#this was part of an information chart on his species but i am Not going to post that bc i know if i talk too much abt this wip | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bunnymajo · 7 months

Text

Time to fill out that OC questionnaire but for Thistle this time!

He'll be in the @sonic-oc-showdown so be sure to give him a vote!

Name: Thistle the Tenrec

Species: Highland Streaked Tenrec

Home: Central City

✨How did you come up with the OC’s name?

Since he’s inspired by Amy I wanted to pick another prickly flower name. Thistle flowers can have a lot of negative connotations in flower language just as much as positive ones (aggressiveness, unwanted intrusion). If roses are known for being noble and lovely, thistles are more wild but pesky, they’re also hard to let go if you end up stuck by one. The image of thistle flower suited him the more I thought about it.

🌼 - How old are they? (Or approximate age range)

Same age as Surge.

🌺- Do they have any love interest(s)?

Currently Surge and only Surge. He’s had previous partners but they usually don’t last very long. Current record is 1 month.

(The only tragic thing about Thistle is that he's not trying to be the worst boyfriend ever. He really wants to do good but he's too self-centered and stupid to realize that he's the problem)

🍕 - What is their favorite food?

Key Lime Pie, he likes anything tart but sweet.

💼 - What do they do for a living?

Works part time at a flower shop in central city, he’s actually quite popular with customers.

🎹 - Do they have any hobbies?

Flower arrangement and astrology charting. Loves reading romance novels and watching old classic movies even if he gets the meaning of them completely wrong. He’s good at baking and also spends a lot of time online on social media. He’s a jack of all trades and always ready to learn something new to get closer with people in his life. He’s here for you. What more could you want from a guy :)

🎯 -What do they do best?

Anything that’s considered traditionally feminine Thistle excels at. Baking, shopping, event planning, crushing your enemies. But even with all of that he’s incredibly good at finding information. Does his new crush have a favorite band? Well Thistle just doxxed every band member and knows the rest of their schedule for the next 3 months.

🥊 -What do they love to do? What do they hate to do?

Thistle likes doing anything that will get him lots of compliments and attention, especially if it’s something he already finds fun. He’s the type to get really wrapped up in tedious side project so probably mapping out his and Surge’s life together via astrology

Hates doing something that doesn’t serve him in some way, like doing volunteer work for strangers. He also isn’t much of an adventuring type unless it’s to chase Surge down, he’d rather not though, he’d rather keep her tied down close to him and they can live a cozy domestic life.

Running around beating up robots getting sweaty and gross and for what? just to protect the masses? Awful, blech, Sonic can have that.

❤️ - What is one of your OC’s best memories?

One time he and Surge accidentally shared a soda, therefore doing the incredibly scandalous “indirect kiss”. She vaporized the soda can to destroy the evidence and then punched him in the gut when he told her. He passed out for about two days.

✂️ - What is one of your OC’s worst memories?

His first relationship was an online one where the other person ended up blocking him and then publicly warned other people about his creepy behavior.

Thistle made one of those “am I the asshole?” posts about their relationship and everyone in the forum went “yeah, you were totally the asshole.”

Thistle deleted all his accounts and started over. He learned nothing. “It’s the forum that was wrong, they were all just jealous.”

🧊 - Is their current design the first one?

There’s a few initial sketches I did to get the overall idea going and there’s a few minor tweaks but he’s basically the same design as when I started.

🍀 - What originally inspired the OC?

It was a bumblekast question asking about what a glitch Amy would be like and I liked the answer so much I wanted to develop it into a real character.

I really like aggressively-in-love characters like this in media actually, something about them being not shy at all about the person they’re in love with leads to a lot of funny or interesting situations, also since Surge is my favorite sonic character at the moment it’s fun thinking about how she would react to someone like this too. It’s a win-win situation for me lol.

🌂 - What genre do they belong in?

The villain in a shoujo romance manga

💚 - What is your OC’s gender identity and sexuality?

Identifies as male, Pan, he/him/they pronouns

🙌 - How many siblings does your OC have?

Zero. Probably for the best because he’s terrible with children.

🍎 - What is the OC’s relationship w/their parents like?

He’s an absolute mama’s boy when she’s around. (It should be noted that Thistle doesn’t really have a tragic backstory or bad childhood. He really is just like that for some reason.)

🧠 - What do you like most about the OC?

Thistle can be a lot of things I like about male characters (a goober in love, not afraid to appear “feminine”, a polite good boy, twisted priorities) and also be the worst person I’ve ever wanted to write thoughts for. He’s a very fun punching bag.

✏️ - How often do you draw/write about the OC?

Probably too much haha, I don’t usually write a lot of actual terrible people so he’s a refreshingly fun rom-com villain.

💎 - Do you ever see yourself killing off the OC?

It’s funnier if he stays alive imo. If Surge ever changes her ways in canon or something drastic happens to her he might lose interest in her and move on to his next victim, that’s about as close as I’d ever get to “killing him”. It would have to be a very drastic personality change though.

💀 - Does your OC have any phobias?

Whatever the fear of being unloved is.

To him, being loved by someone is the ultimate goal. “I can love so easily, why is it so hard for someone to stay in love with me? I must not be loving hard enough, I need to love someone who craves love just as much as I do. Yes, then it would be the ultimate romance” - is basically the rationalization here.

🍩 -Who is your OC’s arch-nemesis or rival?

I mean probably Amy, not just for Surge’s sake, Amy will fight anyone she finds being a selfish creep in the name of love.

In Thistle's mind anyone who even smiles in Surge's direction is a rival. She's spoken for, who do they think they are??

🎓 - How long have you had the OC?

A little over a year!

🍥 - What age were you when you created the OC?

#hey hey it's that time again #thistle the tenrec #my ocs #sonic ocs

71 notes · View notes

starr-fall-knight-rise · 3 years

Text

HASO, “An Unknown Void.”

Hope you all enjoy your day today.

The deep blackness of space surrounded him, or it seemed t, with the lights on the bridge dimed and the blast shield lifted from the wind screen, he could see nothing, well, there was the occasional star in the sky, but according to star charts, this place was supposed to be the darkest in the known universe.

He reached down and tilted the ship slightly to the side to give a better view for the onboard telescopes. Scientists had a theory that this place wasn’t nearly as dark as it looked. A couple thousand years ago the Hubble telescope had been turned towards the darkest portion of the sky they could see, and returned with the Hubble deep space images depicting thousands if not trillions of unknown stars that had been invisible to the naked eye and inferior ground telescopes. He expected to see the same thing here.

Adam was not himself a scientist, though he tried his best to keep informed and educated on as many subjects as possible. Partially It Was due to his overwhelming desire for self improvement, while another part of him, a more subconscious part of him had someone he desperately wanted to impress.

He reached down to open the comm line to the science division, “See anything?”

There was only a momentary pause before, “Give us just another minute sir. We are having to recalibrate the telescopes.”

“Oh, is something wrong?”

“We tried taking a picture but didn’t see anything. It was probably just a younger scientist who forgot to remove the lens covers. We should be good to go.”

There was a pause.

“That’s weird.”

“What?”

There was quiet for a long moment, “Sir, we are still seeing nothing. I think there might be some sort of malfunction….”

Adam shifted in his seat, “turn the telescope back behind us and see if it works in that direction.”

“Sir, how would the direction-”

“Just do it.”

There was another long, two minute pause before, “Sir…. the images are coming in and they look…. Fine…”

Adam wasn’t sure what to think, “His first instinct was to assume a blak hole or something was eating up all the light in the area, but blackholes were visible due to their event horizon, and their machines would have noticed the anomaly in gravitation even this far out.”

Then a thought struck him.

Had they reached the end of the Universe.

No no obviously that wasn’t the case, There were plenty of known galaxies and stars all around them. It was just this narrow speck of the cosmos that didn’t seem to have anything. Somehow that thought made him feel slightly woozy. Adam had never been susceptible to Cosmic Schock, but even he didn't find the thought of an endless black void to be particularly comforting.

“I don’t like it.”

The voice in his head nearly startled him out of his sea, and he frowned in annoyance as Conn floated into view just outside the ship window.

Adam was about to say something scathing to the starborn bust stopped as he saw conn floated with his back to the window staring out at the vast blackness. He reached a hand back to absently touch the screen as if grounding himself against the void. Adam stirred uneasily as he felt Conn’s walls slip. Suddenly his own head was filled with a brimming uneasiness spilling over from Conn himself.

The sensation was strange and unsettling. Conn usually kept his emotions under close wraps, but to see him falter like that was more than strange.

He felt a shiver crawl up his spine.

The starborn had spent his entire life in the void of space, so to have him disquieted by something in space was enough to make Adam nervous as well.

He motioned to his navigation specialist, “Give me a rout back to the nearest star system. Conn, get inside.”

The starborn only hesitated for a few moments before doing as told and floating around the side of the ship..

***

The bright lights blinked on and then off.

They tended to agree, something strange was going on. Their one large eye blinked once as more lights ran up and down the sides of their body.

They stared through the analysis screen but the readout indicated absolutely nothing. There was no detectable UV light, or unknown radiation except for the constant radiation and background frequency that was to be expected in space.

They turned the analysis screen back towards the beginning of the star field to make sure their machine was not simply malfunctioning. It had never done so before, but there was always a statistical likelihood that it might again.When the star field came into view, the screen suddenly erupted with a bright array of blinking lights all with scientific analysis ready for use. That was obviously strange, but they were sure that their equipment was now working. They were about to turn their attention back towards the dark field when something on the analysis caught their eye. It was a bright blinking light, much smaller than the rest but indicating that it was far closer. They zoomed in on that particular indicator and was suddenly pleased at what they found. The signature was familiar, a known mixture of nitrogen and oxygen inside an enclosed container run by fusion energy.

They turned over and floated back through the door and down the tight tunneled hallway.

Bright orange and yellow eyes blinked at them as they passed by the others, flashing their lateral lights in question. They would have answered the questions if the others if they were not hurrying to inform their comandante of their new neighbors

They floated through a hole in the ceiling, or floor as it might have been in any orientation ad met the comandante on the bridge.

They turned, “Zheyar, have you found anything.” Bright lights blinked up and down their body to indicate the question dimming and expanding at moments.

“The dark field is….. Still dark. I can get no readings from it, however it seems that we are not alone.”

Bright lights flashed down their body in response to the news, “Oh, lovely, is it anyone that we know.”

“I believe they are a member of the species we met in the ice field, the ones that put us in contact with the GA.”

There was another bright exchange of lights before the comandante made their decision, “We will have to greet them certainly.”

***

Adam was just prepping his ship for a short warp to the nearest star when their comms specialist suddenly bolted upright in her seat. She leaned forward for a moment pressing her headset against her head, “Sir, sir I have a signal… we are being hailed.” He sat up in his seat, “Way the hell out here. Analyse the signal and send it through.”

There was only a momentary pause before, “Sir, I… its transmitting like a Mike ship.”

Adam perked up, “Mikes! I love those big guys. Hold on, patch the through, and get the translation team up here as soon as you can, I’m gonna need those LEDs .”

It was only minutes later that he had the translation team up and running standing next to him and carefully placing illumination stickers up and down the sides of his body. The little LEDs would brighten and dm in connection with his voice in order to translate to the mikes.

The screen before him lit up and he was excited to see one of them floating on screen before him.

He smiled, “It is a pleasure to see your kind again.” The little colorful dots brightened and dimmed up the sides of his body flashing in bright neons as he spoke. It was only slightly distracting, but he was pleased to speak to the mikes after so long of not seeing tem.

“It is you!” The creature exclaimed emphasizing its enthusiasm with even brighter light.

“I am happy to see you after such a long time. We had assumed you had returned to your home world.”

The mike flashed lights up and down its body. There was no translation so he assumed it was some sort of gesture like a shrug or a shake of the head would be for humans, “We are sorry that we coil not take your GA’s invitation for a visit, but we did have a deadline to consider. We do promise that our monarchs have taken the offer into consideration and will be sending a delegation soon. We are very pleased at the idea of joining your coalition, though we have had so many things to do as of late.”

Adam’s enthusiasm was picked up by the brightness of the LED stickers, “I am personally very excited to hear that. I had hoped that you would take us up on our offer.” he Tried to avoid using his hands too much knowing that the movement of his arms might obscure the lights, “It seems of an almost astronomical coincidence that we should run into each other. There must be a reason.”

“I assume that you are looking at the same piece of dead space as we are, tell me has your scientific equipment been abl to detect what ours have not.”

Adam shook his head, “I am afraid we are getting no readings from the space, though i daresay our equipment is far less superior in comparison to yours.”

The mike flashd a little, “Sometimes simplicity can outmaneuver complex machines, though I see that we are both lost on that particular subject.”

Adam nodded, “Then I propose that we work together for the time being, I supply manpower and technology?”

“It would be a pleasure to work with you, andI must say that you have found quite an ingenious way to speak our language. Yo wear them well.”

He laughed, “You flatter me. We should dock our ships together if you are willing.”

“The pleasure is ours.”

***

It wasn’t more than a few light minutes later when they had docked themselves with the human ship. The cargo doors opened and a waft of wind equalized the pressure between their two ships. The air on the human ship was just slightly heavier making them sink just a few inches towards the floor, though it was of no concern. The humans were waiting for them, standing against the ground, forced to hold up their entire skeletal structures against gravity. It must have been exhausting for them, and likely took a lot of energy.

Their original analysis of humans indicated that a human would have to eat multiple times a day in order to keep up the energy required to move, but these humans seemed bright and awake and likely well fed. Their leader was waiting for them wearing those bright LED dots in order to communicate as did everyone else who stood with him.

They were surprised to find other aliens with him, and were both eager and interested to examine the strange creatures. They floated forward and were met by the humans who bowed low. Another creature floated around the corner of the wall, and the mikes pulled back in surprise.

One of the Star children.

The human seemed to have noticed their surprise.

“You've met the starborn before?”

“On a few occasions,though we weren't aware they had friendly relations with…. anyone .”

The human twitched its upper body strangely before letting the gesture fall, “he i about as friendly as it gets and that’s not saying much.”

The entire group of them shivered lightly as a cold presence washed over them, “Don’t listen to him, he has a hard time admitting how much he loves me. We have a daughter together you know.”

The human’s head snapped to look over at the starborn two eyes narrowing, “Shut the hell up conn, that is not the first thing you need to bring up in front of the company.’

The LED lights on his body flashed bright green with his anger.

The Mikes watched in fascination.

One of the other strange creatures, taller than the human and with another set of limbs stepped forward to Examine the Mike. Its coloring was brightly colored and quite pleasant. It examined them while they examined her, and soon enough she was surrounded by a swarm of poking and prodding at her joints and limbs and strange carapace. They had never seen anything like it before.

The creature took it gracefully enough though their leader to apologize. They did enjoy learning about new things and new creatures. They were completely harmless of course.

The human waved a hand at the dogs on his sides and arms blinking, “Don’t worry, she’d be happy to assist your scientists. If you would please follow me, we can show you how ur ship works see if there is anything that you find useful.

In the end the two groups took tours of each other’s ships, shared as much scientific information as was possible and then began their conjectures about the dark space which they had come across. The Mikes could not penetrate it with any of their equipment and neither could the humans determine that there was really only one way to explore what lay beyond.

They were going to have to go there themselves.

It was suggested that they simply warp to the center of the darkfield, but that thought was quickly discarded as it involved far too much danger. The human offered to fly his ship slowly out into the abyss while the mikes tracked them to see if their signal was lost at any point which they decided was a good course of action if not very reckless.

They were soon to learn that humans tended to be reckless anyway, which both scared them and gave them no small measure of admiration.

They would soon learn quite a bit about humans.

Though both parties were unaware of a stirring in the darkness. A stirring that was well aware of their presence.

201 notes · View notes

ericleo108 · 3 years

Text

Blog Navigation 2021

List #3

“Let go of the past and go for the future.” - Henry David Thoreau

Blog Navigation List: 2020, 2019

Last Updated 05/04/21

Media and Treatise List:

Philosophy:

🌍108 The Story Of Discovering Earth’s Consciousness (post) - I am now an author and this is my first book. The book is nonfiction and autobiographical and about celestial consciousness, my personal story of struggling with schizoaffective disorder, atmospheric consciousness, sustainability, and eugenics, and finishes with what the number 108 means for the origins of life on Earth.

💿🌍Read “108” (album) - As I am a hip-hop artist, I also wrote an album to compliment, popularize, and promote my book “108” as a tool. It’s much quicker to understand what “108” is about by listening to the “Read 108” track. The album stands alone and is more focused on saying some in hip-hop, being relevant, and keeping with the Emma Watson romantic narrative.

🚸🚜 Knhoeing 2020 - The information is broken down into celestial consciousness, atmospheric consciousness, sustainability, and eugenics. Knhoeing states the planets, stars, and atmosphere are alive, and how humans can understand that through sustainability and eugenics. Knhoeing has to do with understanding your position in the universe and expresses and addresses human purpose through a eugenics goal. In order to survive & thrive as a species, we must support ourselves through healthy sustainability and breed to understand higher dimensions.

🙏Sentientism 2021 - This post contains insights into my mind and the voice in my head, Gaia. I explain how sentientism is the religion of Gaia where you worship through action and create dogma through science and philosophy. If the planet earth is conscious how would she try to communicate considering she has no mouth or ligaments? How would Gaia try to communicate? I postulate and explain how Gaia could be communicating through a kind of telepathic randonauting.

📐 Expanding on Plato’s Philosophy: Forms and the Tripartite Soul (2020) - In this treatise, I explain how Plato’s forms are stored and strived for by Gaia and how Plato’s theory about the tripartite soul is similar to my theory about the will.

♟️ Logic - This post is a short introduction to logic. I use quotes and pictures of pages from the book “How Philosophy Works.” The content includes deductive, inductive, and abductive reasoning, fallacies, and formal logic. I have also embedded a couple CrashCourse videos.

Sociology:

🏳️‍🌈 Gender Equality 2021 - In this essay, I break down gender equality into six categories: LGBTQ, Phobic, Sexual, Mental, Feminist, and Economic. To properly show the subject of gender equality I reference the 6 Netflix documentaries and linked and discuss related videos from Ellen, HeForShe, TED, Jordan Peterson, The World Bank, and the UN.

🏁 Dark Racism 2021 - In this treatise I explain the science of racism, how it’s an arbitrary distinction that is socially constructed. Black people do have it worse due to institutionalized racism and white privilege. However, I talk about how black people create their own in-group morality around the word “nigga,” and my presented solution.

🌎👣 Earth: Sustainability, How To Save Our Planet - If you want to know how to save our planet this post is the summation. Taking from the featured WWF video, I focus on a carbon tax and the three ways to save the planet. Along the way I discuss how it relates to The Psycho Consumption Cage.

🍱 The Psycho Consumption Cage 2021 - In this treatise I talk about how it’s hard to see environmental degradation that is not added in our economics, how you should be using your buying power strategically, how apex species need economic and congressional representation, some solutions, and examples of psycho tendencies from Christmas and hip-hop.

🌲Marijuana Treatise 2021 - Published on April 20th and introduced with a discussion of my personal use, in this essay, I wrote about the versatility of hemp, the immorality and failure of the war on drugs, and the medical benefits of cannabis.

Politics:

🍊Trump’s Effect on America - In this post I explore how Trump made the country more xenophobic, racist, and ignorant. I use some psychological terms like cognitive dissonance or the Dunning-Krueger effect.

🐘🔫Republicans are Dangerous - In this post I focus on a chart that shows the most acts of terror come from conservative extremists.

🍊🦠Trump’s Covid Response - In this post I show how Trump is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths due to his response to covid.

Personal:

👨‍💻 My Reckoning - This post is part two from my book “108: The Story of Earth’s Consciousness.” Part one explains the first part of Knhoeing, celestial consciousness. Part two is my personal story from the time I graduated from college in 2010 until 2019 and explains why I think there is celestial consciousness. Knhoeing 2020 is a necessary prerequisite to understanding this story.

✨💕Cosmic Love 2021 - In this post I explain how Selena Gomez is reflecting me and why she is my cosmic love. Coming in phases, I reference Emma Watson who also reflects me and I talk about in my book “108” and in (the previous year’s) Emma Watson Cosmic Love post.

🍷The Chalice Mixtape - This is a mixtape I did from jacked industry beats back in 2017. It was a response to the cosmic love I’d been seeing and I talk about in the blog and “108” book. I love Emma Watson and I want her to think about me so I came up with a fantasy and rapped about it. I took Emma Watson and Taylor Swift’s middle name, Charlotte and Alyson (who I changed to Alice), and made songs talking to them with the subject of gender equality and the theme of Charlotte's Web and Alice In Wonderland.

Journal list:

Journal 01/27/21: Looking Forward - In this journal, I talk about having a healthy relationship with food, Ancient Aliens and Bob Lazar, Marcus Lemonis, David Dobrick, being in remission, keto business plans, and looking forward to Joe Biden improving social security.

Journal 12/04/20: Refocused - This is my first journal in 6 months and does not contain a video. I talk about my plans and the pandemic, my book and music, growing my hair, stagnant weight loss, looking for housing, the importance of food, and going into business.

Video Journal 06/01/20 - Moving On - In this journal I talk about how I have plans to move to Lansing and attend graduate school at MSU. Along the way, I talk about the “108” book promotion and how the diet is coming along. I update the reader on topics from my previous VJ.

Video Journal 02/13/20 - Published 108 - In this journal I talk about publishing my book “108,” getting work-out equipment, exercising, losing weight on a ketogenic diet, how I want stem cell therapy for my knee, affording things on disability, my credit score, who I plan on voting for, that congress should have term limits and future career plans.

#blogger #history #science #racism #gender #equality #inequality #logic

40 notes · View notes

delimeful · 4 years

Text

WIBAR Intermission: Night Terrors

welcome to the third intermission piece; also a commission for @walkingonsunshine for more WIBAR content! sorry for the delay, and i hope you enjoy! <3

if you’re new to this AU, you can find the first story on tumblr here and the ao3 collection here!

warnings: panic, fear, nightmares, depiction of night terrors, hurt/kind of comfort, tsundere princey

---

Roman carefully adjusted their flight course, half his attention devoted to keeping an eye on the Human currently hovering around one of his two closest friends.

How strange his life had become, for that sentence to only be mildly terrifying. He glanced at the charted course on the ship’s displays one more time, and then made his way over to the others.

Predictably, the Human’s gaze flitted to him immediately, and though his shoulders went taut, he continued speaking in low Common.

“Are you sure this is safe? What if you need to get off-planet quickly, won’t we be too far? The smugglers could have people there, what if they recognize Patton--,”

“Virgil,” Logan cut in, still carefully slotting items into his traveling pack as he made direct eye contact with the Human. “We’ve taken this all into account, and we have several contingency plans. If I thought that either of us were in danger, this trip wouldn’t be happening.”

“I know you don’t think the chances are high, but…” The Human shifted his weight, working his freaky jaw as though chewing on his words. “Is it worth the risk, though?”

“In order to keep our ship running efficiently and avoid budget…,” Logan paused, and then revised his statement, accommodating the Human’s inability to comprehend nerd speak. “We need currency and information, and this is the best way. It will also keep us from looking suspicious and risk being boarded.”

The Human averted his eyes, shamed by the reminder that he was the reason they were striving to remain so secretive. Roman huffed derisively. Before, they hadn’t ever picked up anything illegal or unsavory while running missions. Now, they had an entire stowaway on board that could get them in serious trouble.

“What about Roman?” the Human asked, a curious note entering his voice. “I… I know that I can’t go, but he’d be able to keep you safe, right?”

Roman bristled slightly, thrown off guard by being suddenly dragged into the argument. Complimenting him, what sort of ploy was this? “Of course I could keep them safe!”

“However,” Logan shot him a look, completely unfairly since the Human had started it, “Patton and I are the most effective team for trading, and I am a distinctly and severely poisonous species, which means most will be wary to engage. Besides, Roman usually remains onboard to keep the ship functioning properly. Deviating from the norm here could draw unwanted attention, and even open ourselves to the risk of being robbed.”

The Human seemed ready to continue the discussion, but his mouth clicked shut as Patton skittered into the room at full speed, his own small traveling pack strapped to his waist. “I’m ready to go!”

Roman raised a skeptical eye ridge at the bulky shape of the bag as the Ampen passed him. “How many cookies are in there?”

“Just enough to make it through the trip!” Patton chirped back, completely unashamed. The Human’s lips twitched, and Roman reminded himself again that Patton would be upset if he interpreted it as the barely concealed threat display that it clearly was.

Logan cleared his throat.

“Can we consider the matter settled, then?” he asked, because he wasn’t above taking advantage of Patton’s puffball-ness to win an argument. It was infuriating when used against Roman himself, but he was more than happy to let the Human face Logan’s underhanded tactics. Virgil’s face pinched up in a strange expression, and then he sighed heavily, slouching more than normal.

“Aw, still feeling stressed about the trip?” Patton asked, hopping closer to the Human and reaching up to the tip of his talons to pat his hand.

Obligingly, the Human dropped into a stalker crouch, sickeningly quick. Patton headbutted the underside of the Human’s chin gently, completely unfazed by the threatening body language. Roman did his best to pretend he hadn’t just twitched menacingly in their direction.

“Don’t worry, Vee, we’re going to be just fine! I’m a little nervous too, but I know everything is going to turn out okay.” They exchanged one of those clingy Human-style embraces, and then Patton finally stepped back, antennae lowered slightly at the parting. “And you’ll be okay, too! You’ve got Roman onboard to help if anything happens!”

Roman didn’t miss the wary glance the Human threw his way, and he furrowed his brow (one of the few expressions that seemed to convey his general displeasure to the Human fairly well) before turning away pointedly.

“... Right,” the deathworlder said, sounding more apprehensive than he had any right to be.

After all, Roman suspected that Virgil hadn’t gotten the lecture/scolding on ‘playing nice while they were gone’ that he had.

As if Roman was the one to worry about here! Unbelievable.

---

The first half-cycle that Patton and Logan spent away passed without incident, mostly because the Human didn’t bother to emerge from the guest room and irritate Roman with his presence.

Roman still struggled to get to sleep, since he couldn’t bring himself to remove his under armor plates while alone in a ship with a Human. Without Patton on board, there was no guarantee that the Human would remain ambivalent towards Roman.

Humans didn’t take well to anything resembling a threat, after all.

With that unnerving thought in mind, he should have expected that his dreams would be plagued with flashbulb memories of familiar, long-gone faces, ominous sounds drawing closer in pitch darkness, and claustrophobic tightness pressing in on him.

He jerked upright, his mind still struggling in the dregs of the nightmare, and froze at a thick tearing sound.

… That would be the pillows. He sighed as the soft fluff filling spilled out of the holes his scales had pierced. It wasn’t like he couldn’t get them replaced, but Patton often managed the shopping roster, and he’d definitely notice and realize that the nightmares were coming back.

Roman smoothed his arm scales down absently, shaking his head and climbing out of bed. The lights were still dim, meaning he could barely see three feet past his face, but he had navigated in worse, and he’d also been living on this ship more than long enough to familiarize himself with its layout. It would be simple enough to go get a drink of water, clear his head a bit.

He tried not to focus on the fact that he was traversing the same darkened halls that a Human could be wandering. Or stalking. He shuddered, and regretted it as his scales clacked loudly.

As though summoned by his thoughts, there was a faraway faint sound. Roman went still, ears panning carefully-- there it was again. There was only one other being onboard that could be the source of the noise, but what was the Human even doing at such an hour?

With only a little hesitation, he made a detour, following the turns and curves until he reached the guest door that he knew housed their illegal stowaway.

Luckily, the Human always left the door partially open, so it was easy for him to peer in and spot the vague outline of him, curled in a pile of bedding on the floor. It was even easier to see the way the Human tossed and turned, murmuring, clearly caught in the throes of his own nightmare.

Roman softened slightly despite himself as he caught a low whimper. It wasn’t any of his business but… maybe he should go comm Patton. The Ampen would know what to do.

Before he could decide, there was a sharp inhale, and the Human spasmed as though electrocuted, sitting bolt upright and breathing heavily. His entire body seemed to be trembling.

Roman shifted, awkward at being caught lurking, but the movement made Virgil’s head snap sharply towards him. Something about his eyes, wide and blank, immediately set Roman on edge, and he resisted the urge to growl defensively.

“What?” he demanded instead. “I simply heard you making noise-- hey!”

A beat after he’d begun to speak, Virgil jerked away, scrambling to his feet and throwing himself not at Roman, but over the bed, as though trying to put distance between the two of them. He slammed face first into the wall with a painful-sounding thud, but didn’t seem hindered by the injury, turning and wedging himself into the corner of the room.

Roman took an indignant step forward. Virgil screamed, guttural and terrified, as though someone was murdering him. Roman took several rapid steps backwards, but the Human continued to scream for no reason he could see. He abruptly began to worry about how Patton would react if he got back and found that the Human had spontaneously broken in his absence.

“Woah, calm down! I’m not doing anything to you, I’m just standing here,” he tried, backing up slightly.

It was like he hadn’t even spoken. Virgil continued to stare right through him, eyes glazed with fear, skin slick with sweat, breathing quick and high-pitched like he was on the edge of sobs. Starting to panic himself, Roman sat down, eased his body language, even talked soothingly, but nothing he did seemed to help shake the Human out of his stupor.

“Please. Please!”

Roman’s head jerked up as Virgil finally spoke in Common, his voice raspy and thin. “What?”

“No more, I don’t want to-- please, just take it, leave me alone, please,” the babbling dissolved into Virgil’s native language again, and Roman wondered what kind of dream could possibly reduce a Human to this state. ...What had been taken from him?

“Please…,” Virgil mumbled again, and then hummed a few shaky notes. Familiar notes.

When the Human’s hoarse voice trailed off, Roman picked up the rhythm. He carefully hummed the Ampen lullaby to completion, struggling not to tense up when Virgil finally reacted, his head swinging to the side as though searching for the source. His gaze eventually settled on Roman, promptly dropping down to his chest. It took him a moment to realize the Human wasn’t eyeing his vulnerable underbelly for attack, but rather, spotting the glowing charm that hung there.

“Patton?”

“A friend of Patton,” Roman replied in the musical tones of his crewmate’s language, feeling hopeful as the humans shoulders lowered slightly. Virgil nodded to himself, hand reaching for his own charm.

“Please don’t hurt me,” he asked mildly, and then collapsed.

Roman made an alarmed yip that he would absolutely never admit to, and then bolted for the nearest biometrics scanner, thanking his stars that Logan had managed to get the twitchy creature to sit still and register a baseline for them to compare to if he ever got sick or injured. He double checked that the device was offline before logging the Human’s vitals and quickly comparing them to baseline.

Other than a slightly accelerated pulse and an increase in the already ludicrous amount of Dren in his system, it all looked fairly normal. For all intents and purposes, Virgil had simply... fallen back into sleep, just like that.

“What the fuck,” Roman muttered to himself, watching the Human breathe steadily for a moment more before backing out of the room and heading back to his own quarters, water forgotten. Whatever was wrong with Virgil, he could ask (or interrogate) in the morning.

For now, he needed a damn nap.

---

The next morning, the Human seemed to have no recollection of the incident.

After a frustrating amount of time wasted with subtle and then less-subtle prodding questions, Roman threw his arms up and stormed from the room, returning a moment later with the communicator.

“Call Patton,” he instructed as he firmly shoved the device into Virgil’s hands, ignoring his perplexed expression. He paused for a moment, and then added on, “And give me the comm once you’re done.”

Not because Roman was worried about the situation or anything. It was just that if he had to put up with terrifying and vexing Human shenanigans, then the other two were going to get an earful about it.

And... if they decided to talk to Virgil about it and figure out what was wrong, that was their business, not his. He wasn’t involved.

---

Virgil squinted curiously at Roman’s retreating back as the Crav’on vanished into the other room.

The comm in his hand buzzed twice, indicating that the connection had been established, and he felt some of the stress ease from him as Logan’s calm voice trickled through the alien phone, Patton audible in the distance. They were okay.

He was okay too, despite all his doubts about being alone on an alien ship with an alien who didn’t hide his distaste for Humans at all. Roman had even seemed oddly concerned at breakfast.

Maybe the guy didn’t completely hate him, after all.

#sanders sides #wibar #ts roman #ts virgil #space au #writing #my writing #watch it burn and rust #wibar intermission #wibar int: nt #*dangles roman backstory in front of you all* Soon.#ts logan #ts patton #commissioned works

554 notes · View notes

jamespotterthefirst · 4 years

Text

Little Miracle

Pairing: Dr. Ethan Ramsey x F!MC (Dr. Lilac Allende) Word count: 1,900 Warning: A few curse words.

Author’s Note: This is part of the canon scene where Ethan and MC watch over Dolores’s baby, from Ethan’s POV. I was inspired by the line from the book that says they “talked long into the night.”

Catch up here.

The sterile room of the NICU feels stifling that night, the fluorescent lights shining on them both almost blinding. Ethan had been in that room many times before, but never like this. Never with a strain on his mind and heart so painful, he thinks he might burst from it. Now, sitting in the love seat, counting each of the baby's breaths, he feels as though he is in a foreign place—a vastly terrible one where his dearest friend does not exist anymore.

The knot in his throat returns.

Dammit.

It threatens to constrict his breathing in the most debilitating way and he hates it. Urgently, he suppresses the flood of emotion at once, turning instead to glance at Lilac next to him.

The young doctor is not looking at him. In the silence that stretches between them, she stares at the linoleum floor, her tear-streaked face is pale, her eyes bleary and red. The weight of their previous conversation hangs over them and he is surprised to discover it is not an unpleasant one. Instead, her quiet presence at his side feels oddly… comforting. More so than the many glasses of scotch he was planning on drowning in had he not stayed.

Sensing his eyes on her, she glances up and offers him a tired smile which Ethan returns without hesitation. The moment lingers and before either of them can say anything, a soft cooing distracts them as the baby stretches.

An inexplicable warmth pierces through Ethan as he very gently offers Dolores' baby his hand. Small fingers close around his, weakly, yet powerful enough to steal his breath away.

“She named him after you,” she informs him tenderly, as though the words she is offering him are made of the most delicate crystal.

A small wave of shock courses through him as he looks at the name.

Ethan Hudson.

His throat tightens painfully yet again and all he can do is swallow.

“I...see she did.”

A small silence.

Her soothing, kind voice saves him from his thoughts when she comments, “You must have known Dolores a long time.”

Ethan busies himself with carefully removing his hand from the baby's grasp. Despite the painful ache in his throat, he finds the words. “Over ten years. When I first emailed her I only meant to check in. But she was recently divorced, feeling alone, so she insisted on coffee.” In spite of himself, he smiles at the memory of the lively yet persistent young woman who had been so determined to befriend him. “And then it turned into more emails and meeting once every couple months for Sunday roast.”

“She sounds like a good friend.”

She was, he thinks before his mind catches up with him. When it does, the past tense stabs him like a knife to the side.

“I didn’t make friends easily when I started here,” he begins, pausing only briefly to keep his voice from breaking. “So I was always grateful to her for that.”

The words finish ringing out in the quiet room and he swallows, suddenly exhausted from fighting back the excruciating pain of Dolores's death. As he falls silent, prickling eyes moving to the baby she fought so fiercely to protect, Ethan allows himself to mourn. The torrent of sorrow hits him is like the opening of a floodgate.

He is certain he will drown in his grief until a soft, warm hand slides over his, looking small and delicate against his own.

Ethan remains very still.

“I’m so sorry this happened,” she murmurs, the sincerity her voice offers something akin to a caress.

Ethan's eyes remain locked on their joined hands. Something about the sight and the feel of her soft skin against his tears away at his pride until all he wants to do is hold on to her desperately. Instead, he looks up to meet her eyes, unprepared for the quiet compassion in their depths. It hits him so abruptly that he is unable to look away, feeling something foreign stir in the depths of his chest, as consequential as the first blooms of Spring.

“Me too.”

As the seconds tick by and he becomes very aware that her hand remains on his, his pulse picks up, clamoring at his ears. With much effort, he forces himself to pull away.

“I think we need coffee.”

“I can get some,” she says, already rising to her feet, unaware of the scorching trail her touch left behind on his skin.

Ethan shakes his head. “No, I’ll go.”

He leaves the room in quick strides, grateful for the brief moment of solitude. Being alone, however, proves to be a small torment since he is unable to suppress thoughts of earnest, kindhearted eyes breaking down every barrier he had stubbornly built that evening. Steaming mugs of coffee in hand, he returns to the NICU with an eager haste he refuses to acknowledge, missing the tendrils of her soft companionship.

When he enters the room, Ethan finds her lovingly murmuring to the baby. “That’s it little tadpole. In and out.”

Lilac notices his arrival, offering him a sheepish smile at being caught. Cheeks blazing, she accepts the coffee gratefully. “This doesn’t taste like the cafeteria coffee,” she observes approvingly.

“This is from my private coffee machine. As soon as I got an office, I vowed never to drink that caffeinated dishwater again.” He watches her take this information in with knowing amusement. “Nobody knows I have it so…”

Quite seriously, she vows, “I won’t tell a soul.”

Ethan chuckles, shaking his head, the first true flash of amusement that evening.

They fall into a comfortable silence after that until the attending overseeing the case during the night shift strolls in to check on the baby. Satisfied with her findings, she quickly jots down the information on his chart.

“Our little miracle,” she comments quietly, both to the baby and to them, before leaving the room.

Ethan snuffs the urge to scoff at the word miracle. Lilac, of course, catches this and arches a brow at him.

“You don't believe in those,” she says, not as a question but as an undeniable observation.

Ethan hesitates to answer until he glances at her. There is no trace of judgment or derision on her lovely face, just fatigue from already spending several hours keeping watch.

“There is no scientific basis to account for them,” he allows. “Frankly, I'm a little surprised you believe in them despite choosing to spend your career with facts and empirical evidence.” He is careful to keep all sarcasm out of his tone though he doubts he is successful. Years of being a sardonic little shit are hard to break.

Lilac doesn't seem to mind, however, because she gives him an indulging sort of smile. “It is because I have studied science and facts that I am hesitant to dismiss their existence,” she explains. “Even with everything we know, there are some things science or reason cannot explain.”

“There are too many variables at play in a single minute, Rookie,” he counters. “When something occurs that we cannot explain away, it means a plethora of those variables aligned to create a perfect outcome.”

Lilac takes a careful sip of coffee, watching him over the rim of her mug. Not for the first time, he can see her mind working, formulating an argument. And like many times before, he longs to know the mystery of her thoughts.

“And getting that outcome despite all the innumerable possibilities,” she begins thoughtfully. “Isn't that a little miraculous?”

“No.”

Lilac laughs at the resolute way in which he shoots her down, though the sound is far from mocking.

“Are you then crediting what science cannot explain to coincidence and luck, Dr. Ramsey?”

He briefly pauses at that, thoughts stumbling. The haughty way in which she lifts the mug to her lips, concealing a smug smile, tells him she had intended to stump him. Instead of feeling annoyed, as he should, he feels a thrill of approval and something else entirely.

“Not at all,” he returns when he recovers. “I am merely pointing out that there is still much we don't know as a species. When something inexplicable takes place, the real cause is most likely attributed to something we haven't learned yet.”

Despite looking utterly exhausted, her eyes glint, as though she had expected that very answer.

“'If he is confronted with a miracle as an irrefutable fact he would rather disbelieve his own senses than admit the fact.'”

Ethan blinks.

“Are you seriously quoting Dostoevsky at me, Rookie?”

This time, she dissolves into self deprecating laughter. “Sorry,” she says, scrunching her nose in the most endearing of ways. “I studied him as an elective when I was in my undergrad program so it's hard to break out of the habit of being a pretentious ass.”

“A pre-med student with a penchant for world literature,” he observes, allowing himself to relax into the air of amusement her laughter catalyzes.

“I was downright insufferable.”

“So not much has changed.”

Lilac throws him what is meant to be an unamused glare, but she ruins it by losing the battle against a smile. Ethan grins, unable to help it.

“What else do you walk around quoting at people who disagree with you?” he asks, genuinely curious.

“Nothing as severe as Russian literature,” she quips. “I save that for the most stubborn of the people I argue with.”

Ethan rolls his eyes though he too fails to stifle a smile. He begrudgingly accepts that he enjoys bantering with her, though he would never admit it out loud.

“Be lucky I didn't quote Harry Potter at you,” Lilac continues sagely. “I am notorious for that, too.”

“There's nothing in the Potter books about miracles,” he points out.

Lilac shoots him a surprised look. “You've read them?”

“Yes, I read the few that were out when I was in high school. They had midnight release events at bookstores when a new one was published.”

She stares at him in stunned silence.

“You went to that? That is so…”

“Don't say–”

“Cute.”

The word sends a jolt through him, made worse by the sound of her tired but giddy laughter. Ethan allows her to enjoy the mirth, even if it's at his expense. If he was being honest, he thoroughly enjoyed it too, feeling his anguish ease with each passing moment.

“Did you dress up?” she asks, eyes alight with excitement.

“We are not speaking of this anymore.”

“You did, didn't you?” she manages to say through a wave of fresh laughter. “Who did you dress up as? Harry? Dumbledore? Snape?”

Ethan makes a disgusted sound. “Don't insult me.”

Her laughter is uncontrollable by now and he can't help but join. “Good answer,” she commends.

Bodies close on the love seat, they both relax further into their seats, contentment lingering in their fading smiles. Ethan allows himself one good look at her as she becomes momentarily distracted by her phone. The harsh lightning of the NICU washes her out, especially in her sleep-deprived, exhausted state, but somehow she still looks unfairly beautiful. Yet, there is something entirely different about her, though he is far too tired to decipher what.

Lilac glances up to catch him staring.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

Her previous words echo in his mind.

“There are some things science or reason cannot explain.”

Ethan thinks of Dolores and the unwavering friendship she offered him despite being surly and unapproachable. He thinks of the unconditional love she held for a being she had not even met yet, so profound she gave her life for him. He thinks of Lilac, offering him compassion and companionship despite his every effort to push her away.

Lilac glances glances his way, beaming at him radiantly. As he returns the smile, his heart feeling ten times lighter than it did an hour ago, he admits to himself that she was right.

______

Author’s Note: I don’t know what that was but if you made it here, thank you!

I think I will skip the baseball game scene and go on to the fMRI scene. I might have that be slightly AU and have Ethan ask MC the questions. Let me know what you think <3

______

@dulceghernandez | @lion-ess24 | @emotionalswift2 | @the-soot-sprite |

#open heart #ethan ramsey #ethan x mc #playchoices #my writing

280 notes · View notes

thewebcomicsreview · 4 years

Photo

Is it weird that I actually like Homestuck 2, and am at the same time going “Oh Christ, I have to read it now”?

Regardless! New planet! New lore! Will we get a whole new species now? I really hope so, it’d be lame (and nonsensical) is it were just more trolls. I want to see what the natives of Universe C look like!

I didn’t think about it enough in Chapter 1, but the fact that Terezi crash-landed the ship, apparently on purpose and for lulz, is really weird. This is a bit past “prankster” and more in the realm of “the player you stop inviting to DnD”. Wandering out in space for years and fucking John Egbert changes a person.

New looks for everyone! Fun fact: That painting behind Dirk - which is a real painting Andrew Hussie owns - actually made a cameo appearance in Legend of the Hare!

Which was mostly a reference but also foreshadowing that Mary here would be the Horse Champion. Anyway, new looks for everyone! Homestuck characters used to change appearances constantly but it sort of stopped after Act 6, so it’s nice to see the return of Fashion. Apparently, Terezi ditched Jade’s shoes at some point for dragony ones and grew her hair out, while Rose is wearing a statue of liberty tiara, which is probably a reference to all the statues of liberty Alpha Dave made in that timeline for reasons that never seemed to matter at the time but now might.

This is a cute little subtle gag. Dirk’s “Terezi, you too” was extending the “Render yourself more symbolically” command, but Terezi thought it was a continuation of Dirk’s line from the previous page. She’s not as immune to his powers as she things. That green jacket is more than a little evocative of Lord English, and the color-loving Terezi could probably be convinced to trade the gold trim for flashing colors. Just a thought to keep in the back of your mind.

ROSEBOT: At the very least, none of us succumbed to substance abuse. Or re-succumbed, I guess I should say.

ROSEBOT: The perks of not having an appetite or a liver, in my case.

ROSEBOT: In yours... I'm actually not sure. Perhaps the underlying cognitive dissonance or trauma you were originally trying to distract yourself from is no longer a going concern?

ROSEBOT: Or... ROSEBOT: No, wait. ROSEBOT: That's not right. ROSEBOT: I'm thinking of a different Terezi. ROSEBOT: Or maybe I'm thinking of a different me? ROSEBOT: Maybe the different me is thinking of a different Terezi, and I'm just witnessing the thought happen as a bystander. ROSEBOT: It's much the same thing at this point. ROSEBOT: ... ROSEBOT: And I suppose I'm also prematurely ruling out the potential of anime functioning as an abusable substance. ROSEBOT: In which case I've got very bad news for all of us.

The plot of Homestuck is so convoluted that even the characters can’t keep it straight anymore. Rose is referring to her struggles with alcoholism in the original Game Over timeline, but this Rose is from the post-Retcon timeline, and going Ultimate is causing them all to blend together in her mind. Also she seems to think that Game Over Terezi’s problem was being addicted to Faygo, not having an abusive boyfriend, unless she’s thinking of some other Terezi.

Also, as someone who was the treasurer of a college anime club despite not liking anime, I can confirm that Rose has some very bad news indeed.

ROSE: Where shall our allegory begin? DIRK: Beg pardon. ROSE: Oh come on. The cave? ROSE: I have to say I’m a little disappointed in you. Three years, and not once did I witness you replacing any parts of the ship. ROSE: How are we to jerk ourselves off philosophically if you don’t lean into your clumsy allusions? DIRK: It's a fair question. DIRK: But since the name you suggested was nothing more than a very juvenile play on words, I can’t say you’ve got much ground to stand on. ROSE: What’s juvenile about The Kant? DIRK: Nothing. DIRK: At least, not when you say it. ROSE: It’s not my fault you sound like a gay cowboy. DIRK: Sigh.

See, this is what the epilogues were missing! Bantz! Rose was practically comatose for the Meat epilogues, so it’s good to see her back. Maybe one day we’ll get Jade back, too.

Who the fuck is this? This isn’t Dirk narrating, it’s black text. Is this the same person who was narrating the last chapter with Calliope? That narrator didn’t address the audience like this.

Dirk is naming the new planet “Deltritus”, which is a Homestucky portmanteau of Delta (As in “D”; It’s the fourth SBURB planet), and detritus. Kind of an insulting name, honestly. If this planet has SBURB on it, doesn’t that imply it’s inhabited? Do the locals not have a name for it?

DIRK: The point is, we will be building intelligent life on this planet from scratch. That was one of our key mistakes with Earth C. We should have started our guidance from the very beginning, instead of letting it grow organically in our image.

Oh, okay, guess not.

ROSE: Our own world was abandoned by its gods. Or, I suppose, its gods never reached it.

I’d actually really love to see an AU where there trolls made it, and Vriska and Aradia guided the human race as immortal gods. Rose is right that it probably would’ve been way worse, especially given how the Alpha Earth went.

I’m deeply curious about who this narrator is, who speaks in a neutral black text and uses more casual language than Dirk or Calliope. Is this Ultimate Dave, maybe? It sounds more like Dave than anyone else. But how?

Oops, I was wrong. It was Dirk, all along. Well I guess you’ve made a monkey - yes you’ve finally made a monkey - you’ve finally made a monkey out of me.

Oh, that’s actually cool! Rose and Dirk are going to create their own species and let them compete to play the game!

ROSE: There's something so delicious about the two of us being the ones to populate an entire planet from scratch. ROSE: The irony doesn't get much sweeter.

“From scratch”, you say?

DIRK: Next step is adding mutations. DIRK: We can use any old shit for this. Literally any captchalogueable object can be added into the mix by inserting its card into one of the slots here.

So, they each clone themselves, and throw random items in the pot to basically alchemize a new species, the way they used to make weapons? The potential for absurdity here is immense, as is the potential for crimes against god.

ROSE: It's amazing what pieces of inconsequential information your mind can recall at a moment's notice, a whole decade after they were last relevant or interesting to anyone. ROSE: ... ROSE: I think I missed this.

I did, too. Behind all the angst and the melancholy and the sci-fi adventures, Homestuck is a profoundly stupid comic and I’m unironically glad they’re remembering it, and bringing back some of the fun of creation.This is a surprisingly impactful line.

Ed....ward......

Incredible. This is all sorts of fucked up and I love it.

Oh god, Dirk is going to make Cherubs and Rose is going to make Squiddles and the long-memed 48-player Squiddle session is actually going to happen, isn’t it?

Edit: Any item that can be captachlouged can be made part of the species, and that includes John’s dead body that’s currently burning a hole in Terezi’s inventory. So Karkat’s shitty breeding chart from Act 5 can come true after all.

#Homestuck #Homestuck 2 #homestuck 2 liveblog

47 notes · View notes

amvngthestars · 3 years

Text

Bad Ideas

Commander Grant Shepard could never be described as particularly well planned. Thought out discussions are a little harder for him, but actions speak louder than words right? Maybe?

Words: 1256, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Series: Part 1 of the Grant Shepard: With Reckless Abandon

Fandoms: Mass Effect Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: F/M, M/M, Multi Characters: Male Shepard, Grant Shepard, Garrus Vakarian, Kasumi Goto, EDI (Mass Effect), Jeff "Joker" Moreau Relationships: Kasumi Goto/Male Shepard, Male Shepard/Garrus Vakarian, Kasumi Goto/Male Shepard/Garrus Vakarian Additional Tags: Eventual Poly Ship, Open Relationship, It's Complicated will always be Grant Shepard's relationship status, Hannah Shepard just hopes for a message every now and then, Drabbles mostly

“Shepard,” A kiss.

“Shep, you need to stop,” A kiss and a nip.

“Grant, stop, please.” Frozen in his lap, I don’t want to admit he’s right. Grasped hands clutch tighter at his armor, his cowl.

“I, dammit Shepard, how are you annoyingly good at that?” A smirk, leaning closer hoping he’s changed his mind and will let me do what I want.

“No, that is definitely not what I meant by that, Grant,” A pout, pulling back, still not sure if his lap can be my seat. Talons rest uneasily on my hips.

“You need to use your words Shep, I know where I stand, but with everything, I don’t, I don’t know what’s going on inside your head,” A cheek bitten, he knows me too well. A part of me still wants him to know me better. Sliding out of his lap to get a drink, something, anything, to distract me from the reality that I just jumped my best friend in the middle of the same room where she and I once laid.

“Look, I know- I know what you have with Kasumi is, for lack of a better word, complicated, but whatever that just was, wasn’t. It wasn’t honest.” A bitter smile, what use does honesty have for liars and criminals? For thieves and murders? A long pull from the whiskey.

“You know she’d hate to see you crack open the good one without her,” He’s right, I hadn’t even read the label. Another pull. She doesn’t even drink that much, just enjoys seeing me drunk.

“Hey, Grant, I’d like to have this conversation with us both sober, and both of us actually talking?” His mandibles flutter when I turn to look at him again. I decide I like the flutter, it reminds me of when Kasumi would tuck her knees to her chest. He’s determined to keep his mouth shut, until I make this A Conversation. I don’t want to. But he will be more stubborn than I.

“Garrus, I haven’t heard from her in three months.” The weight on my mind lifts for a moment, having admitted it at last.

“Well I can’t imagine why, it’s not like there’s a war going on now,” He replies dryly, not understanding my fears. He doesn’t understand how well Kasumi can actually hack military systems.

“We sent video messages every week while I was in holding on Earth,” I hope he gets it, understands how hard that is. How talented she is. His mandibles twitch this time, shock.

“Damn,” He’s impressed. He should be. Kasumi is one of a kind.

“I know stress of possibly having lost, her, isn’t cause enough for what I did. So know that you have been just as heavy on my mind as she,” Another flutter, I would grin at getting him to do it again were it not for the current topic. I want to go back to kissing him instead.

“Uh, I uhm, well,” he sputters, unsure of what to say. I shake my head, knowing that I should explain myself better.

“Before we found each other on Menae I had been praying you weren’t down there, weren’t actually on Palaven even though I knew you had to be, because fighting with your people is what you do best. Saving lives is what you do best. But I wanted you to be on that moon, so I could see you again.” A pull from the whiskey. Admitting it was easier than when I admitted it to Kasumi, but still not easy enough to do it sober.

“So wait, are you saying that-? But I thought humans were all monogamous-? I-” He’s fluttering, from his words or mine I can’t tell. Another pull from the whiskey. Saying it made it much more real than stray thoughts stringing together a possible conclusion. I wish she was here.

“Monogamy isn’t a requirement Garrus, neither is attraction to your own species. No, I haven’t spoken at length with Kasumi about this because once you left the Normandy to go back to Palaven I figured it best to stop any feelings I had for you since you seemed interested in, something else.” I know the whiskey will hit me soon, and hearing Garrus’ sub-vocals always do things to me, being drunk will just make me act on them faster. The whiskey goes back on the shelf before he says anything else.

“I, uhm, I might need some time to think about this. What this means,” The for us goes unsaid but it’s there in the margins. A nod, understandable, reasonable of him to say that.

“In the meantime, you need to think about what you’re going to tell Kasumi,” A jerk of my head. She’s off the grid, and I know that Jondum Bau has been on her tail since forever. My spectre status allowed me that. But any new finds or information is strictly classified. There is no finding a thief intent on not being found.

“Don’t give me that look Grant, she’s far smarter than anyone ever gives her credit for. Five credits says that she probably knows already with how easily she reads you.” He’s right, the majority of the fights we had ended within a half-hour due to her insight. My dense outlook only made things marginally more difficult. Somehow she could always see through me.

“Well, aren’t you going to say something Commander?” A clench of my jaw, I hate when he calls me that. It means he’s trying to distance himself, put more space between us.

“Tell Joker we’re going to the Citadel after we finish scanning this system, I need to check on Engineering” If he was going to try and back away from this, who says he gets to be the only one? Standing up, needing tangible distance. Already starting to head towards the elevator. I am stopped by EDI’s fabricated voice over the intercom.

“Commander Shepard, there is an notification for you. A ping on the radar, it would seem,” Radar? Techs and spooks, none of them speak clearly.

“A proverbial red rose, has appeared in Citadel space, sir.” There is no way she could mean anything else but what I think she means.

“Chart a course to the Citadel now, and leave the scans for another time. I’m heading up to the bridge now,” The doors open as I’m thinking about possibly performing a charge to get through them.

“Wait, Shep what? I thought you were about to go to Engineering? What does a red rose mean?” Garrus is confused but he’s going to have to follow if he wants to know. I step on to the elevator and start pacing as it begins its ascent. The sound of Garrus’ steps behind me let me know he has decided to come with me to the bridge.

“Kasumi used to be much more romantic than now. As a beginner, she’d leave a calling card in the wake of her thefts. A red rose,” It’s all I need to actually say. Garrus can put the pieces together easily enough. A glimpse of his expression shows some anxiety, but also an eagerness I did not expect. We both storm on to the bridge as soon as the doors open and stand behind Joker’s chair as he sums up the events.

“Well damn, looks like that Bau guy finally caught up to her huh? Can’t say he’s not persistent. Or dedicated. Or lacking useful things to do other than chase Kasumi around am I right?”

#writing #grant #grant shepard #mass effect #mass effect 3 #me #me3 #kasumi goto #garrus vakarian #m!shepard x garrus #m!shepard x kasumi #m!shepard x garrus x kasumi

2 notes · View notes

canyouhearthelight · 5 years

Text

The Miys, Ch. 23

Y’all, I am so excited to actually have this story arc going on! I know there isn’t a ton of direct action, but keep in mind: our narrator, Sophia, is essentially a combination of HR and PR. The actual action doesn’t happen within her wheelhouse, and isn’t in the realm of things she really gets. So all her information is coming from other people.

We do learn a little more about the Miys in this chapter, though. ;)

BIG thanks on this chapter to my co-author and beta @parisconstantine (AKA @ritualistic-raven), and my friend, supporter, and backup rubber duck @baelpenrose. You two are just THE BEST.

By the time Tyche’s group was able to get back to Level One, the majority of the screens had been brought in and were in the process of being set up. Zach made a beeline to where the ersatz flight deck was being set up, fine tuning and rearranging things to very exacting standards. In the meantime, we took Derek over to a pile of cushions Grey had sent an administrator for so that he could recover from the crowds and regain the focus he would need in order to align all the video feeds. Jake dragged another pilot over, a petite woman who had been one of the last two eliminated, and after a few quite words, they started prowling in what looked like a perimeter around Derek, ensuring he was left alone.

Okay, apparently the self-styled ‘Maverick’ wasn’t as much of an asshole as I thought.

Only sparing a few moments to make sure that both Derek and my sister would be okay, I started evaluating what I could do to assist with the situation. The truth was, my official capacity was not directly useful to the current situation: Grey, Xiomara, and Pranav had everything as under control as we could get it. However, for the time being, none of the Council was allowed to leave Level One, just as a safety precaution. Looking around the mostly empty space, with the only furnishings other than currently-useless consoles that the Miys used to navigate being Derek’s pile of bean-bags and pillows, it was a little disheartening.

Maybe I could do something about that.

“Japeth, can I borrow you for a minute,” I asked the Miys.

With a groan it turned to me. “On one condition, Wisdom, and it is non-negotiable, I regret.”

“Oooo-kay?” I asked, confused. I had never heard it sound so frustrated and upset.

“You must stop calling me Japeth. That is not my name. I could tolerate you calling me Noah, because that is a close translation of my actual name into several Terran languages. But I am not Japeth. The one you would call Japeth is on another ship!” The last part was very distressed.

All I could do was gape at it. “Seriously?”

“I am incredibly sincere, Wisdom. I have tried to explain this on several occasions, but I realize now that I never explained it properly. My name, the name of all of me, is Miys, which does translate to Noah. But everyone on board seems to believe that is the name of my species, but it is not. I can understand the confusion, because the only member of my species you have encountered is myself. But just as your name is Sofeeya, my name is Miys. And as you, along with everyone on board the Yjq except myself, are human, I am Hujylsogox. Rylugs, the one you would call Japeth, is the member of my species who is on the carrier Qomtwin. So, I beg you, do not call me any name other than Miys or Noah.”

“I am so, so sorry,” I whispered in horror, covering my mouth. “I… I completely misunderstood. I thought Miys was your species, and that I was essentially just saying ‘Hey you’. I’m not doing very well with manners for addressing a multi-bodied being, I’m sorry, Miys.”

“I know you meant no ill intent, Wisdom. And I can hear how remorseful you are, so nothing more needs to be said. However, if you could please communicate this to everyone, I would be most appreciative.”

“I’ll send out the communication immediately, I give you my word. Geez, I can’t believe I’ve been so rude, that we’ve been so rude.”

“Single bodied races tend to have difficulty with understanding naming conventions for larger multi-bodied races. It does happen. You did not ask me to come over for me to admonish you, though. I believe you needed something?”

Shaking my head in an attempt to get back on track, I remembered why I needed to speak with it. “Yes, right. This space is configured for you to navigate the Ark, right?”

“It is,” Miys hummed in confirmation.

“Since the majority of us can’t leave the level for the foreseeable future, would it be okay if I brought in some amenities for us? Not anything permanent or major. Somewhere we can sit, tables to eat at, something to sleep on. And are there any nearby facilities that we can use for hygiene?”

“The nearest human hygiene facilities are four levels below us, on the opposite end of the ship, I regret. While you stated that you are not requesting any permanent changes, I am willing to have communal ‘bathrooms’ installed on this level, instead. Food consoles would be more difficult; would it be satisfactory if I retrieve the meals myself, instead? Since I cannot pilot the Ark, currently, there is a significant part of myself that has no tasks to perform.”

“I really do not want to ask you to – serve us, Miys.” I was making a conscious effort to use their name, now that I knew that is what I was actually doing. “Truthfully, in times like this, that is what the assistants to the Council are for.”

“Then I shall escort them. I do not like the idea that someone sabotaged what is, in truth, a mission to conserve their own species. I have made many friends among the humans on this ship, and I would like to protect them.”

I honestly had no argument for that, and the smug sounding chirp from Miys told me they knew that. “Okay, so that’s decided apparently. Are the furnishings okay?”

“Once it is determined how much of the deck will be taken up by navigational systems, we can decide that. There may be insufficient room. In that event, there are cargo areas nearby that can serve temporarily.”

“How near?” I was worried about travelling back and forth.

“This space constitutes half of Level One. The other half is made up of three cargo areas, one of which is where the hygiene facilities will be installed. The other two can serve as sleeping areas if necessary.”

I was starting to believe I would never fully understand the scope of just how large the Ark was. The room we were in – what I thought was the entirety of Level One – was the size of a football field. To know that it was only half of the level was mind-boggling. “I want to say I doubt we will need the additional space, but I see your point. How about a compromise: we need seating and eating areas as soon as possible. Since the navigational systems are already being set up against one wall, can we at least have tables and chairs at the other end?”

“That would be acceptable. Everyone is already anxious and tired; from my understanding of humans, this can lead to shortened tempers and increased likelihood of altercations over minor causes.”

“Thank you. I promise, as soon as we are able to get the sensors back on line we will remove the furniture. Maybe even sooner, if it turns out we need to use the cargo holds after all.”

While I discussed what we would need with Arantxa, Derek had recovered enough to start getting the signals aligned to the monitors. Zach relayed any feedback to Pranav regarding adjustments that needed to be made at each individual camera, either to reduce lag in the feed or because Maverick requested minute adjustments in the camera angle so that he would have the best possible visual field for piloting. As the camera feeds slowly started to come online, a handful of the pilots on deck started comparing what they could see to what could be translated from Miys’ star charts.

Once furniture was organized and Hunyh sent his people along with several of Miys escorting them, I started broadcasting updates from my data screen to the rest of the ship, explaining the situation in hopes to reduce panic. The deliberate sabotage to the sensors was left out, but anything that the Council agreed would not put the Ark and those on board in danger was explained for the benefit of everyone. It took several hours, most of those answering questions from worried people on board, but eventually I was able to take a break and collapse in a commandeered chair and gulp down some tea. Thankfully, Arantxa had steadily been capturing each question that I answered and set the in a sort of FAQ list, providing me with a break. “Any updates from the flight crew?” I asked, rubbing my temples. I jerked as I felt something brush against my neck, only to give a relieved smile to my sister when I realized she had stuck an analgesic on me. “Thanks,” I whispered.

“The good news is, they have determined where we are and we aren’t very far off course. We were lucky to drop into sub-light speed near a single star system, and based on the Ark’s course, there is only one that we should be even remotely near. It is an uninhabited system, with a dying star. The Miys were able to explain that the system has never shown any signs of being inhabited. There are only three planets, all gaseous mega-giants, but all of them have rocky satellites, so there is hope that we can get the materials needed to repair the sensors.”

“Worst case scenario, if we don’t find the resources?”

“We find another system and keep trying, apparently,” she sighed, leaning back in her seat. “According to Grey and Eino, even humans cannot fly by dead reckoning at FTL speeds, because you are literally outrunning the information needed. Noah confirmed this is accurate for all sighted species so far.”

“Okay, then let’s hope for the best and prepare for the worst. You said that’s the good news. Does that mean there is bad news?”

“Only less good news,” my sister took over. “The flight controls we have on hand are designed for multi-limbed species, so we had to pick a second pilot. Maverick – dumbest nickname ever, but whatever – insisted on Evania ‘Evan’ Josue, the woman who was helping him drive people off from Derek. The other pilot who was eliminated with her is apparently better, but has a history of violence against Okima, so we agreed on Evan since Maverick is literally the only pilot on board with experience flying in zero-gee.”

“So Captain Cocky picks fights, too?”

“Um… not really? He gets beat up a lot, apparently.”

I groaned and put my head down on my arms. “I really do not need another stray right now. Nope, I’m not collecting any more people until after this whole thing is behind us.” With a sigh, I sat back up. “Okay, so how long until Maverick puts his money where his mouth is?”

Tyche and Arantxa glanced at each other before breaking into howls of laughter. Instead of their reply, Zach flopped down in the nearest available seat, chewing on something. “About two hours ago, Soph. You were so busy, you totally missed it,” he mumbled around a mouthful of food. “Mochi?” he offered nonchalantly, holding out a small server with a precarious pile of snacks.

“Wait, how did I miss this?” I cried, looking at the two women whose laughter was dying down to gasps.

“For all that he has the social graces of a starving dog, turns out that ‘Maverick’ over there pilots with the delicacy and precision of a surgeon,” my sister gasped. “You would think he and Evan share the same brain from how in synch they are with each other. Estimates are hopeful that we should have what we need within a week, two at the outside.”

“Still, you could have told me,” I grumbled.

“You were essentially live-streaming for six solid hours. There really wasn’t a chance,” she explained, still laughing slightly.

All I could do was shake my head at her. “Whatever. Okay, how are the living arrangements going?” I asked, glancing at Arantxa.

“As you can see, food is being brought in, and tables and chairs are set up in here. Bathrooms are still in the basic stages – we have a couple toilets and showers, and waiting lists for both until more are installed. Sleeping space ended up being in one of the cargo holds and we’re setting up more in the other one. Fortunately, the hold is pretty tall, so we’ve got scaffolding set up for extra space. Nothing fancy, just some futons on any available flat surface. But it’s something,” she shrugged.

“At least there’s that,” I conceded. “All right. Take a break, get some rest Arantxa. We’re about half way into Gamma shift, so you should have been off work ages ago. I’m going to go find Xiomara, see what she can tell me.”

“You don’t gotta find her,” Zach interjected after swallowing yet another rice cake. “She’s over one the ‘flight deck’.” He wiggled his fingers in air quotes and jerked his head toward the other end of the room before holding out the now-smaller pile of treats. “And seriously, you gotta eat something.”

“Thanks,” I murmured before grabbing a couple mochi and setting off. I stopped off to get a couple servers of tea and took them with me over to the area where the navigation equipment was set up.

Xiomara gratefully took the beverage I handed to her. “I have never been so grateful for your mother hen tendencies as I was when I saw food and drinks coming in.”

I snorted. “It’s literally my job. Food, board, and recreation all report up to me.”

“Which is totally not because you adopt people at random and insist on taking care of them.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I insisted. “Any updates on your end?”

“Way to be a buzzkill. Yeah, we got everything up and running,” she nodded to the near-silent group of pilots and navigators. “If it weren’t for the history as a fighter pilot, I would think ‘Maverick’ is an ironic nickname. He’s got to be the most conservative pilot I’ve ever seen.”

“Have you seen many?” I asked, curious.

“Loads. I served in the Global Terran Navy, mostly on aircraft carriers. Usually, fighter pilots act like they are invincible and own the skies. But, even knowing that there are shields in place to repel debris, he’s flying like the Ark is made of tissue paper,” she made a sweeping gesture at Maverick and Evan.

“I can hear you, you realize?” He called without looking away from the screens. “And of course, I’m good at flying. It’s my fixation, and probably the only thing I’m good at.” My heart wanted to break at that, especially when I remembered the comment earlier about how ‘most of us’ didn’t get often have people in their corner that supported and defended them. Even worse was how matter-of-fact and distracted he sounded when he said it.

“ETA is about six more hours before we get to Eenie,” Xiomara changed the topic, clearing her throat in embarrassment. “We can start looking for resources when we get to the closest moon around it.”

“Eenie?” I asked skeptically, assuming it was a joke.

“Three planets in the system, no actual names, just catalogue numbers. We’ve been calling them Eenie, Meenie, and Miney for sake of ease,” she shrugged. “Moe is the star.”

“How are we supposed to find resources if we don’t have working sensors?” I asked, shaking my head at the absurd logic of planetary nomenclature.

“Drone probes and old-fashioned core samples,” Grey answered from where they had approached behind Xiomara. I had never seen them look so exhausted and rumpled. “We’ll cannibalize the entire core samples, putting anything not needed for the sensors into ship’s stores, replenishing resources we’ve used by being on board the Ark.”

“Gotcha,” I nodded. “All right then, I’m going to snag some food and a nap. I’m beat.” Cuddles would have been nice, too, but Derek had commandeered my cat for the duration, and I really could not fault him for that.

“I think we all should do the same,” Xiomara nodded, suppressing a yawn. “Maverick, Evan, are you two good?”

“Have to be, Councillor,” Evan answered with flat certainty. “With no sensors, the ship can’t fly on autopilot. Once we get to Eenie, Maverick and I can grab some sleep while the drone pilots take over harvesting core samples. Councillor Ranganathan’s folks already wired the probes up for video-cast, so they’ll be ready to go when we need them. Their pilots are sleeping now, then they’ll come on at Alpha shift commencement.”

“Works for me, Evan,” my fellow Councilor replied, rubbing her temples. “Definitely time for the rest of us to grab some sleep while we have the chance.”

I didn’t need to be told twice.

<< Prev Masterlist Next >>

#the miys #humans are space orcs #science fiction #humans are weird #earth is space australia #original writing #original fiction #aliens #apocalypse #scifi

104 notes · View notes

dyinghorizons-blog · 5 years

Text

So about your family II - Innocent

Hey folks, figures I’d write this up and try to maybe make a little series out of it. Let me know what you think, good bad or ugly. Have at it.

——————

“You did what!?” Sendric exclaimed.

“We took a sample of his blood you collected and ran it through the GCSS medical database. There was a DNA match, so we did a data crawl on all information relating to that individual and took a chance,” Jack stated. “While he may look different, you can’t change your DNA. Hell, if he had fingerprints we would have examined those too, just to verify -“

“YOU CAN NOT DO THAT!” Sendric was furious. “DNA is the sole property of the individual, and under Directive 103.3 is -“

“You don’t do DNA matches because you feel they intrude on people’s privacy. Which is extremely shortsighted, and frankly my superiors and I are at a loss as to why you still refuse to use these types of measures when faced with terrorism on this scale. Additionally,” Jack continued, halting another interruption, “Humans are not a member of the GCSS, and therefore not under any obligation to follow your directives. We saw that you were having a problem similar to what we had decades ago. We offered to help. You accepted. So, if you want our continued assistance, maybe you should begin considering some methods you may find reprehensible are necessary.”

Sendric fumed. The audacity of this newcomer to the galactic stage was infuriating. Terrorist or not, privacy or not, there were strict laws governing the use of DNA. Namely that it should not be used. What if people started to alter DNA or program it?

“So how did you get the records anyway? That information is on a secure database. Not even I have access to that.”

“Secure? My understanding is it took less than 15 minutes for our hackers to break in, get the information, and get out,” Jack said simply.

“You broke in!? This is getting worse and worse...” Sendric was starting to get a headache. “Do you know how much trouble you and your organization is going to be in?”

“Not much. Legally we aren’t bound to follow your laws, you have nothing but my word that your systems were hacked, and in short order we will have all the information needed to start dismantling this terrorist organization for you. I think your superiors will gloss over some minor indiscretions.”

“You know what? Fine. But I’m making this a matter of official record. When the public hears about this, it’s going to be your head on the plate,” Sendric said. Maybe that will make the human work within the parameters of the law. Jack just shrugged and left, presumably to go back to terrorizing the detainee.

Spies. Criminals with a government paycheck. Sendric had heard that somewhere. He detested them. They listened to no one but their own consciousness and that was often times nonexistent.

He took a breath, turned to his terminal, and began typing up his report. He had to stop several times to get up and slink around his office to stop his emotions getting the better of him. He could make a personal note at the end of his report, but the body of it must be fact and nothing else.

—————————

“How did you find my family?” Jo’skar asked.

“Went to their last known address and took photos.” Jack said, putting on a confused look.

“I mean, how did you know they were my family?” Jo’skar was going to treat with this person very carefully. He was obviously very intelligent and dangerous. He threatened his family, after all.

“Ah. That, I think I will keep to myself for now. But, I think it’s time you start answering my questions.”

Or they will pay the price. Jo’skar grimaced. “Fine. Ask your questions.”

“You were a mining foreman before you joined the Rim Coalition. Why did you leave?” Jack asked.

Not the question I thought he would ask... “Because the Core takes all our hard work, all our resources, and uses it to better themselves while leaving us on the Rim with nothing.” He felt some anger ripple through him on that point, but he knew he couldn’t start spewing dogma at this man.

“I understand that...” Jack muttered under his breath, but Jo’skar heard him anyway.

“Is your species also on the Rim?” He ventured.

“More or less. Though a rather desolate part of it.”

“Every part on the Rim is desolate. That’s why what the Core is doing is wrong. That is why they have to be stopped!” Maybe he could make this being feel some sympathy for him. After all, they were both being exploited.

“Good thing my species keeps all their goods then.” And just like that, Jo’skar’s hopes were dashed.

“Why did you leave your family behind? They believe you died in an explosion at the mining site on Theranus VI. Why would you leave your family behind, and allow them to believe you died?” The interrogator asked this quietly, almost sympathetic. As if abandoning ones family was the worst thing one could do. And he was right. Except...

“They wouldn’t have been safe. I had to choose between them, or fighting for the entire Rim. You can’t have both in something like this.” Jo’skar hardened his heart. He would not breakdown at this.

“And so you actually take the lives of fathers and mothers, forcing them to abandon their families when they would rather not. You take that choice away from them,” the human said, but without malice or accusation. It was a statement of fact.

“They make their choice -“ he started.

“THEY MADE THEIR CHOICE TO LIVE AND TO LET LIVE!” The human stood up, slamming his fists on the table clearly furious. How quickly he switched between emotions was astounding. “They chose to live the best they can, not harming anyone. They follow the rules. They lived lives in peace, AND YOU ENDED THOSE LIVES!”

Jo’skar was feeling humiliated. And angry. “I only struck at those responsible for the theft of property of the Rim! I never once attacked innocents!”

The human opened the folder he had placed there earlier that day. On top was his photo, and small writing in a language Jo’skar couldn’t identify. His native language likely.

As the human flipped through, he noticed there were photos of places he had been in the last [15 years]. People he had met. Charts and graphs telling stories about him that Jo’skar had no way of knowing. The more he flipped, the more recent the photos appeared. Until...

“Ah, yes here we are. GCSS University. [2 years] ago. Law school. Judge Falind was to give the keynote speech to the graduating students. Do you remember this?” The human asked. Before Jo’skar could answer, he pressed on. “218 casualties. 44 deaths, the rest either severely wounded or critically maimed. And that’s just from the initial blast. Analysis on the blast radius, materials, and likely construction look shockingly similar to another bomb, one that you supposedly died in, and another recently recovered... in your possession nonetheless.”

Jo’skar was nervous now. He really did not bomb that building. He was simply transporting a bomb made by the Coalition. He said as much, but it seemed to fall on deaf ears.

“So what I’m thinking now is that you didn’t care about the civilian casualties. The innocents harmed by your bomb.”

“I didn’t build that bomb!” Jo’skar said, hoping the man would listen to him. Yet the interrogation continued.

“I think you did. Explosives are used in mining. You were a mining foreman turned terrorist. Had access to the materials to build a bomb. It’s not hard to make the connection. You built that bomb, hurting 218 innocents for the sake of one person. An individual you deemed a threat. There were children...”

“I DIDN’T BUILD THAT BOMB!” Jo’skar shouted. “There are lots of miners in the Coalition. None of us ever built bombs before, we just know how to use them!”

“Then who the Hell built them? If not you, then who!?” The human was just as agitated as Jo’skar was.

“Some ex-military guy, I only met him once!” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Jo’skar was shamed. The human had calmed down immediately. His face no longer red, not breathing heavily. He smoothed his shirt down and sat.

“You’re not lying to me, are you Sar’aal? That would be a great shame for everyone involved.”

“I am not lying,” not even flinching at the sound of his true name, Jo’skar almost whispered it. How did he give such critical information to this person so easily? Wasn’t he supposed to be stronger than this? Maybe it was the innocent lives...

“...I believe you. And I will make sure my superiors believe you too.” Jo’skar took no comfort in that. “I need his name, Sar’aal.”

“Ven-tal. I am done with your questions now. Send me to the executioner. I have nothing else to provide you.” Jo’skar looked at the human. The human looked back at him.

“No. I think we can help each other, actually.”

#hfy #hwtf #thoughts #humansarespaceorcs

3 notes · View notes

black-strike-otp · 7 years

Text

part 73

You seem to have stumbled upon a collection of cached files. How odd...

Readers may yet decode their own series of messages or day-to-day proceedings if they see fit~ I’d be curious to read any if anyone sees fit to do so. q: But we’re going to move along with this a bit, shall we?

Data Log: Day 3 (Blackout’s Personal Files)

We’ve yet to have any leads on the whereabouts of the Rising Star, or the Revenge II. Infiltrator and Nighthawk gave a few suggestions on where to start our lead when revealing their star charts were far more updated than those we’ve obtained and have on record. We’ll be heading to the nearest hub in hopes of speaking with the resident bots in hopes of information.

Data Log: Day 5 (Novastrike’s Personal Files) ERROR – Data omitted

[MISSING DATA: ERROR]... I pray that Guard is keeping watch over us. We could use all the help we can get.

Data Log: Day 6 (Blackout’s Personal Files)

Much of the Cybertronians residing on Moriturus appear to be suffering from injuries residing from a nearby world they call Centaris Seven. After Nighthawk took some personal samples for reference from the bots, they revealed that the planet contains a highly corrosive secretion upon its surface that eats through a mechs armor and protoform. We will be staying a for more days in hopes of coming across any strangers passing through to refuel at the small station, upon Nighthawk’s insistence to help the wounded as much as he could.

Data Log: Day 10 (Infiltrator’s Personal Files)

Screenings of the bots mentioned prior seem to indeed, replicate as we suspected an unknown parasitic organism in the slime that had coated the bots. Nighthawk has deduced that they are of no threat to us, and we no longer need to use precautionary hazard suits. The organisms do not appear to survive outside of their homeworld. Washing bots whose undercarriage still had residue from the ooze revealed substantial evidence. A thorough cleaning was recommended. Below is noted the chemical compounds and information taken from the cells for record to add to Cybertronian archives.

Data Log: Day 15 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files) ERROR – Data omitted

Its been roughly two full cycles now since we’ve disbanded from Decepticon Lieutenant and Weapons Expert Blackout and Novastrike. [MISSING DATA: ERROR] Infiltrator and I have found no further evidence of the Rising Star’s whereabouts. We’ll be stopping on planet Xetaxxis in about 63 joors. Former information on the planet reveals it’s inhabited by a race of sentient robotic organisms just as Cybertron was. Will induct a study on occupants, if allowed. [MISSING DATA: ERROR] Reviewing this data file later, I realized I had made the error in referring to that arrogant mech as an Officer of the Decepticons. Revoke that statement; data is old and irrelevant now. Rogue Blackout, former Commanding Officer of the Rising Star.

Data Log: Day 18 (Infiltrator’s Personal Files)

Documentation attached below on evidence of possible relation between Xetaxxis species and that of Cybertron. They appear more primitive in function than that of Cybertron, but their CNA suggests a pattern related to that of Cybertronians. Further studies will need to be conducted to be assured of this. If we’re lucky, we’ll get to return one day. Residents appeared friendly, but bitter and hesitant to meet strangers because of their feuding battle with neighboring robotic species on different homeworld. Is it simply in our species’ nature to clash? Requires further analysis.

Data Log: Day 24 (Novastrike’s Personal Files)

There were some rather mysterious looking plants to look at today! Blackout had us stop by each one to scan for Cybertronian lifeforms, but we found no evidence. I took some photos to share with Nighthawk and Infiltrator, specifically the fauna, flora, and creatures we saw on some of the cluster of heavenly bodies. I really enjoyed the large gaseous planet the most; it was mysterious and flying through it scrambled some of Blackout’s instruments, much to his annoyance. We re-calibrated outside of the planet before taking off again. There was no way any Cybertronians would be surviving there with the electromagnetic field it generates. We’ll continue our search.

Data Log: Day 31 (Blackout’s Personal Files)

Received a transmission from Nighthawk. Will be joining up with him and Infiltrator on planet Floron 3. Infiltrator mentioned something about speculating rumors that there was insecticide sold there. Has to be the oddest bit of random information I’ve ever received and from a dragon, of all things.

Data Log: Day 33 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files)

Its been a long flight. I’ll record more information later. For now, going to recharge. Blackout and Novastrike appear to be in one piece. The kind femme transferred some data to my pad that she said I may enjoy looking through. She gives my processor something to muse over, how such an easygoing and docile bot could show interest in someone so opposing in forces than herself.

Data Log: Day 40 (Infiltrator’s Personal Files)

DATA LOST. RECOVERING... DATA FOUND. TRANSLATING... IMAGE RECOVERY IN PROGRESS...

(There appears to be no words here, just photographs taken of alien hieroglyphs. Whatever text there may have been, if any, seems to be lost.)

Data Log: Day 46 (Blackout’s Personal Files)

No progress on our quest. Energon reserves are running a bit thinner than we’d like, so we have decided to ration portions by a marginal fraction per daily units. According to all of our starcharts, there is supposed to be no planetoids for lightyears. However, we got to experience a rare sight: the formation of a star. Novastrike seemed to enjoy it. It was nice to see her smile; it seems like ages since she last did so.

Data Log: Day 52 (Novastrike’s Personal Files)

These are my new favorite pics! Make sure Blackout doesn’t see these, he’ll never forgive me. (There appears to be images after a bit of scrolling. One if of Blackout smiling, another of him laughing, and yet another of him trying to scrub dirt from Scorponok. The next picture is blurry, and shows Nighthawk trying to scale Blackout to avoid a tiny, furry looking quadrapoid creature with large canines in numerous rows as Blackout attempts to step back and is obviously tripping over Infiltrator and Scorponok. Nova appears to have doddled something on this image: “They thought it was a scraplet for a nanoklik!” The final image simply shows Novastrike, taking a selfie holding the fuzzy creature. She’s grinning like an idiot, optics offline, with the faint shadows of Blackout and Nighthawk blurring in the background like they were moving swiftly to remove the creature from Novastrike’s arms.)

Data Log: Day 53 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files) ERROR - Data Omitted

[MISSING DATA: ERROR] I am never going back to that Unicron forsaken planet. [MISSING DATA: ERROR] Infiltrator says he managed to get a scan of that scraplet-look alike monstrosity. As predicted, it’s carnivorous. He witnessed one feeding on the aquatic species in a nearby riverbed. [MISSING DATA: ERROR] I wish I could say that femme was brave, but she doesn’t know the horrors a scraplet can do to a bot. So instead of calling her ‘crazy’, I’ll just go with ‘ill-informed’. As per Blackout’s request, I will not send her the video obtained of a hoard of scraplets feasting on a bot, but I think that some reading education may still be in order.

Data Log: Day 57 (Blackout’s Personal Files)

Nothing of importance to log today. No new discoveries. Nighthawk suggests we split up again to track more space once again. I feel like I’m losing my touch, but even Nighthawk of all bots urged me not to lose hope. Searching all of space is just as daunting as I thought it would be.

Data Log: Day 60 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files)

Infiltrator and I have been headed for the Alpha Centauri region. Will record further data later, as of now trying to avoid a belt of meteors in a field. Not entirely sure if we’ll be able to find out way out of this mess alone.

Data Log: Day 63 (Infiltrator’s Personal Files) ERROR - Data Omitted

Nighthawk and I spent the day patching up the Jaguar. Boss was pretty displeased with the damages, but I’m not even sure the most experienced flyer could have gotten through that mess in one piece. Rocks were smashing against each other and causing a vicious cycle of debris. [MISSING DATA: ERROR] Blackout seems to have received our transmission despite all the interference. Estimated arrival in 7 cycles or more.

Data Log: Day 73 (Novastrike’s Personal Files)

We were intercepted today by a small group of bots. Blackout got a bit battered, but the Jaguar didn’t sustain very much damage. We’ve decided to further investigate the area before we draw more attention to ourselves by sticking around, and moving on as soon as possible.

Data Log: Day 74 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files) ERROR – Data Omitted

Novastrike insisted on Blackout being repaired, despite the mech’s disapproval. Unfortunately for him, he had to be given a little medical suggestive aid from my tranquilizer darts. I don’t think he’ll be willingly coming to me for a while for repairs now. [MISSING DATA: ERROR] The planet appears to have dormant volcano of sorts, fascinating. Infiltrator and Scorponok were sent out to investigate, with the approval of the other bots, and bring me back samples. I very much look forward to studying the geographical landscape later and studying the rock formations. I wonder if single-cell microorganisms may exist here, or fossilized evidence thereof.

Data Log: Day 77 (Novastrike’s Personal Files)

No bot is quite sure, but Nighthawk and Blackout are feeling pretty positive they found a vapor trail left from a ship! Hard to believe; it’s so empty out here. I pray it’s the Rising Star. Primus and Guard be with us all, it would really lift the spirits around here if we could cut a break.

Data Log: Day 83 (Infiltrator’s Personal Files)

Blackmail. (There appears to only be an image left behind of Nighthawk, recharging, with Blackout obviously snickering just barely in frame. Upon closer examination, one can tell that Nighthawk’s frame has been decorated with the paints to give a false illusion of a feminine faceplate and frame.)

Data Log: Day 85 (Novastrike’s Personal Files)

Infiltrator shared with me an equally impressive photo I added to my collection. I still don’t know if Nighthawk’s ever going to try pulling out that dent he put in Blackout’s armor, but I hope he does. I mean, it wasn’t like he was physically hurt by Blackout’s little gag. It’s a bit funny though, that the time these two seem to be on their best behavior around each other is when I’m actually around and awake. I feel like I have magical powers of influence around them!

Data Log: Day 88 (Blackout’s Personal Files) ERROR – Data Omitted

Evidence of a ship has been through this area, recently. We’ll be pursing as soon as Nighthawk and Infiltrator have finished collecting their samples on yet another wayward planet. [MISSING DATA: ERROR]

Data Log: Day 90 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files)

[ERROR: LOG APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN WIPED CLEAN OF DATA... RETRIEVAL IN PROCESS... ACCESS DENIED. PLEASE TRY AGAIN.]

Data Log: Day 95 (Nighthawk’s Personal Files)

(There appears to only be images taken from a planet. They appear to resemble an extinct species glyphs and images depicting their history. The only note at the bottom is a simple state: ‘Process later. No obvious signs of life on this planet any longer. Perhaps gone, went off planet, or hiding underground?’.)

Breathing in loudly with excitement, Novastrike pressed her face against Blackout’s viewing panel. He gave a quiet grunt as he had to readjust some of his control panel; knobs moving and levers readjusting carefully.

“Nova, dear, I told you not to touch any of these. They’re sensitive.” he growled softly.

“Oh, sorry!” she squeaked, leaning off of him. She pressed her forehead lightly against the glass as she arched her back to better lean in.

Giving a quiet chuckle, the mech spoke quietly through his alt-mode, “Enjoying the view?”

“Yes!” she gasped. “Look at that planet! Look at it’s rings; they’re glorious!”

Giving a slight chuckle that echoed through his form, Blackout replied lightly, “I’ve seen far more glorious depictions before my optics.”

Sticking her glossia out, the petite femme gave a light swish of her tail to knock lightly against a portion side of his control panel; careful not to touch anything of importance.

Static crackled quietly through the obsidian space vessel as Nighthawk reported over the comm channel, “I have to agree with Novastrike. Absolutely fascinating. It appears that planet is shedding its rings though, sad to say. My scanners indicate that the equator and gravitational pull coming from the epicenter of that planet is pulling its own rings down in the atmosphere.”

“Oh,” Novastrike breathed. “That’s a shame. It’ll lose some of its beauty and charm.”

“Worlds are ever changing, little pupil,” Nighthawk sagely remarked. “That makes them no less beautiful than they are. Planets are constantly in a shift of development; growth and decay.”

“Is that what happened to Cybertron?” Blackout snorted. “We’re just in the decay part of all that scrap you just said?”

“No,” icily responded the seeker. “What happened to Cybertron is a lack of our concern for our own homeworld that damaged it so severely.”

“Cybertron will recover though,” the dragon added on quietly. “So long as we do not meddle in His healing process.”

“You think it’ll be inhabitable again one day soon?” Nova whispered, sighing with longing as she sank down to her knees. Her body flipped over, backstrut pressed into her escort’s control panel as she glanced out at the distant, twinkling lights and blueish toned planet far off in the distance.

There was a quiet silence between all the mechs. The small femme’s ears began to falter, and slowly drop.

“There’s no telling,” admitted the medic. “None of us have exactly seen our homeworld in many, many, many years now. But eventually, Cybertron will be healthy and we’ll be able to return there. Don’t give up hope.”

For Guard’s sake and in his memory, she would not. She remembered just how much he prayed that they would be able to go back one day. It was his dream to bring every bot he could back home, and she wanted to try fulfilling his goals as much as she could.

Inside of himself, the dark armored mech dimmed the lights as Novastrike recharged. He managed to get his holoform functional for a brief time, no matter how weird it felt to think about that his nanoties were creating a false impression of himself inside of himself.

Blackout picked her up and sat her into the chair, which unhinged at a point to lean back so she could lay at an angle. She muttered sleepily as she dreamed, curling her limbs into herself. His holoform smirked for a nanoklik as he looked down at her precious face, the soft lines of light bands moving against her before it flickered offline.

“My sensors indicate that the trail we’ve been following is getting stronger,” Nighthawk reported over the comm link.

Speaking in the quietest voice, Blackout huskily responded, “As do mine.”

“Why are we whispering?”

“Novastrike’s recharging.”

“Ah,” the medic murmured in a quieter voice. “My apologies.”

Blackout’s viewing screens shifted around, looking back at the giant orb of a planet and the array of space rocks they’d passed by a while back. His thrusters gave a quiet growl as he arced out wide from the brownish hued planet. Its radius was far smaller than those prior to the intergalactic debris they’d just went soaring through.

The Jaguar, to Blackout’s right, went zipping by him before returning to an idle pace once again. Nighthawk flicked a mocking salute at him as he passed.

“Proud of your little ship, aren’t you?” Blackout sneered.

“Beats your slow aft, that’s for sure.”

“I’m built to withstand blows from much bigger bots and heartier attacks. Your dinky little vessel is meant for what, a stroll around Iacon?”

“More like Crystal City,” teased the medic. “That’s where the majority of the scientific community used to be, anyway.”

“Yawn.”

“Don’t you dare insult the mathematical ingenious of my peers.”

“Your peers?” Blackout snickered. “Like who? Shockwave?”

“Ugh, don’t speak that deplorable name around me,” the mech stated with an obvious sense of distaste. “That mech is mad. Fusing bots together, dismembering them, his war machines and his mutants. There’s no science in that mech. His logic sensors are broken. All he delves in is chaos and revealing in the destruction he creates.”

“Like any good Decepticon would.”

There was a curious hum that came through the comm channel from Nighthawk.

“Do you miss it?”

“Miss what?” Blackout growled, irritated now.

“Being a Decepticon. Do you miss it at all?”

The dark mech went silent. As he thought over the medic’s words carefully, a shadow descended upon his screen, blotting out the light from above.

“Uh... Blackout,” Nighthawk quietly spoke over the comm channel. Whipping his form to the right hard, the former Hound gave a quiet snarl as he pulled out as far from the ship as he could that came upon him out of seemingly nowhere. Novastrike turned over in the seat as he turned, muttering as she slid down somewhat in her seat.

Banking hard, the mech moved his viewers to look at the side of the ship for a sign or identification series on while he climbed up to see the side of the ship.

“I don’t believe it,” he stated with shock, his voice carrying into the Jaguar as Nighthawk stared speechlessly at the vessel before them.

#quid pro quo au #OTP AU #OTP Lit #Cute OTP #OTP Friends

2 notes · View notes

authenticaussie · 7 years

Note

Izou and Thatch for the pairing ask.

who’s the werewolf and who’s the hunter

Ooooo okay okay so like??? The thought of Izo as a hunter is really really cool but also it’s r EALLY REALLY FUNNY to imagine him being a werewolf and being SO MAD ABOUT IT. Because he sheds!!!! everywhere!!!! Every goddamn where!!! And the amount of clothes he’s ruined by accidentally shifting?! It drives him Crazy. Ofc tho to pass off his obsession w/ the moon is pretty simply - most people think that he’s eccentric, and saying that he’s “charting the planetary flow” and spouting over mumbo jumbo really easily deflects why he actually keeps an eye on it. I can totally see him having this nice apartment w/ pot plants on a balcony and EVERY SINGLE FUCKING FULL MOON, HE KILLS THEM, BC HIS WOLF!SELF IS LIKE, “GOTTA MARK MY TERRITORY”. No-one ever lets him take care of plants. Ever.

And Thatch???? Thatch isn’t even a hunter. He’s the person who got called bc Izo’s apartment isn’t allowed pets and someone complained that Izo had this big dog and Izo’s like my good sir no I do Not, you can very obviously see I do not have space for a dog, and regardless, I hate dogs. They shed and break your stuff and I swear to god if I get humped by one one more time I am going to learn how to levitate.

And like, Thatch was ??? a hunter?? But he’s….soft. He’s soft and squishy and hates to hurt and the whole “werewolves are totally and utterly evil” thing never ever sat right with him. So he went and got a job with animal control buttttttt…. yeah the training doesn’t leave you. And so he’s like “soooo there are no….special circumstances??? Surrounding your….dog??? Like….when he comes to visit?? During certain times of the month?? Like…at night……??”

“My good sir are you suggesting that I am a vampire???”

“No!!!” Thatch goes, “I’m suggesting you’re a werewolf!!”

Three seconds later got him like: why did I say that

who’s the mermaid and who’s the fisherman

IZO MAKES THE PRETTIEST MERMAID,,,,,And like, just ??? All decked out in pearls that he found himself and strung together, and they’re so big and pretty and he’s found chunks of crystals and gone diving in ship wrecks and has thousands of dollars worth of jewellery wrapped around his tail that he likes because it’s sparkly and pretty and also surprisingly enough they make pretty good weapons???

Thatch is #wrecked Bc like??? ooo imagine pirate!thatch chasing down rumours of a mermaid, and a mermaid with a tail made of diamonds??? And finding out that his tail isn’t made of diamonds, but fuck they’re just as valuable, anyway, because of the gems – and then later on, not because of the gems, but just because it’s- Izo. And Izo is infinitely more valuable than any stone, because Izo laughs and teases and smiles and is so captivatingly beautiful.

who’s the witch and who’s the familiar

Izo is the witch!!! Thatch is his faithful familiar. Well, more so faithful helper?? He’s a bit dorky and distracted but also he’d take curses for Izo if that’s what it took. Izo mainly does potions and is a decent witch - not amazing, but decent - and the reason Thatch is considered his familiar is bc when they were young izo tried to brew a “get me a girlfriend” spell for Thatch and it went So Badly and ended up giving him a biologically female body, which he FREAKED OUT about, and in izo’s attempt to fix it he accidentally gave Thatch a whole bunch of animals forms and so!! Thatch can shape-shift a bit xD Only into a couple of animals/objects tho, and only for an hour or two.

who’s the barista and who’s the coffee addict

Surprisingly enough, Izo is the coffee addict?? Like, people think it’s Thatch because he’s so hyperactive, all the time, and Izo is constantly perfect that no-one thinks he ever has a time where he doesn’t look 10000% put together, but nope. Thatch has seen Izo in the 6am, when he’s just rolled out of bed and stumbled into Thatch’s cafe and been like give me coffee or death and Thatch is like one death coffee coming up!! And serves like, a triple shot black pffft xD

who’s the professor and who’s the TA

Thaaaaaaaaaaatch!! Thatch is the professor and Izo is the TA!! He’s distracted and loud and bouncy and forgets things constantly but like?? He’s really good at helping people. Students terrified of their thesises have gone to talk to him in a panic, asking to drop the course, and he manages to kick start their ideas and motivation and enjoyment and they walk out babbling to themselves because all of these thoughts! They know exactly what they’re doing! And Izo has never been able to figure it out; he’s given out schedules and colour-coding and he keeps thatch organised and on-time and helps with marking and meetings but-

Thatch is the one that they flock too when they need it. People leave Izo’s office still looking vaguely worried, but Thatch’s students?? They could conquer the world after a meeting with Thatch. Izo thinks it’s fascinating and amazing and impressive because he’s never been able to do it or figure out how it works and he asks but Thatch just. It’s just Thatch.

who’s the knight and who’s the prince(ss)

Honestly, interchangeable??????? It’s hard bc like, whitebeard connection is undeniable, so like, why would one be a prince and one be a guard, you feel? But like!!!!!!!!!! Honestly I lean more towards Thatch as the prince!!! He’s not… good at politics, because he’s too honest and truthful, but like..He’s been raised for this, and he knows how to twist people round his finger. They think his optimism is idiocy and someone scatterbrained? He’ll give them scatterbrained, and sneak what he wants right by them. Most of the servants know his particular brand of intelligence, but they keep it to themselves because he’s a good prince, and for all that he can manipulate with the best of them, he really only does it in the interest of others???????????? And Izo, now Izo, you’d think he’d be a bad knight, and you’re right in part of the aspect - he’s not the best sword fighter, or horse-rider, or the best guard, and he can get distracted by people and things and situations, but like, gods above does this man know how to get information. And it’s weird!! It’s weird, because Izo understands people but not in the way Thatch does. He understands guilt and greed and secrecy and bribery and what people will do for others, what he doesn’t understand is- is the things that thatch is proficient in. Like, Izo gets it when people act in a situation he knows. But when they change it? When they don’t act like he expects? He has to find out why. And if there’s no reason bar human fallacy he’s just??????????????? It confuses him so much. He knows what paths will lead to the best outcome and people!! not following that!! what the heck!!! why!!! ???? and thatch is like uhhhhhhhh because they’re unpredicatble and people are weird???

“IT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE“

who’s the teacher and who’s the single parent

Thatch is the teacher and Izo’s the single parent!! Like I said?? before?? Izo’s not like…amazing with people, he tries, but he always…thinks his way is best?? And doesn’t understand why people don’t do the most efficient thing? That’s hard for him. But Thatch, oh thatch, he’s good-natured and a bit dorky and useless, but he can solve a person faster than Ace can burn down a building. He started off not really getting kids, because, well!!! Kids!! They’re loud and shrieky and their sense of place and self and Science is weird but thatch stopped looking at them like some other species and was like No they’re just Little People. Anyway, he’s basically everyone’s favourite teacher.

who’s the writer and who’s the editor

Thatch is the writer and Izo is the editor. And like, I can definitely see Thatch as an editor, too, but like?? For structure and flow and being creative and pulling more from a work, and Izo gets really stubborn about it because he’s like no, what you’re suggesting is grammatically incorrect but then Thatch is like yes but it feels. That’s their dynamic even if it’s switched, too pfft. Thatch would write cookbooks but like!! The dorky ones w/ cute stories and pictures and stuff like that. He’d also probably write ??? Poems, I feel?? Whereas Izo would write nonfiction and fantasy, but fantasy ala a quiet, understated fantasy that seeps into every book, and like, you’re not sure you’re meant to understand the book and it’s a weird philosophical classic and you’re just squinting like…uh…okay. Also the one time he and Thatch collaborate they make a jokingly cheesy messy ridiculously out there romance book and it becomes the most popular out of any of their books and they get SO MAD.

#aussie's anons #ask aussie #weirdly enough this is the Very Very Very first time I've been asked for izou & thatch!!#which is Strange considering their apparent popularity lol #sorry it isn't as ?? indepth as the marco/ace marco/sabo etc. ones #I can get lots of thoughts abt them bc I !!! well I do a lot of character studies?? and I've made lots of aus w/ them....#so like???????? figuring out how they would react to situations and how to build a plot around that is easy haha XD #and while I still do a lot on thatch and izo it's not #to the extent that i do charas like marco / ace / sabo / luffy / zoro / nami #bc like??? I don't have Many Ships w/ them....and I do a lot of exploration of character interaction through shipping #i dunno where thatch/izo came from pfft #but it's cute!!! I don't go out of my way to read it #but when it's written well I don't mind it ;u;#I really like super arrogant & clever izo who sometimes forgets how to people #so thatch - who like NEVER forgets how to people #and is always trying to help and comfort and support - is a pretty good match ;u;#at the same time tho i like aro!izo v/w\v #I can defs see qpp thatch/izo though!!!#which actually i didn't think abt before #darn #that's....a Good time #long post #huffs #aw man!!!!!!! I wanted to finish all these tonight but it's 11 and I have a train to catch tomorrow #I guess I'll try and finish them before I Leave??#if not tho they may have to wait until I get back from my trip on wednesday #izothatch #thizo #???#thatchizo

5 notes · View notes

inquisitorius-sin-bin · 7 years

Text

Dr. Victre - Chapter 2

Introduction | Chapter 1

Dr. Lysa Victre scanned one more time through her computer’s species database.

“Right, could you say that for me one more time?”

The Fifth Brother huffed, rolling his eyes. “Nylotican. From the planet Nylos.”

She put a hand over her face, idly pinching her lower lip. “This is highly irregular,” she mumbled.

“What is?”

“Your species, as you named it, is not in my database. Nor is there a group which lists all of the characteristics you seem to exhibit.”

She stood, pacing back over to the operating table. Her head was light with the euphoria, though she tried not to get her hopes up. Perhaps a DNA analysis was due. Or maybe one more look at his features.

“Could you blink for me, slowly?” she asked.

The Fifth Brother stared at her with his arms crossed, but did as requested.

“Nictitating membranes, yes, that’s what I thought… What about your teeth, can you open up for me?”

“What is this abou-”

She caught his mouth and held it open, thoroughly counting and examining the shape of his teeth once more. All the same, seemingly imbedded within the jaw. “Homodont dentition. Appears to be thecodont as well. Do you know if your teeth replace themselves if lost?”

“Ahhh - yaaah?” he replied, his mouth still held open by the strange woman his fellow Inquisitors had been telling him about. Very interesting, she was.

“Ohh, sorry!” She let go of his jaw, returning to her computer and giving more inputs, trying to tease out a response. “There could be several reasons why you aren’t listed,” she tried to reason, “perhaps your species has a name for itself which is different from the database’s records, or maybe someone made a mistake entering in characteristics…”

“Or perhaps you made a mistake,” he suggested.

“Unlikely,” she mused, the corner of her mouth curling up, “however it is also a possibility that your species isn’t described in Core World records. Tell me, how does Nyloticus quintumfratremi sound?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” the Fifth Brother answered, ready to be done with all this poking and prodding.

She sighed in response. “That’s alright, if I hold you any longer I’m liable to get in trouble with our mutual superior anyways. I’ll just take a small tissue sample. That and your scan should be able to give me what I need… for a bit.”

She grabbed the small excision tool while the Fifth Brother instinctively braced himself, covering his arm.

“Ohh,” Lysa put down the tool for a moment, looking at the exposed place on his upper arm. “Your skin is peeling. Let me have a look.”

She extended a hand, and the Fifth Brother hesitated before offering his limb.

“Is Nylos a moist planet?” she asked, inspecting the dried and flaking tissue.

“Yes,” he offered, eyeing her, “like a swamp.”

“Hmm… Well the cold air here doesn’t hold much moisture.” She looked around, then located the trial packets she was looking for. “To be honest, I’m not quite sure if you’re more amphibian or more reptile, so I’m playing it safe. This cream is safe for use on Chagrians, so it should work for you.”

She lightly dabbed the surface of the skin irritation with the moisturizer, watching closely for a reaction. “I would keep a close eye on this patch. If you don’t experience any irritation, then come back to me for more. I’ll give you some samples in the meantime though. And perhaps you might want to consider adding sleeves to your uniform. The less your skin is exposed to the dry air here, the better.”

The Fifth Brother tilted his head back as he eased up some. “I uh - thank you, doctor.”

“Of course! It’s no problem,” Lysa laughed a little, “it’s my job to keep you healthy, and skin care is a big part of that. Now, about that tissue sample -”

The sound of the sliding door cut her off, as she looked up to see Tewbee marching in.

“Dr. Victre, the Grand Inquisitor is here to speak to you,” the droid reported.

“Ah,” she sucked in a breath through her teeth, “I’m in the middle of an examination, but…”

“He is most insistent that you see him.”

The doctor slowly peeled off her rubber gloves. “Yes I assumed that might be the case… Tewbee, if you would please, excise a small tissue sample from this patient and perform a full body scan. I’ll be back when I can.”

“Be careful,” the Fifth Brother warned with a hint of a smirk, “I don’t think he likes you very much.”

“I would tend to agree with that assessment,” Tewbee chimed in.

“Okay, you two, enough of that. I’ll be fine,” Lysa said, hurrying out to the service window. Once there, she pressed the button and the panel lifted, revealing the stern-faced Pau’an.

“Grand Inquisitor, sir, how may I help you?” she asked, hoping today he was feeling at least slightly more amiable.

“These examinations are taking far too long,” he grumbled.

“Well, yes, they are taking longer than I had anticipated… Each of you requires very individualized care, which I hadn’t originally accounted for in my time estimations.”

“Individualized care. Because we are not humans.”

“Why, yes. It isn’t a problem or anything,” Dr. Victre shrugged, “but unfortunately every chart and diagram I have assumes a human physiology, which you all just don’t-”

“-Enough,” he cut her off, “that is not why I am here. I need you to explain this.”

He slapped a datapad down onto the counter with more force than he intended, the sudden sound jolting Lysa’s body and making her chest tight. It took her a second to ease away the tension so she could breathe again. The Inquisitor noted her flinch with a raised brow, but said nothing.

“This is a schedule,” she explained, still a little shaken, “the Third Brother’s, it looks like. Is… there a problem?”

“What are these three hour slots in the UV chambers for?” he asked, staring intently at her.

“Well,” Dr. Victre began, “we don’t get much sunlight here on Stygeon Prime, but it is still necessary for proper neurological health and vitamin uptake, so he needs to spend some time in the chambers just like the humans here do.”

“Neither I nor the First or Second have this on their schedule…”

Dr. Victre shook her head. “No, both the Chiss and Pau’an dwell underground naturally, so it is not necessary for you three.”

The Grand Inquisitor stood on the other side of the window, looking her over.

“…Are you unaware that Pau’an live underground?” she gaped.

“-No! Of course I knew that!” he spat quickly, then smoothed his uniform back down.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend,” Lysa said, noticing his discomfort. “You’re from Coruscant, aren’t you? You have the accent.”

The Inquisitor frowned deeply. Something about him was just suddenly colder and darker to her.

“You had best stay in your own affairs, Dr. Victre.”

She shuddered, though she couldn’t tell if it was his tone or his demeanor that bothered her. “Right. I… should probably get back to my examination…”

“Yes you should,” he hissed.

Lysa slid the datapad back to his side of the counter, and nearly pushed the button to close the window, but had one last concern.

“You will tell me if that medication works for you, right? And when? It’s very important. I need to get a baseline for which dosages are appropriate for you.”

His teeth were bared. “I will let you know.”

“Okay, thank you. Have a nice day,” she spoke softly, then shut the window, slinking into the nearest chair with a heavy sigh.

There was something incredibly off about the encounter, beyond the efficiency and the stubbornness she had come to expect from her new superior. Questioning his home and accent had made him downright dangerous. She made a note not to bring up Coruscant again.

When Dr. Victre returned to the room, the Fifth Brother could tell she had been shaken. Something about her presence gave off the impression of someone who was deeply unsettled. He almost didn’t notice the prick of the tissue sample being removed from his arm.

“Good work, Tewbee,” she said at last, “I can take it from here.”

“I have completed the tissue extraction and scan, just as asked,” the droid replied.

The doctor nodded. “Of course. I think I’ll do some blood work too, just in case. In fact, put down an order for all Inquisitors to get blood drawn on their next visit. I should work on setting up an appropriate bank; it could be very handy.”

Tewbee beeped once in affirmation. “Noted, Dr. Victre.”

“Great, now if you will excuse us, I will finish this exam and move on to the Sixth Brother-”

“-Seventh Sister,” the Fifth Brother corrected. “The Sixth Brother was killed long ago.”

“Oh, I’m sorry…” Dr. Victre trailed off. “I didn’t realize- He was not listed as deceased on my charts. But of course, there wasn’t much information on them to begin with.”

The Fifth’s expression did not change. “That’s alright. It’s not as if… well, you may have noticed that we don’t exactly get along within the Inquisitorius. We aren’t here to make friends.”

“A pity. I couldn’t imagine not being at all friendly with my teammates. If it weren’t for Tewbee and my patients, I think I would have gone mad by now,” Dr. Victre joked, tying a band around the Fifth Brother’s rather muscular arms.

The Fifth Brother suppressed a laugh. “The way they describe you, you may already be a bit mad.”

“Well, I can’t help it, really. You’re all just so different to me. You make me curious, and I mean that not just from a biology standpoint- no. You all must have some incredible tales! I want to know where all of you are from, what it’s like there, how you came to be a part of the Empire, what worlds you have seen since then, all of it!” she beamed.

He furrowed his brow. “Be careful, Doctor. Those questions are not to be answered. And asking the wrong one might get you into serious trouble.”

So she wouldn’t get any answers from him either. Dr. Victre deflated. Though, perhaps investigations of the Inquisitors’ health might yield some answers. A quick look over the Fifth Brother’s scans didn’t immediately reveal anything, but she was hopeful for the results of the blood panel.

“Well, yes…” she said at last, “I suppose I will have to get used to some secrecy. Just… know this, and tell the others too; I am your primary physician now. Details can be more important than you know, and I’m never at liberty to share them with anybody. So if something happens to you and you’re on some top secret assignment, know that you can tell me what I need to know to help you and I will never share it with another soul.”

The Fifth shifted, pawing at the cotton she had taped to his arm. “Alright,” he said, clearly uncomfortable.

She smiled, waving it off. “But hopefully by the time something like that happens, if it happens, I will have gained your trust. Yours and all the others’.”

He nodded again. “Let us hope.”

Lysa swallowed. The Inquisitors were certainly a stiff bunch, but this one seemed a little more open- and he had been the first one to thank her as well. As she escorted him out, she couldn’t help offering him a cup of caf before he left. It just seemed like the right thing to do, even if he refused.

“Take care, Fifth Brother,” she told him.

The Fifth did not answer the doctor’s wishes, but instead stepped out of the medical center and met the presence he sensed was waiting for him just outside.

“The Grand Inquisitor told me that you are to give him a report immediately,” the lithe Seventh Sister stepped into his view.

“A report? On… the doctor?”

“Apparently all current personnel on base are being evaluated. Something about whether or not they can handle the change,” she smirked.

The Fifth Brother crossed his arms. “What change?”

“Well, apparently this place hasn’t seen any action since ohh, the Clone Wars or so. He doesn’t think some of the staff here are up for what is to come if his little pet project actually works.”

“And you think it will?”

The Seventh Sister tilted her head back and laughed. “How should I know, or care? All I know is that you have a report to file and I have an appointment with Doctor ‘I’ve never seen a non-human before in my life’!”

“Right…” the Fifth huffed, leaning away from his smaller counterpart. “Have fun with that.”

Dr. Victre plopped down in her chair long after she had told herself to go to sleep. Tewbee had already powered down, and the med bay was deathly quiet. She mindlessly toyed at the camera switch between Cerastes and Crotalus, but the feed couldn’t hold her interest for long.

She rolled her chair back over to her microscope, tapping her fingers on the counter a few times before standing up and collecting a portion of one of the blood samples she had collected from an Inquisitor that day. It was just a drop, just enough for her to look at and ponder over for the next day’s appointments. She hoped that she could see the remaining new patients in the next two or three days. Simply explaining who she was or how she knew as much as she did time and time again was starting to make her weary.

To make matters worse, every single one of them was suspicious to the point on inhibiting her work. There was something so odd about all of them that Lysa just couldn’t put a finger on. She was excited of the possibilities they represented to her studies- and their physiology was incredibly engaging- but Dr. Victre was unsure of how much longer she could handle patients who treated her questions like she was an enemy spy.

They had to be hiding something. The request she had received on the day of the Inquisitors’ arrival could not be ignored. What could they possibly want with the body of a dead Jedi? How did such a thing even come to be on Stygeon Prime?

Wiping her heavy eyelids, she dropped her sample into a dish and put it under the scope. Lysa wasn’t even sure what she was looking for, exactly. Just any kind of explanation for what was happening on her little isolated base.

Though the cell forms were foreign to her, it only took a few minutes of observation to determine which cells was more or less analogous to human blood cells. The relative proportions of each kind even seemed normal. There was one structure, though, which looked exactly identical to its counterpart in every living thing. There were Midi-Chlorians wherever she looked. They seemed to be in incredibly high concentrations compared to the number in any human samples she had seen.

Dr. Victre fidgeted with her hair, twirling it as she was deep in observation. She drew pictures of what she saw and took notes on any interactions, until finally even her caf couldn’t keep her awake. Just a few precious hours before her own personal wake up call, she finally staggered into the elevator and down to her quarters.

#dr Victre #drabbles

18 notes · View notes

curlygirl79 · 4 years

Text

First Second Coming, the debut fantasy/supernatural/romance/suspense novel by Jeff Pollak, was released on 1st August. Prior to it’s release, I sat down for a virtual chat with Jeff, and I am delighted to be able to share this with you all today. Let’s jump straight in, and then I will share all the important information about the book with you all.

What was the inspiration behind First Second Comings?

When 9/11 occurred, I watched the World Trade Tower collapse just as everyone else did. Of course, I was horrified by the spectacle. Perhaps more so than others, because I had connections to that building. Born and raised in New York City, I’d been in the building a few times as a child. In my adult years, my law firm would hold annual seminars in the Top of the Tower conference centre every May, to update our New York/New Jersey corporate clients about California law and important appellate decisions. As a partner in the firm I’d function as a speaker, a panelist, or just a meet-and-greet guy. I had some clients in the building and gotten to know some of the conference centre’s staff. So the collapse was very hard to watch – some people I knew in that building didn’t survive, I later learned. That day a random thought came to me, that this planet really needs a new god, someone who is a planetary turnaround specialist. Some fourteen years later, when I’d decided to spend my future retirement writing fiction, the concept of a character who is a planetary turnaround deity came back to me as the seed of a story. I developed it and First Second Coming is the result.

What are your favourite books as a reader?

My all-time favorite books? I’ll break it down by genre. Historical fiction: James Clavell’s Shogun and Tai-Pan novels. Also Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth and Iain Pears’ An Instance of the Fingerpost. Fantasy: Tolkien’s Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Science Fiction: Frank Herbert’s Dune and Douglas Adams’ Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Thriller/Suspense: Tom Clancy’s Hunt for Red October and John LeCarre’s Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. Horror: Stephen King’s The Stand. Magical Realism: Haruki Murakami’s 1Q84 and David Mitchell’s The Bone Clocks. Non-fiction: Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin about Abraham Lincoln’s Civil War Cabinet, and Simon Winchester’s Atlantic about that little pond that separates England from the U.S.A.

Which authors inspire you as a writer? Is there a particular author who it would make your day to be compared to?

At the moment the authors who inspire me the most are, in no particular order, Iain Pears, David Mitchell, Haruki Murakami and Daniel Silva. The first Pears book I read, An Instance of the Fingerpost, is told from the point of view of four different individuals. Each POV character narrates the same events entirely differently, leaving the reader amazed that the story comes together. Pears is a master at that sort of intricate plotting and character development. As for Mitchell, the man’s off the charts as a writer. Incredible talent. I don’t read his books, I savor every sentence in them, especially The Bone Clocks. As for Murakami, I started with 1Q84 and it was a revelation. Something different in its Japanese setting, in the richness of the details of both the real world and the alternative world he creates, and in the uniqueness of the story. Finally, Silva – he writes espionage thrillers along the lines of LeCarre or Follett. Silva’s ongoing series of about twenty books now all involve Israeli Mossad spy Gabriel Allon. Silva’s books are a bit formulaic, but he often incorporates real world events into the story and he has a conciseness to his writing style that I try to emulate in my writing. At this point in my development as a writer, being compared to Silva would probably make my day as I’m not yet at the “master writer” level of a Pears, Mitchell or Murakami. I aspire to get that good, though.

What did you learn over the course of writing First Second Comings that you wish you had known before you started?

Good question. I was learning the craft while I wrote, so I suppose the short answer is “everything.” I attended writers conferences, participated in critique groups, did online courses and researched answers to the “how to” things that came up. If there’s one thing that stands out that I didn’t learn but instead experienced, it’s getting so close to your characters that they actually talk to you unbidden (in your head) while you write. The first time my female main character, Brendali Santamaria, started talking to me I pretty much freaked out. I wasn’t expecting that and didn’t know this is a fairly common occurrence in the writing world. She’d tell me what was actually going on in the story, as differentiated from what my outline said was happening. I enjoyed hearing from her before long. Her romance with Ram Forrester, for example, wasn’t something I had planned to include in the story – but it happened and is now a major piece of First Second Coming.

Do you have a regular writing routine? If you do, what does it look like?

I do now, yes, but while writing most of First Second Coming I’d write as time allowed, around my work and family obligations. Now, as a retiree and empty-nester, I have plenty of free time. I do most of my work in the morning, from about 5:30 to 11:30, taking breaks for exercise and to get showered and dressed. In the afternoons I’ll hike for an hour or so, do any errands or chores that need doing, and write or edit as time permits. I don’t write in the evening, leaving that time for reading or other leisurely pursuits.

Do you have a plan in mind for your next book?

I’ve begun writing the second book in the “New God” series, or to put it another way, the sequel to First Second Coming. I’m also doing research for it and writing a novel that will be a spin-off from the series but not part of it. All those things – the two novels and the research – are in the start-up stages. I hope to have a first draft done on at least one of the two novels by year end.

Thanks so much Jeff, for taking the time to talk to me. Now, onto the all important blurb!

BLURB:

In 2027 the deity known as NTG – short for New Testament God – retires after more than two thousand years of minding the store for his employer, Milky Way Galaxy, Inc. The new god, a planetary turnaround specialist, must decide whether the Earth’s dominant species should or should not be included in his plan to bring the planet back into full compliance with Milky Way Galaxy, Inc.’s planetary operation standards.

Earth’s new God introduces himself to humanity by unexpectedly appearing on the Ram Forrester Hour talk show. Ram, an atheist, and co-host Brendali Santamaris, a devout Catholic, are stunned. God’s interview, beamed worldwide, shocks and infuriates viewers. They learn that a sixty-day conference will take place in Los Angeles to determine whether humans are capable of helping him implement his planetary turnaround plan. All that those in attendance must do to assure that mankind earns a coveted spot in this God’s good graces is eliminate religious violence forever, without his heavenly help, before the conference ends. Failure means extinction.

God designates Ram and Bren as the conference’s only authorized media reporters. This assignment, fraught with peril, ignites their romance. Not only must the harried couple attend the conference meetings by day and do their show at night, they must also outwit a group of religious fanatics bent on killing them. When conflicts with the conference intensify, it’s up to Ram and Bren to do whatever it takes to protect their budding romance and assure mankind’s survival.

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jeff Pollak, the author of First Second Coming and sequels to come, was raised in the Riverdale section of the Bronx by a single mom and two grandparents who lived eight floors up. After graduating from college in Buffalo, Jeff headed west to Los Angeles for law school and spent his entire legal career in and around civil litigation. Now retired, writing fiction is Jeff’s new passion.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

Goodreads

Website

Twitter

Thanks again Jeff, for taking the time to talk to me. I think this sounds like a fascinating book and I am very much looking forward to reading it.

Join me for a virtual chat with @jspollak author of First Second Comings #bookblogger #q&a #meettheauthor #fantasy #supernatural #suspense #romance #fictioncafewriters #spoonshortagebookclub First Second Coming, the debut fantasy/supernatural/romance/suspense novel by Jeff Pollak, was released on 1st August. Prior to it's release, I sat down for a virtual chat with Jeff, and I am delighted to be able to share this with you all today.

#@jspollak #fantasy #Meet the Author #q&a #romance #supernatural #suspense

0 notes

mikazukikannagisjourney · 4 years

Text

Taurus Full Moon April 22/23 2020 - with some tips

Hi all, how are you thriving so far? I hope you’re all well, body, mind, heart, soul, and wallet-wise lol But seriously, this “pandemic” has taken a toll on a lot of people, not just those who actually got the virus, but everyone else. I don’t think it’s fair, but when nature decides to make its way after being taken advantage of, well, sh** hits the fan, hard. We’re in the middle of that situation and despite what it seems to be, waiting and prepping up is the only thing we can do right now. For safety reasons of course. Physical distancing is greatly affecting so many jobs that require physical presence so I’m not the only one who’s losing not just brain cells but also moolah.. Unless you’re working at home and everything is still running smoothly. if so... Good for you! =) I am personally affected by this whole mess of a pandemic and I am not exactly OK with it, and my body is also acting up aka old pains and aches and stuff started flaring up ever since I last posted, April 5 or something? 8? It felt so long ago, because after the whole global meditation thing I started having trippy dreams, so trippy that even if I slip in a 10-minute doze I’d get to dreamland so fast, it was so draining, so I had no choice but to get some rest, which only lasts a max of 3 hours. And well, you know what happens to sleep-deprived people. T_T But I’m doing a bit better, thank you, and I tried all remedies to move energies: old, young, new, not mine, mine, generational, genetic, emotional, basically removing all of the blockages I could detect. I couldn’t meditate sitting down due to the back pain so I started going back to doing QiGong. It helped greatly, now I upped my sleep time to 5 hours. Not the best but it’s better than 3 hours or 2 hours and having difficulty filling in the gap. Other than the sweltering and humid heat, and having unexplainable pains, I think I’m faring better than others. It sounds Pollyanna-ish but I just try to see the brighter side of things aka I used to be bedridden due to intense and debilitating backpains but now I can stand and even play tetris 99 so I think that’s something to be grateful for.

Speaking of gratitude, the Full Moon in Taurus tomorrow, April 22 or 23 (depending on where you are) is a great opportunity to fill our cups, in preparation for the days, weeks, and months ahead. Because if it isn’t obvious by now, extreme changes will take place once the quarantines or the mobility restrictions are lifted. It is a strong must that we all adapt, because trust me or anyone else when they say that things will never be the same. Yep. And based on the evolutionary patterns of species, the strongest ones don’t survive, the most adaptable ones do, and it’s high time adaptability is given the love it deserves because THAT’S what the new endings shall require all of us, in order to navigate not just the new energies that are flowing in, but the new way of doing things. Like it or not.

So.. just to push everyone (me included lol) to amp up the manifestation urge, some tidbits to assist you in what to ask for. Taurus is ruled by Venus, along with Libra. Venus rules love, relationships, connections, beauty in general, arts, and most importantly, MONEY. Plus Taurus is a fixed earth sign, meaning it rules whatever we have or own in the physical realm, and it’s in for the long haul. With that in mind, what do you think, or feel intuitively need to manifest now and in the next part of the year? Do you want to be healthier? Make more cash? Be connected with more people? Dress up preppier? Create artsy fartsy stuff? Whatever it is, as long as it is lawful, doesn’t hurt anybody (including you), and fills you with joy, just do it. Or at the very least, plan it out. See yourself achieving that goal, or goals, by doing things step-by-step, even if it’s just baby steps. A move forward despite being pushed back is better than no movement at all. That’s the real backslide right there. And because Taurus energy can help you get things materialized into this physical realm, why not call upon that energy as well? I mean, we’re all stuck somehow anyway, might as well engage with the higher dimensional realms. Besides, these are energetic realms that all religions and belief systems call upon because they’re just there, so even if you’re skeptical it won’t hurt to try, and see if you have results.

Oh, and for those who are affected by astrological energies and shenanigans, Pluto’s gonna go back to Capricorn on the 25th, so you’ll either get used to the quarantine thing or it will make you even more anxious. Also, if you know which house in your natal chart your Capricorn is in, you can check it out because it can affect that house again, once Pluto goes back to Capricorn. You might wanna add that to your manifestations and stuff, for good measure.

Warning: Personal Rant Below. You can skip as needed lol I was supposed to start a new career last month, I was super excited because I thought I was going to get a new lease in life but then community quarantines started so.. Nope. I thought that was the end of my issues so I just shifted into “hey let’s max out the healing since we’re not going anywhere” but I think trying to purge as much crap in my body as I could, sorta broke it, in a way? I mean, I was good for the first 3 days of April, but then after the Jupiter-Saturn conjuction and meditation thing I just broke down into more heaps of emotions that I don’t even know if they’re even mine. Oh, and the pains started coming in, and I didn’t take any medications so I just lived through 2 weeks of having pains, which were bearable to some extent until this weekend. Honestly I don’t see any other way out of this situation but to just rest, but having a gene key that makes me wanna die each time I have to stop and just be, that’s a pretty hard deal. Unless I take drugs so I could just sleep despite the world crumbling down. So I decided to purge more, and the pains starting popping out. It got really intense in the weekend, I can’t sit anymore, and standing hurts, and I had muscle spasms and tense joints. Not exactly fun. And it was hard to sleep in the humid heat, plus I kept getting bitten by ants while I sleep in daylight. Like really, the ants here in my new place are so hecking aggresive, they invade personal spaces like they own the place. Just thinking about them riles me up, I wanna explode. But it’s night right now and they’re gone elsewhere so I will definitely do my best to snooze while it is cool before they invade me in the morning. I miss the monsoon rains, where are you T_T

OK, enough about that, now for some raves--

I have been personally prepping up to participate in Inktober this year but also have to do warmups since I haven’t done artsy drawings since 2017, I concentrated more on doing calligraphy, which is good, of course, but I also have to honor and respect stuff I promised to do myself, for this year. I am not making excuses for not doing as much as I wanted to, I mean, I am just brain-drained and my creativity has been exhausted due to depressive states plus it’s too hot and humid that I kept getting asthma even just moving. So I just try to go with the flow and see what happens, I might make an update if that works out. But seriously, I miss feeling numb, I am not used to having to process a lot of emotions, but I also have to respect my bodygraph type (emotional center) and having emotions and riding them all out until I feel nothing, not numb, but peaceful, is something that I am working on. It’s not easy, but I am starting to see some light.

OK, so there you go, some support for the new moon, or at least, some stuff you can read to pass the time lol I hope you at least got some ideas, or tips, or even some entertainment? I am definitely not at my best right now due to some stuff but I still wanted to post this in case someone else might benefit. Even if it’s read by someone in the future, if it resonates then it resonates. Besides, there’s always a Taurus new moon every year so yeah, why not.

I hope you all keep safe, and healthy, and whole, and at peace. These are changing times, and if sitting still living in the old ways become unbearable, please remember that you are not alone. Just breathe, trust, and move out of your comfort zone bit by bit. Even if it’s not me, someone’s going to meet you halfway. Just keep holding on.

I remain your soul family,

Mikazuki

PS. If you found the information in this post to be very helpful, insightful, and of great value to you and your own personal journey, please feel free to reblog, share and heart/like, or if you feel super-generous, energetic exchanges are welcomed! Please click here and use this email address: [email protected]

Thank you so much and be blessed!

PSS. If you’re interested to get a personal card and energetic reading, for inquires please send an email or an anonymous ask in this page. Thank you! =)

#taurus full moon #taurus full moon 2020 #taurus full moon april 22 23 2020 #taurus full moon april 2020 #taurus full moon manifestation tips #pluto goes retrograde on april 25 #pluto in capricorn retrograde 2020

0 notes

componentplanet · 4 years

Text

Ann Druyan Talks ‘Cosmos’ and Being an Informed, Inspired Citizen

Host Neil deGrasse Tyson is silhouetted against the birth of the cosmos - the Big Bang - at the inception of the Cosmic Calendar and its vast 13.8 billion years of cosmic evolution. COSMOS: POSSIBLE WORLDS premieres March 9, 2020 on National Geographic. (Cosmos Studios)

Today, Cosmos: Possible Worlds, a new 13-episode series building on 2014’s Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey and 1980’s Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, debuts on National Geographic. The creation of Ann Druyan, who served again as writer, executive producer, and director, and hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, Cosmos: Possible Worlds covers new avenues of exploration and discovery both in the vastness of space and within ourselves. We spoke with Druyan about how she crafted the new series and how we once again find ourselves in a particularly perilous time for science and reason.

Before I even get started, just thank you so far for a lifetime of wonderful books and television.

Thank you. Oh, my God, that makes me feel so good.

How did you approach this new series? What was different this time for you?

Well, I was sitting in my house for about six months. I’m a collector of stories, and I had a big fat file of stories I wanted to tell. But I was also stressed by the fact that in popular culture, every depiction of our future is so horrifying. We’re living in shipping containers. The natural world around us has been effectively destroyed. And having explored climate change in season two, and I believe, having made a very compelling argument for our need to change and for the reality of climate change.

And then seeing how in the years since, we’ve, if anything, been sliding backward. It was my dream to tell the stories of our ancestors and their courage, and how they had their back to the world countless times, to tell the stories of the searchers, who courageously fought for a deeper and more accurate understanding of nature here at home and elsewhere in the cosmos.

Think of their struggles, their sacrifices. I wanted to create a season that would enhance human self-esteem, which is for good reason at a low ebb. And also, to depict a future that I believe we can still have if we get our act together and begin to set things right in our own house, that there’s a future, a great future, which is inspiring. And I don’t think enough [people] have seen what that could be.

And so, that was my primary motivation, and that’s how this season began, was to try to be totally science-based and historically based, and not promise things that cannot be, but to depict just how that future can be if we start taking what science is telling us to heart.

Watching these episodes, like the story with Vavilov, with the Russian rocket designer–I can’t pronounce his name, but–

Yes!

These stories are heart-wrenching, and yet, you still come away with inspiration at the end.

I’m so thrilled to hear that.

And I find that remarkable.

Well, these stories inspire me and my co-writer, Brannon Braga. These stories inspired us, and we are a story-driven species. And so, the first thing that has to happen in order for it to be eligible for inclusion in Cosmos is it has to be a story that works on many different levels, the emotional and dramatic levels, as well as … Each story is a way into an idea that has been said to be too complicated for an audience. I don’t believe that, having worked with the great Carl Sagan and having been inspired by his humility. Never talking to anyone to prove how smart he was, how much he knew, but only talking to communicate, to spread his sense of joy, that keeping his understanding. That’s his secret, and it still inspires me more than I can tell you.

Executive Producers Ann Druyan and Brannon Braga on the set of Cosmos: Possible Worlds. Credit: Lewis Jacobs/FOX

And there’s also your new book, Cosmos: Possible Worlds.

Yes, I’m bursting with enthusiasm to tell you about the book, because it was in the book that I was given the space to tell more of the details of these stories and to really … There was so much that we wanted to put in the episodes, but it’s sort of … In less than an hour, you have to pick and choose the things you can tell and those things that also you can tell and show in such a way.

So the book was for me an opportunity to really take a little more time with each of these stories. And it was written for the most part at 4:00 in the morning, because I was writing it while I was producing and directing. And so, I had to be on set 6:00 AM, 7:00 AM. And so, it’s remarkable to me that it’s coherent. But it was done at a very intense and during a period of such intense work on the show.

Alan Silvestri’s score throughout the show is beautiful, but there’s one particular moment where he develops a beautiful music theme right as the Cassini craft plunges to its death on Saturn’s surface, after 20 years.

Yes, I really felt something not only for the spacecraft but for the Cassini’s mission scientists, whom we had the privilege of filming just as the spacecraft … in that period when the spacecraft was being commanded to commit suicide. And these are people who are multi-talented and have worked on many projects. But for the most part, the people we showed were people who had devoted their adult lives, their scientific careers, to this spacecraft, and then, think of it, commanding it to dash itself to pieces. I wanted to catch that on camera, and that was …

I’m really glad that you … I love that moment when we have the conceit of a person’s whole life flashing before their eyes in the last moment before death. And to do that for a robot was really exciting and moving, so moving.

Alan Silvestri is not only a great composer. He did the music for Contact, so we go way back. But he’s also just one of the most beloved human beings. And so, everyone we worked with on this project, all 986 other people, were bringing a level of dedication and unselfishness to making this season. And I’m really in awe of how everybody stood up for Cosmos and did such great work.

What would you want viewers to come away with this time?

I would love for every viewer to come away feeling that much more powerful. Because I feel powerless, and I know how powerless most of us feel. But that much more powerful, inspired maybe to dig more deeply into some of the subjects and disciplines that we cover. But also, to be a more powerful decision-maker, a more informed decision-maker as a citizen.

This is a show that’s being seen in 172 countries next week. And for me, that’s a platform of potential power, so that we begin to use our dreams as maps, to take more seriously our role as links in the chain of generations, to act in defense of our civilization, to not be manipulated so easily, to reject those leaders who have contempt for science and contempt for reality. That’s what has to happen in order for us to endure and flourish and to get at that future, to get to the future depicted in the series, both the near one, or 2039 at the New York World’s Fair, and the more distant one of the time when humans may populate many worlds throughout the Milky Way galaxy.

Albert Einstein is persuaded by Leo Szilard to sign a letter to President Franklin Roosevelt alerting him to the potential weaponizing of our scientific understanding of physics. Credit: Cosmos Studios

We need to act now. You know? Scientists, they did their job, they predicted all of us 70 years ago. And as you’ll see towards the end of the season, the remarkable work that was done for instance in 1967, with what was then a supercomputer, but is now, something that doesn’t even have the power that we have in our phones. And I think of the great scientist, Manabe, and his colleague, Wetherald, who charted out the change of the global mean temperature around the world from 1967 and even beyond our own present, and how close to the actual unfolding of that temperature they were.

These are processes that no one has ever demonstrated before. They got it right.

They got it right.

But as long as we’re insulated from science, and science is something compartmentalized, I don’t think that we are going to act as diligently and as forcefully as every one of us must have to.

Yeah. I think of Sagan talking in the context of nuclear annihilation, which never really went away, but that was the context in 1980, and it just still feels relevant to some of the despair that we feel now about what’s happening.

I’m so grateful to you for bringing that up, because when we were writing the first season of Cosmos with Steven Soter, the astrophysicist, our concern was that there were 60,000 nuclear weapons on a hair-trigger around the planet. And during the years that followed, those arsenals were reduced tenfold.

Now, as you said, we’re not out of the woods yet, and the chance of even one nuclear detonation is something that keeps me awake at night. Still, it’s very different from 60,000 to get down to 6,000, or less, or fewer. And that is a sign that when there’s a worldwide outcry as there was about the nuclear arms race. For example, nuclear testing in the atmosphere. That was happening all through my childhood many times a month, and it was the mothers of the world who once the scientists pointed out that there was Strontium-90 in their nursing milk for their infant, we stood up and said, “No. No, this has to stop.” And it did stop.

We can do this. We are powerful if we’re allied in a common goal to protect our future.

Despite recent attempts to reverse the progress made in the nuclear arms race and start it up again, the hope is that cooler heads will soon prevail.

Well, I have no fonder hope myself, and the steps backward that we have taken in the United States in the last three years are very disheartening. I mean, it makes me … it really makes me heartsick. Most days I worry about this, but I really believe in democracy, and I believe in its power to right itself when it goes horribly awry. And if we can protect our means of registering our will as voters, then I really believe and hope that this nightmare will end.

Is there anything else you want to add about the new episodes that I didn’t get to?

Yes, the screen CAPS (computer animation production system). I want to say that the capabilities that we have at our disposal to virtual effects are growing by leaps and bounds. And so, we had the opportunity in this new season to simulate physical natural reality in a way that as you observed were not even available six years ago when we were doing season two.

The rate of change in this ability to create verisimilitude, to create, to simulate reality, is so exciting. And I would just hope that it would be used more to convey the revelations of modern science and the beauty, the magnificence of the universe and our part of it on Earth.

And it is [used instead] to blow things up! It seems to me that you get these blockbusters, with such enormous budgets. And yet, so much of it is just … it’s just destroying life. It’s destroying cities, destroying civilization. And it’s my hope that there will be a trend to using these powers to convey the magnificence of the universe revealed by science.

This interview has been lightly condensed and edited for clarity.

Now read:

Neil deGrasse Tyson on Cosmos: Possible Worlds and the Future of Our Own

Cosmos: Possible Worlds TV Review: The Unsung Heroes of Science and Exploration

Neil deGrasse Tyson says it’s ‘very likely’ the universe is a simulation

from ExtremeTechExtremeTech https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/307220-ann-druyan-talks-cosmos-and-being-an-informed-inspired-citizen from Blogger http://componentplanet.blogspot.com/2020/03/ann-druyan-talks-cosmos-and-being.html

#Ann Druyan Talks ‘Cosmos’ and Being an Informed #Inspired Citizen

0 notes