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inklingofinspiration · 2 years

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a gradum ad lumen - part 1 .

decided to post the first chapter to the Maze Runner fanfic I discussed earlier, I thought it would be a good way to ease back into things after my prolonged absence. hope you all enjoy, please contact me if you have any specific requests for the series and let me know what you think! ending is also a bit rushed, because i was super excited to get this posted for you guys, but i already have the second chapter in the works.

___

Word count: 2.1k!

Warnings : general TMR TWS; blood, slight gore, disturbing ideas / images, and depicted injuries.

Pronouns used: they/them – gender-neutral.

Prompt(s) used: “Who knows. Maybe we’ve actually made it out of this hellhole after all.”

Pairing: TMR x GN!Reader.

A/N: just one; i imagined reader had a slight british accent when writing this, but feel free to think otherwise!! this is also open to any skin tones, body sizes, etc. i believe in inclusion to the fullest, and plan to make a few fanfics w/ a practising muslim reader in the future; lmk if you have any ideas!

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Staying out in the Maze was likely a dumb idea, especially with the ever-present thought of the fact that the Doors were bound to close at any minute pounding at the back of your head.

Nevertheless, your eyes were fixated on the sight in front of you, hands on your hips as e/c irises took in the thick vines that were rooted into the cracks lining the stone floor and stretched as far as the eye could see up the surrounding walls. Your hand reached up to thread through h/c coloured tresses, thoughts bumbling about your head in an analytical manner.

E/c coloured eyes moved after the beetle-blade, the metal, bug-like machine chittering as its red-light flicked across the wall it was scampering along before pausing. Almost as though it sensed your presence, the thing’s head turned to you, camera staring right back at you as it focused on the stationary Glader. You took a challenging stride toward it, surprised by the fact that it didn’t even move, the step bearing an experimental trial as well as it encouraged them onward. You were quick to take advantage of the situation, leaping after the machine and closing the few metres of distance between you and the beetle blade in the process.

Unfortunately, the sudden movement on your end had sent the beetle-blade shooting further along the wall, bee-lining it straight for a crack in the stone that it would just barely manage to fit into. However, after months of trying to catch one of the blasted things, you’d come to learn a trick or two. You kicked off the ground, clearly determined to finally get your hands on one of the rutting machines even if it meant having to risk the slight detour from heading back to the Glade.

You swiftly scaled among the vines, arm shooting above head as your fingertips came to wrap around one of its legs just as the machine made to disappear. Triumph shot through you as you were about to yank the thing back and disarm it, focused solely on the task at hand when a swift shout that consisted purely of your name halted everything and sent them tumbling backwards when your single-handed grip on the vines jerked loose in surprise.

Your ankle, however, was more reluctant to follow, remaining entangled amongst the vines, a sharp jerk sending jolts of pain through your leg the minute your back slammed against the hard, unforgiving floor. The pain flared, your vision swaying as your eyes flicked to the shoes of the now approaching figure, clearly not pleased with the situation in the slightest as a frustrated and slightly pained groan drew past your lips. Your thoughts of irritated agony echoed the emotion vividly as you practically felt the bruises forming along your ankle, only to be interrupted by the same person who had caused you to lose your balance in the first place, a teasing lilt now lacing the newcomer’s voice, which you could easily pinpoint as Minho,

“Man, I knew you liked me, but I didn’t realise you’d be throwing yourself at my feet the minute you heard me. Not that I can blame you, I am pretty hot,” Came his playful words, causing you to set your jaw in an exasperated grimace before snapping a response.

“Slim it, before it’s your ankle getting broken, shank,” You growled, accent heavy and thick in their unpleasant predicament. You took note of the airy laugh their running partner allowed to bubble past him before crouching beside you and gently unwinding the shrubbery the held them captive, leaving you to wince as your leg dropped to the floor alongside your other leg with a harsh ‘thump’. “Bloody hell, that hurts like a fucking–,”

“Woah there, you think Newt’d approve of that kind of language?” Minho snickered from somewhere behind you, the volume of his laughter only rising as you tilted your head back to shoot him the best glare you could muster from the ground. After a few beats, he finally stifled the rest of his bemused sounds, eyes flicking from your haphazard position and back to your eyes that strained to keep pace with his own before he rolled his eyes and crouched down to offer you a hand up.

You were rolling onto your stomach in an instant, gingerly twisting your aching leg a moment later with great care as to not let it snag in the chipped concrete floor before you flung your hand into Minho’s outstretched one while huffing a begrudging sigh. His grip was cold and assuaging in contrast to your heated and unpleasant grasp from being pressed against the Maze’s floor, you noted in the fleeting moment in which your eyes met once more, only for you to bite back a bark of pain as you attempted to settle a sliver of weight onto your leg. Had it not been for the Keeper’s firm grasp on you, you would have stumbled right back to the ground and likely been left there had he not shown up in the first place, but he offered a teasing scoff instead and slung your hand that was already in his own gloved one across his shoulders. You obliged with his actions gratefully, almost gasping in relief as you felt the crushing weight alleviated from your injured leg, and began stumbling alongside Minho as he set a rather swift pace that you struggled to keep up with, considering you were only left with only one good leg.

“Keep up or we might as well roll out a picnic blanket and wait for the Grievers to come and enjoy the quick meal we’d make for them,” He managed after you stumbled for the nth time, his breathing clearly heavy, and the signs of strain obvious, but he didn’t so much as falter as he continued practically dragging you in the direction of the East Doors. You couldn’t help but cast a partially distressed glance in his direction, feeling nothing but sorrow at the unnecessary weight you were forcing him to bear, but you knew that he would only tighten his grip on you if you tried to manage without him, so it was a losing game either way. You cast a final glance his way, but he seemed to catch notice of your lingering stare in his peripheral vision, not even fully turning his head as his mahogany irises focused on the twisting corner wreathed with thickly woven vines just up ahead. “What’re you lookin’ at, shank?”

You pushed off the ground with your good leg, springing forward and stumbling a few steps as Minho matched strides with you, huffing your response between focused breaths and sighs, “Nothing. Uh –,” you panted softly, sweat beading on your forehead as you continued to manage single steps in the time Minho made three paced strides. “ – anything planned for tonight?”

The two of you rounded the corner and you could practically feel your running partner quaver in relief, his response breathless but audible as the two of you attempted to hurry through the homestretch.

“A big plate of whatever crap Frypan has cooked and a warm shower to rest my weary bones.”

You were about to scoff a laugh the moment you cleared the Doors, already shouldering him with an eye roll and a witty quip soon to follow, when someone called out to you and Minho. Both your heads turned in unison, your steady steps pausing as his arm fell to your waist to hold you steady, and a beaming smile instantly made way through your exasperated frown as you caught sight of Chuck ambling straight for you, Newt trotting not far behind.

“What happened? You guys were out for like, two hours longer than usual!” The younger boy exclaimed as he approached, finally taking in the sight of you leaning against Minho and his arm around your form before he gagged and darted away. “Get a room!”

You choked a surprised laugh at the suddenness of Chuck’s joke, watching his retreating figure stick out his tongue at Minho’s irritated expression, which made him look as though he was about to go after him had it not been for Newt’s prompt arrival. You greeted him with a soft “hey” and the same smile that had been present for the short period of time you had to talk to Chuck, which the blonde seemed to eagerly return, nodding at Minho and taking in the closeness between the two of you.

“You two had an eventful evening, huh?” There was no malice in his voice, merely just an amusingly intrigued tone to his words as he gestured to Minho’s gentle hold on your waist, which made you fumble over your words momentarily, rapidly moving to explain the situation as your hands flicked subconsciously along with your rushed train of thought.

“Oh, uh, Minho distracted me whilst I was trying to grab a beetle-blade, and I ended up falling. Blew my bloody ankle, it seems,” You gesticulated to the obviously sparse pressure you were putting on your leg with a slightly nervous laugh as Newt cracked into a brighter grin.

“It was your fault,” Came Minho’s facetious remark before he cursed under his breath suddenly and knocked your shoulder. “Since you’re too busy chattin’ up a storm, I’m gonna have to do the maps, aren’t I.”

It was the second in command’s turn to scoff lightly and wave a dismissive hand in the Asian’s direction.

“Consider it an order.”

“The things I do for you shanks.”

“Yeah, a bloody hard life you have, shank,” Newt mused, his smile never once faltering before his eyes finally strayed back to you. “I’ll get Jack or Clint over, see what they can do in the meanwhile. Probably just needs to keep off it for a while, take it easy.”

“Ay, ay,” He quipped, a lazy, two fingered salute his makeshift form of a farewell, quick to turn on his heel after his fingertips tapped your shoulder in a reassuring manner before he jogged off in the direction of the Map Room, leaving you and Newt to your devices.

The two of you immediately fell into a bout of comfortable silence as he slowly edged toward you, taking Minho’s place at your side and slipping an arm across your shoulders before looking to you for silent confirmation to begin guiding you to the Medjack hut. You nodded easily, instantly finding a compromised speed to limp alongside Newt, your own arm settled just under his shoulder blades as you both made your way across the Glade with the sun fully beginning to set behind you.

“So,” He began after a moment, doe eyes fixated wholly on you as you carefully navigated through the swishing grass. Gladers were bustling about the expansive courtyard, some carrying plates loaded with food while Builders wrapped up the day, Gally’s shouting fit heard even from the distance you and Newt were as he ordered the others around. “You ready for tomorrow?”

Your head perked up in curiosity, brow furrowing as you called upon even the slightest memory to recall what was supposed to be taking place the next day, finding rather quickly that you wouldn’t be able to. You offered te blonde a confused look as you continued to keep pace with him as best you could, only stumbling every few feet or so now that you were walking across the even terrain of the grass-laden field. “What’s going on tomorrow?”

The second in command chuckled, the sound more akin to the shard of a melody plucked out of a long-since-forgotten song, ancient and rich and beautiful as the golden rays of the dissipating light hit the panes of his face and sent the amber tones to his eyes sparking. It was truly a peaceful moment, one that you found yourself eager to meld into as you laughed alongside him.

“Greenie day. I’m surprised you didn’t remember though, you’re usually more on top of it than I am.”

You hummed. It was odd, how something so big followed by the most looked forward to night of the month followed right after slipped your mind, but you figured that in combination to the surge of new Runners and having to train them alongside Minho had proved to be a bigger distraction than you had originally though. So you shrugged, a content sigh tugging at your lips as you leaned into Newt with a nod.

“‘spose so. Let’s just hope they aren’t another nutjob like Gally.”

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pygian-weapon · 2 years

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What is the Federation general stance on euthanasia?

#Like I imagine in a post-scarcity utopia diseases are much more easily identified and cured #I don't remember it being mentioned but I'm sure they have a cure for cancer and all that #But even then there have to be some forms of terminal illnesses and similar that usually fall under the question #Should a person decide whether to opt out of it?#And in this episode we see Julian be very much against other doctors delivering an easier death to people that are about to die #And he is our resident idealist however that does not necessarily reflect a general trend in the medical community #Since it becomes clear that his revulsion comes also from a place of pride and hero-complex (bless his heart)#Does the post-scarcity get rid of the most cynical support of euthanasia (supplies and resources are endless and sufficient for everyone)?#But what about the more idealistic -everyone has the right to make decisions for themselves and their body #and to exercise control over their own life-?#I know it's the oldest question in the philosophy of medicine but how have past series of star trek answered it?

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scarletspider2the2ndpower · 1 year

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Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider (Vol. 1/2017), #21.

Writer: Peter David; Penciler and Inker: William Sliney; Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg; Letterer: Joe Caramagna

#Marvel #Marvel comics #Marvel 616 #Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider #Scarlet Spider #Ben Reilly #Cover Gallery #yes that’s Sauron #the dinosaur dude who according to Spider-Man & The X-Men (Vol. 1/2015) no. 2 would rather turn people into dinosaurs than cure cancer #one feature of this issue is that Ben goes ‘undercover’ at Naval Air Station Fallon yet his ‘disguise’#is so markedly out of reg akshskaj #oh! and some house keeping news is that I’ve actually finished collecting all the panels that I want to make posts about for this series #and :))))) my head and heart hurt :)))))#so I should be wrapping up this series in the next 48 hours at the latest I imagine

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t-marveland · 2 years

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐳𝐞 𝐑𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫 | newt

Newt x Reader

Warnings : mention prise de sang + spoil

Mots : 102

Masterlist

Tu étais médecin pour WICKED et lorsque les survivants réussissaient à sortir du labyrinthe, tu te devais de leur fournir les premiers soins. Et aujourd'hui, il y avait de nouveau arrivant. Tu arrivas dans la salle où ils attendaient et t'approchas de la personne dont tu devais t'occuper. Newt. Tu lui posas des questions pour compléter son dossier et préparas les seringues pour les prises de sang. Tu approchas l'aiguille de son bras et tu le sentis se raidir.

❝━ N'ai pas peur. Détends toi. Lui dis-tu.❞

Il te regarda puis retourna son attention sur l'aiguille.

#the maze runner #x reader #reader insert #gif imagine #tmr series #the death cure #tmr newt #newt

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maddisandy · 7 months

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is astarion and soleil going to be what drives me into becoming a 100k fic writer. is that what it took

#i seriously want to write them trying to find a permanent cure for sunlight #and not just the cloak of dragomir #but i know it would not be so straightforward and i imagine they'd probably get caught up in many different adventures along the way #(they have eternity after all)#so now im sitting here thinking about all of my campaign ideas and also some prebuilt campaigns (example curse of strahd)#and imagining them getting wrapped up in those while on their quest #and now im considering basically doing a single player campaign of those using dice roll and such for certain plot points #and writing a supermassive series of fics based in that #while sometimes featuring other companions from bg3 too or even other npcs in the dnd multiverse (and even ocs of my own)#my brain has seriously been running on full creative max since finishing the game #this pulled me out of our creative block weve had for years now #we got so caught up in college we forgot how much we love the creative freedom from rp and how it inspires us as a storyteller #pan rambles

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luluviibi · 10 months

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im rereading a bunch of goofy self-insert fanfiction i wrote 4 years ago (i was still a teenager then!) expecting it to be kinda cringe and easy to laugh at, but im actually getting emotional about how it's, like. pretty good. it makes me want to get back into writing.

#vii rambles #not as ooc as i assumed. and there are moments that made me laugh!#man. this series of minifics literally cured my perfectionism back in the day.#imagine if this is actually what makes me do writing and art again after all this time #thanks kid me for the revelations you were a champ 🙏

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forbidden-sunlight · 5 months

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yandere!Alastor with gender-neutral!tinkerer!reader headcanons

Warning: obsessive behavior, implied violence, stalking, implied manipulation, and knowledge based on the 2019 pilot episode.

There may be possible triggers in this story.

If you do not feel comfortable venturing any further, please hit the 'back' button on your device or computer and read something much more pleasant than a possible series of unfortunate events.

You are responsible for your own Internet consumption!

If you would like to read the SFW version of these headcanons, there are some written by @isuckatwritingsobenice. I will leave the link to them here.

Special thanks to @isuckatwritingsobenice, @angelltheninth, and @ceoofdabicorpsensfw for providing feedback and helping me shape up these headcanons into what they are today, my first Hazbin Hotel fic in quite a long time!

If you would like to me to keep up the momentum and write more for Hazbin Hotel or Helluva Boss, please let me know via a request or in the comments section below!

With that being said, sit back, relax, and enjoy the show! :)

Alastor is someone who thrives on entertainment. Seeing the scourge of Hell striving to redeem themselves in Charlie’s hotel, only to fail as soon as they gave into the vices they’ve been trying to cure themselves of? That’s the only reason he agreed to help the princess with her passion project. He needed some inspiration after lacking it for so many decades!

He will not fall for someone who is naive and oblivious to the dangers that lurk around every corner. His preference for a darling is someone who is intelligent, yet malleable to his manipulative machinations, though he would call it being a considerable gentleman.

So, imagine his surprise when you, the maintenance operator Charlie had hired during the hotel’s open house after being thoroughly impressed with your resume, piqued his interest. He had heard that you were very good at repairing broken things. Whatever it was that needed to be fixed, you could do it efficiently and with a smile.

The only thing you would not touch, however, were Angel’s sex toys. He found you at Husk’s bar, whining and clutching what looked like a purple cucumber with a white handle, coated in….an unknown substance. You looked at it, then back at Angel, confused and blinking owlishly at him. You asked him to hold it up in the light so you could see it, just don’t let it touch you because…well, you really did not want to.

The adult film star did, and you tilted your head to the side, staring at it for a moment before pulling away.

“It should be an easy fix.” You said. “Do you think it is a higher priority than preventing the hotel from being flooded with water?” You asked, glancing up at him. The genuinity in your voice as you spoke to him, curious and asking if fixing his device is really more important at the moment, made Alastor chuckle from the shadows. Dear ol’ Husker looked like he was about to keel over from laughter too~!

“If it’s an easy fix like ya say it is, then yes!” Angel whined. “I need it fixed by tomorrow! Can ya maybe work on it, like, after you make sure this place doesn’t get flooded?”

You blinked. “That shouldn’t be an issue. Okay. Did you try looking for the manual in the box it came in?”

“There’s a manual for it in there?!”

You nodded. “There should be. Or at least a phone number for customer service.”

Oh, such dialogue between two unique characters brightened Alastor’s mundane afternoon considerably and deepened his interest in the ever diligent and mild-mannered sinner who never seemed to stop working!

He watched you from the shadows, learning about your likes and dislikes and your….relationships with the others, clients and hotel staff alike. None of which, as he has seen, never went beyond the boundary of polite professionalism. Imagine his surprise when his shadow discovered your daily ritual to lock yourself in the maintenance office and curl up on the couch in there for an hour nap, and how you cannot sleep without the vintage radio on your desk being played on low volume. As much as he wanted to sweep you off of your feet with a night around the city and a lovely candlelit dinner, Alastor could not act too recklessly. That wasn’t how his mother raised him. No, no, no, he was a gentleman!

And a gentleman knows how to bide his time in the art of courting. Expect him to flood your office with bouquets, expensive gifts, and a request to personally fix his microphone even when it was working just perfectly.

Who knows? Perhaps while you’re sleeping soundly, in your office or in your bedroom, he will turn the knob of your radio just a little to the left so it is the music of his radio station that fills the silence. Think of it as….insurance. With the magic he possessed as an overlord, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to comprehend that he did care about you in his own way. And he would like to think you will, in time, come to enjoy his music with a smile.

After all, you’re never fully dressed without one!

Bonus Content

If you accept his courtship, Alastor’s possessiveness will reach to the point where he will absolutely insist that you should move into his quarters and share the bed. For his peace of mind and your own protection.

After all, you’re his precious little doe. He wouldn’t want anything to happen to you in this cesspool~.

Taglist

@angelltheninth

@isuckatwritingsobenice

@selineram3421

@vikkirosko

@nixie-writes

@thatstonedwriter

@lbcreations-blog

@aurora-rose-miller

@yosemitecleo

@doc-tooth

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daisynik7 · 5 months

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to all the boys who live next door - masterlist

Hello friends! Wanted to do a fun little anthology series imagining some of our faves as our next-door neighbors. All fics will contain smut, therefore are rated explicit. MINORS DO NOT INTERACT. Specific content warnings will be listed per fic.

If you'd like to be tagged on any of the upcoming fics below, please let me know in the comments or in my inbox! Thanks in advanced for reading! Divider credit to @/cafekitsune.

Extra Smooth - Suguru Geto

Your next-door neighbor is loud, inconsiderate, and unfortunately, very hot. No matter how many times you bang on his door with another new noise complaint, he’ll continue to repeat his offenses nearly every weekend. You’re too timid to submit a formal complaint to the landlord, so you shrug it off, hoping that one day, he’ll suddenly become nice. That day comes sooner than you think, when he unexpectedly makes a visit to your apartment, discovering the real reason you need your peace and quiet.

2. A Helping Hand - Kento Nanami

You’re so completely insatiable that you’re going a tad bit insane. You enlist the aid of your next-door neighbor Nanami, who you know is more than willing to help. It's almost too good to be true.

3. Cure for a Hangover - Kishibe

Kishibe is your mysterious, brooding, and significantly older next-door neighbor. You’ve lived beside him for a while now, only exchanging basic pleasantries out of politeness, never anything more. One night, he comes home drunk, or so he thinks. It’s not his door he’s slumped against; it’s yours.

4. Double the Fun - Eren + Reiner

You’ve been having a bit of a dry spell recently with how busy you’ve been at work. When you finally manage to snag a date through one of your matches on a dating app, you’re unfortunately stood up, leaving you in a worse mood than before. Lucky for you, your two hot himbo neighbors are more than willing to cheer you up.

5. What Are Friends For? - Takuma Ino

Ino is the cute guy next door that you’ve befriended ever since you moved in. He’s been nothing but kind to you, and sure, there’s attraction there, but you’ve never acted on it considering you’re already taken. When you find out your long-distance boyfriend has been cheating on you, you turn to your friend for comfort, and maybe something more.

BONUS FICS!

6. Make Me Sweat - Aoi Todo

With the start of the new year, you make it one of your main resolutions to become more active. You begin at your apartment's fitness center, where you run into your musclehead, loud-mouth next-door neighbor, Aoi Todo. He offers his gratuitous advice, annoying you at first. But when he suggests a particular kind of workout, it piques your interest enough that you can't refuse.

7. Rub You the Right Way - Choso Kamo

You've always been cordial with your shy next-door neighbor Choso Kamo. One day, you receive the package you've been expecting, finding out a little too late that it isn't your package at all; it's his. What you find inside makes you think that maybe he has a wild side, one you want to see for yourself.

8. A Helping Hand Part 2 - Kento Nanami (coming soon)

After being caught calling out his name during a sex-filled dream involving your neighbor, you try your best to do some damage control to save face from utter humiliation. Nanami, on the other hand, isn't going to let you off the hook so easily.

Do not plagiarize any of my works or translate without my permission!

#attack on titan smut #jujutsu kaisen smut #chainsaw man smut #aot smut #jjk smut #csm smut #geto smut #nanami smut #eren smut #reiner smut #takuma ino smut #masterlist #to all the boys who live next door series

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hier--soir · 1 year

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cat's outta the bag

joel miller x f!reader

rating: explicit, 18+ mdni summary: 3 times they almost got caught, and 1 time that they did warnings/tags: [18+, minors DNI] fwb!joel, language, smut, unprotected PIV sex, oral [f & m recieving], literally just porn lmao word count: 4.9k series masterlist | masterlist this is part two of my fwb!joel series. you can find the other parts here: one, three, four.

A shelf was digging painfully into your shoulder blade, and the sharp edge of it nudged dully into your flesh with every one of Joel’s movements. He had you pinned up on the countertop, your pants around your knees. He’d been so eager, so pent up after a fortnight of not getting to touch you. Your patrols hadn’t been matching up, and you’d both been busy with friends, and odd jobs, and life. After three hours on horseback the pair of you had finally reached the checkpoint, and you’d only managed to get his zipper undone and tug his pants down a fraction before he’d shoved you up on the bench, stepping between your legs.

The safehouse was dank and dusty, nothing but a dilapidated hiding place with a few stashed weapons and a logbook on the coffee table to leave patrol notes in. The two of you had fucked there many times, on quiet patrol days. Sometimes it was just to pass the time; just something to do to cure a mutual boredom. Other times, this time, it was a frustration release.

Joel’s hips pounded mercilessly into you, his cock pushing heavily against the deepest part of you with every thrust. One of his hands gripped your waist, and the other was under your shirt, fingers circling and tugging on your nipple as you gasped wetly into his mouth.

“Never goin’ two weeks without fuckin’ you again,” he grunted against your lips, puffing out heavy breaths. “Been fuckin’ my first every night like a goddamn teenager, imagining it was your pussy.”

“Shit, Joel,” you moaned, thighs tightening around his waist. His hand drifted from your waist down past your hip to grip your leg behind your knee, holding it in place against his hip. You cringed in pain as your shoulder struck the shelf again with a particularly rough thrust, but couldn’t bring yourself to say anything. Couldn’t risk him stopping, couldn’t risk it when your orgasm was so fucking close.

Your hands were under his shirt, and your nails dug into the skin of his back, no doubt leaving red marks in your wake. His cock was thick and heavy inside of you, stretching you out deliciously after two weeks of missing him. Hard as you tried, your fingers could never produce the same effect as this; you feared nothing, and no one would ever compare to the way he fucked you.

His mouth was on your neck, spitting curses as he bucked into you. Stars burst behind your eyelids, and you pulsed around him, a ringing filling your ears as you fell over the edge. Euphoria filled your bloodstream, and a loud bang filled the room as his hand slammed down onto the counter beside you. Joel was grunting in your ear, chasing his own end now that he knew you were satisfied. But as his hips began to stutter against yours, losing their rhythm, a faint whistle could be heard from outside the house.

The pair of you froze, his hips stilling with his length fully sheathed in you. Your soaked cunt was still pulsing around him, the aftershocks of your orgasm making your body shake against the bench.

“It’s Dina and Jesse,” you muttered quickly, the realisation dawning on you that they were there to relieve the two of you from your patrol. Joel’s face pulled back from your neck and you cringed to see his thunderous expression. His lips were pursed tightly, harsh exhales huffing out of his nose, and a gorgeous blush painted his cheeks. Reluctantly, he dragged his hand out from under your shirt, but made no move to step back. Frustration rolled off him in waves, his chest rising and falling with short sharp breaths.

“Joel,” you snapped urgently, hand pressing on his chest. “They’ll be in here any second.”

“Fuck,” he snarled, pulling his hips away from you and groaning at the feeling of his length slipping out of your heat. You dropped off the bench quickly, cringing at the sudden emptiness as you pulled your pants up around your hips. His cock was out of his jeans, head painfully red and weeping pre-cum. You could tell he was aching from the way he gripped himself, thumb stroking along a vein that protruded along his length as he stared at you intensely. There were getting closer to the door now, and you could hear them talking softly. Joel must have heard them too, because he tucked himself into his pants and did his belt up quickly, walking over to the coffee table and scribbling quickly in the logbook.

When Dina and Jesse walked through the door you offered them a quick nod, shouldering your rifle and gripping your pack, attempting to walk normally and not be obvious about how painful the ache between your thighs was.

“Took your fucking time,” Joel grunted at them, before slipping out the front door and stalking towards the horses.

You’d had a long day at the greenhouse. Summer was in full swing, and the sun bore down on you all day. By the end of your shift, a headache was twinging at your temple, and there was a light red tinge across your shoulders and nose.

You didn’t think twice before bypassing your own home, and heading directly to Joel’s. He answered your knock at the door after only a few seconds, and the frown on his face slid off when he saw you.

“Jesus,” he huffed a laugh. “You forget to put a hat on today, sunshine?”

“It’s been a long day,” is all you said. “Are you home alone?” His eyes darkened as he understood what you were asking, and he stepped aside to let you in.

You didn’t make it up the stairs. He pushed you down onto the couch, kissing and sucking at your neck, lips trailing down your body as he tugged your shorts off your legs. Running your fingers through his short dark hair, you pulled gently on the strands, revelling in the sighs of contentment he let out against your thigh. Hands rubbed into your skin, and goosebumps rippled across your flesh despite the heat, as he knocked your knees apart and knelt on the hardwood floor between your legs.

“This what you want?” he looked up at you, desire swimming in his dark brown eyes. “You get all sweaty and sunburnt and then come here for me to kiss it better?”

You nodded pathetically as he kissed the inside of your knee, holding your gaze.

“Wanna hear you say it.”

“Yes,” you breathed, gripping the collar of his shirt. “Had a shit day, need you to make it better.”

He licked a stripe along the inside of your thigh, and you sighed heavily, chest rising and falling quickly as he worked his way closer to the ache between your legs. When his fingers grazed the front of your underwear, he groaned to feel how wet the material was.

“Y’always get so wet for me,” he muttered, pressing a kiss to the fabric. You flinched, your cunt throbbing.

“Just a coincidence,” you said, smiling lazily as his tongue dragged against the fabric, giving you both a tease of what was to come. He didn’t respond, impatiently pushing the material to the side, before dragging two of his fingers through your slick folds. He didn’t waste any time, one of his thick digits slipping past your entrance and curling inside of you. His eyes watched you closely as he pulled his hand back and sucked his finger into his mouth, licking the taste of you off his skin.

“Fucking perfect,” he muttered, gripping your underwear, and removing it hastily. He threw the garment somewhere over his shoulder, and before you could criticise him, his large hands were gripping your thighs and tugging them over his shoulders. You gasped in surprise, dropping down on the couch. “Let me kiss it better now.”

His nose dragged through the dark curls on your mound, inhaling deeply. Without warning, he ducked his head and his broad tongue dragged through your folds. A haggard sigh tore from your lips at the sensation. You let your head drop back against the top of his couch, closing your eyes.

Tired mumbles of his name and curses fell from your lips and you rocked your hips up, eager for more friction. Your nose scrunched up as his tongue circled your entrance, nose bumping your clit, and you winced as your sunburnt skin crinkled. You willed your face to relax, and breathed deeply as he fucked you with his mouth.

Looking down for a moment, your stomach tightened to see him watching your reactions as his mouth worked greedily, sucking, and licking into you.

You could feel yourself nearing your end already. He always knew how to get you there, knew exactly what made you tick. But as you went to verbalise it, to tell him how close you were, how good it felt, a rapid knock came at the door. Your eye twitched at the sound, and you looked in the direction of the sound. Unperturbed, Joel continued his ministrations, gripping your thighs closer to his head and fucking into you with his tongue. You whimpered softly and felt your thighs begin to shake where they rested on his shoulders.

You cried out his name as he changed his rhythm, tongue flicking quickly across your clit in side-to-side movements. As the heat began to build again, another sharp knock landed on his front door and you cursed loudly, in annoyance this time.

“Joel?” a woman’s voice called from outside. “Are you home?”

“Is that Natalie fucking Wilson,” you hissed, pushing his face away from you. The woman worked at the stables, and it was painfully obvious to everyone how smitten she was with Joel. Her eyes would follow him everywhere he went; on the street, when he came through the stables on patrol, when she spotted him the Tipsy Bison. She acted like a dog on heat when he was around, and you didn’t blame her; your friend was attractive. But you never thought she’d come knocking at his fucking door.

Joel’s eyes were dazed as he looked up, finally registering the sound of her voice outside. His lips were parted as he breathed deeply, staring up at you, pupils dilated. Your slick made his lips and beard shine, and your heart pounded at the sight of him looking so blissed out just from going down on you.

“Did you know she was coming over?” you groused, moving to sit up straight.

“Don’t know what she wants,” he grunted, his forearm moving to press across your stomach, holding you down. “Ignore it.” He pressed messy kisses against your pussy, trying to convince you.

“Joel,” you huffed moments later when she knocked again, frustrating spiking in your already tense muscles. “She’s not going anywhere.” You attempted to slide out from under his grasp.

“Don’t you dare move,” he said lowly, his grip on you tightening in a warning. Before you could speak again, his tongue licked a long stripe up your pussy, ending with a sharp flick across your clit, and anything you were going to say was cut off by a low moan.

“Fuck,” you sighed, one hand sliding down to grip his hair again. He groaned in response, sending a vibration through your core. His long tongue dipped into your entrance, before moving up to draw slow circles around your clit, his leisurely pace driving you insane. It was as if he wasn’t even concerned with making you finish, just lazily running his tongue over you, savouring the taste of you, all for his own pleasure.

“Joel?” her voice rang out again, and your head turned to the side to glance at the door. With a startled noise, you realised you could see her. She was bent down, trying to glance through the front window. Thankfully the curtains were drawn, with only a crack of space for her to peak through.

“She’s gonna fucking see us,” you panted, fingers gripping the back of his head as you writhed beneath him. “Stop, stop.”

He pulled back for a split second and said, “Shut the fuck up,” before his mouth was back on your slick cunt. Your back arched as heat soared through you, legs shaking vigorously as he held them to his shoulders, fingertips digging painfully into your soft flesh.

“I’m so close,” you whispered breathlessly, staring nervously at the window. You took your hand off the back of his head and raised it to cover your mouth, teeth digging into your palm. He grunted, reaching up to grip your hand and shove it back into his hair. As another, louder, knock landed on his front door, you gasped brokenly and fell over the edge, your orgasm flooding through you, hips bucking against his fierce grip. His mouth continued moving against you, eagerly swallowing your release, his deep moans vibrating through your core.

As you came down from your high, Joel pressed a chaste kiss to your clit before pulling back, gazing up at you breathlessly with a tired grin on his face. He turned his head and wiped his mouth on your inner thigh, before kissing the skin. His hands rubbed along the muscles of your thighs, relaxing the bunching up muscles. Silence settled over the room, and your eyes begged to close, the release paired with a long day making you sleepy.

“You hear that?” he asked with a smirk, and you frowned in confusion. “I think she’s finally gone.”

“Do you know what you’re doin’ to me right now?”

The Tipsy Bison was crowded. It was Saturday night, and countless people were milling around the hall, drinking, and dancing and chatting. You were five drinks deep, having a good time with your friends, and enjoying the way the Summer breeze blew in through the open doors and caressed your skin.

“Whatever do you mean?” you sipped your drink, looking at Joel out of the corner of your eye. He was sat beside you in the booth, and the two of you had been left alone when Tommy and Maria went off to dance, and Lou and Carl disappeared to get more drinks.

“That dress,” he muttered, the alcohol in his system making his Southern drawl all the more noticeable. You grinned cheekily into your glass, shoulders shaking with laughter. The dress was something you kept tucked away for most of the year, considering it was only appropriate for very warm weather. With thin straps and a short hemline, the skin of your shoulders, chest, and legs was all visible.

“Oh, you like it?” you teased, eyes lazily dragging around the room, watching people dancing and singing.

Joel didn’t speak. Instead, he gripped your hand and dragged it under the table, placing it over his lap. You froze when you felt him under his jeans, stiff as a board, pressing against his zipper.

“I love it,” he said gruffly.

“You’re drunk,” you laughed, palming him through his jeans.

“I am,” he nodded, his hand pressing down on top of yours, applying more pressure. “Can’t stop lookin’ at you. At your mouth, thinking about your lips around my cock.”

“Fucking hell,” you whispered, glancing around to make sure nobody was in earshot of your conversation.

“Sorry,” he lied, bleary eyes staring into yours. You gazed at him for a moment, contemplating, before you nudged him out of the booth.

“Come with me,” you said, turning and walking quickly towards the bathrooms at the back of the hall. You ducked your head inside quickly, and when you saw that all of the stalls were empty, and not a single person in sight, you tugged him in after you.

You pushed him into one of the stalls and locked the door behind you.

“Gonna let me fuck you?” he murmured, leaning in to press his mouth against your neck. His teeth nipped against your pulse point and you hissed, but then his tongue soothed over the sore spot and a warmth grew in your stomach.

“No,” you whispered, and he paused, pulling back to look at you. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out as he watched you lower onto your knees in front of him. You worked hastily to undo his belt, salivating as you pulled his thick cock out of his briefs.

“Fuckin’ hell,” he breathed, eyes dark as he stared down at you. “You’re killin’ me.”

Grinning, you stroked his length slowly, letting your thumb slide over the bead of precum on his weeping head. You raised your thumb to your lips and sucked it into your mouth slowly, tasting him with a soft moan. He was swollen and pulsating from lack of attention, his ruddy head begging to be touched. Eagerly, you leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to his head. A sharp breath rushed out of his mouth, and you laughed as his head knocked against the stall, giving small, soft kitten licks against his slit.

One of his hands rested heavily on your shoulder, thumb grazing back and forth along your collarbone as your tongue licked from his tip to his base. Sweat slicked your back under the light material of your dress, and you could feel your heart racing in your chest. You gripped his length in your hand and stroked gently as you parted your lips around the tip, taking it into your warm mouth. His hand tightened on you. You pressed forward and let him sink further into your mouth, moving your head in a slow rhythm with your hand. White noise rushed in your ears, and you couldn’t help but bring your fingers down to brush against the front of your panties, feeling the dampness that had collected there. You whimpered around the weight of him, wishing he was inside of you.

“I’m not gonna last long,” you could vaguely hear him muttering, and you hummed around him. You loved the way he babbled when you had your mouth around him, like he didn’t know what to do with himself, so he just talked. “Look so perfect with my cock in your mouth, been thinkin’ about this all night. Look at me, gimme those eyes.”

You looked up with wide eyes and pushed yourself further down his length, tongue swirling fervently around his tip. His face crumpled in pleasure, hips jutting forward instinctively, and you choked as he hit the back of your throat.

“Fuck, sorry,” he whispered. “I’m sorry.”

You squeezed his thigh in forgiveness, pulling back for a breath before sucking his tip back into your mouth, tongue dragging along his sensitive slit as you blinked away tears.

After giving yourself another quick moment to breathe, you put your mouth around him and pushed yourself as far as you could, revelling in the sounds of his deep breaths as your nose almost brushed the curls at his base. Tears leaked out of the corners of your eyes, and he brushed them away tenderly. He was so deep, nudging the back of your throat, and you swallowed around him, gagging lightly.

Joel let out a choked sound, his fingers burying themselves in your hair.

“God, your fuckin’ mouth,” he groaned. “Y’take me so well. Open up wider for me, c’mon.” Inhaling deeply through your nose, you went to move again, but stilled at the sound of the bathroom door opening. Your panicked eyes met Joel’s and he held a finger to his mouth, urging you to stay silent.

Laughter filled the room as two women entered.

“Did you see him? He’s so drunk,” one of them slurred, giggling loudly.

“He’s been all over you tonight,” the other one said, and a tap started running.

A mischievous thought ran through your head, and without hesitating, you began to bob up and down, letting him fuck your mouth. His hand tightened in your hair, giving you a warning look and a shake of his head. But he must’ve seen the determined look in your eyes, because his resolve faltered, and he let out a shaky exhale.

“Fuck,” he mouthed as you pulled off almost completely, suctioning your lips around his tip and stroking him firmly with your hand.

The women were chattering loudly, the water still running, and thankfully the noise covered up any sounds that the two of you were making.

“Stop,” he mouthed urgently, but you shook your head, taking his full length into your mouth again. You hummed around him and his eyes shut tightly, hips pushing forward, searching for his release. He was close, and you both knew it, and even with the women standing a metre away, you weren’t going to stop.

But he didn’t give you a choice, gripping your hair in his fist and pulling you off him completely. Holding your head still, he reached down with his other hand and began to touch himself. You could feel how wet you were, slick dripping down your thighs. You watched with hooded eyes as he tugged on his cock, his mouth hanging open in pleasure.

The tap turned off suddenly, and you vaguely heard the women leave the bathroom as you leant forward and parted your lips in front of him.

“Open up for me,” he encouraged, biting his bottom lip harshly. He gripped himself tight, stroking quickly and maintaining eye contact with you. Your cheeks were hot under his gaze, but you held your mouth open patiently, and when he came in hot, thick spurts onto your tongue you swallowed it down eagerly. Leaning forward to take his tip into your mouth again, you sucked and licked at him until he was pushing you back, thumb stroking your cheek in appreciation.

Joel redid his buckle and helped you off the ground, wincing at the sound of your knees cracking painfully. With a smile, he wiped the mix of saliva and his spend off your chin, before bringing the finger up to his own mouth to suck it clean.

“You good?” you rasped, and he nodded slowly. “Alright, follow me out after a minute or two. Don’t wanna be too obvious.”

It wasn’t out of the ordinary for Joel to visit you at work. The greenhouse was in a quiet part of the settlement. It was a small building, filled with tall heavy foliage, and countless boxes of soil that fed life into vegetables and herbs. More often than not, you would work long days all by yourself, and sometimes he would pop by to enjoy the peace and quiet while you tended to the produce. That day though, when he’d walked into the greenhouse, he’d been tense.

“Howdy soldier,” you’d smiled, busy repotting a tomato plant. But your interest was piqued when you heard shuffling, and you glanced up to see him pushing a heavy crate across the ground, settling it in front of the door. “What’s goin’ on?”

“I need you,” he’d said in a low voice, making his way across the room towards you. Your gloved hands stilled in the soil, dumbfounded. “Woke up thinking about your pussy, had to get myself off twice before I could even leave the house. Had you in my head all fuckin’ day.”

“I’m working,” you’d replied, eyebrows furrowed.

“That’s never stopped us before.”

That’s how you ended up shirtless, with your torso pressed down onto the wooden table in the middle of the room. Joel’s large hands were splayed across your back, fingers and lips dragging along your skin. The tip of his cock was nudging your entrance, silently asking permission. Your hips twitched backwards, soaked cunt aching to be filled.

“Just fuck me already,” you muttered, turning to look at him over your shoulder.

He glared down at you, eyes greedily taking in the sight of you laid out against the worktop, back arching as you pushed your ass against him. “Don’t act like you’re not dripping right now. I can feel it; you need this just as much as I do.”

You bit your tongue, knowing he was right. With a low groan, he slid into you in one smooth movement, fingertips digging into the skin of your back. You sighed at the sensation, enjoying the dull ache that always came when he was first inside you. He was so long, so thick. Stretching you so perfectly, always hitting that spot so deep that it had you gasping for breath.

He fucked you quickly, the way he always did. But the angle was harsh at first, and you reached a hand back and pressed it to his thigh; squeezed once, gently.

“Slower,” you breathed, and he complied. His thrusts turned slow, lazily dragging himself fully out before pushing back in to the hilt. You hummed in approval, your forehead resting against the bench.

The burn faded as your arousal grew, and soon enough you were so slick that there was no pain at all, and you found yourself moaning with every movement of his hips.

“So tight,” he was babbling into your neck, chest pressing tightly against your back. “Feels so fuckin’ good.”

He couldn’t help but quicken his pace again, but you weren’t bothered this time. The head of his cock nudged against your cervix with every thrust, and you moaned deeply, one of your hands drifting to rest over your mouth, attempting to muffle the sounds.

“The hell are you doin’?” he asked from behind you, hand reaching down to bunch your hair at the base of your neck. “Let me hear you, baby. Wanna hear you when I’m fuckin’ you.”

You mewled, basking in the feeling of his body all over you, inside of you. He was everywhere, the smell of his sweat filling up your nostrils.

“Christ,” you mumbled, eyes rolling back in your head as he gave a particularly hard thrust, your body jolting into the table. His name spilled out of your mouth urgently as your stomach suddenly tightened, and you could tell you were close.

“Joel?”

You flinched, eyes widening as you recognised the voice as Tommy’s. He must’ve been right outside the greenhouse.

“Oh my god,” you muttered, cringing at the thought of him catching you both. How the fuck would you explain this? You thanked your lucky stars that the glass building was filled with so much greenery, that from the outside the two of you wouldn’t be visible through the brush. But your stomach dropped when you heard the door handle rattling as he attempted to get inside.

“You in there Joel?” he called again. “Maria said she saw you headed down here, I need your help with something.”

“Fuck off Tommy,” Joel yelled suddenly, frustration clear in his voice.

“Joel,” you begged quietly, making a weak attempt to lift your head. His hand maintained its grip on your hair at the base of your neck, and the other pressed on the small of your back, keeping you pinned to the table. Your hand tightened over your mouth, fingertips digging into your cheek.

“C’mon,” he grunted. “I know you’re close. Let me fuckin’ feel you, want to feel you grippin’ me while you cum. Go on now, let me have it.”

Tommy’s voice was closer now, and you bit down onto your knuckles as your orgasm creeped ever closer. Joel’s thrusts were unforgiving, the angle helping his cock reach the deepest spot inside of you.

“Don’t fuckin’ come in here,” Joel snapped loudly, hips not ceasing their movements in the slightest. His skin met yours in a satisfying smack, smack, smack. Your body was positively vibrating, core tightening around him as you felt yourself dangle precariously on the edge of your orgasm.

“Oh fuck,” you mewled into your hand. “I can’t, Joel.”

“Yes you fucking can,” he panted, leaning down to press a kiss against your shoulder. “Give it to me, baby.”

“What the fuck are you doing in there?” Tommy’s voice was closer still. You heard the door to the greenhouse open a fraction and bang against the crate Joel had blocked it with.

“Tommy,” Joel shouted, and your face was on fire against the table as you realised what was about to happen. “I’ll wring your fuckin’ neck if you come in here right now.”

Straining your neck against Joel’s hold, you glanced up just in time to see Tommy’s head poke through the gap in the door and make eye contact with you at the exact moment your release tore through you. Your mouth hung open in ecstasy, moans spilling against your hand. But muffling your cries was futile considering he had definitely seen you, and wet sounds were filling the room as Joel fucked you, your cum dripping down your legs. Tommy’s face paled, and he disappeared from the doorway – but not before Joel spotted him.

“You fuckin’ idiot,” Joel spat. “Get the fuck out.”

Through it all, his hips never slowed, and you choked out a gasp as his palm landed with a loud crack against your ass. He gripped the flesh, and your eyes rolled back in your head as you imagined the bruises that would no doubt be there tomorrow. Suddenly, he was spitting curses and groans of your name. Joel gripped your shoulders and tugged your body up so your back was flush to his chest.

One of his hands came around to grip your breast, thumb and index finger pinching your nipple as his other hand drifted down your stomach to rest over your mound. You cried out desperately as his finger dragged over your clit, and another orgasm ripped through your body. He pulsed inside of you, hips spasming frantically, and you could feel his hot spend coating your walls, deep groans echoing off the glass walls of the greenhouse.

When the aftershocks of your orgasms had worn off, he didn’t pull out. Just gripped you tight, kissing your neck slowly.

“Well,” he cleared his throat quietly, his large palm splayed across your stomach, holding you to his chest. His forehead lowered to rest on your shoulder, his weight beginning to lean heavier on your back as exhaustion came over him. “Guess the cat’s outta the bag.”

part three

#joel miller #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller fanfic #joel miller smut #the last of us #tlou #tlou fanfiction #the last of us fanfiction #joel miller fic #cat’s outta the bag

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galedekarios · 3 months

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gale & curing the orb - early access

writing my current series of cut content from early access made me think a lot, especially about how curing gale of the orb might have originally worked out if larian had kept to what had been set up in early access. it's no secret that a lot of things were changed or cut entirely, big and small, like for instance halsin's involvement with ketheric's fall, isobel and the shadow curse.

gale's condition, too, seemed different then.

what exactly was different in early access?

while only a few body models were unique in early access, gale's key art showed his left arm in bandages.

in early access, auntie ethel had vicious mockery lines, which hinted what might be beneath those bandages:

Auntie Ethel: I can smell what's under those bandages, wizard. You're all rot and ruin. Come to greet death early? You'll be a lovely spectacle.

we also had information from gale directly as to what happened to karsus in the aftermath of casting his spell:

Player: I was wondering about that “mighty lord” you told me about in your story. Gale: Ah, yes. Karsus Karsus was perhaps the most powerful wizard that ever lived. The child-who-would-be-a-god, the elves called him. And he tried. With a spell of his own devising he endeavoured to usurp in one fell swoop the power of the goddess of magic. Mystryl, she was called then. Imagine what it must have felt like. To be a god. To know yourself to be untouchable. To be mistaken. As Karsus aimed his spell at her she began to unravel, and with her, the entire Weave. Too late did he realize what he had unleashed. It would have been the end of everything had not Mystryl sacrificed herself. Gale: The goddess of magic is all magic. By dying, the entire weave was lost, and the spell that challenged a god failed. It was the end of Mystryl, the end of Karsus, and the end of an entire civilization. As the child-who-would-be-a-god was turned to stone, his empire came crashing down around him. The floating cities of Netheril were no more. An event that came to be known as Karsus’ folly.

which is in accordance with the lore:

Unfortunately, his choice was a terrible mistake, for one of the responsibilities of the deity of magic was to regulate the flow of magic to and from all beings, spells, and magic items in the world. Lacking the ability to do so properly, magic surged and fluctuated. With her last remaining bit of power, Mystryl sacrificed herself to block Karsus's access to the Weave, causing all magic to fail. The flying cities of Netheril plummeted to the earth. The severing of the link also killed Karsus and transformed him into stone, and the last thing he saw was his entire civilization being destroyed because of his actions. This was to be known as Karsus's Folly. The stone form of Karsus eventually landed in a part of the High Forest, now called the Dire Wood. The city of Karse was built around its base. Karsus was never accepted as a petitioner by any god, nor did he go to the Fugue Plane when he died. Instead, his soul was bound to the Material Plane. Those with experience in pact magic could call up his vestige, where he appeared as a giant blood-red boulder, like the one found in the High Forest where his petrified form landed. Blood burbles up from the top of the stone, trickling down the side facing the summoner, pooling at the base. When he spoke, the pool fountained upwards, its height varying on the volume of his voice.

the netherese orb then seemed to have a immediate visible physical effect on gale, in addition to the ones that carried to the full release version of the game.

so putting these clues together, i think it's safe to say that the orb caused gale in early access to be afflicted with some form of corrupted petrification, which makes sense given that it's a piece of magic unleashed during karsus's folly.

at that point, this corruption seemed to be affecting his left arm the most, perhaps either from opening the book containing the netherese magic with it, or trying to shield himself with it - but that's just speculation on my part.

so what did the early access set up in terms of curing gale from his affliction?

gale in early access showed a great interest in the astral plane, especially in the absence of time there. he has several banters with lae'zel, which are still in the game now and showing his vested interest in the astral plane as well as any knowledge or insight lae'zel might offer on it:

Gale asks Lae'zel about the Astral Plane. Has she been there? Gale: Tell me, Lae'zel, what is it like on the Astral Plane? Your home realm intrigues me. Lae'zel: Githyanki lay their eggs on other planes. They cannot mature in the Astral. Lae'zel: I will only be welcomed once I obtain a mind flayer's head.

lae'zel notices gale's interest and initiates a banter of her own:

Lae'zel asks Gale what his interest is in the Astral plane, and he equivocates Lae'zel: Tell me, Gale: what is your interest in the Astral Plane? Gale: Time. Or rather: the absence of it. In the Astral Plane, everything is eternal. Lae'zel: It will be my home soon enough, should Vlaakith will it.

in addition to these banters, which clearly show gale's interest in the astral plane - which now in the full release seems merely academic - hinted at another solution to ridding himself of the orb.

what points to that quite conclusively is gale's dialogue when he reveals the truth about the orb to the protagonist.

this reveal differs quite significantly from the full release version. most notably, the protagonist was able to ask him about his own ideas for a what might be able to cure him from the orb.

gale had something very interesting to say to that question:

Player: What would permanently rid you of the orb? Gale: The orb was kept safe and inert in a pocket of Astral Plane, suspended in time. If I can somehow manage to expel it from my body while in the Astral Plane, it will be rendered inert again. Alternatively, I could learn to control it’s chaotic magic, that is; to succeed where I failed before. But without Mystra’s favour, I don’t see how that may come to pass. Of course there could be different answers as well. Faerun brims with more magic than any one wizard could fathom, let alone comprehend. Who knows what outlandish solutions may yet present themselves?

so what does this all mean?

in conclusion, i believe originally there were either more ways to cure gale from the orb - or maybe even in a different manner entirely - than there are in the full release version of the game (begging mystra to remove it, ascension, or accepting/keeping the orb).

perhaps even one that would circumvent having to beg mystra for forgiveness entirely, without gale having to sacrifice his mortality to do so.

i think these banters and lines of dialogue show that the astral plane, which would have rendered the orb inert and stopped the corrupted petrification of his body, would have played a bigger role in gale's quest.

#gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #karsus #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #baldurs gate 3 #bg3 meta #bg3 early access #ch: gale dekarios #vg: baldur's gate 3 #series: baldur's gate #meta: mybg3

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