#;; SHE *LOSES* HER POWER BY ALIENATING THE DRAGONS...AND ALIENATING HERSELF FROM THE DRAGONS

[kaerinio]

Something something, thinking about that thing I wrote a while back about how the Targaryens' assimilation to Andal societal norms and values diminished their power and separated them from their purpose. Something something, Dany's choice to remain in Meereen and assimilate to Meereenese societal norms and values is essentially a speed run of what happened to the Targaryens at the height of their power.

[melrosing]

some seasoning for hotd that would please me personally

Rhaenyra terrorised by vague visions of doom which she believes only she can prevent. unclear to the audience if these are genuine visions or simply Rhaenyra’s anxiety manifest in nightmares. all this exacerbated by the loss of Luke etc means her paranoia increases and she is willing to pursue means of escalating violence. she despises Daemon yet clings to the security their connection once afforded her, seeks to imitate him in his absence believing that will lend her strength only it sends her further down a path of senseless violence and desperate clutching at power

Alicent’s hypocrisy is steadily revealed. she wrestles with the fact that she did trade Rhaenyra’s inheritance for her children’s security, and yet she loves Rhaenyra more than her children. also Alicent’s love for Rhaenyra is twisted up with her jealousy of her as a peer, where Rhaenyra was given more autonomy to choose her partners, got to experiment sexually, was protected by her father when she produced bastards, whereas Alicent was raped by that same father and victimised by her own, and felt she had no autonomy whatsoever and resents every bit of agency that Rhaenyra claimed for herself. and when she tries to do the same as Rhaenyra (e.g. conceiving Daeron w Criston maybe??) she hates herself for the fear and guilt it makes her feel and hates Rhaenyra for being able to persevere through that and love her children and look them in the eye whereas even the sight of Daeron terrifies Alicent and fills her with shame…. anyway she’s increasingly losing her mind with fear and regret and the fact that all this was for a bunch of kids she was never able to truly love

Aemond always having believed himself the victim, now struggling with a dawning suspicion that he was the villain all along after what he did to Luke. starts losing himself in increasingly violent acts, losing the comfort he once took in his relationships with Alicent & Helaena bc he is growing to despise himself and the weakness they make him feel

Helaena is also having visions of the Long Night and the Others, maybe more real and vivid than Rhaenyra’s. she is trying to tell Alicent what she sees but Alicent pushes it away, cannot accept the true meaning of Viserys’ words. Helaena growing increasingly despondent, collapsing in on herself, Jaehaera suffering the loss of her father, mother and brother at once

Jace struggling w the fact that he doesn’t actually feel entitled to the iron throne bc he knows he’s a bastard, resents Rhaenyra more and more as the burden of war grows

Resentment between Rhaena and Baela?? like Rhaena cannot help the jealousy she feels - that Baela is destined to be Queen whilst she is left to guard the children. maybe she has an egg she’s obsessing over, becoming more and more alienated from her family especially since the loss of Luke. she’s a lone figure. maybe she later plans to go to Daemon’s side, thinking she can claim the relationship w their father that Baela always yearned for, and finds him improved enough that he helps her exercise some power of her own at his side - she realises she doesn’t even need a dragon etc. however, she’s left Rhaenyra’s youngest children in the process, which causes more fracture on Team Black, esp as Daemon defends Rhaena against Rhaenyra and Baela takes Rhaenyra’s side

Baela and Jace are likewise falling apart bc she’s more passionate about fighting this war than he is, which leads to his feelings of emasculation and like she’s the true Targ, not him. Rhaenyra revealing Aegon’s prophecy makes this worse because he doesn’t feel like a Targaryen or a hero, and he’s terrified that this means it will all be for nothing. this ultimately leads to his death in the Gullet when he seeks to prove himself, leaving Baela w feelings of guilt and like she’s only capable of pushing away those she loves. she takes an increasingly nihilistic approach, only recovering after the war when she reconciles with Rhaena and they start to rebuild their family

also Rhaena’s egg finally hatching Morning in the series finale. she didn’t need a dragon to grow and claim agency, yet at the end of all things, fate granted her the last dragon of them all. this is deeply bittersweet as all the other dragons are gone, and Morning is a symbol of both peace and the end

Aegon fine

Daemon mostly fine also i guess i just really need the development that would come with meeting Nettles and finding some connection outside of house Targ

I don’t know how to fix Criston

[theselfstudyenthusiast]

Wakfu the Great Wave - Chapter 8

Spoilers with some ranting & theories

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Me, watching Amalia rush to publicly attack the sovereign of an allied nation (technically), the pregnant regent of the Sadida Kingdom (self-appointed) and the (alleged) unborn heir of late King Armand, without solid proof of their culpability in the poisoning.

Meanwhile, the real culprits (Sadida rebels and/or Grougalorasalar & Julith):

I'm proudly anti-Aurora and her father, HOWEVER I must admit the whole poisoning would not fit their style.

The Osamodas king has been depicted as prideful with a deep understanding of the political game. He might not respect Amalia and Yugo, but he knows other people do. He would have no reason to kill the couple in plain sight. That would have made him the obvious suspect. Technically, he believes he has already won the Sadida throne. Why sully his hands with some (overpowered) alien and a pesky but popular princess? His tactics to swiftly push Amalia from the royal seat were very effective and would have given his daughter a positive image as a responsible leader.

Aurora seemed a bit unhinged (but I'm biased so idk) HOWEVER she is usually following her father's lead. It's doubtful she would have gone behind her all-knowing father just to get rid of her in-laws. She too believes she has already won. She might resent Amalia and the presence of all those Eliatropes, but she seems too shrewd to go for the obvious attempted murder, in a very public place no less. Playing with people's feelings and manipulating others into doing her binding are more her style. This doesn't mean she couldn't have played a role in fanning the flames and within the Sadida Kingdom.

It's canon that many Sadidas disagree with the forced cohabitation with the Eliatropes. These Sadidas could have created a rebel group targeting Amalia and Yugo. After all, killing them using a plant-based poison, during a mixed wedding, would send a strong message to Amalia and her allies, especially if the assassin could take out the strongest Eliatrope alive, King Yugo.

Given her royal education and her nature as a Sadida, Amalia being successfully poisoned is unlikely. As expected, she quickly detected the poison and even identified it (belladone) just from its smell and Yugo's symptoms. It is possible that whoever put the poison in their drinks didn't count on Amalia dying with certainty, although it might have been fortunate to take her along with Yugo.

If the people behind the poisoning knew Amalia enough to predict her reaction, they could have planned for her to survive the poison and attack the Osamodas. This would still cause Amalia to lose her popularity and "show her real colours" to the people. Either way, Amalia would be powerless.

That's why I believe the culprits are more than likely rebellious Sadidas. But they could have had someone helping them, like Julith.

Rasalar wants to stop Yugo at all costs. The dragon has already shown his determination by killing innocent people to revive his former Guardian, Julith. The Brakmarian "Butcher" could have infiltrated the kingdom and helped along in the attempted murders. I don't know much about Huppermages and their powers. If Julith can alter her appearance, she could have disguised herself as a Sadida maid and directly spiked the drinks. If not, the hitwoman could have procured the poison to the real culprit.

Regardless of who intended to kill the royals, the victims' reactions could be used against them. Yugo had to be evacuated and blew up part of the forest. It shown that Eliatropes are dangerous. Amalia didn't even try to understand what was going on and attack the Osamodas without proof, showing her hot temper, her inability to separate her emotions from her duty. This could help in exiling Amalia and Yugo, along with the Eliatropes, because the sovereigns were found "unfit" for the throne.

Amalia and Yugo often fight first and ask questions later. Very iopish behaviour but years as adventurers would do that.

This was a good skill during their adventures because overthinking could increase their reaction time during a decisive fight. However, as monarchs, the couple cannot afford to act harshly and without thinking ahead. They have a public image to maintain and all the political stuff to think about. Their respective nations are already ostracised by the other Twelvians. Neither Amalia nor Yugo can afford to lose allies on a bias, however justified it might be.

Hopefully, someone will stop the upcoming fight before Amalia loses more support from her people. I'm not ready for Yumalia to be exiled, especially since the poison seems to affect Yugo well into WAVEN (damaged wings/antlers).

[milfbius]

honkai souls bosses pt 2

SIRIN, Herrscher of the Void:

Sirin's boss arena is located in a centuries old anti-honkai research facility that serves as one of the game's larger dungeons. She is found at the top of a huge metal tower in the middle of the facility. In order to reach her, the player must ascend the tower, fighting through several BIO type honkai enemies (basically, various types of honkai zombies). Once the player reaches the top of the tower, they will have to fight a dragon mini-boss known as BENARES in order to unlock access to Sirin.

Sirin's arena is an extremely dark, depressing, and empty metal box, resembling a jail cell. The darkness prevents the player from initially getting an accurate impression of the room's size, but it is absolutely huge. When the boss fight begins, giant fluorescent ceiling lights will reveal the arena, reflecting off the shiny metal floor and walls. It is then that the player will realise that there is absolutely nothing inside this gigantic, lonely cage except for Sirin herself.

While Welt's appearance evokes technological horror, Sirin is purely biological. Her tiny bone-white torso, wrapped in bandages, emerges from a gown-like structure made of smokey black tendrils. As these tendrils undulate, the player may catch glimpses of the remains of her fellow orphaned test subjects and of scientists, labcoats, bloody hospital gowns, and of courses, flashes of the void itself. Syringes poke out of the notches of her prominent spine. At a glance, she couldn't be more than a 12 or 14 year old human child. Nevertheless, her molten yellow eyes burn with an unspeakably alien fury that predates the very universe, pupils terrifyingly empty black holes. During her boss fight, the player will finally understand what it means to struggle against the will of the honkai.

My idea of Sirin's boss design is heavily inspired by Aldrich, devourer of gods, from DS3. Basically, imagine Sirin if she stole this guys skirt and wore it.

This is what I imagine her eyes look like:

For the player, Sirin will pose a significant difficulty spike (compared to Welt.) She attacks midair from a distance, limiting opportunities for players to get in hits. She is nigh invincible from ranged attacks, as she has the ability to redirect these back towards the player using her spatial manipulation powers. She is also incredibly mobile and unpredictable, with the ability to teleport. However, certain attacks of hers will have her teleport close to the player. This provides an opportunity for the payer to attack her in close quarters and break her poise, letting them deal damage. This tactic will be the key to defeating Sirin.

Of course, the Herrscher of the Void can also summon high level honkai beasts, which will distract the player from attacking her directly and further add to the difficulty of the boss fight.

When player gets Sirin down to 25% health, the status effect Iche Liebe Dich will kick in. This causes Sirin to regenerate health over time, but her aggression is reduced, giving the player the opportunity to go on the offensive. Ich Liebe Dich is represented visually by an ethereal woman with long white hair materialising around Sirin, with her arms protectively clutching Sirin's head to her chest.

Ich Liebe Dich (ILD) will remain active until:

1. Sirin regenerates back to 75% of her health. She will enter ILD again if the player gets her back down to 25%. This encourages the player try different tactics lest they get stuck in an endless loop.

2. The player manages to outdps the health regeneration effect and kill Sirin in ILD state. This results in a special death animation where the etheral woman lays Sirin's body down and kisses her on the forehead before fading away.

3. The player attacks the woman protecting Sirin, who is immune to all damage except PSY damage. Killing her will permanently disable the ILD state for the rest of the fight.

If the player pursues option 3, Sirin will lose all health she regenerated in ILD state (back to 25%). In response, Sirin will let out a bloodcurdling scream and enter an incredibly dangerous state of increased aggression for the rest of the battle. While this state is dangerous, skilled players will find that it provides many more chances to land hits compared to Sirin's default and ILD movesets.

Upon defeat, Sirin drops the Core of the Void. Activating and equipping this core gives the player the ability to redirect incoming projectiles (assuming they time the ability correctly.)

previous boss (WELT) // next boss (MEI)

[tavyliasin]

ATG 12 - Friday? Freaky

Pairing: Haarlep/Tav/Raphael SPICE Rating: 5/5  Content Warnings:  Sex, BDSM, Power Play, group sex, light neck grab, mild hidden voyeurism, body-swap, mild petplay (brief use of collar and leash, one use of the term "pet" as derogatory)  

Spoilers Act 3, House of Hope Canon Compliance If you wanted canon you are in entirely the wrong place now. This is pure "Rule of Hot" and I don't think either of us care now do we?  Other Notes Style note - hopefully this is clear, but whenever Tav is talking in all italics, these lines are being spoken by Haarlep through her. I'm going to go with it's a Haarlep specific thing, I was going to use Magic Mouth on the studs in the harness but the rulebook just didn't quite work for it, so I figured they could add something to the spell or the contract.

Essentially the rule at this point is "what Haarlep wants, Haarlep gets." Adding note - this is the direct continuation of ATG 11

Song/Mood The Devil You Know by I Fight Dragons "Nobody knows you better than your demons So whatever you believe it's now or never Time to take 'em dancing. Drop into the flow, let your body go. Dance with the devil you know or go home. They're all watching now, better show 'em how: Dance with the devil you know, and get loud."

----- FULL CHAPTER BELOW THE CUT -----

The soothing waters of the pool were completely refreshing. With only a little more attention from Haarlep, who was willing to care for her but not to spoil her, Tav felt herself entirely restored. The food and drinks provided were a luxury, too, and one that she happily indulged in. The incubus warned her she would need her energy, and they would be proven right before dawn. As she cleaned up and recovered, Haarlep talked her through their plan. They did not have a lot of time, Raphael would be on his way back in short order having felt the incubus’s use of his form from across the realms, but his work would keep him away just long enough to prepare. Tav stood still as they assessed her, preparing the spell scroll. “You shall have to cast this one, take great care not to lose your concentration, Rat, Alter Self has a time limit too.” “Why do I need to cast it?” She looked at them quizzically.

“Because we do not have enough time to teach you to speak as I do, to act entirely as I do. So my concentration will be on making my words fall from your lips. Looks alone will not fool Raphael, but if we are cunning we can misdirect him. Now, take a good look at my form, and prepare your spell.” They handed her the paper and stepped back, taking but a moment to transform their glamour, the feminine form of the Archduchess now standing before Tav with wings spread. She did as she was bidden and took her time, examining Haarlep’s new body in as much detail as she could. They watched her in return, smirking at the colour rising from her cheeks to the tips of her pointed ears at the sight of their beautifully sculpted curves. “Now, cast it. We have only a few minutes remaining, Rat, but I must be certain you have got this right. I assure you he knows every inch of me~” they laughed, wings fluttering for a moment with an emotion somewhere close to pride. Tav read carefully from the scroll, shivering as the threads of magic wove around her, transforming her body into the perfect mirror image of the female Raphael. Wings and tail extended from her back, feeling both familiar and completely alien to her in a single moment. She flexed them carefully, testing the strength of the muscles and how they moved whilst Haarlep stepped aside to a wardrobe. “This feels…different.”

“Of course it does, but you shall have to get used to it quickly. Now, arms out, if you would, and step in here.” They held out the leather harness, identical to the one they usually wore but fitted to the feminine form. They were quick to fit it now, not wasting any time to arouse her senses but instead focused entirely on making sure not a single hair was out of place. “There, can you move freely?” Tav flexed her limbs, feeling the decadent pressure of the well fitted harness clinging to every curve so very perfectly. It was strange to have something on her body yet feel more undressed than she had moments ago. “It feels just fine. What next?” “Next,” Haarlep instructed, “you must make yourself comfortable on the bed. Appear entirely disinterested, no matter how you feel when he walks in through his little door.” “Wait, where will you be?” She asked over her shoulder, even as she walked towards the bed. “I, Little Rat, will be hidden until the time is just right.” They noted the look that crossed her face, as they began to walk away. “I will be watching , do not worry. He will not be permitted to go too far. Now, do remember everything that I taught you. I will give you the voice to speak to him, but you must use my body if you want to take everything from him. If you do well, I will make certain that you are well rewarded~” “Yes, Haarlep, anything you say.” Tav clamped her hand over her mouth in shock, the voice had risen from her without her permission.

Maybe, she thought to herself as she laid upon the silk sheets to wait for the master of the house, maybe I will do exactly what you suggested and take my own reward.

--- Raphael put the last of the papers in order, replacing the books upon their properly secured shelves. Plans of this magnitude were exhausting, and required meddling with powers that made even his skin crawl. And of course, that little Harlot had been up to something again. He felt it, of course, but at least this time they had known it wouldn’t be quite as inappropriate timing. Not that he would let his displeasure be any less evident. 

Truth be told, when he left, he hoped - despite the vile implication of the word - that Haarlep would be bored and do something about it. The master of the House of Hope himself had been agitated since the Little Mouse had crept into his personal bedchamber and allowed his incubus to… His brow furrowed. Haarlep had played him like a lute, plucking every string like a bard whose sole talent was to get on his every last nerve yet leave him frustratingly fucking satisfied . He wasn’t sure if it was the anger at his authority being disrespected or the excitement at what might be waiting that lit the fire under his feet, but he certainly picked up the pace as he locked the door to the library vault, stepped past the protective barriers, and waved his dimension door into place in front of him. He took just a moment to smooth down the silks of his shirt, inhaling deeply to fill his lungs deeper with rage before stepping back into his home. ---

“What took you so long?” Tav spoke, in Haarlep’s voice, in their feminine body. Her wings were spread out behind her, tail flicking slightly with mock agitation, as she swirled wine lazily in a glass barely bothering to look over at the new arrival. Just like Haarlep told her. “I can take as long as I wish, Harlot. And why, may I ask, have you chosen that body tonight?” He walked over casually, sitting on the other end of the bed. Tav’s heart quickened a little, it was…different, to see him like this. “Technically, it is my body, so I may decorate it as I wish. Or were you hoping I might have a different look for you to try out? Something decidedly more… rodent , perhaps?” She was suddenly glad that her skin was already bright red, the implication they made whilst speaking for her, from her… It was almost as exciting as the reaction she saw from Raphael. “Don’t be absurd ,” he snarled, just a little too emphatically to be believable, “that would mean you made a deal with her and I gave you no such permission.” “You didn’t?” Tav blurted out without thinking, but Haarlep quickly covered for her. “Why would you though? I wasn’t aware you thought so highly of yourself that you would need to give me permission to do what I like in my domain.” “Well, out with it then. What is it that you’re up to?” Raphael glared at her. Even with his human form’s eyes, Tav could feel the hellfire burning within him. For a horrifying moment she worried that he might see through her guise, but he merely raised an eyebrow awaiting the reply. “Wouldn’t you like to know.” She replied, her own obstinate streak leaking through and thoroughly enjoying the visible bristling in her sparring partner. Ah, this might actually be fun, to turn the tables… Alright, Haarlep, I agree. This will be its own reward. “Are we going to bicker all night, or do you have a point you’re going to reach eventually?” He was on the line between boredom and rage, the exact time that Haarlep had told Tav to step up the game. She drained the rest of her wine, offering him none and putting the glass on the table with a languid motion. “Undress. I tire of seeing your pompous silks hiding your body from me.” Haarlep added the words to her voice, the air of command coming so naturally from the sultry tones of the Archduchess’s form she wore. “Take your time, Archduke, entertain me as payment for keeping me waiting.”  ---

He hissed, the lines in his forehead deepening, but he obeyed like it was the most natural thing in the world. Tav watched closely, careful to maintain her air of indifference, as Raphael stood from the bed and began to loosen the fastenings of his finery. It was hardly the sultry display of a stripper, but Tav had missed the sight of him in their last…encounter…so she fully intended to savour the look of him. She licked her lips absent-mindedly as the top of his chest revealed itself to her.

“Pent up tonight, are we, Harlot ?” He continued to glare obstinately, whilst still doing exactly what had been asked. It was clear from the strain of the silks below his waist that he was entirely enjoying being ordered around, a realisation that further excited Tav. No, she would not be needing to steal a kiss from Haarlep to enjoy this . It was almost comical how many layers, ruffles, and clasps had to be undone and cast aside before Raphael was even halfway naked. However, when his trousers finally slid down to his ankles there was nothing left beneath. Well, nothing except- “On your back, if you please.” Tav’s mind blanked for a moment, not quite registering Haarlep’s next commands as they left her disguised lips, the memory of feeling him returning with a startling clarity. Her borrowed cambion tail swished behind her of its own accord. “I thought you were complaining this was too dull, human form, laying comfortably-” “I didn’t say you would be comfortable, Archduke .” Tav hissed, finding her own thoughts surprised her once again. She stood, moving to the side of the bed, looking for the items that Haarlep had set aside for her. The gag, of course, would not be needed. No, she wanted to hear every decibel of his reaction to her, and she did not mind hearing his voice one bit. “And you will remain in that form until I tell you.” Haarlep added to the order whilst she pulled out what she wanted, reminding Tav that she had the choice of when to have him change for her. “Not using your magic today, I see? What, too tired to bother?” Raphael glared, even as he lay prone, naked, and completely at her mercy. “You think you deserve that much effort? Know. Your. Place.” She brought her tail down like a whip on his inner thigh, eliciting a prolonged groan. Her aim was far from perfect, the limb still feeling foreign to her, but she was still delighted by the response. It made her bolder as she knelt on the bed above him, savouring the feel of the leather cutting slightly into her thighs and how small he looked beneath her. She stretched out her wings and dangled the leather cuffs before him. Raphael remained silent, not giving her the satisfaction of a fight now, simply waiting. That would not do. She whipped her tail around again, striking somewhere far more sensitive and eliciting something close to a yowl from the previously proud and composed fiend. But he did not use the word, his word, the one Haarlep had told her was just like her own. He did not want her to stop.

“Do not think to bore me, Archduke, or I shan’t bother even with this much, and you shall remain unsated.” Haarlep’s warning resounded clearly, even if Tav had no intention of following through with it. However, it seemed to have the right effect. “Whatever happened to romance?” he growled, giving her the slight satisfaction of a fight as he pushed his hips up towards her. “I didn’t give you permission to touch me yet, ” she purred, leaning down to put her lips to his ear as her hands worked the buckle of the strap viciously tight around his first wrist, “you will have to prove to me that you want it, that you can earn it, and then I might consider giving you what you want.” Her blood burned hot, almost like the body she inhabited was truly what it appeared to be, and relished the strained noise that escaped his throat as she bit his earlobe. “You,” the sound came from between gritted teeth, “are playing with fire.” “Water just isn’t as fun.” She whispered into his ear, securing the second strap around his wrist and pulling it almost cruelly tight. The cuffs were attached together by a sturdy metal ring connected to a chain. A chain which she yanked sharply upwards to test her control on his arms. “Well, Archduke, isn’t there something you want?” He strained his neck towards her as she sat back, keeping her lips just out of his reach, delighting at how hard he tried. His legs tried to seek purchase on the bed now too, desperate for any skin contact, but she denied him once more. “Bitch,” he seethed, “you always have to have it your way, don’t you?” “And that’s why you like it this way, Archduke.” Haarlep responded through Tav, as she hooked her feet over his legs to pin them down beneath her. “Aren’t you bored of always trying to win?” That time she wasn’t sure if she was playing the part, or genuinely asking for herself. Something she quickly corrected by remembering what Haarlep said before. “Isn’t it more fun when you lose ?”

“It might be nice to see you lose, for a change.” He muttered this time, straining at the bonds that held him as Tav traced along his jawline with a taloned finger. “Perhaps you just might,” she mused, more to herself than for his benefit. She had very much enjoyed losing herself to the pleasures Haarlep could bring, but this … This is what she wanted more. He was the one that would endlessly tease her, never dignifying her with her true name, only ever the nickname. She brought her tail down on his hip, drinking in his gasp as she dragged her teeth along the edge of his ear. He was the one that would flirt and try to seduce her with his mannerisms, peppered with hints of cruelty and threats. She let her lips brush past his, delighting at how he whimpered at being denied so much as a chaste kiss when she pulled away. He was the one that would constantly push her closer and closer towards a contract that clearly had too big a catch to agree to. She gripped his throat with a taloned hand, pushing his head onto the pillows as she rolled her hips to grind on his thigh. Who has control now, Raphael? Grand Archduke of Avernus, swaggering around like you own the place, and look at you. Putty in my hands. I could break you if I wanted to, but this… Oh this is so much better.

--- Haarlep was watching closely, carefully concealed, and utterly delighted. They hadn’t imagined they might draw this side out of the Little Rat, and once again resolved not to underestimate her in the future. She was…inspired. Clumsy, perhaps, but she was finding her footing, and they were impressed. They held a little toy in their hand, wondering how long it would be before it was needed - after all, if she did want to go further, the illusion would be broken if Raphael did not feel what she felt. A replica would be enough, and Haarlep was almost impatient to use it. __ Tav was relentless. Every time she gave Raphael the satisfaction of touch, she pulled back. She kept her hold over him, literally and figuratively, with the carrot and the stick. It was surprising to her, how much she was delighting in drawing out the torment, watching his body react in pleasure to the slightest of touches. Her tail whipped and cracked, covering his human form in tiny welts that radiated their pain like heat. Her lips and fingers caressed, even as her claws and teeth raked and stopped barely short of drawing blood. Raphael was utterly enveloped. He seethed at being denied release, strained uselessly at his own feminine cambion form towering over him holding him in place, and fumed at never being given permission to change to his own cambion form. “What do you want?” The leather of her crude outfit dragged over him, the brief contact driving him to madness even as she demanded an answer with his own glowing eyes. “You know what I want, Harlot .” He kept his pride even as he moaned at the contact when she pressed her hips down over his. “ Enough , are you not satisfied?” “Not until I hear you ask properly. ” Haarlep interjected through her voice, as Tav had already begun to remove the underwear preventing him from getting what he wanted. She held herself above him, waiting for the response, still gripping the chain attached to his bound wrists in one hand. “Well? What will it be? What. Do. You. Want?” Her own words took over, demanding what was expected, punctuating each with a lash of her tail over bruised flesh. “H-” He groaned as her free hand reached down to add to his torment. “I want to fuck you, Haarlep. Please. ” There it was, the plaintive whimper, the begging, the final nail in his coffin that told Haarlep they had won, every single time. Tav felt her wings, the wings of the Archduchess, quiver in response to hearing that name. A shiver of pleasure, a feeling of deep satisfaction and pride. “Good, good…you’ve done so very well, Raphael.” Haarlep allowed his name to be spoken aloud, Tav surprised to hear it leave her mouth, but knowing these words were also for her. The validation…it felt incredible. She shifted slightly and moved slowly, so slowly, drawing forth an extended noise somewhere between a whine and a growl as she allowed him to enter her fully. It was hard to hide her own reaction to feeling him, her borrowed form heating to a fever pitch with her own desire. Somewhere, unseen, Haarlep smiled.

Tav had always imagined Raphael to want control at all times, she had thought that if their dance from her “dream” were ever to continue that he would want to lead. His pride was as formidable as his ego, and he seemed loathe to even consider the possibility of losing. Especially to someone he saw as beneath him. She looked down as she began to ride him slowly, drawing out the sensations for them both. He didn’t see Haarlep as beneath him. That was clear now. Haarlep was not even an equal. They were the one being that had his respect, his trust, and admiration perhaps. In this room, no matter what words were spoken, Haarlep’s were the final ones. Feeling just a hint of that power was intoxicating. “More.” The wanton moan was another plea, he couldn’t do with just this. He needed everything . Not even permitted his full form, he was desperate for all he might be granted. Tav remembered more of Haarlep’s tuition, and brought her tail to his lips, wordlessly telling him her expectations.

Raphael’s lips and tongue caressed the tip of her tail, leaving it slicked and ready as she moved it back and sought entry, still a little clumsy as she tried to guide it in with her hand whilst still riding him. “Stay still, Raphael. Soon.” Haarlep commanded, the last word as an instruction to Tav. He gasped as the “Archduchess’s” cambion tail penetrated him, pressing and flexing, moving to find the exact point he needed-

Ah, there it is. She savoured the way he moaned beneath her, breathless, desperate, about ready to let go at any moment…except he had been commanded to remain still, by the one voice he could not refuse. It was almost cruel, but some things were worth the wait. She stopped her hips from moving for now, sliding her free hand between her legs to pleasure herself, teasing out the kind of orgasm that he was going to feel, pulsing, convulsing, gripping every inch of him as she was overcome with pleasure. Then right before the moment the climax could build to that shockwave, Haarlep gave one final command from Tav’s lips. “Transform.”

Just as the spasms of a hundred nerves and muscles began to cascade through Tav’s body, she felt something beneath her, inside her, changing. The expansion nearly drove her into a frenzy, and it was all she could do to hold the concentration for the spell that held her disguised form as the cuffs broke and Raphael finally moved of his own will. All the impatience, the teasing, drawing out the experience whilst denying him time and time again, it boiled to the surface. This was a side she hadn’t expected to see, but it delighted her. He gripped her hips with now free hands, using the leverage to slam hard into her over and over, selfishly pursuing his own release whilst inadvertently giving her everything she desired. She gripped his cambion horns, now standing proudly like a crown from his head, and pulled him into the kiss she had denied him before. She felt the need to devour him whole whilst being devoured, giving in almost entirely to a reality far more satisfying than any time she had dreamed of this. But even as they found release together, cascading headfirst into a shuddering bliss, she knew it wasn’t her that he wanted. Not her body that filled the room with his roar of pleasure. Not her voice that had easily brought him to his knees. Not her hands that teased every sensation from his body. Not her wings that shook in the afterglow, not her tail that withdrew from him still slick and glistening, not her lips that tasted of cherry and ash- “You were wonderful,” Haarlep spoke through her again, voice low, “if you’re not done, I have a treat for you…” Tav wasn’t entirely sure who the words were for, but she could feel a new rise from the cambion beneath her, in more ways than one. She sat back from him, taking at least a moment to get her breath as she reclined against the foot of the bed. She tried to keep up appearances, knowing Haarlep would not likely tire from anything less than a week long orgy, but it was difficult. Taking control was exhausting, the power that flowed through her had almost felt terrifying, yet even now it was hard to stop her legs shaking as she desperately desired more … Tav was glad that Raphael had his back to her when he turned to face Haarlep - well, not Haarlep precisely. 

Oh you devious bitch,  she thought as she looked at her own true body stepping into view, dressed in the exact same silken outfit that Raphael had conjured for her within her dream, I should’ve known you’d pull a trick like this.Haarlep put on an excellent show, looking apprehensive, yet refusing to flinch as Raphael’s own cambion tail flicked wickedly through the air. They would no longer be providing her words, either, but there would be no need for now. “What in the hells are you doing here, Little Mouse? And precisely how long have you been lurking in the shadows?” He demanded, wings stretching out in a display of attempted intimidation even as he was sat entirely naked and glistening with the evidence of their recent actions. It would have looked absurd, had it actually been Tav stood there defiantly. “I was invited,” Haarlep replied in Tav’s own voice, perfectly replicating her every mannerism with ease, “and I thought you would find it rude of me to turn down an invitation from your own hand.” You liar- Tav spat in her mind, but nevertheless deeply intrigued by the way Raphael reacted. This show was entirely for her benefit, she realised. She was close enough to see every little muscle twitch, the way he leaned just a little closer, how his arms moved just subtly to hide his growing arousal from the Tav standing across from him. Fine, she relented in her mind, I will thank you later, Haarlep… “So now you choose to respect social etiquette? You still ignored my second question, Little Mouse, exactly how long have you been there?” He was visibly bristling, but once again his anger blended beautifully with lust into an intoxicating cocktail. Tav understood exactly why Haarlep had planned all of this now. “Long enough.” Haarlep-Tav smirked, putting a hand on one hip to accentuate how the dress clung to the lines of their body, her body. “Is this what you wanted, Haarlep?” Shit, now I have to- “It fits you very well indeed. I must say he has fine taste, Rat, to keep that dress in your exact size.” Tav played her part as best as she could now, working out exactly how best to rile up Raphael further.  

“Of course, if you don’t want me here, I can just leave.” Haarlep began to turn away, forcing Raphael to act. “Wait.” He snapped, altogether too quickly to deny his interest in her beyond this. “If you wanted to leave, you could have done so before. What is it you really want?” He wove a swift spell in the air, a Zone of Truth settling around the faux Tav unexpectedly. Shit , the real Tav realised, they can’t lie now, only avoid the truth, which will make it more suspicious.

“I was interested.” Haarlep replied, carefully turning back to face Raphael now as he stood up almost uncomfortably straight, no longer caring about how much of him was revealed. “Interested doesn’t cut it. What do you want with me , Little Mouse? Is this what you desire? I can draw you out a contract in short order, if you’re that desperate. ” His tail swished more behind him, the mixed emotions fighting for control. Anticipation, frustration, and…the horrifying realisation that it was all coloured with the disgusting tone of hope. “I do not desire a contract from you.” Haarlep replied, truthfully both for themselves and their portrayal of Tav. “What is it that you want, though? You could’ve sent me away the moment I stepped into view, and yet there you are, keeping me right where you want me.” “You insolent-” Raphael stepped towards her, tail striking the floor, “how dare you presume to know what it is that I want!” He passed the barrier into the spell’s area now, glaring down at them. “Are you sure you can deny it now, Archduke ?” Tav cut in from behind them, still reclining in the form of the Archduchess, seeing the perfect opportunity to slide the blade of her words between his ribs. “I-” Raphael halted, the spell choking his lie. “You devious little- What is your game here, Haarlep?” He turned on his heel, while Haarlep gave Tav a loaded wink from where they stood behind him now. “I was bored,” Tav replied simply, “and so were you. This sounded like an entertaining idea. Do you disagree?” He faltered again, another question he could not answer without a level of honesty he was not ready to embrace. Behind him Haarlep wrapped their arms around him, caressing his chiseled muscles. “Come on, now, why don’t we have a little fun? I would love to dance with you properly this time. Don’t you want to be with me?” How much does Haarlep know about that dream? Tav didn’t have much time to consider the implications, immediately distracted by the hint of a groan from Raphael as Haarlep began to toy with his chest. She flinched, however, when his tail struck Haarlep’s rear. She felt it, just as surely as if she were wearing her own body. 

Haarlep simply grinned at her with her own smile. 

Oh, fuck.

“Why did you recoil when I-”... The realisation dawned on Raphael at about the same moment Haarlep shifted to their masculine form, strong arms now securing the master of the house in place, their hand holding his chin in place to force him to really look closely at the Archduchess he had just slept with.

“Why don’t the three of us work this out, on the bed.” Haarlep growled, now in their own voice, pressing against Raphael’s back while raking his chest with their claws. “We can have so much more fun now our toy is ready~” They caught Tav’s eye. “But don’t you lose your concentration just yet…I have always wondered what he might feel like to be utterly surrounded by himself .” Raphael bit his lip as Haarlep twisted his arms together in front him, securing them with a swift spell. Mending, with a little extra power to it, welded the broken cuffs into one piece, binding his hands clasped together in the twisted appearance of a prayer. Another gesture and a silent Mage Hand deposited a collar with a chain attached into their hand.

“Don’t. Move.” Haarlep whispered directly into his ear, causing the cambion’s wings to shudder as his incubus secured the collar around his neck like some kind of pet. “Wait.” They commanded, an unspoken command of quite the opposite also given to Tav. She sat up now, the first part of the game was over, but she still had an act to maintain. She stretched lazily as she stood from the bed, reaching the peak of her height, all three now technically reaching the exactly same scale and yet…Raphael looked smaller between them. Tav stalked towards him and raised his chin towards her with one claw, as Haarlep began to kiss his shoulders. “Tell me.” She spoke directly into his eyes with her own command. “Tell me that you want me. I will not touch you if you do not agree.” Raphael groaned at the conflict, the desire clear for all to see, but unwilling to allow the Mouse to catch the Cat…and yet… “Fine.” He relented, realising it mattered little when she had already taken so much of him that night, willingly given. “Not good enough, Archduke ,” Haarlep growled into his ear, “use your words, like a good pet .” “You absolute-” Raphael’s complaints were silenced by a pair of tails striking him in tandem. “ Fine. I want this, Little Mouse, and you better not disappoint me.” The echo of power and control he tried to cling to was barely a whisper when he was so utterly trapped between two hedonistic deviants drunk on lust, but he had done what was asked. Tav grabbed his horns and pulled him in to a kiss, finding her tongue met with the same fiery passion and a strangled moan when Haarlep bit down on his shoulder.

His body was entirely theirs, his desire for them both clear and emanating from him like the heat of Avernus itself. Tav took the chain that Haarlep passed her, pulling Raphael towards the bed. She walked backwards, tugging him along with her by the collar around his neck, until she was sat back on the bed with legs apart and waiting. Haarlep followed her lead and shoved the bound cambion to the ground, now truly looking like a heathen in prayer - hands bound and in the pose of supplication, knees on the floor ready for worship, entire body rigid with anticipation. “Go ahead,” Haarlep looked to Tav, “take everything you want and more. You have earned it.”

Looking down at Raphael on the floor, Tav felt another rush of intoxicating power. The permission and praise from Haarlep tipping the scales just as they intended. She pulled the leash, dragging his head towards her, thrusting his face between her legs with a single word to command him. “Eat.” It seemed the selfishness could be tamed out of him well, as the cambion did indeed follow the instructions. He even nudged at her thigh with his horns, silently suggesting she lift her legs over his shoulders to bring him in closer. She followed the direction, holding his shoulders tightly between her knees. — Haarlep took a moment to appreciate the sight. It was utterly decadent. Seeing the Archduke bent double, face buried between the thighs of his own female form, for once giving pleasure without being able to feel it in himself like he could if it were Haarlep laying there with his tongue thrusting within them. Their favourite little Rat was playing so beautifully, too, her gasps and moans with the voice of the Archduchess bringing a new level of excitement to them, erasing the last of their patience as they decided how to join in. — Raphael’s moan from between Tav’s legs was the most wanton noise she had ever heard. She glanced down and saw exactly what had drawn the sound from the lips that were still working hard to quicken her own breath.

Haarlep was on the floor behind him, one hand wickedly pulling the cambion’s tail, the other between their own legs just beneath the dress that had torn when they transformed…and their face was pressed right up to Raphael, clearly applying their own tongue with a level of skill that could impress a professional brothel. Raphael’s wings shuddered above him, stretching out as if to seek some kind of purchase to hold on to. He could feel everything from Haarlep, even as they touched themselves he felt their fingers caressing, pulling, clawing - 

Tav’s own cambion tail had been beneath her when she sat on the edge of the bed, which she now realised gave her a unique position as it brushed against Raphael’s torso unexpectedly. It wasn’t easy to use the foreign limb, but she was going to make the most of it whilst she still could. Raphael groaned again, the two seeming intent on tormenting him until the end of his days, but he could not ask for more …until he felt the false tail of his little mouse begin to caress him. The extra sensation of touch grasping his length even as Haarlep worked its twin with a skilled hand was almost entirely too much. 

“No,” Haarlep intoned from behind him, “no, not yet.” They quickly secured the leather strap at his base, tightening it to prevent his release. “Earn it.” Tav closed her eyes in ecstasy. There was nothing in this room besides red skin and hot passion, the blood in their veins turning to pure lust, undiluted desire pulsing through them all as they were connected mouth to body, skin to skin, drowning in bliss. As the only one with her tongue not currently completely occupied, she gave voice to their collective experience. — The halls in the House of Hope echoed with the feral howl of cambion lungs screaming out a climax that had Korilla checking her hair for pieces of the ceiling. She frowned at the archivist, who simply shrugged, assuming everything was proceeding without unwanted incident. He silently handed her a scroll that would bar further sound from leaving that unholy room, the unspoken understanding that this could last a few more hours yet and they did not have any desire to hear it any longer. The distance between the rooms should have been more than enough, but apparently the incubus had gone completely feral.

---

The sheer intensity and power had shaken Tav to her core, and her grasp on the spell’s concentration melted away as the aftershock continued to pulse through her, the leashed cambion between her legs still working his tongue with an unhinged greed. He could have devoured her, as her skin tone paled from the crimson tone, overpowered her as the tail and wings vanished around her, taken back control as the boost of strength from hardened muscles softened to her usual level. But he did no such thing. Instead, as Haarlep relented from their own work on him and dragged him up from between her thighs by his horns, Raphael only looked at her with a quiet expectation, a longing, and a new level of desire as he considered the far less familiar body of the elf on his bed. 

As an answer to the piercing gaze, Tav pulled the collar’s chain once more, pulling him close as she sat up now to reach his lips. She could taste herself on his tongue, hot, sweet, mingling with the cherry smoke that emanated from his very being. She wanted to devour him, and to be devoured in return. When they broke for breath, she caught Haarlep’s eye, realising they had been stood slightly back watching the two of them, idly massaging Raphael’s cambion tail. “Well,” they said, pausing to bite Raphael’s shoulder to remind him who was in control, “I believe that Raphael has indeed paid his proper respects to you now. Don’t you agree, Little Rat?” Tav could only nod now, seeing the shift in power now that she no longer bore the incubus’s form. She wasn’t even certain she could stand if she needed to, her legs quivered from the lingering tension of the control she had held with such thrill. She could have been drunk on that feeling alone, but it could not last forever. They had risen the fire in his eyes to a raging inferno, and now, as he would have said had he the presence of mind remaining to do so, “down come the claws.” ---

Raphael looked down at her, the Little Mouse, his Little Mouse… Her pale skin was flush with pleasure, hair a beautiful mess above eyes that almost glowed as she looked back at him. Perhaps he should punish her for having the audacity to participate in this little trick, perhaps he should deny her anything she ever asked of him, now or in the future. Perhaps he should just end her right now as she sat helpless, breathless, gazing at him with a pure lust that made his breath catch in his throat.

Haarlep reached forwards and disintegrated the cuffs that bound his hands, allowing him as much freedom as they were willing to give, but their claws on his back gave him the delicious reminder that he was never fully in charge here. Teeth grazed his neck as his own voice whispered in his ear. “You want her real body, do you not? Take it. She is practically begging for you to take over.” Raphael stepped closer to the bed, running his hands up from Tav’s knees to her hips.

“See, she shivers even now just from your touch. Take her. Show her how powerful you can be. ” Haarlep’s persuasion was hardly necessary, but their next move not only tipped the scales - it picked them up and launched them out of the window, weights and all. They changed into Tav’s form, using her voice directly into his ear, their tongue teasing along the edge just after. “I want you, Raphael-” ---

Tav wasn’t sure what the incubus had said in her voice, but it seemed to have sealed her fate. Raphael took hold of her legs, pulling her forwards to the edge of the bed as her back hit the silk sheets from the motion. The claws digging into her skin brought a delightful pain, the actions holding unspoken promises soon to be fulfilled. 

She saw Haarlep smirking at her with her own face behind Raphael, caressing his body in every way she would have…if he had not thrust inside her with a mindnumbing force. “That’s it, give her everything , make her understand which of you two holds the power. Watch her face, make her beg for more~” They talked low in his ear, though even if Tav could hear she would’ve had no chance to listen.

It was clearly difficult for Raphael to hold himself back from just racing towards his own conclusions, tempted to see how he might play this new game and finally claw out a win, even if he would still be second place to his mirror image.

Tav was held in place by strong crimson hands on her thighs. Their hips were pressed flush together, feeling completely and utterly filled…or at least so she thought until she saw Haarlep step out from behind the fiend, still wearing her body, whispering some new and clearly devious idea. 

The cambion kept a sadistic pace, slow but with strong motions, his eyes locked on the place their bodies met. His tail, however, was moving behind him, travelling the length of Haarlep’s leg, the sensation replicated in Tav’s own body from their proximity now. By the time the tip reached its goal and pressed inside, she was thrown into a fever pitched climax. It was almost unbearable, multiple muscles locking down around one real sensation and the phantom that came from Haarlep’s deal.

Raphael’s gaze had turned to her face now, seeing her head thrown back, hands clawing at silk sheets as if trying to hang on to her very sanity as the room filled with the sounds of their little game. It was…different, this was no performance, this was no incubus going through the motions just to feed like they had for centuries. No, his Little Mouse was here because she wanted him, she wanted this, and every time her muscles clamped down around him it was proof that he had the power to throw her into the very depths of infernal ecstasy. He cursed at the strap that still prevented his release, but did not yet want to relent. She could take more of him, as long as he chose. Haarlep was still beside him, remaining stubbornly on their feet even as he attempted to break them down with his tail. The incubus, however, seemed to have other ideas. “Go on, keep going, look at how her skin flushes so beautifully for you. You’re making art, music, and it is so very delicious~” They purred in his ear, running a hand down his spine, teasing those little places between his legs that ached for more. “Well? What do you have to say to me?” “Please-,” Raphael whined, before realising that wasn’t quite what they meant this time. “Thank you, Haarlep.”

“Oh you do play so very nicely~” If they had been in one of their usual cambion forms, their wings would’ve fluttered in the way they always did to hear their proper name spoken in the heat of passion, and the validation of praise was so rare too; Tav felt the shiver of delight travel up her spine, right where the Archduchess’s wings would have been.

The sensation was not entirely unnoticed by Raphael either, he began to increase his pace as Haarlep’s fingers worked inside him, their other hand casting a quick spell to dissolve the strap around his base that held him back.

All Tav could do was try to keep her quickly slipping grasp on her own mind. The sensations were powerful, overwhelming, so when Haarlep took their free hand to join Raphael’s cambion tail inside themselves she almost entirely crumbled. They were right when they said she would not need a single kiss from their aphrodisiac-infused lips to enjoy this, if she had tasted that particular passion today she may not have survived. The punishing speed and impact of every thrust made the bed shake, even the stone floor could not be entirely immune, and the walls echoed with every kind of lustful sound known to creation. By the time the final breathtaking orgasm ripped through all three of them, they were all about ready to collapse. Even Haarlep subtly leaned on the end of the bedpost, shifting back to their masculine cambion form to gain stability. Raphael stayed upright at first by refusing to release his vice grip on Tav’s thighs, staying flush inside her until the last heat of the afterglow faded, taking in every inch of the view of her completely undone on his bed. ---

“I believe,” Haarlep broke the silence once everyone was breathing normally again, “that we have earned ourselves a break for tonight.” Their eyes met Raphael’s with a silent instruction: you are still responsible, take care of her. They took the lead, stalking across the room with hips swaying, a delighted little flick of their tail. They were quite satisfied that their scheme had paid off, and the meal could sustain them for quite some time…but the other two would need to rest. They prepared the lotions and soaps, turning back to check on their prizes. Raphael had relented, throwing Tav’s arm over his shoulders with his own wrapped around her waist, his tail gently supporting her upper back just in case. He wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of being carried, not if she was still able to walk, but he also was not about to let her legs collapse beneath her as they seemed likely to do at any moment. For her part, Tav felt…well, perhaps it was too soon to work out what was going through her mind, if anything was going on up there at all. Her body was a mess, muscles feeling like they were still vibrating and pulsing, heart rate stubbornly refusing to return completely to normal. Much as the fiend’s support was helping her cross the cool stone floor to the bath area, feeling his warmth and strength so clearly was doing nothing to calm her body and emotion. By the time her toes touched to cooling waters, she let out an audible sigh, ready to sink down and be healed.

Haarlep was already seated, laying back, but gestured towards the pair now entering the healing pool. “Here, with me.” Raphael followed the instruction, helping Tav to sit next to Haarlep now, taking his own seat the other side of her and relishing the feeling of the water on the welts and bruises she had peppered him with earlier. He still had no idea how he felt, going only by instinct as he sat back and put his arm around her waist again, pulling them closer. His wing extended behind her, almost possessively, as he used his free hand to caress her shoulder idly. On the other side, Haarlep grinned. They slid their arm around her waist from the other side, caressing Raphael’s where they passed, their own wing stretching just that little bit higher behind the other two as if claiming them both. Their other hand tenderly massaged Tav’s aching thigh, savouring the soft whisper of a moan from her lips. The three would remain there for a while, resting, recovering, and basking in the aftermath of a night of pure satisfaction. Tav even found herself washing Raphael’s hair, something he seemed to secretly delight in as she used her nails to massage to the roots around the base of his horns. 

By the time she stepped back through the shimmering doorway to the Inn, the sun had risen and so had her companions. Fortunately, the healing pool had left her feeling completely rested and restored, though making up a story about where precisely she had been would prove more challenging than any of the battles they would face that day. ---

The room felt emptier after the Little Mouse left to return to her usual plane, the mirrored images of Raphael and Haarlep left reclining upon their separate armchairs. Raphael could’ve spent an hour or more berating his incubus, for tricking him, for using up valuable scrolls, for allowing his prey to see him completely vulnerable-

It didn’t matter though. 

Curiosity might have “killed” the cat, but satisfaction brought him back.

----------- ----------- ENDING NOTES ----------- -----------

Can I ever write anything short for these three together? Absolutely not, virtually impossible, might as well ask me to cease using any BDSM in my fics (that will never happen I want to lean further into that one) There may well be a side story series in the future of various characters visiting our dear incubus, so do feel free to drop suggestions on that one~ For now though, ATG will be moving away from the cambion and his incubus again for a while in the main story to keep me from writing exclusively about them. They have the prequel for that~

[duhragonball]

[FIC] Luffa: The Legendary Super Saiyan (209/?)

Disclaimer: This story features characters and concepts based on Dragon Ball,  which is a trademark of Bird Studio/Shueisha and Toei Animation.   This is an unauthorized work, and no profit is being made  on this work by me. This story is copyright of me. Download if you like, but please don’t archive it without my permission. Don’t be shy.

Continuity Note: This story This story takes place about 1000 years before  66 years after  1000 years before the events of Dragon Ball Z.

[12 March 238 Before Age. Dorlu Prime.]

Luffa had once been the Legendary Super Saiyan, until the Demon God Demigra offered her a chance to do it all over again. She found herself in a new history, where the alien hordes who captured and tortured her were all dead. With the Tikosi's extinction, and Luffa's foreknowledge of events to come, she had a chance to live her life the way she had always wanted. All of the friends, the love, the triumphs, with none of the loss, the regrets, the tragedies.

Or so it had seemed.

She was still trying to decide whether to accept Demigra's truce. His terms were simple. If she agreed to remain in this new reality, he would leave her alone. But if she refused to accept his triumphant ascension to godhood, then Luffa could confront him for one final battle. She only had to take the magic scroll he had left for her, and she would instantly travel from her world to his. Since that path lay open to her, she decided to take her time and see what this new world had to offer.

At first, it had seemed like a dream come true. She was back on Dorlu Prime, where she had spent her teenage years guarding the planet as a mercenary. Her treacherous father had left the planet in a profound despair. His plans for the future had died with the Tikosi, and only Luffa knew just how shaken this had left him. That suited her well, as it meant she could chart her own course without him.

Keda was alive in this world, still a healthy nine-year-old child, unaffected by the terrible conflicts that only Luffa could now remember. The same was true for Zatte, the captain of the Dorlun militia. In this era, she had been Luffa's best friend, although later they would fall in love and marry. However, in this era, Luffa was still married to her first husband, Kandai.

Luffa's plan was fuzzy in places, but the basic goal was to divide her time between the Dorlu Colony and finding mercenary work in the surrounding space sectors. That way, she could still have Zatte and Keda in her life, without taking them away from their home. From there, Luffa could reach out to other close friends she had made in the old reality. It would be a challenge to make contact with them all and befriend them all over again, but Luffa cared for them too much to simply ignore them.

But that part of the plan had ended before it could truly begin. She had contacted Dr. Topsas on Plutark VII, hoping to strike up a friendship with him while he put her in contact with Wampaaan'riix. Instead, he informed her that Wampaaan'riix had been killed in a Deathmatch tournament.

This had been a huge blow to Luffa, who had never even considered the possibility. In the old reality, Wampaaan'riix had survived the tournament, thanks to Luffa's refusal to kill him. This time, she had skipped the tournament, never suspecting that her Yetitan friend might lose his life to some other opponent.

After hearing the news, she was inconsolable for hours. The worst part was that she couldn't even tell anyone what was bothering her. There was no way to explain it.

In the old reality, she might have commiserated with Zatte through her telepathic abilities, which had become much more sophisticated after Luffa became a Super Saiyan. But in this reality, Luffa was still at the power level she had been at the age of nineteen. Telepathy on that level, with an alien, was impossible.

And eventually, after Luffa had neglected enough mealtimes in her despair, it was Kandai who reached out to comfort her. He didn't know why she was upset. Indeed, she had been distant towards him for days without any apparent reason. But he still knew how to charm her, and how to get her to vent her emotions without hearing the context behind them.

The answer was combat.

Their battleground was on the far side of the planet. Dorlu Prime was mostly a primeval wilderness covered in sparse vegetation and inhospitable wastes. The Dorluns had grand dreams for the planet, but their colony was only a tiny speck of civilization on an otherwise uninhabited world. And so it was easy for Luffa and Kandai to find a suitable place to fight without damaging anything important.

It was a one-sided affair. At her present level, Luffa's powers were no match for Kandai's, but that didn't stop her from hitting him with everything she had. As for Kandai, he held back, allowing Luffa to fight to her fullest without shutting her down too quickly. He still fought back, but only to keep her motivated to try harder.

In the end, Luffa put everything she had left into a final assault, charging all of her power into the fingertips of her left hand, and firing a focused beam of ki at his heart. But he was too fast to hit, and before she could react, he was grasping her by the wrist and spoiling her aim. She tried to headbutt him, only for Kandai to use his free hand to deliver a chop to her neck. Luffa collapsed to the ground in a heap. She was still conscious, but too weary to move.

"Not bad, Luffa," he said as he alighted beside her. "I guess training those blue folks really helped you improve."

"Th-thank you," Luffa said between gasps. When she finally found the strength to roll over onto her back, she saw Kandai had lain down beside her.

"Something's got you all riled up," Kandai said. "I don't know what it is, and I guess you're never gonna tell me, but I could sense it in those punches of yours. Oh, and that red laser beam thing you just used a minute ago. Where'd you learn that one?"

"Long... story..." Luffa said.

"Yeah, well your emotions were all over the place," Kandai said. "It's like you wanted revenge for something, and I don't even know what for. If I didn't know better, I'd think you wanted me dead."

"Maybe..." Luffa said with a bitter chuckle.

"Whatever it is, I'm sorry, okay?" Kandai said.

With a loud grunt, Luffa sat upright, and began grabbing at her black, sleeveless shirt.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"The same thing we always do after we spar," Luffa said as she pulled the shirt over her head and tossed it to the side. "Unless you're not up for it."

"Well, yeah, but I didn't think you'd be in the mood," Kandai said. "You haven't been... I mean, for the last month or so..."

Luffa started taking off her boots next. "I know. I've had a lot on my mind, that's all. And... and..."

He kissed her before she had to struggle to find the words that she couldn't say. Luffa returned his embrace, and they continued on in this way, lying in the crater they had made in the dusty wastes.

She was conflicted about making love to him this way. She was married to him in this world, but in the old reality, they had become enemies, and she had pledged herself to Zatte. It felt wrong to pursue her feelings towards either one, but after the news about Wampaaan'riix, she couldn't stand the isolation any longer. She needed to be held, and to be reassured, and Kandai could understand her without the need for words.

Later, as she lay beside him, her head cradled between his chest and his arm, she decided to ask the question. "Did you know my father was negotiating with the Tikosi?"

"What?" he asked, somewhat drowsily.

"I found out," she said. "Don't ask me how. He was plotting something with them. That's why he was so grim after he found out they were all dead."

"You're kidding, right?" Kandai asked. "No... no, you're serious, aren't you? Well, no. He never said anything to me about it. What the hell were we doing during all those patrols then?"

"They wanted a Saiyan specimen," Luffa said. "That's what the Tikosi would do. They wanted the Dorluns to study their abilities, and they wanted to study our zenkai."

"Luffa, why are you telling me this now?" Kandai asked.

"Because I want a straight answer," Luffa replied. "And you're a lousy liar after we've... well, you know."

"No! He never said anything about this," Kandai said. "What, you think he was going to hand me over to them?"

"I don't know," Luffa lied. "He might have had someone else in mind. Maybe even me."

"You're his daughter."

"So tell me," Luffa said. "If it had been me, he would have had say something to you, sooner or later. Would you have gone along with it?"

"The Tikosi are dead," Kandai said. "Your dad's long gone."

"Answer the question," Luffa insisted.

He sighed, then said: "Well yeah, I probably would have. I mean, what else could I do? Fight your dad and take on all the Tikosi all by myself? I'd just get us both killed."

As chilling as the answer was, Luffa found the honesty refreshing. "I see your point," was all she could think of to say.

"I mean, what would you do if they had picked me instead?" Kandai asked. "You're telling me you'd rush off and die in a fight you knew you couldn't win?"

Luffa was about to say that she would, without question. Her pride as a Saiyan would have demanded it, and the example set by the tales of the Old Heroes would have inspired her to fight in spite of the odds. She had proven her convictions time and again during he career as the Legendary Super Saiyan.

But then she thought of Demigra's truce, and how she still hadn't decided whether or not she would accept it. The conflict with Demigra seemed pointless now. The Time Patrol no longer existed, and the history they had fought for was already gone. How would the Old Heroes of Saiyan Legend have dealt with that?

"I think, once, I would have died for you without hesitation," Luffa said. "Now... I'm not so sure."

"So it's this business with your dad that's been bothering you this whole time," Kandai said. "And you were worried that I was in cahoots with him."

"Let's just say I've been rethinking my whole life," Luffa said. "And I'm seeing everyone I know with a new perspective."

"Oh yeah? And what do you see in me?" Kandai asked.

"You're a pushover," Luffa said.

"Hmph. Yeah, I suppose you've got me there."

"You said before you prefer to go with the flow, that you prefer to be a follower. The truth is you're just a doormat. You'll play along with whoever offers you the safest or most profitable path."

"I never pretended otherwise," Kandai said.

"You're probably right," Luffa said. "I just assumed you were more principled than that. I saw something noble in you, but that was only what I wanted to see. I put you on a pedestal because you were so much stronger than me. The ideal man."

"You weren't complaining a few minutes ago, when I was--"

"Yeah, yeah, you do that part just fine," Luffa said with a wry smile. "I guess I let that cloud my perception too.

"So we can call it off here," Kandai said. "If that's what you want. No hard feelings. Strictly business between us from here on out."

"I didn't say I wanted that," Luffa said.

"Then what do you want?" Kandai asked. "You've always had this glint in your eye, Luffa. Like you craved something with all your heart, and you could never put it into words. So how do we get it for you? You always talked about starting a family, but... well, I think we already know how to do that."

Luffa sat up and looked around for her clothes. "I... I think we should head back to the settlement," she said.

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing!" she said, more anxiously than she wanted to sound. "I just... remembered I needed to check on something."

*******

Luffa did not spend long in the settlement, and headed directly for the Saiyans' ship. She fetched the medical scanner, and waved it around herself. She had done this before, but only to investigate the lack of certain scars on her body. Now, she understood that Demigra had somehow transported her into her younger body, that was no longer a mystery. But something Kandai had said to her in the wastes had convinced her to perform a more thorough examination.

The results were as she suspected, but before she could truly react, she heard Zatte and Kandai on board. They were looking for her, and so she stepped out to greet them.

"I just got back from meeting with the Elders," Zatte said. "It's not perfect, but I think I have a way to join your crew, Luffa."

Luffa was confused for a moment. She had completely forgotten Zatte's report to her superiors.

"Wow, you really worked her over, huh?" Zatte said to Kandai as she pointed at several scrapes and bruises on Luffa's arms and head. "I could sense you two going at it all the way from here."

"Whoa whoa! Hey...!" Kandai said. "You could tell we were--?! Oh, wait, you meant fighting. Well, yeah. Sometimes a little spar is the best way to get out of a funk."

"Sure, it's just weird to see Luffa be the one who gets all worn out," Zatte said. "I can come back later."

"No, it's fine," Luffa said. "The Dorlun Elders. What did they say?"

"In principle, they like the idea of a Dorlun operative maintaining a presence in space," Zatte began. "The problem is that I have obligations here, to this place. I'm not at liberty to explain that, but I can't just be re-assigned offworld so easily."

"So they want some other Dorlun to go with us instead?" Kandai asked. "That wasn't the idea. It's you or nobody."

"That's what I told them," Zatte said. "And they agree, I'm the best qualified for the position. The Elders just don't like one Dorlun running off by herself with a pair of aliens. But I've read the Holybook, and I think there's a way to flip this around to satisfy them."

"Holybook?" Kandai asked.

"Their religious text," Luffa said.

"Oh."

"Basically, if there was a familial connection between us, that would clear everything up. A legal relationship-- like adoption or marriage-- can be just as valid as blood." Zatte paused and looked at them both before continuing. "All right, so this might be a little too radical for you Saiyans, but hear me out. If I was married into your family, then I would have sufficient justification to go with you, and the Elders would approve of my transfer."

"What?" Luffa asked.

"Married to who?" Kandai asked.

"Well, Luffa," Zatte said. "I mean, scripturally, it could be to either one of you, but you're not my type, Kandai. No offense."

"Are you out of your mind?" Luffa exclaimed. She pointed at Zatte, then at Kansai. "I can't marry you, I'm already married!"

"No, this could work," Kandai said. He began to rub his hand over his chin as he considered it. "Once we make it official, we're free and clear, aren't we?"

"That's right," Zatte said. "The marriage itself is the thing. Once that's accomplished, well, I can play it any way you'd like."

"Well, this could work, I guess," Kandai said. "Luffa and I had been talking, and maybe things aren't working out between us as well as we thought."

"Oh?" Zatte said. "I don't want to cause any trouble between you..."

"It's fine," Kandai said. "I'm not that thick-headed. If things play out that way, then so be it. Or Luffa can switch back and forth for a while until she makes up her mind. Right, Luffa?"

"I... I need to get some air," Luffa said.

"What's wrong?" Zatte asked. "Look, if this is a problem for you, I apologize. I just thought--"

Luffa ran past them and kept going until she had made it through the entrance hatch. She did not stop until she reached her personal quarters in the settlement.

It was all wrong. So very wrong. Wampaaan'riix was dead, and Dr. Topsas didn't even know him or Luffa well enough to care. Kandai barely seemed to value their marriage at all, and Zatte was willing to exploit that to get a berth on their ship.

Perhaps it would have been simpler to part ways with Kandai and make a clean break, but even that option was muddied by the results of her medical scan. She was pregnant. It was so early into the term that she hadn't noticed it before, but the scanners could tell. He was only a cluster of cells in her uterus, but her only son, Katem, was already beginning to enter this reality.

She could still cut ties with Kandai anyway. His behavior in the old history had already proven that he cared little for their son. He might have been grateful to be excused from the responsibility of fatherhood, but it still rankled her to consider it.

Then there was Zatte. Luffa felt like their relationship in this reality had gotten off to a wrong start. There was something cynical about Zatte's approach, something she couldn't put her finger on. Then it hit her: The Makyans.

In the old history, the Makyans had captured Zatte after the Tikosi massacre. Luffa never learned exactly when that was supposed to have happened, or why the Makyans had been on Dorlu Prime in the first place. Luffa had rescued Zatte from their power, and that had changed the entire dynamic of their romance. Luffa had no intention of letting Zatte fall into their evil clutches again, but that meant her relationship with Zatte would never be quite the same as what Luffa had once known.

And that only raised further questions. Was it right to keep Zatte off Dorlu Prime to protect her from a possible Makyan raid? Would the Makyans even go to Dorlu Prime without the Tikosi attack to precede it? How could Luffa warn the colonists of a threat she wasn't even sure about? And whatever she decided, what would be the effects of those choices?

Her son, Katem, had died in the old reality, betrayed by everyone who claimed to be on his side. She imagined him as a grown man, still calling himself "Xibuyas"-- the name King Rehval had given him. She imagined him dying, abandoned on some nameless battlefield, wondering why his mother had been too weak to spare him from such a fate. Now, she had a second chance to get things right for him, but was it right? Was it worth Wampaaan'riix's life? And even if it was right, how could Luffa be sure that her son wouldn't end up suffering the same fate, or worse?

She couldn't stand it any longer. Every action, every inaction, every decision she made in this new world was fraught with consequences. It filled her with a dread she couldn't describe, and in her haste to be rid of it, she flung open the cabinet in the corner, and reached out for the glowing scroll that lay inside.

Demigra threatened to kill her if she used it, but that no longer mattered. If he had the power he claimed, then she would die in battle and have done with it. And if not...

She had no idea what a victory over Demigra could even be. If he had truly destroyed all of history, then killing him would mean there would be nothing left, except for her. What then?

The thought of drifting alone in the emptiness was enough to stay her hand. Was that her fate? To be the last survivor of a doomed universe?

Her hands began to tremble. She set her teeth and balled her fists, drawing blood from her palms as she tried to force them to be steady. Then, with a defiant snarl, she reached out and took the scroll, moving as fast as she possibly could, faster than her mind could second-guess herself.

The scroll glowed more intensely as she drew it towards her chest . And just as she wondered what was supposed to happen, the world around her went white.

*******

[??????????????????]

Luffa remembered this place, or at least another one just like it. It was a featureless expanse. The ground was smooth and snow white, while the skies roiled with turbulent aurorae. The scroll was still in her left hand.

"I'm back?" she asked. "This is where I was before I ended up on Dorlu Prime. Isn't it?"

"Yes. It's good to see you, Luffa."

The sound of another voice startled Luffa so much that she nearly jumped out of her boots. She spun around, and found a familiar face, one she had never expected to see.

"Dotz?!" Luffa gasped.

She was a fortune-teller Luffa had befriended at the beginning of the war with the Jindan Cult. Much of her appearance was the same as the last time Luffa had seen her. Dotz was tall, dressed in a long purple gown with hood around her face. A mauve shawl was draped across her shoulders, and her thin bony hands were clasped together in a hopeful gesture. The only differences lay in some of the arcane ornaments she wore, and her age. The Dotz Luffa had known was middle-aged. Now, she looked to be much older. Her once-subtle wrinkles now cut deeper lines in her face, and the greying hair under her hood now shone stark white.

"Oh, goodness. You look just like I remembered," Dotz said with a smile.

Luffa stepped toward her and placed her free hand on Dotz's shoulder. "Where are we, Dotz? Did you bring us here? What happened to you?"

She took a deep breath before answering. "It's funny," she said. "I've been wanting to find you for so long, and now that you're here I can't think of what to say. I, uh, well... I didn't bring us here. Let me start with that. This is just where you happened to be when I finally found you."

"You've been looking for me?" Luffa asked.

Dotz nodded solemnly. "Yes," she said. "Ever since you vanished that day on Planet Nagaoka. Everyone believed you had died. I mean... well, the planet exploded and everyone knew you were there when it happened. It made sense that you had perished there. It made sense to everyone, but not to me."

"I survived," Luffa said. "A magic dragon rescued me and took me into the distant future."

"Yes, yes," Dotz said. "I knew it had to be something like that. Shenron."

"You know about Shenron?" Luffa asked. "Then you know the rest? The Dragon Balls? The Time Patrol?"

"No," Dotz said, "but I've seen bits and pieces in my visions. What I meant was that it had to have something to do with you being sent forward in time. That was why I could never get a proper reading whenever I tried to tell your fortune. My psychic abilities improved after we first met, do you remember?"

Luffa nodded. "We couldn't have fought the war without you, Dotz," she said. "Well, we might have, but it would have been a lot bloodier without your ability to predict which planets the Jindan Cultists would attack. And you worked so hard to improve your abilities even further. I... never really got the chance to tell you how much I respected you for that."

She became overcome with emotion, and before she knew it, she dropped the scroll and embraced Dotz with both arms.

"Oh, well, I wasn't expecting this..." Dotz said.

"I've missed you," Luffa said. "You and all the others... I..."

"There now... it's okay," Dotz said as she patted Luffa on the back. "I... forgot how young you were when you disappeared. To tell the truth, I've been trying to find you for so long, it started to feel like an abstraction. Now that you're here, I... well. It's very good to see you."

"How did you find me?" Luffa asked. "I don't even know where this place is."

"After the war, I continued to develop my abilities," Dotz explained. "It always bothered me that I couldn't tell your fortune, even a little. That's why I didn't believe you died on Nagaoka. That should have been easy to foresee, but I had no idea until it happened. Well, over time, I got better at telling fortunes. I learned some new tricks, and improved on some old ones. I found out you were still alive in the far future, but there was still something obstructing my vision. It took me a while to get it right, but I finally managed to get past that obstacle. And uh... here I am."

"You transported yourself through time?" Luffa asked. "You never had that kind of ability before?"

"Well, no, and I don't have it now," Dotz said. "I'm not really here, Luffa. I can talk to you and touch you, but I think that's just because this vision I'm having is so focused, so clear. There's nothing else here in this time and place. So there's nothing to distract me from what I came to find, which is you."

"Then... then there's nothing you can do," Luffa said.

Slowly, she released Dotz from the embrace and stepped back. "When I saw you, I thought you might have had something to do with the scroll, or this place. Or maybe you could take me back with you."

Dotz shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm not really clear on what's going on. I saw visions of a man, screaming something about making a 'new history.' Is that why there's nothing here? But how did you survive?"

"It's a long story," Luffa said. "A goddess of time needed my help to stop an evil wizard, and I failed. He destroyed... everything." She waved at the emptiness around them, as if Dotz had not already seen it for herself. "He said he made a timeline just for me to live in if I left him alone... but... it's no good, Dotz. I'd just make a mess of that world too."

Luffa pointed at the scroll she had dropped. "He told me that if I changed my mind, I could use that scroll to take me to him for a final battle. But instead it just took me to this place. I don't know why. I don't understand any of it."

"What about the other one?" Dotz asked. "I sensed another presence in this time."

"Who?" Luffa asked. "As far as I know, it's just Demigra and myself at the end of existence. Who else could there be? Wait... you don't mean..."

"That's right. She's referring to me."

The new voice was not one Luffa had heard before. She and Dotz looked around, but found no sign of the speaker.

"Who's there?" Luffa asked, unsure whether she actually wanted answer. She nearly suggested that Dotz should stay close to her, but thought better of it. Even if Dotz were truly here, what could Luffa possibly do to protect her?

At last, she noticed the scroll beginning to glow a brighter shade of purple, and it unfurled all on its own. Luffa watched as something began to emerge from the parchment, like an animal rising up from a murky swamp. The form was indistinct, more like a glowing fog than a person. Then, as it cleared the parchment, it took shape, and Luffa could recognize the vague outline.

"It can't be," Luffa said. "I mean, you're the only one left, but how can you be here?"

Despite Luffa's confusion, there was no mistaking the Divine Tokitoki Bird. He floated there with outstretched wings, and stared intently at Luffa.

"Well then, Luffa," the voice said. "Are you finally ready to fight?"

NEXT: One With Everything.

[inferniso]

✢⁎. headcanons

disclaimer this is a Lot and like half of it ain’t coherent:

first and foremost, idunn is being taken shortly after the good ending of fe6 (think a few months after that last cutscene). this lands her in a spot that’s slightly more developed/healed than what we see at the end of the game, but a long ways off from ascended! idunn. that alt is pretty clearly meant to be a longshot future where she can smile and laugh just by seeing you on the homescreen. my idunn is... getting there. so i reference bits and pieces of what it shows us, depending on what i feel is appropriate.

speak of ascended! idunn! her appearance. or more specifically, her dragon form. it can be inferred from the fact that she was once a divine dragon that idunn used to bear more of a resemblance to fae in this form, and the special art of ascended! idunn supports this with its “chicken” wings and feathered tail-tip. however, it also has one scaled wing, and the base of her tail is black and more similar to the demon dragon form (plus her head is the same). thus it is my personal hc that after having her soul restored and her personality slowly grow inside her, idunn’s dragon form changes to reflect this--gradually reverting back to that of the divine style. right now it’s an amalgamation of a demon dragon head, tail-base, and lower/back-left wing, while the main body + limbs, other three wings, and tail-tip comprise her divine parts. 

she’s a character who has internalized both she/her and it/its pronouns, and will respond to either. generally, i’ll use it/its when referring to idunn’s past as the dark priestess and at times where she feels particularly alienated, and she/her otherwise. your muses are free to interpret and use these pronouns however they wish.

i hate the possessed villain trope, alright. i think robbing a character of guilt and remorse stunts their growth, and part of learning to accept herself must include dealing with the fact that idunn’s actions have permanent consequences. i do believe that people--especially innocent families harmed by idunn’s dragons across elibe--do not forgive her for all that she’s done, and to some extend she struggles with this too. idunn is fortunate enough to have really good support systems in fae and the other arcadians, but it will take some time before she isn’t fearful of her own self.

i also write her as holding onto the belief that she is going to lead the world and bring it peace. it never goes away after she becomes herself again, much like her desire to do something that would make the zephiel who rescued her happy.

her presence is a large one and can easily be detected by the magically adept/other dragons who have the ability to do so.

i welcome any and all legendary weapon headcanons! idunn sort of sees the events of fe6 through the lens of a really horrible dream, and so she regards those who fought her in the final map in the same way as the eight legends of elibe. the baseline instinct for this is fear, of course, for their power and that of the weapons, but she tries to see the good qualities of the eight and apply them to their successors in any way she can. if you want your muse to have used one of the weapons against her, just let me know and maybe look it over with any current roy muns.

she still has the power to summon war dragons, but doing so makes her lose control of her soul, so she tries to avoid it if possible. there may, potentially be a dire scenario in which she must in order to protect someone she cares about, but she’d need to be in the presence of someone she knows could bring her back if she chooses to do so. 

in terms of toa-specific headcanons, i think that in line with forgetting much of her previous personality and the concept of like, everything, idunn is only just learning to read. it’s been thousands of years since she was herself so even if she could have read at some point, the language she knows is considered ancient. she’s gotten a good start in arcadia, but is hoping to learn more at the academy!

she loves music! not surprising considering her admiration for nature and simpler things, but i like the idea that dragons are particularly enthralled by it. the flute is her instrument of choice, and if she picks up lessons at the academy it’d be for that.

and finally, though i don’t foresee myself really ever getting into shipping with idunn, she currently has no understanding of romantic love and just barely one of familial/platonic love. if she ever does catch feelings for someone, it’d be after a long healing process learning how to catch feelings.

[sethmillerwrites]

What makes a legend?

Coda pondered that thought many times throughout her life. Growing up, she heard legends of revolutions, heroes, love, and sacrifice. In order for a Revolution, there must be Corruption and Power to revolt against. In decades past, Humanity subjugated herself. Enslaved by her own hubris, her own expansion, and the very systems which kept her alive.

The Russo-American Union of the 2040s was the flashpoint. A solid line where humanity finally conquered herself completely. All was lost. She saw the stars, and her own curiosity led her to reach out, and lose her arm. Swept away by the currents, the Arm of humanity rebelled. Heroes. Great men and women, struck back at their own subjugation, strengthened by their distance from the dictators of their fate. The Perseus Arm Alliance became their own masters, but once again, subjugated herself, becoming a mere reflection of her motherland.

Another hero, an explorer, a poet, and a visionary, opened up the sky to all. When before, all she could do was reach, now she could fly. A network of wormholes, and other beings in the sky that could descend from the heavens. However, flying has it’s own risks, fly too close to the sun, and her wings would melt.

They would fly when necessary, but never too fast or too far. The beings in the sky would stay in the sky, the Mother and the Daughter would stay in their own domains.

Once again, the sky was opened up! Bridges, from Star to distant Star. Now the beings could mingle, trade, love, hate, and kill. There were the estranged Mother and Daughter, the Merchant, the Old Predator, the Philospher, and the Wicked King.

Coda loved the writings of the poet Jetty Brown. She loved the metaphors of the many alien civilizations being winged beings in the sky. Brown’s tales told history through the style of ancient myth. Coda loved the style of her idol so much, she’d written her own story of her people, the Revaeli.

Coda’s story was of the lost and rebellious sons and daughters of the great beings in the sky. In a time decades past, they ran to their very own star. They toiled day and night in construction, and built a Galley to sail the night sky. No bridges, no wings, and they lived off the fish they caught and the water they soared through. They loved each other, they cared for each other, and they provided for each other.

The Philosopher’s daughter would hold the Compass, and guide them true, with the blessing of her Father. Her arms were strong and held the rudder. The Rebel Son of the Wicked King would sew the sails of the ship when they tore, and he would hoist them back into place. The Merchant’s Brother would keep them fed and their storage full of riches with his honest and faithful dealings. There was the Fisherman, who loved the thrill of the catch, not the taste of the fish.

There were many more in Coda’s Grand Crew, but her favorite was the Little Brother of the Estranged Daughter. He was a weak and timid boy when the crew found him. They fed him, and let him row the boat. He didn’t fit in at first, until the Monsters from the Sea attacked the boat! He was strong from rowing, and brave from facing the sea his whole life. He struck the creature in the eye, blinding it with his great oaken Oar. To this day, the Little Brother is known as the Dragon, the Protector, and the Rower.

…

Captain Maverick walked into the barracks. Coda closed her notebook suddenly, then played it off like she was just finishing her writing anyways.

“We have a lead on Barros,” the captain said, a touch of excitement showing through his stoic demeanor.

“About damn time!”

[visenyaism]

I am back to show my work via incredibly undercooked notes app essay i’ve had for a while. So I stand by the idea that the non-targaryens in fire and blood are more interesting in that watching the ways in which regular people have to twist themselves around to fit within this monarchical system run by decidendly alien incest blood curse practitioners is FASCINATING because really it is all about integrating yourself within the paradigm of dragon-magic-assisted state violence.

Which takes us to big point: fundamentally Criston Cole and Nettles are both answers to this question that the narrative asks: “What happens when the lowborn are elevated to positions of historical consequence and societal power because of their usefulness in war/capability to commit violence?”

Initially, there’s there’s a lot of similarities in how they respond to that question: ultimately, this idea of class elevation means you have to follow all of the societal rules perfectly without any of the exceptions made for Targaryens because unlike them, you have everything to lose. (see: criston being rightfully concerned his affair with rhaenyra will lead to his execution vs. nettles almost getting executed due to rumored getting groomed by daemon) The operative difference between those two examples being the insertion of gender into that power dynamic. Nettles has to fight classism AND misogyny to the extent that she gets NO acceptable way to be, and has to flee the country.

The aspect of being elevated from lowborn status also carries with it the implication that no matter how far you rise you still belong to whoever elevated you there in the first place before you belong to yourself (Criston fully personally belonging to Rhaenyra who named him and then Alicent who kept them around/ Nettles belonging to Jace who started the dragonseed effort and then Daemon who decided she should follow him around personally for uh. reasons.)

I’m about to mix show and book canon so feel free to tell me to kill my self if you’re from dragon twitter and you hate that shit. BUT. there’s also the parallel of both being products of ongoing cycles of violence (criston’s dornish mother and marcher father, nettles and the dragonseeds being products of centuries of state-sanctioned rape of lowborn women on dragonstone and driftmark by the valyrian lords.) And then despite being products of this violence and conquest when they are first elevated to power it is because of violence against groups they are themselves somewhat a part of (show criston earning his knighthood fighting the dornish in the marches/nettles being immediately asked to prove herself fighting and killing other dragons because this is the only way to elevate herself. She can’t even stop her home from burning.)

But Criston and Nettles’ final responses to that big question i asked earlier ultimately diverge a LOT.

Criston as a character really is this big allegory for the role knights (especially the kingsguard as agents of state violence) and unquestioningly following the inherently cruel societal rules for knightly behavior has on history. And this allegory wished really hard to be a real boy and then it came true. He dies trying to follow the Rules, getting shot while demanding fair parley in a war that he had an incredibly pivotal role in starting because of his belief in the rules of supremacy of male primogeniture.

Criston gives his entire life to violently enforcing the rules of this paradigm, he’s the perfect ideal of a westerosi knight and this actively makes him a terrible and completely empty person. And because he is lowborn, all he IS is his ability to be an agent of state violence. there’s no exceptions no flexibility it’s just him and his black and white morality that stops him from experiencing complete societal freefall. The Rules don’t save him, and he dies (notably shot by crossbows which fellow sword violence enjoyer jaime lannister will not shut up about being a coward’s weapon outside of the knightly paradigm.)

In contrast, Nettles faces several attempts by the Targaryen monarchy to bring her into the fold, but she ultimately CANNOT give up her identity, her compassion, or her bond with her dragon primarily being one built on mutual respect and wonder. She cannot follow these rules, which IS partially because misogynistic double standards give her no option to actually follow all the expectations without being killed by someone or another. But as a result, she is kicked out of not only the narrative, but Westerosi society as a whole, having to find a home with the free folk in the Vale. She escapes with her life, but as a result literally belongs nowhere.

Unlike a lot of other dragonriders in the text, Nettles’ bond with Sheepstealer isn’t a symbol of dynastic power, an agent of class mobility like it is for the other dragonseeds, or something given to her, it’s something she earned herself and feels personally and deeply. Her being named a dragonseed and part of the Targaryen dynasty is explicitly called out for being this like. veneer to co-opt her power into the targaryen narrative of blood supremacy and dragonriding.

Criston ultimately gets remembered as a Kingsguard knight, historicized as being morally grey despite his extreme and terrible violence because he can’t be completely evil, he followed all the rules! Nettles is remembered as a lowborn girl before anything else. The only way to survive that system of classist misogynistic feudal violence is to reject it entirely, but to do so means you also get punished in historical memory. Only way through is OUT.

what are your thoughts on nettles?

understanding nettles and criston cole as narrative foils is the key to unlocking the secret good fire and blood that is about unpacking ways in which the targaryen dynasty maintained control through class, gender, and state violence. and also dragon magic.

[npdclaraoswald]

Another crosspost from my instagram, this time for Lesbian Visibility Week. It has been a while since I read some of these, so I may be misremembering and accidentally including some mspec protags instead of just lesbian rep, but they're all definitely sapphic!

[Image: a series of edits all with the lesbian flag as a background with a semi-transparent white square overlaid to make the text more easily read. The first one has text reading “5 Star Lesbian Reads.”

The next image has the cover of The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. It has an orange background and a castle with one tall tower. The tower has a blue dragon wrapped around it. Accompanying text reads “In the West, dragons are feared and hated. Ead is tasked with protecting a queen whose bloodline supposedly prevents dragons from rising. In the East, dragons are celebrated. Tane has trained her whole life to be a dragon rider. Their lives will come together to prevents chaos from rising across the world.” Above the cover, the book is labeled “fantasy.”

The next image has the cover of Dreadnought by April Daniels. It has the silhouette of a woman standing in front of a cityscape and a colorful sky. She is wearing a blue cape billowing in the wind. The text reads “A closeted trans teenager inherits the powers of the world’s most popular superhero, and part of the powers transform her to her ideal self. She must then deal with being outed by her transformation and also inheriting the hero’s nemesis.” Above the cover, the book is labeled “superhero.”

The next image has the cover of The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar. vIt has a drawing of two girls looking at each other and touching hands over a pink background. The girl on the left has brown skin and eyes and black, wavy hair, She also has a nose ring. The girl on the right has black skin, brown eyes, and black, curly hair. They both have intricate henna designs on their hands. The text next to it reads “Nishat is crushing hard on a classmate but trying to stay in the closet. When the school has a contest for students to start small businesses and her crush starts a culturally appropriative henna business, she becomes even more conflicted.” Text above the cover labels it “contemporary.”

The next image has the cover of This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. It has a cardinal with a bluejay reflected underneath it over a light blue background. The accompanying text reads “Agents on opposite ends of a war across time and space leave notes taunting each other, but slowly develop a fondness for each other.” Text above the cover labels it “sci fi.”

The next image has the cover of The Seep by Chana Porter. It shows a bouquet of flowers with three hands also emerging from it over a black background. The text next to it reads “Aliens peacefully invade, bringing world changing technology. Trina breaks down and must relearn how to navigate the world when her wife uses the tech to turn herself into a baby.” The text above labels it “sci fi.”

The next image has the cover of Eight Kinky Nights by Xan West. It shows two women. The one on the left has short, greying hair and is wearing a suit. She is sitting in an armchair with a cane resting against it and is holding a leash connected to the other woman’s collar. The woman on the right has long, black, wavy hair and a flower tattoo. She wears a collar, dress, and leather cuffs. She is kneeling on a pillow. There are dishes scattered in front of them, a table holding a menorah with six lit candles is behind them, and a list is taped to the wall. The text reads “Sex educator and sub Leah gifts her newly divorced and novice dom best friend Jordan 8 lessons on kink for Channukah.” The text above the cover labels it “romance.”

The final image has the cover for Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant. It shows a flailing, grayscale arm with blood pouring out of it and spreading as though in water over a black background. The text next to it reads “A group of scientists and media personnel are recruited to investigate the loss of a ship that was filming a mockumentery when they were supposedly attacked by mermaids.” The text above the cover labels it “horror.” End.]

[vhenanshiral]

On the Topic of Seiya Kou.

This is a Sailor Moon post rather than a Dragon Age post. Shocker, I know, but Sailor Moon is another one of my loves. This will focus on the 90s anime adaptation of the manga. So do not come at me with “but in the manga,” because the 90s adaptation and the manga were incredibly different in multiple ways. Seiya will be referred to as she/her because the male form was a disguise. That being said, any interpretation of Seiya’s gender is valid and I love them all! Anyway. I see a lot of shit talking about Seiya and it’s honestly ... super tiring. So many of the “negative” points against Seiya are misinterpreted, misunderstood, and misrepresented for the sake of making her look like a dumpster fire. 1. “Seiya is creepy towards Usagi and stalks her.” Except ... she doesn’t. They meet by accident numerous times, and in fact Usagi even seeks Seiya out. They develop a friendship, and it’s normal and natural for friends to seek each other out. Usagi and the girls actually, literally stalk the Three Lights more than once during the season. 2. “Seiya thinks Usagi is weak because she told Mamoru to take care of her when they left.” This honestly makes no sense to me. It is repeatedly shown that Seiya admires Usagi’s strength, both as Usagi and as Sailor Moon. It is natural to want the people you love to be protected, and that does not mean that you think they’re weak and incapable of protecting themselves. Seiya knew Usagi was capable and strong because she had seen her demonstrate these traits multiple times. Throughout the season, Seiya repeatedly lifts Usagi up with her confidence in her capabilities. This is even before she knows she is Sailor Moon. Let’s not forget that when Galaxia kills all of the Inners, they ask the Starlights to protect Sailor Moon, so saying that Seiya telling Mamoru to take care of her means she thinks she is weak ... that must mean everyone else thinks she is too, right? It’s absurd. 3. “Seiya can’t take ‘no’ for an answer, always hits on her, and is constantly pressuring her into a relationship.” It is true that Seiya repeatedly quips about “having a chance” with Usagi. It’s also true that Usagi repeatedly reminds Seiya that she has a boyfriend. But it isn’t true that Seiya repeatedly attempts to coerce her into a relationship. It also isn’t true that she does it all the time. While she shouldn’t have done it even more than once (when she was unaware of Usagi’s relationship status,) it’s obvious from the context that she isn’t being serious. Seiya repeatedly making quips is an issue, and while those kinds of situations can and often do mean someone is being a “Nice Guy,” a predator, an abuser, etc., we know from everything that we see that it is not the case with Seiya. Let’s take the “date,” for an example: Seiya throws it out there (literally, just time and place and walks off) and Usagi willingly shows up the next day and is even irritated that Seiya is late. Usagi is not forced or coerced into the date; she retains all of the power regarding whether or not she shows up. She would not have gone if she didn’t want to. Actually, let’s look at these instances of Seiya hitting/making a move on Usagi. - In the “date” episode, Usagi thinks that Seiya is going to make a move on her. Some suggest that Usagi thinks she is going to kiss her, but the language, Usagi’s expressions, and her reaction to the truth seem to imply that she thinks Seiya is suggesting something more intimate. - In the episode with the beach monster when Chibi Chibi opens up the door and pushes Seiya over on to Usagi, Usagi is the one who, again, assumes Seiya is up to No Good, despite it being a complete accident and innocent on Seiya’s part. - In the episode where Seiya spends the night at Usagi’s because she’s alone and Seiya very nearly confesses who she is to Usagi while they’re in her bedroom, it is Usagi who believes that Seiya is going to confess to having a crush on her. - Later in that same episode, when they are hiding in the cabinet and Seiya again thinks about confessing her true identity to her, it is Usagi who thinks Seiya is about to suggest something intimate. In fact, throughout the season, it is everyone from Usagi, to the other girls, to single-episode characters, to even Luna who think that Seiya is going to suggest or attempt illicit activities with Usagi, and not Seiya. It is all but explicitly stated that Usagi is attracted to Seiya. Not just because of the implications of her assumptions, but also because she is scolded over it. In fact, Rei tells her that she needs to sort her feelings out. Haruka and Michiru forbid her from seeing Seiya because she has Mamoru. She may not love Seiya the same way, but she is attracted to her and she does love her (and Usagi being attracted to other people is not a new thing.) Let’s look at the softball episode, because it’s ... pretty problematic and people often point to it as being one of the episodes that paint Seiya as some creepy stalker who can’t just take a hint and tells everyone that Usagi is her girlfriend. It is Rei who thinks that Seiya training Usagi in softball is inappropriate (let’s remember that it is Ami who thinks that something illicit is going on with Seiya and Usagi in the bodyguard episode...) because Mamoru is Usagi’s boyfriend, not Seiya. It is Sonoko who insists that Seiya’s “relationship” with Usagi isn’t acceptable, and it is her that places the bet that if Seiya’s team loses, she’s not to associate with Usagi anymore. Seiya agrees because she’s competitive, hates to lose, has confidence in herself and Usagi, and knows that Sonoko is wrong. When Usagi tries to interject about the actual nature of their relationship (that they’re not dating,) it’s the girls who shush her because they’re expecting Seiya’s team to lose and that will give them the opportunity to make Seiya feel better. I want to touch on the “Seiya knows Sonoko is wrong” part. I think what a lot of people don’t think about is that when Sonoko placed this bet and openly stated her disapproval of Seiya spending time with Usagi, Sonoko was attacking Usagi’s worth as a person. She was openly saying that Usagi wasn’t good enough to be hanging out with Seiya in any capacity. Seiya took issue with this because she obviously believes and knows differently. She values Usagi as a person. Who is Sonoko to decide who is and isn’t good enough to spend time with her? Seiya is not approaching the situation with entirely selfish motives, unlike the girls who fed into the Seiya/Usagi romance for the hopeful eventuality of them being able to comfort Seiya after a loss when she’ll be forced to stop hanging out with Usagi. She uses this situation to help bolster Usagi’s confidence in herself. That doesn’t change the fact that the bet is stupid to begin with, but it is what it is. Oh, additionally ... Seiya doesn’t tell the school that she and Usagi are dating. Them dating is an assumption that Seiya simply doesn’t correct. It’s worth noting that if she did correct that assumption, it would feed into Sonoko’s declaration that Usagi isn’t good enough to be with Seiya. 4. “Seiya tried to make the rooftop scene about herself and used it as a way to try to take Mamoru’s place in Usagi’s life.” This whole entire scene is consistently misinterpreted and has all of the context ripped from it, because that is not what that scene is. No, it 100% was not the best time for Seiya to ask that question (and no, it is not “can I take his place?” that she says,) but people tend to forget that Usagi is not the only vulnerable person in this scene and it isn’t just about her. It is Seiya who triggers Usagi’s emotional breakdown on accident, and in these moments she is watching the person she loves crumble into pieces. The rooftop scene is about both of them and the context makes that clear. Up until this point, the only person who knew that Mamoru wasn’t keeping in contact with Usagi was Seiya. None of the girls knew, none of them. Imagine the amount of trust Usagi had to have in Seiya in order to share that incredibly sensitive information with her and with no one else, not even her closest friends. Usagi had told Seiya a whole 13 episodes before this one, and since finding out Seiya tried her best to make Usagi happy and to keep her mind busy. It isn’t until a few episodes after this that everyone including Seiya finds out that Mamoru is dead. So Seiya spends all of this time believing that Mamoru ditched Usagi when he moved overseas and that he’s a horrible boyfriend who obviously doesn’t care about Usagi. This is naturally hurtful to Seiya, who grows to genuinely like and love Usagi through the season. She cares for her and doesn’t want to see her in pain, which is why she does her best to help Usagi feel less alone. There is no point in the season where Seiya’s intentions are to maliciously shove herself into Mamoru’s place in Usagi’s life. She has no idea who Tuxedo Mask is. She had no idea that throwing the red rose - her own personal trademark - was going to trigger such an emotional response from Usagi. So here they both are on this rooftop in the middle of the pouring rain. Usagi’s breaking down over how alone she feels, and Seiya’s suddenly faced with the realization that not only did she cause this breakdown, everything she had been trying to do to help her wasn’t working and she failed again. She couldn’t save her system/planets, 99.9% of her people are literally dead because she wasn’t strong enough to save them, and she and the other two members of her team had no idea where their princess was or even if she was okay until the episode before this one. Immediately after the destruction of everything they knew, the Starlights had to flee to an alien planet with alien people, disguise themselves, and pander to a bunch of complete strangers that salivated over, stalked, and harassed them, all while searching for their princess  and fighting the minions of the person who ctrl+a ctrl+x’ed their home system. She had no time to process any of the unimaginable loss and failure she had suffered through. When people talk about the rooftop scene and about how Seiya “makes it about herself,” this is everything they’re forgetting. When Seiya is asking Usagi if she isn’t good enough, it isn’t Seiya trying to weasel her way in, it’s Seiya both coping with her own numerous losses and trying to remind Usagi that she’s there for her. In the end, Seiya is the one that Usagi credits with being able to get herself through everything she was dealing with.

[rikalovesrice]

Trollhunters : Rise of The Titans [Rika’s Version!]

AIGHT SO THIS IS WHAT SHOULD’VE FREAKIN’ HAPPENED --

The movie starts a year after Wizards. We see Douxie, Archie, and Nari all settled in Metro City. Douxie managed to get a dinky little apartment and works two jobs. He comes home after a long day to Nari and Archie.

Maybe Nari’s running around chasing after Archie. Maybe the two of them are curled up on the couch and snoozing. Douxie smiles softly, petting Archie’s head and gently brushes Nari’s hair out of her face. Maybe Nari was singing to one of her plants and just beams when Douxie walks through the door. Just Magical Siblings and Their Therapy Cat fluff.

But that night, Douxie wakes up. Something feels very, very wrong. Nari feels it, too. 

Cut to the door to their apartment being busted right through, flames quickly consuming the threshold. To Douxie’s horror, it’s the Arcane Order and he immediately goes on the offensive. This is the first display in the movie of Douxie’s strength as a Master Wizard, his proficiency and skill with his magic as he holds his own against Bellroc and Skrael as he did in Wizards. He tells Archie to take Nari and run but neither of them want to leave him behind. Archie instead fights beside Douxie, urging for Nari to escape while she can. Nari’s reluctant because Douxie and Archie have become so precious to her.

When it looks like they’re about to be done in, Archie wills himself to transform into a huge dragon, taking Douxie and Nari into his claws and flying out of there, busting straight out of the apartment. But not before giving Bellroc and Skrael a thrashing with his tail. They manage to give the Order the slip. For now.

Archie quickly loses steam from holding such a form and crashes on the outskirts of the city, transforming back into a cat. Douxie cradles him in his arms. Nari tends to their wounds with her magic, looking forlorn. 

Douxie frantically dials a number on his phone. 

“Claire? Claire it’s me...” A column of fire erupts in the distance. A shot of Douxie, Archie, and Nari huddled close. “They found us.”

Trollhunters : Rise of the Titans Title Screen

The scene fades in on the new and improved Camelot, where the Lakes are staying. We see Jim spending time with his mother and Walter and it’s lovely. We see a hint of Jim’s trauma when he’s cooking and looks at his reflection in a spatula. He flinches away. He doesn’t want to look at himself. Barbara comforts him, a tender heartfelt moment between them.

Claire then emerges from a shadow portal with grim news : The Arcane Order have found Douxie and Nari.

Jim gathers his friends. Claire shadow portals them all to Douxie, who’s found shelter in a hut Nari made from tree roots. Douxie’s cast a barrier to hide their presence, though it won’t last long. 

It’s a really sweet and awesome reunion. Douxie gives Claire and Steve big hugs. Nari bounds up to Toby and holds his hand. Jim, Krel, and Douxie have a “good to see you again, bro” moment between them. Aaarrgh licks his lips at the sight of Archie.

It’s here that Douxie gives the deets on what’s happened. As they begin to figure out a way to keep Nari safe and away from the Order, Nari suddenly says, “No.”

After almost losing Douxie and Archie, her new family, Nari decides enough is enough. She wants to face her corrupted siblings head-on. To not only protect the world, but her newfound friends. 

Douxie understandably protests. But Nari, gentle but resolute, tells him she’s made up her mind. No more running.

And so, Douxie acquiesces. 

Cue the sequence/fight scene on the train!

Nari realizes what Douxie’s doing when it’s too late. They switch bodies and Douxie’s taken away by the Order. 

“Douxie, I’m so sorry...I couldn’t save her,” Claire laments.

Nari, in Douxie’s body, “N-no...No, I am fine. But Douxie...Douxie!”

Everyone’s like, “Oh no” but then oof, they all get arrested.

The police department scene! With Krel and the Blanks busting everyone out.

Now, we find ourselves back on Camelot where Jim’s being attended to by Walter and Barbara after waking up from a nightmare. Bellroc’s words torment him : “Without your Amulet, you are nothing but a frightened! Little!! BOY!!!”

Walter suggests Jim should lay low, let his friends handle things. Jim reaches a real low point here. Claire provides some comfort. Hand in hand, they make their way to the Round Table, where everyone’s licking their wounds. 

Blinky explains to them that the Order wants to awaken the Titans and need all three members of the Order to do so. While everyone’s relieved that Nari’s safe, Douxie’s now in the Order’s clutches and they want to figure out a way to save him.

Nari, sad and grim, says that Douxie’s spell will eventually wear off.

“He is, as humans say, buying us time...”

Cut to Douxie (in Nari’s body) with the Order. Douxie doesn’t make a sound, not wanting to give anything away. They try the ritual and when it fails, Bellroc and Skrael quickly suspect foul play. They realize that Nari isn’t Nari and proceed to forcefully, painfully, undo Douxie’s spell.

Douxie wakes up, back in his own body. He’s swarmed by his friends, all overcome with relief that he’s alright, but it’s short-lived. The Order has Nari. 

Douxie manages to recall where the Order took him. Before they head out, a downtrodden Jim says he should stay behind, going back to the bed chamber. Claire goes to talk to him, but Douxie stops her.

“Let’s give him some space,” Douxie says gently, though he looks just as concerned for Jim. “In the meantime,” he summons his staff, “we’ll hunt the Order down, put a stop to their schemes, and bring Nari home.”

Everyone heads to the warehouse-train track place (I forgot what it was called rip). Just then, Aja comes flying in, having been contacted by Krel. The Tarron siblings have a sweet, wholesome, long-awaited reunion. Also Staja and Creepslayerz reunited!

Aja cautions Steve about the whole seventh kiss-pregnancy thing and he quickly decides that, yeah no, he’s not quite ready for that. His Alien Queen Muffin (or whatever the heck he called her) is back and that’s all that matters to him. Also wtf Eli’s hot and taller than him now.

There’s a cute moment of Douxie and Aja really meeting for the first time. Aja recognizes him.

“Oh! You were the hand-reading waiter boy!”

Upon hearing she’s a Queen, Douxie’s Medieval chivalry kicks in and he bows at the waist.

“The name’s Hisirdoux, Your Majesty.” After Aja butchers his name, he says “Douxie” will do just fine. 

Nomura abruptly reminds them they don’t have time for pleasantries. They get to it. Douxie figures out the sigil and the illusion fades, revealing the Order performing their ritual with a brainwashed Nari. They’re unable to stop it and the Order members teleport away to join with their respective Titans. We see each of the Titans rising.

The Arcadia Gang regroups back on Camelot to form a plan. Jim, discouraged and deeply troubled, is leaning over a rail, head in his hands. Douxie comes up beside him, silent.

Jim eventually asks how things went. When Douxie tells him they failed and the Titans have risen, Jim feels even more powerless and guilt-ridden.

“I’m sorry...I’m sorry, I couldn’t...I can’t do anything. Without the Amulet I’m not the Trollhunter anymore and I’m just...useless--”

Douxie cuts him off, putting a hand on Jim’s shoulder. 

“Jim. That’s not true. Do you remember what I told you? That our strength doesn’t come from special trinkets. Our strength...” Douxie finally gets Jim to look at him, “comes from our friends. From each other. All of us together. That includes you.”

“But...without my Amulet how can I do anything--”

Douxie smiles gently. “By being true to yourself, Jim. As we, your friends, are true to you.”

Just then, Claire joins them and asks if Jim’s okay. Jim smiles as Douxie ruffles his hair.

“I will be. Thanks.”

Jim, Claire, and Douxie find everyone arguing at the Round Table. Aja is wanting to evacuate everyone off of Earth, to which Blinky protests. Everyone just keeps going back and forth until Jim yells for them to stop.

Time to divide and conquer, cutting back and forth between each battle with the Titans.

Aja, Krel, Steve, and Eli tackle the Fire Titan.

Blinky, Toby, and Nomura handle the Ice Titan, with Walter and Barbara steering Camelot.

Jim, Claire, Douxie, and Aaarrgh go for the Earth Titan. Douxie’s hoping to get through to Nari and break her free from the Order’s control.

Aja and Krel fight the Fire Titan side by side on their hoverboard. Steve and Eli help civilians off the bridge and keep them safe. 

Varvatos Vex in his giant robo mech incoming, along with a handful of Akiridion warships.

The Fire Titan proves to be too powerful and defeats Varvatos’ robot, melting down the Akiridion troops in the process. Aja and Krel are knocked down from their hoverboard. They and Varvatos retreat as the Fire Titan continues to burn a path towards its destination.

Toby and Nomura attempt to zipline their way to the Ice Titan to take down Skrael with Akiridion bombs. When the rope fails, Walter extends his wings to save them, but his wings quickly freeze. 

Nomura grabs the bombs and sacrifices herself, bidding a heartwrenching farewell to Toby and her longtime friend, thanking them both. She asks Toby to tell Jim she said goodbye. Ever agile, Nomura scales the Ice Titan and detonates the bombs.

But to everyone’s horror, the Ice Titan only puts itself back together. Walter sinks to his knees. Toby throws down his helmet. Their friend sacrificed herself for nothing.

Aaarrgh is charging after the Earth Titan, Douxie, Jim, and Claire hanging onto his back. Claire shadow portals the three of them onto the Titan’s back. Douxie begins to plead with Nari, even as she constricts him with vines.

Douxie manages to grab her hand. He begins to break the mind-control with his magic, still calling out to Nari as he’s losing the ability to breathe. 

Douxie’s voice reaches her and she breaks free. Nari frantically asks where she is, if she hurt him or his friends. Douxie, overcome with relief, just embraces her.

“You’re here with us, Nari...You’re here with us.”

Nari assures them they have a Titan on their side now. They receive communication from the Tarrons, who warn them that the Ice Titan is getting close to Arcadia.

No time to wonder why Skrael’s headed there. Claire makes a massive shadow portal to Arcadia (the field trip scene!), taking Nari’s Titan with them. Nari tries to reason with Skrael, but he’s having none of it.

NARI VS SKRAEL COMMENCE!

The Tarrons and Creepslayerz arrive on scene. Douxie boards Aja’s hoverboard and together they fire lazers and magic at the Ice Titan. Varvatos dashes and slashes his way up the Titan. Claire, Jim, Krel, Steve, and Eli work to rescue the school bus from getting crushed.

Well, it does get crushed but thankfully everyone made it off. Then, Archie comes flying in with his father, Charlemagne. Charlie flies all the students and Coach to safety. Archie joins Douxie in the air, blasting Skrael with fire.

“C’mon and face the music, Skrael!!!” Douxie summons Spellcaster and starts shredding.

Enraged, Skrael releases a devastating burst of magic that knocks Douxie, Aja, and Varvatos away. Nari seizes the opportunity to impale Skrael’s Titan, but not before Nari’s fatally wounded by him in return. Both Titans collapse.

Douxie runs to Nari, desperately calling her name. She’s on the ground, dying. Everyone gathers around, devastated. Douxie holds Nari in his arms. Archie nuzzles Nari’s arm, tears forming in his eyes. Douxie’s already crying.

“No..No, no, Nari, please...” Douxie holds her hand. “Nari, don’t go, please...!”

“It is okay, Douxie...Do not be sad...”

“I’m sorry...I’m sorry, I said I would protect you...” Douxie leans down, almost touching his forehead to hers (it’s Harry and Dobby y’all). His tears fall onto her face. “I said I would protect you...!”

“You did something greater, Douxie...” Nari squeezes his hand. Tears of her own roll down her cheeks. “You gave me a home. And many, many friends....” Douxie sobs harder, holding her close. “You saved me, Douxie...” She’s beginning to fade. She smiles, her eyes closing. “Thank you...Thank...”

Nari fades, wisps of magic and flower petals slipping through Douxie’s fingers. Douxie wails, Archie pressing close. Jim and Claire lay their hands on his shoulders. Claire hugs him.

Krel is then alerted that the Fire Titan is also on the move towards Arcadia.

Everyone reconvenes on Camelot. They all mourn the deaths of Nomura and Nari. 

They learn that Bellroc is headed towards Arcadia, the center of the universe, because that’s where the last Heartstone is. If at least one Titan reaches the Heartstone, the world will be wiped clean.

Before they head out, Douxie and the Tarrons present Jim with a brand new Amulet, forged from magic and Akiridion technology. That, and the stone in which Excaliber lodged itself. Douxie encourages Jim to try once more. 

Jim steps up on the stone, gazing fondly at his friends around him. They all place their hands on the stone in support. Jim pulls Excaliber from the stone. Everyone cheers for him.

Douxie’s seen texting someone.

FINAL SHOWDOWN IN ARCADIA

Bellroc is seen making their way towards the Heartstone. But what stands between them and the prize is the Guardians of Arcadia. 

Charlemagne, Archie, and Walter soar above. Blinky and Aaarrgh lead an army of trolls. More Akiridion fleets arrive, Aja and Krel at the helm. Varvatos has a brand new robo, too.

Bellroc sneers at their defiance and summons an army of their own : hundreds of big rocky lava monsters.

BATTLE OF THE MOST EPIC OF PROPORTIONS IS A GO.

Trolls are punching, Akiridions are blasting, magicians are casting.

JIM SUITS UP WITH HIS NEW ARMOR AND EXCALIBER AND IS LIKE DON’T THINK BECOMIN’ FOR YA BELLROC FOR THE GOOD OF AAAAAAAALL

Douxie conjures up a spell to send that boy flying onto that Fire Titan.

Toby and Aaarrgh slam and hammer their way through fiery goons. Claire and Aja team up to take down the opposition, noting they should get lunch together sometime. Charlemagne tears through the enemies with his claws and wings. Krel and the Creepslayerz flail about and kick tail anyway. 

Our heroes all cover one another and play off of each other’s strengths and it’s beautiful.

When Douxie’s about to get smothered by lava fists, there’s a flash of lightening and the monsters vaporize. 

Douxie turns to see Zoe with a brigade of hedge wizards. Douxie’s immediately bowled over, smitten.

“About time you showed up...,” Douxie says, in a daze cause wow Zoe’s so pretty.

“Oh, you’ve got a lot of nerve --” Explosions. More lava monsters. Zoe sighs and pats Douxie’s cheek. “Ugh, focus, you big sap!”

The pair are unstoppable together, mowing down the lava monsters in powerful bursts of blue and pink.

DOUXIE’S EYES GO BLUE AND ZOE’S EYES GO PINK EPIC AVATAR STATE RINGS OF MAGIC AS THEY DECIMATE THEIR FOES WITH ROCK MUSIC BLARING YESSSS

And well, Douxie can’t help himself and gives Zoe a good long smooch after they’ve destroyed half of Bellroc’s army.

Toby in the distance : HOW LONG HAS THAT BEEN A THING?????

Archie just groans.

And meanwhile, Jim’s finally facing off with Bellroc. After having one of the most badass fights in the franchise, Jim comes out on top, skewering Bellroc in the stomach with Excaliber.

AND BOOM THEY DID IT GUYS EARTH IS SAVED.

....But not without great cost.

Toby’s been mortally wounded, crushed by the falling pieces of the Fire Titan. There’s the tearful, heartbreaking moment Jim has to say goodbye to his best friend, the one who was there with him through it all.

“We did it, Jimbo...We did it...”

Jim holds Toby in his arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Claire holds Jim and weeps beside him. Aaarrgh is in hysterics but is calmed to pained whimpers by Blinky. The Arcadia Gang grieves, feeling the painful weight of losing the friends they held so dear....Nomura, Nari, and now Toby.

Time Skip/Montage

Douxie found a proper apartment in Arcadia. He keeps a potted plant with those distinct pink flowers, the flowers Nari loved, on his windowsill. Smiles softly at them every time. 

Scenes of Mary with Darci as she mourns. Steve and Eli hanging out. Douxie and Krel jamming, Krel creating beats and Douxie riffing on his guitar. Aja and Claire going on that lunch date. Archie taking a nap on top of Aaarrgh. Walter playing classical music.

It’s taken a while, but Jim’s starting to feel a little bit better. Douxie, Krel, Steve, and Eli came over for some bro time. Seeing the pain in his eyes, Douxie gives Jim a hug.

The final scene is a picnic at everyone’s favorite spot in Arcadia with a single bench and an awesome view of the town.

Aja and Steve are cuddling. Krel and Eli play with a frisbee. Blinky, Aaarrgh, and Varvatos laugh around a table. Douxie and Zoe, holding hands, are having a lively chat with Claire. Jim serves up a huge plate of enchiladas.

Walter and Barbara announce their engagement. Everyone celebrates. 

EMOTIONAL SPEECH VOICEOVER TIME.

Aja, Varvatos, and Eli depart back to Akiridion-5. Steve honks into a tissue. Krel pats him on the back as he waves to his sister.

Barbara kisses Jim on the forehead before going home with Walter.

Zoe kisses Douxie on the cheek and heads off. 

Steve and Krel are the next to go.

Douxie, Archie around his shoulders, pulls both Jim and Claire into a hug before leaving.

Blinky gives Jim a hug. Aaarrgh nuzzle him, looking sad. 

Jim and Claire hold hands and sit on the bench, gazing out at the town.

EMOTIONAL SPEECH VOICEOVER ENDS T_T

The End.

[cielrouge]

YA SFF Books by Asian Authors

Ash by Malinda Lo: In this variation on the Cinderella story, Ash grows up believing in the fairy realm that the king and his philosophers have sought to suppress, until one day she must choose between a handsome fairy cursed to love her and the King’s Huntress whom she loves.

Along the Indigo by Elsie Chapman: Marsden yearns to take her sister and escape Glory, a town famous for seedy businesses, but her friendship with Jude yields secrets that may chain them to the Indigo River forever.

Alpha Goddess by Amalie Howard:  In this sci-fi retelling of Ramayana, Sera is a Hindu goddess incarnate and must battle between her good and evil sides in order to save the world from becoming hell on earth.

Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days #1) by Susan Ee: It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her 17-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back. Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel, Raffe. 

The Archer at Dawn (The Tiger at Midnight #2) by Swati Teerdhala: Set in an Indian & Hindu-inspired world, long-held secrets will force Kunal and Esha to reconsider their loyalties—to their country and to each other.

The Athena Protocol by Shamim Sarif: After being fired from the Athena Protocol, an organization of female spies who enact vigilante justice, Jessie Archer investigates a human trafficking case in Belgrade, while her former teammates have been tasked with bringing her down.

Blood of a Thousand Stars (Empress of a Thousand Skies #2) by Rhoda Belleza: Rhee risks her crown to negotiate peace terms with villainous media star Nero, while framed assassin Aly plots revenge and Kara seeks technology that will erase her royal past.

The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco: Tea’s gift for death magic means that she is a bone witch, a title that makes her feared and ostracized by her community, but when an older bone witch trains her to become an asha - one who can wield elemental magic - Tea will have to overcome her obstacles and make a powerful choice in the face of danger as dark forces approach.

The Bronzed Beasts (The Gilded Wolves #3) by Roshani Chokshi: With only ten days until Laila expires, the crew will face plague pits and deadly masquerades, unearthly songs, and the shining steps of a temple whose powers might offer divinity itself, but at a price they may not be willing to pay.

The Beast Player by Nahoko Uehashi: An epic YA fantasy about a girl with a special power to communicate with magical beasts and the warring kingdom only she can save.

The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh: In 19th century New Orleans where vampires hide in plain sight, half-Asian Celine Rosseau, a dressmaker from Paris, becomes embroiled in a murder mystery, connected to the glamorous supernatural cohort, known as the Court of Lions, and catching the eye of their mysterious, charismatic leader, Sèbastien Saint Germain.

Broken Web (Shamanborn #2) by Lori M. Lee: With Queen Meilyr bent on destroying the magical kingdoms, Sirscha becomes caught between a war in the east and the Soulless in the west.

The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad: Set in the city of Noor, along the Silk Road which has become a refuge for those of all faiths, Fatima becomes embroiled in a war between two clans of powerful djinn who threaten to destroy her peace in different ways, forcing her to make unlikely alliances to survive.

Caster by Elsie Chapman: In this Chinese-inspired, magical Fight Club, Earth is already at the brink of environmental disaster due to the magic overuse. And 16-year-old spell caster Aza Wu must navigate through an illegal, underground battle magic tournament, while evading local gangs and police scouts to save her family from ruin.

Catalyst by Lydia Kang: Zelia Benten has lost her father, the love of her life, and any future she might have imagined for herself. Now she, her sister, and the band of illegal genetic outcasts they’ve come to call their family are forced to run when the safety of their foster home is compromised.

A Clash of Steel (A Treasure Island Remix) by C.B. Lee: Set in 1820s China, Xiah joins Anh and her motley crew in pursuit of the hidden treasure of the legendary Dragon Fleet.

Chainbreaker (Timekeeper #2) by Tara Sim: In 1876, someone is destroying the clock towers that control India’s time. Teenage mechanics Danny Hart and half-white, half-Indian Daphne Richards as they travel to Agra to investigate a series of clock tower bombings.

The Chariot at Dusk (Tiger at Midnight #3) by Swati Teerdhala: In the final book of this epic fantasy trilogy, the lands’ fate, their people’s livelihoods, and the bond that sustains their world all depend on what Kunal and Esha can offer—to the gods and to each other.

Champion (Legend #3) by Marie Lu: June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic--and each other--and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. Just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic's border cities.

Circle of Shadows by Evelyn Skye: Love, spies, and adventure abound as apprentice warriors Sora and Daemon unravel a complex web of magic and secrets that might tear them—and the entire kingdom—apart forever.

Control by Lydia Kang: In 2150, when genetic manipulation has been outlawed, seventeen-year-old Zelia must rescue her kidnapped sister with the help of a band of outcasts with mutated genes.

Court of Lions (Mirage #2) by Somaiya Daud: After being swept up into the brutal Vathek court, Amani, the ordinary girl forced to serve as the half-Vathek princess Maram’s body double, is desperate to continue helping the rebellion But can she bear to remain separated, forever, from Maram's fiancé, Idris? 

Cross Fire (Exo #2) by Fonda Lee: When the peaceful alien-run government withdraws from Earth, it seems that the terrorist group Sapience is going to get the "free" Earth it wanted; but Donovan Reyes, member of the security forces, and once a prisoner of Sapience, realizes that freedom comes with a price. 

The Crown’s Game by Evelyn Skye: Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia. The Tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death. 

The Crown’s Fate (The Crown’s Game #2) by Evelyn Skye: Vika struggles with dangers in her new role as the Imperial Enchanter while Pasha faces disputes about his legitimacy and Nikolai considers how far he is willing to go to return to the world.

A Crown of Wishes (Star-Touched Queen #2) by Roshani Chokshi:  Gauri, princess of Bharata, has been captured by her kingdom's enemies and faces a future of exile and scorn--she has nothing left to lose. But Vikram, the notoriously cunning prince of a neighboring land, promises her freedom in exchange for her partnership on his team to win the Tournament of Wishes.

The Damned (The Beautiful #2) by Renée Ahdieh: Sébastien Saint Germain is now cursed and forever changed. The price of loving Celine Rousseau was costly. But as Bastien and Celine begin to uncover the danger around them, they learn their love could tear them apart.

Dark Goddess (Alpha Goddess #2) by Amalie Howard:  In this Indian-inspired fantasy, a girl who is the avatar of the goddess Lakshmi must work to prevent the apocalypse at the hands of demons. 

Dark Goddess (Templar Chronicles #2) by Sarwat Chadda: Billi SanGreal, a teenaged member of the Knights Templar, must prevent a young girl, who is being hunted by werewolves because of the dangerous powers she possesses, from falling into the hands of the ancient Russian witch, Baba Yaga.

Daughter of Dusk (Midnight Thief #2) by Livia Blackburne: After learning the truth about her bloodlines, Kyra can’t help but feel like a monster. As tensions rise within Forge’s Council, and a vicious Demon Rider attacks continue in surrounding villages, Kyra knows she must do something to save her city. 

Descendant of the Crane by Joan He: In this Chinese-inspired fantasy, Princess Hesina of Yan is thrust into power when her beloved father is murdered, and she’s determined to find his killer–whatever the cost.

The Devil’s Kiss (Templar Chronicles #1) by Sarwat Chadda: 15-year-old Billi SanGreal has grown up knowing that being a member of the Knights Templar puts her in danger, but if she is to save London from catastrophe she must make sacrifices greater than she imagined.

The Devil’s Thief (The Last Magician #2) by Lisa Maxwell: Esta and Harte set off on a cross-country chase through time to steal back the elemental stones they need to save the future of magic.

Divided (Dualed #2) by Elsie Chapman:  When the Board goes after West Grayer for refusing to kill her next target, West must uncover the truth of the past to survive.

Dove Arising by Karen Bao: On a lunar colony, 15-old Phaet Theta does the unthinkable and joins the Militia when her mother is imprisoned by the Moon's oppressive government. 

Dove Exiled (Dove Chronicles #2) by Karen Bao: Phaet’s past catches up with her when the Lunar Bases attack the community and reveal that Phaet is a fugitive. She’s torn between staying on Earth with Wes—whom she’s just discovered her feelings for—and stowing away on a Moon-bound ship to rescue her siblings.

Dove Alight (Dove Chronicles #3) by Karen Bao: Shy, introverted Phaet Theta has gone from being a top student to an interplanetary fugitive to the reluctant but fierce leader of a revolution. But as the death tolls rise, the cost of the war weighs heavily on Phaet. Phaet started this war because she lost someone she loved. Will she have to lose another to end it?

Eclipse the Stars by Maura Milan: Criminal mastermind and unrivaled pilot Ia Ccha and her allies make unpredictable choices as they fight to keep darkness from eclipsing the skies.

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir: Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan, Laia, fighting for her family and a soldier, Elias, fighting for his freedom.

Empress of All Seasons by Emiko Jean: During a once-in-a-generation competition to find the new empress, Mari, who hides a terrible secret, Taro, the prince who would denounce the imperial throne, and Akira, a half-human outcast, will decide the fate of Honoku.

Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza: Two sisters, Rhee and Kara—sole survivors of a murdered royal lineage - must reunite from opposite ends of the galaxy to salvage what’s left of their family dynasty and save the universe from a greater threat.

End of Days (Penryn & The End of Days #3) by Susan Ee: After a daring escape, Penryn and Raffe are on the run, but a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all. When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

The Epic Crush of Genie Lo by F.C. Yee: 15-year-old Genie Lo wonders if she’s qualified enough to gain admission to an Ivy League school, then becomes powerful enough to break through the gates of Heaven with her fists.

The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2) by Julie Kagawa: Cast out of Eden and separated from the boy she dared to love, Allison Sekemoto will follow the call of blood to save her creator, Kanin, from the psychotic vampire Sarren. But when the trail leads to Allie's birthplace in New Covington, what Allie finds there will change the world forever--and possibly end human and vampire existence.

The Ever Cruel Kingdom (The Never Tilting World #2) by Rin Chupeco: To break the cycle of sacrifice, twins Haidee and Odessa need answers that lie beyond the seven gates of the underworld, within the Cruel Kingdom itself. The shadows of the underworld may hunger to tear them apart, but these two sisters are determined to heal their world—together.

Exo by Fonda Lee: For a century now, Earth has been a peaceful colony of an alien race, and Donovan Reyes is a loyal member of the security forces, while his father is the Prime Liaison–but when a routine search and seizure goes bad Donovan finds himself a captive of the human revolutionary group, Sapience, terrorists who seem to prefer war to alien rule, and killing Donovan just might be the incident they are looking for.

Fair Coin by E.C. Myers: When evil versions of himself and best friend Nate appear one day, teenaged Ephraim embarks on a dangerous odyssey through parallel worlds to make things right.

Firestarter (Timekeeper #3) by Tara Sim: Colton, Daphne, and the others must choose between those striving to take down the world’s clock towers so that time can run freely, and terrorists trying to bring back the lost god of time.

Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns #4) by Kendare Blake: In this conclusion to the Three Dark Crowns series, three dark sisters will rise to fight as the secrets of Fennbirn’s history are laid bare. Allegiances will shift. Bonds will be tested, and some broken forever.

Flame in the Mist by Renee Adhieh: The daughter of a prominent samurai, Mariko is promised to Minamoto Raiden. But en route to the imperial city of Inako, Mariko narrowly escapes a bloody ambush by the Black Clan. Dressed as a peasant boy, Mariko sets out to infiltrate the ranks of this gang. But she’s quickly captured and taken to the Black Clan’s secret hideout, where she meets their leader, the rebel ronin Takeda Ranmaru. 

For A Muse of Fire by Heidi Heilig: 16-year-old shadow puppeteer Jetta Chantray performs with her family’s traveling troupe, the Ros Nai. But as rebellion seethes and as Jetta meets a young smuggler, she will face truths and decisions that she never imagined—and safety will never seem so far away.

Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee: Sirscha Ashwyn, while training to become the queen’s next royal spy, discovers she’s a rare and powerful lightwender and is summoned to the realm of the Spider King, where her newly awakened abilities are needed to cull the bloodthirsty Dead Wood.

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao: A reimagining of the evil queen from Snow White based on Asian mythology in which 18-year-old Xifeng must unleash a jealous god on the world and set free the viciousness of her own soul in order to become Empress.

The Forever Song (Blood of Eden #3) by Julie Kagawa: Allie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren. But Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions as his trail leads straight to the one place they must protect at any cost -- the last vampire-free zone on Earth.

Fury of the Phoenix (Kingdom of Xia #2) by Cindy Pon: When Ai Ling leaves her home and family to accompany Chen Yong on his quest to find his father, haunted by the ancient evil she thought she had banished to the underworld, she must use her growing supernatural powers to save Chen Yong from the curses that follow her.

Gates of Thread and Stone by Lori M. Lee: A teenage girl must keep her ability to manipulate the threads of time a secret, but when her brother goes missing, she risks getting caught up in a revolution in order to save him.

Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta: Eris Shindanai and Sona Steelcrest, two girls on opposite sides of a war fought with Windups, giant mechanizes weapons, discover they’re fighting for a common purpose–and falling for each other.

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi: Paris, 1889: Treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier, Séverin Montagnet-Alarie gets the chance of a lifetime when the all-powerful society, the Order of Babel, seeks him out for help in exchange for a priceless treasure: his true inheritance.

The Girl From Everywhere by Heidi Heilig: From modern-day New York City to nineteenth-century Hawaii to places of myth and legend, 16-year-old Nix has sailed across the globe and through centuries aboard her time-traveling father’s ship. But when he gambles with her very existence, it all may be about to end.

The Girl From the Well by Rin Chupeco: Okiku has wandered the world for centuries, but when she meets Tark she knows the moody teen with the series of intricate tattoos is not a monster and needs to be freed from the demonic malevolence that clings to him.

The Girl King by Mimi Yu: Sisters Lu and Min become unwitting rivals in a war to claim the title of Emperor.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust: As the day of her twin brother’s wedding approaches, Princess Soraya must decide if she’s willing to step outside of the shadows for the first time.

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan: When Lei, seventeen, is stolen from her home to become one of nine Paper Girls, the Demon King's concubines, she proves to be more fire than paper.

Girls of Storm and Shadow (Girls of Paper and Fire #2) by Natasha Ngan: After escaping the Hidden Palace, Lei and her warrior love Wren must travel the kingdom to gain support from the far-flung rebel clans.

Girls of Fate and Fury (Girls of Paper and Fire #3) by Natasha Ngan: The last Lei saw of the girl she loved, Wren, was fighting an army of soldiers in a furious battle to the death. With the two girls torn apart and each in terrorizing peril, will they find each other again or have their destinies diverged forever.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh: A feminist retelling of the Korean folktale The Tale of Shim Cheong, set in a town where every year a girl is sacrificed to the sea to stop torrential rains, but when a brave teen girl dives in herself to protect a loved one, she discovers a spirit kingdom in need of saving.

The Great Destroyers by Caroline Tung Richmond: set in alt-history, 1960s America where WWI & WII were fought with giant mechs, biracial Chinese American teen Jo Linden is Team USA’s most unlikely pick in the annual Pax Games, an Olympic-style competition that pits mecha pilots against each other.

The Heartforger (Bone Witch #2) by Rin Chupeco: With a thirst for vengeance, a band of terrifying daeva at her command, and her resurrected lover Kalen by her side, dark asha Tea is ready to face her adversaries.

A House of Rage and Sorrow (Celestial Trilogy #2) by Sangu Mandanna: As gods, beasts, and kingdoms choose sides, Alexi seeks out a weapon more devastating than even Titania. The House of Rey is at war. And the entire galaxy will bleed before the end.

Huntress by Malinda Lo: 17-year-olds Kaede and Taisin are called to go on a dangerous and unprecedented journey to Tanlili, the city of the Fairy Queen, in an effort to restore the balance of nature in the human world.

Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan: When outlaw Ia Ccha is captured by the Olympus Commonwealth and revealed to be a 16-year-old girl, they force her to serve them by joining the Commonwealth's military academy where new acquaintances cause Ia to question her own alliances.

The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1) by Julie Kagawa: Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city, until she too becomes an immortal vampire. Forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls, she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend -- a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

Inferno (Talon #5) by Julie Kagawa: Ember Hill has learned a shocking truth about herself: she is the blood of the Elder Wyrm, the ancient dragon who leads Talon and who is on the verge of world domination. With the stakes rising and the Elder Wyrm declaring war, time is running out for the rogues and any dragon not allied with Talon. The final battle approaches. And if Talon is victorious, the world will burn.

The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman: Japanese American teen Nami Miyamoto finds herself in a limitless world where the human consciousness goes after death, where she battles an AI entity posing as a queen that has hacked its way into the afterlife.

Isle of Blood and Stone by Makiia Lucier: Mysterious maps from opposite ends of the sea cast doubt on the whereabouts of two princes, presumed dead.

Jade Fire Gold by June C.L. Tan: A debut fantasy inspired by Chinese mythology, in which peasant girl Anh, cursed with the power to steal souls enters a tenuous alliance with exiled prince Altan, bent on taking back the dragon throne, and save the empire from a cult of dangerous priests.

Journey to the Heart of the Abyss (Light in the Abyss #2) by London Shah: Leyla McQueen has finally reunited with her father after breaking him out of Broadmoor, the illegal government prison—but his freedom comes at a terrible cost. As Leyla celebrates his return, she must grapple with the pain of losing Ari. Now labeled the nation’s number one enemy, Leyla must risk illegal travel through unchartered waters for the truth behind her father’s arrest.

Hunted by the Sky by Tanaz Bhathena: Set in a world inspired by medieval India, the story tells of a girl, Gul, with a star-shaped birthmark who is prophesied to be the downfall of a tyrant king, the warrior women who come to her aid, and the boy she falls in love with.

The Keeper of the Night by Kylie Lee Baker: set in 1890s Japan, half-British reaper, half-Japanese Shinigami Ren Scarborough flees London and enters the Japanese underworld under the service of Izanami, the goddess of death.

King (Dragon King Chronicles #3) by Ellen Oh: Girl warrior, demon slayer, Tiger spirit of the Yellow Eyes - Kira is ready for her final quest! She must save her cousin, the boy fated to be the future king, uncover the third lost treasure, and face innumerable enemies in order to fulfill the famed prophecy.

A Kingdom for the Stage (For A Muse of Fire #2) by Heidi Heilig: The rebels are eager to use Le Trépas’s and necromancer Jetta’s combined magic against the invading colonists. Soon Jetta will face the choice between saving all of Chakrana or becoming like her father, and she isn’t sure which she’ll choose.

Kingdom of the Blazing Phoenix (Rise of the Empress #2) by Julie C. Dao: Princess Jade has grown up in exile while her stepmother, the ruthless Xifeng, rules Feng Lu. Ready to reclaim her place, Jade embarks on a quest to raise the Dragon Lords and defeat Xifeng and the Serpent God once and for all.

Legend by Marie Lu: In a dark future, when North America has split into two warring nations, 15-year-olds Day, a famous criminal, and prodigy June, the brilliant soldier hired to capture him, discover that they have a common enemy.

Legion (Talon #4) by Julie Kagawa: The legions are about to be unleashed, and no human, rogue dragon or former dragon slayer can stand against the coming horde in book 4 out of the Talon series.

The Library of Fates by Aditi Khorana: Amrita must unravel the mysteries of her past to save her kingdom, but in doing so, she herself might come unraveled.

The Light At the Bottom of the World by London Shah: Set in a future where the Earth is underwater, Leyla McQueen must navigate the treacherous abyss to find her missing father, but discovers a world drowning in lies.

Live in Infamy by Caroline Tung Richmond: 80 years since the Axis won World War II, and America was divided between the victors: the Nazis in the East and Imperial Japan in the West; but now resistance is growing in the Eastern territories and 16-year-old Chinese American Ren Cabot finds himself drawn into a resistance group. 

The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna: 15-year-old Eva is the clone of a girl living far, far away on another continent--and when this 'other' dies, Eva must step in and take over her life.

The Infinite (Gates of Thread and Stone #2) by Lori M. Lee: Kai always believed the only danger to the city came from within. Now, with a rebel force threatening the fragile government, the walls have become more of a prison than ever. To make matters worse, as Avan explores his new identity as an Infinite, Kai struggles to remind him what it means to be human. 

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao: blending Chinese history and mecha science, Wu Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. Features a poly F/M/M main romance.

The Iron Will of Genie Lo (Epic Crush of Genie Lo #2) by F.C. Yee: Along with a few other contenders for the throne,  heaven-appointed guardian Genie and her friends embark on a Heavenly quest to an in-between world.

The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen: An intergenerational story of a mother and son struggling to relate to each other—the mother an immigrant to America who wants to make a home for her family in an unfamiliar country; the son Tiế  trying to figure out the best way to come out to his parents. Through telling each other fairy tales, they’re able to find common ground.

The Magnolia Sword: A Ballad of Mulan by Sherry Thomas: When her ailing father is conscripted to fight invaders from the north, Mulan dresses as a man to take his place in the army, but an old enemy and an attraction for her troop's commander complicate her mission.

The Memory Keepers by Natasha Ngan: Seven is a thief with a difference - he steals downloadable memories from banks and memoriums to sell onto London’s black market. But one night, as Seven is breaking into a private memorium in a wealthy part of London, he is caught in the act by one of its residents; Alba, the teenage daughter of London’s most famous criminal prosecutor. 

The Memory Key by Liana Liu: In the not-so-distant future, everyone is implanted with a memory key to stave off a virulent form of Alzeimer's. Lora Mint fears her memories of her deceased mother are fading, but when her memory key is damaged she has perfect recall--of everything-- which brings her mother's memory vividly back--but may also drive Lora mad. 

The Mermaid, The Witch, and The Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall: A desperate orphan turned pirate, Flora, and a rebellious imperial daughter, Lady Evelyn Hasegawa, find a connection on the high seas abroad the Dove, in a world divided by colonialism and threaded with magic.

The Midnight Star (Young Elites #3) by Marie Lu:  Adelina is forced to revisit old wounds when a new danger appears, putting not only Adelina at risk, but every Elite. In order to save herself and preserve her empire, Adelina and her Roses must join the Daggers on a perilous quest—though this uneasy alliance may prove to be the real danger.

The Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne: Kyra, a highly skilled 17-year-old thief, joins a guild of assassins with questionable motives. Tristam, a young knight, fights against the vicious Demon Riders that are ravaging the city. 

Mirage by Somaiya Daud: In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, 18-year-old Amani is forced to work as a body double for the princess who is hated by her conquered people.

The Never Tilting World by Rin Chupeco: In  a world ruled by goddesses that has been split in two—one half existing in perpetual scorching Day, the other in freezing Night—twins separated at birth Odessa and Haidee embark on a quest across the great divide and rule a reunited world.

Mooncakes by Wendy Xu & Suzanne Walker: Teen witch Nova Huang runs into her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. 

Moribito, Guardian of the Spirit by Nahoko Uehashi: The wandering warrior Balsa is hired to protect Prince Chagum from both a mysterious monster and the prince's father, the Mikado.

Moribito II, Guardian of the Darkness by Nahoko Uehashi: The wandering female bodyguard Balsa returns to her native country of Kanbal, where she uncovers a conspiracy to frame her mentor and herself.

Night of the Dragon (Shadow of the Fox #3) by Julie Kagawa: As darkness rises and chaos reigns,  fierce kitsune shapeshifter Yumeko and her shadowy protector Kage Tatsumi, will face down the greatest evil of all.

Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee: Resigned to a life without superpowers in a world full of them, Jess takes a paid internship where she helps a heinous supervillain and works with her longtime crush Abby, but stumbles on a massive plot.

Not Your Villain (Sidekick Squad #2) by C.B. Lee: After discovering a massive cover-up by the Heroes’ League of Heroes, shapeshifter Bells Broussard and his friends Jess, Emma, and Abby set off on a secret mission to find the Resistance.

Not Your Backup by C.B. Lee (Sidekick Squad #3): As the Resistance moves to challenge the corrupt League of Heroes, Emma Robledo realizes where her place is in this fight: at the front.

On This Unworthy Scaffold (Shadow Players #3) by Heidi Heilig: Jetta’s home is spiraling into civil war.Le Trépas—the deadly necromancer—has used his blood magic to wrest control of the country. Meanwhile, Jetta’s love interest, brother, and friend are intent on infiltrating the palace to stop the Boy King and find Le Trépas to put an end to the unleashed chaos.

The Only Thing to Fear by Caroline Tung Richmond: After 70 years since Hitler's armies won the war, 16-year-old Zara St. James lives in the Shenandoah hills, part of the Eastern American Territories, under the rule of the Nazis--but a resistance movement is growing. 

The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He: In a near future when life is harsh outside of Earth’s last unpolluted place, Cee tries to leave an abandoned island while her sister, STEM prodigy Kasey Mizuhara, seeks escape from the science and home she once trusted.

One Dark Throne (Three Dark Crowns #2) by Kendare Blake: Preparing for the queens' sixteenth birthday celebration and navigating the fallout of the Quickening, sisters Arsinoe, Katharine, and Mirabella reassess their strategic paths to the throne using new understandings of their powers and destinies.

Our Violent Ends (These Violent Delights #2) by Chloe Gong: In 1927, Shanghai tethers on the edge of revolution. After sacrificing her relationship with Roma to protect him from the blood feud, Juliette has been a girl on the warpath. Then a new monstrous danger emerges in the city, and while secrets keep them apart, Juliette must secure Roma’s cooperation if they are to end this threat.

Prodigy (Legend #2) by Marie Lu: June and Day make their way to Las Vegas where they join the rebel Patriot group and become involved in an assassination plot against the Elector in hopes of saving the Republic.

Quantum Coin (Fair Coin #2) by E.C. Myers: Ephraim, Jena, and Zoe embark on a mission across multiple worlds to learn what's going wrong and how to stop it. They will have to draw on every resource available and trust in alternate versions of themselves and their friends, before it's too late for all of them.

Ravage the Dark (Scavenge the Stars #2) by Tara Sim: After escaping the city of Moray, Amaya and Cayo head to the port city of Baleine to find the mysterious Benefactor and put a stop to the counterfeit currency that is spreading Ash Fever throughout the kingdoms.

The Reader by Traci Chee:  Set in a world where reading is unheard-of, Sefia makes use of a mysterious object to track down who kidnapped her aunt Nin and what really happened the night her father was murdered.

A Reaper At the Gates (An Ember in the Ashes #3) by Sabaa Tahir: Beyond the Empire and within it, the threat of war looms ever larger as the Blood Shrike, Helene Aquilla, Laia of Serra, and Elias Veturius all face increasing dangers.

Rebel (Legend #4) by Marie Lu: Brothers Eden and Daniel Wing struggle to accept who they’ve each become since their time in the Republic, but a new danger creeps into the distance that’s grown between them. Eden soon finds himself drawn so far into Ross City’s dark side, even his legendary brother can’t save him. At least not on his own.

Rebelwing by Andrea Tang: At a prestigious prep school, scholastic student Prudence Wu, who smuggles censored media in a futuristic North America divided by culture wars and becomes an unlikely revolutionary, after being imprinted by Rebelwing, a sentient cybernetic dragon.

Renegade Flight (Rebelwing #2) by Andrea Tang: Pilot-in-training Viola Park, a probationary student at GAN Academy, enters a mech combat tournament that becomes a fight for the future of Peacekeepers everywhere.

Rising Like a Storm (The Wrath of Ambar #2) by Tanaz Bhathena: Gul and Cavas must unite their magical forces―and hold onto their growing romance―to save their kingdom from tyranny.

The Righteous (The Beautiful #3) by Renée Ahdieh: Pippa Montrose is tired of losing everything she loves. When her best friend Celine disappears under mysterious circumstances, Pippa resolves to find her, even if the journey takes her into the dangerous world of the fae, where she might find more than she bargained for in the charismatic Arjun Desai.

The Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee: The never-before-told backstory of Avatar Kyoshi, from a girl of humble origins to the merciless pursuer of justice who is still feared and admired centuries after she became the Avatar.

Rogue (Talon #2) by Julie Kagawa: Unable to forget the human boy who saved her from a Talon assassin, Ember is determined to save him from execution with the help of rebel dragon Cobalt and his crew of rogues.

Rogue Heart (Rebel Seoul #2) by Axie Oh: Two years after the Battle of Neo Seoul, telepath Ama must use her telepathic abilities to infiltrate the base of the Alliance’s new war commander, Alex Kim, her first love who betrayed her.

The Rose and the Dagger (Wrath and the Dawn #2) by Renee Adhieh: Unsure who to trust, Shahrzad takes matters into her own hands to try and break the curse and reunite with her one true love.

The Rose Society (Young Elites #2) by Marie Lu: Adelina Amouteru’s heart has suffered at the hands of both family and friends, turning her down the bitter path of revenge. Now known and feared as the White Wolf, she and her sister flee Kenettra to find other Young Elites in the hopes of building her own army of allies. Her goal: to strike down the Inquisition Axis.

Ruse (Want #2) by Cindy Pon: In near-future Shanghai where society is divided between the fabulously wealthy business elite and the masses they exploit, Jason Zhou must play a dangerous cat and mouse game with the ruthless CEO of an all powerful corporation which has an ever-growing choke hold on the polluted metropolis.

Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim: In the city-state of Moray, Amaya, orphaned by a powerful merchant’s greed and condemned to seven years aboard a debtor’s ship, returns to seek revenge only to encounter the merchant’s son in this gender-swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo.

Serpentine by Cindy Pon: Although 16-year-old Skybright feels lucky to be the handmaid and companion to the daughter of a wealthy family, she is hiding a secret that threatens to destroy her position and her closest relationships.

Sacrifice (Serpertine #2) by Cindy Pon: When Zhen Ni discovers that her new husband, the strange and brutish Master Hou, may not be all he seems, Skybright and Stone must travel through the terrifying underworld to save her.

Seven Deadly Shadows by Courtney Alameda & Valynne Maetani: Set in contemporary Japan, Shinto temple priestess Kira Fujikawa, must seek the aid of seven ruthless shinigami, in order to protect Kyoto from an ancient evil.

Shatter the Sky by Rebecca Kim Wells: Maren, desperate to save her kidnapped girlfriend Kaia, plans to steal one of the emperor’s dragons and storm the Aurati stronghold, but her success depends on becoming an apprentice to the mysterious dragon trainer, which proves to be a dangerous venture.

Talon by Julie Kagawa: In a world in which near-extinct dragons pass as humans to grow their numbers secretly, siblings Ember and Dante Hill prepare for destined positions in the world of Talon only to be hunted by a dragon-slaying soldier.

The Ship Beyond Time (Girl From Everywhere #2) by Heidi Heilig: Nix has escaped her past, but when the person she loves most is at risk, even the daughter of a time traveler may not be able to outrun her fate—no matter where she goes.

The Shadow Mission (The Athena Protocol #2) by Shamim Sharif: Jessie Archer faced down death to prove her dedication to Athena, the elite organization of female spies she works for. Now she’s back on the team, in time to head to Pakistan to take down the man whose actions spurred Athena’s founders to create the secretive squad. 

The Shadow of Kyoshi (Kyoshi #2) by F.C. Yee: Kyoshi’s place as the true Avatar has finally been cemented. With her mentors gone, Kyoshi voyages across the Four Nations, struggling to keep the peace. But while her reputation grows, a mysterious threat emerges from the Spirit World. To stop it, Kyoshi, Rangi, and their reluctant allies must join forces.

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa: Demons have burned the temple Yumeko was raised in to the ground, killing everyone within, including the master who trained her to both use and hide her kitsune shapeshifting powers. Yumeko escapes with the temple’s greatest treasure—one part of the ancient scroll. Fate thrusts her into the path of a mysterious samurai, Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan. Yumeko knows he seeks what she has…and is under orders to kill anything and anyone who stands between him and the scroll.

Shadow Girl by Liana Liu: When Mei arrives at the beautiful home on Arrow Island, she can't help feeling relieved. She's happy to spend the summer tutoring a rich man's daughter if it means a break from her normal life. Yet she can't shake her fear that there is danger lurking in the shadows of this beautiful house, a darkness that could destroy the family inside and out...and Mei along with them. 

Shadowsong (Wintersong #2) by S. Jae-Jones: Liesl is working toward furthering both her brother’s and her own musical careers. But when troubling signs arise that the barrier between worlds is crumbling, Liesl must return to the Underground to unravel the mystery of life, death, and the Goblin King—who he was, who he is, and who he will be.

Smoke in the Sun (A Flame in the Mist #2) by Renee Ahdieh: After Okami is captured in the Jukai forest, Mariko has no choice—to rescue him, she tricks her brother, Kenshin, and betrothed, Raiden, into thinking she was being held by the Black Clan against her will. But each secret Mariko unfurls gives way to the next, ensnaring her and Okami in a political scheme that threatens their honor, their love and very the safety of the empire.

Sisters of the Snake by Sasha & Sarena Nanua: an Indian-inspired fantasy where twins separated at birth—one now a princess, the other a street thief— must switch places in a bid to stop a catastrophic war that threatens to tear their kingdom apart.

Silver Phoenix (Kingdom of Xia #1) by Cindy Pon: With her father long overdue from his journey and a lecherous merchant blackmailing her into marriage, 17-year-old Ai Ling becomes aware of a strange power within her as she goes in search of her parent.

The Silvered Serpents (The Gilded Wolves #2) by Roshani Chokshi: Séverin and his team members might have successfully thwarted the Fallen House, but at a terrible cost. Desperate to make amends, Séverin pursues a dangerous lead to find a long lost artifact rumored to grant its possessor the power of God. Their hunt lures them far from Paris, and into icy heart of Russia.

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim: The Wild Swans meets East Asian fantasy where an exiled princess, Shiori, must unweave the curse that turned her brothers into cranes, assisted by her spurned betrothed, a mercurial dragon, and a paper bird brought to life by her own magic.

A Sky Beyond the Storm (An Ember in the Ashes #4) by Sabaa Tahir: Laia of Serra is now allied with the Blood Shrike, Helen Aquilla. Determined to stop the approaching apocalypse, she throws herself into the destruction of the Nightbringer. In the process, she awakens an ancient power that could lead her to victory–or to an unimaginable doom.

Skyhunter by Marie Lu: Robbed of her voice and home, Talin Kanami knows firsthand the brutality of the Federation. Their cruelty forced her and her mother to seek asylum in Mara. When a mysterious prisoner is brought from the front, Talin senses there’s more to him than meets the eye. 

The Shadow Glass (Bone Witch #3) by Rin Chupeco: Bone witch Tea’s dark magic eats away at her, but she must save the one she loves most, even while her life—and the kingdoms—are on the brink of destruction.

Song of the Abyss (Towers of Wind #2) by Makiia Lucier: When menacing raiders attack her ship, navigator Reyna must use every resource at her disposal, including placing her trust in a handsome prince from a rival kingdom.

Song of the Crimson Flower by Julie C. Dao: After cruelly rejecting Bao, the poor physician’s apprentice who loves her, Lan, a wealthy nobleman’s daughter, regrets her actions. After learning that Bao’s soul has been trapped inside a flute by a witch, Lan vows to make amends and help break the spell.

Soul of the Sword (Shadow of the Fox #2) by Julie Kagawa: As the paths of Yumeko and the possessed Tatsumi cross once again, the entire empire will be thrown into chaos.

A Spark of White Fire by Sangu Mandanna: In this sci-fi retelling of the  Mahabrahata, Esmae learns that the King of Wychstar is offering the unbeatable warship Titania to the winner of his competition and she sees her chance to return home and help her brother win back his kingdom.

The Speaker (Sea of Ink and Gold #2) by Traci Chee: Having barely escaped the clutches of the Guard, Sefia and Archer are back on the run, slipping into the safety of the forest to tend to their wounds and plan their next move.

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim: 17-year-old Maia Tamarin poses as a boy to compete for the role of imperial tailor, and embarks on an impossible journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the stars, with help from the mysterious court magician, Edan.

Spell Starter (Caster #2) by Elsie Chapman: Yes, Aza Wu now has magic back, but now she’s in the employ of the gang leader, St. Willow. Who soon decides that having Aza as a fighter is much more lucrative than as a fixer.

Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar: Inspired by Hindu mythology, half-mortal, half-star Sheetal enters a celestial competition to save her human father’s life.

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi:  Treated with scorn and fear in her father's kingdom because of a formidable horoscope, 16-year-old Maya commits herself to her education only to land in an arranged marriage that culminates in her sudden elevation to the throne, a situation that is threatened by dark secrets and Otherworldly magic.

Star-Touched Stories by Roshani Choski:Three lush and adventurous stories in the Star-Touched world.

Steelstriker (Skyhunter #2) by Marie Lu: After the fall of Mara, and with the fate of a broken world hanging in the balance, Talin and Red must reunite the Strikers and find their way back to one another.

Storm the Earth (Shatter the Sky #2) by Rebecca Kim Wells: Maren and her girlfriend Kaia set out to rescue Sev  in Zafed, and free the dragons from the corrupt emperor.

The Storyteller (Sea of Ink and Gold #3) by Traci Chee: Sefia is determined to keep Archer out of the Guard’s clutches and their plans for war between the Five Kingdoms. As Sefia and Archer watch Kelanna start to crumble to the Guard’s will, they will have to choose between their love and joining a war that just might tear them apart.

Stronger Than A Bronze Dragon by Mary Fan: In this steampunk fantasy set in Qing dynasty-inspired China, warrior girl Anlei teams up with a thief to save her village from shadow spirits, but after arriving at the Courts of Hell, a discovery challenges everything they know about who the real enemy is.

The Suffering (Girl From the Well #2) by Rin Chupeco: When an old friend disappears in Aokigahara, Japan's infamous 'suicide forest,' Tark and the ghostly Okiku must resolve their differences and return to find her. In a strange village inside Aokigahara, old ghosts and an ancient evil lie waiting. 

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong: In 1920s Shanghai, starcrossed heirs to rival gangs, Juliette Cai and Roma Montagov, must work together to face a monster that hunts the city streets before the outbreak of the Chinese Civil War.

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake: A fantasy about triplet sisters separated at birth, where one of the sisters will grow up to be queen of their magical island, but in order to ascend to the throne she must hone her magic for a dark purpose: assassinating her other two sisters before they kill her first.

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings edited by Ellen Oh & Elsie Chapman: 15 bestselling and acclaimed authors reimagine the folklore and mythology of East and South Asia in short stories that are by turns enchanting, heartbreaking, romantic, and passionate.

A Thousand Fires by Shannon Price: In modern-day San Francisco where three gangs rule the city streets, half-Filipina teen Valerie Simons enters the Red Bridge Wars to seek vengeance for her younger brother’s death, but soon finds herself torn between old love and new loyalty.

The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala: In ancient India, soldier Kunal hunts the “Viper,” rebel girl Esha accused of killing his General, embarking on a dangerous cat and mouse game and where both must decide—loyalty to their old lives or to a love that’s made them dream of new ones.

Timekeeper by Tara Sim: set in an alternate Victorian era where clock towers control time, about a teen clock mechanic who is assigned to repair a damaged tower and finds himself falling in forbidden love with the boy he mistakes for his apprentice, but is actually the tower’s clock spirit, and whose life is threatened by a mysterious attacker planting bombs in clock towers across England.

A Torch Against the Night (An Ember in the Ashes #2) by Sabaa Tahir: Laia and Elias fight their way north to liberate Laia’s brother from the horrors of Kauf Prison. Hunted by Empire soldiers, manipulated by the Commandant, and haunted by their pasts, Laia and Elias must outfox their enemies and confront the treacherousness of their own hearts.

Two Dark Reigns (Three Dark Crowns #3) by Kendare Blake: A victorious Katharine sits on the throne, Mirabella and Arsinoe are in hiding, and an unexpected renegade is about to wage a war of her own. The crown has been won, but these queens are far from done.

Unravel the Dusk (The Blood of Stars #2) by Elizabeth Lim: With a war brewing, master tailor Maia Tamarin will stop at nothing to find her love Edan, protect her family, and bring lasting peace to her country.

Vicious Spirits (Gumiho #2) by Kat Cho: With the support of Somin and Junu, Miyoung and Jihoon might just have a shot at normalcy. But Miyoung is getting sicker by the day and her friends don’t know how to save her. With few options remaining, Junu has an idea but it might require the ultimate sacrifice and, let’s be honest, Junu isn’t known for his “generosity.”

Want by Cindy Pon: Set in a teeming, pollution choked Taipei which follows a group of teens living on the seedy fringes of a highly divided society that works only for the elite as they decide to risk everything to take down the powerful company which controls the city. 

Warcross by Marie Lu: When teenage coder Emika Chen hacks her way into the opening tournament of the Warcross Championships, she glitches herself into the game as well as a sinister plot with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire. 

Warrior (Dragon King Chronicles #2) by Ellen Oh: Kira, the yellow-eyed demon slayer of Hansong, continues her quest to find the lost treasures of the dragon king's prophecy, save her cousin, the prince, unite her kingdom, and defeat the demon lord

We Hunt the Flame (Sands of Arawiya #1) by Hafsah Faizal: In a world inspired by ancient Arabia, 17-year-old huntress Zafira must disguise herself as a man to seek a lost artifact that could return magic to her cursed world.

We Free the Stars (Sands of Arawiya #2) by Hafsah Faizal: When Zafria, the Hunter, and Nasir, the Prince of Death both embark on a quest to uncover a lost magic artifact, they encounter an ancient evil long thought destroyed - and discover that the prize they seek may be even more dangerous this time.

Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles: Showgirl Kallia, haunted by a dark past, must compete in a magician’s competition in order to secure her ambition and freedom from the handsome, enigmatic keeper of the club, Jack, even as mysterious accidents seem to plague her every move, while crossing paths with another talented magician, Demarco.

When Night Breaks (Kingdom of Hearts #2) by Janella Angeles: The competition has come to a disastrous end, and Daron Demarco’s fall from grace is now front page news. But little matters to him beyond Kallia, the contestant he fell for. With time running out, Kallia must embrace her role in a darker destiny.

Wicked Fox by Kat Cho: After 18-year-old Miyoung Gu, a nine-tailed fox surviving in modern-day Seoul by eating the souls of evil men, kills a murderous goblin to save Jihoon, she is forced to choose between her immortal life and his.

Wildcard (Warcross #2) by Marie Lu: Emika Chen barely made it out of the Warcross Championships alive. Knowing the truth behind Hideo's new NeuroLink algorithm, she is determined to put a stop to his plans. 

The Wild Ones by Nafiza Azad: A a multi-perspective feminist narrative about a fierce band of magic-wielding girls—the Wild Ones—who have collectively survived unspeakable things, and together are determined to save other girls from the cruelties and tragedies they’ve had to endure in their own past lives.

Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones: After her sister is kidnapped by the Goblin King, Liesl journeys to the Underground and is faced with an impossible decision when she finds herself captivated by the strange world and its mysterious ruler.

Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco: A girl descended from Filipina mythological heroine Maria Makiling, finds herself caught up in a war between two fairy tale kingdoms, where the fate of Avalon is at stake.

Windborn by Mary Fan: With magicians hot on their trail, air nymph Kiri and magician’s apprentice Darien embark on a treacherous journey through dangerous lands to freedom.

World After (Penryn & The End of Days #2) by Susan Ee: Penryn's search for her kidnapped sister, Paige, leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans, while Raffe must choose between reclaiming his wings--and his role as the angels' leader--or helping Penryn survive.

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Adhieh: In this reimagining of The Arabian Nights, Shahrzad plans to avenge the death of her dearest friend by volunteering to marry the murderous boy-king of Khorasan but discovers not all is as it seems within the palace.

Zeroboxer by Fonda Lee: As 17-year-old Carr 'the Raptor' Luka rises to fame in the weightless combat sport of zeroboxing, he learns a devastating secret that jeopardizes not only his future in the sport, but interplanetary relations.

[abnormallynice]

The World Evolves With You

The long-awaited personal take on a TWEWY-Digimon crossover is complete T3T/

Keep reading if you like headcanons and text! (TWEWY spoilers inbound):

The wolrd/AU follows alongside the TWEWY story with minor changes: - Players are partnered with a Digimon, not other players. Though, groups sticking and working together helps (as Shiki says in W1) - If the human or Digimon in a team is erased, they other will also cease to exist in several minutes. No Digimon nursery/rebirth or data downloading. - As a Player has personal growth, their Digimon will show equal in growth and digivolve into higher stages. - Digimon are In-training on Day 1 and outside of battles but automatically digivolve to at least Rookie when the battle initiates. In rare instances, some humans have Digimon higher than Rookie stage. - Where player’s prize for winning the Game is a second chance at life, Digimon have a chance at reincarnation into the human world, in a form of their choice. - Noise are mindless Digimon with tribal markings and appendages.

Neku and Monodramon: Evo line: Monodramon > Strikedramon > Cyberdramon > Justimon - Since Neku is our lovely protagonist, he gets the coveted dino/dragon Digimon. This was an amazingly hard choice to make (At first I wanted to go with Impmon, but ultimately I decided it suits Beat better). I did like the idea of Neku having rough, violent looking digis up until Mega, then showcasing a change of heart via the look of the final evo. - During the last day of W3, Justimon appears, a stark contrast in look and personality compared to prior forms. Justimon represents Neku’s final growth as a person, with a less aggressive shell but strong sense of justice for the friends he’s made, people he’s helped and a world he promised to get back to. - Notably, Neku’s Digimon is the only one that doesn’t have a set of wings in Mega. Let’s say It represents his stubbornness to not accept death, even when he was forced into the UG over and over. - It’s not surprising that Neku does NOT like this little, chubby purple creature that keeps following him around at the start of W1. It’s Shiki that helps convince Neku they have to work together (they still meet on D1W1. She and BlackGatomon saved Neku and Monodramon’s collective butts). Sloooowly, Neku and his digimon’s relationship betters and by the end they are 100% in sync.

Shiki and BlackGatomon (Mr.Mew) Evo line: Salamon > BlackGatomon > LadyDevimon/Angewomon > Mastemon - In contrast to Neku, Shiki’s Digimon was a painfully easy choice, lol. She always refers to her Digi as Mr. Mew as well, as they surprisingly resemble a stuffed animal she had when she was alive. In reality, her digimon IS her stuffed animal (thanks to data collection on the digimon’s part, it knows and understands Shiki). It’s one of the reasons that Mr.Mew is a champion level when they first meet. Mr.Mew only ever devolves to Salamon after Shiki’s first encounter with Higashizawa in W1. - Mr.Mew’s evo line is the only one that doesn’t follow ‘traditional’ evolution. The first time they go to Ultimate, the evolve to LadyDevimon; representative of Shiki’s still inner turmoil. When facing Higashizawa on D7, they slide evolve to Angewomon; representing her accepting herself (This is one of the reasons she is the winner of the Game in W1). In the final battle, the two evolutions combine to make Mastemon (I recommend looking at a pic of this digi because wow <3 ).

Joshua and Lopmon Evo line: Lopmon/Lopmon X > Cherubimon (Good) X - I knew knew knew Josh had to get Cherubimon as his Mega. Where most of the other’s Digimon Megas have somewhat seemingly human forms, Churubimon looks out of place as this massive pink bunny with winged ears, indicative that Joshua isn’t human like other players. Cherubimon X looks even more alien and ethereal (seriously, google it. The floating notes/digicode is perfect imo). - As part of Joshua’s deal with Kitaniji, he took a handicap and his powers were lessened, which made Cherubimon X a Lopmon. His Digimon appears as a regular Lopmon when meeting Neku for the first time, which helped mask his identity and assume his role as a regular player. However, Neku will soon notice that Lopmon never digivolves higher than Rookie (whereas his own Digimon was steadily evolving to Champion level). - When Joshua reveals his innate power in W2D5, his seemingly regular Lopmon transforms to Lopmon X. X-antibody Digimon are unheard of, and much stronger than their base-level counterparts (I tease at this in the image by giving Johua’s Lopmon a fluffy tail, which regular Lopmon don’t have. If anyone questions it, Joshua would explain how its a clip-on and looks much cuter than the stubby tail, lol). - Cherubimon X is only ever revealed right at the end of the final battle, when Neku and Joshua face each other. Joshua dares Neku into killing him, but Neku can’t bring himself to command Justimon to do it. Cherubimon X then attacks both Neku and his Partner.

Beat and Impmon Evo line: Impmon > Meramon > SkullMeramon > Beelzemon - Pairing Impmon and Beat just felt natural. They both share an innate need to be badass but are also unwittingly dense and easily embarrassed. They constantly bicker with each other but when it’s time to fight, they can’t wait to get in there and show what they’re made of. - On W1D3, Rhyme still sacrifices herself to save Beat (he knew Rhyme was his sister from the start so he and Impmon stuck around her and her partner). Although Beat didnt get erased, he still made the choice to become a Reaper. - When Rhyme gets erased, it sees a shift in Beat’s motivations and personality, which naturally affects Impmon. Impmon permanently evolves to SkullMeramon and is mindless fighting machine during W2, just operating off Beat’s whim. When Neku gives him Rhyme’s pendant, both Beat and his Digimon soften up. - As a reaper, Impmon could evolve and stay at Ultimate level without issue. When Beat rejoins Neku in W3, he loses that ability and his Digi has to start from square one; In-training level. Impmon (or Yaamon, in this case) wasn’t too happy. Eventually, Impmon gets back to comfortably sitting at Rookie during W3. - W3D7, at the dead god’s pad, (when facing Kitaniji and Shiki) with Beat’s resolve and growth, Impmon evolves right into Beelzemon (indicative of how Beat wants to become more capable and help people he cares about while looking awesome), saving Neku. Beelzemon also helps Neku, his Partner and the other Player’s Digimon to take on Kitaniji’s final form.

Rhyme and Kudamon Evo line: Kudamon > [ERROR] - Kudamon have cool, collected personalities and can conduct precise assessments, even during battle. For this reason I really liked it for Rhyme’s partner. It’s the most pleasing choice close to squirrel-shaped! I liked this version of Kudamon in particular as well (vs the 2006 anime version), since the markings on it were very Noise-like! - When Rhyme sacrifices herself for Beat in W1D3, Kudamon is at risk of being deleted. As a counter, Mr.H binds Rhyme’s soul to the Digimon, keeping it alive (although Rhyme couldn’t speak through Kudamon, the Digimon could feel her emotions and hear her thoughts). - During Beat’s Reaper stint, Kudamon was with him, but no matter what they said, Beat wouldn’t break away his focus. He loosens up eventually and can take Kudamon’s words to heart. - Kudamon accompanies Neku, Beat and their partners through W3, and does get captured by Konishi on D1. - Although Kudamon never evolves (or devolves) beyond Rookie, they do help immensely during the battle with Konishi on W3D7. They are at the final battle as well.

And that’s all for now. Thank you for reading all of that >v<’‘‘\ Hope you enjoyed!! Give me you headcanons and ponders if you like! Maybe someday I’ll get to the Reapers..... ‘‘‘OTL 

[therealvinelle]

Hey, @theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin sent me to you for some spicy opinions. Have you read the hunger games? Do you have any headcanons? Any thoughts on main characters that is different from the way the author meant to portray? I really enjoyed your thoughts on Twilight and I’ll admit I disliked Twilight but not because of the characters being too flat and boring (I don’t agree with that) but just because of the writing style and the framing of the relationships. It really annoyed me. But your headcanons made me realize that there were some hidden gems in there. So thanks for sharing your thoughts.

I like that my life has gotten to a point where I’m the Muffin’s referral point for spicy opinions. And I’m very glad you enjoy my Twilight metas!

When it comes to my spicy hunger games opinions, I don’t actually know how spicy they are. They’re definitely very spicy considering what Hollywood tried to do, but I think I’m actually pretty much in tune with Susanne Collins. Tumblr certainly agrees with me, which is very rare but quite nice. The Muffin and I don’t actually want to have spicy opinions, it’s just that we’ll say shit like “Luke’s not a real jedi” and expect it to be obvious but nope, turns out the entire Star Wars fandom begs to differ. So, I think I agree with Collins on what she wrote, which is great, but I honestly can’t tell anymore what the authors want me to think so who knows.

So, first of, there is no love triangle in those books. And I’m not simply saying that the love triangle wasn’t the focus of the books, I’m saying that the love triangle did not exist.

Katniss and Gale were close friends and if it hadn’t been for the hunger games then yeah, they would probably have ended up together. However, the hunger games happened, and Katniss was a very changed person after that. Gale was still the same, and more, he did not get it, at all. He didn’t understand the person Katniss had become and wanted the old one back. They continued to hang out because they’d grown up together, but at this point it was only the memory of their old friendship holding them together and not the real thing.

Then we get into the third book, in which Gale grows enamored with weaponry and the quest for revenge against the Capitol, proudly displaying to Katniss his sadistic device that’ll later kill Prim. Katniss is horrified, and as usual Gale doesn’t get it. Their relationship with violence are polar opposites: Katniss has been forced to kill to protect herself, Gale takes pride in designing devices that’ll kill as many civilians as possible.

On to Katniss. The first big mistake Hollywood made with her was casting Jennifer Lawrence. Katniss of the books is an impoverished and starving child. Lawrence has the wrong body type for that, and more, she has the completely wrong presence. It’s like casting Timothee Chalamet for Thor. 

Then we have Katniss herself.

Katniss, as I see her, is not a hero at all, and she’s not supposed to be. A hero is too positive a word, as heroes get to choose their own destiny. St. George chooses to go slay the dragon. Katniss is thrown into an arena and told to kill children. She has nobility, grace, and kindness, she is indubitably brave and selfless. It’s not her character I’m questioning. But to call her a hero is to play into the narrative that there’s anything glorious or inspiring about her story, and there isn’t. She’s a traumatized child who’s propped up by powerful people to be a symbol. At first it’s the Capitol making her and Peeta star-crossed lovers, and then we have the resistance making her their rallying point. Katniss has no control over any of this. The hunger games is not the inspiring story of a girl who rallies the forces of good against the evil empire, but rather the story of a child who is grossly taken advantage of by both sides.

Then there’s the fact that even before the Capitol happened, Katniss had been forced to grow up too early. Her mother failed to be a mother, and so Katniss became the family caretaker, raising Prim like a daughter rather than a sister and keeping the family alive. Her childhood died with her father, and it is an unusually jaded and sad child who enters that arena. This doesn’t make her better suited for what she endures over the course of the trilogy, but less. Katniss has had no one to rely on, comes to rely too much on Peeta, which in turn makes her crumble like a house of cards when she loses him.

Going slightly back to the love triangle debacle, Katniss ends up with Peeta not so much because they’re the star-crossed lovers the Capitol wanted, but because after the arena Katniss is really only able to connect with people who know exactly what it’s like. Peeta, Finnick, Haymitch - these three all become deeply precious to her, there is a bond forged between victors because no one else can ever truly understand. Peeta/Katniss wouldn’t have happened in a timeline where they weren’t reaped, but they were, and now they’re each other’s only real option.

Not to mention that as victors they’ll live lives the rest of their district can’t really relate to. They have nice houses and a pension, which is alienating enough, but they’ll also be forever entangled with the Capitol, either as prostitutes, mentors, or both. Gale likes Katniss, but he could never have a wife like that.

By the end of the trilogy, Katniss is a traumatized mess of a girl, and so is Peeta. They choose to have kids anyway, something I have mixed feelings about. I see what Collins wanted with that. Katniss makes it clear early on in the series that she never wanted children, because those kids might get reaped. And, to my recollection, it was also that she just thought the world was a too cruel place. The fact that she still chooses to have kids can only be seen as a sign of healing, that Katniss now feels safe enough in this world to bring others into it.  Which is nice. Except I think that losing Prim is what made the real difference to Katniss. Prim was her daughter, and having children is the closest she’ll get to getting Prim back. I’m also slightly worried Peeta will one day snap and strangle them. There’s also the fact that I really don’t think Katniss and Peeta are parent material by the time those books are through. It’s bad enough that Katniss had to be her mother’s therapy animal, she shouldn’t repeat the cycle. But maybe I should have more faith in Katniss. And damnit, I want to be happy for her. In other words, I have mixed feelings on those kids. This all being said, I’ve heard people think it’s out of character for Katniss to have kids, and I disagree with that. I think it’s a very Katniss thing to do. The question is whether becoming a mother was a good decision.

(Since your ask pretty much put a coin in the ramble box, I’ll ramble some more: the whole “children are healing” thing in the epilogue happens through Annie Cresta as well. The girl is more traumatized than anybody after her hunger games, and codependent with her lover, Finnick Odair. Finnick dies tragically, luckily it turns out Annie was pregnant so now she gets a baby too. I question her ability to raise a child on her own, but the fact that both Katniss and Annie get to have kids points to those children symbolizing healing and happiness.)

[savingthrcw]

Terra Branford (ff6)

iconless - fc is Angelababy, open to: [canon and oc characters from] final fantasy 6, 8, 9 (I don't know the others), Dragon Age, Lord of the Rings, historical fandoms in general, Marvel and DC, and modern verses if we can plot what made her so "special" in the first place.

triggers: she was literally enslaved (canon) by the Gestahlian empire, and I headcanon she was tortured when experimented on so that her magic could be transferred/copied. She's raised to be a soldier with no autonomy whatsoever, no say in it, not really there, and has to find herself.

general backstory: In her original canon world she's half esper (magical creatures who after death will become a gem named magicite and teach their basic magic to the party) and half human, has been captured as a child and enslaved to be used by Kefka, the main villain, who put a Slave Crown on her head that made her his puppet with no free will (and who uses her to bring magic back into this world, and later will open the door to the espers world too) and she becomes famous for being basically a monster that can kill 50 magitek armored soldiers in under 3 minutes with her magic (the equivalent of a human destroying 10 tanks). She gets freed when she gets in contact with another esper and rescued by rebels, losing the crown and her memory; the good guys try to convince her to join the rebellion against the Empire (Kefka is working for the emperor but obviously will usurp him) because of her immeasurable power, and she keeps wondering what her place is, and whether she can love and feel emotions like humans. She has no memories, no nothing, but she trusts her new friends after they talk about not pushing her to help them, even if her help would be vital for the rebellion, or they would be like the empire. She even gets to find out about her parents when they all visit the esper world, after she finds her esper form, a 'monster-looking' pink creature of enormous power. She also obviously care about her friends but can't recognize it as love because her trauma has made her a bit numb to it. Then the world is destroyed by Kefka, and when we find her again in the game, she found and reunited all the orphans of a village where the adults sacrificed themselves (during the end of the world) to protect their children, she becomes basically 'mother of all', she leaves to fight Kefka one last time, destroys him and in doing so erases magic from their world, which means she should disappear too but her LOVE for the children keeps her alive as a human.

SO she could easily be used in Dragon Age as a part spirit/demon (since they are technically the same) which justifies why she's so 'special' and used by some powerful bad guy as slave and blah blah her backstory adapting to Thedas (different from mages due to her abilities) and of course leaving it open ended

she could be used in LOTR if someone can think of some ancient species maybe connected to the elves or wizards? and she was enslaved by some human who went crazy with (her) power, managed to get free or was freed by your muse, and needs her memory back? and we'll see how far we can take it with the whole getting memories back/losing magic or not, learning/remembering how to love

she can be used in historical verses if we can find her some super special ability that makes her impossibly important while also not getting burned at stake (so nothing too magical or magical-looking) in whatever fandom my rp partner plays ?? maybe torture is what took away her memories, which she'll retrieve, and it's still motherly love that awakens her emotions again when she rescues some kids from harm?

she could be half alien in marvel and dc, nearly same story (Except the world isn't destroyed obviously)!!! She could adapt to most modern verses that allow magic or if we want to stretch it and there is no magic? verses where she can be some kind of terrifying monster in the sense of unstoppable assassin when under someone's control (maybe something was literally inserted in her head) but then she's FREE and who knows what will happen next.

[and yeah okay because i love shipping in all universes she soon gets in contact with children, maybe she rescues them from the same people who had her, and when her protective instincts awoken, so does her ability to feel emotions and this is how slowly she gets her memories back, as awful as it is when they involve slavery and experimenting on/torturing her]