#ursa interlude:

[ask-ursa-tonypeter]

Oh man, okay so that Peter snatching ask, I feel like I neeeed more of that. How would Tony even explain Pyrite!Peter’s new situation to him? Would he even tell Pyrite Peter about DB!Peter? Aksdkfniend I don’t know if you want to go more into detail about this because it’s technically not a fic of yours so feel free to ignore this ask if this isn’t the direction you want to go with these, I’m just infinitely curious about the scenario written in that ask and figured it didn’t hurt to shoot my shot here, so to speak.

[[in reference to this ask and then this ask-- not only did it not hurt to shoot your shot, I wrote a whole-ass fic about it, lmao. CWs for abduction/long-term captivity, gentle noncon and general very 💖loving and tender💖 emotional abuse, and all of the psychological trauma that goes with it-- but there's a hopeful ending! (Also, daddykink, which I can apparently only tolerate if one of the characters in question hates it, lmao.)]]

This older Tony told him that he was picked because he's special, but Peter isn't stupid. In the brief glimpse he was allowed to see of the other Peters out there on that monitor, he noticed that most of them were older. Stronger. Actually special.

And he sees the way that this Tony looks at him. Peter wouldn't have noticed it before, probably, but it was the same expression that his brother wore when they were… together. Dark, heated, focused. Peter had loved the attention from his brother, but it scares him from this man. He's constantly on edge, waiting for the moment that petting hands or a tender kiss might slip somewhere unbearable, like being prepared will somehow give him a way to stop it.

He knows it won't, of course. He knows he can't.

He can't stop anything.

This Tony wants Peter to call him 'Dad.' Peter tries to protest, tries to say that he already has a dad, that it's strange when his own Tony is his brother instead. But Tony insists– says that he'll be a better father to Peter than Howard Stark ever was, that Peter doesn't need a brother when he has a father like Tony instead, that his brother was never any good to him anyway.

It makes Peter regret every single time he's ever complained about his dad and every single time he ever felt ignored by his brother, and he tells Tony that, that he loves his family even if they're not perfect and he misses his mom and that he wants to go home.

But this Tony doesn't care about his tears, and Peter is afraid of him, so Tony gets his way.

That's always how it goes. Peter cries, he begs, he asks to go home. When he's at his most desperate and selfish and awful, he asks for Tony to take someone else instead. And Tony holds him and pets him and coos and hums and murmurs that everything will be okay, and he just needs time to adjust, and that he's perfect. That Tony could never let him go.

Peter knows that he means it, and Tony never seems to realize that it only makes him cry harder. But in the end Peter always ends up leaning heavily into his arms, sniffling and exhausted and cried-out, so maybe it's his fault for sending mixed messages.

He does try to make the best of it, after all. He knows it makes him a coward, and that he should fight and scream and try to make this Tony's life hell until he does give Peter up, like rehoming a bad dog. But he can't, because he's not brave, so instead he sets the table and makes suggestions for dinner and smiles at Tony's jokes and picks out movies to watch from under the arm of this man who is not his father and not his brother but who he still calls 'Dad.'

"Good choice, baby," Tony says with a smile when Peter picks out Die Hard for movie night, and Peter hates the warm, pathetic glow of satisfaction that swells in his chest at the praise. But it's better than being scared, so Peter will take it, even if it makes him feel just as cheap and slimy as the actual sex.

It doesn't take long for that to start, though it's longer than Peter expects. A few weeks, maybe, though Peter's sense of time isn't great anymore. Tony had already slipped into his bed even as early as that first night, with the excuse of comforting Peter while he cried– "oh, sweetheart, don't cry, you'll be okay," he'd crooned, pressing kisses to Peter's hair while he flinched, "you'll love it here, you'll see,"– but then he never stopped, even once Peter stopped crying himself to sleep.

So one morning it happens, inevitable. Tony's wrist brushes too low when he's untangling himself from Peter as they wake, and Peter can't bite back his gasp at the pressure against his morning wood, and before he knows it there's a hand around him and lips against his neck and a warm, morning-rough voice muttering, "Let me take care of that for you, sweetheart."

Peter tries to stop it. He does. He does.

But when he gasps, "Dad, wait, please stop," Tony only murmurs, "Shh, relax, honey," and in the end it's like everything else.

Tony is always gentle with him. It's a strange contrast to his brother, who called him filthy things and teased him until he was so red he thought he might pass out and could be rough with him when Peter asked for it. Peter liked that, yeah, but he had always wished that his brother would kiss him sweetly and tell him he loved him, too.

It's disorienting to have those daydreams come to life in the form of this other, twisted version of his brother. Peter tries to close his eyes as Tony moves inside him and take what comfort he can in the soft touches and endless praise, and sometimes it works, and sometimes it puts a pit in his stomach to think he ever wanted this from his brother at all.

Even outside of bed, it messes with Peter's head the way that Tony's so nice. It makes it too easy to sink into the lie sometimes, when he's allowed to wander the familiar penthouse suite of Stark Tower instead of being locked in some basement, when Tony remembers all of his favorite treats and movies, when Tony spoils him rotten and tells him he's perfect and never, ever loses his patience.

(Even when Peter does. Even when Peter has one of his embarrassing episodes where he loses his mind and beats his fists against Tony's chest and scratches and bites until he tastes blood, Tony just holds him and sighs "I know, baby, I know," until Peter is spent. He never even raises his voice.

But he does cry sometimes. It makes Peter feel guilty, and then mad at himself for feeling guilty, and then he gets so confused that he just lets Tony bundle him away for a nap like he really is a tantruming five-year-old. Every time he wakes up he's mortified, but Tony never scolds him like he deserves. He's just sweet and gentle and forgiving, and he lets Peter sink right back into the comfort of the lie.)

Peter wonders if Tony was kind to the other Peter. He resents him sometimes, even though he knows it's not fair. It's not the other Peter's fault that he died, or that his dad is… like this. It's not the other Peter's fault that Tony picked Peter out of all the options. But even still, sometimes he thinks 'if you were still here, then I wouldn't be,' and there's some satisfaction in having someone to blame who he doesn't have to share a bed with.

But mostly– mostly he wonders about the other Peter's life. Sometimes Tony will cling to him and apologize over and over again like he can't hear Peter at all, and Peter wonders if he was mean to the other Peter while he was alive, or if he was sleeping with his actual son, too, or if he blames himself somehow for the way that he died. JARVIS won't tell him what happened, and he's too afraid to ask Tony.

But it wasn't a secret, he knows. Even if he can't find any mention of the original Peter Stark's death online, other people have to know about it, because none of Tony's employees can stand to look at him.

He wonders what they know. Do they think he's some kind of Frankenstein's monster? Do they know he's been kidnapped? Do they think he's just an uncanny lookalike, or do they know about the machine in Tony's personal lab?

(Or do they just know exactly how close their boss is to his son, Peter thinks sometimes, and it makes him want to never come out of his room.)

Or maybe they're just afraid that if they look, Tony will see something on their faces that he doesn't like, because–

He may always be gentle with Peter, but Tony is not a kind man.

He still rarely raises his voice. When he's angry with someone, his voice goes flat and ice-cold and the room gets so quiet it feels like even breathing would be too loud.

He always sends Peter out of the room before he kills someone. It's the only time anyone will look at him, their eyes wild and pleading for Peter to stay like that would save them, but by then it's Peter who can't bear to look.

Peter hates himself for the way that he shakes for hours afterward instead of doing something. He hates himself for the way that he crawls into Tony's lap once they get home, the way he tips his face up for a kiss, all so he can hear Tony say–

"I'm sorry, baby." Rough stubble prickling at Peter's temple, his cheek, his chin. "You know I would never hurt you, don't you? Never."

"I know," Peter whispers, and by the time they're done and Tony has made him come at least twice and told him again and again that he loves him, that he's perfect, that he's the only thing that matters, it will almost feel true.

(Peter thinks about the other Peters on that monitor, and how so many of them were strong and brave and stood up to people just like Tony, and he wonders how the other Peter died.)

He does save someone though, he thinks. Just once. He can't know for sure, because it's not one of the men that regularly comes to meet Tony at the tower, but he thinks maybe he helped.

The man is making excuses. He's in charge of one of Tony's projects, and he says that Tony gave him permission to take time off to take care of his mother after a surgery, and that's why the project is behind schedule. Tony doesn't remember and doesn't care and he gets angrier with every word out of the man's mouth, and eventually he stands, those silver tendrils exploding out of his suit to grapple the man down over his desk while he wails and pleads.

Tony takes a breath, and Peter knows he's going to tell Peter to leave the room, and he abruptly can't stand it.

"Daddy, don't," he says, the babyish word coming out in his desperate horror without him meaning to say it, and he hugs Tony around the waist like that means anything, like he can stop anything, like he's a version of himself that's actually strong.

Tony freezes, and for the length of what feels like a hundred rabbiting heartbeats Peter is terrified. He's never stood up to Tony in front of his men. He's barely stood up to him at all, and it never leads to anything anyway, and he suddenly doesn't know why he stuck himself out for this stranger who Tony is probably just going to kill anyway but this man has a family and Peter misses his mom so much he can barely breathe and he can't keep doing nothing he can't he can't he can't–

Tony turns gently in his grip, because Peter can't stop him, and Peter keeps his face buried against Tony's shoulder. He can still hear the sound of the man whimpering quietly from where he's pinned to the desk by Tony's tendrils, and he flinches when the weight of Tony's hand settles on his hair, gentle.

"Oh, sweetheart," Tony breathes, his voice strange– revelatory, tender, almost delighted. "Did Daddy scare you?"

The room is quiet. Peter is painfully aware of every other person listening– the guards by the door, the man on the desk, gasping in shaky breaths now instead of whimpering.

He can feel the weight of something important shifting, shifting, shifting when he nods his head, and the finality of something new settling into place when Tony wraps his arms around him.

"Get out," Tony says over his shoulder, and there's a clatter of noise as the man scrambles to the door. Tony adds, "You too," to the guards, and when the door clicks closed they're alone.

Peter shudders in Tony's arms, his body not able to reconcile the combination of relief and deep, primal fear coursing through his veins, and Tony clicks his tongue, pressing a kiss to the top of Peter's head.

"You really don't like coming to work with me, do you," he sighs, rubbing Peter's back. "I'm sorry, baby. You told me that, and I didn't listen."

He reaches to cup both sides of Peter's face, so Peter finally has to look up at him. He looks perfectly sweet, warm and fond and apologetic, and the contrast from his anger moments earlier is dizzying.

Tony strokes his thumbs tenderly over Peter's cheeks, and sighs one more time before he says, "All right, sweetie. If you promise that you'll be good, I'll let you stay in your room while I'm gone, okay? If that's really what you want."

It's so unexpected that it takes Peter a moment to understand that this is a compromise. Tony has never offered one before, and Peter had learned to stop asking a long time ago.

He rushes to gasp, "Yes– yes, please," and then, spontaneous and uncertain and thinking, adds, "Thank you, Daddy."

Tony smiles, and the chill it sends through Peter is anticipation just as much as disgust. Tony takes him upstairs to the penthouse then, and takes the entire rest of the day off work to make up for scaring him. It's almost nice, really, and if Peter doesn't like it when Tony tells him 'Daddy's got you' and 'that's right, let Daddy take care of you' in bed, it's still worth it, because–

The next day Peter gets to have four whole hours to himself until lunchtime, and then another four whole hours after that, and he can't remember the last time he didn't spend the whole day with Tony.

Things change after that.

Before, any protests Peter made would get shushed and brushed aside, Tony always gentle but never permissive. He would say that he knew best, that Peter would be okay, that Peter's way wouldn't work, and he would go on like Peter hadn't said anything at all. Requests were usually easier, Tony happy to bury Peter in gifts, but as for experiences– Tony's sense of what was too risky for Peter was broad and paranoid and stifling, and now–

It's shocking having a way to get Tony to listen to him, and Peter tries not to let it go to his head. He's careful. He doesn't ask for too much. He sprinkles in petty requests to throw off the scent of when he really, really wants something so it can't be used against him.

He acts like he really is all those dirty things his brother used to call him, and he bats his eyelashes and pouts and fawns, and he says "Daddy, please?" and "Can I, Daddy?" and "Daddy, I don't want to," and he gets what he wants.

But he knows just that won't be enough for what he really wants. Not by itself. He can't just stick out his bottom lip and simper his way into where he wants to go, so he'll need to add something else.

And Peter will give Tony this: for all that his obsession with his "son" is twisted and wrong, he really does seem to care more about making Peter come than himself. He always takes Peter in his mouth like it's a treat, but the first time Peter slides to his knees in front of him, he looks so shocked that it honestly seems like he hasn't even thought about it before.

"Petey," he says, ghosting his fingers over Peter's hair while Peter draws him out of his pants. "You don't have to do that if you don't want to, sweetie."

Peter knows it's part of why Tony is so sweet to him, but it irritates him sometimes when Tony acts like he actually buys the whole innocent lamb act, like he doesn't fuck Peter at least twice a day himself. Tony knows about Peter's brother, he knows Peter's done this before; Peter's even pretty sure it's part of why Tony picked him.

Peter takes a breath and pushes it all down, down, down, and he reaches for the part of himself that means it when he says, "I want to, Daddy."

He leans in, and if it's more bitter than he remembers– well, the aftermath is what's sweet.

It's hard to keep the request behind his teeth while Tony fawns over him after, showering him in kisses and praise and making him come so many times that Peter finally has to protest, "Daddy, no more," sluggish and sensitive and overheated.

But he wants Tony to think it's his idea, so he waits until finally, finally–

Tony chuckles and nuzzles in to kiss Peter's cheek, and he murmurs, "Okay, okay, baby. I just want to make you feel good after you were so good to me. What else can I do for you, hmm?"

Peter bites his lip and looks away, and it's not all playing shy. He's nervous, and he's really not sure how Tony is going to react, and if Tony squashes his hopes here– he can't think about that.

"What is it, sweetheart?" Tony croons, pushing back Peter's sweaty curls and kissing his forehead. "You can tell me, Petey; I know you've got something in mind."

"Can I–" Peter hesitates, and he'd like to say he's playing it up, but the way his eyes go wide and desperate and shiny is all real. "Daddy, can I… can I please see the monitor again? Please? I want… I want to see Grandma."

He doesn't know if it's a step too far and too false to call her that. Maria Stark would be his grandmother if he was actually Tony's son, and he's trying to– give a show of good faith, that even if he's still thinking about his real family he's accepted the false reality that Tony's made for them. His heart hammers in his chest while he waits to find out, and–

Tony sucks in a breath, staring at Peter in shock for the second time that night, but this time his expression resolves into regret and apology.

"Honey," he says softly, and Peter wants to scream, "I don't know if that would be the best thing for you. I think it'll make you sad, sweetheart."

No, Peter wants to say, but contradicting Tony will just make him dig in his heels, so instead he says, "I-I know, I know it will, but that's okay. It'll make me happy, too. Like getting older, right?"

He throws it in, a last-minute ad-lib; Tony jokes all the time about how sad it makes him to see Peter get older even though he's glad that Peter's growing up so sweet. It's a hit– Tony smiles, rueful, and Peter presses his advantage. He links his arms behind Tony's neck, cuddling close, all entirely-real doe eyes and quivering lips when he asks, "Daddy, please let me. Please?"

Tony sighs, and he leans in to scatter kisses over Peter's face when he murmurs, "You're getting too sweet for me, baby. All right, if you're sure that's what you want."

Peter's heart soars, and when he pulls Tony into a kiss he doesn't even have to fake enjoying it.

They go the next day. Tony is still reluctant about it, but he doesn't try to back out, and so they make their way to his private lab after breakfast.

It hits Peter harder than he expected. He knew it would make him sad, but he was imagining his mother bright and vibrant and happy. He barely recognizes the haggard woman on the screen, grayer than he left her and exhausted with grief, and it makes him cry so hard he can barely breathe.

"I told you, sweetheart," Tony sighs, rubbing Peter's back and stroking his hair, but he doesn't try to rush him out of the room early. "This is too hard for you, baby."

"I'm okay," Peter forces out between tears, because he can't lose access to this. "I w-wanted this. I'm s-so happy to see her. Thank you, Daddy."

It's going to be hard to play at being cheerful the rest of the day, he knows, but he'll have to if he wants Tony to ever let him come back to this room. Because even despite his tears, he did get what he was actually after: he watched how Tony selected a universe from the massive, awe-inspiring constellation of choices, and he memorized the coordinates that Tony punched in to pull up his true home.

And if he's ever going to get an opportunity to use them, he needs to get back in that room.

He makes it work. He's extra-sweet all day long, enough to curb Tony's concerns about the effect of their field trip on his mood, and he keeps it up after that. He pulls Tony into kisses and buttons his shirts for him in the morning. He pushes Tony back to ride him after work, their hands clasped together between them. He gets on his knees, he wakes Tony in the morning with a warm hand or slick mouth, he waits for Tony at lunchtime wearing one of his dress shirts and nothing else.

He's afraid at first that Tony might be put off by his new boldness, or at least suspicious, but Tony swallows the bait whole. He seems delighted that Peter is finally settling into his new life, eager to believe that Peter really has just grown more comfortable and mature in their relationship over time, and he even starts to trust Peter more. It's not even something that Peter asks for, but a week or two into his change of attitude, Tony gives him permission to access the rest of the suite while Tony's at work.

And that's not Peter's goal, but it does have some potential.

He does get to go back to the private lab. Peter doesn't ask for it every time, or even every other time, but Tony doesn't even hesitate to say yes, now. Peter plays up his excitement of the idea of the multiverse and of Tony's genius for making the machine; he plays up his interest in the other Peters; he checks in on his family.

And he watches the way Tony uses the monitor. He examines the construction of the machine. He pays attention to what features Tony uses when he navigates the 'verse map, and more than that, he pays attention to what features Tony avoids ever using in front of him.

He figures out slowly that his first plan won't work. As far as he can glean, the machine isn't built to have a way to send people back, and he knows he's not smart enough to figure out how to build that feature. He's smart, but even though the year on the calendar isn't even a full two decades ahead of Peter's actual universe, the technology may as well be a century more advanced– if the machine can only pull people to this universe, he isn't going to fool himself that he can change that by himself.

But still, every time he's in that room, he watches, and he thinks. He watches how Tony grows less attentive to his every move, more complacent in the idea that Peter is happy with their life. He watches how every day Tony gets closer to giving him permission to go to the lab by himself– it's not like he can use the machine to leave, after all. He watches how JARVIS sometimes lets him get away with things for a beat longer than he should, if Peter can make it look enough like an accident.

And he still watches the other Peters on the monitor. The ones that are older. The ones that are geniuses. The ones that save their cities from men like Tony. The ones that save the world.

Peter's not strong. He's not brave. He's not special.

He can't stop anything.

But he thinks he knows who can.

[trans-xianxian]

picking up each rat so that she may experience the air conditioning

[evienyx]

Chapter 26 of Fractures. I've never been good with whole chapters of icky angst stuff. Can I get a description?

For sure. The chapter is not wholey "icky angst stuff," but there's nto an exact moment to just Avoid It, so, you know. Warnings. Either way, yeah, here you go:

v v v   Fractures Chapter 26 Spoiler Warning   v v v

So, Chapter 26 started out in the aftermath of the assassin’s death. Zuko has a flashback to a time that he was bleeding in the cell. 

Zuko goes off to work, has dinner, and then Kya convinces him to go to sleep. She stays with him, telling him stories about her life in the Southern Water Tribe as he falls asleep.

Zuko then has a nightmare about his time with Ozai in the cell. Ozai talks about Ursa, and so Zuko wakes up calling for his mother. He is crying when he is hugged and comforted by someone in the dark. He does not know who it is. I will confirm to you here that it is Kya. He falls asleep again.

When Zuko wakes up, he is alone. He goes to do his work and wait for Kya to come look at his wounds. When he is alone in his office, he suddenly has a knife to his throat. It is revealed that there is a group here to kill the Fire Lord, who don’t yet seem to realize that he is the Fire Lord. The person who is actively threatening Zuko is actually Jet.

And that’s where the chapter ends! The next one is the Lu Ten Interlude, after which it goes right back into the main storyline.

[evilprincesss]

adazakura is the upcoming fic i'm most excited about btw. and i will share some stuff about it now! it's zuko's pov with an interlude from mai and azula each; it's inspired by if she seems as lonely as me by  carthaginian_berries; it's about the complexity of grief and loss when the person you lost wasn't someone you had a good relationship with; it's been fully outlined for months; it's 5 chapters of healing for zuko, mai, ty lee, ursa, and iroh; it's me so it won't vilify azula so much as portray her as she was and could have grown to be; and it'll be gen but feature some minor ship stuff (past maizula, past maiko, and endgame zukka and mailee)

[lonelywretchjervistetch]

My DCCU Interlude: The Legion of Super-Heroes (Part 5)

Chapter Five: Increasing Fatality

Lemme tell ya, there are few things I want more in a comic book movie or TV show than a team of villains. Already mentioned my desire for this in my Superman essay series, and I even planned out a trilogy of films with a supervillain team in the midst. And again, we haven't really seen an established team like that in shows, at least not one that made an impact. Sure, Smallville had their versions of the Suicide Squad, Legion of Doom, and Injustice League, but all of those...sucked. They sucked. There might be a team in Titans, but I doubt it. And the Flash's Rogues? One day...one day. That is a mountain of rage that I will climb on this blog. One damned day.

Anyway, the Legion of Superheroes, as a big team, certainly has a lot of villains, solitary and teamed-up. I've already brought in the Dark Circle as a part of this series, and tied them with legendary Legion adversary Mordru for good measure. And throughout these write-ups, I've been name-dropping a number of other villains as well. Yet still, there's the political factions found throughout the galaxy, and even on Earth. Plus, there's the Science Police acting as opponents. I already have plenty of players on the board. And yet, some seeds can easily be dropped for a few more.

Esper Lass for example will be a part of a cult introduced as part of Saturn Girl's origins on Titan, while one of her primary rivals, Eve Aries, could also be brought in as a part of her life there. Mekt Ranzz, Lightning Lad's brother, has quite a big role in this version's origins, and will absolutely be seen and introduced this season as a part of Garth's story. Grimbor the Chainsman or Tyr could be adversaries hired to face the Legion by the Dark Circle. And I'd love Kirt Niedrigh to be seen here, maybe as somebody who loves the Legion, or even as an opponent to the United Planets organization, but there's room for him, for sure.

But no, Season 1 of this series would set up some of the most important enemies of the Legion and United Planets, showing each one of them in one way or another, until finally bringing them together in the second season of the series. That season will set up another group of antagonists, the Legion of Super-Villains, of which Esper Lass, Mekt Ranzz, Eve Aries, and Tyr are members. Add to that building tensions against aliens throughout these three seasons, and you have a fourth season antagonist set up in the form of Earth-Man. But of course, we'll be looking at the second season antagonists with first season set-ups in this post. So let's set them up one-by-one, starting with the most famous of all. Finally.

Emerald Empress: Unlimited Power

There have been many Emerald Empresses in comic books and media, all with their own strengths and weaknesses. There was Cera Kesh, the teenager given a She's All That style makeover with an Eldritch twist. There was Falyce, the SA victim from Orando who was driven insane by her circumstances (yeah, unfortunately). There was sugar baby Ingria Olav, who was literally given a knockoff Eye by her rich boyfriend. There's even been Legionnaire Shrinking Violet (AKA Salu Digby), or Young Justice's Ursa of House Zod. But for my money...there's only one true Emerald Empress. And that's the original: Sarya of Venegar.

Sarya, at full power, is absolutely terrifying. With the mysterious and all-powerful Emerald Eye of Ekron at her side, not only was she a formidable member of her supervillain team, the Fatal Five, but she was also the only member of the team to be a genuine and recurring threat outside of that group. Not the only one who mattered outside of their connection to the Five, but definitely the only one who was a genuine threat independently. She took over Weber's World, home of the United Planets, while working with the Dark Circle. She broke and shattered Legionnaires in her wake at full power. Sarya was a force to be reckoned with. For a little more about her, check out the Profile Post I made a little while ago.

But maybe the most important question to answer first revolves around the Eye itself. The Emerald Eye of Ekron contains all of the power of the Emerald Empress, and has been shown, in some cases, to literally possess the user, with Sarya being the best example of this. In this series, that will also be the case, but the Eye will be a lot more powerful...in a much different way. So, yeah, let's talk about my version of the Eye.

In truth, it doesn't really matter who Ekron was or is. Legends would exist around his particular corner of the galaxy, a sector which contains the planet Venegar amongst others. These stories range from world-to-world, referring to him as a legendary hero, a Green Lantern, an Elder God of the Third World, etc. No one story is ever confirmed, and again, it doesn't really matter. What does matter is the power of the Eye, and its resting place. Ekron was a being of willpower and magic, able to summon limitless amounts of power and energy, as well as being able to bestow that power amongst an initially willing participant.

However, this power comes at a cost of sanity and control. The party in possession of the Eye will eventually find that the Eye is actually in possession of them, seeking a mortal conduit to enact its power-seeking will. Whatever the full Ekron was, it was torn asunder eons ago, and the remaining pieces of its body were scattered throughout the sector to prevent it from reforming. In my headcanon, this is one of the early victories of the Manhunters, as commanded by the Guardians of the Universe. In any case, one of its burial sites was Venegar, where the Eye was enshrined and enshrouded in an ancient crypt, never to be opened or released...until...

Venegar is a tropical forest world, known for its resort locales and therefore fueled by interplanetary tourism. This is a somewhat recent development, as Venegar had been a poor and isolated world up through the end of the 30th century. However, around this point, a small child became lost in the deepest portion of the jungle planet, isolated from her family while they were traveling through. From there, she was called to a cave, deep in the jungle, where she first found the ancient tomb. There, the latent power of the Eye saw a child that could be manipulated into harnessing its power. She was given the ability to read the runes in the cave, then offered a wish, which was for her nomadic family to find a home.

Soon after this, the young girl's family settled not far from the jungle cave, granting the young girl's wish. This began the deepset bond between the girl and the Eye. Over the years, this girl, named Sarya, would come to visit the cave again and again, and the Eye would grant wishes for her to the best of its limited ability. Its corrupting influence worked on Sarya as well, and as she grew into a young woman, her desires became for selfish and power-hungry. At this point, her family had become fairly wealthy, and the planet itself began to gain more business due to subtle machinations of the Eye. Sarya herself wanted to be in the seat of this building power, as well as to remain beautiful and young, which was within the power of the Eye to maintain.

As Venegar grew, it gained interplanetary influence, and eventually gained the attentions of the United Planets, as the organization was just beginning to form. At this point, Sarya had worked up the ranks in Venegar's society to become a well-known figure, and high-ranking politician. Designing itself after other planets, Venegar was styled as a republic and democracy, which meant that Sarya's potential pull was somewhat limited. But at the age of 25, she had become the youngest senator in Venegar's history, and by the time she was 45, she was the clear representative for the planet on an intergalactic scale.

And it's at this point where you might be thinking, "Wait a minute...is this just Star Wars?" Good spot! Look, for all the stupid shit George Lucas did with his story over the years, the best thing throughout his films was Palpatine. His build of power throughout the original trilogy, as well as his manipulations and corruptions are the best things about the prequel trilogy, in my opinion (even if it doesn't always make sense). So, yeah, we should be getting some real Chancellor Palpatine vibes with Sarya. However, she'll be much subtler in her schemes, and her ambitions aren't quite as wide-reaching...at first.

Sarya knows that the path to power is to get Venegar incorporated as a part of the United Planets, and to become a part of that system in general. Using the wealth, clout, and newfound popularity of her world, as well as the help of her secret friend, the Eye, these goals are accomplished as planned, and Sarya becomes senator when she's 50. Her political ambitions continue, and she becomes the frontrunner for President of the United Planets by the time she's 65. Not that she looks 65, since the Eye has kept her young and vital during this time, which she plays off as a rare Venegarian genetic quirk (another part of her machinations and illusions with the Eye).

When the series begins, Sarya is in her second year as United Planets President. She's practically worshiped on her home planet, which will be prominent later on in the series, and she's well-liked throughout the United Planets as well. She's also had the piece of the cave temple to the Eye secretly brought here as a part of her homestead. Sarya seeks to expand scope of the United Planets, and struggles with convincing some worlds to join. Allowing Brande to form his Legion is a part of her plans, as is instigating war and conflict that would convince planets to join in order to gain further power and protection. This gives her knowledge and ties to many factions of the galaxy, both political and criminal. And again, that'll come into play later.

Here's the thing with power, though; it's a corrupting influence. And Sarya's long been corrupted. So, over the course of the first season, this corruption will rear its ugly head over and over again, although Sarya's actual role won't be revealed until the season finale, where the Legion will end up confronting her with this evidence. She will have been a pretty powerful ally for the Legion in public, but we'll know of her manipulations behind the scenes throughout the latter half of the season (with her role being essentially a mid-season reveal). Sarya will also be affiliated with the Dark Circle, using them and her various connections to act against the Legion, and further the cause of the United Planets as a result.

However, once Sarya's villainy is revealed, she'll be removed from her position in the United Planets, replaced by rival and politician of high standing, Winema Wazzo (mother of Legionnaire Tinya Wazzo, AKA Phantom Girl). While she's placed under watch and house arrest as investigations are set to take place, this is apparently for naught, as in the season finale, a massive emerald green explosion occurs within her living quarters. The only thing left behind is a charred body of a young woman, leaving the authorities and Legion to believe that this was an assassination carried out by the Dark Circle. Maybe that emerald green color is even seen in other parts of the season during local Legion fights, as sort of a clue to Sarya's involvement in conflicts like this.

Shortly afterwards, seemingly under the weight of the scandal, Venegar withdraws from the United Planets, and becomes closed off and isolated for the next few years. However, this is all the result of Sarya, who hadn't died in the explosion as assumed, but simply escaped with the Eye. The next time we see Venegar, it's completely changed in its political structure and prosperity. Realizing that power through legitimate channels is no longer possible, and wanting revenge against the Legion and United Planets for her ousting and failure, Sarya uses the Eye to remake her world as an empire, and claims the throne as the Emerald Empress. From her seat of local power, she will take over the United Planets the hard way: by conquering it.

Having the enslaved populace of Venegar under her thrall, she needs allies to act outside of the planet's borders. These allies will make their appearances throughout the first season, for the most part, as some of the more dangerous villains of the Legion. On their own, they comprise an episode-length threat. But together, and under the command of the Empress? That's a problem.

Mano: Right Hand of His God

Mano is, in my opinion, one of the most wasted power sets in the Fatal Five, specifically in terms of origin. See, Mano is terrifying. In his right hand, he contains enough power to destroy a planet. And he did it to his own goddamn planet. To be fair, that's definitely one of those comic book exaggerations that display a complete misunderstanding of science and the laws of the universe...but there is somewhat of an explanation for this. Mano's ability is the power to channel antimatter through his right hand, and to use it to destroy matter. Interesting.

The character usually doesn't have much of an origin (you can see a consolidated retelling of his origin in this post of mine), but he's always a mutant of some kind. I'm actually going to lean in a slightly different direction with him, and make him into a mutate. In my incarnation, Mano was a miner native to the impoverished planet of Angtu, specifically looking for the rare mineral valorum found there. While digging one day, he finds a strange blue metal. As he mines it, the exposure to it begins to change him. He also feels a pull and desire to excavate the full sample of the metal, as if it possesses power. His sanity begins to unravel, as his body begins to change.

Eventually, he's found within his mining uniform, unconscious and changed. The full metal piece has been unearthed, but it means nothing to anybody. However, those in the know would be able to identify it as a piece of armor belonging to a very important figure.

Hey, Tumblr? Quick word, real quick. Why are there no GIFs of the flippin' Anti-Monitor from Green Lantern: The Animated Series? I didn't really want to use the Arrowverse version, and I'm compromising by using the Aya version of the character, but...yeah, what the hell? We gotta get on that, people. Anyway, yeah, this is a piece of the Anti-Monitor's armor. For those not in the know, this is sort of a massive deal. Hinting, hinting, at the presence of this guy means that Crisis on Infinite Earths is a possibility in this universe. And honestly, I'm not saying it isn't possible. But that said: why?

Because the Anti-Monitor is from the Anti-Matter universe. Yeah. Why has nobody made this connection before for Mano? Basically, Mano gets his antimatter ability via exposure to a piece of the armor of the Anti-Monitor, and through a connection to the Anti-Matter Universe, which he channels through his right hand. This connection also drives him insane, and he begins to think of himself as a force of destruction, paving the way for the death of the world and universe by clearing the path, as it were. And so, Mano begins to make his way through his planet, becoming a force of destruction as prophesied, until, yes, he destroys the entire planet.

But Mano, essentially invulnerable at this point, is unharmed by this, and instead floats through space until eventually finding a new planet, one covered by the United Planets. This takes years, which makes Mano's sanity further vanish. By the time we meet him, he's completely lost his memories of his past life, and any record of him in the past is lost with Angtu. He's become a minor legend in his sector, destroying any ships or beings that come to close, and raving about his role as the herald of the anti-matter universe. His threat will be combated by the Legion, but will also represent a major challenge for them. He'll be captured by the Legion, but he won't be held for long.

Come the second season, Mano will have escaped, and the Emerald Empress will look to him as a major member of her Fatal Five. And in one of the battles with the Legion, he'll give a Legionnaire a major blow. Possibly as a mid-season event, the Fatal Five will finally form and attack the Legion. And in the process, Garth Ranzz is going to come extremely close to destruction when Mano grabs his right arm. And if you know anything about Garth in the comics (or even the animated series), that arm is gone. Honestly, he'll be lucky to escape with just that loss.

Tharok: Half-Man, Half-Robot, All Danger

If you look back to the Lightning Lad essay, you may notice that I name drop Tharok as an interplanetary gang leader. In this universe (and actually, in the comics as well), Tharok was a gang leader and a thug, with a normal fleshy body. Native to the planet Zadron, he's a nomadic criminal with various criminal ties. Mostly work for hire, his men are smugglers and thieves called the Scavengers. They mostly deal in antique weaponry and drugs, selling and moving them when necessary. They're also in cahoots with the Dark Circle, acting as their minions when the money and job is right.

Tharok is not the leader of the Scavengers when we first meet him. He's instead the second in command to an older man known only as Lynceus, who claims to be immortal. Tharok, clever in his own ways, seizes power of the course of the first season, and eventually gets Lynceus captured by the authorities, taking command of the Scavengers himself. The Legion drives the Scavengers into hiding, under the new lead of Tharok, after Garth has attempted to question him about the whereabouts of his brother, Mekt. But once driven to ground, he won't reappear for a bit. And once he does, he'll do something truly stupid.

Towards the end of the season, the Scavengers are floundering beneath Tharok's command. Truly unable to lead in Lyceus' stead, the group has dwindled to pathetic numbers. On top of this, Tharok is taking less-than-stellar jobs. One of these comes from the Dark Circle, whom Lyceus chose not to work with, due to their questionable goals. Seeing only dollar signs, though, Tharok has taken a dangerous job for an ancient Justice League era weapon, dating back to the 21st century at least. Specifically, this is the sonic cannon used by the legendary Titan, Cyborg. It's at this point that Garth and the Legion catch up to them, after waiting for their reappearance.

Garth, being the impulsive hothead that he is, immediately plows through the Scavengers to get to Tharok. He eventually finds him, only for Tharok to use the cannon as a weapon. However, the years have not been kind to this weapon, and an unstable power source is one of its many problems. The other problem is Garth, who attempts to disarm Tharok by destroying the weapon...only for it to explode, heavily damaging the entire left half of his body. And while he can be saved, the Scavengers are fully defeated by the Legion, and Tharok is taken into custody. And this is where his real story begins.

Why would I use Cyborg's arm as the weapon that explodes? In the comics, it's a nuclear weapon, but I feel like that's a little too much, realistically. Plus, why would that be a viable option to steal in the 31st century? Honestly, it doesn't have to be Cyborg's arm, but I would like it to be a reference to the heroes we know and love. But to be honest, I chose that particular weapon for poetic reasons. Because like Victor Stone, Tharok is going to have the left side of his body completely replaced with cybernetics. But unlike Cyborg, he's going to be far more dangerous.

Tharok is saved on the demand of the United Planets, so that he may be questioned for his connections to the Scavengers and Dark Circle. This is engineered by Sarya, who wants more information on how much is known about the Circle in connection to her in particular. Writing's showing on the wall at this point in the season. But the cybernetic enhancements also give Tharok a literal computer brain. Combined with the sadistic criminality of the original Tharok, and you have a robotic murderer on your hands. Unsurprisingly, Tharok will be devising several plans of escape, but he'll stay incarcerated until the second season, when Sarya will get in contact with him to join her team to destroy the United Planets and the Legion. In that time, he'll have continued his operations with a new group of Scavengers from afar, even while imprisoned, as well as engineering the murder of Lyceus in Takron-Galtos.

The new and improved Tharok is the brains of the group, able to see the flaws in any plan the Fatal Five will formulate, and adjust them to make them foolproof and as deadly as possible. Plus, his cybernetic body isn't exactly a pushover, outfitted with self-designed weaponry. With his brains, Empress' leadership, and Mano's power, this is already a formidable group. Let's, uh...let's make that even worse, shall we?

Persuader: Unstoppable Edge

Hoo boy, Persuader. This character is both ridiculously overpowered, and barely explained in a lot of ways. In the original comics, he's a former gangland leader who has an impossibly sharp axe. That's just the 31st century version, Nyeun Chun Ti, but there are also 21st century versions, like Superman enemy Cole Parker, and Teen Titans enemy Elise Kimble. Each has a different origin for their axe...maybe. In fact, the axe is maybe the most important and least-explained feature of the Persuader, so let's talk about that.

The Atomic Axe has the ability to cut through anything. And I mean anything. It's sharp enough to split atoms, it regularly gives Superman a run for his money, and it can even sever air supply, gravity, light, the soul, or reality. See what I mean by overpowered. While the OG axe is never really explained, the 21st century versions are magical, made by...a random-ass dude who's never explained. Yeah, it's not great, honestly. However, the Parker incarnation of the character does add two intriguing things, in my opinion. Again, it makes the Axe magic, which does make a lot of sense, and which I'll be using here. And secondly, it makes him a cult leader. I don't want to bring another cult into this, necessarily...so let's just use the one I've already established, shall we?

One of the weapons that Tharok's going to smuggle is an enchanted axe, carved with runes that essentially could break reality if the axe were completed. Made of a special allow of Nth metal that has some magical properties, this is an unbreakable axe that instead breaks whatever the user wants to break. Thus, only the most dedicated and focused can actually use the axe. Its origins, though, are unknown. The most likely explanation is that it belonged to a member of Earth's League of Assassins, but the reason for this is lost to time.

When Tharok comes across this during a heist early in the first season (likely the first time we see him), he happens upon this weapon by chance, and steals it for the Circle. They grant it to one of their most powerful warriors and initiates, a tattoo-covered magic-wielder named Châu Thị Nguyễn, from Earth. For the record, the name Nyeun Chun Ti makes no sense, from what I can tell, so I went for a straight-up Vietnamese name, as well as changing one more thing. When we meet Nguyễn, it's under cover of a shroud and mask. But now christened the Persuader, she is ready to face off against the Legion of Super-Heroes.

So, yeah, I'm gender-bending Persuader! Why? Well, frankly, there's only one woman on the team, so we could use the diversity. Also, the name problem. I wanted to get as close to the original name as I could, and my options are pretty gender limited, far as can see. One more thing here, too: I really want an AAPI person for this role. Mostly because the name was always meant to be Vietnamese, but also because some diversity would be nice here. Honestly, I haven't brought up race as of yet, since I haven't seen any characters where I think that matters as of yet. However, for Persuader, I'll place that limit. The only other issue here is that I'd love a particularly imposing actress here. Persuader should be a terrifying presence in their way, so that should be in mind when casting. No ideas personally on that front, but this is sort of a fantasy cast for me.

In truth, Persuader is more of a quiet and imposing threat. When we first see her, she'll be partnered up with two other major threats, each with their own iconic weaponry, and all part of or working for the Dark Circle. While Persuader is actively a part of the Dark Circle, and therefore a worshiper of Mordru and a magic user through her Axe, the others are hired to go up against the Legion. One is Grimbor the Chainsman, a more charismatic figure who'll come back as a recurring threat later on. The other is Hunter, AKA Adam Orion, a tech user and assassin. Each a threat on their own, they'll eventually team up against the Legion, with the Persuader being the clear threat between the three. At the end of this fight in question, Hunter will be dead, with his son to take his place in a future season, and Grimbor will get a new job, rather than working for the Circle. Persuader, on the other hand, will be captured and imprisoned in Takron-Galtos with Tharok, only to be freed as a member of the Fatal Five in the second season.

And that leaves one. And he's a biggun.

Validus: Complicated Simpleton

Here's the thing with Validus: his comic book origin is messy as shit. In the original continuity, he's the son of Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad, kidnapped by Darkseid and sent backwards in time, then given a massive mutated body and childlike mind, while inheriting the electric and psychic powers of his parents. BUT, he got better and became their child again in the present day, and the comics completely forgot this element of his origin. So, I'm also going to ignore this. Honestly, I just wanted to share, because Valifud is a great example of how soap opera dramatic the Legion comics got.

Validus is the muscle and powerhouse, with a body and mind that pack a physical punch. Of the Legion members, he's very much the most physically intimidating, but is also often one of the easiest to deal with. That's assuming you have a psychic on the team, of course. If you don't then...yeah, you may have a bit of a problem dealing with him. Dude can go one-on-one with Superman with only a little issue, and he's a solid threat. He should also be the only one who we don't see the Legion dealing with in the first season. Hints of him would be great, but he shouldn't pop up until season 2, possibly for the season premiere when we introduce some new members of the Legion.

So what's his story? Frankly, I don't know that it matters so much, but I actually do have one! He's a genetic experiment, engineered by the alien race known as the Dominators, as a weapon of war. Originally made around 100 years ago, Validus was the most powerful of his kind, made using the genetic material of multiple races, but with the ability to be easily controlled. When he grew too powerful, however, having destroyed the other members of his brood, he was put into a psychic hibernation and sent into the stars on a wandering invisible prison disguised as an asteroid. Essentially, Validus is a futuristic version of Doomsday, and actually has some of the original Doomsday's genetic material within him.

Validus would be a rumor, confirmed only to the most knowledged of the Dominator activities. However, with the formation of the United Planets, tensions with the Dominators are building once again. And as this is happening, Validus is somehow released from his prison. The slurry of genetic material within him allows him to unleash psychokinetic blasts that mimic different forms of energy, especially electricity. His strength rivals that of Kryptonians, and he's essentially invulnerable to physical attacks. I'm also giving him the ability to increase his size somewhat, but this will only happen when he meets Season 2 Legion member Colossal Boy for the second time. Validus should be a terror, but still defeatable by an experienced Legion, especially if Saturn Girl can wrest control of his empty mind.

Emerald Empress, having been President of the United Planets, is aware of Validus' existence, and was the one responsible for freeing Validus. This is part of a plan to pin this on the Dominators, escalating tensions and trying to spark another war. In her tenure as President, we'll find out that Sarya subtly escalated many conflicts, in order to make the United Planets seem more necessary to those planets in peril. Once Validus is defeated by the Legion, he's indeed traced back to the Dominators, which massively complicates matters for UP President Winema Wazzo.

Validus is brought to a moon of prison planet Takron-Galtos and imprisoned, where he'll eventually be broken out by Emerald Empress and brought into the Fatal Five. And in this fight, one of the Legionnaires will be permanently broken by Validus. And honestly, I'm not sure if I want him to live through that attack. That's mostly because, in the original comics, Validus kills Lyle Norg, AKA Invisible Kid. Like I said, though, I don't know if I want to kill him off. It's a thought, though. It's a thought.

With that said, that's essentially the story of the Fatal Five in this series, as well as setting up most of the conflict for Season Two. By building up the Five throughout Season One, then actually bringing them together in Season Two, we see this rising conflict that should generate investment and anticipation for the future. And in the same way, the Legion of Supervillains will be built up for Season Three, as well as the various political tensions building up between both seasons to prompt wars during Season Three, amongst a few other things to be built up. After all, Mordru is still a looming threat, even without the Dark Circle in play.

I'd talk more about my ideas for Season Two in one of these essays, but I'd also like to get back to my regularly scheduled programming on this channel, in truth. However, I will have one more short essay, detailing some elements of the plot for Season One. Not necessarily an episode-by-episode breakdown, but a general idea of the plot and story beats. As said, I'm not a writer, so it won't be amazing...but I'll give it a shot!

See you in Part Six!

[theam-cjsw]

The AM: February 6 and 20, 2023

Looks like I was so excited about taking Feb. 13 off that I completely neglected to post the Feb. 6 episode. Here’s streaming links for today and the 6th — double your listening for a holiday Monday.

Feb. 6: An 8:30 Throwback to a transitionary period for Sly Stone, in an episode that spans from Sly's subdued grooves to New Order ar the poppiest, classic shoegaze, dreamy omnichords from Lael Neale, Twilight Zone and Night of the Living Dead-sampling electronics, and other offbeat easy listening for the first Monday of February.

Listen on Soundcloud

Stream on CJSW

Feb. 20: A mid-episode throwback to Tony Allen inspires an extended jazz and afrobeat interlude in the show's second hour—consider it a warm-blooded antidote to the frozen landscape on this Family Day morning. Beyond that, it's your usual AM mix of ambient sounds, off-kilter pop, and occasionally explosive shoegaze, all calibrated to wake you up properly on a holiday Monday.

Listen on Soundcloud

Stream on CJSW

Other streaming links

Ongoing Spotify playlist

Playlists:

Feb 6:

Chrysalis Golden Brown • Weird Choices

Slowly Coming Together Jilk • Welcome Lies

Vibration Consensus Reality (for Spectral Multiband Resonator) Eluvium • (Whirring Marvels In) Consensus Reality

Space Jam Eve Parker Finley • Chrysalia

Polaris Yutaka Hirasaka • Single

Free and Easy Wandering FOONYAP • Single

Slavar Fågelle • Den svenska vreden

A New Season Atari Umma • DiverseCity

Learn to Be Cool Conic Rose • Heller Tag

ghul wihtikow • ᒌ​ᐸ​+

I Remember Julee Cruise • Floating into the Night

I Am The River Lael Neale • Star Eaters Delight

You Do It Marlene Ribeiro • Toquei no Sol

Poke the Bear Stelar Door • Masquerade

Just Like a Baby Sly Stone • I’m Just Like You: Sly’s Stone Flower 1969-70

Stanga Little Sister • I’m Just Like You: Sly’s Stone Flower 1969-70

The Greatest Smile SAULT • Today & Tomorrow

The Sound Where My Head Was Badge Époque Ensemble • Self Help

Showking Mong Tong • Indies 印

Cloud Boat Masahiro Takahashi • Humid Sun

Katamaran Les Big Byrd • Eternal Light Brigade

Sooner Than You Think New Order • Low-Life

Hard Eyes Uncanny Valley • Fevering Stare

Hunted Pale Saints • In Ribbons

When It Comes Dana Gavanski • Single

Stopp, Seisku Aeg! Velly Joonas • Single

Failing Pozi • Smiling Pools

High Tide, Storm Rising Skinshape • Nostalgia

to you kkidss • apple sauce

Sapanta Blue Shirley & The Pyramids • Maid of Time

Feb 20:

Softly Brushed by Wind Early Fern, featuring Joseph Shabason • Perpetual Care

Butterfly Sneezes Aagtive • Butterfly Sneezes EP

Bicycle Ballet Gilroy Mere • Gilden Gate

Computer Break (Late Mix) Khotin • Release Spirit

Root Howiewonder • Movements

Before We Don’t Have Time Afternoon Bike Ride • Glossover

Walking in the Rain Romare • Fantasy

Loving on the Moon R McCarthy • Dick Arkive: Issue 1

Her Purse Falls and Everything Scatters Applesauce Tears • Artifacts

Fall Apart Ashi Shonen • Divergence

Remind U Flying Lotus • Flamagra

Heimatort L CON • The Isolator

Way We Are Ben Marc • Glass Effect

Seventh String Makaya McCraven • In These Times

Ursa Major Phil Ranelin, Wendell Harrison, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Adrian Younge • Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison JID016

Starry Nights Adrian Quesada • Jaguar Sound

To the Moon King Canyon • King Canyon

Elastic Band Lightman Jarvis Ecstatic Band • Banned

Secret Agent Tony Allen • Secret Agent

Alutere Tony Allen • Secret Agent

Spoons Afel Bocoum, Damon Albarn, Toumani Diabaté • Mali Music

Staggered Minotaurs • Higher Power

Oh Me, Oh My Lonnie Holley, featuring Michael Stipe • Oh Me Oh My

Koto (Glimpse) Laraaji • Segue to Infinity

Diamond Violence Marker Starling • Diamond Violence

Sound and Vision Helado Negro • Modern Love

Dor Fodida Sessa • Estrela Acesa

Sylvia Arthur Verocai • Arthur Verocai

Vancouver 3 Mac DeMarco • Five Easy Hot Dogs

Warmest One Beach Towels • Single

good - Water From Your Eyes Remix Winter, featuring SASAMI • Single

For What Sunglaciers • Foreign Bodies

Distance Dealer Fly Pan Am • C'est ça

Thieves Flywheel • You've Seen a Lot

Rice Young Fathers • Heavy Heavy

[lightdancer1]

A scene from the Age Reversal AU

It was a big day for Zuko, his thirteenth birthday. Thirteen winter solstices. For a moment he wished Ursa were here and then it occurred to him, for a moment, that he'd spent a grand total of seven years with his sister for all practical purposes his mom. Longer than Ursa had been. It was at that moment, freshly awake, that he wasn't entirely sure how to feel. At first.

Then his sister's knock sounded at the door.

He was thirteen, Azula was nineteen. She would turn twenty in a half-year. An adult, crossing that mysterious dividing line.

She gave him a warm smile.

"Good morning, Zuko."

He grinned at her.

"No Zuzu?"

"Not on your birthday."

He grinned more broadly and ran to give her a hug as she welcomed it. If there was a tension in her muscles and her lips drew thin for a moment with worries he didn't understand he didn't notice it.

They walked to the first meal together, Azula listening with a slight detachment to her younger brother's excitement, her face still. Father's words bothered her. Uncle had drawn closer to her in recent years as she neared adulthood and the tensions between what was hinted at in those talks and what he might speak openly were.....well, they were her business.

Mai was waiting for them with a bright smile that got brighter at the sight of Zuko. She still didn't smile much but here, it was Mai being Mai, and she didn't have to pretend to be anyone else. With Azula and Zuko it was different. Ty Lee was there, too. She smiled brightly at Zuko, who ignored her.

Azula bit back a sigh and mentally braced herself to separate the two if anything started from that as it could some days but it didn't.

Father was out of the Palace for the day, on war business, at least officially. What was interesting was that Uncle was also out of the Palace, leaving the affairs of state for a brief yet important interlude directly in the hands of the Grey Eminence herself. Azula was Crown Princess and for all that it gave her on days like this she might as well have been a peasant.

No, she mused. A peasant couldn't arrange this.

-------

She'd commissioned the gift for Zuko a year prior, paid from her own funds from a master artisan. Zuko would have a few gifts from nobles and the like and they knew that, but her gifts she arranged for them on their birthdays were one of the highlights of their years.

Zuko saw them and his face lit up.

"Daos," he breathed.

"Yes," Azula said. "For you. Right now, you are only to practice with them." Her voice was stern.

"Father said-"

She raised her hand.

"Zuko, you know that I've been helping you learn how to sword fight. Father...." A shadow crossed her face and she said nothing.

She didn't continue the thought, either.

"This is about you, and what makes you who you are."

Not so long from now Zuko would think back to those words and wonder what she meant and why she'd stopped with the partial statement. But that was the future and today he was gleeful and tok the swords and showed that the techniques he'd learned were at a level of skill Azula smiled to see.

"Thank you!" He grinned and leaped at her to hug her after putting the swords in their scabbards and placing them down respectfully. Azula took his hug again and if she tensed and willed herself not to react and it worked, barely.

Her brother was happy. Jiren looked bored and irritated at being here, which was about standard for her but all she did was look that way and she dutifully went through the motions of being with her family. It was a good start to a good day and another of the memories that would linger in contexts that none of the people involved could have neatly predicted at the times they unfolded.

[neuronary]

Hey, happy birthday. So since you sent me that AU idea, what IS your crack-but-not-really theory about Iroh being Azula's bio dad?

aww thank you! and thanks for the ask <3

before i get into this i would like to clarify: i know how this looks and i promise it started as a joke. i swear. it was a joke.

anyways i just thought it would be funny if, after azula spent all that time trying to get her dad’s approval, it turned out she wasn’t even his daughter in the first place. and then i thought about it for way too long and. well.

the genetic irohny theorem

(i’ll let myself out)

ok so the timeframe on this is that, sometime after zuko’s birth, ursa realises that her already unhappy marriage definitely isn’t getting any happier

iroh, on the other hand, is fresh off the divorce block (i am a firm subscriber to the theory that his wife just left him. lu ten is staying with his (very cool) mother, and his father is getting to the point where he’d be posting #secondchances on instagram if he could.

they both get quite drunk one night while ozai’s out trying to suck up to his dad

thus begins the worst affair known to history. congration lads, u did it.

at first, despite the inebriation, they’re pretty smart about it. after a year, they are very much not. welcome to the world, azula.

“you were born early. that’s why you’re so short even though both your parents are nearing six foot.”

(azula was not actually born early. rip azula.)

okay as for my actual ‘evidence’

(i really shouldn’t call it that it is not good enough)

so firstly, the height thing. azula and iroh are the same height. both of azula’s official parents are really tall. this barely counts as evidence though because azula’s like twelve.

(she’s still not getting any taller. why do u think she’s so angry.)

however also

if you go look at the eyes, you see a little bit more. ursa and ozai both have the same light/bright golden eyes as zuko. azula and iroh have the same darker brown eyes. lighter eye colours are typically the recessive ones soooo...

that’s it that’s all my evidence.

shockingly enough i actually don’t do drugs i just also have no sense of shame.

however, your points about lu ten and azulon knowing... your mind... those motherfuckers are definitely haunting the castle and being pissy about it.

[lu ten, @ iroh] “oh, now you give a shit? now you give a shit??”

“he’s not the rightful heir!! if anything the waterbender is, but that agni kai was invalid. this is a violent coup d’etat backed by foreign military intervention!” “shut up grandpa no one cares about your imperialism anymore.”

[azula refuses to have a response to the Situation] “go girl give us nothing”

“you know we should really go to family therapy. literally all of you have unresolved issues” “i don’t” “you are the unresolved issues, gramps.”

“does no one care that zuko’s mom assassinated me” “does no one care that zuko’s dad assassinated me”

honestly if i ever write this i will add in an interlude chapter of lu ten and azulon snarking about everything.

[the-hopefulpenguin]

I’m unlikely to write United Forces Asami because there are too many ideas, so instead I rehydrated an old plot outline, if that’s of interest to anyone! Long post so most of it is below the fold. 

We open up at the beginning of Season 2. Asami joined the United Forces directly after Season 1, and after an accelerated commissioning course, enters service as a lieutenant posted as XO of the UFS Sabre, a destroyer on counter-piracy missions in the Mo Ce. This is an unusually fast career progression made possible by a combination of the immense UF losses in Season 1, her technical abilities, and Iroh II’s recommendation.

Given that the Avatar has to travel south, and also wanting to investigate some odd shipping disappearances in the Southern Ocean, UF HQ details Sabre to take Korra and her immediate escorts (Bolin and Mako) to Harbour City, with Tenzin coming via bison a little later due to pressing business in Republic City.

Korra and Asami renew and deepen their friendship on the journey south. Asami is kind of over Mako – she’s already halfway there in canon Season 2, and I imagine six months of military training and service would be ample distraction – so perhaps she’s even giving Korra tips on their relationship. Meanwhile, one of Asami’s fellow lieutenants has a crush on her, and Bolin gives her advice over noodles (because it would be a funny scene, and Bolin’s got experience dealing with crushes).

Three days out from Harbour City, Sabre receives a mayday call from a merchant vessel under attack from a dark spirit. Asami happens to be officer of the watch, orders the crew to action stations, and the ship + Korra and friends drive the spirit off.

When they get to Harbour City, things go somewhat as canon through the dinner. Asami is ashore with the Avatar’s party as a liaison officer, everything’s going swimmingly – until she gets a runner with intelligence that a large Northern Water Tribe battlegroup is en route to Harbour City. She tells Korra about this, who confronts Unalaq, demanding an explanation. He says that they’re coming to protect the spirit portal. Korra is distinctly unimpressed by this - without Tenzin around she’s slightly clearer headed. There’s an ugly (verbal) fight and Unalaq leaves, asserting his right to rule the South. Tonraq and the other chiefs begin to assemble a militia.

Cut forward a week or so. Korra is still hoping for a peaceful solution as Northern warships enter the harbour, unable to land as the shore is fortified by Southern troops. Negotiations break down, a nervous Southern militiaman fires, and the Northern fleet engages, with predictably ruinous results for irregular light infantry. Much of this is reported live on radio in Republic City. Sabre, with Korra onboard, attempts to flee, runs afoul of the Northern blockade, and blasts its way free – the captain and some of the crew dying in the process, and the communications array damaged.

Asami, as XO, takes command and they decide to go to the Fire Nation – it’s a shorter trip than to Republic City, and Korra thinks Izumi might be persuaded to intervene. The whole krew (and crew) are brought closer in the midst of all this; nothing like mortal peril to reaffirm friendships, eh?

As they travel, we cut to an interlude in Republic City. The mood is febrile. Iroh is this close to mutinying and taking the fleet with him southwards. Tenzin and Lin are desperately concerned about Korra – and the extended family down south. Raiko is trying to hold back popular demands for action, but it’s a close run thing. After all, a United Forces warship was attacked!

Sabre arrives at the Great Gates. Korra and party are received with all courtesy by Izumi, and their friends in Republic City are relieved to hear from them. However, this sours a little bit when Korra asks Izumi to intervene; she’s not dead set against it, but she is very cautious. Eventually she’s argued around, in large part by Iroh’s intervention (and possibly also her daughter Ursa) (Azula may also be involved). For the first time in eighty years, the Fire Nation mobilises for war, pageantry abounds; with that, Raiko caves to popular pressure and enters the fight too.

The largest fleet assembled since the Hundred Years War rendezvouses within striking range of Harbour City under the command of General Iroh. Twenty battleships, sixty cruisers, and close to one and fifty destroyers, supplemented by dozens of airships and squadrons of biplanes. With them is a formidable expeditionary force, regiment upon regiment of infantry, cavalry, and heavy armour, ready to relieve the beleaguered Southern soldiers fighting a desperate guerrilla war. 

The armada descends upon the Northern fleet, sweeping it from the seas through overwhelming firepower. However, swarms of dark spirits rip into them as they come closer to shore, supplemented by submersible torpedo boats and coastal defences. Fearing a repeat of Yue Bay, Iroh orders the fleet to stand off.

Then Asami and Korra come forward with a plan. The spirits obey Unalaq. If they can take him out, the war could be brought to a conclusion. Iroh agrees, and in the dead of night, Sabre slips in close to shore. Korra, Mako, Bolin, and a team of United Forces commandos make it to the beach through terrible weather, linking up with Tonraq’s fighters and conducting an audacious raid. It succeeds, and Unalaq is killed.

This disperses the spirits, but the team faces hot pursuit from outraged Northerners; not least Unalaq’s children. They make a break the coast but are cut off by more reinforcements – until Sabre appears, risking grounding to come up right to the beach to take them off, Asami personally directing fire from the deck, heedless of danger. The team boards and Sabre makes a break to the open ocean, receiving a mauling from Desna and Eska in the process.

Sabre returns to the fleet, where it is hailed by the other ships, firing salutes fit for admirals and emperors, crews crowding the rails to cheer the battered destroyer home. Then we cut to an epilogue; Asami has been promoted Lieutenant Commander and assigned to Iroh’s staff in Republic City as permanent liaison to the Avatar, the North signed an instrument of surrender granting the South independence, and all seems well with the world.

Until Commander (ret.) Bumi falls off a cliff and realises he can airbend.

-- 

I’d be happy to recieve any asks about this, and also thoughts on whether this sort of format is interesting because I have tons of fic ideas which I could spell out like this!

[eria-404-fluff-not-found]

[ID: Ursa sits at a red table with golden edges. She is displayed from her right side, wearing her hair half up in a top-knot as seen in the series. Her hairpiece is golden with an orange flame on it. She wears the same Fire Nation robes in reds and gold details as in the show. She writes with a brush.

On the table lie a sheet of paper, utensils for calligraphy (i.e. a second brush and an inkstick), the mask of the dragon emperor from "Love Amongst the Dragons,” an empty frame, and a cup of tea.

The background is a dark brown solid colour, over it in the top right of the picture is the logo of the story in a transparent white, consisting of the logo for A:TLA, underneath it the words "Lost and Found" in all caps, written with brush strokes. Underneath it, the words "The Way of the Sword" and below it, "By: Eria Nova". Surrounding it is a rectangle made up of dotted lines with the element symbols in the corners: Water in the upper left, Earth in the upper right, Air in the lower left and Fire in the lower right. There is a watermark saying "Eria Nova" and "03/28/2021" on the drawing of Ursa at around the backs of her neck. End ID]

Lost and Found: The Way of the Sword

“Zuko was weak. Azula excelled at everything. Zuko excelled at nothing. Azula was a firebending prodigy. Zuko would probably burn himself with his own fire if it was possible. Azula was four. Zuko was eight, yet he struggled with most things she was already able to do. Azula’s skin was soft and white: untouched. Zuko’s was rough, red and ridden with scars. Scars that he deserved because there was nothing Zuko was good at.”

OR:

Zuko can’t do anything right. But when Piandao teaches him the way of the sword, he finds his talent as well as a safe haven he could flee to when the world becomes too much.

Prequel to Lost and Found, a yet to be published AU in which Aang leaves the ice nearly two hundred years after the genocide.

Interlude One: Request

A collection of letters sent to and by Piandao

Read now on Ao3!

[aion-rsa]

Marvel’s Black Widow: MCU Easter Eggs and References Guide

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This article contains Black Widow spoilers. We have a spoiler-free review here.

The MCU is finally back on the big screen! Marvel’s Black Widow was supposed to be the official kickoff of Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but then the pandemic happened, it got bounced around the release calendar, and Disney managed to release three MCU TV shows before Natasha got to take her curtain call on the big screen.

But that’s thankfully behind us, and Black Widow delivers terrific blockbuster action in the mighty Marvel manner. And you know what that means! Let’s try and spot all the cool MCU references and Marvel Comics Easter eggs in Black Widow.

The Prologue

Setting this prologue in 1995 gives us the approximate age of Natasha. If she’s supposed to be about 11 or 12 here, that conveniently makes the character the same age as Scarlett Johannsson, who was born in 1984.

The general premise of Natasha’s childhood, in which she was the daughter of two Russian spies is highly similar to that of the FX series The Americans. 

This seems to be the late summer of 1995, which puts it roughly around when Captain Marvel was taking place (the official word on that is 1995, but little details in it, like Stan Lee reading a Mallrats screenplay could place it in 1994). 

Young Natasha is played by Ever Anderson – the daughter of actress Milla Jovovich and Event Horizon director Paul W. S. Anderson. You will not be able to unsee her resemblance to Milla. 

The first song choice in the movie is young Yelena’s fixation on Don McLean’s fixation on “American Pie,” a song about (among other things) the death of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and “The Big Bopper” J.P. Richardson. That being said, “American Pie” is about a larger loss of innocence, a theme that weighs heavily throughout this film.

Before Alexei turns the radio off to play “American Pie”, the station is set to 105.1 FM. This is WQXK, a country station based in Salem, Ohio that serves the Youngstown market. Natasha and Yelena’s American home is likely based in Eastern Ohio.

There’s an episode of DuckTales playing on TV in the background while they have dinner. We can’t tell what episode it is, but DuckTales ruled, and the new series was even better. And hey, we get some payoff later in the movie when they play an aircraft crash for laughs while having everyone just casually walk it off.

Alexei was working undercover in the US at the North Institute, which he burned to the ground before making his escape. In Black Widow Vol 3 #1, Natasha decided to retire to Arizona but she and other Red Room victims were hounded by the North Institute. Spurred to investigate the situation, Natasha returned to Russia where she discovered much of the terrible truth behind her past Red Room manipulation. This was a story that also featured Yelena (and Daredevil, believe it or not).

There’s definitely an early SHIELD logo on the trucks chasing the family to the very end there.

The plane number is 258. In Incredible Hulk #258, we get the first appearance of the Soviet Super-Soldiers (later named the Winter Guard), a communist superhero team created for the sake of rivaling the Avengers. The original lineup was Ursa Major (more on him in a minute), Darkstar, Vanguard, and the fifth Crimson Dynamo (more on this, too). Over time, Red Guardian joined their ranks, though it was Josef Petkus and not Alexei Shostakov.

This is a perfect cold open, the kind that James Bond movies excelled at, and it’s far from the only Bond parallel we’ll get in the film. 

The Opening Credits

There’s all kinds of stuff happening in the opening credits, including the film’s villain Dreykov being inserted into photos with various world leaders, including President Bill Clinton, President George W. Bush’s Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, and others. The Red Room’s influence knows no national boundaries, it seems.

The overall effect is to imply that Dreykov and the Widows have been putting their fingers on the scale for quite some time.

It’s also a nice touch that many of the “news broadcasts” we see here are from MCU staple WHIH.

There’s a shot of some vials with blue liquid, which allude to the Red Room’s attempt to create Captain America-esque super soldiers, which they succeeded with to some degree with the Red Guardian, but also makes us wonder if they tried enhancing any earlier Widows.

Smells Like Teen Spirit

The opening credits are set to a version of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Malia J. You may have heard her covers of Seal’s “Crazy” and Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth” in trailers for shows like Bloodlines and The Handmaid’s Tale.

We wrote more about the Black Widow version of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” here.

When Does Black Widow Take Place?

This movie takes place in 2016, shortly after the events of Captain America: Civil War. General “Thunderbolt” Ross (William Hurt) is here to remind us all that Natasha is still in trouble with the government.

What’s kind of neat about this is that it’s the first Marvel “prequel” that feels like it is designed to be watched in its chronological sequence (minus that post-credits scene, of course). Captain America: The First Avenger makes more sense as a flashback interlude between Thor and The Avengers, while Captain Marvel makes more sense as a breather between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. But Black Widow feels like it should be watched right after Civil War.

Thunderbolt Ross

Natasha brings up Ross having his second triple bypass. In Captain America: Civil War, Ross talks about how he had his first heart attack while playing golf and it gave him perspective and convinced him to retire from the US Army. It seems chasing down Cap’s allies hasn’t been so good for his health.

Red Guardian

We know that Alexei has been active as Red Guardian since at least 1983 or 1984 based on the tales of fighting Captain America he tells while in jail. He was apparently sent to the USA for undercover work in 1992, and then imprisoned a few years after their 1995 escape back to Russia.

Red Guardian’s knuckle tattoos say “Karl Marx” which is kind of adorable but…shouldn’t they be in Cyrillic/Russian characters and not Latin/English? Is this to troll his capitalist opponents so they can read them as he beats their asses?

Red says he fought Captain America in 1983 or 1984. The simplest explanation is that he’s lying but…what if he isn’t?

Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he’s telling the truth and there really was yet another secret Captain America active in the ‘80s. Now that The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is done, we know that there was at least one “replacement Cap” and the comics indicate there were others. Or maybe it’s just Steve in the timestream…maybe we’ll find out one day, but we wrote much more about some possibilities for this here.

Ursa

Red Guardian breaks the arm of a man named Ursa… Ursa Major (Mikhail Ursus) is the name of another Russian superhero in Marvel Comics, whose mutant power caused him to turn into a literal talking bear. He became a staple member of the Soviet Super Soldiers/Winter Guard along with a Red Guardian. While the movie doesn’t depict him like the comics, Red Guardian does joke about him being a bear.

Taskmaster

This is a very different version of Taskmaster than the one we got in the comics. Marvel Comics Taskmaster has “photographic reflexes” and is a man named Anthony Masters. Here, in addition to the new gender (Dreykov’s daughter is named “Antonia” as a nod to the comics character), Taskmaster is cybernetically enhanced to make those “photographic reflexes a little easier.

There is precedent for a female Taskmaster. The series Deadpool MAX reimagined Deadpool in a cynical, dark, and very adult (albeit absurd and humorous) way. This lent itself to Deadpool-adjacent characters. Taskmaster was depicted as a woman roughly in her ‘50s who trained Deadpool and warped his mind.

There’s also Finesse, a member of Avengers Academy, whose powers are so similar to Taskmaster that she believes him to be her biological father. Unfortunately, due to memory problems, Taskmaster doesn’t know for sure and refuses to offer any DNA to find out the answer.

In the course of Taskmaster’s action scenes, we see her mimic a number of Marvel heroes, with a particular focus on those who played a part in the recent (by this movie’s timeline) Captain America: Civil War including Hawkeye, Captain America, Black Panther, and even Natasha.

We have more on Taskmaster here.

Who is Mason?

Rick Mason first appeared in his own 1989 graphic novel called Rick Mason: The Agent. Mason was a SHIELD agent mostly remembered for being the son of Phineas Mason, the Tinkerer. Granted, the Tinkerer we saw in Spider-Man: Homecoming isn’t nearly old enough to be Rick’s father in the movies and he looks nothing like him, so I wouldn’t expect any secret connection.

In the comics, Rick was practically forgotten about and killed off-panel. His son was one of the victims of Nitro’s explosion in Stamford, Connecticut from the beginning of the Marvel Comics version of Civil War.

Melina Vostokoff

The Melina Vostokoff of the MCU is pretty different from the one in Marvel Comics (who created by Ralph Macchio and George Perez in 1983). There, she was known as (we shit you not) Iron Maiden, and she was at least a former Widow-esque agent as she is here in the film.

Yelena Belova

Yelena and Natasha’s first meeting being over a bio-weapon/agent is very faintly similar to Yelena’s proper introduction in the comics, a 1999 Black Widow comics story where they were explicitly fighting over a bioweapon, not a “mind control antidote” as we see in this film.

The “face swap” trick that Natasha and Melina pull in the film’s final act also has the faintest of echoes of another early Yelena story, where Natasha “swapped faces” with Yelena to try and break her mind and get her on the side of the angels.

What Happened in Budapest?

“You and I remember Budapest very differently,” Clint Barton famously told Natasha in The Avengers during the Battle of New York. But now we know what went down…

Basically, Taskmaster’s origin story is tied to Natasha’s superhero origin. To fully defect from the Red Room and go to work for SHIELD, Natasha had to assassinate Dreykov…which meant the collateral damage of Antonia.

Of course, that led to Clint and Nat getting hounded by Red Room agents, which led to them hiding out for days together. 

And before that, they were in that safe house apartment that was currently occupied by Yelena, hence the arrow damage to the walls.

Crimson Dynamo

Yelena (probably on purpose) refers to Alexei’s superheroic days as when he was “the Crimson Dynamo.” Sure, this is cute, but there really was a Crimson Dynamo in Marvel Comics! Crimson Dynamo is primarily an Iron Man villain, lots of different Russian agents have worn the Crimson Dynamo armor. It…didn’t end well for any of them. 

The original Crimson Dynamo was Anton Vanko, otherwise known as the old man dying in the beginning of Iron Man 2. Although his son was known as Whiplash, Ivan Vanko was more of a cross between Whiplash and Crimson Dynamo. In the comics, “Ivan” was an alias Anton used.

We’re gonna choose to believe that Yelena isn’t just making this name up and that the Russians really did have an armored hero called the Crimson Dynamo, and if we’re lucky we’ll get to see him in a flashback of some future MCU project. After all, there’s that Armor Wars series on the way…

Also, there’s one thing that Crimson Dynamo has over the Red Guardian: he was immortalized in the lyrics of a song by a member of The Beatles. Paul McCartney and Wings have a tune called “Magneto and Titanium Man” which involves “a robbery” where “the Crimson Dynamo came along for the ride.” It’s great, and it’s on Wings Venus & Mars album.

Thor

Yelena’s line about how a “god from space” doesn’t “need to take an ibuprofen” after a fight is kinda priceless.

Mutants in the MCU

Dreykov tells Natasha that they were searching for the “genetic potential in infants.” Sure, this could mean anything like how athletic someone might grow up to be, but is there a chance they could also have been searching for a mysterious x-factor in a baby’s DNA?

James Bond

Natasha is watching one of the lesser-regarded Bond flicks, Moonraker. Of course, she still knows every word.

Dreykov gets a classic “Bond villain monologue” wherein a baddie spells out his plans for world domination before a hero who he surely thinks is either neutralized or could be swayed to their cause.

Antonia/Taskmaster is a Bond Girl! Olga Kurylenko played Camille Montes, a Bolivian agent with a vendetta in Quantum of Solace.

Remnants of the Red Room

Black Widow was written by Eric Pearson, who also wrote Thor: Ragnarok.

So… Natasha probably couldn’t taste that peanut butter and jelly sandwich from Endgame, right? That’s too bad.

It doesn’t seem that “Fanny Longbottom” is a thing from Marvel Comics, but as Mason points out it is most certainly a real name. Also, Yelena’s dog in the post-credits scene is named “Fanny.”

We get an explanation for Natasha’s blonde look in Infinity War here, as Mason gave her the hair dye. But the way it’s presented here feels slightly like a sisterly tribute to Yelena, which is really sweet.

Natasha makes a crack about “the cavalry” as Ross’ troops close in, but folks hoping that’s an Agents of SHIELD reference are probably going to be sorely disappointed.

Dreykov’s pheromone trick that he has implanted in the Widows (and Natasha in particular) leads to this scene playing out like when RoboCop tries to arrest Dick Jones in the classic 1987 film.

“Thank you for your cooperation,” Natasha tells Dreykov with a smirk after getting him to monologue his evil plans. This is as close as we get to a Black Widow catchphrase – she also ended a veiled interrogation with Loki using the exact same words in The Avengers.

The Post-Credits Scene

Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfuss) is back after her appearances in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. If we had to hazard a guess, she’s putting together a team of “Dark Avengers” or “Thunderbolts” for the MCU.

Florence Pugh is indeed confirmed to appear in the upcoming Disney+ Hawkeye series, as well.

We went into much more detail about what the post-credits scene means for the future of the MCU right here.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Spot anything we missed? Let us know in the comments!

The post Marvel’s Black Widow: MCU Easter Eggs and References Guide appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2VrjyDY

[evienyx]

the subtle set up for ursa's own storyline from the comics ... incredible. the set up that unless koh himself returns irohs memories they will always be just an echo of his real memories ... so so sad. like the idea of iroh regaining these memories without the emotion that goes with them...the reveal that ozai KNEW his comments about zuko would hit because he had been the mastermind behind stealing irohs love for zuko. talk about lore, damn.

Listen, I promised that the Iroh Interlude would have a lot of lore and I at least try not to lie to you guys  <3

[adz]

in case you were needing it, here is my attempt at creating a comprehensive, mostly chronological list of every song sufjan stevens wrote/released as a solo act

A Sun Came We Are What You Say A Winner Needs a Wand Rake Siamese Twins Demetrius Dumb I Sound Wordsworth’s Ridge Belly Button Rice Pudding A Loverless Bed (Without Remission) Godzuki Super Sexy Woman The Oracle Said Wander Happy Birthday Jason Kill Ya Leil A Sun Came Satan’s Saxophones

Eye of the Beholder All Delighted People

8.21: A Blue Bunny Compilation Woman at the Well Far Physician’s Son

Seen Unseen Damascus

Enjoy Your Rabbit Year of the Asthmatic Cat Year of the Monkey Year of the Rat Year of the Ox Year of the Boar Year of the Tiger Year of the Snake Year of the Sheep Year of the Rooster Year of the Dragon Year of the Rabbit Year of the Dog Year of the Horse Year of Our Lord

To Spirit Back the Mews God’ll Ne’er Let You Down Bushwick Junkie I Can’t Even Life My Head

Michigan Flint All Good Naysayers For the Widows in Paradise Say Yes! To M!ch!gan! The Upper Peninsula Tahquamenon Falls Holland Detroit Romulus Alanson, Crooked River Sleeping Bear, Sault Saint Marie They Also Mourn Oh God, Where Are You Now? Redford Vito’s Ordination Song --- Marching Band Pickerel Lake Niagara Falls Presidents and Magistrates Wolverine

Hope Isn’t a Word Borderline

Metaphysics for Beginners How Can the Stone Remain?

Seven Swans All the Trees The Dress Looks Nice on You In the Devil’s Territory To Be Alone with You Abraham Sister Size Too Small We Won’t Need Legs to Stand A Good Man Is Hard to Find He Woke Me Up Again Seven Swans The Transfiguration --- I Went Dancing with My Sister Waste of What Your Kids Won’t Have Illinois Concerning the UFO Sighting The Black Hawk War Come On! Feel the Illinoise! John Wayne Gacy, Jr. Jacksonville A Short Reprise Decatur One Last “Whoo-Hoo!” Go! Chicago! Go! Yeah! Casimir Pulaski Day To the Workers of the Rock River Valley Region The Man of Metropolis Prairie Fire That Wanders About A Conjunction of Drones The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades They Are Night Zombies!! Let’s Hear That String Part Again In This Temple as in the Hearts of Man The Seer’s Tower The Tallest Man, the Broadest Shoulders Riffs and Variations Out of Egypt

NPR single The Lord God Bird

The Avalanche The Avalanche Dear Mr. Supercomputer Adlai Stevenson The Vivian Girls The Henney Buggy Band Saul Bellow Carlyle Lake Springfield The Mistress Witch from McClure Kaskaskia River Inaugural Pop Music No Man’s Land The Palm Sunday Tornado The Pick-Up The Perpetual Self For Clyde Tombaugh Pittsfield The Undivided Self

Mews Too Opie’s Funeral Song

Songs for Christmas ---I We’re Goin’ to the Country! It’s Christmas! Let’s Be Glad! ---II Put The Lights On The Tree Only at Christmas Time ---III Come On! Let’s Boogey to the Elf Dance! That Was the Worst Christmas Ever Ding! Dong! All the King’s Horns ---IV Hey Guys! It’s Christmas Time! Did I Make You Cry on Christmas? (Well, You Deserved It!) The Incarnation ---V Get Behind Me, Santa! Christmas in July Jupiter Winter Sister Winter Star of Wonder The Winter Solstice

The Believer In the Words of the Governor

The BQE Prelude on the Esplanade Introductory Fanfare for the Hooper Heroes Movement I: In the Countenance of Kings Movement II: Sleeping Invader Interlude I: Dream Sequence in Subi Circumnavigation Movement III: Linear Tableau with Intersecting Surprise Movement IV: Traffic Shock Movement V: Self-Organizing Emergent Patterns Interlude II: Subi Power Waltz Interlude III: Invisible Accidents Movement VI: Isorhythmic Night Dance with Interchanges Movement VII (Finale): The Emperor of Centrifuge Postlude: Critical Mass --- The Sleeping Red Wolves

Single: Sofia’s Song

All Delighted People All Delighted People Enchanting Ghost Heirloom From the Mouth of Gabriel The Owl and the Tanager Arnika Djohariah Side D

The Age of Adz Futile Devices Too Much Age of Adz I Walked Now That I’m Older Get Real, Get Right Bad Communication Vesuvius All for Myself I Want to Be Well Impossible Soul

Silver & Gold ---VI Lumberjack Christmas The Midnight Clear St. Benjamin the Bearded One Barcarola ---VII Christmas Woman Happy Family Christmas Mysteries of the Christmas Mist Behold! The Birth of Man, the Face of Glory Ding-a-ling-a-ring-a-ling Mr. Frosty Man Make Haste to See the Baby Eternal Happiness or Woe I Am Santa’s Helper Even the Earth Will Perish ---VIII Christmas in the Room Particle Physics The Child with the Star on His Head ---IX X-mas Spirit Catcher ---X Happy Karma Christmas Justice Delivers Its Death Christmas Unicorn

Carrie & Lowell Death with Dignity Should Have Known Better All of Me Wants All of You Drawn to the Blood Eugene Fourth of July The Only Thing Carrie & Lowell John My Beloved No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross Blue Bucket of Gold

One Night Stand #1 Harsh Noise

Exploding Whale single

The Greatest Gift Wallowa Lake Monster The Greatest Gift The Hidden River of My Life City of Roses

CMBYN Singles Mystery of Love Visions of Gideon

Tonya Harding single

Lonely Man of Winter single

The Ascension Make Me An Offer I Cannot Refuse Run Away with Me Video Game Lamentations Tell Me You Love Me Die Happy Ativan Ursa Major Landslide Gilgamesh Death Star Goodbye to All That Sugar The Ascension America

Live Only Majesty Snowbird The 50 States Song Many Guides Maple River

[blueseakelp]

Burn Steady, My Child. Chapter 4, last line.

I’m crying. CRYING.

THIS IS NOT FAIR I DONT LIKE FEELING EMOTIONS. THAT WAS TOO SAD.

omg wait is this ursa’s interlude

OH N O WAIT I JUST CHECKED IM-

apologies for emotional damages 💙 i did not realize this would make people feel things ‼️

[officialleehadan]

Menkent Ripple

“Ursa.”

Senator Stal Ursa was not accustomed to his name being spoken, quietly and without formality. The surprise of it immediately took his attention form the reports he was studying, and when he looked up, he froze.

Everyone knew of the Edge girl from Asteroid Base 42. How could they not, when she had fallen into orbit with Cygnus Volans as if she was made to be there. How could Ursa fail to take note of the woman whose disappearance, presumed death, turned his most powerful psion into a near-mindless weapon. And who, upon her return, somehow got more powerful. Somehow, during her imprisonment, she discovered a way to destroy the ships that were tearing apart their own attempts at defense. The tie was turning. Slowly, but surely. Because of her.

So yes, Ursa knew about Andromeda Oct. He knew where she came from, and that she was an orphan, with no family, and nothing interesting in her future until she came mind-to-mind with Cygnus.

He also knew that she was still fragile. That her talents, apparently as varied and powerful as Cygnus’ own, were unstable at the best of times.

She could probably hear every thought that passed his mind.

He hated working with psionics.

“Come in,” he said, and nodded a dismissal to his aid as Andra walked in with Cygnus’ arm over her shoulders. He was ashy and looked ill, and Ursa wondered what kind of trouble they possibly could have found in the few short hours since he saw them at the last briefing. “What can I do for you?”

Andra shared a long look with Cygnus, no doubt sharing thoughts, before she nodded once.

“Cyg had a vision,” she said without preamble, and didn’t blink when Ursa muttered a curse. Precognition. It was so unreliable that he tried not to rely on it, but when it came, it could make a difference. “About the war. The ships we’re facing are scout ships. The real force hasn’t even made it here yet, but they’re coming.”

That warranted a stronger curse, and Ursa dropped into his chair as fear threatened to steal his reason.

“We’ve been fighting the vanguard?” he rasped through a throat that suddenly felt dry as desert sand. His head swam at the very thought. How could they possibly face a force greater than the one that already threatened to ruin them? What hope was there, if the great, sleek destroyers that were ripping apart whole planets were nothing but the frontrunners? “This whole time?”

(Not even that.) Ursa jumped, but there was no doubt of the ‘voice’ in his mind. Cygnus shrugged faintly, a little shamefaced behind his mop of dark curls. (Sorry. My voice is too shot for vocal speech. Can we show you what we saw? You should… you should know what we’re up against.)

There was very little that Ursa wanted less, but he nodded anyway. He had never been one to shy away from the unpleasant duties of his station, and that now included trying to save his race from obliteration. If this vision would help, he could do nothing more than try to use it to the fullest.

Of course, he also remembered the last two visions he saw Cygnus have, realized why the psion was speaking telepathically, and profoundly hoped that he would not scream himself raw.

“You won’t,” Andra said softly, and tried to offer a smile. It came out as more of a grimace, but Ursa appreciated the effort. “We’ll buffer you from the… the worst of it. You’ll ‘see’ the vision, but you won’t experience it like Cyg does.”

That did help, although Ursa still didn’t like the idea any.

Oh well.

“Once more into the breech,” he said with a half-shrug. “We need information. Will you be able to share this vision with the rest of our command?”

(If they’re willing. I won’t force it on anyone,) Cygnus assured him. He reached out, and Ursa noted with alarm that Cygnus’ fingers trembled slightly, barely noticeable, but distinctly there. (Take a deep breath in, and release it slowly.)

Before Ursa could do more than breathe, blackness, the dark of open space, engulphed him like falling backwards into shadowy water filled with stars.

(You’re safe.)

That was Andra. Ursa scrambled for his sense of self amid the whirling stars, disoriented and struggling, until bright, brassy-green glimmers appeared out of the darkness and wrapped around him. A moment later, they were followed by more, this time haloed in orange-yellow that somehow felt like amusement.

(Take a minute to get yourself together,) Cygnus, the orange-yellow glimmers, told him calmly. (We’re not going to let you ‘drown’. You’re in my mind. Specifically, on the leading edge of the vision-memory.)

(We didn’t realize how disorienting this would be for you,) Andra agreed, her green glimmers fading to apologetic blue. (It’s easy to forget that what we do isn’t normal for most people.)

(How do you function like this?!) Ursa said incredulously, and didn’t realize he had responded telepathically until the words came out as vivid orange alarm, shot through with pink ribbons of curiosity. (No, don’t explain it. I don’t want to know.)

He took a breath, now vaguely aware of his own body responding, somewhere far away, and braced himself. (I’m ready. Show me.)

(Remember, this is a memory of a vision,) Andra told him when the stars rippled, like the reflection of a night sky on glassy water, disturbed by a single jumping fish. (Nothing here can hurt you.)

Ursa wanted to ask what she meant, and then his eyes fell on the ships.

Thousands of them. Immense, towering vessels. The kind that were specially designed for deep space travel, but much, much bigger. Immense beyond understanding, until he realized that they were asteroids, and moons, and farther back, so far that it was almost lost in the black of space, a ship carved of what could only be a planet.

It wasn’t until his mind shuddered, and he looked closer, that he realized what he thought were little one-man fighters, hovering in swarms around the bigger ships, were actually the same titanic destroyers that were shredding apert his fleet without the slightest effort.

And there were millions of them.

Before he could do anything more than take a single, panicked breath, the stars rippled again and were gone all at once.

He made it to his waste basket just in time to lose everything in his stomach. Icy terror stole the strength from his legs and left him heaving into the little plastic container until he could barely breath and black spots danced around the edges of his vision.

Small hands steadied him and helped him sit back, supported by the wall. Andra offered him a tiny smile even as Cygnus poured a glass of water and knelt to press it into his hand.

(Now you see,) Cygnus told him as he drank, panicked again, and discovered more of the brassy-green glimmers in his mind, soothing away the terror. Andra gave him a tiny, comforting nod, and Ursa couldn’t find it in himself to be anything except grateful for her intervention. (I don’t know how much time we have, but some is more than none. We need to call all our forces together. Because they’re coming, and when they get here, we have to be ready.)

+++

Guiding Stars:

Andra was a mechanic and a pilot with nothing but an old, battered ship to call her own. Cygnus Volans is the most powerful psion to ever live. They were on opposite sides of a messy revolution, until a shared vision of the future brings their two warring sides together against a much greater threat.

Procyon Moon

Altair Chariot

Vega Dignity

Cappella Besieged

Canopus Emergent

Nihal Collision

Spica Interlude

Polaris Eclipsed

Sirius Empowered

Mizar Orbit (Free on Patreon)

Dabih Risen

Ankaa Igniting (Free on Patreon!)

Leporis Crush (Subscriber Only!)

Porrima Chain

+++

MORE STORIES!

+++

[the-yearning-astronaut]

Currently working on

Drawings:

ME HH gift

Live action Kallus

Live action Sabine w Darksaber (concept)

Ahsoka and Din (lines)

Din and Sabine

Kalluzeb sleepy affections (lines)

DinCobb & Grogu (concept)

Rex and Ahsoka (sketch)

Fics:

5+1 Zeb whump - chaptered(3.75/6)

SW BB - likely chaptered (outline)

Din & TR - oneshot (75%)

DinCobb 1 - oneshot (outline)

DinCobb 2 - oneshot (outline)

DinCobb 3 - oneshot (25%)

Bo-Katan and Ursa - oneshot (outline)

Kanan and Hera - oneshot (concept)

Yaim'vhetin - chapter 6 and interlude 6 (both outlined)

If I mention starting ANYTHING ELSE before finishing something first, kindly remind me this list exists by stapling it to my forehead.