#Kah-Gash

[spadegeistalt]

The Demonata Shitpost compilation might do more mayhaps

[kafkaoftherubble]

很多时候还是会想：操，这房间那么美那么温柔，真的是咱的吗？

My memory would tell me that my room, Isolde (伊朔德, "The beginning of salutary conduct"; 伊 was just its fake surname ahahhahaha), was supposed to be a dilapidated space with floors that caved suddenly from any sort of weight or pressure. I still remember Mr. Contractor, who couldn't believe the floor was destroyed not by a flood but by pure termite action, made one step and fell onto his ass because the floor suddenly depressed under his weight.

Then he struggled to get back to his feet only to have the other foot sinking and tripped again.

My room used to have a sub-liminal, bi-aural 24/7 track of "Demonic Whispers of Termites GASH GASH KASH KAHS GNAW GNAW KWASHH KWASHH" playing; none of us was the DJ. The DJ I mean the termites had taken control of so many parts of the room and even bit me if I sat on the floor long enough. And the fire ants who used the termites' pathways to infest the house and bite my thighs so much, that the lumps they raised resembled the continents of a world map. We used to have geography etched on my ass!

It's been months and every once in a while, a new version of us would wake up, and we would marvel at where we are.

Since nothing is permanent, this room is also impermanent. Therefore I wanna enjoy this version of Isolde while it's still here. And also document it in my garden, because I think isn't my garden here basically "my room on Tumblr?"

Man, there are always some things that are slightly askew about my stuff. A tilted portrait for example. We could never do straight lines correctly.

Future Me should charge an admission fee for anyone visiting 伊朔德! That would be an example of "the entrepreneur spirit," right? Bwahahahahha!

A room is one's outsized mind. I should take good care of it. It's "the beginning of my conduct," innit?

[lil-tiger-lily]

If more people could read the Demonata series, that'd be great

I need more folks to nerd out with about demons, magic and fucked up fights, along with fan girling over badass old guy magicians

[keyforshort]

Grubbs mentions in Demon Apocalypse he wished he had a Walkman with him. Walkman’s were popular in the late 90′s early 2000′s. 

Kernel mention’s to Grubbs in Demon Apocalypse that over 30 years have passed since he’s been in the Demonata Universe. This sets him in 60/70′s

Kernel also mentions in Demon Thief, that since he was bullied, he always wore the most fashionable clothes to make himself look cooler and try to fit in. 

Conclusion;

[semper-legens]

16. Demon Thief, by Darren Shan

Owned: Yes Page count: 275 My summary: Kernel Fleck isn’t like other kids. He sees the lights - strange patches of light that float around his vision. When his brother is stolen by demons, Kernel must use them to travel into the world of the Demonata and find him. But not all is as it seems when Lord Loss is involved... My rating: 4/5 My commentary:

Book two of the Demonata, and this is where the series really gets going. One thing that struck me about Lord Loss this time round was how standalone it is - it’s a reasonably self-contained story that doesn’t leave too much hanging. This, however, definitely feels like a larger series, and has many big questions going unanswered. If Lord Loss is the pilot episode, this is season one episode one.

Let’s start with our hero, Kernel Fleck. This being the second in the series, the reader is going to be, consciously or unconsciously, comparing Kernel to Grubbs, and there’s some key differences off the bat. Kernel feels more introverted, moodier and less outgoing. He has a good relationship with his family, but always feels like something of an outsider, in part due to his condition. There’s something deeply wrong in his family, but he seems oblivious to it, unlike Grubbs who suspected something was up. He’s a lot more introspective than Grubbs, too. I think I like him better as a protagonist - Grubbs comes across as too self-consciously an everyman, which works less the older I get.

Next, demons! There are so many more demons in this book. Earlier we just saw Lord Loss himself and his two familiars, but now we’re getting a bouquet of creepy nightmare monsters. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Shan absolutely shines when it comes to the creepy and grotesque, and these demons and demon worlds are no exception. It’s utterly horrible and incredibly creative. I love it.

So this is going into the Spoiler Zone, but I love the twist with Art being Artery the whole time. It’s one of those that makes it really fun to reread just to watch for the subtler hints - how Kernel doesn’t mention Art until he’s holding him in his arms, the orange light and orange marbles, how weird his parents are acting. I don’t remember how I reacted to it the first time, whether it took me by surprise or not, but it’s one of those twists whose impacts isn’t entirely lessened by knowing it ahead of time.

As I mentioned above, this is the book where the larger picture begins to creep in. We meet Beranabus, plus recurring characters Nadia, Shark, and Sharmila. We see the demon universe for the first time, plus some hints that Lord Loss is perhaps playing a longer game. We also hear about the Kah-Gash, a major thread that will recur throughout the series. There’s a lot of plot being established here, but it’s introduced very naturally as Kernel learns about it, and I never felt overwhelmed by the body of information relayed. It helps that this info comes with some really cool imagery, from the demon universe most of all.

I also liked how subtly the timeline is being played with here. Kernel’s story takes place far before Grubbs’, which becomes obvious when Dervish shows up as a teenage punk. It’s never stated when this is, but I think the implication is that it’s the 80s. Laying the groundwork for timeline fuckery yet to come, and also seeing teenage Dervish is hilarious. I love this ridiculous punk man.

Anyway, that’s all I got for this - join me next time; or rather, a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away...

[vreugd-madelon]

The Demonata Series Review

The Demonata by Darren Shan is a 10 part childrens horror series which I read in English. The 1st time I read this I was a kid myself, about 10 or 11 years old. And since reading his other series (The Saga of Darren Shan), I couldn't get this one out of my head. So when I saw the 1st two books on my holiday in Edinbourgh, Scotland in March 2020 I knew I had to get them. This series is devided into 3 different main characters and I'll be summarizing each book with a quick sentece after their rating.

I rate Lord Loss 5 Stars. "When Gubbs Grady's parents are killed he moves in with his uncle, only to find out about the curse that had been laid on his family centuries ago."

I feel that this was the perfect intoduction into a new world, to touch upon it, but not fully diving in. To see the edges of this larger world, the capabilities of magic, while keeping the reader grounded into reality. With an added hint of mystery to keep the reader going through the story, and a climax that is very suitable for a 1st book in the series. A climax that makes you want to continue on, to see where it's going.

I rate Demon Thief 5 Stars. "Kernel Fleck is a normal boy, except for the light he sees. When he plays with them one faithful night, he opens a window into another world."

It's a switch of POV and my younger self couldn't handle it, so I DNF'd it when I was younger, while continuing in the series. Reading it now in full, I can see on how much I've missed out. The continuation of the world-building is incredible. Fully diving into the world of the Demonata and seeing the full potential of the magic at hand. This is also the book where we're introduced to the larger plot at hand, the search for the Kah-Gash.

If you have any questions send me an ask here on tumblr or tweet me. If there are any books that you want to recommend, be sure to let me know!

[demonairs]

I saw this Art prompt asked by Darren Shan here: https://twitter.com/darrenshan/status/1276887312723595266

In which he was interested in putting any of his characters wearing masks! I couldn’t resist but do it myself! For my drawing I have the Kah-Gash wearing special designed masks. I had a lot of fun with this drawing and I hope you guys like it!!

[catharticsacrifice]

1, 5, 7, 12, 15, 20, 23, 33, 37, 40, 41! - denki

oooooooooooops i didn;t even remember i posted this ;;; 1. Any scars?oh boy, do we! we have a lot of scars, so i’ll note the ones that come to mind legs/feet- a scar on our left knee from an ice-free hockey game incident, a long gash on the back of our right calf, several small burn/razor/random scars in random placesarms/hands- a preposterous number of tiny burn scars on my hands, light scarring on knuckles from fighting, one dollar-coin sized discolored patch and a centered 5mmx5mm indented scar on our left hand from a freak spaghettio’s accident, one 3/4 inch scar behind our left thumb from broken glass, one inch long curved scar around our left index finger’s first joint from a knife sharpening incident, several misc. scars on my armstorso/head- a few small scars on our chest from our cats growing up and general clumsiness, a few misc. face scars, and one line beneath our lower lip where we bit through as a child

5. Coke or Pepsi?aaaa i actually like both? ;; but i have had more of a pepsi leaning here lately because the coke in the soda fountain at work is messed up 

7. Best Friends?i have a handful of people i consider to be very good friends, but as we have not been in actual communication for very long i hesitate to say best friends? anywho, i have a handful of people that i find to be truly awesome- kah, bakugou, denki, caliborn, and cain all have exceptionally dear places in my heart!

12. Favorite color?at this point, i’d say either blue or purple pastels and neons are pretty top tier

15. Eye color?blue! not as vibrant as when we were kids, but i actually really like them -v-

20. Do you love someone?i.. dunno, really. i’m not good at determining whether or not i "love" someone, to be honest. i have a difficult time extracting myself from my emotions long enough to recognize where the borders of platonic and romantic affection.. really stop. i get crushes pretty easily, but they are typically fleeting- there and gone within a week or so, but there's a couple here recently that have lasted.. a surprisingly long time for me, so maybe that's something to consider..?

23. Favorite song?

at the moment, one of these three!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSEVBUTXDTQhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccdn1a5LOwkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i92AZxL6Wl4

33. Best day of your life?

i know this sounds hellishly lame, but my friend mitchell gave me this teddy bear like 9 years ago as the very first platonic valentine's present we were ever given and it is still one of my most treasured posessions

37. Ever had a near death experience?

a couple that are truly no good to share, but yes.

40. Do you believe in love?

i think so. i want to. i want to so bad. love that can span lifetimes, love that can last even if they are apart, love that i want to be a part of.

41. Someone you hate/Dislike?

a handful of very specific abusers. i truly wish i could hate them, but i just.. can'. i do not like them of anything they stand for, though.

[realjoehours]

i hath now finished Death’s Shadow it was very good and i need to gush about this damn book

under the cut because there’s explicit spoilers lol

it should also be noted that this is my first time reading the series and so i have no idea what happens in the next three books anyways time for my thoughts

i’m happy to see that Bec is getting a shot at being narrator again since it’s been a hot second, by which i mean 1,600 or so years, and don’t get me wrong i love Grubbs but it’s nice having a change. one can only hope that Kernel didn’t actually accidentally blow himself up and die and that there’ll be another book where he can be narrator.

Bec’s really interesting to have as a narrator because of how long ago she originally lived, her memories of Bill-E and also her powers! especially her brand new power that has surfaced since her coming back to life that being her power to soak up the memories, feelings and thoughts of those she comes into physical contact with. i’m not gonna say i would want that power because honestly it sounds like a burden to carry especially since Bec has perfect memory in the first place but it’s a power i think is going to continue to prove useful in the books especially as things are getting even tougher.

also my beloved Meera Flame is back!! after being absent in Demon Apocalypse due to being dead prior to Grubbs, Kernel and Beranabus’s arrival (pre-time travel) to the scene of Carcery Vale i’m so glad she’s back and she’s okay and very much alive. i love that she’s helping Bec adjust to her new life and i will never not enjoy her personality and knowing when to put somebody in their place. shame she isn’t in the book more but by the sounds of it she’ll be more present in the next book Wolf Island (yippee!!).

i’m very worried for Dervish and that he’s gonna die before they can reach dry land. i want him to be able to see Grubbs again before his heart goes just so that if he dies he can die knowing that Grubbs is okay (or as okay as Grubbs can be in the current climate of the world). i enjoyed that he brought his spikes back that he had when he showed up in Demon Thief that was always a character detail i hoped that would come back but thought never would, but i guess i was wrong about that one lol! also i just think Dervish is very cool and i don’t want him to die and i don’t want any cannibalism on the boat either :(

speaking of not dying Juni is also there after being impaled last book. except she’s kind of a gross corpse/amalgamation kinda thing now? her whole existence sounds like utter agony now but i mean if that’s what she wants? i mean at least now she can continue to serve for her master and she’s more powerful than ever too!

also new character alert! Kirilli’s his name and he is a pathetic failure man but i love him. as well as being a mage and disciple he’s also a stage magician. he’s got stars on his suit and he even wears a bow tie!!!! i’m going to be extremely disappointed if Kirilli turns out to be evil like a certain previous character who i like who turned out to be evil and not who they said they were *cough* Juni *cough*

also does he deserve the bullying he’s getting? …maybe

also Sharmila is dead :(((((

and also Beranabus too i guess but i’m mainly focused on Sharmila because i liked her more. i hope her sacrifice wasn’t for nothing and that Bec, Dervish and Kirilli actually make it to land safely. and a possible r.i.p to Kernel too he may have blown up trying to maintain that window. i really hope he didn’t blow up and that he’s okay and the odds are that he isn’t dead and that he’s okay because he is part of the Kah-Gash after all. i just hope his eyes are okay because his magic i doubt that his magic echolocation will work out in his favour.

also hoping Grubbs, Shark and Meera are okay but i guess that’s what i’ll find out in the next book Wolf Island!

[spocksaestheticblog-blog]

so i wrote some NATM fanfiction starring my two favorite morbid egyptian shitpost brothers ft. a very tired larry daley and also the police. and the assumption that its the franklin museum bc tbh im in PA and honestly, its definitely the franklin museum. no one gives a fck there. its in philly. no ones gonna bat an eye if a neandertal homeless lookin dude bursts into dust in the street.

it goes along with these two arts if anyones wondering

this is probably just chapter 1 but i dont know if im really gonna write more, honestly a lot of this is just vent for my own trauma so take that with a grain of salt, and dont expect this to be. good. or coherent.

content warning for CSA references and self harm, foul language.

The young pharaoh wakes up to the familiar voice of Larry Daley, letting out a few deep coughs as he clears the dust from his lungs and brushes centuries old sand from his robes. “Ahk, I know we talked about this before, but I want to make sure you’re prepared, because I think one of the mummies in the new exhibit might be. Your brother.”

“…Oh! Where are they kept, then?! I haven’t seen him in many an age!” Akhmenra leaps out of his sarcophagus, only to have Larry put a hand out to stop him in his tracks.

“…You heard me, right? Your brother. The one that you told me held a pillow over your head while you were trying to sleep.”

Akh winces, suddenly regretting telling Larry about that. “…Too dark? It happened in Egypt all the time. I’m sure he had a reason. I would have done the same thing, probably. Maybe.”

Larry levels him a patented Look, but Akh waved it off, bouncing in place. Eventually, Larry caves and leads him down the hall, only to have someone round the corner and smack directly into Larry, knocking him to the ground. The figure brushes back complicated, gold-ringed braids that end in golden bird feet, coughing and trying to speak.

“Hhhhheh. Hkhkk- hehk- hh. Hello.”

Akhmenra’s eyes widen at the sight of his brother in the flesh, bound in linens just as he himself was, scars peeking out behind braids along the back of his neck, only slightly paler than he had been in life. Even so, he still proved to be tanner than Akh, kohl smudged into the deep crows feet around his eyes only accentuating this fact.

“Hey, yeah, I’m Larry. I’m not sure we’ve met…?”

Kahmunra. He was actually here.

“…Oh. Okay. Hyeah… I remember you.” His voice is rough, but smooths out slightly the more he speaks, lisp ever present as usual. “…You tfhwarted my plans! My uh, evil plans, heh! Army of the dead and all that…”

Akhmen can’t help but run up and hug the older Egyptian, despite their history. Even when Kahmun flinches, he drags his brother to a bench and sits him down, immediately occupying the spot next to him. “How did you get here?! Do you remember anything else? Tell me everything!”

Kahmunra looks…slightly paler at that, wincing, but gesturing as he begins to describe his adventures as a wax dummy. “Honestly, it washnt that interesting. Shpent a lot of time in shtorage watching videos, mosthly.” He pulls his arm back when he’s noticed the bandages aren’t covering his wrist, so Akh only gets a glimpse, but it almost seems like his arm has…stripes. Something.

He watches as Kahmun jumps to his feet. “Hey, I heard ththhhat- that there was a groshshs- grocers nearby! Wwh why dont we go there? I hhavent eaten in centuries!”

Larry rolls his eyes, even as Akh looks rather surprised at the sudden outburst. It seems Larry is far more used to catering to the whims of every single museum member, and at this point he’s just numb to it and going through the motions. The young pharaoh, at least, has the understanding to know that Kahmun typically hates public spaces and anything that requires too much effort, and he certainly hasn’t been awake here long enough to know about anything in the immediate area.

“I suppose we could head to the Trader Joe’s before it closes. I’m pretty loaded, so. Go nuts, I guess. We should probably get you something to wear on top of that, first, though.”

Kahmunra barely gives them time to blink, making a beeline for the locker room. He’s out in under a minute, wearing sweatpants and ill-fitting sneakers with a jacket that looks far too big, hanging haphazardly over one linen covered shoulder like a fashion statement. “A’right, less’go, time waitsh for no one!”

It’s actually a shorter walk than he expects, but he’s still nervous about someone recognizing them from the museum, especially since he wasn’t given any time to change out of his own royal robes. Kahmun’s assurances that everyone assumes they’re actors is not much comfort, and he really isn’t looking forward to any sort of questions about his job at the museum even if that is the case. He’s not even sure why Kahmunra insisted on leaving the museum in the first place, and he certainly doesn’t want to ask, but Larry doesn’t seem to mind escorting both of them, so he shrugs it off.

There’s less people here than he thought. A few stragglers give him some odd glances here and there, but for the most part, it’s almost empty, and no one bothers them. He starts to worry, though, because Kahmun is simply staring blankly at a box of cereal on the shelf, looking vaguely lost. When he places a hand on his brother’s shoulder, Kah finally speaks, voice low and soft.

“I didn’t mean it, you know. I jusht. I-I didn’t mean it. Yhyou know that, right?” Akh opens his mouth to respond, but Kahmun wanders farther down the aisle like a frightened animal when Larry approaches. Akhmenra jolts slightly as Larry pulls him aside, giving him a confused look as he does so.

“Ahk, he MURDERED you. Do you really trust what he says? You don’t know he’s not lying.”

Larry’s grip on his arm is tight, almost painfully so, as he eyes Kahmun suspiciously from around the corner of the aisle. Akh can see from here that his brother is hiding behind a display case, trembling and avoiding his gaze, looking as if he wants to crawl into the shelves and die. Akh pries Larry’s fingers off of his arm, watching the pale handprint fade from his skin as blood flows back into it.

Without even blinking, Akhmenra slaps him immediately, almost as hard as he possibly can, right palm stinging painfully from the force of it. It’s the only thing that he’s really properly felt in a long time, and he hates it.

“…You don’t know what it was like. For him, or for me. You weren’t THERE. This isn’t something you could possibly contextualize! Don’t TALK to me. Don’t even LOOK at me ever again. I don’t want to see you any more.”

By the time he turns his head to check on his brother, he’s already gone. Distantly, he registers the sound of the automatic doors at the front of the store, and he bolts. This has happened before when they were alive, but never when he’s been close enough to do anything about it. He follows his brother’s footsteps almost instinctually, even when that leads him up a fire escape to the roof of a building, even when his brother is faster, even when he sees a sliver of still-lingering color in the sky, despite sunset having been an hour ago. It’s too early for this. It’s far too early for this.

He stops in his tracks. Kahmun isn’t anywhere near the edge of the roof, so… So what is he doing? Is he okay? Are things okay now? Maybe he just needed space? A million thoughts race through his head as he hesitantly approaches the roof access pillar that his brother is hiding behind. He can’t stop trembling, the residual adrenaline leaving him weak and nauseous.

The panic comes back full force as he rounds the corner. Where did Kahmun even get a knife? Who let him have a knife? Why would…Who would…The sight of blood is too much. It’s far too much. Akh finds himself wrenching the knife from Kahmun with more force than necessary, tossing it far over the edge of the building.

Kahmunrah slumps against the brick wall, eyes unfocused and lids heavy. He sobs openly.

Akhmenrah had never actually properly seen Kahmun’s arms without the linens. He desperately wraps linen around the fresh, deep gashes that bled too fast for his comfort, cutting off circulation. But below those are older scars, he sees now, thousands of them, more than he can count, raised skin like ridges along most of his arm. How long… How long had this been going on? Akh knew about the scars on his back, where the linen sat loose around his collarbone and raised, scarred flesh had always been prominent up the back of his neck. But those were not so obviously self-inflicted.

These scars, these were the kind he’d only seen before on a handful of teens that wore long sleeves in the middle of summer. The ones that strayed to the back of the group, the ones that avoided eye contact. He used to chat with them the most, because they always looked so empty and sad, but he had never…understood.

“…I know it was an accident. I know. I’m here now. It doesn’t matter any more. It never mattered. Please…Please don’t ever- You do not deserve this. Fuck, our parents deserve this, but not you. Not you. You did what you could. Please…Please don’t die. You deserve better.”

He watches his brother turn away slightly, no longer sobbing, instead letting hot tears roll down his face silently as he stares at the ground. He says nothing, and Akh almost wants to shake him to make him believe, hands still wrapped around the wound.

“…D-do you want to go to a hospital? We could- I could. I could just.”

“…I want to go back to the museum. To my sarcophhagus. I want to sleep,” Kah holds up his free hand in surrender as Akh opens his mouth, “-Just sleep. Jusht a nap. Just a quick nap. I’ll- I’ll be okay…” Kahmun laughs, and Akh swallows loudly, trembling still. “…This isn’t even the most blood I’ve ever losht. It’s barely anything. Don’t worry.”

Akhmen can’t even hold it in any more. He sets his forehead against Kahmun’s and wails. He sobs openly as he remembers all the moments in his childhood he tried to forget, tried to bury under dark humor and amusement and authority. He’d watched countless Jews beaten to death by his father’s hands when he was but a child, remembering vividly the face of one of them trying to reassure him, a five year old child, holding what was soon to be a corpse. He remembers being eight and barely being able to breathe from the inside of a pot, fingers burning from the scrapes he’s gotten trying to move the lid, falling still only when he hears pained screaming that he only dimly recognizes as his brother. He remembers the one time he finally managed to raise the lid of his prison, only to shut it again in horror as, for a brief moment, he glimpses nudity and blood through the crack of light. For all of his lifetime he’d assumed his brother was simply trying to torture him, that he’d been playing tricks on him all this time. But he knows what he saw. He knows, and he’d denied it, and he’d pretended all this time that it wasn’t real.

It’s fucking killing him. He knows, now, or maybe he had always known. Kahmun was…hiding him. From this. From whatever this was… And he had hated his brother for this all his life. He’d told people, actual people, that his brother had killed him out of malice. That it was an act of spite and hatred.

“It… It wasn’t an accident. It was never an accident. I couldn’t… I couldn’t let you live like this. I knew what the tablet was, I couldn’t…I couldn’t let you figure out how they made it. I couldn’t let you live like that. I couldn’t live with that. I couldn’t. I couldn’t look at that. I knew. I knew and I let them do it because I was selfush, I. I thought I could take it and mhmaybe this time would be… Maybe it would be differnht. But- But it isnh’t differint at all.”

Akh’s hands drop to his sides loosely. He wants Kahmun to stop talking. He wants to beg Kahmun to stop talking. He can’t handle this, he has no means of processing this, and he cannot handle this knowledge, this torment. Most of all, he desperately wants to feel some sense of betrayal, some sort of pity, anything else other than the intense shard of empathy that feels like hot knives through his blood.

“…I. I wanted to live. Not jusht…Live. I wh- to- I wanted to be okay. I wanted to be okay, just this once. I thought it would be okay if I cccould jusht. I deserved better! I deserved better and I ththought if I lived again that maybe everything wouldn’t… I thought it wouldn’t hurt. I thought everyfhing would be…Okay. I thought… I didn’t know… I…”

Please. Stop. Talking.

For the love of Ra, please stop talking. Anything. Please. Don’t let me hear this.

“…I didn’t- think. I didn’t think the tablet would wake him up. I thought he’d be dead. I thought things would be okay thhis time.”

Akh wishes he’d stayed dead. He wishes he didn’t know. He wishes they were both dead. He doesn’t know what to wish for. His brain scrambles for some semblance of hope or happy outcome or any shred of decency in the immediate future, but nothing is there. Instead, he grasps the wound again, properly wrapping it this time so, hopefully, Kahmun won’t lose any more blood.

“I knknknow you dduhn. nn. nh. srv- dhshr- you’re more worth this thhan I am. Yhhhyou deserved a life. Bhut this is the best I could do. I. I wanted you to have shshomenthing where you would be safe. Not…”

Akhmenrah frowns gently, holding up a hand. “…Kahmun. You need to stop talking. You’ve lost blood.”

“…I kknow. M’sorry bout th…The mess.” Kahmun coughs slightly, more out of embarrassment than anything else, clamping the hand of his good arm on his brother’s shoulder so he can use the leverage to pick himself up. Akh reaches a hand up weakly, as if to stop him, then lets it fall as Kah manages to stand on his own, looking none the worse for wear despite the paleness and the blood.

They both walk back to the museum in silence.

Akh’s feet stop moving when he feels an arm against his chest. When he looks up, there’s at least two police cruisers in front of the museum, and quite a few officers. Kahmun gently hooks his good arm around Akhmenra’s, tugging him backwards through the dark alleyway as slowly as he can.

“…What did you do?”

“I shsshs. I woke up- h  hh. He was right there- hhe wwh. Lifting the lid. I panicked! I ddidn. tuh. uh. I. I panicked. I- I did shay i was sorry a-ah- about the mess.”

“Blessed Amun, what the fuck, Kahmun?! We aren’t even going to jail for this! How are we going to explain this?! What’s going to happen?! What if he comes back? Is he going to come back? Do you know what’s gonna happen when they take his body away?”

Kahmunra looks at him with a joy he’s never seen.

“…I did it. We’re free.”

“No, see, Kahmun, that body is going to decintegrate as soon as the sun rises. What are the police going to do once that happens, huh? They’re gonna see it was a mummy and they’re gonna come after ALL of us!”

Looking smug, Kahmunrah smiles, pressing his tongue through the gap in his crooked front teeth.

“When the sun rishes, someone’s going to see the body’s mishsing from the museum. They’re gonna have a case file, and a bunsh of police that are going to look like they got completely trashed and stole a mummy from a museum. No one is going to look for ush, Akhi.”

The young pharaoh eyes the police warily from the shadows, ducking both of them behind the corner so they’re safely out of view. “…Alright, but I sure hope you’re right. What…What do we do until then? You’ve got a busted arm we need to hide, and we do need to get back in the museum before sunrise…”

“…I saw a CVS around here. Let’s jusht hang out there like it’s the movie Mannequin and we’re Samantha trying to seduce Andrew McCarthy into giving us free sshit.”

Akh’s laughter is almost music, and he gladly follows Kahmun.

……………………………………………………………………………

[semper-legens]

28. Wolf Island, by Darren Shan

Owned: Yes Page count: 223 My summary: Grubbs Grady has a problem. His uncle was attacked by werewolves, which can mean only one thing - the sinister Lambs, Grady family executioners, are after him. But what secrets will he unearth when he digs for the truth? And what role does his newfound magic have to play? My rating: 4/5   My commentary:

More Demonata, and this is one of the better examples of the later books, in my estimation. It’s another book from Grubbs’ point of view, and Grubbs is really the main protagonist of the series. We get to know him better, so anything from his perspective always feels more fleshed-out. Also, werewolves! There’s werewolves. Gotta love werewolves.

Starting with Grubbs, his struggle in this one is predictably between his wolf-self, until now kept in check by his piece of the Kah-Gash, and his human sensibilities. We’ve seen before that he doesn’t have much of a stomach for fighting and combat, and this is where this really flips, as he unleashes his wolf side and transforms into a half-wolf, half-human state in order to save the lives of himself and his friends. I’m not sure about how this is handled as a whole - Grubbs seems to flip-flop into being morally ok with murder a little too easily, though it is an interesting place for his character go and an interesting way for him to develop after everything that’s happened to him.

The Lambs are the major antagonist here. We learn a little more about what they’re doing - apparently the leadership has been breeding werewolves for their own use, which is incredibly fucked up considering the wolves were teenagers when they turned. It’s supposed to be fucked up, though. Grubbs is absolutely horrified by what’s happened. All of the wolves have been taken to the titular Wolf Island, and Grubbs and co travel there to find the Lambs’ leader, Prae Athim, after being told all this by Antonine Horwitzer, the acting leader of the Lambs after Prae took off with the wolves. That Antonine is lying about everything and is the true big bad is pretty obvious to everyone but the characters. Oops.

For all they’re the big bad and fakeout big bad, Prae and Antonine (sidebar - Antonine Horwitzer is totally a shoutout to Anthony Horowitz, right?) don’t get too much focus here. Which is fine, Prae isn’t that relevant, and Antonine is a corrupt businessman-slash-evil scientist type. The switch from demon evil to human evil is an interesting one. Antonine is a very human villain - he wants to profit from the werewolves, using them as a commodity despite the fact that they’re sentient beings and former humans. It’s an odd if intruiging direction for the series to take this late on, and I’ll admit it does make for a compelling narrative between Grubbs’ moral struggles and Antonine’s evil.

Not much else to say here - join me next time for another series I remember loving as a teen, with the first Percy Jackson novel!

[demonairs]

The scene in Demon Thief that made me chuckle was when we find out that Dervish Grady was a punk in his youth. That got me struck with inspiration and wanted to draw the Kah-Gash going through their punk phase. It was difficult but I had a lot of fun with this piece. Hope you guys like it!!

[trieuto]

Darren Shan Demonata - Tập 09: Bóng Tối Vẫy Gọi

Darren Shan Demonata - Tập 09: Bóng Tối Vẫy Gọi ebook PDF/PRC/EPUB/MOBI tải sách hay miễn phí đọc trên điện thoại, Tablet và máy tính. Tác giả:Darren Shan

Darren Shan Demonata – Tập 09: Bóng Tối Vẫy Gọi

Grubbs, cùng với Bec và Kernel (ba mảnh ghép của Kah-Gash) hợp lực bước vào vũ trụ của yêu tinh để chiến đấu chống lại Cái Bóng.

Cuộc chiến đấu gây tổn thất lớn cho cả 2 phía. Về phía Grubbs, Beranabus – thầy của bộ ba Kah-Gash bị tiêu diệt cùng với Các Môn Đồ thân cận. Lord Loss xuất hiện và bước đầu bị đánh bại, nhưng lại bắt được Bec – người nữ…

[blessy-lyster-an-manaya-blog]

Maybe. No. I should. Really start to mind my own life. No shits for others kah kapy na. Gash.

[your-dm-is-your-gm]

Kah-Gash

After finishing the Demomata series for the 5th time ((have no life)) I am gonna challenge myself to a game of chess. If anyone would like to participate In this universal game, then please send an ask and we can probably use Skype or Kik for a game. Hail the Kah-Gash

[semper-legens]

18. Slawter, by Darren Shan

Owned: Yes Page count: 255 My summary: An invitation from esteemed horror director Davida Haym to consult on her new movie seems like a dream come true for Grubbs and Dervish. Recently recovered from their fight with Lord Loss, they eagerly accept the diversion from their real demons to help create some fake ones. But, as Grubbs discovers, there’s something all too real about the demons in Slawter... My rating: 3/5 My commentary:

More demons! This book unfortunately falls foul of something I see in series I read as a child. Often I only owned about half of a series, and got the rest out of various libraries, so I’m more familiar with the ones I owned than the ones I did not. This is not a book I owned until relatively recently, and so I know it less intimately than the rest of the series. Does that mean I like it less? ...apparently yes! That’s more to do with the book itself, I think.

Let’s first talk about Grubbs and Dervish. I’d put Bill-E in here too, but much as I love him, kid doesn’t have as much of an arc as Grubbs. They’re recovering from the events of the first book, from Dervish’s trauma over being trapped in Lord Loss’ dimension and Grubbs’ trauma at being left behind for that and also having to take care of Dervish. I do like that, despite the happy ending of the previous book, things aren’t 100% fixed by Dervish’s return. He still needs care, and Grubbs, a teenager, is the one who has to give him this care. It’s an interesting dynamic and for the first few chapters, one I could really get into. My problem with this book is that Dervish grabs the idiot ball hard. He doesn’t believe Grubbs that the demons are real, despite being reasonably shrewd and practical early on, and doesn’t really contribute overall to much of the story. I’m not impressed with him.

Grubbs, meanwhile, gets more of a satisfying arc. Grubbs is learning and growing in his magic through the second half of the book, up to and including suddenly being amazing at fighting demons. This is a plot point, and one that’s not hard to guess the true nature of, though I suspect that’s deliberate and part of the point is that the reader is meant to figure out the Kah-Gash connection, while Grubbs has no way of knowing this. He’s maturing into a more practical, battle-weary young man, which is an interesting direction. He’s still a reasonably regular kid, but with hints of who he will become lurking beneath.

What else? Slawter itself doesn’t really interest me. The premise is cool - a movie about demons, where the director is summoning real demons - but I found myself not caring too much and I’m not sure why. Maybe an element is that the people in Slawter don’t get characterised in too much depth, bar a couple like Bo or Juni, and are mostly just there as demon fodder. I’m exaggerating slightly, it��s not quite as bad as all that, but I did find myself uninterested.

Here is where we get a little more demon lore. Demons can be summoned from their world, Lord Loss is one of a few demon masters that can sneak in, demons when they cross create a bubble of magic around them that humans can tap into - it’s all stuff that’s been implied before, but now we see it in more depth. Lord Loss himself doesn’t really show up too much until the end in this one. I don’t have much to say about him here, he’s much the same.

Overall, apart from Grubbs’ magic and Juni’s appearance, this really felt like a bit of a filler book to me. Nothing much happens to progress the overall plot, and while Grubbs grows to know his magic better and develop it, Dervish spends the entire book being useless. It’s also kind of grim overall, what with the wholesale slaughter (heh) of a lot of people including and especially children. Maybe that’s why I didn’t connect to it so much? I don’t know. It’s not bad, but it’s definitely my least favourite of the series as far as I recall.

Next up - we go back to Edwardian times, but there are no fewer demons. Well, maybe.