#like yeah that's subtle !! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

not-equippedforthis · 4 months

Text

really love characters who have varied panic responses. kirk stating himself that he does not panic outright, externally, not in high-stress dangerous situations, but instead becomes tense and level like a wound string, on-guard: mostly because his role as captain necessitates that he maintain level rationality even when facing potential death as his training as 'the guy who tells you what to do when shit hits the fan' requires, but also because his childhood experiences taught him early that drowning in the desperate haziness of panic won't help you survive. especially as kirk already follows his intuition so deeply. he learned to grasp and contort the feeling. spock is the main person who represses his emotions, of course, but kirk does it to those deep-set, personal ones (this includes how he doesn't reveal anything truly personal about himself willingly 90% of the time, only what others already know/shallow anecdotes) in a much more subtle way that's really interesting to me. certified expert at avoiding the subject as long as he isnt caught out on the lie. professional bluffer.

in terms of past or parents we dont know much!!! hes known as the heart-on-his-sleeve guy!!! like yes he yells, he gets irritated, excited, hes a whirlwind of quick-thinking and plans and intuition, he goes out of his way to connect with his crew and shows it, when he puts on a little act or bluff he puts his heart into it and clearly enjoys the dramatics so much, at times he wears his heart on his sleeve, he laughs openly and is honest to spock about what he means to him, he's very sun-coded to me in a burning, passionate way, always intertwined with the stars and seeking them out, but when it comes to genuine deep-set turmoil? we dont actually know all that much about him??? hes so full of emotion and character (i love fics where spock characterises jim's mind/bond as a whirl of colour and sensations, hes a quick thinker!!! intuitive!! lively!!!) and yet its still so outwardly surface level. tarsus iv gets mentioned like twice? so especially here where kirk gets briefly jumpscared by the creature, because like:

its subtle but his eyes. his eyesss!!!!! kirk commands with his emotions but there's always some sort of level of control to it, or he transforms them into something that spurs on others or uses them to ascertain a goal: seeing unguarded fear/distress in his eyes even if its faint and brief (in this instance) makes me go insane every single time. like!!! its such a small moment!!! he isnt even panicking!!! really, he just got jumpscared!!! its insignificant!!!!!!! but seeing a two-second flash of actual, naked apprehension is just...oughhh,,,,,,,,,

oh god, and dont even get me started on the galileo seven episode where he assumes a tense level-headedness throughout the whole thing, irritated and apprehensive but not panicking, making sure he maintains intelligent rationality, even when he has to leave them behind, but when spock and the crew are confirmed safe and the bridge is occupied the camera pans to him and his eyes look like they're fucking watering and he's so achingly relieved. don't even talk to me. im. fuck.

he shows so so much but at the same time reveals so little.

#just had to write something about this because i loveeee seeing cool characters in distress. sorry but i need to see that boy PANICKING #im only on season 1 still so i dont know if there is a point where kirk openly seriously panics in the typical way #in high stress situations hes guarded but controlled #seeing him genuinely lose his nerve and start panicking would make me ouuughghgughg #like if he starts actually hyperventilating for kirk you know somethings so wronggg #but no yeah even if spock is injured or kirk is concerned about him he still shows that in the tense guarded high strung demeanor #same with spock really - his tone becomes tense and he uses jims name and its subtle but AAACKKK #i love the note of desperation being logical. that one episode is such a good exploration of spocks characer #i just think its interesting. to me it reads not only of kirks headstrong nature but also of his experience on taurus iv #not equipped for rambling #star trek tos #star trek #james kirk #jim kirk #captain kirk #kirk tos #hope this is right because im only just coming to the end of season 1 so #i love kirk so much though i cant even #hoping so so much ive interpreted him well #and that this makes sense. this is a ramble to the max.#he draws people into his orbit hes lively hes intelligent hes a burning whirl of passion and arhrthhhh

264 notes · View notes

whaliiwatching · 9 months

Text

finally my obsession with zoot suits becomes useful

#spider man: across the spider verse #spider punk #spider noir #hobie brown #noirpunk #DO YOU GUYS KNOW ABOUT ZOOT SUITS #they’re fascinating the history is just. ouujhghghghhh i love it #not to mention the silhouette??? the chain???? fuck yeah #plus… green carnation… wink wink #green carnations as a subtle queer symbol also fell out of use round the 20s i think but i like it so #also zoot suits are technically a late 30s/40s thing if i remember right but leT ME HAVE THIS #theyre going on a date to a langston hughes reading <333 #yknow how every spidey seems to have a borough?? like miles has brooklyn and gwen has chelsea #well. noir has harlem #IMAGINE IT. NOIR RIGHT IN THE THICK OF THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE #I NEED IT TO BE REAL #im so happy i get to incorporate my interest in the roarin 20s #into this magnificent ship. fucking fantastic for me #poem on hobie is love again blues by literally guess

567 notes · View notes

certifiedcoffeeaddict · 4 months

Text

#the kazami scene in the convenience store was a Choice #like yeah that's subtle !!#i love them so much #hope to god you're paying off the person in charge of the cctv footage #(maybe security cameras work differently in japan)#(maybe i'm ignorant. sorry.)#amuro tooru #furuya rei #ALT added #detective conan #case closed #dcmk #zero the enforcer #dcmk textposts

241 notes · View notes

alicenpai · 3 months

Text

about to clean up 12 characters wish me luck JDJHDJHDGDGF

151 notes · View notes

zeb-z · 5 months

Text

also okay. Leo voiding and Foolish going “that’s alright I’ll just wait. I can wait. I wait.” like yeah totem boy that’s all you ever do isn’t it. waiting loyally for Vegetta to come back, for his plans to find fruition, for islanders and federation workers alike to take him seriously, for Leo to return now, just like he waited for her before, keeping patience like none other. he’ll wait - that’s kinda his thing.

#every time foolish goes ‘I don’t really do lore’ and then does shit like this #yeah he’s doing the dramatic rp in lethal company as fuckin clone 99 or Luigi and Mario because his character is not vocal and emotional #it’s subtle like this because his character - as dramatic and silly and seemingly attention seeking as he is - is subtle #when it matters his reactions are quiet #usually - extenuating circumstances aside. we all watched the last purgatory stream #idk idjajfksjfjsjf but like. the fact he’s always the one who’s waiting. who will extend that patience. but he’s also the one left behind #this seems like a good time to bring up when he was left in the nether again kfjsjfjr yknow?#he waits. and he waits. and he waits. and he waits. and nobody takes him seriously in the meantime #he waits for Leo just like he’s been doing for the last few months. reassuring himself and bad she just voided. man #mcyt #qsmp #q!foolish #z speaks

181 notes · View notes

pixiecactus · 21 days

Text

i'm going to call this post book!gendrya for dummies (it's me i'm the dummy): i had always loved the parallel that gendrya share about being the third born child (we are five books in, and still to this moment we don't have another baratheon bastard introduced to us that's older than gendry, so the order for me is: mya, bella and gendry) and (if we go with the r+l=j theory, jon obviously is not ned's son... so we have robb, sansa and arya) but something that has never ocurred to me before, is that we obviously already know the plot point of "the seed is strong" and we have gendry directly telling ned how his mother used to have yellow/blond hair (this is my own headcanon, but i like to think that she had brown eyes as well) meaning that all children sired by robert baratheon shared his hair colour and eyes colour, so gendry in his colouring and looks does not resemble at all his mother and we know exactly the same thing about arya, how of all of the catelyn tully/stark's children, she's is the only one that has none of her mother's looks, she and jon had the stark look, long face and grey eyes, like her father (and jon's mother) and like all of the starks of old time (karstarks included), and meanwhile genetics in asoiaf had always been somehow really wonky if compared to how genetics work in real life, it always interested me this fact about arya, one could simply said that arya having stark's looks and colouring is to help the narrative of arya feeling like an outsider in her own family, just like jon, and to establish even more how deeply the jon/arya bond runs, even when she knows both of her parents, and it's a true-born daughter. so this post was me discovering another gendrya parallel shared between them, i don't think it's really important but hey, it's still there alright

#and yeah i know that mostly the conversation about gendrya's looks is centered about how they look like lyanna and robert reborn #and i absolutely think that part of their looks will come to play in the next books #like arya wears the north in her face and you mean to tell me no one is going to notice that a false arya was in her stead #if arya and gendry were lyanna and robert reborn i wouldn't even ship it in the first place #is so dear to me the fact of how gendry is the complete antithesis of robert baratheon #and now going to my own headcanon territory:#that's why i prefer to depict arya with a chesnut shade of brown hair #like catelyn's genes were really strong no joke about it #so that's why i like to think that arya subtlely has hair a shade lighter than jon due to her mother's genes #in the same way canonically jon has a darker shade of grey eyes #arya with chesnut brown hair is my way of potraying one of my favourites arya's quotes #“the woman is important too”#is this post completely self-indulgent? of course #i'm just here to post my s!ms and make self-indulgent posts #asoiaf #a song of ice and fire #house stark #arya stark #gendry #gendrya #arya x gendry #gendry x arya

67 notes · View notes

beaulesbian · 1 year

Photo

Trigun Stampede 1.02

467 notes · View notes

zecoritheweirdone · 2 months

Text

i am being so so normal about these guys right now

#my art #mystery skulls animated #lewis pepper #vivi yukino #arthur kingsmen #msa lewis #msa vivi #msa arthur #made these to try and figure out how to draw them all consistently!! and also flesh out my own lil drawing quirks #three of those doodles in the first image are based on a oneshot i'm; like. Trying to write #btw the thing arthur's wearing in the second image are pizza glasses #someone asked for arthur w/ silly glasses; and these felt like they'd fit him;; kdjdkdjd;;;#[looks at the six (6) arthur doodles] mm. yeah i think i'm being subtle 'bout who my fav is #also i saw someone's art of arthur with his hair down and i absolutely adored it.#so obviously i had to steal i mean borrow it for myself #robozombii!! that's the artist!! their art is verrrrry very good!!!!!!!#fun fact! the lil ahoge in arthur's hair is shaped a bit like a lightning bolt!#another fact! originally lewis' sweater had the caption 'no prob-llama' bc i'm a fake fan who forgot that his favorite animal was alpacas #so now it's an alpacapella sweater

94 notes · View notes

zelkams-art · 2 years

Photo

camera, cut!

#Nie Huaisang #The Untamed #Mo Dao Zu Shi #mdzs #artists on tumblr #my art #pov: you are jin guangyao and you are fucked #this idea was trapped in my head for so long so shoo you are free now #trying to find out how this outfit works was a pain though #because there are exactly 3 shots of it in the entire show and they're all super closeups so actually you don't see much #but I also managed to find a bts pic of Ji Li in it with the actors that played the juniors #though fun fact he literally wears one of the layers (with the sleeves) in the pre-timeskip already #AND YET it's so subtle that you don't remember abt it #also I had some thinking abt which expression to go for #because at first I made him smirking #but actually like... that's also the point that he was not triumphant when jgy died. he was just Very Tired.#like I wish I could explain properly what I think abt it but it was just... a bit bitter. like the justice is done #but so what. it will never bring his brother back.#BUT ANYWAY!! I wanted to post this before midnight and I have 5 min left so yeah anyway!! art!!

2K notes · View notes

minticecodes · 5 months

Text

I'm slowly getting through devil may cry v and got inspired enough to doodle again. Sure they aren't polished but I love looking at others' sketch dumps, it's like looking at a smorgasbord of ideas. So here you go. Read more for close ups of the other doodles. The ID in alt are the same as written in the text.

[I.D. Digital art. A boy in a shirt hoodie, Nero, sits cross legged as he leans backwards to smile up at his companion. Said companion is a tall horned knight, Nelo Angelo, kneeling behind Nero. Nelo gazes to the side, but braces his broadsword by Nero, and his cape drapes around where Nero's sitting. Nero is rendered in light blue and red, Nelo is rendered in light blue, and they're brightly illuminated. End I.D.]

(Was thinking of 'Love Seeketh Not Itself to Please' by Indigomoods on ao3 while doing this one).

[I.D. A number of digital art sketches, most prominently featuring Dante and Vergil from the Devil May Cry series. From top to bottom, right to left:

Headshots of two boys, Dante and Vergil. Short comic of a man (Dante) ruffling a boy's (Vergil's) hair. Sketch of two boys on a couch, one (Dante) looking concerned at the other (Vergil) in foetal position. Branches curl under the couch. Sketch of child Dante and Vergil in red and blue, running hand in hand. Thumbprint sized chibi child Dante and Vergil. Nero and Nelo sitting together.

Semirealistic headshot (DMCV Vergil) in blue. Boy (Dante) curled in a fire, and fire demon (SDT Dante) gazing at his palm against a black background. Loose sketches of a man's head, roughly scribbled out except one, and an angry cat with a sword. They're labelled in blue and red writing. Side profile of a young man in blues (DMC3 Vergil), face shadowed, a yellow ribbon curled in the background. Side profile of DMC3 Vergil. End I.D.]

[I.D. 4 black and white digital pen cartoony sketches of child Dante and Vergil. Head and bust shot of a boy with slicked back hair and black turtleneck (Vergil) looking right. His brows are furrowed, eyes narrowed; he looks unimpressed. Below is a head and bust shot of a boy with shoulder length hair and white shirt (Dante) looking left with wide eyes and a fang toothed, wide grin. Centre close up of a cloaked boy (Vergil) glaring up, brow furrowed. His hair hangs over a shadowed face. One narrowed eye is visible. Right sketch is of a cloaked boy (Vergil) hugging a book to his chest, referencing a Visions of V panel. His one visible eye is wide as he gazes down with a small expression. End I.D.]

[I.D. Coloured digital art over a black background. Two panels. Panel one is child Dante, arms hugging his legs as he sits within a fire raging around him. He's buried his face in his arms. Panel two is an adult Dante in his demonic SDT form. He gazes down at his clawed hand while the fiery core in his chest glows as the main source of light, casting shadows and red light against his armoured form. The tips of his claws seem to glow in the reflected light. End I.D.]

[I.D. Messy sketch of child Vergil and Dante, running hand in hand. The two look at each other with smiles, Dante with a wide grin and Vergil with closed lips and determined brows. Their full expressions aside from the smile cannot be seen; Dante's hair whips back and covers his face while Vergil's face is eyeless. They're softly rendered in light blue and red, and bright lighting. End I.D.]

[I.D. Messy sketch of child Vergil and Dante sitting on a couch, shot from behind the couch. Dante directs a concerned gaze to Vergil, his hand braced on the couch back as he leans closer. Vergil only looks down. His arms are curled around his knees. From the angle, his expression cannot be seen aside from a small frown. Under the couch slithers Qliphoth tree roots. End I.D.]

[I.D. Chibi doodle of child Vergil and Dante, holding hands. Light blue and red ovals were airbrushed on the page, and a pen lined out their features. They have round cheek patches, like budgies. Vergil has a cartoony pout and a book tucked under an arm, labelled with a V; Dante has a toothy grin and is making a bunny ears hand sign. End I.D.]

[I.D. 'DANTE' is evenly block printed in blue pen. Underneath are what looks to be the start of three portraits of Dante in black pen, but they're roughly scribbled out. The most detailed of the three scribbled out portraits is Dante's grinning side profile. He had sunglasses on. The only intact portrait is a shot of Dante from behind, from the chest up and face not visible aside from a grin. Carried on his back is the Devil Sword Dante, rendered in more detail than Dante.

Meanwhile 'VERGIL' is written in orange/red pen, but strikethroughed. Written above instead is 'PURR-GIL!!', an arrow pointing at a doodle of a cat holding a roughly drawn katana(Yamato). The cat is grimacing with furrowed brows. It has spiky fur on its head, a spiky curled tail, a thorn pattern on its arms resembling Vergil's coat sleeves, and fat round blushy cheeks. End I.D.]

[I.D. Semirealistic rendering of DMCV Vergil from the neck up in three quarter view. He's painted in blues, with soft red shadows. He glares at the viewer, brows furrowed. His irises are a soft red, and he has eye bags. His lips are somewhat glossy. To the side is the blue color palette. End I.D.]

[I.D. Stylised depiction of DMC3 Vergil glaring downwards in profile, from the chest up. He's rendered in blues, his face shadowed from the light against his back. Running over his skin are cracked gold lines, reminiscent of kintsugi. In the background curls a yellow ribbon in the same gold. He's wearing a sleeveless turtleneck and cravat. End I.D.]

[I.D. Stylised black and white lineart of DMC3 Vergil glaring in profile, lips sneering, from the neck up. He's in a coat and cravat. End I.D.]

[I.D. Messy comic.

Panel 1: DMCV Dante ruffling child Vergil's hair. Dante's face is out of the panel

Vergil (grimacing): "Dante!"

Panel 2: Vergil's staved off the hair ruffling, lifting up Dante's hand with both his hands. His brows are furrowed as he looks up at Dante. In the background is a laughing sound effect, that tapers off. 'HA HA ha...'

Panel 3: Adult Dante gazing down at child Vergil, arm hovering over him. His expression seems sad, despite the small smile.

Dante: ... I missed ya, Verge.

Vergil gazes up at Dante, a small question mark by his head. End I.D.]

#just a wall of rambly thoughts from a longwinded person here on out as a warning #devil may cry #dmc #dmc5 #visions of v #artists on tumblr #visions of v spoilers #dmc dante #dmc vergil #nelo angelo #not tagging nero because i think anyone looking for him here wouldnt be satisfied #“holds head in hands” i love drama so much #I especially love characters with tangled relationships to their emotions and their loved ones so. yeah #this is also around the third time i started a game because of a music recommendation #...i think any dmc fans looking at this can guess what song started the downward slide to getting the fifth game #fun fact #it was the sibling unit who went 'add a tree behind the couch' leading to the implications there #they also guessed like #all the reveals around vergil's identities just looking at these doodles and hearing a bit about the backstory #which was funny to me. Man isn't subtle at all #I gotta learn how to do that thing where u can see extra artist comments if u click on a photo in a set. It doesnt seem like alt text?#i had extra Thoughts around some of these but didn't want to clog with extra text. Though they'd be summarised as 'handholding as a motif'#and 'aside from the original metaphor wouldn't it be fun for Dante to literally piece Vergil together again'#and when you wonder if he's acting right you wonder how much you really knew him #how much of his care is what you baked in as wish fulfilment #why can't you keep him from falling apart #something something houseki no kuni style visual shattering #something something Vergil has to do the heavy lifting to glue himself together #and the twins both have to understand each other (i.e. communicate) better for the pieces to stick instead of like #detritus getting in the way of a clean meld

102 notes · View notes

rocketbirdie · 1 month

Text

destiny intersects with the ruined reactor...

little details!

#here i go establishing new questionable habits...#'oh yeah lemme just uhhh create an entire soundtrack to accompany my art! lmao no biggie'#but DUDE masashi hamauzu is a legend and his music sounds SO good in the ffvii soundfont ok #it's irresistable. i don't have a say in the matter. my brain says 'ok music time' and i am at its mercy like cloud giving in to jenova.#ALSO i learned so much about the soundfont while recreating the reactor section!!#you know that subtle triplet beat 'train chugging' sorta sound in the mako reactor theme?#it's actually acoustic bass plucks getting cut off SUPER short in rapid succession!#the same track uses a very deep pitched reverse cymbal sample as a spooky atmospheric 'breathing' noise.#idk man i just admire how creative og ffvii is in general with its limited tools.#ok the nerd urge has passed i'm good now #just kidding. gongaga has me in a chokehold. i'm obsessed with this place. do not talk to me about it because i will not shut up.#ffvii #ff7 #ffvii rebirth #cloud strife #my art <3 #my music <3

62 notes · View notes

lets-try-some-writing · 1 year

Text

Death's Embrace

The Thirteenth Prime was never meant to remain on the mortal plane. His work remained in the space between the living realm and the one after. He was to ferry sparks to their destinations, be it to their frames or back to the Allspark where they might find rest. This was his design, and he never rushed the children of Primus to come to him. They would all meet him eventually.

This is what he believed, and so he never tampered... that was until the chosen Primes began to fall.

(Simply put: Thirteen/Optimus is literally death and has to go be a normal mech for a while to figure scrap out)

━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙

He hadn't known what his purpose was at first. He fought the Unmaker alongside his kin and watched them all in mixed love and a degree of apathy. He didn't have a form like theirs, his was nothing but energy barley contained within a shell, and in all honesty, he had no issues with his form. To his knowledge he had no power, no gift like his siblings, and for a time this was acceptable to him.

Then Solus fell and as if a switch had been flipped, he found his design.

His frame changed and shifted, the bindings he hadn't known tied him the mortal realm snapping all at once. Then as he felt the void become accessible to him, he took Solus's spark and he walked with her, leading her along a path he didn't know he knew until she stood before the Allspark. He hardly knew what he was doing as he guided her there, but it felt right and he found himself with a sense of purpose.

When he returned back to the mortal plane, his frame rematerialized and he found his brethren engaged in battle. Where before he might have intervened, now that he knew his purpose, he did not. He watched and offered advice, but he let events play out however Primus wished them to. All his previous opinions and ties fell away and he devoted himself to his task, eventually leading Liege Maximo to the Allspark as well. His brother fought him all the way, but within the void the Thirteenth had as much power as Prima, if not more so. The void between the living realm and the Allspark was his domain, those who walked it were under his dominion.

In the end he watched several of his brothers offer themselves to the well, to which he did not move. He was not needed, for Primus accepted them without his aid. Megatronus was exiled and others fled to the stars, leaving only Primus, Nexus, and Alpha Trion behind. The Thirteenth did nothing save nod to them and wave in farewell before he turned to his new role, allowing his body to fall away so that he might walk the void, watching the world but not interacting with it. That was his reality and he felt more at home in the space between the stars than he ever did walking Cybertron's ground in the closest thing he had to a physical frame. He was the guardian of the fallen, their guide back to Primus, and it was a role he took with joy.

As time passed, Thirteen felt nothing but near parental love for the little children of Primus that emerged from the well that sprang from Solus's spilt energon. He admired their initial purity and accepted the little ones who perished too soon with a loving embrace. His spark sang with sorrow when the little ones came to him, often in tears and confused. However he was always gentle with them, shifting his form slightly to be more appealing and carrying them to the Allspark while singing a soothing song from the age of Primes. The little ones needed him most and he never held anything against them, for they were more pure and innocent than any other.

Older ones came to him with time. They were different, more mature, and with so many more attachments. They were more difficult to guide, often fighting against him in their desire to linger. However Thirteen loved their uniqueness and seeing their experiences as he led them home, sometimes leading him to allow them to walk the world as a specter for a time. Sometimes he spoke with them by taking on voices they knew, other times he merely extended a servo and guided them quietly all while singing his song. He cared not for their actions in life, only that they lived and learned. He washed their pains away and brought them back to Primus, uncaring of who they were in life so long as they did not break the natural laws or turn to the Unmaker.

Thirteen did not weep when the children came to him, nor was he angry when they fought against him, desperate to avoid his embrace for but a moment longer. No, he adored their struggles and their achievements and left most ample time to escape the death that loomed above them. All the children would come to him eventually, there was no need to rush them. Let them live, let them learn, and let them fight for their future. As children of Primus, they had much to do and so many possible roads ahead of them. Thirteen wanted them to live out their lives to the fullest, although he would not turn them away if they came to him sooner than he would have liked.

Sweet little children, his pride and joy. He loved them dearly and always watched on fondly when the most beaten down rose up to become something greater.

He only began to grow concerned when the number of children coming to him increased exponentially with the arrival of others from the stars, Quintessons they called themselves. So many children fell to lack of energon, to injury, to abuse. Thirteen was well aware that some of the children were not kind to their kin, but this was a whole other level of brutality. The children were being changed, he sensed it when they began returning to him and took longer and longer to know who he was.

Even still he did not act. The children would resolve this with the help of Thirteen's fellow Primes and with the aid of Primus's chosen champion. That was the way it always was and that was the way it was supposed to be.

In a way Thirteen was right. A champion was chosen, Sentinel Prime, and he led the children out of the control of the invaders from the stars. He freed them, and after guiding a worrying amount of children to the Allspark, the children stopped coming in such droves for a time. Thirteen was relieved... and then he watched as things grew to be far worse than anything the Quintessons had done.

The Quintessons abused and killed, altering the nature of the children for their own selfish gain. But the mech who called himself Prime did the same and delved further and further into dark territory with experiments, the caste system, and the way he threw lives away in the arenas and the mines. And that for the first time led Thirteen to be enraged. Invaders were not expected to feel love or compassion for those who walked the surface of Cybertron, but an actual child of Primus inflicting that same pain upon his kin? That made Thirteen seethe. He couldn't sit idly by, he couldn't watch it all silently, not when none seemed to be acting.

His kin in the realm of the Primes were not pleased with his deviation, but they allowed it since he couldn't linger for long anyway.

As such Thirteen made a choice he was not at all fond of. For the first time since those early years where he fought alongside his kin, he took on a physical form, at least as much as he could considering his near non-existent tie to the living realm. It was not at all "normal". He had seen plenty of memories and children, but he had never had to recreate what made them so distinctly Cybertronian. His limbs were too long, his denta too sharp, his frame gangly and uneven in places, and his spark chamber partially exposed. It was not what he intended, much less to manifest out in the wilds. Thankfully Alpha Trion seemed to sense his formation and came to collect him, taking him back to the archives and assisting Thirteen in learning how to be like the children he cared for so dearly.

Thirteen stayed with his brother, learning slowly how to be "normal" while he searched for someone capable enough to stop all the death and needless suffering. He was forced to release his form every now and then to guide the sparks that built up back to the Allspark, but most of his time he spent searching. He cared for nothing else, only taking on a name and working in the archives to try and learn how to best approach the situation.

He was largely left alone as most could not sense him. He faded like a shadow, present physically but not projecting the same aura that indicated that he was alive. At most he was asked curt questions before being allowed to continue his work... then he met Ratchet.

Ratchet: Hey! Can you help me find a text on T-cog functionality?

Thirteen: ... Yes.

Ratchet: You don't sound very confident.

Thirteen: You want the text? Follow. I will bring you to it.

Ratchet: Alright. What's your designation if you don't mind me asking? I haven't seen you around here before.

Thirteen: I was granted the designation Orion Pax.

Ratchet: An odd way of saying it, but its nice to meet you Orion.

Thirteen: ... Likewise.

He helped Ratchet and went back to his work of searching without much thought given. Sometimes mecha saw him, and while odd, it happened enough to not be startling. Ratchet was just another mech who would quickly forget him. At least that is what he thought up until Ratchet came back requesting aid again... and again... and again. It kept happening, with Ratchet returning to the archives for new texts and always going to Thirteen specifically.

Before long Ratchet started coming to the archives just to talk to him and all that Thirteen could do was fumble. He was not used to such things and often slipped up while trying to talk with the strange medic who kept tailing him. Often he struggled to speak in a manner that was not fanciful or grim. He was used to having to console and guide sparks, not speak with them on casual terms. There were several instances where he straight up referred to Ratchet as "child" and "young one". The medic laughed at such mistakes and rapidly began worming his way into Thirteen's life in a way he hadn't thought possible.

Thirteen had always been set apart, not truly connected to his siblings or the children of Primus. As such having Ratchet talk with him, get to know him, and introduce him to the living realm was... refreshing. Thirteen only barely noticed when he began seeing himself as the mech that he claimed to be. He was Orion Pax, if only in the living realm. His form even adapted to match that mental shift, with his plating smoothing, his limbs becoming more proportional, and his overall appearance heightening into something that he quickly found that normal mecha saw as pleasing. Even when he shed his mortal frame to do his work, bits and pieces carried over with his form of pure energy shifting to take on characteristics of his identity as Orion Pax.

His search continued, but his focus wavered as he started to connect to mecha in the living realm aside from Ratchet. He found himself getting along with Jazz and learning how to express himself. He came to enjoy the company of his fellow archivists, chatting with them more and more often. He began to enjoy going out to see the sights of the world he had watched over for so long, even smiling when never before had he ever felt the need to do so.

He felt... alive. But evidently his kin saw fit to remind him of the fact that his focus was to lie elsewhere. It was nothing more than a quick warning, but it was enough for Orion to begin letting go of his physical form more often to clear his helm. He couldn't be getting attached, he was to be neutral... and yet after a particularly long stint of him being absent in the living realm, leading to Ratchet literally leading an investigation to find him... he gave up on that front.

Ratchet: ORION!

Orion: Ratchet, my apologies.

Ratchet: DO YOU KNOW HOW WORRIED I WAS!?!

Orion: No, but I can imagine such an emotional response is not comfortable.

Ratchet: You-! ... You are so dumb sometimes.

Ratchet was usually not a very touchy mech, but after Orion's return he wrapped him up in a hug so tight Orion wondered if he was going to snap. Oddly enough, he didn't hate the touch and even leaned into it, enjoying the sensation of aliveness that he usually kept clear of. Ratchet didn't know it and Orion refused to acknowledge it, but after that interaction the embodiment of death was willing to bend his own rules a degree to protect the medic.

Then Megatronus got involved and similarly gained the favor of death incarnate. To Orion he was the perfect mech to fulfill the mission he had originally come to search for a mech worthy of undertaking. When he first met with Megatronus his only intention was to direct the mech toward the path of changing things for the better. Sentinel may have perished and been ferried long ago, but the council remained. Then he began to speak with the gladiator, developing a fondness for the intelligence of the mech before him.

Orion Pax was death, he was supposed to be neutral, and yet Ratchet and Megatronus gained his favor. Orion was awkward, cold, and didn't present very naturally, but for whatever reason his two companions stuck to him like glue. Whatever they did, they dragged him along, a fact that swiftly gained him more associates in Soundwave, Prowl (due to an accidental arrest), and even Senator Shockwave. Orion hadn't expected this, but as Megatronus worked to fulfill the mission of freeing the children of Primus, Orion couldn't find it in himself to dislike the situation.

He was attached, he knew his kin would not be pleased. But Primus, he couldn't help it. He even found himself using his power to aid his newfound attachments as much as he could while still playing within the rules. No one said he couldn't shed his frame to scout and then return with information cryptically. Not a spark said he couldn't use his deathly aura to frighten threats or call upon the chill of death to settle into the frames of aggressors as a silent threat. He wasn't playing favorites, he was just keeping Megatronus safe so that he could complete the mission and perhaps even claim the Matrix.

Only once did he allow anger to bubble within him and lead him to warp his form into something eldritch to fight off an enemy. He did it for the mission, most certainly not because he didn't want to see Megatronus and Ratchet hurt.

Death didn't play favorites... at least that is what he told himself.

#maccadam #transformers #transformers prime #the thirteenth prime #optimus prime #ratchet #megatron #alternate universe #death's embrace au #yep more wild ideas #this too will be expanded upon if it makes enough sense to warrant expansion #I fully intend to do a POV swap to ratchet noticing that his friend is the weirdest thing on cybertron and shrugging it off #like "Yeah Orion doesn't vent sometimes and he once disappeared into nothing in under a second only to appear again an hour later-#“but that's just what he does don't worry about it”#Orion thinks he is so subtle and Megatronus is just chilling wondering what else his weird buddy can do

279 notes · View notes