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anywaymurder · 2 years

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Ghosts and Granola Bars

Chapter 28

After leaving Emilia Parslows house with the note, the group heads to a quiet spot beside the river (R: ‘I’m impressed that you managed to fake cry so easily, I didn’t know you had such a range of emotions in you’ A: ‘Well, I’m a middle child, so…’). Annori transforms back into herself and spends some time detecting possible traces of magic on it. The note appears to be free of magical influence, but her attention is drawn to a faint magical aura emanating from the direction of the lake. They follow the trail a little further, until it seems to disappear somewhere in the middle of the vast lake; too far for her to see exactly where it’s coming from. There appear to be a couple of small islands, and Annori decides to ask one of the swans for more information (N: ‘you guys might wanna stay back a bit, swans can be dangerous’ R: *was already rapidly backing up when he heard the incantation*).

Upon offering it parts of her granola bar, one of the swans agrees to answer her questions. But when she asks whether it had seen anything weird around, it replies that the weirdest thing around here was her (N: is it my hair color?). She learns that people don’t seem to visit the islands at all, and the only things living there are animals. When she shares her findings with the group, they agree it would be worth finding out more about these islands. If that’s where the magic is coming from, there could be a chance it’s connected to their investigation. Either way, the note doesn’t seem to contain any codes or other clues, so Ara and swamp elf Raiden head back to Emilia Parslow to return it. She seems surprised to see them live up to their promise. She inquires where they’ll be investigating next, but swamp elf Raiden explains that if she’s right and there are indeed others involved, it’s best for her not to know more than she needs to. He promises they’ll let her know once they find out what happened to her husband. She returns the toad drawing to Ara and they head back to town, discussing Ara’s very real and apparently terrifying grandmaman.

Meanwhile, Annori and Kevin visit the harbor to inquire about possibly renting a boat. They find the same man there that they had talked to earlier that day, and Annori is already halfway through her greeting when she realizes this man doesn’t know them: she was a toad when they spoke, and Kevin a swamp elf. She quickly recovers and they introduce themselves anew. When they ask about the islands, the man makes it clear that he doesn’t recommend going there. He doesn’t want to elaborate, but apparently there’s some rumors about ghosts. (N: ‘I guess we could always just steal a boat if we need to’ K: ‘you’ve been hanging out with Raiden a bit too much, I think’)

They all meet up at the tavern. As soon as they start discussing the ghostly rumors, a drunk dwarf comes up to them and loudly declares that he’s seen the ghost with his own eyes. In exchange for a pint, he tells them the story of how he went fishing when a struggle with a huge fish damaged his boat. He got onto the nearest island to repair the damage. When night fell, he saw a weird, white shape of a beautiful lady, screeching. Supposedly, this happened about 1,5 years ago. Annori tried to convince him to lend them his boat, but the man asks a pretty steep price of 10 gold pieces. She says they’ll consider it, and they might come by tomorrow.

Raiden goes up to the barman and asks whether the person who told the story of Bahamut’s ascension last night at the festival was still in town. The man confirms that the woman, named Lilwen Lale, in fact lives in Drengar, and he gives him her address. Raiden also arranges to have a letter sent to Osta Asari, quickly. Before bed, he takes Kevin aside for a moment and apologizes for freaking him out with all the questions about The Fable earlier, trying to ease his worries about his mother slightly. Ara inspects the toad drawing he got back from Parslow, to make sure it’s in good condition. Annori asks who made it, but Ara refuses to tell her the name. The party then goes to sleep, wondering whether there really is a ghost on that island, and if so, how they’re going to handle it…

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#anyway murder #session summary #dungeons and dragons #raiden #ara #annori #kevin

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whatifxwereyou · 3 years

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The Oncoming Storm Part 18: Nemuri Hime

Liu Kang x Reader and Kung Lao x Reader (gonna do both, two paths!)

Kung Lao gets serious. But forgets to tell you all the important things. Boy, he's good at talking. Lol. Hope you guys are still loving the Lao time! Liu will be back soonish. Planned out his whole part last night and then the future. Question! Are you guys READY for the choice or do you want it drawn out more? Also, for the future of this tumblr, is anyone interested in oc x reader stuff? I have so many ideas that I have never shared Lol. Anyway, thanks for reading. Much love. Update Sunday!

Part 17 Part 19 Chapter Index

“They’re going to have someone in there keeping an eye out now.” Kung Lao kicked a loose stone on the walkway, arms folded over his chest. “So much for that idea.”

“For now. We weren’t getting anywhere anyway.” You were still in wonder that any of that had happened. It felt like a fever dream. Your whole life kind of felt like a fever dream now. “Maybe I was wrong. Maybe it isn’t in there. I tried to trust the vision and my gut, but it led us in circles. Nothing looked the same as it did back then.”

“Why would it lead you there otherwise? Maybe this shrine has changed more over the years than we thought.”

“You think so?” You furrowed your brow. He had pushed you like you’d been doing something wrong for a small moment inside the shrine but there he was, preaching his belief in you. It’d been easy to escape the frustration of not knowing where you were going with all that had happened in the shrine, but it was back in full force now. You were grateful to Kung Lao for not making it weird, but it was also a little weird to act like it hadn’t happened. You had a feeling that he knew exactly what he was doing.

“I trust your gut, Y/N.” He shrugged as if it were nothing. That was nice. You weren’t sure anyone trusted you those days so to hear it put so plainly as if it were no big deal was wonderful. “Let’s take a walk and rethink our strategy.” Together you walked around the shrine and along the path slowly, making your way toward the volcanic cauldrons.

Some were surrounded by posts and signs, expressing what they represented and why the water was the way that it was, but you didn’t stop to try and read any of them. Many of the cauldrons had small statues lined up surrounding their edge, placed there for prayer. You didn’t speak much. It seemed that rethinking your strategy was mostly just thinking. You were okay with that. Your head was still buzzing.

It was important to try and clear the fog from your mind. Between the disorientation of this place being so different from the vision in your head and then everything with Kung Lao, you were dizzy. You stopped before one of the cauldrons and Kung Lao read the sign above it.

“One of the hells of Mount Osore…” He was not good at silence, it turned out. He hadn’t been when you were younger either. You’d asked him once back then and he’d said silence was too loud. The dizziness became a buzzing, and the buzzing became darkness. You thought that you’d drifted to sleep to the hum of Kung Lao’s voice.

When you opened your eyes again, you gasped for breath. Your lungs were on fire, as though you had been deprived of oxygen for too long, as if invisible hands had reached into your chest and grasped your lungs to force all the air out. You lost your footing and stumbled forward but before you fell, Kung Lao had his arms around your middle and was pulling you back to him with a forceful yank. You lost your balance and collapsed into him, grasping his arms in surprise with a yelp. He held you upright.

“What the hell, Y/N? You can’t just do that!” He scolded. You gasped to refill your sore lungs and the ache began to fade. You weren’t where you’d been when you’d been listening to Kung Lao but you recognized the place immediately. It was the lake of blood from your vision. You turned in his arms to apologize but the words didn’t come. How did that happen? How had it happened? His expression went from frustration to concern quickly. You wanted to ask what happened, you wanted to ask him how you’d gotten there, but in your mind’s eye, you could see your body falling into that pool and the horned creature staring over you as you drowned beneath the red water.

You shuddered and covered your mouth. Maybe Raiden was right. It hadn’t felt like there was a shadow hanging over you until then when your body had moved beyond your control.

“Y/N, did you hear me?”

“What happened? What are you talking about? What did I do?” The words came out extremely fast, all at once almost. Bless Kung Lao for understanding a word of it.

“I was reading about that cauldron over there.” He gestured down the path. It seemed so distant now but that was the last thing you remembered. “And you walked away. I followed you and you stepped up and just went to jump right in. Right into the blood lake. Didn’t respond to me when I called you.” He tried to joke but there was an underlying concern that neither one of you could shake. “If you wanted to take a dip, Y/N, then you just had to say so. There’s those bathhouses.”

“No, no Kung Lao. I… I’m confused, that’s all. I don’t remember coming here. I closed my eyes to listen to you talk.” His low and deep voice was soothing, but you wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing that right now. “Then I felt like I was falling, and I couldn’t breathe. Then you and… here we are.” You gestured to his arms that still held you and you felt his fingers sink a bit further into the clothing at your waist as if that would protect you somehow.

“You really don’t remember walking up to the creepy blood lake and almost throwing yourself in?” His face was flooded with concern. You shook your head no. “Okay.”

“You believe me?”

“Of course I do, Y/N. You’re white as a ghost. Why would you lie about something like that? Also, you’re terrible at lying.”

“Thank you?” You couldn’t decide if that was a dig or not.

“Okay.” He exhaled and you watched his face contort as his tongue ran over his teeth. “In that case no more wandering away from me. You stay with me at all times. Got it? We tell Raiden as soon as we can.”

“Okay except that I don’t remember wandering away from you, Kung Lao. You were reading and then…”

“What do you think caused this?”

“I don’t know. I really don’t. Honestly, afterward I saw this part in my vision. I’d been choking on ink but in my head, I was drowning.” You pointed toward the red volcanic cauldron. “In there. And I could see that creature. He was watching me. I… I thought it was just my brain interpreting the ink in my throat but… what if… Raiden’s right?”

“You doubted that Raiden was right?”

“This has been a lot, Kung Lao. Accepting it all at face value is difficult.” You responded somewhat defensively.

Kung Lao finally let you go and turned away. He pulled off his hat, pushed back his hair, and then cursed. That would have been funny had you not still been coping with almost drowning because your body had decided to try to kill you. “Okay. We’ll deal with that as we go. I’m changing the subject now because I’m not sure how to process what you just did without talking to Raiden.”

“Smart. Avoiding the problem. Like it.” You were happy to go back to thinking about literally anything else. Up until now you’d handled all this nonsense with relative poise. You’d like to keep it that way.

“Let’s discuss strategy. What do you remember from your vision about the room where this artifact is supposed to be?”

“There was a well. The creature placed something inside of it and I heard this horrible ringing in my head. It was… sad?” It was difficult to describe a ringing as having emotion, but it had been sad. You’d had the distinct feeling that it was sad.

“Back up. What about the well? There was no well in that room. In fact, the whole shrine is elevated. There was a step down in the back for dining, maybe? Could the well have been in that area?”

“I think the floor of the shrine used to be level with the ground. Maybe they built over it? I read that it was abandoned here for some time.”

“That’s a very distinct possibility. Great. Now we get to desecrate a holy place. Loving this more by the second.”

“Or we can hope there’s a hatch above the old well or a way to get beneath the shrine without destroying it.”

“There are way too many people here for us to search that thoroughly without being caught.”

“You’re right. We need privacy.”

“And I’m all out of excuses, honestly.”

“The excuse you came up with earlier only really works the one time before it becomes incredibly suspicious.” You felt your face flush despite yourself. Kung Lao stood just behind you and bent over to be closer. You could feel the smirk on his face.

“You kissed me back so… didn’t feel like much of a lie.” He made a kissy sound near your ear and you tilted away and swatted at him.

“Stay focused, Kung Lao! So, we spend the rest of the day and then pretend to leave ahead of everyone. Then we can sneak in after the monks are at rest, right? Hopefully, we find an easy way to get to where we need to go.”

“That’s as good a plan as any.” Kung Lao began to lead you away from the volcanic cauldrons and you were grateful. The air was thicker there and, quite honestly, the more distance between you and the blood lake the better. “And if we’re caught tearing up the floor of the shrine in the middle of the night, then I’m pretty sure that no amount of making out will get us out of it without getting into trouble.”

“If we’re caught then we could try to be honest about it like I wanted to be in the first place.” You stuck your tongue out at him. “You could try it every so often. It works.”

“Wow.” Kung Lao sounded truly insulted but also laughed as if surprised you had the audacity. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“Let’s just talk like adults for a few seconds. I’m not that little girl that you teased all the time. You don’t have to come up with crazy fake-date schemes. Hell, I’m surprised that you didn’t say we could only afford one room at this point.”

“Oh.” He straightened his posture and furrowed his brow. You nodded as if to confirm that he was far more obvious than he thought he was. “Does it really bother you?”

“Bother is a strong word, Kung Lao. Sometimes you’re just… all over the place. You go from pushing me too hard to not listening to me to having unwavering faith in me. Sometimes in a span of like ten minutes. I don’t mind the teasing, honestly, but it’s difficult to focus when I can’t tell what’s going on with you.”

“Okay.” He puffed up his cheeks as he thought and then exhaled deeply. “So, I don’t quite know how to act around you.” You were genuinely surprised that he was speaking so candidly. You’d expected him to laugh it off and move on. He didn’t.

“Why? I only expect you to be yourself.”

“I know. That’s not on you. I’ve had a lot on my mind.”

“You don’t always act like there’s a whole lot going on in there.”

“Wow.” He winced.

“Sorry, it was easy. I get it though. I have a lot on my mind too, but you are all over the place since you got back. You tease me like we’re kids, then you flirt with me like we’re very much not kids, then you push me when I tell you that I can’t be pushed anymore. It is a rollercoaster spending time with you.”

“I guess I didn’t realize I was so all over the place.” He laughed and you walked together again. The further you were from the cauldrons the better you felt. “It’s funny. I’m still a little shocked that you’re here with me. Little Y/N. My Y/N. Weirder than that is that you are the person I found peace in when I returned home to clear my mind. I never thought I’d see you again. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you.” He avoided your eyes, and you got the chills but refused to shake them off. Him speaking so fondly of you in such a serious tone was freaking you out. These were things that you probably should have talked about far sooner. Instead, it felt as though he’d gone into some weird unspoken competition with Liu Kang for your attention. It wasn’t a competition. You just wanted to talk to him. “Your hair threw me off, I think. You didn’t keep it white. Same face now that I know. Cheeks aren’t so chubby anymore, though.” He pinched your cheek playfully and you scrunched up your face and swatted his hand away.

“I… didn’t recognize you either and you came into my store at least a dozen times over the last couple years. And the dojo just as many. I remember you fondly. You were always very kind with the students. And you look way different, I mean I can still see it, but you had these… dimples as a kid.” You poked the sides of your mouth. “They were so deep then. You still have them but they’re much more subtle.” It was funny. Something about his honesty cleared the air at least for the time being. “Also, I thought you were dead. So, I never considered I’d see you again.”

“You would have been crazy to have guessed it was me.”

“Sometimes I think that I have gone completely crazy and I’m in a hospital somewhere. That this is all an elaborate fantasy that my mind has conjured up to help cope with my madness.”

“I could see that.”

“What? The wild improbability of the truth?”

“No. You being in a nuthouse somewhere.”

You laughed and shoved his shoulder. He nudged you in return. “Some things don’t change, I guess.”

“I defaulted to sarcasm with you. Being together reminds me of when life was simpler. It’s easy to joke and get carried away but I understand that there is also distance with time and age and that this is extremely complicated. And that we haven’t talked about it. Talking about this kind of stuff makes me feel… uncomfortable.”

“What? No. I couldn’t tell.” You walked peacefully along the stone path. Across the way the monks were giving a demonstration and others were setting up tables for a meal near the white beach.

“Can I confess something?” He led you off the stone and down onto the white sand that bordered the beautiful, but absolutely artificial looking, lake. He offered you his hand to help you down and you took it. He didn’t let go of it as you walked together. Fun new game again: fake date or Kung Lao being affectionate? Your brain hated this game. Your heart hated it even more.

“That depends. Is it appropriate to say? Will I smack you when you make this confession? Will you be getting smacked and are you ready to risk being smacked?”

“Maybe. It’s hard to gauge how grown-up Y/N will react to most things.”

“Go ahead, Kung Lao. I’ll try not to smack you but no promises.”

“I uh…” He hesitated and then let go of your hand in favor of grasping the air in front of him as if trying to reach for the words to say what was on his mind. “I hate that you have the dragon mark.” You stopped in your tracks and Kung Lao stopped with you. Of all the things you’d expected, it hadn’t been that.

“What?”

“Yeah. Little Y/N. The girl with the gift, mom called you. You had enough problems. Now you’re here. A warrior chosen to fight for earthrealm alongside me and a bunch of other misfits with the same mark. Lost your home. Your life.”

“I could see your logic, Kung Lao, but I’m tough.” Your heart was racing again. Was this serious conversation better or worse than the rollercoaster ride that was Kung Lao? You couldn’t decide.

“Yeah, Liu showed me the bruises you’d left on him. I was a little impressed. However, you, just moments ago I might add, unconsciously almost drowned yourself in a lake of blood. Went completely gray, weren’t breathing, just walked over and almost threw yourself in.”

“Yeah, that is concerning.” He was right. The dragon marking and your arcana had awoken things within you that were beyond anyone’s control, especially yours. You were scared. You couldn’t imagine how it had to have felt to be watching it happen to someone you cared about. “You know, Lao, it’s probably not actually blood. I’d guess it’s algae making the water red…” You tried to joke but it was a feeble attempt. Kung Lao didn’t even smile.

“That’s not the point.”

You stepped in front of him and offered him a tired and forced smile. “I don’t regret where I’ve wound up, Kung Lao.” It was your turn to speak honestly. To say things that you’d meant to say and had been afraid to say for a long time. You’d kept waiting for the ‘right time’ but the time would never be right. “I’m terrified.” You searched around them just to make sure no one was close enough to overhear. “I killed people, Kung Lao. I never thought I’d be capable of such a thing. My dojo? My shop? They’re gone. I probably won’t see my family ever again or any of the people I associated with home. That life is gone. It scares me. Everything I knew is… being unlearned and relearned. At the same time? I feel like this is where I’m meant to be.”

“Yeah. You didn’t really get to process much of that, did you? Just went straight to studying and training with Liu Kang.” Kung Lao sounded almost bitter. You hadn’t thought about it that way. Liu Kang had been a beacon of comfort to you but was that healthy? Maybe some of what had escalated your whatever-it-was you were had something to do with your sudden lack of control. You were attracted to him, sure, in a crazy way even, but you were also vulnerable. Maybe the attachment between you had gone from big to huge because of it. You felt guilty. Liu. Oh, no. You’d kissed Kung Lao. Not just kissed him but kissed him. Things were instantly that much more complicated and messy. You had to talk to Liu. You had to sort out your thoughts. You had to do the same with Kung Lao. But you didn’t know how and just kept kissing them. It wasn’t like you’d ever been good at romance.

“It’s been difficult. But also surreal. Easy to forget some of it.”

“I get it. Really, I do. Because I’m not done confessing things yet.” He still sounded uncomfortable but urged his hand to your back and continued your walk. “I’m also super grateful that you have the dragon mark.”

“Well, that’s conflicting as hell. I’m having a hard time processing that.”

“I never would have gotten to know who you were or get to know you again at all without the mark. It’s brought me closure, in a way. I never thought I’d see you again.” You walked in silence and you felt your eyes burn just enough with tears that you thought talking was a mistake. You breathed through the sudden urge to cry until it faded.

“I’d like to state for the record, that you being this serious is freaking me out a little.”

“It’s been known to happen now and again.” He bowed his head politely to you after tucking his hat beneath his arm. “I’m sorry that I’ve been weird since I got back.”

“It’s okay, Kung Lao. This has been difficult.”

“Y/N?” He started, as though he had something important to say. He hesitated then exhaled and replaced his hat back on his head, tucking the strap under his chin. “Let’s keep walking.” He turned away and did just that as though he’d said nothing at all. There was clearly something on his mind that must have been difficult to share. You caught up to him.

“What aren’t you saying?”

He turned to you and searched your face with a glint of worry that faded so fast you weren’t sure if you’d imagined it or not. Then he smiled.

“I’m starving. That’s what I’m not saying. The sun is going to set anytime now and they’re setting up food so we should grab some.” He started back across the sand. You grasped his hand and pulled him back. That was not what he’d struggled to say.

“Lao, really. You can talk to me.”

“I know, Y/N.” He smiled so you let go of his hand. Whatever it was, he wasn’t ready to talk about it and who were you to say he should be? “Let’s get some food. You’re still gray so I’d like to see you eat.” If nothing else, he at least seemed less all over the place. What were you going to do? You didn’t know so you couldn’t think about it right now. You’d take everything one step at a time. It was all you could do.

#kung lao #kung lao x reader #mk kung lao #max huang #mortal kombat 2021 #mortal kombat movie #liu kang x reader #love triangle #liu kang #ludi lin #romance #angst #drama #intrigue #action #fantasy #fanfiction #mk liu kang

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fyeahwildfire · 4 years

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Spirit Bound

Chapter 10

Pairing: Mortal Kombat x reader; Bucky x reader; Fujin x reader

After seeing the destruction you had caused in the Coliseum, Raiden didn’t know who else to turn to. The only person who could give him advice was also the person he had tried to keep hidden from you.

In a flash of lightning, Raiden teleported to the Wind temple located high above the Himalayas. There he came across his brother Fujin, who had been pacing back and forth.

“Does something trouble you, Brother.” Raiden asked as he noticed Fujin under distress.

Fujin seemed to have not heard him as he was rather preoccupied. Through the psychic link you both shared, he had sensed your rage and grief. This concerned him as he was not used to feeling another’s emotions. In fact, this was all very new to him.

“Fujin.”

Fujin turned his head to face Raiden as he did a gust of wind blew his white hair. It was then in that moment that Raiden really took note of how much his younger brother was in distress. Fujin’s face was lined with grief and concern.

Immediately Raiden walks to him, “What troubles you?” He rested his hand on his shoulder.

“Y/n.” Fujin looks at his soulmate tattoo on his forearm and then looks up into Raiden’s eyes.

Raiden sighs heavily and removes his hand.

“You knew she was alive.” Fujin narrowed his eyes. “I have spent years searching for her and yet you did not tell me.”

“It is rather complicated, brother. The Elder Gods sent her back in time to save Earthrealm from Shao Kahn.” Raiden looked into Fujin’s white glowing eyes. It was not only that he was trying to hide you from him. It was also the fear that sentiment would impede Fujin’s duties. A life with you will only end in heartbreak and despair. “However, after what I have seen I fear she will endanger Earthrealm.”

Fujin stared at him with confusion and anger. He knew you were participating in Kombat, in fact through the psychic link he encouraged you to continue fighting against Goro. You had even won your challenge against Shang Tsung. How could you endanger Earthrealm when you were trying to save it? Furthermore, how could Raiden reward your valor by insulting and doubting you?

“The Elder Gods told her ‘The Grand Champion shall be Earthrealms salvation or the cause of its destruction.’ She has defeated Shang Tsung and now with the death of her half brother and kidnapping of her other brother. I fear she is not in the right state of mind to defend Earthrealm.” Raiden explained.

Fujin now understood why you felt so much rage and grief. You had defeated and won Mortal Kombat only to lose the ones you loved. He tried desperately to reach you through your psychic link, however you had blocked him.

He felt a twinge of pain stabbing his heart. “Take me to her.”

Raiden shook his head.

Fujin narrowed his eyes, “She is grieving and alone. All the rage and pain she feels it’s all coming out at once.”

Raiden turns his back on Fujin, he remembers all the fights that transpired between them. All of them because of Fujin’s desire to be close to mortals. To be close to you, his soulmate. “Forgive me, Fujin. I cannot.”

“Why not?” Fujin’s asked, his voice laced with anger.

Raiden whirls around, anger transparent on his face. “Because you are a god, Fujin.”

“I do not care about that…”

“You should,” Raiden cut Fujin off. “You are immortal, and she is not. Eventually, she will grow old and die. You will do neither. One day, she will die in your arms and you will watch the life you love fade away and you will do nothing because for all your power, for all of your desire…there is nothing you can do except watch her die. So, I ask you brother to forget about her.”

Fujin’s glowing white eyes were moist with tears he refused to let fall. “You ask the impossible. To forget about her, is to deny love that is given to us, if we refuse to give love because we fear pain or loss, then our lives will be empty, brother. I refuse to fear to love.”

Raiden sighs, “She has another soulmate, who she is spiritually bounded too.”

“What?” Fujin blinked with disbelief, his voice filled with confusion.

“I’ve seen it on her forearm. Lady Y/n, has even describe the bond to me.”

“Has…has she encountered him.” Fujin inquired.

“No, she can only feel his presence within her mind. She saved him from death.”

Fujin remained silent for a moment, before asking, “Did you see my name or a symbol indicating that I am also her soulmate?”

Raiden nodded. “It was concealed underneath a sheer dress, but I could make out your name of her left rib.”

Fujin sighs with relief, “Then it does not matter. I will….”

Raiden looked over to his younger brother and wondered why he unexpectedly stopped speaking. Fujin clutched his head as he felt an overwhelming pressure inside his mind. Fear lined his face as he was unable to sense you.

“What is it brother?”

“Something has happened to Y/n.” Fujin replied with worry. “Brother take me to her. I need to know she is alright.”

You were no stranger to loss, pain, and grief. You lost your mother, father, stepmother, Bi-Han, and now Kuai Liang. All you had left was your brother Tony who was not exactly on speaking terms with you. You were utterly alone. Left to save the past from a mad man who wanted to conquer your world.

You stumbled through the dark forest, tears still trickling down your face. All the painful memories just flooded back into your mind and no matter how hard you tried to repress your feelings you could not stop them.

Falling to your knees, more tears were falling faster and you felt your lungs constricting, making it harder for you to breathe. There was so much pain. So much loss. So much anger. You could not take it anymore. For so long you had managed to keep your anger under wraps, but that is the problem when you keep it contained for so long it does one of two things. It explodes like a nuclear bomb or it comes out in waves.

Your head perks up as you sensed something coming for you. Rising on your feet, you look around to find an incoming threat. However, you do not see a threat instead you can only make out the orange and red flames as they engulf the dark forest.

The hot, bright flames jump higher than the trees and spread quicker like wildfire. Loud crackling fills the air as the flames continue to move closer to you.

You run through the forest in hopes to escape the blazing flames. However, each turn you make you are met with a wall of fire. Soon you are trapped by the raging flames and you are left with no other choice but to use your telekinetic powers to shield yourself from the flames.

Before you even know it, you come face to face with something not of this world and yet had a familiar presence. The raging flames was shaped like the immortal bird of mythology and lore. It called itself the Phoenix.

With a loud cry, the fiery bird descended towards you. At last, it had found its mortal vessel one that would bring it peace it sorely craved.

Watching in the background Scorpion with tears forming in his eyes had seen the blazing fire consume you. He could not believe this was happening. Not you. You had endured so much only for it to end like this. He rushes through the burning forest as he hears your pained cries.

Scorpion tries desperately to get to you, only to be thrown backwards and forced to teleport away as a massive wave of flames and telekinetic energy destroy the surrounding area.

When Scorpion teleports back, he expected to see nothing but your ashes. However, aside from the destruction he sees your unconscious body floating a few feet off the ground. As he steps closer, he notices how the orange and red flames radiate around you like a shield.

In the depths of your mind, you could feel yourself struggling to get away from the overwhelming cosmic force. The fiery bird chases after you as you continue to try and shield yourself from it.

“Y/N LN -Stark. Come! Embrace me! Become one with me. You are my vessel! My avatar! Child of light and darkness. Embrace me! Embrace the power of the PHOENIX!”

Up ahead you notice a red head casually walking towards you. Just as you are about to run past her, she grabs onto your arm and prevents you from running away. You look over your shoulder to see the fiery bird had disappeared.

“What is happening?” You gasped heavily.

“Fate.” She releases your arm, hoping you won’t run away again.

“My name is Jean Grey.” She extends her hand to shake.

You raise your brow and look at her with confusion. “Fate? What…Who are you?”

You look down at her hand and then into her eyes.

“You don’t have to be afraid. You’re safe.”

“Safe? Did you not see that thing chasing after me?” You pointed in the direction you had just come from. However, everything looked the same in your mind. Dark and gloomy.

“That would be the Phoenix.” Jean says with a wry smile. “It won’t hurt you. Believe me I have been where you are now. “

“Then what does it want?” You asked as you slowly started to relax.

Jean extends her hand to show you images of the phoenix traveling through the universe searching for an equal. Its vessel. “The Phoenix is a child of the universe and one of the oldest known cosmic entities. It represents life that has not yet been born, as well as the forces of creation and destruction.”

Jean then shows you the destruction of the previous universe. “In the dying moments of the previous universe, the Phoenix saved all existence from eternal damnation. The Phoenix was later reborn from the cosmic fires of the Big Bang. This would affect us and every other form of life both large and small. The phoenix is a force that guides creation, laying the seeds of life in a primordial universe with its holy flames. From Ancient Egypt to the founding fathers, this cosmic entity has evoked a great deal of influence on our civilization.”

Jean then shows you the Phoenix being drawn to Earth. “After eons of traveling the vast of nothingness of space, the phoenix found its way to Earth. And it is here where you come in.”

“How so?” You asked drawn to the story of Phoenix’s origin.

“The phoenix itself is an immortal entity, yet because it is connected so deeply to life, it can manifest in mortal beings. As a bringer of creation and destruction, it requires a mortal conscious in order to balance its cosmic powers. But I am not just talking about anyone. The phoenix carefully selects it avatars, but none have been able to fulfill its deepest primal needs for balance and order. Not even me.”

“So, what you are trying to say is it wants me?” You asked with uncertainty.

Jean nods her head with confirmation, “I have seen what the Phoenix desires. It desires not only an avatar, but an equal. You reached out to it and it reached out to you. It’s a part of you.”

For so long, you had always wondered why you felt as though something had been calling to you. Not in this timeline but after your mother’s death. You notice Jean looking over your shoulder, you whirl around to see what had caught her attention. Heading towards you the fiery bird shaped itself into a new form. Jean Grey, her former avatar and the one who calmed you.

“Embrace your destiny! Embrace me! Become one with me.” Phoenix stood before you, looking into your eyes searching for signs of fear and hesitation, yet found none. The Phoenix grabs ahold of your arm and pulls you into a kiss.

Your eyes widen when its fiery lips crushed against yours, you half expected to feel a burning sensation. However, you were surprised when you felt none. It was definitely…different from any kiss you had ever had before. The Phoenix’s hand moved to your waist and pulled your body to hers. Slowly but surely you had absorbed the Phoenix within you.

You cleared your throat and turned around to see Jean with a grin on her face. “Does that normally happen? Did that happen to you?”

“Nope.” Jean replies and begins to casually walk away.

“What?” You follow her. “Then why?”

“Because it chose you. You are its equal.”

You come to a stop, “Then what about you? If I am its equal, then what does that mean for you?”

Before you can even get a response back, Jean vanishes before your eyes.

You did not know what was going on. You did not even know where you were. Why were you lying on a rock-hard surface? Why did it smell like blood and death?

“Sister.” One of the women had spoken near you. “So pretty, so far…so sad and alone…Come. Let us be family!”

Slowly you opened your eyes and had to blink a few times for your eyes to adjust to the darkness. You tilt your head in the direction of a women with short black hair who barely had bandages covering her naked body.

“You are not my family. You are a monstrosity!” Kitana replies with disgust.

“’Farewell, sister!” Kitana says angrily, as she is about to deliver the finishing blow.

Your vision swam in and out of focus as Kitana and the other women fought. You groaned as you tried to push yourself up from the uncomfortable table. You wondered how you got here? Well where was here?

You looked around trying to find an exit. How you were going to escape? It was clear the battle between the two women was coming to an end. You look over to see Kitana defeat the almost naked women.

“That is no way to treat your sibling.” Shang Tsung says as he steps out of the shadows.

“Despicable swine! Do you think my father will stand for this…these…abominations you have created here?” Kitana takes a few steps forward.

“I am merely perfecting you, princess. As difficult as that might be.” Shang Tsung notices from the corner of his eyes that you have woken. You slide off the table and place your hand against your head. “Ah, my dear you have awoken.”

“Silence!” Kitana commands. “You will leave her be or I will drag you before Shao Kahn by your pointed beard!”

Shang Tsung smirks, “Is that so?”

Shang Tsung finds out the hard way that it is not ok to underestimate Kitana, her weapons and fighting skills alone prove she is a fighter not to be messed with.

“You will stand before my father and confess your deeds.” She turns him around and pushes him to walk forward, leaving you alone with the women dressed in bandages.

Speaking of the women she begins to stir. She looks around and quickly takes notice of you.

She rises on her feet and approaches you. “What do we have here?”

You take a step backwards and brush against the table behind you. You had never seen anyone like her and yet you knew she was a clone of Kitana. She bore resemblance to Kitana, yet there were certain features that made her look different. Her lips lent her a human-like appearance, but her mouth was lined with large, razor sharp teeth like the Tarkatan named Baraka.

“Are you afraid of me?” She raised her hand up and hooked her finger under your chin. She lifted your chin up so that you were looking at her.

You grabbed her wrist and moved her hand away from you. “No.”

“You’re not?” She tilts her head to the side and looks at your lips. She then looks into your eyes to see if she can find any trace of you lying. Yet she found nothing.

It was not her features that made you tense and ready to fight, it was the fact she was Shao Kahn’s daughter. Glimpsing into her mind you knew of her desire to kill Kitana and claim her existence for her own. You knew of her cruel, sadistic and hot-tempered nature.

This woman that stood before you was anything but an ally and yet you felt sympathy for her. It was not her fault that she was created to be this way. It was Shao Kahn and Shang Tsung. From this moment on, you somehow knew that her life would be rather difficult as everyone will compare her to Kitana.

Through telepathy you immediately sense Kitana was in danger to be executed by her stepfather. “Forgive me, but I must go.”

The women grabs your left arm as you try to leave. “Why in a hurry? Don’t you want to play?”

You unwrap her hand from your arm, “Sorry, but I got to save a friend. Perhaps under better circumstance we can see each other again.”

You looked into her gleeful yellow eyes seeing hope and lust behind them. Little did she know was that the two of you were fighting on opposite sides and were more likely to fight each other to the death.

As you leave the flesh pits, Mileena watches you with interest. She now knows what she desires and that is you. In her eyes, you are perfect. Nothing can change her opinion of you. She needs you in her life. She will even claim you as hers and will kill anyone who will interfere or take you away from her.

#mortal kombat x reader #fujin x reader #phoenix x reader #mileena x reader #jean grey x reader #marvel #bucky x reader #soulmates #scorpion x reader #bi-han x reader #kuai liang x reader #phoenix force

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nevaryadl · 3 years

Text

Raiden looks after Cassie cw: long post

"You sure you're okay, thunder bro?"

"Yes, I am sure."

"Alrighty then. Here you go then," Johnny said as he carefully eased his baby girl into Raiden's arms. Said baby looked from her dad up at the giant of a man that was now holding her, blinking owlishly at him for a moment before deciding that she would rather gum her onesie more. "Ah yeah, she is teething. Don't worry, she's not at 'crying because pain' but more 'chewing' phase. Here, I brought a bag and like four different teethers for her..."

Along with little Cassandra Cage, Johnny and Sonya had brought the bag of a few items that she would need or might need in the few hours that the couple needed someone to look after little Cassandra. A few change of little clothing, diapers, bottles, a few soft toys and a few little baby teethers. One of which Johnny managed to convince Cassandra to chew on instead of her clothing thankfully, a bright blue ring of soft silicone that Cassandra eagerly tucked into and gripped with all her little might as she remained comfortably cradled in Raiden's arms.

"You sure this isn't no trouble, Raiden?" Sonya asked.

"Of course not, I am always happy to see the new generation," Raiden smiled. "And it is only for a few hours. I do not think Earthrealm will collapse in a few hours or require much more than Fujin's attention for that time."

"He does have a few centuries of looking after White Lotus kiddos, Sons," Johnny pointed out, giving Sonya a grin.

"Yeah, probably better parents than we are at this point--"

"Hush," Raiden scolded softly.

"Alright thunder dude, if you got this then we need to go. You got our numbers if you need anything."

After each giving Cassandra a kiss goodbye, they wished him well and promised to be back soon and then it was just Raiden and little Cassandra, now idly looking around while still clutching her teether.

"You have eyes remarkably like your father's, little one," Raiden smiled down at her, reaching up with one hand to gently pet one soft and plump little cheek.

Cassandra seemed to immediately be drawn to Raiden's hand, throwing her little teether aside to reach out and grab at his retreating fingers with a grip that suggested that she was using all of her little might to hold on. She garbled something before giggling as little babies do, as she clumsily examined Raiden's hand with her little, soft hands.

"I suppose that my hands are interesting to you, they are almost as big as you are, little one," Raiden hummed as he held his hand so that Cassandra could examine it.

Cassandra seemed fully invested in Raiden's hand for some very odd reason (but then again, being a baby, literally everything was new, including that humans looked different). She grabbed at his knuckles and rubbed and tried to tug on his nails, she rubbed her little hands against the hard tendons in the backs of his hands and rubbed at the barely seen wiry white hairs on the back of his fingers. She also moved his fingers as best she could, as much as the strength of Raiden's own hands and godly starting dredges of arthritis would allow and seemed utterly enthralled when he crooked his fingers for her.

She also tried biting his hand, but given that he had been warned that she was teething and that she had no teeth, Raiden found it hard to even think about being bothered.

"That cannot taste pleasant, little one," Raiden said when she managed to fit a part of his hand into her mouth, gumming at the junction between his index finger and thumb. "Here..."

Raiden fetched a new teether from her bag and managed to convince her to go for the orange bunny shape in what felt like a slightly firmer silicone. Once she started gumming it, she seemed to lose most of the interest in his hand but still held onto it, so he rested it against her soft little stomach, which seemed to lull her a bit. She idly teethed, holding onto the teether with one little hand and rested a little hand against the back of his that now laid on her belly.

Yes, Raiden absolutely did love taking care of the newer generation, he thought idly as he smiled down at little Cassandra Cage.

#mk #Mortal Kombat #mentioned cageblade #sonya blade #johnny cage #Raiden (Mortal Kombat)#Cassie Cage #fluff #long post/

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skippie89 · 4 years

Text

Secreting Shadows #4

Aithlyn rested against her closed door as she pulled down her mask. She grinned to herself as she thought to how gossipy knights were when they thought no one else was listening. During the time she was in the castle she was able to find out that the knight from Vih’thras was going to participate in the joust, although it still frustrated her that she still hadn’t been able to find the knight in question. Maja had also noticed something was amiss, but she had to run out of the room as she had surprisingly picked up on Aithlyn’s presence.

She had watched as a set of triplets had deliberately been trying to make Lydia feel incompetent. This had annoyed her greatly as she actually liked the Knight Commander. From what Aithlyn could gather they were also going to the joust and she was going to enjoy making their day hell. Just before leaving the castle she had checked in with Cedric to make sure that Azaril was doing fine. Aithlyn smirked as she was told that it would seem her cousin was smitten with a certain demon.

Tiredly pushing herself off the door she stripped as she walked further into her bedroom, folding her clothes as she went along and hid them under the loose panel she had placed in the headboard of her bed before pulling a nightdress over her head and falling into bed.

She couldn’t have been asleep more than an hour before there was a knock at her door. Grumbling as she rubbed her eyes she walked towards the door. Lifting her hand up she took the blade she had hidden at the top of the door frame before opening the door slightly and squinting at the light.

“Lady Lyn! You’re not ready yet?”

Aithlyn momentarily blinked away her confusion and silently cursed herself as she remembered.

“Good morning Morenth. Sorry, I was up late reading. If you give me a few moments, I’ll be dressed and ready to go.”

“It’s alright Lady Lyn, Nate and Morwen are also late. Katra is waiting for them by the bridge and we’ll meet them there.”

Aithlyn chuckled, “you thought of everything, huh?”

“Of course! That’s what you taught me to do!”

An hour later Aithlyn was in a flower field with the four children. They had each offered to help her collect plants that she needed for alchemy potions. Each child had been given a different plant to collect and they had decided between themselves that it was going to be a contest to see who was going to collect the most.

Aithlyn laughed at their antics as they scurried off in different directions. Having nothing else to do she simply waited for them to come back. Laying back in the grass she decided that she’d go through all the information that she had gathered since arriving in Novus. Her brother had sent three from Vih’thras, she at least knew Azaril was the Ambassador, but had yet to get information on the Knight. Even Azaril hadn’t met them.

Nanethe had ensured that the Knight would participate in the joust. Scowling at the leaves blowing in the wind, she was unsure about why he had decided to announce to Novus their military might through just one person. It was something that Vih’thras had kept hidden for decades. Aithlyn couldn’t put a finger on it but she was certain that there was something to do with Eric’s dismissal that was crucial to do with that what going on. Without realising, the gentle breeze and calm atmosphere was slowly lulling her to sleep.

Raiden scowled at the forest which the guild thought he needed to be left out to. The guild wasn’t alive, but it most certainly had a mind of its own. It would take longer to go back through the entrance in the hopes that it would lead him into town, so he simply started walking.

There was one more clearing that he had to walk through before he reached the town and he quickened his pace only to suddenly stop when he entered the clearing. There in the clearing, surrounded by wildflowers was Aithlyn. From the rise of her chest he could tell that she was asleep. Certainly not something he’d ever expect. Creeping closer her he squatted down close enough to touch he decided to use this time to observe her. Her chestnut hair was splayed out underneath her like a halo and both hands rested at the level between her head and shoulders. Aithlyn’s eyes fluttered behind her eyelids and he realised that she was dreaming. She was truly beautiful and as much as he enjoyed her personality, seeing her like this entranced him. His eyes were suddenly drawn to her rosy lips as they parted when they opened in a gasp. Without realising he was leaning down to touch them with his own. A noise snapped him out of his trance and he quickly withdrew and jumped into the nearest tree. He was unsure what the noise was, but he wanted to ensure that he was close enough to protect her if need be.

“Lady Lyn!”

Raiden watched as Aithlyn startled awake, raising into a sitting position and looking quickly around her. He watched as she relaxed as she watched as a young girl ran into the clearing towards her.

“Morenth!”

“I won! I beat everyone back here!”

Aithlyn chuckled, “I’m pretty sure the competition you all set out was for the most plant parts collected.”

Before Morenth could respond three other children burst into the clearing. Raiden watched with a smile on his face from the shadows as they all declared they won and began to count out what they had collected.

“I win” declared a boy with dark hair, “Ninety-five mugwort!”

Raiden couldn’t help but snigger as the boy looked completely confident in himself for a task as simple as collecting plants. His snigger was stopped mid-point as the girl called Morenth held a smile that was completely “Aithlyn.”

“I don’t think so Nate!”

Nate bristled, “Oh yea? You only got ninety taproot!”

At this point the girl in question and grinned more as she slowly put her hand into her pockets and emptied out what was at least another ten taproot. “Pretty sure that’s a hundred!”

Raiden quickly put both hands to his mouth as he tried to contain his laughter. He barely just managed to stay on the branch he was sitting on he was shaking so hard.

Aithlyn, however, didn’t have to hide her laughter and quickly fell back to the floor in giggles. Nate slowly turned red in the face as he pouted at the situation. Morenth simply had a shit eating grin on her face as she looked at everyone.

Raiden watched as they walked off. For a shadow she got on surprisingly well with children. She even reminded him a bit of Adri.

“She’s got a good heart.”

“Fuc-!”

Raiden was so startled that he fell from the branch he had been sitting on. He groaned in pain as he slowly opened his eyes to get a face full of Roux.

“It’s not like you Rai to be snuck up on.”

“It’s been known to happen once or twice.”

“Yes, and you have the scars to prove it.”

Raiden scowled at them as he slowly sat up.

“I didn’t realise you were here.”

“I was the one who told her about this place, it was only natural for me to watch over her.”

For a reason that Raiden couldn’t pinpoint why his stomach twisted at the statement and he scowled in no particular direction.

“I expected you to be hold up for longer stuffing your face full of pastries.”

“Oh, I did.”

“You finished them already!?”

“You tasted them. Would you not do the same?”

“Well yeah…”

It was the day of the joust and Aithlyn was waiting by the bridge feeling a sense of déjàvu only this time she knew who she was meeting. She was wearing a white blouse, the sleeves stopping at her elbows and long navy skirt that started just under her bust and barely touched the floor. The skirt itself was quite unique, as it had two long slits either side. It revealed a lot of leg, but it was easy to fight in while still looking elegant. Her hair was half up in a hair pin Roux had given her, the rest of her curls settled around her face or simply lay at the base of her spine.

She could see Raiden running towards her in the distance and she couldn’t help but chuckle. He certainly didn’t look “shadowy” as Roux would put it. He wore a red tunic shirt and dark pants, quite like the last time she saw him out of leathers. As much as she appreciated the view, it also reminded her of when he was stabbed, and the thought twisted her stomach. Raiden skidded to a stop in front of her and she watched as dust kicked up around his feet and he stretched out his hand giving his usual finger wiggle.

“Come on, we have a carriage to catch.”

“Best not to ask questions I take it?”

“You got it.”

“Just don’t turn into a pin cushion again today.”

“No promises.”

Placing her hand in his, Aithlyn let him pull her through the streets on the way to the carriage. Every time he looked back and smiled at her, a little dimple appeared on his cheek and Aithlyn realised that his smile was infectious.

When they finally reached the carriages available for the joust, they climbed into the last one to see that it was only them and an elderly gentleman using it. Once inside, Raiden sat in the far-right corner and pulled Aithlyn to sit beside him. Aithlyn looked at the other gentleman with an apologetic smile but he simply chuckled and shook his head.

“Hey! Do the thing!”

Aithlyn turned to look at him with confusion, “the thing?”

Raiden rolled his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder as he placed her hand on his hair, “the thing…”

She was momentarily surprised when he closed the distance but chuckled when she realised what he was asking for. She quirked her eyebrow although she did as he asked and started running her fingers through his hair. He was asleep in moments.

They continued in silence for a time before Aithlyn addressed the only other person awake in the carriage.

“I apologise if this is a little awkward.”

“There’s nothing to apologise for my dear,” he chuckled once again, “he seems to be quite a demanding lad.”

Aithlyn sniggered at the comment, “that would be putting it mildly.”

“Where are my manners? I never introduced myself, I’m Duke Finzwhey. Who do I have the pleasure of travelling with?”

Aithlyn wracked her brain trying to find a connection with the name. Duke Finzwhey cared for the southern most lands. They weren’t the largest, but they were the most profitable. He was a widower with two “children”, who were about her age. She smiled her introductions.

“I’m Aithlyn DeBurge. This here is Raiden, he’s my…” she placed a finger to her lips as she feigned contemplation but was saved from answering when the carriage hit a particularly large bump in the road.

“These roads are positively vile to travel on,” the Duke grumbled.

“They are indeed. I’m surprised your children aren’t travelling with you to this event. How are Kit and Sera?”

The Duke brightened at the mere topic of his children and so they conversed in a variety of topics during their journey. Aithlyn steered the conversation to garner information that she wanted with subtle ease.

As they neared the end of their journey Aithlyn tugged at Raiden’s hair, that she hadn’t realised she had been occasionally running her fingers through. He groaned and rubbed his face into her neck as his arms encircled her waist.

“I could think of better ways to wake me up.”

“I could think of worse.”

Duke Fitzwhey laughed heartily as he stood and moved towards the carriage door before addressing Aithlyn with a bow.

“It was positively splendid my dear, you were a delightful conversationalist. My offer for dinner at the villa this weekend still stands, I expect to see you there!”

“With pleasure my dear Duke. I look forward to it.”

As soon as the Duke was out of the carriage Raiden tightened his arms around her and propped his chin on her shoulder.

“Did you just get invited for a date with a Duke while I was asleep?”

Aithlyn laughed as she messed with his hair, “I did my job. I got invited to a dinner with many influential people, I believe even Lucien has been invited.”

Raiden sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, giving Aithlyn time to stand up and move towards the door.

“What? No invite for me after I got you one for here?”

Aithlyn tilted her head back at him, “Of course you can come along, if you want to be my boy toy that is.”

With that she winked at him and stepped out of the carriage leaving Raiden to pick his mouth up from the floor as he scrambled after her.

Walking through the crowd to their seats, Aithlyn noted how much Raiden stuck out in the crowd. At 6 feet with stark white hair it was extremely difficult to miss him. Memories of him wounded flashed across her mind and she scowled at him.

“Couldn’t you find a mage to do something about that?” pointing up at his hair.

“Funny story that. It’s because of a mage that it’s like this. Wanna hear the story? It’s a good’un.”

The way he waggled his eyebrows at her elicited a chuckle and she let him have his way.

“Go on…”

At that Raiden broke into an animated story of how he was sent to steal an item at fourteen years old but hadn’t been told he was stealing from a mage.

“And then BAM! She just appeared! Literally out of nowhere!”

Try as she might, Aithlyn couldn’t help the smile from growing on her face as she watched his antics. If he wasn’t an assassin, he’d be a very compelling bard. She hadn’t heard him sing, but he was an amazing storyteller.

“And then the spell just barely touched my hair, and this was the result.”

“Yes, because I’m sure that she was simply aiming at your hair and not other body parts.”

Raiden shuddered as if someone had slipped ice down his back. At that point they reached their seats in the stands. Aithlyn had to hand it to him, Raiden had gotten good seats. She had a good view of the audience, entry and exits and the tents which the knights were getting ready in.

“Not bad pin cushion. Not bad at all.”

Raiden scoffed at her and rolled his eyes, but Aithlyn could make out his mouth twitch, the way it does when he wants to smile. Aithlyn started people watching and mentally noting where people of interest were sitting. She just noticed where the horrible triplets were sitting when Raiden’s twitching leg broke her concentration.

Not thinking she reached over, placed her hand on his thigh and squeezed. Raiden covered his noise of surprise with a giggle. Aithlyn’s eyes widened when she realised just how firm his muscles were.

“Oi! Easy.”

“Will you please just sit still? You’re not exactly blending in.”

“Yes I am. I’m subtly blending in.”

“Shaking the entire bench is not being subtle.”

Aithlyn went to remove her hand, but Raiden was too quick and soon she found her hand trapped between one of his own and thigh.

“Where are you going? I might just start shaking again.”

Aithlyn narrowed her eyes at him when he winked but didn’t remove her hand. Giving his leg another squeeze she turned to look at the knight entering the jousting area as she addressed him.

“Don’t start shaking.”

She didn’t notice as Raiden smirked when he looked at her. Instead of releasing her hand he started tracing designs over it with his thumb as he looked out to the field. Aithlyn had to stop a gasp from bubbling out of her throat when he started his ministrations. Sneaking a side glance at him, she realised that he was scowling at something in the distance, probably not even realising what he was doing.

She was about to ask what was wrong when the crowd started cheering as Livia came to the field and started giving instructions.

“Esteemed guests, I welcome you here today to take part in our event, a diversion of good faith between allies and comrades. We hope that you are in good health and that our coming together provides you with the assurance that our friendship is everlasting…”

Aithlyn zoned out when she noticed the knight from Vih’thras. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but she recognised this person. As if knowing that she was looking at them, they turned in her direction and she gasped when she looked into their golden eyes. They quickly snapped back to attention as Livia finished her speech.

Aithlyn turned to speak to Raiden. Only to find his seat empty. Scouring the area for white hair she saw him standing before the Vih’thrasian knight, weapon in hand. Well fuck. Standing, she raced towards him.

Maja had cut her off in her pursuit of Raiden and by the time Aithlyn had managed to get away from Maja, not that she didn’t enjoy her conversation, she had lost sight of him again. However, given that Maja was alone, she was certain she knew where the white-haired assassin was.

Turning around the tent to her right, she found Raiden talking adamantly to Lucien. The demon had noticed her presence and looked to her with a smile. Raiden, however, was still trying to tell him something. A scowl blossoming on his face when Lucien didn’t respond to him.

“Are you even listening to me?”

Lucien reached over and turned Raiden’s face towards her, “I am, but so is our friend.”

Raiden’s eyes widened and looked slightly guilty as he leaned against the tree.

“Join us, won’t you, my dear?”

Aithlyn’s eyes turned stormy and Raiden gulped as she turned her sights on Lucien.

“Don’t try your compulsions on me Lucien, they don’t work and they’re practically an insult.”

Lucien’s eyebrows shot up, not many were able to call them out when they were subtly using their powers. They knew that she was skilled, but she was beginning to intrigue them more than ever and they couldn’t keep their eyes off her as she stalked towards them.

“Apologies. That was not my intention.”

“Sure, it wasn’t,” turning her gaze on to a suddenly frozen Raiden, “a nice day out, huh? That’s what you said wasn’t it. Imagine my surprise to find you missing. Care to explain what is really going on?”

Lucien cut it, seeing that Raiden was suddenly finding it hard to form sentences, “You can blame-”

“Do not make excuses for him Lucien,” she barely spared the demon a glare as she turned back to Raiden, “You couldn’t have just said that you were going to meet Lucien? What are you not telling me, Raiden?”

He looked tired… strained, and Aithlyn fought everything inside her not to be angry as he looked at her like this.

Raiden, finally finding his tongue spoke up, “We need to go. We need to catch a carriage.”

“…As you wish.”

The lack of emotion in her voice worried him and as Raiden stretched out to place his hand on her arm, she stepped back out of his reach. The detached look on her face took all the air from his lungs and he felt anxiety creep up his spine.

Tipping her head at them, “Gentlemen,” she said in the way of farewell and walked away.

Emotions flicked across his eyes and it was only that they knew how to look for them that Lucien was able to see the inner struggle going on inside of Raiden.

“She doesn’t trust me.”

“I believe it is more that she is upset that it seems that you do not trust her.”

“What do you mean?”

“Raiden, you invited her to the joust and from the look of it disappeared with no indication that you were going to and are now not involving her with your plans.”

“But-”

“You mean only to protect her, I know. But she is a very capable woman and by treating her like this is like announcing that you don’t trust her to have the skills to have your back.”

“Shit.”

“Indeed. I suggest you find her and rectify the situation as soon as possible.”

Aithlyn was fuming as she walked through the crowd. She thought they had built up some form of trust, but Raiden was keeping her shut out. She didn’t know why she was surprised given their occupations, but it didn’t stop her from feeling hurt. She could feel him closing the distance between them, but right now she didn’t want to talk to him.

Feeling a hand on her arm she turned around and hissed, “what?!”

“Let me explain.”

“So, explain.”

Raiden ran his hands through his hair before pulling her into an unoccupied tent. He was wary that Aithlyn didn’t fight him. The fact that she was able to call Lucien out on their compulsion speech made him realise that she was a lot more than she seemed.

“I’m not telling you to keep you in the dark, I’m trying to protect you. If you knew too much-”

“I’d be doing my job.”

“Aithlyn-”

“No Raiden. You need to cut the bull shit. I know Adri told you why I’m here, the same way you know that Adri trusts me. I have given you-” she pokes him in the chest, “no reason not to trust me. I kept you alive long enough to get you healed. Heck! You happily fall asleep to me playing with your hair!”

“Aithlyn this is not your usual cloak and dagger!”

Aithlyn laughed as she leaned back and raised her arms in aggravation. “And you think I would be sent it if it was?!”

Suddenly, she seemed to deflate right in front of it and Raiden found he couldn’t move.

“Dammit Rai, I thought I proved I was on your level with our little game of chase,” looking up at him, Raiden’s eyes widened as he took in the hurt and frustration in her eyes, “what more do I have to prove?”

Before he had a chance to respond a knight walked through the opening of the tent. They were in the middle of taking off their helmet and didn’t realise what they were walking in on. Raiden watched horrified as Aithlyn chuckled before walking over to help the knight remove the helmet.

“You were always terrible at getting these things off…”

The knight stiffened at the sound, allowing Aithlyn to remove the helmet. Their hair was shaved either side but sweat had slicked back the longer part left in the middle. When they were finally free, they stared at her with wide golden eyes.

“Lyn?!”

“Hi Set…”

#errant kingdom #fanfiction #Raiden

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tumbalumps · 7 years

Text

Monsoon vs Bladewolf

Another pile of shit I wrote when I was high

Monsoon never could have predicted that such a mundane task like shopping would trigger such extraordinary events. It was early evening as the cyborg strolled around Lidls doing his weekly shop. His basket was almost full of his usual items - magnet polish, tooth whitener, hair straighteners, scrap metal, tarantulas and some oil to fry them in... There was only one more thing, perhaps the most important thing, that he needed to get. He turned into the alcohol aisle and spotted a lone flagon of white cider; the last one in the store. At the opposite end of the aisle was Bladewolf who had also been shopping for his essentials. His robot dog eyes were on the cider too. Sensing he may have competition, Monsoon decided to take no chances and dismembered himself to launch his speedy tornado move to get straight to the prize. Bladewolf launched into action and bound down the aisle with his artificial tongue flopped out. The pair collided inches away from their goal creating an explosion of spilled shopping items and Monsoon's body parts. "This cider's mine!" Monsoon declared pulling himself together and clasping a hand on the flagon. "Negative," Bladewolf responded in his monotonous robot voice as he wrapped his tail around the neck of the bottle. They exchanged deathly stares and did the only thing they knew how: fight. Monsoon pounced on him but Bladewolf was no easy prey. He tail whipped him in the face and flipped him off and soon they were rolling around the supermarket floor grappling for the cider like a pair of amateur wrestlers on Money in the Bank. During the struggle a strange feeling of Deju vu came over them and it dawned on them that they had met before. Ten years ago, in the early hours of a Saturday morning, they had just so happened to bump into each other whilst drunkenly staggering home from a club. Memories were vague but weird sexual activity had taken place in a phone box that never would have happened if they had been sober. Ashamed of themselves, they had gone their separate ways and repressed it as deeply as possible, never seeing each other again. Each wondered silently if the other was thinking the same and decided not to mention it, in the hope that they had forgotten. Meanwhile, the scuffle had attracted the attention of the security guards. Two stern looking cyborgs stood over them with their arms folded. "What's going on here then?" the first asked, raising an eyebrow. They yelled at the same time drowning each other out with their childish squabbling and resorting to hair and tail pulling. The security guards looked at each other and shook their heads. "If neither of you are willing to back down then you will have to share." "No way! I have won this!" "Negative. Failure of this mission would violate tonight's objective." The guard spoke firmly, "If you do not agree to share we'll have no choice but to ban you both from the store and report you to your bosses." It dawned on Monsoon that the consequences of this would be dire. Not only was this the only shop for miles but he did not want Armstrong to know he had been wrestling an AI dog on the floor for three litres of white cider. Regrettably there was no choice in the matter. They begrudgingly glared at each other and nodded.

Monsoon's apartment was bigger and the closest so they agreed to go there. Bladewolf planned to share a little with him then swipe it when his back was turned. Monsoon had no intention of sharing any at all (not with Bladewolf anyway). The first thing Bladewolf noticed about Monsoon's apartment was that it was one of a kind. His jaw dropped when he saw the living room. The carpet was invisible under a sea of what to the untrained eye looked like scrap metal. There were bits of tank, helicopter, car parts and set aside even some motorcycle parts. Some of them had the creepy purple Lorentz aura about them. The leather sofa was covered in them too leaving only a small space for a single person to sit down. Plant pots were dotted around in random places and numerous Richard Dawkins and Hendrik Lorentz pictures hung on the wall as if Monsoon worshipped them as gods. The last thing he spotted was propped up in the corner: that damn, godforsaken, unholy Wheel. He would stay as far away from that thing as possible. The so called living room appeared as nothing more than a magnetic scrap metal lab. Bladewolf concluded that it most definitely deviated from the social norms he was programmed with. Monsoon spied the stunned look on his face and explained, "It's simply the way things are; this way I know where everything is so it’s easier and more efficient. It's who I am see. All is as it should be." "We shall be needing some glasses. Do you think you could find some amongst all your weird shit?" Bladewolf shot back, realising that perhaps he had been learning too much of Raiden's vocabulary. Monsoon grunted and reluctantly fetched two half pint glasses. He would permit Bladewolf to that before he booted him out of his house and kept the cider. He also permitted him to sit on the only seat in the room, but only so he could creep him out by sitting on the ceiling. To his annoyance, Bladewolf did not seem phased by this, he was an AI afterall. An uncomfortable silence fell on the room, which Monsoon broke by disconnecting his hand and rifling through Bladewolf's shopping bag. "Let's see what you got, shall we," he grinned snidely at him. "Ooh a squeaky toy, a dog dish, Pedigree Chum... What's this? A leash, dog collar, a Brazillian edition pot noodle and WKD! Tell me: what would a dumb AI dog want with those?" "I see no reason to share my objectives with you," Bladewolf answered coldly. "Do as you please!" yelled Monsoon angrily as he necked his cider in one. "I've got my own objectives to attend to." Rattled, he threw the shopping bag down purposely spilling all the contents and scurried into the kitchen, which was also covered in various vehicle parts leaving only a small space on the worktop and cooker. There was something that bothered him about Bladewolf's shopping list. He put it down to nothing more than paranoia and began making preparations for dinner: fried tarantulas with crickets as a garnish - they were a delicacy in Cambodia. He only made the effort to cook on special occasions or when entertaining guests. All he had to do was get rid of Bladewolf before the said guest arrived. Bladewolf padded into the kitchen curious about what the unusual smell was. Tarantulas! What the hell! But that was not the only odd thing he noticed; "I calculate that the portion sizes are inadequate for just a singular meal. Are we expecting company or is this strange concoction for me?" "I see no reason to share my objectives with you!" Monsoon shot back sarcastically. Bladewolf scowled and headed back into the living room as the smell of fried spiders became overwhelming. He figured the extra meal probably wasn't for him and he dreaded to think what kind of people Monsoon mixed with. If they were anything like him then the situation would become even more awkward; one was bad enough. He may have had some weird tendancies, however he wasn't stupid and had taken all necessary precautions to guard the precious cider in keeping it right next to his fryer amongst bits of magnetic scrap. A distraction was needed. Heading back into the so-called living room, Bladewolf pondered over tactics. For reasons his giant intellect could not fathom, he got a weird kick out of antagonising the cyborg. He found him strangely intriguing: a worthy opponent. He was drawn to one of the plant pots, (which looked oddly out of place amongst all the mechanical equipment) to see what he was growing. There were some pretty pink flowers alongside some psychodelic looking mushrooms that were probably best avoided. Bladewolf smirked and pushed the pot off the ledge. Monsoon heard the smash and came dashing in, "What are you doing you stupid clumsy mutt?" Bladewolf replied with a hint of smugness, "Oh erm.. I apologise. I seem to have broken one of your Pol Pots." "What did you say?" Monsoon snarled. He was very sensitive about the traumatic childhood he had spent on the killing fields. "Plant pots." Monsoon gave him a death stare that was invisible from underneath his dome. A fake smile appeared to mask his plotting, "Oh, I must have misheard you. I suppose it’s OK I've got loads more." Bladewolf looked at him suspiciously. Why was he suddenly being nice? Monsoon's grin spread, "How about we try and be amicable towards each other seeing as we will be sharing this cider." "Your terms seem acceptable." "Good doggy. How about we play some fetch?" he said whipping out the stick he'd stolen from his shopping bag. Bladewolf's tail wagged furiously; he was a sucker for a game of fetch. The fact that Monsoon was willing to play it with him almost made up for how obnoxious he had been earlier in the supermarket. He happily followed him into the garden jumping up and down in excitement. Monsoon had a huge grin on his face that was difficult to read without seeing his eyes. Was he wide-eyed and full of joy or scowling sinisterly? Was he to be trusted? He tossed the stick far into the garden and it disappeared into a bush. Perfect; it was the ideal cover for him to perform his stealth attack... Bladewolf fell for it hook, line and sinker; he darted across the garden to the shrubs, only to find that the stick had been replaced by one of Monsoon's detached legs, which swiftly sprang into action and booted him in the face. Damn that crafty cyborg! He decided he had to up his game... Monsoon retreated back into his kitchen, chuckling maniacally to himself as Bladewolf lay whimpering and injured on his side. His fried tarantulas were almost cooked to perfection. The timing was perfect for his date were due to arrive very soon. Nevertheless a quick codec call to make sure he was on his way wouldn't hurt. 'Good evening my love. I trust you are on your way. I have prepared an exquisite meal for us. I am looking forward to seeing you.'

Meanwhile, in a nearby motel room, Jetstream Sam sat up in bed and wiped his brow after enjoying a steamy session with Raiden, who lay flat out exhausted next to him. He reached over to the bedside table and discreetly checked his codec. It had only been abandoned for a mere hour but already had several messages left on it. He sighed - it was hard being as popular as he was. It was even harder still to satisfy the tremendous sex drive he had... No singular cyborg, human or animal had managed to fulfill it, which is how he justified enjoying them all. "Who's calling you?" Raiden mustered up the last of his strength to ask. "Don't worry, nobody as good as you, pretty boy," Sam smiled, playfully running his fingers through his hair. It was true, Raiden held the largest place in his heart (still that didn't give him the right to be so possessive!) but there were things he craved that he just couldn't satisfy. That was where Monsoon and Bladewolf came into it... He had dates with both of them lined up. Monsoon harboured some of the kinkiest freakiest fetishes that not even the darkest XXX website catered for, while Bladewolf would be his loyal unquestioning servant and do anything he wanted just like the obedient dog he was... And the beauty of it was none of the three were likely to speak to one another so he could use the same puny excuse to get away and have each think he was their one and only. "You know I have VR training to go to," he smiled at Raiden. "I know," Raiden said glumly. "Same time tomorrow though?" "Of course. I'm missing you already." He kissed him and departed for Monsoon’s place, smiling to himself, “I’m just getting started!”

Bladewolf padded back into the house after escaping the rogue limb, his pride literally dented. Analysis of that damn Monsoon, who stood frying his tarantulas with that infuriating grin on his face, concluded that he really was a smug, creepy weirdo and it was just as well that he had that big thing on his head to contain his ego. But it was OK, he would have the last laugh. For now he would let him think that he had the upper hand while he planned his next move. In the living room, in pride of place above all the junk and hanging on the wall were Dystopia, Monsoon's precious Sais. It was where he hung them when he was at home and not ripping people to shreds on the battle field. If there was a way of getting to him, then this was certainly it. So... Monsoon wanted to play fetch? If he was going to get treated like a dog then surely the only thing to do would be to act like one! He tore them from their throne and pinned them down with his metal paws like a hungry predator going in for the kill. It was in a dog's nature to maul and chew things of value. A regular dog would go for things like furniture, slippers or newspaper but he was a cyborg dog with razor sharp metal teeth that could tear up much more. The Sais were infused with Lorentz, which made them a little tough, nevertheless he managed to leave some jagged teeth marks as he slobbered and savaged them as if they were a bone. Monsoon would be furious... On hearing the feral growling from the kitchen, the cyborg dashed in to see what destruction he was causing. It was to his complete and utter horror that his beloved Dystopia were being mauled by that vile mutt! "What the hell do you think you are doing? How dare you!" he bellowed. Bladewolf looked up a sweet look of satisfaction upon his face to see the enraged Cambodian launch himself at him. He should have expected a revenge attack! Yet again, they became embroiled in a whirlwind of metallic body parts grappling at each other on the floor, hair and tail pulling like children. Once again the feeling of deja-vu swept over them. The claws of Bladewolf scraped down his attacker’s face, slicing one of the few human parts he had left. Monsoon’s artificial heart thudded and his skin tingled. Obviously, he felt more pain to his actual flesh than his cyborg body would permit and the scratch gave a jolt to his senses and made him feel alive! A desire he could not understand nor control took hold of his senses and in the grip of its vice he pinned Bladewolf onto his back and ran his tongue along his snout. Bladewolf’s eyes widened with curiosity and the same unknown feeling took hold of him too…

Drawing ever closer was Jetstream Sam, after taking a quick shower to erase the smell of he and Raiden’s bodily fluids from their earlier encounter. He felt as fresh as a daisy but of course it wouldn’t last if past experiences with Monsoon were anything to go by. He was a kinky devil and such an attentive lover! His hair slick back in his usual ponytail he walked up Monsoon’s street with a cocky swagger in his step and a cheeky grin on his tanned face. What sort of fetish would he be indulging in today? He tapped the heavy front door but there was no response. Strange noises could be heard inside: rhythmic grunting and moans… Sam was intrigued so tried the handle. Monsoon usually left it unlocked when he was expecting him although he liked to knock just out of politeness. However the door was open. Nothing could have prepared Sam for what he was about to see.

There was Bladwolf being pinned to the ground by Monsoon who was holding him by the scruff with one hand while violently fisting him with the other. A twisted expression was upon Bladewolf’s face as he yelped and Sam was unsure as to whether or not he was enjoying himself or just in vast amounts of pain. There was no such doubt with Monsoon though; his sadistic grin was spread ear to ear. It was at least a minute before either of them noticed that they were being watched but Sam was more than happy to watch the show. “Ahem…” Sam said clearing his throat. The interruption startled them. Bladewolf was mortified – he had genuine feelings for Sam and did not want him to think of him as being disloyal. On the other hand, Monsoon could not have cared less because he had no interest in being in an exclusive relationship, or any kind of relationship for that matter other than a sexual one. “Sam… why are you here?” Bladewolf asked. “I could ask you the same question,” Sam said, intrigued. “This stupid mutt was helping me warm up for you,” Monsoon grinned. “He was just leaving.” “Well, let’s not be too hasty,” Sam said, the corner of his lips curling into his own cheeky grin... "Let's dance!"

#monsoon #bladewolf #jetstream sam #fanfiction #cider

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