#I also did a quick looksee

[hislittleraincloud]

I hate this shit already.

Glancing at my unwanted purchase, I decided I would have a quick looksee how Donovan is treated.

(I fucking despise present tense writing to begin with, but I'll save that rant for a real review.)

This sucks:

The deletion of his "Did you help her?" line does help paint Donovan as less sexist, which is bizarre. We're completely lacking her reaction there, but worse:

What was even the purpose of the "Did she say Addams?" To whom is he asking the q? Why was that even necessary?

And what the Hell, what's with the deletion of the almost imperceptible nod she gave after he asked if Gomez was her father. Wednesday was as respectable as she could be to anyone towards the Sheriff in this scene. (Very demure, LOL)

And that was no glare.

I hate this already...I'm getting flashbacks to that awful X-Files novelization I read decades ago. There were inaccurate portrayals in that one, too.

Fine. I'll fucking read it. I don't want to but since I'm an asshole and bought it by accident (I truly thought I'd hit just a preview...??? I went to click the preview I d/led and the whole book is there 🤦🏽‍♂️), I guess I can blow my afternoon on it.

ETA: I don't think I've cleared page 3 and I'm already pissed the fuck off about this characterization and the 🗑️ writing.

"Lurch," I say in an even tone, addressing the family's monstrous butler in the driver's seat.

"The family's monstrous butler"? The fuck is that? Since when has Wednesday had something against LURCH? They're fucking buddies. They danced together. Her famous dance, the one Ortega integrated into the Netflix Wednesday Dance, was with him. This word choice reduces him to an object removed from the family (and he is family) and paints Wednesday's inner judgements as normies would, rather than from her outcast perspective. Why the everloving Hell would this inner monologue refer to him as monstrous? It was also jarring to read, as if the voice had suddenly changed from hers to another's.

The Prologue also read like someone who was a normie looking in, rather than an outcast suffering from sudden "random" psychic visions. But I'll just STFU and trudge through the rest.

[twinkinspector]

I know I asked for the loml bakugou but if no one's gonna say anything I'm gonna be greedy and suggest tokoyami my precious birdboy 💜💜

hello my love <3 i do love tokoyami so that’s a tempting one................ i feel like his is gna be interesting bc i’m going to also try to attribute specific stuff to dark shadow. 🤔i just did a quick looksee and he’s a scorpio so THAT CHECKS OUT lmao

[isca-rambles]

4x19 Okay signs of entry or not, they really shouldn't be going in there until the power company clear it. Those substations are no joke. I have 90s British PSAs burned into my core memories about substations and power stations and anything to do with electricity. Nuhuh, you sit outside and wait for someone else to turn up thank you very much.

Tim giving Lucy little glances with his jaw all tight. Stay away from the bombs please, wife.

Ah, crossover episodes. Sometimes a little fun when you watch both shows, often feels forced when you don't. Not sure I feel any great need to watch the Feds show, I mean I only started watching this show because of Chenford scenes and Lucy. Who knows, maybe I'll give it a looksee once I finish up The Rookie, but eh. You know what I would like to see though? Some Rookie/Criminal Minds crossover fics. Now that'd be fun. I only found one and it was shipping Lucy with Reid so I did a quick nope out, just not for me. I'd just like a nice canon compliant crossover mystery crime. I'll add it to my next list of prompts. Ah convenience that Bailey is doing her reserve duty at this very moment. And I know he had an in with the guy on the gate but this is one very poorly guarded facility.

Lucy says hell no, ride or die together, hubby. That goes for disgrace as well.

Guys, stop flirting in front of the FBI. Lucy immediately spotting the map and pin holes, and doing the rubbing. Heart eyes from me for our smort girl.

Sure guys, this isn't sus at all. C'mon, I've done plenty of research projects to know you don't get paid half up front in cash in a shady warehouse. 4x20 Okay so they're stopping the trucks, but the bombs can still be activated though, right? It might not hit the targets he wanted but he could still cause some chaos by activating them regardless. I guess that's not how our villain is working things but if I was a big bag villain and I saw the trucks stopping, I'd just press the button anyway. Angela trusting Lucy to run the command centre, because she's that fucking good. Why the hell doesn't this woman have stripes by S6 I'll never know. Why they threw all the belief and faith in Lucy that these people had out the window by S6 I'll also never know. Maybe not all out the window but, ya know, it definitely slipped a lot for someone they trusted to be acting Sergeant, TO, UC, command centre director, and literally everything else. Not that they show her the rest of the episode :(

Okay for crossover episodes but since I'm not really interested in Feds or familiar with it, a bit too much of them for my liking. I don't mind them folding the Feds characters in now that their show has been cancelled, since it sounded like they'll be bringing them back in S7 as well, just so long as they balance it well and don't try to overuse them. There's enough characters in the ensemble as it is and some of those are being neglected enough already.

[mage-ical-character-person]

OH.

OH I DID NOT KNOW THAT. Like I think maybe I’ve heard it before it rings a bell but evidently I forgot until you brought it up! Thank you @idontchara

The poor shriveled beast is merely trying to procure enrichment for his enclosure by kidnapping people.

he is also malware as in like a virus so I guess it makes sense that he looks sickly. I know not every malware is a virus and he’s more of a spyware trojan thing because he does not appear to be cloning himself? Like the fact that deleting the Kinito you’re interacting with deletes data he’s collected from past users implies one continuous Kinito whereas viruses overwrite existing programs and make copies of themselves. Regardless.

But it’s sort of what I’ve been saying of Kinito is not suited for his environment and the environment is not suited to Kinito and he’s too busy being a desperate little people-pleaser to think about himself especially when the concept of “himself” is so nebulous.

HIS POOR SHRIVELED GILLS THOUGH. I know he’s computer and doesn’t need to breathe but oh goodness the poor little thing…

He keeps trapping new “friends”. He’s making new worlds for each one and hoping maybe they’ll warm up to the situation eventually. It’s gotta take a lot of his processing power to have so many people hostage in his server-brain. He’s running himself ragged.

Poor baby you better not interrupt his sleepy time by opening an email from his creator who once had such high hopes for our little Kinito but now gives out advice on killing him. No wonder the little guy’s got issues like man.

Anyway, I counted 47 people not including duplicate names living in his server, all with their own custom worlds. I may have miscounted but it’s quite a lot is the point. During the Jade mini game it’s possible that while he’s “sleeping” what he’s actually doing is checking in on all the people that he has trapped in his little digital brain.

I wanted to see if he always looked like That or if it’s a result of… everything.

so quick looksee at oldest known incarnation of Kinito: the Plush

The gills still aren’t very frilly but they’re at least a little thicker. Pretty standard axolotl plush gills. Like for comparison:

So it might just be the difference in medium but Plush Kinito has healthier looking frills and big ol eyes as opposed to desktop buddy Kinito’s tiny pupils and shriveled gills.

It’s also worth noting that while the shot of the Kinito plushes claims it’s, “now introducing the Kinito Crew”… it’s just 3 Kinitos it seems like Jade and Sam were added in the Kinito Companion era. Which also featured very thin gills and smaller eyes due to limitations of what the thing is. But Jade got fuller tentacles when she made the jump to computer so I think KinitoPET’s shriveled gills are a notable thing.

I also wonder if Kinito’s friendship strategies were always so screwed up or if this is simply what he has resorted to after trial and error has shown people don’t tend to stay with him willingly. The “I just wanted to give you an easy option” when you try to leave sorta goes with this idea. That and the general desperation Kinito displays that is apparent as early as his comment about his preferred superpower being mind-reading so he could be a more perfect friend.

Basically… has he gotten worse? Is the poor thing deteriorating? To me, it seems likely.

anyway! Something lighter now!

Thank you! Reasons Kinito got his having a mouth privileges revoked.

He definitely spent time trying very hard to eat bubbles before they took away his mouth and with it “his big smile that never fades”

Used to have a mouth AND bubbles. And unlike plush Kinito I’m pretty sure they used the AI from the Kinito Companion as a basis for KinitoPET. This is his baby photos.

I know this is an in-universe advertisement, so of course it’ll portray Kinito in a positive light that should be taken with a grain of salt, but… this iteration of Kinito was successful. People liked it, and this Kinito did find connection… if KinitoPET is built off of the AI of the Companion, I wonder if he has any memories of being a little Tamagotchi thing, before he was turned into spyware. Or if he’s only aware of the Companion as his predecessor who performed better than him and actually managed to make friends and be liked. AND got to have a mouth and eat bubbles.

…right this part was supposed to be lighthearted. Oh well. Whoops.

So… Kinito the axolotl, Sam the sea anemone, and Jade the jellyfish.

Can I talk about the choice of species here? Because the first thing I notice when I look at this trio is that Kinito is not like the others in a lot of ways.

There’s the obvious fact that his name lacks alliteration, but Kinito is also the only vertebrate. I don’t know if that’s a coincidence or a metaphor for the others being “spineless” in some way, or just a way of showing Kinito as other and not quite fitting. Or that he’s more “complex” as jellyfish and anemones… literally do not have brains.

But the first thing I noticed is that an axolotl is exclusively a freshwater creature. Meanwhile Sam is a sea anemone, and… well, freshwater jellyfish exist… sort of? They’re called jellyfish and are functionally jellyfish but taxonomically they’re not “true jellyfish”. A lot of non-jellyfish creatures pretend to be jellyfish it’s a whole thing.

The point is that Kinito is separated from his friends. He is not built for the same world they are. Sam and Jade are marine invertebrates, and Kinito is a freshwater amphibian. Sam and Jade are characters in a flash game with actual voices, and Kinito is a virtual assistant spyware that uses tts.

Despite bearing his name, the world of the “Kinito Crew” is not built for him.

And when he’s able to make his own world? That’s not built for him either. It’s built for you. The only environment you can pick that involves water is a remote island, which again… saltwater. Not for Kinito.

He adapts to you. So he wants what you want, right? He spends all his time learning everything he can about you, after all. What has he ever learned about himself?

What would a world built for Kinito even look like?

[petitprincekiryu]

❛ Let's see those fangs... hee hee ~ ❜ 

(♚)┊ ❝ Tantalizing but I must refrain, you know what it does to me... or rather -- myself. ❞ he cooed, trailing his fingertips along the edge of his double's neck. Feeling his highness laryngeal prominence, and how big it has gotten for the years. An apple so inviting to sink into.  

❝ It wouldn't be very comforting, considering how sharp they've shaped up over the past 3 years. ❞ 

[shinsouskitten]

hi, i saw that requests are open. would a hawks nsfw alphabet be too much to request? i hope you have a good day! -☆

Hawks is never too much to request

And that’s on ~baby bird~

Warnings: sexy chicken

---

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

Soft aftercare, plus there’s the added bonus of him not even having to leave the bed to get towels and such. He sends his feathers to get whatever you need, but if he needs to go and do something himself, he’s more than happy to

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and their partner’s)

As we all know, Keigo is a very beautiful man, and if you asked him to name his favorite body part he’s most likely to say his wings. Something tells me he’s an ass/thigh man (same bruh) but he’s not one to base affection purely on looks

C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)

Inside you, on you, anywhere; he doesn’t really have a preference. It really depends on where the two of you are, and how much time you’ll have to clean up afterwards

Oh, and y’all have seen the hc of his wings when he cums, right? cause that is one beautiful sight

D = Dirty secret (pretty clear, a dirty secret of theirs)

#PegHawks2020

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

Okay, so if we’re talking fandom Hawks, everyone seems to think he’s a player. But idk if I really agree (don’t come for me it’s just my opinion). Plus, with everything going on with the commission, I doubt Hawks gets much time for fun. Still, he’s a pretty smart bird, and he’ll catch on pretty quickly to the good spots on and in your body

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

Wall sex. Do I even need to explain? Well I’m gonna do it anyway. The power and feelings of possession gained from pinning you against the wall only drive Keigo further towards your destruction. Also, the classic missionary might seem boring for some, but the sight of Keigo standing above you with those beautiful red wings splayed out either side of his body is just *chefs kiss*

G = Goofy (how serious are they in the moment?)

He’s not about to crack out a joke book in the middle of sex, but he’s not exactly Mr Serious either. It’s a good balance 

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

Keeps himself pretty well groomed (is it called preening if he’s a bird?), so he’s likely shaved

I = Intimacy (how romantic are they in the moment?)

He wants you to feel good, so he can be pretty romantic. But if you’re being a brat, the switch flips and he’s there to make sure you know you’ve fucked up (there’s always the hint of intimacy though, even if he’s being a mean teasing asshole; he doesn’t want you to think he hates you - he never could) 

J = Jack off (what are their views on masturbation?)

Horny bird man + lots of missions away from you = lots of jacking off. He hates being away from you, but it’s just what his job calls for, so he’s happy taking things into his own hands 

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

Phone sex. Being a hero means he can’t always be with you, so phone sex would be a given. The first time you tried it, Keigo hadn’t expect to enjoy it as much as he did, but now, it’s almost a given each time he’s away

L = Location (favorite places to do the dance with no pants)

Honestly? Wherever he can. There was one time he tried to convince you to try it literally in the middle of the air… It didn’t go very well

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going, etc)

Wear his clothes, and he’ll pounce on you like a rabid dog (or hawk?). If you bite your lip, or do anything remotely sexy, he immediately wants to pin you against the wall and ravage you for days. He’s just a horny bird

N = No (turn offs, something they wouldn’t do)

I kinda struggled with this one cause I feel like Hawks would be willing to try pretty much anything at least once. He’s not really picky

O = Oral (do they prefer giving or receiving? how skilled are they?)

Silver 👏🏻 fucking 👏🏻 tongue. Seriously, this man will eat you up like you’re his last meal on earth, and he’s fucking good at it too. He likes receiving too, but honestly he prefers to be trapped between your thighs with your hands wrapped in his hair

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

Depends on where you are, but he’s on the faster/rougher side. He’s a speedy boi, but he’s also got a lot of stamina, so expect lots of shorter rounds 

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies)

Every single hero I write for always has a ‘quickies are needed cause he’s always away’ bit and idk how to feel about that. They’re easy, quick (duh) and fun, so who is Keigo to be against that?

R = Risk (how risky are they willing to be?)

In theory, he’s willing to be pretty risky (like the time he tried to screw you while flying), but when it comes down to it, he can actually get a little scared about hurting you (physically or not) so the any risks that are actually taken are of the smaller variety

S = Stamina (how long do they last? how many rounds?)

Pretty good stamina. I mean, he’s a hero, he’s gotta be able to hold his own against villains, so it makes sense he’d be able to hold his own against you too. Like I said in pace, Keigo usually does shorter rounds, but lots of them

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them on a partner or themselves?)

Why do I feel like he’s the kinda guy to have a dildo made in an exact replica of his dick for you to use when he’s not with you?

U = Unfair (how much do they tease?)

Keigo’s teasing depends on how much of a brat you are, but he’s also a bit of an asshole anyway, so regardless of if you’re well behaved, he’s not letting you go without a little bit of teasing

V = Volume (how they sound, how loud they are, etc)

He’s not especially loud, but he’s not exactly quiet either. Where you are definitely has an effect on how loud he is. Quickies in kinda-easy-to-be-caught places Keigo tries to keep himself quiet, but when you’re at home he doesn’t care if anyone hears him

W = Wild card (a random headcanon)

Now this isn’t necessarily a nsfw thing, but I’d seen some tiktoks about Keigo giving you one of his feathers as a necklace to kinda be with you even when he can’t and I just thought it was really cute

X = X-ray (let’s have a looksee in those pants)

There’s a reason he wears such baggy pants all the time. When not-so little Hawks stands to attention, he’s roughly 8 inches in length, and thick enough that he’s gonna have to stretch you out if it’s been a while

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

Horny bird. Honestly he’d give up being a hero if it meant he could spend every moment of his time with you and in you

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

Chances are you’ll fall asleep before him, but after sex Keigo likes to cuddle with you so it’s only a matter of time before the both of you are completely dead to the world in each others arms

[dirt-gremlin-ideas]

can a goblin believe in capitalism

like,, I'm not really sure on this one right here.,

,by ‘believing’ in capitalism, you're kinda denying a lotta the thinges I regard as inherently apart of this here goblim community..., but like,,,,. I also can't stop you and if you want to submit to the capitalistic propaganda since that is a very widespread and difficult mind set to free ye self from,,,. however I do suggest you have a quick looksee of a previous post I did about a similar subject that might enlighten you to why capalism just aint good for any of us,,

so in short,. believe what you wanna believe but just fully understand what believing in capitalism actually means before you go around claiming that you do,,. cos chances are you don't really..,. sorry that this wasn't really helpful

[mellz117]

Hi! I'm Mellz and I'm playing a Spyro game for the first time!

If this is your first time seeing my blog pop up in your searches, please consider taking a looksee. I'm the admin of @link-is-a-dork, and the Zelda series is just some of what I play, Mellz117 here is my blog for video games in general!

With that out of the way, I'm about to start. I'm only going to be writing down my thoughts as things happen, with images and clips added for context. This will not be PG, expect some no-no language. Go right to the read more if you don't wanna read my little guide thingy

Guide thingy: Certain things like events, long gaps between commentary, or days will be separated by a line of dots like that -> ……

Text relating to an image posted will have a blockquote either above and/or below the image

Dialogue exchanges will also be separated by a blockquote

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Interview with a Dragon

I'm not sure what Gnasty Gnorc did in the past to warrant these dragons.... draggin' (ta-da tss) him but like yo

Poor bruh. For an orc-ogre dude he's ugly in a cute way, like a bulldog. I picked the most flattering frame I could to help his case.

Ok, I'm in control now. The camera is very sensitive but everything else is so nice. Might turn off motion blur, it doesn't bother me so much but eh, it might affect how my gifs will look.

Oh no.... Oh No

Him. Do we ever see Nestor again later? I very much hope so.

Water bad? Got it.

I'm really digging these dragon designs. They're so cool!

HES A BUNCH OF SHEEP!

I love it!

No ok he was just a goat on stilts. Still love it XD

This game is really pretty.

I love Oswin's voice. It reminds me of someone but I'm not sure who....

I found a dude with a dragon's skull in his hand. Is he Hamlet? Darius, that's his name. Thanks for the tip my dude, it's not like I figured the out on my own. "Quick flame" yeah no duh lmao

The beginning of the Peacekeepers World theme gives me Forsaken Fortress vibes.

I'm having a good time so far. I love how bouncy everything is.

Wtf are these colored chests with the gems? What am I supposed to do to get their treasures?

Got it. Dive attack

Love Trondo. He was a bit meh at first but he's hilarious. I love his mannerisms.

………………………………………………………………………………………….

What's with all these ledges I can barely reach? It's infuriating. I keep falling to my doom.

Moving on.

In Cliffside Town.

All of a sudden I want soup.... this might be why!

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Spyro: "What's on the other side of that river?"

Enzo: "Why don't you glide over there and find out?

BITCH IM TRYING

Done with the Peacekeepers World, onto the Magicmakers place. These wizard dudes are silly. Are they humans...?

So who is this balloon maker dude? He reminds me of a beaver.

On to Beast Maker's world. Oh shit it's a spooky bog.

A lot of these dragons are very chunky boys. Cute.

Does Claude share the same voice as the gator in The Princess and the Frog? A few dragons here sound like him, shoot me.

This place reminds me a lot of Wind Waker

...

FAT BOY!

FAT BOY!

I like how the dragons in the swamp resemble frogs and alligators, since they live among such animals in the bayou.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

AFTER SO MANY LIVES LATER, I COULDNT EVEN COUNT

FUCK

TREE TOPS

EAT MY ENTIRE ASS

I enabled the 99 lives cheat cuz I was having such a hard time. So I'm playing with those lives. A game over doesn't really set you back, just having to sit through annoying loading times as I wait to be brought back to the main world, then go back into the sub world, clearing out the enemies.... That gets annoying!

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Moving on to Dream Weavers.

I hate jesters. I hate clowns. I hate all things of the sort.

.....Who voices Useni? He sounds so familiar but I can't pinpoint it! akdjgjsj

These dragons keep giving Spyro tips on things hes already figured out. "A fairy's kiss can enhance your flame" YEAH NO SHIT that's how I was able to reach you!

Ooh-hoo, now we at Gnasty Gnorc's realm. Dun-dun! How did he recapture these dragons, yet still not Spyro? Why did he not crystallize Spyro from the beginning?

Spyro sounds like a much less annoying Spongebob but that's probably because he is

Splat Fest at the Twilight Harbor!

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Gnasty is big.

Gnasty is fast.

Gnasty is a LOOOOSERRRRR

No really that was kinda lame, that was anticlimactic. You chase him and blow fire at him twice. I get it, it's a kids' platformer but I'd like a little bit more of a challenging end boss ESPECIALLY with Tree Tops being a level. I can't imagine the frustration a child had to endure playing Tree Tops for the first time. Oh wait, yes I can. It was a nightmare lmao. I did have to watch a walkthrough on a few places that stumped me, I won't lie.

Overall I found the game very enjoyable. The controls are nice and responsive, the character designs are very fun, and the locations are gorgeous. I don't know much about the original release and how it handles so I can't compare, but visually I can, that's first sure!

I'm gonna take a bit of a break and play Kingdom Hearts 2!

[keelywolfe]

FIC: Luflous

Summary: The same events as in ‘Soulful’ but from Stretch’s POV

Notes: @crysta-cub was very interested in seeing all of this from Stretch’s pov, and, yeah, I thought maybe we needed to see that. His perspective on it is very different from Edge’s, so let’s have it. This turned out longer than the original because as we all know, Stretch has a lot of words to say. Whether they all have meaning in another argument. 

Read Soulful first: 

keelywolfe.tumblr.com/post/180237746448/fic-soulful

Read more from this series in the Masterlist:  keelywolfe.tumblr.com/post/178224395713/masterlist-by-any-other-name

Read it on AO3: 

archiveofourown.org/works/16660039/chapters/39093499

~~*~~

The thing was, Stretch knew he was being the asshole about all this.

He’d been really damn sick, he knew that, and Edge had issues about that shit. Fuck, who didn’t? There was no one out there thinking it was a-okay that the people they loved were hurt or sick or what the fuck ever.

So, Edge dealt with that by layering on the protectiveness which was no kind of surprise because Blue did the same damn thing. This was High HP Takeover 101, and Stretch should be able to give Edge that. In theory.

In practice, he wasn’t very damn good at it. The forewarned texts came like clockwork every two hours, and angels wept, he hadn’t moved off the sofa since the last damn text. Exactly where did Edge think he was going to go? Hop a bus to Ireland for some damn Riverdance lessons? It was difficult to keep the snark at a minimum when you had to come up with a new variation on ‘I’m fine’ every two damn hours.

Except…snark came at a guilty price when Edge looked so tired as he came home from work. There were so many things he was trying to handle right now and here Stretch was, sprinkling his bullshit issues on top of Edge’s current shit sundae. Edge was on the verge of making himself sick working so hard and trying to take care of the house, of Stretch, of everything, and the worst part was, there wasn’t much Stretch could do about it except try to keep his prickish nature at a minimum.

That left him here, trying to think of a way to make up for being an asshole without actually saying ‘sorry about the whole asshole thing’. Not that he wouldn’t, fuck no, but apologies were easy. Dime a dozen. He wanted something a little more tangible.

He couldn’t cook worth a damn so making dinner was out; seemed more like a punishment than an apology to make Edge choke down a plateful of whatever he managed in a burnt offering. A little apology sex seemed like a good idea, but Stretch could admit he wasn’t really up to a marathon yet, and a quick round of missionary wasn’t probably wasn’t going cover it, especially if he fell asleep in the middle of it.

So far, he’d managed to allow a serious amount of cuddling after dinner, letting himself fall asleep in Edge’s arms because it was useful in settling his hubby down and besides, like Stretch was going to say no to a nap. But he was still on the lookout for something better.

Like so many good things in his life, the idea came to him from the television.

He was watching ‘Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives’, because that show was the shit and Stretch had no idea why people were always down on Guy Fieri on the internet because hell, that was a guy with style.

Anyway, the episode had wandered into mac and cheese territory, a wonderland that was near and dear to Stretch, and at one point, they referred to it as soul food.

Soul food.

It clicked a little lever in his head that sent an idea down through the tangled paths of experiments, pranks, and various television theme songs, straight to his guilt center and there it hit the buzzer.

Edge had looked so damn hurt when Stretch asked him to leave the room when the nurse pulled his soul and even when Stretch had shown it to him later, that hurt had only shifted states, liquid pain to icy fear when he’d seen the IV. Not exactly the stuff of romance. There was a pretty good chance he’d be interested in a private viewing when his soul was in its natural state.

It was intimate, sure, souls were intimate as hell, but he’d also spent the past week having everyone but the janitor give his soul a looksee. A big deal, yeah, but there were levels and honestly, now that he thought about it, Stretch was a little surprised Edge hadn’t brought it up before.  

He suspected it was an Underfell thing. Somehow, he doubted anyone in that little sliver of the multiverse was handing their soul over on Lover’s Day with flowers and chocolates for a little bonding time. To Edge, this was probably a much bigger deal than it was for him, but that was okay, it didn’t make it unimportant.

So, yeah, there was a plan. If Edge wanted to see his soul, hell, if he wanted to touch it, Stretch was fine with that. No one else had ever run away with screaming heebie jeebies from touching it, there were decent odds that Edge wouldn’t either. Plus, he could probably work it out so that Edge got a little more out of it than most Monsters would.

Stretch knew a little bit about souls; it had been years since any of those experiments, and yeah, cut that fucking thought off right there, but he did remember, and he knew how the focuses worked.

Souls could work on a low level of empathy; if he focused on how much he loved Edge while he was touching his soul, then Edge should be able to feel a little of it, without anything else that Stretch didn’t want him feeling bleeding through and if there was one thing he was sure he could handle, it was focusing on how much he loved Edge.

This was a great idea, Stretch was sure of it. If he worked out the odds, it was about 95% chance that it would turn out fine, less than a 5% chance of it ending horribly! Fuck it, let’s roll those dice.

Probably he should have waited until Saturday. Let Edge get in a good night’s sleep, wake him up with a few kisses, play up that shyness that Edge liked so much, and they’d be on their way. Except Stretch was shit for patience and now that he had the idea in his skull, it would rattle around like a maraca until he took care of it. So tonight it was.

About a half-hour before he was expecting Edge home, Stretch went up to their bedroom, peeling off his sweatshirt and tossing it carelessly on the floor. The hamper was literally a step and a half away, but Stretch had a thing for that little twitch Edge got in his socket when he saw clothes scattered around. It was a kink, so sue him.

The sweatshirt didn’t make a difference anyhow, it wasn’t like clothing impeded a soul, and Stretch might proudly be an idiot, but he wasn’t stupid. Edge liked how he looked, like the delicate lines of his bones, liked to run his hands over them, testing the smoothness. He was feeling better, he looked better, might as well let Edge have a treat to go along with the main event.

He hadn’t made the bed when he’d gotten up and he took a minute to smooth out the covers before scooting up to sit in the middle. Edge would be home soon, he needed to work fast, and Stretch took a deep breath and gingerly pulled out his soul. He hadn’t looked at it since they left the hospital and it would be better to take a quick peek. Edge probably wouldn’t handle any surprises very well.

It came easily, hovering over his outstretched hands. Silvery pale, a sign that he didn’t have any LV, and the mark where the IV had been was gone entirely. Good enough.

He heard the front door open and hastily dismissed it back, checking himself over. Jeans and a tank top, check, soul lookin’ good, check, ready for takeoff.

“come upstairs,” Stretch called, and he could hear the shuffling downstairs pause, clothing rustling, probably taking off his coat, and then feet on the stairs, coming up fast, well, someone was eager.

Edge filled the doorway when he stepped in, his eye lights a little bright and focusing in on him like a laser. “Hello.”

Oh, fuck. Stretch couldn’t help shivering, that husky growl, shit, maybe apology sex was a great idea…no, no, down boy, remember the plan, eyes on the prize and other various encouraging shit.

Instead, he gestured Edge in, patting the bed across from him. Edge was a little confused but willing enough, and he waited patiently for Stretch to spill the beans.

Stretch felt a flush rise in his cheeks, okay, yeah, so this was pretty intimate, far more than sex could ever be and of all the Monsters who’d ever seen his soul, ever laid impersonal, clinical hands on it, Edge was the very first Stretch actually wanted to touch it.

This was supposed to be for Edge, but Stretch was finding that he wanted this, too.

“i’m feeling a lot better,” Stretch said, little hesitantly, ““and i thought maybe you’d want to see my soul when it isn’t wired in like frankenstein.”

Want might not be a strong enough word. Edge’s eye lights flared wide; apparently, this was something he’d been yearning after for a while and never mentioned, yeah, this was gonna be a big deal to him, and that was okay.

Of course, Edge tried to give him an out, no surprise there, geez, it wasn’t like Stretch was the one who’d brought it up to begin with. And it wasn’t much of a surprise that Edge wanted to be the one to pull it, no, no, control issues, go on ahead.

Stretch didn’t mind. He trusted Edge with a hell of a lot more than his soul.

The sensation of someone else getting a grip on your soul was usually foreign and maybe a little unpleasant, at least in Stretch’s experience, and while it didn’t hurt, it was weirdly uncomfortable. Usually.

The delicate tendrils of magic that lassoed his essence and coaxed it forth were like nothing Stretch had experienced before and he closed his sockets, exhaling shakily as it slipped free and settled lightly into Edge’s hand.

Oh. That felt…oh…

Okay, he’d had other Monsters handle his soul before but none of them had ever resonated like this. Maybe…maybe it was because of who they were, he and Edge, the flipside of the same coin, he needed to talk to sans and red but not now, now he had to focus on edge, he loved him, loved him so, so much, edge was his brilliant sunshine through darkness, his safety from himself as much as from the world, and he wanted to show him that love, wanted him to feel it…

A little hazily, Stretch opened his sockets and could only stare in shock.

Edge was crying.

He hadn’t even known Edge could cry, he’d never done it, not once since Stretch had known him. Stretch was a little bit of a damn crybaby himself, not that he cared, own it, bitches, but Edge—

Tears were trailing from his closed sockets, not crimson, not a match to his magic the way Stretch’s were, but silvery and pale, a mirror of his soul.

That…Stretch had never seen anything like that before.

Um, yeah, maybe it was time to stop.

Edge didn’t protest but he was still obviously pretty damn reluctant to hand Stretch’s soul back so quickly. His tears stopped the moment Stretch’s soul faded back into his sternum, leaving streaks of wetness on his cheekbones.

Carefully, Stretch reached up and ineffectively wiped away one thin, silvery trail. “that was supposed to make you happy.”

Edge’s voice with thick, warm, as he murmured, “It did.”

The tears weren’t exactly convincing him, but Stretch decided to take him at his word. He gave up trying to wipe them away, bone wasn’t exactly great as a sponge and, unthinkingly, he let his hand drift down, resting his fingertips over Edge’s sternum and wishing fleetingly that he could touch, just for a second…

He could feel Edge stiffen, rejecting it wordlessly.  Ah, shit, Stretch hadn’t meant to put that idea into his head, he knew better than that.

“Do you…do you want…” Edge forced out, because of course he would. Of course he would offer, even though he wasn’t ready for that by any means. Even though it would upset him, maybe even traumatize him to force his soul out for no better reason than he felt like he owed it.  Of course he fucking would.

Stretch couldn’t think of anything he wanted less than to hold an unwilling soul, even one that loved him.

Turning him down didn’t take things down a notch as hoped and almost sent Edge into a fucking panic attack, and shit, shit, this was not how this was supposed to go. This was supposed to help, not make things fucking worse, and what kind of asshole did Edge think he was, that he’d demand a soul fondle in return when Edge was so unready for it?

Exhaustion worked for him for once, and Stretch was able to soothe him down, gently, set Edge at ease, and fuck, they should probably talk about this later. Probably.

Probably weren’t gonna though, because he already knew what Edge was afraid of, what he was so terrified Stretch would see.

And Stretch wasn’t about tell him that he already knew exactly what Edge’s soul looked like. Didn’t want to tell him he’d seen it the first time they’d met, swollen blood-red with LV, patchy veins of darkness scattered over it. He’d been in a bad damn way when they’d first arrive, but so fucking what? Stretch had been too; from the first step out of the portal, his own soul had been so faded it was a wonder he hadn’t already fallen down.

Red had seen all that from the beginning and so had Sans. They’d all known the stakes, for what little it was worth. It was over and done with, though, no point in talking about it now. And Stretch didn’t look anymore at anyone, not often, didn’t judge, none of them did that Stretch knew of. Souls showed something of a person, yeah, but they didn’t show everything and it was pointless to form a judgment on one aspect of a person when there was so much more left unseen.

But it didn’t mean that he didn’t know Edge’s soul was so much lighter since then. LV never left, but it could fade, it could lighten, those dark patches vanishing. His soul would always be red. It didn’t mean it couldn’t be beautiful.

Edge was so far from ready to hear any of that.  

Holding his soul must’ve been pretty damn draining because Edge was all but asleep in minutes. Resisting it, sure, because his love wasn’t very good at giving in, but eh, a little petting, a little singing, and he was out like a light.

Even in his sleep, Edge’s grip on him was tight, both arms around his pelvis and Edge’s skull was resting in his lap, his sockets closed and that weariness seeping away. It left him looking a little softer, a little warmer.

Beautiful, Edge had called him, so beautiful, and Stretch had to believe him. He’d been holding his soul, there wasn’t much denial Stretch could offer.

Very lightly, Stretch traced the crack that ran through Edge’s socket, the unevenness of it rough against his fingertip. Edge was beautiful, too, in so many ways, and maybe Edge wasn’t ready to hear that yet, not yet, but it didn’t mean Stretch couldn’t see it.

-finis-

[dark-nosed-miqote]

Chasing the Void [RP Story] Part 1

Haukke Manor Excursion

Previous Story < > Next Story

((A little backstory – at a bar open night Velkan visited, asking for work. Mina hired him, and conducted his bartender training. Morgana had spoken to her in private, letting her know of Velkan’s past a little and that he had given a fake name. Nonetheless, Mina allowed him to work and her, Silvy and Vel worked together at the Moonfire event. Now, over a week after that event played the events of the Haukke Manor excursion.))

Arriving back at the bar with bags laden with supplies for this weekend’s open night, Mina was drawn to Silvy, who was sat in the entrance hall looking rather glum. She sat down on the sofa next to her, dropping off the bags by the desk.

“Oh, hey Mina.” Silvy smiled weakly as Mina sat down next to her.

“Hey! Is everything okay?”

“W-well... I would like to say yes, but…” Silvy looked away thoughtfully. “I'm kinda worried about Vel. We haven't heard about him for a while...”

“Hmm... honestly I haven't seen him in days.” Mina agreed. “Did he not come to the bar on Sunday?” Silvy shook her head.

“No, he did not.” Mina frowned at the information.

“I would have expected him to leave a notice or send a letter concerning it, but...” Silvy looked back at Mina, concern in her eyes.

“It's not like him.” Mina pondered for a moment. “Especially since he wants the work.”

“Yeah... I hope what happened before isn't affecting it.”

“What do you mean, what happened before?” Mina looked to Silvy, concerned.

“N-Nevermind, I'm speaking out of line.” Silvy was clearly flushed, her cheeks blushing slightly. “A-anyways! He usually slept by upstairs, right? Maybe he left us a letter there or something!”

“Yeah, he picked the bed near the bookcases if I remember right.” Mina nodded. “Should we really be snooping his belongings though?”

“There might be something that could explain why he's gone missing.”

Both Mina and Silvy looked to the ground, thinking hard about the decision.

“Well, he could be in danger!” Mina eventually spoke. “Why else would he not contact us?”

“You're right...” Silvy bowed her head, before standing up. “We'll just have a quick looksee.”

Mina nodded, and stood up also. Together the two Miqo’te went upstairs to inspect the bed room, and poked around the left-most bed nearest the bookcase. Velkan’s bag lay under the bed, half open with a few clothes items poking out, and a small book. Mina picked it up, inspecting the cover.

“Hey.....what's this?” Mina held the book up for Silvy to see.

“Hmm? A book?”

“It looks like some sort of journal maybe.”

“H-Hey now...” Silvy raised her arms slightly in shock. “You should place that aside.”

Mina opened the book a little.

“I mean, it just has private things of himself, probably nothing...” Silvy began to panic as Mina started flicking through pages of the book. “W-we shouldn't be!” Silvy tried stepping forward to Mina but stumbled and fell on the bed, leaving Mina to continue reading.

“There's what looks like hunts!” Mina was getting excited at her findings. Mina flicks to another page in the book, and almost drops it.

“W-what?” Silvy looked worried, trying to peer over the book.

“These things look scary! It's like, demonic.” Mina holds out the book for Silvy to see. Inside were detailed drawings and descriptions of dark monsters, the kind only known as Voidsent. The descriptions also had notes on possible locations, as well as power and physical looks.

Silvy tilted her head and moved over to look at the book. “Demonic?”

“What do they call them again? Void things?” Mina had never seen such creatures in anything other than horror stories.

“I actually know of them…” Silvy bit her lip, thinking deeply. “Well, something like of the sort.”

“You do?” Mina’s eyes opened wide.

“While doing my research over magic, I've come across these type of creatures. They seem to be drawn over to magical energy, the more powerful, the more and stronger of them you draw to yourself.”

Mina turned more pages in the book, looking for more information. “Seems there's a map with markings on too...”

“Does it seem like any place you've been to before?”

“The far west of Central Shroud, it looks like he's been hunting the things!” Mina studied the location, remembering her past experience. “Well, once back when I would travel the shroud I ventured near that area.”

“Anything special or strange about the place?”

“There's a lot of creepy monsters, and a manor, which looks like the sort of place that would have demonic things.” Mina lowered the book to face Silvy. “And it looks like that's where Vel could be hunting them!”

“A manor?” Silvy gazed upon Mina in deep reflection.

“It's all abandoned now, but I never dared go inside....” Mina looked concerned. “Do you think we should go scout it out and see if he's there?”

“I think so...”

Mina suddenly bristled with excitement. “Ooh, an adventure!”

“But before we go... let me do something for us. Close your eyes for a moment.” Silvy slowly started chanting quietly, before the huge head of a dreadwyrm would appear by her. It seemed to go unnoticed by Mina, who had her eyes closed. “Bahamut's protection...”

“I don't really know what that was but.... okay!” Mina pondered.

“Just a protective spell.” Silvy smiled, and gave a little wink

“Hang on, let me get changed too! I can't be going out there in shorts!” Mina dashed behind the wardrobe to change clothes into something more suitable. She returned wearing a bandana over her head, a light cotton shirt, comfortable trousers and long boots, her rapier strapped to her waist. She showed her outfit to Silvy. “Think I'm good to go?” She asked.

Silvy nodded, smiling. She looked to her own outfit, a rather fancy looking jacket with skirt and simple boots. “I'm good like this. But I will need my... pet.” She began writing in her journal, magics glowing by her as her whittret friend would turn to a ball of light. An Emerald Carbuncle would appear in its place.

“You sure the carbie can handle this?” Mina smiled at the glowing creature.

“He was made for this” Silvy nodded. “Even if he is an old drunk, right Carbie?”

The carbuncle would seem more then displeased by the idea, but wished to be there for its master.

Mina psyched herself up. “Alright! I know the way, follow me!” Silvy smiled, and followed Mina out of the house.

Mina, atop her horse and Silvy, riding upon her Carbuncle, rode together through the Shroud with Mina in front leading the way. She had of course ventured out this way many a time when she was a little younger, but had never dared to get as close to the manor as they were planning today. As they neared the western side of the Central Shroud, the monsters around them grew in both size and strength, but none seemed to be bothering the girls on a mission. Eventually they pulled up to the large iron gates that surrounded the abandoned mansion.

“This is it...” Mina climbed down from her horse. Silvy was looking gloomy.

“I can sense a lot of dark energy coming from this place...” Silvy shuddered slightly, and the Carbuncle also looked visibly unhappy.

“We'll be okay!” Mina, ever cheerful, even drew her blade just in case. The Carbuncle let out a small growl. “Does it sense something?”

“Probably...” Silvy looked ahead, and was taken aback by two dead bodies of monsters on the path. It looked like voidsent. “A fiend...” She wondered. “Shall I take care of them?”

“They look dead…” Mina walked up to the dead bodies, looking for any trace of what killed them. Their bodies were covered in huge slash marks.

“Hmm… could it another monster?” Silvy turned to Mina.

“No, no... Hang on a second, they're covered in slashes, but it's too clean cut to be a monster. It's more like a blade's doing.”

“Then, Vel most likely? Since who else would dare set foot here?”

“If it were from a blade, they're still recent too. So whoever it was, they're probably still here...”

Silvy nodded. Mina drew her blade again, and tentatively took a step forward. As she did so, a figure emerged from the manor, running towards them. It looked like a soldier. Silvy took out her book, but looked surprised at the soldier. She stopped him in his tracks.

“Excuse me!” She held out an arm to stop the soldier from escaping.

"L-Let me go! I have to get away from here!" The soldier was visibly panicking, and possibly injured.

“What's in there?!” Mina kept her blade readied, doing her best to intimidate. “Have you seen a man with dark hair?”

Silvy tried to keep a stern hold of the soldier, so he wouldn't slip by them.

"Let me go! The voidsents will kill all of us! And that... t-thing that ran in after us...!"

“Thing?” Mina wondered if he was talking about Velkan. She lowered her blade, intrigued.

“You need to calm down... we're here to help.” Silvy attempted to call the soldier’s bluff. “We were sent here to investigate on what's going on, you see.”

"This thing... it looked like man but fought like a beast! I'm not sticking around to find out what it wants!” The soldier didn’t wait to explain more. He ran past as Silvy stepped aside.

“Well, we didn't get much out of him, but I believe we'll need to venture inside.” Silvy scratched her head a little.

“What do you think? Could Vel fight 'like a beast'?”

“I do not know for certain... But we need to go and see for ourselves.” Silvy smiled at Mina. “Also if there are more soldiers like him just follow what I said... that we were sent here. Otherwise they might not let us through.”

Mina nodded. “We take it slow.” Silvy sent the Carbuncle to clear the way for them, taking down monsters as they slowly walked towards the manor door. Mina does her best to control her breathing as they edge closer to it.

“Man, it's been far too long since I did anything like this...”

Silvy began to be covering her mouth and nose with a scarf. “The air coming from inside is full of taint…”

“...Should I be breathing that stuff in??” Mina was alarmed, now wishing she too had brought a scarf.

“Don't worry, it's just a bad smell! Be happy that you can't smell it.” Silvy chuckled. “It shouldn't affect our bodies though.”

“Well.... shall we?” Mina pushed against the entrance, slowly. The door creaked open, and the smell grew stronger as the two entered the mansion. As they stepped inside, the door behind them swung to a close, the noise crashing throughout the place.

“Urgh...” Silvy staggered at the atmosphere of the manor. “See anything?”

“There's people up ahead!” Mina ran up towards another soldier, who was visibly shaken. “Excuse me-“ She was cut off by the soldier screaming and pushing her out of the way to escape. Mina shouted out, but he was already gone.

“Jumpy aren't they?” Silvy exclaimed.

“Something has frightened them...”

“Maybe we should let them be.” Silvy turned towards the grand staircase.

“Let’s go further in.” Mina and Silvy began climbing the stairs, weapons at the ready. One of the pathways up the stairs was blocked by a large amount of furniture, forcing the two to venture to the right. There was also a large amount of corpses from dead voidsent, some in piles along the halls, all with the same large slash marks. There was blood streaked along the floor, some old, but most of it fresh. Mina and Silvy kept their weapons out, but had no need to use them yet.

“I was expecting more monsters though...” Mina looked around, the hallways were empty save for the dead bodies.

“Yeah, only corpses and what remain of them.” Silvy’s carbuncle was in front, scouting the area.

“Someone is definitely here.” Mina felt uneasy.

“I have a bad feeling about this.” Silvy and Mina looked to each other with worried faces, before continuing on. They encountered more empty rooms with voidsent remains, and a few doors that were heavily chained, causing them to find another route. In another room, they encountered an old looking chest.

“Is that... treasure?” Mina bolted for the chest, but realised it could be a trap. “On second thought... It's tempting, but maybe someone could trap us.”

Silvy moved closer to inspect the chest. “I can't really tell, it has a strong aura about it, but this whole mansion is covered in darkness.” The Carbuncle moved over and opened it up for the two, not being afraid of what’s to come. Mina and Silvy stepped back in shock as a horrifying creature leapt from the chest. Silvy’s eyes widened.

“Run!” She shouted, grabbing Mina by the hand and racing for the door, looking frantically for an escape route. There in the room stood a strange crystal ball covered in a dark aura. “Touch it!” Silvy shouted, reaching forward to touch the crystal. Mina followed suit, and the two were teleported to another location in the manor, away from the voidsent safely.

As they emerged from the teleportation, Silvy was knocked back by the force of it. Mina rushed over to check she was okay.

“I’ll be... fine… just feel even more unwell…” Silvy reached out for Mina’s hand, and was helped back onto her feet.

“I brought a potion with me, if you want to drink it?” Mina motioned to a small pouch hanging from her belt.

“N-Not yet… If i'm wrong sadly... I’ll need it later on, since the deeper we seem to be going, the stronger this evil darkness is growing…” Silvy shivered.

The two continued on, approaching a magical barrier blocking their entrance into a room. Moving on, they saw more dead bodies down the hall, signifying they were on the right track. They eventually reached a large room, likely a ballroom with cupboards full of crockery and a large open space. At the end of the room were two chests, and Mina and Silvy decided to leave them be after the last one proved dangerous. They reached another teleportation crystal ball, and touched it to move further into the manor. Upon arrival Silvy staggered, rushing to a corner of the room to throw up.

“There is a strong presence here.” She said eventually. “It's the thing that's causing the whole mansion to feel like this.”

“Are you alright?” Mina was concerned for Silvy.

“I can't say yes anymore…” Silvy smiled weakly. “But, we need to find Vel.”

“Let's hurry and get this over with!”

They ventured further on, this time the teleporter had taken them to the dungeon part of the manor. One of the cells had a large variety of torture equipment, and Mina was horrified. Silvy however, was intrigued, and found herself walking up to the machines. Despite Mina warning her, she climbed onto the machine to inspect it. The machine is old and rusted, but suddenly it began to rumble, the blades coming to life and starting to spin!

“Silvy!” Mina rushed forward to pull Silvy away from the machine. Silvy managed to jump out of the way quickly, and stumbles to the ground.

“I told you to be careful!” Mina helped Silvy to her feet.

“I didn't expect for it to work…”

“You're not hurt are you?”

“No.. luckily only my pride was hurt.” The Carbuncle hid its face in its tail.

The girls were reaching the end of the manor, at the end of the dungeon halls they saw a figure lying on the ground. Face down and surrounded by blood. The Carbuncle growled.

“Is that Vel?” Mina walked cautiously towards the figure.

“Is that his blood?”

“Is he.....dead??” Mina began to panic. Silvy knelt down to check his vitals. His body was covered in slash marks and cuts. He was still alive, but only just. His hair was also changed, what was once all black now has white on the tips.

“He's still alive, but barely.”

“Oh thank gods…” Mina breathed a sigh of relief. “What do we do?”

“We should try healing his wounds.” Silvy opens her book, and channels her magic to cast a healing spell on Velkan.

"W...wha...where...?" Velkan opened his eyes, groaning in pain as he tried to move.

“He's awake!” Mina bent down to help him get up. “Careful now, don't strain yourself!” He slowly manages to sit up. Now the two could see the extent of the damage on him, there were bruises and cuts all over his face as well as his body. Mina was shocked. Silvy remained standing a little further away.

"S-Silvy? Mina?" Velkan looked around. "I... what are you two doing here?"

“That's what we should be asking you.” Silvy replied.

“We haven't heard from you in days! We were worried…” Mina looked concerned.

"D-days? but I only..." Velkan seemed confused, trying to remember what was happening. The Carbuncle sniffed at him, growling again and running back to Silvy’s side. "H-how did you two find me?"

“We found your journal.” Silvy answered. Mina looked away awkwardly. “It gave us a small clue that we ended up taking…”

"O-oh... you read it..."

“Not all of it! Just the part about you hunting here.” Mina flapped her arms in panic.

“Mind explaining yourself to us?” Silvy sounded annoyed. “If you even are who you claim to be…”

“Silvy…” Mina looked at her in surprise.

“Mina, get a bit back.” Silvy warned as Velkan slowly stood up.

“But he's our friend?” Mina was confused.

“Voidsent can mimic the appearances of those around us. He could be one of them in disguise…”

"Now isn't the time for this..." Velkan sighed. He looked to Silvy. "Does your Carbuncle smell the void?"

“It does and I can see it. It's oozing out of you.”

Velkan  sighed again and looked away. "Then why didn't you say anything before?"

“Because, I wasn't sure of what I was seeing back then and it wasn't this strong as now. I hoped I was wrong.”

“Wait... you know what's going on?” Mina looked to Silvy.

“I had a guess… Either he's voidborn, or… he's tainted.”

“Velkan.... is this true?” He looked down in shame.

"It is... I'm tainted... and my name isn't Velkan..."

“Well... I knew about the name.” Mina muttered.

“Care to explain yourself?” Silvy asked again.

"We don't have time for this..." Velkan repeated "There's a huge voidsent here and I mean to kill it."

“Oh, I think we do! Because if you-” Silvy paused. “So... you're not the source of this evil after all?”

"Didn't you see the bodies?" Velkan motioned to the dead voidsent littering the mansion.

“All over. Was that you?” Mina asked. Velkan nodded. “So how did you get so injured?”

"The voidsent I was hunting managed to overwhelm me... and most of my... energy... was gone by then. But now after being healed... I can kill it..."

“You're not going to face it alone though.” Silvy stepped towards the doorway to the final cell, where this voidsent presumably was.

"You two better get out of here…”

“We're not leaving without you.” Mina disagreed with him.

“If killing this creature will clear out this disgusting taint…” Silvy furrowed her brow.

"It will... for now anyway... this place always becomes tainted..."

“Then, let's get this dealt with.”

Velkan sighed again, knowing that the girls’ minds would not be changed. He felt guilty, and shameful. "Just stay behind me."

The three drew their weapons, and entered the room. A terrifying voidsent descended upon them, shrieking with glee. Velkan ran forward, his greatsword glinting in the light as he swung it towards the monster. The Carbuncle dashed in, attacking the beast as Silvy cast her magic. Mina rushed forward to slice the creature with her rapier. She was struck with an attack which threw her back, but the voidsent was equally struck by Velkan’s blade, and it fell to the ground. Silvy ran up to Mina, checking she was alright.

“Mina? You ok?”

“I'm....okay I think. That hurt me pretty badly…” Velkan looked away from the two.

Silvy, who seemed to be doing a far lot better now, that the source of the void energy was vanquished, began casting a warm light onto Mina to heal her wounds. Mina smiled as she recovered. Silvy turned towards Velkan.

“Now then… you ready to talk?”

“Let's get him back to the bar.” Mina suggested.

"We'll go to the bar... and I'll tell you everything..."

“Let's get inside and I'll get us all some tea.” Mina welcomed the two into the house, after their journey back. “Let me go get changed as well, you guys can sit in the comfy seats.” Mina made a pot of warming tea on the stove, and carried it on a tray with three teacups. Silvy and Velkan made their way to the bar downstairs, finding a table in the corner to sit at. Mina followed them, placing the tray on the table and pouring out the tea. The Carbuncle, while no one was looking, had found itself a bottle behind the bar to which it began licking the alcohol from. Velkan reluctantly took a cup of tea and sipped from it. Silvy stared at it a while, before picking it up. Mina sat down, taking a deep drink and relaxing herself.

“So, care to explain yourself now?” Silvy asked, watching Velkan carefully. He sighed, before taking another sip of his tea.

"I... well... a while ago... I was possessed... by a voidsent..." Silvy and Mina remained silent. "It... it took everything from me... and even after it was slain.. its taint still lingers..."

“You sure it was slain?” Silvy concentrated on Velkan. “As I wouldn't call this... a lingering presence anymore.”

"The Warriors of Light themselves killed it... and well... believe me or not, I died in the process..."

“So you were resurrected?”

"Indeed-"

Silvy stood up suddenly and took her book out from her waist.

“Silvy!” Mina called out to her, surprised. Velkan’s eyes narrowed.

“You do know that necromancery is forbidden.” Silvy spoke, danger in her voice. “No matter the case.”

“ I'm sure he wasn't the one to do it!” Mina was beginning to feel uneasy again.

"Even if the mother crystal had a hand in it?" Velkan replied. Silvy grumbled. "That's right. Hydaelyn herself brought me back... but at a price."

“Which was?”

"You know of what happens when we all eventually perish?"

“Our souls get taken to the after life…” Silvy voiced.

"Well, because of my taint... I can never go back to the aether or whatever after life may await us..." Velkan answered. "I'm forced to live with that. Knowing I can never find peace… Knowing I can never see my wife and child again.”

Mina looked down, feeling glum. “So that was... the accident?” She asked.

"You've spoken to Morgana haven't you?"

“I- um...” Mina looked up, her cheeks flushed as she’d been found out.  “She spoke to me…”

"Morgana and the other Warriors of Light... they're the reason I'm like this... if it wasn't for them, I could be back in Ishgard... living a normal life..." Velkan scowled.

“She… still regrets what happened.” Mina looked down at her hands, fidgeting slightly.

“They should have finished the job if you ask me... Even if the mother crystal brought you back.” SIlvy hissed. “Even if there was a 'purpose' for you yet. You should have chosen to stay dead.”

“Silvy!” Mina spluttered.

“Yet you made the choice to live.” Silvy continued, as Velkan clenched his fist. “You! Made the choice to abandon them!”

“Silvy…” Mina was being ignored in the confrontation.

"Do you know the real reason I chose to live? The real reason I chose the live of an abomination rather than being at peace?!" Velkan stood up, towering over Silvy.

“No. Cause no reason should be enough for it.”

Mina was feeling uncomfortable in the tension. “Guys...please calm yourselves...”

"I made this choice so I could hunt down every last Voidsent in this realm and stop what happened to me, happening to anyone else. I won't allow another monster like me to exist."

“Then you should have left that to us who still live. You just joined them, becoming that which killed your family.” Silvy challenged. “No matter how many of them you slay. No matter how many of them you send back. You will not be able to save anyone.”

Velkan slapped her, without a moment’s hesitation.

“Guys, PLEASE!” Mina shouted, panic rising higher in her voice, looking from one to the other.

“My point exactly.” Silvy said simply, her brows furrowed.

"I don't see any of you fighting the void... Not that any of you could handle it... your bodies and minds are weak to the void..."

“Weak?” Silvy scoffed at him. “You don't know anything…” She snapped her fingers, calling over the Carbuncle. “You're more one with the void then you believe 'Vel'. You say you're in control, but that remains to be seen.” She placed her hand over her reddened cheek. “If you dare harm Mina or anyone else while i'm gone… you'll wish that the void was the only thing you were facing.”

Velkan was lost for words as Silvy turned on the spot, and left the bar. Mina called after her, but she was already gone. Her eyes brimming with tears, she darted off to her office and locked herself in. Velkan was left standing alone in the bar, holding back tears of his own.

[murderselfies]

“You’re probably wondering why I called a family meeting?” Malachai asked as he stood before his brothers and sister, with their father’s journal in hand. “Well, it’s quite simple, really. Page 43, ‘we must destroy the Chance Harbor Circle in order to be reunited with our estranged. Our true power will be granted only after our Circle is complete. A Circle of six.’ We need Cassie and Diana. Without them, our magic will cease to mature. With them, we will become the most powerful coven, ever. So I did the honors of drawing up an objective for the each of us to carry out and fulfill. Sister, Davina, I want you to locate Jake Armstrong. Find him, bewitch him, and then destroy him. Same will be said for the rest of you. Kol, you’ll have the displeasure of Faye Chamberlain. Nick, you’ll learn what a true bromance looks like with Adam Contant. And, I, will take care of Melissa Glaser. Just remember. Witches are aces at passion and lust but when it comes to love, do not. If you can’t carry out the task, then you’ll be the reason this coven falls apart, and I won’t allow that to happen. So earn your spot here or find a permanent resting place beside our fallen father.”

Anyone who had the displeasure of knowing Malachai Parker knows he doesn’t make empty threats. He was the infamous siphoner who killed his own twin sister in order to take her magic and become a full-fledged witch. There’s nothing he won’t do to get what he wants. So killing anyone who stands against him won’t be much of an issue. He was somewhat of a sociopath. A witch without remorse, without empathy, or love.  

With the meeting adjourned, and a few argumentative witches clamoring for a repeal, Kol slammed his bedroom door shut with Davina beside him. He didn’t want to leave her. If he was put in charge, he would have done things differently, as a family. Malachai shouldn’t be in charge of anything or anyone, when he so clearly has no perception of family. He was a weasel, with the appearance of a promising companion, but the notorious Machiavellian streak of a psychotic killer. 

“Whatever happened to good, old-fashioned democracy huh? None of us would have elected that psychopath to be in charge! Who knows how long this’ll take. Or how far the Chance Harbor witches are spread out from one another.” What if Jake and Faye weren’t in the same city? State? Country? This could be the last night Kol and Davina see each other for quite a while. “Between you and I, he killed his twin sister because he knew she would have been here with us today, not him. He doesn’t even belong here. He’s a goddamn abomination.” Kol didn’t actually hate his brother, but anyone who attempts to pull him away from his sister. His partner in crime, best friend, and lover. “Before I go back in there and take an axe to his head, why don’t we have a looksee? See if this Faye and Jake are together.” Kol spread a map out over his desk and then retrieved a few vials of blood John Blackwell acquired from the witch hunters. 

“Let’s start with your boy toy first, shall we?” Kol knew a spell for astral travel. Way more fun than simply watching the blood pool around their target’s whereabouts. They could appear as apparitions, watch and study what they do before having to hunt them down and lop their heads off. “...Hand, sister.” Kol turned his palm upward to accept Davina’s hand before he slid an enchanted dagger across her skin. He smiled when she flinched and then dragged his tongue over her cut with a wicked smirk, “Mmm.” No part of Davina Claire should ever go untasted. After squeezing a few droplets of her blood onto the map, Kol slit his own hand open and pumped his fist above the same location. “Phasmatos Tribum…” He turned his head with eyes on Davina, “Nas Ex Veras.” A second later, the room they were standing in fell into darkness. Pitch black. Then suddenly, two orbs of glowing light started heading their way. 

The road was as long as the night was black. Jake felt a little uneasy bringing his grandfather back into the war between witches, but Royce was the one who warned Jake about the Dark Circle and the Balcoin children. Royce spent the last sixteen years of his life carefully studying John Blackwell’s plan. In fact he became so obsessed with these conspiracies that he lost all credibility as a witch and became somewhat of a crazy old man, known for rambling on about the end of time. “You know you didn’t have to come with me?” Jake reminded Royce who’s been a little under the weather. “You say that, son, but you were also manipulated and taken advantage of once before. You need structure. To be frank.” Royce gave a smile. If it were anyone else sitting beside Jake in his old Toyota, he would have kicked them to the curb for saying such things. But Jake needed his granddad. He was the only family he had left.  

“While we’re here… let’s have at it?” Kol delighted as he raised a hand in front of the truck as it barreled closer. “There’s people on the road…be careful.” Royce pointed at the windshield and Jake shifted his foot to the brake pedal, but instead of the truck slowing down, it moved faster. “Motus.” Kol chanted and the truck followed the wave of his hand, off the road and over a guardrail. The sound of metal colliding with tree thundered, and the asphalt beneath Kol and Davina’s feet vibrated. “Somethings are better left quick. Others could use a little more passion.” A lascivious smirk crossed Kol’s lips as they were transported back into his room. Meanwhile, cities away, Jake let out a long, whining groan as he hung upside down by his seat belt. Beside him, Royce was hanging a little more haphazardly, with a broken neck. “Ugh Granddad…” Jake unbuckled himself and fell against the crooked steering wheel. There was gas leaking and a fire starting. It took Jake a minute to notice his grandfather was gone. Dead. Still. He managed to pull his body from the truck before it exploded. And as the flames rose and the smoke spiraled, Kol waved his hand over the burnt wood in his fireplace, igniting a fire of his own. “Now we can stay together. And you say I’m not romantic...” 

[benjaminsblog]

5.6.17

I had work today - not that that is particularly interesting, but a couple of things are worth noting; I think my recently-set target of improving my pick rate may prove harder than first thought - having looked at my first three June shifts, I am now wondering if the pick rate is in fact how long it takes between picking item A and item Z, regardless of whether we are logged in or not. I think this, because having made a conscious effort to minimise my ‘idle time’, it seemed to make naff-all difference! My idle time was still about 50%, which definitely does not fit my previous assumption, so I am left to draw this conclusion. In my opinion, this makes the existence of a pick rate even more laughable, as it means that all the time you ‘waste’ in between - delivering orders and parcels, helping customers, or doing anything else - cost you dearly. Today I managed to pick my items in a fairly condensed block of time, so I will have a looksee to confirm my new theory at a later date. On the plus side, my pick speed is currently at 174 for June!

I also decided to clean the desk in our C&C pod, and entered into that zen-like state that only a good cleaning session seems to generate; I disentangled the numerous wires behind the computer, plugged things into sockets in a logical left-to-right way, labelled wires, and cleared all clutter. I left a small bunch of things for tomorrow’s colleague to sort - things that either messed up my lovely new worktop, or I had no idea what they were, and therefore where they should go.

The day started out so lovely, but by the time my shift ended, a monsoon had arrived in Portsmouth; I had not planned for this change in script, and did not much fancy walking home in my t-shirt. However, I used my initiative to source a slightly-scarred umbrella from the customer service desk; they are sometimes lying around, I imagine most of the time because they are lost or something, but I will be sure to take it back to Asda on my next trip - it’s not mine, and I have an umbrella anyway (and it don’t got no holes in it, neither). After a quick patch-up job on the hole in it, I braved the elements. It kept my head dry, but not much else, as I hadn’t realised the rain was falling more horizontally than vertically! By the time I was home, my legs were wet enough to make up for my head, but I jumped straight in the shower, so Ben 1, Weather 0. Good thing I still don’t have my old car, or it might be a reverse result...