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#Cold Steel is not funny BR
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Mega Man RS Discussion 4 - Wasted Potentials and Characters
Special Weapons of Megaman. Whether they would be considered phenomenally good, mediocre, or just disappointingly a joke, there’s no clear answer when we are subject on what is more superior, inferior, or vice versa in our own perspectives.
But Ruby-Spears Mega Man just seemed to hit and miss of the potentials for whatever had been used in only once would’ve been real handy in a certain and risky situation for future slots. Especially for the majority of world-building that they’ve just seemed to take it for granted and just discard it for life by breaking several of the rules to what or what is not applied.
What I’m illustrating is that when viewing the entire show of Mega Man, we can spot some interesting abilities from the Robot Masters that once employed in one episode, and that show runners just somehow never brought ‘em back again whenever it would be strategically useful for a certain character in desperate times calling for desperate measures within these reliable gimmicks to be less liable. Or that some of the intern writers that were in the writing room by having no knowledge about Mega Man would end up contriving.
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As season two was brought into air in 1995 and that both Bandai and Capcom governing the toy promotions; that lead to the upgraded suits for Mega Man that was never exclusively seen before in the video game series along with that hefty artillery tank, the Land Blazer. But again, “promotional” usages.
While it is all dandy for what quality second season contains. But going back between first and second seasons on where those abilities were completely ignored and were never been brought back again in future episodes as a preferable choice to get out of mischief or for a wild advantage.
So, what is something that Ruby-Spears wasted a good potential that would never be good to use anymore?
Well, let’s first go over with the Bomber Brothers for their similitude symmetric designs that we can all opening minded to be in a consensus here with their weapon changing converters.
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In the Cold Steel episode, Mega Man has this rare ability to copy both Spark Shock and Gyro Man’s gyro propellers(though he copied Gyro Man’s wings as a transportation item and not the actual Gyro Attack, but some fans will argue with that aspect because clearly Gyro Man does uses it as his own wings as a basic attack, the Gyro Attack) at the same time. It was an extraordinaire and rarest ability to be exclusively not shown in the games.
But my favorite in Ice Age was where Mega Man can switch from one weapon to the next between Air Shooter and Ice Slasher! Directly straight out from the games to switch different Special Weapons manually by the player! Another main reason why Ice Age is my most favorited episode.
But what about Proto Man? He’s a Bomber Robot as well! We can witness that he too can copy Special Weapons symmetrically! And that was the very first episode with Guts Man’s Super Arm! How come he never done that again ever since? And why doesn’t Mega Man never thought of copying Super Arm within all of Guts Man’s appearances for a good opportunity to easily strike back?
You see, copying weapons from the Robot Masters to be used for methodical advantages can be very quite obvious to the writers when placing both Mega Man and Proto Man into battle onscreen. This concept would’ve put into more play if the writers needed to take time by actually paying attention to these abilities on what had been putted in from the previous episodes, and to make it much more improving.
But of course, if we’re hypothetically assuming if anyone in Ruby Spears Enterprises ever known about Mega Man in the first place, then it wouldn’t be too complicated for them to actually stick to the rules of world building and what capabilities that the characters are good at at their side.
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And speaking about Mega Man and Proto Man. In Electric Nightmare when Bright Man tried to stun Mega Man with Flash Stopper, and Mega Man activates the Proto Man visor clones for prevention. Whatever happened to that when it would’ve been utilized again in Robo-Spider other than the regular sunglasses for comedic purposes? Or are we supposed to guess that Mega Man never actually had those visors inside his helmet. After all, that scene was a fake jarred “puppet” scene that I used in loosed quotations.
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But the wasted concepts do not just apply to both Mega and Proto Man. How about Rush? He has some neat abilities, and that he can morph into any transportation modules in fewer episodes. The Rush Jet was always mainly used throughout the time. But the Aerial Mode used in Future Shock would have come in handy at times.
But then there were other transforming modules that would never been too good to use. Like the stealth glider mode with the bat wings that has been shown in the first two episodes that never seemed to be too good out into the air at times for Rush’s own stealth mode. The PWC or an aquatic transformation devices could’ve come in handy for the Brain Bot episode during the water chase scene(but of course, they would get outnumbered by Guts Man propelling water mines unless Mega counters that with his plasma). Or even escaping towards the sea in Mega Dreams instead of dumping themselves into the sewage boat. Seriously. I can only imagine on what they were thinking with that specific scene.
But my favorite ability from Ruby-Spears Rush is that he can use his X-Ray infrared vision in Mega Dreams. That could’ve been a lot more useful to see through the fabrications of the villains going stealth! By actually gaining info on what’s going during the enemy’s hideout, and estimating how many robo foes that are waiting inside. That gizmo could’ve been more cleverly useful in specific terms. Especially for season three if it would’ve happened!
With all these enhanced and fascinating fascinating gimmicks, there’s a lot of tools to apply with at times. I’m not saying that Ruby-Spears could apply a whole lot in one episode by making all these crime investigations super easy to hurt the pacing. Though, it might of occurred to them that having such neat crafty devices could obviously been a lot easier enough to end the entire Wily-Scheme-of-the-week. Meaning that they would make these Wily schemes less simple without having those wonderful gizmos too good to use(if it would be by all means making Mega Man and the others lame to not think real clearly, which is no surprise knowing that on how weak and absurd several writings in the show go to some extent). But even then with the season two upgrade suits would been too great to use, they’ve chosen to only use those for a glorious moment in particular episodes as an important role to serve capacities with.
And, hey. I’m not saying that the cartoon should stay 100% faithful to the game’s source materials. Being different is not inherently a bad thing on what separates the video game version and the show itself.
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But then with the Robot Masters not actually utilizing on what can be seen to the naked eye definitely misused to certain levels. Like Gemini Man’s hologram exposed to his back, but never gets to really used it in his only one episode appearance. Or Magnet Man not using his external gauntlet on his left arm for Magnet Missiles.
They even had Quick Man to not used his external gauntlet for the Quick Boomerang in The Day the Moon Fell, but rather relying on his crest to function like his regular weapon! Admittedly, not too shabby, but really odd right there. But not as bad as Metal Man using his own metal crest to function as both the Metal Blade and Rolling Cutter to fly back to the user! Now that is pathetic. What’s next? Are they gonna use both Magnet and Crystal Man to do the same exact ability with their adorned crests on their helmets?
You see. When you have that much noticeable devices that any Robot Master has on. It is really important to pay attention to certain details whenever danger or battle scenes were to unroll here. And, yeah. With many Robot Masters on the line and are very difficult to select for each episode’s lineup is really hard to keep up since an episode’s plot is far important to show ‘n tell. Because for someone as Cut Man as a main character, it is all too easy to know about his abilities. But compare to someone like Gemini Man, who is just a minor character in one episode, to be not contributing and not knowing his true ability. That’s sort of an issue on how they really failed to pay attention to the basics when it is the writing that really gets sloppy in certain episodes like Cold Steel.
But we all should get this notion of an obvious answer of what people wanted in Mega Man. They just don’t want the main duo of Guts or Cut Man, Pharaoh Man’s awesomeness, or anything to be releasing a heavier plot development on the spotlight. They wanna see Mega Man, and to be expecting on how he could deal with many obstacles between Dr.Wily’s traps, or the Robot Masters in general. Just seeing on how he would win and to counter the attacks from the Robot Masters. Without pulling off any cheap slapstick cartoon effects, that is.
(And to that mentality, I wanna verbally say that to my expectations when viewing this show in a vacuum: I don’t give a lion’s ass about the Lion Men, or a magical one-eyed Genie! I wanna watch Mega Man and not be awful at that times! But I only got one half of it...)
And, yeah. This is all tied down to a growing concern that: Should kids would really cared much about any particular portions within the show’s merits, and would not care enough to ask and give a damn. Because the key basic term: “Target Audiences.”
(And please keep in mind that I never gotten into the show until the early 2000s on Fox Family Channel while I was getting into the Mega Man games. I’ve watched only two or three episodes during the mid 90s on Fox Kids)
But I guess Ruby-Spears just failed to give this show what it really deserves to be. Sure that they really care on having fun with this project, that I can approve to understand. But mainly it’s Bandai really urged to have toy promotions getting in the quality’s way while leaning towards boys 6 to 12(as if they would really think that no kid ever plays any of the Mega Man games to know what Mega Man is all about. Again. Hypothesis) for the show. But then again, it was done for the promotions for the video game series as a business model. Other than that, the show has gotten itself tied within its knots for several causes.
But that is the main idea about rushing things without having an overall result on what would really happened in the end. Quality over quantity. That’s our lesson here, folks.
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Oh, and to those that would be wanting me to conclude of another wasted potential on a certain character that does not contribute a whole lot. Don’t worry. I will be covering her in the future discussion blog.
I claim no ownership of Mega Man. It is owned by Capcom and Ruby-Spears Enterprises for the show. All rights reserved
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aegmblacklatte · 3 years
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Miss Mochaccino (Pt 2)
***[Mature Content]***
"The nightingale sings. A scarlet letter burns upon our lives and snatches it away…
"But what can we do? Look toward the light, and find your answer."
The clapping of hands, "That was motivating as usual, m'am! Now, for our next entry… by 'Germaine'. Let's give her a warm welcome..!"
The Beret Girl made her bow towards the packed audience and slipped out of sight while the next contestant got up out of her seat and got on stage. Down the steps, she turned around to see her competition before being rammed headfirst into a damp cloth—
The introductory applause drowned out a horrifying scream.
The young woman felt herself surrounded by burly animals—Crazed eyes snapped from face to face, "Out the back," a calm hiss.
The last thing she could perceive was the visage of her most current nightmare looking down upon her with a wide smile, deprived of sanity.
Eyes fogged out, and then everything went black.
 * * * * *
"I've read that novel."
The arms wandered on silk. Stirring in forced sleep. Cool. Comforting. As in a dream… Lips parted and searched for air…
"Ohh.."
The dark eyelids took forever to pry open. Opening, closing. Reds and golds. Velvet. Heat awash on every part of her body—
Too warm.
"What happened?" When a hand supported her delicate frame and when the focus sharpened into clarity, the Beret Girl realized something.
Immediately wrapping her exposed arms around her unclothed self.
The only cover was lace; obsidian hiding away her feminine treasures.
"No." Pink became crimson when her wild orbs made contact with a silhouetted figure, lounging around in his regal seat, like that of a pharaoh, amidst the flames of his grand fireplace.
Bradley Uppercrust the Third was in nothing but his red, black lined robe.
"Have a good trip?" Incisors glimmered within the shade.
The girl saw her discarded clothes at his feet. She bolted for them, but felt the garment being pulled away. His breath like ice in all this intense heat,
"If you want them back, you're going to have to entertain me first."
Thin brows came together in disdain.
"Oh come now I'm not all bad! I can be nice, if you want me to be… Of course,"
Suddenly bringing out a dagger behind him, "I can always use this as a last resort." Brad threw it over his shoulder and across the room. It landed in the middle of a soft, lush carpet.
The girl nearly fainted on the spot, bleach white.
 "Ha ha ha!" Delicate fingers touched the cheek, "Pity. You're so beautiful…"
. . .
"Why?"
"What's the question again?"
"Why me?" Licking his lips, he brought her forward in her kneel,
"Are you insinuating you haven't the slightest clue?"
Bradley's eyelids drooped as his brows came together, and gave a feather's kiss on quivering lips. Sudden chills went coursing through the woman's body. The junior took his chance and slid a gentle hand down her back, "Sit with me."
The Beret Girl stared in disbelief. The usual wackiness to his character was replaced by some Don Juan. Dark, persistent, yet gentlemanly in this request… She couldn't bring herself to "entertain" him willingly. The glint of silver on the carpet snapped her out of her trance and into deep blue pools. "Please, sit."
He put his lean, toned legs over the edge of the seat and helped her to a stand. The woman's body on silk nearly put her in Lust's spell, had it not been for the fact that this was the trash that had taken itself out…
"I—" Holding her close, a grip on her waist, then on her voluptuous curves, the jock went in for another deep kiss, giving just the tip of his tongue to hers. For a split second, she thought that his voice was growling incessantly in her mind, "join me". His strong arms under the liquid fabric wrapped all around her unstable frame. The woman found it hard to breathe when the wet muscle cleaned her neck and shoulder blade, "You…"
"What about me?"
"…"
"You're so shy when you're not up onstage… Cute." The predator's gaze went away for a second to give a child's smile. This only made the girl quite unsure about these actions, "Can't you give me just one kiss?"
It sounded as if he wanted the chocolate wrapped in foil.
The random image in the young woman's vision made her giggle suddenly.
"What's so funny??" Playing along—touching his nose to hers. She couldn't stop herself from getting another hot rush to her cheeks—still giggling like a little girl. A side never seen in that café, "Nothing!"
"Nothing?" Bradley regained control of the situation and slid his whole tongue into dew-kissed lips… She fell. Within his embrace, his scent, and sweet nothings whispered in the back of her mind. Their exposed muscles greeted one another. At first Puppy Love, transforming into a crazed sinful necessity. The heat of the flames against silk caused a single bead of sweat to roll down her neck and side of her collarbone, lapped up by a desperate man. The hands finally found the clasp behind her and opened the brassiere, taking a caring hand between the woman's shoulder and her strap, leaving the thumb to remove the lace…
 "You… will be the best one yet."
 Yet?
 Deep green eyes were all of a sudden up in shock, "What??"
Petrified as he took her right leg to his hip and leaned down upon his seat once more, with the Beret Girl on top,
"Maybe you weren't paying attention." She couldn't grasp what he meant,
"You should know that you're not the first, nor the last—
"Are you saying—?" hollow whisper.
"You're just another. Is there a problem with that?"
That was a big problem. When the words processed, her intoxicated gaze turned into a leer,
"Bradley."
"Miss Mochaccino." The same dark laugh from the confines of the dressing room…
"No. I don't want to do this
"anymore." Finishing her sentence, "But you wanted to, and that's all that matters."
"I changed my mind!" The junior was far from impressed at her protest—
"When love is conditional, that isn't love at all. But I know you want this." lowering his voice to a hiss before opening the robe and exposing his chest, "Now come here," motioning with his finger. She shook her head and tried to tear away, both legs held down by rough hands, "I said—
Fingers went behind her head and pulled her down before she could yell. The other hand traveled to a snow white hill and rubbed feverishly despite her squirming, trembling. She went hard at the nip. He had to trail out of her mouth just to see her reaction—
"Stop!" He flashed a devilish smile and sat up, letting his robe slither down to the middle of his torso. More licks to her ghost's face before sucking hard at her breast and teasing her with his bared teeth, with the jaw never clamping down—
"Please stop!" Then the other one, leaving a mess of hot saliva and sweat from his damp chest. A rushing of blood to his other head made him remove the robe completely. She didn't dare look down,
 "But I'll make you."
He pinned her down to the lower end of the long cushion so that her hair was nearly touching the floor, neck barely supporting her skull, "Hold them together."
"What?!" An abnormal high pitch to her usual sultry voice.
"Hold them together." A stern tone. The atmosphere went cold, but the fire silhouetting their figures blazed on for what seemed like an eternity.
Tiny yelps escaped as his erection went in between her coarse pair. At first slow, then pushing a little faster—faster still, beginning to throb to his moans…
"That's always a good alternative to masturbating."
His straightforward commentary was sickening. The Beret Girl shut her eyes to his lust-shot expression, but she didn't notice—
"Ah! Ah!" Strong, thin fingers pressed harder into the lace mesh. The spot was touched, "Ahh—" Again. An appendage went through the black panties and only went in further in spite of the woman's sudden shrieks. Now two were inside, rocking and giving her a high degree of forced pleasure, muffled by another kiss—no longer caring, but wanting to eat her alive--!
"You want more." Spreading them out in front of her face, strewn with vaginal liquid. Soft pants answered his observation.
Uppercrust got up and lifted her, cradled in his arms.
At this point the girl didn't know what to do. This guy went from polite to dangerous in just a short amount of time. Whatever satisfaction she felt couldn't drown out the fact that she was just another sex doll to this aged demon, ensnared inside a 20-year-old body.
"You're so beautiful; I want you tied to my bed…"
Dark hands ran forever through flowing keratin as she was placed into the scarlet sheets, "just to see how long you would last." A slight scowl formed when he said this.
Nothing good could come out of this. Beret Girl's leer turned into a glare, "No chance of that."
The difference in height made it hard to even sit up—Uppercrust kept his body all over hers, feeling her up, massaging her legs, hips, behind—going in between to find her sheath again, hooking onto the hem of her cover. The poet's hands were powerless even as she put up a determined struggle, trying to wriggle away from this steel trap. Incisors bit down on her hill's peak and began to savor the rest of her. Bite marks shone red on white—he, growling like a wild animal—
"Br—Bradley!" His name echoing off the high walls. Going into overdrive when the lace was removed and about ready to go inside--
"I'm not happy. Are you?" Suddenly calm.
"Go to hell!"
"I'm already in it!!"
 A blood curdling scream rang as he broke through skin, going all the way in—heavy thrust upon heavy thrust. The man's features darkened. This wasn't just another woman…
"Go on, little lady: Snap your fingers." Bradley let out a horrid, sadistic, childish giggle and delved in again. The woman let out another shriek, at last realizing why he had brought her here… Against her will, the girl began to shed crystal.
"Ohh!" Strong legs began to shake under the tension.
"Please! Stop—"
"I'm not through with you yet!" whispering harshly in her ear before nibbling the lobe. A few more thrusts were all he needed, "Ah!" pulling out just in time to let his dew sprinkle over an empty womb—"You're not worth having a child with."
Her brows furrowed despite the suffering and pitiful sobs. Miss Mochaccino had enough.
"I have more respect for the common whore than women like you. You. The way you act. The way you move. It screams, 'fuck me!'"
All she wanted to do was cover her ears; the jock had them wrenched to her sore sides.
"I'm just fulfilling your wishes. Your innate desires…"
It was as if she were made of glass, he seeing right through her very being. Her heart ached as her mind cried out, "That's not true! That's not true!"
"It is. Don't deny it. It's within all of us." Glowing red eyes pierced through her own; his lips were sealed shut.
 …
"Now tell me," now speaking, "if you don't mind... What's your real name, little Miss Mochaccino?"
 The woman spat in his face.
 "Oh. You shouldn't have done that."
 Violated. Where only a lost soul would go. Sodom and Gomorrah.
Bodies entwined, locked together. There was no love.
No love at all…
 Yelling, screaming and cursing from each partner. Once or twice did he have to raise a dominant hand—
"Shut up Shut up SHUT UP!!"
"No!" The weeping only got more flagrant.
The noise pounded in his eardrums. He couldn't take it anymore. Bradley was going hysterical. She wasn't bleeding. Only bruises near the areas of her once sacred femininity after his corruption—
A poisonous thought jolted through his brain—All of a sudden he wanted the Beret Girl dead, even if it meant having to strangle her with his bare hands—
 But that's not what I want!!
 He exploded within her, and the twisted fantasy died with it.
 "Agh!" Burying his face and screaming into her bosom, before he burst into tears.
 Like a child that had lost its mother.
 I'm tired! So tired… So tired.
 They slowly distanced themselves from one another. In excruciating pain, emotional turmoil, and a confused, scorching hatred. The junior collapsed—a dead man trying to get off the bed.
Bloodshot eyes could never understand what this creature knew, what he went through to get himself in such a damned place as this, cold and shivering on the ground. And how she, a woman that meant no harm, only living to express her deepest thoughts, fears and desires in the guise of pretty, sensual words—ended up being dragged down with him…
 This Hell on Earth.
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crown-eater · 6 years
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Only the Vital Ones, Pt. 1
“In those days, desires weren’t allowed to become reality. So, fantasy was substituted for them–films, books, pictures. They called it ‘art.’ But, when your desires become reality, you don’t need fantasy any longer, or art.”–Amyl Nitrate, “Jubilee”
[ With Symbiotic Self-Indulgence, 3, Pts. I, II. ] [ The Uptake (table of contents)]
The small brushed steel kitchen table of Cecil and ‘Choly’s studio apartment abutted a full-height open-frame modular shelving unit, which doubled as a space divider between the kitchen and the daybed in the back corner that ‘Choly frequented whenever scaling the loft bed proved too taxing. Slumped at it in a dark tank top and his orange leggings, before the ex-stalker lay a quaint butcher-paper and twine parcel, a paring knife, and his reader on a kickstand. With the apartment to himself, ‘Choly surveyed some of the pieces in his drafts and rubbed at his marred face in a dull restlessness. Grazing his recent cheek suture, he flinched and stood, and he paced in the narrow track the length of the apartment which functioned not unlike a hallway.
Two years ago, such incisions would have been made in the spirit of verbot chasing. He sniveled in anger at the impotence of having had to make such a superficial adjustment for sake of his own clumsiness, rather than in the aftermath of risky enterprises. He'd tried several times to contact the Tellurides after the riots and subsequent quarantine, and he knew in his gut that all three of them had gotten walled up with the rest of the Quarter. And the Geek, and Chalcedony, too, for all he knew. His only solace came in knowing that at least his parents had moved back in together downstate before things had gotten especially hairy.
He returned to the kitchen and rinsed out a mug to pour himself a fresh cup of black coffee from the carafe Cecil had brewed for breakfast, and he sat again. Then, he snipped the string on the box and unfurled its wrappings. His horn-rimmed glasses came off and lay across the table from him as he continued massaging at his cheeks and chin and neck marbled with errant scars. He flicked up the messaging app frame and clicked on Augen’s active username, and sighed. Rather than initiate conversation, he produced from the small wax-coated cardstock box a decently-sized chalky pastel ball. He smoothed out the parchment with a detached free hand, and set down the ball of Confec atop it with the other.
The ball bore a mealy consistency somewhere between soap and fudge. A quarter-inch butt fell to the paper, and he stuck it in his mouth to let the hyssop-like bouquet melt on his tongue as he sank into his chair and hesitated on the chat he’d opened.
ketherphorbia: you’re up early 9augen: funny, i was just about to message you. not at the library today? ketherphorbia: no, and i’m not getting anywhere with what i <i>was</i> trying to do so you have my full attention 9augen: how does meeting up for lunch sound? ketherphorbia: i ketherphorbia: i just started in on a fresh confec bonbon, but yeah 9augen: the finnegans across the street from your old place? its on me ketherphorbia: something tells me you’re just looking for an excuse to milk their one-cred goldfinch lunch special 9augen: if you want a few, just say so. can you be there in... say, an hour? ketherphorbia: it honestly sounds fantastic. we can both talk. if you want
Still rattled from the abrupt invitation, ‘Choly put the knife in the sink and rounded the modular divider to rummage in the side-table drawers for something to throw on. First came his back brace, splints, and wrist braces, and he yanked together his salmon button-up, black sweater with the elbows cut out, and slashed jeans over the orange leggings. Taking his jewelry box into the bathroom, he then brushed his bangtails and tucked the right side back with his ABC-gum barrette. He hooked his new black acrylic skull-cutout gauge hangers into his ears, and plucked his balloon animal and saturn-symbol pendants to string around his neck. The spoon pin went in his left collar-point, and he sat on the daybed for his socks. On the way out the door, he tucked the wax paper wrapped Confec into his diamond-shaped cross-body bag and nabbed his cane, retrieved his glasses, and slipped into his mint creepers.
Along the short trip down to Level 5, he shot Cecil a short message:
|| Might not be home when you get off work. Augen invited me to lunch. He hasn’t said hardly a word since it happened, and I get the feeling he needs a friend right now. ||
Cecil replied to him as ‘Choly waved his pass and boarded the toll lift:
|| I can only imagine how hard it’s been for him. Hope he’s doing ok. You two have a good time. Love you. Give him a kiss for me ||
With a chuckle and a fish emoticon, ‘Choly exited the lift and hobbled down the street. He texted Augen that he'd arrived, asking where to meet him, because at first he didn't see him outside. Leaning on the front facade of the Finnegan’s, a tall gothic figure smoked religiously. The young man with dark hair pulled into a low messy bun wore a black button-down and drop-crotch pants, a dark grey knee-length gauzy vest, a large black shawl-scarf wrapped around his shoulders and neck, and mesh boots. Upon closer inspection, the combination of facial body mods--spider bites, gauged one-inch ears and 2ga medusa with glass plugs, symmetrical double brow piercings, and batwing clicker--confirmed for ‘Choly that this was his friend. Somehow, even with his suspicion as to why Augen had initiated the meeting, he’d still expected to find him his old self, and not this anxious chain-smoking human mess. Augen rolled his eyes at him, having just checked his messages.
“Word of warning, I’m a bit thrushed right now,” 'Choly blurted out. Rather than respond, Augen leaned down and steadied ‘Choly’s chin to give him a kiss. ‘Choly smiled strangely and reciprocated with a second peck, then navigated the awkward posture into a hug as he tucked his head against Augen’s chest. It unnerved 'Choly that his friend was no longer cold-blooded, no longer clammy and tepid, but he kept it to himself. “...Hello to you, too.”
“I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.” Augen rubbed at ‘Choly’s scruff and held the door for him. He eyed ‘Choly’s sweater dully in passing. “<i>Don’t Quit Your Daydream</i>, huh?”<br>
‘Choly looked down at the saying printed on his front once they’d cleared the atrium, and his brows upturned.
“Hah, maladaptive daydreaming. Had it for years. I just kinda threw something on so I wouldn’t run late.”
“Daydream... into a living nightmare...”
With the detached comment, Augen waved down a server to seat them. Marinating in his dissociative veneer, ‘Choly swallowed hard at the prospect of purposefully navigating his mental filter. They settled at a table amid the lunch traffic, and with a series of finger gestures along the tabletop which doubled as a touchscreen menu, both ordered pinzones dorados and got to glancing over their options in silence. The server, a young brunet named Bert, promptly came and left with their drinks, as well as a basket of multicolored meal-rinds and two dishes of salsa. 'Choly sipped at his golden glowing pinzón, a smooth over-ice mix of tonic, hydroponic mezcal, triple sec, and lime liqueur, and mentally praised the facility with which one could get drunk at any hour in this city.
“So... this is a thing now.” ‘Choly got a rind real heavy with salsa and shoved it in his mouth.
Augen knocked back half his liquor in one motion, and slouched over it.
“I’d lived myself so fully, that I’d nearly forgotten what it was like to be human. I’ve missed smoking, if we’re looking for an upside to all this.”
“There’s gotta be a way t’get back what you had. At least some of it?”
“That’s... just about the last thing I want to talk about right now. Past tense doesn’t feel so great.”
They used their mouths to crunch rinds and nothing else. Augen took a hit off the cig around his neck, and with a deep exhale he shut his sunken eyes, the vapors entangling with the odd abstract light fixture over the table. Once they'd placed their orders, 'Choly did his best to people watch behind a zoned out Augen, mostly observing the rotation of three servers popping in and out of the kitchen door with dishes. When a couple that sat on the same side of their far-corner booth thought 'Choly gawked at their unapologetic PDAs and gave him a stink-eye, he coughed, and started trying to read the pattern of scrapbooked web articles which plastered every wall and the ceiling of the restaurant. The theme of all the articles painted up Tri-City's sheer melting pot culture as a fusion city, boasting a collage of articles about people from just about every level in the hyper-metroplex.
Bert interrupted their silence with their meals, and 'Choly squirmed back to give the server the space to lay it out on the table. The teen couldn't hide a sigh of relief as he picked up one plate, and glanced between the both of them.
"Who ordered the wraps?"
Augen gave him a lazy hand gesture, and the plate slid over to him. On Augen’s plate of spring wraps lay six large seared shrimp. Sliced in half both for presentation and facility, the three girthy wraps were stuffed with a combination of mushroom slices, seaweed, and fried mealworms.
"And then, the benedict's yours. Extra sauce?"
"Yes, thank you," 'Choly lauded with a heavily modulated affect, as the other mess of a plate came his way. A viscous pale yellow-green mess blanketed two nondescript mounds of protein and bread, and along its side the cook had scattered soft, colorful citrus gummies. "So glad I can still get breakfast here this late."
"Is there anyth--" Bert broke off, unable not to stare at Augen, as he fished out a pair of napkin-rolled utensils to give them. Augen returned the stare, deadpan.
"...Spring wraps, and a side order of shrimp. It is you."
‘Choly gave the poor boy a glossy smile, about to praise how good it all looked, but he quickly drooped in recognition of the tension.
“So I took a bath today,” Augen dismissed, total fatigue in his voice. “Big deal.”
‘Choly coughed, cataract-bloom eyes wide as he took a stiff sip. Setting the pinzón back down, he tried to smile up at the waiter again, his voice cracking.
"Could we get more rinds?"
The waiter shook his head and shut his eyes, then nodded.
“--Sure thing.”
“And we already need another round of <i>birds</i>.” Augen traced the edge of the faded glass with one black-polished finger and a heavy-lidded, eyelined smirk.
The server flashed him a fake grin, poorly hiding his revelry that the city had defanged the loathsome goth.
“I’ll be right back.”
‘Choly fought with the self-conscious selfishness of directing the conversation to himself, but still he persisted, hoping to distract his friend from getting recognized by his typical order. ‘Choly unrolled his flatware to tuck the napkin beside his plate, and took up the table knife and fork with zeal. He didn’t want to admit it, but as had become typical in the past few weeks, the only thing he’d put in his stomach so far by that time of day was a slice of wax and half a cup of coffee. Augen took precise bites, holding his food gingerly with thoroughly ring-encrusted hands. His face stitched with a faint sweat which could have been from stress, the heat of the food, or even from the start of enebriation. 'Choly observed in distant and fascinated contemplation, unsure whether his friend derived his mannerisms from humanity or the vestiges of having so recently once been a hybrid. Augen shot him a vague glance, and he cringed from getting caught watching. ‘Choly pushed the sauce-drenched larva-hash back up on the one round bready thing he’d been cutting bites from, sheepish.
“If you don’t wanna talk about it, there’s gotta be something you can do to take your mind off it instead? Have you tried... writing, since...?”
Augen finished off the first drink right when Bert swung by two replacements and more rinds and salsa. ‘Choly hadn’t even drunk half of his first pinzón yet, and he nudged his new one his friend’s way, knowing the rate this meal was going. “Most of the time,” the goth mumbled, welcoming the offer, “my writing takes a particular head space. And I sure as fuck haven’t been in it.”
“I mean, like. Not in a carnal sense. Sort of in a carnal sense. An emotional sense? A purgative sense?”
Augen kept his eyes on his food, but his ears patently on his friend. ‘Choly’s hallmark withdrawn posture and tone signaled vague, incumbent rambling. With welcome resignation the goth listened, as he’d aspired from the start. After all, ‘Choly always had been the long-winded one of them.
“You... You remember how I was writing stories about me gettin’ with the Geek, but then I stopped abruptly? The last wip I posted before I stopped was right after I found out that the Geek and the Larva were the same person. Early on, the reasons I couldn’t reconcile with finishing the piece were ‘cause of how badly my first encounter with him went, but then fantasy turned into reality and he... caught me stalkin’ him and. You remember that right?” ‘Choly fished his reader from his bag, and tried to locate a picture in his camera roll. “I know I sent you a selfie of the black eye he gave me...”
“...You couldn’t shut up about it for a month. Heh.”
‘Choly looked up from his reader with a dull gloss to his features, and sniffed. “He even tracked me down, what, five weeks later? An’ things got super weird--" He chewed at his labret. "...I’m still trying to process everything that happened two years ago.”
“This is about the walls, isn’t it.”
“Not quite. And yet. Exactly. I just. I owe it to him to get the details right, don’t I? It feels real lousy to even consider writing a nonfictional account of him, and yet.” He popped an orange gummy in his mouth, and licked the thick, tangy sauce off his swan-splinted fingertip. “I feel like I need to get the very concept of him in print, to get it out from inside of me. I know it’s already been two years since the walls went up, but I don’t think it’s possible for me to forget all that... death, even for a day.” A grapefruit one, this time. “How do you stay motivated to write something that hurts and arouses you, both in ways nothing else has ever really managed to?”
Augen dipped a spring roll in his salsa, and started working on the third drink. Not glancing up from his food, his brows piqued with heavy lids.
“A difficult question. Perhaps a better reply would be another question: Who’re you writing this for?”
‘Choly set down his utensils and stared down his food.
“I’d say it was for me, but I feel like I need to put his ghost to rest. I’d say it was for him, but it’s also in hopes of jamming my brain because something more accurate could exist of him than anything I’ve written of him prior. And I’d... say it was for you, or any of my followers, but I... don’t even know if I can bring myself to post the results.” The dreg sneaked the Confec from his bag and set it beside his plate. “I... I gotta have another slice.”
That got Augen’s attention.
“Mmh. Mind sharing?”
“Oh, absolutely.”
‘Choly sliced through the partial ball a few times with his thumbs against the spine of the knife, and Augen reached over to help himself to one. Wincing at the bitterness, he chewed it up and washed it down with more liquor. 'Choly simply slouched back and let the stringent melt go for a few minutes, thinking it nearly paired with the citrus cubes.
“Cecil knows about us,” Augen began, eyes stitched shut, “but you never did tell Cecil about the Geek, did you? Have you ever wanted to?”
“I told him about Chalcedony. And he may not have said anything, but I know he knows about me an’ the Geek. Can’t not. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to how open he is to it all. It’s like he believes leaving me untethered keeps me more faithful. He’s... not wrong, I guess.” ‘Choly looked up when he heard Augen stifle a choke, and suddenly he regretted sharing. His friend’s face was glistening, grey eyes wide. “Are you-- all right?”
“How’s everything tasting so far?” Bert interjected in passing, trying to hide concern when he he paused noticing Augen’s demeanor.
“Don't mind him." 'Choly quickly stashed the Confec back in his bag, unsure whether having it would cause them trouble. "I think something just went down the wrong way.”
The boy frowned at the Augen, who blanched and rubbed at his Adam’s apple a bit. On cue, Augen forced a cough.
“I... It's nothing."
Augen tapped a finger on his glass, not looking to Bert, and the waiter plucked up their empty glasses with a nod and excused himself, shaking his head in delirious incredulity at what had become of their once most troublesome patron.
“Seriously... Are you okay? You know you’re supposed to let that stuff melt slow.”
Rather than reply, the goth took one of ‘Choly’s wristbraced hands in both of his own, and guided it to hold his strained throat. He sustained breathless, tormented eye contact.
“It's wearing off faster than I was planning. Thought for sure I'd at least get to slagging finish eating. I'll... I'll take it.”
On to part 2 »»»
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ronaldmorton · 6 years
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Cocker Spaniel Winter Games Photo Contest
Snow, cold, ice, old man winter…whatever you call it, this time of year means many parts of the world are feeling the effects of winter’s chill. Fidose of Reality plans to heat things up and have some fun with our Cocker Spaniel Winter Games Photo Contest. You and your Cocker Spaniel can win prizes which feature some jewelry “medals!”
How to Enter the Cocker Spaniel Winter Games Photo Contest
You must be a member of the Club Cocker: Wigglebutts Worldwide Facebook Group.<=== click this link to join and enter.
You can enter AS MANY photos as you like, but you must identify what category you are entering. There are five categories, which means five prizes!!!
Photos must be owned by you and cannot be photoshopped nor can they contain humans. The dog(s) in the photo must be Cocker Spaniels or Cocker mixes. Both English and American Cockers are welcomed to enter.
This Photo Contest is open worldwide!
Any photos submitted with text will be disqualified. You cannot alter the photo. If you have a watermark on it, this is the only acceptable form of text that is allowed.
What Are the Categories?
Category One: Outdoor Snow Fun: Must depict your Cocker/Cocker Mix outdoors in the snow. The dog can be sitting, walking, or playing. Your choice.
Category Two: Sweater Weather: Not all dogs are athletes nor do they like the snow, so this category is dedicated to Cockers wearing their winter apparel.
Category Three: Winter Athlete: Your Cocker performing in some sort of outdoor winter activity: Action shots preferred.
Category Four: Bench Warmer: Your Cocker staying cozy and comfy indoors: Let’s see those relaxing and sleeping indoors.
Category Five: Winter Humor: Funny photos featuring your Cocker in some sort of winter scene that will make us BOL (bark out loud) and LOL (laugh out loud).
REMEMBER, you must identify what category you are entering.
JUDGES’ CHOICE: Judges will choose one photo from all submitted for the grand prize pack. Keep reading.
When Does the Photo Contest End?
When the winter games end on television, so does this photo contest. So on February 25, 2018, this photo contest closes on Club Cocker: Wigglebutts Worldwide Facebook group.
What Is the Judging Criteria?
You will be judged on: 50% adherence to contest rules and photo contest theme and 50% overall photo appeal/clarity and originality to the theme of this contest.
Who Are the Judges?
The two Club Cocker admins will judge from all entries submitted.
When Are Winners Announced?
Winner will be notified and announced in the Club Cocker Facebook group AND on this blog post on Fidose of Reality blog on Monday, 02/26/18. Winners must provide name and mailing address so we can ship you the prizes.
You must be a member of the Club Cocker: Wigglebutts Worldwide Facebook Group.<=== click this link to join and enter.
What Are the Prizes?
  What Are The Prizes? 
JUDGES CHOICE PRIZE PACK:  Dog Lover Prize pack consisting of: Wigglebutt Warriors t-shirt, Club Cocker magnet, and a My Heart Beats Dog magnet.
Category One: Outdoor Snow Fun: “Watch Over This Woman/Watch Over This Dog” matching jewelry. The bling measures 1 inch in diameter and arrives on a 18 inch black leather braided bolo cord for the person. The dog’s pendant is secure on a stainless steel split ring to fit on any size D-ring on a dog’s collar. The jewelry is nickel-safe and incredibly unique.
  Category Two: Sweater Weather: Celebrate the bond you share with your dog by wearing Harper Hound’s finely crafted necklace. Nickel safe stainless steel with contrasting color, this is an adorable necklace for a dog lover. Comes with an 18″ link chain.
Category Three: Winter Athlete:  My Heart Beats Dog Necklace: Beautiful bubble glass pendant necklace is made with My Heart Beats Dog adhered to the domed glass & then attached permanently to the pendant tray. Ready for gift giving in a beautiful organza pouch with filling. Dressy enough for an evening out and looks great worn casually or to work. Show off your love of dogs!
Category Four: Bench Warmer:  My Heart Beats Dog magnet and pin from the Fidose of Reality “My Heart Beats Dog®” collection.
Category Five: Winter Humor: Harper and Hound Rescued Charm for Dog Collar and Club Cocker Magnet
You must be a member of the Club Cocker: Wigglebutts Worldwide Facebook Group.<=== click this link to join and enter.
Note: There was no monetary exchange for the above prizes. Facebook is not associated with this contest, and this is a fun photo contest to bring Cocker Spaniel lovers together and to beat the Winter Blues!
The post Cocker Spaniel Winter Games Photo Contest appeared first on Fidose of Reality.
Cocker Spaniel Winter Games Photo Contest syndicated from https://thehappypoochweb.wordpress.com/
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