#I was this close to opening another askblog with him | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

creatorofuniverses · 2 years ago

Text

Stolen Hunt – Predator and Prey

Since I started posting this story here on tumblr for Gt July, I figured I’d post a continuation of it here as well now that I’ve written some more! I’m also considering making an askblog for it though, since once I’ve got the premise solid I’ll probably just be scribbling non-chronological little scenes for them... thoughts? Let me know!

Continued from this post.

_________________________

“What-” Rowan started to ask, only to fall to his knees with a muffled curse as Ember took a single step and the entire vest pocket he was in swayed like a branch in a thunderstorm. He struggled to his feet again – a near-Herculean effort given that she hadn’t stopped walking – and pushed the flap of the pocket out of his way once more. Only then did he try to voice his question. “What are you hunting?” he called up to her, feeling like her face was incredibly far up there given that he was only at her hip.

She shrugged, making him grip the edge of the pocket in white knuckles as he was jolted along with the motion, and replied, “Anything that makes for good eating. Rabbits, racoons, deer, bigger birds. Thought I might catch some smaller critter in that trap I found you in, but looks like I’ll be using the bow for the rest of the evening.”

Rowan frowned critically, mostly to cover up his uneasiness at the reminder that she had been looking for things to eat in the net he was so recently trapped in. There was also, however, his uncertainty about many of the creatures she named. He was fairly sure he’d heard of them before, though aside from the birds he couldn’t say he’d ever actually seen any. People in Arturium sometimes talked about the summer a rabbit tried to burrow under the eastern wall of the city, but that was well before his time.

He opened his mouth and gathered his courage to ask another question. “What-”

“Shh!” She tensed and dropped to a half-crouch, sending him straight to the bottom of the pocket in a sprawl. He clambered back to his feet, his arms a bit shaky, and looked up at her. Ember’s face was tense, creased with concentration at her eyes and mouth, and she didn’t even spare him a glance. Instead her bow was raised, arrow nocked and ready as she stalked forward. Her huge feet were still nearly silent in the undergrowth, her body coiled like a spring.

Slowly and quietly, Rowan sank back down into the pocket. His heart was hammering, his palms a bit sweaty with nerves he was entirely unused to; it seemed readily apparent that interrupting her right now would be a bad idea indeed.

His pocket swayed slightly with Ember’s even footsteps. The motion was almost entirely foreign- he could only compare it to one experience, many years ago, when he’d teamed up with another thief. She’d rigged up some sort of harness for high-altitude entry, and the sensation of swinging feet above the ground was replicated here. But at least then he had only been worried about some well-meaning citizen spotting him and reporting him; now, his concerns were quite literally bigger than that.

Time passed- how much, Rowan couldn’t be sure. What little light made it through the thick, sturdy fabric of Ember’s dress faded entirely. The only sounds without were her shockingly quiet footsteps and the rustle of the wind through the leaves.

Then, a quick inhale, and the sharp thwip! of the bow. There was some louder rustling as Ember rushed forward, Rowan scrabbling for something to cling too and finding nothing as he was jostled about. He felt a little green, suddenly aware of the large difference between moving quickly on his own and being moved without any control whatsoever. When all the motion stopped, he took in a deep, shuddering breath and pushed down the nausea, shakily getting to a stand so that he could see what happened.

His blue eyes widened at the sight. Ember knelt over a fallen creature, a huge, four-legged thing with antlers. From his position he was nearly close enough to the thing to touch it, though his hands gripped the edge of the pocket tightly instead. Its large ears flicked, its chest heaving in distress- there was an arrow sticking out of it, buried nearly to the fletching. Ember moved her hands, one holding down the creature’s head and the other holding a knife.

“Thank you,” she murmured, before slicing its throat in a quick, efficient motion.

Rowan winced and jerked away from the sight, eyes pinched shut, as the metallic scent of blood filled the air. He swallowed, but it sat, cloying, at the back of his own throat all the same. He realized belatedly that he was shuddering all over.

He was no stranger to violence, but neither was he used to death like this, so close and bloody. The giant had ended the creature’s life so easily- without heat or malic, as a simple job. She could end his even more easily, his brain helpfully reminded him. She wouldn’t even need to use the knife, though the weapon could split him in half without issue. He could be on the other end of this macabre ritual; and he would be powerless to stop it.

When he spoke up his voice was much less steady than he needed it to be. “Why did you thank it?” he asked. He looked up at Ember only until she turned her brown eyes down at him, unbothered by what she had just done, and he had to look away.

“This deer gave up its life so that others might live,” she replied, her tone even and steady, untouched by the swirl of emotions Rowan still felt. “Willing or not, that is an action worthy of gratitude.” He just nodded, not trusting himself to speak without feeling more nauseous. It made sense, in a weird, morbid sort of way. Maybe it was normal for giant hunters who routinely slayed huge forest creatures; but he could still smell the blood now pooling in the grass, practically taste it, and it was so far from his own normal as to be sickening.

As she began to field dress the deer, slicing it open to remove its entrails, Rowan very nearly threw up. He hastily looked away, trying to ignore the distressing sounds coming from that direction. He couldn’t possibly overstate how much he didn’t want to be there anymore.

After a while, but not nearly soon enough, Ember cleaned her blade and sheathed it at her hip. Her hand lingered there for a moment before moving the few inches to where Rowan stood, making him flinch away as her index finger brushed up against his shoulder. “You’re shaking,” she noted, more confused than concerned.

He glared up at her. She was right, of course, and that was why he was glaring. “Well it’s not every day you see something get killed and gutted right in front of you,” he snapped. “I could swim in all the blood coming from that thing.” Regret for blurting out that statement hit him instantly and a larger shudder shook his shoulders.

Ember’s hand moved away and she leaned down, making him sway. Her arms reached around the deer, hefting it up over one shoulder, and her reply to him was almost an afterthought. “Death and blood are part of nature, part of the cycle of predator and prey,” she gruffly replied. “I would think something as low on the food chain as you would know that already.”

Rowan’s blood froze. He swallowed thickly, before sliding down to the bottom of the pocket and drawing his trembling legs up into a shaky half-curl. Going unnoticed for a while suddenly sounded like the best possible action.

Maybe she was right again. This wasn’t the city, this was the wild, where anything could try to kill, maim, or eat him. His life could be ended as easily as the deer’s. Nature didn’t give a single flying fuck about the valuables in his pack or who he might have been back in civilization.

That was something to think about.

#seriously tho let me know if anybody would be interested in an askblog of this story #i think it would be fun #stolen hunt #g/t

11 notes · View notes

if-the-crown-fits-translate-it · 4 years ago

Text

Discord pt 2

[boo: “ohhhhh okay they ARE an askblog now /hj"]

“Only while Crown is unavailable. When he returns, Baron and I will step back and the askbox will close :)”

[[Redacted]: “Does he know that you have it open lmao?”]

“Of course. We spoke earlier today about it. I wouldn't do something like this without his permission.“

[[Redacted]: “Then why do you have to close it when he comes back?“]

“Crown would prefer not to answer asks and direct messages himself. It's nothing against any of you, of course. It's just a matter of him feeling he may not be able to reach all of you if things grow big enough, so he'd prefer to entrust the job to Baron and I.”

[fetch: “Is Baron going to talk to us through here? Or will it be just you?”]

“Just me. Baron wishes to remain solely on the blog.”

[NoobsomeExagerjunk: “Howdy! Would the time come wherein Crown will need more than just you and Baron?”]

“Perhaps. Crown will likely choose another person he is close to, but for now myself and Baron should suffice.”

[fetch: “Just for the sake of being polite,, What are Baron's pronouns?”]

“He/him :)“

“I should get going. It was good speaking with you all :) Have to keep an eye on Crown's blog for now, but I’ll try to return soon, okay?”

“Crown has asked me to inform you that there were a couple mistakes on the document, and that he's fixed them :)“

[The document is a google docs file we use to compile all information about the blog. He merely corrected some information/translations.]

[Prince sent more messages, but for brevity only more relevant ones are going to be compiled from now on!]

#by:prince #on:discord #if the crown fits

31 notes · View notes

valiantly-revenged-askblog · 4 years ago

Text

Mission Complete? | Valiant Heroes

“Well that was intense. Can’t wait to go hom-huh?”

It all happened so fast. A stray Toppat had opened the door to the escape pod and thrown Henry to the floor. Without hesitation, Charles stood and tackled the Toppat, knocking his hat off of his head. He held the Toppat down and looked up. Henry was staring at the two, panic in his eyes, and the Toppat had a firm grip on Henry’s leg. Henry managed to kick himself free, and Charles expected and hoped for him to run back to the escape pod then and there, but he didn’t. He ran and helped Charles up, but the Toppat immediately knocked them back down again. This time Charles was the one being held down

“Henry!” The government pilot screamed. “Go!”

The former thief shook his head wildly. He wasn’t going to leave Charles behind. He had infiltrated the airship of a notorious criminal organization. He had narrowly escaped a high-security prison with his life. He wasn’t going to die here. He wasn’t going to let Charles die here. He ran to help Charles up.

The alarms blared. They were running out of time.

“Henry, please.”

Henry shook his head again. “Not leaving you,” he managed. He pushed the Toppat off of Charles. He quickly got up, grabbed his hat, and ran to the escape pod. The door closed and the pod launched immediately.

They were going to die here.

Shit.

For a few moments, the pilot and the former thief just stared at the empty space where the escape pod had been, dumbfounded.

“Henry, you okay?”

He nodded slowly, but his expression said otherwise.

“Man… That roughed me up.” Charles rubbed his back. “C’mon, there’s gotta be another escape pod around here somewhere.” Even as he said this, it was clear he was losing hope.

The alarms kept blaring.

“...We’re gonna die here, aren’t we?”

Henry sighed.

Charles wrapped his arms around Henry. One last hug. They were running out of time. A nervous smile spread across his face and he closed his eyes.

“Henry, I-”

And then everything was gone.

---

Gonna make this the intro/”prologue” to this askblog bc I had this written up for this AU of mine before I decided to make an askblog, and I don’t feel like making a comic for it all-

#henry stickmin #henry stickmim collection #charles calvin #completing the mission #valiant hero #not an ask

44 notes · View notes

artnerd1123 · 4 years ago

Text

Among Us: CR3WM8TS

Docked and Loaded ——————————————

The ship finally arrives at the newly established Sector G base on a new planet. Hopefully, start of work goes smoothly. Hopefully the logs are functioning well, too...

Among Us archive/askblog Fic chapters post

——————————————

once again i am chopping a chapter in half to keep it from getting too long. anyway!!! more normal crewmate troubles n dorkiness with some ominous vibes for Flavor (tm). hopefully the next part will come out sometime soon! enjoy this for now!

===+===+===

Mission Log 10

Ship Model: SKELD D34-H120 Designation: SUPPLY TRANSPORT, EXPLORATION AND DOCUMENTATION OF SECTOR G PLANETS Crewmate Count: 9 Crewmate Colors: DARK GREEN, WHITE, PURPLE, DARK BLUE, YELLOW, RED, LIME, BLACK, PINK

Location: SECTOR G Ship Status: IN TRANSIT Course: PLANET 326-OCE-894 - SECTOR G Systems:

Navigation: COURSE INLAID / STABLE

Engines: UPPER - ONLINE, TANK 0.86 / LOWER - ONLINE, TANK 0.83 / OUTPUT ALIGNED

Reactor: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

O2: STABLE

Electrical: STABLE

Communications: ONLINE

Shields: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

Weapons: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

Security: CAMERAS ONLINE / ALL FUNCTIONAL

Administration: MAP ONLINE / CONNECTION SECURE / SHIP FILES UP TO DATE / ALL CREW ACCOUNTED FOR

Medbay: EQUIPMENT ONLINE / FUNCTIONAL / CREW FILES UP TO DATE

Supplies: [ONE] CRATES SHORT

Storage Chutes: CLEAR

Vents: CLEAR

Notes: Updates by PINK still taking well to system. Travel into sector G uneventful. Crew bonding time worked into today’s schedule, all crew in attendance for at least an hour. Crew performing normal activities.

===+===+===

Mission Log 15

Location: SECTOR G Ship Status: DOCKED AT [PLANET 326-OCE-894 - SECTOR G] Course: N/A Systems:

Navigation: COURSE REACHED / STABLE

Engines: UPPER - ONLINE, TANK 0.72 / LOWER - ONLINE, TANK 0.68 / OUTPUT ALIGNED

Reactor: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

O2: STABLE

Electrical: STABLE

Communications: ONLINE

Shields: OFFLINE / FUNCTIONING N/A

Weapons: OFFLINE / FUNCTIONING N/A

Security: CAMERAS ONLINE / ALL FUNCTIONAL

Administration: MAP OFFLINE / CONNECTION SECURE / SHIP FILES UPDATING FOR MISSION / ALL CREW ACCOUNTED FOR

Medbay: EQUIPMENT ONLINE / FUNCTIONAL / CREW FILES UP TO DATE

Supplies: [ONE] CRATES SHORT

Storage Chutes: CLEAR

Vents: CLEAR

Notes: [SKELD D34-H120] docked at [PLANET 326-OCE-894 - SECTOR G] successfully. No transport issues to report. All supplies for transport intact and in transfer process to base. Mission files currently integrating to ship system. Crew integrating to mission base to assist in tasks, exploration, and supply dropoff. Weapons and shields offline to align with docking procedures. Course will remain unlaid until HQ supplies further information.

===+===+===

It had been a good long while since Bunbun worked on an exploration ship. She’d been stuck updating supply line SKELDs for awhile, and got bogged down repairing virus bound code in defensive SKELDs for longer. Exploration ships were like little breathers in the middle. It meant she just had to worry about one ship, once all the updates were done. She could sit and watch the stars. Make a friend, if she was lucky. And, on days like these, it meant she’d be helping out with something bigger. Planet 236-OCE-849 was a gorgeous world. A new one, too! Sector G was largely new to HQ. They had high hopes for the planets and inhabitants. This one in particular was the first they’d set up a base on. Crashing waves and strange colorful formations were the source of many rumors across the airwaves. Bun had been unable to see the planet’s surface as they descended, but the views before they made landing preparations were breathtaking. Most of it was enveloped by an ocean. The water bound world was like a painted marble, little bits of vibrant colors poking through. She’d never seen land so vivid. It made her all the more eager to get down to the surface.

The door of the ship opened with a loud hiss of pressurized air. Metal clanked against itself as the two halves pulled themselves apart, the groaning making everything in the vicinity go still. Of course, what happened afterwards was anything but. The gangplank was already lowered, so the cooped up crewmates came scrambling out. Captain Groud was first, their voice echoing back towards the ship as they called for the Mission Lead. Silk trailed after, one of xyr robots hot on xyr heels. Rose and Laser went off as a pair, aiming to tend to any wounded and check how defenses were going. Nanner emerged with supplies already loaded, a couple crewmates from the planet coming to help her transport them where needed. Lemon and Junior were off to check the base’s energy status, the son sticking anxiously close to his father. River, to no one’s surprise, sauntered off the ship to go find somewhere to lounge. Groud said he’d help when they needed him, but from the looks the rest of the crew gave, there was probably a fat chance. That left Bunbun walking down the gangplank last. She was glad now that she’d pulled down her solar visor. The light outside was nearly blinding compared to the ship’s lobby. Around her she could see miles and miles of open sea, the bluish purple waves almost hauntingly familiar. Like an echo of the blue green waters she had back at home… I wonder why the water here is more purple… I bet Rose might know. She only took her eyes off the ocean when something crunched under her boot. She drew back hastily, afraid she’d stepped on some planetary inhabitant- only to draw in a sharp breath from surprise. The ground she stood on was a bright pastel orange. Upon closer inspection, it looked to be made out of some sort of… finely webbed rock? Coral, she realized, eyes widening. Her gaze snapped up to the island they’d landed on. The whole thing looked like a fractured rainbow, colors radiating across the ground. It was all made of the same webbed rock- coral, as she’d remembered. The realization had her bouncing on her heels. I’m standing on an island made of coral!!! She took another hesitant step. It crunched again under her foot. She couldn’t keep herself from giggling as she kept moving, feet dancing over coral that shifted from orange to yellow to green to purple. A myriad of colors, and all so bright!!! She’d never laid eyes on anything quite like it. “Enjoying the scenery?” a voice called, snapping Bun out of her happy dance. She froze in place, instantly standing to attention and trying not to drop her tablet. Another voice laughed, the sound carrying closer as her face flushed. When Groud’s star patched green and Silk’s beat up purple came into view, she let herself breathe. Ok. So. She hadn’t entirely made a fool out of herself. These two, at least, knew who she was. “M-maybe a little, Captain, eheheh,” she called sheepishly. “I’ve never been on a planet with coral islands before.” “Well, it’s a treat for you then!” Groud laughed. “Hey, if you’re not busy, why don’t you go head down to the power room?” “Oh, are the base crewmates busy?” Bun blinked. “Yeah, a little,” Groud nodded. “There’s a lot going on. Lots to update and lots to move.” “That, and Lemon ‘n Junior said they might need some help,” Silk added. Between you and me, I think they just want someone they can rely on to help figure the energy out.” Bunbun’s face flushed again, the warmth from Groud’s voice and Silk’s visor-shadowed smile buoying her mood higher. She’d only been with this crew a few days, but they trusted her this much? … Honestly, she couldn’t tell if that was foolish or not. But things needed fixing, and her crewmates needed help. So, off she went.

The base layout was pretty standard. It was a bit compressed to fit the strange coral island, but they’d managed to fit everything in about the right place. Lucky for Bun, she didn’t have too far to go. The building to the gangplank’s right would give her access to Electrical’s courtyard. The crunching of multicolored polyps beneath her feet made her smile with giddiness, picking up the pace to get inside the base. The door was already left open- standard procedure for operating periods- so she strolled right through. Nobody seemed to be waiting for her in the building’s lobby. She’d guess they were all outside, if it weren’t for a few voices. She could hear a couple people down in the security area. River and some other security crewmates, if her auditory memory served. They were talking pretty boisterously. She hooked a hasty left out towards the courtyard, eager to move on before one of them noticed her. The courtyard was once again standard. Four generators, one control panel along the outside wall, and cagey wire fencing around the edges. Bunbun found herself wondering once again what that was meant to keep out. On a new planet like this, nobody really knew what to expect. It could be anything. Images of creeping beasts and flashing eyes started to bubble up, so she shoved the thought out of her mind. It was fine! The fence would do its job, surely. Just as she would do hers. It’s fine. Lemon and Junior were standing before the control panel, their confused chatter making Bun glad they enlisted her help. From the frustrated looks on their faces, they needed it. They should teach more cross system repair in the academy… oh dear… “You two need some help?” Bun called, striding over to the panel. The pair looked up, relief instantly appearing on their faces. “Bunbun, thank fuck,” Lemon sighed. He leaned against the wall, pulling his goggles back up over unruly red hair. “we’re really goin through the ringer here…” “Y-yeah, uh, any help would be really appreciated,” Junior added sheepishly. He fiddled with his tablet, nervous fingers closing out a couple HQ manual tabs. “Of course, guys,” Bunbun smiled shyly. She tilted her head at the open panel, a mess of wires greeting her. Well. That was. Not encouraging. Her brows furrowed the more she looked, eyes trying to trace input to output and back. “... ok. I uh. I see several problems here.” “That’s an understatement,” Lemon snorted, shaking his head. “I don’t even know where to start.” “Did you make sure to take the relevant systems offline?” Bun asked. “Already done,” Junior nodded. He held up his tablet, a couple tabs pulled up to show electrical systems operating on reserve. “We can’t keep it offline for too long, or else the lights are gonna go out. Which, um, wouldn’t be super fun.” “Right, we’ll have to move fast,” Bunbun replied. “I think I can manage that.” Rubbing her hands together, she eyed the mess of wires before them. She’d handled worse, right? This wouldn’t take too terribly long. It was only when she remembered the other two were watching that her confidence faltered. Was she supposed to help? Was it even ok to take over here??? “... Is, um, is it ok if I… uh… manage it…?” She chuckled timidly, scuffing a boot on the ground. “By all means, dear,” Lemon chuckled, giving her a little dramatic bow as he moved back. “I’ll give you all the space you need.” “Just remember we’re here to help if you need!” Junior offered, scooting back to his dad’s side. He smiled nervously, the sun flashing off his visor as he shifted a bit in place. Gathering courage, if his next little quip was anything to go by. “We might, uh, know the reactor better, but we still know our way around a pair of wire cutters! Eheheheh...” Bunbun smiled gratefully at them both. “Of course, thank you. I’m, um, gonna get on this as fast as I can.” With that, she fixed her attention on the wires once more. Whoever set this base up hadn’t been picky about organization. She could fix that easy enough. She’d just… start by sorting the colors. Taking a breath, the electrician hefted up her tablet, free hand reaching carefully for the nearest red wire. Yeah. This would be over in a sinch. And maybe later, she could go explore a bit more. The thought made her grin wide, fingers flying between wires even faster. Oh, yes. Seeing some more of this beautiful planet would be worth any circuitry headaches. She’d just have to remember to add this to the ship’s log later…

===+===+===

SHIP SYSTEM REALTIME LOG: System setting: DOCKED [STORAGE AND VENT MONITORING]

Location: SECTOR G Ship Status: DOCKED AT [PLANET 326-OCE-894 - SECTOR G] Course: N/A Systems:

Supplies: [ONE] CRATES SHORT

Storage Chutes: CLEAR

Vents: CLEAR

…

Supplies: [ONE] CRATES SHORT

Storage Chutes: MATERIAL BUILDUP DETECTED

Vents: CLEAR

…

Supplies: [ONE] CRATES SHORT

Storage Chutes: CLEAR

Vents: CLEAR

#cr3wm8ts #au:c #among us oc #bunbun among us #groud among us #silk among us #river among us #lemon among us #junior among us #thats everyone who actually gets like. dialogue of some sort LSKJDFLSKF #n e way #yea this was half an excuse to have more bun bein a nerd in the bgLSKJFS #this planet? important #the next chapter's gonna swap perspectives tho so >:333 #hope y'all enjoy SLKDJF #arty writes

13 notes · View notes

celestialsushi · 5 years ago

Text

Mutual (A JSE ego fanfic)

I don’t normally write JSE ego fics (unless all the writing for Schneep in a specific fangame and on a specific askblog counts lol) but I had an idea about JJ and Marvin being turn of the century roommates and thought “well now, I have to write this” XD Enjoy!

PS I still need to draw my Marvin design; don’t worry, I will at some point

~~~

"There's got to be an alternative to setting myself on fire..."

Heavy footfalls betrayed the sound of the exhausted magician's feet as he trudged out the backstage door and out into the open street. No sign of the earlier crowd drew a thankful sigh from his lips as he pressed onward down the puddled sidewalk a little ways to a small residential building, deliberately picking his feet up as he climbed the steps.

"Almost home…" he muttered. "Just a little bit farther."

Once inside the entryway, the wall became his companion, keeping him upright as he began limping to one of the doors nearest the end of the hall. He reached for the final doorknob, but this slipped out of his grasp, soon to be replaced by the sight of another young man about his age, attired in a silk dressing gown. He took one look at the worn out warlock and his mouth hung agape.

"Relax, Jamie. It's not as bad as it looks." He pushed past the mustached man, slowly removed his shoes, and poured himself into the nearest sofa.

Jameson Jackson, or JJ as most knew him, shook his head pointedly as he closed the door. ["Oh is it?"] he signed, leaning over into the couch's line of sight.

"Yes. It is. I promise you I didn't have to impale myself this time." The man on the couch dusted off his sleeve a bit. "Just set myself ablaze, that's all."

JJ's heart seized within him. ["And that's somehow less dangerous, Marvin??"]

Marvin's mischievous blue eyes rolled around a bit in thought. "...Under the right circumstances, yes. It's still not a picnic, mind you, but it's definitely a lot safer. For one thing, the flames don't penetrate my body."

Running his hands through his prematurely greying hair, JJ went off in search of a first aid kit, bringing one back in the time it took for Marvin to realize he had more scorch marks on him than he'd previously thought. ["Okay, sit up,"] he motioned. ["I'll have no guest in my house untreated so long as I'm alive and well. Although you seem to be pushing your luck and I don't like it."]

Marvin held up his hand. "No need, Jamie. This'll be a faster heal than that sword wound. And that one sealed on the outside onstage." He sat quietly for a moment, his body bathed in an unearthly green glow as the singed skin returned to a healthy, soft tone.

Closing up the medical kit, JJ shook his head. ["It's not that I want you to be injured, but at some point I'd like to be able to use this seeing as I paid good money for it. You've thankfully rendered it unnecessary!"]

"You'd get more use out of it if you started cooking more," Marvin laughed. "I've seen you handle knives." Reaching back, he untied the ribbon holding his hair together and let it fall loose, a pair of cat ears poking out from the top of his head. He rolled a bit sideways to let his newly-revealed tail have some room beside him, tossing the ribbon onto the nearby coffee table in a tiny puff of sparkles. "At that rate, people might prefer to see YOU as the final act of the show. We have to satiate their ever-increasing bloodlust somehow."

A tiny clatter of nervous disapproval echoed from the kitchen.

"Oh, speaking of dangerous and potentially soul-crushing work," he called out, watching as JJ re-entered the room. "Any word from the publishers?"

The dressing-gowned man pursed his lips as he sheepishly gazed off toward the mantlepiece, a letter sitting above the cozy fire crackling away.

"Not good, I take it?"

JJ shook his head, picking up his letter and limply handing it to Marvin. The magician wasted no time in opening it and, as his eyes darted across each line within, found the heat within his body rising.

"What??" he bellowed, jumping to his previously exhausted feet. "They can't treat you like that!! W-Why, you're a published author for heaven's sake!! With three other houses currently vying for your attention!!"

The sudden fervor from his friend took JJ's feet a step back or two, but a small encouraged smile managed to work its way under his thick mustache. He nodded a bit as though he were testing the waters.

"That's it, I'll do it. I said I wouldn't but I'll do it." He turned to JJ. "Tell me who I've got to transform and I'll do it. This Whittaker bastard? I can easily turn him into a frog!"

That was nowhere near the list of acceptable things in JJ's book. He adamantly shook his head, giving Marvin the biggest ["NO"] his hand could muster.

"But… they called you pedestrian!"

JJ shrugged.

"They called you an amateur!"

JJ shrugged again.

"They said it'd be better that your work line the bottom of every birdcage in this bloody country--"

It was at this point that JJ snatched the letter from Marvin's hand and summarily tossed it into the fireplace.

"...Ah. And their words can burn in hell for all you care, yes?"

Jameson gave a final shrug and wearily wandered to his armchair, slowly letting the cushions support him. ["I really shouldn't let it have that much power over me. After all, it's far from the first rejection I've ever received. But usually they aren't so..."] He furrowed his brow. ["Opinionatedly nasty?"]

"A bit of cellular reorganization and I'm sure he'll think twice next time."

The beleaguered author shook his head once more, watching as Marvin began to become smaller and smaller. In a few dainty steps, the magician, now a full cat of white fur and card suit markings on his back, hopped up into JJ's lap and curled round himself.

"Perhaps you're right," he said, looking up at his host. "I must say, you've a lot more maturity than I do. I've had to leave town on more than one occasion because someone who jeered me found himself with a new nose. And before you ask, I do mean that literally."

The color drained from JJ's face for a moment but he began to pet the strange cat regardless. A few moments later, the previously-stressed man found his tension slipping out of him into the floor below, as though the feline purring coming from his lap was the source and center of his impromptu meditation.

The cat chuckled a bit. "You know… sometimes I wonder who benefits more from this living arrangement: you or myself?"

JJ smiled lightly, his shoulders doing the talking for him.

"I'm serious," Marvin continued. "Here I was thinking my paltry stage salary wouldn't be enough to repay your kindness and yet you seem to be reaping some psychological benefits in addition to the monetary. Short of being an actual cat, I couldn't have planned it better if I'd tried."

With a sleepy yawn and a small nod of agreement, Jameson's eyelids closed up shop and shut him off from the rest of the world. Marvin remained on his lap, but the consciousness was quickly leaving him too.

"And for your part, just… promise me you won't pick up any more oddly-marked strays…" he muttered. "They're out to get me, you know."

(Penned by CelestialSushi)

#jacksepticeye #jse egos #marvin the magnificent #jameson jackson #celestialsushifics

7 notes · View notes

qwertythepopstarian08 · 6 years ago

Text

JSAB Fanfic: Duality

Okay, so I promised @small--crcle on anon that I’d write a fanfiction for the Reverse Superhero AU that was briefly mentioned on their blog. The idea’s been nagging at me for awhile now, so I finally sat down and finished it.

The Reverse Superhero AU is VERY loosely inspired by Danny Phantom, Miraculous Ladybug, and any other superhero media in which the main character’s alter egos are the enemies of their parents. Because, y’know, ANGST FUEL.

Sadly, this pushed back production of Feeling Blue and Grey Area a bit, but I worked just as hard on this story, so I hope everyone enjoys.

For anyone who doesn’t know, @small--crcle has a swap AU askblog that’s pretty neat, so... go follow them for the original source. Trust me, I can’t do it justice.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy (and forgive me for inactivity ugh).

Description: An AU in which instead of shapes and beats, there are heroes and villains. However, one villain... isn’t that bad.

At thirteen, Blixer already has more scars than one could count. He’s weak, fragile, most of his peers say. They’d probably be right, had it not been for New Game. New Game simultaneously fixes everything and ruins it as well. New Game is part of him, but it’s still another shape altogether.

Blixer’s horns are cracked and brittle, and several cracks and fractures, chips from being thrown around by monsters, riddle his face and arms; he always keeps the scars from battle. New Game can’t be harmed, so it passes the hurt onto Blixer.

Each villain is more dangerous than the last. Blixer wishes he’d never gotten these powers. Everything is after him, wanting nothing more than to shatter him until there’s nothing left but dust. He thinks he’s about to do just that as he struggles through each day.

He walks down the street, towards his step-dad’s house, his only safe haven. It’s raining, icy water pelting him from above, most likely the precursor to some weather-based monster rearing its beastly head. Whatever it was, New Game would deal with it later, anyway. Nothing came after Blixer. They didn’t have to; he was a mess, already.

He stared down at the puddles, just waiting for them to ice over right before his eyes. Of course, all he sees is New Game, the being who ruined his life, who continued to save his life, who stole his life.

New Game grinned back, as usual. Blixer didn’t think it could stop. Frankly, he didn’t care. There was no point in contemplation; in a few hours, when night fell and that thing took over, it would be his face that was pulled into that cursed rictus grin. It would be his form that would be twisted into one of the very monsters that he fought to protect the city from with his life.

And once again, he and his alter ego would be one and the same.

Shaking his head to rid himself of the thought, Blixer kept walking, his nublike horns drooping, his eye trained straight forward so as to avoid eye contact with his reflection. No one else can see it, after all, so he doesn’t bother speaking to it.

Nonetheless, the being chimed in, reading his thoughts, “So, Blix, what do you think we’ll have to fight tonight?” It chuckled in that horrible, evil laugh. Blixer is sure that he’s the only thing keeping New Game from going completely mad. New Game continues with a snicker, “Maybe it’ll be Cia… Ooh! Or, that mysterious cyan beast will show up. I’ve wanted to shatter him for ages.”

Blixer refused to look down, although he hissed under his breath, “The cyan one never attacks us. He’s tough, so we should try to keep it that way.” He winced as his most damaged horn suddenly throbbed with pain, reaching up to hold his head. “Unlike you, I don’t have a death wish.”

New Game only giggled, its smile stretching. “I can’t die, silly! Been there, done that, and now I’m glued to your soul.”

Blixer chose to ignore that last comment, quickening his pace. He was just a few blocks away from Kubix’s house, and if he wanted to get any rest, he needed to get home before sundown. The sky was a dismal grey, although Blixer knew from experience not to underestimate how fast the time could slip. Time seemed to drag on in the minutes before sundown, but from the moment he left school, to the moment the sun hit the horizon, it was quicker than he could process.

He zoned out, distracted by his thoughts, moving on autopilot as he approached the great doors to Kubix’s home. The square was rich, that was for sure, but he insisted on living in a smaller neighborhood to be close to Blixer. It was a sweet gesture, although Kubix could be cold at times. It was just another odd factor, a detail that Blixer often overlooked, attributing it to the other nonsense of his life.

He stepped inside, silent, not wanting to disturb Kubix in whatever he was doing. The square almost always seemed to be busy in the afternoon. Busy with what, Blixer never dared ask. If there was anything else he was sure about when it came to his mysterious relative, it was that he was secretive.

There were no mirrors or reflective surfaces inside. It was always dark, the curtains and blinds shut tightly. Blixer couldn’t say that he liked the darkness, although it made it easier to sleep, at least until the inevitable happened.

He was extra tired today. His feet dragged with each step, and his horns drooped, looking more frail than usual. His eye was glassy and unfocused, although its glow grew brighter with each passing moment, as it grew closer to sundown.

Without so much as a word, Blixer retreated to his room, going straight to sleep. He cared little for homework, only thinking of his crucial rest. After all, in just three hours, the monsters would awaken, ready to hunt down the worst monster of them all: him.

The sun retreated, the moon taking its place. The day was over. The evil, once chased away by the light of day, reared its head, and where there was once order, chaotic beasts came out to play.

New Game opened his eyes, his grin already stretching across his face. His entire body glowed with an almost radioactive light, fueled by a restless energy. It was his favorite time of day; hunting down villainous beasts. He was in no way a hero, but he knew full well that he was the city’s best hope for protection against evil.

Standing, he approached the window, throwing the curtains aside. The window itself was already open, already awaiting his arrival, the moon’s pristine light shining in and beckoning him.

New Game grinned, climbing out to sit on the ledge, to admire the stars for a moment before all chaos broke loose.

The moment passed in an instant, the heart rate in his eye starting to beat madly. He scrambled down the roof, catching himself with his claws as he slid down. Of course, he lost his grip. A roof shingle came down with him as he crashed onto the grass, although he felt nothing.

Blixer was his scapegoat for pain. New Game almost felt bad for him, although the sympathy faded as the being laid, splayed out on the grass, bright pink “blood” already pooling beneath him.

It wasn’t really blood; he couldn’t be hurt.

He just stayed there, collecting himself, staring blankly at the moon above, his smile constant. He thought about pain; Blixer was always complaining about it, so it must have been fun. Anything that annoyed Blixer seemed to be fun. So New Game tried to feel pain.

In five minutes, he was bored. New Game stood, his grin twitching, his good eye narrowing as he looked around. It was oddly peaceful tonight. Not even Droplet’s minions had shown their faces.

He was… lonely.

Horns drooping, New Game found himself standing there, listening to the wind, waiting for something to happen. He couldn’t sleep, so there was no escape from this emptiness… Without another word, he teleported to the top of some skyscraper. He didn’t care exactly where; he just wanted a better view of the sky, beyond the clouds.

He watched the stars for the longest time, sure than an eternity had passed. It was peaceful, even with the sound of passing traffic and the clamouring of the city. This… was the only thing that could placate him...

The sound of a twig snapping alerted the antihero to the presence of another shape… he wasn’t alone.

Whirling around, New Game tensed, his heart monitor quickening in pace as he eyed the being before him, expecting a fight. He immediately began formulating a plan of action, although he knew that, if it was a lower-level enemy, he’d just rush in blindly, anyway; it was more fun that way.

His smile nearly dropped, his heartbeat flatlining for a moment as he processed the sight before him. The shape wasn’t cerulean blue or even red, like most of the corrupted villains. He wasn’t some incoherent beast, either. The shape was just a normal square, set apart only by his expensive-looking clothes and the wicked horns that curved from his head.

A single, fearful word escaped New Game, “King?”

No one knew the true name of the infamous cyan beast. All the other criminals of the night lived in fear of the being, afraid to merely utter his title. Usually, if he was causing any trouble at all, he was causing it for the other villains, although he was by no means a good shape, even in New Game’s eyes. He’d seen this monster shatter innocents before his own eyes, a deed that not even the antihero would even think of, let alone attempt.

The King of Chaos let a small grin quirk at his features. He made no move to fight, although New Game still tensed, his near-constant grin threatening to drop.

“Calm yourself,” King huffed. He raised a hand, shaking his head. “I wish not to harm you, only to talk.”

New Game tensed. “And how am I supposed to believe that?” His voice raised its volume, a growl clear in his tone. “You’re a monster, you-”

“Blixer.” King cut him off, his tone cold, yet nonthreatening. “I promise not to hurt you.”

A slight feeling of relief blossomed in New Game’s heart, undoubtedly appealing to his other half’s fearful nature. However, one word in the other shape’s promise made the pink being’s stomach twist with unease.

“How…” The alter ego staggered back, bristling. “How do you know that name?”

No one was supposed to know of his connection to Blixer. Unlike him, Blixer could be harmed, and rather easily, at that. If the most dangerous villain of all discovered him… Blixer was as good as shards.

New Game kept his voice low as he growled, “You’re not supposed to know that.”

The cyan being’s gaze became distant, before he looked away, his voice lowering. “I know much more than that. More than you can imagine.”

New Game suddenly lashed out, discomforted by the other night-dweller’s phrasing. One of his arms reformed into a large claw, which he held at King’s neck, hissing.

“Y-you’re really insane, you know that, buddy? And that’s coming from me!” He stepped closer, his movements shaky. “I knew you were trouble! I’ll shatter you before you can get CLOSE to Blixer!”

King eyed the glowing claw with a bored expression, although something changed in his tone, his nonchalance seeming to falter. New Game felt a bit of satisfaction well up in his core; was that… fear?

Pushing the claw aside with a hand, King hummed in musing. “Bold of you to assume I would ever harm you… either of you.” His cyan eyes softened, if only slightly. “I was merely looking out for you. Just because we are considered enemies doesn’t mean I desire to bring you harm.”

New Game yelled, “That’s exactly what that means!”

Nonetheless, King smirked. “Well, then I suppose we aren’t enemies.” He approached New Game slowly, his hands held up in plain view so as to ensure that he wouldn’t try anything.

The antihero stumbled back, only stopping when he found himself standing on the edge of the building, gravity almost pulling him over. King caught his transformed arm, ignoring the spikes, dragging him closer to the center of the roof.

He stepped back as New Game was returned to stable ground, his smile still present.

New Game refused to look at him, averting his gaze to stare at the bustling streets below. The streets were alight with yellow light, packed with commuters, travelling shapes who would’ve normally cleared out as soon as a monster appeared. New Game hadn’t seen the city this active in months.

He had a feeling that King had something to do with it...

Taking a chance, he mumbled, “You’re not a villain, are you?”

“Oh, of course I am,” King chuckled, grinning with sharp teeth. “The most dangerous of them all.”

The alter ego closed his good eye, his heart rate eye displaying a slow beat.

“Then why?” He turned fully away from King, hoping that he would vanish. “Why do you help me? Is it a joke to you? Are you just... bored?”

At this point, New Game was just listing his own reasons for being a hero. He wasn’t a good person. He wasn’t nice. He tormented Blixer all day just to keep his body running all night until it broke. He only did the right thing because no one else would, and he liked to fight.

He was just another monster, a demon that had just happened to get stuck to a good person, to be influenced by altruism instead of greed and anger. But at his core, he was just a parasite with nothing better to do.

So what made King different?

Much to his shock, the ruler of chaos spoke up, his voice suddenly taking on a softer tone, sounding eerily familiar to someone that Blixer himself held dear.

“I cannot bear to see a child get hurt, Blixer.” King stepped closer. New Game heard him, although he made no move to escape. He felt himself being pulled into a hug, his anxiety skyrocketing as his instincts told him to shatter the other shape on the spot. However, King’s next words made New Game’s mind fill with something other than restless anger, something more than a bored listlessness.

He retorted, “That’s… that can’t...” He trailed off, defeated. There was nothing to say.

King whispered, the strange, otherworldly echo leaving his tone, his formal language dropping in favor for something kinder, something familiar. “Blix, I’ve told you this before…” New Game’s will to fight melted away, and he was filled with a different kind of fear, a denial that made both Blixer and himself want to scream, to make it go away. The worst monster in the word couldn’t be him, not HIM of all shapes.

Tears welled up in his eyes, and he found himself choking on his own breath, unable to process the conclusion his mind was putting together. The shock was greater than anything that New Game had felt, so great that he felt Blixer wake up, although he refused to take control.

Both of them were awake, awake to hear the truth.

King, or rather, Kubix, continued, his voice airy, filled with a parental love instead of that cold, calculating tone from before. Suddenly, he wasn’t a monster, wasn’t the most terrifying thing that dared to appear, who was just biding his time until he inevitably shattered Blixer.

No, it was just Kubix. Emotionally disconnected, awkward, Kubix. Blixer’s only guardian. He wasn’t much of a fighter, but he’d shatter to protect his son.

New Game’s heart nearly stopped at the next words, although he’d heard them countless times before, knew them by heart.

“I can’t let a kid get hurt… especially not my own.”

The King of Chaos was New Game’s only guardian. He wasn’t the best person, but he’d shatter to protect his heir.

#jsab #Just shapes and beats #blixer #reverse superhero au #jsab au #Oh Look a Story Thing #Other people's OCs #kubix #new game #au #oops all angst

22 notes · View notes

askcarlyle · 6 years ago

Text

Askblog Halloween Special, Discord Edition Part 1

[As many of you are aware, our askblog collective also inhabits a TGS Discord server and occasionally participates in real-time RP threads. These scenarios run parallel to the events of the blogs and feature the same cast, but are usually not considered part of our official Tumblr timeline. Earlier this week, @askbarnum, @askcharitybarnum, @askstabbydeng and I collaborated on a Halloween special of sorts, which I am pleased to share with you now...]

Barnum

-Strolls into the centre ring just as the troupe are packing up after an evening of rehearsing-

Now I know that everyone is ready to head off, but I'd like to open up the opportunity to anyone feeling eager for an adventure.

I have come into possession of a manor house that's supposedly haunted, it's going to be the biggest Halloween attraction in the city. I've got arrangements for tours and people in costumes. It's going to be spectacular, a huge hit with the kids.

First I need to check out that it's a safe building so who's in the mood for a night away from home?

Carlyle

There's no such thing as ghosts. There is such a thing as a safety inspector, though. For the sake of avoiding lawsuits and identifying off-limits areas, I suppose I'm attending this excursion.

Barnum

You seem awfully sure in that statement. C'mon Phil, where's your sense of adventure. You can't sell the unusual if you don't believe in it.

Pats him on the back affectionately as he waltzes past towards the exit

Pack your bags troupe. We meet back here at 8pm sharp. Not a trip for the faint hearted.

Deng Yan

watching this exchange take place. Walks up to Phillip once Barnum leaves I would have to disagree, Carlyle. Spirits are a part of our world, just not one I am afraid of. Regardless, I suppose I should be in attendance. I am intrigued to see what exactly Barnum has in mind.

Carlyle

tries politely to conceal a disbelieving look I respect your beliefs, of course, Miss Yan, but have yet to witness anything that would persuade me otherwise. wanders off to prepare a bag

Barnum

-Eagerly checks his pocket watch, leaning against the tent entrance with a suitcase in hand, a few minutes before 8-

Carlyle

comes in dragging a large suitcase

Deng Yan

wanders up, arm in arm with Charity Mr Barnum. Mr Carlyle. Are we waiting for anyone else to join us this evening?

Carlyle

Do you suppose there will be running water?

Barnum

No no, I think you're the only three who signed up. Can't think why anyone would turn down such an opportunity.

Glances at Phil and pinches the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.

We are staying for one night, Phil. Why is your case so big?

And no there won't be running water. The place is yet to be renovated, authenticity and all that. I've got a few pillows and blankets in the carriage already but that's really the extent of the luxuries. There's not even a privy. It'll be just like camping, except with an element of the supernatural.

Carlyle

greets Charity and Deng with a small bow and helps them with their bags

Charity

Well this will be fun

Carlyle

...camping? I should have packed more soap.

Barnum

Come along ladies, and gent. Leads the way out to the carriage and holds the door open for them You'll be fine, Phil. You don't need soap, there's unlikely a place to fill a bath tub.

Carlyle

rummages in suitcase and unpacks a pile of books regretfully I guess these can stay here for just one night.

Charity

How much reading were you planning on doing?

Carlyle

You never know.

Barnum

I have to question your logic sometimes.

Carlyle

The classics are never out of place.

Barnum

How many books are in there? Did you even pack a night shirt?

Deng Yan

Now, now. Do we really need to discuss Carlyle's sleeping attire?

Carlyle

Two, in fact. Options are good.

Barnum

Tw....never mind. Just. Let's go.

Herds them into the carriage, Charity sat next to Deng and himself sitting next to Phil opposite the two ladies. Then taps the roof to get them started.

I'm so glad you decided to join us too, Chairy.

Charity

I wouldn't miss this. I love old, haunted houses

Barnum

I'll be just like when we were young.

Charity

Exactly

Deng Yan

When you were young? I don't recall you telling this story before. settling back into the carriage I am also very glad of your company. My Rosie said she would prefer to stay at home in the warm tonight. I cannot think why. We have stayed in far colder places than this. smiles at Charity I needed the female company.

Carlyle

How did you find this place, anyway, PT?

...and being in the company of such fine ladies is always a delight, of course.

Barnum

I have my sources. gives Phil a wink and taps his nose knowingly

They were selling it off extremely cheaply, no-one will purchase it because there has been so many occurrences of the supernatural. Also sixteen people were brutally murdered there. It used to be an orphanage!

Pulls a handful of peanuts out of his pocket to snack on while they ride

Have I really not told any stories about myself and Charity when we were children? She was quite the rebellious young girl. Always eager to sneak out. We'd go exploring in the night time and I was always seeking out abandoned places that we could run off to.

Charity

16 people?! Goodness...

Deng Yan

Why were people murdered in an orphanage?

Charity

Did no one think to check after the first murder?

Barnum

Minor details. Waves his hand dismissively

Carlyle

Murdered. looks appalled

Deng Yan

giggles into her hand at Charity's words

Charity

Maybe the seller was exaggerating a bit?

Deng Yan

No matter. I look forward to this.

Barnum

Picks up the candle lighting the inside of the carriage at night and holds it close to his face.

It happened just over thirty years ago now. This orphanage was like no other, it was a place radiating cruelty and evil. Children preferred being sent to the workhouse to staying here.

The matrons would beat the children for crying out for their parents, the beds were full of mould and disease spread every year leaving the children frail and ill. An awful place.

And one night it got even worse...

Carlyle

shifts uncomfortably in seat and stares out window

Deng Yan

That sounds perfectly horrible.

Charity

....And?

Barnum

Takes off his hat slowly and places it in his lap, leaning the candle on the top.

Lights out was at 8 o'clock. The children were marched to bed and locked in. Heavy wooden doors with large steel locks, the only person with a key was the matron.

That night a man broke into the facility. Some say he was a victim of abuse at the home, returning to the place he was broken. Others say he was a maniac escaped from the asylum down town. Rumour has it he only had half a face.

Runs his fingers down his face eerily for dramatic effect

First he sliced the throat of the matron.

Runs a finger across his throat

Then he took her key then locked himself in the bedroom with the children. There were fifteen to a room and he killed them all. Reports say they were tortured into the night, poor souls. Police didn't find them until the next morning. The murderer had hung himself in the centre of the room surrounded by his victims.

To this day no one knows why it happened. Some say they can still hear the sounds of the children crying for their mothers in the hallways.

Charity

I almost regret asking

Deng Yan

That... really is awful, if there is any truth in it.

Carlyle

continues looking out window, paleness probably just from the reflected moonlight

Deng Yan

Mr Carlyle, are you quite well?

Carlyle

coughs It's unfortunate. Unfortunate if the agent felt the need to concoct such a tale just to unload the property on a buyer known for his love of sensationalism.

Charity

Or we might hear the sounds of children crying tonight....

Barnum

Hangs the candle back in it's place

Oh, the agent didn't say anything about that. He'd be an idiot if he did. I just stayed here for a few months when I was a boy.

Watches the carriage come to a stop outside of a huge dark building, broken windows with a worn down playground.

Oh we're here! C'mon, no time like the present.

Cheerfully unlocks the door and climbs out to grab the bags.

Deng Yan

stares after Barnum for a moment before climbing down after him and offering a hand to Charity Are you quite sure you wish to stay here? You could take the carriage back to the circus?

Carlyle

remains sitting stiffly in carriage for a moment, blinking in obvious horror

Deng Yan

looks back into the carriage at Carlyle I meant you too. I wouldn't think any less of you if you chose not to stay.

Charity

has already set off towards the house

Carlyle

clears throat and scrambles out after Charity Safety protocols.

Deng Yan

takes her bag and follows after them

Charity

Watch out for the cobwebs!

Barnum

Turns around to watch them catch up, grinning in delight, then takes out a large metal key to unlock the huge front doors with a clunk. Waltzing inside the dust covered mansion and breathing in deeply with a look of excitement.

Bit overgrown in places but it all adds to the effect doesn't it? Terribly creepy. It'll make the perfect attraction to terrify people. I think I'll line the floors with rubber for easy cleaning.

Dumps his suitcase carelessly

Carlyle

...why do you anticipate there will be that much mess?

Charity

Because there's no light in here lights candle

Carlyle

hands Charity a lantern to set it in

Barnum

Thank you Charity.

Picks up a lantern from the wall and lights it against hers too

Leans close to Phil and lifts his chin with one finger to meet his gaze in the dim light.

I anticipate because I know that I am very good at running a show. I already have several actors lined up and being fitted for outfits. People love to be frightened.

Deng Yan

wiping a trail of dust from the banister of the stairs, then blowing on her finger, watching the dust rise into the air How long did you say this place had been empty for?

Carlyle

shakes off the feeling of foreboding and hastily grabs another lantern, shining it into corners Long enough to develop a pest problem, it seems.

Barnum

Just over thirty years. They closed down very quickly after the unfortunate events.

Jumps a little as a rat runs over his foot, grunting and stepping back

Blegh. Looks like you're right. I'll get pest control in tomorrow.

Charity

So where are these ghosts you promised me?

Carlyle

bumps into Barnum when he jumps back, having been tailing him closely during their exploration Ack.

Barnum

Careful, Phil.

Turns around to steady the younger man

...You alright? You don't look yourself. Make sure you eat something, alright?

Glances at Charity and cocks an eyebrow

It's still early, and we're only in the lobby, Let's wander upstairs. We can stay in the murder room.

Charity

Ominous. Do you have to call it murder room? I think Carlyle is about to pass out

Carlyle

voice perhaps wavers a bit more than desirable Don't think I'm going to be hungry, thank you.

Deng Yan

I could cleanse the room, if you like.

Carlyle

nods slowly If that would make you feel better.

Barnum

Hey, no doing anything to drive out ghosts. People will pay a fortune to come and look if there are any here.

You ladies go on ahead, its upstairs, eight doors to the left. I'll catch up in a moment, I just need a word with Phil.

Gently tugs Phil back towards the entrance for some fresh air.

Carlyle

follows, glad for a breather

Deng Yan

sighs, walking up the stairs, more dust raising with each footfall He would rather keep the souls of children entrapped in the place they were murdered?

Charity

I'm sure it's just a story

Deng Yan

I like to believe so. I can't truly imagine Barnum being that callous.

Barnum

Pauses in the doorway with Phillip, rubbing circles on his back.

Are you sure you're okay? I can send the carriage to take you back if you're not feeling up to this? Can tell the girls that you felt under the weather or something.

Carlyle

regains some composure taking in the crisp fall air. Shakes head and makes a derisive sound Don't be ridiculous. I know this is all just an act. It was just a bit stifling in there. So much dust.

Barnum

Gives his shoulder a reassuring pat

Alright, well just take it easy. You know I wouldn't let anything happen to you.

Presses a kiss to his cheek then turns around to dash off after the ladies

Come join us when you're ready.

Deng Yan

upstairs, making her away along the corridor tell me, Mrs Barnum. Is what he said true? About you sneaking out as a child? I have to confess I can't imagine you conforming to a stifling lifestyle. You are like my Rosie in that respect.

Charity

Yes I used to climb out the window and meet up with him on the beach

Deng Yan

On the beach? Very romantic.

Charity

Not in the middle of winter

Barnum

Jogs to catch them up

Nonsense, the beach is romantic all year round.

Deng Yan

turns quickly at the sounds of his footsteps and visibly relaxes seeing it's Barnum

Charity

You almost died that time you decided to go for a swim on the coldest day of the year

Barnum

Grins proudly as he pushes to walk in between them

Almost. But I didn't. You can't say you weren't impressed by my resilience.

Deng Yan

smirking Now there is a story I would like to hear. From you, Mrs Barnum, not his abridged version. pauses outside the eighth door Is this it?

Charity

Yes obviously I married you for your resilience. It's a deal, Miss Yan

Carlyle

stands at doorway for a few moments longer, feeling a bit more bolstered after the talk, then turns to find he is alone in the lobby ...PT? takes a few steps back inside, swinging lantern around to see Phin? heads up the stairs at a nervous clip

Barnum

Just the one.

Notices the boards nailed over the door when he runs the lantern close

Hmm, I didn't bring a hammer. Hold this for me a moment, won't you.

Passes the lantern to Charity before taking a few steps back and running at the door, throwing himself into it and knocking it hard enough to send the the whole door falling out of its rotting frame and landing on the floor with a loud crack. Revealing an eerie old bedroom, fifteen beds in a row along the long stretch of wall. Strange dark staining on the floorboards hard to make out in the dim light.

Charity

I really hope that's not blood

Deng Yan

It's... probably water residue.

Carlyle

startles at the sound of a sudden crash from further up, followed by a fresh cascade of dust. Coughs and waves away the cloud, taking a blind turn to the left and squinting down the hall

Barnum

Whatever it is, I hope it hasn't weakened the floor boards. Stay here.

Cautiously wanders into the room, careful of every step. Getting to the centre of the room and then bouncing on the creaky floorboards a few times.

...No they're fine. Come on in.

Deng Yan

And what would we have done if you had gone crashing straight through? searching in the shoulder bag she is carrying for something

Barnum

I was at least 60% sure it was fine.

Wanders around, inspecting the beds to see if they're too mouldy to sleep in. Deciding that they are and dumping his suitcase on the ground instead

Can I have my lantern back? It's dark.

Carlyle

counts off doors, though unsure whether it was 8 doors total or on both sides. Shrugs and twists the handle on the final one, stepping into a dim room that looks like a nursery

Charity

Only if you stop angering the ghosts passes lantern What happened to Phillip? Did he go home?

Barnum

Takes it with a sarcastic eye roll

I'm not making that promise.

He was feeling a little faint so he said he'd catch us up after a little fresh air.

Charity

under breath Oh good we're all going to die

Barnum

Squints

...Did you just hear a door open somewhere?

Deng Yan

stops searching her bag Yes I did actually. I am sure it's just Phillip looking for us

Barnum

Clears his throat

Of course. He probably just took a wrong turn.

Deng Yan

Shall I go and check?

Barnum

That would be helpful, don't need him stumbling around in the dark by himself when we're not sure the structure is safe.

Carlyle

steps further in and makes out a moldering old rocking horse, not unlike the one from his own childhood. Runs hand lightly over it, setting it swaying back and forth

Deng Yan

Of course not. retreats back into the hallway Carlyle? walking a little further along the corridor Phillip?

Charity

I don't like us all splitting up like this

Barnum

Waves his hand dismissively

It'll be fine, I'm sure he's not too far away.

Charity

You just said you're not sure it's safe and you let him go walking around without a lantern

Barnum

I'm pretty sure he has a lantern. And he's no idiot. I'm sure we'd hear him if he hurt himself or anything.

Carlyle

sets a mobile spinning in passing, smiling at the shadows of animals thrown onto the walls in the lamplight. Leaves the door open and wanders into the next room, calmer now in these surroundings hearkening back to childhood

Deng Yan

sees the open door and goes to investigate Carlyle? If this is a trick I will not be best pleased.

Carlyle

wanders over to examine a dollhouse, accidentally tipping over some small chairs in the dimness. Sets it aside and catches a glimpse of some bookshelves in the next room. hums a half-forgotten lullaby to himself while exploring, now more sad than frightened by the thought of any souls left forgotten here

Deng Yan

walks through the nursery and into the next room Carlyle??

Barnum

Wanders right to the end of the room, finding the door to the Matrons room and pulling a small piece of wire from his pocket to try to pick it.

She is taking her time though.

Charity

despairing sigh

Carlyle

holds up lantern to read the titles in the shelf Hmm, not bad. sees a flicker of movement out of corner of eye Hello? sits down at the table and opens book Well, if there are 15 of you up here, you've probably been bored to tears. Why don't I tell you a story.

Barnum

If you're going to sigh and huff at me then you are more than welcome to join them.

Successfully picks the lock and lets out a sound of triumph as he confidently steps into the pitch black room, illuminating the moulding ceilings and walls with his lantern

I'm perfectly content to explore the interesting areas by mysel-

Crashes through the floor with a small yelp

Charity

Safer here in the murder room...

Or not.

Did you hurt yourself?

....Phineas?

rushes over

Barnum

Hauls himself to sit up, squinting at the pitch blackness

No, I think I'm fine. My lantern just went out. I'm in the room below.

Charity

Don't move you might've broken something. 60% sure the floor was safe, eh?

Barnum

Charity, I'm fine.

Shifts to his feet

And 60% of the floor probably was safe. I just happened to step on part of the 40% that wasn't.

Carlyle

Once upon a time there lived a beast, cursed to end his existence in an abandoned old manor because of his own hubris. He was once a prince, but his pride led him to push aside others and use the helpless merely as a tool for entertainment and gain.

Deng Yan

looking in the doorway, seeing Phillip with the book Oh, Carlyle.... walks over to rest against the wall near him

Carlyle

For this, he was imprisoned and placed under a spell, along with all the occupants of the house, where they dwelled in an unaging half-life, waiting for the one....

looks up at the sound Miss Yan! Where is everyone? I thought we were meeting here.

Barnum

Kneels down to blindly pat the ground to try to find his lantern, fingers landing on the dulled candle in a puddle of something, grimacing in annoyance realising he wouldn't be able to re-light it.

Chairy, I can't see anything. It's really dark. Have Phil and Deng come back yet?

Deng Yan

You got the wrong room. nods towards the book Carry on, by all means

Charity

No it's just me. This is why I didn't want us going separate ways.

realises she's alone now and the hairs on the back of her neck start to rise

Carlyle

The wrong room? looks around Are you sure?

squints and looks around, in the shadows ...because they seem to think they're in the right room.

Barnum

Takes a couple of cautious steps forwards until his hands touch a wall in the dark, trying to make sense of his blind surroundings

I'm uh. Not a big fan of...

You won't go anywhere will you? You'll stay here with me.

Clears his throat to try to hide the waver in his voice

Charity

I have a lantern, shall I come and find you?

Deng Yan

...They?

Barnum

No!...No it's fine. Don't leave. Stay here.

Charity

If you can't see, you could be getting into anything and I'm not convinced you're not injured.

carefully walks over to where Phineas was and shines light through floorboards

Barnum

Squints at the slight light, breathing a little shakily, at least able to see his own hands now

Carlyle

nods and continues scanning the room Yeah, all of them, just like he said. But they're not angry. And they don't want to haunt. They're waiting for someone to break their curse.

turns to look at Deng now Didn't you say you knew how?

Deng Yan

looks around the room I might... I didn't think you believed in any of this.

Charity

feels something crawl over her shoe

Please be just a rat

Carlyle

...I don't. But I know what something trapped and in pain feels like and there's plenty of that here.

Barnum

Hears the sound of footsteps and shuffles slightly where he is.

Chairy you're not...are you walking around up there? I can hear something down here. There's not supposed to be anyone in here yet. The actors don't start until we've renovated.

Carlyle

Do you have your supplies?

Charity

....No? Haven't moved....

Deng Yan

smiles softly, indicating her bag I do. And you're a sweetheart, you know?

Carlyle

shrugs A fool is someone who isn't willing to change when given reason to.

Charity

unable to stop her voice shaking Phineas? Please come back.

Barnum

Takes off his hat to squeeze against his stomach

I...changed my mind. Come and find me.

Chairy. I think there's someone down here. It's dark, I want to leave now.

Charity

This is what you get for calling something a murder room

backs away to the door and flees

Barnum

Hears creepy sounds creaking in the room like footsteps

Fine I...I take it back. I won't call it a murder room anymore. I won't exploit anything. We can make different Halloween plans, we can-

Feels a hand touch his back and shrieks, turning and bolting as fast as he can into the pitch black hallway

CHARITY!!! PHIL!!! DENG YAN!!!!

[To be continued.]

#tgs #the greatest showman #pt barnum #phillip carlyle #charity barnum #deng yan #halloween 2k18 #the greatest halloween #discord

14 notes · View notes

ironwoman359 · 6 years ago

Note

“I can’t believe I finally got you, how incredible is that?” With human!Deceit and tiny!Virgil?

Warnings: Cages, treating a person as a pet, depression

Virgil was quiet as he was roughly transferred from the pen at the back of the pet store to a portable carrier. He didn’t bother shouting or trying to run, he’d tried all that before and it never worked. He stayed silent as he was run up at the register, kept his mouth closed as the woman behind the counter tried to convince his buyer to pick one of the other tinies from the front of the store.

“Really, are you sure about this one? We have this lovely, lively little fellow over here that I think would be just–”

“Thank you, ma’am, but that won’t be necessary,” the man interrupted with a silky smooth voice, holding up a gloved hand to quiet her protests. “I’m sure this one will do just nicely.”

The woman shrugged, before dutifully informing him of their thirty day return policy and handing over his receipt.

Thirty days.

Had Virgil ever even lasted a whole month with a human? No, he was pretty sure his record with a human was about three weeks before he’d been sent back. It was always the same complaint; he was too boring, too lifeless, to depressing. Nobody wanted a pet that would curl up and lie still in the corner of a cage, refusing to engage with its owner.

Whatever.

It didn’t matter to Virgil one way or another. Whether he wasted away in the back of a pet store or wasted away in the corner of some human’s living room, either way he was going to die alone in a cage.

A car door slammed, and Virgil jumped, realizing that his carrier had been set down on the passenger seat of the human’s car. The man fastened a strap over the carrier, buckling it in place before settling into his own seat and starting the car.

Virgil sighed, and leaned back, closing his eyes. Maybe he could catch a quick nap before he had to endure this new human going through the typical poking and prodding stage that every human apparently had to get out of their system when they first bought a tiny.

“Phew!” the man said suddenly, and Virgil winced at the loudness of his voice. Or maybe, sleep had been too much to hope for. “She totally wanted me to take you home, didn’t she?”

Virgil opened his eyes and peered up at the human who had bought him. The man’s eyes were on the road, but when the car came to a stop at a red light, he glanced down at Virgil and smirked. Virgil realized with a start that the man’s eyes were mismatched, one brown, one blue, and he found himself staring despite himself.

The man raised an eyebrow when he saw where Virgil’s attention was, and Virgil quickly looked away, not wanting to anger him.

“It’s called heterochromia.”

“Huh?” Virgil glanced back up, but the human’s eyes were on the road again as he continued.

“When your eyes are two different colors, like mine.”

“Oh.”

“But yeah, sorry about that lady, she sounds like she was a real treat to have as a caretaker.”

The man shook his head, annoyance clear in his voice, and Virgil frowned. Why did this human care so much about how nice the pet store employees were?

“Between that absolute peach of a worker and the fact that it’s way more difficult than you’d think to track down one specific borrower, I can’t believe I finally got you. How incredible is that?”

Virgil snapped his head up, his eyes wide.

“Did…did you say…borrower?” he asked. Distantly, he was aware that that was the longest sentence he’d said to a human since he first had been caught, but he was too distracted by the fact that this human had just called him a borrower. How long had it been since he’d been called what he actually was? It must have been…

“I’m sure you haven’t heard yourself be called that since you were initially captured,” the human continued. “But rest assured, Virgil, where we’re going, you won’t have to worry about being called a ‘tiny’ anymore.”

Virgil hadn’t thought it was possible for him to be anymore surprised after hearing a human call him a borrower, but the instant that his name crossed the human’s lips, he was proven wrong. All the other humans had tried to give him a name, and not ONCE had he ever been asked what he’d like to be called.

“How…how did you know my name?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper, and the man smacked himself on the forehead.

“Dammit, Dee, you’ve done it again,” he muttered, before glancing down at Virgil with a sheepish expression. “Well, I was planning to ease into this topic a little more delicately, but I didn’t pick you out of that pet store randomly, Virgil. I’ve been looking for you in particular, for some time now.”

“I…why?” Virgil asked, bewildered, and the man, Dee, sighed again.

“Well, if I gave you all the reasons, we’d be driving all night, but here’s the short version. My best friend, Thomas, he has a big house out in the country that his Aunt Patty left to him. He discovered a couple of wild-born tinies out there, or borrowers, as we found out you’re actually called. He became friends with them, and they opened his eyes to a lot of the injustice that goes on in the Tiny Industries. He decided he’d put all that space out there to good use, and he built a little sanctuary for borrowers. It’s been running for about three years now, and we have half a dozen or so borrowers living out there that were rescued from the pet trade.”

“Okay…” Virgil said slowly, trying to keep up with what Dee was saying. It made sense, he supposed, though he’d never imagined a human would decide to take a borrower’s side on anything, let alone build an entire habitat for them. “So…what does that have to do with me?”

Dee smiled at him, and raised an eyebrow.

“One of those borrowers is Patton.”

Virgil sat up in an instant, leaning forward with wide eyes.

“You’re serious?” he asked, and Dee chuckled.

“See for yourself,” he said, putting the car into park. “We’re here.”

He got out of his seat, then came around to pull Virgil’s carrier out. Through the wire bars, Virgil could see fields that stretched out into rolling hills in every direction, what looked like fruit trees in the distance, and the reflection of sunlight off a pond.

All of that was just the background though, for the big, three story farmhouse that Dee had parked his car in front of. A human was standing on the front porch, and from what Virgil could see of his face, he was smiling.

“Dee!” the man called, and his voice was bright and full of energy. “Did you find him?”

“Yeah, Thomas,” Dee said with a grin, holding up Virgil’s carrier a little higher. “I found him”

Thomas clapped his hands, then did something that Virgil thought was strange: he held one hand over to his shoulder, palm facing upward. It didn’t make any sense at first…until they got a little closer and Virgil realized with a gasp that a borrower had been perched on Thomas’s shoulder and was now sitting cross-legged on the human’s open palm.

Thomas let the borrower off to stand on the porch railing, and tears sprung to Virgil’s eyes as he recognized his older brother. He hadn’t seen Patton since the two of them had been captured nearly two years ago, and had long since given up hope of ever seeing his brother again.

Dee set the carrier on the porch railing and had barely flipped open the door before Patton was rushing forward, tears in his eyes and arms outstretched. Virgil took the last few steps to meet him, catching his brother in what had to be the best hug he’d ever had in his life.

Patton was crying into his shoulder, gripping Virgil so tightly it almost hurt, but Virgil didn’t mind. His own hold on Patton was just as tight, the fear that this was all some impossible dream hovering at the back of his mind.

If this was a dream, it was one Virgil never wanted to wake up from.

Eventually, Patton pulled himself away, cupping Virgil’s face in his hands and scanning it, eyes wide and shiny with tears.

“You’re here,” he finally whispered, his voice breathless with wonder. “You’re really here.”

He pulled Virgil close again, and Virgil smiled as he buried his face in Patton’s shoulder.

“Yeah, Pat,” he mumbled back. “I’m here.”

Thomas and Dee watched fondly as the two borrowers reunited, then Thomas turned to Dee.

“You might want to visit the family room, Roman kept insisting I tell him when you got back.”

Dee rolled his eyes before shaking his head.

“He probably has a seventeenth draft of that script of his to show me. Alright then, I’ll catch you guys later.”

Thomas waved at him as he headed inside the house, then turned his attention back to the borrowers, who were still locked in an embrace. He smiled, and whispered,

“Welcome to the Sanders Sanctuary for Borrowers, Virgil.”

——–

A/N: Soooo this is an AU now XD I’ve wanted to write about humans who hated how society treated Tinies (borrowers) and established a sanctuary for them for the longest time, and never got around to it, until noooww! If you guys are into it, I’m going to start a sideblog/askblog for this AU, but until then you’re welcome to send me asks about the AU here! I’ll have more info about the other characters and what their roles are, as well as more fics coming soon, but for now, I hope you enjoyed this little ficlet and the introduction into the Sanders Sanctuary for Borrowers/Tinies AU!

Update: the sideblog is @sanders-sanctuary-au, check it out if you’re interested!

-Taylor

Sanders Sides Taglist: @lizethemotherlycat, @coffeestudylive, @sugarblob0, @logically-asexual, @sir-sanders, @migraine-marathon, @sirkawaiipotato, @princeyssash, @queensephonereaper, @idontevenfreakingknow22, @tree4life25, @spacevirgil, @virgiltheanxious, @thebaagelboy, @msu82, @ultimate-queen-of-fandoms2, @alexthechaotic, @thesleepyraziel, @bobolovesoze, @littlemiracle05, @pattson, @nerd-in-space, @thesides, @stay-in–place, @ravenclawunicorn1, @at-least-seven-pretty-potatoes, @michealawithana, @anotherfandomtrasher , @fandomsofrandom, @a-deliciouslyfadingcollection, @nightmarejasmine, @xxfoxit, @quoth-the-sparrow, @katatles-the-fish, @misty-the-mysterious, @alyssadashrub, @punkassplonker, @noctisvalex, @i-sold-my-soul-to-thefandom, @funsizedgremlin, @vigilantvirgil, @nonamefightergirl, @thomasbemyfriend, @mockingjaysinger, @milomeepit, @justabookworm39, @shortandfantastic, @thesilentbluesparrow, @royallyanxious, @mirror2thespirit, @coffee-stains-paper-and-ink, @silverrhayn, @mooksie01, @backatthebein, @nye275, @anastasialestina, @callboxkat, @a-lexicon-of-words, @dramatic-and-young, @emeraldfoxface, @mytrashlifeistrash, @peachie-keeen, @llamaly, @witch19, @heythereprincey, @bring-it-on-perra, @nienna14, @bubblycricket, @thomasfandersunite, @slightlyobssesive, @miathefangirlwriter, @logicallyanxious, @apologetically-anxious, @keys117, @digitally-analog, @thnksfrthpinof, @ocotopushugs, @warping-reality, @thisandthat22255, @grey-lysander, @your-username-is-unavailable, @hikariyukino, @theresneverenoughfandoms, @virgil-sandersss, @violetmcl, @thatfandomfollower, @nothingelsemattersmetalcisi-blog, @cdragontogacotar, @narniasfinestavengingsociopath, @absentmindedproff, @im-bi-myself, @fantasyandfairfolk, @virgilsblogofanxietys, @your-average-outcast, @sanderstalker, @galaxy-warping-xig, @queen-of-all-things-snuggly @a-little-bit-of-ace, @faithfreedom-art @therealhmmlingle @xxladystarlightxx, @morgan-the-art-girl, @stormcrawler75 @wowitsmyblog, @romanssippycup, @lunalikesgamesandstuff, @lamp-calm-sanders, @musikasworld @cyberpunkjinx, @mauvelavender @samathekittycat @black-out-wonder @i-read-by-lamp @ravenclawicecream @nashiraneko @lucifer-in-my-head @ladyartemisia28 @awesome-and-unique-username @zoalis @entpscarleharrrr @raygelkitty @zeldahadasword @gubbalupagus @musicphanpie-b @virgilssweaterpaws, @faacethefacts @a-simple-fryingpan @pinkeasteregg @punknerdmusings @imantisocialgetoverit @adventurousplatypus @anuninspiredpoet @awkward-avocado-of-death, @poison-lyra @modcarbz, @thisrandomperson102, @skydiamcnds @just-another-starfish, @thepoolofthedead, @theinvisiblespoon, @charithecherry @dreamsshadowwashere, @broadwaytheanimatedseries, @bitten1ce, @madly-handsome, @cats-with-blogs, @itsvirgiliacoriolanus @damienswifeolicitydallysgirl @fanderrawr, @starjames-pma @crownswriter123 @stars-sunsets-and-oliver, @akiraaria, @thilb0burrit0, @dragonangel-funandfire, @painterman-bobross @galaxymindedindividual, @sassy-in-glasses, @vergeangst, @iaminmultiplefandoms, @thedundundunnnsong, @podcastsandcoffee, @bosmeri-alyd @anyay666, @celinethotwrong, @poorlittleanxiousbaby, @bibbidi-bobbity-booyah @chaloopa12 @lastbeginning-blog @readeatfightlove13, @girlwthanxiety4ever @entpscarleharrrr @jani-bunny54 @logically-emotional @i-am-asha @punsterterry @fluidityandgiggles @gatlily @stupidfangirl107 @axahi-bitxh @sharkkittem @thesocialbookwormishere @amuthefunperson @lunareclipse-524 @purplesoul-at-hogwarts @asymmetricalgarbage8888 @basically-trash5 @maxiswriting @bluebloodstains @savage-fox-cacti @skitari @iridescentglassflowers @immortaldystopia @satanblessi @iloveeverytjing123 @the-average-loner @therealpeterpan @theunoriginaldaisy @para-keat @today-only-happens-once @03-30-am @why-only-have-one-fandom @analogical-mess @twilight-trix @silverjay520 @purpleandblacknightmares @anxious-fander-bean @felicianoromano @idioticsky @storytellerofuntoldlegends @naw2702 @lesbianturtle @fight-or-flight-reflexes

@jimprotectionsquad, @somber-fae, @splatoon-jim, @simon-seppa, @kinkiestcoconutaround, @nyxwordsmith, @hannahisnottalented, @thefamouszombiebouquet, @jordandobbertin, @la-fandom-freak, @freepaperie081, @tormentist, @mollycassmith, @pleaseletthisjimbetaken, @littleteenblog, @of-chaos-and-flame, @monstermemories, @simplelittlestar, @sander-fander, @jenni-with-an-i, @superawesomeamazingname, @randomcrystals, @the-gilbird, @alextheodd, @desolate-darlin, @alwaysmy-lilith, @look-its-meme, @sigma-time-lord, @toreen-m, @samthekoalabear98, @thewinterunicorn, @miss-meg1710, @itsjustkota, @justanotherproblem, @redone0-0dreamer, @mltcp, @jiiiimmmm-with-dyed-hair, @jse-fandom-protection-squad, @edible-napkin, @helpmeimjim, @slim-jims, @didsomeonesayprince, @kittyboof8, @fanofyoutubeandmore

#sanders sides #sanders sides fanfiction #g/t sides #virgil sanders #patton sanders #sympathetic deceit #thomas sanders #platonic moxiety #moxiety #my writing #sanders sanctuary au #asks and answers

1K notes · View notes

artnerd1123 · 4 years ago

Text

Among Us: CR3WM8TS

Updates Required (part 1)

——————————————

With the ship launched and crew settled, it’s time to get to work. Which, for Bunbun, means updating. How smoothly that goes depends on the crewmates in charge... Bunbun’s hoping she’s in good company.

Featuring appearances by River and Lemon!

Among Us archive/askblog Fic chapters post

——————————————

Ok so originally I wanted to keep all this together, but decided it’d be better to chop it into pieces. That way I can keep my momentum, keep posting for y’all, and still intro y’all to the crew as things get moving! Hope u guys enjoy!!!

===+===+===

Mission Log 2

Location: SECTOR E Ship Status: JUST LAUNCHED Course: PLANET 326-OCE-894 - SECTOR G Systems:

Navigation: COURSE INLAID / STABLE

Engines: UPPER - ONLINE, TANK FULL / LOWER - ONLINE, TANK FULL / OUTPUT ALIGNED

Reactor: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

O2: STABLE

Electrical: STABLE

Communications: ONLINE

Shields: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

Weapons: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

Security: CAMERAS ONLINE / ALL FUNCTIONAL

Administration: MAP ONLINE / CONNECTION SECURE / SHIP FILES UP TO DATE / ALL CREW ACCOUNTED FOR

Medbay: EQUIPMENT ONLINE / FUNCTIONAL / CREW FILES UP TO DATE

Supplies: FULL

Storage Chutes: CLEAR

Vents: CLEAR

Notes: crewmate PINK settled quickly. Launch was successful, no issues of note. Supplies loaded, all systems functioning optimally. PINK noted many systems need updated - updates will be performed in transit. All crew accounted for

===+===+===

Mission Log 3

Location: SECTOR F Ship Status: IN TRANSIT Course: PLANET 326-OCE-894 - SECTOR G Systems:

Navigation: COURSE INLAID / STABLE / UPDATES NEEDED

Engines: UPPER - ONLINE, TANK 0.98 / LOWER - ONLINE, TANK 0.97 / ALIGNMENT UPDATES NEEDED

Reactor: OFFLINE - UPDATES NEEDED / RESERVE POWER FUNCTIONAL

O2: STABLE

Electrical: CALIBRATOR OFFLINE

Communications: ONLINE / UPDATES NEEDED

Shields: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

Weapons: ONLINE / FUNCTIONING OPTIMAL

Security: CAMERAS OFFLINE - UPDATES NEEDED

Administration: MAP OFFLINE - UPDATES NEEDED / CONNECTION SECURE / SHIP FILES UP TO DATE / ALL CREW ACCOUNTED FOR

Medbay: EQUIPMENT OFFLINE - UPDATES NEEDED / FUNCTIONAL / CREW FILES UP TO DATE

Supplies: FULL

Storage Chutes: CLEAR

Vents: CLEAR

Notes: travel into sector F uneventful. Many systems functioning on reserve power temporarily, as updates are needed. PINK identified systems in need of updates. Updates will be performed today under DARK BLUE supervision. Other crew performing normal activities.

===+===+===

Bunbun stood in the hall next to security, foot tapping nervously. If her hands weren’t clutched tight around her tablet, they’d be caught up in her hair, or fidgeting with her bandanna. It was just a routine ship update. Yes, most of the systems needed it. Yes, she was being supervised by a stranger. But it was nothing she hadn’t done before. She knew the ship layout. So did her new crewmate. It was just… extra precautionary measures. Nobody quite knew who they were dealing with nowadays. It didn’t seem like the door to security was about to spring open. It had been closed for all ten minutes she’d stood there. Captain Groud said it was nothing to worry about. Dark blue- or River, as the crew called him- often shut himself into security. At least, he seemed to do it a lot. If the doors are faulty, we’ll know soon enough, Bunbun thought ruefully. She tapped on her tablet screen, sighing softly at its comforting glow. Her task list was still updating. She watched the number in the upper left tick slowly upward. Yeah. She’d be busy alright. A quick glance at the map confirmed what she already knew- the ship had a standard SKELD layout. A little pink icon stood right outside security. Crew Locator and Tablet Sync are working just fine, she thought. Good. Swiping to the right, the live feed of ship’s systems now lit up her screen. The amount of “OFFLINE” and “UPDATES NEEDED” made her snort. “HQ really doesn’t take care of their older ships, huh?” she muttered. Scrolling down, her eyes swiftly located the vent status. “CLEAR,” declared the system. “Clear,” Bunbun echoed, sighing. For now, at least, she could quell any suspicions of River.

Speaking of which, the telltale clunk and hiss of an opening door announced his presence. Bunbun straightened up quickly, standing to attention as the door split and slid into the wall. A crewmate in a dark blue suit stood in the doorway. A faded blue security cap was jammed down low over his unkempt ashy blonde hair. His green eyes were ringed with a raccoon’s mask. All in all, he looked like a standard security crewmate. Though his bored look and slouched posture said he might be a little put out by his recent assignment. Bunbun tried for a smile and wave. She opened her mouth to speak, voice a little shaky. “Um, hi, I’m-” “Bunbun, right? The new crewmate?” River interjected, a brow raised. “Yeah. Guessed as much. Haven’t had a pink around here for awhile.” “Er- right,” Bunbun stammered, a little taken aback. Interrupting? And… ‘a pink’? Someone was a little annoyed. “I’m… I’m here for the-” “Yeah, the updates, I know,” River said bluntly. Bun’s face reddened a bit. Was she overexplaining? Or was he just in a bad mood? She wasn’t quite sure. Yawning, River made a shooing motion. “Let’s get this over with, ok? I’ve got cams to watch, and I can’t do that if they’re all offline.” “Of-of course, sir. I’ll get on it,” she twittered. She quickly scooted around him, eyes downcast. Talk about a tough crowd, she thought grimly.

She took quick stock of the room as she entered. The monitors on the far wall were all dark. The desk along the back had piles of unorganized papers. Records that needed to go to HQ, she’d guess. The vent lay dusty and undisturbed in the back. With the maintenance panel closed and no other ideas, she wandered over to the flashing bulbs near the monitors. The bulbs were blinking red intermittently. Though, from what she saw, she was surprised anything was happening at all. The lights were indicators on an old, massive computer system, split between two shelves. Bunbun hadn’t seen a system like this since her academy trip to the ship tech museum. She gave a low whistle as she hooked up her tablet. Wait till everyone learns I worked with one of the old old models… “You really think you can update that thing?” River called from the doorway. He was leaned against it, arms crossed and gaze impatient. “Or anything here, really. This bucket of junk has been outta the loop for years. It’d probably short circuit with new input.” Bunbun looked back at him a little indignantly. She could understand being irritated with new crew members. It happens. New recruits often get things backwards, or bite off more than she could chew. But she wasn’t new. Her recommendation was high enough to have her bouncing all over. And doubting her skill? The one thing they brought her here for? That was going too far. Standing a little straighter, she held her tablet like a manager with a clipboard. “Even if things go a little haywire, this ship hasn’t dealt with me yet,” she replied. “I’ll get it running.” “Is that so?” River snorted. “I could make ship software run on a half dead toaster.” “Yeah yeah. I bet you could.” Bunbun didn’t miss his eye roll. She just shook her head. Fine. If he wanted to be difficult, he could. But she was going to do her job whether River thought it possible or not.

Raising her tablet, she tilted her head at the screen. She’d never been so relieved to keep the same tablet regardless of assignment. Working with a new one after being used to her personal upgrades would be a nightmare. The data whizzed past at an astonishing speed. Her gaze picked out the important stuff. The camera system was still functioning well, it just had a couple minor bugs. That was an easy fix. First off, the camera movement program had become a little glitchy. Old camera feed confirmed this- the cameras just jerked around sharply instead of sliding smoothly in circles. It only took a moment to find the problem code, pulling and replacing it with a patch she��d worked out years ago. Just for the fun of it, she slid in an extra bit of code. Just to keep the camera movement unexpected. Made the feed edges much harder to track from the outside, even if the cameras weren’t physically going anywhere. After that, she did a little survey of the feed record system. A few more patches here and there, and it was running properly again.

Bunbun smiled to herself as she closed out the security system, booting up the cameras on her way out. The monitors flickered back to life as she unplugged her tablet. And it had only been eight minutes. Bunbun looked over at River just in time to see him wiping an impressed look off his face. Her smug smile just earned another eye roll. “Ok. Maybe you know what you’re doing. But we got a lot more to get to,” he grumbled, “so you better be just as quick.” “Repair can’t be rushed,” Bunbun pointed out, “but I’ll do what I can.” “Good.” With that, River turned on his heel and left. Bunbun had to run to catch up with him. Despite supposedly sitting around in security all day, the guy moved fast. What was he in a hurry for? “You coming?” he called, standing in the middle of the reactor room. “Yes- yes, sorry-” she stammered, slowing to a stop in the doorway. The reactor towered over her in the back of the room. Glowing pulses slid from the main machine to cables inlaid in the floor. The whole place was awe inspiring. And very scary. Things could go very wrong very fast if she wasn’t careful.

“Well…?” River prompted, gesturing around him. “You gonna do your thing?” “Of… of course,” Bun replied, nervously striding over to the control panel. “It’s just been awhile since I’ve worked with the reactor.” That’s usually left to the experts. “Well, let’s hope you know what you’re doing,” River grumbled. As he wandered away to lean on the wall, Bunbun nervously eyed the control panel. The startup mechanism was just as she remembered it. An older model, sure, but the light up cube pattern and well worn keypad looked about the same. Glad I’ve got that going for me, she thought ruefully. As for updating the thing, though, she… didn’t have a clue. Looking around for a place to plug in her tablet was unsuccessful. It didn’t look like it had a touch interface either. Not besides the keypad, anyway. She didn’t want to try wrangling code with that. The only other options she had were with the manifolds- not wise, as fiddling with those could cause a meltdown- or with one of the hand scanners. Her memory told her those wouldn’t do. They were for biological input, not technical. Bunbun bit her lip, looking back down at the control panel. What to do, what to do…? “Ay, what’s the holdup?” River called, making her jump. His shadowed eyes were narrowed, and his arms held tight across his chest. She stammered for a minute as she tried to compose herself. “I- I’m sorry, I’m, u-um, not used to working with reactor equipment- I- I can’t f-find where to, u-um, plug in my t-tablet-” “For the love of- ghhhhhhhhhh-” River strode quickly to her side. Gesturing to the control panel, he gave her a withering look. “You got my cams working in two seconds. What’s so hard about this? You just take the tablet, get it hooked up-” “B-but if I don’t find the r-right place-” “You try again, and you get to work-” “B-but the reactor is delicate-” “So be careful then!” Bunbun was cowering behind her tablet by now. She didn’t know what to do, River was not helping, and she wished she could just get out of-

“HEY! What’s the big idea?!” A voice shouted from the door.

It made Bunbun jump, and River freeze. She took the opportunity to take a step back and turn towards the doorway. In it stood a crewmate with a bright yellow suit. His short, shocking red hair was rather unkempt, a pair of repairman’s goggles managing to keep the longer locks on top from his hazel eyes. A couple bandages poked out from under his rectangle glasses and stuck to his cheek, and a pair of black hoop earrings hung from his ears. A pale coating of stubble surrounded his downturned mouth, brows furrowed in a very displeased scowl.

Uh oh.

Bunbun went right back to cowering behind her tablet as the man strode over. One angry crewmate was enough to deal with, but two? No thank you. Fortunately, he walked right past her to stand toe-to-toe with River. Jabbing a finger into his chest, the newcomer spoke again. “What EXACTLY do you think you’re doing, wandering in and putting bad vibes in MY reactor room?!” he growled. River took a step back, looking quite put out. “Geez- dude, calm down, I’m just watching the new crewmate,” River grumbled, hands up. “I wasn’t even gonna be in here long. What’s the problem?” “You, obviously,” the newcomer huffed, “you should know better than to rush the artists. Speaking of which-” Turning to Bunbun, a soft grin replaced his broody scowl. “Hello there, stardust! Glad to have you aboard! What’s your name?” he bubbled, holding out a hand. Bunbun blinked in surprise. Artists? This guy was… certainly interesting. But it was a good kind of interesting. The kind she knew pretty well. She let her shoulders relax just a bit. Taking his hand, she gave it a gentle shake. “Hello,” she said softly, “I’m, um, Bunbun…” “Bunbun! That’s a fine n’ dandy name. I like it!” he grinned. “I’m Lemon, in case orientation memories are hazy. Glad to finally be workin with ya!” “Y-you too,” she smiled shakily. A glance at River said he was subdued for now. Summoning her courage, Bunbun turned her attention back to Lemon. Time to see if the interests really matched. “Um, so, I take it you’re the reactor caretaker?” “Thaaaat’s me!” Lemon drawled chipperly. “Well, me and my son, but you’ll meet him later.” He waved a hand as if brushing the thought away. “But that’s- eheh- for later. I take it you need somethin’ from me?” Bunbun nodded shyly. “I’ve got a couple updates for the reactor,” she explained, “nothing drastic, don’t worry- just to keep it running up to HQ standards.” “Understandable,” Lemon nodded. “And uh- lemme guess-” he gestured to the control panel- “you can’t find the interaction interface?” Bunbun nodded again, relieved she didn’t have to explain. “If it’s not too much trouble, could you…?” “Of course, Miss Bun! Don’t you worry your fluffy lil head!” Lemon hummed. Gently nudging her to the side, he stood before the control panel. Bunbun watched in silence as he tapped out a complex code with surprising speed. With a beep and a click, the panel slid to the side, revealing… “Hey! That’s the update interface!” Bunbun beamed. “Correct! ‘S a lil hidden here, but it’s all for safety’s sake,” Lemon explained. He took a step back, waving her towards it. “Reactor’s all yours. Just treat my baby like you treat your tablet, m’kay?” “Makes sense. And of course! I’ll have her running smoothly in just a few,” Bunbun smiled knowingly. Seems her intuition had been right. She settled in front of the control panel happily.

Within a handful of minutes, the updates were once again finished. She stepped back to let Lemon close up the reactor, thanking him silently with her eyes. From his tiny nod and gentle glance, he’d caught onto her gratitude. “You done in there?” River huffed from the doorway. Bunbun’s shoulders slumped a bit. She’d nearly forgotten he was there. “Yeah, yeah, don’t get your leg stuck in a wormhole,” Lemon shot back. Giving Bun a pat on the shoulder, he led her over to River. “You two should head to upper engine next. My son was headed up there to do some alignments, last I heard.” “Ok! Thanks, Lemon,” Bunbun said shyly. He held up his hand- er- fist, smiling at her. It took her a moment to realize what he wanted. With a soft ‘oh!’ she bumped her fist against his. He laughed again, giving her a pat on the back. “Of course, Bun!” he beamed. “You’re welcome here anytime.” “Let’s get going,” River grumbled, turning back to the hall.

As Bunbun trailed after him, she could hear Lemon’s call of “don’t be a stranger!” I most certainly won’t, she thought happily.

#cr3wm8ts #au:c #among us oc #bunbun among us #river among us #lemon among us #among us #yea ok its like. 11:30pm as i post this slkjdfs #many thoughts head full but too tired to actually say them *dabs*#pls enjoy #i care them all #except river he sucks #arty writes

16 notes · View notes

lupin-bun · 7 years ago

Text

A Wing and a Prayer - Chapter 10 (A Yondu fic)

A/N: Sorry this took so long. I still haven’t edited this whole chapter (Why did I make this all one chapter!? It’s stupid long!!) but I got to a good point to stop for now and I’ll continue it straight away. There’s a good amount of story here though so I hope you all enjoy it. Look out for references to Pokémon, Harry Potter and Doctor Who ;) Tell me if you find them all.

Also, if you have questions for Yondu and/or El, please follow my new askblog :) xx

Yondu/El (Yondu/OC)

Warnings: Imprisonment

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9

***

El landed with a soft little thump on a piece of metal guttering, not too far away from the Collector's museum. She appraised it for a second. If the facilities that had held her captive throughout her life were anything to go by, there must be some pretty tough security measures in place. It was certainly big and imposing. It was a bold, blocky, hexagonal building with sturdy buttresses holding it up on all sides with a segmented glass dome for a roof. El swivelled her ears, listening to the surrounding city, looking for any clues as to what time it was. She had no idea what phase of the day cycle she'd arrived at. It could be early morning for all she knew. She might be about to commit burglary in broad daylight (so to speak).

She flapped the last few yards to the glass dome and landed on one of the metal supports that separated each pane of glass and peered down into the enormous exhibition of objects below her. From above, she could see just how many tanks, cases, shelves and even artificial ponds there were. She didn't know how the hell she was supposed to get in, or how she was going to find the device when she eventually did. She'd have to have a think.

Giving her wings a rest (flying took a lot of energy) she crawled up the metal support to the very top of the building. Mining colony though it was, the city of Knowhere was almost aesthetically pleasing when looked at from the right vantage point. Lights of all colours lit up the busy, haphazard buildings with crafts zipping this way and that, going to some destination or another. The air might have smelled somewhat unpleasant but El could look past that for the view.

There was a sudden screech from somewhere very close by. Taken by surprise, El took to the air and hung there for a moment, looking around her, trying to locate the source of the noise. But, as far as she could see, there was nothing. Nothing in the air around her anyway. Whatever it had been, it was loud. And angry. But it seemed to be gone now. She must have just missed it. Relaxing a little, she fluttered back down to the glass dome. She was promptly disturbed again by an identical screech. Again, she flew upwards a few feet and stayed there. Again there was nothing anywhere near her. Right, this was silly. Something was going on. She flew around the museum roof, wondering if, maybe, she'd been sharing it with some other creature that was staying just out of sight.

El didn't find another creature. But, what she did find, was an open skylight. Ok, so the Collector clearly wasn't as hot on security as El had expected. She crawled over to the large, rectangular panel. It was only raised by a tiny amount, the gap too small even for her tiny bat body. No problem. One dull flash later and a bug was scuttling it's way through the gap. She crept over the metal edge but lost her footing and began to fall. She didn't fall very far, however. She landed on a tight-woven wire mesh. The gaps in this were smaller, even, than the gap of the skylight itself. El just about managed to wriggle through the mesh, squeezing between the metal strands, and clung there, upside down, gazing into the trove below her.

It turned out that, what had screeched had been a bird-like creature that looked as though it were made of lightning which sat in a hanging cage that was way too small for it. Now it stared up at El with piercing eyes that seemed full of a primal rage. That thin beak it possessed looked plenty long enough to catch El where she sat so, without hesitation, El let go of the wire mesh and unfolded her wings to fly through the labyrinth of tanks.

This place was huge, especially from a bug's perspective. The whole place was full of a bright, blue light emanating from the towers of tanks that stood floor to ceiling. These housed, not just creatures, but various plants and objects (some of which simply seemed to hang in thin air). Despite her goal of finding the device, El couldn't help but fly by a few of the tanks to have a look at some of Tivan's artifacts and … well, to be honest, captives. And, the more she flew, the more she realised how miserable they all seemed. One small, goblin-like creature with a thin nose and big, bat-like ears was sitting, slumped, dejectedly in the corner of his tank, gazing through the floor with little to no expression in his huge eyes. Another creature (which could only be described as a feathered snake) was floating in slow circles around and around the tank walls. None of them seemed to be making any particular effort to escape. Perhaps they'd just been here too long.

There was a strange smell coming from some of the tanks. While passing a particularly pungent one, El alighted on the tank's control panel to have a look. It turned out that the tanks were set up with chambers containing different chemicals which were being pumped into the tanks in various quantities to replicate the atmosphere of whatever planet each creature or plant had come from. El had to admit it, that was some attention to detail. And at least Tivan cared enough not to let his prisoners suffocate. But, as she looked closer, she spotted an additional gas being fed into the tank (and, presumably, all the other tanks too). A very mild sedative. Oh. That's why they were all so docile. El looked sadly at the creature inside the tank she was currently sitting on. It was tiny and seemed to be made of a strange, light purple smog. It sat in the very centre of the floor with more smog flowing out around it like some bizarre skirt. It didn't seem to have any discernible face but, nevertheless, El whispered to it,

“When I can, I'll come back. Ok? You won't have to stay here forever.”

The smog creature seemed to hear her and floated up to where she sat. Apparently it was looking at her because, as El moved, it followed her.

“Wait. Can you hear me?” El asked.

Smog didn't answer so much as turned a bright, affirmative green then back again.

“That means “yes” right?” El asked in confirmation. Another flash of green. El thought for a moment. “I need you to help me if you can,” she said to it, “The Collector has a new device that he bought off a Centaurian earlier today. Did you see?” A third flash of green. “Well it's very dangerous. Did you see where he took it? I need to get it back.” This time, the smog went a dull red. “Oh.” El said, disappointed. However, now, the smog went crazy. It floated around the inside of its tank flashing a brilliant white. El was confused. How was she supposed to know what that meant? But, it turned out, the smog wasn't trying to talk to her. Various creatures pressed themselves up against their tanks as the smog got their attention. Now the smog started flashing all sorts of different colours, none of which made sense to El, but seemed to make perfect sense to the creatures around her. The goblin with the big ears was nodding vigorously and pointing off to the side. The smog looked up at El, expectantly. And El understood. “Thank you!” She said to it “I promise I'll be back for you!” She lifted off from the tank and followed the direction the goblin was pointing. As El passed him, he motioned, with rapid sign language, to a muddy brown, heavy-looking creature with a large, round body and sturdy, blunt legs. The creature nodded his huge head and gestured, as best he could, for El to keep following the path round. Between them, the captives managed to lead El to a large, metal study table with the device sitting on a stand in the centre of it. Sheets of paper with paragraphs worth of notes lay scattered all around it. El landed on one such page and turned to look in awe at the creatures that had helped her.

“Thank you.” She called, as loudly as she dared. Everyone nodded and gestured silently, glad to have been able to help.

El turned to look at the device. Well, it hadn't been displayed yet. The Collector was obviously still studying it. She looked down at the notes then back at the stand. No. He had finished. It was already mounted. Just not yet on display. So El couldn't very well take it without being blindingly obvious. She sat and thought for a few moments. Maybe she could break it some how? That might work. With a small flash, she turned into a rat. Much better for ripping things apart. She ran her paws over the device's tough, plastic casing. How? How could she break it without still being obvious? After a time, her paws found a thin seam around the outside edge. The casing was fixed around it like a clam shell; in two halves. Curling her tiny claws into the seam and bracing her feet on the table, she heaved at it. All that happened was that she lifted both the device and the stand it was sitting on an inch or so off the table. She stood on the stand to keep it still and tried again. The top half of the casing still wouldn't budge so El gave up for a moment and studied the device more closely.

Crouching to look underneath it she discovered a tiny screw holding the casing together. She rubbed her face, frustratedly, with a little rat paw. Great. How was she meant to deal with that? She set about scurrying all over the table-top, looking for something to release the screw with. As she did, she happened to glance down at the notes. Not only were there written words in a language she didn't understand, but also sketched diagrams. She paused to have a look. The Collector had clearly opened this thing before because the diagrams were all of the inner workings of this thing. That meant there had to be a Terran screwdriver of some sort around here.

The search of the table-top yielded nothing, however so she walked around the edge, being careful not to mis-step and plummet onto the hard ground, searching for a drawer or box of some kind that might hold tools. Eventually she found a drawer partially open. She wedged herself inside up to her stomach, braced her feet against the inside of the drawer and pushed. With a startlingly loud scrape of metal on metal, the drawer surrendered itself to being opened. El paused, holding her breath. The creatures around her all looked nervous too. But it seemed that the scrape hadn't got anyone's attention so El dived down into the drawer and started scrabbling around, looking for the screwdriver. There were all number of bizarre gizmos in here, none of which even looked much like tools, let alone Terran ones. She kicked several obviously-not-what-she-was-looking-for tools out of the way including a bizarre, long, silver thing with a blue light at the end. As far as she could tell, this thing had no implements with which to perform any kind of physical task. She pressed a button on the side, experimentally. The thing whirred and lit up but did nothing else so El left it alone.

Eventually, El found a tiny, cross-head screwdriver and, holding it in her jaws, wriggled back up through the gap she'd created. The creatures all cheered, silently as she wandered over and lodged it in the tiny hole in the underside of the device and started to twist. With a tiny *clink* the screw fell out of this half of the device. Again, El glanced around to make sure she wasn't being watched. Disabling just one would be enough, right? She stood on the stand and attempted to lift the top of the case again. This time it pulled off relatively easily and El laid it carefully on the table-top.

It took El all of two seconds to see what needed to be done. Sitting in the centre of the device's inner workings was a kind of bright white, glowing power bead, the size of a small marble. It pulsed slightly where it sat, throwing soft light over El's rodent face. Well, that looked important. El reached out, grabbed it in her teeth and tugged. It came away as easily as a small battery would and she placed it gently beside her. She looked at the inside of the device again. The power source was gone but maybe she should sabotage things just a little further to be on the safe side. She promptly bit through a couple of wires and ripped them out. Happy with her handiwork, El replaced the top of the casing and fastened the tiny screw back in place. She was about to grab the “battery” and make off with it but something occurred to her that made her stop and turn. Seeing as she was here, Yondu could potentially make some money from these

Throwing caution to the wind, El grabbed the screwdriver again and quickly removed the casing from the second half of the device and stole that power bead too. She was just replacing everything (except the bead) when she heard footsteps approaching. Two sets of them. Hurriedly, El finished screwing the casing back into place, stuffed both glowing beads in her mouth, grabbed the screwdriver and dropped it back in its drawer. The drawer itself would have to stay as it was. Maybe the slightly larger gap wasn't too obvious. The footsteps were getting closer and she could hear voices now, too. El braced herself... and jumped off the table onto the hard, unforgiving ground below.

#yondu #yondu udonta #yondu/el #Guardians of the Galaxy #guardians of the galaxy vol. 2 #fic #fanfic #fanfiction

18 notes · View notes

exotahu · 7 years ago

Text

The Bronycon 2017 big text post!

This is the longest thing I ever write but here is my of the 2017 Bronycon.

Lets get to it.

Thursday:

We met at Bill's house so we could travel down in two groups, since we had too many people to fit in one car. (8 of us, Me, Andrew, Justin and Ethan in one car, Kyle, Bill, Nick and Josh in another.) We managed to pretty much stay together and stopped at the same gas station together. It was the good-hot dog speedway. They only had two left and everyone looked at me like I was crazy for wanting gas station hot dogs. I ate those two and asked if they had any more. They totally did. I intended to eat a couple more but NOPE. Everybody else decided to try the gas station hotdogs and doubled up. Oh well, it was kinda funny. The next stop was Baltimore. There was crazy construction in the city, atleast around our hotel. Slowed us down a bit. Justin really had to use the bathroom, so he jumped out of the car in still traffic and went into a nearby subway rather than waiting until we got to the hotel. As soon as he did, traffic moved, like we thought it would. It was easy to direct him from there to the hotel though. They had the special keys, but there wasn't a wifi password this year. I'm a Marriott member so I got free wifi anyway though. We hung around for a bit and went to get our badges. Went pretty quick for us basic pass holders, only like 45 minutes. Not bad at all. Deposited our con things at the hotel. Went to Dick's Last Resort. Nick decided he wanted to arm wrestle me for some reason. I won. Of course the waiter saw this so he challenged me. I lost pretty quick, he was large. Might have been better had I not planted my elbow on the goddamn laminated menu, but what can you do? The funniest part was when he brought our drinks, he brought one. Left the others at the station thingy. I got up and got just mine. Then everyone else slowly did it. It was funny. Managed to place a Pokemon on the gym there too. Didn't last that long but was nice anyway. Then we went to Fells Point. Everybody went to a ramen shop but I decided to go to the bar trot early. I was the only one to actually sign up for it in our group. The original company running the bar trot apparently closed. I didn't know there wasn't to be one until a month before, and then I noticed a new company doing it but it was definitely very last minute for them. There were only two bars participating, neither of them being the admiral, which seemed kinda lame. However the Admiral, being awesome as it as, participated ANYWAY. They had the themed drink including the Great and Powerful Trixie. Drank a fuckton of it. They also had a Pinkie Pie and Applejack themed drink that I saw. Then the bartender made a Rainbow Dash drink by combining them all. It was fuckin' awesome. We then went to the Soundgarden because apparently it's just right there and back to the hotel for bed.

Friday:

I got up relatively early, think I actually got almost 8 hours of sleep. Decided to bring my bad Derpy cosplay. Product of a 3$ costume store clearance wing/ear/tail set and a shirt photo transfer. I actually went to opening ceremonies because A. I woke up for it on time, B. I didn't want to just book it to the vendor hall. It was neat, maybe I'll try to do opening ceremonies again. After that, I got to meet up with a group of people from a Scisetdaily (a really cute Sciset tumblr askblog thingy) discord server I joined, which was really cool. We hung out and ate some con food before we split off to do other things. I went to the vendor hall at this point and wandered. Bought one of the cool engraved lighters. It has Princess Luna on it. I also got some 4de plushies (Specifically Fluttershy and Trixie), a fantastic JoJo shirt and some a couple Cutie Corral plushies. Specifically the comic universe reverse world princesses. Apparently its their last year doing cons : (. Comics hadn't been set up yet so I held off on that. Then I bought an absolutely adorable Derpy playmat. Also I got to see something neat. The MyLittleTies booth had A VR demo for the occulus rift where you could wander around Ponyville. It was really cool, even though I had to take my glasses off I could still see well enough for it to be cool. And yes I totally want an occulus rift for this reason.... Sad my computer won't support it. It was sort of disorienting, but I'm sure if I used VR more, I'd get used to it. After this I went to the hotel and deposited my things and headed to the Fursuit photoshoot with a couple friends. Next was the CMC VA panel which was cool. I like the VA panels. I kinda just wandered around again after that before going back to the main hall. I was going to watch the comic creators panel, but the adjacent room had a tesla coil set up and i really wanted to watch them go. Ultimately ended up watching the tesla coils go cause I needed to charge my phone and that is where an outlet was. Caught the end of the comic panel though. I hate when two panels I want to see conflict. Ate some more con food and did a bunch of wandering. Went back to the hotel and switched to a normal shirt and prepped for bronypalooza. Hung out in the other room and played some splatoon2. Really wanted to see Vylet. His set was fuckin awesome. Other acts were really cool too. A lot more electronic music than usual for that early in the night. Then I did something different. Rather than stay at the palooza, I met up with everyone and went to the Anthology 6 panel. Fuckin hysterical. Everyone else went back to the hotel and I went back to the palooza to catch Silva Hound's set. Then went back to the hotel and went to sleep.

Saturday: Decided last minute to bring my Chrysalis cosplay. Ran into the guy I met at an Otakon a few years back, which was cool. I went to the vendor hall first. The comic booth had a box of variant covers for 5$ each. I dropped 60$ on comics. Then I found a Madoka playmat. I also got Bill to grab a movie playmat for me when they went to the vendor hall day 1. I got like 3 mats. I mostly just wandered and observed. Saw a dakimakura that was real funny bud I didn't want to drop 100 at that time. It was a cartoon-y chrysalis laying on a fuzzy pink background and that fuzzy pink background was Fluffllepuff. Next I got to meet up with the cool people from the internet again and we went to the Kelly Sheridan and Kyle Rideout panel as one big group. I thought of a q&a question but by that point the line was to infinity and I knew there was no way, perhaps another time. Once that ended I grabbed some food and went to the crystal arena. Bill and Josh wanted to see how the game had changed and see what the game was like now. They were running a novice tournament that was 10$ you got a deck to play with and two packs and at the end. It was neat learning the game again. It sounds like it really became good. They streamlined it a lot. Went to another fursuit photoshoot. Then we went back and got ready for palooza. I stayed the entire time this time. Really liked Michelle Creber and BlackGryph0n’s set. Chilled out and sat for one of the acts with Andrew and Ethan, needed to save my legs which were super sore. It was fantastic. Got to see Garnika, he's probably my favorite of all the regular artists there. I bought one of his shirts. Although I heard this might have been his last Bronycon? Infinite sadness if thats true. This is about when Kyle and Josh showed up. I also got a message that the fire alarm went off at the hotel. Everybody there had a clusterfuck, Justin slept through it. Turns out someone was vaping or smoking or some nonsense. then Andrew and Ethan returned in time for the end of Garnika's set and Alex S. Was a great time.

Sunday: Waking up was a bit rough since I hadnt gotten to bed until like 330-4. I wanted to go the VA panel but it was at 10 am (Goddamn who DOES that) but I was way to tired to get out of bed on time. I caught the end of it though! Then I went to the vendor hall. I was trying to avoid buying prints, but guess what. Bought so many goddamn prints. Again. Fuck. Oh well. I've tetris'd my walls before and I can totes do it again. Was trying to buy other neat things. I did too. I got a lazer etched geode slice and an edge lit acrylic pane. I really just hung out in the vendor hall with various people and looked at things. Also Nick got me a commission from an artist named Baron Engle. It's Lapis and Peridot as ponies in his style. Really fucking cool. Also bought another glass. Fluttershy this time. Was hoping one of the bands was gonna be at the Bronypalooza table but they weren't. Also had a print ordered to be shipped to me cause one of the print places printer broke. (There are certain booths that will sell art on behalf of the artists that can't be there.) Also bought a little digital nametag thing. It's pretty cool. I gotta get a cord to hook it up to the computer though. Wandered the con a little bit then deposited stuff at the hotel. We went to closing ceremonies after that. Ran into Garnika on the way there which was neat. Before it started we were playing music and everyone was just kinda goofing around. Closing ceremonies were cool. They said they were short 219 from their 33000 charity goal. So they asked the crowd if they could do that and SO MANY people got up to give them money (myself included). Turns out they made like 1200 $ They were then 10 short from 34k, and someone gave them 10$ We got our annual group photo and then headed to the Inner Harbor for some food and to play some Pokemon Go. Went to Bubba Gump's Shrimp Co. Place remains to be fucking fanstastic. Shrimpers Heaven is the best. While we waited for a table we managed to find a whole bunch of cool pokemon, Even did a Machamp raid. Found a fuckin Sandshew, Totodile and Mantine as well. Those are all things I've never seen around here ever. The Bronycon gym was blue so we couldn't do it yet decided to try later. I also evolved my first Gyrados. I decided to do it down there because that's where I essentially started my game. Went around an played some more Pokemon after dinner. The bronycon gym had changed but unfortunately the game broke real hard, we managed to get it down after a half hour of error-ing out a game crashes. Then we should have had it but it turned yellow in the clusterfuck. And no one had it in them to stand there for another half hour of broken game to beat one Blissey. We went back the next day but it had once again turned blue so we never got on it. Then we all went back to the hotel and watched the newest Rick and Morty while packing. Got our shit together and slept.

Monday: We got up and hung out before loading vehicles. Checkout and hotel exiting was pretty easy. Decided to hang around in the inner harbor for a bit. Got lunch at an Irish pub in the pavilion. Yay for pub burgers and vodka cranberries! Then went to do a raid. A bunch of us went to get ice cream, but I went to the bigass Barnes and Noble instead. I had been looking for the Daring Do books at the con but no one had them. Barnes and Noble had one of the ones I was missing. After all that we walked back and headed out. We tried to stay together but traffic was nonsensical so it was hard. Unfortunately a rock flew up and cracked Kyle's windshield. Minor but still annoying. We met up one last time in Wilkes-Barre at a Sheetz. I got some 2 for a dollar hot dogs and they were not good. After hanging out some they left about 15 minutes before us. We thought it'd be funny if we managed to pass them since they had such a ridiculously long head start and guess what? We totally did. It was funny. Got home after that.

Overall:

It was a good fucking time. Usually is. Bought some neat stuff. Got to meet some cool people from the internet. (Honestly, if any of y'all are reading this, even though it wasn't for that long at any given point you were all cool to meet and hang out with. I hope we get to again sometime.) It's honestly been a while since I've done that. It's funny, despite having done this the last 5 years, I don't feel at all burned out. Though next year, I think I'm going to do something different for my usual con photography. I'm going to shoot everything in black and white. (I accidentally left my camera in black and white mode for my first shot) I want to see how that makes things different.

(Also as always my memory is pretty butthole, and I essentially wrote this twice, so there might be errors and things I missed or got in the wrong order.)

#Bronycon #bronycon2017 #baltimore #innerharbor #convention #mlp #lets see if tumblr breaks the formatting

2 notes · View notes