#I was in goggles and mask and long sleeves and gloves

[threeunrelateddescriptors]

Applying lots of body lotion to the area also helps slide tiny embedded fibers out and helps keep them from re-embedding before your next shower.

We need to stop engineering blatantly stupid materials

[imalayla]

House meat progress

[phagodyke]

so sweaty at work its actually revolting

[ellieloves2draw]

at long last i have finished it!! this was so much fun :] ive wanted to do a character lineup for a while but havent really had the time/spoons, so it was really nice to have a convenient template on hand

template by @xmaruu11

closeups and ID under the cut

(ID: bust shots of each of the members of the life series, done in marker. left to right, top to bottom, they are: grian, scar, mumbo, jimmy, joel, scott, impulse, skizz, tango, etho, bdubs, cleo, martyn, ren, lizzie, bigb, gem, and pearl. each member is talking to and/or interacting with another member.

character designs:

grian has dirty blonde hair, a button nose, and pure black eyes. his hands are scaled and birdlike, and he has large deerlike ears. he is wearing small round glasses and a red sweater.

scar has brown hair in a ponytail, pointed, ears, a wide nose, and green eyes. there are a number of scars on his face, arms, and neck. there are also some grey streaks in the left side of his hair.

mumbo has black hair, black dot eyes, a button nose, and pointed ears. his mouth is obscured by a mustache. there are two strands of hair sticking up above his forehead. he is wearing a white collared shirt, suspenders, a floppy red tie, and black gloves.

jimmy has short dirty blonde hair, brown eyes, a straight nose, and a beard. I he’s wearing a white shirt, and unbuttoned blue shirt, and a bandana around the neck that is red-and-white striped.

joel has dark brown hair with a green streak in the front, pointed ears, dark brown eyes, a slightly hooked nose, stubble, and a small braid in the back. he’s wearing a loose, long-sleeved white shirt, and a dark brown vest that is loosely tied together.

scott has long blue hair with a braid next to his left ear, deerlike ears, a wide nose, and dark blue eyes. there are small yellow lights floating around his head like a halo. he is wearing a white shirt with a rainbow pattern across the middle, and an unbuttoned blue shirt on top. there are red flowers in his hair.

impulse has short brown hair with grey streaks, slitted brown eyes, a wide nose, pointed ears, and a beard. he is wearing a black, short sleeve shirt, a dark, gray vest, and a yellow bandanna tied around the neck.

skizz has salt and pepper hair styled similarly to wolverine from x-men. he has a chin beard, a large nose, and light blue eyes with white pupils. there are scars on his arms. there is a faint halo around his head. he is wearing a formal vest, red tie, and white collared shirt with the sleeves ripped off.

tango has long pointed ears, red eyes, a pointed nose, yellow blonde hair, and stubble. there are a pair of red lensed goggles on his forehead. he is wearing oversized red gloves, a red button up shirt, and black overalls.

etho has long white hair that is half tied up, a dark blue eye and a red eye, and a scar over the red eye. he also has stubble, which is barely visible underneath his mask. he’s wearing a dark green shirt, a dark blue vest with a fur collar, and black fingerless gloves.

bdubs has short white hair, very dark brown eyes, stubble, a large nose, and a missing tooth. he also has a black eye. he’s wearing a white collared shirt, a cloak made of moss, and a red bandana on his head.

cleo has pale green skin covered in stitches, long red hair, an upturned nose, and pure black eyes with light green irises. they are wearing a dark magenta leotard with purple off-the-shoulder sleeves. she has dark pink flowers in her hair.

martyn has long light blonde hair, parted in the middle and held back with a headband. he has blue eyes, a large nose, and a beard. he’s wearing a green shirt, a dark green jacket with a large collar, and black fingerless gloves.

ren is a dogman. he has long dark brown fur with slightly lighter fur on the face and hands. he has blue eyes. he’s wearing sunglasses and a red plaid short-sleeved flannel.

lizzie has blue eyes, long pink hair, and raccoon-like ears and nose. she has sharp teeth and claws. there is a dark raccoon-like marking over her eyes. she is wearing a blue vest and floppy tie and a white collared shirt.

bigb has dark brown eyes, a wide nose, a beard, and two ear cuffs. his hair is styled in a pompadour. he is wearing a blue poncho with a cookie patch sewn, and a lighter blue shirt underneath.

gem has antlers and deerlike ears, red hair tied in a braid, green eyes, a small nose, and freckles. she’s wearing a light green sweater and blue denim overalls.

pearl has long light brown hair, deerlike ears, and blue eyes with white pupils. she also has white freckles. she’s wearing a dark blue beanie and cloak, and a white shirt. the cloak has red patches sewn on.

end ID.)

[flowerishness]

Sonchus arvensis (perennial sow-thistle)

Round-up

A perennial sow-thistle enjoys a sunny day at the beach. This plant is native to Eurasia but is often described (by farmers) as a noxious, invasive weed, and is now 'naturalized' throughout North America, South America, Russia, New Zealand and Australia. Like it's relative the dandelion, it arrived from Europe during the Age of Exploration and it's probably been growing in North America for five hundred years. I have no doubt that the first seeds arrived on someone's muddy boot.

The Minnesota Wildflowers website reports, "This species is a rapid colonizer from deep, extensive underground root systems. Once listed as a Minnesota state noxious weed, it is now widely established throughout the state but is not as problematic agronomically as was once thought. Round-up Ready crops took care of much of the problem." '

Round-up (2,4-d) is a powerful broad-spectrum herbicide used extensively in modern agriculture. Round-up Ready crops include soy, corn, canola, alfalfa, sugar beets and cotton and Round-up resistant wheat is under development. Round-up has been extensively tested and under normal concentrations it is not considered injurious to human health but this research is controversial and many lawsuits are pending. In 2023, 91% of the corn, 95% of soybeans, and 94% of cotton produced in the United States were from genetically modified, herbicide-resistant strains. For everybody's sake, I hope these safety studies are correct.

A final note: as a gardener you are advised to wear long pants, a long sleeved shirt, gloves, goggles and a mask when applying Round-up, not that anybody does. Personally, I never use the stuff. I get rid of weeds the old-fashioned way - I use my hands.

[jewishevelinebaker]

Have you ever wanted to make the TF2 guys drown in a pool? Or perhaps... kiss? Well, now you can! Here's a list of my TF2 Sims 4 custom content. Playtested, all LODs, all base game compatible. If you come across any problems let me know, but I don't think you should.

I made 3 items for Scout: his cap with headset, shirt with rolled up sleeves (comes in RED and BLU), and a necklace with 2 dogtags.

For Sniper I converted his hat, made a pair of sunglasses with a yellow tint, and added his facial scars. The scars can be found in skin detail, freckles. Also for Sniper I took a vanilla hairstyle and drew on his funky hairline.

Shown with Makesims' Hand Wraps

Here are 3 vests I made by combining and changing some vanilla vests. The one on the left is intended for Heavy, as it has t-shirt sleeves. The two on the right can work for either Demo or Sniper, as both have sleeves rolled up to their elbows. Both contain swatches with and without Demo's long undershirt sleeves. All vests come in BLU and RED.

Also shown here, on Demo and Heavy, are a pair of pants I converted from Strangerville's army career. See, normally when Sims 4 pants tuck into boots, the lower sections of the pants just disappear. But with these, because they include the shoes, the pants puff up over the top of the boots. There are 5 swatches: brown/grey, RED, BLU, and RED/BLU with gradient.

On Heavy and Sniper are black fingerless gloves. There is a swatch with gloves on both hands and a swatch with one glove (for Sniper).

Shown with Pralinesims' eye patch. Also, for Demo I used a white left eye from my Bad Batch CC for when he takes it off.

For Soldier and Engie I made these hats from scratch. Soldier's has two swatches to match his RED and BLU outfits. Engie also gets a pair of goggles.

I made Spy's mask by editing the ninja mask from the Spooky stuff pack and Pyro's by recoloring the inaccurate scuba mask from Island Living. It's not exactly a gas mask, but I really did not feel like making one from scratch and I'm not satisfied with any gas mask CC that already exists.

Pyro's mask also has a version with cat ears. For pary time, of course. Their shirt, while not exactly like Pyro's in-game shirt, has a similar silhouette which is why I chose it. There are white, RED, and BLU versions with and without the balloonicorn graphic.

I also made Pyro's gloves. The second swatch adds a black covering on the neck so that Pyro can wear many shirts without showing skin.

Here are the outfits for the rest of the characters.

Medic has a recolor of the Get to Work lab coat, RED and BLU, with and without gloves.

Spy has a recolor of the base game pinstripe suit in RED and BLU.

For Pyro, in addition to the shirt, I made another pair of pants with gradient, but this time they can go with taller boots. The boots do not come with my CC.

Engie has a recolor of the handyman overalls, in RED and BLU. I also made the gunslinger as a glove. There are two versions, with and without the bulky wrist part, so that it can still work with long sleeves and not clip.

Miss Pauling's dress has 3 swatches with different shades of purple. Please ignore the shading issues in this post's cover image; it has since been fixed but that pic was so hard to get I'm not retaking it.

I have added a few build/buy options. The 2Fort roofs (shown in the 2Fort images earlier) are a recolor of roofs from Werewolves. I also added the gym and meeting room walls from Expiration Date.

Mercenary Career!! Branches for all classes, plus branches for the Administrator and Miss Pauling. Script mods must be turned on and the files for this cannot be more than 1 folder deep in your mods folder.

All items can be found here on Sims File Share.

Recommended: Serenity's 1960s CC and Simduction's Dixie Hair for Ma 💖

My build of 2Fort and my sims can be found on my gallery, username Dadverinee.

[jinxxangel13]

Phantom of the Night

Chapter 3-full

I've been so excited to post this chapter that I actually forgot to post it on time. I'm not surprised anymore! Hope you enjoy! Tw: blood, gore, death, minor character deaths, injuries, inaccurate military and medical terms (I tried to research as best as possible, sorry if they're wrong!)

~Masterlist~ ~Prev~ ~Next~

Heavy set boots were all that could be heard around the hangard. Soldiers moving quickly on and around a transport plane, giving a wide berth to a large man with a completely black tactical gear, black skull balaclava and hard white skull mask cover the top half of the face mask: Lieutenant Ghost. 

“Wheels up in five.”

Some soldiers rushed faster to get their seats on the plane and double check their gear, but a few remained rooted in their spot, Ghost included.

“Roger.” His gruff voice cut across the radio back to General Shepherd.

“Marines are loading in now. You and the Sergeant are leading the way on this.”

Ghost tilted his head, annoyance in his voice lost in the neutral tone.

“Sergeant?”

A 6 foot tall man walked up to Ghost with an enthusiastic step. His hair shaved on the sides with a sort of mohawk down the center of his head, blue eyes sharp and full of excitement.

“Let's get ourselves a win, yeah, L.T.? Save ya a seat, sir.” 

Sergeant Johnny “Soap” MacTavish.

Soap fist bumped Ghost’s shoulder before making his way up the transport plane, making eye contact with another soldier walking up to the plane looking oddly out of place.

“Fuckin’ hell…” Ghost grumbled.

“Ghost- do you copy?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Any issues?”

“Negative, Sir.”

“Good. Captain Phantom will also be joining you on this mission. Get it done.”

Just as Shepherd finished his statement, the mystery figure Soap saw previously made their way towards Ghost.

The figure was wearing black tactical cargo pants with multiple knife straps and holsters on the thighs, a black long sleeve with a hooded overlay on top, tac vest full of frags, flashbangs, extra ammo clips and other things in pouches unknown to anyone except the figure wearing it, as well as a short black scarf around their neck and tucked into their vest. They had a balaclava across the lower half of their face with a thick black metal tactical mask over it, grey eyes almost gleaming as they stopped in front of Ghost, and their hair was underneath the scarf and out of view so he couldn’t identify this mystery person. When they stopped in front of Ghost, they had to look up quite a bit; being less than 6' compared to the 6'4" man didn't seem to be a deterrent for them at all. 

“Lieutenant Ghost, good to meet you. Captain Phantom.” The figure, the female, stuck her gloved hand out towards him.

Ghost shook her hand briefly, keeping in mind the strong grip each of them had on the other’s before they let go.

“On your move, sir. I’ve been requested by the General and Station Chief Laswell to accompany you and your men as backup on Alpha Team. I’m familiar with the mission and have been read in.” Her voice was deep, partially muffled and grainy from behind both masks, but she didn't seem to mind nor care.

Ghost nodded, turned away from her and walked right up into the transport plane with her at his heels to grab a seat and buckle in just as the door sealed shut for takeoff.

The teams spent a while in the air, not much conversation going on except for Ghost to introduce Phantom to Alpha team briefly. 

“Bravo Team offloads here. Alpha Team stays onboard to land downrange. Both teams meet in the middle. Remember, we want Hassan alive, but this is capture or kill.” Ghost's strong voice echoed through the radio in Phantom’s ear as well as directly in front of her.

She watched as Bravo team got ready to unload as the plane landed momentarily, nodding to Ghost as they made eye contact and accepting a first bump from Soap as they got off.

Phantom pulled her goggles down over her eyes and gripped tightly onto her M16 between her legs as the plane took off again to head to their final destination. She kept herself strapped in on instinct, as if something was telling her to brace herself and she was never one to ignore her instincts.

Another minute in the air and it grew more tense as she exchanged glances with her other team members after the plane made a sudden drop on the right side.

“All stations- Razor-1 is bracketed, we're getting lit! Incoming- Flares! Flares!”

Phantom’s eyes grew wide as one of the soldiers stood up to go help the pilots. She could hear the flares going off outside of their plane as it righted itself once again.

“Shit- that was fucking close.”

She chuckled, agreeing with another soldier in front of her and letting her shoulders relax themselves slightly.

“Second missile!”

Phantom barely had any time to brace herself and her weapon before a loud crash sounded on the right side of the plane, throwing anything or anyone not strapped down off balance. She grappled a soldier about to crumple to the ground, pulling him down onto the seat next to her.

“Razor 1 going down! We're going down!” That was the last thing Phantom heard in her ear before she felt the plane plummet down to the ground, grinding and crunching metal the only thing anyone in the vicinity could hear. 

The sound was deafening; a ringing in her ears as she slowly came to. Everything was blurry and she couldn’t make out the garbled voices in her ear before a shrill let off through her radio. With a heavy hand, she ripped the contraption out of her ear before taking a moment to regain her bearings. 

Phantom could barely register her own coughing, let alone the one or two soldiers near her as she struggled to unbuckle herself from her seat.

“Alp--immobile. -Critical! Taking effective fire!” 

Phantom shook her head a little, running her hand across her head, hissing as she brushed against a gash over her temple; must have hit her head on the headrest or something. The piercing sound of bullets from around them was grounding her enough to be able to open her eyes, finding her gun still hooked around her foot.

“Still alive there, Cap?”

Phantom’s eyes were unfocused as she looked around the voice, jolting when a hand steadied her as she stood up. Her legs almost collapsed from underneath her, but she knew they’d be dead if she didn’t stay upright.

“Yes, sir.” Her voice was harsh as she spoke, finally able to get her hands to stop shaking enough to lift her gun up.

Muscle memory started to kick in as her mind caught up with the fact they were in the middle of the battlefield. The man in front of her she didn’t know except his radio callsign.

“Just you and I?” 

Alpha 0-2 and Phantom looked around.

“5 KIA, one wounded, you and I standing. Get your gun on that treeline. Gotta hold them off until Bravo team can clear those buildings.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Phantom leaned heavily against the right wall, windows blown out, and raised her gun to help drop as many AQ members as possible.

She could barely hear the other man over the sounds of gunfire and rpg’s going off in the background, but she could tell that he was talking to Bravo team over his radio.

“I don’t have coms! What’s going on?”

There was a lapse in firing, so Phantom took the moment to reload her gun as quickly as possible; easier said than done when her hands were still shaking from adrenaline, but it at least distracted from the headache.

“Bravo team is on their way. Keep your eyes peeled!”

“Copy!” Was her immediate reply as she leaned her back against the metal siding.

Barely 30 seconds had passed before she heard footsteps fast approaching the opened back of the plane. As she turned her sights towards the entrance, she heard a familiar voice hastily calling out to the two of them.

“Blue, blue, blue!”

Her posture relaxed slightly as Ghost and Soap ran into the plane wreckage.

“Damn good to see you both.” Phantom groaned out, repositioning herself against the corner of the window, switching to her rifle and pointing it out as she focused her eyes on the treeline but still listening to the men.

“We got five KIA, one wounded. It's just my gun and I'm low on ammo. Help me move him-”

“No time.” Ghost cut him off, sliding behind Phantom to pat her shoulder and set himself up at the next window. “Get your gun on that treeline.”

Soap set himself up in a crouching position at the plane opening after placing down a few proximity mines a few paces away as a last resort.

Phantom's eyes narrow through her scope, catching Ghost’s attention at the tensing of her posture.

“See anything?” Ghost’s voice was heavier than previously.

Phantom kept her hands steady as she zeroed in on something in the distance.

“Got movement.” 

“If you have a shot, take it.”

That was all that she needed to block out any further conversation between her teammates and take initiative: headshot.

A smirk made its way across her lips from under the mask as she set up her next few shots. Phantom wasn’t registering what they were saying around her even though she could hear them until she felt the plane rock back from the force of an RPG. If it wasn't for the quick reaction time of Ghost grabbing onto the back of her vest, she would have been flung backwards from the force.

When the dust settled, she straightened herself back up, switching back to her M16.

“Thanks, L.T.” Phantom nodded to him, switching places with Soap at the opening instead. 

“We clear?” Soap kept looking out of his scope, even after Phantom gave him a nod.

Ghost huffed, reloading his gun. “For now.”

[meet-the-net]

𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦.

A continuation of this drawing in 6153 Words. Hope you enjoy :)

“Howdy… I reckon you’re the owner of this place?” the hard-hatted man asks. Anxious about having to give an in-depth description of his person, Ned puts his arms behind his back and counts the ridges of his sleeve with his fingertips. As he’s about to open his mouth, however, the stranger continues; “You wouldn’t mind pointing us in the direction of the barracks? We seem to have misplaced our map of the grounds.” he mentions through his teeth and throws a quick glance back at a person, concealed completely by gloves and a gas mask, who simply waves. Cocking his head to the side indicates to the stranger well enough that Ned has no clue what a barrack is, so his response is a chuckle and a “Y’know? The rooms we oughta reside in?”. For the previous few days and nights, Ned had been disturbed by the sounds of construction, surrounding him from all sides, keeping him awake throughout the twilight, and on edge through the light of day. When he’d found they – and who else would ‘they’ be but the workers for Team Fortress Industries – had been tearing down walls and emptying the rooms of his parents’ home, in order to expand and refurnish it, he’d felt like crying. Instead, he’d gone down to the beach and stood in the freezing saltwater for a few hours, until a single, croaky scream escaped him. When he had returned to the place where he learned to walk, its wooden front door was ripped out, a gaping hole in its stead. Cold men in grey uniforms, upon inquiry in form of ‘What the hell are you doing?’, informed him that it would become a ‘…respawn room. Ya see that door in the back? Yeah, we’re puttin’ up housing for the blue team or whatever.’ ‘Huh, look at that ­– they freakin’ spelled it wrong!‘.

Without uttering a word, Ned points up the freshly installed stairs of his shop to the small ledge before two garage doors that would lead to the barracks. Those doors, along with the entire second floor, had also been added in the renovations, but they didn’t hurt half as bad as the gutting of his parents’ home. “Thank ya kindly. C'mon, boys, quit foolin' around now.“ he directs towards the team. One of them, a lanky one, drops the fish that he’d been unsuccessfully trying to hit a silent man wearing a combat helmet with, right where he stands and, pushing past his teammates, races upstairs with a resounding “Last one there is a smelly sardine!”. Everyone follows at their own pace, but when the last one, a spectacled man in a long white coat, his nose buried in a clipboard, puts a foot on the first step, he halts and looks up. “Vait. Are you…? Zhat can’t be right, you cannot *possibly* be zhe guy.” he utters, now turned towards Ned, then flips through a few pages and looks back at the disgruntled looking fisherman. “Hoo! But you are! Hey, Dell!” he shouts, and the man who asked for directions replies with a simple “What?!”. “You better come take a look at zhis!”. Unhurried footsteps make their way back down the stairs, where the other was holding up his clipboard for Dell to see. He reads a passage, snaps his goggles onto his forehead and re-reads it, squinting. “That guy?” he whispers, giving Ned a short, sidelong glance. “Ja.” “You sure?” “Ja!” “Figured he was just a shop-keeper.”. “Oho, zhat is vhere you’re wrong, mein friend.” the man with the cross decal on his shoulder responds, unable to keep up the low volume. In an exaggerated gesture, he points at Ned with an open hand, palm facing the ceiling. “ZHAT is ZHE Net.” he exclaims, the undertone of it sounding mocking, not genuinely impressed by the infirm, insecure looking man. One who had to look around, unsure if they were actually talking about someone else, before silently waving at them, no less. “Shoot, and we just ran right past ya! You coulda spoke up, y’know?” Dell says, wearing a warm smile to the surprise of Ned, who plasters on a veneer of reciprocating friendliness. The man readjusts his goggles to sit over his eyes again and approaches with an outstretched hand, which Ned agrees to shake with his own clammy, ice-cold hand. The slight twitch of the corner of Dells mouth is the only reaction he gives, involuntarily. “My name’s Dell, and that fella over yonder is Lorenz. You must be, uh, Ned, right Doc?” he asks the man clutching his clipboard and wearing an extremely strained smile. “Richtig!” Lorenz calls, followed by a sotto voce chuckle. “I’ll be damned. Ned the Net. Whoever came up with your classification oughta be tossed out on their ear!" the Texan states and laughs for a bit, but gradually stops as Ned simply stares. Although he could’ve told Dell he didn’t understand what being ‘tossed out on one’s ear’ means, he keeps it to himself, embarrassed enough that none of his team members even knew of him. Dell clears his throat, nervously readjusts his construction helmet, and, persistently smiling, offers “Well, I’ll give ya a minute to catch your breath after us barging in like that. You’re welcome to join us in the common room anytime­. Provided they actually built one this time.” and heads upstairs with Lorenz, who had been and is continuously staring at Ned with a sly grin.

Ned sighs relieved he’d been given time to adjust, and tucks a stray strand of hair beneath his mariners cap. Wet, dead and missing some scales after having been mishandled like that, the fish oozes some of its slime between the cracks of the wooden planks that make up the floor. Ned picks it up and disposes of it inside his kitchen. Housewarming gifts had always been prepared by his parents and always consisted of freshly baked pastries, small jars of various spices and, once he’d opened his shop, samples of Neds dried fish snacks. Sitting on his stool, his leg bouncing nervously, he ponders what components he has at home, but as he realizes he has none, he lays his head in his hands in a self-soothing effort. Not having enough time to dry any fish, he concludes the next best thing should do, especially since he figures their journey must’ve been long; food, specifically undried fish, more specifically fish sandwiches. Raw cod in a nice cream-mayonnaise sauce on home-made, thawed and oven-toasted white bread and a few slices of pickles and egg. A delicacy in Selbyen, which he’s certain can be appreciated by the foreigners as well, as the tourists that used to visit Selbyen always went ham for it.

Wrapped in little brown paper bags, each tied with a piece of natural fiber cord, the sandwiches lay on his kitchen counter, ready for delivery. After a short pep talk into his bathroom mirror, Ned loads them into a hand-woven basket and heads upstairs. The automatic garage doors recognize his shape and clear the way for entrance. Before him stands his old family home, a shell of its former self, hollowed out by hollow people, cold looking in the dusk. With a huff through his nose, trying to maintain a friendly façade, he enters the remodeled, doorless building and knocks on the far back door that didn’t exist a week ago. Nervously he waits, shifting his weight from one leg to the other and tracing his fingers along the twisted osiers that make up the baskets handle, a material soft enough to dig a fingernail into it and leave an indent, which he does. When the door opens into a softly lit hallway, the silhouette of a team member cutting through it, Ned rips his gaze from off the ground. A smile spreads across his face, almost automatically, but out of obligation instead of volition. He squints to see who’s letting him inside, and becomes a bit confused about a helmet gleaming back at him from a further height than he remembered Dell to be. The figure fully turns their back on him, torso stiff as a board, and yells back into the room “ATTEEEENTION. NEW BLOOD HAS ARRIVED. LOOK ALIVE.”, to which someone inside yells back “SHUT IT, AH’LL LOOK AS DEAD AS AH DAMN WELL PLEASE!", slurring their words a bit. Both start laughing loudly, raspy and wheezing before the man turns back to Ned. A heavy hand comes down hard on his shoulder and pulls him inside. “Move it, maggot. It’s freezing out there.”. The unexpected force makes Ned stumble a bit and he clutches his basket, keeping it upright to prevent the contents from spilling, but keeps a stiff smile. “Who are you, little red riding hood?” the man inquires with a smirk, his hand on his back pushing Ned further along the scarcely illuminated hallway. When the overhead lights highlight the shapes of the darkened outline, Ned notices that the man’s combat helmet is pulled down far enough to cover his eyes, and for a moment he wonders how he could see where he’s going. The moment doesn’t last long, though, as they enter a large room at the very end of the hallway, and he ponders about how a room this big and leveled could’ve been built on the sandy slope that used to make up their backyard. Inches behind him, the man visually impaired by his own headgear announces, “He brought a basket! And a load of useless brown boxes!”, then leans uncomfortably close and mutters “When you’re done throwing the boxes away, can I have the basket?”. With his shoulders pulled up to his ears, Ned stiffly shakes his head ‘no’ at giving up the precious family heirloom crafted by a late relative to the very loud madman. “FINE!” he shouts, throwing his hands up in dramatic defeat. Resembling a toddler having a meltdown, he stomps off, arms crossed before his chest, muttering “I didn’t want the stupid basket anyway. I hope you fall down the stairs, and the basket does not break your fall.”. The man plops down into a chair beside someone wearing an eyepatch, someone who immediately starts patting his back. “There there, Jude. Ye’ll be alright, laddie.” he utters in a soothing voice. Jude’s intense frown softens, his shoulders drop, and he mutters “Thanks, buddy.”. Contrary to his expectation, the one-eyed man doesn’t give Ned the stink eye to defend Jude, who appears to be his friend. Instead, he shrugs and throws Ned a glance that seems to express something like ‘Be patient with him.’. Ned reciprocates the glance with a compassionate smile at the pair, safe in the knowledge that they find solace in each other – that the word ‘team’ doesn’t merely translate to ‘colleagues’.

Someone else from that corner of the room, whom he recognizes as Dell by his voice, comments “You made it.”, followed by a chuckle. As a few other people surround him, Ned feels his hands clasping the handle of the basket tighter, white-knuckled, his relaxed expression hardening, his grin forced once more. He simply gives Dell a nod and examines the onlookers, remaining uncomfortably silent. Beside him, the one who had abused his wares before, speaks up "Yeah, ‘bout freakin time! We been waitin’ all evening for ya to get here. Y'know, I can't plan a strategic attack on the RED scum without ya, being da new member of the team and all'at. I-“. Interrupting him, a large hand pushes him aside by the head, a large hand belonging to a proportionally large man. Dulled, the slim one’s voice sounds out through the fingers, “Hey! What da hell?”, before a dark voice cuts him off. “Scout. Shut up.” the big one speaks, accent thick in every syllable. “You do not plan dis anyway. Medic and Engineer do.” he continues, which makes a high-pitched laugh ring out from the corner of the room, where people sat and drank – must be the aforementioned Medic. Mentally, Ned takes note of the class names, supposing that Lorenz fits the description of a field medic and Dell looks like a craftsman. However, he can only assume by Lorenz’ cross decal, having never seen a healer safe for the village doctor. Furthermore, he notes that they are the ones organizing the team and would be the ones he would have to admit his fighting inexperience to.

“You did not seriously bring that STENCH into zis base, did you?” he’s asked, the voice seemingly coming from inches behind him. Ned flinches, letting his strained face muscles let go of the feigned smile. He had perceived approaching footsteps during the altercation between ‘Scout’ and the wide one – only a vigilant fisherman is a good one – but when he turns his head to look, there’s only space and the door he entered through. With the basket’s handle tucked into the crook of his arm he spins around, raising the other hand enough that it could shield his face in case the situation should call for it. He mouths the words ‘Hva i helvete?’ (which roughly translate to ‘What the hell?’) as his suspicions are confirmed that the voice came out of nowhere. Without another sound to warn him, the voice, now right next to his other ear, exclaims a flat “Booh.”.

A flinch ripples through Ned’s body, jerking his raised hand slightly backward. It strikes something invisible, producing a sharp, reverberating smack, followed by a soft, equally flat, “Ow.”. To Ned’s amazement, momentarily overshadowed by his annoyance, a shape appears. Blue and translucent, solely a silhouette, then traces of a human body, akin to a ghost materializing. A man in a balaclava, lowering his hand from his cheekbone and placing it behind his straight back, stands before him.

“Skittish, are we? Not a great look for a hired gun.” he remarks, roguish and smileless. Ned perceives the mumbling that ensues, along with his cheeks warming up, outwardly signifying his embarrassment about being outed as a rookie. In an attempt to shut him up, trump his fear of uselessness and highlight his other capabilities for the team, he makes the strategic decision to finally break his silence. If he changes the subject now, people might be distracted enough to ignore how right the masked man was.

“I brought food.” Ned’s tone is flat, his sentence short enough to hide the shakiness in his tone, brought on by the warm clump in his throat – aggravation and upset from being put on the spot like this. To top it all off – since the eyes in the room simply observe him quietly, impressed but speechless – he digs in his pocket and pulls out the small metal box of breath mints that contains his cigarettes, throws it into the basket and declares “…and cigarettes.” Several people hum approvingly, those who hadn’t been encircling him until now stand up from their seats and approach. With a groan, the French interrogator steps back, correctly anticipating that his teammates would push him aside to get to the gift basket.

Silently, he observes how the large, bald man reaches inside, retrieves three wrapped sandwiches, and wanders off to Lorenz and Dell. First to receive one is the Medic, personally, while the other sandwich is set on the table for Dell to take himself, from which Ned gathers an understanding of the dynamic between the three. “Zhank you, Mirek.~” Lorenz utters in a sing-song matter, to which Dell, probably feeling inclined, grumbles “Yeah. Thanks, Miroslav.”.  

As the person in the gas mask – Ned remembers they were the one who lost, or perhaps destroyed the teams map of Selbyen – grabs a sandwich, Jude reaches over their shoulder to retrieve the silver box, which they watch intently. As Jude retrieves two cigarettes and passes one back to his friend, the unknown person visibly lights up and they turn back to Ned with an outstretched thumb. Instead of it being a gesture of approval, which Ned initially smiles at, they bend and stretch their thumb repeatedly in a motion all too familiar to him. From his pocket, he produces a metallic lighter with a fish emblem and places it into their open palms. “Mmphph.” they respond, incoherent from behind their headgear, but seemingly appreciative, and start toying with the lighter, flicking on the flame and placing a finger on the burning wick to extinguish, over and over. Jude’s jaw falls open and he grabs the fire fanatic by the gloved wrist, yelling “WHO IN THE NAME OF ALL THAT'S HOLY LET THAT MANIAC HAVE A LIGHTER?!" at his comrades. His friend puts a hand on his shoulder and softly comments “Come on, now. Pyro was havin’ such a blast! They haven’t started a fire in months! Not off the battlefield, at least.” “No, Hamish! We’ve been over this. We can’t trust this foul creature.” Jude insists, extending his neck to observe Pyro – as far as the helmet over his eyes allows, at least. Then, despite Hamish’s protest, he snatches the lighter from their hand and pockets it, to which they utter a disappointed “Mhhmm.” and go off to sit on the floor in front of Lorenz’, Dell’s and Miroslav’s table. Ned silently mouths each newly learned name, his eyes flicking from person to person as he repeats them in his mind.

Over the chewing sounds and soft exchanges throughout the room, a voice cuts through that Ned doesn’t recognize yet. A man in yellow shades, sandwich already half unwrapped in hand, mutters “Much appreciated, mate.” before returning to the water dispenser in the corner of the room from whence he came. The Scout prances after him and carelessly takes a seat on the close by pool table, knocking around some of the scattered pool balls. “Awh, mate.” the other sighs, “Open your eyes, Jonathan. Spy an’ I were in the middle of a bloody game.”. he continues, disappointed. Just as Ned expected, the Scout, now also known as Jonathan, starts defending himself, “C’mon, Nick -…” dramatically gesturing with hands and feet, remaining seated on the table. Ned huffs through his nostrils in a silent chuckle and tunes out of the conversation, as he considers their bickering none of his business.

From the corner of his eyes, Ned notices something peculiar that takes him a bit to contextualize; out of the little box that Jude had so graciously tossed back into the basket, floats a single cigarette through the air, until it gradually disappears in a corner. Ned smirks, content about having provided something for truly everyone (even if they would never admit it) despite barely receiving any thanks for the gesture. Two cigarettes in their metallic container and three untouched brown paper food bags remain, one of which he takes out while striding as confidently as possible to the table at which Jude and Hamish are seated. From under the table, a little stool is pushed out with a creaking sound, perfectly timed so that Ned can stop it with his foot and take a seat in one fell swoop. Although it looks like a regular blinking motion at first, Ned recognizes that Hamish sends a wink his way and his delighted smile increases as he winks back.

Jude, however, tenses up and stops eating once Ned places the basket on the table, observing it intently. With a sliding motion across the table, Ned tugs it closer to himself before he jerks up from being suddenly spoken to. “So, what made ye sign up for this bloody awful job, eh?" Hamish inquires, knocking the beer bottle he had picked to wash down the bread, against the table to accentuate his words. The three people from the table on Ned’s right chuckle, all in different pitches and intensities, with Lorenz’ being the highest and Miroslav’s the lowest, almost harmonizing with each other. From beneath the table and chuckling, the Pyro jumps up, then props up their head on their hands and mutters something unintelligible that sounds vaguely like a question. “Oh. Uh, sorry?”  Ned asks, to which Dell grins so wide, his cheeks push up his goggles very slightly. “They’re askin’ what on God’s green earth you’re doin’ here. And don’t you worry none ‘bout not understandin’ that lil’ bugger — it took me four years to decipher ‘em. Well worth it though, ain’t it, pardner?” he checks while he gives their masked head a friendly pat, and they reply with an approving “Mhmm!” as they kick their legs in the air, seeing as they’re half-laid atop the table on their stomach. “So?” Dell beckons.

After taking a bite, Ned re-wraps his sandwich, aware that discussing sensitive topics makes him fidget with his surroundings – and he’d rather not scatter crumbs from a picked-apart sandwich all over the table. He swallows, looking around at his interested colleagues, then clears his throat. “Well, uh.” he starts, trying hard to mask the shakiness of his voice, unsuccessfully. “I did not really go through an official application process, as I think you people might have. It just kind of… happened, after an act of, how do you say, defense?”. “Defiance.” Lorenz interjects, pushing up his spectacles. Ned nods, “Yes, that. Thank you. The lady in purple and her men had cleared everyone out of their homes after the industry bought our land, and when I did not leave… I, uh, threatened her to undo everything… with a harpoon… and then she gave me the contract.” he looks down, remorseful of his outburst, until Hamish chimes in. “What ‘n introduction, laddie! Fought yer way into the job, eh? That sure showed her! Good on ya! Now ye just have tae deal with never gettin’ out again – alive, anyway!”, he finishes with a loud laugh, which Jude and Lorenz join in. After processing what Ned had explained, Dell slams his palms on the table and stands, expression grim, silencing the others who look at him with intrigue. “Let me get this straight, you’re tellin’ us they didn’t even build this village? Just bought it up and ran everyone else off? Now that just ain’t right!” he expresses, crossing his arms as he settles back into his seat. After another grumble, his bitter expression softens as he gestures to a lightly smiling Ned whose surprised gaze raises to meet his – or rather his blurry reflection in Dells goggles. “But you? Standin’ up for your people like that? For your family? That’s real honorable of ya. We need more kindhearted, good men on this team.” he mentions while looking around for someone he can’t find, therefore readjusting his sight onto Ned. This makes the humble fisherman straighten up, beaming within from being called honorable, perhaps even brave, but holding back on showing it outwardly, as he’s unable to gauge how much of a compliment it was, comparatively. A miffed looking Jonathan approaches, hands in fists and some of the sandwich condiment in the corner of his mouth. Firmly standing between the two tables Ned and Dell respectively sit at, he puts both hands to his hips and begins in a squeaky, clearly hurt voice “Yeah, yeah. Brave my ASS. You threatened Miss P.? A defenseless lady? And with a freakin’ HARPOON, at that?” “Only threatened her with words! The harpoon never touched her, I promise.” Ned nervously clarifies, arms flailing in front of him, palms open and facing outward, as if to ward off the accusation. “She never even seemed bothered, if I think about it.” he adds, pensively. “Maybe she was scared to death, huh? Ever think’a that? Wouldn’t you be, too, if some maniac came at ya swingin’ their stupid fishin’ stick?!” “I did not even-“ Ned insists, furrowing his brow about Jonathan painting him to be more violent than he was even capable of, before both of them were interrupted by the peacemaker, the teams shepherd.

“Johnny boy, don’t be ridiculous. Miss Pauling’s been through way worse than some mildly threatenin’ fisherman. She wouldn’t be intimidated in the slightest – no offense, Ned. Take a breather, cowboy. Grab a seat, grab a cold one, and settle down for a second. We know how attached you are to her, but this ain’t no reason to start spinnin' stories 'bout the new guy." Dell admonishes. Jonathan simply puffs up his cheeks, mutters “Fine…” and takes a seat next to Miroslav, who silently retrieves a bottle of beer from the small fridge behind them and hands it to the younger man.

With a wooshing noise, the blue silhouette manifests into the mysterious masked man once more, this time standing behind Dell, who tenses up at the sound. As he takes form, so does the smoke of his lit cigarette, making Ned wonder about how advanced technology actually was outside of his village, what he’d missed, but hiding his awe well. “Your kind ‘eart and ‘onor means nothing when you're caught in ze storm of bullets that war unleashes. Do you even know which end of ze gun to point at zee enemy?” he inquires, his chest subtly rising and falling with quiet laughter, only one corner of his mouth raising into a small smirk. Ned ceases the opportunity to boast, his head raised, his smile proud. “I will have you know that I hit two of the bottle targets, when our Courier taught me to shoot those little guns the other day!” “Out of ‘ow many?” the man demonstratively asks, earning him a back-handed smack in the chest by Dell, who sternly whispers “Spy.”, as if to tell him not to embarrass Ned like that. The fisher’s proud grin begins to crumble as he tucks his head between his shoulders, breaks the confident eye contact and stares at the table while he mumbles “Ten.”.

Spy begins howling, snorting in-between laughs as he holds his stomach and takes his leave through a door in the back of the room next to Nick, who patiently awaited his pool partner, but must watch leave instead. Spy’s ceaseless laughter is heard for a while behind the seemingly paper-thin walls, even as the sound of a shutting door is heard, as he presumably enters his personal room.

People whose gaze had followed him turn their head back to Ned, expecting defense, but that many eyes on him only increase his embarrassment and his pale skin breaks out in pinkish blotches of shame once more. Head in an ice cold, sweaty palm, he tries not only reducing the blood circulation in his face, but also to play it off like he didn’t care as much as he did. “Yes. But a fifth is still better than none, right?” he tries confirming not only to himself, but to a team that partially depends on him now, as he looks over to Dell for one last dose of support, eyebrows furrowed desperately. With a nod, and a warm “You’ll get there, pal.” he responds, prompting various others to break their silence and send not quite convinced encouragement Ned’s way in form of “Yeah…” and “Sure!”. Ned decides to take what he gets and responds with a joking little bow, as if he’d achieved something worth bowing for. When the silence only threatens to return, Hamish cuts in. “Look, we all started somewhere. I wasn’t born blowin’ me enemies to smithereens! Don’t ye worry, lad. You’ll find a way to make yourself useful on the battlefield. Yer the Net, right? We use you to fall back on, and you use us to make yer trapping tactics lethal. It’s a bloody partnership, mate. You set 'em up, we knock 'em down!”. His wide smile causes Ned to match the expression and perk up, “Yes! I will try the best I can. If it is not too much trouble, maybe one of you experienced people-“, he looks around as he continues, making sure each one feels addressed, “-can teach me to shoot even more than two target bottles? Since you have been shooting so many things already, and all I have shot is fish in the water?”

Retrieving his hands from near the basket he was sneakily trying to snatch, attentive all of a sudden, Jude flashes an open-mouthed grin before he asks “You caught those fish by SHOOTING THEM?! NOW THAT’S THE MOST AMERICAN THING I’VE EVER HEARD! Say, soldier, how many bullets does it take to turn a fish into a victim?!”. As a result, Ned gives a warm chuckle, “No, no bullets. With the harpoon gun. You know, the-“ “The one you stabbed Miss Pauling with?!” “The one I did *not* stab Miss Pauling with.” he corrects Jude with a raised finger, “The one I threatened her with.” “This recounting keeps becoming less and less American! I AM SEVERELY BORED.” Jude exclaims, then cups a hand next to his mouth and shouts “BUSHMAN. PREPARE TO HAVE YOUR ASS KICKED. I WILL DEPOSIT THOSE POOL BALLS INTO THE HOLES SO GLORIOUSLY, YOU WON’T EVEN SEE WHAT HIT YA’!” and strides over to the pool table and an exasperated Nick. “He lives in a bush? Like a little tree? Poor guy.” Ned sympathizes to Hamish’s amusement who briefly explains “Nah, just Australia. Which ain’t much more than a bunch o' wee trees, really.”, his chuckle is met by Nick’s quiet side glance, before he’s distracted by Jude pushing the white pool ball into his hands.

Meanwhile, Ned had finished pondering and lowers his hand from his chin, straightening his slouching posture, “Australia, huh? That is an awful bit away. I, uh, have noticed you all seem to be from different places of the world.”. A wry chuckle escapes him as he confirms to himself that “I have never even left this village. Ever. You must have a lot of stories to tell.”. A few people exchange pitiful, almost concerned glances before their gazes fall back on Ned. Jonathan, who had been busy thumb wrestling with the Pyro until now, never stopped listening and mentions “Yeah, a LOTTA stories. Actually, way too many stories. 'Cause things just don’t stop happening, ever.”. He wins the tiny wrestling match and raises his head with a chuckle, “Hey, yeah, remember that time we tried teleportin’ back to base, but those RED bastards moved the tele and we went plummetin’ down that cliff? Lucky we were in respawn range, or we'd all be done for.”

Worried expression, intrigued mind, Ned leans forward and inquires “Respawn range? The men that built, well, rebuilt everything, said something of a ‘respawn room’. Do those things have a connection? The range and the room? How does that work? Would you not have died when you fell down the cliff?”.

Loudly, Lorenz’ sharp laugh rings through the room, bemused by the silly question. “Of course ve died! Miserably so!”, he begins, other teammates murmuring in agreement, “But ve each have zhis fabulous little device implanted zhat gazhers our molecular structure, and, upon death, recombines it inside the room. It’s a really neat machine, zhe Engineer and I toiled on it for an eternity! Speaking of zhe respawn chip, you’re not equipped wizh one yet, richtig?”. Ned had leaned back during the doctor’s monologue, holding onto the table since there was no backrest to relax into, shaken by the information that death wouldn’t end the war. Though relieved that he wouldn’t be giving his life to provide for his family, he still could only respond with a quiet shake of the head, mouth slightly agape and frowning. “Perfekt! Would you like to schedule an appointment wizh dear old me? Zhen I shall use zhe opportunity of your open chest cavity to install your new heart for zhe Übercharge too, all in one fell swoop! It'll only hurt a mediocre lot, not an awful lot.” Lorenz jokes with dark, malicious glee, accompanied by an equally grim, low chuckle.

Feeling his palms begin to sweat once more, Ned’s spinning thoughts fall onto the new term. “The Über-huh?” is met with enthusiasm from Lorenz, who almost interrupts him, “Invulnerability. Vhat a deal, ja? Zhe whole package! No death, no harm. At least vhen my Medi-gun is pointed at you. Bevor you ask, zhat is my trusty co-“ his gaze briefly twitches to Miroslav, “-my other trusty companion on zhe battlefield. HOOHOO! Nozhing beats zhis-“ his gloved hand lands harshly on the huge man’s back, “heap of Muskel, of course. But zhe Medi-gun blasts pure rays of concentrated regenerative particles onto my subjects, somezhing Mirek is incapable of. As of yet...”. The crazed practitioner utters the same low humming cackle as before, sounding truly terrifying. “In layman’s terms, zhe gun un-breaks your bones, extinguishes you from zhe battlefields inferno, and stuffs zhe blood back into your body. Sooo? Vhat do ve zhink?” he follows up. Ned ponders for a bit, heart pounding and head spinning a bit, but decides to settle on the decision that having one surgery to cover for his apparent invulnerability and immortality would be agreeable, though he was still skeptical of how well it would work. “Gud hjelpe meg*. O-okay. Sure. Yes. If it guarantees my safety. If YOU guarantee my safety.” Ned sets as his condition, dimming Lorenz’ cheery expression as he replies “I guarantee nozhing. Zhe machines could fail at any time and ve could all perish at any moment, but I can try to keep you bunch of idi-… i… incredibly… nice beings alive for as long as possible.” he concludes with an obviously forced grin. The fisherman shudders, subtly as to not reveal his multiple degrees of fear for this man, for one because he seems to be using his colleagues as guineapigs for his experimental medical and technical procedures, either uncaring or accepting that each second on the battlefield might be their last. Another reason, despite Ned desperately trying to suppress his fear of others, is Lorenz’ heritage, recognized through his accent alone. He concluded that the Medic must be old enough to have been alive during the world war, and fears he might’ve be part of the horrors on humanity those people inflicted. On the other hand, the man seems to be tolerant of the use of neutral personal pronouns, such as those for the unidentified Pyro, as well as Ned’s own gender identity, which to his dismay remains evident through his feminine talking voice. Undecided on Lorenz’ stance, he can’t help but remain wary in his presence, keep his eyes out for any slip-ups, any other ethical wrong-doings except for the obviously empirical nature of his surgeries.

For a moment, Ned wonders if he should be as wary of the other collaborator of the respawn machine, Dell, but his train of thought is derailed when a blue glove shoves a piece of paper under his nose from behind him. “I’ve decided a time for your appointment for zhe-“ he chuckles, uncomfortably close behind Ned, “-procedure.”. In a mocking tone, he continues “Is zhis time agreeable for you, Herr Ned? HAH! Get it, because zhis job is his whole life now? I don’t even need to ask! Of course it is agreeable! He haz nozhing else to do! Haha! I vill see you tomorrow, little fishie!~” he continues, his voice quieting down as he retreats through the same door the Spy did, hands behind his back and chuckling ominously.

Reading the pale blue business card reveals to Ned, that he’d be on the slab the next day at 7AM, sharp, that he shouldn’t eat nor drink immediately before and that he should preemptively write a will, just in case. A glance at the common room’s clock reveals that 11PM is fast approaching, and Ned perks up. “Oh, herregud, it is that late already? Boy, oh boy. I would really, honestly love to chat with you people some more. But I am worried that if I do not sleep now, I will be unwell after tomorrows… slaughter, let us say.” he jokes to ease himself of the nervousness, and, along with some of his colleagues, chuckles nervously at his dry humor. His laugh ceases into a more relieved smile, happy that his misery provided *someone* with a bit of joy, and he wishes them a “Good night. And, uh, I feel like I should mention; do not be surprised by the weird screaming at night, those are just the seals.”, before grabbing his sandwich, his basket – Jude can be heard protesting, and Nick reassuring him that there’s plenty of baskets in the world – and taking hasty steps back through the hallway, the old, dead home, the garage doors and into his own four walls. The brown paper of the sandwich he devoured on his way lands in his trash can, he quickly gets ready for bed, multitasking his bathroom routine, stripping into his fish boxers and hopping into his blanketed haven. Though sleep comes late and little, his heart pounding, his eyelids wide apart, thoughts spiraling throughout the night. Tomorrow will be very interesting.

[homo-adaptionem]

Urbex Tips

Urban Exploration tips:

Learn basic first aid & bring a first aid kit.

Don't go in alone. Bring at least two other people.

Build up your strength before hand.

You need a tetanus shot every 10 years. If you haven't had one in the last 10 years, get one before you start.

If you're asthmatic, bring your inhaler.

Do research on the building / area beforehand. Figure out why it's abandoned. Learn the history. If it's condemned, find out why. Could be health reasons.

Enter at your own risk.

Tell a trusted person(s) where you're going. Give them the location of any places you're exploring. This is in case something happens, they know where you are/were going. Make sure they know who you're going with.

Hard hats. Being serious. Shit falls, even in "newer" buildings.

Wear gloves (thick leather work gloves, not that plastic faux leather shit, actual leather. not disposables, they won't do shit against glass and metal), goggles (to protect your eyes), a face mask (ideally construction-grade but the fabric types will work well enough), thick, long pants (like jeans), work or hiking boots, long sleeves, and something to cover your hair, like a beanie. If you've got long hair, put it in a ponytail and stuff it under the hat. Trust me. Also deodorant is a good idea.

Invest in a headlamp (easier than using a flashlight)

Avoid the "white 16 year old boy with friends" mentality. Don't do stupid shit because it's funny. If that floor seems unstable, avoid it. Don't smash shit. Don't jump down dark holes.

Don't steal shit. It's tempting, but I don't recommend it.

Avoid tagging / making graffiti, esp identifying graff. Again, tempting, but you can still get in trouble for it.

If someone catches you, BAIL. Don't get into a fight. Don't stick around for pigs to show up. Don't engage, just get out of there. Most of the time, urbex is trespassing.

If you find (which you probably won't) large sums of money, it might be best to report it. It could be stolen or counterfeit and get you in trouble if you use it. But ultimately it's your own choice.

If you find (which you probably won't) bloody clothing, blood-covered knives (or other weapons), or a gun, report it. Fuck pigs yada yada, but it could be connected to someone's death. Don't touch anything, don't take anything, just call the authorities and tell them where it is. I mention this because it could be connected to the assault or murder of sex workers, partners, and/or minorities.

If you find drugs (which you probably won't), report it. Don't use it. Could be laced. Not safe to use, bro, not worth it.

If you find a body(s), (which you probably won't), report it. Check for a pulse, but if the body is cold and/or stiff, call the authorities. If they're still warm, you can try CPR on them while you call for an ambulance. If they have a pulse, call an ambulance. If it looks like they're ODing, use some narcan if you've got it.

If you find Satantic imagery or whatever, 9 times out of 10 it's just teens fucking around. Like I promise you, they were probably left by some guys wanting to cause a stir or trying to make their own ARG or something.

The building isn't haunted, sorry to say. There are rational explanations for every "supernatural" thing you'll encounter. Sometimes they're the aforementioned guys. If you're superstitious, scared of the dark, easily frightened, or suffer from psychosis, you're probably gonna have a bad time.

You may encounter looters, homeless folks, addicts, and/or mentally ill/disabled folks. Try to avoid confrontation. Let them be. If they're alive and unharmed, leave them alone. If they're injured or ODing, attempt first aid (narcan, tourniquets, compresses, etc.) and call an ambulance. No pigs, just medical help.

Watch out for animals. Don't pet them. Don't hurt them. Leave them alone. Also watch out for snakes, esp in buildings with a lot of concrete or gravel.

Don't wear iconic or identifying clothing. Don't worry about looking nice. Don't wear shit you like because it WILL get torn, stained, and trashed.

Just… never assume you're alone.

Feel free to reblog with other tips.

[lore-gore]

For @notsosmallbean I have a cringe Ride The Cyclone x Nerdy Prudes Must Die Fic, set in the timeline where Karnak failed, featuring Jane being The Lords in Black blorbo, transgirl Ricky, a bit of perfectdolls, and Constance getting the revenge she deserves. Enjoy and happy holidays!

The choir gathered around the book.

Constance began. "We invoke the names... "

The choir followed. "Pokotho. Bliklotep."

They paused as whispers answered back.

"Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim. Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim."

They continued. "T'noy Karaxis."

The book began to glow and change colors.

"Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim..."

"Nibblenephim."

"Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim. Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim. Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath, Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath."

"Wiggog Wiggog Y'wrath."

"Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim. Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath, Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath. Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim. Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath, Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath. Pokotho, Bliklotep, T'noy Karaxis, Nibblenephim. Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath, Wiggog, Wiggog Y'wrath."

Savannah spoke up. "Did it work?"

Suddenly a voice boomed out. "Hello friendy-wends."

Giggles surrounded them as several figures appeared. They began to sing.

"Out of the depths of Hell and back,

Us spawn of the black and white,

Cover our souls with robes of black,

And take up the arms of night,

Nibbly wants his sacrifice,

And Wiggly wants his wrath,

We dance around the pentagram,

And take all our kingdoms back"

"Babble the spell that gets it done,

Babble it on command,

Won't stop until all the blood is drawn,

The Lords in Black demand,"

"You summon us once,

You summon us twice,

You gamble it all on the roll of a dice"

"La-la-la-la la

La-la-la-la"

"The devil has won,

It can't be undone,

The book has all but closed on your life"

"The Lords in Black, ah!

The Lords in Black, ah!"

"Ah, Jane Doe, we finally meet." Said the green one. He had green hair and green eyes and wore a green cardigan with some black dots here and there and a big W on the left side and some white stripes on the left sleeve over a shiny green suit with a striped beige tie, chartreuse converses, and a gold plastic crown with fake jewels.

"She looks even cuter in person!" Said the purple one. He had long curled orange and yellow hair and wore a purple hoodie with a pink furry patch on the stomach over shiny purple leggings, shiny purple platform lace-up boots, purple tinted sunglasses with bedazzled lavender frames, and purple lipstick.

"I just want to eat her up!" Said the pink one. He had long curled hot pink hair in pigtails and wore a hot pink skirt with suspenders over a light pink shirt, light pink furry sleeve warmers, hot pink fingerless gloves, sparkly pink knee high socks with white stripes on the top, pink platform boots with pink hearts on the buckles, a light pink bedazzled visor that shadowed his eyes, and hot pink lipstick. He held a giant pink lollipop.

"Can we keep her?!? Can we?!?" Said the yellow one. He had wild yellow hair with orange goggles on top and wore an orange shirt, a yellow jacket with yellow fur around the collar, yellow cargo pants, and yellow boots with orange laces. He held a strange box.

"She's quite... Entertaining." Said the blue one. He had blue goo dripping down his face and wore a blue beret, an aqua shirt, a sparkly indigo jacket with blue fur on the collar and cuffs, blue pants, and blue shoes. He held a dirty and cracked white mask with big eyes and a mouth set in a permanent 'o'.

Ocean put her arm protectively in front of Jane.

"Are you- The Lords in Black?" Asked Constance.

They began to chant again.

"Out of the depths of hell and back,

We've traveled very far,

Cover our souls in robes of black,

The Lords in Black we are"

The green one, who seemed to be "Wiggly", spoke again. "Don't be so formal Connie. We're all pally-wals here. I mean look at us. We even hold court in your own tongue and form! Go Uranium!"

The rest of the Lords laughed at this.

"Our true forms would melt your minds." The blue one added.

"Don't frighten them, Pokey, you nasty boy!" Wiggly responded.

"We need the carnie brought to us. We heard- You could help us."

"The Lords in Black will help you yes,

You stupid silly girl,

Why help you with the Carnieman,

When we could help the world"

"Hmm we could. We could lure him here. But why?" Said Wiggly.

"We want... To kill him." Said Constance. She clenched her fist, rage bubbling.

"I want to see that!" Said the purple one.

"We'll give you whatever you want!" Said Constance.

"Whatever we want?" Said Wiggly.

"Whatever we want we want,

Whatever we want we get,

Whatever you want you want you want,

Forever in our debt"

"So. What do you want from us?"

"Nothing you aren't already giving us, Constance." Said Wiggly, smiling.

"What does that mean-" Said Constance, but by then they were already exiting.

"The Lords in Black,

The Lords in Black call us"

"Out of the depths of Hell and back,

Us spawn of the black and white,

Cover our souls with robes of black,

And take up the arms of night,

You summon us once,

You summon us twice,

You gamble it all on the roll of a dice!"

"La-la-la-la la,

La-la-la-la"

"The devil has won,

It can't be undone,

The book has all but closed on your life"

"The Lords in Black, ah!

The Lords in Black, ah!"

They laughed, disappearing, leaving them alone once again in the abandoned fair.

@rtc-secret-santa-event

[whimsy-will]

NAME: William Winnie Willoughby NICKNAMES: Will, Willy, Winnie AGE: Late twenties BIRTHDAY: April 1st GENDER: Chaotic Demiboy / Genderfluid PRONOUNS: He/him it/its - sometimes she/her xe/xer PASSIONS: Reanimation, mad science (mad biology), mycology, candy experimentations, grave digging, electronic music

EYES: Black HAIR: Dyed black with bright pink highlights, long enough to fully cover his eyes, obviously self trimmed and very messy HEIGHT: 5'7 FACIAL HAIR: Only when he forgets to shave it CLOTHES: Dirty lab coat, long sleeved striped shirt, black band t-shirts, ratty jeans, gloves, boots ACCESSORIES: Earrings, septum piercing, giant goggles, sometimes a face mask, black leather choker OTHER: jagged teeth, chipped nail polish, mechanical heart

SEXUALITY: I-licked-it-so-its-mine / pansexual SEX: AMAB MORALS: Sometimes ALIGNMENT: Chaotic good / Chaotic neutral RELIGION: Skittology

[thegrimoiresvoice]

(I FINALLY posted something for my Mortal Kombat AU! If anyone is interested in designing the kast or if they're just interested, my DMs are open. Enjoy!)

HEROES OF THE WU SHI ACADEMY

Raiden, the Eternal Storm (Liam O'Brien) Species: Demi-God (Thunder) Hair: Electric silverish blue, long Kasual Outfit: White dress shirt, grey dress jacket, black dress pants, white boots Kombat Outfit: White long-sleeved robes, electric blue long coat, gray hiking boots, silver metal gauntlets, gray metal hat with engravings Weapons: Staff, amulet Arcana: Thunderstruck (electric flight, projectiles and telekinesis)

Kuai Liang Oniro/Scorpion, the Ashen Hope (Cody Christian) Species: Human Hair: Dark crimson, top knot ponytail Kasual Outfit: Yellow sleeveless hoodie, red long-sleeved shirt, black jeans, black boots Kombat Outfit: Yellow, red, and black Lin Kuei garbs, black Lin Kuei boots gray arm wrappings, yellow metal mask Weapons: Kunai on a rope, kusarigama Arcana: Smolder (pyromantic teleportation and projection)

Bi-Han Oniro/Sub-Zero, the Frost Sentinel (Roger Craig Smith) Species: Human Hair: Silverish blue, messy Kasual Outfit: Dark blue jacket, gray wicking shirt, black bulky pants, hiking boots Kombat Outfit: Dark blue, silver, and black Lin Kuei garbs, dark silver gauntlets, dark blue Lin Kuei boots, black and blue ceremonial cloak, grayish blue metal mask Weapons: Broadsword, ice weapons Arcana: Shiver (cryomantic projection and creation of weapons)

Tomas Oniro/Smoke, the Silver Eclipse (Benjamin Diskin) Species: Human Hair: Gray, shoulder length Kasual Outfit: Gray hoodie, black leather vest, silver dress pants, black sneakers, fingerless gloves Kombat Outfit: Gray and silver Lin Kuei garbs, black Lin Kuei boots, black gauntlets, black gas mask Weapons: Karambit knives, grenades Arcana: Shroud (smoke clouds emanate from his body, allowing him to disappear)

Syzoth/Reptile, the Venomous Outcast (Todd Haberkorn) Species: Zaterran Hair: Dyed green, shaved on one side, long on the other (VISAGE FORM)/Dull yellow, dreadlocks-like scales (TRUE FORM) Kasual Outfit: Dark green hoodie, sunglasses, stitched khakis, dirty sneakers. Kombat Outfit: Black trench coat, green hoodie, hiking boots, stitched-up jeans, green mask, goggles (modified to Zaterran war robes in True Form) Weapons: Zaterran hatchets, acidic saliva, sharp teeth, and claws Arcana: Vanish (straight-up invisibility in both forms)

Empress Mileena, the Thorned Rose (Erica Mendez) Species: Tarkatan (Formerly Edenian) Hair: Raven, wild ponytail Kasual Outfit: Maroon long-sleeved shirt, silver tank top (red Halestorm logo), maroon sweatpants, high-heeled boots Kombat Outfit: Fuchsia and copper Edenian armor, fuchsia vented mask with metallic clamps, arm guards, bladed high-heeled boots Weapons: Sais, Tarkatan blades Arcana: Blink (teleportation)

Princess Kitana, the Quickwinded Blade (Britt Baron) Species: Edenian Hair: Dark silver, long and flowy Kasual Outfit: Dark blue shirt, black jacket, gray pants, high-heeled boots, blue mask Kombat Outfit: Blue, black, and silver Edenian armor, metal surrounded gloves, high-heeled boots, blue and silver mask Weapons: Bladed fans Arcana: Tempest (hurricane-force winds when spinning)

Countess Jade, the Sage Assassin (Kelly Hu) Species: Edenian Hair: Brunette, twin tails Kasual Outfit: Brown short-sleeved shirt, green hoodie, green skirt, knee-high boots, Kombat: Green and brown Edenian armor, brass gauntlets, silver cloak, metallic boots, green mask Weapons: Dual-bladed staff, throwing glaive Arcana: Passwall (projectiles can pass right through her if she concentrates)

Tanya, the Guiding Hand (Cree Summer) Species: Edenian Hair: Black, twin buns Kasual Outfit: Black and gold leather jacket, black jeans, gray sneakers Kombat Outfit: Gold and black Edenian armor, ceremonial robes, helmet Weapons: Naginata, Tonfa blades Arcana: None

Liu Kang, the Rising Champion (Johnny Yong Bosch) Species: Human Hair: Black, spikey Kasual Outfit: Red jacket, white undershirt, blue pants, silver dress shoes, red headband Kombat Outfit: Black leather jacket, white garbs, baggy black pants, arm wrappings Weapons: Nunchuck staff Arcana: Ignite (fireballs, fire kicks, and summoning a fucking dragon)

Kung Lao, the Shaolin Cyclone (Greg Cipes) Species: Human Hair: Brown, small ponytail Kasual Outfit: Brown long-sleeved shirt, blue vest, stitched jeans, knee-high boots Kombat Outfit: Black and red armored vest, black armored gauntlets, brown pants, knee-high boots Weapons: Chakram fedora Arcana: Tele-Nado (spinning teleportation)

Kenshi Takahashi, the Psychic Scarlet Saber (Yuri Lowenthal) Species: Human Hair: Black, short Kasual Outfit: Black blazer, red undershirt, silver dress pants, dress shoes, black sunglasses Kombat Outfit: Black undershirt, red armored overcoat, black dress pants, dress shoes, blindfold Weapons: Sento (ancestral katana, also helps him see without eyes) Arcana: None

Johnny Cage, the Narcissistic Nutcracker (Sam Riegel) Species: Human Hair: Dirty blonde, short and messy Kasual Outfit: Dark blue blazer, dark green vest, jeans, black sneakers, tinted green sunglasses Kombat Outfit: Kevlar vest, baggy blue hoodie, padded pants, combat boots, sleeveless gloves, tinted green sunglasses Weapons: None Arcana: Showman (bright green, grayish silver, or dark red shadowy aura that enhances his abilities depending on his mood)

Sonya Blade, Semper-fi Do or Die (Ashley Johnson) Species: Human Hair: Blonde, braided ponytail Kasual Outfit: Black long-sleeved undershirt, desert camo pants, dark green vest, grenade sachel, military cap, combat boots Kombat Outfit: Dark blue futuristic stealth armor, armored hiking boots, military cap, grenade bandolier Weapons: Handgun, grenades, wrist laser projectors, combat knife Arcana: Perfume (toxic violet gas that can also cause horrific burns)

Kurtis Stryker, the Riot Guardsman (Matthew Mercer) Species: Human Hair: Dirty blonde mullet, stubble Kasual Outfit: Black jacket, blue undershirt, black cargo pants, combat boots, fingerless gloves, police cap, sunglasses Kombat Outfit: Black and blue futuristic riot armor, tactical visor, noise-cancelling boots Weapons: Nightsticks, handgun, taser, grenades Arcana: Sentinel (surrounds him in a red, bulletproof aura)

Kabal Ramirez, the Speedy Redeemer (Nolan North) Species: Human Species: Black, messy Kasual Outfit: Beige coat, green vest, stiched-up khakis, hiking boots, arm guards, hidden respirators, metal mask Kombat Outfit: Armored long coat and vest, lightweight armored boots, spiked knuckle gauntlets, hidden respirators, metal mask Weapons: Hookswords, throwing saw, flashbangs Arcana: Roadburn (super speed)

Zeffeero/Rain, the Flood of Ambition (J. Michael Tatum) Species: Edenian Hair: Dark purple, long Kasual Outfit: Purple work jacket, yellow dress shirt, dark indigo pants, black dress shoes Kombat Outfit: Purple mage's cloak and robes, purple mask Weapons: Katar, scepter (doubles as a bo staff) Arcana: Monsoon (hydromantic teleportation and projection, mild electrokinesis)

VILLAINS OF THE GREAT LEGION

Shao Kahn, the Legacy of Onaga (Kevin Michael Richardson) Species: Drakespawn Hair: Bald (but he has draconic horns and scales) Kasual Outfit: Dark red business suit, gold undershirt, black dress pants, crimson knee-high boots, Kombat Outfit: Red and black Drakespawn armor, shoulder cape, skull helmet Weapons: Hellbringer (Axe/Hammer), spears Arcana: Dominance (ego-driven reddish black aura strengthens him)

Shang Tsung, the Damnation Dealer (Steve Blum) Species: Edenian Hair: Black, long Kasual Outfit: Yellowish green undershirt, black coat, gray jeans, dress shoes Kombat Outfit: Yellow robes, black armored segments, black boots Weapons: Tekko-kagi claws Arcana: Souleater (literally steals souls to fuel his power, allowing him to assume their forms and powers)

Sullivan Kano, the Hand of the Black Dragon (Hugh Jackman) Species: Human Hair: Black, messy and ratty goatee Kasual Outfit: Black vest, cargo pants, combat boots, bandolier Kombat Outfit: Red and black armored vest, arm wrappings, combat boots with hidden knives Weapons: Cyber eye (shoots lasers), big knives, throwing blades, pulse grenades Arcana: None

Zheng Sektor, the Cybernetic Cinder (Matt Lanter) Species: Cyber (Formerly Human) Hair: Dark red, ponytail Outfit: Dark blue undershirt, red leather jacket, padded dark red pants, combat boots, blue-tinted goggles/red helmet (retractable) Weapons: Flamethrower gauntlets, explosive missile darts, red pulse blades Arcana: None

Goro, the Fists of Blazing Rage (Fred Tatasciore) Species: Shokan Hair: Black, ponytail Kasual Outfit, Black jeans, red Shokan royal robes Kombat Outfit: Black and red Shokan armor Weapons: None Arcana: None

Skarlet, the Blood Bathed Berserker (Cherami Leigh) Species: Drakespawn/Edenian Hair: Red, shoulder length, spikey Kasual Outfit: Black jacket, red undershirt, silver jeans, black boots Kombat Outfit: Black and red leather armor, goggles, red metal mask in the style of Outworld surgeons Weapons: Large scalpel, blood weapons Arcana: Clotted (blood magic through projection and creation of solid blood weapons)

Baraka, the Diseased Shredder (Scott McNeil) Species: Tarkatan (Formerly Edenian) Hair: Bald (but covered in bone-like, sometimes metallic spikes) Kasual Outfit: White short-sleeved shirt, brown jacket, black stitched-up jeans Kombat Outfit: Silverish blue armor, Asgarth Tarkatan banner wrapped around torso, dark red armored pants Weapons: Tarkatan blades Arcana: Fortitude (enhanced regeneration, not hampered by Tarkat)

Roman Valerian/Tremor, the Sandman's Quake (David Sobolov) Species: Human Hair: Silverish brown (with stone-like cracks in his skin) Kasual Outfit: Beige cloak, dark green undershirt, bulky black pants, golden medallions, hiking boots Kombat Outfit: Hooded brown armor, anti-dust mask, combat boots Weapons: Hammers, battle axe, occasionally carries a shotgun Arcana: Terra (seismic waves, crystal growths, rock generation, and lava spurts)

Reiko, the Scrappy General (Gregg Abbey) Species: Drakespawn/Edenian Hair: Silver and black, Mohawk/ponytail Kasual Outfit: Red Great Leigon sports jacket, black jeans, combat boots Kombat Outfit: Red and silver spiked armor, red gauntlets, skull medallion, armored pants, combat boots Weapons: Warhammer, knife, spear, throwing stars Arcana: Shade-Rage (red aura increases strength when angered)

OTHER STUFF

Arcanas are like Semblances from RWBY, being powers connected to the user's soul. Some have them, others don't.

Shao Kahn is the son of Onaga (who is incredibly proud of his son's work), and the father of Skarlet and Reiko (who constantly fight over his approval.

Hanzo Hasashi WILL appear, but not as Scorpion, obviously, but also not as a young child either.

[apollo-gate]

Hello author! How do the ROs normally dress up? Can you share pictures of what they wear? It's okay if you don't, so don't worry! Just that a visual help sometimes help me better understand how you want your characters to look like!

I can do that. (No pictures sorry.)

if you want their alias gear ask that in a separate ask ill do it. And if you want jewelry I can do that too.

Here is what they wear. This is what I visualize when I write them in a normal setting. Not in battle or when they are at their job.

Alice tends to wear tans and greys colors. She likes to wear a trenchcoat over her clothes. Now her clothes are more combat suited. Like combat boots and cargo paints. Her shirts will be plain normal shirts. Alice likes to blend in. Be forgettable.

Helena wears black and white colors. Her overall style is athletic wear. So sneakers (high tops). She likes the freedom of movement. So leggings and an athletic skirt. (Sometimes together sometimes separately.) Her tops can vary from crop tops to the occasional baggy shirt. She also loves to wear a flat-brim baseball hat. Her clothes are the latest in fashion and stand out.

Lisa wears primarily white with red as the accent color. As Lisa is in her wolf form she wears a jumpsuit that can change when she changes. But when she is in her human form she likes to wear a more casual look. So long sleeve shirts and dark jeans with a variety of boots to shoes. Her clothes are quite plain but she wears them well.

Becca wears white with pink. (The pink is very light) When not at school she wears business casual. So button up shirts and blouses in dress pants or skirts. She wears stilettos and dress shoes. (Prefers the heels.) Wears a glove on her right hand it is a black leather glove.

Daniella wears shades of blue. The style is a mix so ill just say what it is. Wears a blouse or frilly tops with a cropped jacket. And wears jeans to a cute skirt. sneakers to wedges.

Vanessa wears black and gold. She wears sundresses and athletic wear (tank tops and running pants. She wears flip-flops and ankle-strap heels. The sneakers would be converses when she works out. Always has sunglasses. (Either on or on top of the head.)

Azalea wears mint green with black. Azalea's outfit is a leather and mesh ensemble. Where their upper chest is it is mesh so visible. On their lower half, they have a metal claw-like cage that is similar to a corset. Their legs have slits where the skin is visible. This is on her upper thigh and calf. Their arms are exposed from Their elbows down. Azalea does not wear shoes as their scales protect their feet. (Don't worry they are not hard. Quite smooth) Wears are gem-covered vail changes daily as that shows her wealth to the Thrallenas.

Kent wears all black. Wears a full suit. No tie. Outside, he will wear the same outfit without the suit coat with his sleeves rolled up. Also wears a full respirator mask but can have a variant where his eyes are visible. Sheos will be from sneakers to dress shoes.

Naamah wears all reds and black. Wears revealing dresses made from silk where her Midriffis is exposed and her legs are also exposed. Wears flats but prefers not as she likes to feel the ground on her feet. If she wore other clothes it would be Crop tops and skinny jeans.

Blaze wears greens and blacks. Wears hoodies and jeans and also wears tank tops and short sleeve shirts. Always wears his running shoes. Has a half mask to cover his face.

Zero: Wears a yellow-gold and black shock-resistant jumpsuit. He has his entire body covered beside his face. Has a pair of goggles around his neck. His hands are covered by a very tight pair of gloves that give the illusion of cybernetics.

[zonerobotnik]

King Trevor visits Corona a few years after the show.

Rapunzel and Eugene guide him through the castle.

Trevor: "Now, this has been a delightful visit, but I feel like you are hiding something from me, Rapunzel."

Rapunzel: "What do you mean?"

Trevor: "I mean that famous royal engineer of yours that everyone is talking about. Won't I see him?"

Eugene: "Uhm, that's not a good idea, he really doesn't like being disturbed and-"

Trevor: "What do you care about 'disturbing' him? Aren't you the king or is he?"

Rapunzel: "It's alright, I'm sure he won't mind. He's a giant teddy bear, don't worry."

Cut to the three of them standing outside an iron door.

Rapunzel: "So, he will come out sooner or later, we just to-"

Trevor: "Oh for heaven's sake! Are you the rulers over this kingdom or not?!"

Trevor knocks loudly on the door.

Eugene: "Oh no."

A loud explosion is heard that rattles everything around and nearly knocks Trevor over while Raps and Eugene hold onto each other.

Trevor: "What the devil…"

Heavy footsteps are heard and the door swings open, a cloud of smoke filling the area.

The Royal Engineer: "WHAT!"

Trevor starts to tremble when he sees the guy he wanted to meet.

Appearing out of the smoke is a musclebound, scarred man with black and blue hair, wearing sooty goggles and who stands over a yard taller than the king.

Rapunzel: "May I introduce, Corona's royal engineer, Varian."

Trevor shakes even more when Varian takes if his goggles and stares him down with burning, icy blue eyes.

Rapunzel: "I told you he's a teddy bear, but a teddy bear is still a bear I guess."

Over three feet taller than King Trevor?

No.

Also, why the hell is he covered in scars that are visible to King Trevor? Varian always wears long sleeves and gloves while working, as he should, and the only place that he'd have visible scars would be on his face, which he would definitely take steps to NOT get scarred up or damaged. Hence why he wears the goggles and welding mask while working.

Other than those issues, yeah, I could totally see this happening, especially if he's working on a big, delicate project and King Poofy-Pants just made it go up in smoke and he has to start all over.

[dukeoftheblackstar]

@fresh-orange-whispers I have waited so long to fuss over this properly, so allow me to just— Sigh.

There's so much happening here that the first time I saw this, I screamed and I, kid you not, wept because of how it just keeps getting better and better to the point that I have been emotional over it.

I'm going through something heavy and Plo has always been my comfort character for years. The amount of I love for him surpases all blorbos and perhaps people irl, delulu as that sounds. So let me just take this opportunity to genuinely thank you for blessing this world for some god-tier art of Plo Koon because this is serving so much cunt ♥.

Without furher delay...

There was a time I talked so much about Plo's boots and this is just pure, unadulterated eyecandy for me. From the strokes for the bend, the shade on the length of the boot, and the lones on the sole is just magnificent ;----; You now the man takes care of his things but it's still susceptible to wear and tear. And I like how it doesn't give off pure leather vibes, but something of a different material altogether.

At this point, it may just be the whore for hands in me, but genuinely speaking this is scrumptous AF.

The consistence of hiw long and thick his fingers are, paired with the knuckles bending NOT at a weird angle, plus the detail on the talons do it for me. I love that in this hold, you have the armor on the middle finger complete hidden, which means the way he has his hold on the hilt is secured and paints the mood of the overall pose.

The gloves, the elevated partion of the back of the hand panel (part of the vambrace) is thick enough to really give a shout of it being a functional armor is bless.

I'm also super pleased because you kept to his actual lightsaber hilt design and I would really just want him to ram that shit inside me — I mean, it's great, babe. SUPER GREAT.

I apologize for the pixels on here because I zoom tf in on some shit because details be crayyyyy.

I just want to suckon his fingers and chok— I mean, that vambrace deet is divine! It's different from the actual design but I gotta hand it to you, I actually like this more. I would love to get a better angle on the Wolfpack crest though, if you don't mind me saying ♥.

The scratch accent on it, idk if i's intentional, but it's such a cute, little treat that I would fight him to not buff it because wear and tear is gawjuuus, baby ♥.

I wish I can zoom in more for this post, but it will pixel it so much.

Much love for still not neglecting design. I see the mesh on the goggles, I see that dotted alignment or something in the middle, I see the thin curves tracing his mask and the "bolts and screw" happening that connects the tendril and the tusk ♥ The length of the stannic tusks compartment is still just right ♥.

AND NOW FABRICSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

You just elebate robe and fabric game so much and this is so ASMR-for me ;//////////////;

And for the third, ugh! Everything about it makes me just want to just

I mean just look at how soft and sexy he is here ;///////////////;

His clavicles are just completely destroying me right now. And I thank you for keeping him lean and not overly buff or square shaped, because he's got that nice curves happening and this old man can just yeet me into the sun and I won't eve be mad about it ;---;

And that off-shoudler plus bicep-up sleeve or glove? SINFUL. Absolutelu SINFUL. I need to see his hands tho ;---------;

Plo in a sexy body suit? BLESS.

My favorite thing to do: Spam husbands' tags.

[clipped-n-buzzed]

Prompt Three: Petplay

“Has anyone seen Buzz?”

“Mic has him.” 

“Oh lord. So we may never see him again, huh?” 

“On the contrary.” Mic appeared around the corner, a leather leash in hand, Buzz on all fours beside him. Buzz seemed calmer than usual, wearing his typical long-sleeved shirt and criminally small shorts, this time accompanied by blue and purple swirled leggings, heavy duty knee pads, thick gloves, and a black and blue leather puppy mask. “Today, Buzz is learning a lesson in restraint. He’s been a bad dog recently and I won’t stand for it.” 

At Mic’s words, Buzz shrunk, whimpering and whining softly. He sat, staring up at the rest of the crew with wide eyes unburdened by glasses or goggles. Without the lenses, they could all see the telltale signs of Buzz’s cybereye, a slightly off shade of brown from the organic one. 

“Don’t let him fool you,” Mic said, tugging on Buzz’s leash, pulling on the neat leather collar Buzz wore. “He’s been nothing but naughty all day.” 

“Can I pet him?” Fleabite asked, crouching down to Buzz’s level and reaching a hand out, treating Buzz exactly like a dog. Buzz, however, instead of doing his usual bratty song and dance, gave Fleabite a few hesitant sniffs, nuzzling his snout into Fleabite’s palm before yipping eagerly and darting forward to hopefully gain more of Fleabite’s attention. Fleabite laughed, scratching Buzz behind the soft fur ears at the edge of the mask. “Aw, he’s so cute! Such a good boy. Don’t listen to mean ol’ Micarta, you’re a good boy.”

Buzz preened under the praise, nosing into Fleabite’s jacket. 

“Hey, no,” Mic scolded, and Buzz whined unhappily as he was pulled away from Fleabite. “No. No, we’re not doing that.” 

“He probably smells this,” Fleabite said, digging a small bag of jerky out of one of their inner jacket pockets. “Can I give him some?” 

Mic sighed. “Go ahead,” he said, and Fleabite happily opened the bag, feeding Buzz a few bites of jerky. 

“Man, he really fucking likes you,” Moth noticed. “Mic, is the dog neutered?” 

“Sure,” Mic said with a shrug. “He’ll mount anything that moves if he’s in the mood. Dumb mutt.” 

From behind them, Prophet grinned, coming around and crouching in front of Buzz, taking Buzz’s face into his hands. “Does the dumb mutt wanna fuck?” They asked in a faux-cheery voice. “Does the dumb mutt wanna mount Fleabite and put a litter in xyr tummy?” 

“Whoa! Hey wait a second!” Fleabite shouted, reeling back and staring at Prophet. “You can’t-“ 

“I just did,” Prophet said, using their commanding Dom tone, causing Fleabite to shrink back. “Go on. You know you want to.” 

Reluctantly, Fleabite sighed, staring at the ground. “I hate you,” xe grumbled, stripping off their shirt and staring at Buzz, who was happily watching, panting eagerly. “How’s he gonna do this?” 

“Just like a real dog,” Mic said cryptically, helping Buzz out of his shorts, revealing Buzz’s soaked cock and a cheerfully curling tail plug in the same jet black as Buzz’s hair. “Just crouch down. Although I will warn you, he bites,” Mic added with a knowing grin.

Fleabite shivered, already fuzzy with arousal at those two dangerous words as xe slowly got onto hands and knees, Buzz cocking his head and looking up at Mic. 

“Yes, go ahead,” Mic said to Buzz. “And don’t hold back.” 

Instantly, Buzz complied, crawling over and onto Fleabite. Without an actual cock, Buzz couldn’t penetrate Fleabite, but he did his best, panting heavily right into Fleabite’s ear as he, with some guidance from Mic’s grip on the leash, mounted on top of Fleabite. 

“Fuck,” Fleabite whimpered, knees buckling slightly as Buzz began to desperately hump Fleabite’s body, jaw locking around Fleabite’s shoulder and chomping down, teeth digging sharply into Fleabite’s flesh. There would definitely be marks tomorrow, if not bruises. But Fleabite just took the abuse, shifting as Buzz repositioned his teeth every so often, biting down with enough force that by the time Buzz let go, whimpering and panting as he came with a shudder, Fleabite’s skin was painted in sweaty streaks of blood, softly dripping down xyr shoulder as xe sat back, watching Mic lead Buzz away. Buzz seemed satisfied, cum dripping down his inner thighs, but Fleabite was left wanting, sitting up and falling onto their ass instantly. 

“Now wasn’t that entertaining?” Prophet asked rhetorically, helping Fleabite up off the ground and chuckling as Fleabite shifted on their feet. “Poor thing, still all desperate to cum, aren’t you? C’mon, let’s get you fixed up now.”