too much of a joke. He'll just have to see.

--

Thanks for reading!! Sorry im just going erratically about updating this. Absolutely baffled by the support i received on the last one y'all are too kind 😭

i think im getting an interesting direction to where the story would be going (surprisingly). There is a possibility that im going to take the story into a darker turn with him finding out about his past and succumbing to his own desires--with the reader being the catalyst and center to that possessiveness and darkness, but dont take my word for this im not even sure yet :<

OH AND I FINALLY FINISHED TOTK GANONDORF FIGHT IT WAS EPIC FHDSGHJASjFSHJ

[motleymunson27]

Surprise.

Sum: Chris popped the question and proposed to you on stage in front of hundreds of people.

Chris Motionless X Reader.

Content Warning: ALL THE FLUFF THERE IS!!

~~~~~~

The show was just about done, MIW was just finishing their show in Birmingham then would be heading to St Augustine two days later to continue the Trinity Of Terror tour.

It’s been both an amazing time but also kind of rough being on the road since the middle of March. The tour was set to end a bit before Christmas then the guys would be free until their next tour.

Of course, dating the lead singer of one of the four bands, and working as their makeup artist with the production team alongside your sister, Shevy—who was Ice Nine Kills’ makeup artist as well, you got to watch the concert from the side of the stage.

You certainly didn’t put up a fight. Watching your boyfriend from just a foot away from the stage would have sufficed, but watching from the side of the stage with your sister? Even better.

The show was coming to an end, the second last song Chris was set to sing was ‘Masterpiece’, and of course he sang it like a god.

Just before the last song, Chris had something to announce to the crowd.

“As much as I love this last song, I have one thing I need to do before it goes on,” he began, turning around towards the stage entry where you were standing next to Shevy. “I’d like to ask my beautiful girlfriend to come up here really quick.”

Confused, and suddenly very nervous, you slowly trekked onto the stage on very shaky legs. You had no clue what was going on, because this was the first time Chris ever requested you to come on stage with him.

Once you were standing next to him, Chris turned back towards the audience. “For those of you who don’t know, this beautiful thing has somehow managed to put up with me for the last 7 damn years,” he chuckled, causing you to shove him back slightly. “And everyday for the last 7 damn years, Y/n has been nothing but amazing. She’s always thought very carefully deciding when she wants to do things. She’s always been supportive of everyone around her and has definitely been supportive about being on the road for the past very long time that we don’t care to count out. I seriously can’t ask for a better girlfriend or a better makeup artist. She’s smart, she’s kind, and she’s damn beautiful. Seriously, I have no clue how she’s put up with me for so long, but what I’m about to do is really going to trap her with me.”

You only grew more confused as Chris continued his little speech.

“This is something I’ve wanted to do for quite a while so while I have everyone’s attention, I’d like to ask her a very, very important question,” Chris paused, stepping back from you just a little bit…

Before kneeling down onto one knee.

Your hands were immediately cupped over your mouth as your jaw fell slack. The crowd immediately started screaming as Chris knelt down.

From behind you, you could hear everyone in production, the other three bands and Chris’ band mates shouting and whistling.

Chris looked up at you, wide smile on his face as he tried to find the right words to say and not to break out in tears. He needed to wait a minute before he could start crying.

“Y/n, baby, I knew from the second I looked into those gorgeous eyes that I knew I would be asking you this question at some point in our relationship whether we started dating or not, and I wish I would have asked a long time ago but I had a problem trying to find the perfect one and never knew when the time would come. I am thankful that the time has now come and that I have found the perfect piece to seal the deal. I promise to stand by your side when the world isn’t being nice. I promise to love you and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live. I promise to be there for you for the rest of our time on earth, Til Death Do Us Part. I love you, and I am more than willing to rot in hell with you for the rest of my life. So I have to ask…”

Chris trailed off, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a tiny black coffin-shaped velvet box in his large tattooed hands, and presenting you with a beautiful white gold engagement ring holding a very beautiful black stone in the centre of it.

The band was shaped like tree branches holding the stone, which was also shaped like a coffin. And there was engraving on the inside that said ‘Til Death Do Us Part’.

“Will you marry me?” Chris asked, a silent line of tears streaming from his eyes, his stage makeup that you did for him now ruined from the happy tears, as the crowd continued screaming.

Tears. Automatic tears fell down your face as you immediately nodded your head, bringing every single person in the venue to start cheering and clapping as Chris immediately stood back up and pulled you into him for a kiss after he put the mic back on the stand, wrapping his hands around your waist as you wrapped yours around his neck.

You managed to break away from your now fiancé so he could put your ring on for you. And it fit perfectly.

It looked just as beautiful on as it did off.

“I love you, so much,” Chris whispered into your ear, his hands holding around your waist as he pulled you back into him, littering kisses all over your neck and face.

“I love you too,” you cried, hiding your face into Chris’ bright red jacket, trying to control the tears but eventually giving up. “I’m more than willing to rot in hell with you too, Til Death do us part,” you smiled, referencing the song that Chris wrote about you 6 years ago.

“Til Death do us part,” Chris smiled as he pressed another kiss on your lips before he grabbed his mic and turned to the crowd who was still screaming.

“This last song before all you beautiful people leave, I dedicate to my future wife,” Chris said to the crowd, turning back to you with one final kiss before letting you go back to where you were standing before.

God, that felt nice to be referred to as now.

Shevy immediately yanked you in for a tight hug as the band gave Chris all the high fives and half-hugs as their way of saying congrats, then started playing the beginning of ‘Eternally Yours’, which only made you shed more tears.

You didn’t see much of the beginning of the song as you were being pulled in for hugs from all around you.

You looked at your sister. “Did you know he was going to do this?” You asked, half of your face wet with tears as she nodded.

“I went shopping with him to help find the right size since we’re the same,” she laughed, tears dripping from her eyes at the sight of her sister so happy.

You were very happy. Who wouldn’t be happy if Chris Motionless asked you to marry him?

Multiple ‘Congratulations’ were being said as you turned back towards the floor, your future husband staring at you with the happiest smile as he sang, blowing you kisses as the iconic love song continued.

As soon as this tour was over, the wedding planning would begin. And you could not be happier.

[crossdressingdeath]

Kressa Bonedaughter: Wait... By the Bone Lord, it's you! Kressa Bonedaughter: I thought I'd never see you again... Kressa Bonedaughter: I wanted to keep you for myself but they shipped you away. Kyvir: Keep me? What did you do to me? Kressa Bonedaughter: You talk? And you are aware? How is that possible? Kressa Bonedaughter: Oh, but what an arresting voice you have! Kressa Bonedaughter: You're not supposed to be here, special one. That's not right. But I don't want to damage you. Kressa Bonedaughter: You were my very first, after all. I learnt everything about the parasites from you. Kressa Bonedaughter: I remember finding you close to death, beaten black and blue on the floor of this sanctum. It must have been a few hours after the tadpole was placed in your skull. Kressa Bonedaughter: How you got here was a total mystery, but I stitched you up just enough to keep you alive, then placed you within your crib. Kressa Bonedaughter: I kept you as mine until you were needed by our superiors. Kressa Bonedaughter: We had such a close bond. I opened you up endlessly with my scalpels, and got lost in your insides. Kyvir: Ketheric needed me? For what? Kressa Bonedaughter: The most important work, the nature of which I only heard whispers of. Kressa Bonedaughter: Truthfully, I'm not surprised to see you found your way back here all by yourself. I always knew you were clever. Kressa Bonedaughter: It has never been the same with another... All the other victims who come here just meekly obey. You thrashed, you fought, you were indomitable. Kressa Bonedaughter: But as special as you are, you shouldn't be swanning around here, acting as if free will is yours again. Kressa Bonedaughter: We're going to kill you, sweet one. But I promise I will stay with you afterwards. Kressa Bonedaughter: Lashers... bring this one back to my table! And prepare my knives for a long night of experiments!

Well. I found Kressa. Kind of wish I hadn't found Kressa. On all levels except physical Kyvir is currently hiding behind Astarion going "What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck". I need an adult! An adultier adult! The way she talks to Durge is just so creepy! Please tell me all she did was vivisections...

Anyway, the general ick factor of how Kressa talks to Durge aside. So that journal from Balthazar complaining about Kressa's distraction was definitely about Durge, nice to have that confirmation. And it's interesting that she's surprised to learn that they can talk and are aware; I guess they were really messed up, but it's still interesting that the woman who fixed them up didn't expect them to be capable of speech. I wonder, did she overestimate how badly they were actually hurt or did someone else heal them later?

Also, Durge was her first? I assume other people were making thralls and True Souls before her given Durge had a tadpole before she got her hands on them, but it's still fun that Kressa's first was such an odd one. Hell of a starting point. So they got imprisoned and tadpoled, managed to break out, and then immediately got grabbed by Kressa? It seems like this really was Durge's horrible, very bad, no good day.

(And it feels important to mention that in the fight against her Astarion actually got the killing blow. Big "No one touches my lover" energy, it was excellent.)

[barilleon]

Three "P"s for Writing NPCs

I’ve been thinking a lot about NPCs, especially within the context of fifth edition (which is where most of my freelance time is spent). Much like a playwright, adventure writers have multiple audiences. The playwright is writing for a director, actors, and eventually the play’s audience. An adventure writer is writing for the game master and the table of players that the GM is running for.

We want a character to be memorable, but so much of that memorability for players won’t have anything to do with us. It’ll be in the voice the GM uses, potential quirks or mannerisms, or a situation created by the die.

For example, one of the most defining features of Knives Out’s Benoit Blanc is his voice, which is all in Daniel Craig’s portrayal. The original screenplay had something else in mind entirely.

Like a playwright, our job as adventure designers is to understand our NPCs as smaller parts of a larger machine. They serve a purpose and are grounded in the reality of the world we’ve built. But they also have to have some kind of pull to them that compels a GM to use them in the first place.

Now, an actor will spend hours upon hours reading through a script, highlighting lines and analyzing their beats and subtext. A GM won’t do that. They need to embody multiple characters in a session, so hey don’t have the time to do a bunch of dramaturgical work to understand every NPC in the adventure.

I say let the GM handle things such as mannerisms, personality, and quirks of speech. As writers, we should be giving our NPCs three things:

A Purpose

A Place

A Pull

Purpose

This is the most important, in my opinion. If an NPC doesn’t have a purpose in the story, they become frivolous, and they’ll likely slow down play. Here are some examples of game-related purposes:

Giving a quest

Teaching a skill

Offering aid

Acting as an obstacle

Showing your players what to do by example

You can also give your character more narrative-focused purposes as well, like:

Reinforcing a theme

Acting as a foil for a PC

Forcing your players to consider their actions

Illustrating consequences of a potential course of action

The best NPC I’ve ever written was S.A.M. for MCDM’s The Workshop Watches (which you can read for free!). S.A.M.’s purpose was very clear, considering it’s not just an NPC— it’s also the dungeon!

S.A.M. acted as the major obstacle for the party throughout the adventure. But on a narrative level, S.A.M.’s questioning of the party’s actions is meant to call the players to do the same. S.A.M.’s arc as a SMART Lab-turned-bipedal robot reinforces the theme of the adventure: how do we define personhood, and what rights are inalienable to those who have it?

Place

A “place” in the story is how the character is grounded in the world. A good character fits into the world you’ve created, because the circumstances of that world have allowed that character to exist in their current form. This connection to the world helps inform the NPC’s decision-making process.

D&D 5e often uses the “Personality, Ideal, Bond, and Flaw” system to give an NPC a place. When players pick up on one of these four traits, they can leverage them to get what they want from an NPC (thereby fulfilling the NPC’s purpose).

S.A.M.’s place in The Workshop Watches is as a curious observer. It does not understand itself or the outside world, and therefore it is bound to make a lot of well-meaning but deadly mistakes.

You can think of the “place” as the stakes this NPC has in the current story. Your NPC might have a son who is fighting in the current war. Maybe they’re a farmer who resents the culture of adventuring that has made their home too volatile to grow crops. Maybe they don’t care if it’s a noble king or a tyrant or the Devil Himself who sits upon the throne so long as they have enough food to take home to their dog.

Pull

“Pull” is something that makes the GM interested in digging into this character. I’ve found the more invested I am as a GM in the NPC I’m playing, the more my players respond to that character. Also, since GMs are players too, as writers we should make NPCs that they are interested in playing.

So how can we make an NPC that excites a GM? What is the “pull” that’s going to work for this?

I like to use the word pull because the thing that grabs me most about a character is tension. The character may want something that conflicts with their place or with their purpose. S.A.M.’s purpose is to stop the party from getting to the deepest part of the lab, but S.A.M. also wants to be helpful and make new friends (who just so happen to be interested in exploring the lab). S.A.M. wants to go out and see the world, but its place is in the lab. It doesn’t know how to exist in the world. It doesn’t understand basic concepts like, “people die when they are killed.”

One character I loved in Waterdeep: Dragon Heist was Fel’rekt Lafeen, a good-aligned drow gunslinger who serves in the mercenary group Bregan D’aerthe. In Fel’rekt’s story I saw a trans drow who had found his family in the mercenary group. He is fiercely loyal to his found family, but sometimes his job causes him to act against his alignment, something he resented. As a transmasc dude, the themes around Fel’rekt resonated with me, which is, I believe, why players at my table always end up taking a liking to Fel’rekt. I was pulled to his story, and it makes him seem more real in my eyes and my players’ eyes.

Using This as a GM

When I run a major NPC for my tables, I take note of that NPC’s Purpose, Place, and Pull and use them to build out the parts of the character that are my responsibility to build. These responsibilities include creating mannerisms, voice, and speech patterns and improvising their decision-making.

I run S.A.M. like a stereotypical robot: stilted speech with alien inflection, no contractions unless it learns them from the players, and a large vocabulary from the corpus of academic texts it must have been trained on.

One of the quirks I give Fel’rekt is mirroring (something I do with my guy friends). He is always trying to mirror the mannerisms of the other men of Bregan d’Aerthe. He uses expressions he learned from Jarlaxle and his friend Krebbyg. I always describe him doing the same or similar actions as any of the drow he happens to be with. One day when I run Dragon Heist I hope he’ll find a player character to bond and look up to enough to mirror.

Final Thoughts

There are a few other tricks we, as writers, can communicate our NPCs without entirely stepping on our GM’s toes or making them read a ton. Good character art is one of them. Character portraits are just as much a tool for GMs as words.

I try to write art briefs for character portraits that will communicate personality just as much as appearance, which was the case for Bard-Core Brawlers. The portraits for Trifling, the all-girl punk band, showcase the individual styles and personalities of the band members. And Leonardo Boia knocked it out of the park; these pieces help focus my portrayal of the characters just as much as the descriptions I wrote.

Another thing I’d like to see in NPC writing is barks! Like video game barks. Open your NPC’s section with a short quote, maybe an opinion they have on their place or something that demonstrates their pull. I really like how some of the abilities in MCDM’S Flee, Mortals! packets have names that could effectively be used as barks. Queen Bargnot’s abilities have names like “Get in here!” and “What are you waiting for?” This signals to the GM that the queen says these things when activating these abilities, which is delicious flavor baked into the stat block.

[jakeluppin]

A long but good read on antisemitism at universities and what could/should be done on campuses. Really good, especially for those of us in academia. Full article below, but a few highlights I wanted to share:

Many students today have little exposure to ideological diversity on campus, and most agree on most politically fraught topics, such as abortion or transgender rights, said Eitan Hersh, a professor of political science at Tufts University. Since issues in the Middle East are so divisive, even among groups that otherwise tend to align politically, students don’t know how to talk about them. They are “not equipped to know how to deal with that,” Hersh said.

“Students have been entirely left alone to sort this out for themselves with zero institutional support, with zero attempts to organize any kind of rational discussion or conversation about the issue,” [Tyler Austin Harper, an assistant professor of environmental studies at Bates College] said. “It’s not a big surprise that they’re floundering when adults have been too cowardly to do their jobs.”

A pro-Palestinian demonstrator asked [Jared Levy, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of Texas at Austin] how he could defend Israel. “I sat there in the rain for an hour and a half talking to students about why I supported Israel,” Levy said. He talked about the importance of a Jewish homeland, about his conviction that Hamas was a terrorist organization, and that Israel had made mistakes but had a right to defend itself. Some of the students with the pro- Palestinian group, he said, didn’t understand what Hamas was and had just been told by friends or social media that Israel was committing genocide and was an apartheid state.

“A lot of students have been eager to engage in dialogue and weren’t just here to yell in my face,” Levy said. At the local Hillel, a Jewish campus-life organization with chapters on many campuses, he said they’ve discussed organizing a “neutral- ground dialogue.” But despite Levy’s success in engaging with students one on one, he doesn’t feel the campus is ready for group discussions. “We came to the conclusion that things need to cool down first,” he said.

A Jewish student’s nose is broken in a melee sparked by attempts to burn an Israeli flag. Messages declaring “Glory to our Martyrs” and “Divestment From Zionist Genocide Now” are projected onto the façade of a campus building. Jewish students huddle inside a campus library while protesters shouting “Free Palestine” bang on the glass walls.

With each new headline and video snippet that goes viral, the pressure on colleges to respond forcefully and quickly to incidents of antisemitism is building. So too is the pressure to resist calls from politicians, donors, and alumni to crack down on protesters in ways that stifle protected speech.

College leaders, who’ve been lambasted over the past few months for failing to tackle antisemitism with the same ardor they’ve confronted other forms of prejudice and hate, are having to make quick judgment calls under the harsh glare of the national spotlight and the war between Israel and Hamas.

The questions are complicated, and backlash is certain. What counts as antisemitism? How can campuses help Jewish students feel safe? And perhaps of greatest consequence for colleges, where is the line between protected speech and prohibited harassment, and how should students who cross it be disciplined?

College leaders today “face tremendous pressures from competing groups of students, faculty, alumni, and administrators,” said Ethan Katz, associate professor of history and Jewish studies at the University of California at Berkeley, one of several universities facing lawsuits over alleged antisemitism. “The number and intensity of those pressures is pretty widely underestimated by the public.”

The Chronicle spoke with more than 20 scholars, free-speech experts, faculty members, and students — all of whom echoed a similar message: Battling antisemitism is one of the most pressing challenges facing campus leaders today, and it is also one of the most difficult.

Many colleges have taken a typically academic approach to the situation, forming or expanding task forces on antisemitism, and often, Islamophobia. To protect students who feel threatened, these groups have proposed tightening security, clarifying reporting procedures, and improving mental-health supports. They’re examining speech codes and student-conduct policies to ensure they’re being applied evenly and fairly. The task forces themselves are proving controversial, especially when it comes to who should be appointed to them.

When campus leaders are called on to intervene in a dispute, the terrain can turn treacherous. If they discipline pro-Palestinian protesters over chants many consider antisemitic, they’re accused of trampling free-speech rights. If they defend the right to demonstrate, they’re accused of failing to protect Jewish students from antisemitism. Impartial stances are attacked as weak, sparking debates about whether campus leaders should comment at all.

In Utah, Gov. Spencer Cox has made it clear he doesn’t want the leaders of public colleges speaking out about the Israel-Hamas war, or any other current events. “I do not care what your position is on Israel and Palestine. I don’t,” he said on December 1 after the Utah Board of Higher Education passed a resolution requiring colleges and their leaders to remain neutral on such topics. The board also called on colleges to spell out the protections and limitations of their speech policies.

Punishing protesters has only stoked anger on some campuses. When the president of George Washington University, Ellen M. Granberg, denounced pro-Palestinian messages projected onto the library in late October as antisemitic and the university suspended the group responsible, Students for Justice in Palestine, demonstrators formed a new coalition. Declaring that “the student movement won’t be silenced,” they marched to the president’s home.

Tightening restrictions on when and where students could protest has often resulted in even rowdier clashes. At the entrance to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, known as Lobby 7, pro-Palestinian protesters went ahead with a demonstration in November even after the area was left off a list of approved sites that the administration released the night before the planned event. Students clashed, some were suspended, and outrage followed.

In early December, that anger erupted on the national stage, when three university presidents testifying before a House congressional hearing on antisemitism appeared to waffle on a question about whether students should be punished for calling for the genocide of Jewish people. The backlash led to the resignation of one of the presidents, the University of Pennsylvania’s Elizabeth Magill, and was a factor in the resignation of another, Harvard University’s Claudine Gay.

Nationally, colleges have been accused of doing too little, too late. Between October 7 — when Hamas militants attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 240 hostage — and December 7, the Anti-Defamation League recorded more than 2,000 antisemitic incidents in the United States, compared with 465 during that period in 2022. At the same time, the free-expression group PEN America points out that there’s been a significant uptick in harassment of Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian students since the Israel-Hamas war broke out. Students have reported being called terrorists and having hijabs pulled off. Some politicians, including former President Donald J. Trump, have called for international students to forfeit their visas for participating in pro-Palestinian rallies. Three Palestinian American students were shot and injured — one seriously — on November 25 in Burlington, Vt., during their Thanksgiving break.

Pressure is building on colleges, and it’s coming from both Republicans and Democrats. Republicans have seized on rising antisemitism as evidence that the culture of higher education has dangerously liberal leanings. They’ve accused colleges of more aggressively enforcing speech and harassment codes when Black or Hispanic students accuse people of being racist and looking the other way when hateful, or even violent, speech is hurled at Jewish students.

More than two dozen colleges are under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education over complaints of antisemitism or Islamophobia. The vast majority of the investigations began after the October 7 Hamas attacks. The Education Department reminded colleges in November of their legal obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to “take immediate and appropriate action to respond to harassment that creates a hostile environment.” That extends to discrimination against people based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including Jewish, Arab, Muslim, and Palestinian students.

Students complaining of antisemitism have sued several universities, including the University of Pennsylvania, the University of California system and its Berkeley campus, New York University, and Carnegie Mellon University.

Eyal Yakoby, a senior at the University of Pennsylvania who spoke at a news conference before the House hearing, is one of two students who sued his university, calling it an “incubation lab for virulent anti-Jewish hatred, harassment, and discrimination.” The lawsuit contends that Jewish students have been subjected to antisemitic chants, slurs, and graffiti, including a spray-painted swastika in an academic building.

Yakoby says the university has ignored his complaints, while aggressively disciplining those who harass other minority groups. “When it comes to the protection of Penn’s Jewish students,” the lawsuit states, “the rules do not apply.”

Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union joined a pro-Palestinian group in suing Florida higher-education officials and Gov. Ron DeSantis after the Republican governor ordered public colleges in the state to “deactivate” campus chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine, and Chancellor Ray Rodrigues of the State University System of Florida conveyed that message to system presidents. That order, the plaintiffs said, violated the First Amendment.

Threats are also coming from state politicians, including Democrats. On December 9, Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York said in a letter that a call for genocide made on a public-college campus would violate state and federal law, as well as codes of conduct. Colleges that failed to discipline students for engaging in such behavior, she wrote, would face “aggressive enforcement action.”

To Jeffrey Melnick, an American-studies professor at the University of Massachusetts at Boston whose research interests include Black-Jewish relations, reports of antisemitism have turned into a “moral panic”: They have roots in a real situation but have been heightened out of fear. Colleges need to carefully distinguish, he says, between true instances of antisemitism and those he believes shouldn’t be considered antisemitism, such as chanting “Intifada revolution.”

If phrases like that make Jewish students uncomfortable, colleges need to help them understand their history and what they mean to the Palestinian movement, said Melnick, who is Jewish.

“Our main job as university instructors is ‘teaching the conflicts,’” he said. “You don’t shy away from them. You say: ‘This is complicated. A lot of people feel really invested in this, and now we need to kind of drill down and figure out what it all means.’”

While antisemitism needs to be confronted, Melnick said, the “panic” is distracting from the continuing violence in Gaza as well as other forms of hate on campuses. When college presidents are called on to condemn antisemitism and “no questions are asked” about how they’re handling Islamophobia, he said, “that silence speaks really loudly to me.”

Kenneth S. Stern, now director of the Bard Center for the Study of Hate, in 2004 drafted what became known as the “working definition” of antisemitism as a way to help data collectors identify trends in such incidents. Stern identifies antisemitism as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.” He goes on to say, “Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”

The definition also provides examples of antisemitic acts, including “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination,” “drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis,” and “holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel.”

Though other definitions of antisemitism exist, Stern’s is one of the most widely accepted, having been adopted by the U.S. Department of State and the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. In 2019 then-President Trump required all federal agencies, including the Education Department, to use Stern’s definition when assessing violations to Title VI.

The move drew widespread criticism, especially from Stern, who considered it an attack on free speech. Using the definition in Title VI enforcement has a “chilling effect” on administrators, who may try to over-correct speech violations out of fear of being sued, he told The Chronicle.

Such controversies have surfaced repeatedly in recent months. Chants like “Globalize the Intifada” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” have become staples of pro-Palestinian protests.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, Republican of New York, demanded a yes or no answer during the House hearing in December about whether calling for genocide — which she’d earlier equated with such pro-Palestinian chants — would warrant discipline. None of the presidents pointed out that the meanings of those phrases, and whether or not they’re antisemitic, are contested. The impression they left in those deer-in- the-headlights moments, when they all insisted that context was important, was that they wouldn’t immediately condemn actual, explicit calls for the elimination of the Jewish people.

Many Jews and their supporters do see the chants as calling for violence, the destruction of Israel, and the genocide of Jewish people across the world. But to many of the pro-Palestinian demonstrators, including students, the calls are for the liberation of Palestinians and the return of land they believe belongs to them.

Problems arise when definitions of antisemitism, such as Stern’s, are used as speech codes, said Will Creeley, legal director at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), a free-speech advocacy group. Many of the examples listed under Stern’s definition are protected speech under the First Amendment, as are pro-Palestinian chants, even some cases when one calls for “horrific acts, including genocide.” Other acts, especially ones that are true threats or incitements to violence, go beyond the bounds of the First Amendment, Creeley said.

“To impose a blanket ban on certain sentiments or phrases,” he added, “would imperil a great deal of constitutionally protected expression.”

In an initial hearing on antisemitism, in November, House Republicans spent much of the time blasting campus offices of diversity, equity, and inclusion, accusing them of dividing students and fomenting hatred, especially against Jewish students. Some argued that such offices actually encourage anti-Jewish sentiments by dividing groups of people into oppressors and oppressed and failing to see Jews, whom many regard as relatively privileged white people, as among those oppressed. In the second hearing, with the college presidents, Republican representatives repeatedly raised questions about whether Harvard was disciplining students for racist acts but not antisemitic ones.

A recent article on Jewish Insider.com described deep rifts within the current and former leadership of prominent Jewish communal organizations about whether campus diversity offices can be partners in combating antisemitism. Two former longtime heads of the Anti-Defamation League and American Jewish Committee argued that those offices and the infrastructure they support only worsen problems for Jews. Leaders of those organizations have recently urged members to work with diversity offices to better incorporate Jewish concerns into the DEI structure.

Meanwhile, lawmakers have taken advantage of the spotlight on antisemitism to intensify attacks on campus diversity offices. U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a Republican from Texas, introduced a bill in December that would strip federal funding for any university that requires students to write diversity statements, blaming them for the spread of antisemitism on college campuses.

“Make no mistake — the DEI bureaucracy is directly responsible for a toxic campus culture that separates everyone into oppressor vs. oppressed,” he said in a news release announcing the legislation, which also bans diversity statements as a condition of employment.

Paulette Granberry Russell, president of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, calls such critiques “an orchestrated attempt to discredit and dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in higher education.” She added that “these attempts by individuals, well-funded organizations, and legislators who have leveled such criticisms and misrepresentations stand in opposition to higher education’s efforts to create more diverse and inclusive campuses and experiences for all students.”

Many diversity offices, Granberry Russell said, provide opportunities for cross- cultural dialogues and encourage students from various racial and cultural groups to collaborate on community-service and other projects.

Georgina Dodge, vice president for diversity and inclusion at the University of Maryland at College Park, said her office is working closely with a task force on antisemitism and Islamophobia created in November at the main campus in College Park.

“Within our department, we have a unit dedicated to supporting any member of our community who has experienced hate or bias, which includes antisemitism,” Dodge wrote in an email to The Chronicle. “This has been a key element of our work for years, and recent events have only underscored the importance of this kind of care on our campuses.”

Granberry Russell agrees. “What is evident today is that there is much more work ahead,” she wrote in an email to The Chronicle. “But to ignore the work, and the evidence-based research that informs the work, of offices specifically designed to respond to the needs of a diverse campus, and to conclude that such offices” contribute to antisemitism is “ill-informed and short-sighted.”

Some, however, question whether diversity offices are equipped to handle the complexities of antisemitism and Islamophobia, especially at a time when their work is under siege from right-wing groups that have succeeded in getting many banned.

“Antisemitism doesn’t fit with what is generally DEI’s focus today — on structural issues of equity and inclusion,” said Berkeley’s Katz, who’s also faculty director for the UC flagship’s Center for Jewish Studies. In 2019, he co-founded the university’s Antisemitism Education Initiative, which has worked closely with campus groups, including the university’s DEI office, to educate people about the roots and different forms of anti-Jewish bias and hatred. That kind of close cooperation with diversity offices, he said, is somewhat of a rarity across higher education, as well as corporations.

“It’s clearly very difficult for DEI professionals to figure out what to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” Katz said. “When attacks are coming from white nationalists shouting ‘Jews will not replace us,’” in Charlottesville, Va., “it’s much easier to wrap your head around it and get on board.” But when the hostile language is coming from the left, and the terminology is disputed, the connections to hatred and exclusion might be harder for diversity officers to grasp without additional training and education, Katz said.

Many students today have little exposure to ideological diversity on campus, and most agree on most politically fraught topics, such as abortion or transgender rights, said Eitan Hersh, a professor of political science at Tufts University. Since issues in the Middle East are so divisive, even among groups that otherwise tend to align politically, students don’t know how to talk about them. They are “not equipped to know how to deal with that,” Hersh said.

Colleges have failed to help students navigate “one of the most complicated geopolitical issues in the 21st century,” said Tyler Austin Harper, an assistant professor of environmental studies at Bates College who frequently writes about issues involving politics, culture, and race.

Part of an administrator’s job is encouraging open debate about complicated topics, he said. Rather than censoring student speech, colleges should be encouraging faculty members to model how to have conversations with people who disagree with them.

“Students have been entirely left alone to sort this out for themselves with zero institutional support, with zero attempts to organize any kind of rational discussion or conversation about the issue,” Harper said. “It’s not a big surprise that they’re floundering when adults have been too cowardly to do their jobs.”

That’s assuming that students are ready to have those conversations. “A lot of campuses are struggling with what to do now,” said Todd Green, director of campus partnerships at Interfaith America, which works to promote greater understanding among people of different religious backgrounds. “Do you try to bring students together now, or wait?”

In a different time, his group might have suggested bringing people from different faiths together in a room to try to find some common ground. To many, though, the issues at a time of daily bloodshed are too fraught, the emotions too raw. People from opposite sides may be shouting at each other, but there’s little talking, Green said.

Interfaith America, he added, “isn’t traditionally a crisis-response group. But we’re in the midst of a crisis that, in my years of higher education, is the most tense it’s ever been on campuses — even compared with post 9/11. In this moment, it’s very difficult to bring students together to try to build relationships.”

Some students, like Jared Levy, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of Texas at Austin, are doing their best to connect. Levy went to a Jewish boarding school in New York City, where his parents are both rabbis. In November, hundreds of UT students walked out of class to join in a large pro-Palestinian demonstration. Levy, with an Israeli flag pinned on his backpack, noticed a small group of Jewish students standing quietly off to the side. “People are being very cautious. You don’t want to be the next student to get punched in the face,” Levy said, referring to an incident at Tulane University where a Jewish student was smacked with a megaphone during a tussle over an Israeli flag.

A pro-Palestinian demonstrator asked him how he could defend Israel. “I sat there in the rain for an hour and a half talking to students about why I supported Israel,” Levy said. He talked about the importance of a Jewish homeland, about his conviction that Hamas was a terrorist organization, and that Israel had made mistakes but had a right to defend itself. Some of the students with the pro- Palestinian group, he said, didn’t understand what Hamas was and had just been told by friends or social media that Israel was committing genocide and was an apartheid state.

“A lot of students have been eager to engage in dialogue and weren’t just here to yell in my face,” Levy said. At the local Hillel, a Jewish campus-life organization with chapters on many campuses, he said they’ve discussed organizing a “neutral- ground dialogue.” But despite Levy’s success in engaging with students one on one, he doesn’t feel the campus is ready for group discussions. “We came to the conclusion that things need to cool down first,” he said.

Other students, like Katie Halushka, a Jewish senior at George Washington University, also wouldn’t be comfortable participating in an open forum or other type of civil discourse. While she hasn’t felt threatened much on campus, even after Students for Justice in Palestine projected messages on a campus building, she’s still tried to avoid talking about the war out of fear that it could permanently sever some of her relationships.

“It’s been sort of a ‘damned if you do, damned if you don’t’ situation,” Halushka said. “If you say anything, someone will be upset with you.”

A popular move among college administrators has been to establish advisory groups to combat antisemitism and Islamophobia. They are typically made up of faculty members, experts, and sometimes students.

Most of the groups, often called task forces, lack the authority to make changes or respond directly to incident reports, but they meet multiple times a week to evaluate campus policies and climate.

Following its creation in early November, Columbia University’s 15-person Task Force on Antisemitism first met in full in mid-December. Columbia has been one of the most tumultuous campuses in recent months, with several tense rallies, dueling faculty statements, and clashes between students. It’s one of the colleges under investigation by the Department of Education for incidents of alleged antisemitism and Islamophobia. The university also banned two pro-Palestinian groups — Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace — saying the groups held “unauthorized” events that included “threatening rhetoric and intimidation.” The following week, 400 students and 200 faculty members protested the suspensions.

One of the group’s main goals is to evaluate the university’s policies on free speech and demonstrations, said Nicholas Lemann, a co-chair of the task force. When Columbia suspended the student groups, many on campus were unclear whether it was on the grounds of an existing campus policy or if the administration had created a new one. Once the group understands the specifics of the policies, Lemann said, they’ll recommend how to revise them.

He also hopes the group can study the root cause of discomfort among Jewish students, evaluate where antisemitism is present in classrooms, and include lessons on antisemitism in orientation programs for incoming freshmen.

“This is not an easy moment at our campus and many other campuses,” Lemann said. “But I do think that our charge from the president and the way we have been working so far makes me optimistic that we can produce something useful.”

Some task forces have had a rockier start, though. Ari Kelman recently resigned as co-chair of a Stanford University subcommittee on antisemitism, bias, and communication, after some controversy about his writings on the difficulties of defining antisemitism.

David Wolpe, a rabbi at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, arrived at Harvard University’s Divinity School as a visiting scholar planning to do research and teach a class on Jewish spirituality. But since October 7, combating antisemitism has become his “full-time job.”

Amid a whirlwind of complaints over her response to the war and a highly publicized statement from a coalition of student groups solely blaming Israel for “all unfolding violence,” Gay, who was then Harvard’s president, called Wolpe asking for help. She was “clearly shaken,” Wolpe said, and he agreed to join a new advisory panel to help her respond to antisemitism on campus.

Wolpe’s inbox has since been filled with reports of antisemitism at Harvard, and he’s spent much of his time talking with administrators, donors, and alumni about the problem. But following Gay’s testimony during the House hearing this month, Wolpe met a breaking point. In a now-viral X thread, he announced his resignation from the panel.

While Wolpe anticipated that the university would make changes to campus, he said it wasn’t moving fast enough to discipline students, define antisemitism, enforce current regulations, or begin “serious education about Judaism and antisemitism.” Gay’s testimony was the final straw. “I saw what was going on as a five-alarm fire,” Wolpe said. “The way it was being treated was a sort of slow- burning flame.”

The focus, he said, should be on creating civil discourse and communication. Many campuses have become “screaming echo-chambers” where students find it impossible to have a conversation with someone whose view is different from their own, he said.

“If you can’t model civil discourse at Harvard University, where do you expect it?” Wolpe said.

There’s no sign that the political, cultural, and legal pressures on colleges over their handling of antisemitism will let up anytime soon. In addition to investigating the responses to antisemitism at Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and MIT, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce has set up an email address to report antisemitism on college campuses.

Wealthy donors will continue to flex their muscle, and faculty groups will continue to push back. The president of the American Association of University Professors, Irene Mulvey, issued a statement on December 12 saying that universities are obliged to protect both student safety and free expression. “We must not allow partisan actors to exploit this moment to demand further control over university curriculum and policy in order to shape American higher education to a political agenda,” she wrote.

Student protests continued to reverberate as the semester came to a close. Many of the demonstrators’ tactics have become increasingly disruptive — sit-ins, occupying buildings past normal hours of operation, and directly targeting campus programs and partnerships with Israel.

Colleges have ramped up their consequences as well. On December 11, 41 Brown University students were arrested after holding a pro-Palestinian sit-in at a university building and refusing to leave before 6 p.m. The next day, Rutgers University suspended a chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine on its New Brunswick campus for “disrupting classes, a program, meals, and students studying” and “allegations of vandalism,” according to a letter an administrator sent the organization. The student group accused the university of applying a “racist double standard” and attempting to silence Palestinian voices. Rutgers is the first public college to suspend the group.

As war continues to rage in the Gaza Strip, those who are pleading for a free exchange on campus of even sharply divergent opinions worry it may never come. Melnick, the professor from the University of Massachusetts at Boston, said that despite his “annoyingly optimistic” nature, he’s never seen the campus climate as grim as it has been over the past few months. And, with no easy solutions, some fear the turmoil could deepen in the new year.

An incident at Syracuse University in December underscored just how fraught things have become. Even a seemingly innocuous event — in this case an advertised study session before finals — can become a flashpoint. Students were gathered in the student center on December 14, three days after the university’s chancellor had released a statement saying that calling for the genocide of any group of people would violate the university’s conduct code. One student had taped a flier to her laptop that read “globalize the Intifada.” Some students complained they felt threatened. A campus administrator asked the student to remove it and she refused, a video posted on Instagram showed. The administrator told her the word called for genocide, and constituted harassment. She told him the word meant uprising and did not call for genocide.

A campus spokeswoman said other students had similar fliers that they were told to put away in their notebooks or book bags and that when they didn’t, they were told such refusal violated the student-conduct code. It’ll be up to the university’s Community Standards office to determine what, if any, punishment they’ll face.

[glynnisi]

Happy ChrismaHanukkah

ShieldShock Holiday Ficlet w inspiration images

"Let me guess. There's only one bed." Darcy rolled her eyes and looked pained. She texted to Jane and Natasha, 'you're hilarious.' "I just texted to tell Jane and Natasha they're hilarious."

Steve nodded, brow furrowed as he returned to her side from talking to the inn owner. "How'd you...?"

"Because we are being match-made, or Yenta'd, or 'given a push'- whatever you call it. There's only gonna be one bed left in this incredibly charming inn where we're snowed-in with one room reservation instead of the two we expected." Darcy shrugged. "Our friends think they're being helpful. You may not agree, but that's obviously what they think."

Steve noted that Darcy gave no sign of her opinion of the situation. She walked over to the sideboard and grabbed a chocolate chip cookie. Speech muffled as she took a bite, she cheered, "yass, still warm. And, yum." She looked around at the menorah and the lights and lanterns and trees, waving her hand. "Charming."

"Why would Natasha and Jane give us a push that involves only one bed?" Steve had his own ideas about that, but wanted to hear what Darcy would say. He followed her to the sideboard and had a cookie. "These are amazing."

"I know. Right? At least they didn't leave us stranded at a charm-free and cookie-free bug motel during the holidays. That would have been depressing." Darcy had another bite of cookie to stall answering.

When she'd licked crumbs from her lips, she looked up into Steve Rogers' incredible blue eyes and confessed. "It's my fault. I know better than to drink too much around Natasha. Alcohol makes me blab things, like my ChrismaHanukkah wish being that you'd give things a go with me." She grabbed another cookie and avoided his gaze. "So, since Jane adores me and Natasha has vetted me thoroughly and I have her stamp of approval? She scared my mother and my favorite English teacher to pieces, by the way... I guess the two of them double-booked us here in hopes that we'll hook up. Sorry."

Steve blushed to the tips of his ears. "What are you sorry about?"

"I'm sorry that my unrealistic crush puts you in an awkward spot stuck here with me tonight. Don't worry. I'll just sleep in a chair down here. This place is so darned cute I might get to meet Santa dropping off gifts." Darcy peeked into the next room. "Aw. 'A Christmas Story' on loop. It's funny. Have you seen it?" She turned and looked at him, surprised when she saw his expression. "What are you smiling about?"

"I thought I was the one who owed you an apology since I got caught ogling you weeks ago." Steve ducked his head, blushing more. "Natasha saw me about swallow my tongue one day when you reached up to get something from a high shelf. You're beautiful and it was obvious I desire you. So, I assumed this was her pushing me to do something about my unrealistic crush on you."

It was Darcy's turn to smile. "Why unrealistic? You're the nicest guy on base and have a delicious, dry sense of humor- on top of being an Avenger and a hottie. I'm just an astrophysicist intern fighting to get her doctorate."

"You're spirited, smart, and pretty. And you have more important things on your mind than dating. I've heard you say that multiple times." Steve volunteered, looking at her for clarification.

Darcy frowned, "you might have missed the part where I said I had more important things on my mind than dating Johnny Storm. He's a playboy and an egomaniac. That's the opposite of what I like in a man. I like someone who's honest and loyal to his friends, someone who looks me in the eye rather than the cleavage, nine times out of ten."

"I'm sorry about that. I..." Steve shrugged. "I respect you, Darcy. And, I like the way you're direct and funny and loyal and..."

"Huh." Darcy nodded, "interesting. Keep going."

He gave her a tight smile. "I can stay down here, if you like. I couldn't ask you to."

"Or..." she grinned and bit her lip.

A smile lit Steve's face. "Or?" He took a deep breath, mock serious and very hopeful. "ChrismaHanukkah wish? That kind of thing should be granted."

Darcy laughed, blushing happily. "Yes, please. You know that they'll be unbearably smug about their success setting us up. Right?"

Steve nodded. "Don't much care. I want you and you're interested, too. I'd be an idiot to let the opportunity slip away." He offered Darcy the key to their room and picked up their backpacks.

She gave him a teasing look as she accepted the key. "Well. Come on, then, roomie."

He glanced around to make sure no one was watching and gave her a scorching kiss. "Merry ChrismaHanukkah."

"The merriest," as they made their way to the room and she recovered from the toe-curling heat of the kiss, Darcy sent a quick text. 'You're forgiven. Thank you and Merry ChrismaHanukkah to you two, too.'

-fin

---

I just couldn't bear to get to Christmas w/o writing some little bit of ShieldShock Holiday fluff. Merry ChrismaHanukkah @mcgregorswench @aenariasbookshelf@typhoidmeri@littleplebe @idontgettechnology @janeykath318 and all #ShieldShock OTP lovers.

[jagged--dust-jacket-analysis]

So in my English class, we had to create a speech to give on a controversial or polarizing topic of our choosing. And because I am a writer and interact with fandom culture on the daily, I naturally chose Art censorship. I wanted other people on here to see it, because I think it might be one of the greatest (and most important) things I've written.

So, here it is. Feel free to critique and comment on it however you like:

Art is defined as, “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination.” This includes not only paintings, drawings, and sculptures. But also music, books, movies. It has always been a part of our lives, an unconscious expression of society and culture. Art is a part of the world. After all, Demetri Martin once said, “The Earth without Art is just ‘Eh.’” I don’t know about you, but I do not want to live on a planet called Eh. Unfortunately, censorship threatens to destroy the ability to freely create. There has been a rise in social awareness and social justice movements, with it talk of censorship. And most times, this stems from a good place. Wanting to protect people from the triggering ideas contained in art. And while I can understand this desire, I believe this is also dangerous. To censor art—especially “heavy” art—is to stifle an artist's creativity, is to dampen the social benefits art offers, is to squander the rights awarded to us as a free society. Censorship of art is simply wrong.

In school, we grow up being taught a wide variety of skills. Math, reading, history. All of these are important, don’t get me wrong. But I think the most important thing we’re taught is the ability to create. Creation is a very cathartic activity, with several benefits specifically for teens. The Polaris Teen Center’s article titled, “Five Therapeutic Benefits of Art Programs for Teenagers” they state that, “By stimulating the mind through artistic engagement, teens can create something that they can tangibly call their own. This helps regain the sense of self-determination necessary in order to overcome other problems in their life.” Creation, art, is taking all the emotions inside of you and putting them to positive use. Censorship, though, threatens to take away this powerful form of expression. By censoring what topics an artist can and cannot cover, we are taking away the ability to be express freely. They now have to color inside the lines. So instead of focusing on the art itself, the emotional reflection that comes with it? They’ll be focused on following guidelines. Focused on making sure their creations do not offend or fall outside of the set rule society has shoved down their throats. They will loose the therapeutic effect of art to an ideology that seeks to corrupt it. 

Art, and symbols, have long been used to promote progress. To move our society forward. It has been an especially big part in activism movements. We all remember the iconic raised fist used by the Black Lives Matter movement from twenty-twenty. There’s also Picasso's famous painting, the “Guernica.” SmartHistory, a site dedicated to art and its history had this to say about Picassos painting: “Picasso expressed his outrage against war with Guernica, his enormous mural-sized painting displayed to millions of visitors at the Paris World’s Fair.” It was his outlet for his frustrations, a way to show people the horrors that had occurred. A form of protest in it’s own right. As William Shakespeare once said, “brevity is the soul of wit.” You can get your message across with few words and in this case, none at all. While art is another way to protest, censorship is a way to shut down said protests. It has long been a tactic used to quiet the shouts and screams of the powerless to the powerful. By striking speeches from records, by deleting posts detailing injustices. By shutting down protests that where by all means actually peaceful. That is censorship, and that is how censorship fights progress, fights protest. Censorship of art is censorship of anger. And this hinders our progress. 

Now, let me pose a question. Who decides? Who decides what should or shouldn’t be allowed? Who decides what is offensive? You may think it’s simple, just follow the direction the currents of society flow. And I’m sure we all have things we want banned, symbols that are offensive, art that is hurtful. But once we cross that line, there’s no going back. Someday it could be your favorite singer. Headlines: Cardi B Music Banned for explicit language, Taylor Swift Removed for ‘romanticizing toxic relationships.’ Ridiculous, right? But that’s where censorship eventually leads. Once you cross that line, you can’t go back. All art in America is protected under the First Amendment. Under free speech. Author of the article, “Artistic Repression in America” writes, “If we are disturbed by images of violence or sex--or anything else--we can change the channel, turn off the TV, or decline to go to certain movies or museum exhibits. We can also exercise our own free speech rights by voicing our objections to forms of expression we don't like.” I have a right to create it, and you have a right to hate it. And higher authorities are not allowed to meddle. 

And so, Roger Scruton once said, “Art and music shine a light of meaning on ordinary life, and through them we are able to confront the things that trouble us and to find consolation and peace in their presence.” A lot of the time, art is going to make you uncomfortable. But it is that discomfort that will spark conversation. Art is going to even make you angry sometimes. Good. That is the job of an artist, to illicit strong emotional responses from their audience. You cannot hide everything that makes you uncomfortable. You cannot tear down every painting that depicts gore and violence, cancel every show or movie that touches on something you believe should be untouchable. You cannot torch every disagreeable book or smash every controversial statue. You cannot censor all art that makes you feel, because then what is left? In the words of Demetri Martin, “Just Eh.”

[missnobodymadness]

I'm so damn bored and feeling such a strong desire to share some OC stuff so I decided to share some of my favorite quotes from my characters because why not? I feel like it also helps me finding some motivation to finally start writing again.

Feel free to share this or make a similar post with your OC's quotes as well, I'd love to read them. :3 (English is not my first language btw, sorry about any possible errors)

Anyway, I'm starting with my favorite girl, Myline.

Myline (Naruto and Boruto)

"Don't give me the privilege speech when you are all living up there exploiting those who stand below you, not once did I felt any privilege or pleasure in serving your opressive system and I will never bow to it. Take my words as you wish, they will only feel like a threat if you perceive them as such, so, how it's gonna be?" - To Darui and A during the invasion of Amegakure arc (not a canon arc).

Aisha (MCU)

"Whenever a scientist finds a cure to something, companies will take advantage of them and sell it to you for the price of your soul, lives weren't meant to have a price tag, you can't play God and decide who is gonna live based on who is wearing Prada and that's what motivates me to keep fighting for a world where science and technology will become a right instead of a luxury"

Evelyn (AOT)

"Dang, this sucks...I've been told that I always make bad decisions all my life, maybe I should've listened before it became an habit, guess this is gonna be the last time I make one...Sasha must be feeling really lonely up there though..." - She thinks to herself as Jean and Pieck run in the opposite direction, both looking confuse on why she wasn't doing the same, she then looks at the sky one last time and run towards Reiner and the warhammer titans.

Masha (TWD)

"While most people hate what is left of this world, I've finally found myself in it and I am enjoying every second of it"

Mybuza (Boruto)

"I hope that someday people will look at me as a ninja ready to sacrifice my life for them instead of just the daughter of a terrorist"

Luna (Pokémon)

"Power is fame and fame is made of power"

Now the ferals from my original story, Cursed Scars.

Sahamara

“If you can’t stand the meaning of a true scar, then you can’t stand life” 

Dakarai (This son of a... >.>)

"You can’t expect to be a good fighter if you can’t even leave a mark on that rock, maybe I should scratch that precious face to exemplify how it is done"

Dalia

"I believe in second chances when regret is present, we are more complex than we think, our minds are capable of constant development but such thing is only possible when we finally learn how to recognize and embrace the wrongs of our past and move on for a better future"

Bakuto

"You once said that stars shine brighter to those who are worthy but lately they all look the same to me, does that mean that the Gods have given up on me?"

Kabuwa

"Greediness brings more misery than accomplishments" - To Ushiva, about Rastakah.

Rastakah

"Some call me greedy, others a tyrant but what I really like to hear them call me is mercy"

Ushiva

"Never underestimate the things a broken heart would do"

Matimba (The one lying down)

"Sometimes you just have to understand when the best option is to get out of your comfort zone and face what is holding you back so you can finally be the best version of yourself"

Thabisa

"War doesn't interest me, what is truly important to me is the well-being of my pride sisters, however, don't take me for a fool, my claws have been immersed in blood before"

Satahka (Lazy, lazy boy)

"This world has yet to prove me what a good nap can't fix"

Yarashin

"Don't spend the rest of your life stuck to your past, maybe it taught you how to hate, but the present can also teach you tolerance and if you try really hard, future may reward you with love"

[vdragon-creations]

Sup Everyone! And I'm here once again for more OC Dumping! Today we have an OC that I've had for a VERY long time!

Meet Sasha The Cheetah!

Now, to answer the obvious!

Yes, all of these are the same OC!

However, all these versions of Sasha have differences between them, despite having similarities! Each one has her own Backstories, Personalities, Age in some cases are very different (depending on the version), and powers.

The baseline thing they all have in common is that they're all Female, are Cheetahs, and that I ship her with Donatello. (But you'll see that each has their own twist on the relationship as well. But we'll get to that soon!)

But without further delay! I'd like to introduce you all to each version of my special little Cheetah Lady! (Starting in chronological order from OG TMNT to Current TMNT versions!)

Also, here's a link to the ToyHouse folder I have for all of them if you wanna read more info on all of them, since I'm not sure if I'm gunna get to cover everything in this one post!

And I feel the need to go ahead and warn you, Not all versions of the TMNT are very PG! I know right, shocker! So keep in mind that not all of these Sasha's are gunna have stories that are cute and happy! So a Trigger Warning is in place for Mirage Comic Sasha, IDW Sasha, 2014-2016/Bayverse Sasha, and Batman VS TMNT Sasha! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

First cat we have is Mirage Comic Sasha (A.K.A The OG Black & White Comics!)

Like the OG Mirage TMNT, This Sasha is by far one of the more darker and more serious versions of herself! She was part of a failed Mutation that was ran by a bunch of Foot Clan Loyalists who's main goal was to get back at the Turtles for killing The Shredder! This mutation was supposed to make her Bipedal, make her even faster, and the most important feature, give her a jaw strength so intense that she could crack a Turtle shell in one bite! But, they also tortured her during the experiment. Causing her to have some pretty crazy anger issues.

And the only reason the plan failed was because The Turtle's found out about it all, and put a stop to it! And while trying to free Sasha, Leonardo accidently injured her back left foot! This only made Sasha fly off the deep end and kill everyone in sight, as the turtles took off to safety! However, thanks to them, Sasha's mutation wasn't complete! Sure she could Run much faster then before, but with an injured back leg it would only get her so far before becoming too painful. And her Jaw Strength truly was something quite terrifying! But now....she's a monster! To the world and her own kind! And it was those Turtles who where to blame!

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha (Name given to her by Donatello)

Sex: Female

Age: 15 (In cat years)

Personality: Cold, Cruel, Violent, Irritable, and Strong

Species: King Cheetah

Race/Ethnicity: African (Was kidnaped by scientists and brought to a secret Lab/Facility in the wooded areas by NYC)

Relationship Status: Single

Orientation: Acesexual

Relationship W/ The Turtles: Hates all of them, but will only "Hear out" Donnie on any matters that might concern her. But she won't hesitate to threaten or hurt them! Should the need arise.

Powers: Super Speed (Though it's limited because of her injury), Super Roar (Basically a roar that's so loud that it can stun others), Enhanced Strength, Sentience/Speech, Night Vison, Powerful Jaw/Bite, and Enhanced Sense of Smell.

87 Sasha is our next Cat! From the good old 1987 Series by Fred Wolf!

By far the bubbliest and silliest versions of Sasha! And is also the weakest, her role here is more or less to be a support for The Turtles AFTER fights! (And she's usually another damsel in distress for The Turtles to save) She's also the first out of three of her versions to actually be a human before being a Mutant!

Originally Sasha was a teenage girl volunteering at The Central Park Zoo as part of a School Program, with dreams of becoming a Vet! Well, one day an accident with a strange Oozy substance in the office turned her into a Cheetah Mutant (as she was working with one of their cheetah's at the time). Well, now with her life turned completely upside down, Sasha got into a bit of hot water with the law by shoplifting several stores in NYC under the cover of darkness! With her speed, she was pretty slippery and was able to avoid capture by The Cops. And the News was having a field day with this so called "Cat Burglar Creature", including Channel 6 News! And it wasn't long before April come to The Turtles about this information.

While trying to apprehend her however, Sasha accidently scratched Donnie's cheek up and was able to escape. However, they did finally catch her, and upon taking her back to their lair and questioning her, they realized that she never really wanted to be doing any of those things at all. She just....wanted to survive. she apologized profusely for what she did and even wanted to help treat the wound on Donnie's cheek! After all, she was gunna be a Vet, and hurting animal (Mutant or otherwise) wasn't something she ever wanted to do. And after showing that she was more useful in their hands that behind the bars of some jail or lab, they decided to let her live with them so she could prove herself, and help treat them after fights!

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha

Sex: Female

Age: 14-15

Personality: Happy, Bubbly, Helpful, Kind Hearted, Affectionate, Loyal, Naïve, and Weak (Especially in a fight)

Species: Cheetah (Formally Human)

Race/Ethnicity: White

Relationship Status: Single (But has a very clear and obvious crush on Donatello, that is reciprocated)

Orientation: Straight

Relationship W/ The Turtles: Get's along with all of them pretty well! Raph and Mikey will usually pick on her a little. And Leo respects her for all the help she provides for them. Donnie has a pretty big crush on her, which she returns in full. Basically, He's her Knight in Shining Shell!

Powers: Speed, Charm (She can use her "cat like" charms to soften up a villain), Medical Knowledge, Teeth & Claws (Despite her not being much of a fighter and not wanting to fight, Sasha can use her teeth & claws to cause damage and to escape traps), Stealth (Being a cat, Sasha is capable of being very sneaky), Acting & Disguises (Her knowledge of human life makes it pretty easy for herself to blend in with humans. Provided she has a good disguise!), Enhanced Sense of Smell, and Night Vision

Next is technically the first version of her I ever made! She's been through SEVERAL rewrites, and she holds a special place in my heart, cause she was part of the first version of TMNT I saw! That's right! It's time for 2003 Sasha! Let's fucking go! Her story taking place between "The Ninja Tribunal" Arc and the "Fast Forward" series.

This Sasha is probably one of the more "Well rounded" versions of herself, as in addition to having her own moments of strength, she story and personality tackles some struggles that bare some similarities to my own struggles with Self acceptance, loneliness and trusting others. Sasha started out her life as a small Cheetah cub left abandoned by her mother. She had fallen into a small watering hole that had a strange glowing ooze floating around inside of it. After she started crying for help, she was rescued by two other cheetahs! An elderly Female Cheetah and a young adult Male cheetah! Neither of them where related by blood, but seemed to behave like family, and it soon became obvious why! They took her back to their master who was a wondering Nomad who seemed to possess strange powers, joined only by a coalition of Cheetahs that fallowed him everywhere. And they adopted Sasha to be one of their own. However the ooze that contaminated Her, the other cheetah (her "Grandmother"), and the young male (her "brother"), started to slowly change their bodies as they began to become more human like. But unfortunately, their master wouldn't live to see them completely changed, as the exposure to the ooze caused the man to get sick. But he left those three with one final wish and a gift for each of them, "Carry on the duties that I haven't been able to complete. This world and those beyond are all counting on you. And so am I. I love you my children." He handed the three of them three Crystals attached to ropes that where tied around their necks.

Now, without their master, the coalition split up with each cheetah going their own way. Except Sasha, Kenai (Her brother), and Imara (Her Grandmother). Their mutation granted them the ability to walk around up right like their master before them, and soon they started speaking to each other in their native tongue. As years went by Sasha slowly learned more and more about what her master's job was from her Grandmother, as she was one of his first Cheetah pets. According to her, he was a great protector of magic who used the powers of the world around him to keep those that would use magic to throw the world into chaos at bay! Kenai later left the two of them to start the final stage of his training and go to the high mountain ranges in isolation to learn the secrets behind his powers! (Something her grandmother did wit their master, and something Sasha would have to do later in life.)

Only one problem, by the time Sasha turned about 5, Sasha's opinion about who and what she and her family were began to skew a bit. They had to kill things to eat like all hunters, but the thought of doing so made Sasha feel sick. She started eating more plants, fruit, and bugs instead of hunting with her Grandmother. And once she got her powers, her opinion of herself got even worse! Sasha was a girl of science and logic, and here she was. A creature that was beyond any science or Logic! They really were freaks. But Sasha wasn't gunna give up her "Quest to be less of a freak", and so at the age of 12 she rejected her Grandmother's teachings about magic and her responsibilities to carry on the duties her master needed them for. She ran off and ended up leaving all by herself closer to the southern areas of Africa!

There, Sasha ran into something even more bizarre. Humans! Aside from her master, she had never been around humans before. But her grandmother warned her many times that humans were dangerous, and for creatures like themselves, they just wouldn't understand them. So, while keeping her distance, Sasha observed any humans that she encountered, learning so many more things then she ever thought possible. Eventually setting up a small camp out in the dessert by a small cave, using a tent and spare cloth she gathered from the humans who left them behind. And probably the most amazing thing she discovered was their technology! She was absolutely amazed by their machines and the sheer amount of them, each for their own purposes! Eventually she was able to get ahold of some of their scraps and start playing with them, and slowly learning how they work and trying to make new things out of them. Two items in particular are her Tech Spear and Gauntlets! Both items used to help her mask and wield her electrical powers more effectively.

And finally, after about two years of living in isolation, Sasha pretty much gained her independence from her Grandmother, though she did remain in contact with her via letters. And for the most part, Sasha almost felt normal, refusing to use her powers much for anything. Until, Sasha started finding Poacher Camps littered around the desert! She had heard stories about these kinds of humans and knew they where extremely dangerous, but.....against her better judgment, she decided to do something about them! After all, being a natural hunter herself and being disgusted by the act of killing for food, the fact they did it for sport and profit just....made her furious. So....she started planning!

Now, going in guns a blazing was a very bad idea, and Sasha really had to plan for all possibilities. First, she would arm herself with her spear as a weapon, and while she had no intention of killing anyone, she would if she needed to. Second, she needed to make sure they couldn't see who or what she was! So, she made herself a Full Desert Cloak and Scarf with a very fine Black Mesh vail covering what little of her face would be exposed, including pants, boots, and gloves. And the final touch she needed was a way to not only cover her tracks and make her harder to identify, she needed something that would made the poachers fear her more! So, despite her distaste for her mystical powers, she used her wind abilities to help make a small sandstorm around herself as she approached and while she attacked. And in addition, after scaring and/or killing them, she would then go to any animals that where held in the camps that where still alive and let them go! And any small and injured animals, she would take back to her home, and try and nurse them back to health before letting them go!

After a while of doing this, word soon spread far and wide across Africa about a mysterious being that roams the desert and protects the lands from those who would take advantage of the creatures that inhabit it! A being of great power, who lives in the sandstorms! Eventually earning a name! The Desert Dragon!

And for many more years, Sasha kept up her crusade, eventually getting a pretty bad scar on her left leg saving a three-legged Tortious, who she named Plato and kept as a pet since he really wouldn't be able to survive on his own ever again. And then one day, after raiding another poacher camp, Sasha noted some of the strange tech they had on hand! Along with their equipment having a very odd symbol on it resembling a Dragon's Claw. Sasha couldn't shake the feeling like these weren't just some average poachers and decided to do a little research into it. And after a little bit of digging on the internet, Sasha found that the symbol belonged to an organized crime group called The Foot Clan. Normally they ran mostly in Japan, but apparently they have operations in The US as well! In New York mostly! And even more curiously, it appeared that New York has been through quite a strange amount of happenings! Both Alien and Magical, with this organization right at the center of all of it!

Call it her teachings about the importance of her job as a Mystical Protector of sorts....but something in Sasha's gut was telling her that she NEEDED to get to the bottom of all these occurrences, and why they where in Africa! But before she could do much more digging, her computer was hacked, and a voice came though the screen that sounded...inhuman. The voice introduced itself as The Fugitoid and asked her what she knew of all these occurrences and if she worked for The Foot or even someone else. Sasha denied it of course, telling him that she truly knew nothing but had seen the symbol on some tech in a camp in Africa, and had a feeling it meant something bad!

There was a moment of silence before he asked a strange question, "Are you by chance not human?"

Sasha was hesitant at first to answer, but she told him that yeah, she wasn't human. At that point the screen flashed to show a.....Robot of some kind. He spoke kind and properly, seeming quite thrilled to see that she was a mutant, and behind him was a very very tall mutant who when he bent down to see the screen too, it was a large Crocodile mutant, calling himself Leatherhead! The three of them talked for hours about science, and about the stuff Sasha had seen in the desert! These talks went on for weeks! This was the first time Sasha had made a real friend, and they both seemed to be into the same things as she was! And after a while, Sasha learned from them that they have more mutant friends too! Four turtle brothers actually. Telling her about all the crazy and strange things that they have seen and been through.

And that's when Leatherhead had a crazy idea! If she could get to New York, he and The Fugitoid would make a place for her to live with them. Her skills would be useful to not just them, but The Turtles too. She'd get to meet them, and maybe, they could find out why The Foot where in Africa.

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha

Sex: Female

Age: 16-17

Personality: intelligent, Energetic, Motherly, Self Conscious, Determined, Independent, Can Get Lonely, and Curious

Species: Cheetah

Race/Ethnicity: African

Relationship Status: Single (has an ongoing mutual crush on Donnie, but don't go through with a full relationship, due to their lives being so....complicated)

Orientation: Straight

Relationship W/ The Turtles: She views them like family! Especially Leo, as he reminds her a lot of her big brother! Mikey is peak little brother to her, and she does enjoy listening to him tell stories about The Silver Sentry and watching movies with him. Him being the first one to introduce her to pizza! Though he does have a habit of poking fun at how close she and Donnie are. She and Raph get along more then one might think. Sure the two argue, but both have issues with inner demons, and Sasha's not afraid to hear him out since she does the same with Leatherhead all the time. Her and Donnie are defiantly much closer then "Just friends", as the two of them understand one another on a whole other level then anyone else. He was the one to teach Sasha how to warm up to Humans, and she idolizes him for his mechanical skills.

Powers: Speed, Zulu Stick Fighting, Hunting (Sasha's natural abilities make her a very skilled hunter and tracker), Technical Knowledge (While not as Mechanically gifted as Donnie, Sasha is still able to keep up with him on projects), Sōjutsu (A Japanese style of Spear Fighting), Multilingual (Sasha speaks Swahili and English fluently! But also knows Japanese, Spanish, Italian and Latin), Elemental Mystic Powers (Sasha, thanks to the gift from her former master, now has the two of the six main elements of the earth: Wind and Electricity. Because of these two Sasha can summon Lightning Storms and use large bolts of lightning on foes, Increase her speed to almost light speed, create winds to help her jump farther, Use her electricity to power machines or make herself a fuzzy Stun gun, and shoot electrical missals that burst into electrical dust that can stun others!), Mystical Powers (And aside from her elemental powers, Sasha also has other powers that she, her Grandmother, and Brother all have! Like Creating portals that can carry her and others large distances, Potion Making, Light spells, and Crystal magic), Roar (Sasha and her family can roar unlike most Cheetah's), Enhanced Strength (Sasha, being a carnivore, is already much stronger then The Turtles. But in addition to that, Sasha was a wild animal to begin with rather then a human pet.), and Intellect.

Our next kibby is the 2007 Sasha, her story taking place a year after the TMNT film!

This Sasha is an interesting one, as unlike some of the others, her story doesn't take place at all in NYC, but rather has The Turtles traveling to Africa.

A pandemic hits NYC that starts spreading super fast, proving to be extremely fatal. And April gets sick with it. Splinter shares the story of an ancient Artifact in Africa, said to be item of great healing. and under his directions, The Turtles go there and find themselves landing in thick Jungle. While wandering around lost for a while Donnie falls off a steep drop and hits a bush covered in thorns. But these thorns are unlike any normal plant they've seen, and Donnie starts to feel dizzy and on the verge of passing out. His brothers get him out of the thorns, but by the time they do, Donnie is already tripping pretty hard and can't see for shit. When they are ambushed by what seem to be natives of the Jungle, surrounding them with spears. But it seems like these guys aren't humans.....they mutants like them.

A tall native, a very large male cheetah approaches them, and he asks why they are here. Leo pleads for them to help them as they're lost and their brother is hurt. The cheetah looked at all of them, then the injured brother. And he agreed, saying that his sister would tend to him while he talked to the other three.

Hours later, Donnie wakes up, noticing that his brothers are nowhere around and more importantly, he's in a hut somewhere. When we turns his head around he sees a mutant cheetah staring at him in awe, a female from what he can tell with his blurry vision. "Are you an Angel...." he slurred. She laughs and tells him that she's afraid not, and he's definitely not dead. They introduce themselves a little, finding out her name is Sasha, and that her Big Brother, Kenai, was the one who brought him to her along with his brothers.

After a bit of talking with both the cheetahs, The Turtles find out that this tiny tribe of mutants are all protectors of the artifact they're looking for! The Turtles plead with them to help them find it since they know where it is, and that it will help save their friend, and by extension, the world. The two agree, but warn the four of them that if they're laying, or doing this for selfish reasons, the artifact will take their life forces in retaliation. Sasha came along to 1. Help them appeal to The Artifact. 2. She's the chosen vesicle for some of the Artifacts healing powers, so it will most likely need her to carry out their needs if it agrees to help. 3. Donnie maybe able to walk now, but he got a nasty dose of that plant's poison. And as a highly skilled and devoted healer, she wasn't just gunna leave a patient without proper care.

During the journey, Sasha got rather close with The Turtles. As a devoted healer and Protector of The Artifact, Sasha hasn't had much of an opportunity to make or keep friends. And the most of the folks she meets are ones that need her healing, but are beyond her powers ability to help too much. However, Donnie is the one she got the closest too. He was super knowledgeable about "The World Beyond The Trees" and loved asking questions about it. She had seen humans before, and had seen the strange equipment they used, and she wanted to know more. Know more about New York! The world! And....him too.

Eventually Sasha and Donnie separated by a group of strange men who came to try and take The Artifact, and Sasha used her healing powers on herself to save Donnie's life. This caused her to loose her powers, as the powers gifted to her by The Artifact forbid her to use her healing magic on herself. In addition, it left her feeling very weak, as the downside to using her powers at all was that it would take power from her own lifeforce. Meaning that she would keep getting weaker and weaker by the second. Meaning.....The Turtles would have to make a choice. Save April and The World....or save Sasha....

As much as it pained Her Brother and The Turtles....they had to choose The World. So, carrying Sasha to The Hidden Temple, they finally found The Artifact. The Turtles pleading for it to help save The World from the pandemic! A very deep and booming voice from The Artifact that is neither male or female spoke. Noticing that Sasha was in the temple, and that she went against her duties to save Donnie, it asked if they where sure with their choice. They all agreed, and suddenly a flash of light engulfed the temple.

They all received a vision of a beautiful wave of golden light engulfing the world. And then....they awoke outside The Temple. Confused they all looked around only to see Sasha standing beside them, smiling at them. She explained that thanks to their sacrifice, The Artifact decided to have mercy on her. That said....The Artifact had to occupy a living host in order to do what was asked. And it chose Sasha.

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha

Sex: Female

Age: 19

Personality: Curious, Intelligent, Cautious, Caring, Serious, Graceful, and Motherly

Species: Cheetah

Race/Ethnicity: African

Relationship Status: Single (Has feelings for Donnie that are reciprocated, but two are unable to have a normal relationship due to distance.)

Orientation: Straight

Relationship W/ The Turtles: She's absolutely fascinated by them, as they are the first real friends she's ever had! And feels like she can learn a lot from all of them! She finds Leo so be a very kind and noble leader, much like her Brother. Raph is a little rough around the edges, but means well and cares so much about his family. And Mikey is so lively and adores his spirit, even if he is a bit silly. As for Donnie, she adores him. The knowledge he has of the outside world is so fascinating, and his ability to just....make things is just incredible! she also finds his obvious nervousness around her endearing and kinda cute!

Powers: Healing (Sasha has the ability to heal, however it comes with quite a few set backs and limitations! She can't cure terminal illnesses like Cancer. She can't help someone regrow a limb, she can close a wound, but that's it. She can help speed up a healing, but she can't bring anyone back from death or keep them from dying. The most she can do is help ease their pain. And even then, using any of these powers drain her lifeforce, making her more likely to die sooner then she would naturally.) Plant Knowledge (With her Healing being so limited, it is important that she knows how to use traditional medicines and medical practices in order to serve her patients! One of these is gathering the correct herbs to make remedies for them!), Speed (Sasha's speed, while impressive for a cheetah, she still can only sprint before she needs to stop. However, living in the jungle instead of the Desert like most of her kind, she has learned to have killer reflexes when it comes to dodging obstacles even at top speed.) Vine/Branch Surfing & Vine Swigging (Sasha, having lived in the Jungle her whole life, learned from a very young age how to tread the terrain quickly over long distances. Usually using Branches and thick vines as slides or swinging from vine to vine like Tarzan.)

Our next Cheetah is probably the most complicated to explain, but i will try! Let me introduce IDW Comics Sasha!

This Sasha's story actually begins with the story of a Goddess! She was the Goddess of the earth and life itself, and like most other gods, it was part of her job to keep the powers and magic of the world in line, and to make sure it never came into the wrong hands! But like all things, this plan went sideways and rouge magic user was hungry for power, and unfortunately, The Goddess of Earth was a target. And the easiest way to get these powers, was to kill the host of said powers. And unfortunately....they succeeded! The Goddess of The Earth was killed, and her powers were up for grabs! But....The Goddess wasn't gunna go down so easily without a fight!

Being a god with a very important job to do, did her best to keep doing her work! However, without a living host to house her soul and power, she couldn't exactly do so safely. And it's not like finding a host was very easy, as only those with pure hearts and bodies would be viable candidates. So for many years, The goddess was left to roam the world in search of a host to carry on her tasks, eventually having to split her soul and power into three pieces to make herself harder to track.

And one day....she found the perfect host! Or rather Hosts! They were three Cheetahs! An elder female, A young adult male, and a small female cub! But unlike most animals, something strange had happen to these three! Due to some human pollution in the African Jungles, these three had been exposed to some strange chemicals, causing their bodies to become more humanoid, and their brains beginning to function more like that of a human. True, they where primitive, but they where pure of heart, and now had the bodies to wield her powers! So she possessed all three, but something....strange and unforeseen happened. Apparently during the time that her soul had separated, parts of her personality became weakened, and due to this it allowed for her hosts to have parts of their personalities shine through! This didn't hinder too much however, as this Allowed the goddess to choose which of her powers would go to which cheetah, and who would wield what better!

Kenai, the young male Cheetah, showed himself to be a devoted protector of his family. And while mostly calm and collected, he also had a switch that would make him incredibly angry and fierce when needed! For this reason, Fire and Water where the perfect elements for him!

The oldest Female, Imara ,having more life experience then the other two, made her a lot more cold are hardened to the unfairness of the world! But this also made her quite resourceful and willing to change her circumstances to fit her needs! After all, she and her two younger cheetah's all started living in the jungle instead of the desert like the kind because it was easier to find food here! And it was cooler during the day! For this, Earth and Ice where good matches for her!

Leaving the youngest....Sasha left! Unfortunately due to her age, she didn't have much of a personality outside of a child's general curiosity and carefree nature! Which was refreshing for the Goddess, as for as long as she could remember, she was made for the soul purpose of serving the world as one of it's protectors! And she never had a choice to be anything else. And this was like a breath of fresh air! Getting to experience so much more from a perspective that was so different! This made Sasha's powers of Electricity and Wind and easy match for her!

But these elemental abilities where not their only gifts however! They where being controlled and possessed by a god after all, and thus gained plenty other powers as well! Seeing things normal beings can't, knowledge of other universes realms of reality, Teleportation via portals, and even immortality to some degree. See...after having her previous body destroyed in such a harsh manner, the goddess decided that these new vesicles would not be allowed to die unless it was by natural causes. In other words....old age!

So for many years, Sasha, her brother, and grandmother spent their days honing their god-like powers, traveling to far lands to rid the world of those who would disturb the balance of magic, and learn how to deal with the changes of the world as time went on. Sasha had started growing fond and was fascinated with the modern world! All the technology, culture, and beauty it had to offer was just so....tempting. But....alas....she couldn't really be a part of it. Being a mutant already put a bit of a damper on that, but having to perform her duties as a meat puppet for a god made getting time to herself to spend on hobbies almost impossible. and she was starting to dislike this quite a bit. The Goddess could tell this too, and while she'd love nothing more then be able to let these three be their own people, she couldn't just....let them go. They were now bonded till their inevitable expiration dates, an nothing could change that.

Well as time went on, Imara, The Grandmother, fell very ill. She soon wouldn't be long for this world, and The Goddess would have to be one body short and have further possess the remaining two. Allowing them to gain her other powers. But before passing on, The Grandmother asked the two of them to complete on last task for her, as her final wish. The two agreed, and then the Grandmother presented the two of them with an empty glass canister that had been smashed open, with the letters TCRI printed on the side.

"Find this place, learn all you can about our rebirth. And please, support each other, fallow your hearts, and when all seems lost remember that I will be with both of you, and i will help you find your way. I love both of you my cubs...."

And with that, she passed on, her body dissolving into golden dust and slowly absorbed into Sasha and Kenai.

With her last words in mind, the two of them quickly started trying to figure out more about that TCRI canister. And while meditating on it, the two of them received a vison of a tall building above a sea of more tall buildings, with the letters TCRI on the top. As a flash of Sasha's lighting is seen shooting up from the top of the building, and the vison then fades away. Trying to find out more info, Sasha and her brother started spying on some of the local cities to see if they could get anymore information on the location of this building. And they where eventually lucky enough to over hear a conversation from a traveling business man saying something about TCRI.....in a place called New York City....

Deciding it would be better to save their energy and cause less of a scare if they just....showed up in New York with a portal, they snuck onto a cargo plane and started heading to their next stop!

But the ride didn't go so smoothly however! As while just before reaching the mainland, their plane started to become unstable and they ended up having to jump from the air craft, but while Kenai was able to portal himself safely onto the dock, Sasha was far less quick to react and ended up hitting the water hard, and blacking out.

Sasha later awoke with a jolt, spitting up water and coughing. And after bit, realized that she was on....well not dry land, but was no longer in the water. From what she could tell, she wasn't on the docks, but rather underground and in what looked to be big man made caves with water flowing through them. The walls being made of metal and stone, along with the overwhelming stink of humans, gave Sasha the impression that she defiantly wasn't where she needed to be. So, she started wondering the dark tunnels looking for any sign of her brother....or the TCRI building.

And after a long time of wandering around, Sasha came into a large chamber, with huge pipes high on the walls slowly having water run out of them into a large pool of swirling water blow the center of the room. Suddenly, bubbles came up from the water as a large spikey turtle like creature emerged and crawled it's way over to her, before standing on it's hindlegs, and charging at her, large sharp claws and fangs ready to tear her to bits! Using was godly awareness she had, Sasha could tell this creature was a mutant like herself, but for more primitive! And Clearly more violent, and while she had no want or need to kill this creature, she wasn't exactly gunna just let it hurt her either. The fight didn't last too long, and eventually, Sasha was able to land a good solid punch to the middle of the creature's beak, knocking the beast out cold, but a sudden voice from behind her made her jump, as it was English being spoken, and she had thought she had been seen by humans. But....she was mistaken! It was actually....more mutant turtles. But unlike the other one she just fought with, these four were much smaller and wore strange combat gear, and small colored masks over their eyes. Each on holding a different weapon. She didn't know if these ones where related at all to the previous one, but she wasn't gunna stick around to find out, and she angrily hissed at them as she quickly jumped and insanely high jump and escaped threw one of the pipes above them.

And after wards, eventually found her way to the surface! Poking her head out of a grate, she quickly took cover in an ally way and started trying to get a better view of the city, and hopefully find her brother. After climbing the side of the building quickly, she made it to the roof and was immediately floored with how beautiful it was! The moon shone brightly over the city while the stars in the sky mimicked the way the lights in the streets danced about! She had never seen anything like this in the many years she had been around! And that's when she spotted it! The TCRI building, standing tall and proud against the light of the moon!

Making her way from roof to roof, eventually, Sasha made her way to the top of the TCRI building. And after realizing that it had been several hours since she and her brother had been separated, and she was starting to get worried. Especially after that mess with those turtle things underground. She had to come up with a plan to find him, and then she remembered her vision, and that beam of her lightning coming out of the top of the building.

It was a risky thing to do, knowing that this would pretty much draw WAY more attention then what she really wanted, but.....she had to find her brother!

So she gathered what energy she could and began to shoot a consistent beam of lightning straight into the sky! And now, all she had to do what hold it, and hope that it would be enough to catch her brother's attention.

Needless to say it worked, Kenai eventually saw this beam of lightning and rushed to the TCRI building. Sasha heard her brothers voice behind her and she stopped shooting off her bean and ran over to him relieved, giving him a hug. But then, she saw those same four turtle things standing behind him. Immediately hissed, letting go of her brother and backing away, her teeth bared and fur standing on end. She shouted at them in her native language (Swahili) and Kenai tried to calm her. Claiming that they found him and where trying to help him find her.

But before they could really start to talk everything out, an arrow shot out from the shadows and hit Sasha in the leg. The six of them turned to see Karai and other foot ninjas surrounding them on the roof. Karai briefly mentions that she knew she sensed some powerful energy in the city, sarcastically thanking The Turtles for helping to find the cause, and now they'll be killed too. Two birds with one stone. A fight soon ensued, and The Turtles along with Kenai started fighting off The Foot Ninjas, keeping Sasha from being attacked while her leg was injured. During the fight, Sasha kept an eye on each of The Turtles. Sure, it was fair to assume that they didn't like these other Ninjas, but....after the fight, then what? Could they be trusted.

At some point in the fight, Sasha saw as one of the Turtles was being knocked down, noticed an aura around him. Something familiar. Before more ninjas had the chance to swarm him, Sasha used what strength she had left to defend him. Swiping away the attackers with her claws. But despite this, Sasha's leg had begun bleeding so much, that she started to pass out, and soon blacked out, the last thing she was her brother starting to create a wall of fire around all of them.

When Sasha finally awoke again, she could definitely tell she was no longer on the roof of the TCRI building, but rather in some...makeshift medical room inside of...what looked like another underground chamber. Her leg was wrapped up and she noticed some strange electronics attached to parts of her body, along with some tubes with needles strapped to her wrists!

Needless to say, Sasha was more then a bit panicked, not seeing her brother anywhere around. Believing that she had been captured by those Ninjas.

And so, she started trying to move and get out of the bed she was in, but thanks to the injuries on her leg and the amount of blood she had lost, she lost her balance while trying to get up and feel to the ground causing a lot of the machines she had attached to herself hurt her and start going off. Suddenly she heard someone enter the room and it was one of The Turtles, the same one she had saved during the fight. He looked worried and was trying to approach her but Sasha growled and started using her electrical powers to make her body spark and crackle, making the machines she was attached to start to malfunction. He tried to plead for her to stop and just relax, but soon more people entered the room. The other three Turtles and Kenai entered the room, seeing her brother made Sasha stop sparking but she remained backed up against the wall and obviously feeling threatened.

Her brother gently explained that these four helped him find her, and that they weren't going to be a threat to her. The Turtle that she had saved even added that he was the reason she had been hooked up to those machines, apologizing for scaring her. Sasha reminded silent, but The Turtles gently stepped forward, noting that her leg wound has probably opened up again after her fall, offering to keep helping her. She looked at her brother and the other Turtles, before nodding, giving him permission.

After getting her situated back on the bed and the others leaving the two alone for a while Donatello worked silently on getting her leg back in working order, trying his best to stop the bleeding. All the while feeling extremely awkward. After all, even her bother hadn't told him or his brothers what the two of them where yet, And they just watched as Kenai had shot fire from his paws, Sasha shoot lightning, and she protected him from The Foot without knowing anything about him. And on top of that, it seemed like her eyes where laser focused on him the whole time, and normally he would have chalked this up to her just being cautious of him, but....it almost seemed like she was both deep in thought and studying him at the same time.

Eventually he asked her why she was staring at him, and her answer was a bit....surprising.

"You're a being who has touched death before too. Haven't you?"

Donnie had no clue how she knew this about him at all! The only clue would've been his metal shell. Sasha explained that, with her and her brother having the abilities of a god, they can see things others can not! Sasha had noticed that Donnie had an aura around him, his brothers didn't have such an aura. This aura was a sign that a particular soul had been in Limbo before, which could only happen if the host had died. Something she too had done at some point in her mortal life, just not through natural means, there for the goddess didn't allow her to parish. Being the technical and skeptical turtle he was, he tried his best to rationalize what she was telling him, but Sasha cupped his head with her paw, giving him visons of her and her brother's lives as hosts for the soul of a god. That got him to believe her a bit more, and afterwards, he asked her why she and her brother where in New York to begin with.

Her brother walked in and answered the question, that they where sent by they're late grandma to find out the secret behind the TCRI canister that held the chemicals that made them into mutants. That's when The Turtles filled them in on there own experience with TCRI, and it became pretty clear that these Turtles had been through the same things as them. This cleared up their questions about TCRI, but now they where faced with a new problem. If The Foot now want The Cheetah's dead for their power, then that means it will be even harder for them to get out of New York without being fallowed where ever they went. Their God-like powers being a bit hard to hide, and they couldn't stay cause otherwise they'd fine The Turtles lair! But they wouldn't get too far with Sasha only having one good leg at the moment. Teleportation would be the perfect option, but they needed to do so in a place too far from The Foot that even if they did sense their power and start trying to chase them down, they wouldn't reach them in time.

This lead to Donnie inventing a device for the two of them to wear that would hide their energy, something that greatly intrigued Sasha. Finding it quite amazing that he could create such a thing from almost nothing, kinda like a god in his own little way! (A sentiment that Donnie was a little embarrassed by, but flattered nonetheless.) After that, The Turtle's asked for April to take them to her Family's Old Farm house so that they'd be far from the city while Sasha recovered and so that they could use their powers. Without the Foot tracking them.

Eventually Sasha was able to heal up quite while, given her abilities as a god, her leg healed up with nearly no issues. But....during this healing time, she became more and more close with these Turtles, and their master. And after hearing the story of their past lives from both Splinter and Leo, she gained an even bigger admiration for them! More so for Donnie, as not only did he seem to be intrigued by her knowledge of other worlds outside of this one and her abilities (especially her teleportation and telepathy), buy his love of machines and science was so new to her and he was willing to teach her so much about the modern world. Mikey doing so as well, but more about pop culture and slang, which confused Sasha, but she tried her best to understand it all. (While sounding a bit awkward doing so.)

But all good things must come to an end, as after healing up, Sasha and her Bother really hand to go back home and get back to their God Duties. And while they wouldn't be able to visit too often due to all the work they had to do, Sasha promised them that she and her brother would try to visit when they could and would do their best to stay in touch!

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha (Though Vitia is the name of the Goddess who's soul possess her body.)

Sex: Female

Age: Unknown (Physical Age is 2 human years, making her 30 in cat years. And her God Soul has no real set age.)

Personality: Curious, Motherly, Protective, Loyal, Stoic, Loving, Wise (When it comes to Fighting, Magic, and World of Nature), and Naïve ( At least when it comes to Pop Culture, Modern Science, and Socializing. Due to having been isolated her whole life and forced to be a Magical Peacekeeper)

Species: King Cheetah

Race/Ethnicity: African

Relationship Status: Single (Not by choice. And would love nothing more then to have Donnie as her mate.)

Orientation: Pansexual

Relationship W/ The Turtles: Being a Goddess of Life and The Earth, Sasha feels connected to The Turtles quite a bit. And after knowing of their previous lives, she can't help but empathize with them. She gets along well with Leo, him being more connected to spiritual stuff makes him easier to talk to. Sasha enjoys sparing with Raph, as he doesn't tend to hold back when he fights. She also finds the relationship between him and Alopex to be super sweet. With Mikey, Sasha adores him like a little brother. And he likes showing her all his comics, movies, and skateboards! He even let's her try different human foods, which she enjoys to a degree. She and Donatello quite smitten with each other, but due to her duties as a God, it makes hanging out a lot pretty difficult. When they are together, Donnie will often times show her all the newest inventions he's made! And Sasha will bring him back gifts from her travels as a God, usually strange and foreign mystical items. And she even granted him the ability to communicate with her Telepathically. In case he ever got himself into trouble.

Powers: Elemental Powers (Sasha has the powers of both Wind and Electricity! And after the death of her grandmother, she gained her powers over earth. But rarely uses them), Telepathy (being a God, Sasha can communicate with other beings through their minds. Though they can only hear her and can't talk back directly, unless she grants them the ability to do so.), Teleportation, Partcial Immortality (Sasha, along with her brother are both Immortal to an extent. They age and will eventually die of old age one day, but till then, the Goddess that possessed them is unwilling to let them die before then. Meaning if they are killed in any other way then old age, they will just come back to life.), Healing (Sasha is capable of healing pretty quickly from most injuries.), Speed, Claws & Teeth, Sixth Sense (Being a God, Sasha can see things that others can't. Spirits, other gods, and gateways to other worlds. She can also sense the life-force of others.

And now onto our next kitten! Unfortunately she is my least favorite to write for as she's for my least favorite version of the Turtles, but I will still show her love, cause she a baby! Welcome 2012 Sasha!

This is one for the other three versions that was human first before being a mutant! She's also the only version that has no real technical knowledge at all, unless it pertains to her weapon and gauntlets. And unlike a lot of her other versions, she's far more quiet and shy!

Sasha was born in Japan, to mother who was Japanese and a father who was an American. And around the same time, Oroku Saki had just started trying to get his revenge on Hamato Yoshi by taking every thing he loved from him! Sasha's family was caught in the cross fire as her grandmother happened to be a pupil of Yoshi's making her and her loved ones a target as well. Unfortunately for her, her daughter and son-in-law was killed. Leaving behind their small child behind in the process!

The grandmother took Sasha and they fled to America, to try and escape Saki's wrath! And it appeared to have worked!

For several years Sasha and her grandmother lived together peacefully in New York City with no real issues! But, her grandmother still feared that Saki was still out there, and didn't want Sasha to be in any danger. So, from a very young age, Sasha was taught ninjutsu! And using what her grandmother learned from her former master (who she never named), Sasha became quite a skilled fighter. Though, despite these skills, Sasha was a very....shy girl. Having been warned about an enemy of her grandmother's former mater, and that he could still one day come after them, Sasha kept to herself most of the time. As to not draw any unnecessary attention to her or her grandmother.

That said, Sasha's Grandmother had to have some way to pay the bills and decided to open up a small martial arts studio, where Sasha helped tutor some of the younger kids in the class. But this ended up being a huge mistake!

One day some strange men in suites that moved a little too strangely, broke into the dojo while Sasha and Her Grandmother where closing up for the evening! They had weapons that neither of them had seen before, and quickly overpowered both Sasha and her grandmother. And once they where done, they took Sasha and left the Grandmother alone.

These men happened to be robotic bodies for some strange brain-like aliens calling themselves The Kraang, and after taking Sasha away, they started to mutate her slowly into a Humanoid Cheetah. Sasha hated this! All of it! She already felt like a bit of an outcast as a human, but now.....she truly didn't belong anywhere anymore! According to what little info she could get, they had been asked by someone to take her specifically due to her skills as a fighter and her age. They intended to use her as a weapon against....from what she could gleam, other mutants! And The Kraang really had no intention on just letting this other client keep her forever. Since after taking out this mutual mutant problem of theirs, they planned on having Sasha fight on their terms next and help them in getting rid of the client.

Unfortunately for them, the whole brainwashing thing didn't exactly work as intended, and Sasha wanted nothing to do with either of these two sides! So, for now she laid low, and behaved. Until the day finally came when she was to be delivered to the client. They met in a warehouse and when Sasha was let out of her containment chamber, she was surrounded by tons of what looked like Foot Ninjas, something that made her heart drop. These where the same dudes her Grandmother warned her about, and then she saw their boss. A very tall man, wearing a suit of armor that very closely resembled a Samurai. This had to be The Shredder. And next to him where two more mutants like herself! One a giant Fish and the other a Dog.

The shredder ordered her to prove her strength to him and take on his two henchmen. And after the cuffs on her hands and feet where removed, Sasha took her opportunity and began fighting the two while finding a way to escape, and she almost didn't make it. Buy before all seemed lost, a few smoke bombs where dropped in the warehouse allowing for Sasha to escape out of a skylight, having to jump on the head of one of what she thought was one of Shredder's ninja's heads to get the extra boost!

For the next few hours, Sasha did her best to stay hidden in the roof tops from both The Foot and The Kraang! Eventually, she took shelter in a storage closet of sorts, and soon she heard a noise. But....it wasn't the sound of a Foot Ninja or a Kraang bot. She stepped out of closet and fallowed the sound just a few feet away from her hiding spot and noticed what looked like another mutant. This time, he was a giant...turtle. Somewhat taller then her and looking at some strange phone looking thing in his hand. He didn't look to be part of The Foot or The Kraang, but regardless she watched him closely from a distance. But this ended up not working out so well as just a few hundred yards away from him, some Kraang bots started showing up from the horizon and started shooting at him! Causing him to make a break for it....HEADING HER WAY! Sasha quickly ducked back into her storage closet hiding spot, and then figured...if The Kraang where shooting him, then he had to be a good guy! So she waited till she heard his footsteps get closer before quickly grabbing him and dragging him quickly into the closet! Clamping her hand over his mouth to keep him from screaming.

The Turtle struggled for a moment before Sasha quickly shushed him, as the two could hear The Kraang Bots chittering as they walked by. After a bit more waiting in silence, Sasha gently cracked open the closet door to have a peek outside, letting The Turtle in her arms finally get a look at her face. Finally, Sasha let The Turtle go and the two of them came out of the closet, finally taking a breath of fresh air. Sasha was just about to leave The Turtle behind, but before he could stop her, a Throwing star was tossed in-between the two of them!

The Foot had surrounded them both and it didn't seem like they where too interested in talking! So Sasha and her new Turtle "Friend" made quick work of them! Sasha noting that his fighting style seemed pretty similar to her own. After the fight was over, she and The Turtle exchanged a few words of gratitude and The both of them making the safe assumption that neither of them worked for each other's enemies. And Sasha assuring him that she had no intentions on hurting him or his brothers, so long as they don't hurt what she was trying to protect! And before The Turtle could ask what she meant by that, she took off into the night!

And for about a week, Sasha didn't see him again! And she spent those days hanging out on a rooftop, not far from her and her grandmothers apartment. Sasha figured that if those guys when to all that trouble to take her specifically, then it was highly likely that they would now try to target her Grandmother! After all, if they couldn't use her, then they could either use her grandmother as leverage or mutate her too. And there was no way in hell she was gunna let that happen. But....it pained her! To have to watch her Grandmother form a far! After what those freaks did to her....

She was....a monster now! There's no way Sasha could just walk back up to her grandmother all normal like? She couldn't let her grandma see her like this! It was....heartbreaking....and it really made her feel all alone.

But one night, while she was sulking, she started hearing sounds coming in her direction! So, Sasha quickly hid with her Tech Scythe at the ready! Finally she jumped one of the intruders only to see that it looked like the Turtle mutant she met a week ago, only....different. This one being a bit shorter, with a crack in his shell, and wearing a red mask. He screamed, and as he did so, three more turtles showed up! One of them being the one she had already met! The one with the Blue mask, who's name was apparently Leonardo, convinced her not to hurt his brother. Eventually they explained to her that they where the ones that helped her escape the Shedder, by dropping those smoke bombs in the warehouse, Raph getting a bit pissy at her for jumping on his head to get up to the skylight.

After a bit of convincing, Sasha agreed to go to The Turtles lair to meet their master, after seeing who she was trying to protect. They figured that with Splinter having been formally a human too, could talk to Sasha about upping her confidence to go and finally talk to her Grandmother again, despite her new form. During this meeting, Sasha learned rather quickly that Splinter was in fact Hamato Yoshi, her Grandmother's former master. He urged her that despite appearances, she should still go to her Grandmother and let her know that she is alive! That no matter her form, a caregivers love will never waver. After all, he as a rat still took care of The Turtles.

Sasha was then escorted out of the lair, but on their way out, Sasha noticed that the TV on their Living room was showing some news feed. It looked like they where reporting on a fire happening in an apartment building, and soon, Sasha's heart sank when she heard the name of her and her grandmother's building. But by the time The Turtles and Sasha made it back to the building, it was too late! After the firefighters and cops disappeared, The Turtles and Sasha both investigated the remains of the apartment. Hoping to either find out if Sasha's Grandmother was killed in the fire, the cause of the fire, or if she made it out ok.

And to Sasha's horror, she noticed two things! Their former apartment looked like a tornado had ripped right through it. Indicating that a fight had defiantly went down in there! And two, there was absolutely no sign of her grandmother in there! No scent! No body! No ashes! Nothing! And then she found the sheath to her Grandmother's Katana, but no blade in sight. Her worst fears had been realized! The Kraang took her.

With the help of The Turtle's, Sasha was able to break into the Kraang's HQ and rescue her Grandma! Sasha did try to stay behind to hold off The Kraang, and was hoping to sacrifice herself as a form punishment for letting her grandma down and getting her kidnaped. And in her mind, her grandma didn't need to be worrying about how to deal with a Mutant Granddaughter. But Donnie wasn't gunna let her do it, and had her back in the fight, getting her out before it was too late!

And while it did take a bit for her grandma to accept what had happened to Sasha, she still loved her and promised she would do her best to try and keep her as comfortable as possible! That said, Sasha still stayed with The Turtles occasionally, mostly to keep from being a burden on her Grandma. But she also wanted to learn more from Splinter, since she had mastered most of what her Grandmother had taught her for years! (And she'd be lying if she said she didn't like getting to see Donnie more often.)

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha Tachi

Sex: Female

Age: 15

Personality: Quite, Shy, Serious (Mostly When in Combat), Hopeless Romantic, Self Conscious, Caring, Protective, and Dedicated

Species: Cheetah (Formally Human)

Race/Ethnicity: Asian (Raised in America)

Relationship Status: Single (Has a mostly One-Sided crush on Donnie, that eventually becomes mutual)

Orientation: Straight

Relationship W/ The Turtles: Sasha has a great amount of respect for (most of) The Turtles. Her relationship with Leo is a bit complicated as at first, he was a bit jealous of her ability to catch onto Splinter's lessons so quick. But then this turned to respect, as she proved to be very helpful in battle and made a very skilled sparring partner. Then very slowly he gained a small crush on her in a way, but never made any moves as it was pretty clear to anyone with eyes that she was into Donnie, even if he didn't like her back and was too into April. He felt pretty bad for her and just wanted to help her move on, but couldn't bring himself to say anything. This is way when it finally came to light how Sasha felt about Donnie, Leo snapped at Donnie trying to downplay the confession. Her and Raph argue a lot and compete in a LOT of things! Since he's basically besties with Casey (who likes to challenge and make fun of Sasha any chance he gets), the three of them are often facing off in some kind of Sport related activity. She and Mikey get along very well, They both like comics, music, and dancing! The two of them even making up little routines to do when they come back from a successful mission. And even though he might be a blabbermouth, he's the only one who Sasha has directly admitted her crush on Donnie to. A secret he keeps successfully for quite a while, mostly because he knows that Sasha's not the best at hiding how she feels anyway and basically everyone knows already. Everyone except the turtle himself. Donnie is almost painfully oblivious to Sasha's feelings for him, to the point where he will actually confide in her his feelings and frustration about his one sided crush on April. Not realizing the pain he puts her through. He sees her as a fellow "Mutant who wants what they can't have", since she admitted that she had a crush on classmate she had while being human, but never got the guts to say something. and now that she's a mutant, her chances are all but dust now. Despite this however, Sasha still cares deeply for him and will protect him no matter what, cause in the end she just wants him to be happy. Even if it doesn't involve them being an item.

Powers: Speed, Sonic Sprint (Sasha can charge up a very powerful sprint that lets her basically rush through most obstacles, nearly reaching the speed of light! Though this doesn't last very long and usually leaves her very drained after, so it's only for emergencies), Bilingual (Sasha speaks both Japanese and English fluently), Tech Scythe and Gantlets (When she was captured and mutated by The Kraang, they made her a custom weapon to use against The Turtles. This is a retractable Tech Scythe, and the blade can be opened when the gauntlets on her wrists senses an increase in heart rate. The gauntlets also allow her to attract the Scythe back into her hands if she's ever disarmed.), and Enhanced Senses (Sasha's Sight, Hearing, and sense of smell are VERY strong!)

The next kitty is probably one of my favs! Give it up for the one and only Bayverse/2014-2016 Sasha!

Making this Sasha was probably the most fun I've had in a while! I had to Think like Michael Bay in order to make her LOOK like she belonged in The Bayverse! What what are they most known for besides the uses of Lens Flares, Explosions, Car Chases, and Shitty writing? Overly sexualized ladies! Now I didn't wanna get too overtly sexual with her, as I figured with her being a bit more on the nerdy side, she'd probably be a bit more modest. I also had to go with a more realistic and complex design for her, given what they did with The Turtles designs.

Her story takes place a year after the second movie, and her birth takes place a year before The Turtles creations!

Years ago, when Eric Sacks and The Shredder started work on Project Renaissance, they built many branches off of their work incase they needed a Plan B of sorts. Project F.A.N.G.S (Frontal Assault Non-human Genetic Squad) was a side venture to create potential Mutant Soldiers out of some of the most dangerous animals they could get their hands on! This Branch was kept as a tight secret from the rest of the project and went through some illegal means to obtain these animals! One such method involved bribing the owners of The NY Central Park Zoo to let them take a few of their "problem animals" off their hands! Taking a Male Hyena, a Female Timber Wolf, a Female Fennec Fox, and finally a Male Cheetah and a Female Cheetah Cub.

This Female Cub was an interesting case for a few reasons! In addition to being younger then the others from the zoo, she was also the only one to not show any aggression at all. Which seems odd since they wanted the most viscous animals for the project. However, this was part of another side experiment. Every good squad of soldiers needs a brilliant Technical and Strategic officer, and she was the perfect candidate as they needed someone younger and who could be easily manipulated.

And so the mutation began, and it didn't take very long at all for the little cub to show signs of becoming more intelligent! While, yes, she still couldn't talk, she had learned how to communicate with the doctors using certain sounds, gestures, and even started beginning to understand written words too! She would also sometimes use Morse Code to communicate by tapping on the table or glass of her cage to ask for things! The doctors where amazed by her progress, but became worried when it seemed she was communicating with the other F.A.N.G.S experiments too. And in particular, worried that their violent behaviors would imprint on her too. So, they separated her from the others to continue her learning!

Eventually, Sacks had heard about the progress she had made and had an idea. If the The Turtles from Project Renaissance could be made into weapons like The F.A.N.G.S subjects, they'd have the perfect Squad for The Military! (And a way to make more money.) But first, he needed to see if Sasha and The Turtles could be compatible, after all they'd be taking orders form her and she is carnivorous. They didn't need her trying to eat them.

So, one day Sacks ask Mr. O'Neil and his daughter to meet up with him in a private Testing and Observation room set up to look kinda like a police interrogation room with a One Way Window on one side of the room with door next to it. Sacks had lied to Mr. O'Neil about Sasha's true purpose and had told him that he had wanted another mammal aside from Splinter to be used for Project Renaissance! And he had asked for April to bring him one of her pet Turtles in for the experiment!

"Choose one that will be nice to her! She's lonely and could use a new friend!"

And so, April ran off and grabbed Donatello from his tank and brought him into The Test Room, Where she sat him down on the opposite side of the table from Sasha and then hid in the side room with her Dad and Sacks to watch what happens. And the three of them where stunned when Sasha started approaching Donnie, and getting spooked by him when he poked his head out from his shell. She was so curious about this "New Rock with A Head", gently batting at his shell to watch his head duck back into his shell a bit. Giving him a quick lick, only to notice that he tasted terrible and shake her head in disgust. And accidentally knocking him over onto his shell and rolling him back over.

And he in turn was very interested in her! She was SO much bigger then him, his brothers, or even Splinter! She smelled different, sounded different, and felt so warm and soft! Unlike his tank that was cold and wet. So, when Sasha sat in front of him to watch him some more, he stepped over to her and buried himself into her chest, enjoying the warm and soft fur, being relaxed by the sound of her heartbeat and purring. Soon Sacks told April to quickly run and bring he other Turtles in too! And it was amazing! April ran over to Sasha and Donnie, putting the other Turtles on the table in front of her, introducing herself and The Turtles! The Five of them took to each other very well! Leo watched the cheetah intensely, Mikey joined Donnie in cuddling her fur, and Raph took a small nibble of her tail.

But like all good things, this too had to come to an end! And it would be the last time Sasha would see those little turtles again. Sacks took Sasha back to The F.A.N.G.S Lab, and later on that same night, Sasha was awoken by the smell of smoke! The facility was on fire and there where no doctors around! Sasha, through some trial and error was able to escape her cage and ran over to The other Male Cheetah's cage and opened it up for him. As soon as she did this, he picked her up and started running off out of the Lab, passing the other F.A.N.G.S Subjects. Sasha made him stop, and convinced him to help her save them too. After doing so, the five of them escaped out of the lab and fled into a quiet Subway station.

For a few weeks, these five wondered around the subway lines of New York, before making to an almost uninhabited part of the city, finding a huge abandoned Subway station. A perfect home for them!

For fifteen long years, that's where Sasha was raised! The F.A.N.G.S now acting like one big unit! A pack! A.....family! Sasha was the youngest out of the five of them, mostly seen as the baby and was usually protected by the others, though she did show that she was capable on her own a few times in her life! Despite never being aggressive or violent like her fellow Pack Members, she was far more resourceful and was fond of using her Wit, Cunning, and inventiveness to aid her! Kenai, while not blood related to her, still treated her like his blood sister. And he was defiantly the oldest out of the five! Luna and Harry where the same age, but Harry was defiantly the bigger out of the two. His size alone would be enough to scare most threats away, with a temper to match! Luna had a mean streak too, but was a tad bit more on the sassy side, rather then angry. With Tori being the same age as Sasha, though being a Fennec Fox, was still much shorter then all of them! But she was no less resourceful, as her size was perfect for sneaking around and her ears being extremely useful for hearing threats before they'd show up!

As for Sasha, the controlled mutation had done wonders for her intelligence. She showed real skill with her hands as she made all kinds of gadgets and weapons for herself and her Packmates to use! She even equipped the Den with all the nicest comforts from TV's to AC hookups! The only real downside to this was.....she could still remember everything that happened in that Lab that created them! While the others only had flashes of memories, they couldn't really comprehend the events of every day they spent in there. This ate away at Sasha for a few reasons, but the most important of which was because....those little itty bitty Box Turtles. The day the lab caught fire, was the same day she met them. They where nice, and the only other subjects in that lab aside from her and her Packmates. She hated to think that they might have perished in the fire, but seeing the way April cared so much for them, she had faith that....some how, she found a way to save them.

In all honesty her packmates didn't believe her, that there were other subjects at the lab! Or that they'd even be alive. And to prove she wasn't crazy, Sasha built a small machine (that she admitted she got the idea from Meet the Robinsons) that would let her see her memories! And display them for the others. And while it did convince them that, yes, they existed. It didn't prove weather or not they where still alive.

As the years dragged on, Sasha and the others had to admit, they where starting to become a little resentful of humans. Each one of them really wanted to do more with their lives! Kenai wanted to work with Wildlife conservations! To keep more animals from becoming lab rats like they where! Harry wanted to get into MMA fighting, to show off his strength and finally use his full skillset as a fighter! Luna and Tori wanted so badly to be Rap/R&B artists! Sure they didn't necessarily need to be seen to do that, but to go on tour, they would have to! And as for Sasha....her reasons where a tad bit more on the nose! One, she wanted to use her technical knowledge to help better society! And two....she wanted to find love! Sasha had spent years watching sweet and beautiful loves stories in anything from Movies, to Shows, to video games. And she wasn't gunna lie, it looked like fun! Seeing two people lock eyes with one another, and seeing the sparks fly as they'd kiss! It made her sweet nerdy heart melt! But.....she'd never be able to experience that for herself.....not while she looked like this.

That's when Sasha had an absolutely crazy idea, if the mutagen that was used on them turned them into humanoids, perhaps they could use they're blood, take out the mutagen, and reengineer it to make them all human! Sasha pitched the idea to the others, and they all agreed that this was they're quest!

However, they swiftly hit a roadblock on this path, as while Sasha was able to get enough samples from all of them to get enough mutagen to create the serum that would change them....there where noticeable gaps in their Mutagenic codes! In other words, the mutagen from their blood wouldn't be enough to complete the serum. They'd need blood from every test subject that was involved with Project Renaissance. Meaning they needed those Turtles.....but....they where long gone. And it seemed all was lost for them.

This was, until one day, the huge spire at the top of Sacks Tower was destroyed, it had fallen into the streets along with Shredder! He and Sacks where both taken into custody, and their plot to infect the city with a deadly toxin was reveled to the public. The news had stated that a man named Vernon Fenwick, who was apparently a Channel 6 News Camera Man, stopped Shredder and The Foot from completing their task. Calling him Vern "The Falcon" Fenwick. This was a crock of shit, and Sasha and her fellow Packmates weren't buying it one bit! But...they had no real proof as to what really happened.

This didn't stop Sasha though, as she kept looking for answers! She even asked her Packmates to set out small security cameras in different locations throughout the city to try and see if she couldn't catch something on them! Anything! And finally, two years later, she caught something! On top of Madison Square Garden, just as a Knicks game was about to begin, Sasha caught a very blurry glimpse of what looked like four very large figures sneaking into an air vet on the roof! Sasha's heart practically skipped a beat seeing this! Could it be those Turtles? Did they survive somehow? Where had they been this whole time?

That same evening, hours later, The shredder was being transported to another prison. But the mission was unsuccessful, as The Foot where trying to break him out of police custody. But with the help of a very strange Garbage Truck intervening with the operation, they where slowed down. Until a weird portal opened, dragging The Shredder inside it, and then disappearing! Sasha was able to watch a lot of the action through some more of her hidden cameras. In particular, she took note of all the strange weapons on the Garbage Truck. And the name on the side.....Tartaruga Brothers....

It had to be them! It just had to be! And she HAD to meet them again!

So, she pulled her Packmates aside and asked them to please be on the look out for The Turtles when they'd go out. If they met them face to face, try to convince them to come back to the Den. So that she could see if they'd be will to help them make the serum they needed to become human. And even make some for them too, if they so wanted. Her Packmates promising that they would do so, but ultimately thinking to themselves that the day would never come, and that their younger Packmate had finally lost it. But after the Technodrome appearing over the city, and then it suddenly being sucked back through the portal it came out of, Sasha was even more convinced that she wasn't crazy! Especially after hearing April's words on the news, "Do we need to give our hero's a name and a face? Or is it enough to know that their out there watching over us, from the Shadows?"

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha

Sex: Female

Age: 18 to 19 (Just slightly older then The Turtles by the time of their mutations.)

Personality: Analytical, Compassionate, Stubborn, Gentle, Self Deprecating (especially when she feels she's screwed up big time.), Honest, Sassy (Usually done in response to stupidity or ignorance.), Passionate, and Romantic.

Species: Cheetah

Race/Ethnicity: American (Was born in captivity as part of a breeding program)

Relationship Status: Taken (Begins a serious relationship with Donnie)

Orientation: Straight

Relationship W/ The Turtles: Sasha met The Turtles when they all where just babies, including herself! Thanks to her mutations, she was able to still remember them years later! She holds them all very close to her heart, as they where her first real friends, even if it was just for a moment. When finally getting to meet them again after years of thinking they where gone, she was overjoyed, almost star struck! Sasha respects Leo, as he acts like her older brother does, and she can tell he truly cares about his family! He's kind to her, and has a pretty good amount of respect for her, as he can tell she genuinely cares about them. He sees a lot of Donnie in her, and while he may not understand all that comes out of her mouth, he trusts her. Sasha doesn't tend to interact with Raph much beyond the occasional potshots at one another, uselly caused with Raph tries to poke fun at her. But side from this, they actually make a pretty decent team. And he respects his brother, so he respects her to a degree. Mikey and Sasha get along pretty well. She can get fed up with his stupidity sometimes, usually leading to her going into Sass Mode. But for the most part, she treats him much like a little brother, which is new considering she's the baby in her family. And finally, to say that she and Donnie where smitten with each other would be an understatement. While he may not remember their first encounter, he could tell something familiar was in her eyes. The two are very much alike and enjoy science, technology, and anything in-between, always putting their heads together to build the most amazing things! Constantly learning new things together! Though thick and thin (in the sheets and out) they look out for one another, as any good couple does!

Powers: Genius Intelligence, Enhanced Memory, Enhanced Speed, Enhanced Strength, Spear Fighting, Engineering Skills, Enhanced Senses, and Stealth.

Our next version of her is probably one of the most fun to draw versions yet! ROTTMNT Sasha!

The last Sasha that was formally a human, and probably one of the most interesting versions of her! She's not like most of her versions, as her attitude is a far cry different from all the others! She's a true queen of sass, and loves to let others know it! But.....she wasn't always that way....

Sasha was born into a small middle class family, and while nothing was really all that wrong with Sasha, most folks including her parents seemed to think she was quite the strange. Sasha had a very strong attachment to Animals, Plants, Nature, and anything really having to do with the great out doors. So much so, that she would purposefully sneak into neighbor's yards to play and feed their cats when she thought they where lonely! This caused her to get in trouble on more then one occasion, however this didn't really make her bitter at anyone at all and she was still the same old quiet weird kid on the block. Until one day, Sasha had managed to break into another neighbor's house to see if their pets where ok, only to then be chased and bitten by the dog.

Her parents finally had enough and sent her off to a girls only boarding school, where they would no longer have to deal with her odd behavior and hopefully she'd grow out of this strange phase. But this did the opposite. Thanks to her behavior and being the new kid, Sasha was picked on a lot by the other girls in the school, causing her to only immerse herself more with animal work. Though now she had a severe fear of dogs.

This interest of hers lead her to being asked to help the school out in their Science department, helping to care for the various plants, Insects, and Small animals they used for the classes. And for a while this made Sasha very happy, though, she did start wondering way some many people seemed to hate her. Even her own parents didn't seem to like her. But why? What made her so different? They where all human? So why was she so hated?

Sasha began to try and act more....normal. First, she started by trying out for sports, getting into the Track Team as a result! Then she tried getting into things like Dancing and Music, as all the girls seemed to be really into it and would talk about it all the time! But, even with all these things, Sasha was still pretty quiet and still got picked on by her classmates. And it was starting to seem like no matter how hard she tried to make herself more acceptable, she was doomed to be ridiculed.

One day though, Sasha was approached by a group of some of the most popular girls in the school, and they seemed to be genuinely interested in her work with the lab animals. Thinking that they were wanting to be friends, Sasha was overjoyed and excitedly showed the girls all the animals they had. Eventually, this seeped into other parts of her life. The girls was go to Track practice and watch her run, they'd listen and dance to music together, and Sasha would even start being more vocal and confident sounding in the way she spoke. All she needed where some people who seemed to care about her.

Little did she know, this was just a plot to play a cruel prank.

One day, during an important Track Competition with the whole school and others watching, the girls decided to put their sick plan into motion. During their time together, the girls found out about Sasha's fear of dogs. So, when it came time for her to compete, the girls set free a few dogs onto the field. And of course, Sasha panicked! Sasha started hauling ass down the track in blind fear, knocking over the barricades as she did so! Finally, one of the dogs caught up to her and made her trip on one of the hurdles.

Sasha was scratched up pretty bad from the fall but the dogs surrounding her made her freeze in terror. Meanwhile the sound of the girls who she thought where her friends laughing at her suffering, felt like knives being dug into her back and through her heart. And soon, a good amount of the students who where watching started laughing too.

And that's when it happened!

A strange green glowing mosquito landed on Sasha's leg and jabbed her with it's needle. Sasha hardly had time to react to the pain of the bite before her body began to quickly change! The crowed stopped laughing and watched in horror, as they watched their classmate start to turn into a monster, and the dogs start to run away from her! When Sasha stopped changing, she looked down at herself! Her skin was now covered in spotted short fur! Her hands and feet where now replaced with paws and claws! And she turned to see a tail now sprouting out of her backside!

The students all screamed and ran, Sasha was horrified herself, and did the one thing she knew to get away. Run!

In this new form, Sasha speed seemed to be unstoppable, and she booked it as far away from the city as she could! Eventually, Sasha made her way out to the Long Island Woods. But not long after making it there, the exhaustion of everything that happened to her that day, her injuries, and now the rain starting to pour down, Sasha finally ran out of energy and collapsed.

When she awoke she had now idea where she was!

She appeared to be laying down on a doctor's examination table, but this certainly wasn't a Doctor's office. And as she as processing where she was, Sasha started to smell the familiar and terrifying smell of dog everywhere around her. Sasha looked around frantically for a way to escape, but before she could try and get up, the door to the room she was in swung open and in walked a short and stubby humanoid creature with blond curly hair and mustache, brown fur, large buck teeth, a pink shirt and blue jeans, carrying a tray of lemonade. Sasha screamed when she first saw him and hid under her covers. It took a bit of convincing, but after the creature assured her he wouldn't harm her, she poked her head back out.

The creature turned out to be a mutant capybara who's name happened to be Todd. He explained that he found her laying out in the rain and just couldn't leave her there, especially with all those wounds on her body. After a few short introductions, Todd asked Sasha what happened to her. And he listened to every word she said. He seemed to genuinely care for her well being, unlike those fake friends of hers. After explaining everything, Sasha asked if she could leave. Todd didn't ask where, but figured that must wanna get back to her family, though he was skeptical about how well that would go, given the mutant thing. And truthfully, she didn't know how it would go either. And as she was being escorted out of the Puppy Shelter, she was lost in thought, realizing that this meant she really truly had nowhere to go. Once she left Todd, then what? She wouldn't be welcome back at school, and she damn sure couldn't live in the city amongst humans now!

Not even her own parents wanted her....

She was all alone....

But then, before they get to the gates, Sasha's ears flicked into the direction of a whimpering sound. Sasha looked up and off to the side, to see a small shack with a door cracked open. And after straining her ears, she could tell it was a puppy in distress. And despite her fear of dogs, Sasha felt compelled to go and investigate.

Sasha walked into the shed with Todd fallowing behind, and found a few puppies who where sick. They looked so weak and helpless. Without thinking, Sasha started helping to tend to the sick pups, and it wasn't long before they where up and better then ever.

After this, Todd convinced Sasha to build her own place close to his. And while Sasha was still very afraid of the puppies, she offered to help with any sick or injured pups, in exchange for helping her get back on her feet. They became fast friends, and finally Sasha found a place she truly belonged!

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha

Sex: Female

Age: 15

Personality: Confident (Usually used to hide how insecure she was when she was human), Proud, Egotistical (without realizing it), Companionate (when things get more serious), Witty, Sassy, and Dedicated

Species: King Cheetah (Formally Human)

Race/Ethnicity: American

Relationship Status: Single (Develops a Love/Hate Relationship with Donnie)

Orientation: Demisexual & Bisexual

Relationship W/ The Turtles: Sasha didn't have the best encounter with the Shell Heads! Their first time meeting was because Todd recommended that she could help them with a mission. Sasha refused in the beginning but was convinced by Todd to help. This ended up with her having to bail them out of a bad situation. Needless to say, she doesn't like them much in the beginning. Though she eventually warms up to all of them the more and more she hangs around. She and Leo definitely didn't start off on the right foot, not helped by Leo's need to impress her with is "Mad Skills". Sasha just found him annoying, but after a bit of hanging out, the two found that they actually two things in common. Making fun of Donnie when necessary/unnecessary. And being fabulous without trying! Sasha likes Raph quite a bit, sees him like a huge teddy bear. And she's always down to cheer him on when he needs it! She enjoys Mikey's company, and while he can be a bit much at times, she likes to watch him make things! She even grows herbs for him to use in his cooking, and he in turn will draw her nice picture to help decorate her Biodome! Sasha is everything Donnie loves and hates in one big fuzzy cute but mean package! The two share so much in common but so much not that its a wonder how they can stand to be in the same state without going to war! Sasha can't stand his ego, not that she has much room to talk, and Donnie can't stand having her ever beat him at anything! they compete in many things, DDR being the biggest thing they do so in. But despite all their bickering, the two actually work very well together with on missions or fighting. And weather they notice or not, they actually do hold some care for one another. And in rare cases are able to open up to one another about things they can't with others. And they hold that sacred between them. From Frenemies to an unstoppable couple, Sasha and Donnie will always give it their all.

Powers: Super Speed, Acrobatics, Archery, Capoeira, Botany Knowledge , Astrology Knowledge, Mystic Knowledge, Electricity (Sasha's Mystic Power is electricity! She can use it help her move much faster, even for a cheetah.), Electrical Spots (Sasha spots store electrical energy and when she plucks one off of her body, she can then use it as a projectile! Be it a bomb, an arrow, or a spear. Once it makes contact, Sasha can make it stun a target, or make it explode with static energy. These spots come back after about five minutes once removed, but if she takes too many off at once, her energy is drained more and more.), and The Thunder Bow (A mystic weapon Sasha stole from some thieves! It's used to help her when shooting her spots like arrows with more accuracy and power.)

We're finally at the last Cat in our line up! A CW is in place for this one, as this version includes some pretty heavy topics (Implied SA, Murder, Sex Work, and Child Abuse), so please keep this in mind if you choose to go forward. And if you do, please welcome Batman VS TMNT Sasha!

This Sasha is the only version of herself to not be an earthling and is rather from a different Dimension. She is also probably the most violent of her versions, with an even darker story behind her too. So, incase it's needed again, CW is in place for some very nasty subjects!

There wasn't really a point in Sasha's life where she had a say in what she wanted to do with it. She was born into Royalty, rulers of The Shibet Empire, and was raised to pretty much just be a pretty face for others to look at. She didn't know it at the time, but her parents where falling into debt, and needed a way to stay afloat. That's when a corrupt and evil businessman/politician approached them with an offer they couldn't refuse! Their young daughters hand, for all the money they could ever need.

So, her 10th birthday came along and Sasha's mom and dad introduced her to the man, Darius Dunn. He claimed to take an interest in Sasha's mystical studies, and was suggested by her parents to give him a "tour" of her personal library. Unfortunately, they didn't do much talking once the doors closed behind them. Sasha went to her parents later that night about what happened to her, but she eavesdropped on a conversation between the two of them where they talked about it like they knew it was gunna happen. It was a way of letting Dunn "test drive" her to see if she would be suitable for him and his needs.

Up to this point in her life, Sasha had always been the ideal little girl! Well behaved, pretty, kind, and graceful! But, the second she realized that the ones who where supposed to protect her only wanted to use her, something clicked within her. That Night, Sasha snuck out and ran away, stealing a bit of money from her parents to help her.

Eventually she made her way to the nearest city. A pretty slummy place, and certainly no place for a 10 year old. But....she couldn't go back to that hell hole! So she found a slum lord who was more then happy to sell this child a rundown old shack at the edge of town. And this worked out for a time, but Sasha knew that this fight wasn't over. Soon word would get out that the Royal family's daughter was missing, and it wouldn't take a lot for someone to put two and two together and find out who she was.

And one night the Landlord saw such an announcement, and came to the same conclusion. It would be so easy for him to sneak by into the house he sold, and take her back to them for a handsome reward! Oh....if only he was right. Sasha didn't wanna do it, but this was survival! She didn't let the Landlord leave alive. And Sasha on some deep level....enjoyed the kill.

Now that she didn't have to pay rent and she was safe from getting captured for now, Sasha could use the left over money she had for food. But of course, about 3 years later it was drying up, and Sasha was gunna need a way to make more money. So, she had to find a job! But the problem with being a pretty girl looking for a job in a scummy city is, the only men willing to hire her for anything were huge creeps that wanted "something extra" for the deal. Sasha went everywhere, but no one wanted to hire her for a normal job thanks to her age and sex. And just as all seemed lost, Sasha over heard a few men talking about a special Night Club, where the women where super strong and didn't let the men push them around! It was called "The Hunt".

This sounded like a good fit for her, so she tracked down the place. And at first, the owner was ready to give her the boot immediately thanks to her age, but....she saw something in her eyes. A need for survival, and strong fire in her soul. So, she was hired, only to work in the kitchen at first as a dishwasher, waiting until she was old enough to work on the actual floor serving food and taking orders. Once she was 16, she started doing just that, and she got to see what those men where talking about!

It was basically a more sophisticated Strip Club, where the girls would dance, and at the end would choose a costumer or two to take back into they're private rooms to "entertain" them. But if any of the guests got out of line or upset one of the ladies, they had no problem disciplining the guests themselves! And the ladies made Sasha feel safe too, making them all feel more like family to her! And while working there, Sasha started saving the money for a side venture of hers! See, while working for the club was fun and paid the bills, until she was old enough to become a dancer, she really wouldn't be making the big bucks. And she really wanted to get that rush of violence that always nagged at her. She had heard some of the men and even the ladies at the club talk about hiring Assassins, and it sounded like the perfect fit for her.

She had been buying up equipment to make potions that would aid in things like travel and healing, and an outfit that would hide not only her identity, but her gender as well! Along with a mask that would cover her face, with a voice changer built in to hide that fact that she was a woman. And to top it all off, a beautiful sword, a dagger, and some custom made gloves with strong titanium nails on the ends of the fingers! Now, all she needed to do, was get her name out there!

Finally the day came, and Sasha was finally able to start Dancing at the club, now being 18! To start off, she needed to choose a theme and a Stage Name! Deciding to go with "Desert Heat", with an Egyptian Queen theme. Fitting, considering her roots! And while Sasha was in the back filling out her paperwork for the boss, she heard a commotion coming from the floor outside! Sasha peeked out the back to see something that made her blood run cold!

There was a gang of four to five men in the dinning area being waited on by some of the dancers. They where being loud and rude to everyone, even the other guests. Sasha recognized them as friends of Dunn and her Parents, they were extremely dangerous people who wouldn't hesitate to kill the dancers if they fought back. And if they spotted her, she'd be forced back to her "life" as Dunn's plaything. And calling the authorities came with it's own line of risks, so....the only thing left to do, was fight...

Sasha quickly ran back home and got her equipment and suited up, then she went back to the club. As she walked in, her appearance alone spooked a few of the guests, but she wasn't there for them.

It was quick, Sasha approached the men and told them to leave as it seemed like they weren't welcome. That's when they thought it would be a good idea to start tryin to fight her. It didn't really end well in their favor as Sasha quickly killed two of the men, severely injured the third, and felt the leader alive to warn him that if he ever caught wind of him or more of his flunkies in this part of town again, she wouldn't hesitate to finish the job. And then she kicked them out. But before leaving, the owner asked her (him) who he was, and why did he help?

He merely said he was a close friend of Sasha's, and that she ran to get him for help. And as for his name, he only said to call him Mirage, and that if he was ever needed again, just let Sasha know.

Basic Info:

Name: Sasha

Sex: Female

Age: 18

Personality: Charismatic, Cold, Serious, Sarcastic, Hard To Get, Protective, Loyal, Flirty, Passionate, Merciless (mostly in a fight), and Secretive.

Species: Cheetah

Race/Ethnicity: (Was born in a different dimension then Earth)

Relationship Status: Taken (Starts a very LONG distance relationship with Donnie after they meet and part ways)

Orientation: Straight (But won't shy away from serving Female clients at the club. Or possibly Flirting with ladies in her Assassin Identity)

Relationship W/ The Turtles: The Turtle met Sasha when they came to her dimension to help The Batman in his search for an Interdimensional Criminal named Torbin Zixx. (This taking place at least 2 years after the movie) Through some investigating, they found out that he had been getting help from an Assassin named Mirage to pull off a huge job. If they found Mirage, they could find Zixx. And their only lead on Mirage, was a dancer at a Club, named Desert Heat! Leo is skeptical of Sasha at first, but she does prove herself to be an honest person, despite her occupation and personality. Raph was defiantly cautious of her, especially after seeing her flirt with Donnie. But like Leo, he learned to trust her a bit more. And after finding out that she was Mirage, the two actually gained a respect for each other and bond over their love for violence. Sasha treats Mikey almost like a child, which technically he is. But he finds her Assassin's costume so damn cool and her mystic powers even cooler! Donnie was smitten with her at first sight, and Sasha was taken by his charms. She has a thing for the nerds, and working in a place were most of the man don't always act with the best of manners, Donnie's gentlemanly manners really set him apart from the rest. And after finding out she was Mirage, he listened to her story, being the first one ever to hear about her true identity as a Princess.

Powers: Magical Abilities (Sasha is one of the few of species in her dimension who is capable of using magic without items, however she never completed her training for them, so she still uses items.), Potion Making, (Sasha can make potions that do a vast amount of things, but she normal sticks to Portal Creation, Healing, and Bomb potions.), Sword Skills (Unlike her other versions, this Sasha is a very gifted swordswoman.), Speed (Sasha is a cheetah, and has extremely quick reflexes!), Stealth, and Strategic Knowledge.

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And that Does it folks! That's all the Sasha's! I'm sorry that it took so long to finish this, but I've been trying to go back in a fix grammar and spelling here and there! But that's a wrap! If I feel the need to ever make another Sasha version, especially if I feel the new Mutant Mayhem coming out next year is good enough, I'll go back in and edit this post then!

But for now, Thank you for reading about my lady! And I hope to share all my cringe art of her soon!

[lotrefcp]

Shadow of the Past - Chapter 2

pairing/AU: Frankie Morales x female!reader

summary: When one man's desire for power can change the life of a country and the lives of its people, anything can happen. History has shown us that nothing good comes from these situations and the future may show us the same.

warnings: I don't understand this so just gonna say mature content, 18+, angst, suicide, smut, racism, ...

word count: 3600+

Chapter 2

May 17, 2030. This was the day of the beginning of the end of our country as I knew it. A few years ago, America was embroiled in one of the bloodiest wars in memory. Fear reigned in all its neighboring countries, ending up here too. This was the perfect ingredient for Colonel John Ford's attempt to rise to power. Fear, that overwhelming force that leads us to thoughtless decisions, a state of alert demonstrated by the fear of doing something, generally because we feel threatened, both physically and psychologically and that clouds our ideas and prevents us from seeing the complete picture.

This was Ford's greatest strength that, by taking advantage of the news that arrived about the American situation, sold our country the perfect solution, the solution of security and responsiveness in any possible situation.

The population was intoxicated by the simple possibility of being free from a situation similar to that experienced in other countries.

On May 17, 2030, John Ford came to power, taking with him all his ambition and greed. From the pulpit where he gave his speech of thanks and victory, he looked like a crow, looking down on his little victims, so far below, unaware of the dangerous situation in which they found themselves. That's it. A crow, wrapped in its black ornaments, choosing its victims. In this case, the victim was an entire country that quickly found itself deprived of something as simple as this: Freedom. Freedom of expression, freedom of opinion, freedom of choice, freedom of thought. In a world as advanced as the one we lived in, we had, once again, fallen into the same mistake of our ancestors. We gave up something so important as if it were a mere whim. We gave up this great power for the comfort of security. A utopian security that was never proven, was never implemented, was never real. We were isolated and far from external wars but we were fighting a war on our own territory. A war against the central power that we ourselves chose and elevated as the savior of the country.

There were several concessions in the idea of security imposed by Colonel Ford. Racist and xenophobic ideals, against anyone who might be different. It didn't matter what the origin of this difference was. They should be exterminated. They were a virus that weakened our “mighty nation”. Blacks, yellows, reds, gypsies, homosexuals, people with physical or mental disabilities that made them unable to work. The government said that they were all arrested and kept under surveillance 24/7 but we all knew that wasn't the truth and now I can prove what we all imagined but didn't dare to express verbally. These so-called prison institutions are nothing more than places where they torture, us hidden in plain sight.

For them we are nothing more than guinea pigs being subjected to all types of experiments and atrocities. They laugh at us while saying that even though we don't have the right to have a life like others, we will at least serve to improve the lives of many. Improve the lives of many. It will not be that of people who suffer from all types of ailments without money to pay for treatment, but rather that of the owners of pharmaceutical companies who see money growing in their pockets at the same time that the population decreases in their insignificance.

Anyone reading this may find the situation strange. I said that the people “recruited” to these “institutions” were people considered by the power to be “different”. At first glance, I don't fit into any of the situations I explained. But the truth is that I am part of one of the groups most feared by the government. The group of people who think for themselves and face the maximum power in this country. I wasn't always like this, but something happened that led me to take a stand, a stand of strength and fight for justice and freedom.

Me, Frankie and Kevin were heading home after having dinner together at a restaurant in the capital. The sky was dark, no stars could be seen, the wind was blowing strong and the smell of death hung in the air. By that time it was already common. We were walking down the street when we came to a tunnel. I felt that something was not right and I accelerated my pace in an attempt to reach the end as quickly as possible. At the exit of the tunnel we saw a group of people known as the pointers. Government dogs that were sniffing out every bone that might fall from the pulpit of supreme power. They were spread across the country accusing and detaining anyone who didn't please them, anyone who broke curfew, anyone distinguished who caught their eye and anyone who didn't submit to their constant attempts of abuse.

This time the victim of this horror show was Kevin who was simply a victim of his skin color. The officials talked about taking him to one of the well-known prison institutions, but soon one voice rose above all the others: “Let's kill this piece of shit.” As soon as the end of the sentence was pronounced, everyone else fell brutally on Kevin. Frankie and I tried to come to his aid but we soon found ourselves prostrate on that dirty, wet floor. A few minutes later, minutes filled with pain, blood and suffering, Kevin was dead, and we, his friends, were inconsolable for not having been able to help or support him. I vividly remember the sound of Frankie's knees falling into one of the pools of blood surrounding Kevin's lifeless body. The scream that came from his throat was frightening and chilling. All the anguish and suffering were expressed in that raw display of pain. From that day on, nothing was the same. Frankie joined one of several groups fighting against Colonel Ford and I, naturally, joined him.

Frankie and I were followed by Isabel, Eric, Anne and Rita who, like us, suffered the most with the loss of our great friend.

We quickly began to actively participate in the group, participating in meetings, distributing leaflets, organizing demonstrations.

On Monday of the third week of August, we gathered for another silent demonstration in front of the company of one of the government members, a member whose company has seen its share capital grow considerably since he held the position of minister of national security .

We were all sitting in the street when the great Colonel Ford, finding himself cornered and pushed into yet another controversy, did the only thing he knew how to do. He released his watchdogs, the army. In the distance, you could hear the sound of boots hitting the ground rhythmically, intoxicated by the desire for confusion and blood.

As soon as they appeared in our field of vision, we stood up as a form, not of resistance, but of protection. They either didn't understand or chose not to understand. I can still hear the sound of bullets leaving the weapons they so “valiantly” carried. It was incredible to see the courage of such fearless soldiers who took on a group of unarmed and defenseless people, only sheltered in their convictions and beliefs. Every time I remember that afternoon the blood dries up in my veins and my lungs close to any trace of air.

That day seemed to be under the shadow of the deepest hell. It was a series of events that should never have happened. Those hours run through my mind in a frenetic, delirious and furious montage. This was closing time for schools in the area, which led to a large concentration of children on the streets. How come the soldiers didn't see them? How? I close my eyes and a whirlwind of sounds haunts my spirit, invades my senses and clouds my ideas. The hissing screams of children who found themselves in the middle of an urban war, the sound of their small bodies hitting violently on the rough and cold ground of that battlefield, the groans of suffering of parents who were watching that festival of horror and who were also hit by that rain of ammunition. A large percentage of the group of protesters were also defeated, on the ground, lying in their own blood which soaked them and dyed their clothes red. I was walking around, lost in all that confusion when I was woken up to that cruel reality with the pain of a bullet grazing my left arm. Soon Frankie came towards me, followed by all our colleagues who were huddled together, like in the rudimentary trenches used in previous wars. This is going to sound bad but it is the purest of truths. Our trenches, that day, were the dead bodies of our fellow soldiers who piled up on top of each other.

After that carnage, the government blamed the group of protesters for that macabre sight and, as a way of showing their pain, for the lives that were lost, they erected a statue, a memorial to the children of Saint James. A nationwide celebration put an end to the days of mourning with which the government tried to redeem itself. Many eyes were covered by these actions, but the eyes of the people who watched everything were never closed, nor were their voices silenced.

In those first days following that Monday, in the third week of August, we moved away from the group to get used to those images. Not getting used to it. Digest them and try to move on.

Many days passed and I couldn't forget the images of that bloody Monday. Whenever I closed my eyes I saw the innocent faces of those bodies empty of life, life that was stolen from them without any kind of contemplation. After a long time thinking about what I was going to do, I decided to leave the group and informed Frankie. He understood my reasons but tried to dissuade me from my idea. He reminded me of everything we had been through and everything the country would continue to go through if we remained immobile and inert in the face of the government's offensive actions. After arguing for a while, I left the house to cool my thoughts. Frankie came after me. He caught me when I had already reached a small alley and had me sit down on a bench there to rest my feet and think calmly. He sat down next to me and placed a hand on my legs.

”Y/N. I understand your decision. I know what you’re going through. But you have to think that what happened wasn't our fault. We are not to blame. The only criminals are the soldiers who only smell blood and whose vital force is the lives they steal from innocent people like those children. Actions like ours are the only chance for this to end one day . We can't give up now. Please. I need you, we need you. Please. I love you and I know how much you are suffering, as I am too, but we have to continue. For us, for our friends, for those we don't know and will never meet, for those children whose only mistake was being in the wrong place, at the wrong time, in front of the wrong people.”

At that moment, tears ran down my face and mixed with the drops of rain that had begun to fall. It fell in torrents, preventing me from opening my eyes so that I could see Frankie's face in its entirety.

I only managed to drop my head onto his lap and stay there for a few minutes. When I finally composed myself and looked up, Frankie got up from the bench and stood behind me, resting his hands on my shoulders. When I felt his touch, I brushed my face against them, making him lean closer to my back and move them across my chest, grabbing my breasts and massaging them slowly. I couldn't help it and took my hands to his, following him in his movement. He stood in front of me and lifted me up, pressing himself to me and taking possession of my mouth, which was already desperate for his. In the rain, our hands navigated each other's wet skin, walked over our wet clothes that clung to us, revealing the contours of our bodies thirsty for the other's desire. I knew that only in him would I have peace, that only with him in me would I feel complete and safe. As we kissed, we moved along the small path between the bench and the alley wall. When I felt the barrier behind me, I let out a sigh between the longing and possessive kisses that Frankie stole from me. He quickly took his mouth to other places, traveling along my neck, passing through my neckline and moving between my breasts and stopping at my waist. His hands dried my legs and, at the same time, lifted my dress. I could only run my hands through his hair and wait for him to invade my body once again. He took me by the legs, which I wrapped around his waist, and he began to enter me, calmly and sweetly. Knowing that we were there, in the middle of the street, in a public space, breaking curfew hours increased the adrenaline and made the pleasure greater and more satisfying. As his movements became faster, following the increasing levels of precipitation, my head leaned back, hitting against the wall that was there. We reached our peak together and our moans were drowned out by the sound of thunder that had begun to light up the dark, empty sky of any star. The water ran over our bodies, connected together.

After the dust raised in the confrontation between the military and protesters settled, people's routine and the city's rhythm returned to normal. In an attempt to reinforce their power through incitement of fear, the channels that, like everything else, were controlled by government, broadcast images of the conflicts and anarchy that were plaguing other countries every day, without interruption. Family homes were invaded by terrifying images, suffocating screams and desperate tears that ran down bitter faces, resigned to the situation they were going through, unable to act in the face of such a force of destruction and pain.

The day of celebrations for the implementation of the new regime was approaching. Celebrations. It was just a day when the population pretended to celebrate the day their lives in freedom came to an end. The fake smiles, the greetings and the “roars” of fake joy, the deep hurt masked by the laughter released in the wind.

On May 17, 2031, Colonel John Ford, president and head of government for a year, took the pulpit to speak to his rehearsed audience, with satisfied and pleasant reactions to the power in activity. In the same place where, a year earlier, he had thanked the vote of confidence for his victory, he gave a speech about strength, power and prejudice, the only three words present in his short dictionary, with which he governed an entire country.

How can a country that is believed to be as advanced as this one be confused with the Uganda of 1970? Here too, the people were obliged to greet the chief as he passed, almost as if kissing the ground on which his feet walked. It was sad to watch that puppet show that acted as its strings were pulled and worked.

Dismay invaded my heart at such inertia and resignation. Why? Why didn't people stand up and oppose the government's ideas? Why did the government violate all humanitarian and civil rights laws without any type of popular or legal obstacle? They did not have morale and would never have it.

In any country that lives under the ideas and choices of a dictator, one truth is absolute. People live in shock and uneasiness because they want to. The ideals of a single citizen can bring down an entire leadership. You just need to want and believe in what you fight for.

A few weeks later I went to Rita and Anne's house. I knocked on the door for several minutes without getting any response. I imagined they had left and would return at the end of the day. At that point I returned to their house but the scenario was the same. I tried to call them but on the other end I only heard the ringing tone. Unable to get in touch with them I decided to go in to see if anything was going on. I prayed that the key was in the usual place and entered. The house was empty, with a silence capable of causing terrible discomfort. A shiver ran through my entire body in anticipation of my discovery. As I went through all the rooms I arrived at the bedroom they shared. An envelope was positioned in the center of the bed. I went to it and opened it and let myself fall onto the mattress. The ground disappeared from beneath my feet and my lucidity faded. The tears left my eyes, heavy and tired from so much suffering, shaken by yet another stab perpetrated on a feeling as strong as the friendship that united me with those two simple and kind people.

When I managed to pull myself together, I went home, to rest in Frankie's arms and gain new life in her chest, the life that was stolen from me by the words written in that letter.

When he saw me like that, he took the envelope and, taking out the paper that was there, he began to read it out loud.

‘I don't know who will discover this letter but I know it will be someone who loves me as I love him. Frankie, Y/N, Eric, Isabel. I love you with all the honesty and sincerity possible. You know this, but I couldn't live without Rita by my side, without her arms around me and without her perfume on my body.

She left the house today to go shopping and never came back. She didn't come back to me. I can visualize all the moments she went through. I've watched so many like this. The van cutting off her path, her eyes blindfolded, the black bag on her head, the shopping bag rolling across the floor, the screams of pain at knowing her fate and the last farewell she was denied. This image has tormented me during all these months of censorship and repression but it has never been as difficult to bear as it is now. I know that if they were after Rita, they will come after me too. I could run away, hide for a while, but I won't. Without half of my heart beating in my chest, life would be meaningless. It would just be a path full of pain and suffering that would have to be followed with the sole objective of reaching its end. Do you remember her smile? The sound of her laughter? Of course you remember. It's impossible not to. That glow that illuminated the darkest place, that melody that filled every space it passed through. How I miss that music that sung in my ears and to which my whole body reacted. I know and want to believe that as long as someone remembers your sweet and deep eyes, your memory will be defended and respected, remembered and loved. I know you will never forget her and that's why I'm here, sitting in this bed, in our bed where we shared our love, our bodies, where we gave ourselves to each other and where we received the sweetest honey of life, waiting for them come and get me and take me closer to the reason for my existence. They're almost here. I can already hear the sirens in the distance. They are in a hurry to finish the job and return to their mediocre and pathetic lives, staged by the current power, which with a simple snap of its fingers ruins lives and causes destruction. I torture myself trying to understand why this is all happening. What harm have we done to them? What do they have against us? So much hate because of our sexual orientation? Is it something so repugnant that it makes us deserve such horrible treatment, such a barbaric fate, such a cruel ending?

It's not worth thinking about it. It would be necessary to have a hole where your heart would be to be able to understand these xenophobic and racist ideas. I'm ready. I just want them to arrive and take me with them. I long for the blindfold, I long for the black bag over my head, I want to be dragged to the van that will take me back to Rita, who will give me back my complete life by robbing me of my material life. I know there is someone who will take care of me when I die. Someone who will free my heart and elevate it to the highest point of peace and harmony. Where there will be no suffering and love will always be the same, regardless of who loves and who is loved. To you, my friends, I can only wish one thing. I wish to meet you as soon as possible so that, with me, you can live beyond this life, free from all the misery that infests this country, from all the rot that is destroying us and from all the hatred that corrupts the hearts of men. .

I love you today and I always will.

Anne’

Frankie couldn't believe what he had just read, the words his mouth had just uttered. He hugged me and then regained the strength that, as his eyes went over the letter, had left his body.

TAG: @sonnestrandmeer @angelofsmalldeath-codeine

[mememanufactorum]

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty quote starters

* FEEL FREE TO SHARE AS YOU PLEASE, NO CREDIT NEEDED. CHANGE PRONOUNS OR ANYTHING ELSE AS DESIRED.

“Our boy is right on schedule.”

“Kept you waiting, huh?”

“The private sector’s not so bad, is it? Privacy guaranteed...”

“I’m happy as long as no one gives me any more unwanted gifts.”

“Give her a message from me: Someone will find out sooner or later. She’s better off assuming it’s sooner and quit while she’s safe.”

“Cigarettes? What’s wrong with you?”

“It’s kind of a lucky charm.”

“They don’t look armed...”

“If it comes to that, a little beauty sleep never hurt anyone.”

“We can’t rule out the possibility that this is a trap. There’s a high price on our heads, you know.”

“We need to get a fix on who they are.”

“I can see the moon even in this storm, pale as death...”

“I have nowhere else to go. [name], I want to stay and fight.”

“You men — you’re all the same.”

“We are nomads. Wanderers.”

“So you shoot unarmed women too?”

“I’m a nomad, too.”

“What else do you have there? Take that knife and toss it.”

“You know what you’re doing.”

“It stopped raining...”

“I think you deserve a little credit. No one’s ever dodged that shot of mine... But no one gets lucky twice either!”

“I grew up on the battlefield. Conflict and victory were my parents.”

“We shared everything — all of the bad, and all of the good.”

“I’m not interested in fighting these guys.”

“Just spit it out. I’m used to things going wrong.”

“With these kinds of odds, I won’t be making any sudden moves.”

“Excellent speech, my friend... Gift of the silver tongue. They say it’s the mark of a good officer... And of a liar.”

“That’s right... No one has to die needlessly.”

“Not that you would understand. Land, friends, dignity, all sold to the highest bidder.”

“Looks like you were long overdue for retirement.”

“Show’s over! If you wish to live, I suggest you run now!”

“I was trained to fight. My personal feelings have no place in a mission.”

“You’re stuck with me whether you like it or not.”

“Hey, I prefer this to being kept in the dark, waiting.”

“Do you know what day it is tomorrow?”

“They don’t know a thing about us. You know we work in the dark and this mission is no exception.”

“Shoot him! What are you waiting for?!”

“Hold on. I’m not an enemy. Calm down.”

“Give me a few minutes. Must have lost a few more pints than I thought.”

“The way he moved... It didn’t seem human.”

“Legends are usually bad news. There’s not a lot of difference between heroes and madmen.”

“Makes up for the boring name my parents gave me.”

“Come, put me out of my misery.”

“This is impossible. Nothing will hit her!”

“Today is another bad day.”

“Is there anyone here that can give me happiness?”

“It’s... It’s like... It’s like being in a nightmare you can’t wake up from.”

“I’ve made up my mind to stay with you. Whether this is real or a bad dream, I’ll keep watching you ‘til it’s over.”

“Did I tell you you could move?”

“It’s alright. He’s not one of the bad guys. Don’t go pointing that thing everywhere, kid.”

“How about it, kid? Are the results in yet?”

“Common sense isn’t one of his strong points.”

“I thought I taught him everything I knew... I have no children of my own and I thought I found a son in him.”

“He had the right stuff, you know. There’s something very unusual about an ability like that.”

“Maybe that’s what started all of this. I didn’t teach him the most important thing I had to tell him.”

“There are some things you have to pass on. The trick is to know which one.”

“You’ll just slow us down with that leg of yours.”

“I don’t have time to baby-sit anyone.”

“Don’t let the fear get to you. When you give in to fear, the darkness comes.”

“I wanted people to be sorry for me, for my weakness...”

“I’ve lived my lie so well I haven’t even answered to myself for my sins...”

“I’ve killed my soul playing the victim. Instead of protecting me, it’s made my life even more hellish.”

“I know — I’m a coward!”

“I can’t tell you how happy I am to see you’re alive after all.”

“I knew this moment would come. Show yourself and finish me.”

“You’ve seen the fires of hell, haven’t you?”

“Maybe you can give me death.”

“So he couldn’t kill you, I see.”

“No... No, that bullet was meant for me...”

“Why am I the only one that can’t die? Alone again... Cheated out of death again... How long will you force me to live?!”

“You’ve punished me enough.”

“I thought you could give me peace, but you couldn’t kill me either.”

“There’s no need for sorrow.”

“I died once already. I cannot die twice.”

“I am the greatest humanity has to offer, and the lowest.”

“Call it what you want. Only the right stuff survived that hell. Set me free, you know... Opened the door to a new dimension.”

“You’re nothing but a common criminal and that’s the only way people will remember you.”

“How dare you, I’m an artist!”

“I have beautiful hands. These hands can craft works of art.”

“I’m like you... I have no name.”

“They’re a band of lunatics to being with. Nothing they do should come as a surprise.”

“If you sell us out, I’ll kill you myself!”

“Don’t ever let me see your gun pointed at me again.”

“I’ll put a bullet in your back instead.”

“I recommend against switching camps. You’ve nowhere left to go.”

“You need something higher... I can’t think of the right word, but... It has to be pure will. Backed up by — by courage, or ideals, or something like that. I’d stake my life on it.”

“There are still too many things I need to do.”

“How could you come back to all this? Why keep fighting?”

“We’re not tools of the government or anyone else. Fighting was the only thing I was good at, but at least I always fought for what I believed in.”

“We work on our own, but it’s a cause worth fighting for.”

“We have a responsibility to the coming generations, to the world. To keep track of the mistakes we’ve made as a species.”

“We need to remember — to spread the word — to fight for change. And that’s what keeps me alive.”

“I’m not as arrogant as that.”

“We’re here on our own, not under anyone’s orders. We have our own battles.”

“We’re out here! We bleed! We die!”

“We’re living for ourselves after this. If anyone wants to stay, I want you to take good care of them.”

“I’m prepared to face the consequences of my actions.”

“Don’t look at me like that. I’m legally sane, you know.”

“Even if a pawn becomes a queen, it’s still just a playing piece.”

“I wanted to leave my own mark in history. But my ambitions were— ...You’ll understand someday.”

“I wanted to wield the power of a king instead of being an expendable pawn.”

“Without freedom, there is no difference between submission and rebellion.”

“My only real choice is to put an end to this charade. Let me at least have the freedom to end it myself...”

“Unfortunately, hell had no vacancies.”

“Human muscles are quite eloquent. They speak out clearly what the person’s next movement will be. They even tell me which way the gun will be pointed before the trigger is pulled.”

“Our only goal is to wipe them from the face of this earth — and destroy this world of deceit they have created along with them.”

“Insane? We might be the only ones telling the truth...”

“I concentrated on your heartbeat... It reminds me of when I was a kid...”

“I never had a family... But I think I know what you mean.”

“...I wanted to hurt you. I wanted to see you suffer...”

“You’re not only cute, but smart too.”

“Ohh... I’m much more than cute.”

“Would you take ‘no’ for an answer?”

“Are you gonna ask me how old I am next?”

“I always... wanted to see you again...”

“Don’t be so honest... It hurts...”

“I’m always the survivor...”

“You and me, we're the same. Both you and I... We were always alone... Always. We just wanted to be loved... We were waiting — waiting for somebody... Somebody who would love us... But we were wrong. You can’t wait to be loved, you have to go out and find it.”

“I realized you can’t wish for happiness, you have to make it happen... I wish I knew that sooner.”

“Change sides? I don’t recall saying I was on yours.”

“A foul wind is blowing. We shall speak again.”

“You’re just like me... We’re both pawns...”

“I have nightmares every day... Pieces of the past I can’t put together.”

“I didn’t want you to get hurt. There was never a real reason for me to fight, except that someone put a gun in my hands.”

“If I survived the day’s fight, I was praised, fed, and had a bed to sleep in.”

“I never questioned why we fought. There was no purpose, no way out. They give you a gun, you ask how many to kill. If you didn’t, you were the one they shot instead.”

“They built us from the ground up into killing machines... We were fed once a day. I can still taste the gunpowder they mixed into the food. The gunpowder had toluene in it, giving it hallucinogenic properties. It kept us drugged, controllable.”

“Nothing’s changed. The only people who have no problem with my past have secrets and agendas of their own... Terrible nightmares — every night. I can never forget...”

“I’m afraid of the night. That’s why I don’t sleep next to you.”

“Told you what? That I’m a killer and always have been?”

“What I hate more than anything else in the world is my own past. I didn’t want you — or anyone — to know about it.”

“I love you the way you are now. You have to believe me. I didn’t know anything about you, I admit that. Where you were born, how you grew up — but I know that now. And I know that what I feel for you can only get better. And I’ll share in your past if that’s the price.”

“It doesn’t work that way. No one can share the burden of what I’ve done. It’s not one of those warm and fuzzy things couples share.”

“I accept the good and the bad. That’s what you do for someone you love.”

“I don’t want to share my past with anyone. I just want to forget it.”

“The last two years with you — it’s been more than I’ve ever hoped for. But I can’t go any farther.”

“I know you want to get married. But — But I can’t. I can’t risk starting a family. There’s no way to erase my childhood.”

“Was sleeping with me a part of the job?”

“No matter where I go, I get used.”

“You must have gone over my psych profile with a fine tooth comb.”

“Great performance. Had me completely fooled.”

“What I really wanted was for you to see the real me. It hurt to play out this — this artificial romance. It was worse to lie to myself than to you. The more love you gave me, the more it hurt — because I knew the person you loved was just a character.”

“So it was artificial on my end too. It was just a game, not the real thing. I feel better knowing that. I was in love — or thought I was — with someone who didn’t exist. I was trying to be someone I wasn’t by loving what wasn’t real.”

“I don’t know who you really are. The person I knew isn’t real; she’s not the woman I’m talking to right now. In a sense, the deception was my own, not theirs.”

“I thought I was acting because that was my job. But I really did fall in love with you, that wasn’t an act!”

“You expect me to believe that? It’s okay. You had your reasons, right? Hey, I understand. But I have nothing left to...”

“It’s amazing you can walk around like that.”

“Have you ever... enjoyed killing someone?”

“We don’t carry guns to take people down. We’re not here to help some politician either.”

“You can say that because you’re a legend, a hero.”

“Legends don’t mean a whole lot. I was just a name to exploit. Just like you.”

“People will only remember the good part — the right part — about what you did.”

“There’s no right part in murder. Not ever.”

“We’re not in this to make a name for ourselves.”

“You can stop being part of a mistake. Starting now.”

“Find something to believe in and find it for yourself. And when you do, pass it on to the future.”

“Everyone I love has been taken from me, one by one... And no matter how hard I try, I can’t follow them. An endless nightmare... The only thing we live for is to see it end. Our wait is almost over.”

“Since no one can kill me, I may as well kill everyone I can.”

“Looks like I’m today’s pick. You go on ahead.”

“You want eternal rest? I’ve got it right here.”

“I’ll think of something. There’s no such thing as a witch.”

“Those days were as real as they come. Every day was absolute, split between life and death. You ran from it, and now you’ve been lead back to war by something less than real.”

“So many dead, and they all died trusting you! Weren’t they your comrades?”

“I know I’m going to hell, but at least my child—”

“I applaud your attitude. If you have a death wish... I’ll be happy to accommodate you. See you in hell!”

“What do you hope to hear? You know he doesn’t know anything.”

“It’s not him I want the answers from...”

“You were going to screw me over, weren’t you?”

“...Why the uncharacteristic generosity?”

“You were using us all along.”

“What exactly do you find so funny?”

“Charades usually are humorous. I wouldn’t have minded watching some more of it, but we’re running a little short on time.”

“Your plan was invalidated even before execution.”

“We provoked and encouraged your hatred — and you opted for vengeance, just as we planned.”

“You have nothing we didn’t give you.”

“Do you know why no bullet could hit you? It wasn’t magic or some new age mumbo-jumbo. Certainly wasn’t your psychic talent.”

“Pure self-indulgence — you couldn’t get enough of the drama.”

“...I could have died whenever I wanted to...?”

“There’s no such thing as miracles or the supernatural, only cutting edge technology!”

“You’re the only one that can free me, after all...”

“We’re all born with an expiration date. No one lasts forever. Life is nothing but a grace period for turning our genetic material into the next generation.”

“What is our legacy if we cannot pass the torch? Proof of our existence — a mark of some sort.”

“All I want is to be remembered. By other people, by history.”

“Everyone grows up being told the same thing: ‘Be nice to other people,’ ‘But beat out the competition!’, ‘You’re special. Believe in yourself and you will succeed.’ But it’s obvious from the start that only a few can succeed...”

“You exercise your right to ‘freedom’ and this is the result. All rhetoric to avoid conflict and protect each other from hurt.”

“The different cardinal truths neither clash nor mesh. No one is invalidated, but nobody is right.”

“Not even natural selection can take place here. The world is being engulfed in ‘truth’.”

“Who else could wade through the sea of garbage you people produce, retrieve valuable truths, and interpret their meaning for later generations?”

“I’ll decide for myself what to believe and what to pass on!”

“That’s the proof of your incompetence right there. You lack the qualifications to exercise free will.”

“Does something like a ‘self’ exist inside of you? That which you call ‘self’ serves as nothing more than a mask to cover your own being.”

“In this era of ready-made ‘truths’, ‘self’ is just something used to preserve those positive emotions that you occasionally feel...”

“Another possibility is that ‘self’ is just a concept you conveniently borrowed under the logic that it would endow you with some sense of strength...”

“You’re simply the best! And you got there all by yourself!”

“Oh, what happened? Do you feel lost? Why not try a bit of soul-searching? Don’t think you’ll find anything, though...”

“Ironic that although the ‘self’ is something that you yourself fashioned, every time something goes wrong, you place the blame on something else. ‘It’s not my fault. It’s not your fault.’ In denial, you simply resort to looking for another, more convenient ‘truth’ to make yourself feel better. Leaving behind in an instant the so-called ‘truth’ you once embraced.”

“Should someone like that decide what is ‘truth’? Should someone like you even have the right to decide? You’ve done nothing but abuse your freedom. You don’t deserve to be free!”

“The individual is supposed to be weak, but far from powerless — a single person has the potential to ruin the world.”

“It was because you were the only one who refused to acknowledge the past. All the others remember what they were, and pay for it daily. But you turn your back on everything you don’t like. You do whatever you like, see only the things you like, and for yourself alone.”

“You refused to see me for what I was. I lied to you, but I wanted to be caught. You pretended to be understanding, to be a gentleman... But you never made a conscious attempt to reach out to me... The only time you did was when I gave you no other choice but to do so.”

“What? ‘Trying not to hurt me?’ Dear, the only one you were trying not to hurt was yourself! Avoiding the truth under the guise of ‘kindness’ is all that you did! It occurred to you to do nothing but look out for yourself. Even if you claim it was for my sake, that feeling was nowhere to be seen. In the end, everything was for your sake. I was never part of the picture.”

“We need to decide which monstrosity will have the privilege of survival.”

“I needed to know whether we were really someone else’s creation.”

“Unless you kill me and face your past, you will never escape. You’ll stay in the endless loop — your own double-helix.”

“It’s time we were both free.”

“No one quite knows who or what they are. The memories you have and the roles you were assigned are burdens you have to carry. It doesn’t matter if they were real or not. That’s never the point.”

“There’s no such thing in the world as absolute reality. Most of what they call reality is actually fiction. What you think you see is only as real as your brain tells you it is.”

“We can tell other people about... having faith. What we had faith in. What we found important enough to fight for. It’s not whether you were right or wrong, but how much faith you were willing to have, that decides the future.”

“Listen, don’t obsess over words so much. Find the meaning behind the words, then decide.”

“You can find your own name, and your own future.”

“Yeah, a clean slate. A new name, new memories. Choose your own legacy. It’s for you to decide. It’s up to you.”

“...I’ll pick my own name, and my own life. I’ll find something worth passing on.”

“No, you have things to do first. And people you need to talk to...”

“Can I ask you something? Who am I really?”

“I wouldn’t know. But we’re going to find out together, aren’t we?”

“Life isn’t just about passing on your genes. We can leave behind much more than DNA. Through speech, literature, music, movies... What we’ve seen, heard, felt...”

“Anger, joy, and sorrow... These are the things I will pass on. That’s what I live for.”

“We need to pass the torch, and let our children read our messy and sad history by its light.”

“The human race will probably come to an end sometime, and new species will rule over this planet. Earth may not be forever, but we still have the responsibility to leave what traces of life we can.”

“Building the future and keeping the past alive are one and the same thing.”

[saltiestgempearl]

Dracula’s Family History

Dracula’s speech from the May 8 entry where he talks about his family’s history was, in my opinion, extremely hard to understand. But I wanted to know what he said because my good friend Johnathan Harker seemed to think it was really neat, so I asked a friend to make a plain text translation for me. He obliged, but warned me that there were so many references in it, he’d need to make footnotes. He also asked me to make it clear to Tumblr that he  does not have a degree in Medieval European history or anything, he just played a lot of Crusader Kings.

I’ve included the full translation below because I can’t be the only one who found the Count’s syntax absolutely impenetrable. I’ve also included the footnotes below the Read More. Everything within the body of the text is part of the translation except the bits in brackets. Those are either translator’s notes or, if they’re just numbers, references to the corresponding footnote.

“We Szekelys have a right to be proud, because we’re descended from many brave people who were great warriors.  Here, in the whirlpool of European races [think ‘melting pot’, but edgier], the Norse Vikings brought with them from Iceland the fighting spirit they got from the Norse gods [1].  Their Berserker warriors displayed this fighting spirit and ravaged all the coasts of Europe, Asia, and Africa.  They were so scary people thought they were really werewolves [2].  When the Vikings came here, they found the Huns, who were also very warlike and scary and did a bunch of scary war stuff until the few people who survived their attacks believed they were descended from witches who were expelled from what is now southern Russia and Ukraine [3], and the devils they’d mated with.  Fools!  Attila was greater than any witch or devil could have been, and I have his blood in my veins.”  He held up his arms to show off said veins. 

“It’s no wonder that we were proud conquerors.  It’s no wonder when the Magyars, the Lombards, the Avars, the Bulgars [4], and the Turks attacked us with a lot of men, we drove them back.  It makes sense that when Arpad [5] and his army swept into what is now Hungary we were still here, and that the Honfoglalas [what the Hungarians called the conquest of the Carpathian Basin] stopped when he reached us, because we’re tough and scary.  And as the Hungarians conquered the eastern part of the Carpathian Basin, we Szekelys were claimed as kindred by the Hungarians, and for centuries they trusted us to guard the border against Turkey.  More than that, we were supposed to guard the frontier forever against everybody, because as the Turks say, ‘Water might stop moving in a valley, but enemies come after you forever.’ ”

“We among the Four Nations of the Kingdom of Hungary [the Hungarians, Germans, Szekelys, and Romanians] were always super excited to go to war, and we were always loyal to the King.  We’re the ones who took revenge for the Battle of Kosovo, when Wallachia and Hungary were conquered by the Muslim Turks.  It was one of my own family [Or possibly ethnic group? Unclear] who as Voivode [6] crossed the Danube river and beat the Turks in their own territory.  It was definitely a Dracula who did all this cool stuff! It’s awful that his own lousy brother, when Dracula had fallen, made our country a vassal state of the Turks and made them slaves to the Turks [7].  Dracula also inspired another member of his family [8] to fight a lot of hard battles against the Turks across the river, and who kept fighting again and again, even when he was the only survivor, because he knew only he could beat the Turks!” 

“They called him an egomaniac.  Bah!  The peasants couldn’t have done anything by themselves without a leader.  And Draculas were leaders against the Hungarians, too, to make Transylvania independent, because we hate not being free [9].  Ah, young sir, the Szekelys—and Dracula family, who basically did everything important—have a much better family history than upstarts like the Habsburgs [10] or Romanovs [11] could ever hope for.  Unfortunately, modern times are peaceful.  Lineage is so very important now that the world is in namby-pamby peace, and all we have left of the good old glorious days are stories.”

Footnotes:

At the time, some people thought the Norse people had originated in Iceland, and that the Finno-Urgric people had been worshipping the Norse pantheon.  Hungarians (or as they call themselves, Magyars) were often classified as Finno-Ugric, as were Szekelys.

Berserkers famously took hallucinogenic drugs and wore animal skins in combat, psyching themselves up into a battle trance.  Some people think they’re the origin of werewolf lore.

The Huns came out of the Eurasian steppe.  Scythia was known for producing a lot of warlike tribes specializing in cavalry warfare.  Greek and Roman sources frequently accused them of being literal monsters and black magic users.

 As mentioned before, ‘Magyar’ is what the Hungarians actually call themselves.  The Lombards were a Germanic tribe that raided much of Central and Eastern Europe before settling down in northern Italy.  The Avars were a Turkic people who at one point controlled the entire Carpathian Basin and were a big headache for their neighbors.  The Bulgars were another Turkic people who eventually settled down in what is now Bulgaria and mixed with the Slavic people there.   ‘Whirlpool of European races’ really does describe the Carpathian Basin pretty well!

Legendary leader of the Hungarians and the founder of the first Hungarian royal dynasty.  Conquered most of the Carpathian Basin, including Transylvania.

 Common term for a ruler in Southeast Europe.  The rank is lower than King, but Voivodes could be independent.

The historical Vlad Dracula’s brother was called Radu the Handsome.  Both of them were raised as hostages at the Ottoman court, but Radu went as far as converting to Islam and ruling Wallachia (not Transylvania) as an Ottoman vassal whenever the Turks managed to get Vlad off the throne.  It went back and forth a few times.

I think this refers to Michael the Brave, who was Voivode of Wallachia and Modavia, and de facto ruler of Transylvania.  In effect, his rule united what we would now call Romania.  I could be wrong, the Drăculești dynasty produced a lot of influential leaders, as did their parent House, the House of Basarab.

Transylvania managed to remain semi-independent for a couple hundred years after the Battle of Mohács.  In actuality, the Ottoman Empire did all the heavy lifting against the Hungarians.  Transylvania only got to be independent because both they and the Habsburgs wanted a buffer state. As for ‘throwing off the Hungarian yoke’, Transylvania was in fact dominated by Hungarian princes, not Szeklers.

The House of Habsburg was THE most influential European dynasty since the Late Medieval Age.  You know all the jokes about inbred royalty?  The Habsburgs inspired that, because they did a lot of cousin-marriage to ensure that their family lands would never be inherited by other dynasties.  Say what you want, it worked for centuries, and they dominated both the Holy Roman Empire and later founded the Austrian Empire.  Also found the time to rule the Spanish Empire somewhere in there.

The House of Romanov (or Romanoff in older English sources) was the ruling dynasty of Imperial Russia; they started out as vassals of the Mongol Golden Horde ruling from a little backwater called Moscow.  They would proceed to make this little backwater the seat of their Empire.  These are the people who MADE modern Russia and helped entrench the idea of Russia as a unified nation-state instead of a bunch of little principalities who shared a culture and language.  As with the Habsburgs, Drac is being INCREDIBLY arrogant in claiming his dynasty was more prestigious.