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jazy3 · 3 years

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Thoughts on Grey’s Anatomy: 17X16

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

I really liked this episode! I loved the scenes between Meredith and Bailey and Meredith with her kids. So precious! I think Meredith is the perfect person to take over the residency program now that Richard has too many jobs as Bailey says! I think she is really going to shine in this new role. In the past I thought her and Alex might wind up running the hospital with him as Chief of Surgery and her as Residency Director. While that won't happen because Justin Chambers' exit, I think it will be great to see Meredith step up and take on the role. Ultimately, I want to see her operate again and be a badass, but since she’s still recovering, I think having Meredith take this on while she recovers from COVID is a great idea.

I’m glad that we got to see Maggie and Winston disagree on something and work through it in this episode. While I think Winston did overreact a bit when Maggie was upset and a bit reluctant about the wedding planning and said that everything felt like a compromise I'm glad that they showed the two of them disagreeing and working through it because up until now they've been portrayed as the perfect couple. I loved the scene where Maggie and Winston talked about the wedding and then it was revealed that Maggie had arranged for her Dad and Winston’s Grandmother to fly in for the wedding. That was very sweet and they got the actor that previously played her Dad back!

I also really liked the patient that Maggie, Helm, and Richard treated. I felt so bad for her when she told them that her husband had died and her dog had ran away and that she wasn’t good with people. I suspected she was pretending early on because of her loneliness. I was so sad about the missing dog for the whole episode and I was ecstatic when they found him! I’m more of a cat than a dog person, but pets are family. I am also glad that we got to learn more about Helm in this episode and that she appears to have left her Meredith obsession behind. That was funny the first few times they brought it up, but then it just got weird and annoying.

Especially after both CeCe the matchmaker and Carina talked to Helm about it and told her she needed to move on and find someone that could love her back and then she went right back to being obsessed with her. That’s been her whole personality for the past three seasons. Now in this episode we learn that she likes to cook, that she makes a mess when she cooks, and that she likes to watch the news. I think Helm moving in with Levi and Jo is a good thing, but he definitely should have cleared it with Jo first and they for sure need a bigger place.

I really liked the scene with Link and Jo. I like that he called her out on the fact that she obviously wanted to adopt Luna and told her she should stop doubting herself. I was surprised and disappointed that Jo’s adoption application was denied. She's clearly formed a bond with Luna and she was ready to have kids with Alex prior to his departure and she was close to Val prior to her death. I’m curious as to why her application was denied and why she failed the background check. I hope we get a follow up to that because she would be a great Mom to Luna and I want to know what happened there.

When we found that out my first thought was, “That’s illegal!” because here in Canada and in Ontario specifically to the best of my knowledge you can’t discriminate against someone and reject their adoption or foster application because they are a single parent, have had mental health issues in the past, stole a car while homeless or lived under an assumed name while fleeing domestic violence provided they meet the other criteria such as being able to provide a safe loving home and can prove that they are financially stable and have a good support network in place.

I was confused as first, but then my friend Amy and I were talking about it and I realized that I was applying my own context to another situation. Having the right to adopt and not be discriminated against is something that the women’s, gay rights, and disability rights movements here in Canada have fought very hard for. A lot of changes were enacted in the 2000’s and 2010’s to make it easier for people from all walks of life to adopt and foster. In fact, in many cases social services will look for prospective parents who share a child’s background or history because they will be able to relate to the child in a way that a parent without that experience might not be able to.

That’s not to say that everything is perfect and that discrimination and unfair treatment doesn’t happen. It does. People can be sneaky about it. But you do have recourse here. You would be able to contest the discrimination. I’m not familiar with adoption laws and policies for Washington State where the show is set so it’s possible that this kind of discrimination may still be legal there or there may not be specific policies addressing it. If anyone does know I would love to know more as what I’m saying is based on the experiences of people that I know here in Ontario. I do think that Jo will eventually get custody of Luna. They've spent a bunch of time setting this up and dropping hints about this storyline so it would feel hollow to have it end like this. It would also put Jo back in a dark place which she just got out of for the umpteenth time.

I’m interested to see where they go with Amelia and Link’s storyline around him wanting more children and Amelia not wanting anymore. Couples getting together and then realizing at a later point that they feel differently about having children or having more children in this case is a real thing that happens. Amelia and Link started off as casual sex partners which progressed into something more serious when Amelia found out she was pregnant. They've become this beautiful family and it turns out they are a great match, but because they didn't start out with marriage and kids in mind there are bridges that they have to cross at some point. I'm glad that Link is voicing his desire to have more kids down the road now so that they can talk about it.

I totally get why Amelia doesn't want more kids. After what happened with Christopher and Ryan and then Owen, Betty, and Leo and then with Meredith's kids I get why Amelia doesn't want more children. It's a lot of work, she's been through a lot, and getting overwhelmed could impact her sobriety. Link is a good guy and way more sensitive around this topic that Owen ever was so my hope is that they'll talk it out, Amelia will share her concerns, Link will understand, and he'll fulfill that need for more kids by spending more time with Leo or Meredith's kids.

Also real talk, Owen was an absolute asshole to Cristina and Amelia when they didn’t want kids and straight up said that there was something wrong with them because they didn’t want to be with something who treated them poorly and kept trying to force them to have kids that they didn’t want. While it’s great that he gets it now and was able to offer some words of wisdom to Amelia in this episode and be supportive it doesn’t make up for or change the fact that he was god awful to both of his ex-wives because they didn’t want kids and he did. He knew Cristina didn’t want kids long before they got married and he married Amelia without ever talking about his desire to have children and just assumed she wanted that too.

He should really call Cristina and apologize because what the hell? I think it’s the difference between perception and experience. Before when he wanted kids but didn’t have any he was in love the idea and couldn’t understand someone not wanting that. Now that he has two kids he realizes how much work that is and why someone might not want that especially if they are dealing with other issues that could be impacted by having more children. I really enjoyed the patient storylines this week. I had previously read a study about what Amelia is working on and how doctors and scientists have now determined that there are two types of patients who appear brain dead.

The kind that actually are where their body is still alive but no one’s home and the kind we see in this episode where their body is still alive and they are still in there, but can’t communicate in traditional ways, but can communicate through thinking about different things to answer yes or no questions. There is a special kind of machine that is needed to scan for this and they are expensive but they’ve proven that hospitals make the costs back within a year because the machines allow them to determine which patients are actually brain dead and which can still make decisions and answer questions about their care.

Something I didn’t like about this episode was that Levi chose Nico over Dr. Mason Post the hot Vaccine Doctor. I was really rooting for them to get together and for him to start something new with someone who might actually treat him well and I was so freaking disappointed wand pissed off when Levi showed up at Nico’s place and got back together with him instead of going over to Mason’s. I’m Team Mason all the way! He's a gem. He's attractive, funny, smart, direct, and kind. He's everything Levi deserves in a partner after the nonsense Nico has put him through.

I liked Nico and Levi when they first got together, but after Nico revealed that he lied about being out to his parents their relationship went downhill fast. He's treated Levi like crap ever since and his one-time apology doesn't fix that or do anything to address the way he's acted or fix his and Levi's relationship problems. I hope Mason returns next season, Levi winds up with him, and Nico goes off to work for the Mariners as he was supposed to originally.

My only other complaint is that Meredith and Hayes didn't have any scenes together this week, but it looks like they'll have scenes in the finale so I'm happy about that. My favourite moment of the episode was when Amelia told Owen that Tom had moved to Boston to help Jackson with the changes he wanted to make and Owen thinking that he had been fired said that he hated that there was one more thing he had to like and respect about the guy. I'm not an Owen fan in general, but that line cracked me up! I’m really looking forward to the finale! I’m excited that based on next week’s promo Meredith and Hayes will have scenes together and hopefully we’ll be getting some movement on the world's slowest moving slow burn storyline!

I swear to god glaciers move faster! People have gotten engaged, broken up, gotten back together, and moved to Boston in the time that Meredith was on that beach while Hayes worried about her from afar. So, I'm excited for that. I'm also excited for Maggie and Winston's wedding and to know why her Dad and his Grandmother are objecting. I hope to see Jo adopt Luna and I'd love to see some father-daughter scenes with Richard and Meredith.

Until next time!

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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How Final Destination Went From Real-Life Premonition to Horror Phenomenon

https://ift.tt/30jSLcc

The year 2000 was a scary one for horror films and not always in a good way.

While American Psycho and The Cell offered up visually striking nihilistic thrills to genre fans, the majority of horror movies released at the dawn of the new millennium were at best forgettable and, at worst, lamentable – yes, we’re looking at you, Leprechaun in the Hood.

This was the year of duff sequels like Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, Urban Legends: Final Cut and, though it is painful to admit, Scream 3. Horror fans were screaming out for something different, something exciting. They found it with Final Destination.

Discarding the stalk-and-slash thrills that had enjoyed a revival in the years following the release of Scream, Final Destination centered on a group of high schoolers who end up avoiding a fatal plane crash thanks to a premonition, only to discover there is no escaping death’s plan as one by one they are offed in a variety of brilliantly inventive “accidents”.

Released in March of that year, Final Destination was a sleeper hit with word-of-mouth helping the film to clean up at the box office, earning $112 million off a $23 million budget with more than half of that coming internationally.

To date, it has spawned four sequels as well as a variety of novelisations and comic book spin-offs while a franchise reboot is also on the horizon.

Movies

The Final Destination Movies, Ranked

By Sarah Dobbs

Jeffrey Reddick has worked on several films during his career to date but he’s probably best known as the creator of Final Destination. It’s something he has come to terms with.

“It’s probably going to end up on my gravestone, it’s such an ironic title,” he tells Den of Geek.

“Sometimes I’ll be out and I will hear someone say ‘you just had a Final Destination moment’ and it will make me smile. The whole thing just took on a life of its own.”

Nightmarish Origins

A screenwriter and director, Reddick recalls how his neighbors in rural Jackson, Kentucky, would laugh when his six-year-old self would tell them about his plans to work in the movie business.

An avid writer and reader of Greek and Roman mythology, he recalls spending his formative years watching horror movies with his friends. His mother was only too happy to indulge his burgeoning interest too, knowing it kept him out of trouble elsewhere.

Reddick’s life began to change after he saw A Nightmare on Elm Street.

“That film cemented my love of horror. I was this 14-year-old hillbilly from Kentucky but I decided I was going to write a prequel. I went home, banged it out on my typewriter and sent it to Bob Shaye.”

The legendary head of New Line Cinema initially dismissed Reddick’s draft out of hand, returning it with a note explaining the studio did not “accept unsolicited material.”

Undaunted, Reddick sent the script back with a note telling him “Look mister, I spent three dollars on your movie and I think you could take five minutes on my story.”

Shaye was impressed and struck up a bond with the youngster that saw him sending everything from scripts to posters to Reddick during his teenage years.

When Reddick moved to New York to study acting, age 19, he was offered an internship with New Line, which would become a full-time role despite acting being his “main passion.”

“Diversity in casting was not a thing at that time,” he recalls.

“My agent was like ‘I don’t know what to do with you as an actor. We can’t put you up for gangsters or pimps and you don’t rap and you don’t play basketball.”

“So I figured, screw it, I will just write stuff and put myself in it.”

Reddick was present at New Line during their company’s early 90s creative heyday and credits the experience with helping him get Final Destination off the ground.

“I learned a lot about how to get a movie made. I knew that to make a movie that connected with an audience you had to tap into something that was universal. Death is the ultimate fear.”

As luck would have it, the idea actually came to Reddick while on a flight back to Kentucky.

“I read about a woman who was on vacation and her mother told her not to take the flight she was planning to take home as she had a bad feeling about it. The woman changed it and the plane she was supposed to be on crashed.”

At that point however the idea wasn’t Final Destination. It wasn’t a film either. It was an episode of The X Files.

The Truth Is Out There

“I was trying to get a TV agent at the time and they recommended I write a spec script for something already on the air. I was a huge fan of The X Files and thought about a scene where somebody has a premonition and gets off the plane and then it crashes and used that as the plot.”

“It was going to be Scully’s brother Charles who had the premonition. He gets off the plane with a few other people but they start dying and Charles blacks out every time there is a murder so people suspect he is doing it.

I Still Want to Believe: Revisiting The X-Files Pilot

By Chris Longo

“The twist at the end was that the sheriff who had been investigating alongside Mulder and Scully the whole time had actually been shot and flatlined at the same time as the plane crash. Death brought him back to kill off all the survivors, including Charles.”

It would have made for a great episode except it was never submitted to The X Files. Reddick showed his spec script to some friends at New Line who were so impressed, they told him to develop it into a treatment for a feature, which was eventually purchased by the studio.

Producers Craig Perry and Warren Zide were brought onboard to develop the story and set about tweaking his idea.

“Originally the cast of survivors were adults because I wanted to explore more adult themes but Scream had come out and teenagers were hot again so New Line got me to change it”

In a twist of fate, two established writers from The X Files, James Wong and Glen Morgan, were brought onboard to rejig Reddick’s script.

“My version was definitely darker and more like A Nightmare on Elm Street,” he says.

“In my script, death would torment the kids about some kind of past sin they felt guilty about. They would then die in these accidents that ended up looking like suicides.”

For example, Todd’s death saw him chased into the family garage by an unseen specter where he accidentally ended up rigged in a noose triggered when his dad opens the automatic garage door.

Death is all around us

Ultimately that death scene and several others were ultimately scrapped in favour of what would prove to be the franchise’s calling card.

Reddick credits Wong and Morgan with coming up with the idea of having the film’s key death scenes kicked off by a Rube Goldberg machine-like chain-reaction that would see everyday things colliding to create a lethal scenario. It was nothing short of a masterstroke.

“It created this notion that death is all around us,” Reddick says.

“Death would use everyday things around us. It made it more universal and allowed us to set the deaths in places where people go all the time. The payoff would be fun but it was the build-up that had you on the edge of your seat.”

There was one major sticking point for the studio though: the presence of death, or rather the lack of.

“I fought really hard to make sure we never showed death because for me, if you didn’t show it, it could be something someone, no matter their belief system, could project onto our villain. That was a tough sell for the studio. They would be like ‘this doesn’t make any sense, you can’t see it and you can’t fight it’ but that’s the point, it’s death.”

“Luckily both James Wong and Glen Morgan were very insistent we never show it and tie it in to a specific belief system.”

Reddick credits the move with helping Final Destination become “an international phenomenon”.

“It struck a chord with people around the world. It broke out beyond the horror audience.”

Casting dreams

When it came to casting, Reddick had a clear idea of who he wanted in the lead roles, even if the studio’s opinion differed drastically.

“I had a wish list with Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst as my two leads but New Line was like ‘well…’”

He might not have got his first pick but Final Destination boasted an impressive cast of up-and-comers who had already made waves among teen audiences.

Devon Sawa had starred in Idle Hands, while Ali Larter was known for Varsity Blues and Kerr Smith was a regular on Dawson’s Creek. There was even room for Seann William Scott, fresh from his breakout turn in American Pie who was drafted in on the recommendation of producer Craig Perry, who told Reddick “you’ve got to get this kid, he’s going to be huge.”

Even so, Reddick was left a little unhappy.

“One of the conversations we had early on was like ‘Just remember this is set in New York, which is one of the most diverse cities in the world so let’s make sure we have some diversity in the cast’ and they were like ‘oh we will’ and then there wasn’t anyone who wasn’t white in it.”

New Line chief Bob Shaye did find a way to make amends on some level at least, casting Candyman horror icon Tony Todd in a cameo role as a mysteriously foreboding mortician.

“He called me up and said they had got Tony Todd and I flipped out. He is an icon. Such a talented, serious actor.”

As well as co-write the film, Wong took on directorial duties while each of the film’s death sequences would require careful planning, his first aim was to have the film start with a bang by creating as terrifyingly realistic a plane crash as possible.

“We want to do for planes and air travel what Jaws did for sharks and swimming,” he declared in one interview.

Yet the film would later garner criticism for its eerie similarities to the explosion and crash of TWA Flight 800 off East Moriches, Long Island, New York in 1996 where 16 students and five adults died.

“There was some criticism that the movie was written to exploit this real-life crash,” Reddick recalls.

“I even realised later they used footage from one real-life crash which I wasn’t particularly happy about.”

Indeed, much of the news footage shown in the film actually came from the 1996 crash.

That didn’t stop the film becoming a major hit and spawning a sequel within three years.

Final Destination meets Game of Thrones

Reddick returned to write the treatment for Final Destination 2, determined to move the franchise away from its teen Scream origins.

“We had tapped into that zeitgeist and didn’t have to do that again. I wanted to expand the universe and subvert it, so I had it open by following a bunch of teens who are then killed off.”

Once again, divine intervention led to divine inspiration for the opening set piece.

“Originally, I was going to have it open with some kids going to spring break and they stop off at this hotel and there is a fire but the producers were not sure. Writers always say you should go out and live life – life informs you and a lot of inspiration comes out when I go out for a walk.

“I was driving back to Kentucky to see my family and I got stuck behind a log truck and the idea just came to me. I pulled off the highway and called Craig and was flipping out with this idea for a log truck on a freeway.”

The resulting freeway pile-up that leads to multiple deaths is one Reddick ranks as his “favourite scene in the entire franchise.”

“The second film is my favourite. I wanted to create a sequel that didn’t feel like a remake of the first. It went in a more fun direction – but it’s still scary.”

That first sequel also represented the last of which Reddick was formally involved in, though he remained very much in the loop as the Godfather of the franchise, revealing that producers had been “looking at scripts before Covid hit.”

He also revealed that, at one point, things looked to be heading in an altogether different and thoroughly fascinating direction.

“There was talk about setting a Final Destination back in Medieval times. Like Game of Thrones in Final Destination. Craig Perry worked with a writer and they talked about the idea and put a teaser trailer together [which has leaked online].

“I would go and see that movie in a heartbeat but the studio said that the reason Final Destination was so popular was that element of deaths in normal, everyday situations.”

Future Destinations

Reddick hasn’t given up on a return to the franchise though, hinting at a “unique” idea he has for a new film that is simply too good to reveal yet.

In the meantime, he has been busy writing and directing Don’t Look Back, a film that shares some surface similarities with Final Destination and is painfully relevant to society today.

“It’s a mystery thriller about a group of people who witness someone getting fatally assaulted in a park and don’t help the person and somebody films them and puts it online. The public turns on the witnesses and someone or something is coming after them.”

Eager to make more horror films and celebrate diversity in his work, Reddick remains immensely proud of Final Destination and the impact it has had on audiences.

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

“It’s cool. To have one movie that is going to be talked about after you die is a life goal. If that’s what I leave behind as a legacy that’s enough – but I still want more.”

Don’t Look Back is available on DVD & Digital from 14th June

The post How Final Destination Went From Real-Life Premonition to Horror Phenomenon appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3oUb1UD

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the-digimon-tamer · 4 years

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Chapter 37 - The Shinjuku Quarantine is out now on FanFiction.Net and ArchiveOfOurOwn! Check them out with the links or find it after the break!

Title: The Tamer v2.0 - In HIs Name

Fandom: Digimon

Rating: T

Synopsis: In the next adventure of the Digimon Tamer, the lives of Juri, Rika, and Henry change forever when digimon begin crossing over into the human world. But it’s all just a story, right? Just a book series by an author no one has seen in a long time. Why are they here and can they save their world before something worse follows the digimon?

Renamon gazed down at Impmon’s unconscious form, laying on his back on the tree branch in the garden of the Makino household. Or Izumi, or Nonaka, or whatever it really was. As frustrating as it was to deal with, she knew that was at the bottom of their list of issues. First was what they were going to do when they got back to the Digital World. Second was what they were going to do about Impmon. She’d helped him out of a moment of pity - but was unsure if he deserved it after what he did. She closed her eyes and ruminated on it briefly, trying to reach a conclusion but unsatisfied with everything that came to mind.

He had killed Leomon - one of the partner digimon of the children who were going to save their world. And he’d done it for what? To test his power? She was unsure what to make of it since he’d always chosen to avoid fighting in the past - claiming that the smartest would survive. So was it really smart to run head first into a battle out of pure blood lust? And why his hatred towards the humans? His distrust for them far exceeded anything demonstrated by the Devas or the Sovereigns. And they had more reason to be weary than Impmon.

“Hmm?” Impmon cracked an eye open and looked around, still in a daze and struggling to stand up right. She crossed her arms, “Welcome back to the land of the living.”

“I’m alive?” Impmon looked down at himself, carefully inspecting every inch of his body for some damage. Renamon nodded, “Yes, although there were some of us who were unsure you deserved the courtesy. You’re alive only because Juri decided to show you a moment of mercy. The girl whose partner you killed.”

Impmon gave no answer, obviously still amazed that he was here and alive to be having this discussion. There was a distraught look in his eyes - a haunted gaze she’d seen only in the most traumatized of digimon before they were destroyed by other, stronger digimon. She tilted her head, “Regretting what you did?”

“I don’t…know how to say it…I saw so many…so many…” he was struggling to put into words. Whatever the Digimon Tamer had done to him clearly did a number - Impmon was reduced to rambling like a madman. After a moment, he shook his head, “I don’t know.”

“Use your words,” she pressed. He massaged his temples and closed his eyes so hard she was sure he was going to pass out again, “I don’t want to. Whatever that was. Whatever I saw. I don’t want to see it again. I don’t want to think of it.”

She should’ve suspected as much, “The Digimon Tamer said he put a bad memory in your head. If it did that to you, one can only imagine what it did to him.”

“That was a memory? I thought it was a nightmare!” Impmon protested angrily, “What the hell kinda human is that? He’s a kid!”

“He isn’t. He’s a digital being - like you or me and he’s even older than either of us,” Renamon explained, “I thought you said the smart would survive. The smart thing to do would’ve been to not run into that situation head first without a plan. So why’d you do it? What possessed you to attack us?”

Impmon fell quiet again, staring down at his hands and then looking skyward. He jumped up upon seeing the skyline, “We’re back in the human world!?”

“Yes, now answer my question. What happened?” Renamon pressed, becoming annoyed, “Why did you attack us!? You wanted to test your power but why on us?”

Impmon averted his gaze, “I wanted to prove that digimon could become strong without humans. That we didn’t need partners. I guess I was right, though. In the end, that old kid and his insane red dragon were the only ones who could beat me - one’s not even human and the other ain’t any kind of digimon I’ve seen before.”

Renamon felt herself shaking from his answer. Was that it? That was why he did all this? It was taking all her effort to restrain herself from doing anything rash, “You killed Leomon to make a point?”

No answer.

“You took a life, prevented it from reformatting, killed a good digimon in front of a ten year old girl…definitely traumatized her forever. All to make a point,” Renamon repeated quietly, shaking with uncontrolled anger. He still wouldn’t look at her. This must be how Rika feels any time she has to be around the Digimon Tamer. It was no wonder she was prone to fits of anger. Still, she needed to know, “Why do you have so much animosity towards humans!?”

“BECAUSE WHY COULDN’T I GET ONE OF THE GOOD ONES!?” Impmon snapped at her. That was not the answer she was expecting from him. She recalled Tamer mentioning he had a bad partner but bad enough to make him like that? What kind of human was capable of making Impmon like this? It didn’t excuse any of his actions - they were still unforgivable - but she had no idea that he’d been hurting this whole time.

“The Digimon Tamer said you had a partner. We determined that much,” she said quietly, more repeating the fact than anything else. He nodded, “I had partners. These two kids. And they fought over everything! Toys! Food! Clothes! And everything they fought over, they eventually broke. It was only a matter of time until they broke me. Hell, they probably already did. So I ran from that place before they could make it any worse and never looked back. And I don’t regret it for a moment.”

Renamon notes the hesitation in his voice, “Even after everything you did? Killing Leomon? Forcing a little girl to watch?”

Once again he gave no answer and just stared off into space. She was getting really annoyed with his evasiveness, “Did you ever try talking to them? Working things out?”

“What do I look like, some kinda counselor?” Impmon raised an eyebrow, “Y’know what? We’ve been answering all your questions so how’s about you answers one o’ mine?”

That was fair, “What did you want to know?”

“Why are we back in the human world?” Impmon asked quietly. There was a lot to answer there, “We figured out the cause of all of this and it isn’t good by any measure. We returned to this world to regroup before we headed back to deal with it. After all, everyone was tired and Juri was in no condition to continue. Not after what you did.”

“Will ya stop tryin’ to guilt me? That’s the last thing I need!” Impmon protested angrily. Renamon remained passive, “I answered the question. Now answer mine! What are you going to do now?”

“Wha!?” Impmon gave her a quizzical look. Renamon picked the digimon up by his scarf, “You got your power and it amounted to nothing. Your own stated distrust of humans was built on your past experiences with your partner. But you were clearly the exception, not the rule. You said it was all about survival. So are you going to continue out on your own, as much good as it’s done you. Or are you going to go back to your partners?”

Impmon stared downward at the garden in silence, clearly contemplating the answer. Renamon waited for it eagerly until she felt a sudden energy in the air that made her fur stand on end. She looked upwards, over the horizon and saw a massive red blob in the distance. The red mass that they’d fought in the Digital World. It was here. It was in the human world. Impmon saw it too and his jaw fell open, “Well I know what I’m doing first. I’m getting away from that!”

She didn’t try to stop him, letting him run away. It seemed that was what he was best at. Running away from danger.

But there was no time to dwell on him. That thing was here now. She knew now that there would be no going back to the Digital World. Not if it was here.

…

“This was the scene today in downtown Tokyo as the gelatinous red mass continues to expand. It’s been five hours since the mass first appeared and now the mass has absorbed three square blocks of the city. Government officials have declared the area a quarantine zone and are advising citizens to stay at least a mile away. The Self Defense Force continues to evacuate citizens to camps outside the city, however unrest grows as questions go answered. And now we go to our resident expert at the studio-”

Yamaki switched off the news and groaned angrily at the situation. The Minister of Defense was breathing down his neck to solve the problem and he had no solutions. He had no idea what this problem even was. It wasn't like with the wild ones - they could at least be captured and contained, or put down if that wasn’t an option. But this thing - this mass. It was too big to properly contain and none of the weapons they’d developed to fight ‘digimon’ were proving effective.

They couldn’t tranquilize it, it didn’t respond to magnets or electrical shocks or anything. If he didn’t come up with something soon, it would be his ass.

His phone rang, pulling him out of his thoughts, “Director Yamaki speaking.”

“Director, this is the Prime Minister,” the man on the other end said. He froze up, feeling the color drain from his face as the nation’s leader spoke, “Tell me you have a plan for this.”

“We’re exercising all our options, sir,” Yamaki answered, “We’re readying to fire Juggernaut again, and currently have our scientists working around the clock to better study what we’re up against.”

He doubted the Prime Minister appreciated his assurances, especially with his current track record regarding the wild ones. He massaged the bridge of his nose as he prepared for whatever answer the Minister would give, “Your department hasn’t had the best of luck when it comes to dealing with these other worldly threats. Since discretion is no longer a factor, I’m authorizing the Defense Force to step in. Im giving operational command to the general and I Hypnos providing support and intelligence.”

“Sir, with all due respect, that’s in violation of the Morpheus Project,” Yamaki reminded him, “If you don’t want the United Nations Security Council coming down on us, I strongly recommend operating within our-”

“We both know that’s a crock of shit, Yamaki. Be realistic. The Chinese, the French, the British, the Russians...hell, the Americans violate more UN agreements before breakfast. Who gives a shit about the UN right now? Let’s focus on dealing with the problem with everything we have. I’m not having another Odaiba Incident. Do you understand?”

Yamaki hesitated, unprepared for this specific scenario. Agreeing meant breaking several international agreements, which he was sure the Prime Minister would happily blame him for to save face. Alternatively, refusing would lead to his arrest for treason. He would need to play his cards carefully going forward. And he could only do that if he was in charge of his team, “Whatever you need sir.”

Carefully chosen words. He could argue that he was following orders from the Prime Minister if this ever came back to bite him.

“Good, get it done,” the Prime Minister responded. The line went dead and Yamaki took a moment to consider his situation. Time for reflection like this was enough to make him understand that his situation was infuriating. He needed to stay calm and think rationally. But he had nothing for this. He was being set up as the fall guy. But that was going to happen over his dead body. He could afford to be emotional, if only for a moment. All that anger and rage and frustration erupted as throwing the phone as hard as he could at the wall - smashing it to pieces and denting the dry wall. He would not take the fall for these men. Not after everything he'd done to keep this nation - this world safe.

This was no longer just a mission to save the world. This was a mission to save the world and destroy their of these feckless politicians - he was going to burn all his bridges and leave them standing in the ruin.

...

Henry couldn’t believe his eyes as his parents watched the news over breakfast. The red mass that had threatened the Digital World was now in their world. But how? Had it followed them when they came back? Was it their fault?

As his mind raced in a panic, the news reporter went on, “Military personnel are quarantining the area and preventing anyone from getting closer but the mass absorbs all barricades placed to contain it. If you look over my shoulder, the trucks parked on the street and walls erected to contain the mass are now partially absorbed. They also appear to be setting up weapons for a conventional attack on the target - we’ve seen tanks, helicopters, transport vehicles and-”

The reporter was cut off as a soldier appeared behind him, “Hey! We told you to back up! Shut off that camera! This is a designated quarantine zone. You will move back now!”

Before either the reporter or the soldier could say anymore, gunfire could be heard followed by terrified screams. As the news cut back to the reporters in the station, Henry heard a loud bang followed by the apartment shaking. Terriermon ran to the window, “Well that’s not good. We thought we’d be safe here but it followed us.”

Henry turned his attention to the window and saw smoke rising over the buildings, in the direction of the red mass. Of the D-Reaper. He shuddered, knowing what he had to do but still terrified by what he would have to do. His partner elbowed his leg, or did something similar to it and Henry regained his resolve, “We need to go help.”

His mom didn’t take to that and she roared, “Henry, are you insane!? You’ll get yourself killed!”

He should’ve expected his mom’s disapproval, “Mom! That thing is destroying the Digital World! The world Terriermon came from! If I don’t go...if this isn’t stopped before it gets out of hand, then our world will be next! Terriermon and I need to go out there now while we can still do something about it.”

“It’s not just you two. I’m going to hurry back to the Metropolitan Building,” his dad added anxiously, hurrying to grab the phone, “I’m going to call Yamaki now. The sooner we get involved, the better.”

“Again!? Dear, don't tell me you’re involved in this!?” his mom cried out in anger. His dad shook his head sheepishly, “Honestly? If it’s anything to do with the digimon, then I made the problem! Henry! Make sure you and Terriermon come back safe!”

“Will do dad!” Henry called out, scooping up his partner and rushing for the door. As he slipped his shoes on, Xiaochun ran up along side him and tried to follow suit, “I’m coming too! We can help!”

“Am I the only one who thinks this is a terrible idea? I mean, I’m literally a fraction of my size right now and she wants to rush out there with you!” Lopmon asked from behind them.

“That’s why you guys are going to stay here!” Henry said so loudly, he nearly shouted. He didn’t want his sister getting involved in this mess and gently nudged her back inside, “Sorry, I don’t mean to shout. But you need to stay here.”

“Henry! I want to help!” she whined, “I have a digivice too! I can help! And Lopmon will come too, right?”

“Don’t you dare put words in my mouth,” Lopmon protested with folded arms.

“I-” he paused, knowing she wasn’t going to take no for an answer. She was as stubborn as she was small. Although, he supposed that meant she was going to be very strong willed as an adult. He needed to convince her to stay with another reason, “You can help by protecting our family while I’m out, okay?”

She glared at him, catching on to the lie right away. Of course she did. It was obvious. But he wasn’t about to let her rush out into danger like this. Not when their lives when in danger. Finally, she huffed, “Fine!”

“Don’t worry, okay? I’ll be back!” he said, finishing putting on his shoes and running outside with Terriermon on his head. There wasn’t any more point in discretion. Not anymore.

The streets were just short of being full of panic, with armed soldiers keeping everyone calm as they directed traffic down set roads to help clear the city. Buses packed full of people moved along side those who’d packed their families into cars while everyone else walked. He must’ve looked crazy going in the opposite direction - but he ran as fast as he could through the crowds until he came across a soldier blocking him off, “Hey! Watch it kid! We’re evacuating! You’re heading in the wrong direction!”

Henry looked past the soldier at tent where more soldiers worked at a makeshift command center. Computers were hooked up to various radios and antenna that all fed into a rocket truck. He panicked at the sight of it, “You’re not planning of shooting rockets in the city, are you?”

“That’s not your business, kid. Now get back! I’m not saying it again,” the soldier warned again. Henry tried reasoning him but he didn’t expect it to go anywhere, “You don’t understand! Those won’t work! You can make it rain missiles all you want, they won’t do anything against a monster like-”

The soldier raised a rifle and pointed it at him, making a point of clicking off the safety. Henry raised up his hands and stepped back quietly, “Okay! I’m getting back!”

“Kids these days have no respect,” the soldier muttered quietly.

He stepped backwards several steps until the soldier lowered his gun, then turned and ran. There was no getting through to this soldier. And he definitely wasn’t going to get past this soldier either. He would need to change his approach - otherwise he’d risk getting shot at.

“Psst! Henry!” Rika called out to him from a nearby side street, poking her head out around the corner. He nodded and ran to join her, ducking into the side street to see Ryo there too with Monodramon and Renamon. Ryo crossed his arms and groaned, “Don't bother talking to them. We already tried that and they just got mad at us.”

“What are they even doing? They don’t seriously think that’ll work, do they? It’s literally absorbing everything it touches. It’ll probably just absorb the bullets and missiles too. And I doubt the explosions will do them any good,” Monodramon observed.

“Okay, take a running start!” a soldier called out. They poked their heads around the corner again to see a soldier holding a model plane in his hands. It was probably about half his height, but the wings were wide enough to mount what looked like small cameras. He raised it over his head and took a running start towards the red mass, throwing it with all his might as the propellor kicked on and it soared straight into the mass, “UAV is in the air! Receiving a signal in five!”

“UAV?” Renamon repeated.

“You got me,” Henry shrugged. The soldiers were too far away to hear properly and it was hard to make out anything else. After a few moments, one of the soldiers jumped out of his chair and threw his helmet on the ground in a fit of anger, “Piece of shit! How did it lose a signal? It’s fifty feet away! I could fucking see it with my own eyes if that stupid red jelly weren’t there!”

“Sergeant! Watch your language!” another of the soldiers barked at him, quieting the soldier down. Rika scoffed and turned away, “Saw that one coming a mile away. Of course it absorbed it. What’s over there anyway?”

“Apartments and I think some tracks,” Henry answered, peeking over again to see the soldier getting scolded by what must’ve been a superior. Rika scratched her head, “Okay, but why here? None of us were anywhere near here last night…”

“Wait, didn’t that one lady take Juri home last night?” Ryo asked aloud. Renamon’s tone changed, “You don’t think that she’s in there, do you?”

“Wait, I’m not following. What’s going on?” Terriermon asked quietly. Henry realized all too quickly what Ryo was getting at and was horrified by the realization explained, “The teacher from my school - Miss Asaji or Kari Kamiya or whoever - she said she was going to take Juri home since they didn’t need to hide a digimon and her parents weren’t there. I bet you they were on that train!”

“So that thing followed us here? How would it have come through though?” Terriermon asked, still not following the conversation. Henry scratched his head, “I don’t know. Juri was acting weird after everything that happened with Leomon. It could be connected. It could just be a really random coincidence. We have no real way of knowing at this point. Anything’s possible. For all we know, Tamerkato’s the one responsible for all of this!”

“You guys should really lighten up on him,” Terriermon frowned. Renamon looked upward, “It doesn’t matter for now. We’re on our own. We should fight.”

“And how are we going to do that with the military right there? They’ll shoot you on sight!” Rika gasped in panic, “I don’t want to lose you or see you get hurt because of them!”

…

The sergeant threw his helmet in a fit of anger. That was several million yen down the drain with no chance of being recovered. Still, they needed to know what was going on in there. They needed to be able to see what happened to anyone who would’ve been absorbed by this thing when it first showed up. But there was no way to do that safely. And the drone was their only chance.

He looked at the ever expanding red mass and wondered just what it was - where had it come from and what was it after? Was it even alive? Or was this some really weird magma flow? That couldn’t be possible. Ambient air temperature was the same. It wasn’t hot. It wasn’t radioactive. It just…was. It existed.

An amorphous blob that was growing faster than it could be contained.

Part of its surface bubbled like something was trying to escape. Then a golden eye appeared. He took a step back and blinked in surprise, “Hey guys? The thing has an eye now.”

“An eye?” one of the soldiers repeated. Some of his squad approached, each with their hands on their pistols for safety - not that it would do them much good against this thing. If it was this big, there was no doubt bullets wouldn’t even hurt it.

The eye blinked, bulging from the red surface until a face of purple skin protruded from the surface. Then another. And another appeared. Each broke free from the surface of the red mass - taking the shape of something like a bird. Or what a bird might look to someone who’d only ever heard of a bird.

The basic shape was there - but the proportions were all wrong and it didn’t seem to understand how birds worked. Eyes on the wings, claws coming from its body, and legs that seemed more like wires connecting it back to the main red mass. And the wings - they didn’t flap but the bird creature was able to hover in the air in defiance of every natural law. Like the wings were just for show and they flew of their own accord.

And before anyone knew it, there were hundreds of them just hovering in the air. Then they scattered, flying in hundreds of different directions around the city all at once. They couldn’t be allowed to get away. They had to be contained. They couldn’t be allowed to wreak havoc on the city.

…

“OPEN FIRE!” a soldier shouted from around the corner. Everyone poked their heads out again to see soldiers firing aimlessly at a flock of bird like creatures flying above in the sky. Ryo blinked and did a double take of what he was seeing. They weren’t birds - they were something else. Something completely unnatural. And there were hundreds of them. But with all the bullets flying in the air, it didn’t seem to matter. The bird things zipped around the hail of bullets like nothing and proceeded forward - scattering around the city and going in many different directions.

Rika leapt out from behind the corner and declared, “If Juri is in there then we can’t leave her hanging. We have to help! Come on Renamon!”

She stood there for a moment, holding her digivice in the air and striking an odd pose. Renamon poked her in the side, “What are you doing, Rika?”

“Is this one of those living statues things?” Ryo asked, unsure of what Rika was doing. Rika looked up at her digivice and frowned, “What gives? Why isn’t it working?”

“Why isn’t what working?” Ryo looked at the digivice in confusion, still trying to understand what she was doing. She turned to both boys and held up her digivice for them to see, “That bio-digivolution-dna-merge thing? It worked in the Digital World! Why isn’t it working here? We need to become Sakuyamon!”

“Let me try,” Henry said, raising up his digivice. After a moment with nothing happening, he started swiping cards at random to no effect. It did make Terriermon twitch in excitement with every single card swipe as he complained, “Henry! Knock it off! I’m getting dizzy from all the power ups!”

“It’s not working for me, either!” Henry gasped. It was a shame. This would have been a really good time to have both Sakuyamon and MegaGargomon. After all, those two seemed to be the only digimon fully capable of actually harming whatever the hell the red bio mass was. However, they couldn’t afford to give up now. There were people in trouble. He gently nudged both Rika and Henry, “It doesn’t matter! We’re just going to have to get in there and support our partners. Monodramon, promise you won’t go crazy?”

“Only on whatever those things are,” the little purple dragon cheered ecstatically, “I’ve been waiting for a good fight!”

“Okay!” Ryo charged out first, his partner following close behind and then rushing ahead of them. Ryo stopped just a few feet from one of the soldiers and took out the red card, “Digimodify! Digivolution Activate!”

“Monodramon! Warp Digivolve to! Cyberdramon!”

The dragon digimon roared to life with a flash of bright light and leapt up into the fight, soaring over the soldiers heads to attack the bird-like creatures. For all the good it did as they were moving too fast for him to catch up to. He swiped another card, “DigiModify! Speed Boost Activate!”

With the new power up, Cyberdramon was able to close the gap with one of the bird things. He tore into it with his razor sharp claws but was barely able to hurt the thing - in fact, it hardly seemed to notice that it was being attacked at all. Before Ryo could swipe another card through, one of the soldiers picked him up, “What the hell are you doing here, kid!? This is an active combat zone! Cover me! I’m getting the civvie out of the fight!”

“Squad! Fall back! Igarashi! Toyotomi! Cover our retreat” the lead soldier barked out, ironically further back from the fighting than the rest of the soldiers. Two of the soldiers turned their weapons on Cyberdramon, trying to get a bead on him as they fired, “New contact! Open fire!”

“NO!” Ryo shouted at them, but his cries were drowned out with the sound of gunfire.

“I wouldn’t do that,” Renamon said, appearing beside some of the soldiers and kicking their weapons out of their hands. A few of them reached for their pistols and took aim at her but were unable to fire before she moved beside them, hitting the weapons out of their hands. Rika and Henry finally stepped out from behind the alley and called out to the guards, “Seriously? She moved so fast that none of you saw her until it was too late. What makes you think pointing a gun at her is a good idea!?”

“Go easy on them,” Henry chided her, nodding to his partner who finally ran into the fight with a great big smile. Henry swiped his cards through his deck and called out, “DigiModify! Digivolution Activate!”

Rika followed his lead and did the same, swiping her own card through her digivice. Both partners rose up into the air as they digivolved in bright flashes of light.

“Terriermon! Warp Digivolve to! Rapidmon!”

“Renamon! Warp Digivolve to! Taomon!”

The two ultimates joined along side Cyberdramon, trying to inflict some harm on the flock of bird like creatures before any of them could get away. Together, the three of them actually were able to hit some of the creatures but it didn’t seem as if their attacks actually did anything to harm them. The soldiers were too caught up by what they were seeing to actually notice how ineffectual their attacks were. The soldier carrying Ryo finally set him down on the ground, “Who the hell are you kids?”

Ryo, Henry, and Rika exchanged glances. Ryo wasn’t sure how to explain anything to these soldiers. After all, the whole situation was absurdly fantastic. Then again, they’d probably believe anything too. Ryo stammered, “We’re…um…we’re…”

“Here to help,” Henry answered for him, “Right, guys?”

“Yeah, but who the hell are you?” the soldier asked again. Rika scoffed, “Those are our digimon. And we are digimon tamers!”

...

Kari finished cooking some eggs and ham, setting up bowls of rice for herself, Guilmon, and Tamer. Once the table was set, she called out to him only to be met with Guilmon instead. He sniffed the food and asked, “It looks yummy! Can I have some?”

“Of course. I cooked it for us,” she said, barely finishing her sentence before he started to dig straight into the food. Kari felt her appetite go away in disgust with how quickly and disgustingly the dinosaur made the food go away, “I said us, Guilmon. Us!”

As she looked away from his eating spree, she noted Tamer still hasn’t joined them, “Where’s your partner?”

“Takatomon was in your bedroom drawing on your window,” Guilmon said with a mouth full of food. Kari sighed and pushed her plate his way, “Go ahead and have mine. I’m going to talk to him.”

She made her way into the bedroom, watching him draw on her window with a red marker and massaged her temple. Not once in her life did she think she would talking to him like a disappointed parent. Then again, she was sure he’d had enough of that in the last few days, “You better plan on washing that off.”

“I will when all this is over,” he promised, not even looking up from his work. That was hardly reassuring to her, especially since the drawing consisted of what looked like a crude map of the city along with some numbers. It was curious, “What are you doing?”

“Measuring the rate of growth and expansion. It’s slow but it’s expanding at an increasing rate. It could swallow the city in a matter of days,” he crossed his arms, “Which makes the whole thing more complicated. The country in the week. The whole world in a month. Time is a factor and we don’t have a lot of it.”

“Okay, but why the window and not a piece of paper?” she asked. He gave her a quizzical look and called her over to have a look at the window from his perspective. The map may have been crude from where she was standing, but it drawn so all the streets and landmarks lined up with where they could be seen from her window, “My math might be off but it should be accurate enough to get a rough estimate.”

She smiled at him, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were playing dumb with your math homework this entire time.”

He smiled back at her and went back to continuing doing math on the window, “I made you some eggs and bacon but I imagine that Guilmon has eaten it all by now.”

Tamer shrugged it off. It seemed he was focused solely on his business at this point whatever his business was. And she didn’t like bring left out of the loop. Not anymore, “Tell ME you’ve got a plan to save Juri. To save both worlds.”

“I probably did. I just can’t remember it. My memories are still off but being in the Digital World helped clear my head of the static. It comes in flashes. And not all of its good,” he paused, stopping his drawings long enough to look back at her with the the biggest puppy dog eyes she’d ever seen, “For whatever it’s worth, I’m sorry. For everything. From when you were a little kid to now. I really am sorry. I was a jerk back then. And I don’t want to be a jerk now. I want to be better. I’m sorry.”

Words she never thought she’d hear him say so genuinely. But that wasn’t important now, “That’s in the past. Right now, all I’m worried about is saving Juri and the world. What is the plan?”

“Right now? Wing it and hope for the best. That thing is called the D-Reaeper. And a long time ago, the guardians couldn’t kill it. We threw everything at it. It evolved and learned so quickly that it was impossible to try the same strategy twice without it adapting. So we did the next best thing. We sealed it away with another equally powerful monster,” he answered, “I’d say we try that again, but I don’t know where we’re going to get that many strong digimon to trick it and an equally strong monster - not digimon, monster - to fight it for another...I don’t know. Another eternity.”

He started pacing frantically, “Okay, plan. Plan. I remember I’m supposed to be good at this stuff - being unpredictable. Winging it so that stuff just kinda works out. So why can’t I think of anything? Gah! Okay, think. Think.”

BOOM!

The apartment shook and Tamer latched on to her to keep from falling over. There was a loud crash somewhere in the distance that must’ve been Guilmon falling over in the kitchen. Once the apartment settled, Kari looked down at Tamer, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, you?” he asked. She nodded, turning her attention out the window, “What the hell was that?”

Her answer came in the form of smoke rising in the distance out her window. It was accompanied by the sight of a strange flock of birds and digimon: Taomon, Rapidmon, and a strange dragon digimon she didn’t recognize. She looked back down at Tamer, “It looks like the rest of your new friends are out there fighting for their lives.”

Tamer’s expression sank, “What? Oh no. Okay, that changes things. I could help but…no, they definitely don’t want to talk to me right now. So change of plan…back up! They need back up! We need to help them! Guilmon! We need to go!”

He collected himself and hurried for the door with Guilmon in tow. But then he paused, stopping just as his hand turned the handle. He didn’t open the door. He didn’t run out to help the others. He just stood there, staring at the door. Then he let it go, stepping back from the door quietly, “Maybe I shouldn’t.”

“What?” Kari blurted, “Tamer, what happened to all that enthusiasm you had a second ago?”

“I’m just realizing something. Any time I help, things just go from bad to worse,” Tamer threw his hands up in frustration, “I could help. I could! But my help tends to cause more problems than it solves! And let’s be fair! With my helping streak, I’ll probably get them killed!”

“So what. Your plan is to sit here and do nothing?” Kari asked, unsure of what exactly he was thinking. Tamer shook his head, massaging his temple as he began pacing in her door way, “Sure! Why not? It’s not like I’ll help them any more than I helped Juri. Who knows, maybe they’ll get kidnapped too! Maybe Ryo will get to spend another twenty years in the Digital World. That’s how destiny seems to be working itself out anyway. I’m supposed to be the Guardian of that and I can’t even remember what I’m supposed to do!”

Kari looked at Tamer pitifully, recalling all her previous adventures in the Digital World and noting how this must’ve been what it looked like from the other side. He seemed genuinely lost and had no idea what to do. All resemblance to the one who always had a plan melted away, all that remained was the misbehaving student from her class with a frustratingly short attention span. As a teacher, she’d always tried using a mix of discipline and learning moments in the hopes of getting through to him. But what exactly could she say now? What should she say?

What would he need to hear? Probably Agumon at this point. She looked over at Guilmon, recalling everything he’d told her. Agumon would be of no help, not in this state. But if he were still around with all his memories intact, what would he say? Of course.

“Don’t worry about it,” Kari said. Tamer looked up at her with a raised eyebrow, “Excuse me?”

Kari mused “It was something Agumon said to us back when you were being ‘Taichi’ that one time, as annoying as it got. Don’t worry about it. Do what comes natural and destiny will usually work itself out. That’s what he told us when we went looking for you. And it’s definitely what you need to hear. Just do what comes natural. So...what do you want to do?”

He looked up at her quietly with big sad eyes. It was easy to forget that he was over a hundred thousand years old when he had those big, sad, childish eyes looking up at her. She put a hand on his shoulder to calm him, “Tamer, what are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. What should I do?” he asked her quietly. He didn’t know. He was on their level. The apartment shook again as another distant explosion rocked the building. She looked back out her apartment window at the chaos outside. If only she had her partner, “I know what I’d do if Gatomon were here. I’d run out there and try to save the city.”

His eyes widened and a small smile cracked on his face, “When did you get so good at this?”

She smiled back at him, “Someone had to step up when you weren’t around. We all did, honestly. You weren’t around to save the world.”

He nodded silently, still smiling in simple agreement, “You guys really did. And you did a great job of it too. I...I’m sorry for how I was before.”

“You already apologized Tamer. Otherwise, I’m glad we’re having a moment, but the city is in danger! So stop talking and get out there!” Kari said just short of shouting at him. He nodded in agreement and threw the door open, “Yeah, come on buddy! Let’s go get some help.”

“Thank you for breakfast! It was super yummy!” The red dinosaur cheered as he followed his partner back out the door. Kari sighed - those two were the best shot they had right now. She just hoped they were able to do something. That Tamer would come up with a plan before it was too late and all of this would be over soon.

#The Digimon Tamer v2 - In His Name #Digimon Tamers #Fanfiction #Chapter 37 #ArchiveOfOurOwn

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javionxander25 · 3 years

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Now You See Gemma Chan

Moving between blockbusters and indie hits, Gemma Chan has kept one foot in stardom and one in anonymity. But this year, she's going famous full time.

BY ,ALICE WIGNALL 06/01/2021

When is a celebrity not a celebrity? When you’re Gemma Chan, of course – or so says Gemma Chan. ‘I don’t think of myself like that at all,’ she says. ‘My life is fairly low-key.’ What, because you don’t drive a gold Cadillac? She laughs. ‘I don’t live in a mansion, I don’t have an assistant,’ she says. ‘All that kind of stuff.’ Beauty Truths With Gemma Chan by Elle UK Previous VideoPlayNext VideoUnmute Current Time 0:39 / Duration 6:34 Loaded: 25.84% Fullscreen CLICK TO UNMUTE I remain unconvinced, and mount my counterargument, ticking off the evidence on my fingers: one, a starring role in an enormous movie franchise (Sersi in Eternals, part of the world-conquering juggernaut that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe, due for release in late 2020 but Covid-delayed until late 2021); two, a new contract with L’Oréal Paris as an international spokesperson; and, three, another recently announced UK ambassador role with Unicef. Guaranteed blockbuster, cosmetics contract, high-profile charity patron: this is the star-making Big Three; the trifecta of global fame. Come on, I say. This year, your face is going to be everywhere. ‘Er, yeah,’ she says, looking genuinely quite alarmed. MARCIN KEMPSKI Chan's path to this point has been one of steady progress, rather than precipitous acceleration, which is maybe why she finds it hard to contemplate the quantum leap her career is about to take. At 38, and with more than a decade and a half of experience behind her, she’s done it all: BBC bit parts (including Doctor Who and Sherlock) and a breakout TV role in Channel 4’s Humans; high-brow theatre and big-budget films (in Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and, indeed, a previous Marvel movie, as the sniper Minn-Erva in Captain Marvel. The two characters are unrelated but, as she points out, ‘I was painted blue for that whole job, so it’s not like I’m very recognisable’), but nothing on a scale likely to upend her life. The closest she’s come to that so far is her performance as Astrid in 2018’s surprise smash hit Crazy Rich Asians, which made $238.5m against a budget of $30m and became the top-earning romantic comedy of the Noughties. ‘[Because] Crazy Rich Asians did so well internationally, I definitely felt a shift at that time,’ Chan says. ‘Like, on the Captain Marvel press tour, not being able to walk through [Singapore] airport. Then again, things have settled and the slight craziness of that time has gone away. I do feel like I can – touch wood – go about my life normally now.’ MARCIN KEMPSKI The biggest impact, she says, was professional: ‘Before Crazy Rich Asians, I wasn’t being considered for lead roles in feature films. There [is] a very select group of actors in that pool and I wouldn’t even get an audition, I wasn’t in that conversation. Whereas now... I’m being talked about for certain things and then you may meet the director, or you at least get to have your shot. So that feels a bit different.’ Her most recent project is certainly the kind of job you can imagine being fought over in casting rooms around the world: hey, how would you like to get on a luxury cruise liner with acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh and a killer cast including, oh, I don’t know, Meryl Streep and make an intelligent comedy drama about betrayal, responsibility and enduring love? Who wouldn’t? But Chan was the one who was picked for Let Them All Talk, which was filmed on board the Queen Mary 2 as it crossed the Atlantic from New York to Southampton. It tells the story of a lionised novelist, played by Streep on magisterial form, en route to collect a prestigious writing award in England, accompanied by two old friends and her nephew. Chan is her recently promoted literary agent, who has also bought a ticket for the crossing, in the hope that she can clandestinely find out what her secretive client’s much-anticipated next book is about. I wasn’t being considered for lead roles in feature films ‘Obviously I jumped at the chance,’ says Chan. ‘It was a dream project.’ Though not a stress-free one: ‘A lot of the dialogue was improvised,’ says Chan. ‘There’s a scene, a lunch in New York with Meryl, which was actually the first scene that I shot. So I arrived on set and the restaurant was full of 200 extras; you could hear a pin drop. I went in and sat down, then Meryl came in and sat down, and we just had to improvise a scene. I don’t think I’ve ever had such a clenched bum! I was petrified. There I am, with possibly the greatest actress of all time, and... “Action!”’ There is an alternate timeline, of course, in which Chan genuinely isn’t famous. If she’d followed the path that her early years suggested, her current life would be, if not stress-free, less likely to include head-to-heads with multi-time Oscar winners. MARCIN KEMPSKI Raised in Kent to Chinese parents, she attended an academically selective school before studying law at Oxford. She also played violin to a high standard and swam competitively at a national level. All in all, the perfect image of a relentless high-achiever, bound for success in a stable career – until she took a post-graduation gap year swerve into acting, at first with evening classes, then a full-time course. Even now – when the gamble has decisively paid off – she sounds tentative when discussing her original ambitions to act. She did some am-dram at school, ‘but never thought, I could do this for a job.’ Embarking on her acting studies, the idea of a career was there, but ‘at the back of my mind’. That might be because this period of Chan’s life was fraught: her parents were alarmed that she declined a training contract with a prestigious London law firm, and thought she was making a mistake. Perhaps she still finds it hard to unequivocally state that the path she chose is not one they initially approved of. ‘The key for both of them and therefore for myself, and my sister, was the importance of education,’ she says. ‘It allowed my father to have a completely different life to his father, mother and some of his brothers and sisters. Both of my parents are immigrants who came from very humble backgrounds,’ she adds. ‘They definitely instilled in me a work ethic from a young age and a sense of, “The world doesn’t owe you a living, you have to make your own way.” At one point in my dad’s childhood, he was homeless. My amah, his mum, raised six kids on her own. They had absolutely nothing, they lived in a shack on a hillside in Hong Kong. I’m one generation away from that.’ You can sense the shadow of the lawyer she could have been when she talks, and almost hear the weighing up of pros and cons she has done to determine what steps to take. Of L’Oréal Paris, she says: ‘I have been a little bit cautious when it comes to brand partnerships and things like that. I wanted to wait till it felt like it was right. [I chose] L’Oréal because the brand stands for uplifting women and empowerment and they have a strong philanthropic side to what they do, such as their partnership with The Prince’s Trust.’ MARCIN KEMPSKI She talks about carefully considering joining the Marvel universe, knowing it could mean giving over a share of the next 10 years of her life (‘You’re not signing up for one film, because they have additional films and spin-offs and they cover themselves’). She chooses her words with utmost caution when talking about Eternals: ‘Marvel is pretty strict about these kinds of things and I’ve got an non-disclosure agreement like that,’ she says, miming a massive wodge of a legal document. She insists that alongside this diligence there’s a flip side to her personality: ‘I have a slightly rebellious nature. I wasn’t always the best behaved and, yeah, I do work hard but I’m also quite chaotic. Hopefully I’ve found a bit of balance but when I was younger I was like, “I’ll leave it as late as I can, then I’ll pull an all-nighter.” That’s kind of the person I was.’ It’s impossible to tell if this ‘rebellious’ streak would register on most people’s radars, or if it was only noticeable in the context of her own – or her family’s – high standards. I suspect you’d have to know her very well to find out, and she’s far too protective of her private life to make peeking through the veil a possibility. Despite – or perhaps because of – two long-term relationships with high-profile men (she dated comedian Jack Whitehall from 2011 to 2017, and has been in a relationship with actor Dominic Cooper since 2018), she doesn’t discuss her personal life. It’s not exactly a state secret – she makes mention of ‘my partner’ when talking about what she did in the first lockdown (volunteering pretty much full-time for her friend Lulu Dillon’s charity, Cook 19, delivering meals to London hospitals) and Cooper makes the odd appearance on her Instagram account – but she’s certainly not going to give rolling updates on her romantic life. Anything I share could become a story on a slow news day ‘Over 10 years, you learn the importance of privacy, what you choose to share and what you don’t. When you start out, you don’t even know what is important to keep for yourself – I didn’t anyway – whereas now I think there are certain things that I absolutely know, “That’s mine and it’s private.” For me, my comfort level is to have a clear distinction between what is for me and what I’m happy to talk about.’ I ask if she’s had any bad experiences with the press. ‘Nothing too horrendous, but some experiences of not having my wits about me. I’m aware now that anything I say could become a clickbait headline – well, on a slow news day.’ MARCIN KEMPSKI (As if to prove her point, in the week that we talk, Jack Whitehall makes headlines in multiple news outlets in the UK – and, indeed, around the world – for making an off-hand comment in an episode of his Netflix show that he ‘could have got married’ to Chan, but he ‘f*cked up my chance of that’. And, given that this was midway through a global pandemic, it wasn’t even a particularly slow news day.) What she's happy to share on her social media – in fact, what makes up the bulk of her feeds – are her thoughts on a range of social and political subjects, from domestic abuse campaigns, to equal access to education, to Black Lives Matter, to protesting against anti-Asian racism. Which doesn’t always go down well: ‘Every time you say anything political, if it’s in the most uncontroversial way, you’ll be criticised for it; you need to be prepared for that. Every time I post something [like that], I lose followers, so it’s probably not the best business sense...’. But she’s not going to stop: ‘I want to highlight things that are important to me but without preaching. I’m still working it out, how to be an advocate in the most effective way.’ MARCIN KEMPSKI I ask if she feels hopeful about the future, given the myriad challenges she mentions. She pauses. ‘I’ve definitely struggled and felt hopeless,’ she says. ‘I think most of us have realised how powerless we are in terms of the day-to- day governing of our [country]. There no longer seems to be any accountability; there’s a lack of shame. Things that a minister or an advisor would have resigned for 10 years ago, now there are no repercussions. That’s incredibly frustrating, especially when people’s lives are at stake. But, I do have hope – mainly because of the next generation. They’re more politically aware than I was, more involved. Often in the media the most boorish voices seem to monopolise headlines, but actually there are decent people who want to make things better for their fellow humans. There are more of them than youmight think. During the pandemic, obviously it was a terrible time, but there were things that sprung up on a local community level of people trying to help each other. That was encouraging.’ Every time you say anything political, you’ll be criticised for it And, of course, last year Black Lives Matter protests pushed questions about race and identity to the forefront as never before. How does Chan feel about her own role in increasing representation as a British Asian? ‘I get moments where I think, I wish we didn’t have to talk about race anymore. In the same way I wish we didn’t have to talk about why it’s unusual to have a female lead. Why is it still the exception? Why is it still so unusual to have half of the human race being centred in these stories? It seems ridiculous to still be flagging that as a talking point.’ She talks about a structure that actor Riz Ahmed has described: on tier one, a minority actor will play stereotypical, reductive roles. On tier two, your race is still prominent, but the character is nuanced and well-rounded. ‘And the holy grail is tier three, where you’re just viewed as a human. But, while we’re still working towards that goal of much more equal representation, it’s going to be something that we have to be more consciously aware of, and it is going to be part of the conversation.’ It’s a classic Gemma Chan answer. I can feel the burn of her frustration, and I see how she’s thought through her best approach. She’s got a goal, and she knows how to get there. MARCIN KEMPSKI As for her own goals – well, there’s a packed schedule ahead: when we talk, she’s about to join Florence Pugh and Chris Pine for director Olivia Wilde’s follow-up to Booksmart, Don’t Worry Darling. Then, when the pandemic allows, there are the delayed back-to-back shoots for Crazy Rich Asians 2 and 3, not to mention the release of Eternals. She’s also set up a production company, which is working on a range of projects focusing on ‘women whose stories haven’t been given their due, who are these unsung heroes of history’. She loves producing (‘You get a bit more control’), so much so that one day it might be all she does. ‘There may be a point where I want to take a step back from the acting side and, if the producing is established by then, that would be great.’ Hmm, I think. The thing about being globally famous is that once you are, it’s kind of hard to stop. But if anyone can manage blockbusters one month, normal life the next, it’s someone with a big brain, a ton of experience and her eye on the prize. Someone a bit like Gemma Chan. So, when is a celebrity not a celebrity? We might be about to find out. Gemma is an international spokesperson for L’Oréal Paris and the face of Revitalift Filler Day Cream. ELLE's February 2021 issue hits newsstands on January 7 2021.

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from https://www.online-digitalstore.com/post/now-you-see-gemma-chan

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zoehodgkins25 · 3 years

Text

Now You See Gemma Chan

Moving between blockbusters and indie hits, Gemma Chan has kept one foot in stardom and one in anonymity. But this year, she's going famous full time.

BY ,ALICE WIGNALL 06/01/2021

source https://www.online-digitalstore.com/post/now-you-see-gemma-chan from Online Digital Store https://onlinedigitalstore2.blogspot.com/2021/01/now-you-see-gemma-chan.html

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onlinedigitalstore2 · 3 years

Text

Now You See Gemma Chan

Moving between blockbusters and indie hits, Gemma Chan has kept one foot in stardom and one in anonymity. But this year, she's going famous full time.

BY ,ALICE WIGNALL 06/01/2021

from Online Digital Store https://www.online-digitalstore.com/post/now-you-see-gemma-chan

0 notes

velvetchen · 7 years

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Dynamic | pt. v

[ back to masterlist ]

Scenario: Superhero AU Pairing: Chen/Reader Word Count: 5637 Rating: T (warning for language)

Summary: You’re the leading superhero of the city, and you’ve fought Dynamo for years. It’s the way it should be - good vs. evil, hero vs. villain. But what happens when a bigger evil threatens everything?

<< previous part x first part x next part >>

Wednesdays are always packed full of classes. It’s one of the days you don’t have patrol, though, so you make the most of it, using the free time in the evening to do some research of your own.

The NSN has good contacts – great ones, actually. The database gives you information about everyone and everything - tax records, evidence of hidden transactions, underground network maps. Today you’re looking for a map of the downtown area, the place where you’d fought the Dragon. The hologram map that pops up is already updated to match the damage - the buildings that were destroyed are highlighted in red, the gaps in the road black holes.

You breathe a small sigh of relief. You were worried about having to search everything, but it’s easier this way. The Dragon wouldn’t have been stupid enough to destroy his actual hideout, you assume, so sifting through the structures that are still standing will be quick work.

You survey the hologram, mind racing. If I was an evil, ambitious supervillain that wanted to cause mass destruction, where would I hide? “Not close enough to hit by accident,” you murmur, spinning the hologram to a bird’s-eye view. “Not far enough that I couldn’t see what we were planning. Tall enough to see at least eye level with that robot…” He wouldn’t use binoculars with a robot that big would he? Unless…

There it is, at the far end of the main road, almost a mile away. The Two Hemispheres hotel. Tallest hotel in the city. Most expensive, too. You zoom in on the building, and a little menu of stats pops up next to it. 80 floors, 500 rooms, two gyms, three swimming pools, bar and club, Michelin-starred restaurant. What you’re interested in is the penthouse suites, though. There are ten of them, all two-storied and fully furnished, luxurious to a fault. If this Dragon guy could build an eighty-foot robot out of metal - metal that was strong enough to resist your blades, you remember - he could definitely afford one of those penthouse suites, a place to sit back and relax while he planned his havoc. A place where he could have all the privacy he needed.

You grin, powering up your tablet to copy down this new information. It was going to be much easier than you thought.

You’re on time for your meeting with Dynamo - Chen - at midnight. He’s already waiting for you by the time you get there, staring out at the skyline beyond, boot scuffing at the concrete of the roof. Behind his mask, you have no idea what he’s thinking, what could possibly be running through his head. Again, that pang hits you. Suddenly you want to know more about him. Who he is behind the mask.

Stop thinking that, Rush.

“Hey,” you say, and can’t keep the excitement out of your voice. “I hit gold.”

He turns around to face you, and you keep going, explaining your analysis. “So I finally narrowed it down to one of the suites at the Two Hemispheres.”

“That’s pretty far away,” he says, doubtful.

You shrug. “I figured if he could see what was going on, close up, he would be able to use his powers without worrying too much about range. The hotel is far enough and high enough for him to use binoculars or a telescope or something and still be able to see the whole scene.”

Chen squints down at the shot of the map, the statistics. “Smart,” he says finally, a smile in his voice. “Let’s go check it out.”

You decide to wait outside the hotel, keeping watch as Chen strolls into the lobby and greets the receptionist, ignoring her clearly shocked expression and casually leaning against the counter. A small queue of equally shocked guests stare at him, not even protesting the intrusion. You stifle a laugh.

From where you’re standing you can see the receptionist’s mouth moving, Chen leaning forward and nodding once. The receptionist looks down for a minute, then presses something into Chen’s outstretched hand.

He turns and makes his way back out of the foyer, crossing the still-busy street and leaving mayhem behind him as cars stop at the sight of the city’s biggest supervillain - well, former biggest supervillain - simply walking straight through traffic at midnight.

“What did she say,” you ask impatiently when he reaches the alley you’re waiting in.

He reaches up to adjust his helmet, and when it shifts you can almost see through the visor. But not quite. “I think you’re right. She said all the suites were booked that night, and I got the list of guest names, along with their check in and check out times. We’ll have to run through all of them, see if we can find out who he is. Then we can worry about taking him down.”

“Let’s do that,” you nod. Then you look down to where your heels are stood in a puddle of questionable looking water, and make a face. “But let’s go somewhere nicer first.”

You grab his hand, ignoring the surprised current that shoots into you when you touch, close your eyes, and think of the one restaurant you know is open at this hour. When you open your eyes, you’re standing in front of Bell’s Diner. You’re slightly dizzy from teleporting two people over such a long distance, but you’re going to go in there and load up on whatever has the most cheese, so it doesn’t matter.

Next to you, Chen is visibly disoriented, clutching your hand tightly. “Holy shit, I wasn’t expecting that,” he says, little zaps of electricity pushing into you. “Is that what it’s always like?”

You pull your hand from his, rubbing it to get the tingling feeling to leave. “You kind of get used to it.”

“You don’t say.”

The inside of the diner is pleasantly lit, with muted, blue lights and neon signs along the wall. Even at this hour, it’s filled with the hum of muffled conversation, couples on dates, students studying last-minute, people that look like they just got out of the office. You pull Chen over to the most secluded booth you can find - luckily, most of the patrons are either too tired or self-absorbed to notice you, and you only get a couple stares - and sit down opposite each other. Your waitress is a tired-looking, matronly woman who looks like she’d rather be taking orders from anyone but a superhero and a supervillain sitting together on what looked a lot like a date. You blush at the thought, then push it away.

“Mega loaded fries,” you say, “and a large soda, please.”

The waitress notes it down, expression unchanging, then raises her eyebrow at Chen.

“I’m - I’m good,” he says, uncomfortably. You wonder if he’s come to the same ‘date’ conclusion as you have.

Once your food arrives and sugar is shooting through your veins again, you stare down the list of names Chen pulls out. “Okay, let’s narrow this down,” you say. “Four out of ten are women. We’re ninety-nine point nine percent sure the Dragon is a dude, though, so that brings us down to six.” Your brow creases as you survey the list. “Richard Lars, I know him. He’s a contact of the NSN. He’s old, too, like seventy-five or something. So we can rule him out.”

Chen strikes the four women and Richard Lars off the list. “Five left.” He pulls out his tablet, searching the next name on the list. “Andy Lehmann.” A picture of a smiling young man with blond hair, maybe in his late twenties, shows up. Chen reads off the description. “‘Lehmann is a leading entrepreneur and philanthropist, with a degree in law and anthropological studies.” He looks up at you.

“No,” you agree, taking a sip of your drink.

“Right, next. Eric Kelly. Kelly is an actor and singer, best known for his supporting role in the film Half a Drink. He’s not very well known, and-” he paused “-was seen at a gallery opening that same evening. So no, can’t be him either.” Chen drums his fingers on the table, his head tilting like he’s lost in thought.

You strike the name off. “Who’s next?”

“Antonio Griffin. Oh, look at this. Owner of Griffin Industries, which has been a leading producer of steel in the country for the last five years.”

“Steel? He could be our guy. Here, give me that.” Chen hands you the tablet and you browse the images that show up, looking for any hint of the strong jaw and hooked nose that the figure in the NSN file had. Griffin looked average, but he had narrow blue eyes that seemed like they held a glint of something calculating. “Keep him on the list,” you finished. “Next.”

“Derrick Diaz, but nothing’s showing up. He must not be famous.”

You bite your lip. “Or it’s a fake name. What do you think?”

Chen stares at the screen a little longer, then nods. “Yeah, I think so too. We’ll keep him. Next, Zhang Yixing, CEO of LAEI Corp.” He lets out a breath. “Wow, he’s rich. And young. It could be him too.”

“It could be anyone,” you mutter, mopping up the last of your fries. “Okay, keep him. Who’s the last one?”

“C. K. Wilkerson. He’s old. No way. Not that rich either, he’s an author. Besides,” Chen says, looking at the list from the receptionist again. “He checked out during the battle. Yeah, not him.”

You frown. “So we have three suspects now. It could be any of them. How do we narrow it down?” Sighing, you stare at the list. “I mean, CEOs, celebrities? How would we ever get to talk to them or spy on them? They’d be surrounded at all times…” You trail off, then snap your fingers and look at Chen, a fiery glint in your eyes.

“I have an idea.”

“You’re working with him?” the Director hisses, pointing at Chen. “You brought him to our headquarters? Rush, what were you thinking?”

You duck your head, embarrassed. “Sir, it isn’t like that. He’s helping. We think we’ve made a huge breakthrough-”

The Director leans in close so Chen, a few feet away, can’t make out what he’s saying. “Rush, I don’t think you understand,” he says. “He could be a spy. He’s a villain, for God’s sake. I mean, this all happened so soon, aren’t you even the least bit suspicious?”

You swallow. “I was suspicious, sir,” you say, trying to sound a little more sure of yourself. “Now I trust him.”

A beat of silence passes. The Director lets out a long breath, leaning over the table to survey your notes about the suspects.

“Rush, you’re one of our best,” he starts. “If I dare say it, you’re our very best. I’m putting the organization's faith in your judgment. If you trust him, I’ll have to trust him too.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you see Chen’s shoulders slacken with relief. You open your mouth, thank-yous about to start spilling out, but the Director holds up a finger.

“Just know,” he says, voice grim, “if you fail - if this fails - it will be because of you.”

“I understand, sir,” you say. “Thank you. Thanks so much.”

The Director smiles at that, nodding his head towards the notes. “So what’s this plan you have?”

You grin wide. “How much influence does the NSN have?”

“A masquerade isn’t too out of the blue,” you argue. “It’s October.”

You can’t see past the door he’s changing behind, but you swear Chen is rolling his eyes. “October is for Halloween and tacky knockoffs of our costumes,” he says. “Not fancy-dress galas for high-ranking executives.”

“You’re just mad you have to dress up,” you tease, stripping out of your superhero suit in your own changing room. “Besides, it’s not like you have any better ideas.”

He snorts. “When I teamed up with you, I didn’t know I signed up to go undercover. What the hell is this complicated tie knot for, anyway?”

“Beats me.” You eye the fuschia evening gown in front of you with a smidgen of distrust. It’s beautiful, and you can’t wait to look beautiful in it, but it would leave you vulnerable. Going as Rush, without your usual mask and full-body suit to hide your identity is more than a little nervewracking.

At least you wouldn’t be alone.

You pull the dress on, careful not to ruin the perfect look of it, and zip it up in the back, turning to look at yourself in the mirror. The sleeveless, high-collared pink bodice slowly fades into a deep wine-red color at the bottom hem, all the way at your feet. Delicate crystals cover the whole length of it, reflecting the light at every turn. “Damn,” you say, turning to look at yourself from all angles. “I should really go to masquerades more often.”

The dress fits nicely to your body, the skirt sticking to your legs and finally flaring out slightly at the bottom. It’s probably the nicest thing you’ve worn, ever.

“You’re done already?” Chen’s voice floats over. “I’m still stuck on this stupid tie.”

You laugh, reaching for your masquerade mask - matching purple-pink and coated in crystals. It hides a good portion of your face and you’re mostly satisfied. But still uneasy. All it would take was a knock the wrong way, and it would come falling off…

Shaking your head, you take a deep breath and give yourself a last once-over. You look different, but the good different. Unrecognizable. With the makeup and mask and violet contacts, there’s no way anyone can find out who you are.

You keep telling yourself that as you push the door of your changing room open at the same time he does, nearly crashing into each other, and you’re so occupied with the fact that this is the first time you’re seeing his face to notice the way he looks over you from head to toes.

He leans against the doorframe, arms crossed, mouth curling into a slow smirk below his own masquerade mask. “You know, I’m re-evaluating my opinion on masquerades. They’re excellent.”

“I - I,” you stutter. “Hi.” Internally you groan. What’s happening to me?

“Hi,” he replies, amusement dancing in his eyes. His eyes. He has a face. I mean, I always knew he had a face, but… “Shall we go?” he asks, bowing slightly so you’re eye to eye. “My lady.”

Swallowing the butterflies in your stomach, you take the arm he offers. “Yeah, let’s do this.”

The banquet hall is lavishly decorated, with rich colors and lush fabrics swathed everywhere. Chandeliers dripping with light hang from the ceiling, their mirror images swimming in the polished floor under your feet.

You hang on to Chen’s arm, more nervous than ever as you survey the room filled with people. You’re in no way the most extravagantly dressed person present - there are men and women with costumes that look like they cost ten times as much as yours. “Do you see any of them?”

“No,” he says, “they might not even be here yet. You’re sure they accepted the invitation, right?”

“Positive,” you frown. “How about we find our contact first?”

You find Richard Lars - who graciously agreed to host the dinner - at the far end of the room by the grand staircase, talking to two other old and important-seeming men. He turns to look at you as you approach, pausing the conversation. “Ah, gentlemen. Meet my lovely niece, Victoria, and her fiancé.” You only just remember to respond to the use of your fake name. “Victoria, darling, this is Senator Kirk, and this is Judge Burnett.”

You have no idea who is whom, but it doesn’t matter. “Pleasure to meet you,” you smile, tilting your head in acknowledgment. “Uncle, can I speak to you for a moment?” Your heart is beating a million miles an hour. Here, in the middle of things, you’re not so confident in your acting skills without your superhero persona as a foundation.

“Excuse me, gents, I’ll catch up with you later,” Lars says, dismissing the other two with a nod. “Tell me, Rush.”

You shift nervously, scanning the nearby area. “Are they here?”

“Yes, they’re here. Follow me, I’ll take you around so it doesn’t look suspicious when I introduce you to them.” He beckons with his head and starts off, back into the crowd.

As you follow, Chen leans down so he can talk into your ear. “Who made me your fiancé?” he whines.

“Just tell yourself you’re lucky to be engaged to a woman like me,” you tease. “Even if it’s only for four hours.”

He grumbles something that you can’t hear.

“And try not to look like you’re going to murder someone,” you murmur, quieter. “Pretend you’re in love with me or something?”

“No need to pretend, sweetheart,” he grins, and takes your hand to kiss the back of it. “There, better?”

You roll your eyes, but you can’t deny that you’re thrown by his charm. “Better.”

Catching up with Lars, you both plaster on your innocent, we’re-totally-not-on-a-spy-mission smiles.

“Mr. Zhang, I have to thank you for coming,” Lars says as you come to stand next to him. “I know it was short notice and you are a very busy man.”

“It was no problem at all,” he replies, giving you a once-over. “I would never reject an invitation from you, my friend. And who is this lovely lady?” Zhang Yixing brings his gaze to Chen - who puts his hand on the small of your back in response - and back to you, a minute movement that’s still hard to miss.

“My niece, Victoria,” says Lars, oblivious. “And her fiancé.”

“It’s wonderful to meet you, Mr. Zhang.” You smile pleasantly.

He smiles. “Please, call me Yixing. I look forward to seeing you later in the evening. Mr. Lars,” he nods, and turns away, pulling his phone out of his pocket as he goes.

You exchange a worried look with Chen. He just shrugs, as if to say, your guess is as good as mine.

Lars takes you around to a few more people before you meet the next man, faces and names that you don't make an effort to commit to memory. The whole time, Chen’s arm doesn't leave your waist, and you're comfortable with it, almost leaning into him for stability. Hopefully, you both look the part of a couple too into each other to be of any real notice.

Your first impression of Antonio Griffin is that he’s a very cold-looking man. He gives off an aura of superiority, one even Lars hesitates to enter. Griffin’s blue eyes - the ones you had thought conniving - are even more piercing and frigid in person.

“Mr. Griffin,” Lars opens good-naturedly. “Thank you for making it here tonight.”

“Yes, you're welcome,” Griffin replies, not even a hint of emotion on his face. His eyes bore into you and Chen, a look that isn't appreciative like Yixing’s or seedy like some of the other men here. It's calculating, like he's sizing the three of you up as threats.

“May I introduce my niece, Victoria,” Lars continues, not wavering.

Griffin takes your hand, pressing the back of it lightly to his mouth, much the same way Chen had earlier, except Griffin’s lips are cold and dry. “And her fiancé, Daniel.”

Griffin’s eyes narrow, but he shakes Chen’s hand. You have to give your partner credit: he doesn't seem intimidated at all. Or if he is, he’s controlled enough not to let it show.

“Glad to have met you,” Griffin says curtly. “If you’ll excuse me.” And he leaves.

After he’s out of sight you drop into the nearest chair, wiping tiny pearls of sweat off your brow. “I need a drink,” you huff.

A glass of champagne enters your field of vision. “Here,” Chen says. “I needed one too. I kind of hate you people. What kind of name is Daniel? Do I look like a Daniel to you? I’m really regretting this.”

“What happened to your newfound appreciation for masquerades?” you ask dryly.

He glances at you out of the corner of his eye. “Ah, I’m bored of your dress now. Maybe you should have bought a strapless one. That would have held my attention longer.”

You resist the urge to punch him. You’re in public, after all. Instead, you roll your eyes as you finish off your drink. “Jerk. Perv. Remind me never to go with you anywhere ever again.”

“You wound me,” he says, pouting. He takes your hand and presses it lightly to his chest. “See, can't you feel my heart breaking?”

All you can feel is the heady thump of his pulse and the warmth of him through his suit.

A few seconds later you both realize you’ve been holding it too long, and you pull your hand back quickly, clearing your throat.

“Want to dance?” you ask lightly to cover the awkwardness.

It’s a second before he answers. “Yeah.” He stands up first, helping you up, and together you move to the center of the room, where other people are starting to partner up, talking as they dance smoothly. You’ve never danced in a fancy place like this, with all the unspoken rules and etiquette, but neither has Chen, and that’s a small comfort.

He puts his hands on your waist stiffly, but to you, the hold feels comfortable and familiar. Yours settle on his shoulders, and you sway together, small, unsure movements that must make it seem obvious you’re both out of your depth.

“Man,” he says after a minute. “These rich people have awful taste in music.”

You look over to where the live music stage is - a string quartet stationed around a grand piano. “Don’t insult the classics,” you say. “They’re classics for a reason.”

“What, you actually like it?”

“I didn’t say that.”

He raises his brows. “Good.”

As the song goes on, you grow relaxed, Chen’s grip on you surer, more firm; your bodies a little closer together. You want to study his face, memorize it so you can imagine what he must look like behind the mask. You’re aware that he’s watching you, not wavering, his eyes searching. Maybe he’s trying to imagine what you look like, too. You keep your stare on the knot of his tie instead, on the little moles that pepper the side of his neck.

“I think we’ve taken a break for long enough,” you say finally, when the tension becomes heavy. “I’ll try and see if I can catch the two we’ve met already, try to talk to them.”

Are you imagining it, or does he look disappointed? “Okay, I’ll meet you at the refreshments table when you’re done.”

“Hey, you’re not excused. You try going around and getting some information. If I need an out, I’ll call you.”

“Okay.” You’ve stopped dancing, but his hands still linger.

“Yeah. Okay.” With a quirk of your lips, you pull away, searching the crowd for the first man you’d met - Yixing.

You spot him by one of the huge French windows that line the walls, holding a drink and regarding the room with an air of nonchalance. It wouldn’t be polite for you to simply just walk up to him and ask to talk - since he ranks higher than you - so you hope he remembers you and take a drink of your own, coming to stand a few meters away. You look at nothing in particular, trying to school your expression into equal parts bored and approachable.

To your relief, it works. You spot him coming toward you out of the corner of your eye. Shit. What now?

Pushing down your nerves, you pretend to not have noticed him until he’s standing right in front of you. “Victoria, was it?”

You switch your expression to something you hope looks more flirtatious. “Yixing, I see you held up your promise.”

He takes your hand. “Well, how could I resist?” Did he just wink? God. “May I have a dance?”

“Lead the way.” You follow him back to the dance floor you’d just left. His touch is different from Chen’s - more confident, almost suggestive. He must be an exceptional dancer. His movements are confident, graceful, something that’s evident the minute you start.

“So,” he makes small talk. “Are you new to these kinds of events?”

You’re supposed to be playing the part of something like a socialite, so you put a little more confidence into your response. “Not at all,” you say. “I’ve been to many.”

“I’ve never seen you. Surely I would have remembered such a beautiful face.”

You lower your eyes, looking up through your eyelashes. “You flatter me. I don’t think we’ve met before today.”

“A shame,” he grins. You can see the playful look in his eyes even behind his mask. Did he miss the memo that you were supposed to be engaged?

You wracked your brain for an appropriate way to probe him for information. “What brings you to the city? It’s not the best place for a vacation, I can tell you that.”

The corners of his mouth turn up - secretive. “Agreed. I think it’s been cloudy ever since I arrived.” He leans closer. “It’s a great place for business. All kinds of business.” Any other time the words would sound like he was trying to insinuate something, but they sound surprisingly innocent from him. Despite his smooth talking earlier, you don’t think he’s up to anything particularly improper.

You still can’t rule him out as a suspect, though. Your instincts have been wrong on many an occasion before.

“Ah, you CEO types,” you say, exaggerating a sigh. “Always working. Is this business...confidential?”

Yixing’s eyes narrow ever so slightly, but his smile doesn’t waver. “Why do you want to know?”

Shit. You force out a laugh. “I know this city. It doesn’t have much to offer.”

“Oh, it has plenty to offer. You must know it’s the only city in about a thousand miles with such a strong population of supers.”

You freeze. “I do. Pray tell me what it has to do with business?” If you’re veering into dangerous territory, it’s too late to turn back.

“Supers are people like everyone else, aren’t they?”

The song comes to an end, and you wind to a stop. Yixing is wearing that secretive smile again, and you know your time with him is over - you’ve crossed some sort of line. You don’t have any concrete evidence, but you haven’t found anything that would rule him out as a suspect either.

You hope that’s good enough for now, because you don’t get the impression you’ll be seeing him again for a while.

“It was a pleasure spending time with you, Victoria,” he says, dropping his arms from your waist as he steps away. “I hope I’ll see you again soon.”

You watch his retreating figure as he disappears into the crowd, feeling like you just messed something up. There’s nothing you can do to fix it, so all you can do is forget about it for now and hope it doesn’t come back to bite you in the ass later.

Spotting Chen, you start back toward him, only to be intercepted by a tall, lanky figure. “Victoria Lars?”

“That’s me,” you say cautiously.

“I was asked to introduce myself to you by your uncle,” he returns almost sheepishly. He holds out his hand. “I’m Derrick Diaz. Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

So this was your third suspect. You shake his hand, lowering your eyes to make it less obvious that you’re gauging him as you look him up and down - he’s young, maybe even younger than you, with a nervous gaze and a coltish look to him. Curly hair that reaches the base of his neck, freckles. No hooked nose. He doesn’t look like he could be your guy, either, but you don’t know enough about him yet to dismiss him.

“I, uh, believe it’s polite to ask you for a dance at this point in the conversation,” he says sheepishly. “Sorry, I don’t usually come to these kinds of events.”

“It’s alright,” you laugh, attempting to ease the tension. He’s even worse of a dancer than you are, constantly stepping the wrong way or leaning too far into you, his clammy hands barely skimming your waist.

You wince as he nearly steps on your toes. “Is this your first gala?”

“Yeah,” he says, laughing nervously, and you almost feel a little bad for him.

“Fun, aren’t they.” Your attempt at some kind of humor goes flying past. You frown. He’s definitely too skittish to be a supervillain of any sort - he’d probably cower in a corner during a fight until it was over. You sigh, giving up. Another name struck off your list.

Fortunately, Chen spots your pained expression from across the room, cutting in just when you think you can’t take a second more. “Derrick, is it?” Chen asks, despite already knowing the answer.

“Yes, that’s me,” Derrick drops his hands away from you quickly to offer a handshake to your ‘fiancé’.

“You looked like you were going to stab yourself with something,” Chen chuckles after you’re comfortably in his hold again. “Was he that bad?”

You shake your head. “No, it was weird. He’s just a kid. No way is he involved with anyone.”

“That explains why nothing showed up when we searched him.” Chen nods. “Leaving only Griffin and Yixing. I’ve been watching Griffin all evening, he hasn’t approached anyone, but there are a lot of people vying for his attention. How did it go with Yixing?”

You frown. “He brought up the topic of supers, near the end,” you say. “It’s almost like he knows something, but I can’t put my finger on what. Something’s fishy.”

“Right, that’s not something you’d usually bring up in a conversation with a woman you just met, is it?” Chen muses. “Definitely fishy.’ Something strikes him and he leans in, looking around to make sure no one’s listening, ‘Rush, do you think he knows who you are?”

It hits you, that sudden paranoia. But you think back and confirm that he showed no sign of recognizing you. No flash in his eyes, no knowing smile.

But still, why would he bring up supers?

You feel a presence behind you and still. Chen is staring over your shoulder, eyes wide, and you turn, slowly, to see Antonio Griffin waiting. The people around you have hushed, watching.

“May I cut in?” He asks, but it’s just a statement, not a request. Chen backs away nevertheless, giving you a confused look.

Griffin is stiff and formal, but looks as if he’d rather be anywhere else than dancing with you. His frigid eyes bore into yours, and you swallow, wondering if your contacts are too obvious, if your mask truly covers your face.

“Victoria Lars,” he says, “I’ve been told your company is worth seeking. Is that so?” His voice is cold, calm, as you start to move.

You’re speechless, but the last thing you want to do is gape like a fish in front of Griffin, a man who wields much more power than you ever will. Am I the first person he’s singled out? And I was hoping not to draw too much attention.

“I would not be in a position to judge,” you reply, trying to be more confident - like you’re worth his time - and at the same time somewhat mysterious. You don’t know whether you succeed because his face remains set, the same unflinching expression behind his mask.

He’s silent for a moment. “I do not usually present myself at these sorts of events. However,” he pauses, narrowing his eyes like he’s thinking, “Your uncle is an old friend of mine, and I decided to make an exception for him. And, by extension, his niece.”

A chill shoots down your spine when he says ‘niece’ like he knows you’re not. You resist the urge to shrink away.

“You caught my eye,” he continues, face still blank. If he notices your reaction, the way you’re instantly on edge - he doesn’t show it. “Tell me, Victoria, how long have you been engaged?”

You’re surprised by the sudden change of topic. Suspicious. There is no one in this room less likely than Griffin to take an interest in you. Much less a romantic interest. “A few months now,” you say as nonchalantly as possible, thanking whatever higher power is watching that you don’t stutter.

Finally, he smiles. A cold smile. “Hmm. I asked, because you’re not wearing a ring.”

Fuck.

“I told him I didn’t want one,” you say. Now, your voice trembles, just a little. “My mother lost hers washing the dishes, can you believe?” A laugh comes up, more out of nervousness than anything else.

He doesn’t laugh back. “Richard Lars has no brothers or cousins that share his last name. I know that for a fact. So where did you come from?” Not waiting for an answer, he presses on. “Do you know what I think?”

Griffin tilts his head down toward you, eyes narrowing further into slits. You freeze, tensing up. “I think you were sent here by someone to get information on me. Am I correct? Don’t answer that, I can see the answer in your face.” He leans back, face returning to that neutral expression.

As if on cue, the song ends. Griffin steps away and gives you a small nod of his head. “Good day, Miss Lars.”

You’re still reeling as you watch him disappear into the crowd.

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