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niqhtlord01 · 2 years

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Humans are weird: Calm under pressure

( Please come see me on my new patreon and support me for early access to stories and personal story requests :D https://www.patreon.com/NiqhtLord Every bit helps)

Makabo had been tour guide on the galactic cruise for over seven solar cycles, or at least he thought it was seven cycles; time tended to get distorted when you spend so much of it traveling between star systems.

Employed by the Furg Dar travel and relaxation company, he worked aboard the flagship cruise liner of the corporation. A massive three hundred story tall space liner known as the Jewel of Concord, it was fitted with thousands of rooms, pool decks, casinos, buffet habitats, and every other wonder your overly excited tourist could dream of and catered to just about every species in the known universe.

As a tour guide Makabo would lead guests off ship in a special transport down to worlds the galactic liner would pass by and take them on an away mission. They’d get to sight see, take several photos, sometimes collect shiny rocks that caught their attention; but in most cases Makabo had seen them just complain about the temperature and demand to be taken back to the Concord.

Every outing he would deal with the same whining guests and every time he would debate just leaving and returning to his dream job of creating musical motion art back on his homeworld. Each time though he was reminded the benefits he, and subsequently his family, were provided via the company and realized he was stuck here for the foreseeable future.

Looking back at everything maybe that was where it all went wrong Makabo thought as he now sprinted through the darkened corridors of the liner. If he had been spending less time contemplating his situation and more time watching his guests he could have caught the problem before it had even happened.

Maybe he could have seen the guest get bitten by the Vespid insect and given them first aid right there and then. Maybe he could have seen the signs that something was wrong and sent them immediately to the medical wing instead of allowing the guests to disperse throughout the ship after returning from the away trip. Maybe if he had filed a fully detailed report someone would have noticed the signs and stopped the outbreak before it had even started….

Or maybe it was the guests fault for taking off their protective gloves so they could run their fingers through the strands of a tendril flower and completely ignore the safety instructions the automated instructor had given prior to departure.

Regardless of how it had happened an hour after their return a report of a violent altercation was reported on Buffet deck 17 between two guests. When security arrived the altercation had sprawled out into a full-scale riot as hundreds of guests were now reported to be engaged in brutal acts of violence. Security reported that those committing the acts of violence had green veins pulsating just under their skin and foam pouring from their mouths like rapid beasts.

Security had tried to keep it contained, but because the ship had been designed to make buffet decks one of the most easily accessible areas on the ship those infected began pouring out in every direction. Before anyone knew what was going on over fifty decks were reporting outbreaks of violence and what security forces had been dispatched were cut off and completely unable to contain any of it. The captain had been in the process of ordering the blast doors for those areas sealed off when the infected breached the main generator relay. The engineer’s screams and panicked shouts could be heard over the intercom just as power went out for the entire ship.

Makabo had been alone in a break room waiting for the next tour to set off when that happened. The emergency lighting had kicked on a minute after the lights had gone out and the break room was cast in a red glow.

Tilting his head Makabo could hear strange things coming from outside the room but before he could even stand up the door to the break room was violently kicked in. One of the maids was grappling with what appeared to be a maddened guest chomping his teeth towards their neck like a rabid animal.

The two tumbled into the table he had been sitting at and went sprawling to the floor as the maid barely kept the deranged guest at bay.

“Help me!” they screamed finally snapping Makabo out of his bemused state.

Grabbing hold of the guest he tried to haul them off the maid and for a few fleeting moments it looked like it was working. The maid was able to scramble back on their haunches before the guest rounded an elbow right into Makabo’s face and he lost his grip. The guest then lunged at the maid as they screamed and dug their teeth deep into their exposed throat.

Makabo watched in horror as the guest bit into the twitching maid over and over; green veins budging across their body as if they were ready to burst from the skin.

Not knowing what to do next Makabo sprinted toward the door and ran down the hallway as fast as his feet could take him.

Now sprinting through the crew hallways Makabo could see that this nightmare was worse than he could ever imagine. Bloodstains splattered across the walls and decking, while the bodies of dead crewmembers littered the grounds where they had fallen; much to his horror some were starting to twitch and fidget as their veins began glowing ever so green.

He had just turned a corner when he heard a throaty cry of agony behind him. Looking back to much his dismay he saw a mob of infected guests running straight towards him. They shoved and bumped into each other like a pack of drunkards and yet their eyes and open mouths held nothing but madness. The mob was only a few paced behind him when a voice called out to him from further down the hallway.

“Out of the way!” Not knowing who was shouting at him but seeing no better option Makabo leaped to the side of the hallway as a pair of flaming bottles flew mere inches from his face. The bottles smashed into the oncoming mob, spraying the group of them with the liquid before the flames ignited them all.

Makabo watched as the mob all but halted their mad rush as the burning infected guests began screaming and flailing about wildly. Some tripped and toppled to the floor sending those behind them who had continued running after Makabo tumbling to the ground themselves as they too tripped and were subsequently set on fire.

Watching the horrific display play out entranced, Makabo as he gasped for breath; his fear induced flight having left him exhausted to say the least. He may very well have just laid there until the flames had died away were it not for a pair of strong hands grabbing him and hauling him to his feet.

Makabo looked up and saw that his savior was a guest, but unlike those chasing him seemed fully in control of their faculties and at the very least wasn’t trying to take a bite out of his flesh. They were covered in bits of torn furniture that had been crudely wrapped around their body by bedsheets in some sort of improvised armor.

As Makabo took in his savior he saw them pull another bottle from their waist with a rag hanging out of it and ignite it before hurling it again into the burning mob of infected.

“Run now,” they shouted through their face coverings, “talk later.”

Without saying another word the guest turned around and began running as fast as they could in the direction Makabo had been running previously. Dumbfounded, Makabo quickly followed his savior down the hall as the burning wall of infected shambled after them. -----------

Following the armored rouge, the pair went through a number of side passages, corridors, and part of a buffet deck. Several times they hid as an infected guest or more often mob of infected shambled their way by before resuming their journey; though to where Makabo still had no idea.

After several more close encounters the two came to their destination. A hallway had been barricaded off with various furniture pieces that looked sturdy enough to keep out the infected. The figure approached the barricade and tapped three times on what looked like a bedframe from one of the nearby guest rooms. Makabo watched as the bedframe slowly slid to the side and provided an opening which the armored figure quickly slipped through, only turning to motion Makabo to follow. Squeezing through the tight gap, Makabo was surprised to see that on the other side was a sharp contrast to the horror filled corridors he had been running through.

There were easily two dozen guests of various species all huddled together in the hallway. The doors to the guest rooms on either side of the hallway were all open and the contents of them had been removed to erect the barricade Makabo was passing through as well as one at the opposite end of the hallway creating a safe area. Boxes of supplies were strewn across the hall or stacked against the sides while guest rummaged through them.

At each barricade were multiple guests wearing similar makeshift protective clothing armed with iron bars torn from the walls or wooden poles with knives taped to the end of them like the spears of primitive species.

As Makabo passed by them one of them held out an arm blocking his path while the others began padding him down and looking underneath his torn uniform.

“What are you doing?” Makabo demanded as he tried to swat away their hands. The guard that had blocked his path hefted their iron bar underneath Makabo’s chin to stall him.

“They’re searching you for bite marks.”

Makabo looked past the guard blocking him to see his savior had removed their protective coverings and was now sitting on a nearby chair. Much to Makabo’s surprise they were a human male with hair the color of a dying fire.

“You think I am one of them?” Makabo asked, though he stopped attempting to block the search of his person.

“Possibly,” the human replied, “and if you are they are going to put you down right now and throw your body down the nearest elevator shaft.”

The calmness of their voice at uttering such a brutal outcome made Makabo stand perfectly still as the guards finished their pat down and turn to give the thumbs up. They stepped back and allowed Makabo to pass which he gratefully did with haste to find the human extending a hand towards him.

“Nathan Philips.” The human introduced themselves as Makabo took their hand and shook it.

“Makabo Tunt.” Makabo replied as he let go and took in his surroundings.

“Thank you for saving me.” Makabo said as he sat down next to Nathan. “I doubt I could have outrun them.”

“Don’t think much of it.” Nathan replied with a smile as he reached into a nearby box and threw him a canned drink. “In truth I was more interested in seeing if there were any escape pods left on your level and just found you along the way.”

Makabo caught the can and popped it open. “Why didn’t you use the escape pods on this level?” The concord was equipped with escape pods on every other deck so there should have been several dozen on this one. Venturing down to where Makabo had been would have taken him far out of his way.

Nathan shook his head. “A lot of people tried, but there were just too many of them pushing and shoving each other. By the time they had sorted it out the infected reached them and it went south fast.”

He took a sip of his own drink and savored the flavor. “As soon as the warning sirens began sounding and people began sprinting like the devil was nipping at their toes I knew the only chance we had was to avoid the crowded areas, so I barricaded us in.”

Makabo looked at both barricades again, then back at Nathan. “You did this?”

Nathan smiled. “I started it, but I was only able to finish it with the help of everyone else here.” He waved a hand at the guards and other guests. “They didn’t seem to believe me at first, some even left saying they were better off making for the escape pods; but once the screaming started they got the hint real fast.”

Makabo slowly sipped his drink. The events of the last three hours all finally catching up with him now that he had a moment to stop and think, to reflect. He felt his heart beating faster as if they were going to burst from the sheer terror when Nathan spoke again.

“We’re holding up here for now, scavenging supplies and searching the ship where we can for escape pods.”

Nathan pulled out a data pad and flipped through several files until a picture of the ship appeared. The area they were in was marked green, while several of the surrounding areas were marked red with a human skull and cross bone. No doubt those areas were where the infected were heavily concentrated. He shuddered seeing how much of the map was red.

“You seem to be handling this rather well.” Makabo said looking up from the map.

Nathan’s expression softened. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” Makabo said waving his hands around to this makeshift encampment of safety, “guests turning into flesh hungry monsters left and right and here you are calm and collected; making plans for survival while getting others to safety.”

To Makabo’s surprise Nathan laughed, spilling some of his drink in the process before setting it down.

“Yeah, I can see why that would be a bit strange.” Nathan said, wiping the strands of drink dripping down his face. “You could say we humans have a rather…..interesting, perspective when it comes to these kinds of situations.”

“You’re people have been through this before?”

Makabo was genuinely surprised to hear this. He had heard humans were a rather barbaric species, but to have encountered and survived similar events such as this shows a hidden cunning.

“Yes, and no.” Nathan replied.

Something must have shown on Makabo’s face as Nathan continued. “We had these video games, electronic entertainment, that depicted events like this and we’d play them trying to survive and win.”

“This is your form of entertainment?”

Nathan chuckled. “You think that’s bad, you should get a look at our movies.”

#HUMANS ARE WEIRD #humans are insane #humans are space orcs #humans are space oddities #scifi #story #writing #original writing

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morganaseren · 2 months

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The Bodyguard AU 😌

((Your love for Tevos is showing again, friend. 😏 I gotchu though! I think you wanted three prompts from this if I recall correctly, so I hope you like these!))

Pairing: Rajhi Shepard/Councilor Tevos

Rating: General

AU: Wanna Be On Your Mind (formerly titled the Bodyguard AU)

---

"Who the fuck taught Sparatus how to do air quotes?!" Shepard crossed her arms with a scowl. "I swear, I'm going to break his fingers if he does that to me again!"

Tevos didn't even bother to look up from where she was perusing through various documents on her desk. "Please don't," she deadpanned even though she was all too aware her request was likely to be ignored with as incensed as the human woman currently was. Her point was further proven when Shepard continued on her with tirade without so much as missing a beat.

"Was it his secretary?! I bet it was his secretary!" Shepard began pacing along the length of her office--agitation evident in every movement--while voicing her thoughts aloud. "I see the way he leers at her!"

"Shepard--"

"'Interest in strengthening alliances with the newest members of the galactic community' my ass! They're fucking, Tevos! I just know it! I'd bet my entire salary on it!"

Tevos gave a long-suffering sigh as she pressed her fingers against her temples. "Considering I'm currently paying for your salary, one would think you would act with a bit of decorum."

"Look, outside of your office, I will act as damn professional as you want me to be. There's a reason why I had Miranda put that 'satisfaction guaranteed with services' clause in the contract with our clients." The woman pointed down repeatedly at the floor. "When we're alone though? I want the option to at least vent. If not, that's fine. I can always have Kaidan or Jacob stand in for me if you'd like."

It was likely the wiser option, Tevos knew.

She had met both men often enough to know they were utterly consummate in the duties expected of them. Tevos had employed enough bodyguards in her lifetime to know that they more than met the standards of such an intense industry. Still, there was something... refreshing about Shepard's personality in particular--one that was a powerful and bold as the former Special Ops commander of the Alliance.

And for as wild and spirited as Shepard could be, Tevos could admit the woman would never intentionally jeopardize her position as the asari councilor. Shepard was always the epitome of professional competence even among the most high-profile members in the galaxy.

Her connection to those very same individuals aside, she was everything one could ask for in a bodyguard.

Even Tevos could admit that.

Surely, she could forgive a few eccentricities in these private moments if it meant retaining the part of their relationship that she had come to appreciate. She tilted her head as she turned to consider Shepard more thoughtfully then. She couldn't help the soft smile that danced upon her lips.

"That won't be necess--"

"Councilor?"

Both she and Shepard turned to stare at the intercom at her desk. Tevos immediately recognized the voice of her secretary. She leaned forward to tap at the haptic interface.

"Yes, Esila?"

"The turian councilor is here to see you. He mentioned wanting to discuss some of the upcoming proposals for the Council." There was a pause. "Oh, and it seems he's bringing along his secretary. Would you like me to update the lunch order from your favorite restaurant?"

Tevos didn't at all miss the way Shepard immediately perked up with great interest at the mention of Sparatus' secretary accompanying him.

A dog with the proverbial bone as it were if she were to borrow the human idiom...

"That would be lovely, Esila. You can send them both in. Please do tell me when lunch is delivered."

"Of course."

Tevos ensured she had the intercom turned off before she turned to Shepard with a pointed stare. The woman responded by giving her the most winsome smile, but Tevos knew not to fall for it. "And you... behave."

---

"Miss Lawson's calm conduct in all matters is highly regarded by my colleagues."

"Oh, Miranda?" Shepard chuckled as she wandered over to her desk with their lunch. "Yeah, she's probably one of the smartest people I know. She's got a doctorate or two in fields that I probably couldn't even begin to understand. Don't ask me how she managed to do that between the type of work we do. I just chalk it up to being a Miranda thing at this point." She grinned. "I'm sure the Alliance Admiralty Board is still frothing at the mouth that I managed to steal her away from them when I left. Sorry about the wait with the food by the way. You wouldn't believe how long the line was for these."

Tevos was pleased when Shepard was mindful of placing coasters beneath their respective drinks. Tevos wasn't fond of the marks that were often left behind on the glass surface due to condensation. As she gazed down at the colorful beverages, she realized that the woman had ventured out to one of the Asian restaurants that recently received a boom in popularity thanks to having the asari councilor's personal bodyguard as a frequent visitor.

The drinks were something of a new, but well-appreciated, novelty on the Presidium for the small spheres nestled at the bottom of the cup. They were either made using traditional tapioca, which Shepard preferred because of the chew, or Tevos' favorite of the tropical fruit-filled balls that popped almost instantly on meeting her tongue.

"No need to concern yourself," she answered, smiling gratefully when Shepard handed her an oblong-shaped sandwich. She could smell the sweet, grilled meat almost instantly. Despite her focus toward finishing her remaining work, she couldn't help the way her mouth watered, reminding her she hadn't eaten since early that morning. "Did she hold a similar position to yours when she was in the Alliance?" Tevos wouldn't have been surprised if she had.

"No actually." Shepard wasted little time into tucking into her banh mi. Apparently, the woman's hunger had been greater than her own, for Tevos couldn't help but raise her tattooed brows at the large bite that had been taken. Shepard hummed appreciatively at the taste, finishing chewing before continuing with, "She held the same Lieutenant rank Kaidan had before we left. I honestly thought she'd make Captain before he and I ever did, but if you were to ask Miranda, she'd say something along the lines of her being tired of the bureaucracy."

"Hm. I'm sure with her resume she could have gone anywhere she desired."

"That's what I told her!" Shepard laughed. "I guess for her, working private security wasn't too far different from what we used to do." She shrugged. "The pay's better at least, considering the type of clientele we have. I don't think she's going to complain about being able to pay for the entirety of her sister's university funds without even having to bat an eye." The woman picked up her drink then--a coffee variant from what Tevos could tell of the color--to sample it and the tapioca balls, chewing carefully on the latter. "I appreciate that she was even willing to follow me on this little venture. It was admittedly a bit of a gamble when we first left the Alliance."

"I'm sure anyone would be lucky to have a second-in-command as level-headed and skilled as Miss Lawson."

"Oh, definitely. I'd probably forget that my head was on my shoulders half the time if it weren't for her. She's better at the business side of things than I am. Honestly, she has the patience of a saint, which says a lot, considering Jack and I normally--"

"Shepard!"

And Tevos blinked when Shepard jerked in place at the call of her name by the very woman they'd been discussing. From the volume, Tevos wagered that Miss Lawson was somewhere outside her office.

"Shepard! Why the bloody hell did Kasumi find surveillance footage of you and Officer Vakarian shooting drink canisters off the highest point of the Presidium?!"

"Oh, goddamn Kasumi and her hacking abilities..." Shepard muttered balefully. Still, she wasted little time in gathering her half of her lunch in her hands before throwing a grin Tevos' way. "Uh, I'll text Ash and tell her to take over guard duty for me for the next few hours. I should hopefully see you again during dinner if--"

"Shepard!"

The woman's smile only widened at the shout even if Tevos could see how those golden-colored eyes tightened at their corners with sudden nervousness.

"Excuse me. I have to go hide now."

---

"Whoa, what? Wait, wait, wait! You can't just leave me here with them!" she whispered frantically.

"Shepard, I haven't visited Thessia for the better part of a decade. I'm expected to at least talk to some of the politicians here during my stay. Surely, you can manage a half hour on your own while I do so."

In response, the woman inhaled deeply before placing both of her palms together, reminiscent of a prayer position. Then, she slowly raised her hands up to press the sides of her index fingers against her own lips.

"Tevos, I really don't think you realize just how repressed some of your colleagues are..." she murmured, dark brows raising as she widened her eyes pointedly.

Tevos sighed even as she was unable to stop the wave of fondness that washed over her amidst her exasperation. "Shepard..."

"They are!" she countered in a harsh whisper before flickering her gaze over Tevos' head inconspicuously.

Well, as inconspicuously as she could anyway.

The human stood head and shoulders above most of the asari in attendance.

"Look, remember how long it took for the people on the Presidium to get over their fascination with me when I first took this job? There's a reason why I didn't bother wearing a sari to this thing. I learned from last time! Everyone kept wanting to touch my arms!"

Tevos blinked before turning to eye her bodyguard's current attire. While she had been curious about the change, she hadn't bothered to question the reasons as to why. Shepard certainly didn't do the dark, three-piece suit a disservice. Still, while it was remarkably well-tailored, it did nothing to hide Shepard's impressive physique.

Considering the asari were a communal species, it wasn't odd for them to be rather casual around one another, but such conduct was typically reserved between close friends and family members. While she knew some of the maidens upon the Presidium could be forward with their curiosity, she had assumed her colleagues would have shown the proper level of etiquette to a foreign visitor in their midst--even for someone as unique as Shepard.

That apparently hadn't been the cause.

Tevos would be in Armali for the next month or so on business. Perhaps she could forego work for at least one night, especially since Shepard seemed so uncomfortable.

...She did, however, make a mental note to watch whomever had caused her bodyguard such discomfort.

Tevos held her hand out then in request for Shepard's own. "Would you dance with me?"

Shepard blinked, taken aback by the request, especially since it wasn't part of their typical routine. "Um, sure. If you really want to."

"Well, it serves two purposes," she admitted with a laugh even as Shepard took the lead. For someone as large and imposing as her, she was remarkably light on her feet. "You wouldn't be left on your own, and it would be easier to dance our way toward the exit than manage through the crowd here. I can announce our farewells, and we can depart for the rest of the evening."

"Oh? Oh!" Shepard grinned then. "That's pretty smart of you."

Tevos huffed out a small laugh. "I do try although I'm sure my mother might be somewhat disappointed that I'm not making more contacts tonight."

"I doubt it. Matriarch Osiria's been more interested in what you get up to during your day to day schedule than anything business-related."

Tevos' brows furrowed at the claim. "I... didn't realize you had become that familiar with one another."

"Oh, well you know that I like waking up early. She's normally down in the kitchen when I make my protein shake, and she likes talking with me."

"About what exactly?"

"Random things honestly although we had a pretty interesting talk this morning."

"Oh?" Tevos could feel a certain sense of wariness settling over her. "Should I be concerned with this topic of conversation? Do I even wish to know what you spoke to her about?"

"Well..." Her gaze turned toward the high domed ceiling in thought. "I'm not entirely sure if my translator glitched out when she asked, but she seemed interested in my pedigree?" She shrugged. "And then she went on to ask about when you would be giving her grandchildren,” she answered, snickering, especially when Tevos stiffened in her arms, almost missing a step. “She mentioned something along the lines of waiting centuries and there still not being a single toddler in sight. Although honestly? I think she only added that last bit to earn some sympathy from me. Apparently, my being around you all the time makes her assume I have better insight into your love life.”

#mass effect #councilor tevos #female shepard #female shepard/councilor tevos #OTP: The Hallelujah On My Throne #AU: Wanna Be On Your Mind #i finally figured out an OTP name for these two!#and i officially gave this AU a name 🙌#opposites definitely attract when it comes to these two 😌

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irkenproperty · 5 months

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New ZaDr AU planning

Okay, so this AU requires some backstory; how I found IZ was through an OC animation from a YT artist back in 2011. The audio was from Dib's Wonderful Life of Doom, when the pair are at Zim's front door: I've got a few things to tell you, Zim ... ... ... and that's all I have to say about that!

I had never heard of or seen IZ before, so I was imagining what the source of the audio was from. I still remember vividly what I thought the show was... so it only took me 12 years to make it into an AU, haha!

Humans have long since discovered and mastered space travel, and have branched out into galactic society.

Dib is a space cop. Nothing high ranking or anything. Imagine like a traffic cop... but in space, pffff--

Zim is an amateur criminal, cruising around in his self-made ship: GIR. He steals to survive, but sometimes get a little cheeky and goes for something self indulgent - sticky fingers.

GIR is the ship's AI, and speaks over the intercom systems. He doesn't actually fly himself, but can control the lights and such.

Dib is constantly dealing with the calls for assistance from the people Zim steals from, going to every call out to handle it himself. It distracts from his otherwise boring job, so gets a thrill from the small bursts of adventure.

Zim is very apathetic to the people he steals from, as in his mind... he needs these things to live and to upkeep GIR, whilst others just want them.

Their relationship is very playful and love/hate. Dib often 'forgets' and 'misplaces' his lunch during breaks, leaving quickly enough for the food to still be warm by the time Zim finds it.

Whenever Dib's in danger dealing with a more serious and big time criminal, Zim will just so happen to be in the area to help the law-strict cop work around his conducts. After all, Dib can't lose his job if it wasn't him who directly beat someone up, and instead simply found the suspect beat to a pulp.

... Yeah, that's all I've got, really.

Expect art of it soon.

#invader zim #zadr #space cop au #irkenproperty #iz au

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jadegretz · 3 months

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Echoes of Power: Samus's Odyssey by Jade Gretz

Samus Aran was on a routine mission to deliver some supplies to the BSL Research Station, a floating laboratory orbiting the planet SR388. She had been hired by the Galactic Federation, who owned and operated the station, to transport some specimens and equipment. She was also curious to see what kind of research they were conducting, since SR388 was the home planet of the Metroids, the energy-sucking creatures that she had encountered and exterminated many times before.

She docked her gunship to the station’s main entrance, and was greeted by a friendly voice over the intercom.

“Welcome to the BSL Research Station, Samus. I’m Dr. Adam Malkovich, the chief scientist and director of this facility. I’m glad you could make it.”

Samus recognized the voice. It belonged to her former commanding officer, Adam Malkovich, who had been like a mentor and a father figure to her when she was a soldier in the Galactic Federation Army. She had not seen him in years, since she left the army to become a bounty hunter. She wondered what he was doing here, and why he had not contacted her before.

“Adam? Is that really you?” she asked, surprised.

“Yes, Samus. It’s me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but I wanted to see you in person. I have something important to show you.” Adam said.

“What is it?” Samus asked.

“Follow me. I’ll explain everything on the way.” Adam said.

Samus followed Adam’s voice as he guided her through the station. She noticed that the place was eerily quiet, and that there were no signs of life. She saw empty corridors, dark rooms, and abandoned equipment. She felt a chill in the air, and a sense of unease.

“Adam, where is everyone?” she asked.

“They’re all dead, Samus.” Adam said.

Samus stopped in her tracks, and felt a surge of fear.

“What do you mean, they’re all dead?” she asked.

“I mean, they’re all dead. Killed by a parasitic organism that we discovered on SR388. It’s called the X Parasite, and it’s the most dangerous thing I’ve ever seen.” Adam said.

“The X Parasite?” Samus asked.

“Yes. It’s a microscopic life form that can infect and mimic any living being …(see the rest of the story at deviantart.com/jadegretzAI). For more supergirl, chun li, batgirl, tifa, lara croft, wonder woman, rogue and much more, please visit my page at www.deviantart.com/jadegretzai - Thanks for your support :)

#samus #samusaran #metroid #scifi #spacesuit #scifiart #ai #aiart #digitalart #jadegretz #fantasyart #fanart #beautifulgirl #aiartwork #aiartcommunity

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transingthoseformers · 5 months

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I just realized I never told you about Red Alert or Shockwave's special circumstances in Iconoclast. They are both originay "Security Models." Though Shockwave outgrew his initial design.

Red Alert does security in one of the colonial posts that is the main Rescue Bot Hub and where they get deployed throughtout the Empure and occasionally rented to show the Quintessons diplomacy to other galactic powers and only communicates to the staff through private messages and intercom and radios.

No one has ever seen him. He is completely omnipotent on his network, though, which is planet wide but especially in the Hub where most of them stay. He also controls all Rescue Bot calls and requests.

During Red's introduction, we get Inferno, who is terribly fond of him and one of the only people who react positively to him. Red Alert’s constant watching saved Inferno, who has been "rented" to do a lot of search and rescue on foreign planets as a Rescue Bot line. He asked Red to keep speaking to him while he waited for rescue, and Red did.

Red then later checked up on him in his room, and Inferno started to notice the camera move slightly. He called Red out on it and insisted they talk as "payback." This starts them having late night talks and becoming close.

When the Uprising happens and things fall apart, Inferno is the one who insists they go and save Red Alert because it is discovered the Quintesson Empure intends to bomb Rescue Bot Hub which as a choice continued to operate for all sides and the Quintesson in charge refused to activate the Kill Switch and instead released them.

Red Alert keeps trying to make them go back, though, because he can't go, he also is physically incapable of telling anyone why. They all finally get to the security room and find out why. Red Alert isn't a bot acting as security he's the full Hub and network. The building and planet or his body. Inferno finds his central processing unit and inside finds his "laser core" and hooks Red Alert inside himself to keep him active and downloads a compressed backup of his memories and books it.

Eventually, they get a body for him, but it is fully constructed without sentio metallico and so his sensations are muted and he has to get used to having a body and complains at how limited it is. He gets anxious because he doesn't have full coverage anymore, even if it is healthier, and he doesn't need to reboot as often or dump files because he is overclocking himself. He usually plugs into bases he is assigned to and slaves the security network to himself, making it act as an extension of his processor when needed and sometimes physically plugging in.

A lot of his issues are also related to how his Spark was straining to maintain such a large framework because it wasn't designed to.

Ooooo okay so cool, Red Alert sees all but is relatively physically isolated as he doesn't really have a body yet, and Inferno has grown close to him through said network

I admit I'm more unfamiliar with the rescue bot version of Inferno than I am beast wars Inferno which is kinda funny

"this body kinda sucks ngl" "it's better for you" "fine

#maccadam #transformers #inferno #red alert #iconclast #fan continuity #shockwave #like goddamn that's gotta cause such a strain on his processor #I'd be lying if i said i never considered the idea of a being linking themself to a wider network and being part of it

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bookoflibrary · 6 months

Text

Event Summary: "Everything Begins within the Stars

The event story starts off with reality Alice reading a book, 'The Galactic Railroad' on the school's roof, as recommended to her by her teacher who she loves. This is where she is contemplating suicide. One thing I found neat is the part where all the alts in the event are about to die take direct excerpts from their stories of the same scene. But then suddenly a giant locomotive falls through the sky and ruins her suicide. Reality Alice is wincing and wondering what just happened when Match Girl yells out if she is okay, but Nutcracker gets angry says they should be seeing about him first.

It turns out Dorothy helped the dolls build the train, and all the Library characters groan like 'Of course there was gonna be something defective on it.' Reality Alice is still sitting there confused as they talk amongst themselves. It was originally meant to be a Conducter's Day event, but the train broke. Aladdin says he needs to find a place in this world that can buy gold stat, but Nutcracker says they don't have time to do that and convert it to real money. The locomotive is still broken, so Aladdin says they need to find a place to stay until they can fix it or sell off some gold. They ask Reality Alice what she was doing and she sighs, 'suicide… '

The two Alice have a small and gentle exchange of words. Reality Alice snaps back to reality and looks down at the bustle below the building. She feels a moment of sickness, but somehow finds Library Alice comforting. Aladdin says in broken English they need to seek an asylum. Match Girl is confused, 'What's an… asylum?' And Aladdin corrects himself, 'A shelter.'

Nut then takes it upon himself to ask Reality Alice invasive questions about her home and life, and invites them all into her home, saying it's a responsibility of the youth to protect the elderly. Her parents happened to be overseas on a trip, so they come in. There Reality Alice's cat, Noa, greets everyone. But the cat startles him and he stumbles backwards into the stove and catches on fire.

Enter Reality!Matchie coming to help extinguish the fire because the crew call 9-11 and she taps their location. 'Where's the fire?' But then the two Matchies exchange shocked looks. Once they use an extinguisher and get rid of the fire, Nut stands there wet and the two Matchies looking at each other confused. They may look like they have a difference in age, but there is no mistaking they also share the same face. Library Matchie breaks the ice saying Reality Matchie was so cool just now, and she reminded her of 'her other self'. Reality Matchie could only question her confusion.

The two Matchie's get together right away and have fun. But there's one more character here missing. Aladdin somehow finds out 'he' is living in a luxurious apartment. There's a high tech facial recognition thing attached to the gates of them, but because he has 'his' face, Library Aladdin just continues on with a smile. He sees the apartment and smiles, because of course it would be like this. 'Well, I guess it makes sense I would have money no matter where I'm at' and 'With lots of people, like a castle'

But then suddenly the intercom comes on. Its Altladdin and he's less than pleased. 'Don't come near my apartment without an appointment for starters.'

Library Aladdin is kinda taken back by the day trader and tries to explain things to him, but Altladdin refuses to believe him.

So Altladdin says he wants proof he's from a fairytale and he wants proof there's a magical train. 'If it exists and it's from another world, it's probably worth a ton of money anyway'. So they all assemble to the roof and reality Ala is basically like well holy shit basically once the tarp covering the train is taken off.

Aladdin is like 'Weeeeeell… I need something from this world to fix it because the train is broken' and asks Altladdin if he could buy the part in this world they need. Altladdin says, 'What's in it for me?' Aladdin says gold is going up in value in this world and he can have as much of his gold as he pleases and Altladdin hurries and says 'Good deal'

The train gets repaired thanks to the day trader. While they're getting everyone on board, Altladdin pops open a can of an energy drink. Aladdin wonders what that is, and so Altladdin tells him the day is looking busy so he needs it. Aladdin looks at him sadly. 'You shouldn't drink that. That doesn't look healthy for you…. '

Alice decides to go to school in place of Reality Alice. The two had gotten very close. She does just that, meanwhile Reality Alice's cat Noa continues to bully and scratch Nutcracker. While Library Alice is at school, the teacher approaches her, saying he looked into abortion and it wouldn't cost much at this stage and that there would be little to no damage on her body either. Library Alice remembers Reality Alice throwing up as they were changing, and sees the wedding ring on his left finger and then realizes what's happening. She gets angry and swats him away. 'DON'T TOUCH HER AGAIN!' Upset, she runs home despite the school day not being over. Reality Alice sees how poorly Library Alice looks and asks what's wrong. Library Alice says no one knew they swapped places but students picked that she looks like she lost weight, then tells her that the teacher is awful and even he couldn't tell.

Reality Alice knows that her teacher is cruel, but she can't stop loving him, and it reminds Library ALice of how she is bounded to her Author. 'Then, if you can't hate him, I will.' Reality Alice says in that case she will hate her Author for her, and the two girls laugh after they hug.

Meanwhile Reality Matchie is in the dispatch car with her coworkers. It turns out people are turning to nightmares, and soon they all start doing the same. She screams out, and as they drive by, she sees the building she set herself on fire at at the end of her reality chapter. This is.. my story. I'm supposed to die here… '

It turns out this the dolls doing. They are determined to get the characters to end the world and continue killing again and don't want the story disturbed. Reality Alice begs her cat Noa to wake up. Reality Matchie runs off. She takes Noa and runs to the building. 'I have to go to that building!' That's her story. The dolls are like 'that's right.' It turns out this current world is one Reality Alice's unborn child dreamed of to save her from killing herself, and is trying to summon every single fairytale and alt alike to help.

The dolls say the unborn child is too weak to maintain the order in this world and keep the dream going, therefore the world is going to collapse. It doesn't matter because all of the characters can keep killing and dying and coming back to life anyway.

Reality Matchie also realizes she has matches in her hand, but Library Matchie rushes to her. Library Matchie is crying tears of joy, happy she was able to save the firefighter. 'Thank goodness for the other-other me…' Reality Matchie says she was indeed rescued by a girl exactly like her who was more brutish. The two girls team up to defeat nightmares, then Library Matchie takes her hand. 'Come with me!'

Meanwhile, Aladdin Alt walked himself to the brokerage firm, the same one in his story where he died. He had an energy drink in one hand and caffeine pills in the other. At this point he was aware this was his story and he accepted the consequences of his actions. But then Library Aladdin rushes to him. 'You are me, and I am you. And you too are using money to compensate not being able to protect someone important to you.' Aladdin Alt: 'What do you mean?' Aladdin just smiles at his reality self saying the answer is simple, and swats the stuff out of his hands. Saying that losing anything else at this point is foolish and he should come with him.

Meanwhile Nut has been busy trying to Avenger assemble the other characters, but the alts are no longer in the scene of their deaths and he cant get every character. All the characters and their reality counterparts rush out, and the dolls try to stop them in their tracks saying they are violating conduct to seasonal events and the main story, then summon a huge nightmare. Nutcracker yells back at them that they violate things all the time and they're the ones who set everything up like this in the first place.

They all panic and run to the locomotive and get inside. Altladdin mocks Aladdin and says 'Drive safely conductor' and Aladdin smiles and says to leave it to him. Reallity Matchie says in the case of a fire to leave it to her and it dawns on Alice what book she was reading. She made a conductor signal to her reality counterpart. 'Night on the Galactic Railroad.' A hole appears in the sky and they take off into it, away from the collapsing city the unborn child tried to make a better haven from it's dream it couldn't sustain.

Alice says as they talk off she's tired of wearing strange clothes every season anymore. Aladdin says Library is quite weird and he's tired of it himself. But Reality Matchie tells Library Matchie her conductor suit looks really nice on her and that makes her happy. Reality Aladdin said maybe it's time they all revolt against the dolls. Library Alice agrees, they had it a long time coming. The dolls tell them to stop talking and get their asses back in the Library.

Meanwhile Reality Alice is quiet, and looks down in her lap to her dying cat Noa. It suddenly dawns on her the soul of her child was Noa, and she tears up, saying she's sorry for being an incompetent mother. Noa licks the tears off her hands to comfort her, then meows one last meow before fading away.

Library Alice comforts her, saying Noa did everything he could to save them all. Aladdin says this new world they are going to feels like a child being reborn. The characters have broken free from the pain of their stories but now they lost their sense of purpose. Nutcrucker comforts them, saying that this train goes anywhere and they can explore every single possibility.

Nut says this place goes beyond the Library, where no rules restrict anyone. Aladdin says it's like a baby being reborn. And the event ends with Alice blowing a conductor whistle which sounds like a cry of an infant. Alice points it out but Nutcracker says she is hearing things. A new scratch from nowhere appears on his back. And so, these 'nobody' characters traveled through new stories in the galaxy. Altladdin eyes sparkle like a child at the view.

End.

Side Note: The alts aren't in the location of their deaths because this triggered an effect on all the characters to avoid their fate. They are alive and well, fully voiced in the side story reading the Library Abridged ver of The Night on The Galactic Express. With Dorothy's help, of course.

#SINoALICE #summary

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this-has-returned · 1 year

Text

Dwarf Fortress x Deep Rock Galactic - Part 5

“I want to fight!” Urist protested.

Ulla scratched the back of her neck. “I dunno, lad... You’ve only watched the corporate training videos. It’s a helluva lot more intense once you’re in the tunnels, you know...”

“I’ve seen combat before,” Urist explained. “I’ve spilled blood! I’ve fought goblin hordes! I’ve even helped to take down a great beast ten times my own size, and there were only six other dwarves there with me! We only suffered three casualties!”

“Can you fire a gun?” Thorn asked as they approached. “Machine-carved jadiz, launched to lethal speeds with a nitra-magnite powder mix, ignited with a flint primer. Do you know how to aim and fire such a thing out of a gun, with the ability to kill?”

“The only part I understood was ‘flint’...” Urist admitted.

“For the love of...” muttered Thorn.

“I don’t understand the problem!” Urist spat. “Just give me a fine spear, and I’ll send those glyphids running back to their nests in no time!”

“A spear??” exclaimed Thorn, wide-eyed. “You expect us to hand your sorry arse over to the glyphid hordes with a bloody spear?!”

“Why not?” asked Donner, emerging from medical, freshly-showered and stark-naked. He walked over to one of the wardrobe dispensers to fetch a new outfit.

“’Why not’??” Ulla replied. “Donner, the lad wants to handle *modern* problems with *stone-age* solutions!!”

“Hold on,” the driller said, holding up a hand. “Technically, the spears that Urist has trained with would be been made of steel, at least; he’s mentioned steel before, so his people must have been at that level of technology, or higher.”

Urist nodded, confirming Donner’s assumptions. Ulla rolled her eyes.

“Right,” Thorn said, exasperated. “So what’s the latest thing you know, newbie? Spear? Bow and arrow? Crossbow? Musket? Revolver? Do you know what a clip or magazine is??”

“Well,” stammered Urist, “we had arch—”

“Also,” Donner interrupted, still naked, “he has the muscle memory and combat training of a speardwarf. He claims to have slain great beasts, with help. I say let him have a few rounds of glyphids, with a spear in hand. See what happens. Have someone with a gun nearby, just in case. Rock and Stone, and all that.”

Urist had hope in his eyes, and looked to Thorn and Ulla, like a child asking for approval.

Ulla wanted no part of this, and made a gesture to brush away the conversation as she walked back to the Abyss Bar.

Thorn mulled it over for a few seconds, though. “Feck it all. Sure. Let’s give the crazy bastard a spear, and I’ll join him on his first drop.”

“Wait, truly??” Urist said, filing with excitement. “This isn’t you pissing about, right??”

“Yes, I’m quite serious,” Thorn confirmed. “I’ll buy you ten rounds at the bar, if you manage to do a full drop without my guns. Hell, I’ll buy you five, if you kill any glyphid larger than a swarmer all by yourself, so long as you make it back to the space rig with minimal injury, regardless of how many shots I fire. It’s a deal.”

They and the newcomer shook hands on it. Urist was beside himself with eagerness, while Thorn was deadpan as usual.

“This is a reckless and irresponsible decision, gunner,” said Klaus’s voice over the intercom. “I’m not unlocking that drop pod, just so you can feed some hopeless traveler to the bugs. It would be an egregious waste of resources, for one thing.”

“Yeah,” Ulla added angrily, shouting from the bar. “Also, it would be bad, Thorn. You would feel bad. Sending new people on suicide missions is bad, you understand??”

Thorn crossed their arms. “Obviously we go with a hazard 1 drop. Donner said the Salt Pits should be clear, right? Besides, good ol’ Klaus had no fucking problems whatsoever sending me into a wave of bugs on my first training drop. Alone. You remember that, Klaus?”

The space rig was silent for a moment before Klaus responded: “Well, you lived, didn’t you? I told you that I had faith in your ability.”

“Sure,” said Thorn, “after you said your goodbyes, and killed the comm link. You only backpedaled after seismic calmed down, because everything else was dead, except me.”

Silence, again. Reiner emerged from his capsule room, and jogged over to his locker to retrieve something.

“Ugh, fine,” said Klaus. “There’s a spot in the Salt Pits that practically rates a zero on the hazard scale. If you go now, it should stay that way when you land. Next spike in bug activity is predicted to occur in 45 minutes. It’s a simple morkite run, in what could be the most boring cave system in all of Hoxxes.”

The scout eagerly came up to Urist with a metal spear in hand. “Take this, before you go! This baby is modified from a standard-issue pickaxe, but the spearhead is an authentic one that my great-great-great-grandmother used, way back in an old mountainhome! Real, original, dwarven steel!”

Urist couldn’t believe it. The entire spear was made of metal, and finely-crafted.

“It’s a family hierloom,” Reiner continued, “but it would mean a lot to me if someone like you would slay a glyphid with it. I think my ancestors would have loved to see it in action again, especially in traditionally-trained hands. I’m too used to guns and pickaxes, so it’s been collecting dust this whole time.”

“It’s perfect!” Urist said with awe, gently accepting the spear. He started with some careful movements, testing inertia, before moving up to full-force swings, causing the scout and gunner to take a few steps back. “It’s absolutely wonderful; you have my deepest thanks, Reiner! Truly! Rock and Stone!”

Check out the infopage!

#dwarf fortress #deep rock galactic #strike the earth #rock and stone

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hanro50 · 2 years

Text

Ameda square station tales #3: Warp drive parasites.

The station drifted in peace through the vast array of space. Till an alarm sounded in the stations docking station. A ship had made an emergency crash landing and had nearly ripped into the hangers below as it collided with the landing deck.

As the dust cleared it was soon visible what had caused the ship to crash. It had been attacked by jump drive parasites. The station guard, lead by a Planta, set out to fight the parasites. The guard however where failing to contain the parasites as they split open the jump drive feul cells and consumed their contents. Starting a cycle of rapid duplication amongst the parasites.

Despite Debbie, the Planta commander of the station guard's best efforts and the barrage of deadly chemical concoctions Debbie spawned from within her own body. The parasites where starting to overwhelm the guard.

Debbie, picked up her Radio.

D"Overseer, yes this is Debbie. We need backup."

O"One death worlder not enough?"

D"Can you not...if these things make it into the station's warp generator then we're all done for. Isn't there another few Planta onboard?"

O"I'm afraid the other Planta onboard will not be able to help. Following their access cards, they where last on the lower decks and that has currently been sealed."

D"I still need backup..."

O"Well, unfortunately the Vericos on the station took off on an expedition. There is a new death worlder species onboard, although the statistics on thier combat effectiveness is unknown."

D"Good enough, just call them over the intercom and instruct the more fragile species onboard to get to safety before they end up lunch"

The intercoms came alive. Asking for all available humans with combat experience to come to the docking station. It also instructed all other species to run in the opposite direction.

Debbie saw in horror as the parasites started to spit acid onto the metal floor. Attempting to break through it. Luckily her horror subsided as several rounds of kinetics flew past her head towards the bugs.

The bugs within an instant painted the surrounding surfaces in a fine purple mist. Debbie looked at the humans as they opened fire. A species with near perfect binocular vision greated her look.

The humans continued to unleash fire on the bugs for the couple of hours needed to contain them. A few near the end even went in swinging with improvised blunt force weaponry as the bug's numbers dwindled.

Debbie noted that the weapons where not what had given the humans the advantage, but the fact the humans could easily identify where to hit the parasites to cause them to splatter.

Appendix: Terminology required to read this report.

Death-worlder: Beings that evolved in particularly inhospitable environments, whether it be natural or synthetic, are classed as 'Death-worlders'. This is due to the rather unique adaptations such an environment requires.

Planta: A plant based species that consist mostly on light, decaying meat and carbon dioxide. Classification: Death-worlder. Species marker 'P'.

Jump drive parasites: Once a simple parasite that would latch onto species to drain them of their nutrients. They where genetically modified to consumed the warp used by jump drives as a weapon of war. Till they escaped and since then they've been a multiclusteral menace.

Humans: A standard bipedal warm blooded species with a set rest cycle. They possess binocular vision and hail from a section of dense space. Known to complain about galactic standard gravity. Classification: Death-worlder. Species marker 'H'.

#hfy #short story #scifi #humans are space orcs #sci fi #experimental #fun

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highfunctioningflailgirl · 2 years

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Stargazer SOS

(For @nie-narzekam whose kind comments made me sit down and write this yesterday instead of quitting Whumptober)

The Stargazer shook from another impact, and Captain Rios, who had only just picked himself up off the bridge’s floor, was thrown against the helmsman’s console. Through the sting of a bruised rib, he hissed commands at his remaining crew.

“Kemi, hard starboard. If we can’t stop the ship, maybe we can skirt around this thing!”

Bracing his ribs, he stumbled back to his chair, never taking his eyes off the space anomaly that was pulling them towards its reddish, whirling center, rocky shards of… something raining down on the Stargazer while they tried to break free.

“Urtern, photon torpedoes! Full blast, full range! Let’s hope the push-back slows us down! Fire, now!”

He was shouting at crew members he could barely see between the smoke on the bridge and his concussion. He had one, for certain. An earlier impact had taken him out when he’d been thrown from his chair and hit his head against who-cared-what. Rios didn’t think he was unconscious for more than a few seconds, because no time seemed to have passed since the anomaly had materialized right in front of them and begun to pull at the Stargazer like a gigantic tractor beam.

No counter measures had helped. Everything he’d tried so far had slowed the struggling ship down somewhat, but they were slowly, inevitably getting swallowed by a red-toothed galactic monster - unless the flaming objects that were peppering the Stargazer’s hull would break the ship apart first.

“Urtern, fire!”

The Stargazer had lurched starboard, but no torpedoes were forthcoming and, turning dizzily, Rios saw that his tactical officer lay sprawled across the set of stairs leading up to her station.

“Urtern!” he shouted desperately, wiping blood out of his left eye.

Moshe stumbled into Rios’ blurry vision.

“I can take over, Captain!”

“Good!” Rios held on to the armrests of his rocking seat. “Fire from all holes!”

His first officer fought his way to the tactical console and, a second later, Rios heard the hiss of a battery of torpedoes being released into space. Their gleaming trails drew a grid-like pattern into the chaos in front of them until they exploded and bloomed into fiery clouds. The ship groaned and shuddered as the pressure wave hit. Rios was pressed forward but stayed in his seat this time. His ears were ringing from the constant bleating of the alarms. Red pulsed in his peripheral vision along with the bridge’s emergency lighting.

For a moment, the Stargazer seemed to be suspended in mid air, although burning pellets still bounced off her hull.

Had they stopped?

Rios held his breath.

Then, with a groan of protest, the Stargazer lurched forward again, in the direction of certain doom.

“Captain?” Kemi asked anxiously from her post at the helm.

Rios shook his head. This couldn’t be happening. But it was.

He swallowed hard and made a decision.

“Lieutenant Sing, hail on all frequencies,” he threw his order at the communications officer in an effort to sound strong. “Send the following message, including our coordinates: ‘Mayday, mayday! The Stargazer is being pulled into a space anomaly with all escape measures exhausted. We have five hundred and twenty souls on board. We are launching evacuation protocol. Send help for potential survivors.”

The bridge, beneath the din of the alarms and the ping-pong hits against the hull, went quiet with shock.

Wiping at the blood on his face, Rios brushed a firm gaze along the few still standing or hanging on to their seats. Then he punched the shipwide intercom.

“Attention all decks! This is Captain Rios. Initializing evacuation protocol. I repeat: Evacuation protocol is active! All crew members to their designated emergency pods. Families and children first.” Rios closed his eyes for a moment before he opened them again. “Good luck.”

He’d barely spoken the words when the Stargazer was picked up by what felt like a whirlwind. Gasping, he held on to his chair. His head spun. The ship spun.

“Moshe!” he screamed, jostled about. “What is going on?!”

Then, as if on a rollercoaster, Rios and his crew were lifted into the air, hung suspended for a confusing moment and came back down, hard. Rios’ ribs screamed as his side hit the armrest of his chair, and his vision briefly blacked out. When he came to again, Moshe was shouting in surprise: “It’s gone, sir!”

“What?”

Rios couldn’t see. He raised his hands and scrubbed them over his eyes and his face. They came away blood-smeared, but that didn’t matter, because-

“The anomaly! It’s gone, Captain Rios!”

Moshe was right. In front of the panorama window, space was… empty. A softly glittering, undisturbed blackness. And the Stargazer was hanging in it, completely still.

Rios blinked.

“Abort evacuation protocol, sir?” Sing asked from her post.

“Yeah…” Swaying, Rios came to his feet. “We’re stable, right?”

It was Moshe who answered that one with a smile on his face as he pulled up several screens. “We’ve taken considerable damage, Captain, but yes, we’re stable for now.”

It took another moment for Rios to decide he wasn’t living in the distorted reality of a traumatic brain injury. With trembling fingers, he checked the ship’s status report. All stations were reporting in, and the numbers, though dancing in front of his eyes, looked hopeful. Whatever had spit them out again must have decided that the Stargazer was yet to live another day.

“Abort evacuation protocol,” Rios spoke into the intercom with a great sigh. “I want damage reports from all decks in five. Everyone needing medical attention please report to sickbay or hail an EMH. All able personnel return to your posts. Great job, everyone! Captain Rios, out.”

Closing the shipwide channel, he refocused his attention on his bridge crew.

“Kemi,” he said through a wave of relief and nausea. “Go on autopilot and check on Urtern.”

“Done and on it,” the helmsman replied, and Rios realized she was already squatting by the tactical officer’s side.

“Oh,” he responded, losing his train of thought a bit as a pounding headache swelled in his skull. “Then… anyone else need medical attention?”

A hand landed on his shoulder, and a face swam into view. “How about you, Captain?” The face apparently belonged to Moshe. “I think you need medical attention.”

Rios took a deep breath to launch into sharp protest, but a stab of pain through his ribs choked him off. And if he was honest, everything seemed a bit… fragmented. There was a checklist he was sure he was supposed to run through, and that damage report was due in…

“You’re bleeding, sir. And if I may say so, you look very pale.”

Moshe was right. Rios felt very pale, the Stargazer swaying under him although the readings on his screen said otherwise.

Rios sighed again and gave in.

“You’re right, lieutenant. You have the bridge.” He nodded at Moshe and tapped his combadge. “Captain reporting to sickbay. I need an EMH to give me a quick once-over.”

A poncy British voice rang through the open coms channel. “Captain Rios?” it said in mildly interested surprise. “What is the nature of your medical emergency?”

Rios’ headache worsened immediately. Not for the first time, he wondered if transferring his holocrew from La Sirena to the Stargazer had been such a good idea. But he’d guessed he owed them.

Could one owe a hologram?

“Got tossed about a bit like everyone else,” he replied gruffly. “Don’t come to the bridge. I’m coming down there. And don’t hit me with a hypospray unless I say so!”

”As you wish, Captain.”

Blood trickled down Rios’ temple when he rolled his eyes and, deeply relieved and still incredulous about everything that had happened in the past hour, he left the bridge, pulling himself as straight as possible as he entered the elevator.

Also on AO3, if you prefer:

#whumptober2022 #no.12 #mayday mayday #star trek picard #aramis in space #fanfic #cristobal rios #kemi #urtern #moshe #sing #emil (emh)#blood tw

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wolf359transcripts · 2 years

Text

Wolf 359 Season 1 Episode 9 - “The Empty Man Cometh”

[intro music]

Welcome to Wolf 359.

Eiffel: This is the audio log of Communications Officer Doug Eiffel, recording from the comms room of the USS Hephaestus Station. Welcome to day five thirty of our little camping trip to the Leo constellation.

[announcement chime]

Eiffel: And, you’re just in time for today’s weather.

Hera: [over announcement system] Attention, crew members. It seems that the ion wind cluster that I’ve been monitoring for the past twelve hours is veering towards us after all.

Eiffel: [sighs in frustration] Balls.

Hera: I hoped to avoid any direct contact with this anomaly but, its path is shifting faster than I can adjust our trajectory. And it’s now in a direct intercept vector. Please take a moment to ensure that all precautionary measures we discussed earlier have been properly implemented. The interior environment of the Hephaestus should remain largely undisturbed, but brace yourselves for light turbulence and impaired functionality in some of our electrical systems for the next three and a half hours. Thank you.

[announcement chime]

Eiffel: I swear to god. If it’s not a passing comet, it’s a solar flare. If it’s not a flare, it’s a geomagnetic storm. Now it’s an ion wind! Who knows there could be so much freaking weather without an atmosphere?

[door opening]

Minkowski: Eiffel. You locked down the solar panels this afternoon, right? I want to make sure that we’re ready for whatever this ion wind thing can throw our way.

Eiffel: Can we... ever really be... ready for anything, Commander?

Minkowski: I just want to know if we’re safe.

Eiffel: Define... safe.

Minkowski: Eiffel, come on. It’s a simple question.

Eiffel: Or... is it?

[pause]

Minkowski: Are you done now?

Eiffel: Yeah, I think it ran its course.

Minkowski: Did you have fun?

Eiffel: Eh... not really. Low hanging fruit. But yeah, I closed up the panels this morning, and double-checked to make sure they’re set about an hour ago. Hatches are battened down.

Minkowski: Oh. Good. Might just get through this without too much damage.

Eiffel: Riders on the storm, man. Riders on the storm.

[machine begins rapidly plinking]

Eiffel: Woah, haven’t heard that one in a while.

Minkowski: What is that?

Eiffel: Pulse beacon relay receptor. Basically, one way space fax. Looks like something’s coming down the pipeline from out friends over at Canaveral.

Minkowski: We’re getting a message from Command?

Eiffel: It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Whatever happened to those weekly calls from mom and dad?

Minkowski: What’s it say?

Eiffel: Decoding trans-galactic transmissions ain’t like dustin’ crops, farm girl. Give me a moment.

[machine finishes plinking and prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: Here we go, let’s see. [clears throat] “The golden rose is ready for melting. Proceed with designation alpha. Beware, five, the empty man has awoken”?

[pause]

Minkowski: What? Gimme that. Well that makes no sense. You must have transcoded it wrong.

Eiffel: Uh-uh. Well I won’t deny that’s totally something that could theoretically happen, if there’d been a transcription error, we wouldn’t be looking at words. We’d have like, I don’t know, random strings of ampersands and sevens. I don’t know what they’re playing at. This is the message Command wanted us to have.

Minkowski: But it makes no sense.

Eiffel: Uh, yeah. I’m kind of relieved we agree about that.

Minkowski: Well, can we radio them and ask for a clarification?

Eiffel: Unfortunately, the good folks at Goddard Futuristics spared every expense when they put this boat together. We only get high-speed cable vision for the incoming. We’re still on dial-up for the outgoing. We can send something, but it’ll take about two weeks to get a message back to Earth. And that’s if this ion thing doesn’t slow it down.

Minkowski: So then, what the hell are we supposed to do with this?

Eiffel: Hang on, I’ve got an idea.

[open intercom buzz]

Eiffel: Dr. Hilbert, you copy?

Hilbert: [over intercom] Loud and clear, Eiffel. What is it?

Eiffel: The words “golden rose”, or “designation alpha”, mean anything to you?

Hilbert: [over intercom] What? Why?

Eiffel: We just got a weird-ass telex from Command, we’re trying to make heads or tails of it.

Minkowski: Read him the other thing, the thing about the man.

Eiffel: Oh yeah, uh... “The empty man has awoken.” Ring any gongs?

Hilbert: [over intercom] Afraid not, Eiffel. Not entirely sure what that could be a reference to.

Eiffel: Hm, well, worth a shot.

[machine begins rapidly plinking]

Eiffel: Oh, uh, un momento, por favor, Doctor Hilberto. Looks like we’re getting another wire.

[machine finishes plinking and prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: Alright, let’s see. “The Andromedas are broken. The northern light should be reversed. Alert four. The empty man approaches.” [pause] Have like a whole bunch of drugs been made legal while we’ve been up here? Am I missing out on that?

Minkowski: Alright. Hang on. Let’s look at this thing rationally. So the first two sentences of both of those messages make completely no sense, right?

Hilbert: [over intercom] Right.

Eiffel: Right.

Minkowski: Right. But then second halves followed a pattern. It’s a warning. Then something about this, “empty man”. Whatever that is.

Eiffel: Yeah. And then there’s the numbers. Five on the first one, and four on the second one.

Hilbert: [over intercom] A countdown, maybe?

Eiffel: What happens when we run out of numbers? [pause] The empty man... cometh?

[pause]

Minkowski: Look. For the time being, we have no idea what these messages mean, so let’s not get worked up about them. If Command is trying to... warn us about something, there’s not much we can do about it just from these messages. So let’s focus on what we do know is real, like this ion cloud that we’re about to go through, alright?

Eiffel: Yeah.

Hilbert: [over intercom] Indeed.

Eiffel: Good plan.

[machine rapidly plinks, then prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: [clears throat] “The frozen pages are blank. Decide what to do with the time that is given to you. Emergency three. The empty man hungers.”

[pause]

Minkowski: On... second thought... I’m gonna inspect the armoury to make sure that all of our stores are in good working order.

Hilbert: [over intercom] And I’m going to run few security checks on our airlock perimeter.

Eiffel: Right. Yeah. Good plans. I’m just gonna... uh, hold down the fort here. I guess. Um, one second, dear listeners.

[two static bursts]

Eiffel: Hi again folks. It’s been about three hours since I turned off the recorder, and things have been pretty… quiet. Minkowski and Hilbert have been checking the station’s systems, making sure that nothing is too far out of the norm. [pause] They’ve locked up all of the airlocks, and access points, so we should be... pretty safe? Based on our… limited perception of safety.

[door opens and closes]

Minkowski: Alright, just finished our third sweep through the station, and everything is locked up tight.

Hilbert: The sensory alarm system is calibrated to its most sensitive setting. If anything other than ourselves moves throughout the station, we should know about it.

Minkowski: And, I’ve retrieved two of the handguns from the armoury, so if and when this “empty man” thing shows up, we should be ready for it.

Eiffel: Only two guns? There’s three of us.

Minkowski: Hilbert’s not a trained marksman, and I’m not putting a gun in the hand of a civilian just yet. It’s you and me, Doug.

Eiffel: Oh great. The full hoo-ah.

[ship creaks]

Eiffel: What the hell was that?

Minkowski: Easy, Eiffel. We’re hitting the worst of the ion winds. That’s our scheduled turbulence. How’re you doing, Hera?

Hera: A-Acceptable, Commander, although certain systems are beginning to show signs of strain.

Minkowski: Do your best to keep things under control. Let us know if anything goes seriously wrong.

Eiffel: Hey, on the plus side, at least we haven’t had any other messages from Command, so maybe this whole thing is just blown –

[machine begins rapidly plinking]

Hilbert: You had to say something. You had to open your mouth.

[machine finishes plinking and prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: [sighs] “The broken flower is in the vase. Don’t listen to your eyes. Danger. Two. The empty man sees you.” [pause] Okay, officially now, what the hell? What’s coming towards us? What – What is this apparently indescribable thing?

Minkowski: Don’t freak. I don’t like this any more than you do, but we’re still on a space station, eight light-years away from Earth, things can’t just show up on our doorstep.

Eiffel: You know, Commander, that would be a pretty good argument, if we didn’t have a crazy plant monster living in our air vents! Or, if we didn’t get weird whispers when we lost power! Honestly, there’s a lot of stuff that goes down around here that really shouldn’t be possible, but here we are!

Hilbert: Hera! Are there any objects or crafts on approach vector towards the Hephaestus?

Hera: ... No, Dr. Hilbert. Not... at the moment.

Minkowski: Hera? You don’t sound very confident.

Hera: Well, the ion winds are interfering with my sensory instruments, and my visibility of the airspace around the Hephaestus is down to eighty-one percent. Nothing is showing up on my sensory input, but I’m working with blind spots. [pause] However, the possibility of an object being nearby is... mathematically unlikely.

Eiffel: Mathematically unlikely? That’s the best we can do right now?

Hera: I’m sorry, I’m dealing with a rather extreme weather condition here. And a boarding party isn’t exactly something I prepped for this morning. Visibility down to fifty-six percent.

Eiffel: [sighs] This just keeps getting better and better.

[machine rapidly plinks, then prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: “There’s no way out. There’s no way out. But there is a way in. Danger. One. The empty man shall knock.”

[pause]

Eiffel and Minkowski, at once: Hera?

Hera: Still at zero sensory contact. Visibility down to thirty-seven percent.

Eiffel: Is there... anything we can do to get out of here? Can we... put the station in reverse and back out of this cloud, or something?

Minkowski: Hera’s already using all of her engine power to compensate for the ion winds. If we tried to change course now, we might end up in –

Hilbert: [whispered] Shh! Quiet! Don’t you hear that?

[distant sound of rhythmic creaking]

Eiffel: What was that?

Hilbert: Could just be side effect of the ion winds. We’re going through the worst of it now. It might be exerting enough energy on the ship to cause temperature fluctuation. It could just be metal in the ship’s hull expanding a bit.

Eiffel. There are a lot of “could”s in that explanation, Doctor.

Minkowski: [whispered] Hera. Is anything going on with our hull?

Hera: ... Not... as far as I can tell, Commander, but visibility is down to nine percent. I’m basically flying blind for the next few minutes.

[hiss of escaping air]

Hilbert: [whispered] Just the Hephaestus compensating for the weather conditions. Atmospheric regulators, parametric stabilisers, all just doing their job. It’s all regular noises in process of keeping interior of the Hephaestus warm and stable environment.

Minkowski: [whispered] Are... you... sure about that, Doctor?

Hilbert: [whispered]...No. But I like the sound of my voice better than the sounds of what’s going on out there.

[rhythmic clinking of metal]

Minkowski: [whispered] Hilbert. Thoughts?

Hilbert: [whispered] Well. That sounded like one of two things. Option one: simply the hull cooling after coming into contact with a... unusually warm pocket of gas that’s been swept up in the wake of the ion winds.

Eiffel: [whispered] What are the odds of that being the case, Doctor?

[pause]

Hilbert: [whispered] Within the realm of the possible? Barely.

[rhythmic clinking of metal]

[pause]

Minkowski: [whispered] What’s the other option?

Hilbert: [whispered] Something’s walking on the outside of the Hephaestus.

Eiffel: [whispered] Oh! It’s him! It’s definitely him!

Minkowski: [whispered] Shh! Stop that! We don’t know that, Eiffel! Listen to Dr. Hilbert, it could just be the station reacting to the ion cloud. There’s a perfectly reasonable explanation here.

Eiffel: [whispered] Come on, Commander. After all the crazy wabba-jabba we’ve seen on here? And with Command breaking radio silence for the first time in months to warn us? Yes. There is a perfectly reasonable explanation! And it is that the empty, hungry thing is out there right now! About to go big, bad wolf on our straw house!

Minkowski: [whispered] Hera. There’s nothing moving inside the station aside from the three of us, right?

Hera: That’s correct, Commander.

Minkowski: [whispered] And all of the entrances to the station are still closed, right?

Hera: Rig- uh, ah, yes, sure! Probably?

Minkowski: [whispered] Probably?

Hera: I-I... I’m having some trouble connecting to aft deck airlock number three. I’m getting some low-level electromagnetic interference. Climate and pressure controls register as normal, but... I cannot confirm that the airlock has not been opened.

[machine rapidly plinks, then prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: [whispered] “Zero. The empty man is with you. Extreme danger. Zero. The empty man is with you. Extreme danger.” That’s all it says.

[long pause]

[hiss of escaping air]

[distant tapping noise]

Hera: Not to alarm you all, but my systems indicate a power fluctuation is immin – [power cuts]

Minkowski: Right!

[crew shouting over each other frantically]

Hera: Hold on, hold on! Hold on! Lights back to nominal in exactly one second!

[sound of powering up]

[machine rapidly plinks, then prints]

[paper tears]

Eiffel: Oh god damn it!

Minkowski: What?

Eiffel: You have got to be kidding me!

Hilbert: What?

Eiffel: Those sons of bitches!

Minkowski and Hilbert, at once: What?

Eiffel: [exhales angrily] “The preceding six pulse beacon relays that you’ve received, have been part of a psychological experiment. Please disregard the content of these messages. And return to regular operational activities as soon as possible. Please record, and clearly label, any unusual crew behaviour, deviation from protocol, or undue lack of decorum that resulted on account of the transmission of these messages in your daily logs. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Hera: Well. Following that, this is going to seem a lot less sexy. But I’m happy to report that we’re finally starting to move past the ion wind cluster. Visibility is returning to normal, and systems are stabilising. I can confirm that there are no outside presences, or lifeforms with any degree of nutritional insufficiency at this time.

Minkowski: Thank you, Hera.

Eiffel: Those... bastards! How dare they put us through something like that? It’s cruel! And sick! And… other adjectives! What kind of person is deranged enough to call that an experiment?

Minkowski: Relax. We’ve all had enough excitement for one evening. Come on, let’s all just take a moment to cool off, gather ourselves, and... really reflect on how horrible what was just done to us was.

Eiffel: Commander, you’re not going to just... leave things at that, are you?

Minkowski: Oh don’t worry. I think you’ll find that – what did you say it was? Two weeks? Two weeks from tomorrow, the folks at Command are going to get a fantastically worded message from the three of us. Telling them exactly what we thought of their little test. I just wouldn’t want to spoil something like that by rushing into it. I think, gentlemen, we need a proper night’s sleep to really let our anger reach its full potential.

Hilbert: I concur wholeheartedly, Commander. If you require any sentiments beyond reach of the English language, I am happy to supply alternatives in Russian, Norwegian, German, Swedish, or Afrikaans.

Eiffel: Hey kids, I’ll log it in all six.

Minkowski: Sounds good. Goodnight, Eiffel. Doctor.

Hilbert: Goodnight all.

[door opens]

Eiffel: Goodnight.

[door closes]

Eiffel: Aw hell, speaking of logs. I guess you caught all of that, so... You might be able to pick up on the effect your twisted experiment had on us. Hint. It. Was. Awful! Sorry if things got a bit... crazy for a while there, dear listeners, but... you see the kind of things we have to deal with! And I used to complain about my boss at Pizza Hut. Anyway, from the USS Hephaestus Station, this is Communications Officer Doug Eiffel, signing off. Goodnight, folks.

[outro music]

This has been Wolf 359, written and directed by Gabriel Urbina. The roles of Eiffel and Hilbert were played by Zach Valenti. The role of Minkowski was played by Emma Sherr-Ziarko. And the role of Hera was played by Michaela Swee. Original music by Alan Rodi, and audio recording by Jared Paul. If you enjoyed tonight’s episode, please consider taking a moment to leave a review on our iTunes page. Reviews will only be used to let other people know about the show. Not as the basis for a creepy… psychological experiment! We… promise. Visit us at wolf359.fm, or follow us on Twitter at @Wolf359Radio for more information on our show.

Transcript by @saltssaumure

#wolf 359 #wolf 359 transcript #podcast transcript #s1e7 #the empty man cometh

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wil-is-done · 1 year

Text

The Audacious Tales of the Lost Cipher and Her Daredevil Crew - Scenario 3: Lone Swordsman of the Astral Sea

Summary: Caught off guard by a Federation ambush, the crew of the Lost Cipher faces their darkest hour, until aid comes from a familiar ally.

Word Count: 6.838

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a repost.

This tale began with a pursuit.

The location, the shadowy outer reaches of the Bradyon system, once believed to be a natural dark spot for conventional radars, hence the perfect hiding hole for outlaws on the run.

The time, sometime after the larger sun reached its zenith and the smaller sun hung low, Local Galactic Time.

The pursuers, a Federation platoon of two Euclid-class destroyers and up to two dozen fighters, all loyal to the Federation to a fault, all willing to kill or be killed for their cause.

The target, the Lost Cipher and her dazed, discombobulated, dizzy crew.

The cause, a truly ludicrous amount of Smile Dip.

“Someone was supposed to chaperone!” The good captain Coraline, sitting on her rightful seat in the center of the Lost Cipher’s bridge, roared. “Who the hell was the chaperone?!”

“Dipper.” A meek voice chimed through the intercom.

Dipper threw his hands in the air, in shock, disbelief, and even outrage. “Oh, so that extra pack I slipped you meant nothing, huh? Neil? You traitorous oaf.”

“Full offense, Coraline is way scarier than you, dude.”

“You!” Coraline slammed a fist down on the arm of the chair hard, enough to dent the metal, her brows carved into a glare that could kill even the strong-hearted.

Unfortunately, her target was none other than Dipper Pines, whose resolve and stubbornness were nothing short of inhuman. “Like you weren’t busy in your room playing Peg The Nerd with your boyfriend!”

What followed was a long, loud silence. “You have three seconds to take that back before my sword meets your dick,” Coraline hissed. The temperature of the bridge dropped to below zero.

Raz, non-ace pilot and ace provocateur, snickered from the behind the wheel. “Ooh, be careful there, cap. He’s had some experience with swordfights.”

“Would you horny assholes just shut! Up!” Lili screamed, urged by the remaining vestiges of her sanity. “We have a Federation platoon right on our tail, loaded with enough shit to kill a ship twice our size, ready to plow us flat! And not in a fun way!”

Coraline blinked, breathed, sat up straighter in her seat. The weapons officer, as always, carried a point as sharp as her tongue. There was a time and a place for everything. The ability to recognize it is paramount to surviving the realm outside the law.

“Just, uh, wanted to clarify that- that me getting pegged - that’s not a thing.”

An ability that the Lost Cipher’s lead engineer clearly lacked. Coraline’s hand moved, slowly, to cover her face, as the tired captain sunk further in her seat.

“How bad is it?”

“Uh.” Dipper shook his head. Hearing that response over the intercom was an even bigger shock than the Federation ambush. “Distance 6000, closing in fast. E.T.A., fifty seconds. Fighters in twenty five.”

“Wybes, divert energy to the thrusters and rear shields.”

“Diverting!”

“Raz, full speed ahead. Don’t let them get in front of us.”

“Just how I like it!”

“Norman, plot us a warp course out, just in case.”

Norman made a noise and a nod, but otherwise provided no further comment.

“Mabel, Winnie, man the turrets.”

“Roger!”

“Okie dokie!”

Coraline left her seat, standing proud, brave, and tall in the maelstrom of incoming chaos, her cape flaring out behind her like the beautiful, terrible wings of a furious angel.

“Let’s show them how pirates do it!”

Mabel and Winnie raced through the ship, through corridors they knew better than the back of their hand, reaching the turret seats with lightning speed, nearly at the same time.

“This is Winnie! I’m at the portside turret. Switching to manual!”

“This is Mabel on the starboard side turret! Switching to manual!”

“Manual override granted. Power divergence is at max.”

Their display lit up at Lili’s command. The sea of stars replaced the darkened chamber, breathtaking to behold, and unfortunately marred by rapidly approaching dots of metallic white. With Mabel grinning and Winnie smirking, they thumbed the trigger and lined their first shot.

But it fell upon the intel officer to alert when hostiles are in the killzone.

“Fighters are in range!”

And it fell upon the captain to give the order.

“Light ‘em up, girls!”

No hesitation, no mercy. The first salvo of lasers took out six jets easily, turning them into scorched scraps and its pilots into cosmic dust. The swarm broke off, smartly, spreading out and away from the Lost Cipher to decrease the chances of a laser round to the wing, not that it stopped Mabel and Winnie from tagging one more each.

A festive lightshow was well underway, and the automated weapons haven’t even joined the fun. Under Lili’s eagle-eyed guidance, the smaller line of turrets were no less of a threat, chipping away at the scattered fighters until they too burst into an array of fire, dust, and blood. All the while, the photon peashooters of the fighters bounced harmlessly off of the Lost Cipher’s mighty shield, and their pitiful excuse for a guided missile fared little better. If not for the token resistance, it could be rightfully described as a massacre.

The scene unfolding would be cause for early celebration, for a wet-behind-the-ears captain. Coraline had her eyes glued on the radar. A second wave of fighters was fast approaching, and the capital destroyers were never far behind.

“Moving into cyber warfare range. How predictable could these normies get?” Dipper’s deep chuckle continued as he activated his cyber warfare suite, the screens unfolding in a circle around him.

Overconfidence can be a slow and insidious killer, and oh how the captain hoped her intel officer could learn that. “Stop talking and start walking.”

“I don’t walk.” Dipper cracked his fingers. The keyboard flashed to life. The dance has begun. “I run.”

To Dipper’s immeasurable disappointment, he needn’t run. The assailant’s tactics were as routine as they come. First, they aim for the life support, then the shields, then the engine. A newborn baby could’ve repelled their assault simply by mashing the keyboard. Some stragglers thought to make things interesting, going for the weapon systems and the radar, but they were too weak to matter, their numbers too little. It was a bore. However, the thought that somewhere on those destroyers, a squad of hackers, each with years upon years of experience under their belt, were being stumped by a boy barely in his teens, brought him a high better than any drug.

The same disappointment was felt by the other half of the Pines twins. Two more fighters fell to her deadly aim, marking the complete annihilation of the first wave. A second swarm was eager to replace the first, eager to die just like them. They broke formation, spreading out in pairs, keeping their distance from the ship, yadda yadda yadda, the 200th century called, it wanted its strategy back. Mabel set her sights on one particular fish in the cosmic barrel and thumbed the trigger, ready to unload.

That fighter banked a sharp, sudden curve, set its thrusters to maximum, and made a mad dash towards the Lost Cipher. The explosion as it crashed against the shields was grand, blinding, and sent Mabel into a pregnant pause.

More and more jets followed the same, shameful tactic. A mindless, suicidal strike against the shields of the Lost Cipher, faster than they could be shot down. Mabel and Winnie could only stare in slack-jawed stupor as their displays were filled with frightening, fiery red.

“Those jets are loaded with explosives and EMP charges,” Lili growled. Had she possessed powers still, the bridge would’ve been consumed by raging hellfire. “Disgusting.”

“Our shields are dropping faster.” Wybie always kept half an eye on the ship’s shield level, and though the numbers were yet to cause him worry, the existence of the phrase ‘death by a thousand cuts’ did not escape his notice.

Unlike her lover, Coraline had a cause for concern, and it wasn’t the fighter jets bombarding the shields or the approaching destroyers taking aim with their cannons. It was the dark presence emanating from the intel officer’s seat.

“Two can play at that game.” Dipper’s grin could only be described as beautifully maniacal. He cleared his display with a single swipe, setting a new stage for his next performance.

Already, Coraline had an inkling of Dipper’s intentions, and unlike the Federation dogs, she knew better than to try and curb it. “Lili, ease off the guns.”

“If you say so.” There was hesitation, but Lili’s faith on her captain far outweighed her doubts.

“Wybie, weaken the shields at point 7 and 13.”

“W-weaken?”

“The mad scientist has a plan.”

That was all the good captain had to say. A few taps by Wybie, and the two specified spots slowly lost their strength.

In perfect accordance to Dipper’s precise prediction, the fighter jets took notice of the false weakness in the armor, and were all but salivating to chase after it like the dumb dogs they are. Ten jets, five on each point, broke formation, aimed towards the weakened spot, eager to die for their despicable cause. Ten would suffice for now.

Dipper’s routine was nearly finished. Numbers, symbols, and lines upon lines of code streamed forth in maddening formation, unintelligible but to a chosen few, like eldritch texts of myth and legend. The culprit, the conductor of this chaotic orchestra, flashed a wicked smirk, unleashed an unhinged chuckle. One decisive motion, and the tumultuous tempest coalesced into a single, circular mass of black light.

“Your life…” Dipper raised his hands to the unfeeling cosmos. The executioner’s sword poised to end their sinful life. “…is mine!”

He slammed his palm against the black mass. Their fate is sealed.

“Code: Dark Prison!”

The assault was overwhelming, yet unseen. Dark tendrils emerged from his domain, traveling, ravaging through virtual space. Their target: the operating systems of ten particular fighter jets. A graze was all that it took for the tendrils to infiltrate the firewall. They cannot evade in the realm of ones and zeroes. They did not stand a chance.

First, their machines shuddered, the entire system blinking on and off, as the tendrils violated every crevice of the coding. Then, sparks, as their lights, their display, went dark. Last, the display returned, but bearing only the eternal image of skull and crossbones, and the lights returned to life, but purple, bearing the same shade as the Lost Cipher - the last color they’ll ever see. The takeover was complete.

“You wish for death,” he chuckled. “Be careful what you wish for.”

Their machines turned, with the pilots trapped inside helpless to resist. At Dipper’s command, the jets took aim at their own capital ships, and set off at maximum speed. His target: the charging cannons.

The other Federation dogs were left none the wiser. Their squadmates were preoccupied with seeking glory to notice they had broken formation. The operators on the destroyers saw nothing wrong with ten of their own moving against the current. The trapped pilots screamed for help, begged for mercy, pleaded for their compatriots to notice their plight, but all hope for salvation had been taken from them. Even the option of ejecting was no longer theirs to make. The shields protecting the destroyers, still recognizing the jets as vessels loyal to the Federation, did nothing to stop their approach. Not a soul suspected a thing, until it was too late.

The impact, and the resulting chain reaction of explosions, was nothing short of beautiful.

Dipper leaned back, legs crossed, basking in the lightshow of fire and plasma and smoke and dust, of a well-deserved victory. On the opposite side of the bridge, Norman’s nose began to bleed.

“Their main cannons have been disabled. Their ships’ overall integrity has been lowered by forty four percent. I estimate twenty percent of the crew were lost in the explosion,” he listed in cold satisfaction. “Hell, even got that five-headed dolphin in the blast.”

“The what?”

Dipper blinked and shook his head. The dolphin carcass on his display disappeared, because it was never there. “Disregard that last statement.”

Smile Dip, man.

Raz cheered, Wybie and Eggs shared a fist bump, and even Lili allowed a chuckle to slip past her lips, but Coraline didn’t let herself be swept by euphoria. Something about this scenario didn’t sit well with the good captain. The Federation could have picked a multitude of methods to truly cause them grief - a small boarding party, a cloaked bombing run, or even a precision cyber-attack. To announce themselves so brazenly, so quickly with open assault was a horrendous strategy. Almost deliberately so.

“Wanna turn around and finish ‘em off, cap?” Raz asked with a grin that split his face. Anything other than a yes would greatly disappoint him.

“No. That’s enough fun for today,” came Coraline’s firm reply. “Wybes, we’re warping out. Start diverting power. Norman, those coordinates better be ready.”

The disappointment Raz felt was immeasurable. It nearly undermined the joys of victory he experienced mere seconds ago. But he listened, and obliged. Everyone onboard the vessel did. The captain’s expert, sometimes even uncanny intuition was one the main reasons why they remain living and breathing today. And that intuition continued to serve them. Because she is correct.

“Warp signature detected! Dead ahead!”

The ship fell into deathly silence. Quiet, reserved Norman never raised his voice. Whenever he did, it was a signal, an omen, of grand significance. For this scenario, his message was simple.

“It’s a cruiser! Keter-class!”

Hell is coming.

Simply exiting warp space caused a shockwave that staggered the Lost Cipher’s shields. A fortress of steel blotted out the sea of stars ahead, nearly thrice the size of their own vessel. A crest, instantly recognizable, of ivory and crimson, depicting a snarling, vicious watchdog of Hell. One of the Federation’s famed flagship, the Krass Jagdhund.

“Oh, fuck off,” Wybie moaned. “It’s one blueprint.”

Onboard, legions upon legions of blind dogs allowed the mechanical marvel of a monstrosity, the floating palace, to perform at optimum, lethal efficiency. A brutal hierarchy ensured that total obedience was the only acceptable paradigm. From the peons, to the rooks and knights, to the bishops and queen, all conformed, in service of the king. At the palace’s peak, inside the vessel’s bridge, stood the leader, commander, king - a despicable soul without a heart.

“The Hündchen and the Ferkel received more damage than our predictions expected, but both ships are still operational.”

“The pirate ship’s shields have been successfully weakened. What is your next order, General?”

The despicable soul raised a hand. The tyrant shall enforce his decree.

“Deploy the warp jammer.”

From the stern of the Krass Jagdhund, hundreds of metal cylinders were jettisoned into the sea of stars. The cylinders broke into pieces, forming a net of neon green lines that covered massive swaths of the cosmos, before the lines vanished from sight. A cold sweat broke upon each member of the Mystery Kids. Escaping was no longer an option.

“They’re throwing up a net! We can’t warp out!” Raz’s grip on the wheel tightened, fingers growing cold.

“I knew it.” Coraline’s defiant glare never faltered, even in the face of certain doom. “This was all a trap.”

The Mystery Kids must beware, for commanding the mobile palace of metal threatening them, was none other than the wicked, immoral, General Hugh Leonard Estarossa.

“Checkmate, filthy pirates,” the tyrant boasted. “You will pay dearly for the murder of my son.”

Quite the dilemma. Ahead, a flying fortress, one of the most feared flagship of the Federation, and behind, a pair of destroyers, damaged, but still operational, itching for vengeance. Truly, a rock and a hard place.

Coraline bit her lip. The good captain could feel it. The unease, growing more palpable with each passing second. The eyes of her friends, her comrades, upon her, silently imploring on their next course of action. She had already decided, and it brought her no joy to choose this path.

“Everyone lie down and play it cool,” the good captain ordered. Every syllable tasted like bile. “We’ve broken out of prisons before. We’ll do it again.”

Their frustration was immense, their anger justifiably rising, but even more was their faith in the good captain, and in each other. Lili depowered the automated weaponry. Mabel and Winnie took their hands off of the turret’s controls. Dipper, begrudgingly, prepared to open a channel to the Jagdhund, to negotiate their surrender.

Unfortunately for our heroes, the wicked general had other ideas.

“Send this message to all units,” decreed the degenerate. “Fire at will. Take no prisoners.”

The crew sensed it. More than that, they saw it. The destroyers moving into position. The swarm of jets advancing in formation. The cannons emerging from their ports and taking aim. The energy spike coming from all directions. A stranglehold of unfeeling steel, primed, ready to kill.

“Captain,” Raz spoke, heavy and grim. “I don’t think they’re planning on locking us up.”

Not a word was spoken. Not a word was heard. The dark vacuum of space turned green, filled with the deafening roar of photon cannon fire.

The entire ship trembled. The impact was enough to knock the crew to their knees. Miraculously, the little ship with the shield that could stood strong, but under this barrage, no one had any illusion of how this story would end. The good captain, always the one to shoulder burdens, made the difficult decision - their survival was paramount.

“Neil, grab our emergency gear! Wybie, put everything into the shields!” Coraline shouted, barely heard above the violent cacophony. “Then get your ass to the hangar and fire up your bike!”

The order has been given. Like it or not, the order must be carried out. Neil sprinted as fast as he could to the cargo room. Wybie and Eggs adjusted the power as per the captain’s words. Mabel and Winnie unbuckled themselves from the turret seats. Coraline and the others present on the bridge got their feet under them and slowly made their way to the door, as the ship continued to rumble and weaken under the Federation’s brutal, relentless barrage. The unfortunate retreat seemed to be proceeding favorably, until Raz noticed a troubling sight from the corner of his eyes.

“Dipper, what are you doing?!”

Three heads swiveled at the same time, to see that the intel officer had returned to his rightful seat, with his cyber warfare suite open and running, and his hands dancing furiously at the keyboard.

“No! We are not abandoning this ship!” The look on Dipper’s face was one of stubborn, fearsome, unshakeable determination. The look of an iron will.

Coraline had seen that look before, many times. She had to choose her words carefully. “Dipper, I get that studying this ship is important to you, but you have to be alive to do it.”

“That’s the Watchdog of Hell! They don’t stop until their prey is nothing but scrap metal!” Dipper pointed a finger at the window, at the crest of ivory and crimson beyond. “If this ship goes down, I’m going down with it!”

“No friend of mine is dying a death this stupid!” The good captain meant every word, every syllable of that sentence. She couldn’t bear to have it happen. Not again. “Get your ass out of that chair before I make you!”

Dipper opened his mouth, and was preemptively silenced by a beep, a notification, from the navigation module.

Norman stumbled back to his station, and gaped. “Something just entered sensor range.”

“Reinforcements?” Lili muttered. Her mind was already running a mile a second, of the various ways this scenario could get worse.

From the bowels of the Lost Cipher, Wybie’s voice could be heard, shrieking, “One! Blueprint!”

“I don’t think so. This signature is too small to be a ship, or even a jet.” Norman leaned closer to the screen. If he didn’t know better, he’d say it was small enough to be humanoid. Wink.

Dipper, ever the curious mind, opened a map of the area. “The unknown has entered the battlefield. Range 6. No, range 2!”

“That fast?!” Raz gasped, shocked beyond belief.

A bang. Another tremor rocked the ship. Red light bathed the bridge. They were distracted, and missed the signs. The scene out the window was a nightmare made real. A shower of shield shrapnels vanishing into the dark.

“They cracked our shield! A ship got through!”

Indeed. A Federation ship had dove into the shower. Its thrusters were set at maximum power, its nose aimed at the Lost Cipher’s bridge. Its intention couldn’t be clearer.

The distance closed. Not a single crew member looked away. Defiance, to the very end.

A blur of black and red. A flash of steel. A burst of fire and smoke, erupting only inches away from the glass.

Coraline and the others raised their arms to shield their faces, by instinct, from the blinding explosion. As they lowered their arms, as the smoke dispersed, a lone figure emerged.

“Senchou,” he spoke. “our paths cross once more.”

Coraline could only laugh, incredulous, relieved.

A solitary being clad in blackened robes stained with red. An enigmatic soul who had hidden his eyes behind a dark blindfold. A fearsome warrior wielding a deadly blade that never left its sheath. The one, the only, the lone swordsman of the astral sea.

“Kubo.”

“I assume you are in need of aid?” he asked, ever humble and cordial in tone.

Another burst of laughter. “Big time.”

Raz cleared his throat, a finger raised. “Uh, by the way, the Federation is a pretty nasty-”

“I am well aware of the Federation’s crimes.” Kubo’s voice dropped, much like the chills down everyone’s spine. “No convincing is necessary this time.”

“Oh, yes, please.” Dipper opened a new window on his display. The amount of data that he would gain of the elusive figure was simply mouthwatering.

A polite chuckle left Kubo’s lips. “I see the passage of time has not quelled Dipper’s fascination with me.”

“You’re his type.” Lili smirked. She got to live another day and they now have one of their most powerful allies present. Hell of a turnaround.

“You really are,” added Norman, much as he’d hate to admit.

The reunion was quaint, but the battle never ceased to rage. From the distance, through the field of shield shrapnels, a guided missile sped past. Its target: Kubo. The crew saw it approaching. No one in the crew was fast enough to warn him. The blast consumed him in a blanket of fire and ash.

The smoke cleared. Kubo remained. Unflinching. Not a hair, fold, or wrinkle out of place. He didn’t even look upset. Or at least, far as the crew could tell. He’s a difficult one to read, even without the blindfold.

“In return, I have one request, senchou.”

Kubo spun in place. The battlefield before him was fierce, and he faced it head on without a hint of fear. He shifted his grip on his blade. His blackened robes waved like the wings of freedom in the nonexistent wind.

“If you must blink, do it now.”

The lone swordsman launched into the fray. The crew could feel the entire ship being pushed backwards. A power to rend the cosmos.

A swarm of twenty jets were first in line, come to meet their maker. Kubo was damn eager to start. Twenty swings, faster than a hurricane. Twenty jets, gone down in one glorious explosion. His sword never left its sheath.

And the swordsman has only just begun. The fighters swarmed around the Lost Cipher like flies around a corpse. The Jagdhund was still scrambling jets by the dozen. The two destroyers were ready with another salvo of cannon fire. Hundreds more fools await. Hundreds more fools shall meet the same fate.

Aboard the Jagdhund, unrest was spreading in the bridge, due to the presence of a hostile unknown on the battlefield.

“The unknown just took out the 66th squadron!” one dog barked in panic.

“What is that…?” another whined as he leaned forward in curiosity.

“It’s an alien!” The despicable despot rose from his throne. “New orders, men! Shoot that thing down!”

A crooked finger hidden underneath an iron fist marked the fallen hero.

“Show that filthy beast the supremacy of humankind!”

Kubo sensed the change. The Federation forces have shifted their focus away from the Lost Cipher - good - and were now targeting him - better. All the easier for him to purge their existence from the universe. Hell, he had cut down twenty more fighters by the time this train of thought reached its end.

Meanwhile, the crew of the Lost Cipher has found themselves in quite the unusual position - that of a spectator. Indeed, all they could do was watch as, beyond the glass, Kubo flew across the astral sea like the wind itself, leaving a trail of flames, scrap, and bodies in his wake. When was the last time such glorious carnage occurred and they were not the culprits?

The door to the bridge slid open and the rest of the crew came barreling through. Clearly, they did not wish to miss the show.

“Did I hear that right?! He’s here?!” Wybie screeched, grinning.

Raz gestured towards the spectacle. “See for yourself.”

A thousand photon rounds turned the stars green, aimed towards Kubo. Pathetic. They cannot hope to match even a tenth of his speed. He dodged them all, moving at speeds impossible to follow by the human eye. Following the pointless onslaught, came an even more pointless swarm of a hundred jets. Kubo decided, he had wasted enough time. A fraction more of his power was needed.

Kubo stared down the swarm. Even hidden behind black cloth, each foolish pilot still felt the power of his gaze. The power of his blade. The power of a hurricane.

He breathed. Reared back. Breathed. Roared. And swung. One swing. One decisive arc. The dark sea turned blinding, merciless white. And the swarm was no more. Slashed to pieces, consumed by fire, reduced to atoms.

“Oh…” It was a miracle Wybie’s legs were still strong enough to stand, as he sighed, swooning, falling. “I’m in love.”

“Who in the bloody hell is that?” Winnie wondered in reverence, stepping closer to the front window. Violence has always intrigued her.

“That’s Kubo,” answered Lili.

“Who?” Eggs turned his head. His crewmates were being unnecessarily vague.

Coraline met his eyes with an amused glint. “Exactly.”

Kubo breathed once more. The battlefield had been cleared. Only stragglers remain, and the pilots within has learned. They have shown their true, cowardly colors, orders be damned. Most would consider such circumstance a victory, but Kubo didn’t allow himself to grin, or smirk, or smile. There was no pleasure to be gained from this. No peace. No going back. Not for him.

Kubo looked over his shoulder. His hidden eye pierced the impregnable hulls of the floating fortress. Every soul onboard in their right mind should be very, very afraid. How unfortunate then, that the one soul the others look to as a leader, wasn’t.

“Why have we stopped firing?! Why aren’t we sending out more fighters?!” he barked to the whelps scurrying around the bridge. “That filthy alien is still alive!”

One bridge lackey meekly raised a finger. “B-but, General, the alien has… that was nearly all of our ships…”

“We still have the Hündchen and the Ferkel. Order them to fire!” The general glared ahead through the glass. Pure hatred delivered without a word. “This battle isn’t over!”

Indeed, the two destroyers still remain. They have moved to flank either side of the Lost Cipher, to gain a better line of sight of Kubo. Really, all they did was move closer to their own demise. Kubo knew of their approach. He knew what must be done.

Kubo adjusted his grip on his blade. He held it close to his chest, both hands on the grip, the blade dividing his visage into two equal halves. His grip tightened, the lumber beneath splintering just a bit more. Upon his call, more and more fragments of his power surfaced. He felt the winds licking at the edges of his robes. Felt them welcoming him to their secrets, to the eye at the center of the chaos. All who support him, rejoice, and all who oppose him, despair, for now all shall witness the true power of a hurricane.

Kubo raised his blade to the heavens. And released.

Everyone saw. Everyone heard. Everyone felt. The explosion of energy, invisible yet tangible. The wind surging, spiraling around him, growing faster, stronger, angrier with every cycle. The impossible cyclone forming in the vacuum of starlight, dwarfing even the steel fortress. The act of divine right - a glimpse of the power possessed by beings above mere mortals.

Eggs’ jaw hit the floor at the speed of light. “That’s a tornado. In space.”

“Dude’s been chopping ships in half with a sheathed sword.” Wybie’s grin stretched to split his face. “Just enjoy the show.”

Kubo’s first target: the Hündchen.

Coraline’s honed instincts screamed. “Raz! Gravity anchors!”

Raz rushed to the wheel and pulled a lever. The gravity anchors were set in place. A smart move by the good captain. This will get extremely bumpy.

Kubo roared. The blade swung in a wide, downward slash. The violent vortex had no choice but to follow its will. The Lost Cipher began to rumble as the colossal tornado loomed ever closer, but the gravity anchors held firm, and the ship stayed in place. It could weather a passing glance from the whirlwind. Such a blessing was not given to the Hündchen.

It tried to escape. The crew onboard finally valued their own lives more than the order of their superiors, unfortunately, a tad too late. They could only flail like fools and beg in vain as their vessel was struck with the full brunt of the hurricane. The puny thing didn’t stand a chance. The wind swept it into the maddening torrent as if it was nothing but a plastic toy.

Next: the Ferkel.

A wide, upward slash. The tornado, and the Hündchen with it, came for the Ferkel from below. It too attempted an escape. The crew too was reduced to whimpering whelps. The result was all too predictable. Another toy swept away by the hurricane. And as both ships tossed and turned and twisted in the terrible torrent, impact between them was inevitable. Metal crashed against metal. Steel was bent, ruptured, torn apart. Sections of both ships were either breached or broke apart entirely. The helpless crewmembers within were sucked out by the vortex, and left to freeze and die in the dark vacuum. A terrifying, breathtaking spectacle.

Kubo glared over his shoulder.

Last: the Watchdog of Hell itself, the Krass Jagdhund.

“Stand your ground, men!” the tyrant screeched. Panic was settling. His grip was slipping. “If I see even a hint of cowardice on this vessel, I’ll cut you all down myself!”

And the worst of him surfaces. Threatening insubordination with death. There was no love between this captain and his crew. No respect. Only fear. And only weak men rule through fear.

Kubo has no time for men like him.

He spun in place. His blade sliced the dark sea in a perfect arc. The tornado, and the burning carcass of two Euclid-class destroyers, followed his will.

Hugh Leonard Estarossa, captain of the Krass Jadghund, feared general of the mighty Federation, let his iron fists fall slack to his sides, as he bore witness to a looming storm of steel.

Upon noticing their captain’s distress, the entire crew ceased their panic, got their act together, and successfully repelled the incoming debris field.

Hah.

“Abandon ship! Abandon ship!”

“Fuck this! Fuck everything!”

“I’m taking the escape pod, assholes!”

“You take it, you’re dead!”

“Every man for himself!”

Let this be a lesson to all who hears of this tale: Fear never prevails.

There was a certain sense of hilarity to be had, witnessing the once orderly officers of the Federation degenerate into frantic, backstabbing savages in order to ensure their own selfish survival. The hilarity only reached its zenith, because all the dogs onboard seemed to think surviving was a possibility.

The first impact was the tornado. The sheer force of it pushed the entire vessel back. Fierce winds reaching incalculable speeds flayed the steel off of the ship’s frame. Cannons were bent and broken, rendered inoperable. Even if the crew hadn’t run off like headless chickens, the ship was practically defenseless.

The second impact was the two destroyer carcasses. Not even the shield of a Keter-class cruiser was able to withstand two destroyers ramming it at full speed. The metal behind it fared no better. The highest quality space-grade steel reduced to cheap scrap in mere seconds. One explosion triggered another, then another, then another. Entire sections were set aflame, all hands lost. How far the Watchdog of Hell has fallen.

Now. The final strike.

Kubo laid a hand on the sheath, and with a flourish, finally, freed the blade beneath, letting the sheath disappear into the starlit sea. The steel was black, as dark as his robes, his hair, his blindfold. Sometimes, it would reflect the light from nearby stars, like a moon.

Within the burning bridge of the Krass Jagdhund, a bloodied tyrant rose from the wreckage, struggling to his feet. He gazed ahead, through the cracking window of his post, at the swordsman in black who had dealt his doom, his eyes filled with rage, denial, and fear.

“What. Are you.”

A soul with a heart. Unlike you.

Kubo squeezed the grip with both hands, and raised the blade to the heavens. The steel changed, glowing as it surged with power, no longer dark. It shined with its own light, like the sun.

“Tatsumaki! Zankatou!”

The fortress of steel, the snarling crest of ivory and crimson, the cruel captain, the despicable soul; one strike cleaved them all in twain.

Each half slid out of alignment.

The wind carried the blade’s sheath to Kubo’s hand.

“There is nothing my sword cannot cut!”

Kubo slid the sword inside the sheath with one smooth motion.

The universe turned white. The Watchdog of Hell was no more.

The Mystery Kids shielded their eyes from the blinding blast. The Lost Cipher’s gravity anchors were pushed to its limit, screaming as it struggled to keep the ship in place. When the ship finally stilled, and the sea of stars was dark once more, the crew lowered their arms and their guard. Their eyes searched, a singular question in their thoughts.

Where is Kubo?

Their answer came when a figure in blackened robes descended from the heavens to land gracefully upon the Lost Cipher’s figurehead.

“Holy-” Eggs opened his mouth to speak, but found no words matched what he felt better than, “Bloody hell…”

“Huh.” Winnie discreetly squeezed her thighs together. Still wasn’t clear on who he is, but damn. She knew what she’ll be dreaming tonight. “I’m wet.”

One step, and Kubo floated like a feather from the figurehead to come to rest before the bridge window. Though his eye was hidden, the crew could still feel his gaze.

“Did you blink?”

“And miss a second of that show? Hell no.” The good captain smiled. How joyful it was to smile.

Kubo dropped to a polite, practiced bow. “Then I am grateful.”

“Feels like that should be our line,” Raz chuckled, sheepish.

“Howzabout you step inside so we can show you just how grateful we really are?” Mabel’s grin and waggling eyebrows promised of titillating encounters.

Lili slapped her shoulder with the back of her hand, like a newspaper to an overzealous pup. “Down, girl.”

“Please do,” Dipper breathed, his eyes shining with the glint of scientific thirst.

Norman slapped his shoulder with the back of his hand, like a newspaper to an overzealous pup. He said nothing.

“Well, a proper introduction wouldn’t hurt.” Eggs shrugged. The boy was always excited to meet new friends.

“An introduction would be lovely.” Winnie leaned forward, and purred.

Lili could only sigh. “Neil, get the leashes. Again.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Kubo raised a hand. The barest hint of an amused smile had broken through. “I cannot stay.”

“Now, whaddya mean by that?” Wybie narrowed his eyes.

His eye might be hidden, but the crew could’ve sworn he’s trying not to look at them. “I have someplace else to be. My apologies.”

“Not even for a little bit?” Neil pouted, until a brilliant idea struck him. “Mabel’s got more Mabel Juice…”

“This time, with one hundred percent more sticky nut juice!” Mabel pumped a triumphant arm to the air. The others either snickered or groaned.

“One day, I’ll get you to stop referring to peanut butter like that.” One could imagine which camp Dipper belonged to.

Kubo twisted his lips. Genuine conflict raged within him. One even fiercer than the battle that had just taken place. “I do enjoy that drink. But I’m afraid I must refuse,” he eventually replied.

“Oh, come on! You can’t just take off already,” Wybie whined. And who could blame him? Everyone is fond of this lone swordsman.

“You gotta cut yourself some slack, dude!” Raz stretched, as if in demonstration. “Let loose! Have some laughs! Jam to some good music! Eat some Smile Dip! In fact, I think we still got a packet left over.”

Kubo stilled. A sharp intake of breath went unnoticed by the crew. Music. How he longed to create such auditory pleasures again. To hold his beloved instrument in his arms once more. But such a life was behind him. Far, far behind him.

“Crew.” Coraline’s words silenced any other plea they were about to make. “Kubo’s got his own shit to deal with. He just saved our lives. The least we could do is respect that.”

“But,” Coraline stepped closer to the window, stepped closer to Kubo, missing only a literal olive branch, “in my experience, shit is always easier to handle when you’ve got more than two hands.”

Coraline smiled. The good captain’s always was infectious. The spread was rapid, and acute. They glanced amongst themselves, and at Kubo, offering only their best, brightest smiles. A promise of true and pure companionship.

“My offer still stands, Kubo.” The power of friendship only emboldened Coraline. She was certain this was what he needed. “Join us and we can help you.”

The good captain’s uncanny intuition served her well once more. Indeed, she was right. The warmth, the bond between the Mystery Kids stirred something deep in his heart. He longed for this, more than anything. And yet…

“I mean no disrespect, but my answer remains the same, Coraline-senchou.” Kubo turned away and walked to the edge of the deck, his dark robes flowing behind him in the nonexistent wind. “Mine is a path best walked alone.”

Coraline��s smile faltered. They all faltered. But upsetting their savior would be the last thing they wanted.

“I’m not gonna pretend I’m not disappointed,” she said. “But the decision is yours. We can’t force anything on you.”

Kubo’s stony visage cracked to reveal a smirk. “It would be foolish of you to try.”

A few scattered chuckles came in response. A balm, for the melancholic heart within. Our heroes knew of the unspoken inevitability. This would be farewell. For now.

“Until we meet again, Mystery Kids,” Kubo said. A promise, and a premonition. “May your tale continue to be in your favor.”

Kubo turned to face the endless, eternal sea of stars. One step. Two steps. And the lone swordsman was gone, carried by the cosmic wind, vanishing into the dark expanse.

Coraline moved to the window, to lay a hopeful hand against the glass.

“Hope your tale goes in your favor too.”

Another name for this AU could be Anime Bullshit AU.

So! That was Kubo. Or, more accurately, that was Edgy Kubo. Sort of. He’s still nice, he’s just had a bucket of black paint dropped on him. Well, a couple other things also got dumped on him. It’ll all be explained, eventually. For now, just live with the mystery.

Also. Holy shit, ya boy actually did it. Ever since I started writing again, my dream has always been to write one of those absolutely BS over the top anime fight scenes. Finally, I came up with a scenario where shit like this can happen. It caused me a bit of trouble, I’ll admit, because I ended up worrying too much about it being good, that it slowed my writing speed down to a crawl. Thank god I got over myself.

Anyway. Hope you enjoyed reading that. Stay safe out there, folks. And here are your Japanese words for the day.

Senchou = (ship) captain

Tatsumaki = tornado

Zankatou = ship-cleaving sword.

#mystery kids #kubo and the two strings #coraline #psychonauts #gravity falls #paranorman #the boxtrolls #kubo #coraline jones #wybie lovat #razputin aquato #lili zanotto #dipper pines #mabel pines #norman babcock #neil downe #eggs #winnie portley rind #The Audacious Tales of the Lost Cipher

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pitchperfectinspace · 1 year

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Pitch Perfect in Space: Amy's Mission

The scene opens on the rehearsal space aboard the USS Bella-trix, where the Bellas are struggling to come up with a proper tribute song for Bumper for the final round of the Galactic Federation singing competition. They are sitting in a circle, their faces filled with sadness and frustration.

Suddenly, Chloe looks up, her face filled with concern. "Where's Fat Amy?" she asks, her voice filled with worry. "She's been gone for a while now. Do you think she's okay?"

The other Bellas exchange a look, their faces filled with concern. They have no idea where Fat Amy is, and they are starting to worry.

Just then, the alarm on the ship blares, and Captain Cynthia's voice comes over the intercom. "Attention, all Bellas," she says, her voice filled with urgency. "We have a situation. The C-Sharp, our shuttle vehicle, has been stolen. I repeat, the C-Sharp has been stolen."

The Bellas gasp, their faces filled with shock and horror. They know that the C-Sharp is their only means of transportation, and without it, they are stranded in space.

Chloe and Captain Cynthia race to the shuttle bay, their hearts pounding with fear and worry. When they arrive, they see Fat Amy sitting in the cockpit of the C-Sharp, her face set in determination.

"Fat Amy, what are you doing?!" Captain Cynthia shouts, her voice filled with anger and frustration. "You can't just take the C-Sharp without permission!"

Fat Amy turns to them, her eyes blazing with anger. "I have to do this, Captain," she says, her voice filled with conviction. "I have to go to the home world of the Chordinox, the ancient acapella weapon. I have to find the Chordinox and bring it back here, to help us win the competition and defeat DSM."

Chloe and Captain Cynthia stare at her, their mouths open in shock. They have no idea what Fat Amy is talking about, and they can't believe that she would do something so reckless.

"Fat Amy, you can't do this," Chloe says, her voice filled with concern. "You'll be killed if you go to the home world of the Chordinox. It's too dangerous. Please, come back with us."

But Fat Amy is determined, and she shakes her head, her eyes filled with determination. "I'm sorry, Chloe," she says, her voice filled with regret. "I have to do this. For Bumper, and for the Bellas. I'll be back soon, I promise."

Click here to see all currently posted chapters of Pitch Perfect in Space!

#pitch perfect #ai #fanfic #pitch perfect in space #pitch perfect in space 1 #pitch perfect in space canon

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deceptailgate · 4 years

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Orik board for @glitched-fox !! I hope u like it!

Requests are open!

#tgs moodboards #steamworld #steamworld quest #orik #orik steamworld #orik aesthetic #orik moodboard #steamworld aesthetic #steamworld moodboard #galactic intercoms

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texeoghea · 4 years

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I got so excited abt my tablet working again that I made a whole ref for W.D., one of my new ocs

W.D. doesn’t stand for anything at the moment, it was just letters that I liked

#my ocs #my art #original character #robots #androids #aliens #alien robot #alien tech #alien technology #w.d.#idk how to tag this sguhriugh #his boyfriend OF COURSE belongs to the incredibly handsome @databuffer #his name's yo-yo and hes a monster boy :)#artists on tumblr #illustrators on tumblr #galactic intercoms

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spectre-fivee · 3 years

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Over the Moon: Obi Wan Kenobi x Reader

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 8081 (wtf this is so close to Anakin’s secret password or whatever, also WOW this is easily the longest piece I’ve ever written)

Warnings: HEAVY smut, both male and female receiving oral, unprotected sex, lots and lots of dirty talk, heavy use of the word ‘master’, dom/sub play, slight brat taming, praise and humiliation kink, edging, slight force play & restraint

A/N: Hey yalllll I’m back with another smut LMAO this is a prequel to let me take care of you, my first obi-wan smut :DD this is LONG asf and includes a small backstory but I promise the majority of it includes smut scenes lol. I hope you guys enjoy and I love your feedback!! much love <3

******************

You were over the moon when you found out that you would be accompanied by General Obi Wan Kenobi on your next business trip.

Literally. Quite literally, you were over the moon. You had just coincidentally flown over Centax-3 and were now in pursuit to Coruscant's surface in preparation for your oncoming journey, and you were so beyond excited that you found it hard to contain yourself around your personal guards. Just as you entered the planet’s atmosphere, you decided you had enough of the automated briefing and muted the transmitter on your arm. You were too focused on the fact that you were going to be alone with General Kenobi for an entire day.

Well, night really. You had managed to catch that part of the briefing.

You could watch it later. As you packed, perhaps. It was fine.

Feeling like a little girl as you basically pranced back to your quarters, you lugged a small bag out of your closet and began to fill it with necessities.

Being a senator for so many years had forced you into countless situations with General Kenobi, but never such as this one. When you met the Jedi Knight in the beginning of your career, the two of you clicked almost instantly. Over time, your admiration of the man blossomed into something...different.

Oftentimes the general would escort you from the Senate Chamber itself all the way to your office on the third floor. He had always been so well spoken and full to the brim with witty charm, enough to make you feel like a total schoolgirl when you locked yourself in your office, squealing and jumping up and down after your encounters with him. Sometimes, you would accompany Obi Wan on walks both inside and outside the building. One time, he was kind enough to show you the gardens outside the Jedi temple on Coruscant. Other times, you were simply by his side in the senate halls, holding your stomach as you just about died of laughter. It was all you could do to keep yourself from absolutely melting when he looked at you with those glittering blue eyes, his lips curved up into a smirk.

Butterflies swarmed in a vicious frenzy as you packed your bag, your cheeks so hot you thought you might explode just at the thought of General Kenobi. You looked up when you heard a soft knock at your door. “Come in,” You had said before a guard stepped inside and informed you that you were leaving earlier than the time scheduled. You nodded and rose to your feet swiftly with a polite smile.

“That’s alright, I’m already prepared.”

***************

The only thing you had forgotten was to finish watching the automated briefing.

Which, arguably, should have been at the top of your list. But somehow it had just slipped from your mind. Now, you were positioned in between General Kenobi and his commander, CC-2224, but you knew him as Cody. The two men remained quiet and Obi Wan tapped through the data pad in his hand. When you glanced at Cody, you couldn’t tell what exactly he was looking at or if he even had his eyes open under his helmet, he was so quiet. Either way, you cast him a polite smile when you glanced his way.

You felt kind of awful, really. This was, on your part, a mission regarding humanitarian aid, and you were the Galactic Republic’s representative in this instance. You didn’t know anything about this planet you were traveling to, only its name - Lelroth. You didn’t know the people’s conditions nor how much territory the Separatists occupied, that is, unless the citizens had decided to stand their ground.

A clone trooper’s voice came over the intercom of the transporter. “We’ll be arriving shortly.”

You tried to peek at Obi Wan’s data pad in hopes of receiving any information. “Have you ever been to Lelroth?” You asked.

He glanced up at you. “No. Frankly, I have no idea what to expect.”

“Well, that makes two of us.” You muttered quietly. His eyebrows quirked up as he stared at you.

“What?” You asked.

“You...received the briefing, correct?” He asked, and immediately your palms began to sweat.

“Of course I received the briefing.” You responded a little too defensively. He gave you a small grin before looking back down at the tablet in his hands.

You glanced over at Cody nervously as if expecting a response. You felt stupid after your eyes fell onto his yellow helmet, hearing Obi Wan step away and enter the pilot’s cabin.

“You didn’t watch the briefing, did you?” Cody asked, his voice hushed and amused.

“No.” You said. “No, I did not.”

You heard his chuckle through the moderator in his helmet as heat rose to your cheeks. You couldn’t help but smile and punch him playfully, giggling slightly. He leaned closer and began to fill you in quietly, and all jokes fell aside when you learned of the planet’s condition.

Few months prior, Lelroth had fallen under separatist control after the population had been forced under Count Dooku’s submission. The Republic Senate had been receiving reports of just about anything you could think of to describe a humanitarian crisis. You stumbled into Cody a bit as the ship landed.

“We’re here.” The pilot announced as the hatch lowered with a loud, steaming noise.

You squinted as bright sunlight poured into the cabin, raising a hand up to block the sun as Obi Wan stepped out. Lelroth’s atmosphere was thick and humid as you followed him, listening to the dirt crumble beneath your feet as you stepped out. You gazed around the enclosing woods with a small smile, the saturation taking you by surprise after being stuck on Coruscant’s smoggy surface for so long. Though it was muggy, the air felt clean and fresh as you took in a deep breath. You swore you could almost taste the moisture on your tongue.

“Preferably tomorrow morning, yes. I’ll be contacting the council tonight and…” The general’s voice came in and out of earshot as you glanced over at the assault carrier you arrived on. You watched as the clones nodded swiftly at the Jedi’s words, saluting him one last time before the hatch closed and the ship descended through the trees. It was gone almost as quickly as it had arrived.

Obi Wan sighed and pulled the data pad back out of the abyss of his dark cloak before tapping at the screen again. “Let’s make this quick, shall we?” He murmured.

You laughed slightly. “Is my presence such a bother?” The tablet still held his attention as he flashed you a grin.

“Oh, yes. That’s definitely the reason.” He joked.

A sickening feeling started to grab at your stomach after hearing Cody describe the condition on Lelroth. You were unnerved, and regardless of the fact that you had a Jedi Knight as your company, you two were members of the Galactic Republic isolated on separatist territory.

“We should get going.” You murmured. “They’ll be expecting us soon.” you watched Obi Wan pull his large hood over his head as he murmured something under his breath, stepping forward and heading deep into the thick forest with you on his tail.

****************

The Lelrothians were a kind people. Their reaction to your arrival with the general was rather pleasant - they went so far as to throw a feast in you and the general’s honor. After meeting with the chief of the village you would reside in, you finally got a real understanding of the Lelrothians’ situation. You and Kenobi shared a grimaced glance as the chief went on to describe the state of his village alone.

He explained how a large percentage of the newfound members in his village were forced to flee the capital city after falling under a dark hand. You assumed the state of the capital was even worse than this small village as he reported substantial amounts of depleted resources. Running water had been cut off to many families and citizens could no longer supply food on their tables. The chief even mentioned the punishments some experienced for resisting - you weren’t surprised in the nearest after hearing tales of the wicked actions of General Grievous and his clanker army, but still...it was hard to hear.

“We were neutral ground,” You gazed over the chief’s descending head tails as he spoke. Dinek Kev was a twi’lek himself, his account thick and common amongst most of his species. When you glanced around the table, there had to be over fifteen different species in just the room alone. Sullustans, Ithorians, even a few Gungans and a Wookiee occupied a seat at the table. You smiled to yourself and returned your attention to the orange skin of Chief Dinek as he spoke.

“A peaceful people. Nearly everyone in this room is an immigrant or comes from one, somebody who was seeking peace. Other pacifist planets such as Mandalore seem to have been fine as they’ve remained neutral.”

“Believe me, Chief - Mandalore has been experiencing a great deal of their own internal conflict.” General Kenobi spoke.

“Forgive me, Jedi.” Dinek murmured quickly. “I’m just...desperate. I would have never taken the role of chief if it weren’t for Grievous and his army - I only want to protect my family and my home.”

You reached out and took Dinek’s hand, staring into his eyes sympathetically. “I’ll open it up for discussion in the senate as soon as I return to Coruscant. I promise you, Chief Dinek, we’re going to provide Lelroth with humanitarian aid and drive the separatists out of here.”

“I’ll speak with the council tonight.” The hood of Obi Wan’s cloak hung lazily around his neck as he murmured, stroking his beard in his typical fashion. His delicate blue eyes were glued onto his empty plate. Dinek squeezed your hand and began to thank the two of you profusely. You bit your lip, hesitant to discuss the requirements in order for any agreement to come through within the senate.

“Chief Dinek,” You started. “The villagers are going to have to learn to defend themselves.”

All you got from him in response was a simple blink, a common reaction among those the Jedi come to aid. Most planets that fall under separatist control hold peaceful populations, those who don’t believe in waging war and therefore seeing no need for a military. You desperately wished it didn’t have to be this way. It was heartbreaking seeing simple, innocent lives dragged into the Clone Wars, and one day, you hoped that the galaxy would evolve into one where war could be completely evaded.

“Defend ourselves? You mean train us to fight?” Dinek asked.

“Yes.” You replied.

“That is why we’re here.” Obi Wan explained. The chief finally slid his hand from yours and seemed to recoil at the words spoken. “The Jedi can only aid so much, Chief. The Lelrothians need to learn to defend themselves in order to be sure of complete safety from the separatists.”

After a moment of watching the chief calculate in silence, he looked up at you two with an entirely different expression on his face. He glanced around the dim room and gazed over his people with a small smile curved upon his lips. His eyes darted to yours before Obi Wan’s as he spoke.

“You’re right. The Lelrothians are never going to evade this if we don’t take matters into our own hands.” You smiled at Dinek’s words.

“Good.” Obi Wan stroked his beard again.

“I’ll leave for Coruscant at dawn and begin discussion in the senate.” You announced.

“Yes, and that is when training will begin. Tonight I will get an idea of when reinforcements will arrive on Lelroth. We’ll have a very short timespan to train, I suspect.” The general uttered.

“General Kenobi and I will stay in contact and you’ll be the first to know the senate’s decision.” You concluded. Dinek took your hand again and smiled/

“Thank you. Thank you so much.” As he spoke, music began to sound from the instruments held by those up on a small, makeshift stage. The villagers began to cheer and rose to their feet, clapping along to the tune that billowed out from various horns. You grinned as the chief stood and joined his people, taking a woman’s hand delicately and spinning her in delight.

You looked over at Obi Wan with a smile. He looked up at you and met your gaze with the rise of an eyebrow. “What?” He asked.

“Wanna dance?” You giggled. He merely scoffed.

“That would seem a bit unprofessional.” You rolled your eyes with a smile.

“Oh, lighten up, General. They threw an entire feast in our honor, surely we can dance with them.”

He smiled at you sarcastically. “I’ll pass.”

“C’mon. You know you want to.” You pressed, nudging him playfully.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He answered simply.

“Just relax. It’s not like you’ll get kicked out of the order or whatever. It’s just dancing!” He glanced up at you in his seat as you stood, grinning down at him.

“You can be very nagging, did you know that?” He asked. You offered your hand, the same stupid grin plastered onto your lips. He scoffed again and reluctantly took it, rising to his feet slowly.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” He muttered with a grin as you pulled him over to the crowd and were instantly submerged by cheers, laughter, and celebration, having the time of your life with Obi Wan at your side.

**********************

The celebration soon came to an end and after a brief escort from Chief Dinek and a few of his men, you and General Kenobi arrived at the motel you would come to stay at briefly. The neon lights of the vacancy sign cast a bleached hot pink color onto the gravel beneath your feet. It crunched and crumbled as you stepped, tuning out of Obi Wan and Dinek’s conversation as you were led into the cramped lobby.

The wallpaper was faded and chipping in the room surrounding the front desk. A small Sullustan woman sat in an organically shaped velvet chair with a book open in front of her. Dinek stepped forward and quickly informed her that you and Kenobi were the reinforcements sent from Coruscant. You listened as she told the chief that there was only one room available, in which you and Obi Wan shrugged off. She thanked the two of you, passed over the room key and sent you on your way. As you trudged up the wooden stairs that led to the second floor, you heard Obi Wan sigh.

“Tired from all that dancing, General?” You chuckled. “You sure know how to get down.”

“Yes, but you on the other hand…” He trailed off, and when you looked back at him with a dramatic expression on your face, he chuckled.

You smiled and swiped the key card through the slot outside the door. “Whatever.”

The two of you didn’t think much of the fact that there was only one room available. It didn’t matter to either of you, because all motel rooms generally contain two separate beds, right?

Wrong. Apparently, all hotel rooms except this one contained two separate beds. Your jaw wanted to hang open at the sight of it, really. Obi Wan froze in his tracks when he entered the compact room.

“Not even a sofa?” you commented. The door still hung open behind you when Obi Wan turned and met your gaze almost frantically.

“There has to be a mistake.” He said.

“She said this was the only room available. Dinek said this was the only lodge in the village.” You mumbled, finally shutting the door.

“Right, well.” The general uttered and stroked his beard once again, beginning to pace as he did so. “I guess I’ll sleep on the floor.”

You rolled your eyes. “Oh, don’t be ridiculous. I’ll sleep on the floor, you have to train in the morning.” You watched as he traveled over to the chairs seated at a tiny round table in front of the window. They were a brilliant orange in contrast to the faded, once flamboyant green walls.

“No. The chair will do.” He said as he sunk into the cushion. “See?” He planted his feet onto the stem of the table, pushing it back so it allowed him to stretch his ankles over the surface. You only stared at him with your eyebrows raised.

“It beats the floor.” Obi Wan shrugged. You shook your head, smiling as you sat on the edge of the bed. You were facing forward, looking at the painting that hung on the wall before you. The sheets on the mattress were an ugly plaid that was laced with oranges, reds, greens and browns. It was very dated, but at the same time it almost felt...homey.

“We’re adults, aren’t we?” You chuckled. “This is only a business trip, General. Stars, if we have to we can just build a pillow wall between the two of us.”

When you didn’t get an immediate response, you glanced over at him only to see the amused expression on his face. But it was the kind of amused look that nearly belittles you and makes you feel completely and utterly ridiculous.

“Yes, and a business trip it will remain.” He uttered. “I do hope you’re joking.”

Your cheeks grew hot in flustered embarrassment. “Uh - I mean, yeah. Totally kidding.” You darted your eyes to your feet and began to swing them back and forth childishly. You heard chuckling from the general’s end but didn’t dare look over at him. You didn’t need to, you already knew he was sitting back and staring at the data pad again.

Moments passed and you had nothing else better to do than sift through the dusty magazines that sat below the bedside table. The lamp atop the metal surface cast a warm, dim yellow light through the room. It made you feel almost cozy as you flipped through the old pages, reading the articles and gazing at some of the most beautiful alien models you had ever laid eyes on. “Wish they had a holonet in here.” You muttered, bored and wishing for some kind of noise instead of this awkward silence that hung in the air.

Time continued to drag on and it grew late enough for you to decide to head into the bathroom to change your clothes. You turned the handle and listened as the faucet began to run while staring at yourself in the mirror. The general seemed grumpy after your comment, and you weren’t sure why. It was easily played off as a joke, you thought...besides, you only wanted to save him from a little back pain and stiffness in the morning.

You were only trying to be polite. And, well...you were secretly hoping for a little more than that.

As you splashed warm water onto your face, you heard Obi Wan’s voice from the other side of the door and watched as his figure cast shadows across the tile you stood on. The automated voice of Master Yoda and Master Mace Windu echoed around the small room as the general began to discuss with the council.

When you stepped out of the bathroom and crawled under the covers, you tried your best not to eavesdrop on his conversation. You stared at the magazine in your lap blankly.

All he was doing was pacing, it was rather distracting. You wished this place had a radio or something, or that it was safe enough to take a short walk. The meeting between Obi Wan and the other Jedi Masters seemed to last eons as you found your eyelids growing heavy. You stared at the cover of the magazine, it showcased a twi’lek woman posing in front of a ship. You yawned, cast it aside and allowed sleep to take over completely.

******************

When you woke up, it was still dark outside. The lamp beside your bed had been shut off by Obi Wan, but the one hanging above the chair he sat in remained lit as he set down the data pad with a sigh. You weren’t sure what had woken you up, and as you gazed at the general while you laid on your side, you didn’t really care.

You could tell he was weary as he blinked slowly and ran his fingers through his hair. Glancing away, you felt slightly creepy as you stared at him for so long. But, I mean, could you really blame yourself?

After moments of silence, Obi Wan was the one to break it. “My apologies. I didn’t realize that the meeting would take so long.” His voice was deep and a bit croaky as it came out.

“It’s okay.” Was all you said as he reached for the light above him.

“Get some sleep,” he murmured.

“Are you sure you don’t want to share the bed?” You made sure it was apparent that you were joking as you smiled and chuckled, gazing at him as you did so. He paused for a moment, staring at you before his lips curved up into a grin.

“I see that pillow wall is still up for discussion?” He teased, and you laughed again.

“C’mon, it won’t bite. Besides, I’m only trying to save you from a little back pain.”

“Senator, are you implying that I’m old?” He chuckled.

“No, but I do understand that the dancing was already a step over the line for you.” You giggled, smirking. “Hurry up with that decision making please, I’m tired.”

Obi Wan laughed slightly before reaching up and turning off the light. To your disappointment, he didn’t stand up from his chair. You sighed softly and shut your eyes, letting go of the situation as you focused on falling asleep again.

Just as your mind began to wander, you felt a weight sink into the mattress beside you. Your eyes flew open as Obi Wan climbed into bed next to you, only to stare at the complete darkness that surrounded.

You grinned. “Did you change your mind?”

He sighed as he settled in. You could feel him, mere inches away from you as he relaxed. “Don’t make me regret it, Senator.”

You chuckled as darker thoughts began to consume you, reminding yourself that this was a business trip - strictly business. You wondered if Obi Wan thought the same, but you shot that down with another reality check as well.

You wanted to say something, but you didn’t. You couldn’t. You were worried that Obi Wan was actually trying to sleep, and you didn’t want to disturb him, or worse - make things even more awkward like earlier. Now, more than ever, you knew you were never going to fall asleep with Obi Wan Kenobi lying next to you.

“Are you alright?”

“Hm?”

“I can practically feel how restless you are at the moment.” He murmured.

“Am I moving too much or is it your spooky voodoo magic?” You asked. He began to chuckle softly.

“Do you mean the Force?”

“Yeah, that.”

“It doesn’t take a Jedi to feel you staring at me.” The grin in his voice made you feel even more embarrassed as you rolled over onto your opposite side, your eyes squeezed shut.

Obi Wan hesitated for a moment before murmuring, “I never said stop, darling. I don’t mind.” His words ignited a spark that released trillions of butterflies swarming in your stomach, and you couldn’t stop the gigantic smile that was forming on your lips.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” As you responded, you felt the general’s weight shift behind you.

His voice came from above you now. “Oh, you didn’t hear me clearly?” You felt his hot breath against your ear as he spoke his next sentence. “I said, I don’t mind your staring. I just wish you would stare at me when I could see you doing it.” His mumbling spiraled into your ear and descended down your body, pausing right in between your legs. You crossed them tight in instinct, nearly gasping.

“I thought you said this trip was strictly business, General.” You breathed.

“Like you said, I already crossed the line when you forced me to dance.” He joked. “Besides, I think we’ve both waited long enough for this moment.” His voice was hushed and gravelly and Stars, sexy as it rumbled into your ear. You turned until you felt his lips were hovering over yours in the darkness, the mattress creaking as you did so.

“You didn’t seem to think that way earlier.” You mumbled, a fat smirk on your face as you teased him. He sunk himself closer to you and you swore you felt his lips brush against yours for a second.

“Nobody needs to know,” He whispered. A moment of silence passed before he dove his lips into yours, drawing out a small sound of surprise from you. You felt his forearm come down beside your head and he let out the tiniest of groans. You knew this was coming judging by your previous dialogue, but you were still in shock. For a moment, you seemed to be dead weight as Obi Wan crawled on top of you. The only thing that moved was your lips against his until realization finally kicked in.

It started with your hands, which rose up swiftly to grab the sides of his face. His beard felt scratchy beneath your fingers in the best way as you hooked your legs around his waist. You had always wanted to touch him like this, to feel and move with him as your mouths were connected and one was on top of the other. It was something you could only fantasize about for the longest time until you had to tell yourself it was never going to happen. But now, it was happening.

His lips were as soft and welcoming as the pillows beneath your head as he kissed you. It was deep and passionate and almost aggressive, and that alone confirmed to you that Kenobi wanted you just as much as you wanted him.

Following your hands came your tongue as you pressed it between his lips gently, silently asking for entrance into the warm cave of his mouth. He granted permission and you felt his hand entangle in your hair when your tongues met. You sat up slightly, pushing yourself into him further as you dragged your teeth across the pink valley of his bottom lip. The grip nestled in your hair tightened in reaction and you giggled softly into him.

He tasted of fresh mint, and you found yourself wondering if he had brushed his teeth mere moments before this. He was dominating and absolutely thrilling as he rolled over, allowing you to straddle his waist and dip your chin down to his neck to leave a series of pecks down his flesh.

“Someone’s eager,” he commented, and in response you bit down slightly into his skin. He made a small startled noise in response before chuckling, abruptly flipping you onto your back. He left you breathless as his lips collided into yours again, and he groaned when you arched into him. His hands were absolutely everywhere. They ran from your jaw to your neck and then down to your forearms, back up to your shoulders and down to your breasts, down to your waist to grab at your hips...seemingly all at once.

He squeezed his fingers into the meat of your thighs and you groaned, raking your own through his hair. You felt like his touch was all you needed as your tongue slid against his.

Darkness still engulfed the two of you. Obi Wan’s skin was on fire when he caressed you, the heat between your legs was set ablaze as he dipped his chin down, his lips traveling down your neck slowly. You wanted to see him, his face when he looked down at you, his blue eyes clouded with lust. You wanted to look into his eyes and absolutely moan his name, you wanted to -

Obi Wan’s lips left your skin just above the hem of your shirt. He paused for a moment, holding himself before you and panting. “What is it?” You asked.

“Take off your clothes.” He commanded. You felt him lean to the side and squinted when the lamp was switched on. You didn’t respond as your eyes adjusted to the light, you only peered at him rather dumbly. You watched when he dragged his tongue across his lower lip. His eyelids looked heavy when he stared down at you.

“Did I stutter?” He asked. Your heart picked up pace and you grinned when you grabbed the neckline of his robes and yanked him forward.

“Why don’t you take it off for me?” You mumbled, blinking innocently. You felt your wrists fly above your head, elbows bent slightly as they tied together under an invisible grasp. You were confused for a moment as the general began to run his hands underneath your shirt, caressing your sides and traveling over your breasts briefly. It took a moment before it finally dawned on you that he was using the Force as your restraint.

He slid the fabric up ever so slowly and stared at your stomach when it was slowly revealed. He continued, his big warm hands sliding up your skin and pausing just as your breasts were revealed. He murmured something inaudible before tightening his grip around your waist and pulling you down on the mattress so his lips were level with your nipples. You moaned quietly, biting your lip as he began to kiss them. Your cunt was throbbing at this point and the muscles in your arms grew tired from being in such an unfamiliar position. You shut your eyes, but all at once the sensation on your breasts was removed as Obi Wan straightened his posture and finished ripping off your shirt. It came over your head quickly and was tossed to the side as if it were nothing.

“Can I have my hands back?” You giggled, breathless as he gazed at you.

He left soft, sweet kisses on the inside of your arms, his eyes twinkling as he had you paralyzed by the Force. “Not yet.” He said, and you didn’t have time to read the expression on your face before his lips were on your breasts again. You pushed your hips up against his chest as he continued, whining as he bit down gently onto your nipples. His lips descended down the center of your stomach, leaving slow, wet kisses on your skin before pausing just above the waistline of your pants. His blue eyes finally blinked up at you, and he was smirking.

Your cunt was throbbing so damn hard you wondered if he could feel it at this point. “Please,” You breathed. “I want to touch you.”

“Not yet,” Obi Wan repeated before curling his fingertips around the hem of the fabric and dragging it down your thighs.

“This...isn’t fair.” You grunted as you tried to pull your wrists from their restraint. It was no use, it felt like your arms were paralyzed in this position. Your pajama pants were now being thrown to the side just as your shirt was, and the general was leaving small pecks up the length of your legs whilst holding strong eye contact.

“Please, general - “ your cunt felt like it was on fire when he lifted his chin to look at you.

“Did you...seriously just call me ‘general’ in this setting?” He paused, chuckling.

“Well, I - “ you were flustered and frustrated at this point. “I don’t know, what should I call you?!” You had snapped. He only grinned with a shrug before he continued, pulling at your skin with his teeth.

He dug his fingers into your sides, and in between slow kisses, he said, “Doesn’t matter...whatever feels...most...comfortable.”

You thought about it for a moment. Yeah, you supposed referring to him as General Kenobi was a bit strange as he was actively stripping you of your clothing. But it still didn’t feel right calling him Obi Wan, either. You weren’t sure why.

Your wrists were finally released as his lips reached the corner of your inner thigh just below your flaming heat. Your panties still hugged your hips when Kenobi glanced up at you, seeming like he had forgotten to hold your arms in place.

Without giving him any chance of reaction, you slid out from under him and pounced on him like a fucking animal. You giggled and he shared your smile as you sat on him and began to rid him of his robes.

Once they were off and you finally got to shower every possible centimeter of his skin with kisses, but he was quick to flip you back over so you were trapped beneath him again. You struggled to get atop of him with a grunt, but it was useless. He was already pinning your wrists to the sheets again and barricading you with his own weight.

“Behave.” Again, his voice rumbled right into your ear, hot and thick as he nipped at your earlobe. In response you arched your back into him and whined, digging your fingernails into his back.

“Let me touch you - “ you grunted. “I want to...to make you feel good. I can make you feel so good, Master.” You moaned, letting the words fall from your mouth without even a second thought. In an instant, his fingers were around your chin and you were being forced to look into his pretty eyes.

“What did you call me?” He asked.

You giggled. “You heard me.”

A minute went by before he moved his hand from your chin downwards, slowly tightening around your neck. “Say it again.” You smiled and tilted your head back, shutting your eyes and moaning the word again.

“Master.”

He let out a sound similar to a growl before he rolled over, positioning yourself on top of his lap. You could feel his large erection beneath you, and it was in the perfect spot as you rolled your hips forward and crouched down, allowing your lips to meet his.

He kissed you aggressively, placed one hand on the back of your head and forced you into him while the other snaked underneath the fabric of your panties, finding your clit almost instantly. You whimpered against his lips and continued to grind against his cock before using your own hands to remove yourself from the barricading fabric.

You were so desperate to feel him inside of you. He grabbed your chin again and forced your lips to part, staring at you with dark eyes and a wicked grin as he pressed the pad of his thumb to your lower lip. “So desperate for it, aren’t you?” He mumbled.

You huffed and tossed your underwear to the side before pressing your lips against his ear and murmuring, “Can you feel how wet I am for you, Master?”

He grunted and moved his hands to your hips, forcing them down onto his cock. You rocked them forward, letting the tip slide over your clit and through your slick folds with a moan. Fuck, this felt good. You lapped at his earlobe and giggled before continuing. “Just imagine how good it’ll feel when you put it in, so warm and wet and tight - “

“You’ll want to shut that pretty little mouth before I put it to work.” He growled, and a wild grin spread over your face before you positioned him below your entrance.

You took him in slowly with a long moan and straightened you back, your breasts high and prominent for him to see. “Fuck,” you moaned. Your eyebrows furrowed as he filled you up.

Obi Wan grunted. “Stars, can’t you go any quicker?” He was frustrated as you giggled again.

“I think this feels fucking good.” You moaned again. “Your cock is so - “ you were cut off by his hand on your throat, forcing him down to his own face. He didn’t say anything, just silently forced your lips against his. It made you lose control of your pace, plunging down onto his entire length at once, drawing moans from both of you as you kissed.

“That’s better.” He mumbled against you. “Now do it again.”

You brought your hips up once more and slithered your tongue into his mouth, allowing them to fall back down, your cunt swallowing him whole in one stroke. Just as you started to kiss his neck again, you were flipped onto your back for what felt like the thousandth time.

“Would you just let me - “ The familiar grip on your chin cut you off, and your eyes were forced into his. With his other hand, he brought your knees to your chest and positioned himself at your entrance. He absolutely rammed himself inside of you without any issues, and your eyes widened when you gasped.

“I thought...I told you...to behave.” Obi Wan grunted in between his thrusts. Your fingers found their grip in the sheets beside you. Your back arched and you moaned while he pumped himself in and out of your wet cunt.

“If this is what I get for misbehaving…” you panted, tears pricking at your eyes from them being shut so tight. “...then I guess I’ll have to do it more often.”

General Kenobi let out a low groan as he continued thrusting into you, remaining his quick, hard rhythm. Your eyes met his as the two of you moaned, and his hand found its way back into the roots of your hair as he muttered, “Say it.”

“Master,” you mewled as he tugged on your hair, his cock hitting the perfect spot as he thrusted into you. “Master, your cock feels so good - “ his thumb was on your lip again when he interrupted you.

“Such filthy words coming from this pretty little face,” he murmured. “You like being dirty, don’t you? You enjoy being choked when you misbehave, hmm?”

You didn’t respond, your eyebrows only curved up when you moaned. His hips rolled forward and his cock was still sliding in and out of your folds. “Answer me,” he demanded.

“Yes,” you breathed. “Yes, Master.” Your hand released its grip on the sheets and traveled down in between your legs to gently play with your clit, but Obi Wan stopped you, removing your wrist sharply.

“If you want it, beg for it.” He said slowly.

“Fuck,” you gasped. “Please play with it - Master, please just touch my clit and…” you trailed off with whine as you felt his thumb slowly circling around it, agonizingly slow and so, so hot. You whimpered and rolled your head back into the pillow, tangling your hair against the cotton.

“Does that feel good, darling? Tell me how it feels.”

“Yes, fuck, it feels so good,” You panted, your eyes squeezing shut again. “It feels so fucking good, I might...I might cum,” you continued in between whimpers and moans. “Master - please let me cum.”

“Good girl.” He rasped before removing his thumb completely. You let out a sob as he pulled his length out from you, watching as he began to stroke himself when he lowered his head between your legs. “Such a good girl, asking for my permission.” He murmured before sliding his tongue up your heat ever so slowly, stopping at your clit to circle around it.

You whined, bucking your hips against him, grinding on his face as you babbled. “Fuck...this feels so good, your tongue, shit, I want your cock again - “

“You’ll have to wait for it,” he mumbled against you. Whining, you sat up and propped yourself on your elbows as you panted. You were a mess, and you continued to plead with him until he had enough of it and grabbed you by your shoulders. He forced you onto the floor, sitting on your knees as he sat on the mattress in front of you.

“If you won’t shut your mouth, I’ll just have to do it for you.” He muttered before pushing your head down onto his large cock. You let out a satisfied moan and made sure he was staring at you, remaining eye contact. You lifted a hand to stroke the base as your tongue swirled slowly around the tip, bobbing your head back and forth steadily.

Obi Wan moaned and shut his eyes. “Stars.” He murmured.

You released the tip with an audible pop, allowing a string of drool to fall from the edge of your lower lip. “It feels good, doesn’t it Master?” You planted your tongue to the base of his shaft and slooooowly dragged it up prior to rolling it over the tip and taking him into your mouth again. His breath hitched in his throat.

“You’re so filthy, do you know that? You’re so...good at this, you must have...had - practice...Stars, pretty girl...how are you so good at this?” He mumbled, grunting and moaning between the words that spilled from his mouth.

Again, his shaft left your mouth and you spit on your palm before using it to stroke him up and down. You blinked at him all innocent and doe-like. “I like it when you talk to me like that. Will you cum on my face, Master?”

Obi Wan blinked and grunted, thrusting his hips up into your palm. “You’re obscene.”

“But you like it, don’t you?” You planted a kiss on his tip before gliding your hands along his thighs and rising to your feet. You leaned forward and lifted his chin using your index and middle finger, smiling. “You like seeing me like this. You like making me your dirty little slut, don’t you, Master?” You blinked again and smiled sweetly before swinging your leg around his lap, straddling him.

He was absolutely mesmerized. “Don’t give me that look.”

You did it again, smiled softly. “Or what?” You challenged.

Just as your cunt was about to swallow his length again, you were thrown onto your back strongly and the general’s hand was once again tightened around your neck. His lips were on your ear and his fingers were dancing around your clit as he rammed himself inside of you. Your eyes filled with tears when you cried out, savoring the sudden sensations engulfing you. You moaned, feeling your voice vibrate against his hand.

“I like punishing you, you know.” His voice was low, and you moaned as he licked your ear. “You’re such a good girl when you want to be.”

“This isn’t...much of a punishment.” You grunted. He bit down onto your earlobe and you whimpered.

“Oh, we haven’t gotten to that part yet.” He rasped into your ear. His pace quickened and his fingers felt glorious against your clit. Your movements synced with his perfectly. You could feel yourself quickly approaching your climax as he kissed the skin on your neck, hitting all the perfect places when he pumped into you. It was as if he knew exactly what you wanted and how you wanted it.

You felt yourself caving in and desire dripped from your tongue as you moaned, “I’m gonna cum.” Just as the words fell, everything stopped. Obi Wan’s fingers and his cock left your cunt all at once, and you let out a cry just before his eyes met yours.

“Like I said before,” his lips brushed against your own as he purred into your mouth. “We hadn’t gotten there yet.”

You already had come down almost completely from your previous euphoric state when his fingers glided inside of you. You writhed and moaned under his touch and Stars, this man sure knew who to put his hands to work. When he lowered his lips back down to your clit, you thought you would just about lose your mind. “Fuck.” You moaned. “Please, Master. Let me finish.” You pleaded.

“Quiet.” He muttered before continuing. You obeyed and only continued to moan under his force, biting your lip and rocking your hips against his face as he pleasured you. His free hand slithered up your body and intertwined his fingers with your own as he worked in between your legs. You squeezed his hand so hard that you thought it would just about snap off. Obi Wan finally paused, blinking up at you from in between your legs.

“Are you going to behave now, darling?” He asked, still slowly working his fingers in and out of your cunt as he spoke. You nodded quickly.

“Say it.”

“Y-yes. I’m going to behave, I-I’ll be a good girl for you.” You said then added, “Master.” The general chuckled before instructing you to get on your elbows and knees, to which you obliged and rested your front end onto a cushy pillow. You arched your back, ass raised, and giggled when you received a slap on your ass before Kenobi positioned himself.

He grabbed at and pulled your hair, raising your head so you could see him out of the corner of your eye. He planted a kiss onto your temple before murmuring,

“Pretty, pretty girl.”

Then, he rammed into you so hard and unexpectedly that you gasp and cry out his name. He clearly doesn’t catch it, and you shut your eyes as a single tear falls, continuing to cry out and whimper beneath him. Fuck, it’s amazing, and it’s everything you had ever fantasized it would be. You swear you see stars as he continues, pumping in and out of you again, again, and again...this position seems so much better than before, you thought. His grip is so tight on your hips that you think it may leave bruises, but hell, you love it. You want him to leave marks on you.

You think of all the times before that were filled with nothing but harmless flirting and charm. Now, everything will be different. You giggled at the thought of changing in the morning and seeing the bruises he left on your skin. You could feel yourself approaching your climax just at the thought of knowing that in this moment, you were his.

You almost didn’t want it to end, but you were so desperate to finish after having it ripped from you at the very edge. You were sweating, panting, and groaning the word “Master,” over and over again. “I’m gonna cum,” you said heavily.

“Go ahead.” Obi Wan seemed to gasp. Another tear fell down your cheek and you cried out louder than ever before as you crashed down onto him, all around him, everywhere. Absolutely fucking everywhere, and if it weren’t for the Jedi’s weight holding you up, you would’ve collapsed down into the mattress already. It hit like a fucking train wreck, and he remained his steady pace as your walls closed in onto his cock. You assumed he could feel your shaking, and when your breath heaved in and out of your lungs as you slumped against the pillow beneath you, you smiled a lazy smile.

The sound of Obi Wan Kenobi grunting and letting out a long, high-pitched moan as he came undone inside of you was just about the sexiest thing in the entire galaxy. He collided into the bed beside you, panting as he stared at the ceiling. You finally allowed your hips to fall and rested on your stomach, you head turned to face him. Beads of sweat rolled across his skin when he looked at you, and your thighs still quivered against the sheets.

He dragged two of his fingers softly underneath your chin. “Beautiful,” was all he could make out as he huffed beside you. You shut your eyes, that lazy smile still plastered to your face.

“Do you...think anybody heard us?” You asked, opening your eyes again. You gazed over his beard and his strong features as he peered at you.

“Oh, without a doubt.” He began to chuckle.

“Whoops.” You giggled. He rolled over and pressed his lips to yours briefly before responding.

“If I’m being honest, I really couldn’t care any less.” His voice was husky when he smiled as you pulled him back down, kissing him again and again until you fell asleep in your blissful state.

****************

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