#(talking about Krom of course)

[angeltannis]

However bad the Borderlands Movie turns out to be, we can all take solace in the fact that Handsome Jack somehow didn’t make the cut while the most forgettable boss from BL1 did

[goattypegirl]

During the peaceful period following the reformation of Spherus Magna (and the conclusion of the... tumultuous events shortly after) much previously obscured information about the Matoran universe came to light. The actions of the Makuta and Order of Mata Nui, the nature of the Red Star, the machinations of the Great Beings. But for certain scholars, one unanswered question continued to nag them in the back of their minds.

Why was Karzahni given the Olisi?

For much of the Matoran Universe's history, Artakha and Karzahni were mythical figures. The Smith and the Physician. Synthesis and Dissolution. A reward for good work and a punishment for poor. Brothers who competed for a legendary prize before the dawn of the world.

(For the record, said contest never actually happened. There was a minor debate between the Great Beings during the planning phase, and they were designed by two teams working in parallel, but by the time the twins were constructed their purpose was already decided. It's not the only instance of the Great Beings' actions being exaggerated into an epic myth by the GSR inhabitants.)

According to the former inhabitants of Karzahni's realm, the Olisi was used to torment the titan's subjects accoring to his capricious whims. Flaming chains to break the body, a rictus-grin mask to break the mind. But why? Karzahni wasn't cruel in the beginning, so why would the Great Beings grant him that mask? Was it meant to be anesthetic, granting Matoran sweet dreams as the titan operated on them? Perhaps it was a replacement mask, his original mask discarded alongside his Duty?

Recently, the answer was found in a laboratory near the site of the old iron tribe. The Osili was a diagnostic tool. Matoran commonly develop amnesia after severe stress or trauma, and it's not as though a turaga or other Matoran could accompany them to give patient history. By using the Osili to sort through alternate lives, Karzahni could learn who a Matoran was, where they were from, what injury befell them, and what they would do after being repaired and sent home. It's a pretty elegant solution.

...Except, that's not the whole story. It can't be. Using the Osili like that is like using a sword to chop vegetables. Surely there's a better tool for the job, a better job for the tool.

Though Matoran stopped being sent to Karzahni's realm relatively early in history, stories about the Osili spread across the world. Mask makers, of course, attempted to reverse engineer it. A true copy was never made, but there are two confirmed cases of new masks made from these experiments. The mask of Foresight allows the user to glimpse a few seconds into the future and see the actions of those nearby, and the mask of Augury allows the user to know the percentage chance of a specified event or action occuring. Though it's unconfirmed, it is theorized the Calix and Sanok were also inspired by the Osili. These masks all have hefty drawbacks or limitations, but they are all incredibly powerful and versatile in the right hands. And they are all methods to divine the future.

And they are all pale imitations of the Osili.

There's another mystery about Karzahni. See, construction on the GSR and the constructs within began while the Dreaming Plague was at its height. It's become clear that the Great Beings didn't fully understand what caused it, nonetheless, they gave psionic shielding to many of the original constructs. Tren Krom was excluded, obviously, but shielding was given to the Mata Nui intelligence, the first generation of Makuta, members of the Hand Artakha, as well as the titan himself. The Order of Mata Nui later instilled this same shielding into their own members.

But why wasn't Karzahni shielded?

It's debated how Karzahni's lack of shielding factors into the Osili's hypothetical capabilities, if at all. Scholars can talk about the troubling implications, but Karzahni is long dead, the Osili presumed destroyed. It feels like they're making shadows to be frightened by. To look on the bright side, progress has been made on restoring the former inhabitants of Karzahni's realm. Slow progress, but progress nonetheless. Reportedly many of them are finding it easier to sleep at night, no longer tormented by nightmares. Or dreams of any kind, for that matter.

[miss0atae]

Random thoughts about City of Stars episode 10:

▪️ I still love Fueang and Krom's relationship. It's the healthiest relationship I've seen. They always communicate and they never lie or avoid talking about things that could lead to misunderstanding. Krom is trying is best to support Fueang's decision to tell the press about his sexual orientation and his story with his ex before everything escalates. I appreciate that he tried to smooth his mother so she would support Fueang when he needed her. He did it without telling Fueang, but he was quick to admit it and everything got better. They are in love and I want to protect them so they can love each other freely.

▪️ As for Fueang I found him really brave to tell his secret knowing it would have an impact on his career. In the end, he stayed true to himself. He was really calm and avoided any traps some journalists tried to create. Of course, he was stressed and it was sad to see him not being his cheerful normal persona. At least, he has all the support from his family, friends and coworkers. However, it must be complicated to deal with the aftermath of his press conference as he is losing job opportunities.

▪️ Kor was the best friend everyone wished to have. He always adds a bit of comedy but when it's needed he can be serious and defend his loved ones. He said something that I found very interesting and that would work for everyone not just Thai people:

It's very sad how people still misunderstand a character's personal life with the actor's personal life. They are not the same. Acting is a job/art and it has nothing to do with who you are as a person. As always, this series never shies away from telling hard truths.

▪️ Fueang's mom also said something important when she talked with Krom:

And Krom agreed. They are right. We have no say in celebrities' personal lives. They can love whoever they want. Everyone deserves to love and be loved. Love is love. If you support an artist you don't care about who they love.

▪️ I'm so glad we saw Namsom again (Rock is so beautiful, I can't). I really appreciate this character and the friendship she shares with Fueang. She is so afraid of what could happen if she goes back with Kor. The press must have been terrible to them. It's a pity because they also didn't deserve to have their life questioned just because some people think it's not "normal". By the end of the series, I hope Kor and Namsom can be together again. Fueang was right, things are easier when you have someone who loves you (it doesn't have to be a lover, it can be family or friends.).

▪️ However Fueang and Krom are still not off the hook as Krom got a call from his work. He must go back to the States. Will they be able to survive long distance relationship hardships? I don't want them to break up in the infamous 11 episodes. We don't need this. This series has avoided the usual cliché in their relationship so I hope it will stay this way.

As always I had a really great time watching this series. 😍

[evereinefaust]

*.·:·.✧ 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐇𝐮𝐧𝐭 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 ✧.·:·.*

After a whole day of suffering from jetlag and headache pains, most of the actors were able to adjust and operate properly the next day. Now, the LOH crew was out and about the resort, exploring many tourist spots and beginning to enjoy their stay at Diamond Resort like they were supposed to.

[Y/n] woke up at 6 in the morning, as she had planned for this week. After refreshing herself and bidding her family good morning, the young girl headed straight down to the hotel restaurant where she would indulge herself in delicious meals.

"This place may be my favorite one so far~"

[Y/n] took a deep breath as she strolled inside the dining hall, the aromatic air circulating making her stomach growl and mouth water. Sporting a cheeky grin, the [h/c]ette scanned the area for any vacant booths or if she could spot any of her colleagues to join in for breakfast.

Fortunately for her, she didn't have to dine alone...

"Good morning, everyone~" she chirped, gliding seamlessly next to the table where her friends were.

"Good morning, [Y/n]," Krom responded, pausing his eating to face the newcomer.

"You're in a good mood, huh," Aran mentioned, noticing the girl's bright disposition.

Zaira reciprocated the smile. "Morning."

"Mind if I join in?"

"No need to ask. Just take a seat anywhere."

"Hehe~ Thanks," walking over to a vacant chair, the young actress seated herself between Aran and Krom.

[Y/n] took the menu from the middle of the table, scanning through the list of meals once more. But unlike yesterday, she already had her breakfast in mind. After all, she already listed her favorites and even others she wanted to try. And since she was planning to spend the whole day outside, eating a hefty meal in the morning would be okay in her book.

It didn't take long for her orders to be received by the passing waiter, now, she just needed to wait for her personalized five-course breakfast to arrive in a few minutes.

"How was yesterday for you guys? I didn't get to meet you yesterday or even see any of you in passing," [Y/n] asked, her round orbs blinking curiously at her friends.

"Charles and I just took a stroll at the shore and visited some shops in the street," the blue-haired man replied, taking a bite of his steak. "We woke up a little after noon so we didn't have that much time to explore."

"Mhm. I see," she hummed. Gazing at the tanned redhead next to Krom, she then smiled. "How about you, Zaira?"

The tanned woman rubbed her temple, recalling the events that she went through yesterday. "Uhm... I spent most of my time in the hotel room until I was invited by Oswald and the others to take a walk around the area."

The teen nodded her head, puckering her lips. "I see. I see. How about you, Aran? Any news?"

"Ian and I were tagging along with whatever Biryu wanted to do or go, but in the end, I ended up taking the lead in exploring the resort," Aran said with a smug expression, her emerald eyes sparkling. "We discovered a lot of places around the island without the help of a tour guide. Did you know about the park uphill?"

"Oh~ That place~" [Y/n]'s face also brightened, cheeks tinted pink. "After I took the bus tour around the island yesterday, I went to Ever Garden, the park that you were talking about. I spent about an hour or two there with the others."

"So that's its name, huh? Great."

Krom sweat-dropped, looking at the redhead. "So you arrived at the place without knowing it?"

"Pretty much."

"How did you three end up there?" the other redhead asked. "I only know about the path near the hotel."

After taking a bite of her cupcake, Aran answered. "Oh, I think we were on the opposite side of the hill when we were out on a walk. I just saw a staircase leading somewhere and took it. That's how we ended up at the park."

"Wow... So there are also other ways to go to the same place, huh? Well, I mean, this resort is huge, after all."

In a moment, [Y/n]'s breakfast came in. The waiter placed down about six plates of different food on the table, all ready to be devoured by this petite girl. As the three were pretty much done with their breakfast, they instead spent the remaining time watching in interest as the small [h/c]-haired actress continuously shoved food after food into her mouth. The way her flushed cheeks swell and jingle when she chews reminded them of a small animal enjoying its food.

Their eyes would soften at the sight as the young actress emits noises of satisfaction and her [e/c] pools twinkle happily. They, too, graced a smile on their lips just from observing this particular girl.

"So you guys are here."

A new voice sliced through the atmosphere, making everyone's attention turned toward the source. Approaching their table were two adults — a male with short, raven tresses and a female with curly, blonde hair and a freckled face. [Y/n]'s eyes lit up at the sight of her older brother, though she could only stare at them as she was busy chewing her food inside her full mouth.

"Good morning, everyone," Bianca greeted, giving a small wave.

"Morning."

"Good morning."

"Good morning, Dietrich, Bianca."

After swallowing a bit and opening up space in her mouth, the girl greeted. "Guf moming..."

Dietrich narrowed his eyes, frowning. "Don't speak with your mouth full, [Y/n]."

"Mhm," instead of answering, she just nodded her head and grunted in response.

"This girl..." sighing, the older [L/n] took a seat next to Zaira as Bianca sat on Aran's left.

After an hour of cheerful conversation during breakfast, [Y/n] decided to go exploring on her own, despite her older brother's insistence on coming along. That's because there's only one thing that the girl was planning on doing today, and she didn't want Dietrich to accidentally know about it or else he'll surely get in the way.

"Hm... I just need to find the person around the shop street... Too bad the clue only pointed to the shop street and not the place..."

[Y/n] walked along the stone pavement on Sunset Street, her gaze darting from each shop lining on the side, trying to find the particular place the hint was about. Yesterday during the bus tour, the tour guide lady mentioned the limited-time activities and quests on the island for tourists.

One quest, in particular, intrigued the [h/c]-haired teen — Diamond Resort's Treasure Hunt.

"The treasure hunt is available for about a week, and each day, there can only be one person who accomplishes it. I don't know if the treasure hunt changes each day or if it stays the same, but if I don't try to solve it today, I doubt I could even have time to do it for the next few days..."

She released a sigh, slumping her shoulders. "I just hope I get lucky..."

The young actress strolled around the street, looking down at the paper she held in her hand and then at the clothing store called 'Crowned Casuals' in front of her. It's the last shop at the end of the street. As she glanced at the large windows of the clothing shop, she spotted a few familiar mops of hair loitering inside. Sporting a smile, she then turned her heels and headed inside.

"Lyn~ You guys are here!" [Y/n] glomped the said girl from behind, surprising the pink-haired teen.

"Oh, hello, [Y/n]," Lucilicca greeted, her eyes wide in surprise to see this particular girl inside the store.

"Heyyo~"

"Geez! You almost gave me a heart attack, [N/n]!' Lyn huffed, though her visage immediately brightened at the sight of her friend. "Are you also here to shop for some clothes?"

"Maybe it's not that bad to look around while searching for the next clue."

"Mhm," she nodded.

[Y/n] walked around the store, her eyes scanning the wonderful selection of various summer-themed apparel. Furthermore, she didn't expect to see either Charles or Aries inside, but it made her happy that she kept bumping into her friends in any place she went.

There weren't that many customers inside, though the young girl couldn't help but notice a certain woman who kept walking back and forth in the same area. From a customer's perspective, she may seem like looking for clothes and comparing each one before buying what suits her. But the [h/c]ette noted that she was doing this for a couple of minutes as if she was just idling by the area to either wait for someone or something else.

Even Charles mentioned it to the girl, and she can't help but think that something's up...

"Excuse me..." [Y/n] built up the courage to speak to the woman.

"Oh..." surprise etched on the blonde woman's face, her cerulean eyes dilating a bit. However, she regained her composure in a minute. "Yes? What can I help you with?"

[Y/n] remained silent for a while. She can hear her heartbeat thumping hard against her ribcage, the utter nervousness overriding her system. Despite being a fully-fledged actress and experiencing a lot of situations where she had to interact with strangers, the girl still can't get used to it. After all, most of the time, the other party was the one approaching her and initiating a conversation, not the other way around.

"It's fine... Don't get overwhelmed by anxiety, [Y/n]. You're just here to talk to her, no worries. If she wasn't the one in the hint, then it's fine."

Exhaling a deep breath, the young girl finally faced the woman. "I'm sorry if this may be out of the blue, but did the treasure happen to be around here?"

The woman squinted her eyes, red lips curving up in a smile. She adjusted her position while taking a piece of parchment from her pocket, then she took [Y/n]'s hand and placed the parchment on her palm. "Sadly, the treasure isn't here with me. But I found a clue as to where it could be."

"Uwah! Lucky~"

"Thank you," she dipped her head towards the woman, pink tinted her cheeks and lips curved up in a smile.

"No problem."

Waving goodbye to the woman, [Y/n] opened the small paper to read the contents. She couldn't believe that she found the hint on her first try, but the girl knew that she shouldn't be expectant or complacent since this was just the start of the treasure hunt.

I’m tall but I’m not a basketball player I’m thin but I’m not a flagpole I shine but I’m not the sun I help sailors but I’m not an anchor I’m a building but I’m not a skyscraper

"What's that?"

[Y/n] looked up at Aries, noticing his line of sight at the paper in her hold. "Oh, just a piece of paper containing a riddle."

"Hm... I see," he murmured, focusing on scanning the various clothes hanging on the rack.

"This has to be a place, right? Well, I guess I need to get a move on."

"[N/n]! Let's get a matching outfit!" Lyn chirped, shoving a dress into the said girl.

"O-oh..." the [h/c]ette sweat-dropped. "Sorry, Lyn. Maybe next time..."

The pink-haired teen deflated, her arms limped to the side. "Eh~?"

"It's rare for you to turn down such a suggestion," Charles mentioned, quirking his eyebrow in suspicion.

"Hehe..." a nervous sweat rolled down the side of her face at his claim.

"Do you have somewhere to go?" the silver-haired woman piped in.

"Y-yeah, sorry..." she replied, rubbing her head sheepishly. "Sorry, Lyn. I promise to make it up to you soon!"

Lyn just smiled and hugged the smaller girl. "No worries! In the meantime, I'll buy us matching clothes. Oh! Maybe you, me, Charlotte, and Cannae could be wearing themed clothing~"

"Ufufu~ I like that," [Y/n] giggled.

"Take care, [Y/n]."

"Don't go wandering off to places you're not supposed to, kiddo."

"See ya later, [N/n]!"

"Mhm. See you later, everyone!" Bidding goodbye to the four, the [h/c]-haired teen exited the shop.

Now that she had found the second clue to her treasure hunt, she just needed to identify the place the riddle was referring to and get there. Fortunately for her, she was smart enough to decipher what the answer to the riddle was, and that it was already directly in front of where she was.

"I'm thankful that I don't have to walk for about 30 minutes just to find a lighthouse. Now that I think about it, this area is the only busy and populated section of the whole resort island."

With her resolve, the young actress proceeded to walk towards the lighthouse up on the nearby hill. There was already a paved, stone pathway up the hill, so she didn't need to worry about climbing the steep elevation or finding other ways to get there. Yet, despite that, it still took the girl about 10 minutes just to arrive at the said lighthouse.

"I... wasn't ready... for exercise..." she huffed, hands on both knees as she finally arrived in front of the lighthouse door. She wiped away a couple of sweat that rolled down her face, expression scrunched up in displeasure at the sudden exertion of energy. "Anyway..."

Trudging over to the wooden door of the lighthouse, she gulped. [Y/n] raised her hand, ready to take a knock on the wood.

"And I'm back down here..." a certain girl murmured to herself, unamused by the physical endeavor she had to do to accomplish the treasure hunt. Her half-lidded eyes gazed at the large ice cream shop in front of her, the words, Frostbite Frozen Delights popping out. Soon, a small smile emerged on her tired facade. "At least I could get ice cream in the process..."

Entering the ice cream shop, [Y/n] was greeted by a cozy and welcoming atmosphere. The place was quite huge, with white and pink, vertical striped walls, white wooden columns and skirting boards, and a beige oak wood floor. There were a couple of booths inside able to occupy about five people on each. And there were even some garden tables and chairs outside the place.

"Whoah... ice cream..."

[E/c] hues sparkled in delight at the menu hanging above the counter, reading the list of available flavors of ice cream. She then turned her attention towards the ice cream bar on the side, seeing the frozen treat being displayed for many to see. Since the young actress was walking for about half an hour now, pretty much all of her breakfast was halfway depleted. Add the fact that she ended up ambling about the whole area underneath the harsh rays of sunlight, the girl thought that ordering an ice cream was a must.

And that, she did.

"Welcome to Frostbite! What can I get for you?" the cashier was a curly, blonde, bespectacled woman. She offered the [h/c]-haired actress a sweet smile.

"Uh... uhm... can I get a [f/f] on a cone, please?" [Y/n] ordered, her eyes glued to the menu board above.

"Sure thing, sweetie~ Is that all?"

Glancing back at the woman, [Y/n] pursed her lips, contemplating what she was going to do. In the end, she decided to kill two birds with one stone. "About the lighthouse..."

The woman's eyes lit up at the girl's words, the corner of her lips curling up. She first scanned her shop before returning her attention to the [h/c]-haired teen. "You know, I heard that the person who was living in the lighthouse often came to my shop to buy ice cream. However, whenever they come, I'm absent from the store. Though, a few of my employees would meet them. Maybe they can help you with your quest."

"How do I... find them?"

"Here's a list of my employees and where they could be found during each hour," the woman gave [Y/n] a piece of paper. "If you've talked to the right one, return to me."

The young girl glanced at the folded paper, gulping. "Thanks."

"No problem! Now, I'll go work on your order, sweets~"

After a couple of minutes, [Y/n] paid the woman for the ice cream she ordered. The girl decided to sit in a vacant booth and rest for a while, assessing the new clue that she was given to complete this quest. She knew that completing a treasure hunt like this one wasn't that easy, however, no matter how committed the young [h/c]ette was, she truly overestimated her abilities and patience in terms of physical undertaking.

"This is a treasure hunt, stupid. Of course, you'll be required to run around the area to find the next clue to the treasure. Why did you think it would be easy?"

The girl frowned, a crease embedded between her brows as she ate her ice cream. Pulling out her phone from the sling bag that she was carrying, [Y/n] opened the device to check the time. 10:09, it read. Waking up at 6 in the morning, having breakfast for about an hour, and finding the next clue by aimlessly strolling for about two hours... and now, this? Surely, this would be the most annoying and tedious part of the hunt. If she was able to search for the first few clues within three hours, this would take a lot longer than that.

[Y/n] let out an exasperated sigh, feeling her eyelids close due to the fatigue. "But all of these would be worth it in the end..."

"Is that [Y/n] over there?"

A familiar voice said, capturing the mentioned girl's attention. Opening her eyes, [e/c] pools met with four pairs of different colored eyes, all belonging to her friends. A few feet away from her, Fram, Waltz, Schneider, and Aslan were lined up at the counter to order.

"Oh, hey, everyone," [Y/n] greeted, giving them a small wave.

"Hey, [Y/n]~" Fram beamed, grinning brightly.

"Good to see you here, kiddo," the tall ravenette guffawed.

Meanwhile, Waltz and Schneider just smiled at her and waved.

"You guys are also here to order ice cream?" standing up, the young [h/c]ette sauntered over everyone, her half-eaten [f/f] ice cream still in her hold.

"Yep! What flavor did you have? I'm gonna try Schneider's favorite, mint chocolate!" Fram said, her blue eyes sparkling in delight at trying the new flavor.

[Y/n] giggled, taking a bite of the waffle cone and licking the melted ice cream. "I had [f/f]. Maybe I'll have some other flavors later."

"How was your morning so far?" Waltz spoke.

"Oh, pretty fine. After having breakfast at the hotel, I took a stroll around the area and met the others. Then, I ended up here," the girl shrugged, finally finishing up the last of her cone. "I'm just resting here for a while before I return to my excursion."

Schneider's brown eyes lit up. "Wow... all by yourself?"

"Hehe~ Do you want to join me, Schneider?" she grinned. "How about you guys? How's the second day for you all?"

After meeting with the four at the ice cream shop, [Y/n] ended up ordering another ice cream and joined them in a conversation. Aslan treated everyone with ice cream, and the youngsters were pretty grateful for his generosity. They sat in a booth, chatting while enjoying the frozen delight during one hot summer day. 

As everyone had different flavors of ice cream, [Y/n] decided to taste everyone's preferences and see if she could add those flavors to her favorites as well. The five of them ended up chatting for about an hour, staying at the shop even after they finished eating their desserts. Despite [Y/n]'s plans of treasure hunting for today, just an hour or two of break spending it with her friends was enough to motivate her to finish what she was doing.

[Y/n] bid everyone goodbye, proceeding to accomplish the next step of the treasure hunt. Reading the paper the woman gave to her, the [h/c]-haired actress decided to visit the farthest person first. Luke was the man's name, and he was located on one of the small islands near Diamond Resort.

There are two ways to get there — one is getting on the gondola lifts that connect the main island to the smaller island, and the other is renting a speedboat or jet-ski. Of course, since [Y/n] doesn't know how to use any water-based vehicle nor have any money to rent it, she opted for the lift instead. At least, she could marvel at the surroundings while she was up there.

"Wow... The view is even beautiful up here..."

[E/c] orbs were wide in awe, sparkling as she stared outside the gondola lift she was in. Since only a few people wanted to travel to the smaller island at this hour, the young actress was able to nab a whole cart for herself and not worry about acting childish in front of other people.

It took about three minutes before she arrived at the landing area of the lift. And then she hopped off the cart, now arriving at one of the smaller islands. Her gaze scanned the area — it is pretty much an empty island with a little vegetation and a dock where one can rent a jet-ski.

"That must be Luke..." she muttered, noticing a brunette sitting at the edge of the wooden dock.

She approached him, determined to get this task done so that she could still have time to search for the others if he wasn't the one she was looking for.

"Fancy seeing you here again, [Y/n]," a certain blonde chuckled, cheeks tinted pink as he saw the girl talking to the cashier.

A long-haired ravenette popped up behind Waltz, a grin emerging on her lips as she, too, spotted the [h/c]ette. "Maybe she just can't get enough of the ice cream here."

"True."

After returning from Luke, [Y/n] went straight to Frostbite just like what the woman said. The young actress was glad that she got lucky with Luke since he was the first one she decided to check on and he was, fortunately, the one she was looking for. She wouldn't want to imagine the amount of muscle pain she would experience from continuously walking around the resort or even how long she would take just to finish it.

Finishing up her talk with the woman, [Y/n] turned around to see Fram and Waltz, a tired smile present on her lips. "Hey, guys. You're here again, huh?"

"Yep, I'm going to buy ice cream for Grandpa," the boy said.

"I'm just here to buy a couple more ice cream since it's so good~"

[Y/n] chuckled. Since she was here to complete the next task of her treasure hunt, she wouldn't need to wait for long or even linger in the store to rest. It's already lunchtime, and the girl wouldn't want to fill her empty stomach with cold deserts, or else she'd be suffering from stomachache in the middle of her treasure hunt. And that is the one thing she wanted to avoid at all costs.

"Maybe I could buy some pizza or pasta for snacks, just to sate my hunger. Thankfully there's a nearby pizza parlor here."

After paying for his order, Waltz turned to [Y/n], his golden eyes scrutinizing her body gestures. "Are you going to stay here like earlier, [Y/n]?"

She shook her head. "No. I'm just going to get what I need and then dip."

"Oh. Do you need to be somewhere? Maybe we could accompany you?"

"It's fine, Waltz," the girl waved her hand dismissively. "You need to bring the ice cream to Grandpa Walther, right?"

The blonde boy frowned. "Yeah, but I could accompany you after I bring it to him."

"I'm also available, you know?" Fram chimed in, placing a hand on her hips. "Although I planned on going somewhere with Johan and the others, I could tell them that I'm with you."

"It's alright, you two," [Y/n] sighed, shaking her head at these two insistent individuals. She showed them a reassuring smile, hoping that they won't press further. "I'm just going to the lighthouse on top of the hill nearby. It's just a few minutes walk away so you two should focus on whatever activity you're planning."

Fram and Waltz exchanged looks. The pout on their faces was evident, and when they glanced at [Y/n], the [h/c]-haired actress had to try her hardest not to give in to their puppy eyes. Fortunately, the woman returned with their orders, successfully stopping the two from whatever they were doing to persuade the girl.

"Thanks," taking the strawberry ice cream in a cup, [Y/n] skipped towards the exit. She turned back to the two, waving them goodbye. "After this, if we meet again, let's hang out! See you two later!"

"And there she goes..." the ravenette said, taking a bite of her cotton candy-flavored ice cream.

"She must be extremely busy... I wonder what she is on about."

Sped-walking at the side of the stone pavement, [Y/n] tried not to get distracted by the cold treat in her hands. The woman earlier offered the girl another ice cream of her choice for completing the task of finding the employees — serving as compensation for her hard work. Although the teen had to pass on the offer for now, she was glad that the offer still stood.

"Just a few more... I hope I can win this."

Finally arriving at the base of the hill, [Y/n] went up the stone staircase, two steps at a time. Despite the soreness she was feeling on her calves and knees, the [h/c]-haired teen pushed through. She wiped a few sweats from her face, feeling the scourging heat battering her petite form.

"Uwah! Finally...! I'm here!" the girl exhaled, pausing to take a breather from another set of exercises.

She took her time to rest, trying to calm her racing heart and wiping away a couple of sweats rolling down her face. When she regained her composure, she glanced around the area, spotting a peculiar pair nearby.

"Aran? Krom? It's rare to see them together like this."

"Aran! Krom!" [Y/n] shouted, waving her free hand up in the air.

"[Y/n]? You're here too!" Aran was the first to notice her, a smile on her lips as she jogged towards the girl. "So there's also a pathway here, huh."

Krom casually walked up to both girls, a slight crease in between his brows as he wiped a sweat. "You're here alone?"

"What are you doing?"

"Oh, I was just doing a meager task, that's why I'm here," the girl responded. "How about you guys?"

"Aran and I were buying ice cream at Frostbite for the others, though we got lost while trying to return to them. Aran said that it would be better to get on high ground to make it easier to search for the others so here we are."

"Oh, I see..." [Y/n] pursed her lips, trying her hardest not to make fun of the two. "Do you need help in finding your way around? I have a copy of the resort's map."

"Great, that's very much appreciated," the blue-haired male sighed in relief, a pink smear across his face and eyes soft.

Browsing carefully inside her sling bag with her free hand, [Y/n] gave them the extra map she got from the hotel's lobby. "Here. Careful on going down, you two. And oh, the path over here is much closer since it links up to the back of Sunset Street."

"Okay, thanks."

Bidding the two goodbyes, she watched as Krom and Aran went down the path she took to arrive at the hill. Nonetheless, she proceeded with her task — returning to the lighthouse to obtain the last clue to this treasure hunt, and hopefully win it.

"So, I need to solve the order of this code so that I can enter the hidden entrance to the cave... Hm..."

After completing the task earlier, [Y/n] received another parchment for the next and final clue of the treasure hunt. Fortunately for her, she doesn't need to cross the whole island to do this one. She just needs to go back down and enter the cave underneath the lighthouse.

The cave was pretty well-kept and is considered a public tourist spot, so there's no need to worry about safety. Knowing this, the [h/c]ette actress assumed that there would be some tourists visiting the cave at this hour. And as luck would have it, she stumbled upon some of her friends.

"We keep bumping into you, huh, kid?" Aslan guffawed, gently placing an arm around the girl's shoulder.

Schneider perk-up at the newcomer. "[Y/n], hey. Can you believe that this cave exists here in this resort?"

"Good noon, Aslan, Schneider, Bianca," the girl tittered.

Bianca reciprocated the smile. "I see that you're also curious about the tourist spots around the resort."

"Hehe... Yep," she grinned.

Aslan removed his arms around the girl, allowing her to walk further into the cave. There were a couple of tourists further inside, she even spotted Aries' snow-white hair in one corner of the area, admiring the indented crystals on the wall. Although the cave was truly mesmerizing, [Y/n] had to refrain from viewing the area. She need to finish the treasure hunt or else she would get distracted and probably lose this chance.

That's why the girl slipped through the crowd to find the place she was searching for. The cave goes deeper inside, with a pathway that twists and curves unnaturally. However, at the end of the cave was a large circular space. There was a small body of water in one area, sectioned off with a barrier.

Despite the sheer size or the number of shining crystals on the wall, [Y/n]'s gaze was instead fixated on a peculiar entryway at the very back of the cave. There was a person — who seemed to be a guard — standing next to it, his eyes inspecting every tourist in the area.

Gulping down her anxiety, [Y/n] walked towards the man. He immediately noticed her, relaxing his posture and waiting for her to speak.

"Um... 'When I arise from the sea, Starfish below quake at the sight of me! My teeth Pearl-y and sublime, my Tail long, glistening, it shines! In the misty blue brine, I search for Sailboats, they'll all be mine mine mine!"

"Ugh. That's so cringy."

After saying her piece, [Y/n] hoped for the best. The last parchment that she had received was one of the hardest puzzles that she had to solve to finally win this treasure hunt. She had spent the entire time thinking about the code order while she was walking. The girl doesn't know if she could get a second shot trying if she somehow messed up the arrangement. Though, hopefully, she gets this right.

Pursing her lips, [Y/n] tried her hardest to calm her speeding heart. The man before her scanned her entire being, his stoic face only intensifying her anxiety. His silence and the suspense around her were killing her, and she wanted nothing more than to escape this undesirable situation.

"That..." Finally, the man spoke. [Y/n] tensed up, hoping for the best in this situation. Noticing her sudden jolt, the man graced a smile. "Congratulations. You may enter the prize room."

"H-huh...? Did I... just win the... treasure hunt? This isn't a dream...right?"

[Y/n] blinked a couple of times, unconsciously holding her breath once she heard the words coming from this man. Despite her efforts, her heart rate didn't go down, instead, it only increased. After a moment, the reality dawned on her, and she couldn't stop a sheepish smile from emerging on her lips, her cheeks tinted with pink.

As the man opened the door to the next area, [Y/n] walked inside and was met with a young woman with red hair. She was seated behind a wooden desk. The 'room' was well built — the walls and floor were made out of wood and it was fairly furnished with furniture and a couple of decor.

"Welcome, dear," the woman said, her mellow voice making [Y/n] stare in a trance. "So you're our winner for today?"

"H-huh? Uh! O-oh, y-yes..."

The adult chuckled at the younger's flustered behavior. "Can you show me the parchment papers given to you?"

"O-of course," following her request, [Y/n] rummaged through her sling bag to retrieve the parchment papers containing the clues. Then, she walked over to the redhead and handed her the papers. "Here."

The woman hummed, scanning the paper she received. Upon concluding that the [h/c]ette indeed collected all and went through the entire treasure hunt legitimately, she pulled the drawer below and got out an envelope. She placed the item on top of her desk, sliding it toward [Y/n].

"Congratulations, Miss. You won this day's treasure hunt," she declared, a big grin present on her face. "Here's your prize. This envelope contained a couple of coupons for Diamond Resort's best facilities. You can redeem any coupon until the next year. Furthermore, you can enjoy the luxury with friends and families with a maximum number of 10 people, excluding yourself."

"W-w-w-what...? Is this for real? Did I just win this?!"

If you may, please sign this congratulatory contract for winning the prize. Don't worry, we just need to ensure that you've won today's treasure hunt and your basic information will be documented by our tourism sector."

Snapping out from her blissful stupor, the girl then glanced down at the legal document presented before her. "Alright."

After reading the contract and completing the documentation, [Y/n] took the envelope, a cheeky grin plastered on her face upon staring at the item.

"Once again, I congratulate you, Miss [Y/n] for winning today's treasure hunt. I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay here at Diamond Resort."

"So the reason why you were adamant about exploring on your own was because of the treasure hunt?" a certain raven-haired male mentioned, the spite and saltiness of his tone didn't fail to deliver. He narrowed his eyes at the jovial girl, his lips sporting a frown as he crossed his arms. "You're so selfish."

"Hehe~ Sorry, oppa," [Y/n] stuck her tongue at him, holding the envelope that contained her prize for winning the treasure hunt earlier that day. "I don't want you getting on my case every minute. Besides, I wanted to win this treasure hunt for myself. I wanted to prove that I can achieve something big on my own."

Zelda, Dietrich, and Cannae circled the girl, peering over her shoulder to see what lies inside the fancy envelope. Rouin, on the other hand, just watched from afar, enjoying the light quarrel between the siblings.

"You should've let me join in the fun, unnie!" Cannae whined, puckering her lips cutely.

"Hehe~ Sorry, Cannae. It just slipped my mind," the [h/c]ette chuckled, patting her younger cousin's green tresses to console her. "Next time, I'll invite you."

"Yay!"

Zelda pouted, pointing to herself. "How about me, [N/n]? Can't I join too?"

"Hmm..." the mentioned girl tilted her head, placing her thumb and finger under her chin as she feigned pondering. After a while, she faced her older sister, a smirk gracing her lips. "Sure. Why not?"

"Huh? So I'm the only one you're excluding? That's unfair!"

"What can I say? You're the only boy in the family," the female twin placed a hand on the other's shoulder.

Dietrich face-palmed, groaning in displeasure. "You girls..."

"Hehe~"

"Well, I'm still proud you managed to win a treasure hunt," he mentioned, a gentle smile emerging on his lips. He then ruffled his little sister's [h/c] locks. "Though, tell me next time where you're going. You're going to worry us if you just decide to go somewhere on your own."

"Mhm. That's right, [Y/n]," Rouin chimed in, walking over to everyone who was huddled on the couch. The young girl blinked her eyes at the oldest in the group, noticing his soft expression. "Always inform us where you're going to be. Since we're in a foreign place, it'll make us worry more if you're by yourself."

"I understand, Rouin oppa. I'll do that, don't worry," she replied, smiling close-eyed. "Though, don't worry much. The others are also with me most of the time."

[lord-of-no-energy]

Taking Care of a Puppy [Rhodon]

A king and his two knights walk into Avillon’s citadel.

Charles

Idk why a ruler of a country will need to take care of a puppy but let’s say that Lord made him do it in return for helping him take back Rhodon

It’d start full tsundere. He’d only give it food and water and safety

I mean, he’s a king, he has duties more important than a puppy

But the puppy won’t take no for an answer. Everywhere Charles looks, the puppy is there

An abandoned part of Rhodon? The puppy crawled out of a house wreck. His study? His desk drawer slid open and out came the puppy. 

It was like having a tiny puppy version of Lord, and Charles had enough to deal with with the existence of one Lord.

It was so funny for Rhodon to see their leader giving an emotional speech about equal rights to opportunities and a puppy’s head pops up over their shoulder

Eventually, the annoyance turns into endearment

When Lord comes to take it back, Charles attempted to act cool, which isn’t a good plan when you’re terrible at acting

He requests Lord to bring it during visits in a cryptic way, like “You know, I noticed that Bella- ahem- the thing has a sharp sense of smell. You should keep it with you when you visit Rhodon. It can smell out enemies.”

Even Lyn can hear his underlying intentions and she didn’t even accompany Lord to Rhodon

Of course, Lord promises to bring the puppy again, after teasing him about it for a bit

Krom

Let’s all be honest, the headcanons with Charles would never happen. Charles would just pass the responsibility onto Krom.

And poor man Krom has no idea how to take care of a puppy. 

He doesn’t even know the first this about it. Why is the puppy panting? It it tired? Is it dehydrated? Is its heart failing? What is gOING ON????

The first person he turns to is Zaira, and even she doesn’t know much, but she at least knows the basics.

With Zaira’s help, Krom is able to understand the basic body language. Turns out, if the puppy’s tail is drooping, it’s sad, not calm. And if it’s wagging, it doesn’t mean its anxious, it means that it’s happy.

So dogs weren’t some masochist animals that felt calm when they were bullied by onlookers

Krom immediately feels bad for getting worried when the puppy was actually happy and not doing anything when it felt sad.

Zaira told him that dogs love fetching, so that’s how Krom makes up to it.

He starts enjoying the puppy’s presence. It’s like his emotional support.

He’s always setting time aside to spend with the puppy.

I can’t see him naming it though. At most, he might call it “Buddy”. Other than that, it’s just “hey” or “you”, which aren’t names.

He’d feel really down if the puppy has to be taken away. 

But seeing him sad made Lord sad so they decided to let him have it. It’s not like the puppy belonged to Lord, they just needed Charles to do something so he doesn’t feel like he still owes them. It’d be better for the puppy to stay with a loving owner than sending it back to the shelter.

And that’s the story of why there’s a puppy in Rhodon’s training grounds.

Zaira

Maybe Krom was busy and Charles had to give the puppy to Zaira

A Rhodon knight’s skill requirements doesn’t include being able to take care of tiny dogs but Zaira takes it anyway

She’s confused at first but she has to now turn her attention to the dog

She’s the only reasonable person out of the three so she starts by giving it a name

By giving it a name I mean looking around the room and saying names of objects and then looking back at the puppy for a reaction

At “chestnut table leg”, the puppy gets up to look for something to play with because it was bored but that was good enough for Zaira

Its name was officially Chestnut Table Leg

At first it was okay but then the puppy got lost in the castle fields, and Zaira felt awkward walking around shouting “Chestnut Table Leg”

So she settled for “Chestnut”

And that’s what she called it afterwards. It was perfect; the puppy recognized and responded to it, it was a shade of chestnut, “chestnut table leg” was a mouthful, and she wouldn’t get weird looks when talking about the puppy to other knights

She’s also the most knowledgeable one out of the three, so the puppy doesn’t have to suffer for the first few days

She spends her free time reading up on diets and what to expect from growing puppies

One of the saddest things for her is leaving the puppy behind when she has to go fight and fulfill her duties

But it’s also a new source of determination to come back alive. She promised the puppy that she will, so that’s what she’s gonna do.

Thank you so much for reading! I loved writing this one, so I hope you loved reading it too!

[0m3g45n1p3r4lph4]

Since I saw you reblog my ask game I'd like to hear some meta/hc/thoughts either relating to Mutran, Chirox, Krika or Icarax (if you don't care for any of them or don't have any specific thoughts you can choose any Makuta of your choice, those four were just the ones I wanted to hear the most of)

Hehe I'm gonna go do all of them

Under the cut though cause it's gonna be a bit long

Mutran: Obviously he fears nothing but Tren Krom. If this guy's willing to stare down - no, try to control a Light Energy Storm for study, he either doesn't fear death or doesn't properly understand his own mortality. I have always found it really interesting what Rahi we've had confirmed were created by him - most notably the Klakk and Blade Burrowers, things that had a strong role in destiny one way or another. He's said to focus on mutations that are destructive in nature, but I think it has to be a more recent development of his - maybe his visit to Tren Krom shattered his perception of mortality, leading to his more destructive designs that ultimately brought his demise? something to think about. either way, fun character, and the Mutran Chronicles is always a good read.

Chirox: Can't really bring up Mutran without mentioning his matching-masked rival, can we? And to think that their rivalry is over the Lohrak. The pettiness building over the course of millennia. For all the battle strategy and cooperation these two have, I really like to imagine their rivalry is still relatively good-hearted - it's evolved with them to becoming rougher and much more harshly competitive, but in the end it's mere competition. idk, I just really like the idea of Makuta not being pure evil about everything, since we know it's well possible. Also shouldercanon - they both originally wear Shelek because they were trying to subtly tell the other to shut up and stop complaining about each other's designs, but ended up sticking to it because not having screaming lab mistakes was much more comfortable. (pretty sure the last bit is canon, but I like it tying into their rivalry.

Krika: my boy... spooky stickbug lad... before I talk lore, why does he not glow in the dark? His parts look the same semi-transparent as Takadox but no glow? That would've been the coolest thing in the world. Might remould all his pieces to glow when I get the materials. Lorewise? oooh... It's not often I get to see a 'villain fighting the heroes because if the heroes win, both sides lose' scenario (only other time I can think of is the Drawn to Life games which... maybe I'll make a separate post talking about the similarities between that and Bionicle one day.) I wish so frequently that we could've seen more of him,.. He never wanted this. Makuta he may have been, but he's a great insight into the wider variety of personalities we could've seen in other members of the species, and for that alone he holds a special place in my heart. Plus spooky boy cool

Icarax: Let's be real, we all thought this was a new Teridax form when it came out. Heck, I think that might've been the set designers intention, until Greg/someone on the story team decided otherwise, to fit in with the Great Plan and where Teridax needed to be for that. I like to imagine, since Pridak originally served under him, that Icarax was the influence behind the leadership of the League of Six Kingdoms. As from this aggressive behaviour, it's a shame we never got to see that fateful battle between Icarax and Botar - the more I think of it, the more I realize it likely would've been the most intense battle in the series. Both have immense strength and free teleportation powers, though it's implied Botar's has more range and is easier to use. Seeing this though, in the Mirimax/Creative Capers style, with the improved battle choreography from Web of Shadows? We probably would've more felt that the Toa Nuva were up against impossible odds. And I would've loved it.

[mocsbylexan]

A letter that has been delivered, opened, read, and discarded in the sands of Bara Magna:

Dear Toa Onezu,

I was so happy to get your letter! Of course I'd love to come visit. All of us other toa from the Northern Continent had been wondering where our Great Hero of the Tren Krom Breach dissappeared to since the Rejoining. We didn't get to introduce you to any of our new friends!

You know, I feel like you left so fast that I never got a chance to properly thank you for all you taught me back when we worked together. If you hadn't taken me under your wing when we met I don't know if I could have ever learned how to be a great Toa like you. Though I'm sure you're still a better toa than I'll ever be!

But I'll shut up now. Gotta leave something to talk about when we meet back up. Hopefully while I'm there I'll be able to convince you to come back and visit everyone in the city! I'll see you in a week.

Your Humble Apprentice (and biggest fan, just because I know you hate when I say that),

Toa Varresk

<>

An excerpt from Onezu Nuva's Journal:

I've been scouring the library looking into alternate uses for the significant collection of kraata I've amassed. I knew that they were often used to infect Kanohi masks, which is fascinating of course. But even more so is the mention of certain experiments made late in the lifespan of the Brotherhood, the very beginnings of which are documented here. It seems that the shadow leeches that plagued us so during the Reign of Shadows were nothing more than modified kraata. Curious.

I believe I have successfully reproduced shadow leeches in the lab. It was surprisingly easy, after having gleaned enough data from the library's records. Initial tests are promising, but it's hard to measure the mental effects of the transformation from mere sand bats and the like. I need a more sentient test subject.

On another note, I've decided to reconnect with an old colleague from before the Great Rejoining.

The Student and the Master

[clansayeed]

Bound by Circumstance ― Chapter 8: The Tower Upright

PAIRING: Nik Ryder x trans*M!MC (Taylor Hunter) RATING: Mature

⥼ MASTERLIST ⥽

⥼ Bound by Circumstance ⥽

Taylor Hunter (MC) has made it good for himself in New Orleans; turns out moving to a new city fresh out of college to reinvent yourself isn’t as hard as people make it out to be. Things only start to get confusing when he finds himself the target of a malevolent wraith. Good thing someone’s looking out for him though — because without Nighthunter Nik Ryder as his bodyguard he definitely won’t survive long in the twisting darkness of the supernatural underworld he’s tripped into.

Bound by Circumstance and the rest of the Oblivion Bound series is an ongoing dramatic retelling project of the book Nightbound and the rest of the Bloodbound series. Find out more [HERE].

Note: Circumstance only loosely follows the events and plotline of Nightbound, and features a separate antagonist, different character motivations, and further worldbuilding.

*Let me know if you would like to be added to the Circumstance/series tag list!

⥼ Chapter Summary ⥽

Ryder and Taylor head to local out-of-the-way voodoo vendor Laveau’s for the final ingredient in their protection ritual. While he waits, Taylor gets his fortune told by the real deal—a spirit medium descended from Marie herself.

[READ IT ON AO3]

Krom’s barely through the threshold before Taylor pounces; hovers around him comically short and buzzing like a gnat.

“So, what did they say? Do I need to call — I don’t have my phone, shit — please tell me I’m not cut from the show.”

Luckily the stone troll looks freaked-out enough to get him to stop and apologize. “Sorry,” he mutters, “I just…”

“No, no I completely understand!” Krom scratches the tips of his head and laughs it off, “I just didn’t want to step on you.”

“He’s not that short.” calls Ivy from her booth at the back.

Taylor shrugs it off. “But I appreciate it.”

“Anyway; the company manager’s a little mad no one could reach you but I convinced them to give you a week of sick leave? Even though there was this one weirdly giddy guy…”

They join Ivy on either side. Taylor groans and rubs his hand over his face.

“That would be Antoni. He doesn’t matter. I really appreciate you doing this for me, Krom.”

“It’s no trouble!” And the troll’s voice is so filled with sincerity he has no trouble believing it.

“That’s our darling Krom.” Garrus returns behind the bar with his tray of collected dirty steins and beer glasses. “He’s like an angel; always helping others. You’ve got nothing to prove sweetheart — you know that.”

Ivy answers Taylor’s question before he even has the chance to ask it; “Stone trolls have a bit of a rep’ around here. You saw their natural element at Persephone.”

“Bodyguards, hired muscle, and the like.” Krom agrees; pointedly trying to keep his voice his usual baritone despite Garrus’ casual compliments.

“So you’re a pacifist?”

“In the flesh — so to speak.”

There’s a thud from behind and all eyes turn to see a stack of crates stumbling out from behind the back room curtain. Not hovering in midair as Taylor originally thought but carried by a very red-faced Cal. Who still forces on a smile through his gritted teeth at Garrus.

“Where… where?”

The fae gestures with a bony finger. “Just leave ‘em behind here. I’ll unpack before the evening rush.”

He slams them down before Taylor can even try to offer help — grumbles under his breath about something he can’t quite catch but he knows Cal’s grateful to Garrus for giving him a place to stay. He must be paying off the stupor he drank himself into following their return as less-than-triumphant heroes.

“I should start taking in strays more often — pun not intended,” Garrus teases but all in good humor; especially when he slides a cool glass of water for Cal to chug when his hands are free, “someone to do the heavy lifting around here and all that.”

Krom shifts in his seat. Something so subtle only the two beside him notice it. But Ivy doesn’t give him the chance to let it go and kicks his rock of a leg with her heels.

“I — I could help with whatever you need, Garrus?” Even though it comes out as more of a question than anything.

The look the two exchange is strange but fond. Garrus’ eyes softening under the twinkling lights. Maybe he regrets what he said — or the implications behind it.

“But if you’re laboring around here then what would I have to look at for inspiration?”

Not the smoothest save, in Taylor’s opinion. But Krom acts like it’s the highest form of praise and brushes the compliment off with a wave.

“Are they always like this?” Taylor whispers to Ivy. The revenant just sighs and nods. A long-suffering struggle on her end no doubt.

Heavy footfalls on metal steps herald Ryder’s arrival from the apartments above. He looks around and beelines towards Taylor in a way that almost has him jumping and hiding.

“You, me; let’s go.”

“That’s not how you ask a man out on a date, Nik.” chides Ivy as she pushes the mortals together.

“What?” He blinks; shakes himself out of whatever thoughts compelled him to seek Taylor out. “Wh — shut up, Iv’.”

“Right,” she winks, “he’ll go with you anyway. It’s part of your brutish charm.”

“Shut up, Iv’.” Taylor parrots with a glare. “Is the spell finally ready?”

Not that he’s not enjoying his time at the Shift. And following the disaster that was the Bayou and Persephone he’s not exactly eager to go into other supernatural spaces any time soon.

But he’s never been one to stay cooped up for long.

Ryder huffs. “Not quite. Damn toad wart expired. Luckily though there’s a shop down the road that carries simple ingredients — so put away that grin Iv’. I’m done owin’ you for now.”

Probably a good thing judging by the low witchy cackle she gives instead.

“So let’s get goin’, hustle hustle.”

“But wait — is it safe?” Taylor follows anyway. Keeping at the Nighthunter’s heels is practically his new job. “You didn’t even want me leaving for the theater.”

“I’ll be right there.”

“With your hallelujah arrows, right?”

“Holy light arrows, Rook. You sound like an idiot when you say that.”

“Well now I’ll keep doing it to piss you off.”

“‘Course, because why would you do anything else?”

Their bickering continues out onto the ruins of another day of Mardi Gras fun. At least some things never lose a sense of normalcy.

It’s a small shop — one of those ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ types. The shop name LAVEAU’s is hand-painted above a doorway embellished with the classic purple, green, and golden plastic beads of the season’s parties.

Taylor stops Ryder before he opens the door. “‘Laveau’s’ like…?”

“Read the signs, Rook.”

There they are clear as day; painted by the same hand as the top sign but with an artist’s frustration behind every black-painted stroke. One on the door declaring ‘Yes, like Marie herself’ and then one blue-tacked beneath it; ‘Not Affiliated with Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo.’

“Oh. Got it.”

While the outside may lack the flair and panache that attracts the usual tourist crowds the inside is a whole other looking glass. Probably looks the way it does to differentiate between those who want fake dolls to poke with pins and those who want a real hex to mess with.

God, he’s talking about real hexes. When had this become his life?

Together they weave through the cluttered mess of uneven shelves and their uneven products. Books stacked flat where they’d fallen over at some point and left that way with little concern. A bundle of glass-looking orbs balancing precariously without cradle to keep them from rolling off the edge. A plant hanger in the middle of the room holds a pile of sage sticks just there. At second glance some look a little used.

The back ‘counter’ isn’t even that. It’s a folding table with a frayed tablecloth unevenly distributed atop and an old and rusting register in the corner.

First Taylor sees the joint resting in an ash tray made out of a mason jar lid. Only when it’s picked up and placed between two pink lips does he realize the man sitting kiddie-corner to the till.

“Welcome, wayward souls, to another side of the witch you know,” he recites as if from a script; monotone — doing everything he can to dissuade those who might darken his doorstep, “everything you see is one hundred percent bona fide authentic to the craft. Don’t do the rhyme if you can’t do the wiccan time.”

Ryder stops abruptly. Arms folded and a raised eyebrow looking over the pile of scattered tarot cards strewn across the table. That which holds the proprietor’s attention more than customers.

Unbidden he reaches out and plucks a card at random. Turns it over to stare at glittering golden words ‘The Emperor’ upside-down.

There’s no way the shop owner should know what card was grabbed — not like he can see though the matte black backing — but he gives a low and throaty chuckle. Lets smoke billow in a thin stream around the same lips now curled in a smirk.

“You always picked predictably, Ryder.”

Ryder who frisbees the card back onto the table carelessly. “I’m not still unconvinced you don’t set me up every time, Luc.”

“For all the shit you see…”

“I’ll always be skeptical of some damn cards, yeah. What else is new?”

“Good question.”

Luc finally drags his gaze up and away from his reading. Gives Ryder an easy and lazy smile that might possibly be the friendliest greeting to the Nighthunter Taylor’s seen so far. Had he not joined Ivy in teasing Krom only a short while ago he might have run himself ragged trying to understand the electric connection he’s witness to.

There’s definitely a history here.

Ryder sighs; knows Luc isn’t going to answer him until he answers himself. “The usual, man. Another day another job. Not much changes for me.”

“That’s not what I hear. In fact — I hear quite the opposite.”

“Sure those aren’t just voices from a bad trip?”

Luc laughs and kicks himself up to balance on the back two legs of his chair. Teeters dangerously close to falling backwards. “Could be, brother, could be. But I ain’t talkin’ ‘bout the spiritual radio this time. Everyone who’s anyone heard tell of a gutsy break-in among the city’s most elite. And all the chaos that followed.”

Ryder’s teeth grind together; his brow gives an almost imperceptible twitch.

“What did I tell you about listenin’ to the rumor mill, Luc?”

“Are they wrong?”

Not giving an answer is answer enough. Makes Luc give a haughty grin so wide Taylor likens him to a shark.

“I said what I said; another day, another job. It got me a rare ingredient I needed. I figured I could get the rest from your sorry ass if I could get you to look away from that damn deck long enough to ring me up.”

Luc makes everything look easy; from getting on Ryder’s bad side to letting his chair fall forward so he can stand. Like he’s not moving through air and gravity but dancing through deep watery depths.

But there’s a defensive edge to his voice — the first emotion beyond amusement — as he starts to gather up his cards.

“I’ll have you know I’m fond of this deck in particular. They were given to me as an apology from someone who never apologizes.”

“Oh yeah, what for?” Judging by Ryder’s tone, though, he already knows.

Still he lets Luc’s bright hazel eyes bore into his soul.

“Skippin’ out come dawn without so much as an adieu.”

Taylor laughs because, well, it’s funny? Only to quickly realize it’s not the right thing to be doing when he catches the strange look Ryder throws back at him; halfway and in profile — like he stops himself before he can make it a whole confrontation.

The teasing’s gone, now. “Yeah — listen, any chance I still have that standing credit here? I need frog warts and a few other things for a protection spell.”

“Ain’t like you to run around on an empty wallet.”

“Yeah, well… this job ain’t just another.”

And as ‘Another Job’ Taylor kind of takes offense to it.

Luc jerks his head towards a doorway shrouded with a curtain of thick wooden beads and the occasional bird feather. “You know where the stores are, cher. Just consider ya’self lucky Mardi Gras is a prosperous time for us all.”

“You’re a lifesaver, Luca. And if it makes you feel better the life you’re savin’ ain’t even mine.”

Taylor’s a step behind his heels when Ryder turns and keeps him at bay with a palm to his chest. His heartbeat stutters; spandex yielding to the firm press, but Ryder says nothing of it.

“Stay up here.”

Taylor scoffs. “Why? I’m not going to accidentally cast a spell or anything.”

“Maybe not, but the last thing I need is you gettin’ clumsy on the wrong object and fuckin’ us both even deeper.”

While he fumbles for a retort worthy of the witty comeback, though, Ryder makes his escape. Calls back; “don’t touch anything, don’t look at anything — and don’t let him suck you up in that damn deck!” before he’s gone in a clatter of beads.

They both know he’s not going to listen — he only says it so he can tell Taylor off when something inevitably happens. That seems to be how they function. Not that he plans on flailing his arms and messing with the first thing he hits, but…

“Since you ain’t dead I’m gonna assume Ryder’s not takin’ on the role’a teacher of the nighthunting arts.”

Snaps Taylor’s attention back to Luc; back in his chair and shuffling the deck in long and ring-adorned fingers.

“No.”

“Good. You might just stay alive then.”

“Apparently that’s a hard thing to do so, sure.”

Luc gestures to the chair across from him. It’s an offer, not a demand, but out of spite for Ryder’s twenty different moods — follow me, don’t follow me, around and around again — he takes it up. Watches Luc shuffle and reshuffle with naught but the soft collision of the cards as music.

When he realizes Ryder’s going to take his time, he figures the best way to start might be an introduction.

“I’m —”

“Pick a few cards for me, Taylor.”

He hadn’t even realized the man had started a spread; each card turned down and black as the void in a soft arc reaching out to him across the table.

Luc is courteous enough not to blow smoke in his face. Sits back slightly hunched and letting his focus flicker between Taylor and the cards. Like both are equally likely to speak to him in the silence.

“It’s probably useless asking how you knew my name, huh?”

“Smart boy. Sometimes they whisper an’ sometimes they scream, but I gotta say it’s been a good long while since I heard the cards call out the way they do to you, Taylor Hunter.

“So help me out here. Pick a few and let them show us why they’re so damn chatty.”

He wants to point out that the only chatty one around is Luca himself, but again that’s one of those useless things he’s finally starting to come to terms with. Knows another useless thing would be to ask why he can’t hear anything… but that’s because hearing is the only word he can think to describe it too.

They’re cards — just plain tarot cards. But like inky tendrils they’re reaching out to him across the table on another plane of reality. One where they have soft black fingers that wrap around his wrists and bring his hands to hover over them. Like safety.

Ryder said… “Well, Ryder said…”

The look Luc gives him cuts him off. Yeah, that was a bit of a stretch, wasn’t it?

He points at random; watches Luc pull a card out without flipping it over. Keeps going until a curt nod cuts him off and nine rectangles of shadow form a square across from him.

“This ain’t your average reading,” that much being obvious by the reverent way the shopkeep looks down at his selection, “and I ain’t your average reader. You’re not from around here.”

“Are you asking?”

“No. But I figure that means you did what all newcomers do — got yourself one of those back room phony shows at the House of Voodoo.”

He wants to say he hasn’t only for how ashamed Luc’s tone makes him feel about it. But yeah — yeah he had. Doesn’t remember much about the event itself but knows somewhere buried in the clutter of his desk back at his place there’s a piece of paper from whatever the alleged ‘psychic’ had him ask.

Luc nods slowly. “Mmhm. Sometimes — ‘bout as oft’n as pigs fly — the cards they play don’t listen and give out an ounce of truth. Nothing life-changing, but a slip enough to tempt the handler into believing.

“You won’t get none’a that here. Whatever’s shown when I flip these babies around has been, is, or will be whether you know it or not. But they only tell as much of a tale as you’re ready to hear.”

The unasked question: are you ready to hear it? And Taylor isn’t sure he knows how to answer.

He knows a lot about himself; inside and out. Has lived through too much and shoved too much inside for too long not to. It’s something he’s proud of. A lot of people spend their lives with no understanding of their inner self but he’s never had that problem.

But there’s a difference between knowing it and seeing… whatever these cards might show him.

What if what he knows isn’t what they say?

Life would be easier if Ryder took that opportune moment to reappear and save him the trouble of having to make the choice.

But life isn’t easy.

He nods — but before Luc can flip over the first card he reaches out and stops him.

“I’m not, like, sealing a deal with a demon or something, am I?” Judging by the look he gets he really shouldn’t have asked.

“Do I look like a demon?”

“I don’t know what demons look like.” He knows it’s a lie but says it anyway; can think only of that skeletal face sneering at him under the moonlight.

Luckily it’s not enough to deter the shopkeep who just bats Taylor’s hand away. “Judgin’ by your ghostly pallor I’m gonna call your fib on that one. But if it eases ya mind; no. No deals here. I get as much outta this as you do.”

Well that’s okay then, isn’t it?

Luc flips the first card over and has himself a little laugh. And why wouldn’t he — The Fool isn’t just an apt card but an apt description.

Taylor’s humor is, however, short-lived. “Seriously?”

“You drew the card. Only one to blame is you.”

“So I’m gonna be even more of a joke in my future or something?”

Luc shakes his head; spreads his fingers as far as they’ll go as the shadow of his palm casts over the center card. “This ain’t your future, but your self. This is you, Mister Hunter.”

“A fool.”

“A man of innocence,” comes the quick correction, “and oftentimes a free spirit. You do your own thing; march to your own drum. Ev’ry Sally and Joe likes to laugh at the Fool but he’s got his eyes set on the horizon and that’s worth admirin’. So don’t sell him — or ya’self — short.”

Innocent — not quite. But the rest Taylor doesn’t disagree with. Seems he knows himself as well as he thought.

Luc’s painted nail traces along a jagged line on the image. “But see here; the Fool stands at the cliff’s edge. He’s a card so it ain’t in his nature to look anywhere but where he’s told but you’re not a card, are ya?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you lookin’ forward at the horizon or down into that abyss,” — he flips over another card before Taylor can answer — “or maybe you see the Tower on the other side.”

The Tower card is actually at the Fool’s back but he’s learned enough now not to question the metaphors.

“All that love for life might come at a cost. An’ hey — maybe it’s one you’re willin’ to pay. I don’t judge.”

No matter how hard he looks he knows he isn’t going to see the same thing as his reader. But… “I’m gonna need you to be a little less cryptic and a little more straightforward.”

“This ain’t science. Everything’s up for interpretation when the cards are involved.”

“Okay so interpret what exactly you mean by a cost. What cost?”

His rings drum on the plastic surface slowly before Luc clicks his tongue. “Looks to me like you’ve been through some shit lately. Life-changin’ shit — shit that skips right over dippin’ a toe into destiny and pushes you right in the deep end tied to an anchor — or ten.”

Finally Luc looks back up but his gaze is guarded; carefully and excellently so. He can’t get a thing out of just a look.

“I could have told you that.” He mutters a defensive reply. “A couple of days ago everything was fine and then my best friend’s in a coma, I find out the shit I’ve been hallucinating my whole life is real, and on top of it some big scary Ugly wants my skinny ass for a meal.”

“That explains our friend Ryder, then.” Luc almost seems to peek at the row’s last hidden card. When he turns the Eight of Cups over the hum he hums reminds Taylor of endless weeks of therapists and their noncommittal noises failing to cover the scratching of pen on paper. “And it’s all a helluva lot, I bet.”

It’s a bit hard to play off the full-body adjustment to hide his discomfort but Taylor likes to think he pulls it off pretty well.

“Understatement of the century.”

“Makes a world ‘a sense. You’ve tried gettin’ away from it.”

“Actually I haven’t really had the time.”

Only Luc disagrees; shakes his head curtly and offers the Cups to Taylor like it’s written on the surface in plain sight. “The cards ain’t just talkin’ ‘round the physical. Sometimes we do all the runnin’ in our minds and we don’t even know it. It could be as simple as connecting new things in ya life to old ones and convincing ya’self they’re the same; whether they are or not.”

Oh, there it is — on the surface and in plain sight. Struggling for Cal and Donny. Taking blame for what happened (not that he’d tell Cal, he’s got enough to feel bad over). Jumping down Krom’s throat about the theater company.

“Don’t beat ya’self up too bad,” continues Luc in a way that makes him freeze in the sudden fear that he can read thoughts as well as tarot cards, “a little escapism is good for the soul. The hard part’s when you gotta come back to reality an’ doin’ it without a fight.”

Taylor offers the card back and watches it settle home beside the Fool. The same Fool he’s now a little reluctant to identify with so quickly. “Yeah. I guess.”

“Got it — now cut the ramblin’; you’re talkin’ over the cards.”

Only hasn’t he been the one doing all the talking? Arguing won’t help but that little nugget of petulance persists.

This time Luc reveals three cards one after the other. Makes sure to let each one rest face-up before moving on. Letting them breathe. Letting them speak.

Strength. The Hermit. The Two of Swords. The first two facing Taylor this time as if in judgment. No; they haven’t drawn that card just yet.

He realizes he’s waiting on bated breath when his lungs start to burn and beg for fresh air. Why is he so quiet all of a sudden?

“Tell me more about those hallucinations ya mentioned, Taylor.”

That’s not where he was expecting that to go at all; catches him off guard. “Sorry?”

“Don’t be,” but the other man sounds distant; lost in his thoughts, “jus’ tell me. Said you been seein’ things ‘your whole life’ right?”

“Yeah. But I’d really rather not, uh, go into…” Wasn’t his life story down on the cards? It was hard enough explaining everything to Kristin — and they knew things about one another bound to secrecy by the sanctity of roommate-dom. So he tries to keep it all in the realm of the reading; “I mean I know what they are now. I was seeing glamours. Like through them — without a charm or spell or whatever. I dunno, Nik can explain it better.”

When Luc doesn’t give the same shocked jaw-drop the trio at the Shift had he entertains the brief hope that the same talent runs through the psychic’s veins. But that’s dashed when he catches sight of the unconscious way Luc grabs onto one of the numerous stone pendants draped over his neck — the way he thumbs over the polished surface and tugs on the leather cord.

It’s not the same one Ryder has but pretty damn close; close enough to assume his glamour-charm used to have a home in this very shop.

“That kind-a inner sight’s awful rare.” He practically mumbles.

“Yeah, it’s been mentioned.”

“Not unheard of, mind you. Not in things that ain’t entirely mortal by blood and bone. When you draw Strength in reverse it’s not the opposite like you’d think; it ain’t sayin’ you lack strength.

“Think of it more like the meanin’ is just turned about. Upright’s outside and the other is inside.”

“So it’s inner strength.” He can get behind that.

“Or lack of it.”

I’m fucking sorry? “Who—what-now?”

“This row,” he gestures a little too grandly for the subject matter, “is your past, present, and future. I told you the cards were screamin’ — and they still are — but not this one,” — not Strength — “this’un’s more of a whisper. And it makes sense given that you called ‘em ‘hallucinations.’”

“And an explanation for us ‘card’-of-hearing?”

Luc bites his tongue — really and without metaphor; wince and all. Grabs a stray bit of crumpled receipt from god-knows when his last sale was and scribbles on it in blocky letters.

“‘Note to self,’” he enunciates his writing harshly, “‘add sign to shop: ‘Owner Has the Right to Refuse Service on Account of Shitty Fucking Puns.’”

The glare that follows tells Taylor it won’t be long before that sign has his name added to avoid confusion.

No regrets. None at all.

Puns aside, though? The level eye he gets across the cards takes a turn for the serious.

“I think it tells me a lot more than you’re ready to share. About ya life before this; about the things you done to make the pain go away. Some of us may be human but that don’t mean we ain’t still animals. And animals lash out when they’re scared.”

He’s right. It’s a lot more than Taylor’s ready to share. Makes him want to scramble the deck — flip the table on its end. And maybe the old version of him, the version in those cards, might have.

In his silence Luc gets the answer — “moving on…” he almost sing-songs — lets his fingertips dance on the card showing the present: the Hermit.

Which Taylor tries not to take personally. Who is there to be angry at other than himself?

“So since that one’s reversed too that means… what, that I’m a hermit on the inside?”

“I can see how you’d think that,” laughs Luc, “but not quite. How about we let the professional do his profession?”

Taylor gestures. The professional carries on. “It ain’t easy comin’ into this life so late. ‘Specially when you end up seein’ all the bad before a lick’a good comes your way. But you’re drownin’ in it — that’s what the Hermit’s tellin’ us. No time to ruminate?”

He scoffs. “Something like that.”

“Well make time. Lest it all starts crashin’ down and you get the proverbial water in ya lungs.”

“It’s not by choice. There’s things after me and —”

“And excuses ain’t gonna keep you afloat.” The man reaches over faster than Taylor can move back; actually flicks his forehead dead center.

“Ow!” He swats Luc’s hand away.

“It ain’t me sayin’ this, Hunter. It’s them,” he gestures to the cards, “and they know more about this world than either of us could learn in a hundred lifetimes. Take ya damn time and really work out how you feel. Else you won’t be able to face this here future with a clear head.”

Luckily Taylor doesn’t have to ask; isn’t certain he’d be able to as he looks at the Two of Swords card and feels sweat start to bead at his temples.

Playing with tarot cards is all fun and games when you don’t believe. Even when you do — a measure of healthy skepticism is good for the soul. But with everything he’s seen; been told?

Who would willingly ask for their future foretold after that?

“I think we can skip to the next cards.”

“Oho, this don’t work like that.”

“Why,” doing his best to keep his voice level, “it’s my reading, right? I don’t want to know.”

“Sucks to be you, then. You draw; you listen. That’s how all true readin’s go.” Luc leans back on the creaky chair and lets the Swords card flip and twirl between his fingers.

He could make it easy on them both; stop arguing and just get up and leave the reading unfinished. Find Ryder in the back and apologize for doing what he said not to do — again — and book it out of there right quick.

But he doesn’t.

“Now I get why Nik said not to do this.”

“Ha — well, hindsight ain’t much use in a house of foresight baby. So listen; an’ listen well.

“In proper tarot some cards are real close in meanin’. That’s where the spread comes in — the order, the intent; not to mention the cards all ‘round it. The Swords in your future point to some hard fuckin’ choices. And if ya keep on the path ya’re on you won’t be makin’ ‘em with all your marbles.

“I ain’t talkin’ about decisions that can be made for you, neither. When it comes down to it you’re likely to find ya’self alone — not only in the act a’ choosin’ but in dealin’ with the consequences.”

“So what kind of choices? What do the cards scream about that?”

“They don’t —” he tosses the card back down and it’s probably not a coincidence that it slides magically askew back in the reading’s place, “— on account of all the changes between now and when that time comes.

“The cards give truths where mortals lie; hope where the world pushes despair. But at the end’a everythin’ they’re just cards — bound by the same circumstances as you or I.”

It’s probably meant to be poignant; something that might be sold on a re-purposed wooden palette hand-painted and polished. In a shop similar to this — right between the mismatched crystal balls and Ryder’s coveted frog warts.

But all Taylor can think is; “Well that’s absolutely useless to me beyond freaking me out.”

Luc gives another one of his gap-toothed grins — “C’est la vie, mon petit,” — and doesn’t wait for permission or argument to reveal another card.

“If it makes ya feel any better —”

“Doubtful at this point.”

“— Fair. But they won’t leave ya hangin’. Unless the Hanged Man is drawn, a’course. Naw, rest easy knowin’ you won’t be goin’ the journey alone.”

He frowns; confused. “But you just said —”

“Hush. All the best journeys are made with friends. Though I… I ain’t sure I’d call the Nine a’Wands a friend…”

Curiosity replaced by twists and turns of his bewildered head; Luc bites down on his thumb nail and scrutinizes the seventh draw. “In fact, I’d call whomever this bad draw represents —”

“Ryder!”

The Nighthunter emerges in a wave of beads carrying a pearly sphere the size of his head tucked in the crook of his arm. At the same time Taylor jumps — a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar — and swears when his knee bangs under the table.

Luc doesn’t notice — or doesn’t care; still fixated on the black-and-gold design in front of him. Mutters “could be him, but…” under his breath so low that no one catches it.

Taylor fumbles for an explanation — which is a pretty stupid move seeing as he was ready to just come clean only a minute ago — but doesn’t get the chance. Though he would like to state that it probably would have been an extremely convincing and well-versed one had Ryder not just held up a hand and rolled his eyes.

“I figured you’d ignore me. Already took out my anger with a mortar and pestle in the back.”

Well he’s a little offended now. “I wasn’t blatantly disobeying you or anything,” then; “I’m a grown adult and can make my own choices.”

And doesn’t that karma come around to bite him in the ass pretty damn fast. He makes a great effort not to look at what is no doubt a haughty look of ‘I told you so.’

“Yeah yeah, cry me a river.”

He props the sphere on a large cushion nearby to keep it from rolling and drags the last free seat over into Taylor’s personal bubble. Already looking at the spread like he, too, can hear these alleged screams from the deck. “So, Luc? Any tell on whether or not I’m gonna get paid for this gig?”

“Wha — hey!”

Taylor knows he doesn’t hit Nik’s arm that hard but the offended look he gets back is more than enough.

“Ouch. That hurt.”

“If that hurt I need a new bodyguard.”

“Don’t tempt me to pawn you off.”

“Please do.”

A tinny click draws their focus away from each other and to Luc’s newly lighted blunt. No longer puzzled by the cards — his eyes are brighter; they shine with understanding.

“Nevermind. I get it, now.”

“Get what?” barks Nik a little too defensively.

“Didn’ I jus’ tell ya not to mind it?”

Taylor cuts Nik off before he can continue arguing. They’ve been here too long already. “If we can’t leave until this is finished — can you finish?”

Two cards remain to be revealed. The fortune teller takes his sweet time with a few puffs before agreeing, if reluctantly. Maybe he just doesn’t like an audience?

All sense of the mysterium is gone. Luc flips the cards one at a time with one hand while sucking in his joint with the other.

The Five of Swords. The Wheel of Fortune.

It’s totally the secondhand high that makes the golden wheel glitter and seem to turn before their eyes. Totally.

He braces himself for another round of cryptic semi-explanations. Only they don’t come. Luc’s eyelids droop heavy — almost closed. And judging by Nik’s frown that’s not a normal part of the reading.

“Luca? Hey —” — he snaps in front of the man’s face — “— Laveau!”

He doesn’t quite jerk out of his momentary trance; eyelids flutter as if awakening from a dream.

“Maybe you had a point, Hunter,” after a throaty cough, “maybe it’s best this go unfinished.”

“What seriously? After all that earlier shit?” He balks. Beside him Ryder grabs the Swords and looks it over back to front.

“You’ve never left a reading hanging. What gives?”

“He’s still new to the life. I think he’s had enough bad news for today.”

Taylor practically snatches the card from Nik. But it seems just as reluctant to give up its secrets to him, too. Makes him toss it back down in frustration.

“Just tell me,” even he can’t believe what he’s saying, “since I dunno if it’s worse to know or to guess.”

“Trust me. The worst one’s knowin’.”

“I’ll take that as you’ve never encountered crippling anxiety, then.”

In rare sympathetic form Ryder reaches out and rests a hand on Luc’s exposed forearm. They aren’t hiding behind quips or dancing words any longer; you could see the remnants of intimacy between them from space.

“Luc — come on. For my sake, too.”

The doubt doesn’t ease off from the fortune teller’s brow. In fact it looks deeper than ever before. Finally he yields. “All right — but don’t blame me or the cards. We’re jus’ messengers after all.”

No longer in need of a familiar touch Luc shakes the hand off. Mutters something unintelligible under his breath and takes another few puffs to calm himself down before he covers the Five of Swords like he can’t do the reading while looking at it.

“There’s more than difficult choices ahead for you — and for those what end up around you. A fight looms —” he turns the Swords card on its back atop the revealed Wheel of Fortune, “— on a bigger horizon than that’a the Vieux Carre. Might even be one bigger than this world of ours.

“Not so much a fight as a battle; a war. Turnin’ and churnin’ at the banks of the river and out into the ocean. Ready to flood the whole damn city — every corner of the earth. And it’ll keep ragin’ and screamin’ with every body what falls to it.”

Ryder goes still as stone beside him. Taylor finds himself revisiting the notion of it being better not knowing.

“What does any of that have to do with me?”

“You, Mister Hunter — you’re smack dab in the middle of it. More’n that… you belong there.”

Apologies. Sympathy. Condolences. Luc can’t seem to settle on one way to look at Taylor so instead he just focuses on packing his deck back up. He isn’t as careful this time around — like he’s angry at the cards and what they had to say; to scream. Two separate entities working off of one another but, at the very least, both unhappy with the outcome.

“I’ll get a box for that crystal ball — the warts are yours but I’ll need interest on that relic.” He can’t get away from the pair fast enough. Shuffles the tarot deck in his hands as he goes.

He wants to be surprised that Nik doesn’t follow; doesn’t go to check on someone he obviously has a past and present connection with. But in the goody bag of his emotions he just keeps pulling out resignation — even when he cheats and peeks inside.

That’s all there is. All he can feel.

Where’s that opportunity for escapism the cards had mentioned earlier? He could use a bit of that at the moment.

Doesn’t know when exactly Nik started trying to comfort him; hand on his upper back, the gentle back-and-forth of his thumb. Taylor’s not a big fan of touch but that seems to be how Ryder connects to the world; through the physical.

And oddly it’s working. The comfort thing.

“You okay?”

He’ll sass such a ridiculous question later. “Uh, honestly I don’t really know what I am right now.”

Ryder’s face is unusually close when Taylor looks his way. The barest flicker — a crack in the bravado. Nik is worried for him.

“That can happen after Luc’s readings. You think I warned ya away to keep you from somethin’ fun? Knowin’ his connection with the spirit world makes it all really…”

He struggles for the right word. Weird, coming from him.

“‘Real?’” offers Taylor, and gets him a nod.

“Yeah, really real.”

Noises of shuffled boxes and Luc’s grunts draw them out of Taylor’s personal space and back to the world around them. Up near the back curtain Luc gently eases the crystal ball into a wooden box.

“So, question.”

“Yeah Rook?”

“What do we do now?” Because if turning tail and running like a shameless coward away from this war is an option, he’s taking it.

“We keep on going,” Nik answers, “We get back to the Shift and finish up this blasted protection spell and then we dive into findin’ your attacker and punch a bunch’a holy light holes in it’s ugly-ass face.”

This time when he reaches into the bag of emotions, luck gives him a break and lets him pull out the barest ghost of a smile.

“Man, it is ugly. Like — fugly ugly.”

Ryder’s smile is just as small — but no less sincere — than his.

“It damn sure is.”

[crazy-loca-blog]

Personal thoughts on… 2019 seasonal books

Note: As the title says, these are just personal opinions on Choices books and chapters. Of course, you may agree or disagree with them, I only use this platform to express my thoughts on what I read every week.

Finally! I promised that I would be posting this as soon as all the seasonal books were fully released, but I didn’t think it would take them so long to be finished… and I didn’t expect me to spend so much time reading them. For some stupid reason, I saw myself facing the same problem with all four books: trying to finish the first chapter was a real struggle. Maybe the beginning of the books was too slow, maybe the first chapters were too long… I have no idea why it took me forever finishing the first chapter of all four books. Luckily, all of them caught my attention in chapter 2 and of course, I couldn’t stop reading afterwards. The books are organized as per release date.

The Royal Holiday (November 16, 2019 - December 7, 2019): Sorry if I’m a little biased on this book, but I think talking about it may be a little complex, because I have a feeling that every person had a different experience depending on who you married to. Overall, I really liked it. I felt it was more similar to what we’re used to see in TRR than in TRH. And if you married Drake (as my MC did), I guess you’ll understand what I mean. If you didn’t marry him, let me give you a quick update: during The Royal Heir there were plenty of dialogs with Drake that were absolutely out of character… can you imagine him saying “yes” to Liam’s petition immediately? I mean, no doubts, no “but”, no nothing? Even the MC had more doubts than him! Anyway, in this Christmas book, the old Drake we know (and some of us learned to love) was back and that was pretty comforting. One of the things I liked the most about this book was how the writers found a balance between the time alone with our LI and the main plot of the story. On one hand, spending time with Drake and remembering that it was actually in Lythikos where they both began to realize they had some romantic feelings for each other was a nice detail. On the other hand, helping Olivia after all she did for the crown (and especially after what she went through with Anton and her aunt) was awesome. I personally missed her so much during TRH that she definitely deserved all the love and a whole book dedicated to her. But I have to admit I got mad… like really mad… when I saw all the nobles arriving at the party just because the press had been there. Can we just talk about how fake these people are? I kept waiting for the moment where someone would give them a piece of their mind, because I certainly did while reading the last chapter.

The Elementalists: Winters Past (November 27, 2019 - December 18, 2019): I think this was PB’s attempt to give us a proper closure for The Elementalists series… but they didn’t convince me. Don’t get me wrong, I think the book is pretty good, I had fun reading it, I loved the plot involving Shreya’s mother, Isabella and their friendship story, but as we won’t be seeing this gang anymore, I would have expected the book to solve at least some of the questions that were left unanswered in Book 2. There were plenty of hints (like how the MC and Atlas spent Christmas with their mother) and even some glimpses of the future (in my case, my MC is dating Beckett and they talked about meeting his parents… and even about having kids!) but nothing that concrete. Instead, the main plot took another direction and gave us a whole new story, with ghosts and a solstice (and now I’m wondering if we’ll see some crossover between TE and BB in the future) that ended up being very attractive and different. Isabella was, in my opinion, the perfect character that this story needed to be bright, something that this series needed after so much darkness. I even had to grab some tissues when she left, the scene was super emotive. The only thing that doesn’t add up to me is why they decided not to include Shreya’s sister in the story. Being this a short book, inviting her to the castle would have been actually fun, and it wouldn’t have affected the main story. Despite this, I think justice has been done to Griffin. Yes! Finally he got the love he has deserved from the very first moment! I’m so in love with this boy (seriously, the only reason why I didn’t choose him was because I’m convinced that Beckett was the perfect match for my MC) and I was so disappointed that he never got the recognition he deserves for being a good guy, that it was awesome to see someone finally recognizing what a treasure he is.

Bloodbound: Dark Solstice (December 21, 2019 - January 11, 2020): At first, I didn’t understand why PB would release a Bloodbound holiday special when this is one of the darkest series in the app. I would have never thought that this would become my favorite seasonal book of 2019. So, we had the Dark Solstice instead of Christmas. And it was awesome! I know I’ve said this plenty of times, but one of my favorite things about a story is when the writers realize that there is more than a “main LI” and they do their best to balance the screen time and the interactions with all of them. And they did it. I also loved how the story was focused on Kamilah and Lily, instead of being focused on Adrian and Jax (as things usually are in the main series). Finally, we had something that took us out of what a Christmas book is supposed to be, and I’m thankful for that, as it helped us to “fight” the cheesiness we may have found in the other three books. But my favorite thing about this book has to be how they made things work with the main series. We had this awesome crossover with the Nightbound gang (who would have thought they actually met Ivy, Garrus and Krom before meeting Cal in Book 2?) that left me begging for a trip to New Orleans at some point during Book 3. We also had glimpses of Gaius and Serafine, which helped to link this book the plot of Book 2 (smart move!). And last, but no least, if you got all four pieces of the portrait, you got to see these new characters, all of them Japanese vampires. Who are they? Are they somehow related to Jax? How did the kid realize that things wouldn’t be the same after this solstice? What will be their role during Book 3? Will they be decisive characters? I have so many questions now!

Desire and Decorum: First Winter (December 22, 2019 - January 12, 2020): I have some mixed emotions on this book. As many of us, I was excited to see these people one more time after the beautiful final chapter that the writers gave us in Desire and Decorum, Book 3. But I’m not going to lie… I’m a little disappointed with the result. It’s not a bad book, but I ended up feeling that it was unnecessary; especially because it didn’t give us an actual new plot and it didn’t add many new things to the original plot either, as the other three seasonal books did. So for me, this is probably the weakest release of the season. Sure, it answered some questions such as how Harry and Miss Sutton got engaged and how Sir Luke and Cordelia (if you shipped them) didn’t get engaged during this period, but there was nothing too exciting to make this book memorable. Not even Henrietta was the annoying character we were used to see throughout the series. Probably my only “OMG” moment of the story was when we had the chance to make Constance to kiss someone under the mistletoe. I chose Prince Hamid just to see what happened, and it seems they actually ended up becoming a thing in the future… I didn’t expect that to happen, not at all! I also liked the fact that they remembered old traditions while trying to create some new ones, but for some reason, I felt the MC said that exact sentence so many times during the book that it ended up feeling “forced”. Instead, I think it would have been cute to see a main plot with the two brothers, our grandmother and even Henrietta teaching the MC about the old family traditions, our MC teaching them about her traditions with her mom, and then creating new ones with our husband/wife and our friends. Overall, the book left me a bittersweet feeling. I enjoyed reading it, but it lacks of that “something” to make it feel like a really special book.

[angstymarshmallow]

The Things That go BUMP in the Night

Hi folks! I haven't done this sort of blogging in awhile but I really wanted to jot down some of what I thought about the new book released this week. For starters, although I know I'm a fan of the genre I was still pretty happy with the first two chapters - but like with everything, I still have my gripes about it. And without further ado, let’s get started!

1. Lore. One of the never-ending questions I’ve always found interesting to answer is - how do people that aren’t human fit into the same universe? How do they co-exist. Originally I’ve asked these kind of questions in another post but this specifically was one of the most important questions, going into this book. 

I imagined from the beginning, there was some sort of glamour involved - and I was right! It's not to say it's a hard conclusion to come by lol, in some ways it is kind of textbook. But I think while it is a good way of explaining their world; it would have been more interesting if it was all out in the open (including bloodbound), rather than being quite so hush hush. How would that work? Wouldn’t there be mass panic? Well maybe at first, we are talking about things that go bump in the night, but I imagine there would have to be some kind of legislation in place to support their existence and to keep them in some kind of line. (I’ve read a series once that did something akin to this and there’s been other things where I don’t think this would be something impossible to accomplish). 

That isn't to say nighthunters like Nik wouldn't still have a role within society. They could be a special task force assisted by the government to protect the...well ordinary from the unordinary and vice versa.It just would have been nice to see another explanation other than the more popular substance of - "oh my god, we had no idea these things exist!" But then I guess there would be no reason for glamour anymore, if everyone's accountable for their actions. However, this doesn’t take away from how awesome it is to explore this new detail regardless of whether everyone knows it. And I think it’s worth mentioning that I do like a lot of other things they’ve showed us. They paint this picture of New Orleans, uniqueness. Vera one of the first characters we meet, implores us that the city isn’t black and white but rather there are lots of gray areas when it comes down to the city. 

From the little pieces of context from Vera, to meeting people such as the seemingly charming Garrus and Ivy as well as the shy Krom; as the reader it’s already been established to us that there is more to the supernatural world than just black and white - everyone is a monster. What I really enjoyed is seeing the different representation of supernatural beings in just the little details they’ve allowed to naturally come up within dialogue. And it makes sense! Just like people, supernaturals differ from one another. Plus that kind of detail - I eat that good shit like it's breakfast, and now I'm just waiting for a full course meal.

2. Introduction to Other Characters.

Another refreshing take from this story was the way in which they introduced some of the characters. Particularly, how Vera Reimonenq and Nik Ryder were introduced to us. I can’t even think of another time where we spent almost immediate one-one with a female LI first instead of a male LI. It was surprising and I jumped on the chance right away.

Vera herself is very interesting. I was particularly drawn to the fact that  she swears satin gloves. I think touching is a sensitive thing for her; specifically touching with her bare hands which may allude to the kind of supernatural she is; or more specifically the kinds of abilities she has which sets her apart from “other humans” . I like that we had the chance to know a bit more about her; the fact that this is her first time home in a few years and although she didn’t confide in us why she left- it is clear that something has drawn her back here. It sets up for a very unique love interest :D.

Nik feels a little more cookie-cutter. A hunter with a dark sense of humour and a tragic backstory (i feel that to my soul when he brought up quite briefly; his father in his first diamond scene and the cuts that MC notices when they see a flash of their body). This is my personal biases coming out to get me because I love that kind of detail, and I live for that kind of angst. I also appreciate witty banter and it’s clear to me that whatever MC’s relationship with Nik becomes - they will have some kind of rapport between them.

Garrus, Krom and Ivy.

There’s very little we know about them, considering we spent a small time with each - but Ivy more so when MC and Nik agree to ‘help’ her in a way to find answers as to that creepy monster which appeared in the first chapter. Garrus is what I expect from the fae; charming and probably very easy to be seduced by, Krom was adorable in his own way and Ivy - she interested me the most. She felt a lot more personable and transparent. I think this is partly because of the  time we spent in knowing her a little more than the others, and also because she may be more of a reoccurring character because of her little shop that Nik obviously knows his way around.

3. The Set Up?

There isn’t much to say plot wise about the first two chapters. Naturally it asks of us as the reader several questions. Why can our MC see past glamours? Who wants to protect MC so badly that they’ve paid an extensive amount of money to hire a hunter? And what does this have to do with the necromancy? These questions (and many more), are undoubtedly going to be answered over the course of this book. Although, I’ve already began wondering about this in length - as I have no doubt many others have as well. I like that it sets some objectives in a clear way from the beginning and honestly, so far it has the kind of action packed I never realized I needed for this kind of genre. It’s refreshing to be pleasantly surprised for a change and so far, I expect to keep up with series (diamonds and all).

The pacing so far is great and I’m looking forward to learning more about the Nightbound universe!

TLDR: I really enjoy the set-up of how they’ve painted supernaturals. Although, I was disappointed like Bloodbound, humans don’t coexist with supernatural beings - rather they live among them completely unaware because of glamour.  The lore is really interesting so far and I’m enjoying the characters we’ve met along the way - particuarly Vera and Nik (I think they’ll be big movers in terms of plot) and overall, I think it’s setting up for a great adventure! 

What are your thoughts?

[convxction]

Supports Analysis part 4

The subject of the rant for today is: Chro/m & Marc/Morgan

Based on: The game [supports] / [DLC convos] & The CD Drama.

What is beyond the read more is merely my own interpretation of the subject. You do not have to agree with me, a room for disagreeing is always open and of course comments and feedback are appreciated.

Index

In-game support

Their support

Morgan and Lucina support

Interpretation

Conclusion

Resources

     In-game support

  Their support

Pay in mind that I am going to go over the JP and ENG as always.

Morgan and Chrom interaction in the JP version is pretty much the same generic lines that all father uses. So, there is nothing that was omitted or replaced beside that in JP chrom refers to ‘Marc’ as talkative which I assume in Japanese it is an equivalent to being energetic so I won’t stress on it that much. So, aside from that, the support really does not give much insight on Chrom as a father because the lines are pretty much  . . . bland.

  Morgan and Lucina support

To my research, I believe Chrom is the only Father (or parent) that is featured in their siblings' support (among them or with their other parent) so that is a nice point that IntelSystem gave Chrom (screw you for giving him less supports smh.)

But yeah, the siblings in their support rank C, they fight against a ..roach. Apparently, it is a family joke by now that Chrom always gets the bugs while the whole family quaver in fear behind him but that is aside, ahem. In here we see some slight differences in Chrom and Lucina lines. I believe it is a culture thing again playing part in here. In the JP version below:

Krom: Hey! You've been at it for a while, what is all this noise about!?

Lucina: F-Father!?

Mark: Dad!?

(…)

Krom: Geez, you two... Don't create such a racket over a bug.

Mark: It's my bad...

Lucina: I'm sorry, Father...

Krom: It's fine... just be aware from now on.

Mark: In the end, dad was the one who got rid of the bug. Dad sure is reliable ~

Lucina: Yes... but we gave Father trouble...

Mark: Hey, Lucina, are you feeling down? I'm actually really happy.

This is the first time we both got scolded by dad together.

Altogether I think it's nice to have memories like this I can cherish, it makes me so happy!

Lucina: Mark...

… Yes, you're right.

I do think it's kind of funny…

Chrom is still rather understanding towards the whole ‘freaking out because of a bug’ which I think because in Japan it is very common to find insects in the houses because of how they are built so children getting scared of them is a normal thing and a father should be understanding. In short, I believe, again my own opinion, In here, Chrom’s reaction is calmer because the culture is forgiving to being scared of bugs unlike his English counterpart below:

Chrom: What in the name of...? What are you two doing in here?!

Lucina: F-Father?

Morgan: Father!

Chrom: Honestly, you two. All that commotion over a silly insect? What were you thinking?!

Morgan: Sorry...

Lucina: I'm sorry, Father...

Chrom: Just see that it never happens again.

(Chrom leaves)

Morgan: Figures he would be the one to get it. He's unshakable.

Lucina: It's true. Although he was a lot less calm when it came to scolding us...

Morgan: Aw, are you still down about that? I actually rather enjoyed it. I can't remember the two of us ever getting in trouble like that before. It felt...strangely familiar somehow. Kind of a happy, nostalgic feeling.

Lucina: Heh. I confess, it did have its moments…

I don’t find it that of a problem that they changed how Chrom reacted, from understanding to slightly irritated at this because again, CULTURE plays a major role whether you like or not. In Japanese, Chrom was kinder to the children but in the English it feels like he expected better of them, which how I believe Intelsys sees the Western Culture, not tolerating children freaking out of simple insects like a roach where they could have just settled the problem quickly without causing a huge problem in the camp. Again, cultures! At times it is hard to cross that border when there are certain expectations and ‘cemented’ norms. As for me, I would have loved if they kept Chrom’s understanding in the English part, too because we know Chrom is kind man who would have forgiven his children for something as silly as this but putting the context that they are in camp, WAR CAMP he probably had the right to be angry at them for worrying everyone, not just him. Don’t forget it is probably unfitting for the princess and prince of Ylisse to act like that when they are supposed to be a beacon of hope for everyone. So yeah, these things in mind, I don’t want to go hard on this as I initially had been before.

As for Lucina’s line

JP>Lucina: Yes... but we gave Father trouble...

ENG>Lucina: It's true. Although he was a lot less calm when it came to scolding us...

In my opinion, the Japanese line would have fit the English context even more because of why chrom was angry? because they made everyone on the camp worried so it is obviously that caused chrom trouble by having to calm everyone down outside. But that is for another analysis to talk about.

In that support, between Morgan and Lucina, it showed that Chrom kind of pin some expectation on them so that is why he got a little upset of them fearing a simple insect when they fight dead walking men on daily basis.

On their A Support, when Morgan tried to wield Falchion and kept missing the mark, he left and Chrom walked by to see the clean cut that Morgan had made on one of the logs.

Chrom: ...Hmm? What's this log? Was someone training? Hmm, split perfectly in two. I've never seen such a clean cut before...

This is the only time where the game confirmed that another sibling can wield Falchion beside Lucina. Falchion is a mysterious sword and how can wield is still mysterious as well--like what are the requirements for doing such? Who knows. But going by how Morgan determined to protect everyone, I believe the sword reacted to that strong will but since Lucina already in possession of it and perhaps her will is stronger than Morgan being the older and the actual Exalt of their own world, the sword reacted faintly to Morgan. Anyway, if Chrom realized it was Morgan who cut that Log with Falchion, I’m sure he will be both proud and concerned. Proud, because it still needed skills to use the sword to get this clean cut. Concerned, because it reminds him that he and Lucina came from a dead world and it might be a bad premonition that something might happen to Lucina, thus Falchion accepted him. But in the end, he will take time to teach Morgan about Falchion and swordplay in depth, not to use it in battle only, but to understand the newfound power that rests on his shoulder. Chrom was trained since he was a kid to hold Falchion when it finally accepts him, so he realized that it is a heavyweight since the beginning. However, Morgan only came to notice the sword’s power once he was able to use it with his own two hands, so Chrom wants to make sure Morgan does not get overwhelmed or overtaken by power, which is the worst possible scenario Chrom fears.

Chrom surely raised them well with Robin but with some newfound power, one can get corrupted easily so what the parents fear that a rift between the siblings happens because who gets to take Falchion. Again, Chrom and Robin will try to teach them to not let this get the better of them, especially now they know Future Morgan can wield Falchion, so baby Morgan will surely too, so they have a counterplan for the future.

The supports that featured Chrom or he was part in have ended. Now it is my own interpretation of Morgan or Marc or the twin in general.

     Interpretation

The game allows Avatar to have one child of a different sex to the MU. In the game, Male Morgan, let’s call him as the whole fandom does, Marc and Female Morgan as just Morgan, the former is seen more timid and meek, unlike Morgan who seemed very cruel at moments. I think it is Intelsys way of trying to..make the female more iconic but sure. Why not. Good job. Anyway, I won’t go in depth details because I don’t write the twins so I cannot guarantee actual on point in character thought process but I will try my best.

Whether the twins chrom’s children or not, there will be always that gap between them. The twins as seen only obsessed with getting on Robin’s level and it does not help when they are both lost their memories of their own father.

There is a theory that Robin (male) did not marry thus any Morgan who appears is not his child but another Robin from another parallel world. This stems from the Drama CD where Reflet/Robin did not marry even though Chrom did (and presumably some shepherds?) So, any twin showing up would be probably from a different realm. This can be complicated which I don’t prefer unless it is plotted on. It might explain that the twins cannot recall their father because Grima was taking over their bodies. It also explains their detach from some parents, like Chrom because they are not sure if he IS their father or not. It would have been evident if they kept the twins’ hair ambiguous but it does change depending on the father so that is a problem. For example, going by that, if a morgan/marc appear, it is a high possibility they have a different father than who Robin is going to marry. I can smell angst from this one because their younger counterpart would be nothing like them at all.

Anyway, sidetracked. There is less material to go with but a note to take from the Future Past DLC. First thing, Naga dismissed the presence of Morgan and Marc as she said:

Naga

A world in which the ancient fell dragon has been revived, causing untold chaos. All hope for the future rests upon the shoulders of 12 valiant children—an exalted princess and 11 others born with the power to alter their destinies. However, without intervention, these 12 children will most certainly die.

12 children not including Marc or Morgan which brings their role in the destruction of the world. In the first Map, Marc appears and will only withdraw IF Robin spoke to him otherwise he..dies, fighting you.

The second map Morgan appears and the same thing applies as Marc. Something noted that Marc is Sorcerer class while Morgan is Wyvern Lord. They both are what you can say, brainwashed by Grima. Think about it, your father/mother killed the king and then an evil entity took over their body, these kids were probably utterly confused and shocked because of the event developments. Their mother/father was no longer the same but slowly kept on manipulating them with their parental talk and swayed them to join them. One might hate how fragile their wills were because they simply turned over everyone, their friends, and family (if possible siblings are there.) It is perhaps due to their blood and most closeness to Robin than any other child what made them easier to be manipulated.

It is sad how Naga has forsaken them as well, it is not like their fault that they were used in this. But then again, Naga is not a God so she can make a mistake too. Not to mention, she did not explicitly say anything about the twins like she does with Grima.

Another point to take that Avatar did not recognize the twins even though they did recognize them, which might be as said before that Avatar did not marry and they still single or because of their ‘new classes’ and ‘new aura’ it was harder for Avatar to tell??? Who knows. Maybe Grima’s spell or something? But Avatar comment that they remind them of someone precious to them--it either could be interpreted their own Morgan or the father/mother that they are either in love or married to? Look, man, awakening is a big loophole and I’m tired of thinking too.

To jump at something I previously discussed before on this POST/167339200049.

It is related to the rift between Chrom and the Twins no matter how close they are, there will be that...space, gap or whatever. Unlike Lucina who adapts quickly to her mother, the twins do not see Chrom as a father on the spot. Again, it is perhaps due to their memory loss.

I’m going to copy and paste some points from the previously mentioned post and comment on them.

anyway, whether morgan is chrom’s child or not, they will not feel that closeness to him like they feel to their parents or the other shepherds (potential other fathers and mothers) why?

their half-blood from grima not liking to be near naga’s blessed beings.

because their feelings are mixed between knowing their parent betrayed chro.m in their own timeline thus they do not know if they should be allowed to be near him and the first point.

linking to the second point, every child that came from the future sufferers of post-war trauma. In Morgan’s case, since they dont retain any memories, it is even worse. the idea that their body remembers everything but their mind does not, hurt them badly. Morgan cannot feel safe when he is around chro.m (or lissa but due to her not having the brand lessen it)  Not because Chro.m is bad to them, they fear they might cause him pain. as if their body is programmed to not be near him.

chro.m being their father/mother best friend first,( and a husband second if it happened) they feel that it is his duty to make sure avatar lives on. the true ending could be fatal to chro.m if morgan does not understand that avatar chose that path themselves and chro.m tried to stop them. morgan blames chro.m for losing their parent after the war ends and that even strength their feelings towards him. tbh this is can be flexible. it all depends on how chro.m tries to reach out for morgan before everything. if morgan came to realize chro.m’s effort in trying to befriend him, the lash out would be lessened. I believe morgan can go to kill chro.m if they couldn’t cope with losing their parent again and because of chro.m nevertheless.

Going by these points, the twins (or just Marc or Morgan) pose a great difficulty to Chrom. Because of how generic the father/son support, it does not show how these points can happen but perhaps when Marc can slowly regain bits and pieces, these awakened fears will control him. This will lead them to avoid any place where Chrom is, again whether he is the father or their parent’s best friend. Marc will join Chrom in a fight if that was the strategy but will quickly step away as soon the danger is gone because he will feel unsafe--more precisely he fears that Chrom might be unsafe around him.

As for chrom he would feel that marc avoids him/push him away. Though, he would keep his interaction with Marc to the limit if they were not is own kid because he would hate to impose himself on the little kid if they did not wish to befriend him, really. However, if Marc is his kid, Chrom will try a little bit harder to get to Marc. Again, Chrom is not good at being a father so he does not try to push his luck with Marc and does the same as he did with Lucina; talk when he can and back off when he does not know if his child will accept his butting in.

     Conclusion

The twins by no mean are evil, they are just simply born from the vessel of the Evil Dragon. They are bound to be rumors and ill reputation circle around them but this will only make Chrom more determined to keep them beside him. He knows full well how bad rumors can destroy you from within--he tasted that himself so he will not let them suffer. To note, Chrom will not step his boundaries if the twins were not his kids and simply have a talk with Robin about it. However, if they were his children, he will do everything in his power to drill it in their heads that he IS going to be their ally and friend AND a father before he is an exalt and a commander.

     Resources

Here / Here / Here

Here / Here

[libr-tumbl-alternative]

Depending on your search history and interests, there is a decent chance you've come across a number of articles written and edited across Wikipedia and RationalWiki and many other MediaWiki's on the web that were curated by the infamous Oliver D Smith, aka Darryl L. Smith aka Dan Skeptic, aka Krom, aka Atlantid, aka Anglopyramidologist, aka GoblinFace and aka a huge list of sockpuppet editing accounts spread across Wikipedia, Rationalwiki, Encyclopedia Dramatica, and only Google knows what else. Oliver has been featured extensively on Wikipedia We Have a Problem primarily because he is one of my well known online stalkers and harassers I encountered while developing this case study on Wikipedia consensus building. Oliver D Smith has engaged in a four-year-long campaign to target and attack me, first as a method of editor suppression on Wikipedia, where he was working with a small group of skeptic activists, a small but influential subculture on Wikipedia, under an editing account Dan skeptic  (contribs). ‎ Dan Skeptic was actually more of a minor actor in the harassment that I received on Wikipedia during the Sheldrake wiki war in 2013, but his participation increased heavily immediately thereafter, as he was the creator of a number of other attack articles written about me, first on RationalWiki, then Encyclopedia Dramatica, then KiwiFarms. It took about two years to finally track and expose Oliver D. Smith in this case study. I wasn't even aware of his participation until I received an email from someone who proposed to me a curious and peculiar threat; delete your articles on GoblinFace/Atlantid or, as he linked to a discussion thread he created, under my real name, arguing against biological evolution in favor of creationism, he would create 500 more just like these on the internet. By these of course he meant impersonations, one of Oliver's key attack strategies on MediaWiki's against other editors he encounters and conflicts with. Oliver D. Smith was impersonating me as a creationist so, he claimed, he could add this to my RationalWiki profile which he noted, already listed me as a promoter of pseudoscience, which he inserted as well. Since combining me with either of these labels is completely removed from who I am, including what I do professionally and what I think privately, it was obvious to me that I was dealing with someone who did not have a firm grip on reality. Disturbing to experience, however, was his ability to publish his own peculiar reality, of which I was a key enemy, across MediaWiki's on the web about me, and then game those articles for peak Google performance in search. More so than any other Wikipedia or RationalWiki editor, Mr. Smith has numerous times crossed the line from online harassment to criminal levels of slander and behaviors. His actions were so extreme at one point that I filed a report with the FBI, a nonworkable path to recourse that was my only option as this individual, a resident of the UK, not the US, continued to target me on the internet. “You idiots don’t seem to realize that I made the Viharo and Jon Donnis pages here, then set up a whole load of other people and turned them against each other, as well as at Rationalwiki. I also added Viharo’s page at Rationalwiki.”  – RationalWiki editor “Krom”, one of dozens of accounts operated by the Smith brothers, to sysops at Encyclopedia Dramatica, 2016 From my experience with him, it is likely that his psychology rather than any true ideology is what guides him. His editing history spans everything from white nationalism and neo-nazi MediaWiki MetaPedia, to articles on both the paranormal and skepticism, to left-wing MediaWiki RationalWiki to articles across the web the cover ancient Egypt, pseudoscience, anti-natalism, TombRaider, and whatever ideology he needs to adapt to become accepted by one community to target another. Over two hundred Wikipedia accounts have been discovered on the Smith sock farm, some claiming to be his brother Darryl who is claiming he is responsible, then denying it, and back and forth with layers of confusion, deception all over the web, including impersonating women or other editors Oliver D Smith conflicts with. The only controversial thing I have ever done is create a Rationalwiki article on Rome Viharo. MediaWiki editor skeptic, aka Darryl L Smith, aka Oliver D Smith, defending their actions on Encyclopedia Dramatica. Oliver, in a manner virtually identical to our Twitter president, has a habitual practice of deception. This practice may be more of a result of delusion. Oliver D. Smith believes he is a white knight, a hero on the internet who attacks his foes based on his own pizzagate interpretation of reality, that is, one that is disconnected from consensual reality but relies on emotional reactions to keywords he believes he finds on the web about his targets. Once Oliver finds a keyword written on the web by his targets, he then takes that emotionally charged keyword back to online communities and attempts to build personal armies, developing an emotional and distorted consensus so these platforms will not only join in the attacks but give Oliver a safe harbor to continue them. The strategies Oliver D. Smith employs to accomplish this extend far beyond him just editing articles on various wikis around the web about his targets, they  are also entail online impersonations of other users editing accounts, which not only deflects blame from Oliver, but places blame on other users which then riles up communities against each other on the web. This was one of the factors that has contributed to it taking Wikipedia, We Have a Problem over two years to finally identify the author of significant harassment and targeting that I've received. This is how highly toxic digital wildfires and troll farms are able to build communities like PizzaGate or QAnon. Oliver D. Smith shows us how to do that too. His attacks actually show the trail these type of campaigns create on the web. Once an internet user is emotionally charged with any given keyword, they throw critical thinking skills out the window and fail to investigate the flag-waving of sources which misrepresent original context. What is curious about Oliver, however - is his ability to do this with communities that identify as skeptic activists on the internet, communities like RationalWiki and thought leaders of skeptic Wikipedia editing like Tim Farley, communities that would appear to be more critical. Oliver's abuses on the internet I believe help to expose a remarkable vulnerability of the web that all of us are more susceptible to than we are aware. Oliver is taking advantage of a flaw, deeply rooted in human nature and software design flaw. Oliver Smith always claims his innocence, and always confesses his guilt. Oliver D. Smith may be unaware of the very extreme contradictions he makes attempting to cover his tracks across MediaWikis, which are glaringly apparent to anyone who encounters him.  I never met you on Wikipedia 4 years ago, that was one of my brothers. So you targeted my whole family out of a grudge of a silly Wikipedia dispute/ban. Oliver D. Smith, in a direct email to me, on file, 2017 Because he both confesses and denies all of his activity on the web, everything Oliver D. Smith says is highly suspicious. There is no brother involved. I made it all up to mislead people stalking me, or trying to investigate who I was (this goes back to when I had trolls following me 24/7 on other websites like Encylopedia Dramatica, Kiwi Farms etc). There's plenty of other false information I fed them and I found the situation rather funny since I fooled most, or all these stalkers. Oliver D. Smith, in a direct email to me, on file, 2018 Whatever guides Oliver D Smith, whether a brother who is deeply involved with Wikipedia editing and certain skeptic activist groups or an out of balance psychology, also has a significant influence on the web via Google search, and this is the tragedy of MediaWiki software. MediaWiki software, the engine the drives Wikipedia communities and dozens of more platforms around the web, in combination with Google search, provides significant global influence via individuals like this, along with the troll farms and agenda operators who collaborate with Oliver and those like him. The other problem with MediaWiki software is there is nothing that can be done about it, at all. That is really what Wikipedia, We Have a Problem validates, the utter failure of all of these communities, platforms, institutions, and even the legal system to do anything about this significant problem. While, in principle, online misinformation, targeted harassment and manipulation can find a solution on Facebook or Twitter, on MediaWiki's - there is literally no solution available. Since the participation is small, even insignificant in comparison to harassment occurring on large platforms of users like Reddit or Twitter, this problem does not obtain much mainstream attention. Pass the buck open source architecture MediaWiki's, as developed in open source by the WikiMedia foundation, put all of the responsibility of the management of the platforms on the users who edit them. As in a legally binding contract. This includes all paths to recourse for any misinformation, slander, fake news, attacks, etc. As long as the community who participates is well-intentioned, rational, and have integrity with the principles of the platform, this isn't a problem. Unfortunately, the web is anything but that. MediaWiki's are one of the few last artifacts of the early, idealistic web -  so it is not surprising that the zeal mentioned in many early TED talks (my own included) opined on the great value of software that anyone could edit would easily overlook the social reality that occurs, a silent policy of not everyone should. Before we even address the inherent flaws of the software itself, there apparently is a very high appeal of MediaWikis by those who are on the spectrum with autism, aspergers, or social anxiety disorders. Within Wikipedia's own editing culture, Wikipedia itself is referred to as a honey pot for editors on the spectrum. Autistics can be remarkable editors who are incredibly diligent. The result of this, however, is a community that is unlikely to have much social empathy, a trait often lacking in those with the condition. This naturally exasperates the problem that MediaWikis carry with them. All MediaWiki's empower the users to restrict or police other users activities, within certain boundaries. This means the software that anyone can edit is synonymous with the software that anyone can police, and MediaWiki's give users tools which block, ban, or restrict other users participation. Therefore, MediaWiki software's core design flaw lay in how it creates competition instead of collaboration. This makes MediaWiki's even more problematic - while the software design increases user competition, the rules that govern the community usually instruct collaboration, a contradiction that makes it impossible for a community to responsibly manage itself without a high degree of social empathy. Really? Wikipedia is now being leveraged as the good cop of the internet on Facebook and YouTube, creating more tensions to the prime real estate value to agenda groups and the inherent tensions of the design. I'm all for spontaneous collaboration on the web, but if Wikipedia is the only solution Silicon Valley is offering us in defense of fake news and online misinformation, the web could be lost forever. This tension created by the design flaw in MediaWiki has created dozens of various ideological spin-offs of Wikipedia around the web, all using the same software with slight modifications, including the commercial version of MediaWiki, Wikia. Google's own search algorithm also rewards not just Wikipedia with a high ranking, but any MediaWiki platform. MediaWiki platforms are very easy to optimize for search engine results, and likely in most search returns internet users discover. Oliver D Smith, MediaWiki master. I'm vague on the details, but apparently, Oliver has finally been banned from RationalWiki. It took RationalWiki six years to finally boot him off of their platform. Six years of Oliver using RationalWiki as a platform to target anyone he considered an enemy. Six years of influence on global search results all over the world. After six years, is the web finally free of Oliver D Smith abusing media wikis and Google search? Booted from RationalWiki, Oliver found a new home on another MediaWiki fansite called RationalWiki,Wiki. Since MediaWiki's create a copy of themselves via spats within the previous community, RationalWiki now has RationalWiki, Wiki on Wikia and Oliver D Smith once again as an editor. The unique distinction in this MediaWiki is that it is Wikia, a paid advertising commercial platform MediaWiki site. Like Wikipedia and MediaWiki software, Jimbo Wales commercially successful Wikia was meant to accommodate, and commercialize, niche communities and the advertisers that want to appeal directly to them. It's Wikipedia with a business model. More than just a software platform that anyone can edit, Wikia is a MediaWiki that anyone can publish, simply by creating an account. The RationalWikiWiki is literally a fan wiki that covers all the RationalWiki articles that Oliver edited on RationalWiki, now primarily edited by Oliver who now just writes under his real name, Oliver D Smith - including a RationalWikiWiki article about himself, defending himself from his RationalWiki ban and many events detailed in this study. Oliver uses RationalWikiWiki to continue to attack all of his enemies all over again, of which Wikipedia, We Have a Problem and yours truly is uniquely featured.   And you can see that he is the sole author of this latest attack article from the editing history. Wikipedia has blocked over 200 hundred of Oliver's editing accounts, yet it is easy for him to use a fresh IP, and continue where he left off. If that doesn't work, he goes over to RationalWiki, or Encylopedia Dramatica, to continue his obsessions. Even though it took six years to finally remove him from those platforms, he has finally found a new MediaWiki home on Wikia, one that has all the benefits of a high Google search ranking, advertising dollars, and both an algorithm and a set of rules that will allow him to continue for as long as he wants. Welcome to the very real problem of MediaWiki software and the poster boy who teaches all of us developing solutions for the web all the ways these platforms can be readily abused by just about anyone, for any reason - and without any path to recourse.          . Powered by AutoBlogger.co

[miss0atae]

Random thoughts about City of Stars episode 8:

Every Friday I'm waiting impatiently to have the new episode and I'm never disappointed. I wish this series has more fans because it's really good. The plot may seems very simple and the story had a slow pacing but I believe this series is quite refreshing. The romance is really sweet and they always take the time to have important conversations that you don't always find in BL.

▪️ Krom and Fueang are still in their blissful honeymoon phase. They told their closed friends and family about them being together and everyone is very supportive of their relationship. Even at work, Fueang don't have anyone who tell him to break up with Krom. They only have to be discreet. Their relationship must remains secret because of Fueang's job. This is something they both discussed before and Krom agreed. Their friends and loved ones also agreed to keep it a secret so they can live happily.

▪️ Watching them being happy is everything I'm looking for when watching the series. It suits them well. There are plenty of kisses and sweet moments between them in this episode. You also get sexy and steamy moments because they can't seem to have enough of each other. It's good for them. I'm glad they are enjoying every moments together.

▪️ Of course, there were and still are some rumors about Krom and Fueang because people already saw them and they can't really hide well how close they are. Journalists are already sneaking and trying to find the truth. As we all knows in series (but also in real life) t's never easy to keep a secret. One night, Krom went out with his friends and drank too much. His friend's boss, really well known to be a playboy, is interested by him and wants to have a one night stand with him despite learning Krom has a boyfriend. Fueang learnt about it thanks to Kodit and came to the rescue… unfortunately it will lead to future problems for the couple in next episode and I'm not ready yet.

▪️ I was a bit sad we didn't get more time between Kodit and Namsom. I thought they were on the right tract to be together again but it seems it's not yet the right time for them. We didn't even get to see them have one conversation. Maybe, next episode in between sad scenes where crazy fans will go after Krom and his family because he is being too close to their idol. I hope the series will talk about how some fans can have a very problematic behavior and how it can create a lot of anxiety and stress for their idols and the people close to them. They already tackled on this topic at the beginning of the series to explain why Fueang was only using Zendaya (the social media).

I believe Fueang and Krom will experience hard time and I truly hope they won't have to break up just to calm crazy fans.

[thelordofthepenblog-blog]

Will of Fire Part 1

Everyone remembers the Great War, the war that saw the Brotherhood of Makuta fight the rest of the universe. The war that saw the Toa nearly become extinct. The war that saw half the island of Xia fall into the sea. The war that saw Metru Nui fall into the hands of evil.

 The war that nearly ended the universe.

 It didn't, of course, but it was a close one; eventually Metru Nui was liberated after Toa Takanuva destroyed Makuta Icarax in a terrific battle in the Citadel, and the rest of the Brotherhood fought amongst themselves for the now-vacant throne, leaving them vulnerable to their enemies. Almost all the Makuta are extinct now, the rest in hiding, though at a terrible price.

 You all know the price. Takanuva was left in a coma, and is still trapped in it to this day. The Vortixx are now working at half-capacity after the loss of their island. The Dark Hunters reign supreme on the Tren Krom Peninsula and the surrounding areas. The Visorak roam unchecked in many parts of the universe. Thousands of Matoran died, and hundreds more left crippled by the fighting.

 Some of you should still remember the horrors. The Voya Nui Massacre. The Abomination of Stelt. The Zakaz Incident. There used to be more Matoran in this village.

 But thousands died so that we could have hope...so that we could have a future. Remember their sacrifice, my friends, as we work to that future. How Toa Lhikan held off an entire legion of Rahkshi alone while protecting the Matoran that would go on to form a rebellion in Metru Nui. How Toa Vhisola sacrificed herself to destroy Makuta Mutran and end his mad experiments. How Garan and his fellow Matoran died liberating their friends from the Skakdi. They gave their todays so we could have a tomorrow.

 Go now, my friends. There is work to be done.

 Turaga Kongu rose from his seat as the gathered Matoran left. It had become a tradition, he realized, that once a year he would recount the sacrifices made during the war on the anniversary of Metru Nui's liberation. That was, what, three hundred years ago now? Something like that.

 Kongu sighed as he left his hut. He still remembered the bitter years of war, the loss of his entire team. Chiara, Balta, and Jovan disappeared in the Southern Islands, while Hewkii and Macku died side-by-side while fighting the Brotherhood's forces. Kongu still had trouble believing that he, the chute-worker from Le-Metru with next-to-no combat training, had survived while his friends had died. He guessed the Great Beings had a strange sense of humor as one of his fellow villagers approached him, a Ta-Matoran named Thuka. He was the Captain of the Guard of Kentarr, their village, and a survivor of the Voya Nui Massacre. It had been Thuka who had been able to gather a sizable defense and repel the Dark Hunters long enough for the remaining Matoran to escape. Kongu didn't know what he had done in the war after that; it was a subject that Thuka didn't really like to talk about, and Kongu respected that.

 “Turaga,” he began, “Dekar has reported seeing Stone Apes moving up from the south.”

 Kongu looked at him quizzically. “Stone Apes? This far north?”

 “That storm we heard a few nights ago might have driven them here, Turaga,” Thuka replied, walking alongside him. “It was in the vicinity of the desert, after all.”

 Kongu nodded. “They'll probably head back when they realize the storm has quick-passed. Do you think they will be a danger-threat to the village?”

 Thuka shook his head. “Not to the main village, no, but they'll probably settle by the Nui River for a while. I recommend keeping an eye on them until they head home.”

 The Turaga considered this for a moment. “Assign a few guards to watch-spy them for a while. In the meantime, the Matoran should fish-catch upstream from their usual spot. I don't want to risk an encounter.”

 “They won't like it, but I'll tell them.”

 They discussed a few more trivialities on the security of the village, then Kongu dismissed the young Matoran. He headed for his hut, a large, domed building at the center of the village, made from wood and rather large leaves, woven together with sturdy rope imported from the north. The leaves were intricately shaped, curving and twisting like a dancer, and it certainly looked like a dancer when the wind was blowing. It was a work of art that Kongu thought wasted on him.

 Upon entering it, Kongu was greeted by his assistant, the Fe-Matoran Delin, who updated him on a few things concerning Kentarr. “The Gukko bird nests are almost completely rebuilt, Turaga, so they should be returning in a few days. The storm's apparently wrecked that Nui-Rama hive down south, so they won't be a problem for a while. And did Thuka talk to you about the Stone Apes? Good, but there's also the matter of Turaga Rekilus' visit tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Kongu looked sharply at Delin. “I thought it wasn't until next week?”

 “Well, yes, it was, Turaga, but a messenger arrived this morning, saying that Rekilus is coming early to offer support in rebuilding Kentarr.”

 Kongu snorted. “We're doing just well-fine on our own.”

 Delin chuckled. “Yes, well, I told the messenger something along those lines. I'm sure the Turaga will be quite motivated to come sooner, if only to allieviate you of your bad attitude.”

 The Turaga of Air glared at the Fe-Matoran, who grinned behind his Kanohi Pakari before listing off several more things the Turaga needed to hear: the Ussal Traders would be passing through Kentarr soon, Kaya had injured her arm (again) and had to rest for a couple of days, and, once again, Nuparu had nearly blown up his hut with his latest “invention.”

 “More like boom-explosive,” Kongu grunted. “I haven't seen Nuparu invent-make something that didn't blow up since the Boxors.”

 “That was fifty years ago.”

 “I know!”

[lord-of-no-energy]

Zaira x Lord Headcanons

From @audre-falrose​:

Ok now I kinda wanna see some Fem!Lord x Zaira hcs bc of course I'm gay... (and she's literally my type...) Don't have to be fem tho I'd also be fine with gn lord too

Zaira is top tier simp material. 

And sorry, I only write gender neutral Lord ;;

Zaira

For who confesses first, it’d be neither. 

The only way this relationship can happen is if the knights tell Zaira how much Lord is crushing on her or Charles or Krom tell Lord how much Zaira is crushing on them

At first, it was Lord organizing the dates. Zaira has no experience in romance. She hasn’t even read books about it. It takes her a bit of time to get used to the relationship.

But once she was, she was finally doing her own advances. 

Zaira’s touch-starved, so cuddling with Lord when they’re alone is her favourite thing to do

She likes to put her arm around Lord’s shoulder when they’re sitting together

Or have Lord lie down in her lap and play with their hair

Lots of spooning

Zaira’s almost always the big spoon, unless if she’s having a bad day. Then she needs to be the little spoon to turn her day around.

One of the biggest challenges was the power imbalance. Zaira had trouble putting herself up on a pedestal and being on the same level as Lord in terms of relationship

But Lord let her take her time, and eventually, Zaira was able to see that she and Lord were equals in the relationship

She’s really self-conscious too, so Lord will need to shower her with validation so she doesn’t feel down

Validation from Lord makes her day. It makes her feel like she can face anything and everything that comes her way

This is the kind of warm relationship in which both feel too lazy to get up early in the morning during a day off so they just cuddle each other until late afternoon

Further into the relationship, Zaira gives lots of forehead and cheek kisses. 

Her playfulness also becomes apparent as she gets more comfortable with Lord

She’d be listening to Lord talking about something that makes them happy and she’s find it so adorable that she’d give them a sudden peck on the lips

Lots of sudden hugs from behind

Zaira loves wrapping her arms around Lord’s torso and just pulling them close to her

She smiles a lot more around Lord than she would around anyone else

Zaira dislikes PDA, so she isn’t as touchy with Lord around others in comparison to when the two are alone

But she still expresses her love, just in different ways. She makes sure that Lord has everything they need to be comfortable and is on high alert so she can be at their defense if someone wants to harm them.

Balancing work and a romantic relationship is difficult, and almost impossible when power imbalance is added into the equation. From how Lord and Zaira were able to sort it out, it’s like they were meant to be.

I enjoyed writing these so much that it got a bit long. I hope you like them!

[autodidact-adventures]

Cambodian History (Part 50): The End of Sihanoukism

Sihanouk was losing his grip in both domestic and foreign politics.  He was known for sudden, dramatic changes in political direction, and idealistic, impractical gestures, but this was getting worse, and was a reflection of his growing powerlessness.

For example, both the Viet Cong and DRV (North Vietnam) opened embassies in Phnom Penh in 1968.  But later that year, Sihanouk reassured the USA of his goodwill through the French Embassy, and as evidence of this, he released several captured US military personnel.

He had wanted all the power, but now more & more he left the responsibilities of running the country to PM Lon Nol, and his deputy Prince Sisowath Sirik Matak, and spent most of his time making films.  Marak was strongly anti-communist, and the incompetence and uselessness of Sihanoukism was causing him to be increasingly discontent.

Matak began to stand up to Sihanouk publicly, and think of deposing him.  In August 1969, Lon Nol (with Matak’s persuasion) refused to form a new cabinet unless he could choose his own ministers.  Sihanouk was forced to agree.

Many important Khmers were now disgusted by Sihanouk’s narcissism and self-indulgence.  In 1969, he awarded himself a gold statuette (cast from ingots from the company’s treasury!) for winning first place in a stage-managed film festival.  Also, dislike for Sihanouk’s wife, Monique Izzi, was growing.  Sihanouk was losing goodwill and reverence.

Late in the year, at a conference Sangkum, Siri Matak and Lon Nol forced the closure of the state-run casino in Phnom Penh.  This was deeply humiliating to Sihanouk.  And by this stage, any possibility for compromise had disappeared.

Meanwhile, the war had escalated in the east.  In March, the US had increased their secret bombing of communist positions in Eastern Cambodia.  B-52s bombed large areas of the countryside, destroying lives, property, famland and forests.  Sihanouk had failed at keeping his country neutral.

In January 1970, he went to his villa in the French Riviera, to rest and think about what to do.  Many of the politicians & higher-ups believed he should have stayed - however, it is possible that he had gone overseas to ask the Soviet & Chinese leaders to lean on their Vietnamese allies, and get them to close down (or at least water down) their bases in Cambodia.

Siri Matak and Lon Nol were left to deal with the worsening situation.  Matak tried to negotiate with NVietnam and the Viet Cong for them to withdraw their troops - but found out that Sihanouk had agreed to their presence!  However, he couldn’t exactly had refused, unless he was going to form a military alliance with the USA & SVietnam, and that would mean the end of any pretence of neutrality.

In Phnom Penh, mobs sacked the NVietnam and Viet Cong embassies, demanding the withdrawal of troops.  They had the covert support of Lon Nol, and possibly Sihanouk’s (He may have wanted to use the situation as a bargaining chip with the USSR & China).

But the demonstrations turned into large riots (with hired Khmer Krom soldiers flown in from SVietnam by Lon Nol).  Sihanouk had to denounce the rioters.  He may have been hoping to return to Cambodia a hero, with a signed agreement with the Communist leaders about the bases, but if this was the case he was mistaken.  He was no longer writing the script.  Siri and Matak and Lon Nol had taken over.

The next day, the ordered the evacuation of the Vietnamese bases.  They also cancelled the agreements that allowed the Vietnamese communists to funnel supplies from Kompong Som, via the “Sihanouk Trail”.  The Vietnamese refused to withdraw, so Lon Nol’s soldiers attacked the communists’ positions, with support from SVietnam artillery over the border.

These actions were ridiculous, of course.  The Vietnamese communists couldn’t suddenly close down their bases in the middle of a war!  And it’s true that  the bases infringed on Cambodian sovereignty, but they did have permission.

On March 16th (1970), last-ditch talks between the Vietnamese communists & Lon Nol’s government were carried out, but they failed to resolve the problem.  Cambodia’s age of neutrality was over, and they were sliding rapidly towards war.  And by March, Matak had had enough.  Disaster was rapidly approaching, and Sihanouk was still absent.

The Coup

On the night of the 16th, Oum Mannorine (loyal to Sihanouk) attempted unsuccessfully to arrest Lon Nol.

Lon Nol wasn’t sure what to do.  He was 56 years old, owed much to Sihanouk, and had been loyal to Sihanouk since he was young.  But Siri Matak was determined, and more than a match for Lon Nol.  He had lost all respect for Sihanouk a while back, and he was determined that the time had come to remove him from power.

During the night of the 17th, Siri Matak burst into Lon Nol’s house with several supporters.  He pulled him from his bed, and demanded his support for a parliamentary coup against Sihanouk.  Some reports say it was at gunpoint.  Lon Nol reluctantly gave in, and signed a paper that asked the National Assembly to depose Sihanouk as the Head of State.  It is said that he wept as he signed it.  Later, when Cambodia fell into chaos, he would express his remorse for turning against Sihanouk.

The National Assembly session was a thorough turning on Sihanouk.  Speakers stood up to denounce Sihanouk for his corruption and abuses of power.  Their anger had been pent-up for a long time, and they had been personally humiliated by Sihanouk at various times.

The men weren’t revolutionaries, and this made it all the more significant.  They were the same conservatives who’d supported Sihanouk since 1951, and others very much like them.  They voted 86-3 to remove Sihanouk (this was later changed to be unanimous).  Several months later, they voted to turn Cambodia into a republic.