#especially riz because i love him

[twinstxrs]

idk if this is accurate but i’ve felt like in previous seasons riz & gorgug have been one of the inter-bad kids dynamics we’ve seen the least of & this season has been so great in that aspect. gorgug having helped make some of riz’s magic gear. riz helping gorgug with his studies. the shared birthday party. gorgug’s gift to riz being something he himself made to protect riz. riz’s gift to gorgug being something he illegally grabbed to protect gorgug. gorgug who utilizes rage to put his body on the line for his friends & riz who will take deep levels of mental stress for his friends. even though it was within the context of a joke, riz calling gorgug an “absolute sweetie.” like yea they might not be in a band together or both part of a presidential campaign team or owlbears teammates, but they’d go to war for each other, because they’re best friends.

#riz gukgak #gorgug thistlespring #fantasy high #dimension 20 #fantasy high junior year #fhjy #fhjy spoilers #these kids are all so self-sacrificing but i do think riz gorgug are the most clear (& juxtaposed) self-sacrificers #riz will mentally tear himself to pieces and get lost in cases and take on ungodly levels of stress for those he loves #gorgug will use himself as a human shield. he will take hit after hit if it means his friends are okay. #and they’d both do the other thing too. riz would let himself get hit for gorgug. gorgug would pull all nighters & take stress for riz. #even if mechanically they can’t or it wouldn’t make sense. they would if they could. #also #the starstruck barry mechanic of being a guard is so gorgug. it’s soooo gorgug like that’s literally him #anyways love this tall green guy & this short green guy so much #especially because gorgug is tall & considered intimidating but protective in a deeply kind way #while riz is short & underestimated but protective in a deeply vicious way (affectionate) #i hope this makes sense but i think riz is primarily ‘i would kill for you’ & gorgug is primarily ‘i would die for you’ maybe #this does not mean gorgug would not kill for riz or riz would not die for gorgug. they both would. #but those are the primary ways their love manifests due to the nature of their strengths/personalities. To Me #idk this is all just me saying stuff when i should be sleeping 😭 #sorry if i missed a riz gorgug moment in the main post btw i’m tired

[rodolfoparras]

we talk a lot about the characters being "loser boyfailures" and having no game and being rizless but think about the reader being that. guy in his thirties, no relationship ever, negative riz, absolutely no game, my man cannot speak to people without making 13 grammatical mistakes just an absolute pathetic wet dog vibes....

and the 141 boys could not want him more. they're absolutely head over heels for their loser boyfriend. i imagine Simon sees him bump into a chair and apologise to it and he's jumping his bones right then and there. pretty boy Kyle Gaz Garrick never goes anywhere without bringing his wet dog of a man with him. people are wondering how that happened and if he's blackmailing him, he gets very offended and sassy on his boyfriends behalf and when you're back home he rants to him about stupid people while milking his loser dick. Soap is just.... he's just himself the bigger the loser the more he wants the man. his boyfriend fucks up an interraction or fails at something and looks so wet and pathetic that he just has to put his dick in his mouth idk what to say Soap loves his loser boyfriends cock and when he tries and riz him up and falls flat on his face (literally and metaphorically) Soap just has to have him cream his hole im sorry but the man isn't letting his boyfriend go anywhere without having his mans loads in him. Price just loves him for the sincerity and how endearing his loser boyfriend is (just like an old man). the boyfriend will bring him coffee with a treat he tried making for Price and fuck up both the coffee and the treat but that old man will still praise you and give you kisses while his hand wanders bellow your waistband. with him Price gets to get rid of the anxiety of being too old to be useful because someone needs to make his boyfriend into a proper man. and when his boy does things right and suceeds Price rewards him by riding his phat loser cock for the whole night, milking load after load untill nothing comes out anymore

thanks for listening to the ramble i just want some love to the losers of society, there's too many perfect people in fics

Sugar!!!!!!! This is one of my favorite things I’ve ever read why do y’all leave these masterpieces in my inbox on anon you should post this sugar 🧎🏻‍♂️🧎🏻‍♂️

Especially the gaz and price part???

Imagine all eyes on Gaz in whatever room he walks in they barley notice you behind him but he’s always got a hand around your waist, gently nudging you forward and introducing you as his boyfriend to whoever’s there

He lets you take the stage just endearingly staring at you while you try to make conversation with whoever was eager to meet the two of you

And after you’re done you got a goofy smile on your face feeling happy that you managed to get through that conversation without fucking it up

And Gaz? He’s swiftly pulling you into a room crashing his lips against yours and it doesn’t take much before he’s riding your cock marking you up and feeling all possessive because yes this wonderful sweetheart is his boyfriend and he needs the world to know that

Or you, Price’s boyfriend feeling a bit insecure because Price has so much experience and you have none but he loves it, loves how you look at his old man body with such amazement love how eager you are to learn how to get him off, tears trickling down your cheek as you suck his cock, using your hands wherever your mouth can’t reach

Or you being careful as ever when you first fuck, asking him if he’s okay, if you’re hurting him all while he’s looking at you with the biggest smile on his face because bloody hell how did he get so lucky to have someone as sweet as you and he’s even more endeared when you’re swiftly apologizing because you came too quickly

#alec answers #call of duty #john price x reader #john price x male reader #john price #captain john price #captain john price x male reader #captain john price x reader #top male reader #kyle gaz garrick #kyle gaz garrick x reader #kyle gaz garrick x male reader #gaz x reader #gaz x male reader

[auteurdefeu]

So I feel like it’s almost collectively agreed upon that Fabian is not straight. I’ve seen a lot of people talk about him probably not being cis either, I’m personally on board with he/they Fabian.

Now allow me to present my headcanon:

Fabian being on the asexual spectrum. Not as sex-repulsed as Riz, probably more neutral to it, but still. I’ve brought this up before but this time I’m doing it outside of the context of specific ships.

I can’t find the specific instance so someone please tell me if this didn’t actually happen, but. I could’ve sworn there was a time someone (probably Kristen) was talking about having sex, a comment was made about how Fabian could learn from that, and he insisted that he already knew how to kiss. Which, buddy… completely different thing. But it is always “getting his kisses in”, when it’s shown that the Bad Kids/Intrepid Heroes don’t usually censor themselves when it comes to that.

He’s been very awkward when it comes to any actual advances, as seen especially with Mazey this year. To be fair, that is a pretty normal thing for teenagers but for someone with his confidence, he seems skittish when it comes to proper relationships. In my experience as someone aroace-spec, I love romance and take no problem with the idea of sex in the abstract, but as soon as any of it feels personal or directed toward me, it leads to a similar kind of panic/discomfort, unsure how to engage.

My personal take on it, overall, was Fabian trying to live up to his father’s legacy. Bill got around, and Fabian spoke proudly of it in Freshman Year (only to later have to deal with the fact he apparently had a lot of half siblings that have since been eaten by Captain James… oops). Given everything else in his arc, it would make sense that he sees it as an expectation to follow in Bill’s footsteps, because that’s how to seem ‘cool’ and ‘fit in’. It seems more like something he has to do than something he actively wants.

I know he and Aelwyn apparently canonically had sex. if Siobhan hadn’t leaned into it and acted like Adaine was an unfortunate witness, I’d say it wasn’t above Fabian to beg Aelwyn to lie for him to make him seem cooler. But I digress. It’s all headcanons anyway, and asexual people can still have and enjoy sex. Just senseless rambling over here 🫡

#I think he should have a cuddle buddy #he desperately needs a hug honestly #fabian seacaster #fabian aramais seacaster #fantasy high #dimension 20 #d20 #fantasy high junior year #asexual #the bad kids #fantasy high junior year spoilers #fantasy high sophomore year #fhsy #fhjy

[alliepretends]

Briefly returning to this blog because I feel like I'm going to explode if I don't find a place to say this where it might be heard.

I feel uncomfortable and disappointed by the way the D20 fandom, and even the players, have responded to the Riz and Skolanda conversation.

It feels like everyone immediately went on the defensive. Endless "she just doesn't get that his friends love him," "look at all this stuff his friends have done for him," "the relationships between the Bad Kids are perfect and they could never take advantage of him." Plus, Ally, Emily, and even to a certain extent Zac immediately shifting how their characters interact with Riz in response to Skolanda's criticism (that their characters wouldn't know about). I generally feel like Brennan tends to get a free pass while players (especially non-male players) get criticized for things that are partly or mostly his fault. But this is the one time that's not the case. It seems to me like he was trying to set up an interesting story. What does it mean for someone like Riz ("very social but weirdly doesn't have any friends," aromantic and desperate to hang on to his first friendships for life, a workaholic) to not really be able to set boundaries with his friends? How does that lead to situations where even loving and well-intentioned friends are taking advantage of him (getting him to write their essays for him, making him adapt to a nickname that was originally used to bully him, sacrificing sleep and mental health in the name of maintaining his relationship to them/helping with what he understands to be their goals)? It's not a pretty story. It's a story where everyone (including Riz) has to admit to some wrongdoing. And everyone has to change their behavior. But it has the potential to be a great story! In a way that "everyone is great, Riz's mom just doesn't get it" doesn't. It would be one thing if Brennan was having this come out of nowhere. But he's not. There has always been an expectation among the Bad Kids that Riz and Adaine will do the bulk of the labor. That Riz will put up with it when his friends make fun of him or seem to use him as a means to an end ("are you just the little thing that finds the clues").

It's a good story. Or at least, a good idea for a story. I get that it could end up in a place may feel too much like pvp for some players. And if they decide to dodge it for that reason then that's fair. But if the reaction to it is just "How dare someone accuse my (teenage) favorite character of not being emotionally aware enough to realize when they are taking advantage of a vulnerable friend?" I don't know how we can expect these stories to be particularly emotionally nuanced or complex. Or really having anything valuable to say at all. It's not a bad thing if the Bad Kids have unhealthy relationships. It's not a bad thing if the Bad Kids are imperfect perfect people. It's probably better storytelling if those relationships are being prompted to actually grow and change for the better. And I'm sad that the situation seems to be that we'd rather shield these characters from any criticism than be excited about maybe seeing them grow

#dimension 20 #riz gukgak #negativity #disclosure of bias i am an aroace person overly invested in Riz as a character

[the-greatest-magic-of-all]

For the fanfic bingo, what if Fabriz 'grabbed the wrong bag' but they didn't grab each other's bags, Fabian grabbed the wrong bag and now has to figure out where his bag that has a sleeping riz in it went

Ugh, Anon your mind! Gimme a sec...

Alright! I'm back with a fic that I really didn't expect to be as long as it is... I really have a problem. Anyway! Think of this as the spiritual successor to "Frightful Snow & Delightful Fire"! Because it's basically the same premise but this time it's hot instead of cold!

Send me a prompt and help me get a bingo!

Words: 8,881

The raucous noise of a tense battle rang out within the padded walls of the Aguefort gymnasium. Sounds of foam blades and bullets striking torsos and limbs. Squeaks from sneakers skidding against the shiny floorboards. Shouts from the audience of students, hyping up one side or the other.

Fabian sat amongst the rowdy crowd of teens next to a cheering Gorgug. His sweaty form lounged against the cool, hard metal of the sparring gym’s bleachers. Still somewhat panting from his match against a slippery aasimar monk. Priscilla Maynard, head cheerleader. She gave him a run for his money, ending their bout of fights in a draw. Two wins a piece.

Usually, he wouldn’t be fighting her during school hours. Most days, all of the martial classes were trained separately. But every so often, during last period, the martial teachers liked to combine their classes for the sake of keeping the students on their toes. It’s not like he’d be only duelling with other Fighters out in the wide world of Spyre. So, he couldn’t complain about this little switch-up. Especially since it meant that he got to watch his boyfriend kickass without having to be in any danger himself.

Riz Gukgak was certainly a sight to see on the battlefield. Blink and you’ll miss him. It was only with years of experience that he could track Riz’s relative position in the makeshift dynamic environment made up of foam shapes and raised platforms. He tumbled through the legs of his paladin opponent. Used his sword of shadows to get out of being cornered. His newfound arcane Mage Hand to trip them. Darted underneath a staircase to hide and gain Sneak Attack when he popped out to shoot his opponent with his Nerf arquebus. Landing shot after shot. Hit after hit.

Quite a sight indeed.

Umberlee below, Fabian loved him.

By the time his match was called in his favour, Riz’s tiny chest heaved and he looked a bit dead on his feet. But he still smiled as his rogue teacher, Ms. Shadow, lifted his arm in victory. His gaze found Fabian’s within seconds of searching the bleachers. Finding him clapping and cheering for his win, perhaps, too loudly. And if Fabian had a big enough ego (and he did!), he’d note that Riz’s smile got a bit wider when they locked eyes.

Porter’s deep, rocky voice interrupted their little moment with the announcement, “Thistlespring! You’re up next!”

Riz shot up in the air a foot, his tail standing on end, more than a little startled by the hulking Earth Genasi’s sudden appearance. Fabian could see it in his eyes as he silently cursed Porter’s innate earthen stealthiness as he hung the Nerf arquebus with the rest of the faux weapons. All before he scurried from the sparring mat. Making his way back up to his seat next to Fabian.

“Wish me luck?” Gorgug asked as he got up from his seat beside Fabian, offering his fist for a bump.

Never one to leave his boy hanging, Fabian quickly balled his fist and accepted the bump with a wink. “You know it.”

Riz accepted the fist bump that was offered to him as well, as he and Gorgug passed each other on their way up and down. It wasn’t too long before he bounded up the rows of bleachers, closing the distance. Using the last bit of his energy, he pushed off of the last step to jump, not into the seat next to Fabian, but directly into his arms.

And despite him being absolutely drenched in sweat, Fabian held him close. Settling Riz in his lap, he pressed a kiss on the top of his greenblack undercut and murmured, “Excellent work, darling.”

“Aww, thanks. You weren’t half bad yourself,” Riz said, rubbing his nose against the underside of his jaw and lacing their hands together in his lap. “Pretty sure Maynard only stunned you once.”

“Ugh, monks.” Fabian spat out as he scowled at the memory.

Riz chuckled as he poked Fabian in his dimpled cheek and said, “I’m invoking boyfriend privileges, by the way.”

“Oh?”

“Class is done in, like, ten minutes. I’m gonna crash in your backpack. That okay?” He asked as if he didn’t know that Fabian could never tell him no. Not when Riz looked up at him with his big, amber eyes.

“Sounds good to me, The Ball. Ooh, that’s gotta hurt,” He and Riz hissed in unison as they watched Gorgug land a critical hit on his opponent. Yes, it may have been with a foam greataxe, but Fabian wasn’t convinced he’d like to be on the business end of it. “Want me to drop you off at your office or home?”

“Neither,” Riz answered faintly, still caught up in that crit before he went into more detail. “Mom wants the apartment all to herself and Gorthalax tonight. And as a soon-to-be adult, I can appreciate her honesty and bluntness and I will honour her request. But also, BLEGH! SO GROSS!” Fabian let out a guffaw as Riz descended into exaggerated disgust, pantomiming gagging and clawing his eyes out. A couple of the students around them shot them annoyed looks, but Fabian paid them no mind. Eventually, Riz let his disgust at sex fade away, letting his head fall back against Fabian’s chest. “So, yeah. I’m going to be taking a Sleep spell gummy and really passing out. Like, for seven hours straight.”

Fabian hummed in thought. “I’d be remiss not to mention that that’s normally how long one sleeps for.”

“Sounds fake,” Riz said after he spent a couple of beats with his face screwed up in faux introspection. “Sleepover?”

Clutching his imaginary pearls, Fabian scoffed and turned his nose up at Riz. “Sure! Call me a liar and then ask for me to open my heart and my home to you!” His offended act lasted two more seconds before he softened and answered his question. “Of course, Mama won’t mind.”

“Alright, I’m going to beat the rush,” Riz said, getting up to crouch on Fabian’s lap and rub their cheeks together before scurrying off to the locker room.

Batting his eyelashes and twiddling his fingers after him, Fabian put on his silliest sexy voice and said, “See you in your dreams.”

“Blegh,” Riz said, wrinkling his nose. “Hate it when you do that.”

Fabian didn’t even try to hide how much he loved annoying Riz.

The class wrapped up about ten minutes later, following Gorgug’s winning match. Heading back to the locker room with the rest of the humongous throng of students, the two Bad Boys crowded into the now-tight space. Fielding accidental shoves and elbows to the stomach on the route back to their things. After an arduous journey, they arrived at their bags and quickly got to work on getting out of there as fast as possible.

After checking on Riz and finding his adorable sleeping form in his backpack, Fabian would’ve been out of there in a minute flat. Would’ve, if didn’t need to dig through his locker for the homework he’d carelessly shoved in there. Normally, he wouldn’t care, but Riz had been on him lately about caring about his academic success. Those big, amber puppy-dog eyes staring up at him in disappointment were his kryptonite. So, yes he needed to find this homework. And he needed to find it soon or else he’d be driven mad by the thundering chatter all around him.

With the sound level being what it was, Fabian could hardly hear himself think. Not with this cacophony of a hundred voices having a hundred conversations rattling around his head. Like the one occurring directly to his right.

Blaze Evermore, a jockish Fire Genasi linebacker on the Owlbears, was boasting about how his older brother was taking him to the City of Brass for the weekend. Got ‘em tickets to this underground pit fighting ring and everything. Interesting! It’d be far more interesting if Blaze’s bros weren’t jostling him around and pushing him into Fabian’s open locker door. Smacking his head with it via the proxy of Blaze’s bulky frame. All in good fun, yes. But Fabian was going to get a concussion if they didn’t—Found it!

With one good tug, he yanked a crumpled paper folder out from the bottom of his locker. Thrusting it into the air in triumph. Only to be reminded he was still surrounded by a bunch of boisterous guys when Blaze sent him and Gorgug crashing to the floor with an unintended hip-check.

“Whew, sorry, Cap!” Blaze said apologetically as he offered Fabian a heavy, calloused hand. Fabian grabbed it, happily taking the help up back to his feet. A little rocked in the head, but as a Bloodrush player, he was used to it. “Didn’t mean to knock you over.”

“That’s alright, Evermore. No harm done, except to my spleen. You okay, Gorgug?” Fabian asked, trying to shake the fall off as he watched Blaze help Gorgug up off of the ground as well before he bent down. Handing Fabian the closest fallen backpack to his feet. It didn’t even cross his mind to double-check that it was his because his mind was paying much more attention to not forgetting to grab The Ball’s briefcase. Why wouldn’t it be his? Slinging the backpack over his shoulder and taking the briefcase in hand, he gave Blaze a nod. “Have fun this weekend.”

Blaze smiled wide, revealing a missing canine tooth. “I will!”

“Gorgug, see you later.”

“See ya!”

Aguefort must have some type of soundproofing surrounding the locker rooms because as Fabian made it out of there, all was quiet. Almost deafeningly so. Not a peep came from the room behind him. The only sounds to hear were the idle hum of the academy settling for the day and his own breaths.

Whew.

Alright.

Time to head home.

The next hour passed rather uneventfully. Hangman only grumbled and huffed a little bit about Riz’s presence on the ride home. Receiving a couple of pats on his school for showing a level of restraint toward his boyfriend. He kissed his mothers on both of their cheeks as he passed through the kitchen on his way up to his room. Once inside, Fabian rested his Riz-filled backpack in the middle of his bed and the briefcase of holding next to it before he went about having a shower. He desperately needed to scrub after-sparring stink off of himself.

Clouds of steam followed in his wake as Fabian stepped out of his en suite bathroom and finished up working the last of his leave-in conditioner into his coils. With his comfy pair of silk pyjamas on, he was ready to spend the rest of the evening waiting for Riz to awaken from his spell-induced slumber. Which reminded him, he should take Riz out of his backpack now.

He hadn’t bothered when he first got home. Knowing that the space within his backpack held a certain appeal to Riz’s primal, Goblin brain. Warm, cramped, very cave-like, and thus, safe. This Fabian understood. Riz had assured him this many times, that he liked falling asleep in his backpack more than in his own bed. But Fabian couldn’t in good conscious keep in him in there for any longer.

Sliding across the wooden floor with his socks, he leapt onto his Chaos King-sized bed and crawled to the middle where he left his backpack. More than ready for some cuddling time with his favourite guy, Fabian’s heart stopped when he zipped it open and saw what was inside.

Nothing.

Well, not nothing.

A wave of grease and rubber accompanied the sight of school folders, crumpled-up papers, a cute lunchbox riddled with Sig Fig stickers... Oh, and a bag full of tinkerer’s tools. Fabian groaned. Slapping a hand across his forehead. When Blaze and his bros had bumped into him, he must’ve gotten mixed up and taken Gorgug’s backpack instead.

Nice going, Seacaster.

Zipping Gorgug’s bag back up and taking it with him, Fabian made his way off his bed to pick up his crystal. Holding it between his ear and shoulder as he strode over to his closet to throw on a jacket overtop his pyjamas. He’d only be out for a couple of minutes, he figured. No need to change for the ten minutes it would take The Hangman to get to the Thistlespring tree.

The first thing that he heard was the sound of sparks flying and a clank before Gorgug’s cheery voice came over the call. “Hey, Fabian! I’m kinda in the middle of welding something for my mom. What’s up?”

“Very sorry for interrupting, Gorgug. But it seems to be that we’ve swapped backpacks.”

“Oh? Yeah, I guess it was lighter than usual,” Another clanging sound erupted on the other end of the line. “Do you need it back now?”

“Yes, The Ball is sleeping in it.” Fabian could hear the wince in Gorgug’s voice, which in turn, made him pull a face. He knew how much learning the ways of artificing from his parents was important to Gorgug and how he silently hated being pulled away from it. But he really needed Riz back.

“Gotcha. Hold on,” Gorgug said before he leaned away from his crystal, his voice growing distant, to call out. “Mom, can you go get my backpack? It’s actually Fabian’s,” Suddenly his voice returned to its original volume as he asked, “Need me to bring him over?”

As he slipped his leather bomber jacket on, Fabian quickly said, “No, no, no! Don’t worry, I’m on my way.”

“Awesome. Huh?” Gorgug was pulled away from his crystal again and once it returned, his confused tone made Fabian’s stomach turn. “Uh, Fabian? My mom’s saying that Riz isn’t in there.”

“What are you talking about?” Fabian asked, his voice hollow as he stood stock still in the shadow of his closet. His heart beginning to race.

“She says—what’s that, Mom?” Another long moment of quiet as Wilma spoke to Gorgug not close enough to the crystal’s receiver for him to hear. Leaving him in suspense until Gorgug returned and said, “She says that it doesn’t seem like your bag anyway. There’s not much in it except for—oh, an Owlbears jersey with Evermore on the back. I think this is Blaze’s bag.”

“Which might mean that he has mine. Shit. Thanks, Gorgug. I have to go.”

“Yeah, of course. Good luck finding Riz! Bye!”

Didn’t Blaze say he was going to the City of Brass for the weekend? The same City of Brass in the Elemental Plane of Fire?… The one where if you head down the wrong winding street, you could be enslaved for it? That City of Brass?

Shit, shit, shit.

Fabian hung up as soon as he could and then went straight for his Fantasy Whatsapp app. He and Blaze had never really talked outside of practices, games, and passing each other in the halls, but they both were in the Owlbear group chat. Surely, if he just went through all of the participants in the chat he could find Blaze’s number. After a minute of scrolling and trying to leg bounce his anxieties away, he let an ‘Ah hah!’ as he found Blaze’s profile pic and his number underneath it.

Tapping the little crystal button next to Blaze’s number, he didn’t even get to agonize over the dial tone before a tinny artificial voice said, “We’re sorry. Your call cannot be completed as dialled. The person you are trying to reach has gone interplanar and the call cannot connect at this time. Please try your call again. Beep.”

Fuck.

Fabian stood in silence next to his open closet. A sense of emptiness and confusion filled his chest. Crystal still pressed up against his ear. The call disconnect tone, low and droning, beeped incessantly. Urging him to make a choice and end the call already. What was he going to do? What was he going to do? His grip on his crystal tightened as his face hardened in resolution and he realized there was only one thing to do.

He’s going to get his boyfriend back.

But first, he definitely had to change out of his pyjamas.

Riz stirred from his deep slumber for only a moment. Long enough to yawn and stretch and reposition himself amongst the nest he made out of Fabian’s things. These Sleep gummies were good. So good. They somehow managed to temporarily mute his ever-running-a-mile-a-minute brain long enough for the want of sleep to overtake his racing thoughts.

Smothering any wonder of why everything got so hot all of a sudden. Or why he could hear muffled shouts, cheers, and jeers all around him when he was in Fabian’s room. Those didn’t matter.

Not when he could instead burrow into and wrap himself in Fabian’s letterman jacket that smelled just like him. Sea salt, cedar, and cinnamon. Riz took a deep breath of them, ignoring any of the other strange, exotic smells that seeped in from the outside world. The last thing he thought of before he slipped back under was Fabian holding him tight. Feeling safer than ever in his arms and wanting only to stay in them forever.

Filled with a renewed purpose and determination, he texted Gorgug. Informing that he’d swing by his place to drop his bag and pick up Blaze’s before he started gearing up for an impromptu solo mission.

Frandrangour rested in its holster just above where he wrapped his battlesheet around his hips. Tying it off so some of the sheet still hung from the knot. He may not be a pirate like his Papa, but he’d sooner die than give up their aesthetic.

And for his clothes, he’d remembered enough from his Planar Geography class that temperatures in the City of Brass tended to be pretty hot. Staying between a breezy fifty degrees Celsius and wanting to rip your own skin off. So, he opted for the loosest white tank top with the lowest cut sides he could find in his closet and a pair of deep turquoise and orange harem pants. The Plane of Fire wasn’t going to catch him slipping. Climate or fashion-wise.

Ready as he was ever going to be, he did a quick Fantasy Google search for the closest portal to the Plane of Fire as he raced down to the Manor’s garage. More specifically looking for one that would get him as close to the City of Brass as possible. And by the time he was settling onto The Hangman’s leather seat, he’d found one near a place didn’t expect.

The Elmville Firehouse.

At first, it seemed a bit counterintuitive to him, you know? Surely whoever decided where to place the Fire Department there knew there was a portal to the place where Fire was born, right? But, after a moment’s thought, it kind of weirdly made sense. Who else would you want to fight any invading fire elemental than the people with gallons of water and a huge hose to spray it? Also, seeing as it sounded similar enough to what he remembered Blaze talking about, he decided to take the risk.

After doing a backpack swap with Gorgug, who thankfully didn’t ask too many questions about where he was going to find Blaze, Fabian was off to the Firehouse. Urging The Hangman ever faster as they sped through the streets of Elmville. Not that his trusty steed needed much encouragement to hit his top speed.

Skidding to a stop in front of the huge, brick building, he asked only for The Hangman to wait at home for him. Getting a reluctant okay, he rushed inside the station to ask exactly where the portal was. The firefighters were nice enough. They’d looked a bit skeptical at first as he explained that he needed to save his boyfriend from waking up scared and confused in the City of Brass. But showing them his Aguefort school ID and having Fandrangour on his hip helped them believe that they weren’t sending him to his fiery death.

“Gettin’ all kinds of adventurers today,” A half-orchish man named Kark said in a gravelly grumble as he led Fabian around to the back of the firehouse. Stopping in front of a back shed with an arcane padlock, he began flipping through a ring of runed keys that he had on his belt.

“Really?” Fabian asked.

“Yeah, two Fire Genasi boys went through about an hour and a half ago.” Kark answered absent-mindedly, humming a tune Fabian didn’t recognize under his breath until—“Hah! Here it is.”—He took hold of a key that looked almost identical to the rest, in Fabian’s opinion. But he said it was it, then it was it. Kark slotted the key into the padlock’s hole, a small arcane hum vibrating out once he unlocked it, and then he opened the door. A blast of heat hit their faces as the portal to the City of Brass was revealed. A whirling vortex of pure magic, tinted orange, red, and gold, hung like a tear in the fabric of space before them. Kark took a step back, grimacing at it as he asked, “You sure about this, kid?”

Fabian chuckled and smiled up at Kark, a brick house of a man who regularly ran into burning buildings, yet was still weary of what lay ahead of them. “I am. I’m an adventurer. It’s what we do.”

With one last wink at Kark and a deep breath, Fabian walked through the swirling, roiling portal.

Coming out of essentially a crack in a red stone wall, the heat hit him first. As solid and unyielding as the wall he’d just stepped out of. Instantly the immense heat sent beads of sweat down his forehead and left him a bit agitated and antsy to leave this Plane as soon as possible.

It was so distracting that he almost got run over by a merchant’s hurrying wagon. Fortunately, he rolled well on his Dexterity saving throw to jump out of the way at the last second. His back pressed up against the red stone, Fabian pushed his irritation with the city’s climate and tried to gain his bearings.

The street he just stepped into was choked with people. Hustling and bustling with throngs of folks of all kinds on foot and in wagons (or pulling them? Umberlee below.). All making their way back and forth. Either deeper into the city or toward a giant golden gate set in the black obsidian wall that encircled the entire metropolis. The tall buildings that surrounded him were carved with intricate designs. Topped off with spiralling towers. Colourful banners of red, orange yellow hung out of windows and from brassy poles with what looked like the emblem of a noble house.

What little breeze there was brought with the smell of a plethora of spices Fabian had never encountered before. He could practically taste them on his tongue with how strong they were. Shouts of a language he knew but a dialect he didn’t also were carried on the wind. Though his father keeping that tornado on as a crew member had done wonders for his knowledge of Primordial, the differences between Auran and Ignan were significant. Enough that he was worried that he might misinterpret something if he tried his hand at Ignan. Best to stick to Common then.

Pushing himself off of the wall, Fabian began to search the surrounding streets for anyone who might’ve noticed the Evermore brothers heading in a certain direction. As busy as this place was, it didn’t seem like there were a lot of people that stayed put longer than a couple of minutes. Nobody except for a beautiful Fire Genasi woman wearing hardly anything at all posted up in front of the entrance of “First Flames”. A building that just screamed ‘House of Pleasure’ not unlike the Gold Gardens back on Leviathan.

Long, fiery hair, decorated with gold and brass charms and hairpins, fell around the greeter’s sweet, round face. Waving at passersby, asking if they wanted a cool drink and some hot company.

“Hello, handsome. Name’s Cinder,” She said to Fabian once he landed in her sights. Her voice was nice and sultry as she waved him closer. “You look like you’re searching for someone.”

“I am actually,” Fabian answered with a queasy smile as he cautiously approached but tried to keep a respectful distance away. “But I don’t think he’ll be in there.”

Cinder practically cooed at him, probably mistaking his discomfort for general shyness. Her slim, ruby fingers wrapped around his to urge him closer to her and the bedecked double-door entrance. Resting a forearm on his shoulder, she made a sweeping motion with the other toward First Flames and said, “Oh, sweetie, that’s not a problem. We have this charming lad named Smoulder and he would be more than happy to make your day.”

Following her motion, he could see inside of First Flames and it didn’t look unappealing. Lush and plush and filled with beautiful, scantily clad people strutting around and draping themselves over customers. Fabian couldn’t help but skin up his nose at it. Maybe he would’ve enjoyed this place before, but now, all he wanted was Riz.

“That is a lovely offer but I’m not interested in… companionship today. I’m afraid I’m taken.” Fabian said as politely as he could and stepped out from under Cinder’s arm.

Taken aback for a moment, Cinder then let out a sigh. Placing her hands on her hips, she shook her head and laughed. “Of course you are. Anything I can help you with before you leave us for good?”

Hmm, well, she was one of the only people he’d seen so far who could’ve stayed put long enough to notice the Evermore brothers pass by…

Worth a shot.

“Is there a chance you saw two Fire Genasi guys who looked out of place walk through here about an hour and a half ago?”

It took Cinder a moment, her stained lips pursed and fine brows furrowed in thought before her face and hair brightened in remembrance. “Indeed I did! They asked for directions to The Pyre.” Fabian’s confusion must’ve shown on his face because she quickly added, “It’s a pit fighting ring. Down in the Rookery.”

“Right. And that would be…?” Fabian said. Drawing out the syllables of every word and arching a questioning brow until Cinder burst out into full-hearted laughter. Through her giggles and titters, she managed to tell him the route he needed to take to get there as quickly as possible. Though she did warn him to stay on his guard. This city wasn’t a forgiving one. Yeah, he knew a thing or two about cities like that. With one last thanks to Cinder again for her help, Fabian set off deeper into the city to find The Pyre.

Easier said than done, of course.

The City of Brass didn’t seem to have an urban planning committee that cared about easy navigation and wayfinding for newcomers. Tight and crowded streets would bend and twist and (he swore on his life) would curve back around. He’d end up in a different district than the one he was in seconds ago with little warning. And it’s not like the locals were exactly hospitable. He almost got his head chopped off for asking for directions, on two separate occasions. And he barely managed to escape the wrath and chains of a noble-looking Efreeti he accidentally bumped into.

Luckily after two hours of searching, he turned a corner and stumbled upon the place Cinder had described for him. It won’t look like much, she’d said and she wasn’t wrong. Situated in the crook of two side streets, a beefy Efreeti man guarded what was essentially a hole in the wall covered by a flimsy-looking dark wood door. No signs or any distinguishing features to be seen. Yet, all the same, a couple of well-dressed Tieflings strode up to the bouncer and discreetly handed him their tickets. And after a moment of inspecting the little pieces of cut brass, he let them in.

That’s another problem. He doesn’t have a ticket.

Crouched behind an alleyway with a view of the Pyre’s entrance, he’d searched through Blaze’s backpack. Looking for any sign of a similar cut piece of brass that he assumed was engraved in some way, but he came up with nothing. For a moment, he weighed the possibility of it maybe being a pay-at-the-door situation. But that train of thought was swiftly derailed as he watched the bouncer toss a man out into the busy street for even asking.

Shit.

Fully sat on the ground now, Fabian let his head loll back and hit the hard stone wall behind him. The oppressive weight of the heat of this place bore down on him. He dug the heels of his palms into his eyes and wiped the dripping sweat out of his face. There had to be something he could do. He’d come this far. And Riz was somewhere in that place. So close yet somehow miles and miles away.

Okay, okay. He can’t get in without a ticket… and if Blaze’s smug boasting in the locker room was any indication, they were pretty hard to get. So he couldn’t go around asking where to acquire them. Not if he wanted to keep his head on his shoulders. But that would mean he needed to get in without a ticket. How could he get in there without a ticket? Ugh, if Riz were in his position, he’d make a stupidly high investigation check for a backdoor. But Fabian had a sinking feeling if he were to try the same, he’d end up walking around the same block for hours on end. No, that wouldn’t do at all.

As Fabian sat in agonizing contemplation, the Pyre’s door opened up enough for whoever was on the other side to speak to the bouncer. A high, nasally voice asked, “Is he here yet?”

To which the bouncer only grunted and shook his head.

“That idiot. He’s supposed to be in the ring in ten minutes.” The voice said, his tone dripping in barely concealed aggravation. “If he does come tell him to get his ass into the pit ASAP. Got me?”

Another grunt, but this time with a nod instead before the Pyre’s door shut once more. Leaving the side street quiet and Fabian’s mind with an idea. He was asking the wrong question. It’s not how could he get in there without a ticket. It’s who could get in there without a ticket. Though he left the subclass behind when he became a Battle Master, it looked like the Pyre was about to get a new champion.

Jumping to his feet, he adjusted his father’s eyepatch, squared his shoulders, and lifted his chin. He marched up to the towering bouncer with the same confidence he had on his first day of school. Staring up at his eight-foot-tall form, Fabian smiled and said, “I heard this ring needed a challenger on short notice. And I just so happen to be aching for a good fight.”

Flame-filled eyes, hard and blazing, looked him up and down. The bouncer’s strong nose wrinkled in a glare at him. His gaze lifted from Fabian to behind him as he probably searched for whoever was supposed to be there. Must’ve come up empty. Since, in the end, he rolled his eyes and let out a huff of smoke from his nose as he opened the door for Fabian. And with a voice deep and rumbly like smouldering coals, the bouncer called out into the dark and hazy doorway, “Naflia. He’s here.”

“Finally!” Came the high-pitched nasally voice again. Soon accompanied by a relieved, swarthy face wreathed in a mane of fire and a short, stout frame clothed in fine brass garments. This Azer woman’s face turned surly, though, once she got a good look at Fabian. “Where the fuck have you—Jubi who the fuck is this?”

Settling a wrist Frandrangour’s pummel and a hand on his chest, Fabian went to introduce himself, “I’m—”

But Naflia cut him off, tired and gruff as she said, “Actually I don’t care. Can you fight?”

“Yes, I—”

“Perfect come with me.” She said and without another look, Naflia took him by the hand and dragged him into the building.

Leading down into a tight, spiralling stone staircase lit only by torches. Their hurried steps echoed off the walls as they went. Until they reached the bottom and came to a sitting area for guests. It was lit by blue flamed lanterns and filled with seat cushions and low-lying tables filled with goblets, plates, and candles. But Fabian didn’t have time to admire any of the furniture or the guests.

No, Naflia, surprisingly as strong as she is, yanked on his arm to get him moving again. Away from the plush niceties reserved for paying customers and into an employees-only backroom. One that led to a stone chamber filled with benches and rough, rugged fighters. All of them had harsh scars and mean mugs, scowling at him as he passed by. Fabian’s pretty sure he saw one of them laid out flat, covered in bruises and blood, hopefully just unconscious.

“What kind of establishment do you run here, Miss?” Fabian asked frantically as he brought him into a dead-end tunnel and placed him on a square platform.

Stepping back, Nafila grinned and gave him a shrug. “It’s pit fighting, kid. What did you expect? Flowers and roses?”

“A healer on deck,” Fabian answered with a grimace.

“Bah! You’ll be fine. Just don’t die. It’s bad for morale.” She said with a wide wave of her hands. Just as a tiny mote of fire flew in from around a corner, flying into her ear with purpose. Naflia squinted and tilted her head as if being quietly spoken to before she looked back up at him with a grin. “Alright, kid. You’re on in a minute.”

“A minute! Don’t I have to sign something? A waiver perhaps?” He frantically asked with a crack in his voice. Oh, he so didn’t think this plan through. He thought that he’d have enough time to scope the place out before having to fight. But apparently, Naflia didn’t care to get him acquainted with anything. Probably more fun for her. “Don’t you want my name, at least, before you throw me to the wolves?”

“No wolves. Just some punk Firenewt with anger issues. What’s your name?”

“Fabian Seacaster.”

Naflia arched a fiery brow at him. “Huh. If you say so.” She said as she reached behind her to a large brass lever in the wall and yanked it downwards. “Was just going to call you Wh’tila.”

“What does that mean?”

“Pretty boy.”

Hmm.

He didn’t hate that. Not at all.

“That works.” He said as the platform beneath his feet started to shift and rumble as it began to lift him into the air. The sound of huge gears cranking and turning filled his ears as the ceiling above him parted. Slowly but surely, he was raised into a circular arena. With stone walls that raised maybe a hundred feet over his head and were lined by metal railings. Lit by torches hung in elaborate sconces. And just beyond the railing were rows and rows of stands filled to the brim with people screaming their heads off.

The last thing he heard before the roaring audience drowned her out, was Nafila as she said, “Best of luck, Wh’tila. Remember, put on a good show but. Don’t. Die.”

Soon enough, she was gone from his sight as the platform froze in its final lifted position. Letting out a mechanical hiss as it did so. He faintly heard a similar noise about fifty feet away. Pulling his gaze away from the crowd all around him, he looked out across the arena filled with fire pits and racks of weapons to find his opponent.

Orange skin mottled with veins of gold and deep crimson reptilian eyes, the Firenewt opposite Fabian stood ready and raring to go. His fists were wrapped in gauze and he had a huge slashing scar that ran across his chest. There was this strange calmness that came off of him in waves that unsettled Fabian a bit. A sinking feeling grew in his gut that he was about to get his shit rocked by a monk for the second time today.

As he tried to remember the tips Ms. Jones had given him about fighting monks this afternoon, Naflia’s disembodied voice filled the arena. “Ladies and gentlemen! I assure you our next two fighters are about to give you the show of your lives.” At the sound of her voice and the feeling that it was truly go-time now, Fabian began to untie and unwrap his battle sheet from his waist. “The Swift Inferno, a returning champ faces off with fresh-blood fighter, Wh’tila! It’s sure to be a fight for the ages folks. Which one of these young men will come out on top? We’re about to find out in three, two, one.” As she counted down, Naflia’s last words to him rang in his head like a tolling bell. “BEGIN!”

Don’t Die.

Now, Fabian didn’t have any monk friends, so he didn’t feel bad about voicing his opinion of their range of movement.

It was fucking stupid.

Stupid and bullshit and should count as cheating.

To say that The Swift Inferno lived up to his name would be an understatement. And if you said it in front of Fabian he’d shoot you a death glare that rivaled a Sea Hag’s. Because that cute little comment didn’t help him dodge the bastard’s flurry of blows or escape his steps of the wind! Swift’s attacks just didn’t stop coming. So much so that Fabian couldn’t find an opening to strike. He just kept pushing him back and back until he hit the arena’s wall, which worked out in his favour.

As he evaded another one of Swift’s punches, both he and Fabian realized in the same second that he’d accidentally over-extended his arm. Sending it slamming into the rough, uneven stone just beside Fabian’s head. And in the moment before Swift could wince and pull his fist back, Fabian grabbed it. Keeping it where it was and leaving the entire lower half of Swift’s elongated, salamander-esque body open for him to pierce with Fandrangour.

Pulling his blade out of Swift’s abdomen with a flourish, he shoved the Firenewt away from him to give himself some room to work. Swift stumbled back, clutching his now bleeding side. Blood covered his hand wraps. Staining them red. Looking back up at him, Swift snarled.

Fabian smirked as he took a more offensive and showy stance. He arched an eyebrow and asked, “Shall we?”

Swift spat at his feet and sneered out, “Fuckin’ priss.”

“I believe it’s pronounced Wha-till-ah. But what do I know? En guarde!”

Their fight raged on. Fabian, on an upswing, managed to land a few more hits on Swfit. While Swfit tried his best to stun him as often as he could. He only succeeded once, but man oh man was that hard to come back from. Especially since one of Swift’s roundabout kicks sent Fabian crashing to the ground about half a foot away from an open fire pit.

As Swift leapt on him and pressed his face closer to the burning coals, he heard a voice call out from above. “What are you doing here, Cap?!”

Chancing a glance away from his opponent, Fabian followed the voice up into the crowd to see Blaze. Practically falling out of the stands as he leaned over the guardrail to wave at him. Yes! Yes! Blaze was here. He just needed not to die and he could get Riz back!

From within Swift’s hold on him and between the flurry of fists, Fabian yelled as loud as he could, hoping that Blaze could hear him. “Switched! Bags! The Ball! In! Mine! Ugh, one second!”

Reaching down into himself, to the pool of energy in his center that he always pulled from, he pulled from it once more. A tiny current of wind swept up from the ground and swirled around him as he gained his Second Wind. Curling up both of his feet to aim for Swift’s stomach and, using his newfound stamina, booted Swift off from on top of him. Fabian knew he’d be back on his feet soon enough, but he didn’t mind. The effects of the spell he was about to cast would look better if he was standing up anyway.

Nafila did tell him to put on a show.

“Had enough?” He asked as he watched as Swift staggered to his feet, swaying. But he was still standing. Not for long, though.

“You wish.”

Swift descended upon him once again. With flaming fists of fury, spending all of the ki he had left trying to pummel Fabian into the ground, he did his best to withstand his attacks. Taking blow after blow until his moment came. A split second when Swift left his chest open.

“Looks like my lucky day then,” Fabian smiled wide and cocked his fist back, wreathed in a helix of wind, as a low rumble of a distant stormcloud hummed. He directed it straight into the middle of Swift’s chest as he shouted, “Have a nice flight!“, in Auran. Casting Thunderwave.

BOOM!

A tide of pure stormy rage surged out from where Fabian’s fist connected with Swift’s flesh and swept him off of his feet. Sending him flying back ten feet as a thunderous boom filled The Pyre. So powerful and cacophonous that once the ringing in his ears stopped, he thought he’d deafened himself because the whole arena went silent. His pants were so loud in his ears. Chest heaving, he looked out into the stunned crowd before searching for The Swift Inferno. Finding him flung against the curved stone wall, unconscious.

Hold on… Hold on!

Fabian spun around to where he found Blaze in the crowd to lock eyes with him just to double check what he thought was happening was happening. Blaze, with his square jaw and freckled, ruddy face, beamed down at him as he threw his arms into the air. Letting out a whoop, “Let’s go, Cap! HOOT! GROWL!”, and started a chain reaction of cheers and chants as the rest of the crowd erupted.

Instinctively, Fabian whispered underneath his ragged breath, “Hoot growl.”

He’d won.

Holy shit, he’d won!

Oh, how he wished Riz was awake to see this.

The sound of a thunderstorm directly over his head was enough to rip Riz out of the inky void of sleep and back into the real world.

At first, he thought he imagined the sound of thunder crashing. Since, in the first seconds following it, everything around him went quiet. But then a jockish voice above him started yelling a familiar chant and soon an entire audience was joining him in cheering. Leaving Riz to quickly cover his sensitive ears and wonder just what the fuck was going on.

The Owlbears didn’t have a game today, did they? There’s simply no way. He’d marked them all down in his calendar app on his crystal so that he’d miss getting to watch Fabian in his element as Captain of the Bloodrush team.

Mind still groggy from the Sleep gummies, Riz tried to wrap his head around where he was when an abnormally loud voice spoke over the din. “Ladies and gentlemen, it looks like we have a winner! Give it up for Wh’tilla!”

A winner?

Wh’tilla?

Who the fuck was Wh’tilla and why did they not sound like a high school Bloodrush team he’s ever heard of?

Okay, that’s it!

Riz practically ripped his way out of Fabian’s backpack. Claws digging and scratching into the sturdy canvas until he could find a hole in the zipper and claw his way out. Instantly, as he popped his head out, he almost wished he didn’t. Because all at once he realized that he was in a place that was unbearably loud, chokingly hot, and definitely nowhere near Elmville. Sitting in a crowd of hundreds of rowdy people of all kinds, with a quick look around he concluded that he was in an underground arena of some kind. Most likely illegal, but never mind that. None of it explained why he wasn’t in Fabian’s room right now.

“Oh! That’s why Cap’s here!”

Huh. That sounds more useful to him.

Whipping his head around to look at the person who was holding Fabian’s bag on his lap, Riz looked up at the young, Fire Genasi’s face. It was familiar, that was for certain. Someone he’d never talked to but saw often enough for them not to be a complete stranger. He must be on the Bloodrush team. The strong jaw and bulky shoulders were a dead giveaway. His name? Oh, by the Gods, it was Flames or something. No, Blaze! Blaze Evermore! Fabian had called him a line-back-thingy when he’d tried to explain Bloodrush to him once. Yes, okay. But why did he have Fabian’s backpack?

“Hey, Blaze. Uh, what’s up? Man.” Riz said more awkwardly than he would’ve liked. He just didn’t know how to talk to Fabian’s Bloodrush teammates. Were they and Riz friends-in-law? Would they treat him differently if Fabian wasn’t in the room with them when they hung out? So many questions and no time to answer them.

Thankfully, Blaze just shrugged and nodded his head in the direction of the arena’s pit. “Nothin’ much. Just watchin’ Fabian kick ass.”

“Huh?” Riz turned to inspect the pit again and what he saw made him gasp.

Fabian stood with a black eye, blood running from his nose, and his arms spread wide in triumph as he soaked up the audience’s cheers. Giving them dramatic, ballerina-esque bows with a big smile on his face. But that wasn’t the part that got Riz’s heart racing.

No, that was reserved for something that no one else seemed to notice, not even Fabian. Behind him, about ten feet back, what seemed to be his defeated opponent, a heavily injured Firenewt stirred. Achingly slowly, he got up. Raising himself onto his arms, Riz saw the seething look he was shooting Fabian. Daggers into the back of his unsuspecting head. And almost imperceptibly, smoke began to pour out of his slitted nostrils as his jowl began to expand. A fact from his studies of inner planar creatures shot into Riz’s head.

Firenewts can spit fire.

They can spit fire at anyone within ten feet of it.

Riz was moving before his thoughts could get any further. Though they did. How could they not?

Could Fabian have enough hit points to withstand a blast of fire to his back? Maybe. But with how punchdrunk he looked, Riz wouldn’t bet money on it let alone Fabian’s life.

With all of his eight strength, he pushed his way through the crowd.

Sure, what damage it would do to him probably wouldn’t kill him, either. However, Riz doubted that anyone would get into the ring before that Firenewt rained down blows on Fabian’s unconscious form. By the time they pulled him off of Fabian, he’d be dead.

Despite the shouts for him to stop, Riz bounded up the metal railing and leaped off of it. Shocked gasps rang out behind him, but paid them no mind. He only smirked as, once he began to fall, spectral angel wings appeared on his back.

He’d thought that wearing this vest would be overkill for this afternoon’s sparring class, but, like always, his father was right. It always pays to be prepared. He was happy about all those gasps though. They were an excellent way to pull Fabian’s attention away from gloating and towards him.

“Riz!” Fabian shouted, his voice somehow loud enough to hear over all of the noise. The single step Fabian made toward him as his smile turned all soft and fond once his eye locked onto him wasn’t going to be enough to avoid the fire.

Maneuvering on his temporary wings, Riz tried to make himself fall faster while still keeping course towards Fabian. All the while he unfurled a multi-coloured braided length of rope, entwined with the help of all the Bad Kids last summer, from his belt. He’d yet to ever cast Rope Trick properly before, but if there was ever a time to do it, it’d be now.

In the split second before the Firenewt opened his mouth, Riz tossed the rope up into the air. He felt it catch on an extradimensional space and dove to grab Fabian’s awaiting hand. Then as Fabian's larger hand wrapped around his, he yanked as hard as he could on the rope to pull them up. Riz's muscles screamed at him as he held on to all of Fabian’s weight as they were both snatched up and into the hideaway he created.

“The Ball, what the—” Before Fabian could whip himself up into a bluster, Riz took his face into his hands as gently as he could and pointed it downwards. Letting him see through the window down into the pit as the Firenewt belched fire exactly where he was standing. Fabian’s eye went wide. “—Oh.” Meeting Riz’s know-it-all gaze, Fabian blushed before he put a hand on his chest and another against his forehead and said, “My hero.”

“Damn, right,” Riz said with a nod, ignoring how hot his cheeks felt. “What are we even doing here? Since when do you pit fight?”

Fabian groaned. Letting himself flop back into a sprawl on the floor of the Rope Trick as he explained himself. “Ugh, I didn’t mean to be here. Blaze, Gorgug, and I swapped bags accidentally. I got Gorgug’s, Gorgug got Blaze’s, and Blaze got-”

“Yours.” Riz interrupted, his mind still whirling a mile a minute. Peering down at the pit below, another question popped to the forefront of his head. “Where are we?”

“The City of Brass,” Fabian answered, barely lifting his head to do so.

“What?” Riz reared back before pressing his face to the glass of the Rope Trick’s window to the outside world. Only now, with this bird’s eye view did he notice the abundance of Fire Genasi, Azers, and other fireborn or touched creatures in attendance. No wonder it was so fucking hot! That’s the capital of the Plane of Fire for you. Wait. If he was brought here accidentally by Blaze that must mean—oh. Riz looked up from his snooping to crawl over to Fabian’s prone form. Peering over his head, Fabian’s lone silver eye opening as he did, Riz softly asked, “Did you go interplanar just to come find me?”

Fabian shrugged with an amount of adoration on his face that made Riz feel like he was about to throw up.

“I’d go to the ends of the multiverse to find you.” He said, simply. Almost nonchalantly. As if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Oh, Riz just couldn’t take it. Slapping his hands against his face, he fell back as well and curled into a ball. Fabian’s soft chuckles didn’t help. Especially not when he also pulled Riz over to him and wrapped him up in his arms. “What? Too mushy for you?” Riz could only nod, too overwhelmed with such big feelings. “Like you wouldn’t do the same.”

Of course, he would.

In a heartbeat.

He’d venture across the multiverse and back twice if that’s what it took to find him.

The two of them stayed just like that for a few long moments. Content to stay in this embrace for maybe the rest of eternity… Well, that’s a bit much. This spell wouldn’t even have an eternity. Maybe another fifty minutes. Tops.

If it weren’t for the stray glance Riz made downwards, they probably would’ve. But now that he felt like he could speak again, he couldn’t help but comment on the Firenewt below them. And how he was frantically punching the air around where he’d swept Fabian up from. “Huh, looks like your opponent is a bit confused.”

“I’m sure he is.” A beat. “Think I can drop down on him and knock him out?”

“Fabian.”

“What? I wanna win.”

Riz rolled his eyes, not immune to Fabian’s puppy dog pout, and said, “On my cue.” Fabian let out a whoop and kissed Riz’s cheek before he scrambled to get into place. “Drop down in three, two, one, now!”

In a fall, complete with twists and summersaults, Fabian soared out of the extradimensional space with flourish and theatrics. Landing on top of the poor Firenewt in an obnoxiously dramatic pose. Riz couldn’t hear anything from within the hideaway, but he knew the crowd must’ve been going nuts. He didn’t want to, but Riz couldn’t stop a fond smile from playing on his lips as he said, “That’s my guy.”

By the Gods, did Riz love him.

Whew!! There you go! I hope you liked it, Anon! Another one ticked off the bingo board!

Send me a prompt and help me get a bingo!

#fabian seacaster #riz gukgak #fabriz #fanfic #fantasy high #fic bingo #prompt bingo #this one is a doozy but so good!! #it's also the fic i was talking about when i said i needed to change an ending now that riz knows magic!

[beetlethebug]

so we know that like, Kristen's whole deal is religion and such, right? I'm just kinda thinking about the other Bad Kids and the Gods. Maybe it's my own multi-deity pagan ass just wanting to consider what it would look like. (I'm using primarily Forgotten Realms Gods and my absolutely vague knowledge of them).

This got long so read under the cut ;u;

Gorgug is absolutely Garl Glittergold's favorite child. He loves the shenanigans. Do you think he starts connecting with Gruumsh when he starts connecting with his birth parents? Baby Gorgug leaving bits of metal and toys he accidentally broke on the altar the Thistlesprings' have in their workshop. Gorgug pre-artificer offering up the songs he makes as a tricky sort of "metal" working. Feeling a connection to Gruumsh in the heats of his rage, the nudge of a hand during his frenzy guiding him to the right target. Keeping bits of scrap from their enemies to melt down into his next artificing project. He also probably talks to Helm, sometimes, asking for guidance on how to best protect his friends. Gorgug has big protector energy.

Adaine who is, in a way, a deity in her own right, depending how revered the Oracle is. I don't know if Adaine would connect with Elvish gods, but she and Oghma vibe. I think that after the Bad Kids all talk and bond, Kristen makes a joke about her being a Gruumsh follower with her furious fist and so Adaine jokingly buys a pin to wear in offering. Jawbone also had a talk with her about sometimes it can help to talk to someone about your anxiety--whether that be a counselor or even the Gods, sometimes. Just Adaine praying to Gruumsh to have the strength to punch her anxiety in the face is very beautiful to me. Azuth is the god of wizards, so he and Adaine might vibe. Adaine feels like the type to vibe with the Gods mostly in jest; she talks to them sometimes, but they're silly little guys to her. Because of Tracker and Jawbone's lycanthropy, I think she either has a small shrine to Galicaea or has the biggest beef with her imaginable. Maybe a little bit of both.

Riz. God. I think once Riz meets his Father, he definitely like, sets up a little shrine to him. Ancestor work feels really important to Riz. He dedicates a lot of self-care things to his dad, I think. Mainly sleeping and drinking water. Does he do them? No. But it's the thought that counts. Riz is definitely the like, mundane acts of worship. Incorporating it into miniscule parts of his day that would go undetected unless you knew him and where to look. He also probably has some devotional jewelry to Yondalla; I think that Penny probably had a habit of repeating prayers while touching the beads of her bracelet (kind of like a Rosary) and that rubbed off on him, especially when she was babysitting him. The whole family also probably have at least some sort of worship to Tyr due to their connection to justice and law enforcement. I think Sklonda is more connected with some of the deities associated with Goblins, specifically Gruumsh (can you tell I love him?) and Maglubiyet. He prays to war gods to get through the absolute shitshow of Adventuring school. He and Adaine probably dedicate their research to Oghma.

Fig is really interesting because I feel like she is probably in the vein of demon work instead of divinity. Although I think that she unironically thinks Riz's dad is super cool so like, playfully worships him. Fig is the Bad Kid that I feel like collects all the different pieces of her friends and wears them proudly upon herself. She dedicates concerts to Kristen's new deity of the week. She sighs and asks Oghma for help on exams; she includes prayers to Gruumsh in her tracks. I feel like Fig also might have a tendency to like, worship the people in her life. She thinks they're so important and she cares about them so much. So she elevates them to the status of a God in her mind. They are invincible. They are young and powerful and the bonds they share are much, much magical then some God who pretends to be high and mighty. Her body is an altar--she wears jewelry and draws sigils and uses so much color magick. She is, in a way, a walking beacon to the gods, saying, "Look at us! We're just as good as you, and if you doubt it, then we'll kick your ass!"

Fabian Seacaster my beloved. This man follows his Father's footsteps for a long time. He worships Gods of the tempest, of the sea and sailing. Yondalla holds a special place in his heart. Riz nearly has a conniption when Fabian corrects him on a prayer to Yondalla, and the two of them bond about it. But once this man starts dancing, this man worships Corellon Larethian with his whole chest. He does a lot of his worship through dancing. Moving his body, getting in touch with his roots. Because of the fire elemental, he also does some like, elemental magic? But I think a lot of his forms of worship come through bodily experiences. Braving a storm, dancing in front of a crowd, making just the right maneuver to protect his friends in battle. Sometimes he and Fig and Gorgug will sit together and make devotional playlists!

#fantasy high #dimension twenty #dimension 20 #fabian seacaster #riz gukgak #headcanons #adaine abernant #fig faeth #gorgug thistlespring #deities #forgotten realms deities #dnd lore #dnd gods #listen i am just. submitting this into the world these are my thoughts and feelings #paganism #the bad kids #d20 fantasy high

[fillingthescrapbook]

Let's Talk About: Fantasy High Junior Year and Not All Who Wanda Are Lost

This is the first time I'm watching a Fantasy High season as it airs, instead of binging it--and I hate it! I am itching to see what happens next. Itching. Like I can't focus on anything else without having that itch scratched.

Also: two things right off the bat:

One. The bitch is back. This is not a drill. THE BITCH IS BACK.

Two. GORGUG AND ZELDA REALLY ARE BROKEN UP? GOSH DARN IT!

Okay, now that I've calmed down somewhat. The episode is also a bit of a breather after the high-octane and high-emotions of the first two episodes. We do get some answers to some questions, like: yeah, Gorgug and Zelda are indeed broken up. Cathilda is at Leviathan, which is why Fabian is all alone at the Seacaster Manor.

And, yes, the projections are very much alive. Which I love.

There's an energy surrounding the Intrepid Heroes that really makes their seasons engaging even when their characters are doing bits I don't agree with. I guess because we've seen them play the most in Dimension 20, we trust that we know where they are going. And that's really the main part of why their seasons work, isn't it? We trust them. Even when they make mistakes or flub a deception that Brennan can then use against them, we trust that they mean well. That they have a story to tell.

That's one of the reasons why I've held on judgment with what seemed to be a repeating storyline for Kristen in the first two episodes. Now that we've seen the third episode, it does make sense for Kristen to enter a cycle. It does make sense for her to treat Cassandra the way she treated YES!. And, of course, Brennan is going to use this to fuck with the Bad Kids.

And Brennan is setting up so many villains, and maybe some red herrings… But it's hard not to panic. It's hard not to go into a worry. Because, yeah, I am going into a worry.

I guess, though, this season's biggest villain is real life. Not real-real life. But real life for our bad kids. Reality isn't cut-and-dry. We don't defeat monsters and then get to live happily ever after. Because life continues. And consequences matter. So of course Gorgug doesn't get an approval to multi-class as an artificer. Because of course it doesn't make sense.

We got a taste of the financial villainy last episode when Sklonda and Riz discussed how good grades might not be enough for him to get into a good college. And now Adaine is facing the reality of what being a wizard with no rich parents means. While, on the opposite side of the spectrum, Fabian is realizing how having money might get you perks but it still doesn't shield you from getting bombarded with other problems.

And then there's Fig. Our beloved wild child whose past actions are now, quite literally, chasing after her. And the poetry of Ally setting up a Hilda Hilda callback just as Brennan reveals an investigation about a missing person's case at 22 Hilda Boulevard.

If you're reading up to here, you probably understand my reason for hating having to watch an episode at a time, right? Because I am itching to find out what happens next. For each Bad Kid.

Especially after that revelation in the end.

…

One last thing: I laughed way too much at Riz using the term "constituents" when referring to the student body of Aguefort Academy.

Also: is Brennan intentionally letting the Intrepid Heroes go off tangent so he could get his almonds in?

I guess that's last two things. Oops.

#dimension 20 #fantasy high #fantasy high junior year #d20 spoilers #brennan lee mulligan #emily axford #zac oyama #siobhan thompson #lou wilson #ally beardsley #brian murphy

[ageless-aislynn]

Aislynn's Absolute Screaming, Crying, Flailing Thinky Thoughts About Halo s2ep8

Under the cut since its the finale and I don't want to be That Person who spoils a finale for anybody if I can help it 💖

First thing: KAI, my baby, noooooooooo

Okay, do I love the Halo games? So much. So, so much. Did I know what actually adapting them would mean would happen in the live action show, especially since s2 clearly wanted to pull closer to the games? Yep.

Did I want to see characters I've come to love, appreciate or love to hate get infected by the Flood? HECK NO.

However, the fact that the Flood spores were much smaller than their game counterparts (Evil Cabbages with feet were my initial thought of them when I met them in Combat Evolved the first time 😂🤷‍♀️😉) was a definite win, IMO. Obviously they couldn't be germ-sized in game and you be able to shoot them. But just the visual of them being smaller and much more virus/germ-sized made them a bazillion times scarier because they felt more real in that way to me.

Why do I watch so many zombie things? Zombies FREAK ME OUT SO BAAAAAD, MAN. And the body horror, dude. Ohhhhh, I can't with the body horror and people getting mutated and... UGH. Yet I've made, like, half a dozen Alien/Prometheus vids. I AM A CONUNDRUM, what can I say? 🤷‍♀️😂

Now, ever since Vannak died, I've been trying to figure out how we can, you know, bring him back to the show. I still don't know how it could actually be done but one thing I do know is that KAI COULD TOTALLY BE FOUND INJURED BUT ALIVE. Her Mjolnir can protect her from deep space, so it could have totally protected her against a big KABOOM, too. Her body is intact, she wasn't vaporized or whatever, so that's my story and I'm sticking to it. *nodnods very seriously*

I think I'm going to have to either invent time travel or cloning to save Vannak, though. Give me a minute. 🤔😉

If we do get another season (or 2 or 5 😉), I'm wondering if they're really serious about Silver Team being gone, if we're going to get Blue Team, then? Mannnnn, I don't want Silver to be gone, though. I've fallen so in love with Kai, Riz and Vannak now, too!

I'm kinda glad that not-Thel!Arbiter wasn't Thel because that was a good ending to his storyline, with Chief's "I know what he said" and finishing him off. Obs, though, I don't want Thel to have met the same fate.

Makee's line about being a demon, too? That was a good one, yep. Still annoyed that John's first question to her last ep wasn't "Um, hi, nice to see you and how is it that you're alive?" That being unanswered was just one of those clearly "because we changed showrunners," things.

John and Cortana (now in his suit), together again, YESSSSS!!!

Hello, Guilty Spark! If this is Gravemind they're talking about, they NEED Dee Bradley Baker for the voice. Just, no question, don't even think of casting anybody else.

John doing that badass "fight through the smoke and haze to save the day" made my fangirl heart go pitter-pat, what can I say? I'm easy to please, lol!

In summary, I did love s2 in a different way than I loved s1 and I hope we'll get news of a renewal ASAP!

Also, Kai's fine, she's just having a little nap, no worries!

#halo #halo the series #halo paramount+ #airline's thinky thoughts #master chief #john-117 #kai-125 #ageless aislynn #aislynn's thinky thoughts #i'm TOTALLY keeping that autocorrected tag calling me an airline lol #halo spoilers #spoilers

[plate2]

Putting this here because I can't stop thinking about a stupid little alternate universe that I should probably just make a fanfic of

AU where gilear and sklonda meet before the bad kids introduce them to one another, and they don't know about their kids being friends, nor do they know about either's romantic history. Why? Because then there's the funny of miscommunication

A gilear who always sounds very sad when talking about someone named sandra lynn, wearing the ring because he says it feels weird not to, talking about all the money it took to finalize things. Sklonda, of course, assumes sandra lynn is dead and he's broke because of the funeral.

A sklonda who talks very much the same about pok and the ring she wears on her finger, talking vaguely about how he had secrets about things she didn't know all the information about, how she worried about him and how their son would grow up because of said secrets. Gilear, of course, assumed sklonda is divorced because of an affair, similar to him.

I would love accidental things they would say that end up meaning something completly opposite to the other person, especially if there's so many opportunities for them to realize and they just. don't. They become really good friends when they think the other needs support and a friend since they went through the same thing when they could not be more wrong. This doesn't have to end romantically, but I'm not extremely opposed to it either

I'm just thinking about the situations,, it getting closer to father's day and sklonda saying her and riz are going to the cemetery and gilear just assumes she's going to visit her dad/riz's grandpa that they must have been very close to. Or a night where gilear gets a little tipsy and starts to talk vaguely about fig's other dad and the issues he was having with him,, and sklonda is both so happy because she assumes gilear means he's moving on and has gotten a boyfriend but is also sad because they're having issues with their relationship so far because of him already having a daughter

Even a gilear who admits he's divorced and sklonda assumes he got divorced first, only to later fall in love with sandra lynn who very unfortunately died. I would make such insane situations where they should for every reason figure it out but Don't. I have no clue how the reveal would work nor who would finially tell them but the entire idea is just hilarious to me

#dimension 20 #d20 fantasy high #sklonda gukgak #gilear faeth #this would probably happen during freshman year #why is this what i spend my weekend thinking about #fantasy high #dimension 20 fantasy high #plate2posts

[everywishway]

Kalina Playlist Deep-dive

Kinda wanted to do a playlist deep-dive about all my Fantasy High playlists. If you want any more, I have playlists for all the Bad Kids, both Voxes, and I'm working on a Cassandra Playlist. Starting off with my baby girl, Kalina

ALICE:

I picture this as Kalina describing the fall of the Unnamed Goddess into the Nightmare King. A goddess of dreaming and doubt till she lost her mind, and her persona. Turned her forest into this idealization of what the Nightmare King represents.

Queen

Kalina's persona is this person manipulating everything in the background and several steps ahead of everyone. Also how the Bad Kids originally assumed she stole the crown to control the Nightmare King and be in power.

GRRRLS

Kalina's ideology is about taking control to bring back the Nightmare King by any means necessary. Not wanting people to look too closely into her.

&

It's like how Kalina always gives options when speaking to the Bad Kids, especially Riz. Also how each option and the tone get more threatening overtime. Also "They took a lesson from their fathers" connects to Riz and how she killed Pok.

The Mind Electric

I honestly don't remember why I added this? Vibes? Maybe it's another example of her trying to control Riz and the Bad Kids, taunting them and making them face their fears? Yeah, that's it, why not?

Achilles Come Down

Goes against my Kristen Playlist which has this same song. This is Kalina and Kristen deciding what Cassandra is going to be in FHSY. Kalina is the deeper voice and Kristen is the kinder one.

Church

Kalina's loyalty to Cassandra and more religious imagery for her connection to Cassandra. Plus the line "Time capsule for the future, trust me that is what I'll be" is how she lives on for the Unnamed Goddess as the plague for her to live. Also "Oh the things that you do in the name of what you love, you were doomed but just enough" is her talking about how her goddess was doomed by her followers, the people who loved her. Also, the second section of the song says "Got a few more fake friends" showing her connections over the years she keeps at arm's distance like Pok Gukgak.

Child of Ashes

I picture this as Kalina singing to the Bad Kids, willing to show them mercy as long as they back off this case.

Hawk in the Night

I see this as her talking to Riz because she is still close to him. She's his godmother, she wants to see him grow strong but it's not the best advice.

You Stabbed Me in My Sleep

My Love is Sick

Kalina is literally a plague, what can I say? Just kidding, it's that and all the religious imagery. The loyalty to the person is like Kalina's loyalty to Cassandra in all her forms. Plus I love Madds Buckley so much. <3

Ghost

Kalina's abilities appear and disappear, along with taunting the Bad Kids and messing with them on their journey. Her confidence, knowing they hate her and why right before the bridge. Plus during the Bridge where the artist says "Why don't you just leave me alone" I see Riz and other Bad Kids begging her to stop with this, stop messing with them.

It Took Me By Suprise

Her being is surprised that the BKs didn't back off, especially Riz after taunting him and seeing the anger in their eyes... thats it...

That Unwanted Animal

How I picture Kalina sees herself. She cares for Cassandra in every form and tries her best to take care of her. When the "Unnamed Goddess" sacrifices herself to be the Nightmare King, Kalina becomes the "Unwanted Animal".

Little Big Boy

Specifically for Fabian, when she makes him stab the Hangman and jump into the ocean.

Take Me To Church

Another song with religious notes to show her dedication to Cassandra and illness notes for her being a literal plague Sophomore Year.

the fruits

Another song with religious notes that I added for the vibes. Also, her being used to keep alive a goddess.

Allies or Enemies

Picked to show her relationship with the Bad Kids now in the present time. Also her new relationship with Cassandra as this new form.

Until It Doesn't Hurt

The pain of her being a plague and vibes.

If I Kill Someone For You

Another song is about Kalina sacrificing herself, and her identity to keep her Goddess alive, to bring her back. Sacrificing her livelihood, and her well-being to bring back the Nightmare King.

Everybody Wants To Rule The World

Final boss music and the end describes the battlefield of "Spring Break I Believe in You" where there is no light coming through the forest, the stairs and ruins where the battle is old and decrepit. "When they do I'll be right beside you, so glad we almost made it" is her speaking to herself/the Nightmare King as she brings them back to life.

Panic Room

Another song about the Nightmare King's Forest and how Kalina and the Nightmare King shaped the forest to have the deepest fears of the Bad Kids.

That's it! I hope yall had fun listening to me explain my thought process <3

#dimension 20 #fantasy high #brennan lee mulligan #d20 fantasy high #d20 #fhjy #kalina #kalina d20 #dimension 20 playlist #riz gukgak #kristen applebees #cassandra dimension 20 #madds buckley #pok gukgak #the shadow cat #Spotify

[genderliquid-witch]

What are the Bad Kids' favourite Death Grips projects? (Fantasy High)

I've been having a blast watching Fantasy High: Junior Year, and I have also been relistening to a lot of Death Grips' discography. So, like I do with most of the fandoms I'm in, I'm going to guess what I think each of the Bad Kids' favourite Death Grips project would be. I will give reasoning for each one, but be warned that they are almost completely arbitrary.

Adaine Abernant: n-ggas on the moon

While on one hand I feel like Adaine would find some of the band's heavier albums a bit startling, I think she'd love n-ggas on the moon. It's got this whimsical atmosphere that I think a wizard would really vibe with, and I can see drunk Adaine wilding out to the more high energy tracks like Have A Sad Cum BB and Billy Not Really. Not to mention she'd have a great time deciphering what are arguably Death Grips' most cryptic and mysterious lyrics. This is a party wizard album for sure.

Fabian Aramais Seacaster: Fashion Week

As we all know, Fabian indulges in the finer things in life, and I think his taste in experimental Sacramento-based hip hop would be no different. Fashion Week is the closest Death Grips has ever come to luxury and I'm sure that would attract a young Seacaster. He's totally the type to brag about how refined his taste in music is, evident by how he chooses one of the band's more obscure, instrumental projects over the mainstream slop that is The Money Store. As for the music itself, I feel it's perfect for some wild interpretive dance, and I think Fabian would agree. I can already picture him doing some crazy sheet dance to Runway E.

Fig Faeth: Jenny Death

Jenny Death is the heaviest album in Death Grips' discography, almost acting as fully fledged psychedelic, punk metal album, so I can't imagine why Fig wouldn't adore it. The loud, abrasive guitars, the hypnotic production, the drums that practically punch your ears; it all just screams Fig to me! I mean when I saw the band live the songs from Jenny Death were easily the ones that caused the crowd to go completely wild, and we all know Fig loves a wild crowd. Even the names of the songs are perfect for her: I Break Mirrors With My Face In the United States, Centuries of Damn, Beyond Alive, and The Powers That B all sound like they came right from the Archdevil's own mind.

Also yes, I'm aware I missed an opportunity to assign her Bottomless Pit, but these are the sacrifices I make for accuracy.

Gorgug Thistlespring: Exmilitary

For a barbarian drummer, I can see no better fit than the band's debut mixtape, Exmilitary. This mixtape is so raw and primal, I mean the drums sound like war drums. We already know that Gorgug loves heavy, intense music, so I think he'd totally rock with this. I also think that the tape's unique, grinding production would appeal to his artificer side; it's a perfect mix of rage and technology, and I can imagine him blasting something like Takyon or Guillotine as he hacks through some enemies.

Kristen Applebees: Government Plates

For someone who's constantly riddled with feelings of doubt and confusion while also maintaining a general aura of weirdness (affectionate), I think Government Plates is a good pick for Kristen. It's the kind of album that you have to sit down and listen to a couple times before you really vibe with it; it doesn't want to be understood, but that doesn't mean you should stop trying! Not to mention the pure emotional intensity of tracks like You Might Think He Loves You... (I'm not writing the full title.), Two Heavens, and Bootleg (Don't Need Your Help) suit Kristen very well imo. An underappreciated album for an underappreciated character.

Riz Gukgak: No Love Deep Web

And for everyone's favourite little weirdo is what I consider Death Grips' certified weirdo album (They're all weirdo albums, but this one especially so). Though my reason for choosing No Love Deep Web as Riz's favourite Death Grips project isn't because of the music itself, but rather the history surrounding this album. If you didn't know, this album was released through a secret Alternate Reality Game on the deep web where fans had to solve incredibly cryptic puzzles over a few days in order to gain access to a link that allowed them to torrent the album, and I think that Riz would be all over that shit; I can imagine him setting up a little cork board with all of the clues and whatnot strung up. I don't even know if he'd even like the music, I think he's just invested in the mystery!

#this took way longer than it should have #also for anyone wondering Gilear is 100% noided #he's disturbed enough to be in the band tbh #fantasy high #dimension 20 #dropout #adaine abernant #fabian seacaster #fig faeth #gorgug thistlespring #kristen applebees #riz gukgak #fantasy high junior year #fhjy #d20 fantasy high #d20 fhjy #death grips

[bloodyshadow1]

just for fun, I assigned the bad kids a vestige from critical role because I love both and am bored at work. My own little rule is that no one can have overlapping vestiges. example Fig and Fabian both would be great with mythcarver, but I gave it to Fig since I think she could use it better and I explain why. I also wanted things to fit with the Bad Kids thematically instead of just being efficient in assigning powerful magic items to adventurers.

Riz

Whisper- pretty obvious as the party's rogue even though Riz uses a gun he does have the sword of shadows that he uses as a melee weapon.  Having a weapon with a free teleport with his rogue disengage is amazing

Danothar’s visor- a great item for a sneaky investigator like Riz, he already has gadgets that lets him do similar things, but still, the other abilities like advantage on investigation and perception checks are great for him. It also lets him auto save from illusions and see through them, see through solid matter up to a foot and cast antimagic field.  It’s perfect for someone who used to get screwed over by magic a lot like he was the passed 2 years

Infiltrator's key- an item made for rogues even if thieve’s tools aren’t normally Riz’s thing, it does come down to him to unlock doors and disarm traps that the bad kids face.  Being able to create your own doors is also just great in general for an investigator.  Not to mention the spells that the key grants are perfect for rogues and means he doesn’t have to burn his spell slots since he doesn’t have that many compared to most of his friends

Adaine

Wraps of Dymak- while this is of course not great for Adaine, the first 2 seasons she was so intent on punching her enemies despite not having the strength to do so, Ayda even gifted her the spell Adaine’s furious fist so she can do so more effectively. Sure she has the sword of sight now, but it’s always important to remember where you came from. Also a free misty step isn’t bad by any means

Jewel of Three Prayers- as a wizard, Adaine has shit ac so any boost from it that wouldn’t interfere with her other ac boosting items or abilities would be great for her in general.  Being able to burn a charge to get rid of a nasty affects like Paralyze, restrained, and grappled is great for anyone, but especially a squishy wizard like her.  Being able to burn a charge to grant anyone she can see a reroll on a save is great and fits with her diviner subclass.  And finally the exalted ability to breath and swim under water with a walking speed is thematically great for Adaine who has a slight fear of water given what happened to the previous elven oracle.  

Grimore Infinitus- I mean there isn’t a better vestige for a wizard, 25 free spells in your spell book would make this amazing on its own.  Being able to prepare 3 extra spells per day in its exalted state is great for any wizard who is nervous about what they are going to face that day.  Additionally, saving throws on all magical effects is great for any character, but for Adaine who is alway being targeted by harmful magic it would make her less depended on Boggy giving her the help action for her saves and put him in less danger.

Kristen

Plate of the dawnmartyr- not to keep ripping off critical role’s cast choices, but Kristen is the only one of the bad kids who uses heavy armor so she would get the ac boost, and the any resistances is a good thing so the resistance to fire in its awakened state.  Bounce back damage is great because clerics tend to be targeted above other pc’s.  And of course the ability to come back after going to 0 hp is perfect for any cleric.

Honor’s last stand- Kristen I believe has high AC because it’s flavored she’s wearing heavy armor and wielding a shield, so having a legendary shield would be great.  It’s awakened ability to make it’s user immune to prone is also great for someone with her dex

Fig

Spire of Conflux- it is a staff with extra spells which is great for any spell caster and in its exalted state it increases the casters spell attack and dc by +1.  Additionally in its awakened state the spire allows the wielder to reroll any 1’s they get on the dice for elemental damage and since Emily has been rolling pretty poor this season damage wise, I think it would really help Fig out with her damage rolls

Armor of the Valiant soul- I believe Fig can use medium armor, not sure with all her multiclassing, but she should be able to by now.  The ac buff is great all around and so is the resistance to acid and immunity to fear.  However the free use of the command spell is why I chose this for Fig since she is always trying to mess with her opponents heads though that was more so in freshman and sophomore year I still think it fits.

Mythcarver- While this would also work for Fabian, I think as a lore bard with cutting words, it would have more utility in Fig’s hands instead of Fabians, though it would still be very good for him.  Fig is more of a primary spell caster than Fabian so using cutting words to give enemies disadvantage on saves would be more useful for her than him.  Not to mention that the exalted ability to get more attacks, would be more useful for Fig as Fabian already gets multiattack and action surge as a fighter while Fig only has 1 for now, and as a Paladin she can smite on each of those attacks while Fabian already has Fandragor to due something similar.   

Verminshroud- While not exactly good for Fig, I do think she would have a lot of fun with it, being able to turn into a giant rat, wasp, and scorpion would be fun for her and her chaos bringer mentality.  Honestly, resistance from poison is still a resistance.  Again, I just think she would have fun with it

Fabian 

Kiss of the Changebringer- I think this is just a generally good vestige for anyone but I think it fits Fabian because he’s always trying to get his kisses in.

Deathwalker’s Ward- Fabian is a dex fighter, so light armor with bonus ac is perfect for him.  In its exalted state it gives him a resistance that he can change during a short rest which is good for every character, but especially someone on the front line like Fabian.  And of course the ability to fly for an hour is perfect for a maximum legend like Fabian who loves to show off and it also is incredibly practical too

Cabal’s Ruin- It’s good for any character, being able to get resistance to damage you would take from a spell is great.  As a fighter/bard, fabian has a great ac of 19 and can boost that with his defensive flourish and maybe battlemaster abilities, so hitting him isn’t the easiest but he is just as affected by magic as any other martial character, but Cabal’s ruin gives him advantage on all saves against magic.  So the ability to halve spell damage and use it to boost the damage you do is perfect for him.  Also, despite being a bard, Fabian doesn’t really use his spells in combat, preferring to use them to fuel Fandragor and hammer away at his foes making Cabal’s ruin perfect for him as a fully charged exalted vestige can do an extra 10d6 lightning damage on one attack or being able to spread the damage around.  

Gorgug- 

Titanstone knuckles- again, not to rip off critical role, but the knuckles are an all around great item for anyone with its multiple resistances to common damage types.  For a barbarian it’s a no brainer with the extra damage the enlarge spell gives and of course putting his strength above 20, maxing out at 26 exalted as opposed to his current 18 isn’t anything to sneeze at. 

Pyremaul- Thematically not really Gorgug’s thing because he doesn’t have any specially affinity towards fire and uses axes, but the maul is still a two handed weapon and does an extra 3d6 fire damage on hits so I don’t think any Barbarian can pass up that damage. It also has a similar ability to Zelda’s mixtape if he ever wants to retire that since they broke up it would give him the chance to.  On the flip side of themes, it wouldn’t be the worst thing for Gorgug to put aside the axe meant to kill to pick up a hammer than can be used to kill and craft. To symbolically choose to walk the path of barbarian and artificer.  

Stormgirdle- like the Titanstone Knuckles, these are perfect for a barbarian as it buffs your strength score, not as high as the knuckles, but still higher than the natural max any character can get to.  2 extra elemental resistances aren’t anything to poke fun seeing as magic tends to be barbarians bane as they have physical residences as they rage.  The storm avatar form is cool in general, most barbarians don’t have much use for their bonus action after they rage so the extra damage is great and being able to fly is amazing for any martial class. 

Tell me what you think, if you agree or disagree. If you have better suggestions. Or just think another character should get one over the other that I put here

This was a lot of fun but also more difficult than you think. I'll admit I thought more about utility and defense than pure offense. Like with Kristen I focused more on her being harder to hit and put down because she's already an extremely powerful cleric. Fabian was also kind of difficult because he's a fighter, he's good at it, Mythcarver or the Star Razor would be great for him, but I also think that there isn't a better sword for him than Fandrangor so I couldn't argue that for him to get an offensive vestige.

Like I said, it was still a lot of fun, might do something similar for the seven since they're still my favorite season of d20

#fantasy high #fantasy high junior year #fhjy #the bad kids #adaine abernant #riz gukgak #fig faeth #kristen applebees #fabian seacaster #fabian aramais seacaster #gorgug thistlespring #critical role

[rizs-briefcase]

‼️FHJY EP 2 SPOILERS ‼️

all my thoughts about episode two of junior year !! it’s a long one :)

The little scenes when they describe their attacks and moves where the minis are acting it out is so cute

‘A mega version of Riz’s mage hand’

They all look so good. But especially Ally and Murph omg

Adaine’s first turn was actually pretty sick

And Gorgugs wtf

AND KRISTENS TO MAKE IT BLOODED PLS

‘Do you have mass healing word? Would you be interested in doing that?’

‘Brennan you’re literally bullying us’

‘You can try, oh it does hit’

ARMOUR OF AYDA crying

These beans are DUE

Murph starting to roll like shit again

Fabian flirting with efac again

‘I punch the mirror’ ‘I punch Kristen twice’

Lou Nat one again to get out the van ‘I’m going to throw up’

In two turns Lou only needs a 2 to not get crushed by the van, and twice he rolls a nat one

‘For you to half or third or whatever you do since it has multiple attacks’

Adaine death fail instead of taking a Dex save wtf

‘You don’t have it written down! I thought you read the book’

ECAF NOOOO

‘Look somewhere else’

I need a full story of Balthazar and Duggan, THEY WERE LOVERS

Murphs sleeves being short enough to show off his tattoos, I might disintegrate

What is with these kids and crashing vehicles

Ally throwing their dice

‘With my wizarding powers and my absolutely fucked van’

‘Just don’t roll a one and this is over.’ ‘NAT 20’

Gorgug IS the greatest wizard of our time

DUGGAN NO. At least he’s with Balthazar now :(

Moggy the doggy crit <3

‘Can I get under that hood a lil bit’

‘Give me a tinkerers room check’ ‘I don’t have that’

‘It’s limp silk’

‘Fabian, photosynthesis is back!!’

It just ain’t the same

‘I don’t even cutting words. I just take it’

‘I’m feeling a little unhinged’

‘Love is love’

Gorgug double crit, my boy <3

The enemy rolling two Nat ones and shooting himself in the eye

Murph dying of laughter of these guys showing up late

‘Nat 20’ ‘are you serious?’ Balthazar is everywhere

Adaine would’ve got a job, Fabian would’ve gone to dance camp, Gorgug would’ve worked on his van ; THEYRE JUST KIDS

But Riz is just happy they got to spend the summer together STOP MY SON

‘I do a half hearted prayer of healing just because I don’t trust you’

‘This was supposed to be an in and out deal but I got involved and I regret it’

‘Hey girlie,,, heyyy girlieee’

HALLARIEL ART, UGH SHES SO HOT

Gilear x Hallerial wedding WHEN

There’s something so sad about Fabian, who’s been coddled his whole life, being abandoned and left to fend for himself in a massive house

SKLONDA MY FIRST AND ONLY LOVE

Sklonda talking to Riz about college and how she doesn’t know if she can afford it for him

Riz just wants to go to college with everyone stop :(( him and adaine are fine there grades are good, but he needs to make sure he finds a place that suits the others please!!!!

WILMA AND DIGBY I LOVE U !! THEYRE SO CUTE

WAIT DID GORGUG AND ZELDA BREAK UP?? THEY ARE NOT THE COUPLE THAT WAS MEANT TO SPLIT !! Although calling it rn they’re getting back together

‘The elven oracle, the Saint of mystery and doubt, and the archdevil of rebellion’ THATS MY GIRLS!!!

RAGH AND LYDIA ART I MIGHT SOB

Kristen never told anyone she changed gods (I guess twice now?), Fig still hasn’t been to a bard class. They’re so funny

WE GOT AYDA ART!!!!

Ayda leaving Fig fossils to say she loves her her!!

Aelwyn putting protective wards on adaines bedroom to keep adaine safe :((

Cassandra my love,, but also it should not be up to a literal child who has just came out a religious cult to keep you alive and all that.

#dimension 20 #fantasy high #intrepid heroes #fhjy #fhjy spoilers #riz gukgak #fabian seacaster #kristen applebees #fig faeth #adaine abernant #gorgug thistlespring #brennan lee mulligan

[sweetsmalldog]

Fun fact: I will literally never the over the fact that Kristen’s immediate reaction to seeing Kalina in the forest was to get Riz and Tracker out. Yeah I know it’s because Ally messed up their spell cards but there’s something so deeply Kristen about her immediate reaction being in defense of two of the people closest to her. Also the fact she was gonna apologize to Riz as she did it, she knows Riz always puts the mission, the mystery the case, first and she knows she’s taking away his right to do that but she can’t let him or Tracker get hurt. Kalina has already threatened to kill Tracker specifically. And Kristen isn’t blind to the fact that Kalina has this thing with Riz even if she’s missing a lot of context. She knows the people in love are in danger and she doesn’t hesitate but it isn’t without thinking.

And her casting Greater Restoration on Riz once again proving her value in her friends lives. Knowing Riz for all his smarts and all the damage he can deal can’t take as many hits as her. Kristen may not have Riz’s precise movement and quick reflexes but he can’t take the hits she can. There was a higher chance, however small, that she’d make it out and she wasn’t going to let some fucking Plague Cat take anyone else from her. Especially not one of her first friends.

#fantasy high #dimension 20 #kristen applebees #riz gukgak #tracker o'shaughnessey

[artistnamedlg]

GARAGES SONGS ASSIGNED TO FANTASY HIGH CHARACTERS (AND SOME OTHER STUFF)

For context, the garages were a band who wrote songs based off a game called blaseball, mainly rock but not confined directly too it. I am assigning some of their songs to fantasy high characters for the very small subset of people who are interested a.k.a mainly me. Most of these are based off season 1 but there is influence from the others. 👍

FIG

-Pyschoacoustics: Very loud but also kinda team based! (The bigger the garage/ the better the sound/ we’re just so glad you came around)

- Vanessa tables, the cheesiest love song ever. I can totally imagine fig singing this.

- ALBUMS: either Underground (its heavy metal) or Short circuit (psychoacoustics esque, it’s so loud!!!)

- CHARACTERS THEY WOULD LOVE? Probably Betsy Trombone or Allison Abbot. Or Jaylen HotdogFingers. Big Garages Fan probably.

ADAINE

- so mediocre, it’s about not being good enough and being told your not good enough. Yeouch.

-Sidelined, same album same reason but this one ends happier cause people do believe in them :)

- the entire Kansas City breath mints team failed the bar exam,

- won’t strike out, it’s about a frog kicking ass. For everyone who doesn’t know blaseball google chorby short right now.

- ALBUMS: either unstable (the first two songs are from it) or, while not a album, The Mike Townsend Trilogy because she would one hundred percent understand the looked down on for not being good enough vibe.

- CHARACTERS THEYD LOVE? Mike Townsend, Chorby Short, maybe Sebastion Telephone cause underperforming sibling vibes. I can see her being a big Hawaii Fridays fan or more accurately Yellowstone Magics

KRISTEN

- And I mean all gods, the first line is “I need to email god because I have some issues”. Kristen would say that, 100%.

- solar eclipse, this one’s a little bit of everyone but it feels especially Kristen because of the direct callouts to god in it. She’d very much understand this one I think.

- ALBUMS weirdly enough, no clue. She would probably like the garages kill gods cause of the title and maybe pathetic/spineless cause repressed rage.

CHARACTERS THEYD LOVE? Most of the like goofy ones I think. She’d see pitching machine (a player who is an actual honest to god pitching machine) and start cheering. She would actually maybe enjoy the monitor who is a god but is also a pushover and eventually anticapitalist. Shed like Randall Marijuana if only cause he’s called “Randy weed” She’d also be a big Fridays person but I can see her being a Hellmouth Fan.

RIZ

- operation plasma (swing and a miss) it’s a song by the spies about how they want a spy to bring them stuff, riz core.

- beautiful day, I don’t know why I can very much see riz in this, half of it cause shit canonically hits the fan even harder after beautiful day.

- the unremarkable ballad of Derrick Krueger, I can’t explain this one but I think it does have slight riz vibes of like overlooked underdog at the beginning of season 1

- Albums, be my valentine cause some of the songs are very sweet and a decent amount are not even romantic in like partner partner way or percolate or lofi hip-hop brews to kill siesta/kill gods to.

- Players he’d love? Parker McMillan, he’d love the insane complexity of trying to piece them together and like interrogating their socials. He’d be a big Houston Spies fan as well, no surprise, but he’d also be a data witch or something similar on the side, just digging round in the code.

EDIT: he would also love one of my fav players, Evelton mcblase 2, a trans mad scientist who is evil and also occasionally a eel.

GORGUG

- heart full of love mouth full of blood, it’s a little romantic but also about killing to protect your friends

- Mike Townsend is back, I can see him vibing to this, especially with the goofy “I learned how to solo!!!” Part

- hurt people, it’s about desperately not wanting to hurt those around you but being unable to.

- Albums I don’t know! Maybe encore cause some of those are very hard hitting and he’d like that I think but also maybe lofi as well cause chill out vibes. Potentially Immaterial Shores which is a bunch of like sea shanty’s.

-Characters they’d like? Jaylen hotdogfingers as well, he’d understand the tradgedy. Also Theodore Duende. Definitely Nagomi McDaniel because she’s a buff as hell mother , maybe the dad versions of Lenny Marijuana. Generally the strong ones who have hearts of gold. He’d be a Dallas steaks fan (their joke is that they’re all dads or dad adjacent, they do cookouts)

FABIEN

- Top ten Tillman Henderson moments that actually happened, dude I cannot describe it but he would love Tillman, shitheel player who does the silliest shenanigans.

- Rise, I can’t really explain it but the extreme confidence mixed with the knowledge that Jaylen actually deeply regrets her revival and fame feels very Fabian.

- Betsy trombone (+ r - s version) I can’t explain it but specifically this version has Fabian feels.

- Albums. Uhhh maybe just straight up discipline, it’s super long but he’d like it I feel. Something shorter would be Caught in the Reverb I don’t know why but I think he’d like it a bit.

-Favorite Characters? Tillman Henderson, he’d love how much of a shitheel he is. I can see him also liking Nagomi McDaniel and Jessica Telephone. I can also seeing him being part of the Jaylen resurrection efforts and just supporting her girlbossing murder spree. He’d actually care if they’re good at the game, similarly he’d be a crabs fan since they’re pretty consistently good, if not the crabs then the hades tigers cause they’re sick as hell. I can also see him really really enjoying York silk because it’s a 12 year old with a gunblade who’s unironically super strong.

BAD KIDS IN GENERAL

- Well suck forever

- A horrible Mistake we will make again and again

Gilear (special edition!!)

-on fatherhood, im adding this just cause it reminds me of him. If you didn’t know people died in blaseball! That was a key thing! While figs alive this does give that vibe with how much she gets into.

#blaseball #outside of blaseball #fantasy high #dimension 20 #music recommendation #music recs #do genuinely listen to the garages #even if not curious about what blaseball was #it’s super good #their songs are about screw capitalism and kill gods #and also love each other #yippee 👍 #headcanon

[bullet-prooflove]

Flavours: Che 'Taza' Romero (feat: Michael 'Riz' Ariza)

Tagging: @drabbles-mc @ficnation @keyweegirlie @aconfusedidentity @anime-weeb-4-life, @danzer8705 @adaydreamaway08 @librarian1002 @creativitybeware @mortal--soul @buddinglinguist

Riz has always known that Taza was gay. He picked up on it early within their friendship. Whilst his brothers took women to bed, he played cards and sipped whiskey at the poker table. There were other signs, the occasional flicker of interest when a man walked by, the shyness in his gaze if their eyes met. Riz has spent his entire life observing people’s behaviour, back in the orphanage and then in the whorehouse, he knows attraction when he sees it.

The change in Taza is subtle. It starts with small, bashful smiles and develops into lingering touches, ones where Taza doesn’t want to let go. That’s how Riz knows that it’s turns intimate, he remembers being the same when him and Songbird had first gotten together, and he had been trying to keep it under the radar.

They’re sitting at a table in the breakroom, sharing a coffee when Riz tries to approach it. They’ve been mapping out the operational aspects of the programmes at the community centre when Riz sets down his pen.

“It’s nice to see you happy.” He says quietly.

His eyes stray to Ben who’s talking to the pink haired girl from the coding course Bottles has been running. Taza follows his gaze before he clears his throat and turns his attention back to the paperwork in front of him.

“Che…” Riz says and that gets Taza’s attention because no one in the MC ever calls him by his first name. “I’ve been known to try a different flavour from time to time, it’s not my favourite flavour but it’s not a bad one.”

“Your favourite flavour wears black silk and sings like an angel.” Taza responds as he toys with his own pen between his fingers.

“And yours wears button up shirts and has a beard that I am very envious of.” Riz counters, rubbing his palm across his jawline.

There’s silence between the two of them before Taza breaks it.

“Were you worried that the others would find out?”

“Neron did find out. He saw the guy coming out of my room the next day.” Riz tells him, his lips twitching up into a smile. Taza can only imagine the sight that Neron was subjected to. Riz’s poor one night stand, fucked out and wrecked as Riz kissed him goodbye on the doorstep of the motel room. He’s seen younger man do it a thousand times before when he’s been with women, he can’t see it changing with a guy. “It didn’t bother him either way.”

Taza sighs, twisting the pen between his fingers.

“Things are different now.” Riz says, using his hands to articulate. “We’re different now. The club isn’t the same as it was. Nobody’s going to shame you for loving who you love, especially not the people who care about you.”

“It’s not about shame, not entirely.” Taza tells him, his voice rough. “I lost someone when I was with Vatos Malditos, my David…”

Taza swallows hard against the ache in his chest. There’s an anguish when he talks about David, it sits in the space underneath his ribs, squeezing his heart like a fist.

“He was killed when El Palo found out about the two of us, he slit his own brother’s throat. That hate, the memory of it, makes it hard to move forward.”

Something like that it stays with you, it gives Riz insight into his friend’s mentality. He understands why Taza has kept his sexuality a secret, why he hasn’t allowed himself to experience the joy or the pleasure of losing yourself in a lover. It devastates Riz, that the man he respects has suffered so much, that he’s been forced to suppress the truth about who he is.

“I’m sorry.” Riz says, his palm coming to rest upon Taza’s arm, squeezing it tightly. He can’t convey how he means those words because Taza has given him so much over the years. He taught him to embrace who he was, to channel his negative emotions into something healthier, it was Taza who gave him his love of music, who bought him his first guitar when he was just a broke teenager.

“I love Ben.” Taza tells him earnestly. “He’s bright, vibrant and he’s so unashamed about who he is. He deserves better than to be some dirty secret.”

“Then don’t let him be one.” Riz says forcefully. “What happened to David was horrible but we’re not Vatos Malditos and Bishop is not El Palo. You’ve seen him with these kids, he doesn’t care if their LGBTQ or not, as long as they’re happy, it’s the same with you.”

Taza’s gaze flickers up to meet Riz’s. He sees a lifetime of hurt in those eyes, of fear and shame but he also sees hope, hope for a future where Taza can be with the man he loves without violence, without tragedy.

“Maybe it’s time to make a change.” Riz tells him, leaning back in his seat. “Maybe it’s time you allowed yourself be happy.”

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#mayans mc #che taza romero #che romero #taza romero #michael riz ariza #riz ariza #michael ariza