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pandorafallz · 26 days

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Lest We Rest Upon Our Graves | C11

It took a while before Alma left the makeshift office. She wrote up the report for Max anyway, detailing her avatar’s cause of death, the connection to the circle of ancestors to allow a few Na’vi to look into her memories (without the reasons why, irrelevant) and her subsequent avatar’s death and her experiences of that and the fallout since.

Everything she could think of.

It made burning time quite well, avoiding people and providing for the research quite well in her report and it was quite sizeable as well. Something she hoped would be useful for the future of the Resistance’s Avatar users. Once she passed she was sure she could get Nalin to fill in the blanks; she didn’t intend to take her head monitor off so they’d still get the data without her body.

She did stop once she complied enough files for High Camp, the data was too big for a transfer so they’d have to pick It up. However, her right arm was cramping badly with sharp pains up and down her bones, her other finger massaging the tendons mostly, being careful with how hard and where she pressed her fingers to relieve the tension as she headed away in search of So’lek although took a detour to pick up a fresh icepack for her arm.

She didn’t need to go too far but the sight of Kìoetey and Ri’nela standing with So’lek almost made her turn back around but she bit back her instinct to bail and continued to path towards him, not looking at the Sarentu kids although she noticed when the shift in their body language when she was noticed.

“So’lek, Can I have a word?” She asked. “I’ve updated High Camp on the success of the battle the Na’vi and the resistance have but I’ve got news.”

So’lek’s head tilted though he eyed the two Sarentu briefly. “Privately?”

“Preferably.”

Ri’nela clicked her tongue. “I will talk to Teylan, it will be good to update him on what’s been going on in his absence.” She touched Kìoetey’s arm.

With a lingering look, Kìoetey nodded and followed her away.

Alma led So’lek to the quieter side of the base before she took a slow seat down on an empty weapon’s crate with a heavy sigh.

“What news have you brought me?” So’lek asked as she settled down.

“The man who led the battle at the Hallelujah Mountains, Colonel Quaritch has returned from the dead in the form of an Avatar” Alma stated very bluntly.

What news he had been expecting, it was clear So’lek certainly hadn’t anticipated that. His posture tensed right up, ears pinning down and his tail rose but became motionless as he processed her words. It took a few seconds before he rebooted enough but she sensed his rise of internal rage behind his mask.

“How.”

“Max believes that the RDA used the avatar link-beds to scan the minds of soldiers, Quaritch and his unit, and preserve them as the RDA grew avatar bodies on the trip back to or from Earth. The copied minds were put into the empty bodies.” Alma explained the basis, doing some logical leaps of thought to come to the conclusions given she knew a lot of the link beds given she spent 32 years in them.

So’lek’s tail lashed, his hands tense at his side. “They defy nature with these creatures.”

“Their presence has pushed Jake to go into hiding to preserve the Omatikaya clan, as the unit can slip through Eywa’s defences.” Alma carried on, “My concern isn’t Quaritch’s team, So’lek.”

So’lek refocused back to her intently, lips pressed together. “You believe more dead humans will take on false shells?”

“Specifically, Harding and Mercer. As humans, they’re a threat but… as Avatars, or Recoms, as Max calls them, they’ll become a bigger threat.”

His eyes narrowed but he could understand the threat now. “We cannot let that happen.”

“Harding may know. I want to arrange a meeting with her before her death. She won’t talk to the Na’vi but she might slip up if I talk to her. She and Mercer were here for weeks before coming to the West Frontier.” Her being on drugs might have loosened her lips so she had to take her chances.

“I will talk to the sisters.” He looked very determined as he said this.

Alma nodded, mildly regretting the motion as it made the pain in her head spike a fraction. “Let me know when you’re set.”

So’lek nodded. “Anything else?”

“I’ve asked Max to bring some more medical supplies from High camp if it’s possible. Not sure if they’ll take the trip or not so it’s a wait-and-see. They’ve got a long way to go and lots of RDA dodging to do so I’m not confident they’ll be here fast. If they do.” Alma wasn’t sure. “Maybe they’ll bring another doctor down to help Nalin. She needs some help.”

“We will keep an eye out then.” So’lek didn’t look thrilled but the resistance needed more help and support. Even with High Camp being that far away.

Maybe she’d see, maybe not.

Alma settled back into the quiet corner with the monitor again, briefly going over her prepped data and downloading it onto a newly wiped tablet from their haul and putting a post-it-note on top with: ‘For Dr Max Patel’ on the front and shoved it into the draw.

Her aloneness didn’t last long before… a tall, familiar blue figure seemed to anxiously look in.

“Hello?”

Alma gave him a tired smile, waving him in. “Come in, Teylan.”

He came in, looking uncertain but mostly around than at her as he entered, taking in her little office space with some curiosity but she held his gaze as he finally seemed to find the confidence to look at her sitting there.

“I’m…not used to you being that small.” He remarked, “I miss your other body… the you that I know.”

Alma hummed. “Me too.” She spared a look down at herself. “I’m not exactly used to being human. Got… so used to the other body.”

“Ri’nela told me what happened to it.” Teylan frowned. “everyone seems happy it happened but..i don’t know.”

Alma swallowed thickly, her hand coming to her side. “They think I deserved it. I…don’t know myself if that’s true or not.”

Teylan looked uneasy. “It’s…scary to think Nor would do that to anyone. Would… do you think he would have hurt me if he found out what I did?”

Alma rose to her feet slowly, though he seemed to shy away from her a little so she halted her steps, trying hard not to feel the sting of his weariness towards her. “No.” She answered firmly. “You are Sarentu. He wouldn’t harm you.”

“But he killed the other you?” Teylan seemed to struggle with that. “You were our teacher. You looked after us.”

“He knew what I was underneath that skin. Not Na’vi. His…resentment of humans grew into a fire.” Alma assured. “Why don’t you talk to Ri’nela about this concern you have? She may have better answers.”

“I didn’t want to bother her. She is so busy and… I’m still trying to understand all that happened here. It’s so much.” Teylan hunched a little. “She told me…what you did as well. To us. How we came to TAP.”

Ah. He was still trying to process it still and coming to her to see for himself. Alma looked down at her desk a little at that.

“I know it’s a lot to take in, Teylan.” She started. “I didn’t…know what Mercer and Harding were going to do to the Sarentu when we got there. I thought it would be peaceful like it had been with the Kame’tire clan. I was wrong. I couldn’t stop them. Harding wouldn’t listen to me. They planned behind my back on the massacre to ensure they’d get you.” She sighed deeply. “That doesn’t erase my part in it. I know that. I am so sorry that I was part of it and for keeping the lie up since.”

Teylan was frowning at her, eyes wide with uncertainty.

Alma carried on. “I don’t expect forgiveness, Teylan. Ri’nela and Kìoetey have told me as much and I know they’re still processing it. Take your time in how you want to…handle it.”

Teylan let out a shaky breath. “It’s…all confusing. I don’t know what to feel. They… they forgave me for what I did. What…I did led to some of our friends dying. But… they’re not willing to forgive you? I don’t understand the differences. Shouldn’t they forgive you if they’re willing to forgive me?”

Alma didn’t know how to answer that. Not really. He had some level of logic to his understanding but… she supposed there was a difference that he couldn’t see.

“I can’t answer that question, Teylan.” Alma sunk back down into her chair, her hand coming to massage her temple. “I don’t have the answers there.”

Teylan remained quiet for a moment, mulling to himself. “D-Does the resistance hate me? For what I did?”

Alma didn’t know the answer to that, not really. She hadn’t interacted a lot with the crew here since her return to base. “I don’t know. I doubt it. Most of them understand. Jin-young may need more time to accept your presence. Alex may be a little tense but… it’ll take time for them to process.” She dropped her hands from her head. “Don’t rush, Teylan. You have all the time in the world to heal those wounds.”

Teylan considered her words thoughtfully. “I suppose. It’s going to take a while but…I suppose I have to try and work hard to make it up to the Resistance.”

Alma nodded. “Indeed.”

Teylan looked ready to leave before he tilted his head at her. “You’re hurt?” His yellow gaze was low, she looked down to see him looking at her arm. The distinct bruise was still dark as ever and the tell-tale shape wasn’t hard to hide.

Alma ducked it under the desk uncomfortably. “it’s nothing. A…misunderstanding between me and Kìoetey—”

“Kìoetey hurt you as well?”

“It’s nothing, Teylan,” Alma emphasised, more sternly. “I’m fine. I just lost my splint to cover it for now.” Maybe Nalin took it but who knew where it went on a day like today?

Teylan didn’t look convinced but he recognised a dismissal when he saw it. He turned and scurried away. Alma let out a steady breath, letting her arm come to rest back on the table, her hand touching over the dark bruise and delicate and sore skin.

Kìoetey was…relieved to spend some time just resting in the peacefulness of the morning. Still morning. Being up so early, the fight had been over within the hour and now… they were still so many hours in the day. Helping Nalin with Harding had been a relief.

Nalin didn’t need to know their presence there was due to Nesim’s caution in case Nalin opted to help Harding escape. Kìoetey knew the human woman wouldn’t but she understood that Nesim was still riding high off her victory and trying to ensure that Harding had no means of escape. It settled some…contentment to see Harding captured.

Harding had hurt them a lot growing up. So what if she was Mercer’s dog but she still did a lot more than what was asked of her to give them hell growing up. She had helped murder her people, dug them out of their hiding spots and handed them over to Cortez the day they were stolen and caged. Abuse that continued for all of them, differently. Nor had his hands broken, Harding had overseen the beating of Teylan when he had wet his bed… held Okni down while they shaved her head for disobedient weeks before the girl passed to Eywa.

Mercer was dead and there was relief. Now with Harding, it was the last of their problems to go. Almost. But the worst of their past was going to go.

Kìoetey wasn’t sure if she wanted to be there when Harding’s death came about. To see her death, to witness her body fall to the ground… it was a lot to think about. Personally, she’d rather have her killed in fair combat, if she thought for a moment Harding would play fair. What the Zeswa planned, she had an inkling but didn’t know for sure.

She had time to think before Harding would die so… she’d see.

Kìoetey sat with a selection of beads and flax, mostly letting her hands work and mind wander as she crafted a small armband for Teylan; something to get him started back as Sarentu. Something small and basic but a start; she wanted him to add to it himself.

He hadn’t made a start on a new songcord and… she wasn’t sure if he was ready to start creating one but this had to be a start; she could introduce the cord later in the week once festivities died down and they could find a new normal. The RDA were still about, even with Mercer gone. Ardmore no doubt had backup plans once the news hit she also lost Harding and the evacuating humans.

She wasn’t alone. Ri’nela was taking a break as well, looking to be adding to her songcord quite peacefully but the dent between her eyebrows was not noticeable.

“<Is everything alright?>” Kìoetey finally asked

Ri’nela sighed deeply, lowering her cord to look at her tiredly. “” she admitted. “”

Ah. “<Can I ask what about?>”

Ri’nela hummed a little in consideration. “<She’s…been ignoring me when I’ve crossed paths with her. Wondering if she’d try to open up a conversation or say something to me if given the chance.>”

“<Is that upsetting you?” Kìoetey asked in concern. It did sound a little…odd for Cortez to do that.

“” Ri’nela pointed out, “<not to sound harsh but she has more of a reason to keep her distance with you.>”

Kìoetey winced a little but she inclined her head in agreement. “”

“<Me? I don’t know why she’s giving me the same treatment. After her avatar sided, she was a following shadow. An unwanted cloud spilling nothing but apologies and now she wants nothing to do with us.>” She huffed out a little.

“” Kìoetey pointed out with a twinge of guilt. “<Her attempts to us have solidly stopped after that.>”

That and the fact the woman had literally moved to a field lab as well made it hard to reasonably cross paths. She was only back for a short time before she no doubt fled back to the field lab. Kìoetey could wait until then because… well it was far easier to get to her and Cortez had less place to run off into out in the open and it was more private. She could work with that.

“” Ri’nela set her cord down neatly. “<Please, you’re sounding like you’re defending her behaviour here.>”

“<I’m not defending her, Ri’nela. She shouldn’t give you the cold shoulder because of me but humans respond differently than Na’vi. She told me herself when I apologised to her that she didn’t feel safe around me. Perhaps that fear has extended to you as well?>”

Ri’nela eyed her for a moment then scoffed. “<Cortez scared of us?>” She shook her head, muttering a little. “Unbelievable…”

Kìoetey didn’t say much on that and didn’t want to side in either direction. Ri’nela didn’t need to hear that. So, she picked up her needle to continue on with her sewing.

The Circle was cold as she waited for So’lek to convince her in but Alma listened and waited with the guard outside as their voices carried.

“<There had been news from our Eastern resistance. Harding may know more.>” So’lek explained to Nesim and Minang. “”

“<News of the Sky people?>” Nesim sounded interested.

“<Harding’s position is called a Colonel. High ranking with a lot of authority over her warriors. She has been in contact with General Ardmore recently, the sky person leading the assault on Pandora in the east where they primarily operate from.>” So’lek further explained. “<Harding will not respond to Na’vi but a human might get more of a response.>”

There was a long pause and their voices quietened as the Olo'eyktan spoke to the Tsahìk in small consideration before Nesim spoke up.

“<You will oversee the interrogation. You understand the Sky people’s language, I do not trust humans alone with her fully. We cannot risk losing her or allowing her to escape. We will wait for what information is provided.>”

So’lek agreed and Alma soon followed the Olo'eyktan and So’lek through to another tent far off. She figured Nesim probably hadn’t initially recognised her face but from the few looks sent her way, she hoped it dawned on her that she was the Dreamwalker they had seen and interacted with before. So’lek had stopped referring to her by her first name which didn’t help.

Not that it really mattered.

So’lek pushed through the tent first, startling the occupants inside from their slumber or general waiting.

Harding was there, bound and patched up and her foot looked to be strapped into some sort of brace which worked in keeping her leg in place. She was dressed down, sweat did coat most of her pale skin and her arms looked to be raw with the rubbings of her binding already; particularly the one with her burn scars. She didn’t look good.

Harding’s eyes narrowed as she entered, her eyes dropping to take her in though there was no mistake in the woman’s nose upturning at the sight of So’lek.

“What do you want?” She demanded tightly, “Come to finish me off, Blue?”

So’lek let out a dry chuckle, pleased to see Harding not looking so good. “I do not get the honour.”

Harding scoffed a little. “Looks like you’ll get off watching.”

Alma tisked a little at that, drawing the attention back to her so she stepped forwards. “I’ve never heard you speak so crudely, Harding. Drugged up that much?” She slowly sat down on the grass in front of her, the motion thumping her skull a little but she ignored that. “Or is the pain getting to you?”

“What do you want?” Harding demanded, “I’ve gotta catch up on my beauty sleep before one-eyed-willie makes me sing and drop.”

“So you know your fate?”

Harding scoffed a little at So’lek. “I’m a captured colonel in enemy territory. I’m not stupid. If the Blues negotiated with the RDA, demands would have been made well for the proper care of me and my men until my release back. I know the Blues don’t negotiate and don’t hold prisoners for long.”

Alma sighed loudly before this could progress into something less productive. So’lek humphed a little and stepped back, allowing her the stage so to speak.

“Look, Harding, I can’t do anything or offer anything to get you out of your situation.” And wouldn’t “But what I can offer is this; you answer some of my questions and I’ll see it that you and your men here get a proper burial” She offered instead. “The Zeswa won’t tend to your body and will leave it where you fall to the mercy of the animals you helped poach.”

Harding stared at her for a moment then snorted. “Likes that’s an appealing deal.”

“It’s the only one I can offer. You’re not getting out of this.” Alma pointed out. “You have caused too much harm to the Zeswa. Lost many of their people to the actions of you, Mercer and the RDA.”

“Thanks but I always knew I was going to die a horrible death and be left in the mud. Hardly tempting me into disloyalty and betraying my own race.” Harding’s shoulders lifted a little as if trying to shrug. “Unlike you, Cortez.”

“You’re not going to die a martyr. You’re not dying for the RDA. Your death is about your poaching of the Zarkru. Not RDA ideals.”

Harding didn’t look convinced. “The RDA will spin my story to be what they need it to be. They may recover my bones one day which will see my death at the hands of Blue freaks.”

“Spears, Actually.” So’lek correctly coldly. “Na’vi won’t taint their hands with your blood when their weapons will suffice more effectively.”

Harding stared at him for a long moment. “I will take my secrets to my grave, Cortez.”

Alma didn’t let her words draw too much power away but she figured they needed another approach. Less direct.

“Your ranking in the RDA has allowed you plentiful amounts of information on this land and of Bridgehead. You—or should I say, Mercer, had plans to extract oil on a large scale on the western Frontier which meant you had contingency plans on handling the backlash from the Zeswa, Aranahe and the Kame’tire clan when they came for you. What were they?”

Harding hummed, noncommittally. “Chances are the numbers would have dwindled enough to not be of concern beyond leisure hunting or pest control. Everyone loves a good trinket on their shelve. Who cares if it’s off some corpses?”

So’lek hissed quietly at her phrasing.

Harding just smirked a little at the warrior. “Why are you so shocked? You’ve seen my art.”

Alma held a hand up to stop So’lek from answering; she needed the power here. Not his interference or provocation.

“Mercer had no loyalty to you. You probably already knew it otherwise you wouldn’t have abandoned him at his base. Fine, if you won’t talk about the rest of bridgehead but surely you can talk about something useful. Your death, what happens to all the money that comes from the stuff you already sent off?”

Harding shrugged, “What of it? My next of kin will get what they need from me.”

“From what I know, you have no one.” Alma rebutted. “No family. No children. No one to take your belongings or to morn for you. You’re just a number on the list of the dead. Will the RDA take the money? Seems likely. They probably won’t have to worry about the backlogs of pay either; they keep your earnings. All of it.”

“<This topic is hardly relevant.>” So’lek remarked, “<We waste time with this.>”

Alma ignored him. “We found the other poachers from the splinter groups so we know there were a few inspired by your work. I knew some of the Proceeds go towards the RDA for the supply drops back to Earth. I take it you must have…investments into something for it to be useful. Even after your death.”

Harding rolled her eyes a little. “So what if I do, Cortez? That’s hardly any interesting for the resistance to know about.”

Alma’s head tilted but she couldn’t help the smile on her lips at the implication that had. Very few things that came from that. Investments beyond one’s own life with no next of kin?

“Just…curious. You must handle a lot of your people's pay to make the calls on those bagged and tagged. Are all of these your unit or just part of the ship?” Alma nodded to the other captured men.

Harding said nothing, just raised a bloodied eyebrow.

No matter, they’d get the details from the black box. That could provide them a unit to look out for when the avatars were grown.

“I spoke to Sully’s team. They told me of this new unit the RDA has. Have you met the new Colonel Quaritch?” Alma asked, “I bet he’s a…bit taller now.”

Harding snorted a little at that. “Why are you asking about him?”

“It seems a bit like a novice. A whole new Avatar program, only…they don’t have a driver. Seems…exciting, even.” Alma sighed. “How are they made? Or… the minds of the soldiers preserved? I wasn’t aware that the RDA even had that technology.”

Harding raised her other eyebrow again. “You sound jealous, doc.”

“Why wouldn’t I be? I always preferred my avatar. That was no secret.” Alma spared a look down at herself then shrugged.

Harding chuckled at her, a nasty smile on her face. “I wondered why you’re not in your avatar. It’s dead, didn’t it, Cortez? You’re dead.”

There was an undertone of implication there which… didn’t surprise Alma to know that the colonel knew the risks just as much as Max did. But she didn’t want So’lek to know that. He’d tell the Sarentu. She couldn’t have that.

“Accidents happen. But we’re not here to talk about me.”

“Why not?” Harding seemed to get marginally chipper now, “We both know your self-hate of your own body came from your kid dying before she was born. What makes you think that was an accident.”

Alma’s jaw tensed right up, eyes narrowing at her but she felt a shiver at the implication. “My daughter was stillborn.”

Harding snorted. “Mercer was never above having things in his way killed. You think you’re any different because you were human?” She scoffed at her. “Like he would let you simply leave with a kid and leave him with the blue scraps!”

“<Cortez?>”

Alma swallowed her feelings, now was not the time to let her words get to her. It was well over thirty years since she had touched that box and she had no intention of opening it in front of the present company. Harding was trying to get a reaction.

“The new avatars,” Alma started, her voice stern, “how many?”

Harding continued to smirk still. “None of your concern.”

“Does Mercer have an avatar like this new squad?”

At that, Harding seemed to laugh, wincing a little at the pain the motion brought her. “Hell no. He couldn’t pass the tests required, mental or physical.” She shook her head. “He’s a psycho.”

Alma rose slowly to her feet, bringing her arm to her chest to avoid leaning on it. She brushed the grass from her clothes as she fixed her former colleague with a long look. “I look forward to meeting your recom, Colonel Harding.”

She didn’t dare look at So’lek as she turned and headed towards the exit.

“No you won’t,” Harding called after her almost gleefully. “You’re a dead woman, Cortez!” Alma didn’t stop at her shout, her voice meant to sound loud now like a threat. “You’re a dead woman walking, Cortez!!”

“I know…” Alma whispered to herself, exhausted already still.

Masterlist

#avatar #avatar au #avatar james cameron #avatar frontiers of pandora #frontiers of pandora #so'lek frontiers of pandora #so'lek #sarentu #nor #teylan #afop #ri'nela #alma cortez #angela harding #nesim #minang #zeswa clan #avatar rda

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teecupangel · 1 year

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What if Desmond was one of the shadow soldiers in CoD? Like, he's really good at what he does, so becomes like the right hand man, but when 141 is betrayed, turns on the Americans because 'fuck this shit, this aint what I signed up for'

Shadow Company, in general, has always been more on the side of morally ambiguous since the only time we see them is when they’re working for Shepherd (in both OG and Reboot games) and he’s more on the morally gray area than a full-on villain so, yeah, Desmond could totally be part of Shadow Company.

Hell, instead of being a bartender, he could have found his way into becoming one of the Shadow Company’s recruits in the first place and it would have worked.

They’re mercs for hires but there seemed to be some kind of camaraderie going on among them, most notably seen when Graves said “These guys on the ground... Mexican Special Forces, 141, they are your brothers now. You treat 'em like your own and let's get this done, yeah?” in the mission Close Air and he does have the habit of calling others “brother” which would resonate with Desmond’s desire for a place to belong (especially 16 years old Desmond).

Also, their equivalent to “Roger” is “Yup-yup” and that will never stop sounding both funny and adorable to me.

In a scenario where Desmond becomes a member of Shadow Company, a setup we can use is him quickly rising the ranks and getting the attention of Graves, building some form of bond between them that is both friendship-forged-in-fire and bash-brothers that soon turns him into Graves’ (and Shadow Company’s) unofficial second-in-command.

You can even ‘transplant’ Desmond into Shadow Company as Velikan since Velikan never showed his face and there’s no real information about him. (Velikan is from the multiplayer section of Modern Warfare 2019)

Desmond wouldn’t balk at any questionable methods Shadow Company even does, especially if he joined the PMC at sixteen.

So Desmond turning on Shadow Company during the end of Dark Waters/start of Alone?

It could work if Desmond built a stronger bond with 141 and that is more possible if Desmond joined Shadow Company later (like, say, after the whole Grand Temple deal.) This is the idea that "fuck this shit, this ain't what I signed up for" can definitely be included.

Otherwise, Desmond would only see it as another mission and the only reason why he would take a stand would be if he believes that Graves and the others are getting out of hand (like, for example, them shooting on Soap and Ghost when they were only ordered to shoo them away or detain them if they do not comply).

So yeah, Desmond would betray Shadow Company if he believes they’re in the wrong or if he develops a more close relationship with 141 but his thoughts on what the wrong side is isn’t as clear cut as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ due to his Assassin background.

And if we were to set this up with Desmond joining Shadow Company as a sixteen years old, betraying Shadow Company would be a hardsell at that point as they would have become something akin to a family to him.

And, if he does betray them, he would definitely get some to his side, creating some kind of civil war between two factions in Shadow Company in the middle of Las Almas.

This is also the idea where Desmond would be more "don't make me do this, Graves..." and it would definitely have more angst.

I’d also just like to note something…

And this part would also be counted as a bit of a spoiler for The Shadow’s Endgame so skip this one if you don’t want to be spoiled:

Shadow Company’s brutality during Las Almas? They only specifically target corrupted officials and police officers, those in the pockets of the cartels.

Yes, they’re definitely war crimes and they do terrorize the citizens (especially the family of their targets) but, at the same time…

It’s not exactly that different from how the Brotherhood operates. They’re not stealthy about it and that was by choice as we have to assume a PMC like them should have the capabilities to be stealthy if they wanted to be, they simply chose not to.

Perhaps they wanted to make an example of Las Almas.

Perhaps they wanted to show the cartels their work.

They attacked a hostile territory and took down the corrupted high-ranking officials…

Kinda like how Assassins used to operate before the modern era.

You might even say…

Shadow Company is what the Brotherhood could have been had they continued to uphold a more militaristic approach and idolized Ezio Auditore’s liberation of Rome.

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themeowsticvigilante · 10 months

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... All Systems Rebooting ...

Well well, I rise from the grave yet again. Yeah I was, kind of gone for a while here and a lot has happened since then. Anyways, how has everyone been doing? Planning to make a return here soon. Don't know exactly when but I'll definitely do so.

Since I've been gone just wanted to see whoever is still active here.

Please leave a reply or a reblog if you're an active Pokeask blog. Newcomers are also welcome! Would love to meet new people coming in.

#ooc #return post kinda #mun equinox echoes

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gcdl3ss · 2 months

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⌜ pinterest / playlist / wanted connections ⌟

( michael b. jordan, cisman, he/him ) — 🎬 just announced, roman calloway has been cast as luke danes in the upcoming gilmore girls reboot. the thirty eight year old is trending as people are debating if the stacks of filled crossword puzzles, judgemental stares during a deep conversation but very little contribution verbally, an organized sock drawer, cigarette hanging between lips as a coping mechanism, fear of commitment that causes you to run that they are known for is enough to make them as good as original. a quick google search shows that their fans call them grounded, but internet trolls think they’re more pessimistic. i guess their newest interview for variety where they talk about their rise to stardom being all their own and not having previous connections in the industry will let people know them better.

𝐢. 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲

barney stinson, how i met your mother + damon salvatore, the vampire diaries + flynn rider, tangled + alex karev, grey's anatomy + steven hyde, that 70's show + lip gallagher, shameless + roman roy, succession.

𝐢𝐢. 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝

born in long beach, california, the calloway's were well known however not connected to the elite class that both children would soon dive into. parents being high class lawyers, one a defence lawyer and the other focused on family law, the calloways had money, but there wasn't a moment where they would use it to contribute to a potential spoiled nature of their children.

high school was practically a breeze for roman, he was well liked by many individuals and his charm allowed him to grasp hold of anyone he wanted; confident but also willing to keep to himself when necessary, he was someone that many individuals gravitated towards. an enigma in the eyes of many; one second he could be playing beer pong while the next he's at home with a crossword because his social battery was dead.

following in his parents footsteps, roman didn't hesitate to begin his adventures in pre-law upon graduation. freshly eighteen and beginning his first year, he made sure to dedicate himself to his studies. that didn't stop his door from constantly revolving, however, but there was very little interest in a serious relationship, always voicing his needs off the bat to avoid potential dramatics.

graduating top of his class with pre-law, he began his law school adventure at stanford at the age of twenty, able to jump right into the system. however, his twenty first birthday was when everything changed for roman.

spending money left right and center but lying to parents that it was for school supplies, he was soon cut off from speculation that he was using it for partying and women that didn't deserve it (which .. it was, but he will forever take that to his grave). digging through his junk drawer, roman found the cellular number to the agent that approached him the prior year for modelling; at the time, it was laughable, but now roman felt like he needed to make a living.

it wasn't long for roman to become extremely well liked in the industry. with his charm, bright smile and ability to mask the personalities of everyone around him, he was able to crawl his way to the top. it didn't hurt that he managed to have a beautiful woman on his side either; cordelia became someone of comfort, someone he thought would actually convince him to settle down.

the moment of bliss was brief, tabloids taking hold of the new actor's after hour endevours and cordelia finding out about his infedility via headlines. despite his lack of care in the moment, tears were shed when he witnessed the disaster he managed to create. the pair of them having such a deep seeded love that they agreed to couples therapy - years continued where they began to grow again, conversations of marriage even beginning to dangle before them. ring bought, hidden perfectly in their shared home, however the night when he was going to ask ... his fear of commitment got the best of him, and yet another individual was brought into their bed, only to be caught red handed.

although not entirely liked from that point forward, he was still an extremely talented actor and someone that studios wanted. his career skyrocketed, thoughts of his past were long forgotten when viewed on screen and his charm remained his go-to safety net. however, upon arriving to his reboot, his eyes lay on the woman he had truly loved and let go; posing the question if this type of life is truly worth it.

𝐢𝐢𝐢. 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲

grounded : despite what's seen in tabloids and known about his personality, roman can remain grounded in many instances. although seen at many parties and clubs throughout the week, there are months at a time where he will go into hiding and remain in his home with some crosswords and practicing his cooking skills. the lavish life took a toll on his previously cherished ways, and when the realization hits that he's losing himself, he likes to go back to his roots.

pessimistic : always preparing to the worst. roman likes to come up with endless worse case scenarios to avoid getting his hopes up on certain situations. when auditioning, he will lay out what he did wrong and what he could have done better before a phone call is made to give the final vote. this way, he can provide himself less disappointment if he doesn't come out on top, but feel immense happiness and joy when he does.

extroverted : not entirely a social butterfly, but he does love connections. sometimes quiet in nature and other times loud in tone, he craves the company of others no matter what. somtimes enjoying a movie in silence with a friend or even a quiet beer, while other times he wants to meet new people and thrive off the chaotic natures of a nightclub.

manipulative : roman has managed to always manipulate a sitauation to avoid consequences. if it's gaslighting, shifting blame, or bringing up past arguments to make a point; a fear of having to admit he was wrong because deep down he knows he is. many would question if he's narcassistic, however behind closed doors, roman feels every emotion and it's very common for him to break down when no one is watching because of his own actions.

#2000s.intro #𝗖𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪𝗔𝗬 ﹐ 𝘙𝘖𝘔𝘈𝘕 ⸻⸻⸻ introspection

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psychedelic-charm · 1 month

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I've been visiting the Characters page for Blue's Clues on TV Tropes, and it seems there's a small number of Tropers who believe that Blue falls under the Messianic Archetype trope. It reads:

"Blue is a special puppy, and that has nothing to do with being blue. She is the target of a prophecy, born during an important cosmic event, announced by a divine winged being (Moona), appeared on Christmas Day, is a Reality Warper born and raised around common puppies, is constantly accompanied by her True Companions, and is an All-Loving Heroine who gives advice to people close to her."

Now this may be far reaching, because "Blue's First Holiday" shows that Blue doesn't actually appear in the house until the day after Christmas when she skidoos out of her book, and the prophecy discussed in "The Legend of the Blue Puppy" talks about Blue using the key she came with to unlock her greatest gift (a special play room where she can talk to the viewers) rather than giving herself up to save her friends. However, you could argue that the show fits this trope in a more significant way than the main character herself.

After Season 6 of Blue's Clues ended, Nickelodeon decided to end the show in favor of the spin-off show "Blue's Room". Unfortunately, that series would only last 2 seasons and 17 episodes before going quietly into that goodnight in 2007. Twelve years later, Traci and Angela brought Blue back to Nick Jr. with the reboot "Blue's Clues & You!" The Second Coming of Blue, if you will.

So, even though Blue doesn't exactly fit the bill for a messianic figure, the death and resurrection of her show is almost like Jesus rising from the grave after he died for our sins.

Blue's Clues is alive again!

#blue's clues #blue's clues and you #blue's clues steve #blue's clues joe #blue's clues josh #messianic #easter #allegory #blue's room #who would have thought the star of a preschool show would be a messianic figure?

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anin13 · 11 months

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Shumori chapter 5

TW: ptsd, arson, grief, Diabolik Lovers, survivor's guilt

Yuma was stalking and sulking at one of the four cardinal points of the Sakamaki mansion. His mood wasn't too bad because he happened to land a spot with a rose garden to patrol.

He'd never seen so many of those fragrant flowers together; and they were so well taken care of, too! All blooming crimson rubies with velvety petals glistening with fresh dew in the blinding morning sun.

Must be the army of servants who met with the terrible fate of working here. He'd have loved to ask for tips to tend to his own rose patch, but ain't no way he was asking the vampires who reside in that haunted-looking house to contact their servants for him.

Not even if it was sad his roses never seemed to bloom so he could at least give back something symbolic to Boss and the others.

He'd never had the chance to lay flowers on their graves because they had none, and he still, sometimes, against all logic, wondered if he'd find his old friends, alive and well around the corner.

He never actually saw the whole gang's corpses, right? They could have been just knocked out, couldn't they?

He grabbed an apple from his tree in his enormous pocket to throw up and down; he was getting impatient.

Every time Yuma had this kind of thought, he had to give himself a good old fashioned mental smack- it was ridiculous. Too much time had passed, too! They'd be dead or too old to be recognized, not everyone becomes a vampire like he had!

Murdered friends don't just rise from the dead and randomly cross paths with you.

Shu was on his way out to the garden but he decided a snack was due to occupy his mind on something less tiring than a reboot of his fire nightmare.

The kitchen was near the back door, which was less steps to take than to the front one. Unfortunately the kitchen was out of anything that didn't need to be cooked, so he just left with a sigh.

As he opened the door he sensed Yui was going for a walk in the sun too, but he didn't want to see anyone; glad she was opening the opposite door.

He was about to go sit down at his favorite spot when he noticed a nearly 2 m tall man that was too hard to ignore inspecting the roses Subaru took care of.

-How the hell..! -the tall guy yelled to himself softly touching a rose's petals- grrr... do they fertilize these with blood and dead rats or what?!

-Ugh, it's too early to be this loud... -Shu replied behind him

-HUH?!

Yuma threw the apple at the source of the voice, startled by the sudden sound, ready to run, and then he turned around.

It was none other than the blond man from the day before.

Ruki had asked Karl to send pictures and small descriptions of the Sakamaki brothers the night before for Kou, Yuma and Azusa.

The younger siblings hadn't had the chance to spy on them on the crystal ball at Karl's crib, and the car encounter was too brief.

Yuma had asked who the fuck they all were for the sake of the mission, but only actually read Shu's description.

Apparently the neet of the family, the oldest brother, was up too early or going to sleep too late.

Shu somehow caught the apple he'd thrown at him and casually put it in his pocket. That was a first; his throws always managed to knock grown men to the floor! Shu Sakamaki was a vampire, not a man. It doesn't count!

-Why are you in our garden? -he yawned- If you keep shouting you'll fail the stalking game...

-What the hell..? -Yuma was still stunned- Oi, I'm here for a good reason, but this is getting real boring! ...Why don't you even try to stop me or something?

-There is no point. -Shu shrugged- I don't care what happens to anyone here nor if the place suddenly sinks into oblivion.

-Huh, you really are some kind of neet like our report said.

Shu lifted his eyebrows. Who was making reports on him saying he is a neet? What did his brothers's potential reports say?

Yuma approached Shu on a whim. He had decided the mission could screw itself today, there were things he needed to know!

-I'm surprised, but despite being some spoiled aristocrat, you don't seem like a bad guy.

Shu suddenly froze. His mind started racing.

-You don't seem like a bad guy.

"No, you have no idea what I'm like... go away!" he thought but the words wouldn't come out,

-You must be hungry, it's pretty late. Here's an apple I grew, try it!

No!!!!!!!

Shu felt really hot, burning, and a bit like he was choking. It was like he was there again, hiding from his duties in the forest with his best friend, that imprudent boy who wanted to save his family.

-Don't worry,

Shu saw this grown vampire with a puzzled face in front of him become the child who assured him he'd be fine; he didn't listen to Shu,

-That is not normal fire!!!

His face felt the heat of the extraordinary flames, the rage at the core of them, and his vision began to blur and fade to black, just like the smoke that threatened to annoy him at the time, but would surely poison his best friend, who became a small, indistinguishable black dot in the burning village.

Shu tried, for the first time, to have mind control over him so he got out of the furnace, but it was already too late. He met with a terrible fate.

And if it wasn't for you, that fire wouldn't have been caused. It was one of your kind. This is what happens if anyone is around you. You are the same.

He fell over and the tall man seemed to get taller, as if he'd risen from the ashes that fell in that scene. Shu's vision refused to clear, as if said ashes had fallen into his eyes.

Edgar, that cheerful, generous, knowledgeable, fun child was dead. This guy was simply a stranger, he had to be. It was not worth the hassle, the concern, the stupid emotions, the longing, it was nothing!

And then the ashes buried Shu alive and he couldn't see anything anymore.

-WHAT THE FUCK? -a pale Yuma yelled without even thinking the piglet might hear him and run, and despite himself, tried to put the blond in a sitting position.

-Oi, aren't you a goddamned vampire? -he shook him, but then remembered Shu is actually immortal- ...Get a hold of yourself, Yuma! -He flicked his own forehead.

While this guy seemed to be seeing things and then fainting, Kou, Azusa and Ruki had caught the piggy and were only waiting for him to leave the Sakamaki estate.

Clearly this vampiric bum didn't burn in the sun so hard, but Yuma couldn't help feeling bad for the poor bastard. He wouldn't die if he chocked on his own tongue, but that surely would be a very annoying situation to wake up in.

He carried him into a cozy-looking bench in a stone gazebo and put him in recovery position with some soft leaves as a makeshift pillow.

This place would be out of the blaring sunlight all day, he was all set. Sleeping, Shu's face looked younger. Kinda familiar.

Whatever, time to go, they'd have that conversation some other time.

In contrast with Yui and Shu, Laito had slept all day and woke up till dusk was almost over. He managed to catch the last rays of a red sun; he didn't like how the sun felt on the skin, but sunsets and dawns were always works of art to behold.

Vampires only saw the moon and the stars most of the time, but rarely the spectacle of sunsets. Let alone rainbows!

He was musing about the joys he might have missed out on, as he sometimes did, when he noticed Shu having a walk in the rose garden, eating an apple and looking just as depressed as Laito felt for no obvious reason.

A rare sight, he thought. Shu rarely ever showed he cared about anything, not even himself, nor any kind of emotion beside "tired". Should he investigate what's going on?

Something big might have happened. Subaru was having a fit downstairs, Shu was depressed and there was no human presence in the house. Was Bitch-chan gone? Had the kidnapping from the dream he had really happened? Or was it a coincidence?

He didn't believe in those, but that woman had too many people on her tail for her own good, it was like dreaming that monkeys eat bananas. Subaru was getting closer to his room; hopefully he wouldn't smash anything he considered pretty this time.

-I'm telling ya I didn't think she'd be stupid enough to wander off on her own with four people after her!!! -Subaru yelled and stomped the floor-

-Please have your tantrum elsewhere; outdoors or in your room, and then we'll talk. -Reiji's non-existent pulse was racing- Have you considered the possibility she might have seeked out human-ish contact with those guys? -he tried to be reassuring,

-Since vampires are not even her species and you are extremely possessive, she might have felt lonely.

A smash, a whip, a shriek of pain and a Subaru-shaped thud. Ugh.

-How can I possibly not protect her at all times??? -Subaru whined after a moment- She lives with all of you absolute maniacs!!!

-Is it protection you're giving her, or do you feel threatened someone is going to try and take her away from you, therefore you won't let her have any personal space?

Growling and profanity.

Laito rolled his eyes. Was Reiji purposefully winding him up, or why was he blatantly blaming him? Did he need Subaru to demolish something?

-She'll be back -Shu said confidently as he entered the living room.

Now that was a mood swing. No depression to be heard in that voice! Laito could do that too if necessary, but Shu was the absolute master of it, zero cracks in the act.

But he'd just seen him and felt the vibe from afar a few moments ago; something besides Bitch-chan getting kidnap-cepted had just happened to him.

As he joined the living room he saw everyone was a bit off. And after a mass-bickering session, Ayato told Laito in private he wanted to go to bed earlier that day since he'd had a disturbing dream about a fire and Bitch-chan taken away by some creeps in the forest with a monster truck, he was exhausted.

They were triplets, but weren't "connected" enough to have the same dream.

This was incredibly suspicious. He'd go to bed early too.

This one is short because I need some sleep, ironically. Anyway, more dream world in the next one!

#diabolik lovers #diabolik lovers fanfiction #diabolik lovers fanart #shumori #diaboys #shu sakamaki #omoriau #yuma mukami #laito sakamaki #diahell

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x--daughters-of-darkness--x · 1 year

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New IN THIS MOMENT Song 'I Would Die For You' Featured On 'John Wick: Chapter 4 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'

Lakeshore Records is set to release "John Wick: Chapter 4 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" digitally March 24 with an original score by Tyler Bates ("John Wick", "Guardians Of The Galaxy"),and Joel J. Richard ("John Wick", "The Andromeda Strain"). Bates and Richard, their scores an integral part of the success of the first three installments of "John Wick", return with another masterclass in high-intensity compositions that feature an array of instruments — including treated piano, mandolin, acoustic and electric guitar, bass, harmonica orchestra, synths, and found object percussion. Bates also produced songs performed by Lola Colette with Nick and Sam Wilkerson of the punk band WHITE REAPER on drums and bass respectively, as well as tracks with IN THIS MOMENT and Manon Hollander. In addition, the track co-written and produced by Bates with vocals by avant pop phenomenon and cast member Rina Sawayama, "Eye For An Eye", is available digitally. The Lionsgate film directed by Chad Stahelski and starring Keanu Reeves, Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgård, Laurence Fishburne, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Lance Reddick, Rina Sawayama, Scott Adkins and Ian McShane is in theaters and IMAX on March 24.

Bates told Entertainment Weekly about his collaboration with IN THIS MOMENT: "'I Would Die For You' is a song that I wrote with Maria Brink and Chris Howorth of IN THIS MOMENT and [also] produced. Chad, literally, out of the blue, called me up, and he's like, 'Yo, Tyler, do you know this singer, I love her, Maria-something, she's in this band, IN THIS…?' I'm like, 'IN THIS MOMENT?' He said, 'Yeah, that's it!' I said, 'I'm actually working on their new record right now. [Laughs] They are real fans of 'John Wick', which is really cool."

"John Wick: Chapter 4 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" track listing:

01. Big Wick Energy 02. Nowhere To Run (Lola Colette) 03. Sand Wick 04. Change Your Nature 05. Continental Breakfast 06. Wick In Osaka 07. High Table In Osaka 08. A Grave Accusation 09. Grief On A Train 10. I Would Die For You (IN THIS MOMENT) 11. Of Mincing & Men 12. A Grave Situation 13. To Get Back In 14. Killa's Teeth 15. Ambition And Worth 16. Dog Lover 17. JW, Loving Husband 18. Stairs Arrival 19. Marie Douceur, Marie Colère (Manon Hollander) 20. John Wick Rises 21. Paris Radio Intro 22. Chess Club 23. Urban Cowgirl 24. Quite The Mess You've Made 25. The Ex Ex 26. The Ex Ex Chapter 3 27. Arc De Triomphe 28. Wrong Train 29. Sacré-Coeur Sunrise 30. Pistol Procession 31. Ten Paces 32. Twenty Paces 33. Helen A Handbasket 34. Eye For An Eye (Rina Sawayama) 35. Cry Mia River

Bates regularly transitions from scoring some of the world’s biggest film and television franchises, such as "Guardians Of The Galaxy" and "John Wick", to rocking massive audiences in the world of rock music, and back to the studio again writing and producing records with artists like HEALTH, BUSH, IN THIS MOMENT and STARCRAWLER, to name a few. In 2004, he created the menacing audio backdrop for the popular Zack Snyder reboot of "Dawn Of The Dead", beginning a string of nearly a dozen box office number ones that have contributed to well over five billion dollars cumulative worldwide box office gross for his projects. Bates then teamed up with Snyder again for the films "300", "Watchmen" and "Sucker Punch". His oeuvre expanded to include films like "Atomic Blonde", "The Devil's Rejects", "The Day The Earth Stood Still", "William Friedkin's Killer Joe", and TV shows like "Californication", "Punisher", "The Purge", "Kingdom", "Salem", "The Exorcist" and more. More recently, Bates scored the blockbuster "Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs And Shaw", "Deadpool 2", "Jamie Foxx's Dayshift", Ti West's 2022 releases "X" and "Pearl", "The Spy Who Dumped Me", plus Genndy Tartakovsky's acclaimed animated series "Samurai Jack" and "Primal" on Adult Swim. After scoring Cirque Du Soleil's "R.U.N.", Bates embarked on the 2022 world tour in support of Jerry Cantrell's latest album "Brighten", which he also co-produced. With more new projects on the horizon including "Agent Elvis", Tyler Bates will undoubtedly continue to redefine what a composer is as a shapeshifting artist who's architected one of the most kaleidoscopic resumes in music.

Last October, IN THIS MOMENT released an EP called "Blood 1983". The effort commemorated the tenth anniversary of IN THIS MOMENT's gold-certified album "Blood" (2012) and was made available digitally across all digital service providers as well as CD via BMG.

"Blood 1983" was co-produced by Bates and Dan Haigh, and mixed by Zakk Cervini.

Since coming to life in 2005, IN THIS MOMENT has presided over a diehard fan base under the watch of "mother" figure and frontwoman Brink — joined by co-founder and lead guitarist Howorth, bassist Travis Johnson, guitarist Randy Weitzel and drummer Kent Dimmel. As millions convened upon the group's otherworldly and unforgettable concerts, they quietly emerged as one of the most influential and impactful bands of the 21st century.

To date, in addition to the gold-selling album "Blood", the quintet has garnered two gold singles — "Blood" and "Whore" — followed by Top 25 entries on the Billboard Top 200 with "Black Widow" (2014) and "Ritual" (2017). Bringing their total stream tally well past 200 million as of 2020, "Ritual" elevated them to new creative and critical peaks as well. Between selling out headline tours coast-to-coast, the group performed in arenas everywhere alongside DISTURBED and appeared at countless festivals from Welcome To Rockville to Sonic Temple. Along the way, they assembled their seventh full-length, the aptly titled "Mother" (Roadrunner) with longtime collaborator Kevin Churko (OZZY OSBOURNE, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH).

IN THIS MOMENT is Maria Brink (lead vocals),Chris Howorth (guitars),Travis Johnson (bass),Randy Weitzel (rhythm guitar),Kent Dimmel (drums).

youtube

#maria brink #In This Moment #I Would Die For You #2023 news #John Wick #soundtrack #metal ladies #metal bands #metal music

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whatudottu · 2 years

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The Classic Ben 10 series had a lot more mutants and otherwise unexplained creatures and happenings that do not directly relate to aliens, and it’s with that absence thanks to UAF retconning a lot of mutant and magic stuff (as well as not even acknowledging the blatantly weird that just seemed to be so accepted) that I generally prefer OS over most other iterations of Ben 10. It also might be why I actually enjoy what I watched of the reboot, because there’s some stuff in there that is rather unexplained and bizarre.

But I come with this post with an idea, one based in the original series and also inspired by what Kai does in Omniverse much later in the show’s continuity. What if the Ghostfreak arc of Ben 10 was not based entirely on alien monsters?

This thought mainly came from the idea that it’s generally bizarre to have not only an alien mummy - which connects in a different way than most to the ancient alien trope especially around Egypt - AND a Frankenstein’s monster construct, based on a very independent and specific story written by Mary Shelley in what’s considered to be one of - if not THE - first science fiction novel. The concept of a bipedal wolf alien is hardly odd at all, considering the logical steps that one could evolve in such a way aren’t too high for leaps and bounds, but I suppose also a ghost alien may be a little too out of reach, but the twists that are made towards ectonurites in their function and form made me think of a curious idea.

So what if, within the context of OS, that the only aliens of the Anur team were Zs’Skayr himself and the Werewolf/Yenaldooshi, for I find from both the modern idea of the werewolf and the yee naaldlooshi that the name has been derived from, that the entire concept of Ben shifting from boy to lenopan in a weird error of the watch fits the concept of man-wolves and witches turning into animals. For whatever bullshit that happened for Ghostfreak to dip out of the watch, whether it be some shred of ectonurite DNA finally regaining it’s sentience or perhaps something else, anything directly affecting Ben and the Omnitrix in this instance at least should maybe be alien fuckery, and Ben having another Omnitrix glitch out causing the DNA absorption mode to slowly come into affect (maybe from the damage it sustained) would probably lead to a new alien in the selection.

But what of the others? What of thep khufans and transylians? What do I do now with the existence of the mummy and doctor Viktor himself?

Well, we have other main characters don’t we? We can’t have everything be just about Ben, now can we?

Perhaps I’m looking too far into this, but in the debut episode of the mummy in ‘Under Wraps’, Gwen made the attempt to cast her spells from within the containment suit... failing because of the suit. But that brought up the idea that, within this arc, while Ben faces against a lenopan and ultimately gaining a new skill set, that Gwen may find her arc-based rival in the mummy as a being of ancient magic, born of the funerary practice of ancient Egypt so long ago.\

With some searching, the rituals of ancient Egyptian burial - the mummifying of the body, the grave goods to send across to the afterlife, the casting of spells - were believed to be necessary in ensuring immortality after death. Hah, if you think that’s interesting, just wait until I tell you this! It was believed that, if the bodies were mistreated after death, that the buried would rise again and look who we find walking around playing quest finder to a team of monsters.

The fucking mummy, that’s who!

Now we essentially have the ancient body of a disrespected undead, perhaps a mage themself responsible for casting spells of their own for the funerals of others, of someone who probably was only a mere serf who has found themselves back in the world of the living and come face to face with a man made of other men and women staring back with eyes in the wrong colour. Yes I am back on my Frankenstein bullshit, and yes, I’m making Viktor the modern Adam by some modern Frankenstein fanperon who accidentally found themself with another crime to humanity.

And baby, this lad is now Grandpa Max’s rival of the Ghostfreak arc.

Of course, the visual design of Viktor is very much influenced by the modern and more bumbling beast takes on Frankenstein’s monster, but he also appears - at least pre-reveal - to have taken on the interest of the academic that the original Shelley monster had. And also, maybe the uglier and disjointed Viktor looks correlates to how much the disrespected mummy wants to work with him rather than target specific assholes who shat on their grave or whatever happened (US archeologists do it like the British and fucked over another country’s historical grounds and got a mummy sent on their asses?), but regardless of that, I find it interesting that he has that dynamic between monster and man.

His debut episode, he is very much a doctor who has found his way into the graces of NASA, and that alone could very much parallel Max in the perspective of a human reaching their hand out towards the stars. But if the grand Dr Viktor is a being made of the parts of people very much passed, a created life searching for life outside of the planet and between the expanse of space itself, boy howdy the modern Prometheus has gotten futuristic and DAMN if that isn’t interesting you can fuck right off i’m joking i’m joking i just think this is very cool-

It is also in this episode, that Max and Viktor are both of their team’s ticket to get within NASA and - very much for the latter than the former - get their hands on rather limited Earth developed space tech, even if Dr Viktor and the mummy don’t have experience of otherwise. And on that note, for as much as Viktor may be reaching to discover more about the stars above, it is Max who has known and met more aliens than the constructed man learning the theories and building the tech to reach them, the two - in this context - parallels of the scientist seeking to learn and the front-liner on the field getting first hand experience of intergalactic contact.

But all this comes to ahead with whatever the fuck ectonurites and Zs’Skayr are in comparison to team monster, what is he and what fuckery are his people?

Well, Zs’Skayr is integral to Ben as the alien that never felt his own and made his skin - it’s not his it’s not HIS - crawl whenever he had become Ghostfreak. But with his multiple showings within Omniverse, his significance in association with magic began to spawn and thus, Gwen too gets involved with the schemes of Zs’Skayr, not only from just being occasionally possessed that one time. And reversing back to his reintroduction into the series in UAF as a prisoner kept under watch for crimes unknown to us, but perhaps to Mr ‘top of the board’ galactic police Max Tennyson; dealing with the reincarnated DNA of a ruler of a nation and a criminal of interplanetary degree has never been more Plumber business, but with Zs’Skayr directly impacting on the lives and mental states of his grandchildren, it just got personal.

But what the fuck is up with that? How in the world does Zs’Skayr just do that? To essentially spawn copies of himself from shreds of DNA not just from stored data like the Omnitrix, but from the scattered remains of his ash against the brick and mortar of a preppy... high school? Collage? Whatever it was it was some form of clock tower.

Well, my dear friends, ectonurites are just built like that... because of their exposure to Legerdomain.

How I see it, certain locations within the universe have thinner barriers between dimensions (as actual dimensions and not alternate timelines like Dimension 23) and the thinnest between most planes is within the Forge of Creation, worn thin by the powers of celestialsapiens rather than a naturally fragile veil between realities. On Galvan Prime, for example, there was a veil thin enough for the galvans to discover and experiment with, developing the technology responsible for traversal into the Null Void.

For Legerdomain, a few notable planets have a thinner veil between them and the magical dimension, that being Anodyne, Aldabra and now Anur Phaetos (oh look they all start with ‘a’). The presence of Legerdomain in such proximity is equivalent to UV radiation from the sun, and much like the green grass upon our own planet being the colour suited to reject the majority of Sol’s light, beings like anodites and geochelone aerio have adapted to be filled with mana to the point where they’ve become resistant to the effects of it. In fact, because the veil is thinnest across Anodyne, even breaching the two realities and serving as gateways, anodites have completely converted into energy beings built from the mana itself.

In contrast, ectonurites on Anur Phaetos have become the equivalent of orange/red/magenta grass growing on a planet with an Earth like star, adapting to diametrically oppose mana to take in all of the background mana like a sponge. And akin to UV radiation, mana in such intense is very much a radiation of life energy, and for ectonurites to welcome it with open arms with their anti-mana bodies... well.

You might find that they have more life in them for one person to enjoy...

Between being rather adept with magic should they so try to develop the skills for it and being biologically more welcoming to extraneous life force, a lot of their ghostly powers are the result of mana manipulation in quite the opposite application of anodites, and are magically capable of retaining memories and intelligence in strands of DNA instead of being purely centralised in a brain; possessing one primarily for motor manipulation rather than for sentience. And it is with this intense exposure - what is equivalent - to mana radiation, there is no one form an ectonurite is nor is formed to be.

It is an anomaly to regenerate as one was before, being that the power of regeneration from particles is a form of asexual reproduction were the high presence of mana turns the pieces that used to be you into people entirely new, a planet-wide acknowledgement that - at least to them - reincarnation is very real. It is that anomaly that is why Zs’Skayr is so intrigued by the Omnitrix, because inherent as a machine there is no shred of mana within it, regardless of how much life is stored within it’s database.

The appeal of immortality, of existing as a constantly regenerating being through the use of the Omnitrix, is what led his DNA being gathered and stored within the watch. Though rather unfortunate, the Omnitrix did not end up being simply a DNA storing device as it was planned to be, as a very particular warlord interrupted it’s path towards the Omnitrix’s final and true destination.

And that’s a compilation of what I think might be cool if OS kept with the mutants and magic addition with aliens for I guess a rewritten Ghostfreak arc, with some exploration of ectonurite biology for a bonus, perhaps in some way a series of headcanons I can drag to the more canon settings of the Ben 10 series as a whole. I mean, I certainly am proud of that exploration of anti-mana and the fucked up things it can do to a species’ development, but do tell me what you think of that and my other ideas.

I don’t know, this was ultimately rather random and I just thought I’d share it, haha!

#loboan #ben tennyson #thep khufan #gwen tennyson #transylian #viktor #max tennyson #ectonurite #zs'skayr #anur phaetos #legerdomain #there are other mentions of species planets and dimensions #but these are more integral to the point and if i elaborate- they'll be in different posts #this isn't about them- it's about team monster #ben 10 #headcanon #rambling #what would this constitute? is this au enough? do i want this to be my way of thinking?#would i even consider it to be fully an au?#hmm #ben 10 au #mutants and magic #i guess it's more than just an 'i'm ignoring your retcons uaf and ov' explanation and just straight up #turning two alien species into essentially the undead #having the mummy walk around as the body of an ancient human real fucking upset that grave robbers are still a thing 5000 years later #especially face to face with a frankensteinian being #who thanks to the heightened presence of alien activity #probably has a few of the mystical based plumbers hunting down that very fateful grave robber successful at creating life #since kai green is going out searching for a certain dr jekyll's serum- might as well be a victor frankenstein running about #or maybe- who knows- maybe the authors of such stories are the true scientists behind the plots of modern classics

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pigeonrocks · 1 year

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since i cant do digital art rn (school) im just gonna fucking. drop some of my reboot!roach lore

(discussion of roaches suicide under the cut)

Roach is- okay to put it bluntly. roach's supposed suicide left shadow company with more questions than it did anything else. because of how unlikely and bizarre the situation was. it wasn't a weird thing for him to go missing for a few days but he always came back with prized intel on the ultranationalists. now. when roach returns to the shadow company's base he feeds all his intel to graves who then works on routes to intercept and kill said ultranationalists. so- roach.. not coming back when he returns back to base is bizarre. him being dead is even worse to that fact, some of the shadows (cough velikan cough) dont believe that he actually kicked the bucket. nothing about it at all adds up and makes sense- he leaves base with ghost to investigate an ultranationalist snuggling route, like always- and he comes back surviving by a fucking thread with what looks to be either a suicide attempt or an attempt on his life by something else. none of it adds up right.

Soap- is called roach at times in passing. by graves and ghost. not intentionally. but roach died so very very recently. soap tries to learn why but he never gets an answer from either of them.

graves calls soap 'roach' out of just habit. he does not want to address it. he never does. he gets almost depressed when soap brings him up. he is still very much mourning his second in command- it does not take a genius to see how much it stings when soap asks him about it.. a wound all too fresh.

same as graves- ghost called soap roach out of habit. but when soap asked him about it.. he got very cagey? and dismissive of soap's confusion to this guy- soaps never met him. shadow company business stays in shadow company. but everything else about ghost just says otherwise. how it screams guilt- not the mourning and sorrows that graves displays. its guilt- it leaves soap with nothing knew about this- it just rises his own suspicions and frustrations about this- graves atleast tells him something-

ghost doesn't tell him a god damn thing- he didn't expect anything but he didn't expect ghost to get cagey just at the mention of this guy's name. its weird!! what the fuck? with graves he understands- he wont press a man grieving his dead- but with ghost?- he expected maybe something- if anything just to make sense of why he knew this guy so well to call soap by his name.

#mystuff!!#chester rambles #call of duty #uhh #simon ghost riley #bc hes important #john soap mactavish #phillip graves #gary roach sanderson #reboot!roach #I'll draw smth abt this maybe laterr when i get home

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phantom-le6 · 2 months

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Ramble of the month March 2024: Phase 5 of the Batman Begins-Led DCEU

With April set aside for an autism-centric monthly ramble and February utilised for phase 5 of my 90’s-based alternate MCU, March takes on the role of show-casing phase 5 of my hypothetical Batman Begins-led DC film-verse. As DC is more prone to content reboots than Marvel, this latest phase will actually ramp up to just such a reboot, with “phase 6” actually being phase 1 of a new DC film-verse. Unlike the real DCEU, that reboot will be better planned, but first let’s re-cap the previous four phases.

Phase 1:

2005: Batman Begins

2006: Man of Steel

2007: Wonder Woman

2008: The Dark Knight, Green Lantern

2009: The Flash, Man of Steel 2

2010: Aquaman, Justice League

Phase 2:

2011: Wonder Woman 2, Green Lantern 2, Green Arrow

2012: Hawkman, Batman/Superman, Aquaman 2

2013: John Constantine, The Flash 2, Suicide Squad

2014: Justice League 2, Green Arrow 2, Batman: The Long Crusade

Phase 3:

2015: Shazam, Man of Steel 3, The Atom

2016: Wonder Woman 3, Batgirl, Teen Titans

2017: Green Lantern/Green Arrow, Shazam vs Black Adam, Suicide Squad 2

2018: Justice League: Darkseid Rising, Aquaman 3, Doom Patrol

Phase 4:

2019: Superman: Doomsday, New Gods, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract

2020: Suicide Squad: Arkham, Knightfall, Green Arrow 3

2021: Reign of the Supermen, Green Lantern: Twilight, Knightsend

2022: Justice League: Armageddon, Teen Titans 3, Justice Society

Phase 1, of course, acts as a means of establishing the DC Universe for film fans prior to forming the Justice League. Phase 2 then builds on that foundation while also causing a schism within the Justice League by adapting the “Tower of Babel” story arc into Justice League 2. Green Arrow 2 then proves Batman’s point about safeguarding against rogue heroes, which some films in phase 3 follow up on. Phase 4 then focuses on the falls of many heroes, some of which stay down and some of which return. However, as phase 4 ended, Hal Jordan was revealed to have gone rogue, which phase 5 will pick up from. This is how the phase 5 slate would shape up overall.

Phase 5:

2023: Justice League: World’s Finest, Nightwing, The Killing Joke

2024: Supergirl, Birds of Prey, Flashpoint

Compared to past phases, phase 5 is only half the size, and while the opening film deals with the issue of Hal Jordan becoming Parallax, most of the other films are one-shots or sequels to tell some interesting stories ahead of the Flashpoint film. So, let’s start by taking a look at these various phase 5 films.

Justice League: World’s Finest (2023) Directed by The Russo Brothers

Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent = Brandon Routh

Bruce Wayne/Batman = Christian Bale

Diana/Wonder Woman = Kate Beckinsale

J'onn J'onzz/Martian Manhunter = Chiwetel Ejiofor

Arthur Curry/Aquaman = Chris Pine

Kyle Rayner/Green Lantern II = Taylor Lautner

Wallace "Wally" West/Flash II = Calum Worthy

Green Lantern/Hal Jordan/Parallax = Ben Affleck

John Stewart = Derek Luke

Guy Gardner = Damian Lewis

Fire/Beatriz Bonilla da Costa = Selena Gomez

Ice/Tora Olafsdotter = Kristine Froseth

Dinah Lance/Black Canary = Malin Akerman

John Henry Irons/Steel = Aldis Hodge

Kara Zor-El/Supergirl = Dakota Fanning

Connor Hawke/Green Arrow II = Levon Hawke

Lex Luthor = Kelsey Grammer

Mercy Graves = Scarlett Johannsen

Koriand'r/Starfire = Elle Fanning

Dusk = Ella Balinska

Blackfire/Komand'r = Virginia Gardner

Ferro/Andrew Nolan = Garrett Wareing

Mon-El/Lar Gand = Milo Manheim

Brainiac-5/Querl Dox = Karan Brar

Saturn Girl/Imra Ardeen = Dove Cameron

Lightning Lad/Garth Ranzz = Tye Sheridan

Cosmic Boy/Rokk Kirnn = Dylan Minnette

Starman/Thom Kallor = Ty Simpkins

Dream Girl/Nura Nal = Sabrina Carpenter

Karate Kid/Val Armorr = Aramis Knight

Sensor Girl/Projectra = Angourie Rice

Amanda Waller = Viola Davis

Floyd Lawton/Deadshot = Christian Slater

Jaina Hudson/White Rabbit = Hayley Kiyoko

Eve Eden/Nightshade = Debby Ryan

Dr Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy = April Bowlby

Dr Niles Caulder/The Chief = Pierce Brosnan

Clifford Steele/Robot Man = Johnny Whitworth

Larry Trainor/Negative Man = Alessandro Nivola

Rita Farr/Elasti-Girl = Alyssa Milano

Mento/Steve Dayton = Nathan Fillion

Bumblebee/Karen Beecher = Kyla Pratt

Vox/Malcom Duncan = Donald Glover

This film is based on the events of the Justice League story arc The Final Hour, in which the Justice League and others try to stop an alien being called the Sun Eater from devouring Earth’s sun, only for Hal Jordan to ultimately sacrifice himself to save Earth by absorbing the Sun Eater and reigniting the sun. The film version would be slightly different in numerous details, but by-and-large the main thrust of the story would remain the same. The League would be the main focus, with Luthor, a few members of future super-team the Legion of Superheroes and a couple of others being heavily featured due to the story arc involved. The Doom Patrol and Suicide Squad are also featured to lesser degrees during scenes showing the wider crisis in what is essentially a superhero disaster film.

Direction-wise, I’d put this film in the hands of the Russo brothers based on their work for the MCU, especially Infinity War and Endgame in the Avengers run of films. Indeed, like Infinity War and Endgame, I also gave the Russos direction of Justice League: Armageddon to keep things consistent across both films. In terms of cast, most cast members have appeared on prior films, with only the characters from Dusk down to Sensor Girl being new cast members coming in fresh on this film.

Nightwing (2023) Directed by Guy Ritchie

Richard Grayson/Robin/Nightwing = Patrick Schwarzenegger

Roland Desmond/Blockbuster = Adam Driver

Lady Elaine Marsh-Morton/Lady Vic = Florence Pugh

Talon/William Cobb = Evan Peters

Amy Rohrbach = Elizabeth Olsen

Elise Svoboda = Alexandra Stan

Gannon Malloy = Max Lloyd-Jones

Comissioner Gil Maclean = Michael Ealy

Mr Nice/James Nice = Sam Reid

In the first of our one-shot films, we get a solo outing for Batman’s original protégé Dick Grayson as he tries to clean up the corruption of Bludhaven by working for their local police force. As the film progresses, Nightwing finds himself caught between local crime lord Blockbuster and a plot involving the infamous Court of Owls of Gotham legend. Outside Patrick Schwarzenegger reprising the role of Dick Grayson, the cast is completely new to this DCEU, and in honour of his great work on crime-centric films, I’ve picked Guy Ritchie to serve in the director role.

The Killing Joke (2023) Directed by Christopher Nolan

Bruce Wayne/Batman = Christian Bale

Barbara Gordon/Batgirl = Bella Thorne

Tim Drake/Robin II = David Mazouz

The Joker = Willem Dafoe

Lucius Fox = Morgan Freeman

James "Jim" Gordon = Gary Oldman

Jeannie/Becky Moore = Georgie Henley

Comedian/Young Joker = David Corenswent

Patrolman Robert Moore = Grant Gustin

Mitch = Scott Eastwood

Murray = Drew Powell

Det. Harvey Bullock = Donal Logue

Det. Renee Montoya = Penelope Cruz

When DC and WB did an animated Killing Joke adaptation, they had the right idea in terms of expanding the story beyond the Alan Moore-written graphic novel. However, they expanded it incorrectly by having an unrelated preceding 30 minutes that served more to facilitate Bruce Timm’s shipping of a Bruce-Barbara relationship than to make a well-expanded narrative. This film begins with the Joker being apprehended, hatching his scheme in Arkham, and then a short while later, we get the original Killing Joke plot in the film’s middle.

The end is then expanded, first by taking from a prose novel adaptation I’ve read where Batman laughing with the Joker turns into Batman almost giving in to the temptation to kill Joker. After this, Joker sees a woman who he thinks is the dead wife from his flashbacks and breaks out to “find the truth”. When Batman confronts Joker for a third time, the question is left hanging as to whether the Joker’s past was true or not, and a post-credits scene sets up for Barbara becoming Oracle. Direction-wise, I figure that only Christopher Nolan would do well adapting this material into a live-action narrative. Casting-wise, the film is mostly existing cast reprising past roles, with only the characters linked to Joker’s back-story being fresh castings.

Supergirl (2024) Directed by Reese Witherspoon

Kara Zor-El/Supergirl = Dakota Fanning

Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent = Brandon Routh

Cat Grant = January Jones

Jimmy Olsen = Rider Strong

Winslow Schott Jr. = David Henrie

Lena Luthor = Spencer Grammer

Zor-El = Henry Cavill

Alura Zor-El = Rebecca Hazelwood

Astra In-Ze = Rebecca Hazelwood

Non = Ryan McPartlin

Vartox = James Murray

Indigo/Brainiac-8 = Letitia Wright

Capt. Crispus Allen = Djimon Honsou

Det. Peter Foley = Matt Le Blanc

This film gives us a solo film outing for Supergirl that is partly based on the first season of the character’s Arrowverse TV show. In other words, we see Kara starting out on her own life in another city and having to clash with her villainous aunt and uncle, as well as Indigo, a time-displaced villain in the Brainiac family tree. For direction, I’ve picked Reese Witherspoon as I know in recent years she’s taken up production and is very passionate about female-led stories and story-telling, so I think she’d be a great fit to make a directorial debut on a character like Supergirl.

Birds of Prey (2024) Directed by Patty Jenkins

Dinah Lance/Black Canary = Malin Akerman

Barbara Gordon/Oracle = Bella Thorne

Cassandra Cain/Batgirl = Momona Tamada

Helena Bertinelli/Huntress II = Alexandra Daddario

Zinda Blake/Lady Blackhawk = Rita Ora

Det. Renee Montoya = Penelope Cruz

Noah Kuttler/Calculator = Tom Cavanagh

Scandal Savage = Katie Leung

Knockout = Ireland Baldwin

Thomas Blake/Catman = Luke Grimes

Floyd Lawton/Deadshot = Christian Slater

Bane = Rodrigo Santoro

For the penultimate phase 5 film, we’re giving the Birds of Prey super-team their chance to shine, albeit better than they did in the real DCEU. More comics-accurate castings and character selections, including leaving out Harley Quinn (who, if you remember my phase 4 ramble, is killed off in the last Suicide Squad film). In this film, we see Barbara recruit a number of street-level heroes to tackle a criminal group known as the Secret Six. The film follows up on plot threads from Knightfall, Knightsend and Killing Joke, and also uses Cassandra Cain as Batgirl like in the comics, another elements the real DCEU Birds of Prey got wrong. Patty Jenkins of the real DCEU’s Wonder Woman films helms the project from a directorial standpoint.

Flashpoint (2024) Directed by Robert Zemeckis

Barry Allen/The Flash = Matt Damon

Thomas Wayne/Flashpoint Batman = Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Oliver Queen/Green Arrow = Ethan Hawke

John Constantine = Matt Ryan

Jason Blood/Etrigan = Eddie Redmayne

Victor Stone/Cyborg = Ashton Sanders

Citizen Cold/Leonard Snart = Rob Lowe

Superman/Kal-El = Brandon Routh

Nora Allen = Cybill Shepherd

Eobard Thawne/Reverse Flash = Jake Gyllenhaal

Diana/Wonder Woman = Kate Beckinsale

Arthur Curry/Aquaman = Chris Pine

Billy Batson/Shazam = Zachary Gordon/Zachary Levi

Freddy Freeman = Chandler Riggs

Darla Dudley = Quvenzhané Wallis

Mary Bromfield = Halston Sage

Eugene Choi = Hudson Yang

Pedro Peña = Rico Rodriguez

Hal Jordan = Ben Affleck

Martha Wayne/Flashpoint Joker = Marg Helgenberger

Yo-Yo = Margot Robbie

During the events of Justice League: Armageddon, Barry Allen’s Flash became lost in the timestream. When he gets out, he enters an alternate reality where Aquaman and Wonder Woman are at war, and many heroes are missing or dead, including Barry’s speedster alter ego. Thus begins a mission to learn the truth of why events have changed, and the climax will reboot the DCEU. While this film simply uses the title of Flashpoint, it’s based more on the DC animated version from the DCAMU as that’s the main Flashpoint story I’ve seen and recall. Of course, the rest of the alternative DCEU I’ve laid out prior to this film alters some other aspects as well, including how Barry exits the timestream and why history was changed. Direction-wise, I had to pick Robert Zemeckis just because as the guy who directed the Back to the Future trilogy and the 2009 Disney version of A Christmas Carol, he is probably the best director for anything with a time travel component.

This concludes our phase 5 for the alternate DCEU, and this specific version of the DCEU. When I do phase 6 on my 90’s MCU, the first (and for now only) phase of my rebooted hypothetical DCEU will be hot on its heels. So, until next time, ta-ta for now.

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docrotten · 2 years

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[Horror News] THE CROW, MONSTERS OF METAL, WINNIE THE POOH BLOOD & HONEY, and more…

Welcome to HORROR NEWS RADIO for SEPTEMBER 5, 2022.

JOIN US FOR casting news for THE CROW and FIRST OMEN, along with trailer news for SLAYERS and WINNIE THE POOH: Blood & Honey. All this, and more, coming up next…

I am your host Doc Rotten and this is HNR, the official GRUESOME MAGAZINE HORROR NEWS podcast. Back with me again are the scariest, goriest, bloodiest co-hosts on the 'Net.

Dave Dreher, the lead news writer at Gruesome Magazine

Crystal Cleveland, the Livin6dead6irl

UPCOMING FILMS

NETFLIX confirms an October 5, 2022, debut date for John Lee Hancock's adaptation of Stephen King's MR. HARRIGAN'S PHONE

Mr. Harrigan’s Phone is from the latest collection of novellas “If It Bleeds” from Stephen King, about a young boy living in a small town, who befriends an older, reclusive billionaire. The two form a bond over books and an iPhone, but when the man passes away, the boy discovers that not everything dead is gone, and finds himself able to communicate with his friend from the grave through the iPhone that was buried with him.

DIRECTOR: John Lee Hancock WRITER: John Lee Hancock CAST: Donald Sutherland, Jaeden Martell, Joe Tippett

https://deadline.com/2022/08/netflix-fall-release-dates-2022-knives-out-2-1235102815/

Jason (Guns Akimbo) Howden's adaptation of his comic MONSTERS OF METAL is heading to theaters Frankenstein’s monster (named Frank) and his bandmates Medusa, Jack O’Lantern, Werewolf and the Bride have spent the last few centuries squatting in Dracula’s castle – unbeknown to their slumbering host. But after a band rehearsal gets out of hand and wakes the fearsome vamp, the group gets booted from the castle and are forced to hit the road. As Frank and the band take their act on tour, they find themselves fighting off crazed groupies, monster hunters and fellow crypt creatures in a darkly comic tale that puts the death in “death metal.”

https://deadline.com/2022/09/guns-akimbo-director-jason-howden-prepping-monsters-of-metal-comic-book-pic-1235105385/

Director Patrick Brice and screenwriter Blair Butler are bringing HOME BEFORE DARK to the big screen for SONY

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/sony-home-before-dark-director-writer-1235208160/

CASTING NEWS

Danny Huston and Bill Skarsgard star in Rupert Sanders' reboot of THE CROW. Rupert Sanders is directing the feature which is now weeks-deep in production in the Czech Republic.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/danny-huston-the-crow-bill-skarsgard-1235203490/

Nell Tiger Free (Servant) attached to FIRST OMEN for 20th Century

https://deadline.com/2022/08/servant-star-nell-tiger-free-omen-prequel-first-omen-20th-century-1235103698/

R.L. Stine's ZOMBIE TOWN adds Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase tp the cast now shooting in Ontario, also stars Henry Czerny and co-teen leads Marlon Kazadi and Madi Monroe. The ensemble cast also includes Scott Thompson and Bruce McCulloch of the Canadian comedy show Kids in the Hall. Canadian animator Peter Lepeniotis will direct Zombie Town.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/dan-aykroyd-chevy-chase-zombie-town-rl-stine-1235206863/

Rising star Sydney Sweeney will lead and produce - along with Brad Fuller - THE REGISTRATION The Night House writers Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski are adapting the script.

https://deadline.com/2022/08/sydney-sweeney-brad-fuller-sony-registration-1235102178/

TRAILERS

WINNIE THE POOH: Blood & Honey

It follows Pooh and Piglet as they go on a rampage after Christopher Robin abandons them for college. Directed by: Rhys Waterfield Writing Credits " A.A. Milne Characters from the book by: Rhys Waterfield Cast: Natasha Tosini, Amber Doig-Thorne, May Kelly, Maria Taylor, Craig David Dowsett (Pooh Bear), Richard D. Myers, Nikolai Leon, Chris Cordell (Piglet)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-IFS_upGGU

SLAYERS

A group of superstar influencers are drawn to a reclusive billionaire's mansion only to find themselves trapped in the lair of an evil vampire. The only way out is to be saved by a famous online gamer and an old school vampire hunter. Directed by: K. Asher Levin Writing Credits: Zack Imbrogno, K. Asher Levin

Cast: Thomas Jane, Kara Hayward, Jack Donnelly, Lydia Hearst, Malin Akerman, Abigail Breslin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhtKPrQTGP8

DON'T LOOK AT THE DEMON

A team of paranormal investigators head for the highlands of Fraser's Hill, Malaysia, to probe a series of alleged disturbances at a house with a dark past.

Directed by: Brando Lee Written by: Brando Lee, Alfie Palermo Cast: Harris Dickinson, Fiona Dourif, Malin Crépin, Randy Wayne, Jordan Belfi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Dda63FuCNk

THE VISITOR

After a series of tragedies, Robert moves with his wife back to her childhood home. After he discovers an old portrait of a man who looks like him, he goes down a rabbit hole to discover the identity of this mysterious doppelganger. Director: Justin P. Lange Writers: Simon Boyes, Adam Mason Cast: Finn Jones, Jessica McNamee, Donna Biscoe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuNAnj3x4f8

Check out this episode!

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ghostgirl19posts · 4 years

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I just finished Ouran High School Host Club, now can someone explain to me why this masterpiece doesn’t have a second season?????

#ouran high school host club #ohshc #why tf does this not have another season?#or a reboot?????#if inuyasha can rise from the grave and come back ala kikyo then so can this anime

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luqya · 2 years

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HANAFUNDA SYMBOLISM AND KAGEROU PROJECT

Do you remember hanafuda merchandise of Kagerou Project back then? In case you don’t know which one is it, then here the picture

At first, it’s like Sidu simply put the character in the card. But in fact, there’s some sort of symbolism there

Here are the symbolism in hanafuda card (based on my research, mainly from here and here) and it’s relevance to Kagepro:

1. January

Mutsuki: affection month

January - Matsu 松 - Pine

“January is represented by the tsuru (crane) and the matsu (pine). Both are symbols of long life and good luck. The pine tree is known to live for centuries, and never sheds its leaves. No matter how cold the winter, the pine tree stays green and alive.”

“The month of January is indicated by a Japanese umbrella pine (koyamaki), an evergreen which is one of Japan's five sacred trees.”

“Legends associated with the trees include the belief that the women who touch the wood will conceive healthy offspring. In some parts of Japan, people set branches of the tree on the graves of their loved ones in order to lead the spirits back to the land of the living.”

Sounds interesting? It’s widely known about Paper Crane symbolism in Shintaro and Ayano’s story. Also, the mention “in order to lead the spirit back to the land of the living” is the same with Shintaro’s desire to have his loved one back to living, and well, it’s happen

After all, the fact that the month is called “Affection month” has correlation with this frame in Children Record Reboot:

Although the quick translation means “Emotion”, but the other meaning of the word is “Affection”

“'A crane gracefully crosses the sky before the glowing red orb of the rising sun on New Year’s Day. An aged pine, pruned as carefully as a bonsai tree, complements the symbolic association of cranes with longevity'.” “The bright card shows a Japanese red-crowned crane (tanchōzuru) in front of a red sun”

“The Red-crowned Cranes are sacred birds in both China and Japan. They are called the “bird of happiness”” “ They also are said to mate for life, which makes them symbols of marital harmony. “

“ Both Pine and Red-crowned Cranes are symbols of long life and good luck. “

Aside from the general symbolism of crane, this one specify about ‘A crane crossed the sky before the glowing red orb’ You know what time is it when sun glows red? Sunset. And well, in Additional Memory lyrics, there’s a mention about “Revolving latern” she saw while ‘crossed the sky’

And the last....

“The text on the red ribbon (also on that for February) reads "akayoroshi". The word is fairly obscure, but means something along the lines of "obviously good" (some say "red is good").”

Ahahaha... red is the colour of hero, eh? (*crying on the floor* Jin, you....)

2. February

Kisaragi: changing clothes month

February - Ume 梅 - Plum Blossoms

.... THIS IS LITERALLY HER NAME. (I though like that too when read the meaning)

“February is represented by the ume (plum) blossom, which is the first of the flowers to bloom in the year. The plum blossom and nightingale are frequently shown together to symbolize the coming of spring.”

“Ume Blossoms are often mentioned in Japanese poetry as a symbol of Spring.”

“Japanese tradition holds that the Ume functions as a protective charm against evil.” “The eating of the pickled fruit for breakfast is also supposed to stave off misfortune.“

Indeed, her songs are has some sort of “fight against misfortune” context on them. For herself in Kisaragi Attention and for Hibiya in Otsukimi Recital

“The Japanese Bush Warbler (鶯 Uguisu) - Cettia diphone, is a passerine bird more often heard than seen” “ The Japanese Bush Warbler tends to remain deep in the shadow of foliage during the day.”

It seems, Momo’s job as idol, and the fact that she canonically can sing well, is a reference to nightingale, which is a bird with beautiful voice

3. March

Yayoi: new life

March - Sakura 桜 - Cherry Blossoms

“March is represented by the sakura (cherry) blossom. Although the plum is the first blossom of the year, the cherry tree marks the real beginning of spring, and new life.”

“The cherry blossom is a symbol of the brevity and uncertainty of life. Youth, pleasure, fame, and misfortune, all blossom and fade like the ephemeral cherry blossom. The cherry blossom is a reminder to focus on the present.” “It is a symbol of the brevity and uncertainty of life “

“Sakura also symbolise clouds due to their nature of blooming en masse. They are an aspect of Japanese cultural tradition that is often associated with Buddhist influence and which is embodied in the concept of 'Mono no aware' (which is a Japanese term for the awareness of the transience of things and a gentle sadness (or wistfulness) at their passing).“

Mary, who has very long live, gradually notice that everything change, and everything will not last forever. In fact, this is one of the main theme in Kagerou Project

“The bright card is called the "camp curtain". This was used as part of a Japanese tradition where people would gather in groups to view blossom on trees (hanami)”

This is not relevant for now, but it has relation with the later card meaning

4. April

Uzuki: deutzia flower month

April - Fuji 藤 - Wisteria

“The name for April, Uzuki, refers to the deutzia flower or unohana, a flowering shrub. This is a popular flower in Japan that signals the beginning of summer.”

“The flower for April is Japanese wisteria (fuji) which blooms at this time of year and is cultivated in Japanese ornamental gardens and arranged into spectacular cascading displays. Once, wisteria was a popular symbol in family crests and heraldry.”

“The cuckoo and wisteria are often shown together as symbols of late spring and the beginning of summer. The cuckoo usually calls in the dark of summer nights. The call of the cuckoo is said to sound like someone calling, “return home.”“

Hibiya and Hiyori’s neverending story is taking place in certain summer. It’s a story of them who can’t return home

5. May

Satsuki: rice shoot planting month

May - Ayame 菖蒲 - Iris

May is represented by the ayame (iris) blossom. The ayame represents virility and is often displayed on Boys’ Day, May 5th.

The 5-point card depicts the ayame alongside a bridge. This is a reference to a chapter from The Tale of Ise, a collection of poems from the 10th century Japan. The Tale of Ise is a very well known piece of Japanese literature.

The story is about a member of the Imperial Court in Kyoto who was assigned to a new post far to the East. He left his family behind in the Capital as he travelled on his long journey. Along the way, he and his companions lost their way.

They came to a place called yatsuhashi, or “eight bridges.” This was a swampy area where a large river split into eight smaller rivers. Each of the rivers was crossed by a bridge. The whole area was filled with blooming irises.

The court official was feeling rather sad, was lost, and missed his wife. The men stopped to rest, and the court official wrote the following poem:

Karagoromo kitsutsu narenishi tsuma shi areba harubaru kinuru tabi wo shi zo omou

Translation:

I have a beloved wife Familiar as the skirt Of a well-worn robe And so this distant jouneying Fills my heart with grief

At first glance, the poem seems to have nothing to do with irises. However, the poem is an acrostic. The first Japanese letters of the Japanese poem spell out “ka-ki-tsu-ba-ta” which is the Japanese name for the species of iris that filled the marshes.

Blue Iris symbolizes “Hope and faith”

I had to put this story, because the story of a traveler who lost his way, missed his loved one and passing through bridge on his journey is maybe.... a reference of this:

6. June

Minazuki: month of water

June - Botan 牡丹 - Peony

The name for the month Mi-na-zuki is an example of ateji. The name Minazuki is made up of three Chinese characters: (water-not-moon). The middle character for “not” was often substituted as the ateji, or phonetic equivalent, for “na” which is the possessive article “of.” So Minazuki can be read as both “the month of water” and “the month without water.”

June is represented by the botan (peony) blossom, a beautiful flower native to China. in China and Japan the peony is a symbol of wealth, good fortune and prosperity. The Peony is known for its medicinal properties and large fragrant flowers. It is often shown with butterflies in Chinese and Japanese paintings. The flowers are full of nectar and attract many insects.

When depicted in visual art and poetry, tree peonies represent good fortune and prosperity, bravery and honour.

Generally, Kido often associate with dogwood flower (because of Never Lost Word). But, in novel route, it’s shown that Kido live in mansion with her rich family pre-incident, so, it’s probably a reference of that.

7. July

Fumizuki: book month

July - Hagi 萩 - Bush Clover

The exact meaning of Fumizuki is somewhat obscure. Some think that in the lazy days of midsummer, between the planting and harvesting seasons, people had time to write and read letters and poetry. Another theory is that the month was originally Fumuzuki which means “swollen month,” referring to the swelling rice grains in the fields

July is represented by the hagi (bush clover) and inoshishi (wild boar)

The strange animal depicted is a young Japanese boar or inoshisi. In Japan, it is widely seen as a fearsome and reckless animal, to the point that several expressions in Japanese referring to recklessness include references to boars. The boar is the last animal of the oriental zodiac, with people born at this time said to embody the boar's traits of determination and impetuosity. Backwoods folk in Japan sometimes name their sons after the animal in tribute to its qualities. Boars are also seen as symbols of fertility and prosperity.

Wild boars are one of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, and are symbols of bravery and affection. However, to villagers in the mountains the boars can be dangerous pests that destroy crops and gardens.

Sometimes the meat of wild boar was called botan (peony). The meat of deer was called momiji (maple leaf) and that of the horses was sakura (cherry blossoms). In this way the pious Buddhists could pretend to eat as vegetarians.

The flora for July is Japanese bush clover, also known as lespedeza or, in Japanese, hagi. It is associated with melancholy and unrequited love

8. August

Hazuki: leaf month

August - Susuki 薄 - Silver Grass

The name for August, Hazuki, refers to the changing seasons and the falling leaves. August features the suzuki (similar to pampas grass). Some players in Hawaii call the card with the harvest moon, “bozu” (slang for bald-headed). Tsukimi, or moon viewing, is the fall counterpart to cherry blossom viewing. Like the first yaku suggests both cherry blossom viewing and moon viewing are often accompanied by the drinking of sake, or rice wine. The traditional date for moon viewing is August 15th.

JIN. Jin, you did not plan the Kagepro plot while playing hanafuda... right?

August is represented by maiden silvergrass, also called eulalia or susuki grass. Traditionally, the grass was used to thatch buildings and for feed for livestock. It is one of "the seven flowers of autumn" (along with bush clover, above)

The card with wild geese shows the seasonal migration of birds. In the fall geese migrate from Siberia and Northern China to spend the winter in Japan.

9. September

Nagatsuki: long month

September - Kiku 菊 - Chrysanthemum

Nagatsuki, or long month, marks the beginning of autumn when the nights begin to be longer than the days. September is represented by the kiku (chrysanthemum) blossom.

The large yellow blossoms of the chrysanthemum are a fitting symbol for the radiant sun.

The Chrysanthemum is also a symbol of longevity because of the long life of the blooms. There is a legend of a place in Japan called Chrysanthemum Mountain. It is said that if you drink from the stream where the petals of the chrysanthemum fall into the water you will be blessed with long life. The 5-point card depicts the kiku next to a stream with a sake (rice wine) cup. Inside the wine cup the character for “longevity” is written. It was a common tradition to sprinkle chrysanthemum petals in one's wine and drink them as a way to ensure long life and happiness.

Ah, yeah, Crysanthemum. Where we ever see that?

I think I don’t have to explain more. But it seems, the colour of the crysanthemum in the MVs is supposed to be yellow (?)

Royal crysanthemum has 16 layers petals, which is interesting because Ayano died presumably on 16 years old.

by the way... Additional Memory was released in September

10. October

Kaminazuki: month of the gods

October - Momiji 紅葉 - Maple

In this month, all of the 8 million Shinto gods leave their provincial shrines to congregate at the Great Shrine in Izumo (Izumo Taisha)– the center of Shinto religion

Like the month of June (Mizunazuki), Kaminazuki (October) can be interpreted two ways. It can be read as the “month of gods” or “month without gods.” In this case, both readings can be correct whether you are in Izumo or not.

October features the autumnal colours of falling Japanese maple leaves (momiji or kito). These symbolise calm, rest and peace.

The Stag on the card 'Momiji ni Shika' represents gentleness. Together with the red Maple, they are a symbol of longevity.

This suit is more commonly known as 'Shika' (鹿) (Deer) in Japan.

Seto Kousuke, a gentle person who loves deer.

11. November

Shimotsuki: frost month

November - Yanagi 柳 - Willow

November is known as the yanagi (willow), or ame (rain) suit. The willow tree is a symbol of grace and strength. In China and Japan, the willow symbolizes the traits of an ideal woman.

November's suit is a bit strange as it is as much about rain as it is about the plant depicted, which is willow (yanagi – a Japanese word also used for a long, thin-bladed knife thought to resemble one of weeping willow's cascades). The tree is associated with ghosts and spirits.

The tsubame (swallow) is often shown with the willow. They are seen as good companions and are symbols of happiness and harmony.

The other notable figure in the November suit is the man with an umbrella. This man is the famous Heian period calligrapher Ono no Toufuu

The lone junk card for this month is called the lightning card (or gaji in Hawaii where it is most likely to be singled out). In some games, it can be used as a sort of super-card or joker. It is the only card in a hanafuda deck which does not show its month's flower (so players have to explicitly remember which month it comes from). Instead, it depicts a (rather abstract) storm scene with rain, and sometimes a devil's claw, coming down from the sky to beat on a drum. The dark rectangles are possibly the torn camp curtain (see March).

Note that Korean games swap the months of November and December around.

..... Didn’t the accident involving him and Ayaka is when it’s raining? Oh, God...

It’s torn camp curtain from March (The card with Mary). The storm is destroy the place that use to enjoy Sakura...

And the fact some game is swap between November and December is interesting because the December card is...

12. December

Shiwasu: priests run

December - Kiri 桐 - Paulownia

This month's symbol is the princess tree (aka paulownia, aka empress tree, aka foxglove-tree) known in Japanese as kiri.

The phoenix card is known in Hawaii as the tori (chicken) card. The phoenix (Hō-ō 鳳凰) is the symbol of righteousness and often connected with the empress. It is a representation of the mandate from heaven giving the Emperor the authority to rule. Legend says that only the kiri tree is beautiful enough for the phoenix to land on.

this mythical bird represents fire, the sun, justice, obedience, and fidelity.

According to Chinese legend, the Hō-ō appears very rarely and only to mark the beginning of a new era. In other traditions, the Hō-ō appears only in peaceful and prosperous times and hides itself when there is trouble. As the herald of a new age, the Hō-ō decends from heaven to earth to do good deeds and then it returns to its celestial abode to await a new era.

It is both a symbol of peace (when the bird appears) and a symbol of disharmony (when the bird disappears).

The Kiri tree beautiful enough to phoenix to land on. As shown in the card, Konoha is on Kiri tree side, while Kuroha (saeru) is on pheonix side. (As like Saeru posessed Konoha (?)

And the fact it means mark the beginning of new era -> mark the beginning of timeline?

By the way, if you ever play this card, you know about the bright cards (The highest value card);

TLDR; Jin write Kagepro while playing this card (wrong conclusion)

I want to update later, so all thoughts are apreciate ^^, tell me if I made mistake tho

(The photos of the merch are from this post by @hollsos)

#kagerou project #kagepro #kagerou daze #mekakucity actors #Ayano tateyama #Kido Tsubomi #Kano Shuuya #Seto Kousuke #Marry Kozakura #Momo Kisaragi #Ene #Shintaro Kisaragi #Hibiya Amamiya #Hiyori Asahina #Konoha #Kuroha #Kenjirou Tateyama #theory #sidu

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