#we could have gone back to stupid legends and monsters and two hunters doing their best

[shanastoryteller]

i know supernatural is the show of missed opportunities but man. the trials really get to me - what a perfect way to reboot and reset this show that you're artificially extending for ratings. it could have been really, really good, actually

so the trials of god is a way for someone to gain the ability to seal the gates of hell and the gates of heaven

they have the translation for hell, they know that slamming the gates of hell shut means calling all the demons back home and locking the key. it's logical, then, to for them to believe the same is true of the one for heaven - that it calls all the angels back home and locks them away where they can't do any more damage

peace, for the people of earth, outside of the influence of angels and demons. that's got to be worth it, right?

so while sam is completing the hell trials, they get the angel tablet, kevin gets translating, to figure out the angel trials. or maybe metatron helps nudge them along to figuring it out, since him being the big bad here isn't really relevant and they are in a bit of time crunch

canon doesn't tell us what the heaven trials are, except that the first one involves a ritual using the heart of a nephilim. they make it sound like they're carving it from their chest, but what i would do is

have a nephilim offer you their heart from their chest (gain their loyalty in a binding ceremony)

create grace from freshwater (there is no rain that falls anywhere on earth that is safe to drink and god said let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters)

find a human soul to guide you to heaven (babel fell but the stairway was built and those with wings have no need of stairs)

so sam is in the midst of the hell trials when dean sort of accidentally on purpose completes the first heaven trial and then the brothers are on parallel train tracks heading in the opposite direction

sam works to close the gates of hell

dean works to close the gates of heaven

demons and angels both working to stop them

sam completes the trials. he restores crowley's humanity and he dies and the gates of hell are closed

but that's not the end

metatron says they can close the gates if they're willing to pay the price. canon says the price is sam's death, but frankly that doesn't make any sense. what's the death of one human against the horrors of hell? and remember, metatron doesn't know the winchesters. maybe another angel would make this comment, knowing how the winchesters have weighed the safety of the world against their brother and left the world out to dry, would think this a price worth warning for. but metatron wouldn't bother, wouldn't even think of it, if that was the only price

the gates of hell close and malevolent spirits explode across the globe, evil spirits and angry ghosts causing death and destruction everywhere

hell serves a function and now the gates are closed and every evil human soul is forced to stay on earth, causing as much destruction as it can

that's the price for closing the gates of hell

except. except. aren't the hell trials interesting?

kill a hellhound. rescue an innocent soul and return it to heaven. purify a demon and restore their humanity.

the trials are not to prove if someone is worthy of closing the gates of hell. it's to prove they're capable of setting hell to rights

the trials are if things got too out of hand, if things were taken too far, and hell had to be put back in it's place. sam dies and ends up exactly where azazel wanted him - ruler of hell. all the demons and souls are trapped with him and what he has to do, while he has them all there, while they can't escape, is exactly what he did to get there

he kills the hellhounds, leaving only those meant to patrol hell. he releases every innocent soul bound there. he purifies the demons one by one, who he either releases as innocent souls or who to pledge to do their job as demons of hell - punishing evil, containing evil - in penance for what they did before (how do i even begin to make up for what i've done, crowley had asked, and this is the answer)

meanwhile, dean, heartbroken, completes the heaven trials and dies

and the gates of heaven slam shut and all the angels are stripped of their grace and expelled from heaven and dean finds himself in charge of an empty heaven

the trials are for when things have gone too far and heaven must be rebuilt, after all

good souls pile up, no one who dies able to truly leave earth, and given enough time they become twisted things that must be hunted along with the spirits of evil men and women who cause chaos from their last breath

dean has work to do. he has one angel - the nephilim whose loyalty he earned in the first trial - and this is what he has to do. he recruits more, to replace the ranks, he creates grace and hands it out judiciously. he sends them to guide the good souls home, using the stairway that the former angels wouldn't be able to use even if they wanted to, and each good act and deed earns them a little more grace. former angels throw themselves into the fight for humans, because they know it's the only way that dean will return their grace to them and lift them back into heaven

and in fighting for them, in living like them, they learn to love these creations of their father that they'd despised. they see what he saw and the thought of destroying this place in a civil war becomes unthinkable to them. they are once more the angels god intended them to be

in this, dean and sam fulfill their destiny as lucifer and michael's vessels. not in letting them in, but in pushing them out, in doing the work each was intended for but refused

only when there is only evil human souls being punished and caged, only once the demons are once more working to run hell and earn their release to heaven, does sam reopen the gates of hell

only when there's a full choir of angels once more, committed to their cause, only once there are souls working with reapers as it once always was, does dean reopen the gates of heaven

they're called the god trials for a reason. above and below, sam and dean act as god, putting things back in their intended places

they could stay. they should stay. keeping house, making sure it all goes smoothly, eternally keeping earth safe from angels and demons both

they're called the god trials for a reason. not even god could resist the paradise inbetween that he'd created

dean doesn't know if sam is going to return to earth. he might stay in hell, and if dean becomes human once more, then what's the point? he'll live and die a human, get stuck in heaven, and be forever separated from the brother he loves

sam doesn't know if dean is going to return to earth. he migh not be able to, might be stuck doing his work - sam assumes if the hell trials did this to him, then the heaven trials did the same to dean, and the idea that dean could have failed the heaven trials after he dies doesn't even cross mind. if he returns and dean's not there then he loses it all, he never again gets to see the brother he loves

but when, exactly, haven't they been willing to risk everything for each other?

dean falls as lucifer fell, throwing himself towards earth

sam rises as michael did after the fall, pulling himself towards earth the same way michael once pulled himself to the top of heaven

what's the use of being a god without his brother, after all?

dean and sam are reunited on earth, human once more

no more angels, no more demons, heaven and hell functioning once more as they should. we're back to basics, a clean slate, all of the rest remade and set aside by their own hands (it's literal and a metaphor, the way the show could have remade itself with the trials, after setting aside kripke's plan while at the same time recognizing that the design of it - two brothers who love each other going across america and fighting evil - is the thing that made it worth watching to begin with) and now it's them again, brothers forged in blood and sacrifice and love, and a new appreciation for the humanity they gave up and returned to

and then we get my beloved monster of the week with no stupid too high stakes, convoluted bullshit involved, beyond the occasional angel who dean refused to reinstate and demon tracking down miscreant souls and, every once in a while, a person or creature or something in between squinting at them and going - weren't you two gods?

nah, they say, all corn fed grins and the dimples their momma gave them, we're brothers

[hatmanreviewsmovies]

Missing Link

Hat 1- Story: When Sir Lionel Frost, mainly failed monster hunter, is told the place to find the legendary Sasquatch, he sees it as a way to gain membership to an explorer’s society he’s wanted to be involved in for years. When he gets there, he realizes his sasquatch subject (Mr. Link) was the one who told him the way, in the hopes he’d bring him to the Yetis in the Himalaya. Meanwhile, the members of the society know he will be successful, and hire a hit man to prevent it. 

This is a much simpler, and more comedic storyline than Laika would normally go for. As they are known for their darker, more dramatic films, the story and the entire treatment of it is much more light and humorous.  Those who come to this film expecting the normal Laika mood and tone should be aware of this. However, that is not to say that it is too light. There are components of it that do not work, namely the character of Mr. Link, for reasons to be explained. However, the two other main characters of Lionel Frost and Adelina Fortnight, along with the entire supporting characters from the society, are fantastically engaging and entertaining. All in all, it’s nothing truly bad about it, it’s more the execution I didn’t like so much. .9/1 hat

Hat 2- Performances: So here we arrive and what I find to be the central issue of this film: Zach Galifianakis as Mr. Link. There is nothing particularly bad about him as an actor, but the comedy he is known for is very much leaned into, and it doesn’t fit in the world of this film. His classic fish out of water type character, highly exaggerated and written to be stupid funny, placed against Frost, who is very dry and sarcastic played by Hugh Jackman, really gets annoying in the first act. “’Of course I just did what you said, I’m very literal.’ ‘You could say that’ ‘Of course I could say it, I just did!’” I’d certainly call him the (ahem) weak link of the cast. The rest of the cast is absolutely spot on. Hugh Jackman’s Lionel Frost is hilariously dry and sarcastic, while still being incredibly heartfelt. Zoe Saldana’s Adelina Fortnight is a strong central heart of adventure. Tony Olyphant as the hitman hired to kill Frost is one of the best parts of the whole film, and the English legends they got for the society are absolutely brilliantly hilarious. Mostly spot-on casting. .75/1 hat  

Hat 3- Craft: As always, Laika’s stop motion is state of the art, innovative and absolutely stunning. Vibrant, atmospheric environments, stunning clear blue skies and starry nights, and some of the best stop motion character expressions I have ever seen. There is a sequence at the climax of the second third that features a brilliant action sequence in the narrow hallway of a boat. The way this scene was choreographed and incorporated this environment in an extremely inventive way, it’s some of the coolest stuff I’ve seen in animation, a definition of what makes animation so great, that anything can be done. 

The difficulty is the writing, mainly the comedy, mainly the jokes around Mr. Link. I feel that they leaned too far into Galifianakis's “quirky” “awkward” comedy he is known for. I am not a fan of this, to begin with, but it’s even worse surrounded by so much incredibly good stuff. Laika is known for things being flawlessly crafted, mature and adult in a children’s environment, this is the most childlike they’ve ever gone by ways of comedy, and for me, it didn't work. .75/1 hat

Hat 4- Entertainment Value: Because of this fatal flaw, this film is the least engaging film Laika has ever done. To be sure, the film is well made and very interesting in its attempt to do a standard adventure comedy with a Laika twist. I was never bored, but there were moments when I’d sit back and was not as engaged. .75/1 hat

Hat 5- Memorability: I’ll be honest. The way this film is framed, the story it tells and the performance it features as it’s title character, make it a high-quality mid-range film, which is not to say it’s bad. It’s entertaining and content in it is absolutely worth seeing. But it is the lowest on the Laika film roster. .9/1 hat

TOTAL: 3.5/5 hats

[i4z-0892-il]

Memories Part 2

Author: Jena @i4z-0892-il

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Summary: The Reader suffering from amnesia has been trying to figure out how to function in a world she doesn’t quite fit into, and remember a past she just can’t recall. Until someone almost familiar steps into her life.

Word Count: 4,488

Warnings: Emotional distress, physical aggression, assault

A/N: Next part will likely be the last. Like always please leave me some love! I live for your feedback. Seriously, it’s like my lifeblood. 

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3

-

His pacing back and forth across the floor of their motel room was beginning to not only grate on Sam’s nerves, but it was starting to make him just as antsy. Sam tried to focus on his computer, tried to keep his head in the lore, but the silent stalking was driving him crazy. He’d been walking the same small circle for nearly half an hour, breaking his stoic gaze just long enough to polish off his second beer. Dean just kept replaying the whole scene over and over in his head, the mischievous way your lips curled into your smile, charming as ever. The look on your face when you asked if he knew you. The way his heart dropped like a stone straight into his gut when he lied to your face, and how broken you were when he said it. And then that grimy piece of shit who thought he had the right to lay a single fucking hand on you made him boil over, that was the line. There was no way he could have just sat there and continued to watch it happen, and do nothing. He couldn’t have ignored it if he tried, his need to keep you safe was coded into his DNA.

“So I’m pretty sure it’s another Wendigo there’s tons of legends of them for this area, I’m surprised no one’s come out here sooner.” Sam started to explain, but Dean wasn’t paying much attention, he just nodded absentmindedly and kept pacing the words landing on his ears but not registering. “Sorry, am I boring you with talk of a cannibalistic monster living in the woods of this town?”

“I shouldn’t have left her there.” Dean admitted, finally breaking his silence. Sam sighed as he leaned back in his chair, disgruntled but sympathetic. The recognition painted on your face, and that earth-shattering hopefulness in your eyes, it broke his fucking heart. It made him second guess everything. He’d been certain when this went down that this would be a better life for you, but seeing you there more lost and confused than you’d ever been, he just couldn’t justify it to himself. He hadn’t considered what it would be like to live life with a giant blank where your whole life should have been, and how lonely it must have been for you not knowing anything about yourself, where you came from, who you were. And he did it to you.

“You had to, we shouldn’t have gone in there in the first place.”

“Yeah? And if I hadn’t been there what then? Let that- that asshat put his grubby chicken wing fingers all over her?”

“No, that’s not what I’m saying. Y/n’s a big girl, she can take care of herself.”

“Could. She could have, but that was before, now-”

“Now what, Dean? Now because you had her brain scrubbed clean she’s suddenly some weak thing who needs you to be her knight in shining armor?” Sam stated, his voice harsher than intended, and when Dean went deathly silent he knew he’d struck a nerve. “She’s got to figure out how to live this life without you.”

“You know that’s real funny coming from you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I distinctly remember you singing a different tune when this whole thing happened in the first place.”

“Yeah I was, you don’t mess with people’s heads like that Dean!”

“I had no choice, she was going to die if she stayed in the life.” Dean defended through gritted teeth.

“Yeah? And? So are we!”

“Yeah? And?” Dean sneered, more than offended by his brother’s careless tone. Yeah? And? “You fucking serious? So you wouldn’t have cared if she died? We should have just left her there to bleed out and rot.”

“I didn’t mean it like that. Of course I care, I don’t want to her hurt either. You’re not the only one who was affected by that.” Sam said with a huff and a click of his tongue. Seeing you torn apart and choking on your own blood like that was difficult for him too, he’d have done anything he could have to keep you safe too- within the realm of reason. Taking away your memories, who you were, what you’d seen, everything you ever did, no matter how awful- it just didn’t sit right with him. You didn’t ask for it, you didn’t consent to it, it was just wrong. He knew from personal experience that had he been in your shoes, he’d have rather died. “Look, she’s a hunter, always has been, it’s in her bones like it’s in yours and mine. Don’t you think that’s what she would have wanted? Going down fighting. Isn’t that how you want to go out?”

“Nobody wants to die getting ripped to shreds by some fucking monster, Sam. Just because you and I have a death wish doesn’t mean she has to. You don’t think she’d rather live a long, fat, happy life and die of old age instead?”

“No, I don’t. I think she’d rather be on the front lines at the end giving ‘em hell with us. But it doesn’t matter what I think she wants, and it doesn’t matter what you think she wants. It matters what she wants, and she doesn’t know what the hell she wants because she doesn’t even know who the hell she is. Her life is never going to be apple-pies and white picket fences, Dean.”

“Then why are you fighting me so hard on this?” Dean hollered, his temper getting the best of him, he couldn’t think straight, you’d always made that difficult. He loved and hated you for it, you made him second guess things, and play it a little safer, but it also meant that when if came to you, and to Sam all logic flew out the window.

“Because you decided to do this to her! You were the one who made the choice to wipe her brain, Dean. You were absolutely sure this was the best thing you could do for her, and you knew what that meant. You don’t get to just change your mind on a whim. It’s her life, her’s, she makes the choices, not you.”

“A whim? This is Y/n, Sam. She’s not a whim, or some fleeting fancy, she’s not just some random girl. This is Y/n. I couldn’t lose her Sammy, I couldn’t watch her die.”

“Look, Dean, I know this is hard for you, but you can’t play ping pong with her head like this, it’s not right, and it’s not fair to her. So the way I see it is either we clean up this case, and put this town in our rear-view and let her figure her new life out by herself, or you tell her the truth and hope to god that she’s stupid enough to forgive you. You can’t have it both ways.” Sam finished. Dean knew he was right, he wouldn’t admit it, but he knew. He knew he was wrong for doing this to you in the first place. But he was far too angry to agree with anything Sam had to say at the moment, all he could do was jock his jaw and leave. Dean grabbed his jacket and keys and headed for the door.

“Dude, where are you going?” Sam called after him already knowing the answer. He sighed defeated by the sound of a slamming door, and the Impala roaring to life.

-

Benny locked up the back door and turned to look at you, who was once again just out of it, lost in space. He wasn’t even sure if you were capable of staying on Earth for longer than only a few minutes at a time. Since you walked into town you were more wrapped up in your own personal dreamland than any single person he’d ever met. More often than not he wondered what went on inside that pretty head of yours, but you were never one to share, and he wasn’t one to push. Though this time you seemed different, there was a sadness lingering on your lips, and the wistful light in your eyes was dim, and he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. It was a look he hadn’t seen on you before, and it was one that was unsettling, you seemed in pain.

“You sure you don’t want me to give you a lift home?” He offered, you shook your head dropping back into the world at the sound of his voice, only really catching the last few words of his question.

“No, I’ll be alright. I think the walk will be a good thing, cold air, good for the bones.”

“Y/n you live 5 miles down the road, and it’s pitch black, you sure that’s a good idea?” He said with a kind smile. You nodded in response trying to brush him off.

“Yeah I’ll be fine. Just in my head too much is all.

“Speakin’ of, you got something rolling around in there that’s buggin’ you?”

“It’s nothing, I just thought I recognized someone, but I was wrong.”

“Yeah, you said that earlier. Someone from before the accident maybe?” He pressed, and when you turned your head to face away from him he could see the tears gathering in your eyes.

“Maybe,” you shrugged, biting into your lip. “But it doesn’t matter.”

“Obviously it does.”

“I just… I thought for a second that maybe, just maybe, I’d finally be able to get some answers, but I was wrong. And I’m pretty sure I’ll never know, and I’m just going to live the rest of my life not knowing, with this- this hole where everything from before should be.” The word vomit just came out against your will, but if there was someone you could trust it was Benny. “Do you know what it’s like to not even know your own name?”

“No, but you are Y/n.”

“You don’t know that. I don’t know that!  I woke up in a hospital and was told that was my name which, by the way, was given by two random dudes who literally couldn’t tell them anything else! I don’t remember my own birthday- I mean I have to have one right? When is it? Your guess is as good as mine. Benny I have scars that I can’t remember how they got there. I don’t remember family, I don’t know if I have brothers or sisters. I don’t know anything about myself, hell I know more about you than I do myself.” Streaks of wet fell down your cheeks, it was the first time you were admitting anything to anyone, and once the words came out of your mouth they seemed somehow more real than when they were in your head.

“Alright, look I’m not lettin’ you walk home by yourself like this.” Benny said draping an arm over your shoulders giving you a gentle squeeze and leading you to his car, this time you didn’t argue. You slumped in the seat facing out the window, it was silent for what felt like an eternity. “Y’know, I don’t know what you’re going through, I can’t even imagine. But what I do know is that whoever you were before doesn’t make a difference in who you are now. You’re a good kid-”

“Kid? I may not know how old I am but I’m pretty sure I’m well into my twenties.” You snipped. He chuckled and put his hands up in surrender.

“My mistake, you’re a good woman, Y/n. You’re a hard worker, and you like to stare into space more than literally any other person I’ve ever met. You said you liked those calla lillies I brought in that one time.”

“So?”

“So you don’t know who you were, but you can start with who you are now. You like classic rock, y’like whiskey, and can throw ‘em back with the best of them. And apparently you can kick a little ass, broke that boy’s nose like you were just flipping a page in a book.” He said impressed, you scoffed. The car pulled into the drive outside of your little shack, and he took your hand softly before you slipped out, catching your attention. “So what your brain’s got some issues, it’s not a race to the finish line, it’ll come to you. In the meantime you just gotta figure out who you are now.”

“Thanks Benny.” You replied with a grateful smile, before sliding out of the seat. It may not have been what you wanted to hear, but it was what you needed to hear. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He waved at you before he pulled off leaving you standing in the middle of your gravel driveway. You pursed your lips as you watched his tail lights fade down the empty stretch of road. Your’s was the very last house on the street, the closest neighbor was nearly half a mile down. And your house- if you could call it that- was more like a rickety old cabin that no one else was willing to live in, set just a little too far into the woods, and a little too close to the foot of the mountains. Everyone thought it was just a little too unsettling back there, and no one could figure out why you’d sleep there, let alone live there. You’d heard the whispers about it, about the Thing that lived there in the trees, no one was willing to shed much light on it for you, and you didn’t really want to know either.

Rock and gravel crunched under your boots as you made your way up the long driveway, a single light on your porch being the only guidance you had to get where you were going. You’d walked that path one hundred times in day and at night but tonight the air felt different. There was an eerie thickness to the fog that rolled through the trees, making your gait quicker and your eyes dart around you in terrified caution. You fumbled with your keys tring to unlock your door, the panic in your gut making it hard to concentrate and only subsiding once you twisted yourself inside the door and locked it tight behind you. You let out a huff, your back pressed against your door feeling safer just being surrounded by walls again.

“That was weird.” You sighed to yourself as you discarded you jacket, and proceeded to check the locks on you the back door and your windows, eyes lingering on the fog crowding the trunks of the thicket of trees around your home. Tearing yourself away, something in the back of your mind warning you not to look for too long, you slipped into the bathroom and into the shower. The heat of the water over your shoulders eased some of the tension you’d been holding for the last few hours. Green eyes flashed in your head, and you let out a frustrated huff, you didn’t catch his name. But his handsome face was going to be etched into your mind forever, one you’d never forget.

You slipped out of the shower, wrapping a towel tight around yourself as you watched yourself in the mirror. The girl looking at you was still a stranger, and you tried to befriend her but it was just so hard. Your fingers traced lightly over the long ugly scars that were ragged over your shoulder and down your chest and arms. You wanted so desperately to know where they came from- car accident. Sure. But those weren’t the only ones, there was one in your hip, circular and deep looking more like a bullet hole than anything else. There were four long scratches on your back going from your right shoulder blade to your left hip and you’d gone into the hospital with those. You’d study them time and time again praying that the marks would reveal secrets to you that you should have already known, but they just left you looking on in disgust, and shame. They were ugly, you thought, they were ugly because you didn’t know their stories and what they meant, and you would have given anything to just know. To know so you could feel like you didn’t have to hide them, like you didn’t have to keep yourself away. So maybe you could feel a little more secure in your own skin.

Slipping into a pair of cotton shorts and a black tank top you tied your hair away from your face and padded back to the kitchen to make yourself a pot of coffee. It was nearly three in the morning but there was nothing more soothing to you than a cup of hot coffee, well, except the man’s voice in your head. But you had to figure out how to put him out of your mind, each flicker of him burning a hole in your chest. You filled the pot with water, your eyes flicking up through the window and into the black of the trees. The water started to overflow but you couldn’t look away, something had you transfixed, and you worried that if you stared long enough something unnatural would move through the shadows. You let out a surprised scream and nearly jumped out of your skin dropping the pot in the sink when a knock on your door came. You clenched your jaw tight as you moved to it, trying to convince yourself that you were just freaking yourself out. A second round of knocking startled you again in your hesitation trepidation prickling your skin. You let you an anxious and frustrated, stuttering breath as you reached for the lock.

Cracking the door open you held your breath letting it out with an irritated sigh as your eyes landed on Parker Delaney standing on your stoop. The fucking nerve of that guy.

“What are you doing here Parker?” You said flatly, and less than happy to see him or his over-sized pick-up truck in your driveway. He smiled at you as if it was perfectly okay for him to be there at two-thirty in the morning. “It’s late, you want to see me that badly you know where I’ll be tomorrow.”

“Yeah I know, I just meant what I said earlier Y/n. It’s dangerous for a young lady like you to be out here all by yourself. Lots of frightening Things creep around these parts.”

“I think I’ll manage.” You replied unamused the only creep that bothered you was him. When you moved to close the door, you were met with his hand pressed against it from the other side preventing you from latching it. “Parker, let go, I’m tired, and I want to go to bed.”

“And I just want to talk to you.”

“Talk to me tomorrow at the bar. Please go.”

“Nah, I don’t want to talk there.” Parker growled, before throwing his weight into the door, forcing it open with a solid crack against your head dropping you to the floor. If you hadn’t been afraid before you certainly were now as he crossed the threshold into your home uninvited and threatening. You crawled away backwards your head split and disoriented. He seemed taller, bigger, more imposing than he ever had before. Parker stalked towards you something primal and predatory in his eyes making your blood freeze like ice in your veins. He was getting too close, and you shot your foot out landing hard in his groin before you flipped over and clumsily tried to stand and run. All it did was serve to piss him off more and before you could reach a bedroom door to barricade yourself he had you by the hair yanking you backwards sending you crashing over the kitchen table and toppling into the wall, knocking the air from your lungs.

-

It was creepy, and he knew it, but it wasn’t enough of a deterrent to make him stop. He wasn’t stalking, just checking in. He cut the lights off on the Impala and rolled up the driveway as quietly as he could, although the thundering rumble of her engine and the crunching of gravel beneath her tires was more than enough to give him away. Curiosity had gotten the best of him, and Sam was right, he had to choose. Choose your happiness, or his. Dean figured if he could just see you in your own element if he could see that you were alright then he could be alright with it. But rolling up on your ramshackle house was more depressing than he’d anticipated. He hadn’t expected you to be in the lap of luxury, but the consequences of your memory loss dawned on him. You were just a waitress, making a waitress salary, with no other means of income, no money set aside or away, that was the best you were getting, and it was his fault. The pick-up truck in your driveway was familiar, he thought he’d seen it at the bar. Maybe you were alright after all. He had no room to be jealous, he had you once, had his chance. But then he sent you away. It was natural that you’d move on- since you had nothing to move on from. Dean’s jaw locked tight as the idea crept into his skull, obviously it was a possibility that you’d find someone else. You were you, and you were beautiful and strong and one hell of a woman. Anyone would be lucky, but you’d been his. And he didn’t like to share, it didn’t matter how irrational it was. His eyes landed on your door standing wide open and he cocked his head quizzically. The violent sounds of furniture breaking and glass smashing immediately put him on edge, and he tore himself out of the Impala without second thought, reaching behind him ready to pull the pistol tucked into his waistband.

What Dean saw when he stepped into your hovel sent him into a burning rage. Parker standing over you, gripping you by the collar of your shirt, while you stared up at him defiantly and frightened, blood dripping from a gash at your hairline. He pulled his gun and whipped the butt of it against Parker’s temple, landing with a crack and dropping him into an unconscious heap to the floor. He crouched to his knees, taking your face gently in his hands, worried olive eyes washing over you.

“You okay?” He begged, you nodded and shook your head as you tried to string together a thought but your head was fuzzy and you were shaking from a very real fear. Dean’s warm hands cupping your face instantly gave you a sense of safety and security, you may not have known him but you wish you had.

Parker groaned rolling onto his side trying to figure out what the fuck just happened, gripping the side of his head. Dean wasted no time yanking him up by the collar, seething hatred twisting his features into a menacing grimace as he slammed Parker against a wall nearly lifting him off his feet.

“You’re gonna walk out of this house, and you’re never gonna come back. You’ll never speak to her again, you so much as look at her again and I’ll fucking kill you.” His voice was low and threatening and all too serious. Parker gave a terrified nod in response, not wanting to stay long enough to find out whether or not Dean would deliver on his promise. He stumbled out the door as quickly as he could to his truck.

Dean turned back to face you dropping to one knee again, your expression unreadable attempting to sort out the train of events that had happened in rapid succession.

“I… P-parker he.. I didn’t want to let him in.” You stumbled through your words as Dean helped you to your feet, your eyes darting over the mess in your home, not sure you understood what had just happened. He gathered you in his arms holding you tightly to his chest, firm, and warm, and home. He pressed his lips into your hair, breathing in the scent of your shampoo before breaking away enough to examine the gash in your forehead.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner Y/n.” He said your name again and it didn’t fail to pull a reaction from every fiber of your body. You locked onto his eyes peering into his soul, your gaze so intense and sincere it would have made him uncomfortable had it been anyone but you.

“I know you.” You stated, it wasn’t a question this time, it was a fact. He was the man from your dreams, the one who would wrap you up in strong arms and whisper your name with a sweetness that made you feel full and loved. You didn’t know how it was possible, or where you knew him, but you knew you weren’t just making him up. He was real, and standing right in front of you and looking at you. Looking at you with eyes so fucking green you could drown in them. Tears welled and your voice came out broken choking in your throat with the inability to understand and piece the puzzle together. “How do I know you? Who are you?”

Dean’s full lips parted as his eyes turned to the floor, not wanting you to see the pain he was trying to keep buried under lock and key, and not wanting to see the streams of wet roll down your cheeks or it would destroy him. He wanted to speak but no sound came out. A bloodcurdling scream ripped through the thick silence making both you and Dean jump in surprise. But while you were immediately terrified, he went on alert, his head snapping to your still open door. He stretched one arm behind him pulling you flush and protected against his back, gun pointed and at the ready in the other. Your fingers curled into the fabric of his jacket at his shoulder blade clutching on for dear life. As a unit you cautiously approached the door, Parker’s truck still sitting under the dim light of your driveway, but no sign of him.

Another scream came from behind your house, and another from the side, a voice similar to Parker’s but not quite a perfect imitation. There was something off about the sound, something just slightly unreal, guttural and feral.. Dean slammed the door shut locking it quickly as the revelation dawned on him.

“Fuck.”

“What? What is it?” You beckoned he was afraid and you figured if he was then you should be too. Sam’s words from the motel echoed in his head, as panic surged through his veins from head to toe like wildfire.

“Wendigo.”

[douxreviews]

Legends of Tomorrow - ‘Terms of Service’ Review

"The power is in the Palm(er) of your hands."

Is it rude to point out that the Emperor has no clothes, if you point out at the same time that the Emperor is super ripped and has been clearly doing a lot of cardio?

Because.... Damn, Emperor. You got it going on.

Which is, of course, my frivolous and subtextually homoerotic way of saying that there's an embarrassment of riches in this episode when it comes to things to like, but they all kind of rely on some serious glossing over of problem spots.

The problem in a nutshell can be boiled down to one thing. The basic opening foundation for this episode doesn't match at all with where things were left at the end of the previous one. I'm tempted to assume that I'd missed an entire episode worth of plot development, except that I know perfectly well that I didn't. It's almost as if the writers room broke a 17 episode series of stories and then just completely excised one of them when they found out they were only getting 16 to air.

For the love of God, CW, please start giving Legends a full boat of 22 episodes. It's getting embarrassing.

OK, so here's what I mean. A not insignificant portion of the plot development tonight entirely relies on the fairy godmother currently being under Gary's control. That's actually an inspired plot development, and his relationship both with Tabitha and with the next inheritor of the fairy godmother mantle were pure gold as far as both comedy and plot development goes.

The problem is, when exactly did Fairy Godmother bond herself to Gary? He calls to her at the end of the previous episode and she saves him from Mona as if their relationship was an established thing, but unless I missed something significant completely, that was not a thing they'd ever set up.

I'll be fair. I drink a lot of wine. If I missed something that explains this, please do let me know in the comments.

Additionally, at the end of 'Nip/Stuck,' Mona ate off Gary's evil nipple – not a sentence you get to type every day – and Gary was rushed out of the Time Bureau with unconscious Mona, Tabitha, and Neron in Ray's body. The implication strongly was that Gary's nipple was behind the mass hypnosis of the Bureau, and now that it had been destroyed the bureau was saved. Left behind to witness the bad guys escape was Nora, Ava, and Sara.

This week we open with the bad guys still in possession of the Bureau, only now it's due to Gary's influence over the fairy godmother rather than his fancy hypnotic nipple. Not only do we see no evidence of the bad guys leaving the bureau together, they aren't even all in a group anymore. Mona is imprisoned in the Bureau cells, which makes no sense if they were fleeing with her body ten minutes earlier. Neron and Tabitha aren't even there anymore as they're busy setting up 'PalmerX 2019,' a low key tech con with only one panel and one guest. Ava and Sara are back on the Waverider as if they'd never liberated the Bureau in the first place, and Nora is Die Harding her way to rescue Mona with no mention of how she got separated from them.

I'm sorry, show, but I have to ask. Did you smoke a gigantic bag of crack between these two episodes, or what?

It's all very frustrating, because I said earlier, where they take all of those plot threads is fantastic. Neron's plan to create fear using the monsters so that people will download an app in order to locate the monsters and in doing so sell their immortal souls through a lengthy terms of service agreement is both goat-shit crazy and completely brilliant. What's more, it would absolutely work. If you doubt it, just consider how much none of us noticed when the guests of PalmerX were shown agreeing to a terms of service agreement that they didn't read. Seriously, go back and look. The camera shots practically luxuriate on people swiping through the TOS as fast as they can, but nothing about that reads as unusual or sinister to us anymore and so we just blanked it out.

Similarly, Tabitha's plan to trick Nora into taking on her fairy godmother mantle was inspired, despite being lifted pretty completely from genie-lore, particularly Disney's Live Action Aladdin Soon in Theaters Near You. And God bless the show for keeping Jane Carr around as Tabitha. I absolutely expected that they'd find an excuse to recast Tabitha into the body of someone younger and sexier as soon as they possibly could, because that's the kind of gross thing that network execs tend to insist on. I love, love, love that they're keeping her around as Neron's love interest. And while we're talking about it, it's such a good choice for them to show that Neron and Tabitha do genuinely love each other. It would have been so easy to tumble into the cliché of a villain team eager to backstab one another.

But the best choice this episode made was in the nature of Gary Green himself. Wonderful reveal that Gary was perfectly aware the entire time that the fairy godmother was trying to get him to wish hurt on the Legends and so he was deliberately just focusing on wishing to hang out with them as a way of defying her. Even when 'Dark Gary' finally gets called forth, his glorious flow of vengeance never goes further than acne and tap dancing. Gary is a good man, fundamentally. And he's absolutely right, he does not deserve to be laughed at. I've been saying since the beginning of the season that the Legends need to face a consequence for the way they're played Gary as convenient bait that can be had for a little flattery. I think they finally learned that lesson here.

Which brings lastly to John Constantine, in a plotline I like to call, 'This should absolutely have been an entire episode all on its own.'

When they mentioned Hell's Triumvirate I briefly entertained the thought that they might be about to do the good parts of 'Dangerous Habits' that everybody always leaves out when they try to adapt it, but alas, no. It felt right that he chose Astra over Ray, as much as it broke my heart, and it felt equally right that Astra betrayed him. Can't wait to see what will happen there when Nora gets to Hell to rescue John. I do, however, which that they'd gone with the imagery from the comics and had Astra only have one arm.

Everybody remember where we parked:

There was actually shockingly little travel this week. The Waverider just hung around Washington D.C. in 2019, and a couple of our heroes went to Hell, which may or may not equate to the same time zone, it's hard to tell.

What is interesting is the reveal that Zari grew up a little outside of D.C. Did we know that already, or was that a reveal of convenience this week? Zari appeared to me to be in the 8-10 range, although I am a notoriously bad judge of age so she might be a bit older. That actually answers a couple of longstanding questions I was pondering last year about what baby Zari might be up to in our time period.

Zari mentions that it's only a few years away from when ARGUS takes over everything and creates an anti-Meta, anti-Muslim Dystopia. We're all kind of assuming they're just never going to deal with that, aren't we?

Quotes:

Sara: "Mick, Nate, do you think you can handle Tabitha?" Mick: "Granny’s dead."

Sara: "OK, can you guys stop being dragon baby crazy right now?"

Gary: "And now I have three nipples, because a spare never hurts." Having a third nipple was historically a sign of witchcraft. There is a zero percent chance the writers don't know that.

Calibraxis: "You’re dead, demon hunter!" Constantine: "I was gonna be a demon proctologist, but the pay wasn’t as good."

Calibraxis: "I’m a demon, not a pirate, John."

Zari: "It’s a demon app. I’m gonna read the fine print."

Charlie: "If I die, I’m gonna come back and haunt you." Zari: "I would love a ghost friend."

Nora: "Gary, you dick!"

Bits and Pieces:

-- This season has for some reason brought up a lot of embarrassing confessions from me. Adding to the list that already contains my love of semiotics and the assembly of flatpack furniture, this week I have to tell you how much I love logo design. Honestly. I bring this up because the PalmerX logo is a masterwork. The solid 3-D cube implied by the background framing device conveys an unspoken implication of solidity and dependability with the third implied square breaking the frame and shooting 'toward' the viewer implying a daring willingness to work outside conventional rules and by implication 'think outside the box.' The coloring, meanwhile, subtly underscores the 'Palmer' portion of the name, thus reinforcing the higher brand. Honestly, and with no ironic joking involved, the PalmerX logo is a f*cking masterpiece of work.

-- I actually have a startling number of opinions on the quality of logo design. Feel free to ask, but I warn you that the answers get lengthy.

-- I get that they were underscoring the connection between Tala Ashe and Zari's younger self, but that hairstyle just fundamentally did not work for her. That's actually kind of rare and notable for her. Just about every hairstyle they've ever given her has looked gorgeous.

-- Looks like Wixtable the dragon is hatching in time for the season finale.

-- I went back and forth on whether or not it was smart or stupid for Zari to have brought the egg with her on the mission. Ultimately, I think there was no guaranteed safe place for the egg, given how often messed up stuff happens on the Waverider when they aren't there.

-- I hope Nate is understanding about Zari leaving the egg behind.

-- So many questions about why Nate has a 'Kid Steel' costume hanging around. And why Gary picked it.

-- This week's fabulous dress watch. Jane Carr looked stunning in that evil black number she adopted once she'd ditched her godmother duties. Also, the designer of that asymmetrical sheath number that Nora wore to PalmerX is underpaid. Regardless of how much he or she is paid, they are underpaid. That dress was amazing. Please, please, Courtney Ford, tell me that you stole that dress and have it in your personal collection. Also, call me. We'll brunch.

-- They're really getting their money out of the Stein puppet. Bless.

-- Hell's triumvirate included Satan, not Lucifer. Which means a crossover with Lucifer is still possible. Fun fact, in the comics the triumvirate in Hell stepped in to rule when Lucifer left to go open up his nightclub in LA. Which means it all totally works together if they can get Tom Ellis to make a stop in the Waverider. And then possibly he and Matt Ryan could share a torrid embrace and... I'm sorry, what were we talking about again?

-- That's like the third episode in a row where they've mentioned Damien Darhk. Dare we hope to see him again next season?

If you squint at it and assume that we missed an episode of plot development, this would easily be a four. Sadly, we can't, and so I can't in good conscience give it more than three out of four fantastic logos.

Mikey Heinrich is, among other things, a freelance writer, volunteer firefighter, and roughly 78% water.

[asaeria]

The Red Flags in my Past Relationship

I think my relationship with my first ex is probably the funniest. I reread my diary and god was I so stupid. There were so many red flags that got ignored due to me being blinded by love. It was so toxic and bad for me and yet I took all of the shit. SIGH.

It all started when I got into high school. I noticed him walking down the halls (he was in grade 11 at the time) and I was smitten with him. I've had crushes before, my first one lasted 7 years, so I was used to imagining myself in situations with my crush that were wayyy over romanticized. Just as dramatic and cringey as the Twilight saga. So I pretty much "stalk" him for my grade 9 year. Stalk as in notice him in the halls and I'd stare at him till he was gone from view. I think I started talking to him in grade 10 when I joined a musical ensemble that he was in. And this is where it started.

I was given my first red flag before we even began dating...

Flag #1. We had our "first" date at his house during school hours, so yeah I had to skip class for this. We watched a scary movie and the entire time he asked if I needed comfort, which the shy lil' me at the time kept declining. But I mean, what guy would ask a girl over to watch a scary movie with him if he intend for it to be a date..? So almost 5 months past (Oct - Feb) and nothing really happens between us. At our school for Valentines Day you can choose to buy a rose (or roses) for people which get delivered on the day of Valentines Day. I obviously bought one for him. I ended up finding out he bought a rose for another girl who only walked with him during a fashion show in school. They knew each other as much as he and I knew each other so when I found out he did that I was devastated. He must've not seen me as worthy of being chased by him if he's gonna drop me after our first date and go after another girl, right? AND YET I STILL confessed my love to him in April. Ironically he gave me a rose when he responded to my confession. LOL I learned that if your dude can jump from girl to girl that quickly just avoid him entirely.

Flag #2. A month after we started dating I already had insecurities. This was also the month he made his first major move towards me, a kiss. And around 3-5 months in he had already fingered me. I was 15-16 at the time as well. I never had a relationship before so I didn't know that there were boundaries I had to set up. I didn't think that him touching me in such places meant he was taking advantage of me because I was so blinded by my dumb love for him. I didn't say no to anything because I was naive and thought that he's only doing these things because he loved me too. I found out a year after our relationship started that he only started "liking" me 6 months into our relationship. Which meant he kissed and touched me inappropriately before he even liked me back. I started to feel disgusted at my OWN body and that is NOT okay. If you don't feel ready to have sex, let alone being touched inappropriately do not be afraid to say NO!

Flag #3. So around January (9-10 months after the relationship started) he told me his dad used all the internet for the month or something so I won't be able to reach him through Facebook or any other social media for at least 3 days. He also bought the new 3DS and the new Monster Hunter game around the time his internet ran out too. The 3 days past and I missed him terribly and I figured he probably missed me as much as I missed him. He invites me to play Terraria with him and not even 5 minutes into it he leaves me for his 3DS. You see, I started playing Terraria with him because I wanted us to have some sort of game we can play together. This was our "couple game" sort of. I waited 10-20 minutes for him to finish so that we could play together but he ends up ending our call to eat dinner. I figured, ok he will probs play with me after dinner. The moment he comes back he says "sorry in a fight LOL" which I guess he meant a fight in Monster Hunter, "glhf (good luck have fun) in terraria." So I logged out of Terraria, why would I play a game you invited me to by myself? He notices this 10 minutes later and says "o guess you're not playing." are you mf serious? I told him "uhm cuz it's not fun playing alone??" which he replied with "ok maybe later then LOL" <- this was at 9:30 pm. That was around the time I would be sleeping. He knew I slept early too. This shows how little he cared for me and our relationship.

Example of how our conversations would usually go:

A day later I hit him up with "I'm backk... from the dead"

A: "still assuming you're mad at me ok bye"

Me: "I'm not D: Well I was. But not anymore."

A: "You get mad at me too often LOL"

Me: "^^^ maybe because you're oblivious" and just when I sent that...

A: "NADDHUAGDAIDDB. NEWWW TOKYO GHOUL. SWAG SWAG. SWAG SWAG SWAG SWAG SWAG SWAG SWAG"

Me: "I should date women instead. LOL oh yay. wait what new?"

A: "NEW SEASON. oh ok. I c how you feel about me"

Me: "I watched the first ep. Too gruesome. so I stopped ;n; and uh idk"

A: "AYYEEEEE GRUESOME"

Me: "boys have trouble paying attention to detail."

A: "^"

Me: "nonono. I can't watch gruesome stuff ;n; I like watching things like Spirited Away"

A: "afk. Tokyo Ghoul <3"

Me: "oh gawd. yup yup."

By this point I got so fed up with him. I get that he had his own hobbies and stuff but like it felt more like he didn't want anything to do with me despite me being his girlfriend. It's like he didn't even like me to begin with. My boyfriend now showers me with attention and affection. Even when he goes off to play games he'd always make sure that I was higher priority.

Flag #4. A few times after we have had sex he'd jump right on to his computer and he'd start a League of Legends game just as I'm putting my clothes on. I would even have to see myself out of his apartment and walk myself in the dark to the bus stop in a sketchy ass neighbourhood. I started to feel like he was only dating me just so he can have sex with someone.

Conclusion:

After dating him I realized that I deserve and need to seek way better. He was not right for me as I was not right for him. However, the way he treated me and our relationship was complete ass. I've had people talk shit about me because I'm so vocal about how badly he treated me and honestly? I don't give two fucks about what you think about me because I KNOW I deserved better and can call whoever I want out. I was taken advantage of and I was taken for a fool. Maybe he actually had sincere feelings of love towards me at some point, but it doesn't excuse how he treated me for most of our relationship.

Sucked that this life lesson took 1.5 years of my life.

[katheyroyalsdragososeries]

Book 4 Chapter 4

Kathey sat on her bed, the Council’s books laid out in front of her and a notepad on her knee. The fact that this had turned into an investigation was mildly concerning. Brokenstar was an easy case, Deathbore came to her with the information. The hunters had been stupid enough to kidnap her two youngest fledglings on top of Cyrus and Aaron running out on Garrett and joining Voutneth. Agony exposed himself through nightmares and his stunt on Halloween.

This situation, however. It could be any of the remaining Council members! Lust could be taking them because they’re males, Envy could take them because of jealousy towards big strong males, Greed could take them for collection purposes. There was no telling who it really was.

Kathey chewed on her pen as she read a passage in Pride’s book. She was coming to the conclusion that Pride would probably play tricks on them and be pretty direct like Agony was. Pride was only really good for bragging about how great he was and paralyzing people since Horror Dragons had that ability. She looked up when the door to her room opened and Sylark stepped through.

“Don’t tell me they got Zoymey...” Kathey asked and Sylark shook his head.

“Darkness disappeared. He has not been seen since last night,” Sylark announced and Kathey tossed Pride’s book in front of her.

“Fesh... what is happening? Who the hell is taking males connected to the Academy and more importantly who is doing it?” Kathey asked, not expecting an answer. She shook her head and sighed. “Any clues?”

“Not from what I saw, I assume you will be tracking down other locations to find clues?” Kathey closed Pride’s book and stood from her bed.

“You assume correct, Samual still here?” She started out without waiting for an answer.

The flight wasn’t long, Samual leading Anna through the skies as he tracked Trevor’s scent. His tongue flicking out to get a better trace of the trail.

“He flew over the treess and landed a few yardsss away,” Samual directed and Anna nodded, following him and spotting broken branched.

“Hang on, Samual,” Anna called out, flailing her wings to stop and hover over the spot. She could see how the snow was disturbed like someone had fallen through the trees and crash landed. Anna was reminded of what Arc might’ve gone through when he had been attacked.

Arc... Anna still struggled to trust the Archangel Dragon considering he had little memory of his past and his wings... Archangel Dragons had a unique trait to them, their alignment was displayed in their wings. White for good, grey for neutral, and black for evil. Arc’s wings were a rich black.

Anna shook her head of the thoughts and flew to land a few yards away from the scene, avoiding disturbing the snow where a dragon had crashed through the trees. Possibly. She approached the area and sniffed around a bit. Trevor was here, no doubt, if the scent of his blood was anything to go by. Water-Ice Dragons had clear blood, but blood is blood, salty and metallic. And with Anna’s Venom Dragon traits, she could pick it up so much better than other dragons that didn’t feed on blood. What she didn’t expect to pick up alongside the scent of blood was a sickening sweet scent. It actually burned her nose when the pheromones hit.

“Ugh, what in Kaylano’s name is that?” She coughed and rubbed at her snout. She looked up when Samual landed and he sniffed the air, flicking his tongue and humming.

“That ssmellss amazing, what iss that?” he questioned, sniffing around for the source. Anna watched Samual search for the scent, then it hit her. A really sweet scent that repelled her, but attracted a male? It sounded so familiar... where had she read that before?

“Samual, let’s go, I need to go to the castle,” Anna said, taking off. Samual’s head shot up from the snow before taking off as well.

“Casstle? Wait, why?” he asked.

“I might know what this is about.”

~oOo~

“Get the hell off of me!” Trevor snapped as Lust drove the heel of her boot into his back. He was on his stomach after being shoved onto it and Lust decided to pull this stunt, whatever it was she had planned.

“Shut it. Behave and maybe I won’t take away your stupid humanity,” Lust threatened and Trevor swallowed. He knew she was a vampire, as for what dragon breed she was, he couldn’t even guess. Her eyes were bright red, much like Agony. But she didn’t have nightmare causing abilities, she couldn’t be a Nega Dragon.

“Leave him alone!” Malice snarled and Lust looked over to the Thunder Dragon.

“Be patient, you’ll get a turn,” Lust purred. Malice growled a warning, baring his teeth which looked like his sharp dragon teeth. So they could get their sharp teeth then. Lust kneeled down with a knee on either side of Trevor’s hips, gripping his hair and pulling his head back, inhaling at his neck. Trevor growled when his hair was pulled.

“Let me go, get off me!” Trevor repeated. Lust hummed like she was thinking about it.

“Mmm, no.” Trevor cried out as the vampire’s fangs pierced his neck. Right away he grew light headed as the life was drained from him. His vision started to get fuzzy when Lust finally pulled away, licking her lips. “Interesting, Water-Ice Dragons have actual cold blood. Rather tasty if I do say so myself.” The weight from Lust is suddenly launched off of Trevor and Haarvik stands over the teen, growling at Lust.

“Stay the hell away from him,” Haarvik commanded. Lust pushed herself up and grinned.

“Look at you protecting the pathetic yearling. Big strong Rukmar protecting the weak human. I hardly took any blood from him and I doubt he can stand.” Trevor grit his teeth and attempted to roll to his back, his head throbbed at trying to sit up so he stayed down.

“I protect them because that’s my job.” Lust scoffed and got to her feet, brushing her skirt off.

“Puh-lease! You’re just obligated to defend the little dragons from the big bad monsters because you are a monster.” Trevor stared up at Haarvik who was tense and his face stoic.

Haarvik? A monster? Lust’s words obviously rubbed the large Rukmar the wrong way. Lust and Haarvik stared each other down for a while before Lust smirked and walked out of the room. Haarvik exhaled and stepped over Trevor and returned to sitting in his spot by Jarin’do who snored away.

“What was she talking about?” Trevor asked, rolling to his side to look at Haarvik. The large creature exhaled and shook his head.

“I don’t know. She may be referring to the near extinction of the Flower Dragons, since I am a Moon Dragon. I have no involvement with that war though,” Haarvik explained. “I was born on Orrumai as a dragon, trained in the ways of dragon magic and was going to be assigned to the temple, but I met Nyx and we started the Night Walkers. I protect others because I was born and trained to protect. I got more out of it with Nyx, Jarin’do, and Kyona.” Trevor hums and Haarvik nods to him. “Get some rest, you’re probably high on endorphins right now, those vampires are known to trigger that reaction when they feed sometimes.”

Trevor attempted to do just that, his dreams being filled with images of Vatuna and a blond haired infant with bright blue eyes.

~oOo~

Anna sifted through book after book in the library, Samual and Welsh sat nearby, watching her look.

“Anna, please, if you would tell me what it is you are looking for, perhaps I can help,” Welsh reminded her for the third time. Anna flapped her wings and hovered in front of the bookshelves, finally finding the books she was looking for. As soon as she pulled them all, she glided to the floor and curled up off to the side, skimming through the first book and finding a passage.

While in legends, Incubi and Succubi are said to take advantage of humans in their sleep, those of the real world work differently. They charm, procreate, and steal the souls of those they have sex with. A trait to assist in these situations is they smell appealing to the opposite sex, while repulsive to the same sex. Succubi have an extremely sweet scent and Incubi have a very spicy smell.

“Extremely sweet smell...” Anna mumbled. She continued reading.

The demons are masters at deception and prefer to infiltrate and charm rather than fight, though they will when provoked.

“Trevor wouldn’t start any unnecessary fights, that’s not in his nature. He’s a big brother, he would protect when needed, not fight if he’s left alone.” Anna flipped open the other few books, dragons with aggressive natures. Venom, Toxic, Toxic Metallic, Xeno. Though at the sight of the Toxic Dragon book, Anna paused and looked up at the shelves. “Toxic Valentine Dragon book?” she asked.

“Shelf eleven,” Welsh informed her and she flew up to search for the book. Anna pulled it and flew back to her spot, looking through the words.

Toxic Valentine Dragons are known to seduce other dragons before killing and eating their hearts. These dragons are able to put any dragon who’s heart is free under a trance and draw them to a destination. These dragons are also known to have Succubus as their non-dragon form. Toxic Valentine Dragons do not have a breath element, but they do have a venomous bite.

Anna looked up at Samual and swallowed. “I need some parchment and ink.” Welsh set a stack of paper on the floor and a bottle of ink and a phoenix feather quill in front of her. Anna wrote out information before rolling the parchment up into a few scrolls and nodded to her teacher. “We must be off, thank you, Welsh.”

“I have hopes you will solve this and bring an end to the Council like your predecessor did years before. May Kaylano guide you in times of need.”

“And may Gradroso grant you eternal life,” Anna replied and Samual followed her out.

“What wass that blesssing?” Samual questioned.

“I am Kaylano’s child of the skies. He watches over me. Welsh is Gradroso’s actual son, so it’s a blessing we say to Welsh personally in hopes he will live on to educate those about the past.”

The two flew back to Voutneth where what members remained of the team. What was a concern though was Zoymey and Galzra were missing. “They’re sparring in the gym,” Mitsua informed Kathey. It brought some relief at least.

“What’s this important information you have for us?” Sonar inquired. Kathey unrolled the scrolls and looked them over before exhaling and looking over what made up her team.

“A Toxic Valentine Dragon is behind the kidnappings. It’s possible she is a Succubus as well, she reeks of a sweet scent that she’s leaving behind,” Kathey started.

“Which means only one specific member is behind this,” Sylark noted and Kathey nodded.

“We’re dealing with Lust,” Kathey continued. “I would consider her a super vampire due to being a vampire and a Venom Dragon. She’s probably under orders from Agony, if his plan was to fail, she was to begin this one. Frankly it makes sense considering she lures away the physical strength of the team.”

“It’s not going to work though,” Tikimune bragged and Kathey smirked at her optimism.

“No, it’s not, because we’ve proved we’re not a typical source of power. I want everyone to keep an eye on each other, I have cots on hand to set up in the gym to sleep. They still have to put furniture together for the dorm and staff rooms. There’s space outside for the cold lovers.” Kathey looks over at Brenda, Aya, and Ractor who grinned back. “Ractor, I would be careful about being outside though.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Ractor replied.

“Rest up, train up, we’ll talk plan in the morning. Dismissed.”

[crimsondomingo]

Day 9: Supernatural

For my July AU a Day Challenge

Ray never intended to become a fae hunter. Or monster hunter? Honestly, he didn’t know what he was hunting most the time, but he’d come across more faerie like monsters than monster movie monsters. Tonight, however, he was after a werewolf, which might have been exciting if it wasn’t so terrifying.

He didn’t have any research on werewolves, all he knew was from the movies, and he was fairly certain silver bullets wouldn’t cut it in real life. Usually, the legends were tweaked for reality. He decided to try silver casings he’d gotten just in case and go for the heart. Heart or head usually worked for just about anything.  

The point was, Ray hadn’t intended for this life, it found him, a cliché through and through that he’d ended up in a fight or die lifestyle all for revenge in the name of one he’d loved.

Shadows darted in front of his car where he’d been waiting for the sun to set. It was gone now, leaving the warehouse district in near blackness, but something was out there.

The wolf.

Ray had had trouble tracking it, but a lot of food had been going missing and he’d discovered a few stray trails leading this way. Why a werewolf needed to steal groceries when he was also eating people, Ray had no idea, but he didn’t care. He needed to put this thing down.

Slipping out of his car, he quietly got what he needed from the trunk and gave chase. The moving shadows had headed toward the largest warehouse, one clearly abandoned, the perfect location for an evil lair.

On Ray’s better days, he enjoyed the chase and adventure and being someone maybe a little heroic. It was better than thinking of what he’d lost.

He heard shuffling and continued toward it. Despite being almost 6’4” and well-built, he could move swift and silent with ease, which may have been the only reason he’d survived his first few encounters. He had some self-defense training, he worked out, but he wasn’t a gladiator or soldier with combat experience. A lot of it had been luck and good timing in the beginning. He’d been doing this enough months now that he felt more confident, and if his opponent was sloppy enough to shuffle, he should be able to put this puppy down in a blink.

More shuffling. But wait—from the other side of the building. Ray could have sworn he was following something on the right. What if there were two?

A flash of something bright and blue illuminated the large open space, and Ray blinked through the immediate blindness when he’d been adjusted to the dark. Did the werewolf have some sort of flare?

Another spark of blue, but Ray was easily able to dodge. And man, was it cold in this place.

The shuffling headed left toward the, well, other shuffling, so Ray gave chase. He reached a spot where he thought the shuffling might have converged, but then…nothing.

Taking out his flashlight, Ray scanned along the surfaces near him. He couldn’t hear anything else, but the left wall had streaks of bright yellow along it like…gold?

He scanned his flashlight down and saw a stack of boxes, one still wobbling as if it had been disturbed recently. Ray didn’t know what was going on, but he wouldn’t be surprised again. He raised his gun and knocked the boxes aside to find—

Two crouched, terrified kids, an older boy about 7 and a girl about 4. Neither of them were covered in fur.

“What—”

“Get away from them!”

A powerful hand gripped Ray’s shoulder and lurched him back with such force, he went flying, halfway back across the warehouse floor.

Ray gasped as the wind knocked from him on impact, but he somehow managed to hang onto his flashlight and gun. Scrambling to peer back into the darkness at his attacker, he soon saw no reason to use the flashlight, because the large brute stalking toward him gave a growl more human than wolf and suddenly lit up his forearms with flames, head on fire too, with tongues of light dancing from his eyes.

“Holy shit, you’re Ghost Rider… I-I wouldn’t harm any kids!” Ray tossed his gun and flashlight away and held up his hands rather than shoot, which he realized after the fact might have been a stupid idea.

But the man on fire calmed as he reached him, looking annoyed and surprised together. “I’m a salamander, you idiot.”

“A…lizard?”

“Fire fae.”

“Oh! So he’s…” Ray glanced at the boy amongst the pair as they came forward to stand behind their guardian. He had that brilliant blue dancing around his hands.

“Ice,” the man grunted.

“And she’s…”

“Both. Her ma from my tribe got mess up with his pop. Mix ‘em together, you get gold, like a Midas touch.”

It was gold on the walls. “You’re all faeries.”

“Don’t go thinking that means I’m nice or mischievous. I’ll tear you limb from limb, you hunter scu—”

“I was hunting a werewolf, not you!” Ray held up his hands higher, slowly starting to stand but leaving his gun and flashlight on the ground. “I thought—”

“You’re going after that wolf?” the boy asked from around the man’s legs. He had very bright blue eyes to match his powers.

“He’s been nothing but trouble for us,” the man said, “bringing unwanted attention. Have at it then, hunter, and leave us alone.” His large, meaty hands, doused from their fire now to leave just a man, gently pulled the kids in on either side of him, hugging them to him, which was actually rather sweet, such a large man with two tiny faerie children.

Ray let his hands drop. “Umm, do you think you could maybe—”

“What?” the fire flared in his eyes again. “You gonna give me and my kids trouble?”

“No! I just…don’t really have a ton of experience and… This will be my first wolf, so I could use some advice?”

“Great, he is an idiot,” the boy said with far too sophisticated and mature a drawl for one so young.

His sister giggled.

“I’m just new at this,” Ray said. “It’s only been a few months since…since this thing killed my fiancé. I just want to stop it from hurting any other good people. And if I find other bad beings along the way, I’ve been trying to stop them too. I don’t want to hurt anyone living their lives or just trying to get by. Only bad guys hurting others. Besides, I could help you in return.”

“How?” the man asked skeptically.

“I’ve run across other hunters. I could make sure they don’t give you any trouble. You shouldn’t have to hide in a warehouse. You can come stay with me at my hotel.”

The girl perked up at this, probably at the thought of sleeping in a real bed, but the boy narrowed his eyes with uncertainty.

“The kids are still learning their powers,” the man said.

“I know how to use my powers!” the boy defended.

“Not flawlessly you don’t.”

The young girl looked away, clearly less confident than her brother.

“It’s okay,” Ray said. “We’ll make it work. Please? You could help me with creatures I’m unfamiliar with, and I can help you with groceries and staying off other hunters’ radars.”

“You sure don’t seem like one of those usual assholes. Fine, but only until you take care of this wolf. Then we’re gone. You got me, Haircut?”

“Sure! But wait, my name’s Ray—” He tried to step forward and extend his hand.

“I don’t care. You need to call us something, fine. It’s Mick, Lenny, and Lisa,” he pointed to each of them in turn. “I’ll call you what I like. Now let me make sure nothing and no one followed you before we make scarce. Watch the kids.”

He blew past Ray like a force of nature. But then, he was one.

Ray smiled nervously at the children, carefully retrieving his flashlight and gun but putting them away quickly so as not to startle the young ones.

“Great,” Lenny grumbled once Mick was gone.  

“What?”

“He gave you a nickname.”

“So?” It wasn’t the nicest nickname. Did Ray need a trim?

“It means he likes you,” Lenny said in distaste.  

“Oh. Wait like, like me, or like me like me?”

Lisa giggled again while Lenny rolled his eyes. “You really are an idiot.”

[hekate1308]

The Wheels Keep Turning

Read it on AO3

Second part of this. Yes, it’s a series now too. I couldn’t help myself. 

He had been back for only two days when they came across a new case. Not enough time to really get used to having a room to call his own, or Juliet having waited for him, or the boys treating him, well... nicely.

But a case was a case, and soon Crowley found himself at a table with the others, researching.

He’d always been jealous of the Men of Letter’s library, even if some of their sources were utterly inaccurate.

Couples had been going missing in Pennsylvania every new moon; it didn’t take them long to find old urban legends about a creature stalking lovers.

“Alright, sounds like a case for Team free Will“ Dean decided. “Let’s go”.

And they left him right there in the war room. Crowley tried his best not to feel left out, but it was difficult to deal with being shoved to the side as if he was nothing, especially since he’d been used to constant fighting for almost two years. With a sigh, he began putting back the books they had used for their research.

Maybe he’d take Juliet on a long walk later.

The door opened.

“Crowley, what – “

He turned around to see understanding in Dean’s eyes.

“I get it, man, you properly want everything to be all orderly now to ground yourself, but we can really do this when we get back. Come on.”

Still rather unsure why he should, he followed Dean. In the corridor Juliet joined them.

“Ugh” Dean sighed. “Don’t worry, you slobbering mess, I’ll bring him back, I promise”.

The penny only dropped when they joined Sam and Cas in the garage; next to the former angel lay Crowley’s duffle bag.

Alright then.

“Thanks”.

“You’re welcome”.

And without anyone mentioning it or even making one comment, he found himself in the back of the Impala with the boys.

“We need to stop at a copy shop, Crowley hasn’t got his credentials yet” Dean remarked.

“Split up? Cas and me go looking for a motel, you show him the ropes?”

“Sure”.

“I think I’d be able to fake a FBI badge” he muttered later in the shop.

“Not so loud” Dean mumbled back. “So, what’s your name? I don’t think Jay Z is gonna fly with the officials.”

“John Bonham” he said without thinking. Dean raised an eyebrow.

“Fine by me”.

After another stop, this time for clothes shopping, they were changing in the motel room they’d procured. It wasn’t difficult to guess why Dean had decided to share with him again – both Sam and Cas, while perfectly friendly, were still a bit wary of him.

The more pessimistic part of him didn’t expect that to change in the time to come.

When he stepped out of the bathroom in a suit for the first time in years, Dean chuckled.

“That brings back memories...”

“Maybe for you” he said. “I used to wear much better quality, thank you”.

“Ah yes, we poor modest hunters can’t afford Armani, I’m sorry your Highness”.

“You should be” he muttered but there was no heat behind ut, as he was well aware Dean knew.

The hunter grinned.

“Alright then, let’s talk to the police”.

As always, law enforcement was disgustingly easy to fool.

What was new, however was that certain... friendliness people tended to treat him with.

He’d got used to it in the other world – and had eventually concluded that, whether people had known him to be a demon or not, some sort of instinct had told them to be careful around him – but here is still felt new.

“You been doing this long?” the deputy asked him casually as he handed him a file.

“Not that long. I’m actually the new one in the team”.

He grinned sympathetically.

“Beginnings are always rough”.

But that was the thing.

It wasn’t.

The boys would have had every right to throw him out on the street, but they hadn’t. They had every reason to be suspicious of him, but they weren’t. They had every opportunity to pay him back for the problems he’d caused them, but they weren’t doing that, either.

Add to this a hunt that was actually pretty easy and left them relaxed and laughing on the drive back...

If he hadn’t known that monsters had been eradicated in the Apocalypse, he would have thought a djinn had grabbed him. It was impossible, of course; apart from there not being anyone to grab him, he hadn’t had any weird flashes or seen blue light.

Another possibility would have been that he had died and gone to Heaven, but not only did he sincerely doubt he’d end up there, he would only have been able to view his memories then, and what he was living through certainly weren’t memories.

That night, when the boys were all asleep and he was trying to get some rest himself, he decided to use the patented Dean Winchester method of coping.

To his joy, he could easily get drunk now, especially since he wasn’t used to hard drinks anymore.

He’d only forgotten two things.

First, people tended to make very, very stupid decisions when they were drunk.

Second, he’d either been a mean or a weepy drunk in his previous mortal life, and considering his character now, signs were definitely pointing to weepy.

And because he hadn’t paid attention to these details, he woke up the next morning in his bed after a black out, Juliet a comforting presence at his side.

He was too out of it to register anything but a blinding headache and the aspirin someone had laid out next to him. He swallowed the tablets and gulped down the glass of water next to them before passing out again.

When he woke up again, he felt much better. Juliet still hadn’t moved and he patted her comfortingly as he sat up.

The door opened and Dean looked in. For a second, something like relief crossed his face before he became angry.

He stepped in but, Crowley registered thankfully, he didn’t slam the door behind him.

“Crowley, you goddamn idiot”.

Juliet barked and left the bed, trotting up to Dean.

He sighed as he looked down at nothing.

“Yeah, yeah, you did good, you mutt.”

He reached down and appeared to be scratching her behind the ears. Crowley had been suspecting that he’d spent more time with her in the last six months than he’d let on.

It was only now that he realized his right forearm was bandaged.

“What happened?”

“You can’t remember. No, of course you can’t, because that would actually be practical.”

After a pause, he continued, “Juliet woke me up. Kept scratching at my door. I’m pretty sure it was her who’d already made you put the knife down too, although I don’t know how”.

It was strange to see his usual mixture of anger and concern directed at him instead of Sam or Cas.

“I thought you had – I thought you tried to –“ He made an aborted gesture with his arm. Crowley understood.

“But then you started babbling about how you were just sure this wasn’t a djinn dream or whatever, so I assume it was just one of these awesome drunken decisions?”

“It must have been although I don’t remember it. I assure you I have no intention of killing myself.”

This time, the relief was unmistakeable.

“Good.”

Then his expression turned into one of disbelief.

“Dude, seriously? You thought this was a djinn dream?”

When he didn’t answer, he added, “Barely any Craig, no money for Armani suits, your throne is long gone...”

“I told you I hated being King of Hell.”

“As it was. I thought for sure your djinn dream would have been something like still being King but everybody obeys you and it isn’t such a pain in the ass”.

He’d never even considered that.

“I like being part of your team” he told him the truth. He still couldn’t quite believe that Dean had automatically made him part of their Team Free Will they’d harped on about for years now.

Juliet returned to him and hopped on his bed. Dean grimaced.

“She tried to do that with me a few times too”.

“I’m not so cruel to kick her out, and that’s why we love Papa more than the others, right, sweetheart?”

“Look, Crowley...” Dean hesitated and stepped closer before continuing, “I’m not saying don’t get drunk because frankly I have no right to tell anyone that. I’m just saying... before you make such decisions... Come to me first, right? I don’t care if it’s three am and you have to wake me up. Just come to me first.”

He nodded, speechless.

Dean seemed relieved that he hadn’t answered.

“Alright. Dinner’s gonna be on the table soon, in case you wanna take a shower before or whatever”.

With these words, he left.

Crowley sighed. Whatever he had been doing last night, it definitely didn’t count as looking after the boys, as Mary had told him to do.

Still – he couldn’t deny it felt – good that Dean had looked after him.

And of course Juliet had been there as well.

“Thank you” he told his dog, “Promise I’ll do better”.

When he eventually made it to dinner, no one mentioned his adventure from the night before.

He was not surprised when Castiel approached him in the library later, however.

“You don’t have to, Cassie. I don’t need to get used to being human. I’ve already been one for two years, remember?”

“I think you need to get used to being here” he told him gently.

He shrugged.

“Dean was very worried. We all were”.

He snorted; he couldn’t exactly picture Sam all that concerned for his well being.

“We truly were. You’ve done a lot for us, Crowley”.

“Yeah, well... you kill yourself once for someone and they start calling themselves your friends. Unbelievable”.

Cas gave him a small smile.

“I wouldn’t have expected this to happen either”.

No one would have, he thought, remembering the days they’d conspired to open Purgatory (although not for too long, never for too long, because the memories of torturing monsters were no longer pleasant ones).

“Look at us bunch of dysfunctional hunters”.

“Hardly dysfunctional. You are an excellent fighter”.

“That’s what two years of the Apocalypse do to you. Should have seen me in the beginning. I was almost as helpless as you guys”.

“I’m sure that’s not true. I had to relearn to fight in a completely different way as well. Dean wouldn’t let me out of my room for two weeks in the beginning”.

He smirked.

“Guess dying and coming back human does that to you”.

“I told him repeatedly I was alright, but that didn’t stop him”.

“Our history didn’t stop him from helping me yesterday either”.

“I think Dean prefers the term “blank slate”” Cas said carefully. “He told me after I came back to life that he was “done with the goddamn betrayals””.

He still did the air quotes. Crowley suppressed a chuckle.

“That explains a lot”.

For example, Dean’s insistence that they didn’t think too much about the past but that him reappearing in their lives was “a good thing” and that they should focus on that.

“Crowley”.

Castiel grew serious – well, even more serious. He really should try and lighten feathers up a bit, one of these days.

“I know that... adjusting isn’t easy. But as I have come to know Mary Winchester... usually when she does something, she has reasons for it”.

“Misguided ones, you mean”.

“I wasn’t saying that she was misguided concerning this. She was right”.

He couldn’t help but feel surprised yet again.

The second member of their... family? who’d told him that.

Cas uncharacteristically reached out and squeezed his shoulder.

“Crowley, I do believe we could become good friends.”

“Me too, kitten”.

His eyes narrowed, but he smiled.

A few days later, he had another bad night, as he’d come to call them. He woke up from a nightmare of a particularly vigorous torture session on a hunter and couldn’t go back to sleep.

Crowley could have dealt with it on his own, but on the other hand...

While there was a chance that he and Cas – and perhaps Sam, although he considered it unlikely – could become friends, it felt like he and Dean were already and had been for quite some time.

He knocked on Dean’s door.

The hunter looked tired, but grinned at him nonetheless.

“Time for a nightcap, I’d say”.

And they went to the library, Juliet happily following them.  

[vorthosjay]

Lore of Command: Commander (2013 Edition)

Welcome to Lore of Command, a series where I look at the lore and flavor of Legendary Creatures in Magic: The Gathering.

Today I’m continuing my look back at supplemental legends, mainly from products like Commander, and examining what, if any, lore they’ve added added to their stories. In most cases, the answer will be they have not, but it’s worth noting who has had their story expanded on.

The second Commander product, released two years after the first, is the aptly named Commander 2013. The blurbs for each of the Commanders in this product were printed collectively in The Ten Commanders.

Jeleva, Nephalia's Scourge

Jeleva, Nephalia’s Scourge by Cynthia Sheppard

The name of Jeleva, Nephalia's Scourge, invokes terror in Innistrad. Known to play cruel games of cat and mouse, she preys on her victims' minds before devouring their blood. She spends her days sequestered in an opulent mansion in Nephalia, but by night, her merciless predations know no bounds. No one's throat is safe from Jeleva, but it's the minds of archmages that she truly craves. She targets the most renowned personalities of Innistrad, intent on stealing their knowledge for herself. The powerful Church of Avacyn has put a price on her head, and monster hunters from across Innistrad track her through the dark province of Nephalia. Jeleva welcomes them. She likes the blood of monster hunters, and will happily steal their minds as spoils in her private war against the Church.

Home Plane: Innistrad (Nephalia)

Featured In: The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Innistrad

Updates: While the art book doesn’t add much, it does mention that Jeleva’s favorite minds to drink are those of Avacynian Archmages.

Nekusar, the Mindrazer

Nekusar is a former king who schemed to retain his power even after death. In life, he was an unpopular ruler with many enemies. He was obsessed with the machinations of his court and threats to his reign. When one of his plots to assassinate a rival backfired, Nekusar was killed in his own throne room. But he had prepared for his eventual death, and he transformed himself into a lich lord. Nekusar has positioned himself as the secret power of the realm, and now he monitors the court with his network of informants, both living and undead. He offers knowledge to the highest bidder but at a painful price. Nekusar has more power now than ever. He devastates his enemies by giving them what they think they want but cannot control.

Home Plane: Unknown

Featured In: Flavor Text

Oloro, Ageless Ascetic

Oloro manipulates the forces of life and death. He believes that he possesses the secret to eternal life and guards it jealously on his remote, mist-shrouded island. Oloro's location is sought by thieves and mystics alike. Some seek to steal his possessions while others seek to learn his secrets. Oloro will tolerate the companionship of only a few select individuals—those who can help him in his quest for knowledge. Some say he is older than time itself and wiser than all the great minds in the illustrious academies of learning. So far, Oloro has maintained an uneasy balance between the darkness and the light, but any threat to his carefully guarded secrets could force him into a quest for merciless domination.

Home Plane: Unknown

Featured In: Nothing

More After the Break

Sydri, Galvanic Genius

Sydri, Galvanic Genius by Terese Nielsen

Sydri is a master of metalwork and mystical animation. She's young, brilliant, and willing to sell her ingenious devices to anyone who will pay her substantial fee. Sydri can infuse life into almost any object, which will then tirelessly do its master's bidding. Under her touch, a statue could become a spy, or a sword transform into an unexpected assassin without the need of a hand to wield it. Although honest by nature, she's fallen into a dangerous circle of elite priests who will do anything to gain the upper hand in the political sphere. Sydri is tempted by material rewards and must soon make a choice about the nature of her creations and their ultimate purpose.

Home Plane: Fiora

Featured In: The Perfect Gift, Flavor Text, Like Cogwork (mentioned), Blood Will Have Blood (mentioned)

Updates: Sydri was connected to Fiora after the fact, and only in hints. Two of the Conspiracy stories mentioned her offhand as a former student at the Academy and a pupil of Muzzio.

Marath, Will of the Wild

Marath is an elusive, powerful beast who roams the untamed regions of his shaman-ruled world. Although many try, few have glimpsed this majestic creature. Some believe he was one of this world's progenitors and has been around since before the dawn of time. Vines twine out of the earth as he passes. Green mist rises around his feet. Some of the mist takes on animalistic forms, and new life is created as he passes by. He's infused with elemental magic, and many of the elves who share the wilds with him believe he is the source of growth and natural justice. When threatened, Marath is a ferocious opponent, striking with furious blows and predatory power.

Home Plane: Unknown

Featured In: Nothing

Gahiji, Honored One

Gahiji is revered as a god by the fierce Rahode tribe, who call him the wild heart of their people. He came to their aid during the epic Battle of Flat Sky, when the Rahode were being slaughtered by their enemies. Gahiji appeared on the hills above the battlefield. He let out a great roar and charged headlong into the midst of their foes, with the Rahode warriors rallying behind him. He saved the tribe, and now Gahiji dwells with them in a place of honor. He hunts in the surrounding jungle by night but willingly returns to the palace during the day. Worshippers pilgrimage for months to bow before the Honored One.

Home Plane: Unknown

Featured In: Nothing

Prossh, Skyraider of Kher

Prossh, Skyraider of Kher by Todd Lockwood

Prossh dominates the Kher region of Dominaria. Each day at dawn, he takes to the skies, tracking his prey and monitoring the lands he claims as his own. The sound of dragon wings in the distance sends many of his subjects into a panic, scrambling for shelter that can withstand his dragon fire. He levels entire villages just to punish a single hunter who strayed into his territory. Those who don't pay tribute to him are burned alive. Prossh is worshipped by the kobolds of the region, and some offer themselves to His Mighty Overlordship in hopes that he spares their kin. Prossh is a predatory machine, and the death of his "allies" just makes him stronger.

Home Plane: Dominaria (Kher Ridges)

Featured In: Nothing

Updates: Prossh is actually a reference to a very old bit of Magic lore, the Kobolds of Kher Keep and their lord Rohgahh way back in Legends. The running joke is that somehow, these idiotic kobolds are still alive despite millennia of stupidity. Kher Keep is referenced again in Time Spiral

Shattergang Brothers

Shattergang Brothers by Kev Walker

In Ravnica, if you want something destroyed, call the Shattergang Brothers. No job is too small or person too important for this goblin family. They are sought after by thieves and priests alike, and even the Rakdos have been known the hire them for jobs that need a bombastic finesse. These goblins can take out—or blow up—any problem you might have. An Izzet mage giving you trouble? Gargoyle spying on you? Pesky curse upon your house? The Shattergangs will bring the destructiveness you need for a (mostly) reasonable price. The Boros and Azorius have both put prices on their heads, but the Shattergangs have eluded capture time and time again. These brothers take pride in their work and joy in the destruction of others.

Home Plane: Ravnica

Featured In: Limits

Updates: In Limits, the Shattergang Brothers were introduced as rivals of Krenko, Mob Boss. The three brothers were named Rikkig, Dargig, and Gardagig. Krenko killed the youngest, Dargig, after a weapons drop gone bad. Gideon managed to apprehend Gardagig, but Rikkig remains on the lam.

Derevi, Empyrial Tactician

Soaring above the battlefield, Derevi, Empyrial Tactician, uses cunning strategies to outsmart her enemies. She orchestrates the movements of her great army as they fight invaders who would lay waste to her peaceful lands. Derevi's keen eyes absorb a multitude of factors as she rapidly alters her plan to meet the changing conditions on the ground. Among her devoted followers, Derevi is called the greatest commander the Shards have ever seen. Her brilliant strategy routed the Grixis hordes at the Battle of Split Peak. Her clever diplomacy diverted the Esper Council in their plot against her. Derevi is disciplined but fair, and she evokes loyalty in her soldiers. Always the eye in the sky, this commander outmaneuvers her enemies time and time again.

Home Plane: Alara (Bant)

Featured In: Nothing

Roon of the Hidden Realm

Roon of the Hidden Realm by Steve Prescott

Roon is believed to guard the gate of an ethereal world. Raised in a devout family, the young rhox was drawn to warlike pursuits against his father's wishes. Roon joined the infamous Herald's Army, where he became a skilled fighter. But after a mistaken slaughter of innocents, he deserted and wandered in the wilderness. There he received a vision of the Hidden Realm and was told he was the keeper of its secrets. Called a blasphemer by some, Roon embarked on a pilgrimage to rally people to his cause. His compelling personality attracted many, and he became a prophet with legions of followers. Roon does not seek out conflict, but when he perceives a threat, he will eliminate it quickly and efficiently. For those who believe in him, he is a great guardian who will one day open the gate to eternal glory.

Home Plane: Unknown

Featured In: Nothing (A Roon is referenced on Shadowmoor, but it is not the same Roon.)

Speculation: Given everything we know of Roon, Rhox culture (namely that they often become monks), the look of his armor, and the look of the building behind him, I’m pretty comfortable suggesting Roon is from Bant.

Thanks for reading. Next Time: Commander (2014 Edition)

[bored-summer-nights]

JWC - Day 5

His heart raced trying to escape the demon behind him. As Tyler ran through the hall, the walls began to fill with a malicious darkness. He knew he should've listened; he should’ve listened to the legends around the town. Don't go into the abandoned school on the hunter’s moon, don’t ever go near the school or she will get you.

As the darkness consumed the ground under him, a hellish, shadowy hand rose up and grabbed the terrified boy’s ankle. He fell to the ground as the hand began to detain his flee. He screamed for mercy that the demon would let him go, but it was no use.

From the shadow, the demon began to cackle as she ascended from the void. She had a complexion as white as fresh snow and her eyes beamed a nauseating blood red. The darkness cloaked her like a dress, flowing indefinitely. She began to speak in a shrill deafening voice, “You chose to come here… now prepare to give me your soul…”

The hand that held down the boy’s ankle began to wither into the void, but the fear of death overcame Tyler, leaving him paralyzed. Tears began to stream down his face as the grievous monster loomed closer to him.

With her nonhuman, hand she clenched his neck and lifted his head from the ground. Her grip on him tightened to the point where he couldn’t breathe. His face turned a bright red followed by a deep blue.

In one final act of desperation, he struggled out, “P-please…”

She stared at him for a moment, but a devilish grin crept on her face. She let out a small chuckle, that grew into a kind laugh, then a maniacal laugh. “NEVER!” The nails of her hand gashed out to form sharp swords of death. The demon plunged her talons into his tender chest. He gasped in pain as the blood began to ooze from the 5 penetration points. Her claws detracted from Tyler, dropping him to the ground.

As the red vital fluids seeped through his wounds, his incapacitated body was consumed by the blackness. A heinous laugh filled the air as Tyler was overcome in the blackness. Then, his shape flattened into the darkness, purged from reality. Everything became silent. He was gone from this world.

--

Tyler thought he was dead. The piercing of his chest should have left him to bleed out. The darkness should have eaten him. He should not be able to feel anything. Then why could he feel nothing but pain? It felt like his apparent body was on fire. The worst part, he couldn’t do anything about it. He felt his hands, his feet, but they wouldn’t move. Was he still immobilized in fear? Maybe he was being held down by the malicious force. Whatever the case, his anguish didn’t seem to cease anytime soon.

All he could see was pitch blackness. IT seemed his eyes were shut tight, unable to open or move like the rest his body. Only if he knew where he was could he try to get out of his terrible situation? Sadly nothing.

However, after what felt like hours of agony, a calming lull coursed through his body. Suddenly the firey pain no longer tortured him. He didn’t detect the puncture wounds on his chest, and there was no wetness from his blood. Slowly, he started to regain feeling in his arms, then his legs, but he still was unable to open his mouth or eyes.

Just as he thought the worst was over. An ominous noise began to rattle in his mind. Bellows of tortured voices screamed out in varying voices. Horrifying the screams did to him, making him shudder and fall to the ground. That didn’t stop the voices from wailing. He could sense the lightness of children, to the powerful screams of mature adults.

“Hahaha... “ Out of the screams, a familiar voice couldn’t help but laugh. The demoness spoke in a peaceful facade. “Welcome to my realm… As you may not believe I will allow you to escape with your life. If you are able to make it to the exit of my labyrinth within fifty attempts you are free to go. If not…” As if on cue, the voices of her captured souls wailed in anguish. This was the price they paid for not escaping.

It was difficult for Tyler to think. The thousands of souls releasing their anguish made it virtually impossible for him to keep a stable thought. Without any option, Tyler reluctantly agreed.

“Perfect… we will see if you make it…” With her witch cackle, her voice faded, leaving only the screams.

Tyler feared the labyrinth and the voices all around him. Just the sound of the wailing made him imagine the horrors that would await him if he could see. The thought terrified him, even if it was stupid to take on the challenge without sight. He could hear everything but dare not open his eyes. With an anxious inhale. He took his first steps.

The ground under him felt soft. It squished with every step, almost like bare flesh. He stepped slowly, cautious of what may lie in front of him. Foolishly, he should’ve have counted his steps. The ground vanished from under him. He fell down into a pit of barbs. Instantaneously, he felt the spikes pierce all around him, killing him instantly.

The pain lingered for a moment, then he felt nothing. The screams continued to torture his ears, but it seemed that he was no longer in the spiked pit. The demoness’s voice returned with a sneer, “I forgot to mention when you fail to make it through, you return to the entrance. Have fun!”

Tyler felt the dread in his heart. He wasted his first attempt and died foolishly. This was pointless. The yells drowned out any thought he could make, but he began to aimlessly head into the trap.

The deadly pits fooled him three more times. By the fourth, Tyler counted the space between the entrance and the pit, nineteen small steps. He stopped before he fell and turned right, stepping into another hole and dying again.

His next attempt, he took a careful step to the left. He felt his foot under the same fleshy ground he had been walking on. He counted his steps from that point, and on his thirty-something step, a large metal blade stabbed into his head, sending him back to the start. Tyler was irritated, but at least he was making progress.

His ninth try, he stepped into a fire. His 13th, the ground under him turned to stone and crumbled under him. His 26th, both his arms were chopped off before he was beheaded. Each death was more painful than the last. The only relief Tyler felt was the relief after every death. It seemed to work as one of the video games he used to play: die and you are spawned in your last checkpoint. Unfortunately also like his games, his lives were numbered. The only thing he could concentrate on was his memorized number of steps he must take and his attempt counter. Halfway through, he hoped he had almost reached the end.

Then, on his 34th, a new sound broke through the barrier of anguished souls. It was faint at first, but as he got closer, losing two more lives in the process, he sensed the sound, a little girl’s cry, was right in front of him. He called out to the mysterious voice, “He-hello?”

The crying subsided, and slowly the voice of a little girl spoke, “Hello? Please help me!”

“Who are you?” I tried to feel for the girl, thinking of opening my eyes but, dared not to.

“I’ve been trapped in this labyrinth forever, I- I’m on my 50th try. I’m- I’m scared of dying!!” Then she began to cry again, matching the voices surrounding us.

I was shocked to hear another lost soul was trapped by the demon. Were there others in here? Could they help me? Maybe...Could I help her? I called out to her. “Can you see?”

She whimpered, “Yes… it’s very dark though. The souls screaming, they make up the walls! I don’t want to be one of them!” Her cry was relentless.

“Ok! Ok! Listen! It’ll be alright!” Tyler felt bad, it felt like he was lying. Part of him lost hope, but he needed to be strong for her. “If we work together, we can escape I promise. My name is Tyler.”

She let out a nasal sniffle, “M-my name is Liah.”

“Here,” Tyler stuck out my hand. “I’ll lead us, tell me if I’m walking into anything, but if I fail, I still have a lot of attempts. If I die, stay where you are until I find you, ok?”

For once her voice sounded reassuring, “Ok!” Together, they made it through the maze. Tyler led the way; falling into a fire, electrocuted, tripping into a noose, and literally exploding, every time he found his way to Liah. With every death, his number shortened. It wasn’t until his last five until he began to panic.

“Tyler! I see a light!” The thought made me almost open my eyes, but I kept them shut tight. Just the thought, maybe the exit excited me and filled me with hope.

“That’s great-” Then a large weight fell on Tyler’s head, bashing in his skull and sending him back.

Four. He met up with Liah. Taking each step carefully, Liah didn’t see the pool of water and her partner fell in. The demonic sharks had a good time eating his corpse.

Three. Stupidly before he made it back to his spot, he ran into a knife trap. Wasting one of his final lives.

Two. This time he made it back to the last place. “Liah… I’m almost to my last attempt, make sure nothing bad happens ok?”

“Ok Mr. Tyler, I know we can do it together!” Her voice made me smile. Even the wails of agony around them seemed dull to her hopeful voice. They continued until he heard her partner squeaked.

Tyler stopped in his steps, nervous to hear the peril. “What!”

“Were almost it's a straight run! Let’s go!” She ran forward without him.

Tyler became nervous of another trap. He was determined not to let her die. “Wait let me go first!” He ran towards the sound of her laughing.

“I made come on slow poke!” He imagined her on the other side, excited to almost be free from the demoness. Then suddenly, the ground under him disappeared and he was left to freefall. Tyler let out a scream, the last thing he heard for his second attempt was Liah breaking the sound, yelling his name “Tyyyyyyleeeeer!”

And like that he was resurrected. This was his final attempt before his nightmare would come true. And what of Liah, what happened to her. He needed to make it out. For both of them.

He used his senses, making sure he bypassed every obstacle in his way. The first pit, the blade, the fires axes and anything that killed him in the past wouldn’t stop him this time.

Finally, he sensed he was right before he fell. Tyler called out in desperation, “Liah! Liaaaah!”

At first, there was nothing but the normal screaming, but then. “Tyler!”

“Liah, are you ok??”

“Yeah! But the ground collapsed, there's a ravine dividing you from the exit! You’ll have to jump!”

Jump? Was she crazy, Tyler couldn’t jump without falling. He pleaded, “How? Isn’t there another way?”

The little girl fell silent, then called out. “Do you trust me??”

He was hesitant at first, “Yes!”

“You have to open your eyes! It’s the only way!”

As the words met his ears, fear filled him. Not once was he able to see, but now it was his only choice. He thought about the options, but his mind lost focus with the searing screams. His eyelids felt numb and he questioned if he could even open them? He was scared, but he knew he had to do it.

His vision came very blurrily at first but quickly returned to him. Liah was right in saying it was dark. The only visage of light came from torches mounted on the wall, as well as the giant lit exit. Then he saw them; the walls were completely made of corpses, charred and screaming. Each one of them showed agony and envy in their faces. Standing across from the bottomless ravine separating them, was a small girl. She wore overalls and had a pink bow in her big curly hair. She cried out to me, “Be safe!”

Tyler took a shaky breath. His legs felt like jelly as he took his running start. This was it, his last chance.

With a great leap, he soared over the ravine, catching his body onto the edge. About to fall, the small girl ran to his aid, “Tyler!” She aided him up the cliff and after a moment, the two successfully made it over. Tyler caught his breath for a moment, the jump used the last of his strength, but he couldn’t give up now.

They both stood up and stared into the portal. Unbelievable, they made it. A tear streaked from Tyler’s eyes, hopeful of living his life again. As if a miracle, the voices that tortured him for so long fell silent, and he could finally think clearly.

Liah smile could brighten the room, “Thank you for bringing me here Tyler. I wanted to give up, but then you arrived and helped me!”

Tyler wearily smiled back. What would she do when she got back. Did she have a family to get back to? Time might have passed a day or a hundred years, how will we know the world we’re going back to is our own? He took a sigh with his thoughts, then looked over to Liah.

Whatever the case, he would do it with her. He went in to give the hopeful girl a hug.

SHIIIING

Pain loomed in his chest. Shocked, he looked down to see a dreadful sight. Liah’s hand was pressed against his stomach, snow white. Her five fingers pierced into his chest and an inhuman smile formed on her face. Like magic, her little girl facade changed into the form of the demoness. The cackle filled the air as she pulled out her withered nails. “And that makes fifty!”

Tyler’s vision went blurred as he fell to the ground. In a final attempt, he began to crawl to the portal. Slowly. Slowly… He fell still. This time, he was gone. He was hers.

[recentanimenews]

Manga the Week of 8/9/17

SEAN: Stuff, stuff, stuff! So much stuff!

Dark Horse gives us a new volume of Drifters, the 4th. It comes out sporadically, so I will no doubt have to refresh my memory about what’s happening besides cool old famous people reincarnated and fighting each other. Actually, no, that should do it.

ASH: Let’s see, the last volume was released in English in… 2014. I didn’t expect that we’d ever see more of the series! I suspect that last year’s anime adaptation may have something to do with that.

SEAN: And there is a 4th omnibus of “Like Evangelion, only stupider” spinoff manga Shinji Ikari Raising Project.

J-Novel Club has a new debut, but it may seem familiar: Clockwork Planet, whose manga adaptation Kodansha has been releasing. This is their first Kodansha license, and will hopefully open the way for more in the future.

And we have the 4th In Another World With My Smartphone, which I hear is where the plot really kicks off.

Kodansha has titles both digital and print. Digitally we have the 2nd Altair: A Record of Battles, which is clearly not on the fastrack like some other digital titles.

ANNA: Good reminder for me to read the first one!

MICHELLE: Same!

SEAN: And the 2nd Aoba-kun’s Confessions as well.

I was unprepared for the Attack On Titan: Before the Fall adaptation to be this long, but here we are, Volume 11. Huh.

ASH: I’ve fallen behind, but I do largely like how the manga further develops and expands the story and characters from the original light novels.

SEAN: Back to digital with the 5th Full-Time Wife Escapist. Will these two poor communicators finally get together?

ANNA: I enjoy this series!

MICHELLE: Me, too. I’m always happy when I see a new installment on the schedule.

SEAN: And L♥DK has hit double digits, and presumably has not run out of ways to frustrate its heroine.

Seven Seas has the most titles out next week. There’s a lucky 13th volume of Devils and Realist.

And the 2nd print volume of the light (hah!) novel Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash.

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid will try to ride out the post-anime depression with its 4th volume.

The debut next week is Nirvana, an action fantasy with a “trapped in another world” veneer, the gimmick being the protagonist is female for once. It’s written by Jin, the creator of Kagerou Daze, and runs in Comic Gene.

Not Lives gives us a 6th volume. Has the cast diminished yet?

Also at double digits next week is Servamp. (poses) Vampires! (peers around, crickets chirp) Could it be the running gag has gone on too long?

ANNA: Maybe we need more mermaids or pirates.

SEAN: SuBLime has a digital-only release next week with Am I In Love Or Just Hungry, from popular author Akane Abe.

In print, they have the 2nd Deluxe Edition of Finder.

And the 5th volume of Ten Count, which has managed to irritate most of Manga Bookshelf by now.

ANNA: Yeargh.

ASH: I’m still reading it, though I completely understand why people dropped the series. The character’s relationship is far from healthy–right now to me it actually reads more like a horror manga and less like a romance.

SEAN: Viz has a 5th digital release of The Children Nowadays, whose existence I keep forgetting.

In print, they have the 21st volume of Itsuwaribito, which must be reaching a climax of some sort, I say as if I read past Vol. 1.

And a 2nd Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.

ASH: I’m enjoying this adaptation so far; I’m also glad that it doesn’t end with the second volume.

SEAN: Magi has reached 25 volumes! In Japan it’s wrapping up, here we still have a ways to go.

MICHELLE: I’m always kind of relieved to hear a series is ending. It’s probably the reassurance that I’ll actually get the complete story.

SEAN: Lastly, we have a 9th volume of Monster Hunter: Flash Hunter, which wars with Yu-Gi-Oh in how often it ends a Manga the Week of column and leaves me with nothing to say.

What do you say? Anything for you next week?

By: Sean Gaffney

[wrenwinchester]

You’re hired!!!!!

i know supernatural is the show of missed opportunities but man. the trials really get to me - what a perfect way to reboot and reset this show that you're artificially extending for ratings. it could have been really, really good, actually

so the trials of god is a way for someone to gain the ability to seal the gates of hell and the gates of heaven

they have the translation for hell, they know that slamming the gates of hell shut means calling all the demons back home and locking the key. it's logical, then, to for them to believe the same is true of the one for heaven - that it calls all the angels back home and locks them away where they can't do any more damage

peace, for the people of earth, outside of the influence of angels and demons. that's got to be worth it, right?

so while sam is completing the hell trials, they get the angel tablet, kevin gets translating, to figure out the angel trials. or maybe metatron helps nudge them along to figuring it out, since him being the big bad here isn't really relevant and they are in a bit of time crunch

canon doesn't tell us what the heaven trials are, except that the first one involves a ritual using the heart of a nephilim. they make it sound like they're carving it from their chest, but what i would do is

have a nephilim offer you their heart from their chest (gain their loyalty in a binding ceremony)

create grace from freshwater (there is no rain that falls anywhere on earth that is safe to drink and god said let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters)

find a human soul to guide you to heaven (babel fell but the stairway was built and those with wings have no need of stairs)

so sam is in the midst of the hell trials when dean sort of accidentally on purpose completes the first heaven trial and then the brothers are on parallel train tracks heading in the opposite direction

sam works to close the gates of hell

dean works to close the gates of heaven

demons and angels both working to stop them

sam completes the trials. he restores crowley's humanity and he dies and the gates of hell are closed

but that's not the end

metatron says they can close the gates if they're willing to pay the price. canon says the price is sam's death, but frankly that doesn't make any sense. what's the death of one human against the horrors of hell? and remember, metatron doesn't know the winchesters. maybe another angel would make this comment, knowing how the winchesters have weighed the safety of the world against their brother and left the world out to dry, would think this a price worth warning for. but metatron wouldn't bother, wouldn't even think of it, if that was the only price

the gates of hell close and malevolent spirits explode across the globe, evil spirits and angry ghosts causing death and destruction everywhere

hell serves a function and now the gates are closed and every evil human soul is forced to stay on earth, causing as much destruction as it can

that's the price for closing the gates of hell

except. except. aren't the hell trials interesting?

kill a hellhound. rescue an innocent soul and return it to heaven. purify a demon and restore their humanity.

the trials are not to prove if someone is worthy of closing the gates of hell. it's to prove they're capable of setting hell to rights

the trials are if things got too out of hand, if things were taken too far, and hell had to be put back in it's place. sam dies and ends up exactly where azazel wanted him - ruler of hell. all the demons and souls are trapped with him and what he has to do, while he has them all there, while they can't escape, is exactly what he did to get there

he kills the hellhounds, leaving only those meant to patrol hell. he releases every innocent soul bound there. he purifies the demons one by one, who he either releases as innocent souls or who to pledge to do their job as demons of hell - punishing evil, containing evil - in penance for what they did before (how do i even begin to make up for what i've done, crowley had asked, and this is the answer)

meanwhile, dean, heartbroken, completes the heaven trials and dies

and the gates of heaven slam shut and all the angels are stripped of their grace and expelled from heaven and dean finds himself in charge of an empty heaven

the trials are for when things have gone too far and heaven must be rebuilt, after all

good souls pile up, no one who dies able to truly leave earth, and given enough time they become twisted things that must be hunted along with the spirits of evil men and women who cause chaos from their last breath

dean has work to do. he has one angel - the nephilim whose loyalty he earned in the first trial - and this is what he has to do. he recruits more, to replace the ranks, he creates grace and hands it out judiciously. he sends them to guide the good souls home, using the stairway that the former angels wouldn't be able to use even if they wanted to, and each good act and deed earns them a little more grace. former angels throw themselves into the fight for humans, because they know it's the only way that dean will return their grace to them and lift them back into heaven

and in fighting for them, in living like them, they learn to love these creations of their father that they'd despised. they see what he saw and the thought of destroying this place in a civil war becomes unthinkable to them. they are once more the angels god intended them to be

in this, dean and sam fulfill their destiny as lucifer and michael's vessels. not in letting them in, but in pushing them out, in doing the work each was intended for but refused

only when there is only evil human souls being punished and caged, only once the demons are once more working to run hell and earn their release to heaven, does sam reopen the gates of hell

only when there's a full choir of angels once more, committed to their cause, only once there are souls working with reapers as it once always was, does dean reopen the gates of heaven

they're called the god trials for a reason. above and below, sam and dean act as god, putting things back in their intended places

they could stay. they should stay. keeping house, making sure it all goes smoothly, eternally keeping earth safe from angels and demons both

they're called the god trials for a reason. not even god could resist the paradise inbetween that he'd created

dean doesn't know if sam is going to return to earth. he might stay in hell, and if dean becomes human once more, then what's the point? he'll live and die a human, get stuck in heaven, and be forever separated from the brother he loves

sam doesn't know if dean is going to return to earth. he migh not be able to, might be stuck doing his work - sam assumes if the hell trials did this to him, then the heaven trials did the same to dean, and the idea that dean could have failed the heaven trials after he dies doesn't even cross mind. if he returns and dean's not there then he loses it all, he never again gets to see the brother he loves

but when, exactly, haven't they been willing to risk everything for each other?

dean falls as lucifer fell, throwing himself towards earth

sam rises as michael did after the fall, pulling himself towards earth the same way michael once pulled himself to the top of heaven

what's the use of being a god without his brother, after all?

dean and sam are reunited on earth, human once more

no more angels, no more demons, heaven and hell functioning once more as they should. we're back to basics, a clean slate, all of the rest remade and set aside by their own hands (it's literal and a metaphor, the way the show could have remade itself with the trials, after setting aside kripke's plan while at the same time recognizing that the design of it - two brothers who love each other going across america and fighting evil - is the thing that made it worth watching to begin with) and now it's them again, brothers forged in blood and sacrifice and love, and a new appreciation for the humanity they gave up and returned to

and then we get my beloved monster of the week with no stupid too high stakes, convoluted bullshit involved, beyond the occasional angel who dean refused to reinstate and demon tracking down miscreant souls and, every once in a while, a person or creature or something in between squinting at them and going - weren't you two gods?

nah, they say, all corn fed grins and the dimples their momma gave them, we're brothers