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aeor-is-for-reccing · 27 days

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Science Fiction: A Shadowgast Rec List

This week, we have science fiction! Check under the cut for 7 fics that include a lot of space and other sci-fi tropes, and don't forget to comment and kudos if you like them!

The Schwarzschild Solution by dawl_and_dapple (13650, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

A series of meetings between Caleb and Essek across the galaxy.

Reccer says: Loved the build between them and the picture of the universe they live in

A Tapestry of Stars by Cinderstorm (127981, Not Rated) Reccer's Content Notes: Choose Not to Warn, Rape/Non-con, Dubcon/Consensual Non Consent, Domestic Abuse, WIP

Caleb and Essek end up in a political arranged marriage - in space!

Reccer says: There's so much politics and intrigue and feelings!

into the desert of your pitiless faith by burningdarkfire (24913, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek is a newly-arrived ambassador in Rexxentrum, Beauregard is his assigned cultural liaison, and Caleb is the consecuted soul at the back of his mind. Empires and Dynasties do not serve: they consume. (A Memory called Empire AU)

Reccer says: So lyrical, and fascinating - you don't need to be familiar with A Memory Called Empire to read it, but reading this fic might make you want to read the novel, and that's a double win in my opinion.

calling occupants of interplanetary craft by principessa (1273, General) Reccer's Content Notes: None

Essek Thelyss, the sole Vulcan on the USS Eden Horizon, would quite like to be left to his experiments, and for the rest of the crew to stop calling his intellectual discussions with Commander Widogast 'weird science flirt lunch dates.'

Reccer says: It's a lot of fun!

you must first invent the universe by renquise (3466, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

The Mighty Nein are getting ready for a big fight. Caleb can't seem to sleep while they wait, so he ends up talking with the ship instead.

Reccer says: Absolutely fascinating world building!!

such a constellation by Chrome (6362, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Exhausted and disillusioned with Starfleet in the aftermath of the destruction of Romulus and the loss of his friend, Romulan maybe-spy Essek Thelyss, Caleb Widogast retires to his parent's farm in Germany with the intent to view the stars through a telescope from now on. But an unexpected arrival changes everything, and Caleb discovers that the wider universe may not quite be done with him yet.

Reccer says: This is a fabulous fusion that encapsulates the wizards so perfectly in a different story. Worth every second of the read!

Sufficiently Advanced Magic by SaltCore (5880, General) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Have you ever wondered what would happen if Caleb and Essek met Spock, Captain Kirk and the protagonists of the Locked Tomb series? No? Me neither, but I sure am glad I found out!

Reccer says: For one, the origin story of this fic is uniquely wholesome - it came to be as a result of all three pairs reaching the finale of a shipping tumblr poll, to extend an olive branch and honour the ships' place in their fandoms' hearts. Secondly, it's SO funny. There's humour in every little detail and it gives me a Douglas Adams vibe. The characters' voices in their POVs are distinct and endearing too. I keep returning to it when I need my spirits lifted.

Aeor is for Lovers is an 18+ Shadowgast Discord server. The above fanfic recommendations were pulled from our community for this weekly event. All fics, unless otherwise specified, will primarily feature Shadowgast. Have any questions about what this is? Check out the FAQ! Next week, we’ll be back with Established Relationships!

#shadowgast #caleb widogast #essek thelyss #critical role #cr fic recs #fan fiction rec list #aeor is for lovers #critical role fan fiction #cr fic #cr fics #science fiction

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void-f3lt · 6 months

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🌟•:{Iter Astra}:•💫

In hindsight, he probably shouldn’t have jolted up the moment he saw a humanoid lizard with sharp ass teeth, cause that headache and ringing ears was not worth making said orange and black monitor lizard with horns, also, jolt. Actually it looked like he scared the shit out of everything in the other cells, whoops at least he knows everyone else knows now.

His cell was less wide then the others and it has a cubby like area at the top, back and only solid wall, it was about seven and a half feet up, with a gap between the tile that he could probably put his fingers in so he could climb that easier. There were many different types of aliens, some sentient some not, in neighboring cells.

One cell to his left and four to his right that he can see residents in but, there was definitely more probably twelve to sixteen and he can also hear at least one other floor under him. He was much smaller than all of them, since the stupid height average in space is six to seven feet tall for sentients that looked like the prey species. Though most of them still have claws, sharp teeth and/or talons, so like the animals back on Earth, they probably could still eat him if they hadn’t been fed for awhile.

Whatever they drugged him with made him feel a little dizzy and nauseous so he laid back down. He did not whimper. He was just… unwell. *Yea. That was it.* He wasn’t scared because he was in space jail with predators and lost his brother... He was just feeling a bit sick. The lights seemed to be strong UV lights given the fact that he can see his Blaschko lines *I really hope I don’t get skin cancer from this or something. Why do they use UV lights in the first place.*

Every now and then, he’d look at the aliens in the other cells, they were interesting to look at and he was curious. There were aliens that walked outside his cell too and they wore armor and they either had more muscle or spikes. One looked dull purple humanoid scorpion, that one was staring at him for a little too long in his opinion. He tried to commit how often they passed by to memory. It would be helpful later to know their patrol schedule.

The staring from nearly every other sentient seeming being there was unnerving. It felt like hours before most of them seemed to lose interest in him. Now a few aliens in the cells to his left and two from a cell to the right, seemed to be arguing amongst themselves. As Vecko would call it ‘a skinny big bird’ looking alien kept looking back at him, he kind of remembered seeing one back on another planet fighting some criminal, so he, a free traveling unlicensed space pirate, is trapped in a trafficking ship with a fucking space cop.

As he realized this he fell on his back banging his head violently on the metal floor, groaned and said with his hands covering his mouth and eyes closed, “Fuck my life, why does it always have to be Me.” And judging by the sudden silence he scared the shit out of the other sentients again.

The big bird like sentient looked like a humanoid Sulpher-Crested Cockatoo, but with a longer beak. Instead of white feathers they had light gold and their crest was more beige-taupe. Pistachio green eyes. Their wings didn’t look like they could fly with them but they still looked longer then Tobey was tall and he was 5’3. *Fucking hell, why does the interplanetary height average have to be in the fucking double digits?* They also had taupe brown talons that were most likely three inches on the wings and the ones on their legs were closer to four or five inches.

Also it was wearing a worn down sleeveless to accommodate their wings, black leather jacket that looked like the color of juniper bark in some places, the collar being the mast prominent from where he’s angled. *Probably faux given.. would they actually have issues with real leather? Are there cow looking aliens?* They also had a white tank-top, black sleeveless leather jacket, a black belt with venetian red and dark and possibly stained with blood, beige cargo pants, it looks more like shorts though. Apparently Alt/Punk fashion is universal, who knew.

After seemingly the end of a conversation that he completely missed Sulpher (what he’s calling the bird) stood up and started walking over to the bars and then squatted in front of Tobey, who shifted back just a little bit before realizing that Sulpher can’t reach him cause of the electrocuted bars. A slightly familiar warbling came from Sulpher. He only says slightly because he’s heard similar when stealing borrowing his ship from the sellers in that unlicensed port he crashed into.

Sulpher didn’t try to reach through the bars but they were looking directly at him. Not his eyes though cause apparently that’s a universal way to either get your ass beat or cause an entire building to be evacuated. Yes he learned that the hard way. Fun days.

Sulpher shifted after a moment, bringing their armwings together to fiddle with its talonfingers. *Were they nervous? Is that what happened to their collar?* They made noise again and Tobey noticed a pattern as well as a questioning little shift to its tone. *So it is a language!* And they were trying to ask him a question. Now he’s getting excited. The lizard from the right-most cell said something, and then he whipped his head back and made everyone flinch, again. He should really stop doing that.

Sulpher then replied with a bright tone, and turned their attention back to Tobey. They pointed at him and then drew a circle in the air. Tobey shifted to sit criss-cross (which Sulpher and a dull navy with pastel pink accents, humanoid dragonfly looked at him weirdly when he did so *probably not normal then*) so that he could see better and also to be more comfortable, he and his brother always sat like this when they got dad to go on a rambling spree.

Were they asking what planet he’s from? That seemed possible based on the context. “Earth.” The aliens all froze when he spoke. Sulpher recovered first. They put a hand to their chest. “### ##### ## Ariho.” Tobey squinted his eyes a little in frustration that he didn’t know words he hasn’t been taught yet. “Ariho,” they repeated while patting their chest. They’re telling him its name! Or species. Either way not a normal word, therefore important.

“Ariho?” He mimicked almost perfectly, (a hint of a British and it would have been perfect) and apparently that isn’t common thing and/or they just weren’t expecting him to get it right first try. Everyone listening startled *again, why??* but then Sulpher made a chirping sound. They were probably happy, maybe they were part of a species that was oriented on parent/child relationships.

That’d be pretty cool, and convenient if he played his cards right. No, no manipulating.

Then Sulpher/maybe Ariho pointed to Tobey. Do they want his name?

“Tobey,” he offered.

“Obeey?”

“Tobey.”

“Toebean?” That one made him laugh.

“Tobey.”

“Tobey?”

“Tobey,” he confirmed with a nod and thumbs up, which in hindsight probably confused them a little but either way they got names down, Now what?

Sul-Ariho? repeated the pointing and drawing a circle motions, this time adding a gesture to the cage around them. He was still a little dazed so, they were back to square one on that one. The charades repeated a few more times before they realized he wasn’t getting they tried something else, that he could not make sense of in the slightest therefore that also failed.

#writing #humans are space australians #earth is space australia #scifi #space religion eventually #Magic #cause there’s no way the shit that gets pulled and explained away with “science” normally is actually science #PLEASE point out pronoun continuity errors #And also generally spelling/grammar errors #Gay eventually #Tobey finds and dragonborn to fuck #And Ariho is married

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lexxlikes · 4 months

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The invasion of Ravnica

I found it kinda sad, that we didn't get enough "The Multivers fights the Phyrexian" and so I've had the idea to write a little story about the Invasion of Ravnica and what the guilds might have learned after Bolas. Hope you like! (Yeah... there are some more gilds... but I kinda focused on my favorites. And yes: I do like the Azorius-Fun-Police-Senat)

RAVNICA

As the dark-skinned elf roamed the streets of Ravnica to run his errands, he was accompanied by a persistent, uneasy feeling. It wasn't nausea from bad mussels or a night of drinking. It was the feeling that gave you the creeps. The feeling, or rather, the instinct that is anchored in us to immediately take flight without knowing exactly where to go and why. The tension and adrenaline that ensured that all muscles were ready for immediate action. Eule, the courier, could not explain where these almost omen-like thoughts came from. Admittedly, he had survived the invasion by the God-Pharaoh Nicol Bolas and, as a Dimir agent, was entitled to a healthy dose of paranoia. But this feeling was... different. He had spent the whole morning trying to work out the reason for it and logically get to grips with his feelings. But in vain. Perhaps there were so many little things that you didn't even pay attention to in everyday life, but which subconsciously kept you constantly occupied. The fact that more and more of these strange symbols had appeared in the city. A circle divided vertically by a long line. Strange cloud formations. The way the light fell on the tin road. It all didn't feel... right.

Arriving at the Guild's headquarters, he looked at the still large, circular hole gaping in the building. It was a silent memorial to all who had fallen in that battle and a lasting reminder that they were not alone. It wasn't just crazy dragon planeswalkers out there in the multiverse. A millennia-old war was brought to these streets and so many innocent people died. And not only that. The city was forever changed. The hole Eule stood in front of and in the distance you could still see the last remains of Vitu Ghazi. The tree that was forced into an elemental and went down fighting. Many of the inhabitants of Ravnica therefore met the familiar planeswalkers with fear. Ral Zarek, guild leader of the Izzet, didn't care - God knows he had more important problems - but there was a negative mood among the population. The ignorance of what a Planeswalker was mixed with the fear of what else was out there and the shattering realisation that there was an "out there" at all. Ravnica was a planet and a single city. It already made you feel small and sometimes insignificant. But now?

The elf's blue eyes stared at the sky, lost in thought, as if he would find answers there. In a way, this was also true when these strange symbols appeared in the sky. But only for a moment, until the circle simply opened up and a kind of portal appeared. Organic-looking roots clad in whitish-looking metal snaked through it and after a short time the ground broke open. Similar outgrowths erupted here too and while Eule's bag was still falling to the ground and he was running, he realised one thing: Ravnica was being invaded again.

Azorius Senate

It would never quite come out in the open - and frankly, it didn't matter - why the Azorius were able to react so quickly to the attack. Rumour had it that it was the precognition mages, who had fuzzy visions of the future but saw enough for Lavina, the interim guild leader, to prepare for anything. After the invasion of the Mad God, they wanted to be able to act more quickly in the event of future interplanetary conflicts. In a small circle of 30 selected members of the Azorius, various emergency procedures and sub-clauses were drawn up, which made a quick reaction on the part of the Senate possible and also legally legitimised it. It was hoped that these clauses would never have to be invoked, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

This foresight of the clairvoyant magicians made them feel uneasy that morning. Without being able to catch any concrete glimpses of the future, their statement put the entire senate on heightened alert. However, only the relevant members of the "Meeting Committee for the Prevention and Security of Ravnica and its Guilds", or M.C.F.T.P.A.S.O.R.A.I.G for short, were informed of this. Not only did this committee consist exclusively of members of the Azorius Senate, but it was also broadly diversified in order to ideally bundle the individual focuses and specialisations of the guilds and, if necessary - like today - to direct them in an effective action plan against an as yet unknown enemy. So couriers were sent out and - just to be on the safe side - Sonnenheim was put on standby. Maybe it was nothing. Perhaps it was a good exercise, because something like Nicol Bolas should never happen again.

Lavina wasted precious seconds at her office window as her mind tried to interpret what her eyes saw there. Huge, metallic tentacle-like outgrowths seemed to be coming out of holes directly in the ground and sky. These "tendrils" looked as if they were encased in a white metal, but the reflective glow didn't seem to match metal and it looked more like porcelain. Lavina's focus then centred on the portals and what the brown eyes saw behind them was a living nightmare. A nightmare of metal, precision and perfection.

With a quick movement, she opened the tightly closed, metallic tube on her belt and pulled out a piece of parchment. Immediately it unfurled its magic and all of Ravnica was warned.

The three gigantic, triangular pillars surrounding the fountain inside New Pravh immediately shone with a warm, bright light, while all the previous sky runes were extinguished at once. The previous law changes and announcements gave way to the urgent message that Ravnica was once again under siege and all defence protocols had been activated. Citizens were advised to seek shelter calmly and without panic or not to leave their homes. In view of the chaos that had already ensued, these words seemed like a farce.

Seconds later, various airlocks opened in the three towers of the Azorius Senate building and an uncountable number of Thopthers - a retained change from the previous guild leader - swarmed out like a gigantic swarm of bees. The task of the metallic fliers was to warn all the districts of Ravnica, but also to broadcast visually over the entire city - or at least the 10th district.

At the same time, countless Verdalken mages gathered on the ground at the large, central fountain in New Pravh. Various hand movements followed in practised synchrony and after the nullification mages rose into the air, a transparent dome formed around the Senate headquarters. No spell would now be able to penetrate the seat of the Laws. Runes of pure light flew around the mages, whose concentrated gaze became filled with fear after a moment. From their elevated position, they could see what they were up against. They had survived Bolas. But this was a completely different category of enemy.

The defence of the Senate building against the metallic, insectoid warriors was taken over by the members of the Lyev Column. The trained special unit for internal security immediately streamed out of the main buildings, clad in shining silver and blue capes. Armed with lances, swords and warhammers, the melee fighters positioned themselves around the Senate itself, while other units consisting of battle-hardened paladins and powerful clerics took care of the protection of the citizens. Various units, some even on horseback, were now also spread throughout the city and the first clashes between attackers and defenders could be heard loudly.

Boros legion

Aurelia, the red-haired angel and guild leader of the Boros, read the news of Lavinia with concern. As much as the angel lived for the battle, she hoped for the safety of her city and its inhabitants. And this could never be guaranteed in a war. As the Boros had to reckon with unexpected training sessions every day, the many members were at work with routine safety and, as befitted soldiers, they did not question orders from their superiors.

Aurelia was divided when the invasion began. On the one hand, there was now certainty and action could finally be taken. On the other hand, it was the inhabitants of Ravnica who suffered the most. The city itself. So should the leader be happy that the adjustment and uncertainty was falling away from her? She routinely shook off any feelings and the red-haired angel rose into the air with powerful beats of her wings. An aura of fire enveloped the guild leaders and she allowed the heavy gates of Sonneheim to open. The Boros garrison moved out to defend Ravnica.

The synchronised appearance of the soldiers running in step towards the giant roots shook the cobblestones and served as a warning to many citizens. Minotaurs, giants, humans and vashinos alike charged towards the enemy. Armed with lances, swords and an arsenal of devastating magic, the enemy's ground troops were immediately engaged in battle. But how did one fight something that did not understand fear itself and yet evoked fear in everyone else? Strange creatures that seemed to be more metal than flesh, with unreal eyes and disproportionate mouths, pounced on the legionnaires and soldiers with no regard for their own health. However, the battle-hardened Boros constantly regrouped and were quickly able to set up various defences so that the nearest residents could flee. But even some of them began to wonder whether they stood any chance at all against these creatures. After a while, fellow fighters who were thought to be dead got up again - but changed forever. Cables tore open their skin, metallic lenses literally burst from their eyes as their bodies tried to repel everything organic. Glistening black oil dripped from various pores and while some of the victims screamed in pain, a look of rapture could be seen on their disfigured faces.

While the ground troops suffered losses but were able to hold their positions, they tried to fight the root of the evil in the sky. Through the cloudy sky, another monster burst forth in the direction of the roots. The Parhelion II. The flagship and mobile centre of the Boros garrison. With incredible thrust from two nozzles on the underside of the gigantic building, the object headed slowly but inexorably towards the roots of the worldbreaker. At a suitable distance from the enemy, the many airlocks on the front opened and to the distant observer it looked as if white doves - a sign of peace - had been released. But none of the angels that swooped down on the enemy were meant to bring peace. Only salvation. With merciless precision, the countless heavenly squadrons swooped down on the enemy. The enemy needed several minutes - important minutes that greatly minimised the numbers of the attackers - to adjust to the new danger. When he tried to launch a coordinated counterattack, however, the angels scattered in all directions as if on command. The last thing the enemy saw was the grounded energy weapon of the Parhelion II. Light as pure, bright and hot as the sun itself burst upon the enemy's troops, melting metal and skin alike. All that was left behind were steaming lumps of metal and the almost undamaged "branch" of this strange tree. This naturally dampened the initial euphoria of the sky warriors and it sank almost to the bottomless pit as for every enemy defeated, it felt like two new ones came through the portal on the other side. But as long as even one Boros was standing, they would fight for Ravnica. And this is exactly what Aureila shouted at the top of her lungs as she crashed down on the enemy again: "FOR RAVNICA!“

Izzet league

Lavinia had long struggled with whether the Izzet League should be integrated into the early warning system for Ravnica. On the plus side, the Izzet had a perfect knowledge of the city and enough equipment to cause a lot of damage by exploding. On the downside, they had enough equipment to cause a lot of damage through explosions. And a chemo-voltaic radiation condenser, for example, made no difference between aggressor and inhabitant. But the new guild leader, Ral Zarek, assured the M.C.F.T.P.A.S.O.R.A.I.G that he would proceed with caution for the inhabitants of Ravnica in the event of a potential interplanetary or multiversal threat. Now the leader of the Azorius hoped that she would not regret her decision. The Storm Mage might inspire confidence - but the unpredictable goblins... She didn't want to finish the thought.

In Nivix, the headquarters of the Izzet League, there was no difference to a normal Tuesday afternoon. Explosions could be heard in the distance and, as various goblins rushed around to fulfil orders for their lab leaders, the smell of electricity (and, strangely, barbecued meat) was everywhere. On the rooftops of Nivix, the Storm Mage with the grey mottled hair watched the invasion of enemies not entirely unknown to him.

New Phyrexia.

Jace had reported it, and as much as he wanted to help and be a part of the rush to the Machine World, he was also Ravnican. This was his home. This was where Tomik lived. This was where he grew up. The multiverse was at stake and perhaps deep down Ral Zarek felt like a coward, a traitor or an egotist. But at that very moment, he had to live with his decision and all the consequences it entailed. As well as the certainty that the invasion meant the failure of the Gatewatch. He fervently hoped that he would not encounter any of his old acquaintances in a nightmarish caricature of themselves. Zarek repeatedly asked himself whether his presence would have made a difference. Whether his abilities would have led to victory. But looking at this enemy, he wasn't sure what would have helped at all. Jace spoke of a Sylex and Kaya was very convinced in the presence of Teferie. But apparently none of that had been enough. The only thing Ral could do now was to fight for his city. He took another deep breath and focussed his entire analytical mind on the here and now. He had to have a clear head. He hadn't been a friend of M.C.F.T.P.A.S.O.R.A.I.G from the start. Too long. Too bulky. Too Azorius. That's why there was the Izzet version CM-LPG. "Activates the counter-motion loss power grid," came Ral's words over the small radios that had been developed some time ago - for just such cases.

What happened next surprised Phyrexians and Ravnicans alike. In a four-shift, three-person rotation, there were houses at strategic points in Ravnica that had been bought by the Izzet League some time ago. Extensive conversion work was carried out there, so that with the obligatory press of a red button, the 13 diesel engines in the house came to life. Four hyper-torque drivers and gyro-stabilisers at the most motion-critical points and cooling by crystallised ice magic ensured that the houses pushed themselves upwards through two hydraulic legs. After a gap opened in the floor on the now exposed underside of the house, four more legs appeared and the three joints made the house look like a gigantic, clumsy spider.

Reinforced by metal on the inside and protected by the natural masonry, the 3 people were able to operate the running bulwarks and keep the enemy at bay. Sufficient armament - partly due to unstable and risky research projects - was part of the basic equipment of the counter-movement loss power grid. It was intended to keep the enemy at bay until either the inhabitants could flee to safe havens or the Boros, Selesnijans or Azorius could dig in.

#lexxlikes magic the gathering #magic the gathering #fanfiction #fan writing #izzet league #azorius senat #boros legion #boros #azorius #izzet #invasion of ravnica #ravnica #phyrexia #march of the machines #new phyrexia #writing #mtg #mtg community

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meandaupod · 2 years

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Andrea’s big list of podcasts about women smooching

In light of my ongoing #romancequest 2022, I figured it is time I did my bit by compiling a list of shows that I like where one of the main plotlines is a romance between two women.

For the purposes of this I’m going to define “main plotline” as:

Involving one or more of the show’s lead characters and

Affecting the show’s plot in a substantial way, over a large percentage of episodes

The Strange Case of Starship Iris | @iriscasefiles

An ensemble sci-fi adventure about a team of scrappy smugglers who stumble into a major, galactic-spanning conspiracy involving the oppressive galactic regime that governs humanity and the aliens they went to war with.

Who should be or is kissing? Anxious scientist-turned-medic Violet and Arkady Patel, a combat veteran with a complicated history... present... day-to-day, really.

Me and AU | @meandaupod Yes, okay, this is us, but if you found this list via reblog, here are some details:

A coming of age romance about two college-aged women who fall in love writing fanfiction about their favourite new TV show, a paranormal mystery only airing in Canada with a fandom of eight people. Listen to us here.

Who should be or is kissing? Kate “ACunningPlan” Cunningham and Ella “Hella--enchanted,” two big nerds who realize that sometimes when you think you’re writing your friend a there was only one bed fic what you’re really saying is I love you.

The Pasithea Powder | @pasitheapowder

When Dr. Jane Gonzalez revealed her planet had been experimenting with a memory-altering bioweapon she helped end an interplanetary war - and committed an act of treason. In the aftermath of the conflict, she reconnects with former friend Lt. Sophie Green, a war hero on a goodwill galactic tour, and everything gets even more morally and ethically complicated somehow.

Who should be or is kissing? Jane and Sophie’s years-long will they or won’t they sexual tension will make you scream but in a good way.

Arden | @ardenpodcast

All Bea Casely wanted was to make a true crime podcast about the infamous disappearance of actress Julie Capsom. But when her station is purchased by an eccentric billionaire, who insists on hiring disgraced cop Brenda Bentley as her co-host, Bea gets way more than she bargained for.

Who should be or is kissing? There are actually a fair few f/f couples across Arden’s two released seasons, particularly in season 2, but never have two people needed to just fuck already more than Bea and Brenda.

Midnight Radio | @martletradio

Amelia just moved back to the hometown she left for a reason and needs advice. Luckily, the dreamy, perfectly vintage midnight radio talk show hosted by Sybil McIntyre takes listener letters. Slowly we realize things aren’t all that they seem for Sybil, whose timeless aesthetic may have more sinister underpinnings.

Who should be or is kissing? Sybil and Amelia, assuming a uh, massive spoiler gets resolved.

Interference

D&D podcaster Jacq is recording her advice show when she accidentally makes radio contact with Geneva, an orc researcher based in the land of Chel. As portals begin to open between their worlds, the two must get to the bottom of what’s going on, and figure out their fledgling feelings for each other.

Who should be or is kissing? Jacq and Geneva are very cute from the jump. And who can blame Jacq for seeing the opportunity to smooch a hot trans orc lady and going for it?

Mabel | @mabelpodcast

A home healthcare worker begins attempting to reach the estranged granddaughter of the woman she is charged with looking after, and then things get really weird. (I find Mabel so very vexing to describe but expect strange, surreal horror with a dark romantic heart.)

Who should be or is kissing? Home health worker Ana Limon and Mabel Martin, whose whereabouts will not be spoiled by this tiny list.

Greenhouse

Rose’s dad just died, and his will states she must start writing letters to the owner of his favourite flower shop if she wants to continue living in their family home. Despite all this, romance blossoms as she and her new penpal slowly get to know each other.

Who should be or is kissing? Rose and Abby, the owner of the flower shop, who build an mutual understanding around being anxious as hell, weird about media and needing to go to therapy pretty badly.

Alice isn’t Dead

Alice isn’t dead, which is news to her wife. Working as a truck driver for an increasingly strange company, Keisha crosses the country to track her down and uncovers a dark secret lurking along America’s highways in the process.

Who should be or is kissing? Alice and Keisha have a, uh, complicated relationships to say the least but you can’t argue there isn’t something interesting there.

#romancequest 2022 #me and au podcast #the strange case of starship iris #arden podcast #greenhouse #midnight radio #alice isn't dead #mabel podcast #I feel like this list should be longer!#BUT a lot of stuff got knocked out for being off category - either about a couple who broke up before the start and will never smooch again #(Within the Wires IWNJATR etc)#or a couple who are only together for a bit to move the plot along #(Night Post)#or stuff like my OWN OTHER SHOW where the romance is a C-plot at best (but Nelly/Reva forever listen to Station to Station anyway)#that being said I know there are a few circa-2018 shows I've forgotten but their feeds may be dead anyway

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hellofwinnie · 16 days

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OKAY BUT IT'S LONG

(also spoiler-free for the Downhill fic)

Let's goooo

Childhood

- Jack carries a Siren "gene", so he's not a siren but Angel got it from to him (my older post about it).

- Tantalus was under oppressive rule so he grew up with questionable beliefs, explained below.

- moved to Pandora around 8y.o. with grandma (she worked in the Dahl mines).

- as a kid dreamed of working in the mining business, like his dad.

- has one (1) memory of dad holding him and rocking to sleep (unless it's a fabrication of his mind).

- has pictures and videos of the parents playing with toddler Jack, they look normal and happy. Jack keeps them in a secret place and *very* rarely replays them because VHS/photos tend to wear out.

- Vaughn is his only trusted therapist so they figured he has exactly 9 good childhood memories. He is scared to replay them in his head too and "wear them out" by forgetting.

- he was 6 y.o. when grandma demanded to have shared house responsibilities and the punishments started to get harsher.

- dropped out after middle school bc fuck this boring shit (and bullying).

- started to run away regularly from grandma's house bc of abuse at the age of 10.

- lived with a street gang with other Pandora kids like him.

- was the youngest in the gang so they protected baby-John so it was safer then at home.

- he made toys and other stuff from scraps. He discovered programming.

- by the time he turned 17, the times on Pandora changed and their gang didn't have many new young incomers, so he didn't get a chance to be a big brother.

- there he also met his first love (gay) they didn't kiss or anything so he didn't realize what it was until he was like 35 💀 talk about denial.

- their con/stealing gang shifted to serious shit with a real interplanetary mafia and a drug lord rivelry.

- he had to get out of the gang because he was one of the oldest and his life was in danger as he would be held responsible.

- He comes up with a new plan and starts to con solo. He targets the recent rich families immigrating to expand/develop stuff on Pandora.

- He pretends to be one of them rich kids and then steals something small but it's enough to survive.

- Here he gets the Handsome Jack nickname and gets famous in those circles (for stuff he lied about ofc but everyone was impressed).

- that how she met his future wife, he was stealing from Jacobs' mansion and some gal of his age found it hilarious (it was her house btw).

- she seemed different from all those delusional idiots, so she helped Jack to steal bigger and with less consequences for the sake of drama.

- Jack went through hell to gain a right to marry a Jacobs bc she had an arranged marriage waiting for her.

- married her around 20 y.o. and got rid of his gang problems.

- Angel was born a year later. Among other reasons it was a way to gain independence from his wife's family bc they treated her like shit personally and financially (mostly for sexist reasons).

- went to a culinary school for "prestige" and "education" but dropped out a year later.

- he made his buddy-chef with QuiRKy culinary interests to take his private restaurant on Helios later. He doesn't like his food personally but it's prestigious and educational for the Hyperion management.

- his wife was an influential businesswoman and a big figure in Pandora's development under the second Atlas rule (not affiliated with Atlas).

- for the next 8 years he managed to get into Hyperion and after a big return he got a solid career to build.

- Mortimer punched Jack at the wife's funeral, it was the most brave thing Jack ever seen him to do.

- lived with Angel on Pandora, had to sell their house.

- got a permanent intrusion/kidnapping paranoia.

- married his next girlfriend so the teen daughter has a mother figure among other love reasons.

- Angel did a nasty thing where she framed both of them (hated that dad remarried so soon?).

- they divorced about a year later.

- after dating and breaking up with Moxxi had a massive sexuality crisis (at the age 35, as promised).

- figured he's queer, and went to conversion therapy, because he grew up in antiqueer times on Tantalus and it felt reasonable to him.

- the CT base was mostly filled with teens and young adults who was forced to be there and the "doctors" there couldn't explain him their sconific or even spiritual methods.

- he left a week later and A: rolled out an official ban for CT on Hyperion lands on Pandora.

- B: called his trusty escort company and booked ALL men for months ahead. That's how he figured out he's a switch (*bi anthem starts playing*).

- was on coke most of his life but it didn't cause any problems or so he beliefs.

- after suddenly getting rich (now dating Nisha) spiraled down in codependency with her on opioids. He almost died.

- Angel lived on Helios all this time and knew she was growing up to be the next Hyperion president.

- she met Gaige online™

- at 21 y.o. moved to Bunker and started to work with Jack on the Vaults Key plan.

- At the same time Jack gifted her Buttstalion so she's not so lonely in the chambers.

- Nisha is an abuser in all senses in my books, but no hate to the canon Nisha.

- this relationship made him hesitant to go with BDSM dynamics (he belived it was a dynamic alright 💀).

- the addiction and Nisha destroyed his already strained connection with Angel -- she could spy using Siren powers and know exactly what's happening. Which was: neglecting her and destroying himself (he has issues okay).

- Angel tried to reason and gain independence, refusing to work on the Vault Key research anymore.

- Jack didn't listen bc all he cared about was heroin atm.

- sent Nisha away to rule Lynchwood and got into rehab to stay alive.

- he was too slow to repair relationships with Angel and she already got Crimson Raiders for friends planning to only hurt (for now) Jack.

- when B2 shit rolled down she was already too deep in misery + Eridium altered her physically and mentally in a way she didn't like.

- Nisha dies in Lynchwwod so it's also not good even though it's a relief.

- after Angel's passing, Jack went hard on old addictions.

- in his 48282th rehub he managed went sober for a record amount of time (14 months?), restated smoking tho.

- A couple of years passed and he decided to "OBJECTIVELY" off himself.

- Vaughn managed to help him with making a list of a desired partner's traits (not the best strategy but it helped to postpone the decision).

- massive trust issues and the list left only one option for Jack -- Timothy.

Tim and Jackothy AU.

- in 20 years they build some trust, professional and even platonic.

- Jack was too deep in his own head about the problems that prevent him to be normal but unconsciously gave signs of unusual attention to Tim.

- Tim straight up asked him out and everyone (Jack) panicked.

- eventually, he agreed tho haha

- they didn't date-date at first but for sure became buddies and it was enough to get Jack's mind off grim stuff in his life.

- Tim had an education in business from Hyperion uni and then got his acting MA in a small school.

- He couldn't find a job for either until he mass-applied to Hyperion and got into the double program.

- back then Jack wasn't very nice to anyone, but he had some weird obsession to subtly degrade Tim in particular.

- twenty years later he already was his only body double who not only stayed loyal but did a great job in security.

- they def had a history of hooking up but it was all played down as a mistake/situationship... Not like Tim had a choice to just stop seeing his boss every day.

- over the years of service, Tim got promoted and started working with Jack closely.

- he's from a privileged middle-class family that fell apart when he was 14 (divorce and alcoholism).

- got his red hair from the mom.

- Mother also was a retro pop star with 1-2 popular hits that are still known.

- after Tim "died" she was left alone, so she remarried and now Tim has a half-sister who is also into acting.

- Tim tends to cure stress by drinking but nothing too bad (yet).

- he had a little sister who passed away early, and this triggered a chain of events where his grandma (dad's mom) died, and then his mom cheated on dad, hence the divorce. Tim used to see his father until he moved away to another planet (and then Tim got into Hyperion at the age of 25).

- mother coped with alcohol so Tim was left to himself and tried to study well and get a good education to help his family.

- EXCEPT capitalism lied and he got stuck with a loan of $150 000 yipieee!

Misc.

- had an inside joke calling Angel an angle (sharp or dull)

- has a chronic skin condition where his scars are not healing fully so he can't have most surgeries, including the cosmetic ones.

- hates taking off his shirt. The forearms and neck are pretty much the only places where he doesn't have visible scars.

- has 13 big scars in total + one from that bullet he got shot in TPS.

- all scars tend to inflame and bring pain (medical reasons undefined, I say it's somatic).

- has a scar on the inner thigh, looks like smb wanted to decock him. Hint: she had a buzzaxe.

Irl misc for my writing

- Jack was born in 1966 which makes him an early Gen X, I'm sorry for my boomer jokes.

- Tim is 9 years younger, same gen, different flavor.

- Moxxi is a boomer I'm telling ya. She's slightly older then Jack.

There's probably more but that's all I could remeber for now 👀

#Borderlands #headcanon #Handsome Jack #jackothy #downhillfic #Is it time to check myslef for OCD? Just a titbit?

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workingforitallthetime · 9 months

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oooh do you have any other fic recs (of any hockey rpf pairing)?

anything in my ao3 bookmarks i would recommend! but i often don't bookmark my favorite writers because it's quicker for me to just get to their entire works via my subscriptions list. below are some of my faves from writers whose entire catalogue i'd recommend:

Fake Dating Your Lab Partner and Other Foolproof Ways To Have The Best Year Ever (trevor/mason) -- my favorite comfort read. absolutely nails the friendship, the trevor/mason dynamic, the side characters, everything.

How the Future Knew (tk/patty) -- a ship i've moved on from but i still come back to this fic

May these memories break our fall (gavin/seamus) -- exactly the fic we needed about CBJ writing seamus out of gavin's narrative

take me home tonight (thom/brendan) -- really gets at the uncomfy darker side of this pairing

Front Runner (bennguin) -- i love this fic because i kept waiting for the big bad thing to happen and it was such a relief when it never did and yet it still felt like a wonderfully complete story anyway

interplanetary fall (j.t./tyson) -- the theme is that i like fic where nothing too terrible happens

in the stillness, boys, clear water till the bottom (joel/morgan) -- one of my favorite scenes ever of gross boys being gross

heel (nate/e.j.) -- beautiful achey writing

#anonymouskinis #i love everyone in this bar #hilarious that this list includes almost none of my favorite ships #truly i must write the fic i want to see in the world

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yusufalioglu · 9 months

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Unknown End by Yusuf Alioğlu Via Flickr: Unknown End My Interplanetary Memories Interplanetary Travel This is the story of a man in the depths of space, alone in his spaceship, searching for a planet suitable for life. So this is my story. I feel like I have reached the end of this story. I don't have the slightest idea how the story will end. At the end of this story, we will wait and see together whether a good ending or a bad ending awaits me. It will be an end for me, which is entirely up to my own choices. However, I still can't predict what will happen. Unfortunately, I still haven't made a decision for myself. Which makes the ending of my story ambiguous. Maybe it's better for me that the ending of my story is uncertain. So I can continue my journey into the unknown. Otherwise, knowing that a bad end awaits me would cause me to end my journey and return to the world without fulfilling my duty. As a result of this, I would have put myself into a deep depression as a result of the emotional breakdown brought about by the failure and maybe put an end to my own life. I guess it's best not to know some things. It's like not knowing our end. Camera: Canon EOS Kiss X7i Photograph by Yusuf Alioglu Location: Outer space (space) Facebook Become a Patron! Instagram (Yusuf Alioglu Photography) Instagram (UnbornArt) Twitter Youtube iStock Blogger Vimeo UnbornArt deviantART Tumblr Check out this portfolio on Shutterstock!

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redbloodprose · 1 year

Text

writeblr re-intro

ABOUT ME

kian, 25, they/it/he (no preference, all are equally good). i write about queer people fucking shit up, intricate worldbuilding, and mostly happy endings. i'm open to tag games, dms, and asks, but i am unfortunately very slow at replying.

MAIN WIP

project guts — a young noble, a guarded gravedigger, and the undead unkillable creature they created work together to overthrow their kingdom (and also fall in love). page // intro // tag // playlist // pinterest

BRAINSTORMING

i am incapable of only thinking about one story at a time. while these aren't my main focus at the moment, i will still talk about them! there are a lot, hence the cut, but i love them all so much.

children of the nameless (project stars) — six demigods are forced into heroism to stop a rampaging falling star. ya high fantasy. page // tag // playlist // pinterest

project godfall — in a world landmarked by the corpses of gods, a young man attempts to run away and instead gets wrapped up in their war. na fantasy apocalypse. tag // playlist // pinterest

the beckoning dark — a soldier with a rare metalworking ability is sent to defeat a mysterious foe but finds himself agreeing with his motive instead. na dark fantasy. page // tag // playlist // pinterest

ACH1LL3S — after countless reincarnations, patroclus finally finds achilles in this lifetime as a genetically modified supersoldier on the opposite side of an interplanetary war, with no memories of their former lives. na scifi. tag // playlist // pinterest

project necromancy — a piano prodigy only has a few days to find out who murdered him after being temporarily resurrected by his lifelong rival. na fantasy. tag // pinterest

project heist — a conman calls his former criminal crew back for one last mission and one last chance with their enigmatic leader. na scifi? tag // playlist // pinterest

project island — hannah is used to her small fishing town completely forgetting all the people who've gone missing, but when her secret girlfriend disappears she has no choice but to confront the mysterious force that's been stealing everyone away. ya horror. tag // playlist // pinterest

robot — an soldier-grade android rescued from a garbage heap is rebooted with most of its data deleted, and must decide what kind of new life it wants to forge for itself. scifi visual novel. tag // playlist // pinterest

forest — a young adventurer finds themself trapped in a cursed forest and sets out to defeat whatever is trapping them and the forest's other unwilling residents there. fantasy visual novel. tag // playlist // pinterest

#[ kian rambles ]#writing blog #writeblr #writeblr intro #wtwcommunity

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iwanttogointospace · 1 month

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As a boy my mom picked up the Tom Corbett, Space Cadet books by Carey Rockwell for me at garage sales. They were about a boy learning to become a space ranger. The first in the series was Stand by for Mars! (1952) I loved the adventure and suspense, they were much more interesting than hardy boys at the time . As I got older, I realized they were loosely based on Robert Heinlein’s Space Cadet, a 1948 science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein about Matt Dodson, who joins the Interplanetary Patrol to help preserve peace in the Solar System. The story translates the standard military academy story into outer space: a boy from Iowa goes to officer school, sees action and adventure, shoulders responsibilities far beyond his experience

As a boy who watched the first human to walk on the surface of the moon, I somehow thought I might have a chance for adventure in space, unfortunately, the opportunity has not risen, however, I still have the great memories and, these books.

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binarystargames · 1 year

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Hi!

I'm Binary. I'm a game designer and software developer. He/him.

Game-wise, I'd like to say I'm known for things, but that would require me to be known. The one thing I made you might have heard of is APOCALYPSE FRAME, my fast-paced tactical mecha game, built off of a fairly modified LUMEN. It released to v1.0 very recently!

I'm currently working on a number of things, especially:

ANOINTED, a Soulsborne-inspired tactical game that's about being an immortal guardian slowly regaining memories and skills through exploring the ruined place you were sworn to protect. (It's currently playable in the traditional GM'd sense but I'm going to be revamping some of the mechanics as well as adding frameworks for GMless play.)

The Total//Effect SRD, a toolbox/ruleset/set of ramblings that outlines a (in my opinion pretty good) engine. I'm currently trying to firm up by making several games with it:

Liminal Void, a space game in a setting that resembles The Expanse (hard-ish sci-fi) but with a vibe closer to something like System Shock or Dead Space. Much more about survival in an even shittier future than interplanetary politics. Right now there's "Level 0" available in that quickstart: this is basically the "you are a regular working person who is suddenly in the shit, what do you do" ruleset without any of the ship or economy stuff. Right now I'm trying to figure out how the hell that works.

Valiant Horizon doesn't have any kind of release yet but I've been posting about it a bit. It's a JRPG-inspired fantasy game with an emphasis on character relationships (connecting with other characters is how you gain their help and learn to use their abilities). It has a mostly technically complete manuscript: right now I'm playtesting this with my home group and it's pretty fun!

If you'd like to keep up with me elsewhere, my site and various other links (Twitter, Cohost, and Discord) are on my itch page here.

#ttrpg #ttrpg design #ttrpg dev #indie ttrpg #introductory post

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dwn024 · 8 months

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hi what do you think of the music of my fair hatey? i really like it & the episode is one of my favorites! i especially like the songs from the first half of it, theyve been in my mind for the past few days & ive rewatched it several times already. i like reading your music thoughts because you like. Know things about music and can phrase music stuff well, while i usually just go like "woag it sounds really good" . soo id love to hear any thoughts you have on it :)

IT’S SOOOOOOOO GOOD the music in woy is consistently SO SO SO SO GOOD especially since it’s all kinda sorta written by one guy for the most part, and my fair hatey is especially notable because it’s the one episode where all the songs still sound stylistically consistent with each other even though only One of them is the same banjo-type music as the rest of the show, and them switching to showtunes-type music for this one episode works Really REALLY well for what they’re going for IE a Musical Episode and even saying that they Still incorporate the banjo into most of the instrumentals even if you kinda have to listen closely for it!! i just wish there was MORE songs!!!!

i also really like how smoothly at the start of the episode wander transitions from speaking to singing it’s very seamless and VERRRRY musical theater it works super well. i love how even if there’s only one Explicit patter song most of the songs still have patter-y elements and very phonetically pleasing lyrics, i loooove how satisfying and Precise the rhyming schemes are and how precisely all the words are sung Especially “watch her forces crumble before my strategic eye” in that’s how i’ll get her tom kenny’s delivery there is Perfect it’s so satisfying to listen to, i’m also just mildly biased in favor of that song in particular because [<-guy who likes patter songs] but the alliteration on “your wits alone won’t win this interplanetary war” is sooo so so good i love how much alliteration there is in woy’s lyrics plus W is a letter that doesn’t get much alliterative appreciation it’s so satisfying to hear. also whatever chord peepers n sylvia are harmonizing to at the end of that’s how i’ll get her i am Obsessed with like it’s slightly discordant but it perfectly works with the key of the song And their vocal ranges And their dynamic of “only working together reluctantly for the greater good”

when they harmonize in general it’s really nice i also really like that in let’s all go meet dominator and i Also really like how that song is kinda-sorta a subtle reprise of the melody of ask her a question [<-guy who is a sucker for a good reprise]. does you’re the greatest count as a rhapsody either way it’s super super fun i LOOOOOOOOVE big stupid musical numbers with a big stupid staircase so i’m maybe a Little biased but it’s fun and i love the way it goes through different genres i LOVE how it does the tom lehrer thing where a word in a lyric doesn’t quite suit the meter cuz it has too many syllables but half the word Does suit the rhyming scheme so the word just cuts off and continues on the next line [“tell me about—yourself / don’t leave any—thing out”] [i know for a fact woy does this a Lot in plenty of other songs i just can’t think of em right now and this is my favorite example and also my favorite aspect of lehrer-type songwriting it’s so stupidfun]

you’re the greatest and its reprise are i think the most musical theater type songs in the whole episode [which is really sayin something] mostly from the way they’re composed like musical theater always has VERY particular style trends that i can’t quite articulate but you know when you hear a showtune that like, isn’t necessarily a “blatantly singing about the plot” type song but you can still tell from the way it Sounds that it was written for musical theater [like memory from cats for example][or maybe this is just a me problem] like it’s something about the chord progressions that keep amping up and Feels like it’s pushing the plot along even if you don’t listen to the lyrics And the tempo changes especially. also it’s a big stupid musical number with lots of fun visuals and a fantasy sequence and a big stupid staircase [<-sucker for that exact thing]

i already mentioned this before but i LOOOOVE how i’m the bad guy adapts on dominator’s “out of armor” leitmotif i’ve also mentioned before how i Kinda have issues with some of the lyrics [in particular i have never been able to stand “or well girl”] BUT i can excuse those issues for the fact it is a solid fuckin villain song and everyone’s gotta love a good villain song. i do always notice the most audio mixing issues on this song than any other like dom’s voice clips an awful lot which is really unfortunate because it’s a REALLY fun song that Perfectly encapsulates her character and noël wells REALLY killed it i ADORE when you can tell singers are having fun which is ESSENTIAL for musical theater type songs because you have to be able to act and sing at the same time, and she’s just so giddy and deranged i LOOOOVE the bigband in the instrumentation especially the jazzy horns i think that really works for dominator as a character especially how drunkenly the horns are bein played it suits her “just doing this awful shit for funsies” trait super well

my fair hatey/buddies being the One song that actually has diagetic music i think works super well for its purpose in the story IE mildly more grounded moment after reality n rejection came crashing down so wander’s gotta make sure hater doesn’t Completely lose all hope it’s nice i like it. also tempo change [BIG HAPPY GRIN] it’s so so fun plus i love how hater’s spoken dialogue still continues the rhyming scheme from wander n sylvia’s lyrics [“i thought i’d never see you again” / “BUT HE KEEPS SAYING WE’RE FRIENDS”] and you could argue that the reason peepers’s line in between doesn’t rhyme is cuz it’s an ABAB rhyming scheme and he was on the B while the others are on the A HOWEVER it’s fun for me to think of that as a character thing because i think peepers is the one most likely to get redeemed Last while hater [though in denial about it] is already startin on the way to turn good Before the finale even, so peepers doesn’t follow the others’ rhyming scheme because he doesn’t want to fall for wander n sylvia’s goody twoshoes shit [<-guy who is reading way too much into this]

aaaand like i already said i’m a sucker for a good reprise. and i love how you’re the greatest reprise amps up the musical theater power ballad shit when hater starts singing what with the piano building up HARD to the rest of the instruments joining in. it’s just a really really good nicely composed finale reprise and again i really like how they all harmonize nicely with each other i also have always liked that peepers and wander have the two highest vocal ranges in that harmony while sylvia is second-lowest it’s just nice you just gotta appreciate when the one girl has a lower range than two of the guys [<-transgenderism truther]

OK that’s all sorry i did noooot mean to write so much about like every song i was just gonna generalize but then i got too excited and carried away

#wander over yonder

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billikatchoo · 8 days

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ipbm test

i witnessed the shattering of our moon. although many will claim now to have experienced the moment, having in reality only seen the footage, on that day same as any few were looking to the sky before they heard the booms. and everyone heard the booms.

the last week of december is hard on everyone. holiday travel leaves far too much time to think, to contemplate the past year and its changes and what pain and pleasure will come with the next. this year i was happy to travel with my lover.

we flew to maryland this year. it was a fine xmas, snowless unfortunately but that’s to be expected in our warming climate. i was nervous about introducing her to my mother, and more so my sister, but the trip was uneventful. that is until we left.

we woke up late that morning, having wasted too much time the previous evening drinking wine and packing our bags and indulging in the intimacy we have been blessed to find in each other. snow in the north left us without concern, only a three hour delay. we chose to spend the time in our terminal; she thought it prudent, i saw anopportunity.

we spent all of two hours lounging on that ugly carpet, sharing one set of wired earbuds and one masterpiece of a conversation. the chaos of the previous week left us with little time for each other, all ofwhich was spent maintaining our affections and our respective body heats in the chill nights on the bay. i don’t admit it much, but my recollection of this day is dominated by those hours we spent with our backs against each other. how she braided my hair, how she laughed more than usual, how she seemed optimistic for our future together; i burned these moments into the folds of my brain like petroglyphs on canyon walls.

a few days previous was the full moon. a cold moon on the eve of xmas is a special occasion for everyone. we spent this rare occasion as anyone would, and consequently have little memory of it. we were amongst many who wished they had savored the moment. had we known that was our final evening basking in the full glory of her beauty, everything would have been different. that was one lesson we all have to learn the hard way: you will one day gaze upon the face of the one you love for the final time, and you will be blissfully unaware.

her beauty had already begun waning by the end of the week. she was however still largely visible on this crisp and clear winter’s day. my memory is vivid; i stood at the window wall by the gate watching planes take off and land and take off again as i waited for her to return with snacks i could care less about. the sunlight glared off of every surface; the brightness was overwhelming and i sought solace in the moon. it was in this moment it shattered.

it is trite by now to describe it as surreal, especially with every aspect of our reality becoming increasingly so with each revolution. in the moment, i was so certain i was daydreaming. it just broke apart. it cracked and scattered itself like a projectile egg. and that was the last humanity saw of her face.

moments later sonic booms, at first to be foolishly assumed by many to be the sound of this great calamity, were heard in every region of the country. this was quickly deduced by some to be no more than the sound of martial mobilization, a well documented impulse in this country.the details would later be unceremoniously revealed in the following months of news coverage.

my lover returned to me snacks in hand and confused, but not as confused as me. i was speechless, and it was all i could do to point at the sky. as vividly as i remember the moment of shattering, i can imagine seeing again the tears well up in her eyes and slowing rolling down her cheeks, void of any other expression. i relived that moment every hour of every day for the next year.

in the next few hours we learned that this was the result of the first test of the space force’s new ipbm, the inaugural interplanetary ballistic missile. the test proved successful only by the means they had expected to measure. in every other sense, it was an unprecedented failure. it answered all our questions about space bombs, but raised infinitely more about humanity’s history and place in the cosmos.

this was the day we learned that the moon, our moon, the very one we’ve worshiped and written poems about, the one our dogs howled to, the one that pulled the tides while glimmering the beauty of its light across the water, was in reality, at least our reality, a hollow megastructure put in place in the far distant past by beings more ancient and more advanced than we are genuinely capable of comprehending.

in the following days, people talked about nothing else. in the following months people began asking questions. in the following years, scientists began investigating. we were never given answers.

not real ones, not satisfying or even conclusive ones. we can only imagine the implications for our past and our future. in the present the effects of our hubris are self-evident. you didn’t need to be an oceanographer to see that the tides had lost their potency. the impacts on aquatic species are still being documented. the extent to which it exacerbated the extremes of each season will always be up for debate. it was clear that this was a new era for humanity.

a reminder of this day will exist forever in our sky. a broken moon fragmented and strewn across the firmament. a reminder of this day will exist forever in her face. i will relive it with every tear that falls upon it. and those memories will resurface with only positive feelings of the lovely day i spent with her.

#short story #science fiction #speculative fiction #sci fi

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curiosity-killed · 4 months

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Fandom asks: M, P, Q, U, and X

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

oh gosh. going to go with....His Radiancy from HOTE/whatever the series is called except that there's a 90% chance i'd get fried bc i am a pretty big hugger with my friends

P - Invent a random AU for any fandom (we always need more ideas).

hmmm okay who rules the world scifi AU where hei fengxi & bai fengxi are both assigned, randomly, to the same off-world internship around...*rolls dice* interplanetary regulations on the seizure and restriction of fresh water sources in newly discovered planets (Lanxi is probably doing this as part of his plan to become Space Emperor and Bai Fengxi is doing this to help maintain public access to vital resources)

Q - A fandom you’ve abandoned and why.

There are a few of these but we'll go with Marvel for the simple reason that I think I less abandoned Voltron and it more imploded. anyway marvel mostly, for me, sort of curdled thru the source material and as that eroded (corroded? bloated?), so did the delight i originally got from it.

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

trying to pick different ones from usual and also. make some actual words here

Bucky Barnes (Marvel)

i am trying to limit myself to one (1) Human Weapon character here and i am being. So Brave about it

I know that my love of him is Heavily influenced by the Stucky Fandom That Was but like! sunshine dapper lady's man baby boy turned into haunted, ragged ghost turned into a weapon with no name no memory no self!!! breaking out of that!!! choosing to forge a life of his own choice!!! hnnnn

also. i can't not say it. The Arm is one of the sexiest pieces of costume design the MCU has ever done. the shifty shifty plates. the noises. excellent 12/10 i still love it

Miranda (Station Eleven [the book])

I read Station Eleven at an admittedly weird and tender time of my life but my god!! that book Read Me and Miranda was a significant part of that

her thoughts on being a creative, her end scene! I!!!!

Furiosa (Mad Max: Fury Road)

i have an unfortunate abiding love for action movies and if MMFR had come out when i was 8-13 i would have been, Insufferable

i love competence! and trauma!!! and wrath!!!! i love a character thinking they will finally Escape only to realize that they must turn back and make that new world with their own bloodied hands!!

im realizing that 2/3 of these are not actually fandoms im in but they're characters i love so anyway. a fandom can be urself and ur many many many emotions

X - A trope which you are almost certain to love in any fandom.

i maintain that h/c is a genre but hurt/comfort. otherwise, glass canon characters. i love to see competence AND whump. ✨duality✨

fandom ABCs

#fandom abc asks #asked & answered #boredandblank #ty :D #i CAN resist hugging my friends if i know they do not like to be hugged but it is hard #i don't come across as a big physical affection person but i am Delighted and Thrilled by ppl who are down with casual physical affection #unfortunately. this would mean bad things if i were friends with HR in HOTE-world #on the other hand if i survived i'd be super down with gold tattoos/scars bc that straightup fucks

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