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honourablejester · 4 months

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Numenera Setting Notes: Points of Interest Part II

Moving over into the Beyond, the less-than-settled area of the Ninth World. This will have to be multiple posts, because the Beyond is huge and weird and woolly, and there’s a LOT out here. Not going to lie, I do think it’s cooler than the Steadfast? While the Steadfast has some cool weirdnesses in it, it is generally calmer and more medieval-fantasy toned. The Beyond has a lot more batshit SF vibes, and I’m here for them.

This is all literally just from the first half of the Discovery Corebook chapter on the Beyond. It’s HUGE. But. Some locations/setting details from the Beyond in Numenera that make me happy:

Part II: The Beyond Part I (Numenera: Discovery)

The Cloudcrystal Skyfields. Literally the entire area. This is what I want out of vast science fantasy worldbuilding. It’s a sky full of huge crystals floating over a desert formed from the shattered shards of fallen ones. There’s a dune sea pierced by crystal shards. There’s a moving city in there called the Crowd City that’s built/formed of corpses, strange, preserved, possibly petrified corpses, and this whole city crawls around the place, and everyone (sensibly) avoids it. There’s a lake so transparent it’s invisible and the fish seem to be swimming through air. There’s a mountain in the middle which may or may not exist, because some people can find it and others can’t. Uxphon, the main living, inhabited city in the area, built up off the plain in the Black Riage mountains, is built into a twisting complex of massive ceramic prior-world piping that extrudes out into a canyon. I just. If you have a fantasy, high magic, high tech universe, feel free to go off a bit with the landscaping, you know? Have an invisible lake and a vast field of crystals floating in the sky and a corpse city crawling around the place, why not. Go off a bit. Have fun. Make it big and bonkers and just a little bit horrifying. The Cloudcrystal Skyfields are excellent and I adore them.

Mt. Zanlis, in the Black Riage Mountains. Worshipped as a living being, a god, and Aeon Priests say that the heart of the mountain is artificial and run by a reality-warping AI that makes weird weather, teleports people into and off itself randomly, and generally makes life weird in the vicinity. Because everybody loves a living machine-god mountain that makes weird weather, right?

Hidden Naresh, in the Black Riage Mountains. Basically a hidden fungal skid row, it’s a weird writhing creepy bioluminescent fungal city in the mountains whose primary export is psychedelic substances (‘mycos’) and despair. Humans and abhumans and all sorts of others find their home there. The city’s leader has a harem of Nibovian Wives, which appear to be basically genestealers, who take human, ahem, genetic material and transmit it to ultraterrestrial (possibly Lovecraftian) entities who use it to make distinctly nonhuman children. So. Weird creepy drug city full of alien genestealers? I mean, why not.

The Slant Milieu, again in the Black Riage Mountains, or rather just below them. It’s a wide strip of land that is blasted flat by a constant wind off the mountains called the welkerwind. As in, trees grow sideways along the ground instead of up, if they grow at all, sort of blasted flat. People live in burrow towns in a network of prior-age tunnels that honeycomb the area, and most of the wildlife in the area is ferociously wind-adapted. And valuable. There’s a (very dangerous) insect here called a caffa whose iridescent goldgleam wings and golden silk from their cocoons is really valuable, but also really hard to gather, so there’s a whole tense industry around collecting enough of it to trade out to big cities in the Steadfast. There’s also a whole community of once-criminals and their families who were sent here as forced labour to harvest them, and who realised that this was the perfect land to slaughter your guards and vanish into instead. And the only tall things in the area are two prior-age artefacts. The first is the windmoldens, which appear to be hundred-foot-tall ancient black wind turbines, which would probably power quite a lot, but nobody can figure out how to hook up to them. The second is the Susurrus, which looks like a massive junk sculpture, but is actually an environmental musical instrument, which is played by the welkerwind. I honestly love this entire area as well. It’s the concept of katabatic winds writ really large. I love it.

The Ausren Woods, in the Plains of Kataru. I’ll be honest, I just love the shape of this entry. It takes the form of several excerpts of a diary found in the woods, a ten day arc of a visitor admiring these lovely purple trees and their absolutely delicious fruit, and then getting sick, and then getting too sick to move, and then growths coming out of their stomach, and then the growths burrowing into the soil, and crippling them with agony when they try to cut them, and then the diary ends. And then, after all that, there’s this lovely dry note by the Corebook itself at the end: “The Ausren Woods are a large forest of purple trees that grow nowhere else. Do not eat the fruit of these trees.” That’s it. That’s the entry. A quick horror short story, and a dry ‘don’t eat the fruit’ at the end. Excellent.

The Beanstalk, in the Plains of Kataru. Because they wanted to play on one of the class names being ‘Jack’. But. This is why I love Numenera’s playing with POV. To the medieval-era people of the Ninth World, it’s a metallic beanstalk up to a giant’s castle in the sky. To a modern reader of sci-fi, I’m here wondering is that an orbital elevator? It’s a tower of metal and glass that leads up to the ‘stalk’ a strip of a strange material about 10ft wide and a few inches thick, that just extends beyond view into the sky. The whole edifice causes a local gravitational distortion that has five huge boulders hanging in the sky around it. Not for any apparent reason, so it’s possible they’re just a side effect. And, like. That sounds like a gravity-isolated orbital elevator to me? If I was a Nano in its vicinity, my fingers would be itching. There is a thousand-strong town under the rocks outside, pushing any buttons you might happen to find is likely a bad idea, but gosh I wanna push some buttons. The top end of the elevator, if it is an elevator, could be broken and I’ve just zoomed myself up into orbit to die, which would likely be karma given that I might have just killed 1000 people, but … I wanna push the button, Max?

Dessanedi, the Jagged Wastes. Again, as a region, and for the same reason as the Crystal Skyfields. It’s a sheet of splintered glass. The whole area. It’s a desert that got literally glassed, and then carved up by wind or other forces in the aftermath. I just love when fantasy lets its hair out and gives me some alternate landscapes. There’s little beetles in there called Warrow Beetles that eat glass and it’s gently noted that most things therefore can’t eat them. I love it.

The Great Slab, in the Jagged Wastes. Because it’s a jazzed up sci-fi version of the Lost World. The Slab is a vast artificial plateau, whose strange organic synth-metal sides ooze a red-black oil that makes them impossible to climb, and which contains a giant gash on top called the Driftless Valley that’s its own whole little isolated ecosystem that has nearly no contact with the outside world. Nobody’s been up there, because the slab is featureless otherwise, and the sides are impassible. So unless you find a flying machine or ability, you ain’t getting up there. So … anyone want to play Lost World/Dinotopia up there?

Druissi, a town in the Ba-Adenu Forest. It’s ‘built on the visible part of ancient, unknown wreckage that generates a stable, low-level heat year-round’. Which. Concerns me? I know it’s been there for hundreds or thousands of years and it’s been fine, but the combination of ‘wreckage’ and ‘heat’ just has me concerned. Like. I would want measurements over time scales. How stable is stable? Is it stable but increasing? Because, yes, making clever use of ancient machinery to live your life, very cool, but also … wreckage. That’s generating heat. I have concerns.

The Untethered Legion, also in the Ba-Adenu Forest, but towards the swampy, bayou-esque southeastern extremes, where the forest is a morass of red oily mud that dries itself grey and hardens and then liquifies itself in cycles, and births black mutant hounds as it liquifies again. And an army of biomechanical humanoid riders waits to ride them every time, just gathering in the forest, waiting for gods know what. This is one of those ones where I feel like the science fiction perspective makes it worse than the fantasy one. Because the fantasy perspective is just a cursed land birthing demons. The SF one is a vast biofactory manufacturing supersoldiers/supersoldier mounts. I don’t know if it’s just me, but somehow that makes it worse.

I really am vibing with the Beyond, over here. The Steadfast, for all its obelisks and inverted cities and telepathic cliff faces, did feel much more ‘ease the audience used to medieval fantasy into this’ a bit, while the Beyond is taking the gloves off and shaking your sleeves out and going, ‘right, that’s done, now let’s get down to business’. Let’s throw some landscapes in here. Some orbital elevators. Some AI mountains. Am I being unfair? It’s possible I’m being unfair. But I just want to get a bit wild and woolly with my hyperworld-SF-viewed-through-a-fantasy-lens over here, and the Beyond feels like it brings that a lot more than the Steadfast does.

Looking forward to the second half of this chapter!

#numenera #ttrpgs #worldbuilding #setting notes #getting wild and woolly #science fantasy #i so love this setting

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lexpressobean · 2 years

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Okay. So one of my favorite things about Shino as a design choice is that Shino actually enjoys insects. It's to the point that his Infinite Tsukuyomi Dream was, in fact, riding on the back of a giant beetle-like insect that he discovered himself. Shino fits right in 100% with the Aburame because such an enthusiasm about the Clans main means of offense in general is absolutely beneficial to him as an individual that is to inherit such a culture, especially as the up and coming Clanhead.

So then, I started thinking about a scenario where Shino would have to be given up by Shibi for XYZ reasons, but left alone by Danzo and essentially just brought up as a Civilian.

Maybe he was put in the care of his Maternal Grandparents who were sworn to secrecy, or maybe they don't even know who the father is truly. But if Shibi's actions in Naruto have any implications at all, Shibi would shadow Shino his entire life.

And Shino would grow up without knowing the Shinobi life, without ever being infested with kikaichu, without ever having to think about killing or being killed. Despite his chakra system diagnosis, he decides not to become a shinobi, but a scholar/teacher all the same. Or maybe his maternal family runs a business and he's set to work there and it's fine.

Shino doesn't wear sunglasses. Shino doesn't have holes in his body. Shino wears whatever he wants w/o the need to conceal himself or the conditioning of the Aburame. He's still hecka smart, but he's a lot more social and less guarded during first impressions, though maybe still a little standoffish/shy as is his nature. And seeing as he's implied to be quite a catch, I'm sure he'd be a lot more popular, especially doted on by customers or fellow peers in his studies.

But even so, Shino still has his hobbies, and one of them is still entomology. He spends his lazy summers in the outskirts of the village bug catching and adding to his collection. He's the one that gets rid of the spiders in the room for his family members. He buys books and rents even nore from the local library. He keeps caterpillars for fun and releases them once they become butterflies. He loves watching fireflies and he appreciates the booming calls of the cicada where others would gladly wish for it's death lol

And so, he also doesn't freak out when feels the skittering crawl of an insect roaming around on his person. Sometimes it's a fly, sometimes it's a ladybug, but sometimes, it's an strange looking insect he can never seem to identify.

It doesn't seem to bite when disturbed, though it certainly could judging from its mandibles. It's definitely a type of beetle. He's never been able to get the best look at them though, even when he gently handles a specimen. And once he even thinks about trapping one, it flies away immediately. He's never been able to successfully trap that strange beetle.

And Shibi knows at some point he has to cut ties completely. Shino is too smart. He's too invested and much too tenacious to underestimate, even as a civilian with a simple hobby. But you can't blame a father that only wants to look out for his child's health and wellbeing.

And it drives Shino absolutely MAD over the years. Because here it is, a golden opportunity for him to formally discover a new type of insect!! He's tried so hard to pinpoint these elusive things, but to no avail. He thinks of seasonal patterns, time of day, location of sightings, what he smells like even, anything he could think of to use as data. But nothing makes much sense and seems too messy to properly deduce a single thing.

That is, until Konoha is under attack for the first time since the year Shino was born, according to his grandfather. There are more important things to worry about besides bugs, but when Shino finds himself in a bind, and is saved by a man with a gourd in his back, obviously one of the Shinobi around the village, Shino becomes acutely aware of a buzzing noise. A buzz that exactly mimics the mysterious beetles he's encountered, but seemingly amplified. And when two invaders attack the man, and so Shino, Shino COULD NEVER have been prepared to see the sight that is a swarm of insects seemingly manifest from within the man's person and assault the would be assailants.

Shino is brought to safety and his questions and excited chattering is coldly dismissed by the man who goes as far to scold him for being so careless before vanishing completely into thin air.

Since that day, something doesn't sit quite right with Shino. He definitely needs answers. But the bugs seem to completely vanish after that too, only unsettling him more.

What does it all mean???

#anime: naruto #shino aburame #aburame shino #aburame shibi #shibi aburame #tis i #i just wish Shino had been properly flushed out as a character #i just want bug boy to meet his greatest potential #but if he did that then the series would be so much shorter lol #haha what an absolute bust #civilian shino au

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cafe-de-lune · 2 years

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hi omg this is such a cool concept

can i please have a tokyo revengers or haikyuu headcannons matchup (it’ll be great if you could do both but even one’s fine)

zodiac, MBTI, personality:

okay so i’m a libra sun and Aquarius moon (fem reader), ISTP, 5w4 idk anything else oops. above 15 but still a minor. i’d say i’m shy at first but when you get to know me i’m the most open person you’ll meet. people say i’m funny and def the therapist friend of the group. i can be very brutally honest at times like no filter honest. I listen to music almost all the time and a big overthinker. i’m very social but i’d consider myself an ambivert because sometimes anxiety gets to me and i almost don’t go to events but people say i’m very social and make friends easily???

likes:

I love music, i play the keyboard and guitar and make playlists for fun when im bored. i love memes and fb memes (i make them too sometimes lmao). love humour and stand up comedy and i’ll laugh at almost every joke. yeah i also do theatre and def a burnt out smart kid. i love travelling and collecting magnets from places i’ve been to. i draw sometimes and love math (ready to be cancelled). i love reading contemporary fiction or fiction with a strong female lead. i love watching the office, suits and Brooklyn 99. oh and i absolutely love paranormal stuff it’s so fun to watch. not a big fan of cooking but i’ll do it sometimes. i absolutely adore tattoos and piercings but not too many. im a big dog person too and love trying out new foods also wanna learn skateboarding. i’m interested in tarot and spirituality too. def have a lot of ISTP qualities

dislikes:

i don’t like insects, i don’t like people give off the rich kid / jerk vibe like i won’t approach them AT ALL. i don’t like when people tell me what to do it makes me wanna not do it even more. i don’t like people who brag about their lives. i don’t like the gym absolutely hate it uh what else. um i hate when people bring up others insecurities and taunt them. and can i say i don’t like my family—

appearance:

i’m 5’2, long and straight brown-golden/black hair, fit but not thin, brown eyes, light skin but not too light, LOTS of baby hair.

general aesthetic:

i wear a lot of baggy clothes, tomboy kinda apparel, i wear a lot of black, kind of an indie x emo aesthetic (ik that clashes but so does my personality) kinda dark academia but indie at the same time (yes we’re currently having an aesthetic crisis) LOVE hoodies. anything that’s comfortable. i’ll wear colour but prefer black. a bit of skater girl too.

what you look for in a partner:

someone who’ll push and encourage me to do my best and that works both ways. gives me space when i need it and understands my privacy and independence as well. would push me to go out of my comfort zone but not all the time. um someone who is good at communication cause i’m not. honestly someone who makes small gestures (i’d literally swoon over even a box of chocolates)

how comfortable i am with PDA:

i’m okay with like hugs (HUGS FROM THE BACK YES), hand holding, kissing in public, forehead kisses and kisses on the cheek/neck, resting head on shoulder or lap, holding from the waist but not sitting on his lap. that’s a big no.

i think that’s it thank you in advance and hope you have a great day <3

꒰ ☕️ ꒱ؘ Order: Cappuccino ࿐ ࿔*:･ﾟ

I match you up with . . . . ♡

ຳི⟡᎒ baji keisuke ✿ೃ*

. . ⇢ [ falling in love ; baji keisuke . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

classmates/friends to lovers trope!

you two probably met when the teacher assigned you to tutor baji with basically all the subjects but specifically math. (And it would be a difficult job)

but of course, the more you interacted with Baji and tutored him, the more you two got to know each other. He is a really friendly and extroverted person so he wouldn’t hesitate to strike up a conversation (much to the dismay of your teacher’s initial intent)

and sometimes, instead of tutoring him, you two end up talking about something else and just completely forgetting about teaching him lol

that’s the slow progress of how he falls in love with you. He likes being in your presence and he likes your brutally honest nature. And not to mention, I think you two would have the same wavelength in terms of humour. Like once you two have progressed further into your friendship, you two would send each other memes at like the dead of night or something

you two would also be the duo that laughs at everything. This is how you two end of making tons of inside jokes that only you two know

Baji’s mom is probably the mom to be like “why are you smiling at your phone? 👀 girlfriend?” And baji would be like “no!“ (not yet at least)

and baji is really cute. He would always talk to about you to his mom and his mom is lowkey proud because you are (sometimes) helping him pass his class so needless to say she likes you without meeting you. Anyways, baji would probably be a lovestruck idiot when confiding to his mom from you. His expression just brightens and he is just so happy

Of course his mom puts two and two together. Ever since hearing about you, her son seems to smiling more at his phone and stuff. And obviously she’s going to be like “keisuke you like her don’t you?”

and baji would deny it and scoff at it because he himself doesn’t know yet and I think he would be kinda dense at romance. BUT it would linger in his mind for the next few days. And whenever he sees you or hears your name, his mind would just go back to what his mom had said. And expect him to be more fidgety and making less eye contact as well as more red tones to his cheeks

Of course like any normal person you would be like “???” What’s with his recent behaviour? And depending on you, you might even think “what did I do wrong?” It’s not you, it’s him <3

So, in the end, baji would confide with Chifuyu and he would just straight up say “you’re in love” he slow and kinda a dumbass but a lovable one <33

. . ⇢ [ confessing ; baji keisuke . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

baji wouldn’t be the type to beat around the bush and would plan to confess to you. But there is a lingering thought in the back of his head that’s screaming what if he ruins your friendship by confessing? That’s the only thing that deters him. But eventually, he continues planning

His first thought was to write you a confession letter. And he does start writing it. The thing is, he gets stuck and crinkles the paper and throws it in his trash bin before finishing it

Chifuyu would come and help with grammar and spelling and ideas, but in the end, baji scrapped the idea because 1. He doesn’t seem anything he write as good enough for you and 2. It just doesn’t seem to be his style. So back to the drawing board he goes

And how he actually confessed would probably be in the heat of the moment. Like throughout his whole dilemma you two would still interact and go out on friend hangouts. Though there is a sort of an awkward and tense air? Baji’s just nervous

You would probably ask him out of concern “are you alright?” And at this point, Baji’s brain is overloaded and he would just blurt out “I like you.” And immediately, he would regret it because he thinks it’s a lame way of confessing and that you deserve better. And then his thoughts would morph into ones of what he would say in case you reject him

so when you say yes, he just squats down and was like “thank god.” But he would look at you with his toothy smile and just be so happy

Once he gets home, he would slam the door open and announce to his mom “she said yes!” He’s so precious omg.

. . ⇢ [ dating ; baji keisuke . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

baji is the type of person who lets you do whatever you want and if the other person is making fun of you or judging you or making you uncomfortable, there will be knuckle cracking noises in the background. He would tell you to turn around or close your eyes while he does his stuff (if you don’t stop him that is. If you stop him, he will stop… but no guarantee they’d been found “unharmed” 💀 )

he is your number 1 cheerleader. When you are trying something new, he would always be found near you just encouraging and cheering for every single atom of your being. And whether or not you succeeded or failed, it doesn’t matter to him. He’s proud of you regardless of results

he may not be the smartest but he sure pays attention to details when it comes to you. He is the type of boyfriend who would save his money and buy you the item you mentioned briefly that you wanted. And there would be times where he would remember small obscure memories of you two that he really enjoys and that you may not remember because it was a small memory. You’d be honestly very surprised at how good his memory is for those kinds of things.

When you mentioned you wanted to try skateboarding, he would go out of his way to learn it just to teach you. And he would hold onto your arm or waist as you two practice. (He’s worried that you might inure yourself so he has bandaids ready in his pocket. And if you do scrape your knee or something, this dumbass would be like “pain pain fly away come again when I’m beating someone up.”)

In terms of affection, he’s going to be clumsy at it at first. You will probably be his first partner and of course it would show. But he does his best for you and it starts by learning boundaries :)

When initiating physical contact, he would be really shy at first. I’m talking him “accidentally” brushing your fingers together when you two are on a day. Having a heated debate in his head whether he should hug you and etc. you would probably have to tell him it’s ok and initiate the first few contact

But after dating for a while? Oh boy he is really affectionate. (It’s going to be the end of you once he finds out you like backhugs. He would do it just to get a reaction out of you. He would do it very often as well. And then he would just kiss you from that position afterwards. It’s very loving and teasing as well)

He really likes hand holding and kisses in general. He is more of a physical touch type of person so you two are perfect. When you two show PDA in front of his friends, they’re gonna fake gag but smile at their friend’s happiness.

And if you fall asleep on his shoulder? He is SWOONING. But he would be like “I’m as still as a rock. I am a rock. I am a rock. I’m very still” because he doesn’t want to wake you up. He’s going to hold his breath because he thinks breathing might wake you up.

And if his friends are there? They would quietly tease and mimic baji just to make fun of him. And he can’t even retaliate because he doesn’t want to wake you up. Chifuyu would end up snapping a few pictures to which baji would grumble but later on be like “send them”

baji would definitely understand you wanting your privacy. he would like his privacy sometimes as well so he 100% understands. Though if you were MIA for too long then he might text you or stop by your house with a bag of your favourite food and a funny movie and preparations of cuddling

Despite Baji’s tough looking exterior, I think he would be afraid of anything horror/paranormal. Like he would cling onto you and hide into your shoulder whenever you two watch those things. I can just imagine him screaming at the screen when there is something scary or there is a jump scare. (But I think he would like buzzfeed unsolved)

Baji would NON-DISCREETLY and very obviously leave some of his hoodies at your place on “accident”. He just likes seeing you in his clothes so indulge him on that end haha. When he sees you wearing his hoodies, it’s a pda session right there. He loves seeing his already oversized hoodie (on himself) just making you look adorable on you who is shorter than him

baji would definitely be the type to want to get matching piercings with you. (And maybe tattoos in the future as well) just something to make him feel like you are with him when he is out doing gang stuff. It’s his lucky charm and he will find himself unconsciously touching it 💕

he would take you on dates on his motorcycle. You two would decide on a place and he would take you there on his motorcycle. And to him it doesn’t matter if it’s some beach or mountain or something. As long as you two are having fun

OK THE MEMES. You two still send each other memes but now they just have more of a romantic implication/meaning. Like it would be those wholesome meme reaction pictures with lots of hearts and cute things. And when you start sending him memes you make yourself, the battle is on. You two would send each other memes you two created just to see who can outcompete/love each other

you know those couples who are like “I love you more” “no I love you more” “no me!” “Me!” yeah. you two are that but in meme language

The elephant in the room is that Baji likes cats but you like dogs. But it’s ok since Baji likes all animals so no need to worry about anything here.

. . ⇢ [ couple pics ; baji keisuke . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

ຳི⟡᎒ kuroo tetsuro ✿ೃ*

. . ⇢ [ falling in love ; kuroo tetsuro . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

Friends to lovers! You two probably sat next to each other during class. And finding the class rather boring, you started to doodle little drawings on the side of your notebook. And kuroo, finding the class boring as well, saw your doodle and just smiled because it was cute

He would end up ripping the corner of his notebook and draw something, like a cat or something, and just pass it to you. And that’s the start of your back and forth passing of drawings in the boring class. (Sometimes you even add onto the drawing and just pass it back)

Of course you two would naturally talk and befriend each other due to your mutual suffering of said class. And sometimes, you two help each other with other subjects. Like you help him with math and he helps you with chemistry

In your friendship, there is a lot of teasing on Kuroo’s end and you being the recipient of it. There are also a lot of jokes. Nerdy ones as well. You two sometimes get caught by the teacher for laughing too much because you two just tell each other dumb jokes

As your friendship progresses, he would invite you to watch a practice session or a game if you had free time. And if you do go, chaos is going to erupt in the nekoma volleyball gym. (U know how chaotic they are lol) he might show off/play better than usual. And his teammates will catch on. They’d be like “Kuroo is playing better I wonder why 🤔😉” (but of course you would have those who won’t get it like Lev and Inuoka)

It was during one of those study sessions that he falls for you. Specifically your intelligence and how you conduct yourself. And unlike Baji, Kuroo actually knows and is self aware that he has fallen for you. However, he isn’t as impulsive as Baji.

the reason why he hasn’t confessed to you yet is because of the fear of losing the friendship you two have. (And the fact that if you reject him, it would be awkward for both of you as you two still sit next to each other in class)

kenma being the observant person he is will catch onto kuroo’s little crush on you. And whenever you turn away, kenma would look at kuroo within a knowing look and a little smirk. But he wouldn’t say anything. When you three are walking together, he might just make up an excuse so that you and kuroo can be alone though (though it benefits him because he gets to play more of his video games)

There will be a noticeable change in your friendship. He already has a teasing demeanour/attitude when you two were just friends but when he finds his crush on you, they start to get a little more flirtatious. And since he is tall (he’s 6’2 and you are 5’2 tHATS SUCH A CUTE DIFFERENCE ANYWAYS) he will start to take advantage of that by like holding your notebook slightly above your jumping height and just tease you like that. And not to mention the classic and cliche getting a book off of a shelf for you.

But his signs aren’t clear. Like at one moment he can be basically flirting with you but the next moment, you two are back to being friends??

It’s to the point where his team is like “get a room!” “Just marry already!” They become sick of it especially yaku and poor yamamoto

. . ⇢ [ confessing ; kuroo tetsuro . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

He finally confesses because of yaku and kenma. They beat sense into him saying that he would regret it and beat himself for not at least telling you his feelings in the scenario that you do find someone else. He gets jelly

So the next plan is planning how to confess. I think he would have two ways of confessing. The dorky way and the more romantic/normal(?) way of confessing

the first way, the dorky way, consists of him asking you how to solve a math problem that he doesn’t understand. And of course you will solve it for him. But the final answer is that 128√e980 (cover half and it should say I love you ) or the i < 3 u or inputting a function that graphs out a heart

it’s honestly a dorky way and cute way of confessing if he takes that route

The second way of confessing is more normal unlike that dorky way. He would invite you to a “friend” hangout and throughout the hangout, he’s just really flirtatious and soft for you. And you two would be out for the entire day and finally, kuroo said he wants to take you somewhere

And you were like “where are you taking me” and it would be a high place where the view is clear. And finally, you would see the sunset and all of its vibrancy and it’s honestly very very pretty.

All of a sudden he would turn to you and just confess. He is holding his breath as he awaits for your response. It may not look like it but he feels as though his heart is beating at like over 200 bpm when in reality it was just slightly sped up

When you say yes, he is of course so very happy. He would pull you into a hug and rest his chin on top of your head. (Again he is taller and it’s honestly so adorable)

. . ⇢ [ dating ; kuroo tetsuro . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

Kuroo is very busy with volleyball and especially during seasons where matches are in. So during those times, he may not be there as much as you both like it. Though you two would have lunch together and sometimes, you would find little snacks in your bag that kuroo snuck in with a cute drawing + encouragement and words of affection

When you two are having your study dates, kuroo will be a scheming cat and just pretend to not understand just to listen to you. (You will catch on because he would have his mischievous smirk on his face.)

He is going to use his height against you that is 10000% certain. Like it can happen in two ways. The first way is that you can reach something and he gets it for you. But he teases you but holding it up high and tells you that he will only give it to you when you kiss him on the cheek. But this scheming cat will turn his head before your lips touch it so you end up kissing him on the lips)

(If you get flustered, his ego and pride inflates so much. He would have that annoying smirk and just LIVE for your cute expression. Please get use to that because teasing is basically programmed into his DNA lol )

The second way is again, you are reaching for something and he ends up going behind you, getting the thing, and ends up back hugging you while resting his head on your head. He would wrap his arms around your waist and just be like “I miss you” it probably only happens when he is feeling soft or after a long period of being away tbh

You two would watch a lot of paranormal stuff together. And he wouldn’t get scared. Instead you two might comment on how fake the props are. And I have to say that while you two are watching movies or something, his arm is going to be around your shoulders and he just rests it there. (If you are watching with friends, you two might even plot to randomly shout just to scare them)

He exclusively sends you cat memes no questions asked. It would be those cat memes with hearts and lovey dovey stuff. The usual. Ever since dating you, he would create a folder just for romantic cat reactions memes just to send to you

It’s honestly a given that you would end up befriending nekoma and kenma. Especially kenma. He would tell you embarrassing secrets and stories of what happened to kuroo when he is younger. (He will also tell you how kuroo gets his bed hair) he lowkey becomes a menace and just reveals kuroo’s most embarrassing moments

oK it’s canon that kuroo likes girls with longer hair and you have longer hair so it’s perfect. He might get into a habit of unconsciously playing with your hair. Though I don’t think he knows how to braid hairs or create any hairstyles other than a ponytail

He would read books that you are interested in. And it ends up with you two talking about it and talking about how some characters are dumb/made such a poor choice

Kuroo’s fairly adept and good at communication so it wouldn’t matter if you aren’t the best at it. He is highly observant and intuitive so he will pick up on little things and communicate to you about them. But at the same time if he sees you are uncomfortable, he will speak up/shoo away the person and comfort you

He will also push you out of your comfort zone if needed. Again, if he senses or sees that you are uncomfortable he will stop pushing you and just being you into his arms and praise you. You did challenge yourself after all

When he sees you are overthinking, he will stop it by forcing you to get a rest via saying he wants to cuddle and etc. and later on, he will guide your thought process and just talk you when somethings are unnecessary

In the case of your family, whenever that bring up your insecurities and taunt them, Kuroo would always comfort you with open arms no matter what. Needless to say he also doesn’t like your family. And when they meet, he might throw in some snarky remarks/provocations while still remaining an ideal son-in-law. Idk how he does it but he does it

He is the provocation king and he will do things just to annoy his teammates. So yamamoto ends up being his victim when he does PDA with you infront of them. Most of the times he does it on purpose to provoke his teammates

. . ⇢ [ couple pics ; kuroo tetsuro . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

. . ⇢ [ other compatibles . ] ˎˊ˗ ꒰ ☕️ ꒱

.˚🌙 ༘┊͙ chifuyu matsuno ;

You two would be so cute. You would be giggling at things so much because you two crack jokes with each other so often. And it’s honestly rare to see you two without having a smile or just laughing. And again memes galore. He has every reaction meme imaginable

He is another one who loves seeing you in his clothes especially his oversized hoodies. He will give it to you any chance he gets. If it’s snowing? He is taking off his hoodie, giving it to you, and just going with his jacket. He will insist you wear it even if he is shivering and his teeth are clattering.

Affection is a big thing in this relationship. There will be constant hand holding, cuddles, kisses. But I feel like Chifuyu might be more on the reserved and shy side at first when it comes to PDA. But as your relationship progresses, he wouldn’t mind PDA at all. As a matter in fact, takemitchy might be sick of it all lol

.˚🌙 ༘┊͙ hinata shoyo ;

So cute~ just two sunshines together making the world brighter. He would cheer you on no matter what you do. And when you are feeling anxious, he is there holding your hand and giving you reassurance. And you two are perfect. Your brutal honesty will be good for Hinata as sometimes he needs that honesty instead of a person beating around the bush

SO AFFECTIONATE. He gets so happy when you two hug. But he is shy in terms of affection so kisses would probably happen later in the relationship and in private. The first time you two kiss, he turns into a tomato and steam is coming out of his head. You would break him lol

Whenever you two see a stray dog, you two would stop and pet it and sometimes feed it something. There would be a time where the dog exclusively likes you and barks at Hinata. Hinata would end up barking back at the dog and just say “S/o is mine! Go find someone else! There’s many dogs in the sea!” “Shoyo, it’s there are many fish in the sea—not dogs.” “Oh—”

. . . . . ꒰ ♡ ꒱ ,, i just wanna say how it’s funny how I match you with boys who associate/likes cats when you are a dog person haha. Opposites attract 💕💕💕 ⌲˘͈ᵕ˘͈

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luvring · 2 years

Note

HELLO I Would like some interior hcs pls bc i dont fucking know anything (this is a lot dont feel pressured HEHE) my mc is felixs gf, Anne Nova. She's 24, 5'8, and loves anything cutesy but ALSO really loves flower + bone imagery. she's a painter, musician, writer, cosplayer/sews, and grew up on a farm. She loves cozy clutter & reading and is very bubby, optimistic and impulsive. She's sassy, sarcastic and very blunt but in a very kind way, despite cursing like a sailor. she has adhd and has a bit of an eclectic style, always just wearing whatever she likes. she doesnt like people paying for her bc she feels guilty, but she also loves when felix does bc its always so thoughtful. its a dilemma. she has a lot of jewelry, but only wears lipstick and eyeliner in terms of makeup. her jewelry is all gifts from her friends/family, many of whom are no longer in her life. she loves the aesthetic of nobility; princess dresses, golden details, etc. but she hates all the rules and bullshit.

shes always carrying around a pencil case, notebook and a scrunchie. she's very messy but if the kitchen or the bathroom is messy she gets very antsy. she works the best in daylight, but loves the night just as much. this is probably so much but i love rambling about her LOL. she loves pink and sunflowers and does tarot and has so many crystals. she collects animal bones and sometimes paints on her denim clothes. one of her jackets has a coffin with sunflowers painted on it. shes just a very preppy, cutesy person who really loves dry and morbid humor.

note from nia: i just know these two get along super well pls. everyone's ocs sound cool wtf anne nova is such a cool name?? also don't worry omg more details only help me HDJDJS this was very fun (i think i called her anne a few times but if she uses the full name/just nova,, which sounds very cool thinking about it,, i can edit it!! <3) their bedroom is objectively pretty, especially when the sun is rising or setting. waking up to a dream perhaps

they have a canopy bed with pretty wispy curtains

ahhh there's a really pretty oak dresser with a mirror above it that has really intricate gold detailing

the wall around it has a bunch of posters/art and a jewelry hanger for anne's most worn pieces

Mini Gold Heart-Shaped Mirror On The Dresser. also this glass dome with sunflowers and led strips in it. thank you

other stuff includes crystals, the tarot deck she's been using recently, and a jewelry box that felix gave her :(

their side tables usually have a book or something that anne was sewing before bed

felix had to put a little table where you walk in that has one of his taxidermied animals and favourite preserved insects in resin

their master bath also as a gold detailed mirror above a wooden vanity

there's a little spot on the counter shelf for those headbands to keep hair out of their face. they have like, 4 and they're all fuzzy

the shelf also has skincare products, lotion, etc. + face masks that they use together

they got a basket for bath bombs to place next to the bathtub

their living room is so cool get these two on pinterest Immediately

they have the coziest reading nook sectioned off with a mini bookshelf omg it's under this big curtained bay window and has super soft blankets

it's also a super nice place to sit when they want to write or talk </3

there's fairy lights hanging up that they switch out during holidays!!

the tables have decor like lace tablecloth, an animal skull in a glass dome display, crystals, salt lamps, etc.

the walls have paintings (thrifted or painted by anne), small mirrors, and mounted candle holders

the couch and accent chair are a muted brown and they both have at least one throw pillow and blanket thrown over them

there's two dark bookshelves on either side of their t.v. with novels, plants, an incense burner, ceramic trinket dishes, a sunset light, (+ a duck night light they got semi-ironically) and little figurines

if you looked up cozy cottage kitchen you'd probably find something like theirs

sage green kitchen....Sage Green (and brown) Kitchen

the fridge has a calendar, a bunch of magnets they've been collecting (animals, letters, etc.), pictures of them and their friends, and a chore schedule because felix would forget otherwise

they have a couple of hooks for aprons and they are either really nice or really stupid (one says "oh crepe" probably)

there's a small mug shelf on the wall with their go-to ones

the sink has a ceramic animal soap holder (also a little bunny kitchen timer nearby)

there's a rolling tray table they use for snacks and to put tea sets on

they have a small wooden table by the window where they usually eat breakast

they put a little glass jar on the counter to put spare change in so they can go out when it's full without worrying about who's paying

anne gets a whole room as her studio/workshop considering how much she likes to do (deserved!!)

there's a really cute pastel pink utility cart with different supplies next to the easel that sits in front of a big window

there's a mug that has "paint water" written on it

they put a table ( + a rolling char) in the middle of the room so it's easier to work on any larger projects

there's a cabinet with craft supplies, a clothing rack with baskets + a full-length mirror for when she works on cosplay

there's also a little seat by the mirror that felix sits on when he's watching/talking to her

she has a smaller desk with a computer in the corner so she can play/make music or write

the keyboard has cute customized key covers she can switch out!!

the walls are covered with different art prints, paintings, album covers, posters, etc.

general hcs

imagine anne giving felix a painted pair of jeans or something that has a super cool design that specifically includes an animal skull surrounded by double black hellebores (his favourite flower!!) i really do think felix would love personalized things like that </3

tangent,, you know when people get someone to write something so they can get it tattooed? that except she puts it on one of her favourite pieces :sob:

i see anne is a little taller than felix...him wearing her clothes? let's think about that

the paying thing is so relatable tbh. they decide to switch paying for food each time and remember that gifts are not something to consider when paying the other person back

felix isn't a fan of the whole royal outfits thing, but he doesn't mind as much when he sees her wearing a dress and jewelry (that he paid for with escell's money probably) that coordinates with the colours of his own outfit

#🛒nia.reqs #last legacy #last legacy felix #fictif felix #felix iskandar escellun #last legacy headcanons #screaming and crying #these two sound so cute together

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silence-burns · 4 years

Text

Please Hate Me //part 39

Fandom: Marvel

Summary: Based on: “Imagine having a love/hate relationship with Loki.” by @thefandomimagine Who would have thought that babysitting a god could be so much fun?

Genre: slow-burn, enemies to lovers

Running is a funny thing. Despite what you probably think, it can actually bring a lot of pleasure if done in the right circumstances. A lot of people run to feel better. Some do it for sport, or for health reasons. There's running through the park, or in the gym. There are many types of running and most of them are actually quite enjoyable.

Running for your life is not one of those.

Running for your life overrides everything you think you know about running. The adrenaline pumped into your veins allows your body to overlook some of its limits, which is very handy. It lets you do things you'd never have thought about pulling off, like, for example, cutting corners with godspeed, while also ducking your head to avoid having it bitten off. It also allows your legs to fly you through the tangled mess of gardens despite the breath hitching in your throat.

The chemistry of the human body is truly a marvelous thing.

You'd give it more thought, but the beast of a spider scuttling behind you occupied too much of your mind. It was a marvelous thing too, and one you wished to never mull over too deeply. There was little you wanted to do less than think about its abnormally sharp chelicerae trying to bite the flesh off your back. Or the spindly, wiry legs sending it running after you with the speed no insect, and definitely not one of that size, should ever be allowed to achieve. It was simply unfair.

The dagger Loki gave you was still buried into one of the creature's huge, glowing eyes, now leaking a greyish muck. It should raise your morale, to see it hurt. It didn't.

You slipped on the mud, and slid down between the trees. Thorns broke your skin and roots slammed into your legs. The spider hissed, strings of saliva spraying from its gaping mouth, when you ducked under one of the lower branches - a thick, sturdy thing that shook when the spider threw itself at it, but didn't break. Not at first, at least.

It gave you enough time to push yourself up and back in the direction of the massive castle looming over everything. The mountain that was a part of it rose over even the highest trees. Under different circumstances, it would be a menacing sight. In yours, it was a relief not to get lost.

The wood creaked and groaned and then broke somewhere behind you. What a pleasant way of reminding your legs that they could run even faster.

You broke out of the woods and back onto the winding paths leading to the fountain. It was broken now, and its pieces cemented in the mud; as if running wasn't difficult enough.

The castle was so close. There must've been someone who’d seen all that mess, someone who would surely come to help.

But they didn't.

"Loki!" you screamed at the top of your lungs toward the pile of marble - all that was left of the original construction. "Could you not be dead right now?!"

There was little that could have reached the god laid sprawled among the debris. It would fit the romantic narrative if hearing your voice gave Loki new strength and raised him from the dead, but the truth was, all that he could hear was the blood pumping in his veins, the water rushing from the damaged pipes, and on top of it all the—powerful, although turned inward—scream of his devastated pride.

To be swept like a bug, like an insect unworthy of any more attention, like a nuisance to get rid of - what a pitiful sight he must be.

Even just imagining that made his blood boil. Steam rose from the debris and fueled his rage further. Loki was no bug.

He was angry.

An explosion sent the debris flying. You scuttled forward, shielding your head in your arms. For a moment, you thought something even worse than a bizarrely overgrown spider came to ruin your day.

The golden helmet shone as Loki rose, his eyes immediately turning to the monster behind you. The god reached into the depths of his magic. It awakened eagerly.

"That's quite enough," he groaned from the heights of the pile.

He was battered, bruised, and a little embarrassed, which was never a good sign. The green light crackled hungrily around his fingers as he eyed the monster rushing after you, stumbling through the mud.

Mud was not what he'd prefer, but mud was all he had.

The magic surged out of Loki's hands in a wave of shivering air and glistening frost. It writhed and bit and raised in a wave of freezing spikes. Ice crackled with sudden chill as it pierced through the belly of the spider and raised it off the ground, helplessly wriggling its legs.

The ground was freezing under your hands as you pushed yourself up, balancing on the coat of ice.

"Glad to see you alive," you said, backing away from the writhing spider. Yellow entrails oozed over the ice, but it still refused to die.

Loki shot you his best grin, brushing the dirt off the leathers of his armor. "It would be rude to just leave you on your own. Besides, you'd probably hate me if I didn't take you to Valhalla with me."

"You know me too well."

Relief clutched his chest when you looked mostly unharmed, even if a little out of breath. There was a lot Loki wanted to say to that smile you gave him, and to the hand that grasped his in looking for balance. He even started on the words- but wasn't able to finish. The spider was a wicked thing, born of feral magic and it did not want to die.

The spikes broke and rained shards of ice around. The huge, bulbous body shook with the impact of striking the ground again. Hissing and shaking, the spider's fury rose as it clawed the frozen mud, digging trenches into the ice. Its eight legs were perfect for keeping balance and hurtling it with terrifying speed forward.

Loki pushed you away as the magic surged around him and struck the monster to the side. It curled as it hit one of the statues of people long gone, and sent it flying in pieces. The cracks on the spider's back were deep, but they were already healing when it raised again like it couldn't even feel the pain. And maybe it was true and the reason why it was such a vicious, unstoppable enemy. Loki sent another spear of ice through it, washing the frost in yellow.

You cursed, looking around for anything or anyone.

The castle walls were right there, and the corridors you'd walked not so long ago all overlooked the gardens you now fought for your lives in, and yet, no one seemed to be aware of it. You'd waited, and hoped, and it did nothing to change the tides, so you gave that up and focused on what you knew best.

The spider hissed and spat greenish acid as it tore itself open on Loki's spikes, pushing itself despite ripping parts of its body off. Loki kept on cutting its legs off with a lance bleeding golden dust, but it slowed the spider down only a little.

If only there was something you could use for a bigger impact… Like the huge, already half-crumbled marble statues just standing around.

Well, you'd already ruined some of them, how much would one more matter in the grand scheme of things?

Loki had the full attention of the monstrous spider, which was very convenient and equally dramatic. He looked unfairly good with his green cape flowing behind him as he cut, ducked and stabbed the spider while also trying to freeze its remaining legs to the ground.

You tried to be less dramatic while you snuck around and made it to the back of one of the statues nearby. It stood high on a pedestal, with the figure majestically carved like a moving warrior. Whoever it depicted, was standing on one leg, in the middle of a run. It was such a perfect little detail, you thought, as you took a nice, heavy block of stone and climbed up the pedestal.

"Loki!" you shouted while chopping the marble and watching the cracks spread up its surface. "Get your ass over here!"

There was not much time Loki could spare to see what you were doing, but he retreated a little, luring the spider after him, closer and closer to where you now stood. You pushed with your remaining strength.

Right when the statue started to fall, Loki cut off the spider's front legs and sent another wave of frost over the already frozen ground. He jumped away while the spider struggled to stand.

The statue had fallen with a loud, nauseating crack of splitting stone and splashed juices.

You half-slipped, half-climbed down the now empty pedestal, trying to avoid the disgusting yellowish muck that coated everything thickly.

You watched Loki push some bigger pieces of the carcass around with the tip of his spear. He was very focused on whatever he was doing, which was convenient, because you'd had absolutely no desire to lend him a hand.

The ground was wonderfully cold as you knelt on it a healthy distance away from the mess. Sweat covered every part of your body that was now trembling out of exhaustion. Your breath came out in a cloud of white as you laid down on the frozen mud and crumbled stone. The stars were beautiful as always, and so huge they looked as if in your reach.

There was nothing short of disgust on Loki's face as he held up something hidden in the soaking remains of the shriveled spider. It was a piece of stone with a slim handprint in the middle. He felt its magic under his fingers, angry to have its vessel ruined. Now that it was taken out of the carcass, its power was not enough to heal it yet again.

Loki was very glad about that. His evening was eventful enough for his liking. He hid the stone in his pocket.

He headed your way, discarding his golden helmet and the spear as he went. They disappeared in a shimmer..

You looked up at him. Blood covered the right side of his face in what a painter would call violent brushstrokes, and what looked to you like a face slammed into a fountain.

"You look like shit."

Loki looked at the arm you held stiffly over your stomach, and at all the scratches and scrapes you'd collected like autographs from every tree and a bush on your way.

"At least we match."

His face contorted in pain as he lowered himself next to you, embracing the blessed chill of the ground against his bruised flesh. The magic was a flickery thing on the Edge, and it did not like outsiders. Loki could already feel it working against his spells and undoing the coat of ice around.

"You know what," he said, laying in the mud and looking at the stars. "I used to like spiders."

"I used to think magic was cool," you said, watching galaxies travel through the never ending night. "Now I feel like it hates me."

"I can assure you, that abomination was aimed at us by someone much more real than the general concept of magic. And I know how to track that someone. Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes. I think I'm done with today."

You nodded. Your joints felt stiff and loose at the same time. "Agreed.."

The stars looked down on you, boneless in the melting sea of mud and marble. The stars understood little of the ways of mortals, but they knew what it felt to be tired.

"Loki."

"What."

"How is it that you got injured by that thing?"

"My face had been introduced to a few surfaces, you know. That smile of yours tells me enough about how much you'd seen."

"Yeah, that was marvelous, I wish I got it on tape. But, usually you don't get so roughed up. Remember when you got hit on Earth? You said it hurt, but you never blacked out."

"It doesn't work that way. I wasn't born on Earth, so things that are inherently earthly, and lack the magic matching the one in my veins can't influence my state much. I might feel pain, and maybe get a few bruises, but it just doesn't work on my… being."

You frowned.

"But back when you invaded New York, you got smashed quite a few times by Hulk, and you, from what I could tell, didn't enjoy it. "

Loki sighed. "...I don't want to be talking about that incident ever again. That beast is… not entirely like everyone else on your precious Earth, that's all the explanation I can piece together."

"And that's why it Hulk-smashed you for good?"

"To put it in terms that you can understand without any knowledge on the theory of magic, you can't destroy water with a stone, no matter how many times you clash them together in your hands. They have different… cores. But if two stones clash, they will both take damage, because their very being is similar in nature and they can interact with each other fully. I am a being born of magic. The spider was too, so every hit from it did more damage than anything else invented on Earth."

"...so you're saying you're too stoned for guns?"

"I swear on Valhalla, on one of those nights I'm gonna murder you. Your puns are not half as funny as you think."

"That's fair, I guess. Could you please at least choose a pretty night?"

Loki took your hand in his. He liked the feeling of your fingers linked together. "I will."

"You're so romantic. I promise to only ever share the mud with you."

Loki chuckled, despite the sharp pain in his cut face. He looked at you and saw stars in your eyes and love in your smile. There was dust in the kiss you shared, and blood on your tongues that didn't stop you. There were very few things in the universe that could've stopped your embrace there. In fact the stomping of the castle guards that finally made it to the gardens qualified.

Loki still held your face in his hands when their swords aimed at you. Despite the gentleness he embraced you with, there was nothing warm in the gaze he met the guards with.

"I suggest you reconsider your hostility," Loki's voice dripped with threat.

The lean man with a needle-like rapier you'd seen earlier, stepped out. There was a growl in his features, and tension in his arms. The star-like freckles that used to cover the night expanse of his skin were now dim and grey.

"My name is Faroq and I am the captain of the guard. I demand answers, now," was all he said, still as a statue himself.

Loki didn't rise from the ground, and neither did you. He only gestured to the steaming remains of the spider behind their backs. "I believe someone has lost their pet. Do me a favor and give it back to them."

Faroq snapped orders at his guards to check on the muck underneath the broken stone. In the meantime, Loki helped you to your feet with a charming smile and his back to Faroq. Whatever the stone he had found was, Loki had no intention of sharing it with the fuming lord.

The captain of the guard only asked you a few questions, but it was clear that he believed nothing you said, even though for once you weren't even lying. It was not your fault that someone on the Edge wanted to silence you before the investigation found the ambassador's murderer. There was no point in Loki or you setting a ravenous murder-spider on yourselves, but Faroq didn't buy it.

When he ordered you to return to your chambers, both of you gladly followed, with as much dignity as you could muster while covered head to toe in mud.

#please hate me #loki x reader #loki x you #loki laufeyson x reader #loki laufeyson x you #loki imagine #loki #loki laufeyson #loki laufeyson imagine #loki mcu #loki marvel #i love loki

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littlefreya · 4 years

Text

The Way to Hell - Part 6

*No permission is given for reposting my work, copying it or parts of the source material and claiming it as your own*

Summary: Post Mi6 - August manages to escape with his face intact and just won himself the title of being the most dangerous man on earth. With every agent in the world on the hunt for him, life became a living hell, but that’s okay because hell is where he reigns.

Too bad for the woman who’ll stand in his way.

Pairing: August Walker x OFC (Ingvild) | August Walker x ofc Suzy

Word count: 5K

Warnings: Dark themes, rough oral sex, gagging, hinted anal, mentions of rough sex, and August twisted thoughts.

A/N: The adventures of August and Ingvild continue 💖 thanks again for reading and giving me your feedback, it keeps me fueled so keep it up :D! Of course thanks @agniavateira for editing my work and being my muse.

Title: Stargazer

The love boat sets sail through the icy water of the North Sea. The apostle, Knight_of_Cockn3ss, or whatever that kid’s name is, wasn’t joking when he mentioned a romantic cruise.

The traitorous sun hangs mid-sky as August trails across the deck. A beige fedora covers his dark curls and a matching cream-coloured suit over his sturdy body. In his right hand rests his laptop, he is not daring to leave it out of sight even for a minute. His eyes observe the surroundings; he must be the only single person on this trip, surrounded by timid couples on the verge of divorce and sugar daddies with their sugar babies.

‘At least the young girls are pretty.’ August greets a tall blonde, holding one hand behind his back and giving her a small bow before continuing on his way.

He’ll have to endure this trip for a couple more days, which isn’t ideal by any means, but he can’t risk getting caught or killed. Airports all over the world are swarming with security guards, agents, and assassins on really fucking high alert by now, all of them waiting for him.

The irony of the situation is that a long time ago used to be one of them. A wanted target on a scale of world catastrophe would spin a web of agents worldwide and Agent Walker would always get there first. That’s why they called him “The Hammer” - he nailed each target on the head, among other things.

No one cared about torture and extreme violence. He once brought back a target in such a dire condition that Erica was forced to send him to psych evaluation. He bluntly told the psychiatrist he enjoys the violence for no particular reason why, and then fucked her over the desk.

He scoffs at the memory, breaking into a wolfish grin.

Standing on the rail, his gaze is glued to the blue horizon, following the trail of sea-foam left by the boat as it slices through the water, disturbing the peaceful life beneath the sea. Slowly, his chaotic mind begins to drift, reveries of the CIA reminding him of her.

Golden locks of hair glow like hot sand on a summer day. Sweetly, she jokes about buying a yacht, telling Erica to fuck off so they can leave everything behind, and sail into freedom.

Memories are perfidious. Why has she been on his mind so much as of late? She’s been dead for years, flesh eaten by worms and the insects.

She is no more but a sack of rotting bones.

To condemn her memory is more than she deserves.

August’s nostrils flare. For whatever reason, his mind wanders to the girl who lived. Gently snorting, he shakes his head, remembering the condition of how he left ‘poor little’ Ingvild; half-naked, wrists tied up to the bed, probably crying to whatever father figure she has.

After what he did to her, she’ll probably retire from Icarus.

“I’m coming after you,” he mimics her voice in his head, and laughs while making his way toward the stack of beach lounge chairs. The section is nearly empty as most of the lovebirds are dinning in the main hall and unlike the degenerated visitors of this cruise, he is here solely on business.

Much work is left to be done. “Knight” has promised to meet him in London’s sky tower, suggesting he may or may not have a source of plutonium. Whether he’s a broker, a source, or a possible troll matters very little to a man on the run. Desperate times are ahead; he may be sticking his neck out, might be stepping into an obvious trap, but choice is scarce at the moment.

‘This is not the type of anarchy I dreamed of.’

That little girl, Ingvild, was the first to come. There will be others, endless more until the world will fall apart.

“I’ll keep coming after you.” Her voice hinges on his troubled mind.

He opens his laptop with a groan, trying to ignore the truth that lies on his mind like a pile of heavy brick.

‘You should have left her pretty face to die in the bottom of the lake.’

“Oh, but to miss out on all the fun that followed in that bedroom?” he speaks to himself quietly, unlocking his laptop with a retinal scan.

Luckily, his old drive is still accessible on the cloud he encrypted. Years of work and dirt collected on the CIA and the government nestles on a single server. The ugly truth, the lies, the corruptness. Thick and black like a pit filled of tar.

Erica Sloane has her own dedicated special folder. Personal vendetta was never on his agenda, it was never about revenge, it was about a cause but sweet Erica deserves whatever damnation he could think of. He hopes that when he detonates his nuclear bombs, that once this world falls apart, she’ll sit on a front-row seat to see her failures raining down like fire from the sky.

A vicious smirk paints his face as his fingertips slide onto the touchpad. August scans through his many folders, seeking a specific one regarding illegal weapon deals. It would be a lovely afternoon at the CIA had one of these recordings or documents would find their way to the public eye.

August slides the cursor around, entering one of the CIA’s subfolders when his smile fades away.

He thought he deleted her folder a long time ago, but it seems like mistakenly, he placed it in another section instead.

And now here it is. A name he thought he’d never see again: Lacey.

Strange, he hardly remembers what she looked like. How long has it been? Six? Seven years ago? In his dreams, she’s nothing but a rotting corpse, but the mind has a tendency to alter one’s memory, doesn’t it?

Was she even sweet at all?

‘Manipulation was her strongest trait anyway.’

Without mustering a mother breath, he deletes the folder, and proceeds to search for the files he means to leak. He muses if they caught up with the notion that it was him who poisoned the well this entire time. Years of stirring chaos while sitting with his laptop of his bed while Sloane and her high-ranking management freaked out and did all that’s in their power to cover shit up.

It was so hard to keep a poker face and pretend he is trying to help. One particular time, he got so ecstatic he had to go and jack off in the men’s room.

‘That was a good one.’

Something abruptly disturbs his attention, making his heart nearly drop.

‘It can’t be, is that...?’

A petite brunette passes through the lounge, joyfully trodding along the deck. Her hair is tucked back into a ponytail. No, it can’t be her, not in the situation he left her at. By what sort of dark magic would she exactly appear here out of nowhere?

‘I wouldn’t be surprised if the little Valkyrie turns out to be some sort of a witch.’

The brunette feels his gaze upon her figure and turns. He is met with a brown, warm gaze, rather than the sharp icy lustre that is Ingvild’s trademark. Less pretty as well, but looks about the same age, perhaps a year or two younger.

Another sugar baby, weary and discontent.

August realises he must have been staring with a dumbfounded look as she decides to smile back and make her way to him.

“Good afternoon,” she greets in a Midwestern accent. August’s eyes focus on her painted lips and in his mind, he imagines wiping that cotton candy pink lipstick by his thumb.

“Afternoon,” he smiles kindly, tipping his fedora with a welcoming bow.

Always the gentleman.

The young woman moves to sit on the seat in front of him, crossing her legs together as she takes in his sight. She observes and assesses how old he is and how much money he must own.

Probably looking for a new target.

‘Not old enough to be your daddy, but you can still call me that if it floats your boat.’

“Are you a secret agent?” She jokes, peering at his laptop before he smooths his hand on the lid to shuts it. He pretends to be intrigued by her senseless, obvious seduction when his mind once again forced him to go back and compare her to living-dead girl.

It seems like he can’t get away from her. Perhaps her threats were a curse? Even halfway across the sea, this total stranger reignites his curiosity.

‘Does Ingvild has any values? Any empathy toward others?’

She did experience fear in those little moments when his knife penetrated her soft little gut - that look in her eyes; like a virgin, fucked extremely rough for the very first time.

Thinking of those big, terrified eyes light up a snarl on his bewhiskered lip.

There was an inch of vulnerability in that sweet farewell kiss, a sense lost look on her face as if she couldn’t fit that emotion into any drawer inside her brain. It made her look so much more beautiful.

He wonders what she would have looked like if he went ahead with his besser urges and fucked her.

‘Maybe she’d finally break into tears. Fuck, I’d love to see her cry.’

“Sorry, I didn’t catch your name?” He interrupts the sassy brunette as she speaks of Lord-knows-what. It seems that she doesn’t even realise he wasn't listening to her for the last 5 minutes she been babbling . The girl smiles sweetly, tucking a brown lock of hair behind her ear. The diamond bracelet that decorated her wrist dangles as she does.

“Suzy.”

“Suzy,” August repeats and smiles charmingly before giving his lips a quick flick of a tongue. “Would you like to join me in my room?”

The brunette pretends to blush beneath the layers of foundation on her face and fakes an argument inside her mind as if she actually considers refusing his bold suggestion.

~*~

Back in his room, he pushes the petite brunette to her knees. He wipes away her makeup, smearing the pink paint with the crudeness of thumb. Suzy giggles, thinking she probably had men do worse than that by now.

‘Oh, darling, we haven’t even started yet.’

August’s large hand traces her rounded face, knuckles brushing against her cheek tenderly while running down to meet her lips again.

“Open up sweetheart,” he commands in a relaxed voice, his index finger demanding entrance to her velvety mouth. She spreads her lips open slowly, allowing him to slip in his long digit to explore the wet cavern while his thumb caresses her chin. Much to his delight, she sucks on his finger obediently, moaning as he slowly pumps in and out of her hot mouth.

“Good girl,” he praises, his free hand reaching to unbuckle his belt urgently and free his aching cock from his trousers. He tugs at himself for a second, staring how she suckles on his finger with fake devotion. She probably do want his cock, but it’s his money that she’d care for more later.

‘Oh, how disappointed you are going to be once I’m off this boat, baby.’

“How about I’ll fuck that pretty little throat, hmm?” August asks and without waiting for an answer, pulls his soaked finger away and clasps his hand around the hollows of her cheeks instead, forcing her to keep her mouth open.

She voices no protest, only her eyes staring at him wide and helpless. He pays no attention, preferring the sight of his cock sliding in between those puffy lips and pushing into the warm depths instead. A prolong groan slips out of his mouth, emphasising the relief of finally getting his dick wet.

Usually, he loves to watch, yet he lets his eyes roll back and shuts them tightly this time while she in the background. It only makes him fuck her throat more vigorously, his hands cradling and saddling her head, forcing her to meet the violent thrust of his hips.

“Don’t touch me,” he rasps breathlessly, as her her dirty paws snake for his waist. Terrified, she pulls away, intimidated by his voice. August’s eyes remain shut yet he can feel the wetness on her cheeks as his thumbs dig into them. Those tears are enough to send him over the edge, and he comes into her throat without any warning, grunting a couple of times and lingering inside her mouth to make sure she’ll swallow him clean.

‘That’s right little Valkyrie angel, you’ll take what I’ll give you.’

The mists of fantasy fade as August blinks his eyes open. Debunked by the plastic-type of woman. Slowly, he pulls his cock out, impressed by the mascara that’s smeared beneath Suzy’s now glassy red eyes. He wipes her lower lip clean and then gives her chin a gentle pinch with a soft grin.

Suzy gives out a weak smile in return, trying to look satisfied while remaining on her knees. He can tell that her little brain is pretty much half-through into realising she made a mistake by following the devil into his room.

Tall and menacing, he looks at her drenched by vile mischief. August moves to sit on the queen sized bed, petting the empty spot next to him. She follows, fighting her instinct to put a hand on his knee as she is used to, afraid that he will bark at her again.

“Tell me, Suzy,” he coaxes, reaching for the wallet in his pocket and drawing out a Trojan condom.

“Have you ever tried anal sex?”

****

“Ingvild,” the old man calls her name once he brings her to her new home. It’s a simple, minimalist apartment with naked walls and generic black IKEA furniture.

Silent, she peers at him, holding her small luggage between sinewy fingers. Everything that she possesses in the world is in that suitcase; a bunch of plaid skirts, white buttoned shirts, and a few books about fairies and monsters.

This man called Liam, is he to be her new father? He never even offered her a smile and hardly bothers looking into her eyes. Instead he grunts and sighs while making his way around the house and gesturing for her to follow.

At least he is kinder than Mother Superior. At least in here, no girl is going to pick any fights with her and get her into trouble.

“This is your room,” Liam gestures. The pubescent girl sneaks closer, peeking inside with curiosity. It’s not what someone would call a girl’s room by any means, very much like the rooms they had at the orphanage. It contains a single bed with a thin mattress and white metal bars and on the bed rest some casual clothes for her to wear.

At least she won’t have to wear skirts anymore.

As little Ingvild continues to scan the room, she picks on a small library housing some books and a learning desk with a computer. Probably for her to gain some knowledge of the world. She never had any of that at the orphanage, just the bible and the “forbidden” books of fairytales she stole from one of the nuns.

“Today you can rest,” Liam speaks, watching the little girl as she moves to place her luggage inside and sits on the bed.

“Tomorrow, you will start your first day of training.”

‘Training?’

Ingvild says nothing, only glares at him back quietly. It’s quite clear no woman is present in the house which makes her wonder; the orphanage doesn’t allow single parents to adopt, especially not men. Was Mother Superior this desperate to get rid of her that she decided to throw her at the first person who asked?

“Just so we’re clear, girl,” Liam grumbles, “I am not your father. You call me Liam and that’s that.”

She nods silently and watches him leave the room, shutting the door behind. Sighing, she falls back to the mattress, her silver eyes fixing at the ceiling in wonders of what sort of new life has she been sold ito.

“Ingvild...”

A low, velvety voice calls for her again, the mattress dipping, shifting with the weight of the one who joins her. As she turns her face aside, she is met with hungry eyes and a smile so cold it makes her heart shrivel.

August.

*~*

A loud thud wakes her with a sharp inhale. Though her face remain stoic, quickly readjusting to the sight of moving ground as the plane’s wheels make their landing. ‘Arrogant August Walker, invading my dreams’, she curses but pays no more thought to why he was there. Analysing dreams was never her thing. They were just memories of random things that happened to her in her childhood and August is no different as he had been on her mind for the last 72 hours.

He was a job.

One that she needed to get over with.

Liam was at her throat with this one specifically, nagging her like an old shrew. He wasn’t used for her taking her time with it, not his special girl.

Massaging her strained neck, she waits for the last person to leave the plane, observing the empty cabin and noticing how used it appears with all the crumpled, empty snack bags lying on the floor.

‘Ungrateful’, she thinks before exiting her seat and tip-toeing to get her luggage.

The arrivals terminal is infested with agents. Having been trained for years, she sees right through their casual attire, so fake they almost look like B-movie actors. It’s those badly selected outfits and their observant gazes - eyes obsessively fixed on every gate. Every airport in the world must be the same right now, desperate to catch this nightmare of a terrorist.

‘As if he would be stupid enough to travel by plane.’

With a high profile target like August on the loose, it almost feels like the world is on the brink of war.

‘Is that what he wants? To be an anarchistic god that plows chaos everywhere?’

Maybe that’s why he gave her back her life, to humiliate her, to show her how easily he can twist everyone’s life and disrupt the world people know.

‘Mephisto, Lucifer, Hades, Hel.’

“Remember that you’re only alive because I have allowed it.”

A sudden shard of pain sears through her torso, the wound reacting to the phantasm of his low timbre which plays in her mind. It makes her slow on her steps and chews on her inner cheek to suppress a moan that has been begging to escape her lips since yesterday afternoon.

“August Walker”, the name rolls on the tip of her tongue.

Her very first failure, the very first man who killed her.

It almost feels like a bond now, intimate and twisted. August went deeper than any other man ever did - he fucked her internal organs.

‘Is that is why you “performed” for him in the shower? Why you thought about him, slipping inside you with his cock rather than his knife?’

Ingvild huffs tenderly and passes in-between a couple reuniting with passion, her shoulder sharply bumping against the woman, who yells at her while she remains indifferent, never bothering to look back.

Putting on her shades, she continues to head for the exit. The wound in her gut throbs even further, all of a sudden and just when she is tempted to give into the pain and acknowledge it, the new mobile device in her jacket’s pocket begins to vibrate.

Liam, who else?

“Papa?” She answers, the big exit sign finally flickering in front of her eyes.

She can see Liam rolling his eyes without having to see his grumpy old face.

“What progress do you hope to make with this lead? Someone says they saw him in Singapore yesterday, you should be following these threads instead.”

Ingvild holds her breath, knowing very well the lead is false. August was with her a night ago, so close she tasted him, so near his fingers dug deep into her flesh, leaving an imprint on her bones and even though there is something quite demonic about him, she doubts he can be at two different places at once.

“I need access to his world, I need to pick up the clues,” she explains, yet the sad truth is that she has no idea what to look for. August is not a rookie idiot, he did a fine job leaving zero clues back at the bed&breakfast room they “shared”. Not even the receptionist who ogled her oddly when she left could tell her where he was heading.

“Just get it done, Ingvild. You’re acting like a child, this isn’t like you,” Liam mutters before hanging up.

‘He is right, this isn’t like you.’

Ingvild feels hooks clutching her guts, not just the pain August inflicted upon her, but something deeper, something desperate, leaving a void in that same spot. The fact that he slipped between her fingers seems to torments, just as much as the fact that she lied to Liam for the first time. It makes her feel like a rebellious teenager. She never keeps secrets from him and there she is, lying through every word.

Absentmindedly, her fingers press against her lips as she exits the airport.

~*~

The address led her to a small suburban house in southern London. It’s the type of house that has large glass windows where anyone standing outside can ogle freely. Rich people houses, as she likes to call it. She had a few missions in the past with people living in homes like this one - always an easy kill.

A blond woman meanders about inside the house, wearing a grey silk nightgown, preparing for bedtime probably. According to Walker’s file, she’s the most recent ex - Sydney. They broke up a couple of months before he decided to go on what he thought would be his final mission, his deathstrike.

‘If only.’

Glancing from the gravel path that leads to large metal doors, she learns the woman’s delicate manoeuvres, her mind reciting every graceful gestures as she crouches down to place food for a large Maine coon cat.

‘Is that the type of woman he likes?’

August would strikes her as a man who would fuck anything with a heartbeat but he did have more than a few relationships. She can’t help but wonder if he has a type, noticing how Sydney is more of a woman than a girl; solid income, big name lawyer, a woman who can take care of herself, a woman to start a family with.

Not that she imagines Walker starting a family anytime soon.

She is pretty too, with her mid-length straight golden hair, bright eyes and a shapely body. Ingvild looks at her own outfit: jeans, sneakers and a black sleeved shirt, nowhere as classy as beautiful Sydney.

The hour is late, still she walks toward the door and rings the bell.

“Can I help you?”

Ingvild is greeted by green eyes and a subtle Welsh accent. She gives her one of her fake smiles, trying to look as charming and pleasant as a sweet doll.

“Sydney Bedford?” She asks, while briefly scanning her body. She tries to imagine what August liked about her the most; her figure? Her angelic face? Her emerald stare?

“I have some questions about August Walker, he used to…”

Sydney shakes her head vehemently, waving her hands in the air. Something in her eyes drastically changes the moment the name “August” slaps her across the face.

“Are you MI6!? Please, I don’t want to speak about that psychotic loser anymore.”

Ingvild smiles calmly, a soft chuckle leaving her throat.

“Oh you see, he disappeared…”

“Good riddance!” Sydney replies, her eyes filling with anger, her face turning red within seconds. “Listen. I already told them everything I know.”

“Please,” Ingvild begs, batting her long lashes and tilting her head like a cute little kitten. “I’m new in this and my superior will be mad if I don’t at least speak to you. May I please come in? It’s important for my investigation.”

The same childlike charm that works on men might as well work on women, for different reasons in this occasion. Sydney is a single 36-38-year old woman who lives alone with her cat.

She must have wanted a family, perhaps with Walker, no wonder she’s furious.

Leaning against the door frame, Sydney scrutinises the young girl, believing she is younger than she really is with that pale smooth face and big innocent greyish eyes.

“Come on in, dear.” She opens the door wide, letting Ingvild step inside before closing it behind her.

The main entrance leads into a large living room, furnished with a black leather sofas and a glass coffee table. She owns a TV that is larger than Ingvild's entire living room and the walls are moulded with grey bricks, shiny from some cut stone.

Ingvild imagines how lovely it would feel to crack the shimmering stone with August’s skull.

“Would you like some tea?” Sydney offers while heading toward her luxurious kitchen.

“Please,” Ingvild answers, walking around the house and examining every corner to learn of the woman who invited her in. She nearly stumbles as the large cat rubs against her foot. “Oh,” she exclaims, lowering herself to pick the chubby feline to her arms.

She never owned a pet. Liam said it’s unnecessary.

“So like I said,” Sydney calls from the kitchen, putting the kettle on the stove. “I don’t know anything about August and where he is. All I can tell you is that he was weird.”

“Weird? How?” Ingvild asks, stroking the cat behind his ears and while it purr against her chest.

Sydney places two mugs on the black marble counter in the kitchen and opens a cabinet, looking for some tea bags. “He would disappear and then return after weeks, telling me not to ask any questions. Then, he would go away and come back in crazy hours. He was a gentleman of course but arrogant and demanding, never taking no for an answer.”

Ingvild turns to look at Sydney, arching her eyebrow as if she is surprised to learn this about the man who stabbed and drowned her in an icy lake. “Is that so?”

“Yes!” Sydney shouts back, her chest heaving as she throws the bags into the mugs and turns toward Ingvild.

“Everything had to go his way, and I won’t be surprised if he had a mistress or another family, or god! Maybe an illegal drug practice.”

The cat jumps down from Ingvild’s embrace, and she brushes the grey hairs off her black shirt. “What makes you think this way?”

“Like I said; disappearing in the middle of the night, coming back... I knew something was off so I went and... wait I… I shouldn’t tell you this, you’re an agent!” Sydney looks around her, as if she’s afraid someone might be listening to their conversation.

Ingvild takes a step forward into the kitchen, her grey eyes seeking Sydney’s, giving her a warm, kind smile. “You can tell me anything Sydney, you are not in danger, I promise. We just want to locate Walker, he hasn't reported to HQ in a while.”

Sydney observes her gaze, trying to determine her personality. She thinks the young woman seem gentle with those unique eyes and the hair that’s tucked back to a strict ponytail.

“I had him traced,” she whispers. “I know I wasn’t supposed to because he is CIA, and trust me I was scared but I had to know.”

“How did you do that?” Ingvild asks, tilting her head with curiosity and slight disbelief. It seems odd that a man like Walker was bugged by some dumb lawyer woman.

“I did his laundry, it wasn’t hard to hide something inside the pocket of his jacket. I mean, inside the fabric, where he can’t find it.”

Ingvild can’t help but let out a small snort, amused by the fact that the infamous CIA agent got made so easily. She covers her mouth with her fist, shyly smiling into it, but it’s noticed by Sydney who stands in front of her, staring oddly.

“Where would he go?”

“Some place in South Kensington, almost every day for the last month of our relationship. He would vanish there for hours and then come back. I have the address, hold on.” Sydney leaves the kitchen and walks through a long corridor.

Not bothering with politeness, Ingvild follows her, easy off her feet like the big grey cat, carefully exploring this new territory. She imagines the fights August would have with this woman and then the passionate sex afterwards while her hand runs against the texture of the garnet.

“Oh!” Sydney exclaims, confused to see Ingvild in the doorway of her bedroom. The young woman looks around curiously, trying to find any memorabilia from August; a photo, a clothing article, man cologne. It seems like he was never even been here, though there is a certain coldness in this room that feels strangely familiar.

‘No, not August, his touch is warm.’

“He did trading or something,” Sydney says as she hands her over a small yellow note that was hidden in her purse. It has the address to August’s “secret lover”.

Ingvild takes the notes, memorizing the address before placing it in her jeans pocket. “Trading? Can you elaborate?”

She shrugs. “He asked me to not disturb him while he was doing some dealing, I don’t know what it was… it looked fishy but it might just be CIA stuff.”

Ingvild nods silently, scanning the room again and again and eventually taking in the sight of the empty bed. Her mind fills in the gaps, painting an image of August fucking Sydney into oblivion, his muscular body ramming into hers, one leg held over his shoulder while the blond little bitch screams in ecstasy.

“How was he in bed? Would you say he performed well?” Ingvild asks, her eyes gesturing toward the mattress.

Sydney frowns, giving her a slight repulsed face as she finds her question remarkably rude.

“How is this relevant to the investigation?”

She means to berate her when she witnesses Ingvild’s kind smile growing remarkably cold.

The young woman remains silent, taking a step closer and making Sydney almost stumble back as sudden fear creeps in. Grey frigid eyes, like icy shards, her nostrils slightly flares as she catches up the scent of her expensive perfume.

“How is this relevant to the MI6?!” Sydney asks again, trying to dismiss the tension yet continues to draw distance from the young agent.

“I never said I am MI6.”

Sydney’s back hits the wall with a soft thud, she attempts to flee but Ingvild’s hands lock around her shoulders, forcing her against the wall with a thud. As small as this woman is, she is way stronger than she appears.

“How was he in bed?” she repeats, her voice becoming more demanding while her glare threatening to spear into Sydney’s skull. “Would you say he satisfies you?”

Puny gasps peal from Sydney’s mouth, her green eyes becoming moist with pure fear.

“Please, don’t... He was... Rough.”

“Bondage?”

“He... he..he choked me,” she answers in a trembling voice, her lower lip quivering, much to Ingvild’s delight.

“He was too rough, he was big and he didn’t care, it was as if he enjoyed my pain...”

Ingvild licks her bottom lip, imagining Sydney thrown on the bed with August treating her like a rag doll, wrecking her completely. Bruises left everywhere, tattoos on her skin for the world to see this fine artist’s work. A cold flame licks at her spine, crawling down to the small of her back.

She’s uncertain why.

“Would you say he loved you?”

Sydney’s peers at her quietly, thinking of her answer for a few seconds while Ingvild’s fingers bury into her collarbone, voicelessly demanding a response.

“August Walker is incapable of love. He is dead inside.”

________________________________________________________

Disclaimer: I don’t own August Walker or the Mission Impossible Frenchise

#august walker #Henry Cavill #August Walker Fanfiction #Henry Cavill Fanfiction #August Walker x ofc #Henry Cavill x ofc #August Walker Fanfic #augustwalker #henrycavill

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septicstories · 3 years

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A/N: For some unfathomable reason, I get some fantasy BNHA vibe from the song, Ophelia by the Lumineers. not even the lyrics. Like, the instrumental. It also, for some reason, gives me such an intense feeling of nostalgia that it sort of makes me want to cry? And I don’t know why? Actually wait. Seeing that this song is from the same guys who performed “Ho Hey” that makes a bunch of sense. Okay, anyways, I’m just gonna write a Kiribaku fantasy thing. Just some fluff, nothing super major.

I, I, when I was younger

“Kacchan! Quit running off! Your mother is bound to be worried sick!”

“Shut up, Deku! I’m gonna be fucking fine! C’mon!”

“Kacchan!”

The two young boys ran through the forests. Katsuki had recently turned twelve, given his first sword. Nothing fancy, just a small cutlass. In a week, he’d get his very first tattoo. But only if he collected an animal’s blood.

Easiest way to do that?

Kill it and bring it back to his village.

I, I, should have known better

“Uh, Kacchan? Do you see that?” the younger green haired boy asked.

Katsuki glanced in the direction, seeing that there was a pair of bright red wings popping out of the bushes.

“Is that a dragon?” the green haired boy whispered.

“No one’s ever had dragon blood for their tattoo before!” Katsuki whispered back with a feral grin.

The grin was odd and misshapen, something he didn’t do often. It hadn’t quite grown on the ash blond yet.

“Oi! Dragon! Show yourself!”

Katsuki took his cutlass, slicing through the bush. As the leaves and branches from the bush fell, the front of the dragon was revealed.

And I can't feel no remorse

A black haired boy looked up at him with big red eyes. A pair of horns protruded from his forehead, their base a bright red. A tail stuck out of the other side of the bush, also bright red.

“Sorry! No hurt, please,”

Katsuki dropped his cutlass to the ground.

A dragon shifter.

They were a rare species, only two thousand known in the world throughout time.

“Are you hurt?” the green haired boy popped up beside Katsuki.

“Uh... wings. Stuck. Help?”

“Come with me afterward,” Katsuki said firmly.

“Huh?! Kacchan?! What are you doing?”

“Shut the fuck up, Deku,”

The boys freed the dragon shifter before Katsuki led him back to his parent’s castle.

“Oi, hag! Bring us a medic!” Katsuki yelled into the castle, kicking a door open.

“For fuck’s sake, Katsuki! Did you hurt Izuku aga--”

Queen Mitsuki entered the room, ready to whoop her son’s ass, only to find her son and the boy she called her nephew in perfect health. A third boy with dragon wings, scales, and horns, however, was not.

“Oh. Uhm... hello,” she said calmly.

The dragon boy gave a bow as Mitsuki called for a few medics.

And you don't feel nothing back

“Kacchan, it’s so weird for you to help someone like that. What about your tattoo?”

“Dumbass. Don’t you know that dragon shifters are a rare species? If I fucking killed one, I’d die, for sure. I’d be hunted down. And it felt... different. Like I couldn’t kill them, even if they weren’t a dragon shifter. I... they feel different,”

Katsuki sat outside of the infirmary where the dragon boy stayed.

Behind the door, the shifter had sat, listening. That was something he was good at. Listening. He didn’t know what most of it meant. He didn’t speak their language. Hell, he rarely spoke.

But hearing what the ash blond boy had to say made him feel weird. His tail thumped against the cot he sat on, a happy chirp leaving his mouth.

When Katsuki came back to see the dragon shifter, he was pounced on, happy chirping noises escaping his mouth.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“Master! Teach fight!”

“What?! Master?”

“You save me. I stay until I save,”

Katsuki sat there, baffled. A dragon shifter wants to be his? And a cute one at that?

“So, you wanna know how to fight, huh?”

I, I, got a new girlfriend

“No fucking way, really?” Katsuki was snapped from his memories by Sero gawking at the drunken purple haired bard.

“Mhm! She’s super duper pretty,” she slurred happily. “She’s a princess!”

“Congrats!” Mina, the pink haired barkeep said with a smile.

“Oh, it’s Princess Yaoyorozu, right?” Tenya asked, sipping lightly from his glass of wine.

“Mhm! Momo is so great,” Jirou beamed.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, scoffing at Jirou’s words.

She feels like he's on top

The dragon prince-- no, king-- had changed greatly since he met the dragon shifter, Eijirou.

Katsuki’s original kingdom was attacked, his family and his people killed. It was bloody and traumatizing. He actually needed saving from Eijirou.

But he never left.

And I don't feel no remorse

“Oh! Katsuki!” Eijirou tugged on the king’s cape. “Look! Miss Frog brought her wife!”

He looked behind the bar to see Ochaco and Tsuyu, smiling sweetly at each other.

“Get a room!”

Denki and Sero laughed beside Katsuki before Ochaco flipped him off.

And you can't see past my blinders

“Ochaco, relax, kero,” Tsuyu mumbled.

“Yeah, Katsu’s just jealous that he can’t have what we have,” Ochaco said with a smile, pressing a kiss to her girlfriend’s nose.

“You want to be a lesbian?” Eijirou whispered to Katsuki, who choked on his brandy.

Eijirou frantically waved his hands. “Sorry! Hurt?”

Whenever Eijirou found himself flustered or speaking quickly, his speech would go back to the broken language he used when he was a child. It got his point across, it just wasn’t the most eloquent.

Oh, Ophelia

“I’m fine, shitty lizard,” he mumbled. “No, I don’t want to be a lesbian. I don’t like women. I would just want to date someone and... be happy with them, you know?”

“Oh! Dragons do that! We bite the neck of our mate, give our mate a mark!”

“What, some sort of binding mark?”

Eijirou nodded happily, a small chirp leaving his throat.

You've been on my mind girl since the flood

“Why hasn’t Ei gotten drunk?” Mina asked.

“Dragons don’t drink. Alcohol to them is like feeding chocolate to a dog,” Katsuki scoffed. “Figure you would’ve fucking known that since he’s declined your alcohol consistently for the past several years,”

“Mhm! Alcohol killed my family,” Eijirou said with a soft smile.

“Oh,” Denki murmured.

After the sudden dark turn, it was quiet. But only for a moment.

“Hi, Kacchan!”

Katsuki rolled his eyes, turning to the green haired boy, who had Prince Shouto walking behind him.

“Done fucking the prince yet? Or are you still his spite boyfriend?” Katsuki snarled.

“How dare y--” “Shou, it’s okay,”

“Ah? Having the lapdog shush the prince? Doesn’t that deserve some sort of punishment?”

The shit eating grin on Katsuki’s face grew as Izuku’s face flushed at the word.

“Don’t be rude,” Eijirou hissed, smacking Katsuki’s shoulder. “Sorry for Katsuki. He is drunk.”

Oh, Ophelia

“Ah, it’s alright, Eijirou!” Izuku said with a grin.

“The master disobeying his dragon? Doesn’t that deserve some sort of punishment?” Shouto asked, giving a smug ass grin.

Katsuki’s grip on his glass tightened, the glass making a creaking noise.

“Shou!”

“What does he mean by that? I did not do anything wrong, did I? Did I go against a human rule again?” Eijirou whispered.

“No, Prince Shouto’s just being an asshole,” Katsuki mumbled.

“Stop being mean!” Eijirou said before pouting a little. “You’re better than that,”

Katsuki felt his heart clench at his oddly adorable dragon servant.

Actually, was servant the word to use? He didn’t feel as though Eijirou was his servant or inferior to him. Much more like a friend.

One day, hopefully more.

Katsuki groaned, smacking his head with the heel of his palm. He needed to stop thinking like that. Eijirou would be a friend and nothing more.

Heaven help a fool who falls in love

So maybe Katsuki did end up falling in love with his dragon shifter friend. What did it matter?

He wasn’t going to act on his urges to kiss him, hold him, tell him he loved him- no! That’s preposterous!

From time to time, he wonders what his mother would think of him if she saw him now:

Sitting in a bar as a dragon king, making fun of the prince of another kingdom, sitting beside his dragon shifter friend who he also held high affection for.

He was fucked, wasn’t he?

“Why did you hit yourself? Was there an insect? I could have gotten it for you,” Eijirou asked.

“You are not eating a fucking insect off my head again,”

“It was one time!”

“One time too many!”

I, I, got a little paycheck

“Anyway, Katsuki, we didn’t come here to hear endless innuendos,” Shouto sighed, pulling out a silken sack.

It jingled happily as it was dropped in front of Katsuki.

“We came here for the--”

“Yeah yeah, you came here for the head of that beast. I know. Ei, you got the satchel?”

“Right here!” Eijirou said, holding the heavy satchel, dripping in black blood. “The head is in a bag inside of the satchel. So grab the bag inside. Do not wear white gloves, I suggest black as that is the color of their blood,”

“Thank you, Eijirou,” Izuku said, giving a quick bow as he replaced his white gloves for black ones.

Katsuki was handed the sack and he popped it open.

“Ei, coin toss,” he growled, taking a golden coin and flicking it behind me.

Coin toss is what they’ve done to see if the money is genuine. Katsuki toss a coin behind him, Eijirou nibbles on it for a second, and then he gives it back if it’s good. If it’s bad, he eats it.

If he eats even a single coin, he has Katsuki’s permission to beat the shit out of them.

You got big plans and you gotta move

“Must you do this every time?” Shouto asked

“What, you give us a shit coin?” Katsuki asked, flipping Eijirou the next coin.

“No’ ye’,” Eijirou said, catching the coin between his teeth. “All solid,”

“Good. And yes, we fucking do, asshole,” Katsuki scoffed. “You could scam us out, and we’d have to kill ya for it,”

“Be nishe, Katshuki!” Eijirou said before slipping the coin out of his mouth.

And I don't feel nothing at all

“Hey guys, we’re gonna go head toward the inn! Heard they had a bonfire going! We also need to drop off our horses,” Sero said with his signature grin.

“Yeah, yeah,” Katsuki scoffed.

After quickly checking the rest of the coins and making sure they were genuine, Katsuki closed the silken sack.

“Thanks,” he grumbled out.

“Sure thing, Kacchan! It was a pleasure to work with you!”

“Fuck off!”

And you can't feel nothing small

“Hey, Katsuki?”

“What is it?” Katsuki asked, turning to Eijirou.

“I want to show you a place,”

“Oh yeah?” Katsuki had a smirk cross his face. “Where to, Shitty Lizard?”

“Come with me!”

Eijirou and Katsuki left the bar, leaving a few gold coins with small dents in them on the counter.

Eijirou stood behind the building, removing his clothing as not to rip them before Katsuki placed them in the satchel.

A few moments later, the redheaded hybrid became a full dragon, and the two tore up into the sky at vicious speeds.

But once they were over the clouds, Eijirou slowed to a glide.

“Nice job on speed. Doing better,”

A deep rumbling chirp came from Eijirou as they continued to soar above the clouds, Katsuki relaxing happily on Eijirou’s back.

Honey I love you, that's all she wrote

The duo began their descent, landing at the base of a mountain as Eijirou shifted back.

“So, what did you want to show me?” Katsuki asked, handing Eijirou his clothing.

“Top of the mountain,” Eijirou said, yanking on his clothes.

Katsuki blinked for a moment. “Then why the hell didn’t you fly us up there?”

“The path there is very pretty too,” Eijirou said, making Katsuki huff.

“Fine. Whatever. Let’s fucking go,”

Oh, Ophelia

The boys began their hike up the mountain. Nothing too rigorous, but still harder than a simple walk. Not like the two minded, though. They’ve grown used to things that take up far more energy than a hike.

“So, where exactly did you bring me?” Katsuki asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“Oh, we are climbing up a mountain. I cannot remember the name at the moment, so my apologies,” Eijirou chuckled, tugging at his scarf a tad.

“Fucking great. Any sort of civilization nearby?”

“Uhm... I believe there is a village that sits on the shore,”

You've been on my mind girl like a drug

Katsuki put a finger in his mouth, and after a moment, he pulled it out and held it to the sky.

The light breeze hit his wet finger tip, only a small part of it being cold.

“We in the East?”

After a moment, Eijirou nodded.

“Yes, yes!”

“And there’s a village by the water?”

Oh, Ophelia

“Yes, you will see it once we reach the top!” Eijirou chirped.

“So does the name Tuft Mountain ring any bells?”

“Oh, yes, yes!”

“And you wanted to show me the peak of Tuft?”

“Mhm!”

Heaven help a fool who falls in love

Katsuki knew what Eijirou was doing.

Anyone with half a damn brain cell knew what he was doing.

Oh, Ophelia

“YOU’RE FUCKING TAKING ME TO LOVER’S POND?!”

You've been on my mind girl since the flood

“Hush, hush! You’ll disturb the wildlife!” Eijirou said, thankful for the dark of the night that covered his flushed face.

The two reached the peak, and Katsuki’s eyes widened.

Oh, Ophelia

The pond was surrounded by gorgeous flowers and other wild grasses, waving in the breeze nonchalantly.

Fireflies dotted the sky, their little lights glowing up against the water’s surface.

The pond itself was an irregular heart shape, yet it was naturally formed.

Heaven help a fool who falls in love

Legend says that those who sit at one side of the pond will have their soulmate appear at the other side.

This could take minutes, hours, days, months, weeks, even years.

The pond is for those who are willing to wait for their soulmate.

Oh, Ophelia

Eijirou went and sat at one end of the pond, and waited.

Katsuki felt a tug.

You've been on my mind girl like a drug

As though he was being forced closer to the pond.

His head foggy and walk awkward, his body slowly made it’s way to the other side of the pond.

Oh, Ophelia

The two boys gawked at each other, vermilion and scarlet eyes locking, jaws dropping.

Katsuki knew what had just happened and knew what he’d done, but he hadn’t felt as though he was in control of himself.

A smile bloomed on Eijirou’s face.

He covered his mouth with his hands as tears clumped up in his lashes.

His tail thumped on the ground, wings beating, and sobbing chirps of joy escaping his mouth.

Katsuki felt his eyes water as well as he grinned.

Heaven help a fool who falls in love

A/N: Okay! Thank you so much for reading this! I sincerely hope you enjoyed it! I just get sudden impulses to write, so I do, and then you get this. Ooh! I’ve also never done this before, but I’m gonna start a tag list! I’ll do this for every story! I’ve only got one person and my beta readers, but feel free to ask to be on the tag list! You’ll get a notif for any oneshot I post! Or story! If you want to see my artwork, then please make that specification. So I’ll tag you in both or one or the other. Okay? Okay!

Tag list: @king-queenie, @violet-fandom, @siivermoon,

Okay! That’s all! Thank you!

#long post #kiribaku #kiribaku fantasy au #oneshot #eijirou kirishima #katsuki bakugou #krbk #songfic #ophelia the lumineers #the lumineers #fanfiction #fanfic #septic's stories

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kyndaris · 3 years

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Divine Comedy

There’s a lot to be said about Immortals Fenyx Rising. That it’s a close of Breath of the Wild. That it’s far too childish. Or that it’s essentially Assassin’s Creed, but reskinned. In an age where games have aimed for photorealism and developers have been adamant about using a colour palette that has basically amounted to shades of brown, Immortals Fenyx Rising is a breath of fresh air. The sharp contrasts of yellow, purple, blue and green make the world vibrant and a wonder to behold as they pop out of the screen. Even the art style is a reminder of decades long past when mascots dominated the scene.

I, for one, find it much better than the deluge of similar character models we’ve encountered for several long years of video games. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

While the title of this post is a reference to the epic poem written by Dante Alighieri, which I haven’t quite finished (and in all likelihood, it might take years before I actually bother with Paradisio and catch up with Dante’s yearning for Beatrice), I thought it quite an apt descriptor for the narrative of Immortals Fenyx Rising. Why, you may ask - as the epic poem describes Dante’s descent into the nine circles of Christian Hell before he journeys to purgatory and on to paradise?

Simple. Because while the plot of the Divine Comedy doesn’t have many (if any) parallels with the game itself, I thought it was a great way to draw attention that Immortals Fenyx Rising is a story told within a story. And who should tell it but our favourite titan chained to a rock, where his liver is ripped out by an eagle every day, as well as the Father of the Gods, Zeus himself.

While the internal timeline takes a bit of time to adjust to, I liked having Prometheus and Zeus commenting about the actions Fenyx was undertaking. It was amusing to listen to them argue, provide commentary (mostly Zeus’s opinions of his many children and his exploits) as well as edits to the ongoing narrative to add a little challenge.

But while the telling of the story was exciting, the actual tale was one as old as time. There was nothing original about finding the Gods, collecting their Essences and tackling Typhon once Fenyx was decked out with upgraded gear and had unlocked all the abilities at their disposal. As a purveyor of video games, I’ve encountered the same loop many times and was a little deflated by the time I had defeated Typhon. Even the plot twist near the end failed to serve up much in the way of surprises.

Typhon, himself, was a little too hammy. While a serviceable villain for a children’s game, there was far too little depth when it came to his interactions with Fenyx. So, if one was hoping for an epic tale, I would advise to look elsewhere.

Still, given my love for Greek mythology, I liked the retelling of many of the Greek myths and seeing Immortals Fenyx Rising’s rendition of some of my favourite Gods. Though most were not explored in depth, mentioned only in passing, I liked the references made to the Trojan War, the many ways Athena turned young maidens into cursed monsters or animals/ insects, and the numerous Greek heroes that have since found their way into the mainstream.

What I liked most was that Atalanta was given a piece of the spotlight alongside Herakles, Odysseus and Achilles. Even the animated show Class of the Titans stumbled somewhat with the title screen - declaring Atlanta a descendant of Artemis (which is impossible because the Goddess of the Hunt was prided for her virginal status).

The characterisation of the Gods was also quite nice. Given Zeus’s proclivities, it made sense that his children hated him. Hephaistos soared in the role of tortured artist and Aphrodite’s transformation into a tree, along with her more selfless attitude in that form were all great to witness. Ares, of course, probably had the most fun quoting God of War (2018) with his: “do not be sorry. Be better.”

When it came to the controls, I felt that they were a little too floaty - particularly when it came to running and jumping. Given the aesthetic, however, I was relieved that it was not as pixel perfect as other games. Combat is serviceable and revolves around the use of sword, axe and bow. After levelling up my weapons and armour, and equipping those that would complement my play style, I was nigh unstoppable as I tore around the Golden Isles on my noble steed.

The one major gripe I had about Immortals Fenyx Rising were the puzzles. There are far too many. Almost every collectible or myth challenge involved moving weighted boxes around, hitting targets with arrows or racing a countdown timer. While most are quite easy, some of the Tartaros vaults could be downright devilish with how precise the timing is. I hope that future iterations would allow for separate difficulties for combat and puzzles/ dungeons because I still have nightmares about a few of them. It just seemed that wherever Fenyx went, they were dogged by contraptions that needed solving and this sucked out quite a bit of the fun from exploring and taking a look at the next question mark on the map.

Immortals Fenyx Rising is different from many games that have come from triple-A studios. While there are many similarities to Nintendo’s Breath of the Wild, the colourful nature of the land of gods and monsters is a far cry from what Ubisoft had primarily been churning out on a regular basis. And that’s a good thing. Shaking up the formula, even a little bit, by making things look a little more cartoony or using colours that pop out of the screen is a great way to reengage with players that might be suffering from first-person shooter fatigue. And while I don’t mind exploring the English countryside as a Vikingr, it is nice to be able to freely customise my avatar and make them wear goofy outfits rather than watching them grimace realistically for the sixtieth game in a row.

Also, it featured a credits scene. Albeit, a fake one that was meant to throw the players off. But, at least there kind of was one?

#video games #immortals fenyx rising

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Godzilla Singular Point: The Weird History of Jet Jaguar

https://ift.tt/3jvPBwC

The latest take on Toho’s iconic, building-crushing lizard comes in the form of Godzilla Singular Point, an anime series now available in dubbed form on Netflix. Taking place in the not-too-distant future, this reimagining of the King of Monsters involves a group of human characters becoming aware – through rather bizarre ways – of a coming apocalyptic event. Now the only thing that can save them is a behemoth out to punch monsters and look out for the little guy.

No, not Godzilla. He’s actually the apocalyptic event. No, our hero is none other than Jet Jaguar.

Yes, it’s finally time for Jet Jaguar to get his due.

A concept nearly 50 years old at this point, Jet Jaguar is one of those characters who was initially doomed to fail, but lives on due to nostalgia and the golden notion of, “I realize most people hated that thing from my childhood, but I bet I could make it good!” At best, he was a rad addition to the Godzilla mythos. At worst, he was a dumb idea from a dumb movie. For the most part, he’s remembered as something goofy that gets laughed at, despite having some genuine earnestness.

Jet Jaguar was created from both a fan contest and a corporate game of telephone. Back in 1972, to jump on the bandwagon of tokusatsu giant superhero/robot shows, Toho asked fans to design their own superhero design. The winner was a half-man/half-bird robot with a lengthy neck resembling a stack of rings named Red Alone. The concept was turned into a full-on rubber costume, but they changed the color scheme, which upset the young winner. They later decided to just scrap the whole thing, keep the color scheme, and make their own new design. And so, Jet Jaguar was born.

The superhero made an entire one movie appearance in 1973’s Godzilla vs. Megalon. As the urban legend goes, this was initially intended to be a standalone Jet Jaguar movie that the studio just didn’t have faith in towards the end and they hastily threw in Godzilla and recurring Godzilla villain Gigan. While the claim is dubious and unproven, it certainly is easy to understand where the allegations come from.

Everything about the movie feels rushed. As the last-minute replacement for another Godzilla film that didn’t pan out, filming took several weeks and production was a mere six months. Even the Godzilla costume was whipped up in record time. As for the story, outside of the intro, the preexisting elements (Godzilla and Gigan) aren’t thrown in until about 2/3 into the movie. Up until that point, it feels like a Jet Jaguar vs. Megalon movie with the production team hitting the panic button.

The plot of Godzilla vs. Megalon is that a scientist Goro Ibuki is working on a robot called Jet Jaguar, along with his little brother Rokuro and his best friend Hiroshi. They get wrapped up in a plot involving a group of beings from Atlantis-But-Not-Really, who are annoyed at all the nuclear bomb tests going on in their neck of the woods. They steal Jet Jaguar and use him to guide their insect god Megalon to different cities for the sake of smashing them up and punishing humanity.

Goro and friends get their hands on Jet Jaguar’s controls and use him to lead Godzilla to where Megalon is. Then the Seatopians call some alien friends for a solid and have them send in Gigan. Jet Jaguar is able to break away from all control and becomes fully sentient, as well as revealing the ability to turn into a giant. It becomes a big tag team battle, mostly remembered for Godzilla doing the silliest dropkick you’ve ever seen, followed by a second one for good measure.

The villains escape, Jet Jaguar and Godzilla shake hands, they go their separate ways, and Jet Jaguar reunites with the humans heroes after shrinking back down. He gets his own snazzy theme song to close things out.

In Japan, the movie wasn’t all that successful. As the thirteenth title in the Godzilla series, it brought in the worst returns yet. Between public burnout and the movie’s lack of quality, it just wasn’t grabbing people. That said, it came out at just the right time in the United States. Released in 1976, it came out months before the anticipated King Kong remake. The American movie poster for the movie even bit on the King Kong poster by featuring Godzilla and Megalon duking it out while each standing on a different Twin Tower, even though the movie at no point took place in the States.

A year later, the movie would be cut down into 48 minutes so they could broadcast it on NBC in prime time, across an hour with commercials. The only reason I mention this at all is because it was hosted by John Belushi wearing a Godzilla costume, which is sadly somewhere in the abyss of golden lost media.

Getting back to Jet Jaguar – the topic of this article – I feel the need to bring up Germany’s handling of the movie’s translation. Rather than call him “Jet Jaguar,” they referred to him as “King Kong.” I mean…sure, why not. Even weirder, when the next two movies introduced fellow giant robot MechaGodzilla, Germany once again referred to the robot as “King Kong.” Guys, I know what you’re going for here, but it doesn’t work that way.

Anyway, Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla and Terror of MechaGodzilla followed Godzilla vs. Megalon and closed off the classic Showa Era of Godzilla movies. Not only did Japan need to rest Godzilla as a concept for nearly a decade, but this also meant that whenever Godzilla would come back, it was going to be some kind of reboot or new “only the first movie counts” installment. Jet Jaguar was never high on the list to be brought back, especially since MechaGodzilla completely overshadowed him.

He would at least get a little more exposure in 1991 when Godzilla vs. Megalon was featured in the second season of Mystery Science Theater 3000. While much of the episode is spent making fun of one of the Seatopians for looking like Oscar Wilde, they toss plenty of jokes at Jet Jaguar. Most memorably, they “translate” Jet Jaguar’s ending theme, which notes that his mother never loved him and he looks a lot like Jack Nicholson.

Due to rights issues, Godzilla vs. Megalon is one of the few MST3K episodes that is no longer legally available for viewing. This does make the original MST3K Collection Volume 10 box set (which included Godzilla vs. Megalon as one of the four movies) a collector’s item, as it was later discontinued and rereleased with The Giant Gila Monster taking its spot.

A stranger use of Jet Jaguar comes in the form of Certain Distant Suns’ music video for “Bitter” in 1995. While there’s not much of a narrative outside of the band playing, footage of Godzilla vs. Megalon being shown, and a few shots of guys walking around in Megalon and Jet Jaguar costumes, I really insist you give the video a look due to the ending. It certainly goes in a direction I wasn’t expecting.

In 1997, Jet Jaguar made his next official appearance in another frankly bizarre spectacle. In Japan, a series called Godzilla Island appeared on TV in three-minute increments. While it only lasted a year, there were a whopping 256 episodes, meaning almost 13 hours of footage. If you’ve never heard of Godzilla Island, you might be thinking, “Wow, almost 13 hours of Godzilla stuff? Why isn’t this more well known?”

Well, it probably has a lot to do with the fact that instead of using guys in rubber suits, the kaiju action was done with action figures. Yikes.

Not only did Jet Jaguar show up during these adventures, but they gave him the 90s superhero action figure treatment. Much like how they released as many figures of Batman as possible for different crime-fighting scenarios, Godzilla Island gave us Silver Jet Jaguar, Medical Jet Jaguar, and even Fireman Jet Jaguar. Collect them all!

Movies

Godzilla vs. Kong Writer Talks About Spending 8 Years in the MonsterVerse

By Don Kaye

Movies

Godzilla vs. Kong Director and Writer Talk Future of The MonsterVerse

By Don Kaye

In the early 2000s, Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee was released for the GameCube and Xbox under the Atari brand. It was a fighting game featuring various characters from Godzilla lore and though Atari wanted to include Jet Jaguar, Toho refused. Still, at least Megalon was included in the game. There would be two sequels in the form of Godzilla: Save the Earth and Godzilla: Unleashed. FINALLY, Jet Jaguar was playable, because if there’s anything you can count on, it’s scraping the bottom of the barrel when you’re working on multiple installments of a nostalgic who’s who project.

He’d also return in 2014’s Godzilla game for PlayStation 3 and 4. The producer of the game didn’t even plan on putting him in there, but he saw that the programmers already were working on him and just shrugged it off. There was a special trick to summoning Jet Jaguar as a boss character. By ending up in three different Godzilla vs. Jet Jaguar scenarios and winning all three times, you would then unlock a special cutscene of the two shaking hands while a confused military woman would wonder about their history.

Around the mid-2010s, IDW Publishing was all about releasing a bunch of comics with the Godzilla license. Their mainline series was Godzilla: Rulers of the Earth, which went on for 25 issues. Early on, Jet Jaguar appeared out of nowhere during a fight between Godzilla and the team of Gigan and Orga. In human size, Jet Jaguar flew into Orga’s mouth, then expanded into giant size, causing the beast to explode. Especially awesome was that it came with the cliffhanger text, “Next: PUNCH! PUNCH! PUNCH!” a reference to Jet Jaguar’s theme song from the movie.

Jet Jaguar showed up regularly in the series, coming off as Godzilla’s designated driver friend and handler. What I mean is that he seemed to be out to protect Godzilla, but that meant having to keep his violent ally on task (ie. pointing out that Gigan was nearby to stop Godzilla from attacking Jet Jaguar) and throwing punches when the situation absolutely called for it.

This continuity played up Jet Jaguar as more enigmatic than anything, as although he was mechanical, the only human character who knew his origins was killed off before it could be explained. Even one of the invading alien villains saw him on a screen and basically went, “Oh crap. It’s THIS guy!” Regardless, he still came off as a total badass, winning fights against Godzilla, Gigan (the chainsaw-hand version), and Destroyah.

Then again, at one point he needed to be saved by the 1998 American Godzilla, which at least proved as a reminder to the robot hero that there are Toho characters far more hated than him.

Toho started using Jet Jaguar again, albeit in sillier ways. In 2019, as an April Fool’s Day prank, they put up a teaser on YouTube for a Jet Jaguar movie. They also had him appear a few times on Godziban, a Godzilla web series for kids that, once again, used dolls and action figures to tell its stories.

Now Jet Jaguar is a major part of Godzilla Singular Point. To get into specifics on the plot would be like explaining advanced calculus, but to keep on-topic, Jet Jaguar is the creation of Goro Otaki as both a way to ward off monstrous threats and as a company mascot. Considering King Kong’s role in King Kong vs. Godzilla was “kidnapped to be a company mascot,” maybe the Germans were onto something with the rename.

Anyway, this version of Jet Jaguar is more mechanical in appearance instead of having to rely on making him look like a human in a costume. Jet Jaguar is there to protect the heroes from the endless supply of monsters, usually taking some extensive damage. Still, the robot gets rebuilt stronger and stronger and becomes advanced enough to become self-aware and speak in…well, the voice of a teenage girl.

I don’t know, I guess I just figured he’d sound like Astro Guy from King of the Monsters.

There’s a big hard-to-explain twist, but the main thing to know is that Jet Jaguar becomes a full-on badass by the end of the series, turns out to be a huge key to the plot, and has a completely kickass showdown with Godzilla. In a way, Jet Jaguar’s journey in Singular Point is a lot like in real life, going from a lame idea that appealed to kids and gradually being understood as a respected part of the Godzilla mythos. Something initially representative of the worst of the franchise, proven to be something genuinely cool in the right hands.

Now it’s time for America to return the favor. Once again, timing is on Jet Jaguar’s side. The Monsterverse was on its way to the graveyard after the box office intake of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, but Godzilla vs. Kong came out at just the right time in the tail end of the pandemic to be a big success and keep the series going a little bit longer. There aren’t too many names in the toybox left to pull out, but at this point, Gigan and Jet Jaguar have to be high on the list.

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

Make it happen, Hollywood!

Godzilla Singular Point is available to stream on Netflix now.

The post Godzilla Singular Point: The Weird History of Jet Jaguar appeared first on Den of Geek.

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#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

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teaboot · 4 years

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Is okay to ask what are you interesed in? Like fandoms/hobbies and things like that?

Omg YUSSSSSS!!! I have so many fun weird interests one sec lemme think uuuuuh

Okay okay okay, so I've been in just about every fandom by now, but I'm currently active in The Witcher, Overwatch, Spiderman, The Punisher, Elementary, aaand... Idk, I jump around a bit.

My FIRST fandom was Lord of The Rings, then X-Men, Avengers, Homestuck, Transformers, Sherlock, Kingsmen, Daredevil, Supernatural, Lucifer, Hellboy, Miraculous Ladybug, Umbrella Academy, Harry Potter, Rise Of The Guardians, Teen Wolf... A few others, but those are the biggies.

My all-time favourite genre in the universe was Fantasy growing up. I read every fantasy book in my school library, two times, and to this day I can close my eyes and tell you where each book was and what it was about. If it's an English teen fantasy written prior to 2009, I've probably read it.

I love bones- like, literal bones, not the show, but I loved the show too. I love natural history, animal trivia, facts about plants, venomous animals, and insects.

I'm a really good artist- that's, like, the one thing I'm usually pretty confident in. My favourite disciplines are pointilism, clay sculpture, and whittling, but my favourite mediums are India ink, hot press cotton paper, Ph*toshop, and copper.

I'm super interested in psychology, magic tricks, foreign languages, anthropology, vulture culture, tattoo art, and fashion design, although I'm not great with magic.

My favourite animals are the common brown bat, sea otters, golden moles, silky anteaters, rhinoceros beetles, bugbears, big dogs, and cats.

I like to cook but I'm super awful at baking desserts, so I'm trying to learn, and I also just started learning Brazilian jiu jitsu!!! I'm absolutely horrendous, but everyone's been really great about it and I love it so much!!!!

Oh, and I LOVE riddles. Getting them right is fun, but cheating is almost better.

Oh and I collect handmade ceramics! Mostly stoneware- I like the texture and weight of it; porcelain makes my hands feel slimy.

Also antique silverware, wooden boxes, leather scraps, woven blankets, beeswax candles, cologne samples, glittery nail polishes, soaps and body washes that smell like plants, old masks, animal bones, and houseplants.

Asdddhgfgfdhjjhff thank you so much for asking!!! Aaaah I've got the jitters now!!! :D

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space-blue · 3 years

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The Mountain God

"I wish I could work downtown too."

"But working in the summer here is not very fun, especially not in kitchens."

"Still beats my job. I'm not even paid for it."

"Does it? I would think your job is more important and valued than mine."

Arji looks at the blond stranger, surveying the woody valley with a delight she doesn't think she's ever felt, being born and raised here. To him it must look exotic. She has no doubt her religious tasks are just as exotic to his foreign eyes–folklore that adds to the local charm.

"You know," he says, "I like to think that what makes tanma noodles taste so good is that each bowl contains at least one drop of sweat from our brows. It's the spice from all the hard work we chefs pour into making it."

"See, you make it sound so nice..."

It is hot and humid, and the blue of the sky feels wet to look at, like a smooth sea floating in the heavens. Their ears are filled with the racket of crickets and cicadas, a persistent hum that seems to make up the very fabric of the air. The breeze plays with the stranger's golden locks, making a show for Arji's own delight. She thinks Erik Vinter is a fine addition to the local charm.

"I still can't believe you begged Derjan to apprentice you after one bite of his tanma."

"No, I finished the whole bowl before asking. I couldn't stop to talk in the middle of such an experience. What can I say? I'm a travelling foodie. I know to trust my taste-buds."

Erik's eyes light up as he talks to her of foods he has tasted on his travels, of the recipes he has collected, of his dreams of restaurant and fame. She looks at him sway in the tuneless music of nature around them. She wishes the whole summer could pass by like that.

"I finish at eight tonight, Apra and Jen are coming over at mine for some drinks, won't you join us?"

Arji is surprised. It takes a clueless foreigner to invite the God's attendant in the middle of summer devotion. But it crystallises her hopes and desires all too well.

"I'll call you," she says, rising to leave and maybe hide her blushing, "if I can join after devotion."

She knows, as she goes through her ablutions, that her mother simply won't let her.

"Arji! How can you think of partying at such a time?"

Her mother's face looks so hurt and scared, it's hard to resent her, and that makes Arji angrier.

"Child, I'm worried you're not taking your duties to the mountain's God seriously," she says, tying Arji's ceremonial robes, "it is not a baseless tradition. Misconduct would bring much worse than just shame on us..."

Arji tries not to roll her eyes. Each passing summer her tasks seem more pointless. She knows the importance of attending the God. She would not want him to desert him. But surely summer devotion doesn't need to keep her as good as trapped on the Temple grounds, forbidden to have any fun? Her exasperation makes Arji look more dignified than usual as she steps out of the Temple's back patio. The evening ritual is the same every summer, with two priestesses–her aunt and mother–singing while Arji slowly steps unto bare earth and approaches a crystal clear pond at the base of a rocky outcrop. People call this the temple's garden, but really the temple was built in the God's garden. When she gets to the pool, Arji seizes the cord knotted on her chest and in one smooth motion, all the colourful layers of fine fabric cascade to her feet, leaving her naked but for a thin white loincloth. She raises her arms, breathes deep and plunges. The water is warm and clear. Arji grabs onto holds smoothed by generations of divers, and pulls herself expertly in a bend. It grows dark before light appears again, diffuse and greenish : a natural phosphorescence in the stone referred to as the God's Way. The passage bends until a new surface appears above, a cavern lit by the rocks' inner light. When she breaks through, Arji enters an atmosphere almost thicker than water.

It is the God's den. Here he is, lying on his side as always.

Arji climbs out and kneels, bowing and reaching forward to touch the God's fur. She doesn't know what he is. Wolfish, but smaller, definitely carnivorous. He never moves. The only movements she ever sees comes from the creatures crawling on and around him, critters of all shapes and sizes, from skittering bugs to mice, snakes or feral cats, come to pay their own respects. As she touches him, the air comes alive to her ears, throbbing, amplifying the rustle of fur, the clicks of little claws, the drips of water.

"From the humans of your mountain, O God, may you give breath to our songs and rhythm to our lives."

And Arji sings.

Her voice bends and reverberates in the close space, and she plays with it. For many years she has come to perform this duty, to offer the beauty of human music to the God. It is their expected sacrifice. She sings five prayer-poems of reverence, and bows again before turning and dipping back into the pool, unheeded. She did it the night before, and she will be back on the morrow. All summer it is her task–to please a God who lays crawling with insects and animals like a dead carcass–and all evening Arji fumes. She hardly touches her diner, and retires early. Once, singing for the God had been a great privilege. Habit wore it off. Does the God even really care for her songs?

Escaping the temple's grounds isn't exactly a feat: it is all open ground. She is kept in by trust and duty, not gates or fences. But tonight she's had enough of those, and not enough of Erik's charming smile and manners. Her friends are surprised but happy to see her, and the night soon melts away in pleasure, Arji loosing track of reality after a while. The dancing was famous, the food spicy and tangy, someone took out firecrackers... They sung and drank–and drank–and Erik's hands wrapped around Arji's waist, making her feel so small–they kissed, and the lights went out in her head.

A night well worth the misery of the following day, spent sick and hungover. The worst isn't so much the vomiting but convincing her mother she's fine. Standing in front of the pool again, Arji grimly wonders if the dip will help–it doesn't. She emerges with her headache intact and her spirits low. Everything is as she left it the last day, but for the court of little attendants. Here is a new vole, and a marten is gone... Arji sighs. Even the animals have more freedom than her, it seems. Resigned, she sings–but her voice splits, cracks. Reverberations croak back from all corners. She coughs and looks up, sheepish.

The God moves.

His whole head lifts from the floor and twists to face her, golden beady eyes starring at her, trapping her under his gaze like a frog in torchlight.

"So little care, human."

His voice comes from the stones, from the water and from each little critter. It comes from the noise of the blood in her ears, and the thunder of her laboured breathing.

"You see your duty to me as a chore, I can hear it."

Arji can do nothing but look at the God, her eyes popping out of her head.

"Do you wish to do without me, to become a place of chaos?"

Arji shakes her head, not daring to speak. She's been to the great city on the plain. She knows what it's like down there, where no God lives. People's lives are messy, without harmony. Things collide instead of working together. Sound there is noise without rhythm.

"I'm sorry... I thought... you weren't hearing me."

"But I was. And until you've come to love your reverence and your life embraces the rhythm I breath for you all, no one but me will hear you."

The God moves too fast for stunned Arji to react. His pounces on her, his teeth digging into her throat and tearing. She cries out, reaches up, but no blood is pouring out, her skin is smooth, and the God already gone, back to lie on his rock with his creeping court curled up close, chittering angrily at her.

“I'm sorry!” Arji chokes, massaging her throat. “I'll be more mindful.”

She bows and takes a hasty leave, subdued, her aching brain overwhelmed by the encounter.

It's only when she tries to explain her early return to her mother, and not a sound comes out from her throat, that she realises what the God meant. No one hears her bitter cries.

~~ May 2017 – Theme : Music Bit of a weird one... I'd totally forgotten I'd even written it...

#original story #original work #competition #fantasy

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emptynarration · 4 years

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AUs and Verses (Short Edition)

Here’s a collection of my favorite AUs and Verses! Hopefully a bit shorter and more easily understood uwu

[HERE’S THE LONG EDITION, WHICH INCLUDES A COUPLE MORE TINY VERSES!!! DO CHECK THIS OUT AS WELL if you’re interested]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Normal / Default Verse

[Here’s the story of how Author turned into Host!]

Author was very greedy. He wanted to become a literal god. His greed attracted an actual old god, who abused Author’s greed.

The old god, named Alden, forced Author to gouge his own eyes out.

After Author passed out, after mutilating himself, Alden “possessed” Author’s body. Normally, its omnipotence destroys human minds. But not Author’s.

Due to neither being able to overpower/destroy the other, they came to a compromise, and share the body between them. Their body was named “Host”, as it now hosts the old god together with Author.

Over time, they grew so intertwined, that they’re one very well working person, while also still being their own.

Twisted Minds AU

[Here are the Fanfics I wrote about the whole AU]

The egos all live in a manor together, everything was alright.

One day, the body Dark used rotted away, and got too hard to keep going; so he had to leave it. Without a human body containing the entity which is Dark, slowly seeped into the manor again, even though he tries his hardest to stay contained in what was once his office.

Due to his shell-less self, everyone was slowly changed. Emotions brought to extremes, personalities flipped, appearances growing inhuman, etc.

[Here’s a little post about the gist of it all]

Author was also affected, like everyone else. But, due to Dr Iplier wanting to use Author in an experiment, and things going sour for the writer, he was thrown “into” Dark. He nearly died. He was changed, his sight gone and powers changed.

This made him into Host. And Host, due to his powers, realized how wrong this reality is, and how fucked up it is. Thus breaking him out of the cycle of madness, as well as making him a terrified being.

Cursed AU

Set in a fantasy world, slightly medieval perhaps.

Author and Host are brothers. They live in a cabin in a forest, away from other people, happy with only themselves as company.

One day, someone Author angered tried to kill him. But instead of Author, Host was hit, and was quickly dying from a curse.

Author didn’t care when he was hit with a curse as well, angry, wanting to kill that woman, but Host dying in his arms took priority.

The curse Author was hit with was worse, though. It turned him into a sort of “undead” state. And to stay “healthy” and strong, he had to leech the life-force from other people. The touch of his bare skin does so.

He unintentionally quickened Host’s death.

Author was cursed to live forever with this curse, unable to die. Due to the strong connections between the brothers, as well as the circumstance of his death, Host is stuck as a ghost.

Host is technically bound to the cabin, but, Author wears the same slightly magical necklace that Host had. This makes Host able to go with Author, though not stray too far from him.

Teeny Twins AU

[Here is a collection of Fics I’m writing!]

All of the egos are a little younger than typically (Between 24-38 on average, outliers being Magnum, Dark, Wilford being older, and Host, Author being younger)

Author and Host are twins and live together in their cabin in the woods.

They know where the egos live and visit them quite often.

They have their respective powers, but don’t know their full extends.

Neither of them wants to be anything like a god or something alike; the thought alone makes them uncomfortable and even scared.

They are quite mysterious but also total rascals. Favorite past time: pranks. They’re best friends with the Jims and Bing due to that.

Author is more active, energetic, and reckless. Host is more quiet and thoughtful.

everything i wanted AU

[Here’s two little fics I wrote about it]

Host and Author are twins. They grew up very close, and were eventually taken in by Dark and Wilford.

Author was very very open to explore his own powers, always pushing and pushing and pushing.

Dark, with the excuse of fearing Author would be a danger to himself and especially others, banished Author into the void, where Host had also gotten hurt in the process.

Author sort of became one with the void, gaining strange weird powers. With them, he managed to escape the void -just in time to save his brother, who didn’t want to live without him.

Swap AU

Egos’ “roles” and sorta their powers being switched around!

Host is “swapped” with Dark.

He is monochrome. He wears a black trenchcoat and black tights, as well as knee-high black combat boots. He has a bright strand of hair, no eyes, and bandages around his eyes.

[Here’s some info about the AU and Host’s/Dr Iplier’s/Dark’s/Wilford’s backstory!]

He is called Darkiplier in this AU (pronounced Dark-eeplee-er? sorta french lol).

He talks in third person as a comfort mechanism.

He doesn’t really have a goal like normal Dark (getting revenge on Actor) but he takes care of the other egos and keeps them safe and in check.

He does his radio show still, but has no narrating powers.

Florist AU

[Here’s the main artwork for it]

Author is a very soft boy, and a florist.

He writes very dark and gruesome stories he publishes online in his free time.

He lives in a pretty much one room apartment right above his flower shop. He’s not very wealthy, but he survives.

He loves tattoos, but is shy about getting more than the one he already has (plus money is a slight problem).

Painter AU

[Here's some art for it]

A human AU! Every ego is a human

It's focused on Author, but Host also exists as his twin brother!

Author is a somewhat famous painter, but he doesn't really care about the money. He's super clumsy and ditzy, a whole himbo mess really. But he looks like a hot fashion model.

Author is more the traditional medium guy. Mainly painting, but also sculpting, pencil drawings, illustrations.

Host is more the digital artist. Mainly illustrations, but also some painting stuff, also uses 3D sculpting for art purposes. Probably works with video games, making art, doing some voice acting.

Wilford is one of Author's friends and a fashion designer. He recommends models (and friends) for Author. He drags Dark to their friend-meetings a lot.

So Dark's a singer. Just wanted to sing for fun, but somehow it turned into popularity (like Billie Eilish whoops)

So Eric is Dark's boyfrend and makes music with him. Plays piano. Sings a little but very shy to do so anywhere other than a little for Dark's songs. Too nervous to meet the gang but everyone knows from dark talking about Eric anyways

The Jims twins work mainly on the video game Host helps working on as well. They both do the writing, but only one of them also does programming. They eventually meet up with Host sometime after a lot of only online talking and somehow love happens eventually

Little Demon AU

Host is a demon, still called Host.

He is 7 inches tall.

He has dark purple horns and two tails, and no bandages, but keeps his eyes closed.

Looking into his eyes will cause the looker to be pulled into their own mind and be faced with their deepest and darkest fear.

Host will be able to see that and interact with the person there, but also leave them there alone to suffer.

He can “teleport” short distances, mostly through shadows.

Harpy AU

Host has no name he goes by, but will let anyone name him.

He is 8 inches tall.

He’s a brown thrasher harpy.

He has slightly darker skin (than Mark), short, like brown fuzz on his head resembling hair; white feathers with dark spots on his chest and hips down his thighs, where his legs then turn into bird’s feet; dark brown, almost black eyes. His wings have light brown feathers.

He mainly eats fruits, berries, nuts and insects.

He isn’t afraid to attack anything larger than him, going so far as to attack humans if he has to.

Mermaid AU (other versions depending on size!)

Host goes by the name of Host.

He had almost been caught once by humans, which resulted in the loss of his eyesight, and thick scars over his eyes.

His scales are golden. His fins are slightly see-through, and tipped green. His ears are fins. He has fins on his underarms. He has scales on his shoulders and arms.

He has scales that glow in the dark, and markings on his face which also glow in the dark (not visible unless glowing)

He’s a siren, and thus can speak and understand English.

Underwater mermaids communicate via clicking sounds (kinda like morse code, but different).

Human AU [Second Version]

Host is named Markus Barker. Sometimes uses Host as nickname.

He is either: Born blind (sclera/pupil milky). Blind due to a disease (Neuromyelitis Optica).

He lives on his own with his pets. He either: Lives in his cabin in the forest. Lives on the outskirts of town with a garden.

He has an older brother (Arthur, world-wide known author).

He works on a rather popular podcast as main-narrator. He also either: Works at a radio station. Stays at home (financial help from his brother).

Can also go with human Author, the aforementioned brother of Host.

Both can also exist without brother.

Human Slave AU

Host is named Markus Barker. Host is his nickname though

He is either: Born blind (sclera/pupil milky). Got his eyes gouged out by an owner.

He had been sold as slave when he had been a young child (around 4 y/o?).

#the other is speaking #blog rules

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screamingatanemptyroom · 5 years

Text

I Can’t Eat Love Pt 6

Here is the next part! Please Enjoy!

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 linked here

____________________________

The next week was brutal.

Each day I would get up before dawn, moving to my office to get started as soon as possible. Reading, studying, I was trying to learn a lifetime of knowledge at a breakneck pace. I still was piecing together bills and tax documents, working with Hallers to consolidate all the debt I could. Fortunately, as I was still in good standing with the Royal family, the interest and repayment plans were very generous.

I stayed locked in that tiny room, only to pause whenever Hallers brought up a meal, an increasingly worried expression on his face with each passing day.

“Miss, you must sleep!” He broke his professional silence on the fourth day, as he walked in late into the night, finding me reading a chapter on historical government forms while taking notes by candlelight. I glanced up, surprised to see him still dressed up in a proper butler uniform despite the late hour.

“Hallers, I’m sorry, did I wake you? I just have a few more pages… and then there’s still the letters from the Eastern section of Duchy….” I leaned back, rubbing my eyes with a yawn. “You might as well go to bed. I’ll make sure to blow the candle out when I finish.”

He stood his ground, looking determined. “No, Miss.” He picked up the candle, ignoring my squawk of protest. “I cannot let you run yourself into the ground. You cannot save this Duchy in the space of a week.”

“But… I …”

“The work will be waiting for you in the morning. But for now, please, I’m begging you… go to sleep?” He looked so miserable, I found myself nodding without realizing it.

“Fine. I’ll do this in the morning.”

I went off to bed, hiding a smile. When was the last time someone worried about whether or not I slept?

Beyond the work I had to do between lessons and the financial organization, there was still the matter of the corruption within the Duchy to deal with.

“Hallers?” Early in the week, I called him into the office.

He stood at attention, waiting. “Yes, Miss?”

I handed him a paper. “I need you, or someone you would trust with your life, to go into the city. In the Northwest square you will find a man who sits under a blue awning named “Rig.” Hand him this note, and tell him that you will purchase the information requested within for 50 crowns.”

Despite the oddity of the request, Hallers was a professional, his only reaction a single raised eyebrow “Is that all?”

“No.” I sighed. “He will demand at least twice the amount offered. You are to refuse this and tell him that ‘Angel’ sent you.”

“Who is this ‘Angel’, miss?”

“No one.” I laughed. “It’s a code, which only his inner circle know. If you say this, it will allow you to purchase the information I need for that price. He will tell you when you can retrieve it.”

Who would have thought that the knowledge I had earned being one of Rig’s info runners while living on the street would be helpful so quickly? I had hated the man at the time, but even I had to admit that he was the best when it came down to tracking down things others wanted to hide.

“It will be done.” With a short bow, he turned to leave. I called after him.

“Oh, and Hallers?” When he paused, I added, “Postpone any meeting with our men involved in tax collection/counting until after you have what I requested.”

“It will be helpful to you?”

I grinned evilly. “Let’s just say I don’t believe in going into battle without a weapon.”

____________________________

Despite the drastic change in my schedule, my parents remained completely unaware. My Father, relieved that he didn’t have to pretend to care about the paperwork anymore, went riding and hunting, enjoying himself thoroughly. As long as he wasn’t spending money, I was content to let him be. As for my mother… fortunately she had been visiting her family in the South since my reawakening, and was not scheduled to return for another month. I was curious to see my mother, since my last words to her were on her deathbed. Our relationship was strained at best, however, and I need to figure out how to approach her.

The Duke and Duchess may not have been concerned with the abrupt changes I had made in my life, but it had not gone unnoticed by others.

“What’s come over you, Miss?” my maid Angela shook her head, frustrated as she assisted me undressing one evening. “You dress so simply these days. You never go to the Royal palace gardens or visit Lady Edith anymore! Is there something wrong?”

I smiled at her grumbling. In my previous life, whenever I hadn’t been trying to perfect my etiquette lessons, I had wandered the Royal Gardens with Edith, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Prince. It seemed so silly, so empty now.

I shook my head. “Everything is fine. Mrs. Rendler simply increased the difficulty of my etiquette lessons, and I have a lot of work to do to catch up.”

“You don’t have to work so hard, though!” She muttered, putting away my gown. “It’s not as if…” She trailed off, as if realizing what she was about to say.

It’s not as if I’ll ever get to be Queen. Of course, I know that… but how does she? I smiled, the expression cold. “Angela. Are you saying I shouldn’t do my best at preparing to be Queen?”

She panicked slightly, backing away. “No, of course not! I – I just want you to be happy.”

I kept my eyes on her own, appreciating the fear I saw there. “I appreciate the concern.”

I placed the confrontation to the back of my mind, refusing to think it through to its conclusion, but things were stirred up once more by a an unexpected encounter towards the end of the week, the day before my next trip tot the palace. She showed up unannounced, barging into my office, with Hallers trailing behind, a disapproving expression on his face at her intrusion.

“Lenora! What’s going on?!” She was a beautiful girl. Golden hair, light colored eyes, long lashes… she looked as if she had stepped out of a storybook, exactly what I thought a princess should look like.

“Edith.” The name felt wrong to say out loud after so long.

____________________________

“EDITH!” I sobbed, falling to my knees in front of her. “You have to help me!”

She stared at me silently with glassy eyes, a polite smile hiding any deeper emotion.

Exhausted, starving, I reached out a hand towards her.

“Please, mother, father… they’re both gone… I lost my job with the seamstress… someone told them I had stolen something... I don’t know what to do!”

My hand grasped empty air instead of her skirt. She had stepped back out of my reach.

“What do you expect me to do?” Her words were lifeless, she stared at me as if I were an insect, rather than her childhood friend.

I held my grumbling stomach, hating that I looked so pathetic and weak. “Can you talk to the Queen…?”

“She refuses to hear your name.” Edith interrupted, a small gleam in her eye. “She heard the kind of dirty crimes you committed on the street, and says that you are dead to her.”

Dead? Dead. Dead… the word repeated itself in my mind over and over, like a chant. Was that the woman who had called me her daughter, who said she loved me?

“That can’t be true! I’ve not committed any crimes. Why would she… say that? I can’t believe it!”

“Well it’s true.” Edith sighed, looking around as if searching for an excuse to leave. “Was there anything else?”

I looked back at her, lost, confused. I was so hungry. Can you help me find work? Or at least give me something to eat?”

“Sorry,” She didn’t look sorry. “My father has forbidden that I be around you anymore. He’s worried it will effect my reputation as the future Queen.”

“What are you saying?” I stared at my only friend in the world, feeling the shattered remnants of my heart break even further.

“Goodbye, Lenora.” Refusing to look at me anymore, she walked away.

“EDITH!”

____________________________

“I haven’t seen you in days!” Edith smiled brightly, the expression turning my stomach. “I missed you!”

Her act wasn’t extremely convincing this time, to a more experienced eye. Her smile was a little too stiff, her eyes cold and calculating as they looked around the room, trying to determine what I had been up to. Even as she told me she missed me her voice seemed more irritated then sad, as if she were frustrated that I had made her do the work instead of going to her as I usually did.

I returned her smile. “I’ve missed you too!” Standing up from my desk, I reached out, giving her a hug.

I was a much better actress.

“What are you doing? I’ve heard you’ve been locked away in this room for days!” She grabbed my hands, a true look of concern crossing her face.

“Really? Who did you hear it from?”

She balked at that question. “Oh you know… just around.”

“I see.” I looked over at Hallers with a frown, who looked furious. He nodded to me briefly and left, likely to interrogate the staff regarding who had been gossiping about my activities. I let him go, although I already had my own suspicions.

I brought Edith away from my desk and papers, not wishing for her to see any of the Duchy’s financial numbers, and sat us down on some chairs near the fireplace. I didn’t bother ringing for tea, I knew Hallers would have already arranged it.

“What brings you here?” I asked, keeping my voice casual and polite.

Edith laughed. “What nonsense! As if I needed a reason to see my friend. I was hoping we could spend some time together, perhaps walk through the gardens?”

“I see.” I nodded, thinking it over. She wanted to see the prince, I suppose.

“So can we go?”

“Well, not today because I have to finish some work here, or tomorrow because I have to attend my lessons with the Queen.” I noted the angry flash in her eyes at the mention of my royal etiquette lessons, but continued without comment. “Perhaps next week we can walk through the gardens.”

She looked disappointed. “Next week?”

“And perhaps I can arrange for us to have tea with the prince.” I laughed as her demeanor brightened. “Wouldn’t that be fun?!”

“Well, if I wouldn’t be in the way…” She trailed off, watching me slyly.

“Of course not.”

How many times had these conversations happened before? How many times did I unknowingly bring her to see my fiancé, allowing them to grow closer, sealing my own fate. Well, go with my blessing this time, Edith. I don’t want him.

Edith, unaware of my inner thoughts, seemed relieved. “Alright then, that would be fun! I just worry about you, Lenora! Don’t work too hard in this dreary little room! If you don’t go spend as much time with the Prince as possible he might lose interest!” Her hand rested on my arm. I struggled to not fling her off. “Trust me.”

I hid all my feelings deep inside, smiling brightly for her to see. “Of course I trust you.”

#writing #i can't eat love #part 6 #setting up for bigger events #edith arrives #:)

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dustedmagazine · 4 years

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Listed: Elkhorn

Jesse Sheppard and Drew Gardner joined forces as Elkhorn in 2013, Sheppard on 12-string and Gardner on 6-string. Together they’ve made a string of gorgeous duet albums on Feeding Tube and now Beyond Beyond Is Beyond records, while supporting the growth and scholarship around American Primitive guitar playing in a variety of ways. Sheppard, in particular, has been active in organizing the 1000 Incarnations of the Rose festival and documenting players including Glenn Jones, Nathan Bowles, Chris Forsyth, Ryley Walker and others in video. Their latest album, The Storm Sessions, comes from a snowed-in session in Brooklyn when a cancelled concert turned into a prolonged and graceful meditation on the possibilities of guitars and guitar-like instruments. In her review, Jennifer Kelly wrote, “… a tribute to filling in the quiet spaces that have arisen unexpectedly out of chaos and disappointment, but which are, themselves, very peaceful and beautiful.” Drew Gardner contributed this list.

I put this list together with the thought of talking about some music that overlaps with elements of The Storm Sessions. There are several shared elements at play in these records: songs using longer durations that unfold in suites, improvisation, the blending of several genres-sounds-traditions, gradual development, the use of calm/blissful moods, and players who tend toward letting the music guide the playing.

Mary Lattimore —The Withdrawing Room, “You’ll Be Fiiinnne”

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The Withdrawing Room, harpist Mary Lattimore’s debut album, unfolds beautifully with delay-soaked harp mixed with bubbly psychedelic electronic textures courtesy of Jeff Zeigler. Lattimore knows how to use patience to build a feeling of calm tranquility and often walks her harp figures beside a stream of contrasting ambient sound. She glides though different sound areas without trying to push the songs around, letting the music be. The results are lovely and dreamy.

Maya Youssef —Syrian Dreams, “Queen of the Night”

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Maya Youssef is an expert player of the maqan, a traditional Middle Eastern plucked instrument in the zither family. She grew up in Damascus and now lives in England. Defying the tradition that only men could play it, she has innovated the maqan as a solo instrument beyond its conventional use in larger ensembles. The instrumentation on Syrian Dreams is maqan, percussion, cello and oud, the textures of which blend into sets of suites that seem to tell many stories. This is a record of original compositions of Middle Eastern music that seamlessly incorporate the sounds of flamenco and jazz. Somehow Youssef’s group also reads like a freak folk chamber band. She’s unafraid of the healing power of music, and she connects her compositions with both the ancient and the difficult recent history of Syria.

Sunburned Hand of the Man—Headdress, “Shitless”

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Gloriously lo-fi collage-ist space jams, cohesive in their disjointedness. Like GBV, the low fidelity makes it more intimate. As with most of their catalogue this is a head-trip and also a lot of fun. This record puts all the myriad things they’re capable of into perfect balance: uniquely fried “Massachusetts dub,” comical Dadaist prank-chants, slow loose funk grooves with all kind of friendly space debris orbiting around. Each song has at least three different genres melting in and out of it, and it all sounds like a party. They don’t order the tunes around, they let what’s happening happen. There’s plenty of improvisation here, but without a big demand for the guitars to need to get anywhere—what a relief. They’re happy being where they are, floating over the rhythm section and soaking in the cascades of color, relaxed and weird-blissful.

NNCK—Qvaris, “The Doon”

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NNCK went to great lengths to secure certain freedoms, especially freedom from fame and freedom from commerce. Those freedoms are put to great use here and the result is a floaty ego-differed collective texture and with a groove and a vibe. It feels like all the players are steering the boat. Everyone is thinking about the total sound and the overall flow. Everyone’s in charge and no one is. They improvise and move from zone to zone, sound world to sound world. There are trippy drones, ritual percussion, and calm, bizarre and soothing textures. The songs sound like they’re improvised in a way that allows them to be self-assembling/self-disassembling ensemble music. It sounds like life forms are evolving. The various combinations of different elements create a lot of variety as the landscape scrolls by. Need some dilating texture-walls shifting into a bonus of damp squishiness? You got it. Need some mescaline-fueled post-rock? You got it. Rustically glowing biomechanical insects morphing into autumnal haze? Yup. Malfunctioning alternate-dimension windchimes into Dada kabuki Muppet theater? Cannabinoidosaurus Rex chill out wedding music into Martian organ grinder swing winding up at third-pot-brownie-surf-rock? You get the idea. There’s something for everyone. All the song/soundscapes flow through these ecosystems with a “how did we get here?” effect. The players find different windows in the soundscape. It never feels crowed. Sonically occupying the space they’re in, they let the music become itself rather than trying to control it.

Joshua Abrams Natural Information Society—Mandatory Reality, “Finite”

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I first heard this record last year in the Elkhorn tour vehicle while Jesse and I we were driving from the Milwaukee Psych fest to Chicago. It turns out that being stuck in a car for several hours moving at twenty miles an hour in a white-out is the perfect context for experiencing this music. There was something about the slow speed, the need for concentrated attention, and the monochromatically unfolding landscape that really enhanced the experience of the music. Abrams’ use of slow tempos, repetition, long durations, gradually shifting textures and cycles of chords and melodic figures was perfectly mirrored in the snowy drive. He allows the music to repeat and unfold without needing to rush in contrasting sections or motifs. It’s patient and languid and mesmerizing. Done in real time with no overdubs, it blends several sounds beautifully: minimalism, Gnawa music and modern Chicago free jazz. At times it feels like a radically becalmed Braxton Ghost Trance piece transmuted into something like the spacious Tabla Tarang playing of Pandit Kamalesh Maitra or the straight 8ths of Gamelan music with John Luther Adams-style long tones stretched over it. When we arrived in Chicago the snowstorm had abated after the long drive, and as I stepped out of the car into the slush I felt refreshed rather than exhausted.

Pauline Oliveros with Stuart Dempster and Panaiotis—Deep Listening, “Lear”

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Deep Listening was improvised with no overdubs using just-intonation accordion, trombone, didgeridoo and voice in a cistern in Washington State that once held two million gallons of water. This space featured a natural forty-five-second reverb. As dolphins know, reverb is a kind of image—information about space in sound form. On this record the players, the environment and the instruments all combine to become intertwined into one system. I’ll let Oliveros say it: “The Universe is improvising and we have evolution, so improvisation is always happening.”

Cul De Sac—Immortality Lessons, “Blues in E”

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Cul De Sac featured Glenn Jones on electric twelve-string guitar before he turned to solo acoustic music. The band played improvised instrumental rock that crossed over several genres: Krautrock, psych-rock, surf-rock and American Primitive. This record was recorded live at a college radio station in one take under less than ideal circumstances and it’s a great example of turning lemons into psychedelic lemonade. This music flows and develops in suites, using various groove/dissolve/solo patterns than unfold with an expansive vibe. Everyone in the band is thinking about the whole arrangement, not just the parts. It’s genre blending, full-band texturing and rewards repeated listening. One can only hope for a reunion one day.

Marisa Anderson—The Golden Hour, “In the Valley of the Sun”

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The Golden Hour is a record of solo fingerstyle electric guitar improvisations recorded straight to tape. It sounds like she’s doing variations on open themes and the results feel modern/spontaneous and composed/traditional at the same time. She has a warm, woody guitar tone, often tastefully overdriving the amp in a lush manner, using a nimble rhythmic gait. This works as psychedelic guitar music and at the same time resonates with the old American music traditions she’s connecting with. Her blend of genres is country blues, country and western, and folk, put together in concise songs that always have a coherent flow of ideas with sometimes subtle hints of deconstruction. She’s not afraid of the pleasures of meandering. This is music that sounds like it’s dreaming through guitar history as a kind of meditation.

Shivkumar Sharma and Zakir Hussain—Rag Madhuvanti, Rag Misra Tilang, “Rag Misra Tilang”

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Shivkumar Sharma plays the Santur, an Indian box zither, not unlike a western hammer dulcimer. Sharma is credited with bringing this folk instrument, normally associated with the Sufi music of Kashmir, into Indian classical music. Indian music involves several of the elements I’ve been discussing in this list: long duration, improvisation, and drone. There’s something about the cascading overtones of Sharma’s Santur playing that reads as especially psychedelic, unfolding in undulating patterns using his knowledge of tabla rhythms. He wasn’t afraid to risk innovation and prove that a folk instrument could be used for high art. This album is mesmerizing, beautiful, and rejuvenating.