#HK Electric

[silksongeveryday]

Drawing Hornet everyday until Silksong comes out - Day 455

anyone else remember riding one of these

[gncbozo]

I think Lurien has an electric guitar somewhere in his spire...

[maddieandangel]

Had a weird Hollow Knight-related dream a couple days ago, so I decided to draw a major scene I remembered from it dgsgshf

More context will be in the tags, for those interested!

[des-fangirl]

here's your daily portion of @alecz-obssesionz 's modern AU fanart from me <3

not the thing i wanted to draw originally, YOU SEE i got carried away again. well what matters is that it was nice to draw

i was listening to some rock song and then was like..omg grimmchild looks like they would love electrick guitar. then i remembered about the kalimba i have and decided to draw this

[aqqleshiqqing-archive]

i could gush about how amazing the hollow knight ost is. they go hard with the orchestral instruments... just give "sisters of battle" a listen and then youll get meee

[gartexindia]

Consumer Electronics World Expo: Gain Insights into the Latest Technology

Stay at the forefront of tech innovations at the Consumer Electronics World Expo. Discover cutting-edge advancements, network with industry leaders, and unlock opportunities for your business

[hollowknightinsanity]

ok i have all the main events for reign of light planned out but theres one thing im struggling with.

ya see, theres two ways event 4 could go. i wont say what those branching paths are bc spoilers, but i will say its kinda a major thing.

so as always, it is poll time yet again!

yeah that’s the poll, you get no other context until i give you the finished doc

[arsonistmoth]

WYRM 2 ELECTRIC BOOGALOO @linkerbell tempted me to draw some more HK Wyrm style Leshy Narinder has THOUGHTS on this, most of them going 'NUH UH MY BABY BROTHER CANT BE THAT FUCKIN BIG'

[easternmind]

The weird and wonderful history of Kowloon as a digital interactive space - Part II

This article is the continuation of a previous post.

Any comprehensive history of 20th century Hong Kong is not complete without a chapter entirely dedicated to the architectural and urban planning puzzle that was Kowloon Walled City. Quite unlike any other slum in Asia or elsewhere in the world, the extreme conditions under which its inhabitants lived captured the attention of various international journalists and photographers whose reports of this accidental labyrinth, in turn, inspired some of the most remarkable artistic explorations of our time. In this regard, video games did not remain impervious to the powerfully stimulative imagery, as much a reference today as it was when its hardened concrete walls still stood tall.

Kowloon's Gate Suzaku VR - Jetman - 2017

Kowloon's Gate made a most unexpected comeback twenty years after the original episode via the crowdfunded VR project Suzaku developed by Jetman, a studio founded by and composed almost exclusively of ex-SME/Zeque staff. While it is not the remaster many had hoped for, essentially consisting of a walking simulation through some redesigned locations from the original, it does a commendable job in faithfully replicating its instantly recognizable, light-starved alleyways in competent high-definition. It is also the only VR-compatible entry from this list, granting it a degree of uniqueness over its counterparts.

Stranglehold - Midway/Tiger Hill Productions - 2007

Stranglehold is the result of a collaboration with Hong Kong movie director John Woo, developed as a direct sequel to his heroic bloodshed classic Hard Boiled, featuring Chow Yun-fat in the role of detective 'Tequilla' Yuen in his unending confrontations with organized crime. One of the game's most unforgettable levels, Slums of Kowloon, takes place during a particularly rainy day, seemingly in those last days when the zone had been emptied of residents and demolition work was well underway. The visual representation of the quarter is suitably evocative, its buildings in complete state of disrepair, the remnants of local businesses or places of prayer still discernible from under the piles of steel and cement rubble.

Resident Evil 6 - Capcom - 2012

For all its shortcomings, Resident Evil 6 partly succeeds in taking the first two episodes' concept of parallel storylines and realizing it to a much fuller extent. Its choice of different characters translates into entirely different campaigns, locations and playing styles. The very first scene in Chris/Piers' campaign occurs in the fictional Chinese city of Lanshiang, modelled after real-life Hong Kong. The mayhem in the main streets forces the player to take a detour into a location named Poisawan, which bears a striking resemblance to the Kowloon district. Though an unofficial representation, it is among the most skilled replications of the scenery we find in the vast photographic repository of the area. The degree of minutiae with which the district's haphazard electric installation is replicated, alone, suffices to demonstrate a true commitment to authenticity.

Paranormal HK - Ghostpie Studio - 2020

Few would dispute that Kowloon is, itself, naturally conducive to sentiments of dread and anxiety. Paranormal HK is a 2020 made in China production reviving the defunct neighbourhood in a gripping, blood-curdling contemporary ghost story. The player is the cameraman of a paranormal-themed TV show exploring the zone during the evening of the Zhongyuan festival, a scheme suspiciously akin to that of Akira Ueda's 2004 game, Michigan: Report From Hell. As a result of the thorough research work performed by its creators, as well as the impeccable usage of contemporary 3D graphics techniques to achieve accurate lighting conditions, players may momentarily experience the feeling of walking into a photo of the actual city as it existed in the mid eighties.

Sifu - Sloclap - 2022

Notwithstanding of its renaissance during the 128-Bit era, the beat 'em up genre is commonly associated with the arcade games of the late 80s and 90s, the period of time when it flourished and, arguably, reached its zenith. The simplicity of controls and ease of access sufficed to attract players to the arcade cabinet, while the frequently extreme levels of difficulty of advanced levels ensured a steady flow of cash for arcade room owners and game development companies alike. Nevertheless, the genre has but perished and, in many aspects, recent years have indeed elevated it to unforeseeable degrees of complexity. Sifu, by Sloclap, synthesizes the elation of digital hand to hand combat simulation with the real-life complexity of mastering a martial art.

As is the case of previous entries in this list, Sifu makes no admitted reference to Kowloon or Hong Kong. However, the designers left little to the imagination in what pertains to their inspirations when taking on the task of constructing the game's environments. Another notable coincidence stems from the fact that this production was made possibly with the support from a celebrated independent game funding group going by the name Kowloon Nights.

Stray - BlueTwelve Studio - 2022

Stray is one of the most revered independent video games in recent memory, and justifiably so. The long development process yielded many benefits, judging from the consistency and attention to detail that engrossed many an avid player. That the main character is singularly charming feline may have played an equally crucial role. The creators have made no effort to conceal the fact that the notorious Hong Kong district was a pivotal influence to the design of its nameless city. The first indication can be spotted in the game's earliest footage, in which a black cat traverses a street where a particularly conspicuous sign boasted the initials HK. Stray is less concerned with presenting a precise replica of Kowloon than it is about summoning the very essence of its atmosphere. Moreover, in an exquisitely poignant way, its ending lends an entirely new meaning to the term walled city. In the future, robots may well take the place of humans. Invariably, the Walled City is no more. Slitterhead - Bokeh Game Studio - Work in Progress

An sequence of unconscionable mistakes from the part of Sony Computer Entertainment's management galvanized Keiichiro Toyama to part ways with Japan Studio, as it once was, and establish his own game production label. Their debut title, Slitterhead, is described as a grotesque survival horror experience, a genre within which the author moves with matchless ease. Among the few certainties regarding this project is the fact that it will take place prominently - if not exclusively - within the Kowloon City province. A wide variety of aspects included in the preview footage leave the viewer optimistic as to this being one of the most accomplished portrayals of the district ever seen in a video game. Subtle yet telling signs already demonstrate the creator's in-depth knowledge of the quarter's architecture and history. Take, for instance, the suggestive image of the airplane flying mere meters above the top of the buildings. Although the growth of Kowloon was for the most part ungoverned, buildings did not rise above a certain height, even as inhabitants claimed for increased availability of space. This is due to the fact that airplanes landing at the nearby airport would be required to make their descent at relatively low altitude, performing a tight curve as they soared just above the enclave, thus preventing construction from expanding upwards. Another scene shows a child playing on the rooftops of the buildings, which once again is consistent with the documented habits of residents who, starved for sunlight and open space elsewhere within the city limits, had little alternative than to take the stairs all the way to the top.

Warehouse Kawasaki Arcade

I would be remiss not to make some form of allusion to Warehouse Kawasaki, an arcade built to replicate the Walled City with unthinkable detail. Though its ultimate purpose was for visitors to engage in digital entertainment, the venue was scrupulously put together. Point in fact, many of the objects used in the construction of the five floor amusement centre were imported directly from Hong Kong. Like so many other Japanese arcades, it closed its doors in 2019.

In recent years, a rather similar initiative was taken by the Chinese in their attempts to build unique mall spaces. The 文和友 malls in mainland China, found in Changsha, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, attempt to reproduce the walled city aesthetic. Local residents inform me that these are increasingly lacking in foot traffic, for which reason the majority of their stores are closed. Other digital replicas of Kowloon

A number of other videogames set in or deriving inspiration from Kowloon could not be featured in this article. A frequently cited reference in this context is the action/adventure game Fear Effect, one which I emphatically dispute. No doubt remains as to it being located in a futuristic version of Hong Kong, yet I could discern no parallels with the walled city, save for those scattered second-hand visual motifs that were no doubt imported from sci-fi classics such as Blade Runner or Ghost in the Shell.

The Utelek Complex stage of Deus Ex: Makind Divided presents a similar situation, where the overall atmosphere of the futuristic favela bears some resemblance to Kowloon, without meeting the specificity quota that would warrant a more comprehensive exploration.

The 2004 Shout! original Kowloon High-School Chronicle for the PS2 is a unique case, in that it borrows the city's name despite taking place in a massive, Tokyo underground dungeon that is later revealed to be a maze-like Egyptian pyramid. The odd choice of title remains unclear. Shadowrun: Hong Kong game (screenshot above) contains a very direct mention of Kowloon as the place in which an entire episode comes to pass. Another project still in development, Kowloon's Curse (screenshot below), is following the lead of many popular independent horror games in recent memory by using a visual design and structure that elicits memories of the late Playstation/early Dreamcast era. A short prequel episode was made available earlier this year, for free.

Additionally, I refrained from mentioning the Kowloon maps in Call of Duty: Black Ops or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, as I perceive both games to be insufficiently relevant to merit study or contemplation.

A space that refuses to be forgotten

(China rooftop stage from The King of Fighters 2003)

It would be a gross overstatement to claim that Kowloon is a recurring location or level design motif in videogames. The relationship between digital games and the real life ghetto has been one of sporadic references. What makes the subject so engrossing pertains to the quality of the relationship, particularly that of a small cadre from among the titles featured in this article. Kowloon's Gate was one of the most relevant game creations of the 32-Bit era, a game deserving of reverence and cult following inside and outside Japan. Likewise, Shenmue II is the second instalment of a truly ground-breaking and highly advertised series whose production costs alone were unmatched until quite recently.

Moreover, this is an affair that is far from concluded. The unexpectedly high number of allusions to Kowloon in videogames released or revealed just last yet demonstrates that its aesthetic is still very much present in the minds and hearts of artists and designers working in the field. The walled city lives on as a digital demarcation that is certain to resurface time and again in years to come.

[talbaquix]

A layman's guide to olympic fencing—

for writers, artists, olympic fans, or the otherwise curious.

disclaimer: i say layman for a reason! i'm not at all a professional, or even good, but i have been fencing (very) recreationally at an amateur level for ~7 years. also, my exposure to sabre is extremely limited, and i am speaking from an american POV, so please feel free to correct me on any points you see necessary. :)

long post incoming...

So, what is "Olympic fencing?"

First and foremost, it is a sport. Not a fight, not a duel—a sport. One of five that have been permanent fixtures since the very first modern Olympic games, actually—hence the name! While other similar sword-wielding activities (such as historical European martial arts (HEMA), kendo, or wushu for example) may occasionally be referred to as "fencing," most people (me included) define fencing as this specific sport, and use other classifiers to categorize the rest.

Originally, fencing began as a form of military training in Germany and Italy, before spreading recreationally across more areas in Europe. Currently, the fencing scene is almost uncontestedly dominated by Italy, France, and Hungary, though both China/HK and the US have had some pretty stellar wins more recently.

In addition, French has a pretty large influence on fencing terminology and language, at least in the West. Be prepared!

The Basics

Three Weapons

Fencing is divided into three disciplines, each with their own equipment, strategies, and ruleset. They are as follows:

Épée: The classic. The heaviest and most defensive of the three blades, épée's simple ruleset allows for more elaborate strategy and really lives up to fencing's moniker of "physical chess." In épée, the entirety of your opponents body (including face, toes, etc!) counts as valid target area and all hits must be scored with the tip of the blade. In case of a double-touch (relatively simultaneous hits from both opponents), both opponents score points.

Because there's no need for specific target areas, épéeists enjoy minimal equipment, forgoing lamés (electric jackets, pronounced luh-may) and mask cords in exchange for a larger bell guard to protect the hand (that big bit of metal at the end of the blade). Épéeists can use pistol grips for more point control (molded to fit a hand), or a french grip to get a little bit of extra distance (red stick grip).

Épée bouts are stereotypically known for being slow and boring, since the absence of right-of-way (explained later) allows more freedom in trying to sus out opponent reactions and strategize, and the whole-body target + double-touch system means there's more benefit to fencing slowly in comparison to sabre or foil. It's not uncommon for épée bouts to begin with both fencers being carded for passivity! There's a lot of bouncing back and forth in the middle.

Saber (Sabre): Fast, slashing, and aggressive. The fencing you see in movies? Sabre. It's the only cutting weapon, where the entire length of the blade is able to register contact with the opponent. In sabre, the target area is the upper half of the body (including the face, but excluding the hand) and their lamés reflect that. Sabre also employs what is known as right-of-way/priority/advantage (from here on abbreviated as RoW) which, in the case of a double-touch, essentially gives RoW—and therefore the point—to the "aggressing" fencer at the referee's discretion. RoW is pretty complicated, but is very influential in how both sabre and foil play out.

In their ready (en garde) position, sabreists also hold their blade vertically to protect the face (as opposed to foil and épée, where the blade is held horizontally to keep the point towards the opponent). Sabreists also need special masks to register hits, as well as a mask cord to connect it to the rest of the electric circuit. Sabre bell guards are kinda swoopy and extend downward (think pirates) and are always "french grips" (aka just a stick).

Sabreists are generally known for being (respectfully) batshit insane and dramatic as hell. Bouts are extremely fast (rarely more than a few seconds) and look simple, and rely much more on pure athleticism and fast reaction times than épée. Most bouts consist of the two fencers running towards each other, maybe a parry or two, then both fencers scoring hits with a fair bit of screaming and angrily pointing at the ref. Oh wait, did I say running? Sorry, I meant advancing, since sabre is also the only discipline where crossing-over with your legs got banned because people just started sprinting towards the middle instead of actually fencing. Love them for that.

Foil (Fleuret, rarely): Oh, foil. The artistic middleman. Originating as a practice weapon, foil tends to sit in the middle of épée's careful point-control and elaborate strategy and sabre's split-second reactions and fuck-it-we-ball energy. Yet somehow, it ends up being more nit-picky and complicated than both. It has the smallest target area of the three, only covering the torso, as well as the lightest blade. Touches are only registered from the tip.

RoW's influence is noticeably large, since, compared to sabre, the longer bout times actually allow for opportunity for RoW to be traded between you and your opponent. Foil can almost be thought of as turn-based combat. Fencer A initiates the attack first, now has RoW, lunges and misses, which gives RoW to Fencer B. Fencer B attacks, gets parried (back to Fencer A), A extends, B counterattacks, A gets the point.

Foil stereotypes aren't as strong as épée or sabre stereotypes, but foilists are generally known for either being super pedantic and arguing w/ the ref about RoW or whipping their blade around constantly & being flowery (hence, "fleuret"). Because of how bendy the foil is, foilists can also do cool stuff like flicks (snapping your wrist so that the blade bends around, oftentimes to hit your opponents back) and can also get into pretty funny in-fighting situations a bit more often than sabre/épée (since corps-a-corps contact isn't allowed in fencing, and stepping back means you lose RoW, there's a lot of awkward up-close poking).

Some Positions

En garde: the basic fencing position. In essence, a squat, with one foot facing forward and the other turned out, roughly one and a half foot-lengths apart. This is the basis from which all other movements—the lunge, the advance, the retreat—should be executed, and the position fencers return to once an action is completed.

Lunge: the quintessential fencing attack. From en garde, extend your dominant arm, kick out your front foot, land forward, and extend your back arm for balance. To recover, bend your back leg and return to en garde.

Parry: the most basic piece of defensive bladework that every fencer learns, with the "beat" serving as its offensive counterpart. Consists of hitting your opponents blade to prevent a touch. There are nine different parries in classical fencing, but the most common (in foil/épée) are the four and six, which defend the inside and outside lines respectively.

Ettiquette & Other Fun Facts

All fencers must salute their opponent, referee, and audience (if there is one) before and after the bout. Usually just consists of "nodding" at the salutee with your blade before the mask is donned. At the end of bouts, a handshake with your opponent using your non-dominant hand is also expected. Many people substitute/add on to the handshake by tapping blades instead.

Unlike in tennis, seeing a fencer hold up a one on their hand after a touch is an acknowledgement of the opponent's point, whereas a closed fist is a claim of theirs.

When fencing without a ref, many people will slap their thigh to indicate the start of a bout.

Fencers may not speak while the mask is on.

Fencing clubs are also sometimes called salles.

While electrical equipment can vary between disciplines, all fencers are required to wear knickers, a plastron (under-arm protector), a body cord, a jacket, a glove, and a mask. For women, a plastic chest protector is also required. In sabre and foil, fencers also wear a mask cord and lamé.

The first safety rule most fencers learn is to never raise your blade towards someone without a mask on, and it's taken pretty seriously. Because the back of a mask is exposed, its also a big big no-no to turn your back to your opponent during a bout or otherwise lower your head.

Common Terminology

En garde, prez, allez! - On guard, ready, fence! Used to signal the start of a bout.

Halt! - Said by referees to. halt the bout.

Strip/piste - The surface on which fencers fence. Usually around 2m wide and 14m long, the lines on the piste also dictate where fencers must move to to begin bouts, and where they're considered out-of-bounds. Sometimes, they're on raised platforms. Yes, people have fallen off, yes, it's extremely funny.

Feint - Probably what you think it is.

Disengage - Moving your blade in a little circle to avoid contact with what is usually an incoming parry/beat. On a very basic level, straight attacks beat disengages, disengages beat parries, and parries beat straight attacks.

Fleche - An explosive running attack. Due to not being able to cross-over, sabreists use "flunges" instead, a mix between a fleche and a lunge that essentially entails flinging yourself at your opponent in a flying lunge.

Balestra - hop :)

Riposte - An immediate attack done after a defender's parry. Usually heard as "parry-riposte."

Tempo - A kind of nebulous concept, but very similar to the musical definition of the word. The pace of a bout, sorta. Often used when someone is advised to break tempo or if one fencer is controlling the tempo of a bout.

FAQ

Why are the blades bendy? To keep us from dying, mainly. What, you want the metal pole people can throw at each other at the same speed as a bullet (literally) to be solid? Also, blades break a lot already, especially in the hands of the inexperienced—they'd snap a hell of a lot more if they weren't flexible. Ouch.

Does it hurt? About as much as getting poked really hard with a steel stick would. Leaves bruises often, but cuts very rarely. You get used to it. The real kicker is staying in en garde for that long. Trust me, your quads will be screaming.

Is it- No, it's not dangerous. If you follow the rules, fencing is actually extremely safe, especially compared to contact sports.

Does a red light mean no touch? No. One fencer is assigned a red light that lights up whenever a touch is made, and the other is given green. In sabre and foil, yellow (sometimes white) means whatever the fencer hit was off-target, and should not be counted as a point. Épée doesn't have an off-target light, since épéeists don't wear lamés.

How do the masks know when a point is scored? Often asked upon seeing the little lights on the side of masks light up upon touches. Unless you're "dry fencing" (no electricity), you're typically hooked up to a circuit. If you fence épée or foil, there's a little button on the end of your blade that registers when pressure is added onto it. When a hit is scored, the signal goes through the wire in your blade, up your body cord, and eventually to "the box" (and your mask if you're fancy), and the corresponding light is flashed.

Why hold your hand behind your back? Most people don't! Some beginners do it to prevent themselves from reflexively moving their non-gloved hand in front of them when being attacked (which is against the rules), but most fencers either keep their hand relaxed at their side, raised in a t-rex pose, or occasionally above the head.

Helmet? Mask.

Sword? If you want.

Touché? Often "touche," actually. No accent.

Paralympics? On (stationary) wheelchairs. Extremely cool, actually, and very hard. Check it out!

Expensive? To get all your own stuff? Yes. But most clubs will rent you equipment, or sometimes lend it for free! But yes, more expensive than, like, soccer. :(.

Is it fun? Absolutely. To quote some random internet user, "it's like chess, at 90 miles an hour, oh and there's swords!" I would 100% recommend it to everyone, especially if you're on the older side (fencing isn't super age-restricted at all—seeing a 12 y/o and a 70 y/o facing off on a club piste isn't uncommon!) It is exhausting, exhilarating, and super, super fun. Give it a shot!

.

Please feel free to send any and all questions, corrections, or musings my way. Thanks for reading—I hope this was interesting and/or useful!

[thatlittledandere]

EDIT: Should have linked this originally my bad here it is

[sleepinginmygrave]

OML 300 FOLLOWERS YES CONGRATS YOU DESERVE IT SM <3

(also lmao sry if you get a notification saying i just followed you i managed to click the unfollow button instead of the ask button like a rly smart human)

help this event is so prettyyyyyy i can’t even it looks so niceeeeeeeeee if you want to ofc/have the energy could you maybe do the manta rays one? you have such interesting interests lmao

AAAAAAH HI EVIEEEE

AND TYSM HJJHLHLHLH YEAH OFC!!!! giggling

i may have been a bit carried away so hmm it's quite long

⇢ ˗ˏˋ {manta rays}࿐ྂ AHHH so i guess you want me to talk any my interests then!!!! giggling okay hmmm i have a big big oral exam tomorrow like really big and we had a theme to chose a subject from i picked science ofc and i made my presentation at hammerhead sharks!! it's mostly about why are they shaped like that and why would evolution create something so different than all the other? hammerheads are the newest sharks to appear on our earth the first sharks appeared around 450 millions of years ago while hammerheads appeared 20 millions of years ago, they didn't knew any of the mass extinction that older shark survived; but like why would evolution take such a different turn? a shark like that look like it's prehistoric or smth while all the others sharks have a pointed snout those are the only one like that. okay first we have the vision reason: the visual field of any creature is what the can see without moving their eyes;; our monocular vision is what we can see with one eye etc and the binocular overlap is what we can see with both eyes. predator often have a wider binocular overlap so they really can focus on their preys while preys have a smaller binocular overlap and a bigger monocular vision on both eyes. when we see a hammerhead we dont really know what going on there like?? its obviously a predator but WHY ARE THEIR EYES SO FAR APPART and i'm making it short but basically in 2009 searches looked into this made an experience with two more basic sharks and three hammerheads (among those were the winghead shark, the one with the longest head compared to his body (his head is 1m long while is body is 2m) and turns out the longer the head the bigger the binocular overlap so YEAH they have the best view of the marine world and it shows!! the second reason is for hydrodynamic!! when thinking hydrodynamic we tend more to think abt dolphins, with thin nose that can cut through water. so like. WHY??? why making something that takes so much more effort for hammerheads to carry!!! for quite some time scientists beleive the cephalofoil (name of the head) acted like a plane wing (that's where the word came from actually) since sharks din't have a swim bladder they can't stop swimming so they thought it was like to keep their head parallel to the water flow or smth BUT again to make it short turns out its for MANEUVRABILITY!!! (or however you type this shit) i won't go into details BUT when the incline their head like upward or forward it help them move?? kinda?? like quicker hk and we we see what their diet is composed of (especially wingeads, bc the bigger the head the more MANEUVRABILITY) it FITS like they do eat a lot of really quick agile fishes so the cane moved up down left right and turn REALLY QUICK thanks to their cephalofoil hehe AND FINALLY the last reasons is their 6th sense!!! all sharks have a six sence that make them able to detect electric fields produced by ughhh living things?? so yeah it's mostly like ''pores'' called ampullae of lorenzini (silly name ik) and its all over their nose!! again u won't get into details of how it works but yeah they can detect electric fields SO since hammerheads have like a way bigger head they have a lot more ampullae!!! so they can detect more!!! (i'm trying to make this the least complicated i promise) SO YEAH that's why you can see their head moving like that close to the sand it's actually a ting like a metal detector but its looking for preys!!! and this sense can work even when the five other senses dont' work SOOOO all this combined makes them GREATTT hunters!!!! yay!!! i love hammerheads!!! i love sharks!!! i may have gotten a bit carried away sorry hjjlhglg also i didn't read all this again so bear with me i'm just excited and sleep deprived as i type this

thanks for your visit!! don't hesitate to come back<33

[hapan-in-exile]

Volume 3 - Post #10: Good old-fashioned shootout

Another installment in this ongoing serialized fanfic

Genre: Mandalorian x Fem! Reader

Total word count: 2.6K (of 45K total in Volume 3)

Rating: Explicit - smut, language, +18 *NSFW*

__________________________________________

 X. Unlike the exclusive mooring of Vos’s yacht with HK sentinels, security lights, cameras, and sensors everywhere, the hangar bays in this section of Daiyu Spaceport, where Gwellis Bagnoro’s ship is located, are unnervingly deserted. And you definitely get the impression people are being paid to make themselves scarce. There is no legitimate reason why the corridors need to be this dark. 

You’re glad for the silence, but it feels almost too quiet after the noise and chaos of the city streets. 

You arrive at the hangar expecting to see the Onodone waiting for you, but there’s no one in sight. In fact, it’s eerily still without the usual maintenance crew droids.    

The grim surroundings did not prepare you for the caliber of this forger’s ride. Apparently, Gwellis Bagnoro can find enough suckers like you to pay his outrageous prices because his corvette is in pristine condition. No mismatched parts for this ship. 

Poor Nito usually salvaged everything needed to sustain the Razor Crest through its continual state of repair. 

With containers stacked high on either side of the ship, you’d think the Onodone would need help loading all this cargo. They create a sort of labyrinth around the hangar bay. How did he expect to fit this inside a gunship?  

Something feels off. 

Maybe he’s just waiting for you on board? Even as the thought occurs to you, your boot catches on something soft yet solid, and you stumble forward.

Looking down to see what you’ve tripped over in the dim haze of the hangar’s overhead lights, you see a station agent crumpled on the flight deck with a knife stuck in his gut. 

“Mando!” you shout.

But it’s too late. You hear a ting of blaster fire right before the fueling tank next to the ship explodes, knocking you off your feet and showering the hangar in flaming debris. You get slammed hard into the side of a cargo container from the force of the blast. Your ears are ringing, your vision is blurring at the edges, but you can still see the onslaught of blaster fire breaking out around you.  

Looking over your shoulder, you see the Mandalorian, who’d managed to stay on his feet. He’s crouched, taking cover behind a diagnostic panel directly in your line of sight, loading his rifle from the bandolier across his chest. 

“Is this Vos?”

“They’re Guild,” he calls out in response.

“The Crest?!” 

You’re terrified about what might be waiting for you back at the ship. Mando’s precaution of leaving it docked on a nearby moon didn’t seem so paranoid after all. 

“If they knew where it was, they wouldn’t be waiting for us here.” 

He’s got the rifle up, adjusting the scope.

“Thermal imaging, you said?” 

“What?!”

“In the visor?” he stills the muscles in his shoulders, taking aim. “You said your visor has—”

“Yes,” instantly recognizing what he’s planning. “And night vision. I can adjust the settings.”

“It impact your aim? Still good?”

“Fuck, yes. I have a laser sight,” you’re already screwing the barrel attachment onto one of the Westars.

Mando nods his approval.  

With one shot, he takes out the electrical in the hangar bay so it all shuts down. The lights go out, the doors fall closed, and the docking clamps thud onto the deck. Through your visor, you can see they’ve got the high ground, hoping to pin you in place until their crew on the deck can flush you out. 

If they were hunting the Child, they wouldn’t shoot to kill. They needed you alive for questioning. 

Well, one of you, at least.

The Mandalorian crouches around the diagnostic panel to take aim at one of the snipers firing down on you from the catwalk overhead. You’re able to hit another gunman positioned above the cockpit. But there’s at least three more of them—two of whom are situated on top of the corvette. 

Should you scale the cargo containers to get a better shot and risk exposing yourself?

“I’m going to—” you call out before you see the Gand bounty hunter launch himself over a stack of containers to bear down on the Mandalorian with a raised halberd. 

Mando’s able to block it with his rifle, but his opponent continues swinging relentlessly. He catches another blow with his vambrace and kicks the legs out from under his attacker.

But the other hunters have flanked him. And there’s more blaster fire coming at him from above. 

You can’t remain here, paralyzed with indecision, so you take a deep breath, sink low, and slip out from behind the container in a lunge, blaster held out in front of you. 

The gods are kind. Several more hunters charge towards Mando, their backs unguarded as they pass your position. You quickly take them down before they can reach him, still grappling with his other attacker. 

Unable to get off another clear shot, you begin climbing the cargo containers. It’s fucking terrifying how readily your brain reverts to autopilot—letting the adrenaline push you forward despite the threat of exposing yourself to sniper fire. You try to retain as much cover as you can, scrambling around the ship’s intake vents. 

Then, you hear the ping-ping-ping of blaster bolts hitting the Beskar armor and forsake all caution, climbing with whatever handhold you can find, fingernails cracked and bleeding. 

There’s a gap between the wing where you can see an opening up to one of the bounty hunters splayed across the exhaust turbine. But you’ll have to step into it to fire. If they look down at you, they’ll have a straight shot, same as you. 

Your heart is pounding against your eardrums, but you have to drown out the panic and concentrate.

All you can do is prepare your grip, make sure you’re ready on the trigger, and pray they can’t see your movement in the darkness. 

With your first shot, you merely clip the sniper's helmet. Shit! You can't see their body armor with thermal imaging. And you've revealed your position.

They respond by shooting wildly, a spray of bolts that erupts in every direction. Your second shot gets them in the chest, but not before their own blaster fire takes out another sniper posted on top of the ship’s sensor array.

Which meant there was only one shooter left. 

You look around to check on Mando. He’s dispatched the rest of his attackers in a pile of bodies strewn across the flight deck. 

That’s when a sharp, lancing pain burns across your scalp. Your hand claps over the side of your head, just above your ear, and you groan as raw, wet tissue squelches under your fingers.

That’s how close you came to dying today. You can heal from almost any wound, but not if your brain is splattered across the hangar bay.

Hot blood starts to trickle over your cheek and down your neck. You’ve gotta nail this fucker before you get too dizzy to see straight.

At the moment, you don’t feel dizzy at all. On the contrary, the pain brought everything into crisp focus. 

You launch yourself off the ship and start running in sporadic bursts and turns as soon as you collide with the ground. Serpentine! You can almost hear your drill sergeant yelling it at you. 

The last shooter is hiding somewhere on the other side of the hangar. You can’t be sure—but you think they’re embedded in a tangle of suspended cables and tubing. No way to climb up there without getting gunned down.

Here goes nothing. 

You shoot at the ballasts holding the whole mess together, and a section of the braided cables collapses to the floor. To the credit of this bounty hunter’s strength and determination, they continue firing at you while dangling from a metal coil one-handed. 

But you’ve got the advantage. All you have to do is wait for your shot from behind the safety of a cargo container. You line up the little red dot, and—there’s a nasty thud when their limp body falls to the deck. 

Behind you, Mando’s whipcord fires, and hand over fist, he drags a sobbing Trandoshan hunter into his waiting blade. 

“You take care of the others?” he says, wiping the knife on his boot.

“Yeah. We’ll be long gone before they regain consciousness,” you reply, clicking the safety back on and holstering your blasters.

He tilts his helmet from side to side, and an irritated sigh erupts from the modulator.

“Do no harm? I feel like you, of all people, Mando, should support the sanctity of my oath.”

“There’s a time and a place—Thulani!”

He cries out in horror when his headlamp falls over the gash sliced across the side of your head. Which stung like hell.  

“Is it bad?”

“I—” his voice chokes in his throat, reaching for your chin. “I can see your skull.”

And immediately, you vomit up all five glasses of Spice liquor onto his boots. 

Fortunately, he’s pretty tough—a hardcore Mandalorian, right?—and despite how disgusting you must look with sick clinging to your lips, he catches you in his arms when you stagger forward.

“Tell me what to do.”

The sound of his voice is so soothing—deep and strong. His muscular arms cradle you, one wrapped around your shoulders while the other surrounds your waist. Solid as iron but gentle, holding you tightly against his chest. 

“This feels pretty good,” you sigh. “I think the adrenaline crash is just—hitting me hard. Will you, um, hold me like this until I finish healing?”  

“Whatever you need. Anything.”

“I’m sorry I got vomit on you.” Ugh, so embarrassing. He would probably not be in the mood to fuck you after this. “It hasn’t even been a whole day, and I’ve already ruined the mystique.” 

“Fuck the mystique. You’re alive. That’s what matters.”

You shift in his arms to find a perfect little nook for yourself. “I’m definitely seeing the advantage of a helmet now.”

He lets out a soft chuckle, “I’ve got some expertise in that area if you’re in the market.”

“Could—could you tell me how it’s going with the—”

“The gigantic gash in your scalp?” Mando scoffs, delicately tugging the visor from your face to get a better look. “I can’t see the bone anymore, but…there’s some burnt flesh...hanging…open.” 

“Am I at least earning some warrior cred with this?”

“I told you you didn’t have anything to prove to me,” he says earnestly. “There’s got to be something I can do?”

“Just hold me.”

His arms tighten around you, and it feels like the only safety you have ever known.

“It’s gonna look like I’m gone for a minute,” you whisper. “But I promise I’ll still be here with you. Okay?”

He nods.

You let your head rest against his neck, then close your eyes, take a deep breath, and call upon that feeling of surety. When the "you" that was you disappeared and was subsumed by the infinite. That pulse of power surging through every fiber of your being.

Don’t let yourself get distracted by the throbbing shock of the wound as it seals shut. Or the searing heat as the tissue reconnects. Or just how thick Mando's biceps are...

All those tiny nerve endings that had to be repaired. You can’t make the hair regrow, but vanity is the least of your worries at the moment.

Okay. Yes. There. That should do it. 

Now, what you really need is a fuck ton of electrolytes. 

“You can let me go,” you open your eyes and smile up at the Mandalorian through your visor.

“No,” he says, pulling you closer.

“Mando, we can’t flee the scene glued together.”

“Don’t care,” he murmurs from somewhere in your thicket of blood smattered, vomit crusted hair. Aww, is the Mandalorian going soft on you?

Suddenly, the whoosh of the corvette’s boarding ramp echoes throughout the hangar, causing you both to turn and draw. 

“Don’t shoot!” the Onodone inches his way down the ramp with his hands extended, the vocodor swinging from his neck. “They got here right before you did. There was nothing I could do!”

“That’s as may be,” you march up the ramp with your blaster not exactly aimed at Gwellis, though not precisely lowered either. “But I tell you what. I’m willing to let you make it up to me.”

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

“I didn’t expect you’d be such a tough negotiator.”

“After he sold us out? Like hell, I was going to pay fifty-thousand fucking credits.”

“Alright, but making him hold the mirror while you stuck that needle in your eye? That’s cold-blooded.”

Without the reflective tissue, your eyes no longer glow with a violet sheen. To all the galaxy, you would appear to be an unremarkable human woman. 

But Mando had been right. As you removed the guanine from your cells, it felt like stripping away your identity piece by piece. The last remaining connection to your homeworld.

The Mandalorian might have chosen to forsake that little boy, the man he would have been—but you found you couldn’t. So you’d left some tissue under the lenses in the hopes that you might be able to coax it back to regrowth. If anyone asked, you could claim the faint remaining glimmers resulted from some kind of chemical exposure.

Would Mando think you’re a fool for holding on to the past? How had he—

But he hadn’t let go of the past either. 

You wouldn’t be able to see those memories if he’d really let go of who and what he was before, like he claimed. And while it might not be conscious, intentional resistance to his Creed, it proved that oaths and tenets can’t change what’s in your heart.

 “Whatever,” you jeer. “He can go cry into his money.”

“We don’t know it was Gwellis,” the Mandalorian shook his head. “It could have been any one of Vos’s henchmen. Someone who recognized me at the club. Or Bril, for that matter.”

“I like Bril!” You raise an eyebrow at him. “You need more people in your life who aren't afraid to make a joke at your expense.”

His helmet turns to look at you, and you can just sense his indignation. 

“If you’re rolling your eyes at me, Mando, I can’t see,” you smirk. “Besides, you had the entire populace of Daiyu City buzzing the moment you set foot planetside. You knew we would catch heat before we even made it to the club.” 

And nothing has changed. Making your way back through the concourse, his gleaming armor draws the same stares and excited whispers. “Gwellis is right. Subterfuge is not ‘the Way’ of a Mandalorian. I’m beginning to think you welcome everything ending in a shootout.”

“It’s a lot more straightforward than spending the next two weeks pretending to be...” he grabs the newly made ID from your hands. “Kasya Hawat?”

“Something tells me Mandalorians don’t engage in a lot of intelligence gathering either.” You pull off the wig you wore for the ID photos and toss it in a nearby bin. 

“That’s why I pay informants.”

“Touché,” you concede. “It’ll be worth it, though. We need someone on the inside, and we don’t know Ubaa Dir’s people. That could change. But for now, my circle of trust doesn’t extend past Team Razor Crest.” 

This last part, you say more to yourself than the bounty hunter. You’re not exactly thrilled about the prospect of working as an exploited minion for the Tagge Corporation, living in some squatter’s settlement attached to a refinery in the middle of nowhere.

“Worth pulling out those gems embedded in your teeth?” he asks wryly.

“I’m thinking Kasya’s backstory includes working in a Zeltron pleasure house during her prodigal wanderings.” You wink at him, “I might even be able to keep the moondust hair.”

**********************

Keep reading - Post 11: Well, Hell's Bells

Back to Volume 3 - all posts

[kalevalakryze]

Divine Intervention

Relationship: Shin Hati & Sabine Wren Characters: Sabine Wren, Shin Hati, Reader Additional Tags: Crack, I don't even know what to tag this, Omnipotent Reader Language: English Summary: Electricity charged the air between Mandalorian and Apprentice, causing the hairs on the back of Sabine's neck to stand at attention and cause gooseflesh to race down her arms. "What are you doing?" She called, fighting to keep her tone level, even as the calm environment became anything but. Those same dangerous eyes were widened, no longer focused on her prey, but instead focusing on an unstable arc of energy that seemed to circle the perimeter of their impromptu battlefield. "It's not me," The blonde confirmed, stepping back as the arc shot just past their head. The map was passed off to the accompanying HK droid without a second look, even its warbling response to the action was left uncountered as their eyes danced along with the unpredictive energy. "OOF!" Notes: This is a gift for @backfromjohkku! As a very special thank you for all the Ursa Wren content you've gifted us lately!!! The prompt for this story is one i know we have in common, with seeing these situations and imagining these exact scenarios, so I just let the vibes kind of take over from here! I hope you enjoy!

"We've been looking for this." The blonde's gloved thumb brushed across the smooth surface of the orb-shaped map, silver-blue eyes forever seeing as they stared through Sabine's skin and into the soul hidden within.

Sabine's weight shifted from foot to foot, fingers flexing to relieve remaining anxieties, taking them out against the cool, barely familiar hilt of her lightsaber.  Her lips parted to speak, though, through the rumbling of her vocal cords, something otherworldly began to rear its head in the form of an alien thunder, deep and booming across the landscape, sending gusts of wind that tickled the tall grass all around them.

Electricity charged the air between Mandalorian and Apprentice, causing the hairs on the back of Sabine's neck to stand at attention and for gooseflesh to race down her arms.  "What are you doing?" She called, fighting to keep her tone level, even as the calm environment became anything but. 

Those same dangerous eyes were widened, no longer focused on her prey, but instead focusing on the unstable arc of energy that seemed to circle the perimeter of the impromptu battlefield. 

"It's not me," The blonde confirmed, stepping back as the arc shot past their head. The map was passed off to the accompanying HK droid without a second look, even its warbling response to the action was left uncountered as their eyes danced along with the unpredictive energy.

"OOF" A voice shouted, arcs of electricity gathering in one spot, forming a tear through the very reality of the once peaceful night sky.

Green and orange ignited simultaneously, raising in defense of those who wielded them as a figure tumbled from the tear, dust flying as their body rolled with the momentum of their ejection. 

"What the *fuck?!*" The mysterious stranger shouted as they came to a stop, hands planted firmly into Lothal soil. 

Their gaze lifted first to the gouges their body made in the ground when they'd streaked across its surface, then to the green saber held closest to them. "Sorry... Let me rephrase... What the fucking fuck?"

“What the kriff are you supposed to be?” Sabine questioned incredulously, golden eyes narrowed in suspicion, flickering to the other side of the battlefield to look at her original opponent for some kind of an answer.

The confusion she found in Shin’s eyes should have calmed her, knowing they were both far from their depths. However, the Mandalorian found only the same unease in their stance and face, unease mirrored thanks to the stranger’s sudden appearance. 

“This isn’t real… This isn’t happening,” They muttered to themselves, fingers wrapping around their biceps where their arms crossed over their chest, nails pressing into supple flesh as if in an attempt to jolt them from some form of altered state or reality. 

Sabine had seen plenty of spice addicts mimic the behavior dozens of times over the years, though never before had someone managed to teleport across reality-altering electricity and create tears in the very fabric of space. Makers, Sabine was sure even the most Force-Sensitive being to ever exist wouldn’t be able to cross with the finest, most exquisite run of spice, and still somehow manage the same feat. 

“Who. Are. You.” The blonde growled, beginning to take large strides across the field, rapidly closing the distance between the three of them. A predator with the scent of blood in the air and a looming threat that only served to make her all the more dangerous, all the more unpredictable and otherworldly. 

“I… What?” A closed fist raised to rub at their eyes. “Ivanna?” Their eyes narrowed toward the blood-orange saber-wielding maniac. Sabine stepped forward, emerald blade humming as she drew closer, poised to protect the strange visitor. “Natasha? Am i…? Did I stumble on set or something?” Wild eyes moved to search the landscape, searching for something that wasn’t there. 

“Kid, you may want to get a move on with figuring out where you’re at. This is not the place to be inebriated on a Taungsday,” She was close enough to the stranger now, that if Shin swung out against them, she would at least be able to provide some form of initial defense.

“Wait…. Are you guys filming the first fight again? Or… I mean it already aired, or…?” A pause as they sat back on their knees. “There isn’t even a film crew…?”

“Film crew?” The dark apprentice questioned, her advance stalling as confusion furrowed at her brows. 

“Yeah? Or… Like do you guys just… do this for fun now that the show aired?” 

Sabine blinked, nose scrunching as her brows furrowed. “We can figure this out after I get the map back, alright?” Frustration surmounted any other feeling of confusion- she didn’t have the time for all of this.

“I mean…” They shifted in the dirt to rise to their feet. “It’s not like it matters, right? Shin gets the map and tries to Qui-Gon you, you Qui-stay-” A giggle for a joke that only they understood. “But like... I dunno why I’m telling you of all people?”

 Sabine’s arm lowered as her attention jumped to the apprentice. “Your name is Shin?”

Shin’s chin raised in a proud acknowledgment of the name they’d been given. “It is,” 

“Sorry to interrupt, but did i accidentally stumble into a blind cosplay date or something? I mean more power to wolfwren, for real, y’know-”

The orange blade sunk back into the spired hilt. With larger strides, the blonde gained enough ground on them to truly startle them. Sabine’s own saber sunk back into its hilt, watching, poised like a vexis ready to spring to the stranger's defense if the blonde stepped out of line as she reached for the scruff fo their neck. “Explain,” Shin ordered smoothly, all piercing eyes and growling tone. 

Sabine’s gaze moved to the skyline- They’d been so absorbed with their visitor that no one noticed the disappearance of the tear in the sky, now replaced by the albeit sparse traffic high above. “Inside,” She commanded, meeting the blonde’s stare, extending a temporary truce, at least until they could determine what was going on.

Her truce was met with acceptance as Shin shoved and dragged at the stranger, shoving them towards the lookout tower. “Hey! I can walk on my own just fine!” They protested, stumbling over their own feet with each shove. 

The interior was wrecked, a present from the HK droids that Shin had brought, disabled bodies strewn about the small space that made up the Mandalorian’s home. “This is so sick.” They remarked in awe as they stood amongst the wreckage of a depression tornado and the debris of the attack. 

“What is?” Sabine questioned, only half focused on her impromptu prisoner and reluctant ally as she went about clearing some form of space for everyone to occupy with a sigh. It was a struggle to keep herself steely and impassive, her racing mind quieted only by the knowledge of the dark Force user just feet away. 

“I just- An entire replication of Ezra’s tower? With all the added touches? Like- Oh!” Shin’s hand on their shoulder prevented them from moving to point at the corner where Sabine’s chair rested.” You actually replicated the seat from the Ghost? And Ezra’s scout helmet? It’s insane, seriously!” 

“I didn’t replicate anything, and-” A box was moved with a huff as she cleared an extra stool. “How and what do you know about Ezra?” A shove from the blonde to their shoulder had the visitor stumbling and falling into the provided stool. 

Swallowing with a sudden thickness, the stranger shrunk under the pair of piercing gazes focused solely on them from across the table.

“Alright… Something tells me this isn’t a Chalupa-induced fever dream, and I’ve been reading everything wrong. I was literally just trying to go to Taco Bell,” They sighed, fidgeting with their fingers atop the scorched remains of Sabine’s table. 

“I don’t even think I want to know,” Shin grumbled, arms crossing over her chest, stubborn eyes instead focusing on the mess around Sabine’s home. 

Perching on the edge of the table, Sabine folded her hands neatly in her lap. “Alright… Now spill,”

“Okay, so like…” A huff as they shifted in the stool. “I know everything about you? Wait- okay, like.. Not like a creep… like? I’ve watched you since I was a kid? I watched your story unfold… uh… like…God why does this have to be so difficult. Okay, like. Your entire universe has been around longer than I’ve been alive, really- even if the writers are telling everything so wild crazy out of order.”

“Get to the point,” The growl in Shin’s tone was deep and unsettling, the unspoken threat in her eyes did not go unnoticed by the local Star Wars fanatic. 

“Okay, so like. I even watched Ahsoka grow up, I practically grew up with her almost- I watched Anakin Skywalker fall, and I’ve seen and read so much about the formation of the Rebellion, from like… Day one, all the way to the Fall of the New Republic, and then some.”

“Fall of the New Republic?” Sabine queried with worry bringing her voice to crack. A frown pulling at her lips as she forced her arms to cross over her chest, preventing her from fidgeting so obviously in front of two unknown enemies. 

“Trust me, you’ve got time- Anyways, yeah. I know where Ezra is, and how this-” They gestured between both women. “Turns out. Like… Shin, your Master? He’s after the Mortis Gods, specifically, we think it’s Abeloth, who makes Palpatine seem like child’s play, and he’s got some twisted idea that she can help stop something like order 66 from happening again? It’s all speculation, but when you guys get to Peridea, he’s going to get squirrely. He’s being played, alright? And he’s a good man, really… He’s just being blinded by this mission, noble as he believes it to be,” 

“Stop.” Shin ordered, sharp teeth worrying at her lip as she raised a hand. “Explain something else… Mortis gods?”

“Oh! Yeah, Sabine has some experience there too-” They looked over to the contemplative artist. “That mural that Ezra disappeared through for a while was a portal and linked to them. But on it, was the Father, Daughter, and Son. They’re like…. The living embodiment of the Force from what I’ve gathered? Except the Daughter lives in Ahsoka now after the Son killed her when she was a teenager. 

Sourly, Sabine shifted. “Seems like she’s good at that,” Bitterness ran rampant in the waver of her voice as she focused off to a pile of debris to the side. 

“Oh, dude, you have no fucking idea. I’m serious, the most reliable thing about Ahsoka Tano is she’s going to die. I think I’m getting numb to it really, Baylan winds up killing her when you all-” They made a smashing motion with both hands. “Gather, on Seatos. I’m pretty sure everyone called that she was going to die at least once in her own show.” 

“So she’s immortal?” Shin perked up, an academic curiosity sparking their fullest attention.

“Eh… That’s up for debate. The Force just isn’t done with her, seriously this entire universe is against that woman getting a break.”

“Is there… anything else?” Sabine prodded, more gentle this time, calmer the more they spoke, now that some of the gaps she’d ha were finally being filled in.

“Ezra is safe. He’s been waiting for you,” They had to pretend not to notice the shark breath Sabine took, weighed by a heavy heart that pressed in on Sabine’s chest, which lessened only slightly. 

“You will bring him home. And everyone will be right where they belong… in due time.”

“And my Master?” Shin piped up, breaking from their inquisitive trance.

“I… Really wish I could say. You and Baylan are new to the world I know. We don’t know your stories yet, everything is merely speculation on what we’ve seen so far. But he’s fighting a war no one else can really see, and he’s blinded by a Master that doesn’t have his best intentions in mind, which again, it’s just like… speculation, but it’s the most reasonable explanation for his actions. Just… Keep in mind, his word… it won’t carry the same weight as it once had. Just… Be ready. Other paths will reveal themselves to you, but it will be solely up to you to determine which one you take…”

“And Ezra,” They continued, scrubbing a hand down their face. “God Sabine, we only had to go about sixteen hundred days without him, I can’t… No one could have predicted they would take him from you for almost ten years, or that they would have… done what they did to your… yeah…” A pause. They knew, at least, that it wasn’t the time or place to bring up her family. 

The electrical current was back, sparking this time around the interior of Sabine’s home. “Listen, I think that's my ride, and I should probably haul ass- Sabine, this whole Force thing?  Just give it time. The Force will decide when you’re both ready. Don’t-” A giggle to themselves again, hidden behind their hand. “Don’t force the Force. Alright? And… Shin girl… please fucking blink- your eyes have to be dry as hell.” The sparking grew closer to their body as a mysterious wind picked up. “And you know… May the Force be with you, Always.”

Neither apprentice had the time to speak, to offer more questions or thanks for their information, as the swirling vortex of energy seemed to skyrocket the stranger into it’s swirling chasm and disappear just as fast as it had arrived again with an otherworldly rumble.

“So.” Sabine began, blinking slowly. “What the kriff did they mean by Qui-Gonned ?” 

“I’m still trying to figure out what a Taco Bell is,” Shin admitted, arms falling from their crossed positon at her chest. “Listen, Wren. I’m chalking this up to a fever dream or that I was dosed somehow and this is all a very strange hallucination. Either way, I have what I came for.”

Sabine huffed as she slid off the table. “Yeah, alright… Shin.”

“Either fight me, or I’ll be on my way,” The blonde sighed as she stalked towards the door. 

“I mean, why? You heard them. Not like it’s going to matter.”

“I think now I want to fight you for being pathetic.”

“Alright… you asked for it.”

[ruthlesslistener]

I hard agree with 'the moon will sing' for Hollow, and I recently bumped into a hk map that used Empires by the electric swing circus, specifically framing the ending lyrics as being sung by radience, and it made me curious about if you have a song like 'the moon will sing' for radience. and also I wanted to reccomend the map song to you cus it was fun

Ohoho, do I ever!

Both 'Breath of Light' by Florence and the Machine and 'Neglected Space' by Imogen Heap are songs that I think encapsulate the vibes of Radi perfectly, with Breath of Light being how she views herself, and Neglected Space being how she presents herself to others (particularily Hollow), bargaining and manipulating in a honey-sweet tone as she slowly and vengefully tears them apart. The lyrics perhaps don't fit her as well as The Moon Will Sing does for Hollow, but both songs are my top picks for how I'd characterize her in the absense of the usual 'scorned, spiteful angry bird' mode I typically end up writing her in

[accio-victuuri]

oh. wait. was wyb lowkey giving us a clue? ⚡️ i agree that his choice of clothes (airport ) when he went to HK was not his usual skaterboy type of clothes. tho everyone loves pokemon and so does he, but it’s interesting how xzs’ first post for yuguyao is about shiying defending himself from assassins. and he is using what looks like electricity to drive them off. xzs even uses words like “voltage”. is he pikachu? lol.

and well, bobo’s shirt was primarily eevee. there’s a video game featuring them both so i wonder if they played that and assigned themselves as those characters. they are also apparently a CP. lol. omg. this is galaxy brain but kinda makes sense too. how many coincidences will it take really?

source.