spooder brainrot

unfortunately cannot draw spooder consistently

How many tattoos do you think Eddie has? And if any what tattoos do you think the lost boys have?

Thanks to the makeup artist, Amy Forsythe, confirming this we now know Eddie has five in total. The most notable being the flock of bats on his forearm. There is also one of a puppet on his inner right forearm, one of a wyvern on his right tricep, a black widow spider on the left side of his chest, and a demonic skull below the spider. Sadly I can’t find any good quality images of these tattoos. Especially of the wyvern. Nor can I find an image at all of the demonic skull.

As for the Lost Boys, oh man... this will probably fall on headcanons and preferences, but I imagine they’d all have tattoos — some more than others. I personally love the idea of Dwayne and Marko being the most decked out in ink. While David has a sparing few that hold a lot of meaning to them, and Paul would just be starting his collection. This heavily implies that tattoos stay after being turned or slowly fade away (since healing is a factor of vampirism and tattooing is technically scarring) Otherwise, it would mean they had to achieve these prior to turning. So let’s go with the unrealistic take that they can get tattoos even as vamps. 

This post became longer the more I worked on it so I will do a “read more”

David:

For me personally, I can’t see David coated in ink. What he manages to get is probably thought out to the very detail and has heavy meaning behind each one. That is why I imagine very few decorating his skin. I can see him adding a simple cluster of bats to his right inner forearm every time someone is added to the group — those he knows are loyal and perfect for the life-style — and he will often look at it. If one is lost it something to remember them by. Otherwise, I am drawing a blank when it comes to David. Maybe a clock? Or a name that is fading out? Or something Western themed? Plenty often imagine David coming from a western era so I can see some cowboy-like themes from his past still decorating his arm. He also likes playing games of chance with people. So maybe dice or cards?  Dwayne:

I don’t think Dwayne would cover his chest in anything. If he did it would be a full blown chest piece that displays from collar bone to collar bone, and stops just before the nips. However, I can imagine with ease one arm sleeved — blending up to his knuckles in ink, the other partially sleeved, and his back decked with something wicked. From what fans can make out for his character, I think the tattoos would bounce between something traditional — designs that might match the characters heritage or nature — while others would be modern interests. Like skateboarding, motorcycles, etc. I do think that most would be greyscale, lined, with very minimal colors.   Marko:

I imagine both arms entirely sleeved; starting around the shoulder and stopping at at the wrists. The designs would be colorful, just bursts here and there, instead of purely greyscale with mere line-work — and layered on thick. Lot’s of reds, oranges, yellow, green, blue, and purple. And, without a doubt, there is a skull or two, even a grim reaper blended in there, and a bat for ironic purposes. Much like his patch work jacket, which a glance alone comes off as handmade, I feel the designs show Marko’s potential interests in what types of tattoo’s he’d get. Plenty refer to him as a cherub due to his angelic face and I, personally, enjoy referring to him as an Angel of Death. So I could definitely see all these aspects.

Paul:

Paul’s style of tattoos would probably be New School and/or Old School. Like Dwayne’s, it would be all over the place in design. No real direction on interests but weed, music, skating, bikes, bats, etc. Since I imagine a majority of his skin being a blank canvas, I also think his would be the least organized — just going with the flow on any given night. He’d have a tattoo on a shoulder blade, one on his forearm, and another on his calf, so on and so forth. There is also a good chance that he’d probably did one himself, like the one his calf or forearm, or that he let Marko do it. Paul really doesn’t mind if they come out looking professional or not because he thinks they are rad regardless! 

Snowy sneezes

Class 1a x GN! Reader

Quirk: Snowman ~ can produce snowmen with everything that includes water. They can't melt (only by other quirks, not through natural causes), and they do whatever the host wants. If the host doesn't give any tasks immediately, the snowman becomes a body of its own forever. Unfortunately, they can't speak :( The more water there is in the air, (or any other source of water), the bigger the snowman gets. 

Warning: Crack, Fluff, mention of sexual content (because Mineta), swearing (because Bakugou), a bit OOC Midoriya

Summary: Y/n is sick, and every time they sneeze, little snowmen appear in their dorm. They are listening to music and study. Because of that, they didn't even notice that the snowmen disappeared and caused trouble. 

Disclaimer: My hero academia and the characters belong to Kohei Horikoshi.

Words: about 2.489

Masterlist

Inspiration by Frozen Fever

Your head pouted, and you barely could keep your eyes open. You had a quirk about snow, so why did you get sick from a snowball fight. "L/N-san, could you please lift your head from the desk and focus on the lesson." admonished you Cementos. "I am sorry, Ishiyama-sensei." you apologized. He continued to teach, but you couldn't focus on a word he said. The lesson dragged on like forever. 

After the day ended, you went straight to your dorm room to replicate the knowledge you got taught today. 

After some time, the headache disappeared, and you could finally focus on your unfinished notes. Your nose started to tingle, and with a loud achoo, you sneezed.  A cold shiver went down your spine, but you didn't think much of it. You were so caught up in the work that you didn't notice how a small snowman waddled quietly around the room. Since listening to music helped you while studying, you didn't hear the rustling steps on your carpet.  The cute snowman watched your back and looked around your room. He investigated your plant in front of your bed. His tiny form tried to stroke the plant, but his short snowy arm couldn't reach the plant. The small snowman was determined to stroke the plant, so he tried to climb up at the plant pot. Since he didn't think about the consequences, the plant pot fell over and covered him with the potting soil. Anxiously he watched if you had seen his plight. You didn't seem to notice it. So he tried to clean himself with his tiny arms. 

Another sneeze shook your body, and another tiny snowman appeared. He looked around the room and found his buddy. The two jumped happily around, and the new snowman helped to clean up his pal. The two snowmen happily discovered your room, as quiet as they could. After they were done, your room looked like you had a fight in it.  They also tried to open the door, but they were too tiny. Exhausted, the two snowmen settled in front of the door. 

A sneezing fit hit you, and about five snowmen developed in your room. The two snowmen got right up and wobbled to the new snowmen. They hugged each other like they were old friends. Silently the two older snowmen convinced the younger ones to open the door together. They built a ladder out of snowmen by stacking themself on their shoulders. With a soft click, the door opened, and they left your messy room.

Your classmates were occupied with their interests and tasks. Some were reading, training, baking, showering, or learning. So they were either outside, in their rooms, or in the common room area. This meant that the hallway in front of your room was empty. The snowmen waddled quietly around the enormous building. 

Since they discovered their new skill, they opened another door. In the room was a blond boy, who laid on his back with a manga in his hand, called Snow white with the Red Hair. He was completely caught up in the book, so he didn't even notice that someone entered his room. The snowmen inspected his room. It has the theme of yellow and blue, and on his shelf were tons of All Might figures. One snowman got his snowy hand on a manga and tried to read it. He failed because snowmen can't read, but the pictures were interesting. He wanted to read it later, so he took it with him. 

The gang of snowmen went downstairs to explore the other parts of the dorms. Loud singing caught their attention. They followed the singing and landed in a steaming environment or, to call it something more simple, the bathroom. It was hot in there, and the snowmen were happy that they couldn't melt by natural causes. Since the bathroom was really a boring place to be, they climbed on the shelves and searched through the products. After the other snowmen had left the room, the last one of them was mesmerized by a big red bottle with the label: red hair dye. He took the bottle with him and followed the other snowmen fast. 

The next stop of the seven snowy figures was another room. They used their secret method again and opened the door. The room was cramped with bookshelves that reached the ceiling. Another weird thing was that there was a shelf only for tons of glasses. No one was there. The snowmen wandered around the room like it was an old museum. The two snowmen that stole something hid in the corners of the room, so their misbehavior wasn't noticed. The smallest of the snowmen looked around and climbed up on the shelf with the glasses. Unfortunately, one of the spectacles fell on the ground and broke. No one seemed to witness it, so the tiny snowman grabbed them and hid them behind his back from the others to see. After they discovered every inch of the room, they made their way to the next one. 

The room wasn't much different from the first one, but it had a more pleasant atmosphere. It was bright and happy. Some snowmen were bored because of the All Might figures they had already seen, but one of them got interested by the rarest of all time. The bronze age All Might figure. Only fifty got produced, and the owner of the room had one. The snowman needed this figure, so when no one watched him, he took the opportunity and stole it. 

They went into two other rooms before they finally got to the common-room kitchen. There stood a tall brown-haired boy with a tart pan. He studied a recipe and was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't even notice how a snowman stole his eggs. After the boy wanted to reach for them, they were gone, and he questioned himself if he forgot to lay the eggs on the kitchen counter. He opened the fridge and saw no eggs. But he was sure that he bought them with Koda yesterday. They couldn't be gone, only if someone used them. And he was sure who it was. With angry steps, he walked to the room of a certain angry pomeranian. 

In the meantime, the snowmen discovered that everyone had stolen something. They laid their stolen objects in the middle of their circle. The items they had stolen were a romance manga, red hair dye, a pair of glasses, a rare All Might figure, eggs, lipstick, and a book. All of the snowmen had a panicked expression on their snowy faces. The humans aren't dumb they would soon find out, so they have to hide their items somewhere. Fearfully they collected the things and quickly set about hiding with the stuff in a nearby room. 

It was a dark room, and it got lit by a small source of light. Unearthly sounds could be heard from the computer screen in front of a short, purple boy. The older snowmen tried to cover the eyes of the younger ones. So they couldn't see the horrific show that played on the screen. It was dangerous to be in such a gross environment with young snowmen, but it was better than getting caught. 

"I didn't steal your lame eggs. Now leave me alone fat lips." cursed Bakugou as Sato confronted him. "But I am sure you know where my manga is, don't you?" Bakugou questioned harshly with a raised eyebrow. "Why would I want a manga from you?" Sato asked him. The blond one scoffed and pushed Sato out of the way. "I bet shitty Deku got it," he grumbled and stamped in the direction of his room. Without knocking, he kicked the door open. "Oi, shitty nerd. Give it back," he yelled. But what he didn't notice that the room was messy as hell. "Ah, Bakugou, I wanted to talk to you," Midoriya spoke slowly. His expression was horrifying. Even when Bakugou wouldn't admit it, he was scared of the shorter green-haired boy. "Now, where do you have it?" Bakugou asked, unimpressed. "What should I have? I wouldn't even give it to you. You stole my All Might bronze age figure." Midoriya yelled. He activated his quirk, and before he could Detroit Smash Bakugou into nirvana, Kirishima intervened. "Wait, that's not really manly of you, bro. My hair dye also went missing. I think someone is stealing from us." Sato followed the red-haired. "I think he's right," he said. "Let's meet up with the other ones and think about it before we hurt each other." mediated Kirishima. Still, with rage in his eyes, Midoriya let got of his powerful quirk and noded. "Alright, but I am not done with you, Kacchan." proposed Midoriya. "Whatever you say, shitty nerd." scoffed Bakugou.

As they got everyone except two persons in the common room area, the yelling began. "My lipstick went missing. How can I be able to rock my hero costume." Mina cried and hugged Uraraka desperately. The short brunette patted her back, comforting. "A book of mine also went missing," noted Momo. "Did someone saw my pair of glasses? I need to find Marry the third. Without her, my collection is incomplete." Iida yelled and made his typical hand gesture. At his comment, more than half of class 1a had to suppress a burst of laughter.  "My hair product also went missing," said Kirishima. "My limited All Might figure in his bronze age is missing," said Midoriya grumpily. "You look a bit scary, Midoriya. Is everything ok?" Todoroki asked. "Yeah, of course. I didn't need my All Might figure anyway." he sarcastically answered. "It's just a figure," Todoroki mentioned, and every chatter died down. "Dude, does he have a death wish?" asked Kaminari quietly. "Maybe," answered Sero noiselessly. "A figure... A figure..." Midoriya yelled and wanted to charge for a punch, but a frustrated screech interrupted the argument. 

You finished the last sentence of your work. So you turned around and stretched yourself with closed eyes, but as soon as you opened them, you were met with a tremendous mess. "The sneezes and the...oh shit," you yelled out in frustration. You were so occupied with work that you didn't even notice that you let go of a bunch of snowmen. Your steps stormed to the common-room to start the search for the tiny, snowy trouble makers. The yells in the common-room got louder and louder as you got nearer. "Guys," you yelled over the screeches of Midoriya. "I let go of my quirk, and some snowmen are probably starting some trouble. We need to find them." you got straight to the point. Everyone looked at you with expressionless faces. "Why is even every one of you here?" you asked now, confused. "Your tiny snow fuckers stole our stuff," Bakugou grumbled. "What was actually stolen from you, Kacchan ?" Kaminari asked.  "A manga," answered Bukugou grouchily. "Uh, which genre?" questioned Kaminary. "Shut it, dunce face," Bakugou yelled. "Just asking." waved Kaminari away. 

"Do you know where they possibly went, or how we can get rid of them?" asked Momo calmly. "I don't know where they could be," you answered, a bit disappointed. "If we find them and want to get rid of them, we need to destroy them with fire quirks. They don't melt of natural causes," you explained. "Alright, I think we build two teams. One team goes with Bakugou and the other one with Todoroki," suggested Momo. "Why do I need to be in one team. I can do this on my own." Bakugou protested. "Do you want your manga back asap?" Momo asked after that the ash-blond boy was quiet but still grumpy. "I am not going with Kacchan." Midoriya angrily said. "I don't want to go with you either," shouted Bakugou. "Just like an old married couple." laughed Kaminari. "Shut it, dunce face." yelled the blond boy. 

After you build up the teams, you started to search for the cold troublemakers. The team of yours consisted of Todoroki, Aoyama, Tsuyu, Iida, Uraraka, Yaoyorozu, a grumpy Midoriya, Tokoyami, Shoji, Ojiro, and you, of course. The other ones had fewer patient people in their team. Bakugou got Sero, Kirishima, Kaminari, Ashido, Jiro, Sato, Koda and Hagakure in his team. Your team searched on the second and third floor for the stolen things and your snowmen. 

The third floor was clear now you searched on the second floor. "Waa, how did snowmen came into my room?" a high-pitched yell caught the attention of your team. You neared the room and opened the door. Mineta was standing in front of a bunch of tiny snowmen. Everyone in the room turned, slowly their hats to the door. "Yeah, gotcha," you shouted happily. The snowmen suddenly let go of the stuff they hoarded and ran in different directions. "We need to catch them. Todoroki, Tsuyu, Iida, Momo, and I are catching them, and the rest of you secure the missing stuff," you ordered. During this time, Momo produced earpieces for communication. The people named ran with you to catch the snowmen.

Since the snowmen were fast and not as dumb as you wished they were, you had to separate. The snowman in front of you ran fast, and you yelled after him. As the snowman had to take the elevator, you could easily catch him. "I got one. Does someone else has one?" you asked in your earpiece. "I've got one too." answered Iida "Me too," said Tsuyu. "I have already burned two," said Todoroki in his calm demeanor.  "I am currently trying to catch one," yelled Momo hectically. "Thanks, guys, that means only one is missing," you said. A loud explosion roared through the dorm-building. "Now, I think only one is left." you corrected yourself. "I got the penultimate snowman," said Momo proudly. "Great." you cheered. As the elevator stopped at the ground floor, the snowman in your arms tried to wiggle himself free. "We need to met up in the common room, so we can get rid of the captured snowmen," you said to the others. 

After you got rid of the captured snowmen. Bakugou stormed into the common room area. "We found only one, are all gone?" he asked grumpily. "Only one is missing," you answered as you watched the penultimate snowman melt. "I got the last one he was hiding in the fridge," said Sato and brought you the last one. 

"Thanks, guys, for helping. I am so sorry that my quirk got out of hand and caused such trouble," you apologized to your classmates. "No problem, that could happen to every one of us. You don't need to apologize." Midoriya said reassuringly. A small smile spread across your face, and you were relieved that everyone agreed and wasn't angry with you. Except for Bakugou, but that was to be foreseen. 

Just simple ask, who is the most to least favorite characters. I bet pops is one of the most, am I right? 👀 👀

MY FAVES ARE HERE!

For me!? If I had to rank at least a top 5 villains (currently as of 10/04/21) then it would go as follows:

1.) Overhaul-no explanation needed honestly. I love his voice actors both dub and sub, his character design gets me every single time (despite that ugly ass purple feather coat). I mean then there’s my thing for characters with bottom lashes etc. I would beat him to near death for what he did to Eri, but then I’d nurse him back to health because I’m a hopeless simp as expected

2.)Shigiraki-I loved him since he first showed up haha. I think he’s pretty cool as a villain, and it’s been so much fun watching his character change throughout the seasons. I can’t wait to see more of him and I’m wondering where Horikoshi will take him.

3.)Toga-She’s just so dang cool to me. She reminds me of how weird I was in middle/high school (minus you know...minus the murder and all). I’m still a little weird as far as societal standards go and Toga to me represents that small part of my personality from youth I keep with me everywhere. 

4.)Spinner-I wanna give him hugs

5.)Twice-(*please see above, listed by Spinner*)

(But Pops is in the top 10 since I love him and genuinely wished the best for his character. What a precious old man...despite being a gang leader lol)

NOW FOR THE 5 LEAST FAVORITES

1.) Re Destro-I have not the slightest clue as to why I dislike him so much but Oh my God, I want to grab him by the nose and sling him against the wall like a stress ball. That stupid orange slut...(even tho I still hadn’t figured out why I don’t like him, I still pretend to like him when I write for him so that his fans can have a comfy place here reading too!)

2.) Afo-You aint shit old man. You aint worth a damn to me. You basically picked up a 5 year old and fucked him all the way up mentally. I get that society had a hand to play in it too. I know that Tomura should’ve been saved by someone else and but at the same time, I despise the fact it had to be you. (but damn his voice actor be carrying my heart in his pocket, AND his theme song slaaaaaps)

3.) The Doctor-Ew. I hate him so much that I made sure he was NOT added to my list of villains I write for.

4.)Muscular-I hate him so much. I literally can’t stand him. He reminds me of the type of boys that used to bully me all the time when I was little and how my dad would have to go to their houses and talk to their parents just so that they’d leave me alone. I bet muscular smells like fucking cigarettes' and gym sweat. I wish the worst on his character for the near future (I'm sorry muscular fans)

5.)Mummy-I don’t hate him really, I just don’t find him the least bit interesting and honestly he could’ve been excluded from the movie and I wouldn’t have even cared or noticed.

An Unbent Person

Note: Even though I haven’t finished the movie Remaining Sense of Pain from Kara no Kyoukai as a result of my being triggered by the intro, Asagami Fujino has been lingering in my head lately. And since it’s your birthday, @withanina / Aqui, I wanted to revisit her in a way that both honors you as one of my best friends and that helps me process the complex character that Fujinon is.

I just hope I did Fujinon justice with this oneshot. I’m still trying to figure her out, even when she’s one of my best Archers in my Chaldea and I’ve been in a writing slump to the point of defaulting to S&S verse to try to get back something. But we’re still here and I’m rambling, so enough of that. I’ll just insert this song as a theme since Yuki Kaijura also composed Credens Justitiam for Madoka Magica after working with Type: MOON, and let’s go. The lyrics used for the song are taken from lyricstranslate.com. This story canonically takes place, I think, after the aforementioned Remaining Sense of Pain (possibly around Extra Chorus) and S&S 24, before Kannabi.

Happy Birthday, Aqui. Thank you for sticking with all my stories. I hope we’ll keep being friends for years to come.

---------------------

Growing up in Nagareboshi Café meant getting used to what other civilians would call “abnormal behaviors.” Or, maybe the better phrase was simply “not minding things out of the ordinary.” Whether it was the shinobi coming into the café with nothing but a few flicked fingers in my direction to ask for an order or the occasional call for a song by a tired voice from the bar area, I learned very quickly to take things as they were. After all, it was still the Narutoverse — a place where child soldiers were considered “common” of all things. Papa had lived in that very same scenario for years, and now my best friends were growing up in it.

It felt like death was inevitable, no matter where you were in this world, because it was made a “norm.” Ugh.

Thus, the least I could do was not judge and instead be as welcoming as possible. It was all I could do just to provide some levity in a world that couldn’t offer any.

It was with this mindset that I met her.

She could’ve blended into the crowd with her unassuming black and red spider lily-patterned kimono and long purple hair, but once she was gently walking past Mama’s figure in the front of the café and carefully making her way to a table in the corner of the building with her cane, I did my best to not stare. It wasn’t every day that someone came in with a cane in hand, and once she started gently tapping the cane against every object she came across while walking, it automatically clued me in that it was not my business to ask.

Someone with an apparent disability didn’t need extra attention drawn to them unless they needed it for a helping hand. Internally, I was very grateful, though, to see how some clientele and our own café servers stepped out of the way to let the lady slowly maneuver through the crowd with her cane, a few people even quietly moving their chairs out of the way to give her a clear path. It was such a stark contrast to how Vy’s old family at times gave one of my aunts far too much space, simply because of how emotionally stubborn and physically weak she was for reasons I never did understand even after being reborn. Family issues were family issues.

But for a second, my thoughts wandered to how things would have happened for the lady to come in the way she did. Anyone, of course, could use a cane. Everyone had their own reasons. But the cloudiness in her eyes — it said something about her cane usage. Aside from looking straight up at the sun for that direct UV light exposure, possibly impaired vision wasn’t something that just happened unless we were getting into the possibility of genetics, lifestyle choices, and/or eye strain and how eyes related to anime powers. The Sharingan was a notable example of the latter, where Canon Sauce went blind thanks to overusing his Mangekyo after fighting Danzo, and I did not want to think about Obi possibly dealing with the same consequences once his Sharingan activated.

Wait. No no no. I shook my head vigorously, clamping down on the urge to slap my cheeks as punishment. It wasn’t my place to speculate what happened to Nagareboshi Café’s newest customer, even if she was pretty and the empathy in me was screaming to help her. The right thing to do is give distance and let her come to me if she wants to, I mentally knocked my head against a library wall, much to Hisako’s raised eyebrow. Remember that, me.

How about a song to break the ice, then? Hisako suggested, eerily quiet with her arms crossed over her chest. Tomoe Mami’s theme? To stop the library knocking.

Oops. I glanced at the black and white keys underneath my fingertips and nodded to myself. You know, why not?

My Nobody beamed with pride. Much better!

I couldn’t help but agree. There was something about seeing that lady with her walking cane and cloudy red eyes sitting by herself at a table that reminded me of a yellow magical girl. A single yellow-themed, gun-wielding magical girl who went about fighting alone just to ensure some kind of future for herself. It was honestly sad to think about because her wish was “to live” and that was where it had landed her.

But the concept of “loneliness” was not one I could entertain forever. I knew I didn’t want to when I couldn’t unsee the white myself.

Thus, humming the first few lyrics to myself was a good distraction while it lasted. Plus it was a good starter for tapping my foot to get the rhythm before letting my hands play out the rest. The piano crooned softly with my thoughts, echoing the chords I wanted, and for once,  I didn’t mind feeling my chakra start to float from the interaction. It felt like I didn’t have to hold my chakra back. This time, I let the music take me away in the hopes of letting my chakra play out as it should’ve been. Free, empathetic, and open.

The Sage of Six Paths might’ve been happy with the performance. I wanted to think that, at least, when playing the piano at that moment.

Solti ola i Amaliche cantia masa Estia…

E sonti tolda i Emalita cantia mia Distia…

A litia dista Somelite esta dia A ditto i della Filioche mio Solti tola Solti ola i Amaliche cantia masa estia E sonti tolda i Emalita cantia mia distia…

Alita della Maliche sonta dia Mia sonta della I testa mia Testi ola Solti ola…

Solti ola i Amaliche cantia mia Dia, dia...

By the time the last few keys faded into the air, I knew without opening my eyes that someone was sitting next to me on the piano bench. Miyako-bachan’s teachings were close to becoming second-hand nature to a point, but it didn’t stop me from squeaking a little when glancing over to find the very same lady I was thinking of at my right side.

Maybe I was too invested in remembering the first Heroine of Justice…

Even up close, it was obvious my newest visitor had gone through a lot at her age, with the little creases on her cheeks and the occasional white line of scarring crossing along what skin her kimono showed past the collar. Once she wrapped her red shawl tighter around her shoulders, hiding the scars with one hand while clutching the handle of her cane with the other, she slowly blinked in the vague direction of the piano. It took a moment before she went about turning her head towards me. Her gaze was unfocused, but still pointed my way. “Hello,” she said very quietly, her long purple hair brushing her shoulders with the greeting. “Are you the one who played the song just now?”

“Y-Yes,” I replied gently, nodding my head. “I am Hoshino Tomoko, your pianist for the day. Welcome to Nagareboshi Café, um…”

“Asagami,” the lady said, bowing her head in return. Her red eyes blinked again, as if focusing past the clouds in the irises, before she added, “Asagami Fujino,” with a small smile. “It was a beautiful song, Hoshino-san.”

“Thank you, Asagami-san,” I said respectfully in return. “Is there another song you would like me to play for you while you’re here?”

To my surprise, Asagami-san shook her head, her long purple hair swishing against her clothes enough to reflect the café lighting. It took an extra moment for me to realize she was wearing a black ribbon in her hair. “Not a song,” she said, voice all the more quiet in spite of her closeness. “I wanted to ask you something.” She blinked for a moment, her eyes narrowing in my direction in that small interval of time before widening minutely. “What were you thinking of when playing it? It was…” Asagami-san trailed off, turning her head back to looking at her lap as she gripped her cane. “It felt different. I never heard such a song like yours before.”

Oh. Uh. Just in case, I turned to the other person in the room. Hisako?

It didn’t even take a second for my Nobody to answer. Reliable as always. Yes, dear?

Chakra or no chakra explanation?

Hm. Hisako thoughtfully pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. Keep it simple. No chakra. Best to not add any confusing elements.

Alrighty. Simple and no chakra it is.

To Asagami-san, I admitted honestly, “I was actually thinking of you.”

Asagami-san raised her head in my direction so quickly, I would’ve thought she’d have given herself whiplash with how her neck turned. Her red eyes were still cloudy-looking, but they seemed to be shining with a newfound light of some sorts now. It felt like she was shocked. “Eh?” With that said, Asagami-san then lowered her head, no longer gazing in my direction but still exuding that same aura of surprise. “…Me?”

“Yes,” I continued, in spite of the growing blush no thanks to anxiety and embarrassment. “I-It looked like today is your first day here, so I just wanted to play something that made you feel welcomed—”

“No one has ever done that for me before,” Asagami-san interrupted, her voice one octave louder than before. Her knuckles were turning white against her already pale skin as she gripped her cane. “Not after…” She inhaled one long deep breath. “It was not painful.”

I took a deep breath too. “I didn’t mean for it to be,” I said softly.

Asagami-san gave me a small smile past the shoulder of her red shawl. “You seem to be a kind person, Hoshino-san.”

“I try to be, every day,” I said, doing my best to keep my voice from wobbling. This conversation was definitely starting to hit something heavy, and for once, it felt like I was doing something right and stepping into territory I couldn’t exactly parse out on my own. After all, it wasn’t every day a grown woman was relying on a teenager of all people. But the situation was happening, and there was no stopping it. “It’s what I was taught to do, and I want to keep doing it.” For the people I care for, for the people I lost, for myself, was left unsaid. “Everyone deserves a chance to feel safe and be themselves. I just help make the space for that, without pain and with as much kindness I can muster.”

Asagami-san said nothing for a while after that, merely tapping her cane against the pedals of the piano for a small moment. I did my best not to wince when one such tap happened on my foot, but by then, it seemed like Asagami-san was in her own thoughts. My bit of pain didn’t matter. Right now, something was up.

Did I say something wrong?

“…You can see,” Asagami-san said finally, her voice a bare wisp in the air, “life even without pain?”

As expected from a moment of silence — it sounded and felt like a loaded question. Still, I lifted my hands from the piano keys to place them into my lap, taking a breath to formulate my answer. There was no way I could leave this standing. “Maybe. Maybe not. I just know that life is full of many things, Asagami-san. Pain can be a part of it, but that’s not all there is to it. There’s the trees outside, the bright blue sky, the warm air, the food in the café, and the people that live here.” With the warmest smile I could make, I turned to her, even if a part of me could guess she wouldn’t fully see it. “It’s because of what happens in this life that I got to meet you, right?”

Asagami-san looked up in my direction again. Her red eyes were wider than before, letting in enough light to expose my reflection in the cloudy irises before the first visages of tears dotted the edges. “You…” her bottom lip quivered. “How can you say that, Hoshino-san? I-I…” Asagami-san shook her head vigorously, enough to jostle the black ribbon in her hair, making it crooked. “I’m not—”

Maybe I shouldn’t have shared. Maybe I was going too far, considering we were in the middle of the café and the privacy seals weren’t turned on and I needed to turn them on. But the words were leaving my lips before I could stop them, interrupting whatever thought Asagami-san was about to voice. “You’re fine, Asagami-san. I just wanted to play the song for you because I’ve been hurt before, and I don’t want anyone else to feel the same way when there’s so much more in the world to discover and enjoy.”

Asagami-san’s shoulders shook against her shawl, causing the red cloth to fall back and expose the barely hidden scars against the black collar of her kimono. “…I thought I couldn’t feel anything outside of pain. Not after Keita-san a-and Shiki-san.” Keita-san? Shiki-san? “But you—”

“I’m sorry if I overwhelmed you,” I said honestly, raising my hand for a moment before lowering it. Even if I was tempted to pat her back as a form of sympathy, from the way Asagami-san was hunching into herself, it wasn’t the best time to intrude on her personal space bubble. I made this bed, and I was going to lie in it even if I wasn’t sure of what was going on. “I put a lot in what I do. But I meant everything I said. And what I felt when I played the piano.”

It was at that very moment I saw a small droplet hit the edge of Asagami-san’s kimono sleeve. Oh. Oh dear. “Wh-why…” there was a dainty sniffle, “why didn’t I meet you sooner? If I knew you before, then—”

Screw it.

I reached over to gently rest my palm against the hand Asagami-san was using to grip her cane. “But you’re here, Asagami-san,” I said, feeling my smile wobble all the more at seeing more droplets fall onto Asagami-san’s kimono, creating dark wet circles in the black cloth. “You’re still here now. And I’m glad that you are.”

Asagami-san shuddered, her shawl barely covering her back with the gesture tilting her center of balance. “I-I feel like crying. It hurts. I-It all hurts. C-Can I… Can I cry?” For a grown woman, I was not expecting the childlike tone of wonder in her voice. “Hoshino-san, can I cry?”

My heart hurt. Something must’ve happened for her to react so much. Even then, I still curled my fingers so that they could brush against Asagami-san’s hand and hopefully relax her grip on her cane. Physical comfort was the least I could give after unearthing something so heavy. “Of course you can. That’s a part of what makes you human, Asagami-san. Crying is a part of what helps all of us be alive.”

The first sob I heard from her then sounded more like a relieved laugh than a cry for help. Even then, Asagami-san shrunk into her seat at the piano bench, purple hair shrouding her face all the while. I simply kept my palm against her knuckles, controlling my own breathing to not cry myself from the shared emotion.

“M-May I—” Asagami-san choked around another sob as her hand relaxed minutely under my grip, “May I come here again, Hoshino-san?”

“Yes,” I said faintly. “Of course. I wouldn’t say ‘no,’ Asagami-san. Feel free to visit Nagareboshi Café whenever you’d like. I’ll be here.”

It felt like a promise I couldn’t turn my back on. I wouldn’t.

---------------------

Long after Asagami-san left from the café closing for the day, I found myself letting go of the breath I was holding. Then a hand gently fell onto my hair.

“You okay, hime?” Papa whispered, patting my head for a moment before pulling me in for a side-hug. “Need anything?”

My lip quivered before I let go of my current inhibitions and wrapped my arms around his waist, converting the side-hug into a full-on hug. The fact that I was getting a faceful of his waist apron didn’t matter. Nor did the smell of what reminded me of day-old soda. No matter what, it was still Papa, and work was done. I could be selfish around him and it was okay. “M-More hugs, please, Papa.”

Papa laughed softly before resting a hand against my back and patting there too. “Alright. You did well, hime.”

“I-I followed your example, daddy,” I whispered back, finding my voice going back to Vy’s for just that moment. “Help others when you have the ability to.”

“And that, hime,” Papa replied wistfully and proudly, “is what makes your heart a good one. Just let me and Mama help you next time. You can’t do everything alone and we’re still here. We’ll play a full concert together when Asagami-san comes back.”

“Aye. Th-That’ll be nice.” If it meant one more wounded person could smile, that was enough for me. I didn’t have to shoulder everything. And one concert could possibly make one more day won from the dirty clutches of war. I’d just have to settle for that.

Maybe next time, Asagami-san could smile without tears in her eyes.

Ultraman Z Ep 5: “First Juggling” (TV Review)

(Original Air Date: July 18, 2020, Director: Takanori Tsujimoto, Writer: Takao Nakano)

A chilling threat arises from Earth’s ancient past this week on Ultraman Z. As Haruki and Yoko are sent out to deal with it, we get a special look at the personal life of STORAGE Chief Shota Hebikura. Those elements plus the debut of a new weapon for Zett make this the most densely plotted and exciting episodes so far.

[Full Review Under the Cut]

The main threat of the episode comes from the freezing power of Peguila as the flying creature lands in the city. Why it’s arisen from the permafrost in Alaska after 30,000 years and targeted this city is connected to two things in the episode’s story; first is Hebikura speculating that climate change has made it easier for the beast to escape its ice prison and secondly is a legend connecting the monster to an stone spear recently recovered from the same area being studied at the local university. Yoko’s sent out in Windom with Haruki on the ground to handle evacuation.

We get a more detailed look at Windom’s launch procedures than last time, where the focus was more on what the robot’s like in action and seeing it fly out of STORAGE is a solid effects sequence. There are some of the more unique destruction shots in the series so far as we see Peguila marching through the city. Most impressive among them being a POV shot from inside a car that gets flipped over by the monster’s footsteps shaking the ground beneath it before cutting to an exterior shot of the vehicle getting stomped by Peguila. This part of the episode is also a solid highlight on Yoko as she’s determined to not eject from Windom until she’s certain as many people have gotten to safety as possible, even as Peguila’s freezing breath damages Windom to the point of nearly freezing to death herself. Listening to her determination and pride in her job over the comms, Haruki gets ready to join the fight as Ultraman Z before the Z Riser is stolen from his by a mystery figure, the returning Jugglus Juggler.

I’ve been talking around the foreshadowing and fan speculation about Chief Hebikura since I started writing these reviews. Getting to discuss the actual reveal feels like a welcome exhale now that we know for sure that Takaya Aoyagi is reprising the role of Jugglus Juggler from Ultraman Orb. The official reveal and seeing Aoyagi fully back in Juggler-mode was the most excited this already thrilling episode got me. For those less familiar with the Ultra franchise, Juggler was the main villain in Orb but has since been something of a wild card in terms of what his motives are at any given time throughout cameos and guest spots. His personality can best be described as “I think I will cause problems on purpose”, his monster form is like if Square Enix redesigned Mac Tonight, and he’s a favorite character among many in the Ultra-fandom, myself included.

Why Juggler’s gone undercover in a position of authority for an organization like STORAGE is currently unknown, but his actions in this episode appear to stem from simple boredom, as hinted in the cliffhanger of the previous episode. He leaves STORAGE HQ while Yoko and Haruki are dealing with the current threat of Peguila and we don’t see him again in human form until the actual reveal of him changing back from his monster form. Plenty of credit is deserved for Aoyagi as an actor, as he does play the two sides in great contrast with different body language and styles of line reads when he’s “Hebikura” versus when he’s on his own as Juggler. While my excitement for this reveal comes from my knowledge of past Ultra shows, I am curious how this reveal reads to anyone less familiar with the franchise. I could see the base level of “the main character’s boss was actually a monster-man the whole time” still being an effective reveal, but not getting that same excitement from it without that background knowledge.

Juggler’s boredom may have been what drove him to steal the Z Riser for his own end, but the meat of the story in this episode is what that drives Haruki to do so he can help against Peguila without the power of Zett. Remembering Yoko’s words about doing their jobs at any cost, Haruki rushes back to HQ to commandeer Sevenger to save Yoko and continue the fight against that “dirty penguin” (his words.) While he manages to save Yoko by thawing out Windom with Sevenger’s jets and gets a few good hits in against Peguila, the monster is still enough of a threat to damage Haruki’s robot. Once the two pilots are back on the ground, Haruki gets a last minute save from Juggler, giving him back the Z Riser.

After a brief reunion scene where Zett tells Haruki he “sensed darkness” while they were separated, the episode climaxes in two different and equally stunning fight sequences. The fight between Ultraman Z and Peguila is mostly an aerial battle through the snowstorm the monster creates, composited to look like a continuous shot, and features a nice shot of the “camera” frosting over as the monster’s artic blast hits it. This fight gets resolved in one shot once the stone spear glows to life and Zett senses the power of a past Ultraman within it, remarking that he knows how to use a weapon like this. Before the fight ends there’s a great humorous bit where Peguila visibly freaks out at seeing the weapon that sealed it away again.

While that may have been where the other episodes so far would have ended, here we go on to see the results of Juggler’s machinations. Earlier in the episode he’s seen conducting a ritual calling upon the powers of darkness to make a dark duplicate of the Z Riser along with three Monster Medals of his own. Once he sees that the fight against Peguila has concluded, he pulls out the Riser to test his own powers against those of Zett. We get to see his own transformation sequence, styled after that of Ultraman Orb, in a purple version of the Z-Riser pocket dimension. He takes on the form of the fusion monster Zeppandon and is clearly using this fight as an opportunity to size up the abilities of the young Ultra. He teleports around and taunts at the heroic giant. Zett, even with the new power of the spear, initially gets overpowered but Haruki recalls Yoko’s words about pride in their jobs fighting monsters and that encourages Zett enough to earn them a second wind. The final act of the fight is marked by one of my favorite tropes in anything, the show’s opening theme song kicking in, as they strike a final blow against Juggler’s giant monster form.

This episode, even apart from the glee I got from the official reveal of Juggler, is easily the most exciting so far. Ultraman Z’s episodes have all been pretty action oriented in their own way, but the displays of determination from Yoko and Haruki make this a highlight of how both characters operate under fire (or ice in this case.) Tying what was already a solid setup into this episode’s main advancement of the overall arc for the series has me more than ready to see what comes next, especially as this episode ends on Juggler clearly being pleased with the outcome of his fight with Zett and the preview for next time showing the return of my favorite hero in this entire franchise, Ultraman Geed.

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Unrelated to the Epilogues

Apologies for not getting back to liveblogging, yet; however, that’s going to begin again with my next post.   This one is simply to express some thoughts that have been kicking around in my head for a few days, which I did not get the chance to express because I was sleep deprived and then briefly sick. Namely:   All weapons (or Strife Specibi, I should say) in Homestuck seem to be symbolically representative of the character who owns them to some extent.  A few easy examples would be: * the Dualing Pistol (White Magnum/White Wand), which is elegant and precise, only needing to be fired once to provoke massive, impactful change, and doubly representative of Alt!Calliope’s subtle orchestration of events behind the scenes; * The Dudely [Fire]Arm[ament]s (Caliborn/Lord English’s canes/rifles), which the aforementioned doubled set is contrasted to: whilst they are equally intended to convey mastery of events (and particularly the people taking part in them), these are more brutish, and make their impact through repeated blows (a pool cue arranges things through a loud, meaningful break, and then many serious blows to follow--- and while these blows might in theory require precision in order to make the balls fall where they must, in practice, Caliborn’s talent is in ensuring that every hit eventually brings things to a favorable conclusion, rather than in the shortest route possible).   Brute force methods are used to bring about the desired conclusion--- an inevitable death, generally  ---and the overkill that Caliborn (the Lord of Death, in some ways) utilizes whenever his rifle’s sights fall upon a target (for it’s never a single bullet that hits) is representative of his general methodology and spirit. *  Dave’s broken/mended sword, split over time, is obviously representative of his own Aspect, how it gradually affects him (time heals all wounds, as the saying goes, despite the fact that he seems to become quite incensed with it at some points, and struggles with it to the point of refusing to embrace it for a very long time), and especially how his personal history ties into his personal arc (Dave is more affected by his time with his Guardian than perhaps any other kid, despite the fact that Jade is fused with the replacement surrogate that might arguably be said to have usurped the position from her grandpa, and this is also a reflection on the Aspect of Time in his life, I should think).     How Bro (Dirk) Broke his Heart, and how Dave struggled to mend it over the course of the series has been much better discussed elsewhere than I could attempt to express in the brief space I’m allotting to this discussion, here, though, and thus I shall cut this off right here, just as both brothers have a habit off symbolically cutting things off, themselves. ~~~ The train of thought that I am wanting to express herein started with a thought that caught me by surprise:   I continue to have no idea what, precisely John’s Strife Specibus is supposed to represent, you see, so when I remembered that there was a method of inheritance called Gavelkind, it struck me that it could be related to this, as a pun.  Unfortunately, this seems like a dead end, unless it is a very forward thinking joke about every member of his party taking up the main character mantle after he dies in the “more canon [more relevant in Dirk’s eyes]” Meat Epilogue (or, alternatively, Davesprite and Rose’s inherited self from the timeline having to clean up John’s mess after the idiot got himself obliterated in the deal he made with Typheus after Terezi tricked him).     It could also be related to him forging the group through his Heir of Breath inspiration toward a path mechanic, but what are the chances of it being that simple an answer?   Unfortunately, said inheritance business seemed more promising than it was, because I was initially confusing it with the Elective method of kingmaking that is to be found in German historical culture. That truly fits with who John is, and resonates with the “I’m not your leader, I’m your friend” humblepie that was served up to us (and everyone else in his party). ... This line of thinking was useful, however, because it led me to thinking about Karkat’s own weapon.  Obviously, the “Heh, heh, Communism” line of thinking briefly occurred to me, but more relevantly, I thought of the reason why the sickle is used as a symbol of Communism.  It is a classic symbol of the lower class--- farmers, in particular  ---which hints at the very beginning to Karkat’s rather humble origins. While many people might like to think of his mutant blood as “potentially higher than fuschia,” or some such nonsense, more realistically, one has to realize that Karkat was placed in the lowest of low positions: not only was he the only member of his kind, but he would have been without a Lusus and immediately abandoned to death, if the worshipers of his Ancestor had not ensured that he had the dimmest possibility of a relatively normal life. At the same time, he wanted to defy this lowborn status and become a mighty general in )-(er Imperious Condescension’s army.   While this initial spark of revolution was not much, it is representative of all that was to come-- you see, the sickle is to some extent also a symbol of revolt, and while peasant revolts would generally be brutally put down throughout history (just as the waves of opposition to the Condesce were in Alternian lore), this would not in fact be the case with Karkat, or the session that he (and Aradia) would lead. You see, Karkat’s own ideals and the weapon that represents them are but the tip of the iceberg.  The Beta Trolls’ entire session was littered with themes of rebellion against the established social order, and the consequent turning of it upon its head.   First and most obviously, it would be two Lowborn trolls that would come to lead the two “teams” which the session had to offer. Both of these figures acquired this position by usurping it from Bluebloods, who might traditionally have taken up this role in a circumstance where the empress-to-be didn’t show interest in leadership and the Purple Blood in the group appeared to be an incompetent, serially inebriated sack of garbage. This theme particularly shown through in [concupiscent] romance, where we saw pairings that, without exception (other than possibly the crush that Ms. Leijon bore for Karkat, which saw no fruition and arguably did not count for anything, just as Eridan’s flushed feelings for Feferi didn’t “matter” in the end, and Kanaya x Vriska, while being a borderline issue for this topic, doesn’t count either, also due to it just being a crush), all saw subversion of social hierarchy:

Equius x Aradia, Gamzee x Tavros, Feferi x Sollux {I just noticed that these relationships all have the same social distance from one another for some reason.}, Terezi x Karkat. Vriska x Tavros is one-sided, and thus debatable, but also fits this pattern, intriguingly enough. Equius was hit with this subversive force in their social lives particularly hard, possibly because he was the Heir of Void, and thus was more inundated with forces of subtext than the rest of the group [particularly since he was a failure in that role].   Not only could he not resist the drive to submit to those it was “perverse” for one of his “station” to bend the knee to, when the opportunity to truly embrace the anti-normative forces that he had been dipping into (despite his Classist upbringing) came, he was so confused and uncertain that he could not properly understand what he was being pushed to do, and the necessity of it--- and thus froze, allowing himself to be swept away by the Rage Gamzee filled him with. These themes play out in Operation Regisurp, both in name and its practical implementation.  Furthermore, I have just, in the course of writing this post, come to the conclusion that this is why Gamzee had to be the final obstacle to the true end of the Beta Trolls’ session.  He was a crystallized manifestation of the old regime, and its established order:  Gamzee acted as a shadow of the Condesce’s will, the Hemospectrum’s implications, and the brutal reality that was Alternia.    It was thus quite fitting that Karkat was the one to stop his rampage, for he was the Knight of Blood who cajoled everyone to work together as a single team, rejecting the classical restrictions that would have spelled DOOM for their party in favor of bonds beyond the literal nature of the blood that flowed through all of their veins.   Furthermore, I think this is why that confrontation ended in the Shush Pap scene.   Not only was it true that Karkat had literally zero percent chance of actually killing Gamzee in the fight (and a very small chance, indeed, to defeat him through violence), but this would to some extent additionally be an endorsement of the old Alternian way of life.  Rather than through violence, Karkat used his bond with Gamzee to find a solution, and by this means, turned him away from his role as brutal Subjugglator--- though unfortunately this also meant that Gamzee would take a turn for the worse, becoming even more firmly cemented in his role as a servant to the Mirthful Messiah’s. ... Heading back to the meaning of Karkat’s weapon for a moment, I think that the sickle has another implication to explore: it is an implement of the harvest.  Karkat initially wanted to be a sort of grim reaper, slaughtering Alternia’s foes and claiming glory for himself and for his empress. While he was correct in thinking that he just needed an opportunity to prove himself (and thus, he was embracing the symbolic “one must wait until the fruits of the harvest are ripe” implications of the sickle in his own life), the climax of this narrative arc would come when Karkat found himself at the head of Meenah’s united army of all the trolls in the afterlife and bravely charged to meet a foe he knew could destroy the soul with very breath--- and the very real equivalent of the Grim Reaper, himself ---wielding the closest thing he had to a weapon painted with the rainbow (Fuschia an Lime Green bound together betwixt bands of black and white, thus singled out amidst all the colors of the light spectrum). This was his ultimate rejection of the Alternia that was, as he challenged the hidden hand that had twisted it into the place of horror it had been; and upon the fulfillment of that destiny, Karkat would vanish.

Yet, by some miracle, this was not the end: in a place separated beyond barriers of space and time, he would awaken, and but a short time later, he would be granted the Ultimate Reward that had once been wrenched from his grasp. ....................................................................................................................... One last matter of note:  It should be pretty obvious, considering the fact that universes are shaped to reflect the wills and designs of the Players involved, but I am pretty sure humans’ singularly colored blood is an explicit rejection of the hemospectrum, and the particular color that was “chosen” may very well be reflective of the important role Karkat in particular played in the session. What may not be so obvious is how fitting, symbolically, it is that it is a human that stands triumphant over the corpse of )-(er Imperious Condescension.  Curse baggage aside (which still has been irksomely unexplored, to my knowledge), the fact that it is essentially the Beta Trolls’ rejection of her world order that does the empress in feels very right and, upon reflection, is quite beautiful.   Obviously, there’s also a nice splash of revenge playing into that too, as visibly denoted by the weapon used and the handle wrapping, in particular.  I am curious as to the implications of Roxy’s typing color being the same as the blood of said fishy tyrant, though. That, I can’t quite figure out.

Rhapsode’s Top 10 Favorite Fire Emblem Antagonists

Hey guys, so I wanted to do something a bit special because of a few asks I’ve gotten from time to time. Namely, who are my favorite villains in FE. Thing is, I wanted to do something with this for a while outside of an ask, and hear I am.

Now before I even start, these are all MY OPINIONS. These are my favorite antagonists in FE, not some objective masterlist that means anyone who isn’t on here is a bad villain. If you agree with me on this list, great! If you think I got everything wrong, I respect that opinion.

So if I left out any of your personal favorite villains in FE, let me know in a reply or reblog.

Now a little bit of criteria on how I had made choices,

Uniqueness: What does a villain bring as a character. Because FE is nothing if not a bit archetypal.

Impact on the Narrative: Now I think a good villain should be an active participant in the narrative as well as have a level of relevance. They also should have relation to the lore of the world they’re in.

Personality: In my opinion even a poorly written character with a magnetic presence can be more tolerable than a poorly written character with no personality

Were they satisfying of a boss in game: While FE emphasizes narrative, it has some terrific gameplay. So I would hope the opposing units really give you a run for your money.

Oh and fair warning, this will have spoilers.

With all that out of the way, sit back and I’ll tell you all about my favorite FE villains!

10. Uhai (Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade)

Yeah, so, we’re starting with probably the most tertiar antagonist on this list. While Uhai might not seem that important in the grand scheme of things. Being a Black Fang member who’s scared of what Nergal is going to do and is out for Ninian. 

So why did I pick him over other Black Fangs or Saceans?

Well in terms of Saceans, I really felt Uhai brought the most personality compared to someone like Glass, who was pretty basic. Especially for Lyn’s final villain. Uhai definitely felt the most… “Sacean,” if that makes sense. Having a code of honor and integrity. As well as acting on self preservation.

And while Uhai isn’t my favorite Black Fang, he shows something different as being one of the original fangs and having this sense of honor. Which was a really nice reminder about the humble origins of the Black Fang.

I also really like how he could’ve easily killed Lyn when he kidnapped her, but let her go to kill her as a warrior. Given Lyn’s underlying theme of fighting sexism, to have an opponent that didn’t factor in her gender and would fight her on equal terms, it was a really cool scene.

Sadly, he’s just a minor antagonist and if he got more time like being a part of the Four Fangs, I think he could’ve really added more.

9. Orson (Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones)

Orson seems pretty simple all things considered. He loved his wife, Monica, and after losing her, he is willing to make a deal with the devil to bring her back. It’s not much, but I think what plays into the effectiveness is seeing him before his wife is revived and having him on your team, then watching what he has become after her revival.

Having a villain who starts off as a playable character and then later is an antagonist is always tricky. From a story perspective, you spent time with them that even you, the player, feel negatively affected by the heel turn. However, from a gameplay aspect, it's a tad annoying if you spent time grinding them. 

Orson, is pretty obvious in that he’ll be turning against you, but we really see him as a somewhat charming and endearing guy at first. But then when he returns to Renais to be with his wife, it leads to one of the most unsettling narrative shifts I think FE has done.

We see him now in charge of Renais, but now more mentally disturbed, physically malnourished, and locking himself away from the rest of the kingdom to be with his wife. Seeming like magic has possessed him. But when you find that this is due to being reunited with his wife who is now just a corpse that can only say “Darling” you really feel this messed up mood permeating the chapter.

There's so much unsaid, and I think that it works to the advantage of the story. Comparing the Orson you meet when he’s your ally to the Orson you meet as an opponent, it really doesn’t need to be said how he fell so hard. That Orson has given up so much and now that he has his wife back he’s just convincing himself that she’s alive.

While another villain on this list did the heel turn far better than Orson, I still think that the sheer shock of Orson’s story really makes you feel for him, while just wanting to end him.

8. Bloom, Hilda, Ishtar and Ishtore (Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War)

So this one is definitely cheating. 

While only two members of the Friege family could really stand on their own as definable villains, I actually think when all are together they offer something more unique for FE. Families of villains are a bit of a rarity in FE, especially ones whose family dynamic is well defined in the main story, and not supports. 

But with Bloom, Ishtar, and Ishtore, you get to fight all of them in a chapter thanks to the set up of the Genealogy of the Holy War. It allows for a more unique encounter and this growing feeling of outrage if you end up killing a member of the family.

House Friege continuing on as secondary antagonists in the second generation was a great addition. Giving this sense of history repeating itself, with Bloom seemingly no better than Reptor from the first generation, but where as he is a power hungry politician, Bloom shows some shades of gray in his detestment of Child Hunts and actually being a somewhat decent father figure to Tine. Which actually leads to some interesting contrast to his wife, Hilda.

Hilda is easily the most monstrous of the family, and while I was considering her to be her own separate entry, as she is possibly the most wicked and cruel female villains in the entire franchise. Driving Tailtiu to death, and using Ishtar as a step towards more power. Her additional role a matriarch of the household who married for Bloom’s money and power, adds an extra layer to the band of villains.

Ishtar and Ishtore also offer a role as both not being Child Hunt supporters but act in different ways to them. With Ishtore not getting involved and instead spending more time on Liza and Ishtar actually working with Arvis to free the children rounded up.

As a family unit, it offers a lot of unique villain interaction that I’m sad the limited technology of the time couldn’t capture all of. I’m glad that games like Fates have tried making family units as opponents, but I’d like to see a dynamic similarly fleshed out as the Frieges.

7. Jedah (Fire Emblem Gaiden/Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia)

Okay, how the hell did this guy so high up on the list? No joke, Jedah started at the bottom when I first started this list. I mean, he’s just another Gharnef. What makes him all that different from Nergal or Manfroy?

Well, truth be told, what got Jedah so high up for me is presentation. A lot of Gharnefs are the big game manipulators, and sometimes that can be frustrating if you’re not really in the character. I think Manfroy is one of the most effective villains, but he’s not particularly stand out. 

Nergal is a far more justifiable villain with his motivations, but he’s basically corrupted by “Darkness.”

Jadah, especially in FE15, oozes personality and charisma. I give a lot of points to his more inhuman design that went beyond just making his a wrinkly old man. As well as his expressions. When playing Three Houses, I was shocked at how stone-faced Thales was. But with Jedah, I feel like the artists took a lot of opportunity in giving him a face that could contort in such a way to to sell how much of a schemer and villain he was. 

He has this look of a guy you love to hate.

Also, in terms of story, Jedah really does eclipse Rudolf as a villain (Yes I know, Rudolf is not really a villain) and is easily a more proactive villain than even Berkut. While Jedah serves Duma faithfully, the purple baddie still seems to have done more as an antagonist then the detriorting dragon.

He’s really the most satisfying overarching villain next to Berkut. And power, don’t get me started. While Gharnef’s Imhullu seemed relatively foreshadowed on how he wouldn’t be beaten by normal means, the first time I fought Jedah, I was surprised just how much of a gap in power there was between us. As well as the terrors he summons for the first time are more lovecraftian than the other terrors you fought before.

While Jedah is definitely a fun villain, his greatest weakness is that he is unquestionably in the morally black category. The man sacrificed his own daughters to prove his loyalty. Before then, there was a bit of an argument to be made that witches were just a sign of society and that offering up your soul for more power was just common in a power focused structure. But sacrificing your daughters is a tad on the unforgivable side.

As well as his end goal is really just war and conquest, while being Duma’s number one servant. So ultimately, he’s not very complex. But that lack of complexity still added a chaotic edge to Echoes that was really welcomed.

6. Reinhardt (Fire Emblem: Thracia 776)

Now speaking of complexity here we get, who I consider the best of the Camus archetype. First off, I really like how Reinhardt is built up as the second coming of Crusader Thurd. Especially if you’ve played FE4 and know just how much of an obstacle Ishtar, Bloom and Ishtore were. 

Second is just how tragic his story is. I never really cared for the romance between Camus and Nyna, so at times I didn’t really care for his internal conflict. But the fact that Reinhardt has eyes for Ishtar to the point that Julius is feeling jealous and stripping him of his title. You also get the heartbreak of his sister, Olwen choosing to side against and how much denial he feels until Saias needs to point out how Olwen made this choice herself.

It’s just sad to see a guy who comes off as so imposing and level-headed have so much internal strife because his convictions of loyalty keep putting him on the wrong side of things. At times it feels like you can invest more into him than Lief, I really hope to see an expanse of him in a remake.

Reinhardt is not a character I enjoyed fighting because I wanted to see him be with the Liberation Army. He’s suffered from Julius’s pettiness. He knows how bad things have gotten with Grannvale’s expansion. Yet he just won’t because of his loyalty to his home. 

(I like to think that if you release him, he goes onto serve Tine and Arthur.)

Now, as I said, he still fits that Camus archetype. But unlike Camus or someone like Xander, I wish I had more of an expansion of his loyalty to Friege. I know he loves Ishtar and he probably has some ego built up about “second coming.” But if you’re not a fan of, “he did this out of love.” You’re probably not gonna like him. As a lot of the Camus archetype have always suffered from a, “why are you so loyal.”

People like Dedue and Catherine had the benefit of being playable characters, so you could support them and peel back a lot of their reasonings. And even Camus got more of a reason when he became Zeke and was saved and given a new life in Rigel.

So while Reinhardt makes for a great adversary, I do find him leaving me wanting more that other rival characters could give me.

5. Grima (Fire Emblem: Awakening)

(Note: I’m using masculine descriptors for Grima because I’m personally more used to male Grima and male Robin)

Here’s another baddie I wasn’t too sure where I was gonna put on the list. I knew I wanted him on here, but again, I wasn’t expecting Grima to be so high. He’s built up all throughout Awakening, as well as turning out to be reincarnated in the main character, Robin. Already does push him up on the list. But if you were to dissect his personality, he’s really just your godly final villain, who condescends down on you.

But there’s actually a lot more to this monster than you’d expect.

At first, I see a lot of similarities between him and Duma: Cult worshipers, really powerful dragon, catalyst for a war etc. But Duma as a villain is due to the dragon deterioration. Sure, he’s got bad followers, but losing his sanity kinda enabled them. But Grima… This guy wants to wipe out all life because he can.

Grima is much more a force of nature as a villain. He doesn’t try to dress up his simplistic desire with fancy philosophy. No, he embraces just how above everyone he is and how he’ll enjoy wiping them out. 

Not only that, but design-wise… Holy crap.

The sheer size and power of Grima, coupled with one of the most unique designs for a dragon, makes for a truly nightmarish foe. The boney, almost mechanical way Grima turns his head when ready to attack, just sends shivers down my spine. His size and pension for only wanting to destroy all life really gives off this sense of being an inevitability. A force that can not be stopped from washing over the world.   

It really works with the overall theme of Awakening. Robin trying to forge his own identity and is not tied down to fate. But how exactly can you fight that fate when its just so intimidating? Why with friends, of course! The final moments of Robin and Chrom slaying Grima is one of the most tragic things I’ve watched. With Robin knowing he needs to die to prevent Grima, but the only way to kill Grima is with a Falchion in the hands of Chrom. So Robin must be slain by his best friend, the one he’s gone through hell with and gave him a chance at making this new life for himself. It’s a final battle that breaks my heart.

Speaking of final battles, Grima offers one of the most unique environments for a final battle. Using that monstrous size to serve as a stage for your final fight against the Grimleal on the back of their god. Not to mention the priest warping in to keep bogging you down as you try to get off that killing blow on the Fell Dragon.

The background added by Shadows of Valentia about a young Grima actually being an alchemic monstrosity made to find a way to cheat death not only elevates Grima thematic impact, but also make him more like a lovecraftian horror. Which is something rare in this series. 

That said, the biggest fault in this character is hw sidelined he is. There’s nothing wrong with a simplistic villain, but even in Robin form, Grima really doesn’t take much part in the events. I would’ve liked more interactions with him and Chrom or Robin before the revival.

I also completely understand if someone doesn't care for the “kill all people in the world,” type of villain. What is the endgame after destroying everything? Guess make some zombies. 

I do argue that Grima being a force of nature makes him unique to the whole point of “what happens next?” But again, as a finally boss, I can see if that’s not your style. And while I think the simplicity is kinda beautiful, I myself have a preference for more complex villains.

4. The Black Knight (Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance/Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn)

Hoo boy, I’m not gonna make any friends with this one.

How do I even talk about this guy properly? Mainly due to some narrative… Disconnects... between Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn. Well I’ll just try and keep with his outing in Path of Radiance.

Black Knight has easily some of the most thematic presence in the series. His anonymous name and sleek design make almost all of his cutscenes a treat. Just stepping onto the battlefield and killing Greil, with the only hint of who he is being that he was one of Greil’s former students already sets him up as an anomaly.

But something you notice quickly, Black Knight has chivalry. He offers to give Greil the legendary blade of Ragnell so they can have an even fight. Sure, Black Knight wants to kill his mentor to prove he has become better, but he’s not gonna do it unfairly. And he lets Ike keep Ragnell, so that he can truly grow as strong as Greil and then give him a true fight.

Speaking of Ragnell, I actually love how it and Black Knight’s Alondite blade are sister swords. Setting up for a rivalry that goes beyond just Ike getting revenge for his dad. It leads to a lot of interesting encounters over the course of the game, building up to a crescendo of when Ike will finally defeat the armored menace.  It honestly makes for a more compelling final brawl than Ashnard.

Also with Ashnard, we come back to that whole chivalry thing. Because while Ashnard displays himself as a “Mad King,” Black Knight still honorably serves him. In fact, while I’ve seen many people debate the true identity of Black Knight, I actually like the idea that he was just a student of Greil. He needs no true identity except being an embodiment of knightly principles and power.

For all the good and bad that entails.

Leading to great parallels between him and Ike. Ike being a mercenary whose principles differ so much from the Black Knight make him an ideal opponent for the Black Knight.

Now all that said, we need to get to the big but. The actual identity of the Black Knight being Zelgius raises a lot of questions and messes with the consistency of the story. I genuinely feel like it would be more powerful if Zelgius was his own character. While the ambiguity of the Black Knight added to his.

The best moment in Radiant Dawn for me is honestly his end, where he’s at least proud to have helped perfected Ike’s swordplay. But after that, I can’t exactly say he’s the same character. And that unfortunately keeps him from being any higher on the list.

3. Berkut (Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia)

Top 3, everyone! And we’re kicking it off with the Rigelean Prince, Berkut.

After coming off Fates, there was this really big cloud hanging over the FE fandom if they’d actually be able to recover from their dip in storytelling. And then Echoes came up with the game-exclusive addition of Berkut. 

Berkut really was a return to for with understandable villains. Having grown up being a noble of Rigel and as nephew of Rudolf next in line for the throne. In a society that prides itself on power, Berkut was only ever asked to be strong enough to ascend to that title of king.

And when you first see him dancing with Rinea, he really does seem invincible. Dancing in the conquered halls of Zofia Castle with his one true love as he does not need to take to the battlefield to assist in fighting the Deliverance. Only bothering to fight Alm as “sport.”

At first, he really just comes off as an arrogant Blue Blood that you wanna knock off his horse. But after he loses once and sees Alm’s brand, it just starts this downward spiral. Begging is uncle for one more chance, rejecting the help of Nuibaba’s mirror, only to use it out of fear that he might actually not be able to win against Alm.

Also, massive props to Ian Sinclair as Berkut’s english voice. As FE had started going fully dubbed, Sinclair brings such a performance as the deteriorating prince.

I like he even makes more dynamics with the Duma Faithful, believing that they’re supposed to serve his house and respect him, but Jedah counters that their real allegiance is to Duma. Tempting Berkut with his power. But Berkut himself even finds Duma’s strength disgusting.

When he finally falls after Rudolf naming Alm his true heir, so see just how low he’s fallen as he sacrifices Rinea to make his pact with Duma and use his new mystical enhancements to take out the Deliverance golden boy Alm, once and for all.

Berkut’s story is easily an ideal tragic character. Very powerful and smart, but flawed. His own fears motivating his actions as well as the constraints of his society and family pressure. Add on how he’s made that he will not marry Rinea until he becomes Emperor, as he feels that is only when he’s worthy enough, and this guy’s basically telegraphing the grave he’s about to dig himself.

No way can I undersell how much Berkut seemingly revived faith in writing for future FE antagonists as the series was still suffering from the… mixed reaction to Fates.

2. Edelgard von Hresvelg (Fire Emblem: Three Houses)

God what have I not said about Edelgard? Well if you want to read more comprehensive stuff I’ve written about her, you can find it here.

But in short, Edelgard was a phenomenal twist character. Built up slowly over the course of the game and the fact someone as high as a lord would secretly be planning to destroy the church was a shock. 

Her role as the most intellectual of the three house leaders, motivated by logic and pragmatism offered a unique opposition to the over emotional Dimitri. Her being the product of crest experimentation and the second wielder of the crest of flames makes for a pretty powerful backstory. Not to mention being one of the few lords whose political system we fully get to see realize. With the multiple ministers having robbed power from her family.

Her relationship with Dimitri is also one of the sweetest villain backstories. You see the two actually sit down and try to end this and you know it’s probably only because of their shared past. The oath of the dagger of how they both have made their own paths that veer off in different directions is the first signs of turmoil that El has felt ever since her declaration of war.

And then there’s her final fight. I don’t think I have felt a more satisfying final battle than with Hagemon Husk Edelgard. The long throne room crawl as guards and monsters poured in to try and stand in your way. All whlie Edelgard tries to snipe at you from a distance with her new fireball technique. 

Also if were giving points to acting, Tara Platt brings a great performance as both Edelgard and the Flame Emperor.

Now like Black Knight, the biggest flaw is a lot of minute nitpicks that really add up over the multiple routes. The Black Eagle route even seems to do away with a lot of Edelgards ambiguity. But if you stick to BL and GD Edelgard, you have one of the best antagonists in the series. Leaving me excited what FE17 has in store.

1. Arvis (Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War)

Yeah, you all knew this one was coming. The OG Flame Emperor himself, Arvis.

So for those who don’t know, Arvis was basically Edelgard before Edelgard. Having watched corrupt nobles run Grannvale for a time as well as grown up under the self destructive Duke Victor, Arvis had intended to make Grannvale a more fair world. Free of prejudice and pain.

Use the feuding lords to his advantage to claim land and renown, Arvis also stayed by the current King of Grannvale, Azmur. Earning him some brownie points. Arvis’s alliance with Manfroy and the Lopto Sect ultimately leads to him getting his chance at the throne. With Manfroy finding the long lost granddaughter (and wife of Sigurd) Deirdre,  wiping her memory clean and “conveniently” leaving her for Arvis to find and fall in love with. 

By marrying and impregnating the newly found prince, Arvis was named Emperor Regent by Azmur till their child came of age. However, to unilaterally have Grannvale under his control, he had to take out Sigurd in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the history of FE, The Belhalla Massacre.

At first Arvis seems like this manipulative puppet master with delusions of conquest, but the more you learn about him and the environment he came from. Arvis truly wants to make a better and more fair world. And unlike someone like Zephiel, he doesn’t think that means wipe out all humans. You see that he doesn’t even hold contempt for Sigurd, more indifference as he regrets that Sigurd would not be able to see Arvis’s new world.

But with his ultimate tragedy being that faustian deal he cut with Manfroy ultimately led to the birth of Julius. Who, with the Major Loptous blood, would go on to not only be Loptous’ vessel, but also wrestle away power from Arvis. The tragic irony of what secured his hold on the throne being what ultimately makes him lose it. Add on some more angst as he realizes that Deirdre is actually his half sister and that Manfroy’s intention was for them to bear a child like Julius, you have easily one of the most tragic tales in FE.

We also see more of the dynamics of Arvis in the Seliph book of FE4. Actually trying to save all the children taken by Julius with Ishtar. As well as his love for his own children, Julius and Julia, going out of his way to save Julius and finally face his reckoning against Seliph.

His battle is brutal, as after what he did to Sigurd, you want to beat down Arvis with Seliph. You want nothing more but to his rule. But as you’ve gone on, you see just how much of person Arvis is. And while you want Seliph to get his vengeance, it doesn’t make the fight any easier as you are left to wonder what things would be like if Arvis was Emperor without Manfroy using Julius.

 His final words to Seliph just echo in your head, making you wish there was a better way this could’ve turned out.

If there is one negative I could say about Arvis, its the fact he basically monopolizes the story for his own. His actions basically pushing so much of the narrative he eclipses Sigurd. But honestly, if we got a remake with more time devoted to character interaction in Sigurd’s army, I think it would balance out nicely.

Welp, that’s my Top 10 FE antagonists. Let me know if you agree or disagree. And if this gets enough hits, I might do similar posts in the future. Till next time, take care!

⭐⭐👀

On The Moon There Are No Ghosts

Since you said dealer’s choice, River, I’m going to take this opportunity to talk about one of my very favorite of my own fics (humble, I know). I’m pretty proud of this one, which is honestly a rarity for me, normally I just...nitpick to death. But I was very happy with this, for a few reasons. 

First, I really feel like I got Martin’s voice here, which I always find challenging. You wouldn’t think it from how much I write him, but while Martin is probably my favorite character to write about, I don’t naturally get his voice. This one felt like it really flowed for me, though, so I was happy about that.

Second, like I said, I LOVE WRITING ABOUT MARTIN. Especially Martin’s sad, awful childhood and how it’s mirrored in the man he is today. And what better way to do that than to literally send him back to his childhood home, having to deal with all the relatives he hasn’t seen in years, and saying goodbye to the mother he’s had such a difficult relationship with since he was a kid? It’s like Martin angst paradise. I’m honestly surprised there aren't a lot more fics specifically about Martin’s mum’s funeral, because damn, death and grief are such rich topics. And like Peter says in this fic, you can really get to know people when they’re grieving. 

Third, I was so delighted to find a good opportunitu to work in some We Have Always Lived In The Castle references. I love that book, and with the protagonist’s last name being Blackwood I’ve wanted to write something about it related to Martin for ages. The book has strong themes of grief and guilt and isolation, which is pretty perfect for this point in Martin’s life. The title is a reference to Merricat’s recurring fantasy throughout the book of going with her sister to live on the moon, where they would have everything they want and nobody would ever bother them. 

And that’s kind of what Martin wants here, when he’s overwhelmed with confused emotion about his mother, and the intrusive presence of a family he barely knows, and all the responsibilities of organizing a funeral. And it’s exactly the lever Peter pulls to get closer to him. Not that Martin is naive or taken advantage of, he knows exactly what he’s getting into with Peter. He wants something simple and enjoyable to take his mind off things, and Peter is definitely a Good Time. Unfortunately things are never quite so simple with a fear avatar, and Martin gets a little more nastiness than he bargained for. 

Speaking of family, I was originally going to have his mum’s funeral be tiny, only a handful of neighbors and acquaintances. But then it occurred to me that it could be even more horrible for Martin if the funeral is packed with family and friends, all this social support his mum had, at least at some point in her life, and that he never had through his lonely, neglected childhood. That they all reminisce so kindly about her is an added pain, when all his memories are tainted with anger and resentment. 

I also really liked the idea of sending Martin home to a place that hasn’t changed, except it’s missing all the little touches that make it a home. His mother’s nursing home at the beginning was more of a home to her at the end, with all her belongings and personality. And his childhood home is cold and empty, his bedroom still the way he left it when he was seventeen, down to the poetry magazines under the bed from when he wanted to study literature. Martin’s whole childhood is sort of summed up to me with this line: 

“That’s just what happens. Things get broken or damaged, and you get used to them, and after a while it’s like they’ve always been that way.”

Because abuse gets normalized, neglect gets normalized, the way a broken clock or a cracked ceiling does. Eventually it just becomes background. Normal. Have I mentioned that I’m sad about Martin Blackwood?

And of course what would this story be without a monster? I also LOVE WRITING ABOUT PETER LUKAS, although I have yet to write anything from his perspective, funnily. He is just hilarious and inappropriate and manipulative and sometimes downright mean, but in a way where you always have to ask yourself “did he really mean that?”. He’s been interested in Martin since he first met him, and he wants to extend Martin an offer to join the Lonely, that’s canon baby! Martin at his own mother’s funeral would have to be catnip to the old sea bastard. He thoroughly enjoys making Martin uncomfortable by getting into his personal space, and then making him a little more uncomfortable by inviting judgment from his family, and then taking the opportunity to proposition him while he’s in a “fuck it” mood. Peter is the purple gorilla in this story, big and brash and impossible to ignore, although in this case acknowledging him doesn’t make Martin feel any better. 

I haven’t even mentioned anything here about EVERYTHING THAT ISN’T MENTIONED IN THIS STORY. Like the fact that Tim’s dead and the Archives are under siege and Jon’s in a coma. I very deliberately didn’t have Martin think about Jon at any point in the fic, because I didn’t want this to be a Martin pining over Jon fic (for once!), I wanted it to be about him. And also I thought that this was the time when he would very definitely and carefully not be thinking about Jon. It’s as much as he can do to just get through this, y’know? If he thinks about Jon as well he’d probably just break down. I kind of went back to that in Felt So Like Fear, where Martin goes to see Jon in the hospital and tells him his mum died, and it’s saying it to Jon, even though he can’t hear him, that makes it feel real. 

Anyhow I think that’s more than enough rambling. You might be able to tell I really enjoyed writing this fic and it might be my favorite thing I’ve written. I am aware that Peter/Martin is a NOTP for a lot of folks, but if you like or even just don’t mind it, this is probably the fic of mine I would recommend most. 

Thanks for asking, I had a lot to say I guess!

(ask meme)

Title: Converging and Diverting

Author/Artist: AnchoredTether

Rating: M [graphic depictions of violence, major character death, dark themes]

Pairings: Plance [Pikelavar], Kallura [Thunderyun]

Series: Defenders of Aurita

Chapter: 13/?

Summary: Meklavar has a formidable secret. Pike has an objective for which he's willing to kill. Despite their odds, they might have a chance of realizing their seemingly impossible desires if they fight for them together. Revelations are brought to light, quests align, and their hope lies in the power of a common cause.

Aurita is on the brink of desolation and it will require more than courage and sacrifice to save what is left. As the stakes continue to rise, what was once a fight for restoring a broken kingdom turns into a war far more sinister.

CH13 :: CONVERGING AND DIVERTING

"It's been days and we still haven't seen or heard from Meklavar or Pike." Block said when he brought over a tray filled with various meals to their table in the busy tavern.

"They'll know to meet here," Valayun piped hopefully as she grabbed her bowl of soup with an excited grin. "It's the largest tavern and it's in the center of town. It's the most logical place to meet." She shrugged. "Meklavar's short, and Pike's arm was still injured, so maybe they're just taking a while longer to get here."

"Being short doesn't make you that much slower at walking." Thunder deadpanned.

"If they're not here within the next day," Jiro started, "then we'll leave a message with the innkeeper and head north."

"Just one more day?" Block looked at the paladin with concern. "What if they're in trouble? What if the dragon caught up to them? Shouldn't we go looking for them?"

"Shiro doesn't have much time left, it is imperative that I find the sorcerer." His expression was stern. "Whether you choose to accompany me or not is up to your discretion."

"I will come with you," Thunder offered, his gaze hard. "I at least owe Shiro that much."

"I... feel more inclined to stay," Valayun said. "For all we know, Pike or Meklavar could desperately need a healer. If they aren't here by tomorrow evening I will try looking for them."

"I'm with Valayun," Block said. "But if you leave something of yours with us I can use a tracking spell to meet back up with you guys."

Thunder nodded, taking the ring off his index finger and placing it in Block's upturned palm. "Don't lose it, it's important to me."

"I can take something less valuable-"

"No, the stronger the sentiment the stronger the spell. It'll help you find us with greater ease."

"Okay," Block held onto the ring tight before placing it carefully in one of his pockets. "I'll keep it secret, keep it safe."

][ --- ][

It took Pike nearly three days to heal enough that they could start traveling again. Thanks to Korhan's healing salve and various ingredients, Pike's recovery was swift. Meklavar realized Korhan's claim that khaliit were a resilient species held true - the only other species she had seen (aside from herself as dragonborn) with such strength and adaptability were galra.

"Princess, we need to get you a change of clothes! Your previous outfit was completely destroyed aside from the armor…" Korhan distressed. "Unfortunately I have nothing worthy of a princess!!"

"Korhan, we're traveling to Darmuth and finding a sorcerer. It's not like I need to wear a ballgown," Meklavar said impassively. "Besides, I'm trying to keep my identity secret, remember?"

"Well that doesn't mean you can't still do it in style!" Korhan sounded offended. "I got the blood out of Pike's scarf and his pants were salvageable but I'm afraid everything else was too far rent from the dragon's claws. Luckily we're a similar height and build…" He rummaged through a closet, flinging the occasional item of clothing behind him.

Pike glanced over at Meklavar with a dubious expression. He was currently shirtless, his freshly removed stitches leaving ragged scars almost as dark as the crimson markings along his back. "Well, at least I don't need pants, otherwise I'd have to tailor them, and that's always a pain."

"Tailor them, or tail-or them?" She snickered.

"Hey, this is no laughing matter! Do you have any idea how much I chafe down there unless there's a proper hole for my tail?" Pike sighed. "And Aurita doesn't have a large enough population of khaliit to have pants for us readily available."

She frowned as the wheels in her head began to turn. "Huh. I never thought about something like that. I wonder how I would go about making something that's low in demand but at the same time essential for those who need it more available to the populace…"

"I mean, most tailors are willing to alter pants for khaliit, khariit, and argonians, but whew, do they charge a mighty fee… it's easier if I just do it myself." He shrugged.

"Perhaps just a simple regulation that all alterations should be charged as the same price to avoid discrimination…" She held a hand to her lips as she thought. "Or even that such alterations should be free if they don't provide necessary clothing for a certain species' specifications…" She pointed up to his head. "Hoods too, you'd need them altered for your ears."

"Some galra have similar specifications, orcs need three-fingered gloves, you and dwarves need shorter tailored clothes, and I don't even know what centaurs do for clothing and armor for their lower half."

She swatted his head for the jab towards her height. "I'm pretty certain all the centaurs live in Namithir which is not my division. Well, at least... wasn't my division. But, it's still interesting to consider."

"Look at you two," Korhan beamed, "Talking about demographics and politics!" He tossed a shirt at Pike's face, causing his ears to swivel back with a grunt. "Now put on this tight shirt and let's get out there!"

][ --- ][

"How do you know Shiro?" Jiro asked as he, Thunder, and Rover made their way through the crowded streets of Darmuth. It would take them almost half the day just to get out of the city, but Jiro was confident the sorcerer's home would only take them a day or two's journey north.

The ranger was quiet a moment, guarded as always, but decided that the twin brother of Shiro was someone he could probably trust. "Shiro found me after I was exiled from my village. I was only eleven when it happened, but he showed me how to survive. He gave me reason to hope."

"You were exiled? Why?"

"I'm originally from Namithir. And apparently my mother had to have been galran, since my markings started to show once I reached adolescence. The village must have assumed my mother was human since I didn't have any elvish markings but I still looked like all of them." He clearly remembered the day it happened and how some simple purple stripes on his face could cause so much hatred to seep from the hearts of people who he thought were kind and charitable. The true faces of people were hidden deep beneath acceptable facades and Thunder learned that the true intentions of most people were ugly and selfish.

"What about your father?"

"He died when I was five. I have no idea if my mother is alive or dead from what little I could get out of him. But regardless…" He let out a sigh. "I've lived on my own for most of my life." Rover let out a small whine which caused him to gently pet the giant wolf's head. "Well, until I met this guy."

"Hmm… you must have met Shiro when he was traveling to Henat. Did you end up accompanying him there?"

"Yeah… we parted ways when we reached Staerene. But I saw him again many years later, right before the Invasion."

"Huh… and… he never mentioned me?" Jiro almost sounded wounded.

Thunder frowned, uncertain how to address the paladin's hurt. "He never really talked about himself… never about his family, his interests, or personal concerns. It was always about the mission or about helping others."

"I suppose that's just a testament of D'Jahno's training and the seven pillars of knighthood." Jiro paused, his brows lowering in skepticism. "That's hilarious you would say he never talked about himself, because he'd never shut up about his 'bright internal light' and how he was chosen to be a paladin. It's all just because he can use chakra and I can't."

Thunder offered an encouraging smile. "I guess identical twins aren't quite so identical after all. But hey, you're still a paladin, so there's that."

"You're right… and there's nothing more fulfilling than being a paladin."

][ --- ][

"So how does this Castle of Lions thing work??" Pike asked as they headed towards Darmuth on foot, having left the giant tent behind.

"Oh it's super fascinating!" Meklavar started, "It's through a locator spell combined with a warp enchantment if I remember correctly. Korhan can explain it better though."

"So this bracelet here," Korhan held up his wrist and pulled back his sleeve for Pike to see the white band with a cyan colored spell etched into its face, "Works as a locator for the Castle. I can always find the Castle so long as I have this, so it works like a tracking spell. With the bracelet, I can also summon the Castle to wherever I am."

"Wait, so you can teleport the Castle right here if you wanted to??" Pike looked like Korhan just told him he could resurrect the dead. "Even though it's half a mile back that way? And it's huge?"

"Well, relatively speaking, the Castle is quite small. But yes - it takes a couple of doboshes to work, however, and it takes longer the greater the distance."

"But doesn't that mean that anyone could stumble across the Castle and take your stuff?"

"I don't leave my front door unlocked, Pike. And before you say 'there are no doors that cannot be unlocked'  I'll have you know, I have plenty of protective enchantments that keep the Castle hidden from thieving eyes such as yours."

"I'm not a-"

"Besides, the bracelet would alert me if anyone entered. I can always warp the Castle here if that happens because it only transports inanimate objects. Any persons inside would just remain at that location."

"Huh. Neat. I guess we don't have to stress anymore about finding shelter at night."

"Which is good considering Valayun still has our share of the loot," Meklavar added.

"Oh? You're traveling with Valayun?" Korhan asked. "Alfor's daughter?"

"The one and the same." She let out a sigh. "She seemed to recognize me as well, but I don't… I don't remember her at all. Or Alfor. But the name Altair sounds like I should know it."

"As you should - Alfor was the royal Chancellor, arguably the most important person in the kingdom after your father."

"I remember him," Pike offered. "He looks just like Valayun except his markings are light blue. Well, I guess it's Valayun who looks like him. Anyway - he wore armor very similar to Shiro's- I mean Jiro's… well, both of them, really."

"That's great, Pike, but I still don't remember him." Meklavar let out what sounded like a growl. "I think I need to just accept the fact I'm never getting those memories back and move on."

"Hey!" Pike spun in front of her, forcing her to stop. "You remembered the night of the Invasion, or at least part of it, just from me talking to you! We are not giving up on your memories!!"

"My memories are nothing but pain and suffering. I don't exactly care to relive all that."

"I know you have good memories mixed in with the bad. Don't you want to remember your family?"

"My entire family is dead, Pike. I think it'd be easier not to remember them."

"Mek…" He put a hand on her shoulder and saw she was on the verge of tears but she was being so strong despite the turmoil of emotions and confusion that raged inside her. Pike's voice was soft, his eyes pained in understanding. "I don't know anything about my father because he died when I was too young to remember. I would kill to have any kind of good memory of him. Your family would want you to remember them, even if it is painful. It will probably be incredibly painful but it'll be worth it. I know your memories are important to you despite what you're thinking now and I know they're important to everyone who was a part of them, including me."

"I'm sorry about your father… and…" Her eyebrows lowered and her voice shook ever so slightly. "My memories are important to you?  But you said we were just acquaintances."

"Well…" His markings started to turn a bright red but his eyes were sincere. He lifted his hand to rub the back of his neck. "I figured I was just an acquaintance to you… but to me? …You were kind of my only friend."

She blinked a few times, completely baffled. "I… was?"

"Most my childhood I was a slave and even though living in the castle as a servant was phenomenally better it's not like there was anyone my age to interact with. Aside from you, that is. But even that was limited. But outside of my family? You're the only one I could really call a friend." He jabbed his thumb behind him to the elder elf. "Korhan comes close. But he's more like an uncle. Same with Olia I guess, but she's more like an aunt. And her kids were much too young to befriend me. All they would do is chase my tail anyways." He sighed. "Khariit pups are a nuisance."

Korhan giggled. "I remember when that happened. They chased you and your sisters throughout the whole castle."

Pike groaned. "Uhhhgh it was awful. My legs were sore for weeks."

Meklavar gave him a wicked grin before continuing their walk towards the city. "So it was your classic game of dog-chase-cat?"

Pike stood there and pouted a moment as the two elves lengthened the distance from him. "Not a cat," he growled before running up to them and slowing to their pace. His ear rotated when he heard Meklavar whisper something that only he would be able to hear, her amber hues glancing up to him.

"Thank you, Pike."

He offered her a quiet hum.

][ --- ][

"Oh quiznack," Valayun swore as she rummaged through her satchel.

Block raised an eyebrow at her. "Quiznack?"

"I should have given Jiro and Thunder some of our loot!" She threw her head back in a frustrated groan. "I'm a horrible treasurer."

"I don't think there are any towns between here and the sorcerer's place for them to even spend money in, so I think they'll be fine. I do wonder though how Pike and Meklavar are holding up."

"Oh Pike's a thief. I'm certain that if they needed money he'd figure out a way to acquire some."

"Probably." Block frowned. "But then again he said he wasn't a thief."

"He probably just said that to throw off your guard. What kind of thief proudly announces they're such?"

"I dunno, a good one?"

"Exactly," she said decisively as if that explained everything. "We have to make it a priority then to make sure we meet back up with both Pike and Meklavar and Jiro and Thunder, that way we can at least divide up the loot between us if we do part ways again. I am hoping, however, that we stick together. I think we make a great team." She lowered her gaze, her expression nostalgic. "I'd always dreamed of being part of a spectacular group of people, out there fighting the good fight, helping people in need…"

"It is nice to travel with others," Block agreed. "I'm grateful I ran into Meklavar and that she decided to help me, otherwise I don't think I'd ever get past the Wiebian Swamps. Although… it's weird to think she's actually-"

Valayun quickly grabbed the sorcerer's shoulder, giving him a warning look.

"Right. Secrecy." Although the market street was loud with bustling people, there was no knowing what prying ears were listening in to their conversation. "But I think it'd be pretty amazing to help her with her 'quest,' if you know what I mean."

"It would be a noble quest indeed," she concurred, looking around at the various stands and booths selling a wide variety of necessities and luxuries. "I would love to continue what my father has started."

"What your father started?"

"I'll tell everyone all about it as soon as we regroup. And we can discuss Meklavar's 'quest' in greater detail as well." She let out a small exclamation once her eyes found what she was looking for, her face lighting up. "As for right now? I'm going to purchase some lovely arrows."

][ --- ][

][ music ][

The city of Darmuth was visible enough that Pike could see the details of the architecture. The city walls had impressive archways and all the rooftops of the numerous tall buildings were a distinct red. As they drew nearer, Pike's brows lowered and his ears perked forward, straining to make out anything amongst the myriad of noises coming from the town.

Meklavar noticed his change in behavior and tried to look where he was looking but his eyes were darting around too much. "What is it?"

"I'm… hearing something within the city walls. It sounds like screaming." He looked over at her and then Korhan. "And I think I got a whiff of smoke, but it's hard to tell from this distance."

"Perhaps we should enter the city from the western gate?" Korhan asked.

"I dunno… by the time we get on that side of the city whatever's going on inside might have migrated over there anyways." They all started when an explosion sounded from the heart of Darmuth, arcs of purple lightning trailing up above the rooftops. "Whatever's going on inside looks serious." He summoned his lance, the ring on his index finger transforming into the weapon he twirled in his hand. "Our teammates could be in danger."

Meklavar stared at the lance before looking up at him. "Are you sure you're healed enough to fight? It was almost impossible to get you out of bed this morning."

"I'll be fine, that's what my chakra is for," he said dismissively. He didn't actually know how many spells he would be able to cast in his current state but he didn't like the idea of Meklavar fighting without him there to ensure no harm came to her. He knew she was plenty capable and stronger than him in more ways than one, but at some point along their travels, he developed an almost instinctual need to protect her. He wasn't sure if it was his servant sense of duty to her or loyalty from their small but meaningful affinity that urged him to vigilant behavior. He reckoned the seeds of safeguarding were planted as soon as she confided in him her secret of being dragonborn and now the roots were firmly weaved deep within his heart.

"Whatever lies ahead, princess," Korhan started as he unsheathed his rapier, "Know that I shall have your back."

"And I…" Pike made a face. "Your side, I guess."

Meklavar took a deep breath as she looked to both of her comrades and then to the danger that lied ahead. "I wouldn't have it any other way. And no formalities, Korhan."

"Yes prin- ahem. Meklavar."

When they reached the city gates the chaos they were greeted with was worse than they could have imagined. Pike tried to make sense of all the sounds and smells that bombarded his senses but there was too much mayhem to understand the situation entirely. Townspeople ran in fear screaming, others brandished weapons of every variety from swords to frying pans, elvish and galran soldiers under the Empire were attacking with all forms of steel and magic, rebel forces fought against the Empire, city guards were running around shouting orders and helping townspeople while also fighting whoever, and another organization that wore facial masks adorned with the design of a maw full of fangs were included in the fray.

"The Fangtides are here, as well as the Empire," Pike hissed.

"Fangtides?" Meklavar asked.

"Rival assassin group." He started to fight an Empire galran and soon enough Meklavar and Korhan had their hands busy with their own oppressors.

"Rival? Does that mean you're part of an organization?" Meklavar shouted over her shoulder while she swung her axe at an elf.

"Of course I'm part of an organization!" One of the Fangtides was headed towards Meklavar but Pike whipped out his lance in time to cut him off. He narrowly dodged a knife to his throat with a pained grunt. His barely healed wounds were already slowing him down and he feared he would only become a burden to his teammates at this rate. He reared back his weapon and released a blast of lightning through the thrust of his lance, creating a clean line that caused a dozen to collapse to the ground. His eyes found a path for them as a wild idea passed his mind.

"Guys, follow me!" He grabbed Meklavar's arm for good measure before he dashed down the street and into an alleyway, Korhan following closely behind as he parried off some attackers. Pike began jumping and climbing his way up towards the rooftops, turning around to help Meklavar up at the parts where it was too difficult.

"Pike, you know we can't jump like-"

"I know, shut up and I'll remind you to thank me if we live through this." He held down the butt of his lance for her to grab and pulled her up to the next ledge, doing the same for Korhan. With some strained effort, the three of them made it up to the brick red rooftops of the city and overlooked the madness that spread throughout the streets like a flood. "There was no way we would have gotten through those homicidal crowds. Up here we can find our teammates faster." He started running across the rooftops and the two elves followed behind him, looking down into the streets as they passed.

"Oh that's not good," Korhan said somberly as they neared the city's center.

"That's druid magic, right?" Pike asked, staring at the vibrant purple arcs of lightning with dread.

"The one and the same."

"Wait, we have the Empire, rebels, an assassin organization, and the Druids here?!" Meklavar asked.

"Seems like it," Pike said somberly.

"What exactly is going on??"

"Valayun!"

"What?"

"Valayun!" Pike stopped, causing the others to halt as well as he pointed to the archer. "I don't see anyone else nearby, but let's regroup with her."

"How about you get her and bring her back up to the rooftops?" Meklavar suggested. "Korhan and I are safer up here and we'll find everyone else faster this way. You're the one who can get up and down with ease."

Pike wanted to argue that he didn't want to leave her side but she had a point and her plan was logical. "Alright," he answered hesitantly. "You can yell directions to me, I'll try to tune in to your voice over the madness down there."

She nodded. "We'll start to head closer to the center of town."

He took a deep inhale before departing, leaping down to ledges and other precarious lips of architecture until he landed on the ground and ran towards Valayun, slashing at anyone who tried to intervene.

Her brows rose when she saw him. "Pike!"

"Where are the others? Meklavar's on the rooftops with Korhan, we're regrouping there." He took her arm and started towards an alleyway where there were less people.

"Korhan?" Valayun shook her head, realizing now was not the time. "Thunder and Jiro split from us this morning but I saw Jiro only a moment ago. I'm afraid I've lost Block entirely."

"It's alright, follow me." He took the lead climbing up to the roof, giving her a hand when necessary. When they reached the top he looked out at the crowds below for the sorcerer donned in gold and green and the paladin in his armor that reminded him of Alfor's. Sure enough, Jiro wasn't far from where he found Valayun. "I'm going to get Jiro, keep an eye out for Block and Thunder on your way to Meklavar and Korhan."

"I'll try to offer aerial support if you need it," she offered, notching an arrow at the ready.

Pike gave her a nod before running across rooftops until he was closer to the paladin. He made his way down into the masses, striking blows with his lance as he fought his way through. When he called out the paladin's name he turned his head towards him, finishing off the fight with his opponent before striding over. "Jiro, we're regrouping on the roof and we can leave as soon as we find Block and Thunder. Do you know where they are?"

"Leave? We can't leave these people in their time of need!"

"Jiro, I know you mean well," he began but he was cut off with a yelp as an assassin tackled him to the ground. He wrestled with her for a brief moment before an arrow suddenly lodged through her throat. His widened eyes followed the angle of the fletching to see Valayun on a nearby rooftop. "I know you mean well," he continued as he stood up, "but we can't handle these odds. If we stay some of us will die, or worse."

"What's worse than dying?"

"Oh I'm sure you can use your imagination." Pike rolled his eyes before leading the paladin back up to the rooftops and meeting up with the rest of the group. They spread around looking for their sorcerer and ranger, heading closer to the center of the city where the worst of the fight raged, and Pike's heart skipped a beat when he found both of them cornered in an alleyway by a druid. Block was fighting them off the best he could since Thunder's blades were not nearly as effective against magic.

Pike moved quickly, traveling from rooftop to rooftop with ease and jumping his way down to land behind the druid cornering his teammates. He transformed his lance back into the silver band around his index finger and instead made a couple hand signs to summon several magical chains from the ground. They snaked around the druid and arced back into the cobblestone, pinning them down. Thunder rushed forward and swiftly took care of the enemy with one of his blades before they could get back up.

"You're alive," Thunder greeted dully.

"Barely."

"Watch out!" Block shouted before casting a shielding spell that blocked an oncoming attack with a loud clash. Pike's eyes widened when he saw what nearly hit them - a druid's hands were held up, controlling two halves of brightly glowing purple cuffs. He felt his heart fall into his stomach, his muscles tensing into near paralysis when he understood the situation.

Pike barely broke out of his trance in time to cast his own barrier spell that surrounded him and Thunder in pillars of red light before the druid struck again. Block was too far away fighting another druid for Pike to include him in the protective spell. With each blast the barrier weakened, the red light slowly fading from its vibrancy.

"They're surrounding us," Thunder warned from Pike's backside, observing the two additional druids who approached and summoned their own sets of ominously vibrant collars. "Can you teleport us out of here?" "Afraid not," Pike admitted with a terse sigh. "I'm low on chakra - I could probably teleport myself but taking someone else takes a lot of out me. Where's Rover?? Can't he come and grab us?"

"He was badly injured in the fight," he uttered. "I… don't know if he's okay."

"Cheese…" They were running out of options and his protective spell was wearing down fast. "You ready to fight the old fashioned way?"

"It's the only way I know, idiot."

"Oh, right." Pike summoned his lance again before the barrier dissipated, leaving the two of them vulnerable to the druid's attacks. Both of them lunged into the fight, blades fighting against the onslaught of cuffs curving relentlessly towards their necks.

Suddenly he heard Meklavar screaming his name from the rooftops.

And then pain was thrust against the left side of his neck, knocking him to the ground.

Pike hit the cobblestone with a gasp as the magic wrapped and sealed around his neck. He tried to pull himself up to his feet but the collar drained what little energy he had left. He could barely hear anything over the ringing in his ears but the nightmare was released from his neck temporarily and he felt like he was gasping for air after breaking the surface of the water he was drowning in.

Thunder was distracted by his comrade's pain and inevitably fell to the same fate. Block kept trying to break the collars but the druids were too many and too persistent. He could no longer help now that two druids were attacking him with elemental spells but the sorcerer continually tried to release the dark magic around his teammates' necks as he fought off his aggressors.

One of the druids conjured a swirling black portal upon the ground as Pike and Thunder struggled against the electrifying surges that left them depleted, gasping and groaning on their hands and knees. In a last attempt before the darkness swallowed them whole, Pike used all his energy to get Block's attention.

"Block!!" When Block's dark brown eyes met his terrified blues, Pike called out his final plea as one of the druids kicked Thunder into the obsidian portal. "Leave us! Please, protect her!"

Do what I can't…

Block's face fell, the horror of the situation setting his stomach into knots. As the druid's foot met Pike's shoulder, Block offered his friend a pained nod as promise before Pike was kicked into the void and swallowed into oblivion.

"I'm so sorry you guys…"

Alex Final Wars 2: Dark Alex. Chapter 1: Tying up Loose Ends

Welcome! Welcome one and all to the second book of my own personal story series, Alex Final Wars! (You can read the first book here by the way: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12255508/1/Alex-Final-Wars) For those of you that don’t know, I posted a few chapters of the first book ages ago, then posted the rest on FF.net. But now, I’m back with the second book in the series, and I can promise that this one will have a more diverse cast of characters, and still maintain the epic combat from the first book!

Anyway, let’s get into some information about the story so you can understand it more. Now this is the second book, Alex Final Wars 2: Dark Alex, so take note of that. Now this universe that I have constructed draws characters, events, worlds, etc, from all sorts of themes and things I’ve been interested in throughout my life. Be well aware of that, and you’ll meet all sorts of people and places you may or may not know about as you progress through the book.

I will now show you a short timeline of the events in the AFW universe, as to better help you understand what’s going on:

2018 - The meterex arrive to wreak havoc on earth with the help of factions they have brought under their control. Thanks to Alex and his allies, the meterex are destroyed (Alex Final Wars)

2019 - (Alex Final Wars 2: Dark Alex)

Now let’s meet some of the returning characters and see what they’ been up to since last time!

Alex Boehm: with the help of his friends and a few world governments, the legendary warrior has created an organization known as ‘Heroes’, which is dedicated to keeping the peace in an unstable world! With the leadership and fighting skills of this young man, Heroes will do their best to make sure the world remains safe!

Toothdee: After the meterex war and the battle of Zootopia, Toothdee is still ready to stop any force that threatens peace and justice. She is Alex’s second in command and best fighter. Even though no one know what species the blue furred, long tailed mammal is, her skills cannot be denied.

Nick Wilde: the sly fox still lives in Zootopia, and still works at the Zootopia Police Department. While it might not look like it, the fox is still a capable fighter and is ready for anything! He keeps in touch with Alex, Toothdee and many other mammals, when not spending time with Judy.

Judy Hopps: Having made the world a much better place while defeating the meterex, this young bunny keeps patrols the streets and continues to make Zootopia a safer and better place for everyone. Even though her and Nick remain in the police department, they will answer the call to fight for something greater if Alex needs them.

Laval: This lion prince is still as brave and fun as ever, spending his time riding his speedor and keeping his skills sharp. Most of his day is taken up by either meeting friends or messing around with a vehicle or weapon. He has also been spending a lot of private time with Eris.

Eris: still residing in Chima, Eris continues to hone her piloting skills, and make sure her axe is battle ready. She also continues to read and do her best to help the eagle tribe, while still taking time to run off with Laval for an adventure. The two remain inseparable and flirt often, even in front of other friends.

Anyway, I REALLY hope all of you guys enjoy this book, because I’ve certainly had a lot of fun constructing the world in this story. So, thank you all for taking the time to read this, and please enjoy the story!

000

Chapter 1: Tying up loose ends

The bridge of the typhoon was an unusual shape when it came to warship bridges, then again the typhoon was not your average warship. It didn’t float, it flew, something that set it apart from other US warships. The bridge of the vessel was sort of semicircular in shape, with multiple chairs where individuals sat and controlled parts of the ship via computers and buttons. The curved side of the bridge was made of a large glass panels that enabled perfect viewing of the surroundings, while at the same time being capable of resisting high amounts of damage. A small set of stairs near the center of the bridge lead to a raised captains chair, that had 2 horizontal levers for driving the ship. Right now the bridge was completely dark, all computer displays on various control panels were off, save for the main screen which provided the only lighting. Alex and Toothdee stood on the bridge, watching the illuminated screen. Projected for their viewing, was an orbital view of a meterex compound in a remote location. Both of them were dressed in black combat fatigues, which were standard issue for the Heroes organization. The pair also wore high quality armor, which looked golden in color. The armor was heavy duty, and could stop a lot of damage from bullets and blades alike. The armor also contained a Chi slot, enabling the wearer to use an orb of chi to “chi up” for intense battles.

“This is it” Toothdee said “the last pocket of meterex resistance that we have found. With it gone, the meterex will be no more”

“Let’s hope so” Alex said “but I have to say, every time a meterex group crawls out of the woodwork, Heroes gets a boost in funding, so I’m not complaining”

Heroes was an organization that Alex, Toothdee, and some of their companions set up after they put down the meterex forces that were staging attacks all over the world. Funded by world governments, mainly the US, who were impressed with their work in the meterex war, the organization was a well known force for good. Normally tasked with stopping dangerous groups like terrorists or gangs, they also participated in peacekeeping and relief efforts.

“Ha, neither am I” Toothdee said, responding to Alex’s claims of increased funding for the group “But this compound looks heavily fortified. We haven’t spotted any armor or vehicles, however there are a lot of troops”

“What’s with the large satellite dish? Just communications?”

“I believe so. But how do you want to play this? It’ll certainly be a tough fight”

“Don’t worry” Alex said, holding up 2 fingers “I have 2 new heroes fresh out of training who are just itching to get out in the field”

The door behind Alex and Toothdee opened, flooding the room with light. 2 figures dressed in combat armor walked into the room, a young male Zootopian lion, and a young female Zootopian hyena.

The lion had a bright red mane shaped like a mohawk and eyes of light brown, while the hyena had long hair with a purple streak, and eyes that were dark purple in color. The 2 individuals were also dressed in standard Heroes combat fatigues and armor. The pair stopped in front of Alex and Toothdee before raising their hands in salute.

“Kion Priderock reporting for duty” the lion said.

“Jasiri Outlander reporting for duty” the hyena said.

Alex and Toothdee saluted the pair, before Alex told them “At ease”

Kion and Jasiri placed their hands behind their backs while Alex went over the plan.

“Ok, Me, Kion and Jasiri will head into the compound and plant explosives throughout the building. When detonated these will create a chain reaction that should destroy the entire compound. There is a power plant at the center of the base, we will concentrate most of our explosive firepower there, to deal the most damage. We are also tasked with retrieving any information we can find at this compound. Information that might alert us to any pockets of hidden meterex activity, should they exist. After the explosives are planted and intel recovered, Toothdee will come and pick us up in a helicopter, before we evac and destroy the compound”

Kion and Jasiri nodded in unison, understanding what was going to transpire.

“Let’s see how you 2 do in the field” Alex said.

“We won’t let you down” Kion responded, ready to get into a real combat situation.

“Judging by your training, there’s no way you could. Now head to the hanger, let’s get our gear.”

The typhoon’s armory was located near the hanger bay, meaning that you could just grab your gear before hopping into a vehicle and heading out on mission. Rack of all kinds of weapons were situated on every wall, holding every kind of weapon from rocket launchers to knives. Workbenches also resided in the room, alongside proper tools, in the event someone needed to modify or work on their weapon. The entire room was also locked with a retinal scanner, preventing unauthorized access.

Upon arriving at the armory, Kion picked up one of his weapons of choice, a long sword with a simple design. The sword didn’t have a fancy trick it could do, or elegant engravings, but it was made from a material that was capable of deflecting most small arms fire. The lion swung the sword in his hand, making sure the balance and weight was perfect, before tucking the weapon into a holster on his back. He also carried firearms, such as a pistol and rifle, but he loved using a sword. There was something almost elegant about a sword, using it was almost like a dance on the battlefield, except a wrong move might result in death. Kion also donned a flack jacket that looked like a leather coat, making it both functional and somewhat fashionable.

Jasiri put on a combat helmet that was designed for Hyenas, before picking up a pair of pistols. The guns were decorated with purple lines and markings, and the weapons had been modified to fire quickly, while still delivering a powerful punch. The hyena tucked the pistols into specially designed holsters on her hips. These holsters would automatically refill Jasiri’s weapons with a fresh magazine if the hyena just held the pistols in the right position a tiny bit above the holster. Because she duel wielded, her reload time was much quicker than manually inserting a new magazine into each pistol.

While his partners got themselves situated with their gear, Alex picked up his weapon from a table nearby. A G36 assault rifle, modified with an extended magazine, forward grip, and a powerful scope. The weapon was painted in a shiny golden color, and could shoot powerful shots at a high rate of fire. Alex also grabbed his sword, a Chima style weapon, consisting of a gold colored hilt and one large silver colored main blade split into 2 smaller blades, with an area of unfilled space going up the center of the weapon. When wielded by Alex, chi power would fill the space at the center of the weapon, allowing him to deliver devastating strikes to opponents. But what really made the weapon special was the chi blaster embedded in the hilt. This enabled Alex to fire chi blasts while at the same time engaging opponents with the blade of the weapon, allowing him much more dexterity on the battlefield.

Alex also carried an A.J.M. 9 pistol, which was hard hitting and silenced, making it perfect for stealthy operations. Lastly, Alex wore what looked like normal sunglasses, but they were anything but normal. They contained a heads up display that could mark objectives for Alex, recognize faces with a camera on the nose bridge, and even tell Alex how much ammo his weapon had left by linking to sensors in the gun. Alex put the rifle and sword on his back, tucked the pistol in his holster, and donned his sunglasses, before the team picked up other gear they would need, such as medkits and grenades.

Once the team was geared up, they were ready to move out. Getting into a helicopter piloted by Toothdee, the team was flown towards the meterex base, but they would have to land and hike in for part of the journey, as flying the helicopter any closer could alert the meterex forces. Alex, Kion and Jasiri got out of the helicopter once it landed, and Toothdee lifted off before flying away, ready to pick up the team once their mission was complete.

Human, Lion, and Hyena hiked through the woods that made up this part of the world, taking periodic brakes so they would not be to tired when battling the meterex in the compound. Soon they came upon a constructed barricade, and that’s when the team knew that they had reached their objective.

“Here we go, get ready. Safety’s off” Alex said.

“How about a kiss for good luck” Kion whispered to Jasiri.

“Not now Kion, we’re in the middle of a mission”

“It doesn’t bother me” Alex said. “Feel free to show affection, but I will say this....”

Jasiri obliged Kion’s request with a quick peck on his cheek.

“....is this Star Wars? Are you two gonna kiss for luck before swinging across a chasm?”

Kion chuckled while the team moved into some bushes nearby, to keep hidden as their eyes scanned the clearing in front of them. Soon the group spotted 4 meterex soldiers on guard. The sun reflecting off the brown metal that made up their bodies, and their large purple eyes watching for any enemies. Weapons clutched firmly in their metal hands. Most Meterex were spindly and thin robots, but their heads were large and shaped sort of like a rounded triangle.

The group snuck closer to get in a better attack position, before planning their strike. Alex gave the signal, before opening fire on one of the meterex units. The bullets quickly subdued the robot, and Alex directed his attention to another meterex unit. Jasiri opened fire with her pistols, aiming for the head of one robot. The shots shattered the eyes and armor of the unit, quickly rendering it destroyed. Jasiri then targeted another meterex unit nearby, just as Alex had done. Sprinting out of cover, Kion swung his sword with all his might, decapitating a meterex soldier like a hot knife going through butter. Alex and Jasiri both opened fire on the last hostile unit, quickly killing it under a hail of bullets.

“Move up” Alex said, as the team continued down an alleyway before emerging into another small courtyard. This courtyard however contained a heavy meterex unit. Standing half a meterex taller than normal meterex unit, and purple in color, this unit’s body was blocky in shape, along with its large legs and arms. A cube shaped head sat upon the unit, with a big red eye that fed the robot information. Embedded in its hands were heavy machine guns, along with powerful fists for melee attacks, or lifting objects.

“I’ll handle this, boys” Jasiri said, stepping towards the heavy unit. The robot emitted a loud, almost battle cry like sound, before charging at the hyena, who dodged out of the way. Jasiri used this opportunity to fire her pistols at critical points on the meterex, dealing heavy damage. The hyena once again dodged another strike and used the same tactic of firing at critical points. The heavy meterex slammed its fist onto the ground, trying to crush Jasiri, who evaded the attack and jumped onto its arm. Running up the robot’s arm, Jasiri jumped off its head, while dropping a grenade onto the unit. The grenade exploded violently, destroying the unit while Jasiri landed on the ground.

“Good job” Alex said, complementing the hyena while the group continued deeper into the compound. As they entered the next area they were greeted by 3 normal meterex as well as 2 elite meterex units. Elite meterex looked the same as normal meterex, accept they were yellow and black in color. Also in their arms were a pair of blades for engaging hostiles in melee combat.

Jasiri got into a firefight with the normal meterex units while Alex drew his sword before him and Kion approached the elite meterex. The pair clashed blades with the meterex, sending sparks flying as they fought. Alex deflected a strike from the elite unit before getting into a sword lock. Kicking the unit back, Alex slashed the meterex’s blades out of his way, opening the unit’s guard and enabling him to stab the hostile in the chest.

With his opponents defeated, Alex turned to see Kion severing the head of his own opponent, while Jasiri finished off the last meterex soldier.

“All clear!” The hyena yelled.

“Let’s move inside” Alex said “see if we can find and capture the meterex commander, they have to have some valuable intel”

The trio headed through a small door on one of the buildings, and Alex spotted what appeared to be a structural support column on the side of the large room they were in. He quickly took out a small bundle of C4, and attached it to the column, before arming the device. After the charge was planted, the team moved down a large hallway, and came face to face with 3 more meterex units. These meterex looked like normal units, but they were each equipped with a shotgun and assault rifle, both built into their hands.

“Oh boy, specialist meterex” Alex said

The units opened fire, prompting the team to fall back to a more defendable position.

“I haven’t seen much of this kind of meterex” Alex said as the meterex entered the room and engaged the team “but watch out”.

Alex tossed a grenade that landed near the feet of one unit, exploding and reducing the unit to scrap metal. Jasiri began to use crates as cover, sneaking around behind the units, before popping out and blowing the head off one. The hyena got back in cover as the last unit focused its shotgun fire on her, while at the same time continuing to suppress Alex and Kion with its rifle.

Alex drew his sword and got out of cover, getting into a ready stance. The meterex unit opened fire on him with its rifle, but Alex used his swordsmanship skills to deflect the bullets, all while slowly approaching the unit. Once in striking distance, Alex cut the unit’s arm in half, before swinging his blade across its body, putting it down.

With the threat eliminated, the team continued down the hallway, until they reached a point where the hall split into 2 paths.

“Kion, Jasiri” Alex said, “you 2 go right and plant the remaining explosives. I’ll head left and find the commander and extract any intel”

The lion and hyena nodded before the team split up to achieve their objectives. Continuing through the base, Alex ran into an elite meterex unit and a heavy meterex unit. The elite unit swiped at Alex with its blades, but Alex managed to defend against the strikes using his sword. The combatants got into a sword lock, and Alex removed one hand from his blade’s hilt so he could draw his pistol and fire at the meterex unit. Once the elite unit fell to the ground, Alex barely had time to get out of the way of a strike from the heavy unit. Jumping off the wall, Alex was able to get on top of the elite unit and stab its head with his sword. This, coupled with a few shots from his pistol, defeated the unit, enabling Alex to continue onwards.

Sprinting to cover as much ground as possible, Alex encountered 2 normal meterex on a set of stairs. Both units fell to a few pistol shots and sword slashes as Alex kept going.

Reaching a room with a bunch of computer equipment, Alex spotted 2 more specialist meterex, unaware of his presence. Taking out his rifle, Alex emptied a full magazine into one meterex unit, putting it down. The second unit moved towards Alex, firing its weapons as Alex took cover. When the unit got close to where Alex was hiding, he jumped out and stabbed it in the head with his sword.

After making sure the area was clear, Alex began to check the computers for any intel he could salvage, only to discover that the equipment had been wiped clean of data. There was nothing left, the servers were fried and a few were shot full of holes. However there was one piece of gear still working, a device that kept track of meterex in the base, so their movements and attacks could be better coordinated. Looking over the screen Alex noted that there were not to many meterex in the area where Kion and Jasiri had went, hopefully that would mean they set the rest of the charges quickly and easily.

Alex also spotted what appeared to be the signal of a meterex commander, coming from an area not to far away. This commander was the last source of intel, and Alex raced off to capture this meterex unit.

The next area Alex came to was a large room with catwalks suspended above the floor. Alex came out onto one of these catwalks and was traversing to the other end of the room when a bullet whizzed by him.

Turning to see who had fired at him, Alex spotted 2 sniper meterex. These units had one large eye that they used to find targets at long distances. There was no cover, so Alex drew his sword and got into a stance. One of the snipers fired a high power shot at Alex, who moved his sword to make contact with the bullet. When the bullet struck his sword, it ricocheted off the blade and struck the other meterex sniper, killing it. When the first sniper was distracted by his companion dropping to his own bullet, Alex pulled out his pistol and shot the sniper in the head.

The next room Alex came to was shrouded almost entirely in darkness, but similar to the last room there was a single catwalk running the length of the room. The floor space of the room was totally taken up by electrical equipment, as this was the power plant area of the base.

Alex spotted the meterex commander standing in the middle of the catwalk with his back towards him. The commander was teal in color, and looked like a normal meterex unit with larger body structure. His head design also contained more jagged points, and he had a multitude of armor plates flowing off his back onto the floor, almost like a robe.

“Alex!”

Searching for who called his name, Alex spotted Kion and Jasiri heading towards him from the other end of the catwalk, from the other side of the meterex commander.

“Charges are placed!” Jasiri said.

“Good work” Alex responded, keeping a gun trained on the meterex commander. “We need to capture this guy. All intel was destroyed, we need him to tell us what he knows”

Kion and Jasiri nodded and trained their weapons on the commander, who remained silent and unmoving. Just as Alex was about to open his mouth to say something, the commander spoke.

“I suppose your here to take me prisoner” the unit’s voice was metallic and didn’t really contain any noticeable tone.

“Yeah, no duh” Kion said.

The meterex commander laughed and turned towards Alex.

“I know you believe this to be the last pocket of resistance, but no, you are wrong. There is something much more terrible coming”

“What are you taking about?” Alex Asked

“The fact that you are oblivious to your end coming closer and closer”

The meterex commander walked to the side of the catwalk.

“A force that you will be unable to destroy, even thought your heart, like the sky....”

The commander looked at the trio of heroes one final time.

“...Will be on fire”

The commander then jumped off the catwalk, landing on some power plant equipment, causing a chain reaction. Sparks flew and the equipment burst into flames.

“Well, looks like we have no intel” Alex said, disappointed “but we’ll worry about that later, right now we gotta get out of here!”

“There was a staircase leading up over here” Jasiri said, pointing back towards the way she and Kion had come from. Alex nodded and the team raced off towards the staircase while Alex called Toothdee for a rapid extraction.

“Toothdee! We need an immediate evac!”

“Coming your way” Toothdee said, and Alex heard the sounds of an engine start.

The trio reached the staircase and climbed it, finding their way out onto a roof. Alex lit a flare so Toothdee would be able to spot where they were. The compound was catching on fire, as the power plant overloaded and caused chaos.

“Incoming!” Kion yelled.

A meterex force was climbing the staircase they had come from, and they were ready to stop the team. The force consisted of 2 heavy meterex, some sniper meterex, and a couple of normal meterex.

“Jasiri!” Alex said “detonate the charges!”

“But Alex, we’re still in the compound!”

“Leave the details to me”

Jasiri took out the detonator and pressed the button. Large explosions went off nearby, with one blast even destroying some of the meterex forces that were attacking the team. There was only one heavy unit left, and it charged forward towards Alex, who dodged the strike. The unit continued to swing at Alex, who dodged its strikes. Unfortunately for the heavy unit, it was left open to an attack from behind, and Kion stabbed the unit with his sword, killing it. Jasiri took down a normal meterex soldier and then focused her fire on the sniper meterex. Alex also took out his rifle and opened fire, resulting in the last 3 enemies being put down under a hail of bullets.

More meterex entered the area, consisting of an elite meterex, 2 specialist meterex, and a flamethrower meterex. This unit looked like a heavy meterex, but was painted red, and as the same suggested, was equipped with a flamethrower.

“Take down that flamethrower now!” Alex yelled, tossing grenades into the group of enemies. The flamethrower unit moved forward, and engaged with its flamethrower. Jasiri took down a specialist unit, before needing to dodge the stream of fire from the flamethrower unit.

While Kion dueled the elite unit, Alex ran up to the other specialist unit and his it with his sword, destroying the unit. Alex then fired with his gun at the tank on the flamethrower unit, causing it to explode and destroy the meterex unit.

Just as Kion destroyed the elite unit, a third wave of meterex appeared, consisting of all types of units they had encountered. As the group prepared to battle, suddenly a missile struck the group of enemies, destroying them. The team looked up to see the helicopter, before Toothdee hovered nearby so they could get on. Toothdee’s timing was perfect, as right after the team had jumped on the chopper and the aircraft pulled away, the building they had been on exploded. The entire compound was burning or destroyed, and most, if not all of the meterex were dead.

“Where’s the commander?” Toothdee questioned.

“We didn’t get him” Alex said. “And they destroyed all their intel”

“Damnit, that’s not good Alex”

“No, it’s not. But don’t blame me, they destroyed their intel before I got to that room, and the meterex commander killed himself”

“He was acting strange as well,” Jasiri said. “He said ‘there’s something coming, your heart and the sky will be on fire’ what do you think he meant by that?”

“If we had him we could ask him” Toothdee sighed, although the compound was destroyed, they had lost 2 sources of intel. However, unlike Toothdee, Kion and Jasiri were happy with the way their first mission turned out and shared a victory high five. They had performed exceptionally and were ready for whatever else faced them.

INFINITY WAR Spoiler talk

Random spoilery thoughts and rating of the movie

Things I liked:

- Thanos. This is his movie. A sad, lonely, yet terrifyingly driven villain. His relationship with Gamora helped humanize him, but he’s still a genocidal monster through-and-through… One of the best MCU villains (though I feel Killmonger is more relatable since his motivation is grounded in our reality, and Loki since we’ve spent so much time with him and witness his struggles) - Loki saying “we have a Hulk” - The various team-ups throughout the movie in general. - Tony butting heads with Dr. Strange, and his continued mentoring of Peter Parker. - Dr. Strange demonstrating more of his mystic arts powers, and going toe-to-toe with Thanos and holding his own quite well. - Ebony Maw is the only member of the Black Order worth remembering…. creepy and intimidating. - Thor managing to remain humble and mostly-level headed despite losing everything he was protecting and fighting for in Thor: Ragnarok. His bonding with Rocket of all people was endearing. - Kevin Bacon in the Avengers - Rocket matured a bit since GOTG vol. 2. He’s still Rocket as we know him, but more willing to step up and “be the captian” now than before. - The Invisible Drax. Stupid… but i liked it. - Gamora’s flashback to her homeworld and meeting Thanos, and her scenes with Thanos on his ship. We finally get to see her confront her father directly, and the dysfunction lends weight to both their plot threads. - Thanos to Quill: “I like you” - Seeing Vision and Scarlet Witch’s relationship play out on the big screen. - Hulk not coming out to play due to the beating he received by Thanos. He’s still got a child-like mind, and it’s totally believeable that he’s pout and whine and not want to come out. Banner still gets some heroism in nonetheless in the Hulkbuster. - Seeing Wakanda again with the Avengers there alongside Black Panther and Okoye. - All the cameos… always good to see Pepper Potts. Peter’s friend Ned. “Thunderbolt” Ross has an obligatory scene. The Collector appears. M'Baku returns to help T'Challa and the Avengers. Shuri gets to banter with Banner. - the Red Skull’s return… even though he has only a brief scene, it confirmed he was only teleported away and not killed by the Tessaract. - The entire battle with Thanos on Titan. It’s just cool to see heroes all battling a single enemy as opposed to another faceless army. - Nebula confronting Thanos on Titan, and her inclusion at all in the film. I hope she plays a bigger role in the next part. - Thor’s adventure with Rocket and Groot to get a new hammer. He is still obsessed with hammers…. - Giant Peter Dinklage… - “Thor, you’re about to take the full force of a star… it will kill you.” “ONLY IF I DIE!” …“Yes, that’s what killing you means…” - “WHY IS GAMORA?!” - Thanos getting more and more somber and depressed as the movie went along, especially after sacrificing Gamora, the only person he cared about. - "Tell them about the dance-off to save the galaxy." Footloose. - Quill’s angry reaction to Thanos killing Gamora and screwing the heroes… it’s perfectly in character. He’s always been an immature man-child, even with the development he received in the previous films. Part of his curse of being raised by the Ravagers. Likewise, who would NOT have an emotional outburst like that? Stark had one in Civil War. - War Machine back in action. Blowing shit up. - Winter Soldier/White Wolf alongside Rocket Raccoon……. - Thanos throwing chunks of a moon at the heroes. Tony: “If you throw another moon at me…” - Thanos’ admiration of Stark. “I hope they remember you” - Later he tries to comfort Scarlet Witch after she kills Vision. If he wasn’t a maniac hellbent on universal genocide with a history of child abuse, he might be an ok guy… - Thor’s heroic return with Stormbringer. Seeing him back to full power was great, though… it takes away a bit from his development in Ragnarok… He’s not a god of hammers… why does he need one so much? - Thor keeps calling Rocket “rabbit” and Groot “tree”. Didnt bother to learn names - “This is my friend, Tree”, “I am Groot”, “I am Steve Rogers” - Okoye + Black Widow + Scarlet Witch vs. Proxima Midnight - Vision sacrificing himself, and Wanda having to witness him die twice. - “You should have gone for the head!” - The ending… the fingersnap. The dissolve into ashes… The character’s reactions to these deaths is what makes it all work, even if we the audience know it probably won’t be permanent. - “Mr. Stark, I don’t feel so good…” and “I don’t wanna go I don’t wanna go… I’m sorry”…… - Knowing what Tony must have felt when Peter disappeared… probably adds a whole new level to his current PTSD… - Dr. Strange clearly playing the long game, even at the sacrifice of himself and half the universe. “Tony, it was the only way”… Witnessing their deaths 14 million times must have been rough. - Cap gets the last words in the movie: “Oh god….” - The simple end credits, playing almost like an “in mermoriam” - The fact that we have no idea where the heck Avengers 4 is going plotwise…. will those who became dust in the wind return? Seems likely since Homecoming 2 and GOTG vol. 3 are filming soon… and like they’d kill off Black Panther after he made ALL THE MONEY before this movie made all the money again. - “Motherfu-”

Things I didn’t like:

- Heimdall again gets kinda shafted… after getting such a prominent role in Ragnarok. At least he got a last heroic gesture by sending Hulk home. - Loki dying so early to be motivation for Thor. Unless he has more up his sleeve in a long play, having him try to stab Thanos in the face felt like sloppy storytelling. What if he succeeded? The Black Order is RIGHT THERE. They would’ve killed both him and Thor anyways. Loki probably knew death was imminent and wanted one last act of defiance and proof of loyalty to Thor and Asgard. I don’t mind him dying early on, but I feel the writers should have been smarter about his actions. - The GotG felt a bit flanderized. I get it though since they need to share screentime here. Quill remains immature and childish and it leads to disaster. Drax merely spouts comedic lines and is generally useless. Mantis is not much of a fighter but at least managed to subdue Thanos a bit. Groot barely registered at all until he makes the handle for Stormbreaker. Groot meeting Captain America was amusing though. - No one during the Wakanda fight calls attention to the talking raccoon… - Cap, Falcon, and Black Widow also didn’t get a whole lot to do. Their fights seemed to devolve into shakey-cam BS. - Vision was nerfed for sake of the plot. Guess he’d otherwise be too OP. - What was the point of Red Skull being there at all… if you replace him with someone else, would it have affected the plot in any way? Why was he floating like a spectre of Death? - Rocket just gives Thor a new eye…. guess they got tired of CGI-ing that eyepatch on Thor. - The fake-out of Gamora killing Thanos in Knowhere… of course they’re not killing the villain in the first third of the movie. - Gamora’s death… when she asked Peter to kill her, I knew she’s probably going to die. Of course not by Peter… the scene of her, Peter, and Thanos was a good one though. - Something about the scene on Vormir felt… heavy-handed. Maybe the music? The silly fade to Thanos’ crying face when Gamora is falling to her doom? Something just took me out of the moment… maybe the awareness that i was looking at a purple, ballsack-chinned, CGI space man crying CGI tears. - The Black Order… generic looking scary alien people… They didn’t amount to a whole lot. Just excuses for more fight scenes. They all die inglorious deaths. - The final battle in Wakanda was another giant brawl with faceless alien monster people… there’s nothing creative about it. - There is no build-up to that battle either… it just happens. Take a page out of Peter Jackson’s The Two Towers… the build-up is just as, if not more important than the battle itself. - Hawkeye and Ant-Man being convieniently written out of the movie… - Where is Valkyrie? and Korg? Not even enough time to give them a mention? Valkyrie might’ve been helpful in the ensuing fight… - Thanos didn’t seem to use the Gauntlet to its full potential despite demonstrating some wild powers. He mostly just shoots purple beams at people… - Thanos is “burdened with knowledge” and thus knows who Stark is…. ok…. what. - The pacing of the movie felt too relentless. Let the movie breathe a bit dammit. - The CGI in some scenes screamed of “reshoots”… Banner in the Hulkbuster comes to mind. Iron Man and Spidey’s Iron suits looked very cartoonish. The Black Order’s CGI looked very off in a few scenes. Could they not have achieved Proxima, Corvius, and Maw using prosthetics? Thanos looked very convincing though, even if his look was a tad simplistic. - The music… you hear the Avengers theme occassionally… but there’s no memorable new music. We don’t hear any of the respective themes of the various characters. No Guardians theme, no Dr. Strange theme, no Iron Man or Captain America or Spider-Man or Thor themes…. Music should factor into this “culmination movie” as much as the characters. Least we got the Black Panther theme when we see Wakanda again. If somehow the different themes get interwoven into a new melody…. plz Avengers 4? -Knowing that this was a part 1 of a 2-part finale sort of robbed the movie of a sense that the deaths will be permenant… but I would like to be surprised in Avengers 4. The question is seemingly “how” they will defeat Thanos and revive their allies, and not “if” they do…

Overall, there is a lot of good in this movie. It’s not as… “fun” as the previous Avengers movies or even Civil War. They tried to be a lot darker, and for the most part they succeeded. The issues I have are mostly nitpicks to the plot, and minor issues with the craft involved.

After two viewings, I don’t feel the need to really watch it again… until Avengers 4 next year.

8.25/10

@chrisjoshington​

Okay before we start: CD I first saw this submission through my mobile browser and therefore had no idea that you sent it and was gonna message you to BEG you to hold it for me. I love them so much holy shit. And I have some ideas.

Alternia, Beforus, or AU: Alternia

Themes/Story: Corday is nb and uses he/they/she interchangeably. He’s basically Theater Kid taken to its logical extreme. They’re a master of the art of disguise and utilize this skill to aid the rebellion. And also do some assassinations. So there’s her themes; theater, disguise, assassination. 

Thank you for giving this offering to me, an Adjacent to Theater Kid. I am planning a murder mystery party for my birthday. My birthday was three months ago. Corday is invited.

Name: Corday Nopper

Corday is a reference to Charlotte Corday, Marat’s assassin. Nopper references Noppera-bō, a mythical creature that disguises itself as human and can wipe off its face like a chalkboard. 

I…I never knew about Charlotte Corady before I read this holy shit.

Age: 9 sweeps,19.5 human years

Strife Specibus: Knifekind

I wanted to keep it simple and discrete for him. It’s also just subtly, just a little bit a reference to the assassination of Julius Caesar.  

I think you could also maybe get away with Staffkind if he’s into musical theater because of the pun.

Fetch Modus: Monologue Modus. They have to monologue for a minute about an object without saying the name of the object and their modus has to guess which item he’s talking about.

My main concern with this modus is that it doesn’t seem like Corday would use this one because it would require too much noise if they were sneaking around. Maybe a CHARADES MODUS? It plays into the acting without them needing to speak, and it lends itself to comedy when they need to retrieve, for example, a Perfectly Generic Object.

Blood Color: Indigo

They’re described as the enthusiasts of the spectrum and I thought that fit well for the level of Passion she brings to her job. 

Special Abilities: Nothing aside from the usual blueblood strength. 

Symbol and Meaning: I’ve been split between Sagio and Sagirius. I’m leaning Sagirius though since it’s called “the Bardic.” 

I can see either one working for her tbh, but I LOVE Hope players so I side very strongly with Sagirius.

Trolltag: zealousDeathspian. Zealous references their enthusiasm, Deathspian is a portmanteau of Death and Thespian. 

DEATHSPIAN IS SO GOOD. What about dramaticMurd–I’m kidding I’m kidding. If you wanna go even harder on the theme maybe Deathspion to include “espion” in the title?

Quirk: As neutral as they can possibly make it. Outside of their acts, they like to project a relatively neutral image to make them harder to pin down. They are partial to (~: emojis, though. Their one identifying marker. 

Ex: Just as normal as can be. Definitely not a fun assassin or anything. (~: 

They change the quirk up between disguises, though! 

Lusus: Probably a big raccoon with many faces. As a reference to shapeshifting racoons in Japanese mythology.

Personality: Have you ever met a method actor? He buys into roles with all the enthusiasm possible. If you have any question about her disguises’ lives or personalities or likes or dislikes, she has a thorough answer. If she has a long mission playing a character with a broken arm, she will Break Her Arm. 

They’re committed to this because they thoroughly believe in the good of the cause and that if everyone just works hard enough, they’ll succeed, and succeed Soon. They’re definitely an optimist to a somewhat critical degree. They expect most things to go right simply because they believe in it. 

He also has a tendency towards the ruthless. When he’s got a mark, the mark will die. He’ll do anything to accomplish his goal. He has a strict moral sense, but that moral sense includes Never Fail To Follow Through On A Promise. 

She’s predisposed to drama and acting over the top when hanging out with friends, but can actually be a very serious and competent person when she needs to be. Dedicated and focused and responsive and passionate. 

Interests: Theater, Musicals, Costumes, Makeup, Sculpting, Glassblowing, Jewelry Making- Basically anything to do with costume making. Soap Operas, Trashy Dramatic Tabloid Magazines, A Good Knife. 

Title: Witch of Hope

Hope seems to fit her because of her strong convictions and optimism as well as her willingness to do anything to reach her goal. He has a strong personality, so an active class makes sense. But the Witch comes in in the active change, the need to shape and mold the nature of all that potential and optimism that he holds into a usable form. 

Land: Land of Drapes and Pinion 

Dream Planet: Derse

Design party…: 

Leftmost: Their True Appearance/how they dress in front of friends. They hacked off their horns so they could put fakes in their place because they’re just that hardcore. And he also designed a new symbol to do a little more anonymity preservation. The shoes are from fan-troll. 

Blue: This is what she wears if she wants to walk around discretely. The goal is to be as generic as possible. The shoes are John’s! 

Purple: He disguises himself as a Bartender/Candy Vendor and runs in highblood circles to get Intel. The symbol is meant to look a bit like a lollipop. There’s sopor candies stuck in his hair. And I couldn’t decide on a good makeup so I did like… paint that looks like drool and a black eye. The suit and pants are both from fan-troll. 

Violet: Her most recent disguise, she assassinated a violet Career Adviser and took on her role. And uses this as a way to meet people she can convince to join the rebellion.  

Listen…I love him so so much my redesign is the MOST minimal thank you for this joy. I especially love that you kept visual continuity with the eyes without compromising your vision for him as a master of disguise.

Okay SO. Minimal minimal changes idk if I’d even go top to bottom. Let’s go left to right?

True Self

I liked how you gave Corday’s casual duds this very “hanging out backstage before curtain call” vibe so I pinned their hair back the way one might if they were gonna wear a wig over it.

I also figured like. Breaking her horns its badass and all but it may be difficult to fit a prosthetic horn over that? So I gave her slightly shaved down horns (she could even do this with her knife!) that could potentially fit a prosthetic over them.

For his mouth I really liked the look of his teeth but I figured if they stuck out too much then they would difficult to conceal when he was undercover so I colored their outline in grey to keep the definition while visually implying that they’re set further back from his gums.

For their shirt, I gave them their real symbol. If we’re gonna push that this is how they are with their friends then that’s them at their messiest and most relaxed, which would include aspects of their True Self.

Other than that just a few outline changed but all in all it’s a real good look.

Generic

So I edited the symbol you originally gave to her true self and shifted it over, mostly so it could feasibly comply with multiple sign languages? I also edited the horns so they’re just pointy and not so arrowlike.

For their disguise, I wanna explain my reasoning. So we know that hemoanonymity is effective in that people genuinely can’t tell what your blood color is, but that it’s also see as childish and immaturely rebellious, so doing so may bring you attention in a way that simply wearing a shirt with a blood colored symbol may not.

BUT

A really, really effective disguise makes the onlooker draw their own conclusions and feel much smarter than you are. So, fine! Let his symbol be hemonanon! Deck him out in grey-colored clothing that’s indistinguishable from others’ fashion choices.

but

If you look closely you’ll see that they’re wearing bronze ankle socks. They’re very small! Barely noticeable! Almost like something they’d worn them by mistake.

Someone speaking to her would obviously roll their eyes at her greyed-out sign and cast about for hints of her “real” blood color and see the socks. Aha, they’d think, she’s slipped up. Forgot to leave those at home, huh? And now that they think of it, it’s obvious she’s a bronzeblood. It’s not just the circle in her sign either; she may not be dressed to the nines, but look at the touch of mascara around her lower lashes! The slight gleam of her lip gloss. Typical bronzebloods. They can try to hide their blood color all they want, but their desire for creature comforts will always give them away.

Barvendor/Candytender

Once again, not much to change here. Made the white threads in their suit yellow for that little pop, and swapped out the tie for a loud bow tie for the whimsy. I also adjusted a few stands of hair that felt like they were laying oddly.

For the face paint, between the candy association and the single sharp snaggletooth, he’s already halfway to being a jack-o-lantern, so that’s what I used for his makeup! Other than that he was perfect.

Career Advisor

I lengthened her jacket collar and her sideburns to more deliberately cover up the space where there would be a line between her face and her fin; we don’t really know how far practical makeup can take us in this instance. Aside from that though I really didn’t have any fixes and tbh that was more because I felt like I had to futz with the sprite a little bit.

I LOVE THIS TROLL SO MUCH LONG LIVE CORDAY.

-TR

I found this “About Me” template here on Tumblr. I’ve reblogged it on my account if you wanna see the blank one.

1: Name - Gracie

2: Age - 19

3: 3 fears - The dark, heights, and spiders

4: 3 things I love - Ducks, math, and singing

5: 4 turn-ons - Being dependable, a good listener, funny, and artistic

6: 4 turn-offs - People who are messy, narcissistic, only care about looks/like me for my looks, and ignorant

7: My best friend - My sister, Caroline

8: Sexual Orientation - Panromantic Demisexual

9: My best first date - I saw Black Panther and got ice cream with my boyfriend

10: How tall I am - 5’8”

11: What do I miss? - South Carolina

12: What time was I born? - 7:57 a.m.

13: Favorite color? - Purple

14: Do I have a crush? - Do crushes on fictional characters count? If so, my current crush is Fatgum from My Hero Academia

15: Favorite quote? - “Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you, and don’t be afraid to be the dumbest one in the room because that gives you the most potential to learn.” - Markiplier

16: Favorite place? - Lexington High School

17: Favorite food? - Ambrosia

18: Do I use sarcasm? - Frequently

19: What am I listening to right now? - My cat purring

20: First thing I notice in a new person - Probably their hairstyle

21: Shoe size? - Women’s 13

22: Eye color? - Hazel

23: Hair color?  Dark Brown

24: Favorite style of clothing? - Graphic Tees or Dresses; there is almost no in-between

25: Ever done a prank call? - Nope.

26: Meaning of my url - My URL (BringBackMaes14) is based on one of my favorite animes, Fullmetal Alchemist (Brotherhood is better you can fight me) and one of its characters, Maes Hughes. His death was the first anime character death I experienced, and he died in 1914 which is where the 14 comes from.

27: Favorite movie? - Robots (2005)

28: Favorite song? - There’s a Platypus Controlling Me from Phineas and Ferb

29: Favorite band? Panic! At the Disco

30: How I feel right now - A little bit tired, and my back hurts, but my mood is good

31: Someone I love - My sister, Caroline

32: My current relationship status - Single

33: My relationship with my parents - My relationship with my dad has always been bad. He was pretty abusive. My relationship with him is okay right now, now that I don’t see him but once a year. I’ve always been really close with my mom, and a big part of that is I’ve been disabled my whole life and so I’ve always needed her by my side, so we’re just together all the time. Things are a little rough right now though.

34: Favorite holiday? - Thanksgiving. It has all the same big meals and family gatherings as Christmas, but I don’t have seasonal depression then or gifts staring at me from under a tree for three weeks, driving me mad with anticipation.

35: Tattoos and piercings I have - My ears are pierced

36: Tattoos and piercings I want - I want a rubber duck tattoo, probably just a small one on my shoulder

37: The reason I joined Tumblr - To look at anime memes

38: Do my last ex and I hate each other? - No, things ended on good terms. We’re still friends and we talk occasionally

39: Do I ever get “good morning” or “good night” texts? - No

40: Have I ever kissed the last person I texted? - No

41: When did I last hold hands? - It’s been a few weeks

42: How long does it take me to get ready in the morning? - On a regular morning? Maybe 10 minutes. On mornings that I shower? About 45 minutes

43: Have you shaved your legs in the past three days? - I haven’t shaved my legs in 19 years

44: Where am I right now? - In my living room

45: If I were drunk and couldn’t stand, who would be taking care of me? - Probably one of my sisters

46: Do I like my music loud or at a reasonable level? - I only turn songs way up when they have great bass

47: Do I live with my mom and/or dad? - I live with my mom, my two sisters, and my brother-in-law. It’s my older sister and brother-in-law’s house. I have a brother who still lives back in South Carolina where I’m from

48: Am I excited for anything? - I’ve got a virtual Halloween party I’m going to this week

49: Do I have someone of the opposite sex that I can tell everything to? - No

50: How often do I wear a fake smile? - Not very often. I wear my emotions pretty openly

51: When was the last time I hugged someone? - Last night I hugged my younger sister

52: What if the last person I kissed was kissing someone right in front of me? That’s none of my business really. We never actually dated and I don’t talk to her a lot anymore.

53: Is there someone I trust even though I shouldn’t? - Not that I can think of

54: What is something I disliked about today? - It rained while I was in the middle of going on a walk.

55: If I could meet anyone on Earth, who would it be? I’d like to meet J. Michael Tatum. He’s a voice actor in a lot of animes that I’ve watched and I really like his voice.

56: What do I think about the most? - Probably myself

57: What’s my strangest talent? - I wouldn’t call it talent but I can make a really disturbing horse-like noise.

58: Do I have any strange phobias? - I’m afraid of swingsets and trampolines

59: Do I prefer to be behind the camera or in front of it? It doesn’t really matter to me. I don’t take a lot of pictures of myself, but it doesn’t have to do with not liking having my picture taken

60: What was the last lie I told? - “I’m not in a lot of pain.”

61: Do I prefer talking on the phone or video chatting online? - I actually prefer video chatting. It seems more personal.

62: Do I believe in ghosts? - Yes. I’ve seen my twin sister’s ghost several times in my life.

63: Do I believe in aliens? - Yes

64: Do I believe in magic? - No

65: Do I believe in luck? - Yes

66: What’s the weather like right now? It’s 60 degrees Fahrenheit and cloudy

67: What was the last book I read? Mother Knows Best: A Tale of the Old Witch Best by Serena Valentino

68: Do I like the smell of gasoline? - No

69: Do I have any nicknames? - Boo, Gracie Pie, Dot

70: What was the worst injury I ever had? - I broke my spine when I was 16

71: Do I spend money or save it? - I tend to spend it but I’m trying to save it right now

72: Can I touch my nose with my tongue? - Yes. I can also touch the bottom of my chin with my tongue

73: Is there anything pink within 10 feet of me? - Yes, there’s a pillowcase and a blanket

74: Favorite animal? - Panda Bear

75: What was I doing last night at 12 a.m.? - Sleeping

76: What do I think Satan’s last name is? - I don’t know, Smith? We’re probably all overthinking it and it’s something much more simple than Morningstar

77: What’s a song that always makes me happy when I hear it? - Flashy by GameBoyJones

78: How can you win my heart? - By not judging me based on my past and my disabilities

79: What would I want to be written on my tombstone? - Quacked to Death

80: What is my favorite word? - Feshnickit - the act of consuming alcohol until a point is reached where an individual is unable to function normally

81: My top 5 blogs on Tumblr - lady-raziel, just-shower-thoughts, plus-ultra-writings, drawing-prompt-s, and writing-prompt-s

82: If the whole world was listening right now, what would I say? - What that tongue do? (Idk I think it’d be really funny if the whole world just randomly heard that in their heads). If we’re talking like I’m on tv and broadcasting to the whole world and I’m not just telepathic/mind reading, then I’d probably say something about rights for women, colored people, and LGBTQ+ people

83: Do I have any relatives in jail? - Nope

84: Superpower of choice? - The power to affect probability. What’s the probability that I’ll ace this test? 100% What’s the probability that it will rain on my wedding day? 0% What’s the probability that my dad will shit his pants every time he hears the word “dragon”? 80%

85: What would be a question I’d be afraid to tell the truth on? - Have you been handcuffed before and if yes, then why?

86: What is my current desktop picture? -

87: Had sex? - No

88: Bought condoms? - No

89: Been pregnant? - No

90: Failed a class? - Yes. I failed IT twice and Java Programming once.

91: Kissed a boy? - No

92: Kissed a girl? - Yes

93: Have I ever kissed somebody in the rain? - No

94: Had a job? - It wasn’t an actual paid job, but I worked as a student aid in my school’s library in my senior year of high school.

95: Left the house without my wallet? - Yes

96: Bullied someone on the internet? - I’ve bullied people in real life, but not on the internet.

97: Had sex in public? - No

98: Played on a sports team? - I played basketball with a church league for 6 years

99: Smoked weed? - No

100: Done drugs? - I take prescription drugs for my disabilities, but I’ve never “done” drugs, no.

101: Smoked cigarettes? - No

102: Drank alcohol? - No

103: Am I a vegan/vegetarian? -  No

104: Been overweight? - I currently am

105: Been underweight? - No

106: Been to a wedding? - I’ve been to 4 weddings

107: Been on the computer for 5 hours straight? - Yes

108: Watched TV for 5 hours straight? - Yes

109: Been outside my home country? - No

110: Gotten my heart broken? - Yes, but not in a “I got dumped or turned down” kind of way. Someone close to me told me something really devastating.

111: Been to a professional sports game? - I once went to a Clemson Tigers vs University of South Carolina Gamecocks game, which was a pretty big game for South Carolina

112: Broken a bone? - I broke my L5 vertebrae

113: Cut myself? - Never on purpose, but yes. I sliced open my thumb knuckle once and had to get 3 stitches.

114: Been to prom? - I threw my own prom at home my junior year of high school because my school’s actual prom was 3 days after my spinal surgery so I wouldn’t have been able to go. I went to my school’s prom the year after and the theme was Emerald City from The Wizard of Oz

115: Been on an airplane? - No

116: Flown by helicopter? - No

117: What concerts have I been to? - I once went to a concert at my church for a Christian barbershop quartet called Soul’d Out

118: Had a crush on someone of the same sex? - Yes

119: Learned another language? - I took Spanish classes for 3 years and French for 6 years

120: Worn makeup? - I’ve worn makeup before for stage performances but I don’t like to wear it regularly. Every once in awhile I’ll wear some mascara.

121: Lost my virginity before I was 18? - No

122: Had oral sex? - No

123: Dyed my hair? - I’ve dyed my hair purple, and blue. I liked it better purple.

124: Voted in a presidential election? Voting day for the 2020 election is in 8 days, and it’s the 1st presidential election I’ll be old enough to vote in, but I don’t think I’m going to vote.

125: Rode in an ambulance? - Several times. I had a lot of seizures when I was a little kid. My longest one lasted at least 2 hours.

126: Had surgery? - I’ve had 2 major surgeries: I had my gallbladder removed and I had a spinal surgery to fix my broken vertebrae where they screwed 3 of my vertebrae together and used part of my hip to make a bone graft to cover it.

127: Met someone famous? - Unless the guys from Soul’d Out count, I don’t think so.

128: Stalked someone on a social network? - Definitely not (and if I had, I probably wouldn’t tell you guys)

129: Peed outside? - Do Porta Potties count?

130: Been fishing? - Yes. I went once when I was maybe 8 years old, and I was the only one of my siblings to catch a fish. I caught it by the eye socket though and its eye fell out. I’m still not sure exactly how that happened.

131: Helped with charity? - Yes. I don’t remember what the charity was called, but I worked in a warehouse once to collect shoes for homeless shelters

132: Been rejected by a crush? - Yes, but it was when I was 11 so I don’t know if that really counts

133: Broken a mirror? - No, but I’ve punched a hole in a wall before

134: What do I want for my birthday/Christmas? - The number one thing on my list is some Artemis Drawing Figurines. They have adjustable and interchangeable hands, and they come in both male and female shapes.

ENTM C7 - Week 5 Results!

We have reached Week 5! Next week we will be finding out who the winner of Eorzea’s Next Top Model will be! Stay tuned for further information coming in August for Cycle 8!!

Here are the results for this week!!

The winner of this week with highest overall score is:

Noesis Phobos!

Congratulations! Let’s see if you’ll keep it up for next week, when we announce the winner of ENTM!!

 Judges Reviews Below:

Flare:

Nadede Lasalle: This picture is what I wanted to see from you. It looks fantastic! The colors are crisp and your outfit goes well with the background. You stand out and the brazier behind you adds a warming effect to the picture. For me, the only nit-pick I have would seem like your face is a little bright for the picture. Also, just from your pose it looks like you have no arms. Not a big deal but since the top half of your body is around the darker part of the picture it just looks a bit strange.  Over all great job this week.

Noesis Phobos: This is probably one of my favorite backgrounds this week. Gives me the shivers just looking at it. Looks really cold in that picture! The colors tie in really well together and your outfit blends so well with the background. Which is a good thing. I actually had you lower at first but after actually looking at your picture you had more things right then you did wrong. You gave me something brighter than your last two and something that makes you outshine your other pictures in this contest. My favorite from you yet.

Doki Kodoki: This is a pleasant picture to look at. The joy on your face as your taking in the snowy weather just warms me up inside. The placement of your little little lala in between those two rocks work. Fills the background up a little but still gives your photo that soft touch it needs to make you stand out. While sometimes I don't like outfits to be the same color as the background, you chose red as an accent color to tie in with the background. A nice touch. Great work this week.

Kusuh Valentione: This is a nice concept, but the filter ruins it for me. Your character looks like he's about to freeze to death and the purple hue takes away from your scenery a lot of me. While the hue works for the scenery, it doesn't work for your character. Since your hair is already pink, it looks a bit neon and unrealistic.

Stephen Fairbrook: This is a nice one where the scenery goes great and ties in with your outfit very well. I love the Ishgard scene and you really enjoying yourself. While the lighting on your character is a tad bright, it still works and looks fine. Try to find a nice balance with the lighting. It's a hard one to figure out. But sometimes natural lighting or even the sun minion would work better than that sometimes god-awful light in gpose.

Rivienne Cotrlaint: I was instantly drawn to your picture the moment I saw it. Hands down my favorite this week. It has the right balance of color and the lighting is perfect here. The dark outfit with the white accents of the sleeves, glove and bow help you stand out. The scenery is pleasant as well. I really enjoyed your picture this week.

WoW Wie: A nice fun picture that I'm surprised no one else decided to try and recreate. You have a lot of fun and lighthearted pictures and this one is my favorite from you. You used your background models nicely, a used a nice simple background to keep the focus on the real action. Great work this week.

 Gangly:

Nadede Lasalle - A lovely warm fire on a cold wintry night is the best! Your outfit combination is quite interesting; the top fits perfectly with your snowy background, while the pants and boots add an adventurous flair to it. The trim of the top matches with the bottom of your shoes, and the white of your pants matches with the highlights in your hair! I like that you are standing higher up from the ground; I can imagine you taking in the cold and quiet peacefully. The fire behind you is also a nice contrast to the soft snow in the background. The pose you chose is fine itself, but the facial expression and angle are a little odd. Your expression appears pouty, and because of the angle of your body, it looks like you are about to fall off the beacon! I didn’t notice it at first, but the faint hint of the moon is a nice touch to the shot!

Noesis Phobos - So bright! The lighting on the ice is beautiful, and the white of the background is a great contrast to the black parts of your outfit. The snowflakes on your pants are a nice addition to the snowy theme, and the frayed edges of your boots match nicely with your poncho. Your pose and expression are playful, and I love the light from the ice hitting your back; it gives you a nice glow. The camera angle gives the background and ice a nice tilt while keeping you vertical. The shot is well-lit, but something odd is happening with your hand over the ice. Because there is no light on it (like your other hand), I cannot see any texture in the glove, and it appears almost like latex (personal observation of course!). I think just even a smidgen of light could help define it more!

Doki Kodoki - I really like the lighting of this shot! While most of the shot is white, it’s not overpowering. The bright 3 filter gives the colors a more gray tone, evoking a calm and almost sad mood. Your outfit matching the white of the background and the red of the formations is a great addition! You look relaxed with your pose, and I’m liking how you placed yourself in between the two formations in the back; not only is there an interesting sweeping motion with the gradually increasing height, but it also frames you nicely and helps you pop out! I would have liked to see your feet because I can see the beginning of your shadow on the ground, but the composition of this shot was executed well!

Kusuh Valentione - I’d like to know what’s under that snow too! Your pose fits nicely with your theme, and the emotion on your face lets me imagine your pondering and curiosity! I like the white and red of your outfit mimicking the colors in the background, and the many bumps and curves of the formations in the background help to further accentuate the strangeness mentioned in your caption. While the lighting on you is not too bright and not too dim, the color is a bit odd. It stands out a bit too much against the more cool and darker colors of your shot; I am thinking either white or red light would make more sense, as they could act as reflections from your surroundings!

Stephen Fairbrook - Lightly falling snow and bright lights, I like it! I love the lights and how your background surrounds you; it gives the shot a lively feel! Your position in your shot is nice as well; we can see a good amount of the background, but you remain the focus! Standing up on one of the roofs (at least I think that’s what you’re standing on hahaha!) also feels nostalgic. Your outfit combination works quite well; the top is fancy, but the gloves and pants help to tone it down. I am completely in love with how the colored marker filter made the colors extremely vivid, especially in your hair, but I also think it made your face and hands a bit too bright. However, the brightness also does help attract the viewer’s attention straight to you!

Rivienne Cotrlaint - I’m getting mixed emotions about this shot, but that’s a good thing! You look so calm and composed with your expression and pose, yet your background and the black of your outfit adds the elements of loneliness and a silent beauty to the shot. Your gaze looks confident yet dreamy, and the filter works incredibly well to give the shot a tasteful gray tone. Your position in the shot frames you nicely, and the smaller mountains in the back make you look powerful. Also, nice outfit choice (I actually use the same top and gloves for my BLM hahaha!); it’s almost like a mix of good and evil with the white and black!

Wow Wie - Ohhhh a snowball fight, what fun! Your expression is bubbly and you like you’re having a great time with your friends! The red of your poncho helps you pop out nicely, and the slightly faded background has a nice effect to it! The snowballs add a cool effect that almost appears to be a lens flare, giving the shot a playful, energetic feel. The right side feels a bit empty because your friends are more to the center and left of the shot, and everyone throwing snowballs at the camera and being in the same pose looks a bit unnatural for the playfulness of the shot. Unfortunately, /gpose synchs everyone up, but I think if you froze only your pose and all of you were facing each other in some manner, it would appear more natural; after all, it’s a snowball fight!

 Katarh:

Nadede  - A beautiful night time shot brings out the snow and the delicate frost covered trees.  Closed eye shots are a risk, but your caption's explanation of "reminisce" combined with your pose brings it all together - fond memories in the snow. The angle of everything feels a bit warped; be careful with the camera controls not to distort things too much. The usage of the pastel filter lets the reds and oranges pop against the darker background, drawing the eye to the left side of the image.

Noesis - This is my favorite outfit for this week.  I love the usage of the starlight tights and the boots together!  The strengthened effects filter makes the colorful ice pop out, and I really love your playful pose.  There is so much joy in this image.

Doki  - This is the starkest image this week, and I really love the coordination of the bright white outfit with a red hat and sash against the blood red rocks of Boulder Downs.  Since you're a Lalafell, it may have been possible to get your feet into this shot, and it might have been worth sacrificing the close up to do it. The bright effect brings out the contrast to the maximum, clearly enhancing this shot in the best way possible.

Rivienne - A more somber mood in the snow calls for a darker filter, and somehow the Bright 3 filter manages to do it.  I love the contrast of your character's mourning clothes against the snow.  That said, a less fuzzy background might have made this shot stronger - I know the bones are back there, but the blur from the focus makes them almost impossible to discern.

Wow Wie - Our only group shot this week is a brilliant idea - a synchronized snowball fight!  I love the use of focus on this, so that the main character is obvious even with the extras, and the rest of the image has a foggy feel.  Your bright red top also lets you jump out from the background.  Although the character is dead center once again, the slightly off balance pose from the snowball throw makes up for it, as well as the balancing effect from the extras being on the left.

Kusuh  - Thinking.... thinking.... I love your character's expression here, contemplating the secrets of the snow.  I'm not sold on the usage of strengthened effects in this shot, as it makes your brightly colored outfit blend into the brightly colored background a bit too much.  The slightly off-center position is perfect, but then it comes down to balancing the composition, and if you are going to lean to the right, you should consider having your busiest part of the background on the left instead.

Stephen - Colored Marker can do such interesting things, even to Falcon's Nest!  Interesting doesn't always mean better, though, and I'm not sure the selection of this filter enhances the shot in quite the way you wanted. Perfect outfit choice for this location, but the tilt of your head is too much, and I can't see the expression on your character's face at all.

Answer all of them. That's right you bastard, every damn one. We're gonna overload this site with the cuteness that is your relationship. Happy goddamn Easter.

You sent me this just to torture me damn you Nicole 1. Have you met your soul mate?Well that term is cheesy as hell but I literally can't imagine anyone more compatible with me than Act and I love him super lots so... Yes? I guess?2. Favorite color when you were younger, and now?I used to really love green partly because Irish but now I'm all about the purple because I am the Byzantine emperor3. Do you wear eye-shadow? What color?Get anything away from my eyes I am terrified of anything makeup related near my eyes even eye shadow4. Are you in love right now?YES5. In your opinion, is love at first sight real?No but the fact that I literally saw Act's OkCupid profile and immediately thought wow what a cool dude sure says a lot about my judgment lol6. Are you an optimist, realist, opportunist, or pessimist?I guess I consider myself a realist? Like things aren't either wholly bad or good and I do believe you can advance if you take opportunity but ultimately you are limited based off of your circumstances like wealth race status and mental health, stuff like that. 7. First kiss details? (If you haven’t been kissed, reply how and if you would like to be.)lol I'm going to do both first kisses because I really wish my first was actually Act. So it's high school and no other gay kids existed ooexcept my friends friend. We start dating because duh gay. We go to a school concert and I'm like trying to be cutesy and romantic so I tell him, because I'm dying of heat in the winter because Florida, "if I had do be overheating at least it's with you~*~" and then cue kiss. He was an ugly dude but damn did he know how to kiss.My first kiss with Act was actually damned passionate. We meet up after talking for months for the first time. I drove six hours from Tampa to Savannah and we meet and hang out all day right. It's all very simple and very chaste. We go hang out at my hotel afterwards though where we pretend we don't know what we wanna do. So we start cuddling... My god I've never felt such electricity from someone touching me. He says he's wanted to do that all day as we just hold hands. I then ask if we can kiss. We lean in gently and it's awkward but feels so good...We didn't do anything else except make out but it was great.8. Do you own stickers, an stationary?No but Act taught me calligraphy and I really should learn it again and get some nice stationary for fun.9. What’s your aesthetic?Uh... Colorful pants? That's all I guess lol 🤣10. Do you wear dresses, and skirts?Nah11. What is your hair like?Resistant to change. I have blond and wavy hair but no matter what I do it always wants to lie flat on my head so I've given up doing fancy stuff with it and just do some decent styling.12. Does time go by fast or slow to you?Too damn FAST when Act is here and too damn SLOW when I'm bored to death.13. What time do you go to bed? What time do you wake up?This question assumes I have a regular sleep schedule.I guess normally I fall asleep around 2 and wake up at 10 though.14. Favorite sweet food?Hmm... Lately I've kinda become an endless cheesecake eater. That and cookies or ice cream.15. Tea, coffee, or hot cocoa?I would die without coffee but tea is also good. 16. Space, Ocean, City, or Forest?I'm a forest gay.17. Favorite game as a child?Video game: the Legend of Zelda: Wind WakerBoard game: this weird version of chess called stratego? I would always play it with my mom lolOutdoors: uhhh baseball? If by baseball you mean hitting a ball and not having to run lol18. Comfort book?It's hardly a comfort book because it's the embodiment of Angst™ but the only book I can just open and read a bit of is Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. The narrative voice and theme of adolescent identity crisis really kinda got to me when I first read it. I still identify heavily with the characters and love the surreal, almost cerebral tone.19. Princess, Fairy, Mermaid, or Unicorn?I'm a forest fairy boy thanks 20. Do you fall in love easily?Lol very much so. I met Act in person once, and we were just chatting one night on the phone and he was translating "Now I See the Light" from Tangled from Swedish into English and it just hit me: this super nerd is the cutest and most interesting guy I've ever met, and has a beautiful voice and personality. 21. Favorite word?Apparently. It's quite versatile and always has a ring of sarcasm to it.22. Describe your life in 3 words.AHHHHHHHHHHH (grad school), Act, Nicole 23. Do you dance? Slow dance?lol nope 24. Do you wear fake nails, or paint your nails?Nah 25. Has anyone ever confessed to you?I'm literally the confidante of both of my best friends (Act included) so yes26. Do you lie?Yeah. White lies though, I can't stand being deceitful unless I'm trying to avoid something unpleasant for me or anyone else. Like I'll say I'm going to bed but really just want alone time or I'll say I need to get home instead of I really don't want to be in social situations right now.27. What makes you smile?Thinking about my boyfriend :)Otherwise it's my super cool friend @stained-glass-rose That jerk 28. Have you ever cried in a book or movie?Duh. I sob at any emotional scenes 29. When and who was your first crush?Hmm that's hard to say really. The first super super deep one was with this guy Chaz in high school, my best friend at the time. He and I had 6/7 of our classes together and spent every day eating lunch with each other. During the summer he would ask me to come over every day and after I came out he got even more physically affectionate with me. During freshman year English class we watched a shitty version of the Odyssey and he just rested his head on my arms and napped there. It was super super gay for me. We still suspect he was probably attracted to guys.30. Marriage or kids?Marriage without a doubt, it's legally convenient and frankly I like the idea of a nice commitment thingy. Kids I'm gonna need a long time to think about because I'm an anxious and depressed mess who can hardly handle himself and is afraid of getting a pet even. I like the idea of giving a sweet kid a good home but I'm worried I'm not up for it. We shall see. 31. Are you superstitious?Not at all. Tbh I find ghosts, magic, superstitions, and all that to be completely silly.32. Who’s your 3 am thought?Take a wild guess lol(Act~)33. Do you like candy? What’s your favorite candy?I have a horrible sweet tooth: I love mostly fruit flavored candies like skittles and twizzlers and life savers especially.34. Favorite holiday?Christmas because winter :p35. Favorite season?WINTER I AM A FURNACE36. Cat or dog person?I love dogs so much they are my life's goal. I've always had one until I moved away.I used to be meh about cats, neither liked nor disliked them, but now I'm appreciating them and their personalities which are so much different from what I'm used to with dogs. They're beautiful and elegant and dumb and adorable creatures all at once. I still don't think I want one though but when a cat lets me pet them I feel Blessed™37. Are you quiet or loud?I'm quiet if I don't know you and I never shut up if I do38. Favorite time period? (80′s, 60′s, etc.The 80s would've been great if Reagan wasn't president and AIDS never existed. The music, aesthetic, movies, and all that are some of my favorite enduring things.39. Favorite fashion fad that went away?Skinny jeans. I'm very disappointed because absurdly tight pants are my go to fashion choice40. The best dream/ worst nightmare you’ve ever had?I have weird nasty horror nightmares but the freakiest one was a weirdass realistic one.TW: Sexual assault, pedophilliaMy worst nightmare involved my old roommate that me and Nicole used to live with. An old friend's friend contacted me and asked to hang out in the dream. I agree and he's on his way over: while he's out in my living room I hear my roommates door close and I find graphic pictures showing the dude into those diaper kink things and somehow this made me certain he was gonna hurt her.I burst out of my room and try to open her door only to find he's locked it and assaulting her at that exact moment. He then mocks me through he door as I desperately try to get in and stop him.God I was so scared for her and Nicole from that point on41. Worst fear as a kid?... To be honest it was (and still is) being raped or kidnapped and molested.44. Do you flirt?With my boyfriend :p45. What’s your style?I have none I'm a giant spastic nerd 46. Do you blush?Not often anymore but I get bashful when flirting with Act or when he gives me an unsolicited compliment. Also Nicole's mom called me and him adorable while we were being cute and me and him both blushed lol47. Do you feel everything, nothing, or you don’t know what to feel?I feel numb a lot of the time but I think I'm able to feel some things again. I still don't feel like I feel as much as I should48. Are you a crier? Do you smile?I'm not as much of a crier as I used to be but I can still break out at the slightest touch if I get in an argument or stressed.49. First love?Act.50. Last love?Still love Act :p