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lshark-cs · 10 months ago

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Iron God Chapter 33 [Xigon]

Xigon pushed his dagger between his enemy's ribs, slicing deep into his lung. Haode tensed up with a choking wet gasp, blood spurting out as the blade cut a major artery. When he was sure he'd done enough damage, Xigon pulled the dagger from the wound to let blood flow unimpeded. For an instant, his heart glowed with the grim satisfaction he had come to know like an old friend – the violent delight of an excellent kill. He had always hated how much he loved this moment.

The next instant, pity overwhelmed all else. Xigon grabbed his terrified enemy and laid him down, cradling his head and neck so he could breathe a little easier – choking on blood was needless torture. "Don't be afraid." He kept his tone as soft and soothing as he could. "It's over. It's all over."

Color drained rapidly from Haode's skin. He said something Xigon couldn't make out. His voice was too shaky and weak to understand, but it sounded like he was pleading for help. Though it hurt something deep inside him, the master refused to flinch or avert his eyes. Instead, Xigon took Haode's hand and comforted him through his last vulnerable moments.

Though it took several minutes for Haode to lose consciousness and several more for him to bleed out, his death was quiet and calm, like returning to sleep after a nightmare.

_____________

This thing we call life exists only for an instant between two oblivions. We are made in darkness, pushed screaming into this world, then pulled whimpering back, forgotten as we were conceived – within a single breath – and the universe does not even blink.

That is the first law of being. We are nothing.

_____________

An instant between two oblivions. A single breath in troubled air. Insignificant. Xigon knew this scar should not weigh any heavier than the thousands before it. And yet...

As he watched Haode's heat go dark, Xigon was overcome with a pain so intense that it made his breathing hitch. He blinked. Everything was blurry without his goggles. His eyes had never hurt this much. Nothing had given him pain like this in recent memory, not even the dose of Rager. Stranger still, the urge of impending death did not leave him, even though he knew the man bleeding in his arms had died. Xigon knew he had not failed. If he wanted someone dead, they died. That was how it always was.

He might as well have been a child crushing an insect. He certainly felt that small.

Confused, Xigon bent for a closer look. His vision only got blurrier. He checked for a pulse and found none. Still, Xigon's head was pounding. He could hear his own heartbeat, but even that was barely enough to punctuate the harsh ringing in his ears. His spine tingled as if his own power were somehow turning on him.

"Dakko, stop crying or you'll hurt yourself." Ido sounded in tears himself. "Dakko, please!"

Xigon jolted as if he had been struck by Ido's lightning. His eyes darted and found the boys' heat. Ido stood at a cautious distance, arms wrapped tight around his struggling brother.

"Come here." Xigon was taken aback by how weary his own voice sounded.

"No!" Ido yanked Dakko back, nearly throwing him. "You demon, you — !"

"Ido, it's all right." Dakko's tone was eerily calm. "Master Xigon won't hurt us."

Ido let go of Dakko and fell to his knees with a scream. The sound was like an ice dagger through Xigon's heart. His eyes burned with a sharper pain. Tears, he realized. He'd ripped the ground out from under these children.

Dakko crawled over and laid a frost-encrusted hand on Haode's bloody chest. Xigon stayed quiet. It seemed best to say nothing.

Dakko broke the silence. "He didn't need Kolo after all." He let out a breath so cold it was nearly liquid. "He didn't even need us. He needed you."

Xigon didn't look up.

"You were so gentle." Dakko's voice took on a strange tone, one that made Xigon's skin crawl. "So gentle...I..."

"It's pointless to punish a dying man," said the master. His eyes strayed to the blurry shape of Ido running off, perhaps returning to the others. "Pointless and cruel. But..." Xigon raised a hand to his face. "It almost feels like he's still suffering."

"He's not." The boy's cold fingers brushed against Xigon's arm. "We were never able to calm him down when he cried. But you could do it."

Xigon's jaw clenched. How could anyone be so sure?

Dakko cocked his head. "Xigon?"

Shivers ripped through his aching muscles. Heat flared in front of him, so bright it was like staring at the sun. The tears that spilled down his cheeks were like boiling water. "It's nothing." He sputtered a flimsy excuse without even thinking about it. "I mean, I see something. It's..."

Only one thing was clear in his vision, and it should not have been there.

"Dakko." He tried to keep his voice as calm as possible. "I need you to leave now. Go back to Qila and the others. Let them know what's happened, but don't let anyone come looking for me. I'll come back as soon as I can."

"Why won't you come back now?" Dakko asked. "What's the matter with you?"

"I don't know what's happening," Xigon admitted. "But no matter what it is, I don't want anyone else to get hurt. Understand?"

Dakko nodded. "All right."

The boy's joints cracked and he cried in agony as he pulled himself up. Xigon barely saw him leave through the increasingly bright aura of unnatural heat.

With no warning, Xigon's energy crashed. He crumpled. The world went dark and he slept.

He woke up after only a few minutes, but was even more exhausted than before. When he sat up, the first thing he saw was heat. Familiar heat this time, which put him at ease somewhat. Then he scowled. "I was very clear. No one was to come looking for me." He was surprised by the anger in his own voice.

"I know." Azvalath sat down with him and put a hand on his wrist. "Thing is, I'm not a good listener."

Xigon couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Neither am I."

Azvalath's grip shifted to clasp Xigon's hand. "Are you hurt at all?"

"No." It seemed the only correct answer, even when it was a lie.

"The boys told us what happened." Azvalath gave his hand a squeeze. "And Dakko told me to thank you."

"For what?" Xigon's gaze drifted to the man he'd killed.

"For being merciful, he said." Azvalath looked down. "I probably wouldn't have been so kind, you know."

"But you're honest, and that's more than I can say." Xigon rubbed his eyes. "How did Kolo do? Did she make it through?"

"Yes." Azvalath's voice brightened. "She's still back at the tree. Probably wondering where we are." He stood up. "Well? Let's not keep her waiting, Master."

Xigon braced himself against a tree trunk to stand up. The pain in his back and legs was intense.

Azvalath handed him a long stick. "Here. I know just a walking stick makes your wrist hurt, but it's probably better than nothing."

Xigon nodded. "Thank you." Then he looked back at his slain enemy. "Carry him, will you?"

Azvalath cocked his head. "What?"

"Out of respect for Dakko and Ido, we should lay him to rest properly." Xigon cast his eyes down. "Remember, Azvalath. There's no point in punishing someone who's dead or dying."

Eventually, Azvalath obeyed.

Xigon walked with him back to the rest of the group. He couldn't make out anyone's features without his goggles. No one except Kolo.

Kolo stood firm, feet planted in the snow stained with her own blood. She held her head high, proud beneath a mask in the likeness of an eagle skull.

She was neither devil nor child. She was miraculous and inexplicable, like life itself. It really was like looking straight into the Iron God's heart.

Kolo turned to acknowledge them. She took one step and stumbled, but didn't fall. Even if she had fallen, Xigon knew nothing could knock her down and keep her there. Defeat was not a word she knew.

#iron god #original work #dark fantasy #fantasy #my writing #writing #web fiction #web novel #creative writing #original writing #writers of tumblr #writers #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writers and poets #writerscommunity

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dato-georgia-caucasus · 2 years ago

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Kalash or kalasha is a Kettlebell-shaped or ring-shaped bread found in Central and Eastern European - East Slavs, cuisines, commonly served during various ritual meals. The name originates from the Old Slavonic word kolo (коло) meaning "circle" or "wheel". Korovai is sometimes categorised as a type of kolache.

#კულინარია

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guardianreadersofthegalaxy · 5 years ago

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Dom’s mini Who reviews - the awful episodes

Arachnids In The UK – The Trump guy reminded me of Monobrow Man from the Hobbit films, an irrelevant dick who never learns anything. Also the Doctor murders all the spiders, then is a huge hypocrite about it. Great CGI though.

The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos – Not a battle. Also not a finale. I don’t for a second believe Graham could kill someone. Wasted obstacle of the planet’s trippy atmosphere and the Ux are boring. Yas & the Doctor relegated to exposition. Great production design though.

Extremis – Total non-event. Moffat way too pleased with himself about the number thing. Farce of the Doctor pretending to not be blind played out for far too long. Yet more people cowering in fear at the awesome, legendary heroic legend of the Doctor.

Fear Her – Dull setting. Dull everything. And the Doctor & Rose are insufferable.

The Ghost Monument – A gentle stroll from A to B. Killer bedsheets. Deus Ex Machina ending. Ryan, Yas & Graham’s second appearance and they’re already side-lined in favour of supporting characters. The long take at the start is great though.

The Idiot’s Lantern – Dull setting! Maureen Lipman got money for being in this which makes me sad.

Kill The Moon – Interesting abortion debate ruined by having the pro-choice advocate be a grumpy stranger. Clara could have wiped out the human race. Courtney’s only slightly annoying but Clara & the Doctor take way too long before sending her back to the TARDIS. Excruciating overuse of ‘A Good Man?’ that makes the BBC look like amateurs.

Knock Knock – Dull setting. Obviously evil landlord never raises an eyebrow from the tenants. Rubbish creature design. Pulls its punches on the body horror. I like it when the Doctor says that everyone loves insects though. “They’re fascinating!”

The Long Game – I don’t know why, but this is a rubbish future. I think it’s the garish production design, it looks cheap and feels like a set. The mad thing is, my favourite episode of the whole show is in the same location. I’ll never understand that

The Name of The Doctor – Another total non-event. Smith’s whole tenure’s climax is River Song saying his name on mute. Clara sacrifices herself but then she’s fine. What would have been wrong with Paul McGann doing the 50th?

Orphan 55 – More superfluous supporting characters than ever before. A pointless rescue mission that leads nowhere other than people chatting on a windowless bus. I understand the desire to be unambiguous about the theme but it comes across as patronising. The dregs look good though.

Planet of the Dead – Davies’s writing at its silliest. This is too light to be taken seriously but can’t make up for that by being actually funny. Michelle Ryan is easily the least likeable companion and the writers’ attempts to convince you otherwise backfire. What a waste of Daniel Kaluuya.

The Rings of Akhaten – Annoying autotuned singing child. The Doctor creepily stalking Clara all through her life. Why does a leaf causing two people to meetcute make it the most important leaf in the universe? Also Matt Smith ‘A C T S’ his speech, which I hate.

The Tsuranga Conundrum – I can hardly remember this one. The Pting is unintimidating. An interesting obstacle of the ‘fam’ recovering from injuries is instantly jettisoned so we can learn more about a medic who promptly dies.

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primaldecor · 7 years ago

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#primal decor #gold body jewelry #legit body jewelry #BVLA #septum #conch piercing #septum piercing #daith piercing #gem kolo #gem kolo ring #the rosary #Rose BVLA

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miceenscene · 3 years ago

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Star-Crossed

din djarin/female oc | soulmate AU | pre-canon

wc: 6.2k / 28.5k

summary: The Way was not supposed to be a solitary one. People, house, clan. And when all else failed, your Match. “Fits like a Mandalorian Match” was the old saying. Though it wasn’t so long ago that it stopped making sense. But what's a lost Match to a man like Din Djarin?

warnings/tags: canon-typical violence, fluff, hurt/comfort, Din Is In A Cult, angst with an eventual happy ending i swear

Previous Chapter | Masterpost | ao3

Chapter Eight: The End

Nia and Anella ran for each other, crashing into one another in a fierce embrace.

Anella held onto Nia as if in fear that she might slip through her fingers again. Both of them talking through tears over the other.

“I’ve missed you so much! I was starting to think I wouldn’t find you–”

“Niæna! I thought you were–Niæna, cyare’se–”

Loved one.

They stopped talking at the exact same moment to listen, making them both laugh and wipe away tears.

Anella cupped Nia’s cheeks and pressed her forehead to hers, frowning in a joy so bright it had to hurt.

“Me'vaar ti gar, ba’buir?” Nia whispered, sniffling.

How are you, grandmother?

Anella nodded slowly, swallowing hard before speaking in a rough voice. “Ner bu’ad. Yaimpar. Ori’sol gedetyar.”

My granddaughter. Returned. There is much to be grateful for.

Watching their reunion made something deep inside Din ache. He had never felt like more of an outsider.

He stepped back once, twice, hoping to let them share this moment as long as they wanted to without an audience. But–

“Ke’mot!”

Halt!

Even if it hadn’t been the exact order used by his training instructors, the tone Anella used would have stopped a runaway Star Destroyer. Din looked back, shoulders automatically hunching to brace for whatever was coming next. Anella still had an arm around Nia, but was giving him a very familiar looking study.

“Is he with you?” she asked Nia.

She smiled. “Yes, he’s with me. He’s the reason I’m here.”

Anella looked slightly mollified. “Do you have a name to go with all that beskar?”

“He goes by–”

“Din. Din Djarin.”

For half a second, he had the same feeling as when he gave Nia his true name on their first meeting. WHY? But the warm and open look in Nia’s eyes immediately quenched any doubt he might have had.

Anella looked between the two of them then snorted. “Come, let us leave this drafty high rise and you can explain. You too, Din-Din Djarin.”

Huh. It’d been a long time since he’d had relatives.

Anella took them to her small apartment many thousand levels down from the twin-spired penthouse. It was cramped, and there was some sort of betting ring happening on the street corner, but they could still see the sky, so better than most on Coruscant.

Inside was about as luxurious as being aboard The Razor Crest, which made Din feel a lot more at ease, truth be told. Anella managed to find an extra crate for Din to sit on as she only owned two chairs, but it didn’t feel too tight at the table.

Anella was a small woman, slight and barely reaching his chest. But she still had a commanding Presence that made him continually straighten his posture every time she re-entered the room. The long burn scar through her whitened eye probably helped, but even then…

Nia hadn’t stopped smiling since they arrived. “Ba’buir, sit. We’re fine.”

Anella grunted disbelieving and tossed two ration packs their way. “If I had known you were coming, I would have gotten the good ones. But I at least have this.” She placed down three metal cups on the table and brandished a bottle half-filled with golden liquor.

She filled the cups with the very strong smelling booze and then lifted hers. “K'oyacyi.”

Cheers. Literally, ‘stay alive’.

“K’oyacyi,” Nia repeated before sipping. Din lifted his glass, but did not drink.

Anella gave him an odd look. “I can assure you, this place is safer than it looks.”

“Din doesn’t remove his helmet in front of others,” Nia explained before he had to.

A knowing look crossed through Anella’s eyes that turned to a pointed glare towards Nia, who avoided it by paying very careful attention to opening her ration bar.

“I see. Well, it will keep just fine,” Anella said before taking Nia’s hand in hers and giving her a soft, concerned look. “Now tell me, my Comet-fire, what has happened since I saw you last?”

Nia let out a long breath. “A lot, but… I’m not even sure when that was.”

“What do you mean?”

“I had a control chip put in my head,” Nia said, making Anella’s face harden and her grip clench. “Din made sure it was removed, but it took… everything. I wasn’t even sure of my own name when I woke up.”

Anella’s face was disturbed, but she nodded and sat back. “Tell me what you know then. And I will clarify.”

“I remember Mandalore. My parents and you, our home. I remember you raising me, training me–training us. We found the school. Ba’buir, it was attacked–”

Anella held up a hand “I know this. Continue.”

Nia kept going. “I remembered the Vod’oya after we found the headquarters. Going through the mission log brought back a lot of good memories.” She smiled for a moment, but then it disappeared. “But there’s gaps. In the records themselves. We have a contact seeing if it can be recovered, but haven’t heard anything yet.”

So far none of this seemed to surprise Anella. “And then?”

Nia’s face grew very carefully blank. “I know I killed Phasia,” she said in a small voice. On instinct, Din reached out and took Nia’s other hand. He could feel Anella’s gaze rest on him for a moment. “I don’t… know why, but I remember doing it. Ro saw me shoot her, she told me.”

“You found Ro?” Anella asked, sounding actually surprised now.

“Yes, she was… angry. I would be too.”

“What brought you here then?”

Din spoke up, making them both look his way. “I had a bounty, some years ago, for Phasia. I delivered her to that building. Nia remembered being chipped there when we arrived.”

“I remember a man. Human. He wanted to know where the school was…” Nia’s face threatened to crumble. “And I told him. I couldn’t stop myself.”

“Because you were chipped,” Anella reminded her, her voice fierce with determination. “Do not take guilt that is not yours, Niæna.”

She didn’t look like she quite agreed with her, but she let out a breath. “We’ve been looking for eight months, and there’s still so much we don’t know. Please, anything will help.”

Anella nodded and considered for a moment before speaking. “I hope you have re-discovered it, but your gut instinct is… uncanny. As a child, it was unsettling.” A wry smile twisted her mouth for a moment. “But as you grew older, and especially with the path you and the others chose, it gave me some measure of peace. So when you came to me a year ago and told me that you felt one of the Vod’oya had betrayed the group, I trusted you. But I told you that you would need hard proof to convince the rest. And you had it. The collection of missions the Vod’oya had completed all under false pretenses, all proposed by Phasia. You showed it to me not long before… before it all ended.

She finished her drink and set the cup down. “The owner of that building is a man named Terreck Basslan. He is rich, which makes him powerful. Even with your proof, we weren’t sure how he’d gotten his hooks into Phasia–” She looked pointedly at Din. “But it was clear that she was the turncoat. Through her, Basslan was using the Vod’oya as his own personal army. The seven of you could take out his enemies, remove his competitors, or just cut down anyone in his way. I am sure he lined Phasia’s pockets with more credits than she knew what to do with for her assistance.

“When you told me, I thought it best to disband, but… you wanted to know why she had betrayed the sisterhood. I told you to be careful. She had kept up the ruse for years; she was probably deeper in than even we knew.” Her face grew even more somber. “And then I was woken up very late by Kolo, who told me that Phasia was dead. And you were missing.

“I went after you immediately. You made it to the spaceport before I could get to you. I followed you, tracked you to that building.” She shook her head, a grim light in her eyes. “At the time, I hoped you were dead. That would have been better than most of the fates that waited there.”

“I got lucky,” Nia said, squeezing her hand.

“Yes,” Anella replied, looking at Din. “By the time I returned to the school, the Empire had already come through. Basslan must have told them where we were; Mandalorians are not technically wanted, but far from welcome. They killed some, took most. Where and for what purpose, I do not know. I buried the dead and burned the stormtroopers in the woods. Set out to find my students.”

“You think Basslan knows where they are?” Din asked.

“I think Coruscant is a good place to hide when you still need contacts. I have a scanner nearby; it logs every ship that comes and goes from Basslan’s.” She smiled slightly. “My curiosity was sparked when the same pre-Imperial ship that landed at my school three weeks ago showed up here. Though the Mandalorian was more a surprise than your survival, Comet-fire. Where did you find him?”

Nia laughed slightly. “He found me. On Tatooine. When I was chipped, everything felt foggy. Except for this… compulsion. Kick the guard off the barge. I did, and then he showed up out of nowhere.”

“And what brought you to Tatooine, Din?”

“I took a quarry and had my own… instinct. Go to the Dune Sea, and follow the barge.”

Nia smiled at him. “Though the next thing I remember is waking up to a stormtrooper swinging a staff at me.”

“You wouldn’t stay on the ship,” he replied, making her laugh.

Anella was looking sharply between the two of them. “I see.”

“We’re Matched,” Nia added, resting a hand on his arm.

“Good. Glad you have figured that out yourselves.” She refilled the two empty glasses and sat back in her chair. “Are you bonded yet?”

Nia’s confused frown reflected the one on his face. “No…?”

“It will come in time. What clan are you from, Din?”

“I don’t have one. I was a foundling, raised in the fighting corps.”

“Outside of Keldabe, right?” Anella asked, though it seemed she already knew.

“Yes.”

“Are you going somewhere?” Nia asked, pulling the conversation off track. She nodded to the corner where a few bags were packed.

“I was, yes. I have received a tip on where my students may have been taken. Was going to investigate when you two arrived.”

“I want to come with you,” Nia said.

Anella held up a hand. “No. I do not know yet if it is true. If it is, I will leave word at the school. But you need your evidence back. Prove yourself to Ro and find the others together.”

Nia nodded, though it was clear she didn’t like the idea of leaving her grandmother again.

They stayed up talking, reminiscing till late in the night. Not stopping till Nia could barely keep her eyes open. Anella wouldn’t hear of them returning to the ship, making a few spare beds out of the blankets and furniture she was leaving behind.

Nia curled up on the couch, immediately dropping into sleep before she’d even managed to pull a blanket over herself. Din watched Anella drape a quilt over her and smooth her hair, something deep inside him aching again.

Anella caught him staring from the table, jerking his head back to look down at his still full cup. However, instead of retiring herself, she sat down across from him and refilled her glass.

There was a quiet minute as she sipped and studied him carefully. She and Nia really were related.

“Tell me, Din,” she said in a low voice. “What are your intentions towards my granddaughter?”

He didn’t know how, but he suddenly felt that every answer that came to mind was wrong.

“As long as Nia wants me by her side, that is where I’ll be,” he said finally. True in spirit, but not his full hopes.

She huffed in amusement. “Spoken like a true Mandalorian.”

Her choice of words gave him pause.

“Because it seems to me like you have already chosen her,” she continued.

Kriff, he’d hoped he was more subtle than this.

“Not formally…” he admitted. “But… I am… settled.” He looked to where he could see the top of Nia’s head. “I do not know if she agrees with me.”

“What of your tribe? Do they agree with you?”

Din looked back at her, frowning. “Nia is my Match, what is there to argue with?”

Anella chuckled into her teacup. “Since when has that stopped Mandalorians?”

Under his helmet, he frowned. The idea had not even crossed his mind…

“You know, Nia’s mother was of your tribe. The Faithful Ones up the mountain,” she added.

“Really?”

She nodded once, looking at him closely. “When she and my son chose each other… her tribe cast her out for choosing someone who was not faithful.” A black pit opened in his stomach. “It was difficult for her, and admittedly, I had my doubts at first about the wisdom of my son’s choice.” A wistful smile filled her eyes. “But before long, she made me as proud as if I had birthed her myself. It was through her foresight and her sacrifice that Nia and I survived and escaped when the Empire invaded our village.”

“Nia never told me.”

“Nia does not know. Her mother wanted to leave that part of her past behind her. And she did…” She drained her cup and stood. “I may be biased, but I think she was happier for it.” She patted his shoulder as she passed by. “Good night, Din Djarin.”

Din finished his cup and settled for the night, leaning against the couch with a long sigh. Nia, still asleep, turned and threw her arm across his chest. He slipped his glove off and held her hand, the usual something flickering beneath the surface as he drifted off.

The next morning, Anella saw them back to The Razor Crest, not before giving them a small case of ration bars and the quilt Nia had slept under. She probably would have foisted more, if Nia hadn’t gently yet firmly assured her they weren’t in danger of starving.

“One last thing,” Anella said, making Nia suck in a breath and Din bite back a chuckle. She reached into her bag and pulled out a wrapped, rather flat package, handing it to Nia. “You should have this. It is time.”

Nia unwrapped it and both their mouths dropped open. It was a beskar cuirass, battle-worn and painted grey and white.

Nia looked up at her. “I cannot accept this–”

“I cannot wear it anymore. It is right that you should have it, cyare’se.” Anella ran a hand over her beskar, thumb rubbing at one of the scuffs. “It will need to be fitted to you. And deserves new paint. Perhaps a new color if you think it fitting.”

The color of a Mandalorian’s armor was symbolic. Grey meant mourning a loved one, while white meant a new start.

His own red set was in honor of his parents. Perhaps it was time for a new color on his own as well.

“I will take good care of it,” Nia promised solemnly, her hand pressed over the iron heart in the center.

Anella nodded. “I know this.” She rested a hand on her shoulder and waved Din in to rest the other on his, looking between the two of them. “Look after one other well. Mandalorians need each other, now more than ever.”

They looked at each other, a warm smile passing between them. “We will,” Nia promised, not looking away for a moment.

Anella patted Din’s arm and kissed Nia’s forehead one last time before letting them board the ship.

“Ret'urcye mhi,” Anella called, waving from the landing pad.

Maybe we’ll meet again. A Mandalorian farewell.

Nia watched her from the cockpit, waving back as Anella grew smaller and eventually disappeared from view.

Din was setting coordinates for Nevarro when a message came through. Peli’s voice was crackly but clear.

“You two are in luck; I was able to recover most of the data. Come back to Tatooine when you can–and don’t forget the rest of my money.”

He immediately plotted coordinates for Tatooine. Unfortunately, Coruscant being Coruscant, it was actually almost two full hours later till they made the jump to hyperspace and he could leave the flight deck.

He found Nia down in the hull, putting away the armor cleaner that usually only he used.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

She nodded, tucking her now shining beskar into the armory. “Yes… Part of me wishes we didn’t have to be apart, but we’ll see each other again.” She smiled back at him. “She liked you, you know.”

He chuckled. “I liked her too.”

Her eyes shone, warm and open. “Din. You… you have saved my life in so many ways. Without you…”

The look in Anella’s eye came to mind – I hoped you were dead – making him pull her into his arms. Safe, she was safe now.

She leaned back enough to look at him. “It means so much to me that you like my clan. Maybe… the next time we see Anella, I could ask if she would let you join. You could claim clan Vard’on when people ask. If you wanted.”

“A clan of three,” he said, trying it on for size and finding it a perfect fit.

She smiled, so much brighter and more beautiful than the stars that he just had to kiss her.

Din slipped his helmet on the next morning and opened the bunk door. Nia was already up, doing the final meditation of her stretching routine, completely still and her back straight as a saber.

He admired her form, the slope of her waist and the absolute control over her body she commanded. By the Mythosaur, he was beyond merely lucky to have a Match like her.

“You’re staring, my absence,” she said, without turning around to see him.

He smiled and went to sit behind her, pulling his helmet off before tucking his face into the safety of the crook of her neck.

Sea air and wildflowers.

“Absence?” he asked, interrupting the end of her meditation in more ways than one.

She relaxed back against him. “When you’re helmeted… I can feel the space where you should be, rather than actually you. You’re my favorite absence.”

He chuckled and pressed a kiss to the skin behind her ear.

A contented hum echoed from her chest as she intertwined their fingers and pulled him closer.

They sat there in the quiet perfect ordinariness for a while. That feeling of Something hurtling towards them returning. Though this time, it arrived.

Connection.

“What is this?” she murmured.

Pure and powerful.

It went beyond star bursts and comet fire.

It was… the birth of a galaxy. The miracle of Something from Nothing.

And at the same time, it was simply just her. And him.

Devotion flowed through his hands, tempered with loyalty and admiration. Strong and fierce. Familiar, but decidedly not his.

“Nia,” he whispered, head swirling with the rush.

“I thought the bond was just… a metaphor. A fairy tale…”

Surprise and awe joined the cocktail before simmering down into an amusement that sparkled.

This was her, Din realized after a moment. It was Nia. She was feeling all of this, and through where he touched her, he felt it too. Was she feeling him? How did she not drown in all these emotions?

Concern flooded the riptide.

“Are you alright?” she asked, a hand slipping up to cup the back of his neck. Every place she touched him, Awareness flowed, nearly overwhelming. “Din?”

He nodded, finding his footing slowly but surely. “Yes. I… I feel you.”

Concern ebbed, replaced with shimmering adoration.

“Din Djarin, you like me,” she teased, curling against him.

He had to laugh. That was too small a word for everything he could guess she felt from him.

“I do.” He wrapped his arms all the way around her, holding her tightly and basking in her. Without any effort at all, the words slipped out, soul-deep and earnest. “Will you marry me?”

Surprise detonated.

She breathed a giggle. “Grandmother warned me that Mandalorians move fast. I just assumed she was talking about sex.”

He chuckled. “I’m serious.”

“I know…” Thoughtful consideration welled up.

She had to feel his nerves, his longing for this.

Instead of answering, however, she turned to face him, eyes already closed without any reminder. Her hands reached out for his face, and he guided them to his cheeks. She pulled him close again, pressing their brows together.

“Yes.”

Star bursts and comet fire. Coming from both him and her.

A smile so bright it splintered into a laugh bubbled up from within him. When he opened his eyes, she was smiling too, eyes still closed.

He nearly asked her to open them. Breaking his Oath seemed almost worth it to see her eyes with his own in that moment.

But something deep recoiled at the thought. So instead he kissed her, soft and sweet.

“When?” she asked, lips still brushing his.

He kissed her again. And again. And again, moving slowly up her jaw, fingers brushing through her curls. “Now?” he asked, only half-joking.

She laughed. “Really?”

“Mhi solus tome–”

We are one together. The first line of the vows.

She gasped and pulled half back, but he reeled her back in, laughing and nowhere near done kissing her. Her surprise and amusement bubbled.

“Grandmother would never forgive you if you married me on the floor of your ship.”

He brushed her cheek with his. “Would you forgive me?”

“I’d have to think about it,” she teased with a grin he happily kissed away.

“Where should we go then?” A kiss to her forehead. “Naboo?” A nibble to her chin. “Coruscant?” A rub to her nose with his. “Mandalore?”

She laughed. “Yes, reclaim Mandalore for me, and I’ll marry you by the lake outside of Keldabe.”

“De ner haat.”

By my honor.

Still smiling, she kissed him once more and then relaxed against him, head on his shoulder, a hand stroking through the hair by his ear. Her happiness sparkled under his skin everywhere she touched him.

“I don’t care where… but I would like to have my eyes open. When we marry, I want to see you.”

A thin curl of worry smoldered in his throat. “Will the helmet be enough?”

She was quiet for a long moment, considering again. “Yes. I will never ask you to break your Oath for me, de ner haat.”

The worry immediately extinguished. He kissed her forehead. “Vor entye.”

I accept this debt. Or thank you.

“Of course, ner riduur.”

My husband.

He smiled and held her tighter, the edges of his person threatening to burst from their shared joy too large to be contained within just himself.

“Din Djarin of clan Vard’on, chosen of Niæna, has a nice sound to it,” she said, smiling too.

“Yes. It does.”

They arrived in Tatooine the next day, Peli extremely happy to see her money. And also them.

Nia flipped through the recovered data, the proof of Peli’s hard work evident in the relief in her eyes. “It’s here. This can all be traced back to Terreck and Phasia,” she said before tucking the drive away.

“Thank you, Peli,” Din said, offering a hand.

She looked surprised then shook his hand. “Eh, it wasn’t that difficult. And tell you what, next time you come to Tatooine, I’ll get rid of that dent on the back side of the ship for you. Half-price.”

Now with the evidence in hand, it was time to reach back out to Ro.

Nia left another puzzle box on the doorstep of her house, hoping that it hadn’t been abandoned.

But even if Ro was still around, there was no guarantee that she would answer.

However, about a week after they left the message, they got a holo request. Nia looked back at him from where she sat in the captain’s chair, face twisted with worry. He gave her an encouraging nod, and she accepted the call.

Ro appeared, her semi-translucent face completely neutral.

“Ro, I’m glad you called,” Nia said, offering a slight smile.

Ro nodded once. “Your message said you can explain what happened.”

“I can, yes. Phasia… she was working for someone else. Someone bad. And I can prove it. I swear by the Manda’lor. I swear by Anella.”

“Fine, fine. Bring your proof and I’ll listen. But I want to meet with just you. Leave the buckethead behind.”

Nia looked his way. He pulled off a glove, brushing fingers against her hand out of view of the camera. Her worry flowed through the contact, but changed to gratitude as she felt his understanding.

“Alright. Tell me where, and I’ll come alone,” Nia promised.

“I’ll send coordinates.” But instead of hanging up, Ro paused. “If you… after we clear the air… it might be nice to… catch up.”

Nia’s whole face brightened. “Do you want to go camping? Like old times?”

“You remembered,” Ro said with a small smile.

“I did, yeah. Finally.”

“I’d like that.”

“Me too.”

Since Nia was going to be with Ro for a few days, Din decided he’d be better off finding something to do with his time rather than just wait. Luckily, Ranzar Malk had a job that fit very neatly within their schedule.

And it was only slightly illegal.

“Why do you work with Ran?” Nia asked as she adjusted the straps of her bag over her shoulders.

Din picked up a few extra ration bars from their supply in the hull wall and slipped them into her backpack, as well as a flash grenade. Just to be safe. “He pays. And we need the money.”

She turned around. “The Guild also pays.”

“He pays more.”

He was wearing his gloves so he couldn’t feel her thoughts when she threaded her fingers with his. But he could see them plain on her face anyway.

“You’re disappointed,” he said.

She shook her head. “No. I understand survival. But… I don’t know, hopefully someday we can choose between the right thing and the job.” She sighed and squeezed his hands. “Just please be safe. Don’t let Xi’an stab you.”

“Don’t let Ro stab you,” he replied, making her smile.

“I promise.”

This was the first time in nearly nine months of being together they were going to purposefully part for more than a few hours. As she made to step away, he pulled her back in, close enough to rest the brow of his helmet on hers.

“Wherever you go, I go,” he whispered, even as he reminded himself that they weren’t physically joined at the hip.

She smiled softly and touched his helmet as if she was cupping his cheek. “Mhi solus dar’tome.”

We are one apart – the second line of the marriage vows.

Heart surging up into his throat, he reached for his helmet before he could change his mind. Automatically, she closed her eyes. “Wait. Don’t,” he whispered, something deep inside him shaking.

Her eyes opened slowly, surprise drawing them wide as he reached up again. He lost sight of her as he tipped the helmet up just far enough to kiss her good-bye, gently yet meaningfully.

It wasn’t quite an Oath break, right?

Her fingertips brushed over his jaw, his lips. The awe tingling through the connection made him smile, the first one she’d ever seen.

She gasped and pressed a kiss to the bare spot in his facial hair where a beard stubbornly refused to grow. “You have a beautiful smile, Din Djarin,” she whispered, a fingertip brushing his dimple.

He lowered the helmet back into place and she came into view again, her warm smile still on her face. “Thank you. I’ll see you in a few days.”

“Ret'urcye mhi,” he replied, leaning over and opened the hull door.

Sunlight flooded the room as Nia grabbed her staff from its usual resting place. Ro was waiting just outside of the treeline, hands folded behind her back and her own bag at her feet. Her expression softened as Nia came into view.

Nia jogged down the ramp, stopping one last time to wave back at Din, before running to join Ro. They spoke for a few moments before Ro grabbed her bag and they fell into step, heading down the path together.

Din watched them go till Nia disappeared between the trees, already counting the minutes till he could kiss her again as he closed the hull door and flew away.

As Ran’s quick, easy, and not-all-that-illegal job turned out to be none of those things, Din promised himself this was the last time he’d work with this crew. The two of them could make it by with just the Guild from now on. Dodging fang and knife attacks from your supposed partners was not worth the pay bump.

Ignoring offers for drinks with most of the crew (and far more than just drinks with Xi’an), Din immediately grabbed his share and jumped into hyperspace. Ran’s poor planning had made him a few hours later to meet Nia than he’d originally hoped.

Din half-expected her to be waiting by the treeline as he landed in the exact same spot he’d left her in two days ago.

But she wasn’t there.

That was fine. He knew where they were planning to camp, not even half a mile down the path, near the river.

Maybe he could surprise her, he thought as he headed down the trail, fallen leaves squishing underfoot. Huh, they probably got rained on quite a bit.

He heard the babbling of the river first. And soon after the path through the trees widened with the bank, revealing a near panoramic view of the river bend.

It’d be the perfect spot to camp. But he didn’t see any signs of fire pits or sleeping rolls in the softened earth.

No sign of Nia or Ro either.

What he did see, drew him to a full stop.

Nia’s staff laid abandoned in the mud.

He stared at it for a long moment, before looking around. “Nia?” he called, loud enough to be heard in the nearby vicinity. But there was no answer.

He wrenched the staff from the mud, the weapon half-buried as if… as if it’d been left for some time.

“NIA?” he yelled again before searching for the story in the river bank. However, the heavy rain had washed anything useful away, leaving only rivulet trails and puddles behind. Not even his visor could identify footprints.

A black pit opened up in his gut, large enough to swallow him whole.

He ripped off his helmet, breath fogging slightly in the air, and looked around wildly with his own eyes.

“NIA,” he bellowed, voice breaking as it echoed between the spaces in the forest and across the water.

Silence was the only reply.

Nia was gone.

It was several weeks later that Din was back in the Vod’oya headquarters, this time alone. He set up the holo recorder on the table and activated it, stepping back to the foot and trying to pick a place to begin.

“Anella, I have… Something’s happened.”

He looked at the glowing light of the recorder and knew that this wasn’t the right way to do this, for so many reasons. But fear more than Creed kept his helmet on his head.

“Nia’s gone missing,” he said, face screwing up from the stabbing pain of it. “She met with Ro, they were together for two days, and… and she wasn’t there when I returned. I don’t know if Ro did something, or if someone took them both, or…

He shook his head, just barely holding together enough to get out the words. “I have searched everywhere I can think. Ro’s house is abandoned. No one’s been through the school but me. Even Basslan seems to have gone underground, his staff haven’t seen him for months. I’ve thought about putting out a bounty for Nia, but… I don’t want her getting hurt.

“I’m never going to stop looking for her, de ner haat. But I don’t know what to do. And I’m out of credits. When you get this message, if you want to reach me, you can find me on Nevarro. Leave word at the cantina or with Greef Karga.”

He made himself make eye contact with the glowing lens, as if it would make a difference behind his beskar barrier. “I’m sorry, I…” He sucked a shaking breath. “I’m so sorry, Anella.”

And he ended the recording.

There was one last place he hadn’t gone yet for help.

But now with nothing left, and him nearly ready to believe he deserved it, he returned to the Covert.

Visored gazes felt heavy, pressing in on his armor. Did they know? Would they hate him for losing what so few were lucky to find?

He ducked his head and didn’t pause till he reached the armory, sitting down in front of the forge. Hoping – praying – that this would fix… anything. Something.

The Armorer put down her hammer and sat across from him. Even through two barriers of beskar, her gaze was leaden. “What is it you seek?”

Din dropped his view to his lap, shoulders bowing under the weight of Everything. “...My Match. She was taken,” he finally admitted, breath cutting out of him unevenly through his meager remaining control.

“By who?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know. I have searched… everywhere.” His control snapped, throat tightened. It was like he suddenly couldn’t breathe for the weight of his cuirass. “She’s… she cannot be found. Even by me.”

“Did she see your face?” she asked calmly.

Her question, in light of everything he’d just told her, everything he’d been living through, everything he’d lost, scalded and immediately scarred.

He stared at her for a moment. “What does it matter?”

“It matters.”

No. No, it didn’t. It DID NOT MATTER.

Outrage making his hands shake, he wrenched off his helmet, throwing it to the ground with such force it bounced and rolled away.

But the Armorer saw his intent and turned before she saw his face.

It just fueled his rage. He wanted her to see, to take this away from him too.

“She was my Match!” he shouted, standing to his feet. “How was she, above every other living thing in the galaxy, still forbidden from knowing my face?”

The Armorer tipped her helmet slightly, but didn’t look away from the opposite wall. “This Is The Way.”

“It was not The Way for other Mandalorians! She was clan Vard’on; her ancestors were there to ride the Mythosaur. I met her clan! I saw their faces!”

“Some Mandalorians have abandoned the true ways. But you have not yet answered my question. Did she see your face?” she asked again, completely unfazed from his outrage.

He sucked in several shuddering breaths as the cruel truth welled up in his throat.

Nia was his Match. She was bonded so closely to him he felt her emotions. She had agreed to marry him. She wanted to be one when they were together, to be one when they were apart, to share everything, to raise their children as warriors, and yet–

“No. She never knew my face.”

The only sound was his low gasps as he wept for all that had been stolen from his care, stolen because he hadn’t been vigilant enough to protect it. Reckless, careless, and now–

Matchless.

He dropped back onto the bench, head in hands as the truth ran its course through him, leaking out drop by drop, till he was Empty.

Only once he’d grown quiet again, did the Armorer stand and walk calmly to where his helmet had landed. Never once looking at him.

“Even in your hardship, you have been given a blessing.”

Din stared down at his hands, empty and disconnected. “What blessing?” he asked, bitterly.

“The galaxy can take your Match. It can take your parents, your planet. And one day, it will take your life,” she said calmly as she circled around to stand behind him. “But it cannot take your belief.”

She set the helmet down on the bench next to him and continued, “Hold fast. And do not surrender what can never be taken from you, Mandalorian.”

He stared at the helmet for a long while.

If he walked away right now, he would truly have No One. Nothing.

And he would deserve it.

He rested a hand on the top, and the emptiness between his lungs cauterized to a permanent hole. Ragged, but not bleeding. Not anymore.

He picked the helmet and slipped it over his head, seeing the world only through his view screen once more.

“This Is The Way,” the Armorer said.

“This Is The Way,” he repeated.

After all,

What’s a lost Match to a man like Din Djarin?

End of Part I

Interlude I ; posting soon!

taglist: @loversandantiheroes ; @kelenloth ; @keeper0fthestars ; @sarahjkl82-blog ; @thirstworldproblemss ; @spideysimpossiblegirl ; @i-belong-in-fandoms ; @gallowsjoker ; @nova646 ; @darnitdraco

#The Mandalorian #Din Djarin #Pedro Pascal #Din Djarin x ofc #mando x ofc #din djarin x oc #mando x oc #din djarin fanfiction #soulmate au #star crossed #my writing

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patwrites · 2 years ago

Text

FAVORITE DW EPISODES:

Dalek

The Parting of the Ways

New Earth

Tooth and Claw

School Reunion

The Satan Pit

Doomsday

The Shakespeare Code

The Lazarus Experiment

Blink

The Sound of Drums

Voyage of the Damned

The Fires of Pompeii

Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead

Journey’s End

Planet of the Dead

The End of Time

The Vampires of Venice

Amy’s Choice

Vincent and the Doctor

The Doctor’s Wife

A Good Man Goes To War

Asylum of the Daleks

The Snowmen

The Rings of Akhaten

Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS

The Name of the Doctor

The Day of the Doctor

Into The Dalek

Listen

Mummy on the Orient Express

Death in Heaven

The Witch’s Familiar

The Girl Who Died/The Woman Who Lived

Sleep No More

Face The Raven

Hell Bent

The Husbands of River Song

The Empress of Mars

World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls

The Woman Who Fell To Earth

Rosa

The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos

Spyfall

Fugitive of the Judoon

War of the Sontarans

#doctor who

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simplyxsinned · 3 years ago

Note

10-20? :D (hellooo I am the water to the desert that is your inbox)

thank you almond qwq

ask game

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

badmintonnnn >:]

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

Kolo Mee idk why my parents like it so much-

12. name of your favorite playlist?

will you accept Childe's proposal? ///-///

13. lanyard or key ring?

key ring

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

SKITTLES

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

i forgor

16. most comfortable position to sit in?

that one position uncle roger sits in

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

slippers ig?

18. ideal weather?

rainy days

19. sleeping position?

oh god... i like sleeping on my side with one of my arms as a pillow? like a cat

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?

tumblr.

#·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳crumpled notes #sin's mutuals!

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pez-wolf · 4 years ago

Text

Doctor Who Watch Time for Important Episodes

1.1 Rose (45min)

1.2 The End of the World (45 min)

1.4 Aliens of London (45min)

1.5 World War Three (45min)

1.6 Dalek (45 min)

1.7 The Long Game (45 min)

1.8 Fathers Day (45 min)

1.9 The Empty Child (45 min)

1.10 The Doctor Dances (45 min)

1.11 BoomTown (45 min)

1.12 Badwolf (45 min)

1.13 Parting of Ways (45 min)

2.0 The Christmas Invasion (60 min)

2.1 New Earth (45 min)

2.2 Tooth and Claw (45 min)

2.4 Girl in the Fireplace (45 min)

2.5 Rise of the Cyberman (45 min)

2.6 The Age of Steel (45 min)

2.12 Army of Ghosts (45 min)

2.13 Doomsday (45 min)

3.0 The Runaway Bride (60 min)

3.1 Smith and Jones (45 min)

3.3 Gridlock (45 min)

3.4 Daleks in Manhattan (45 min)

3.5 Evolution of the Daleks (45 min)

3.8 Human Nature (45 min)

3.9 The Family of the Blood (45 min)

3.10 Blink (45 min)

3.11 Utopia (45 min)

3.12 The Sound of Drums (45 min)

3.13 Last of the Time Lords (50 min)

4.0 Voyage of Damned (71 min)

4.1 Partners in Crime (48 min)

4.2 The Fires of Pompeii (45 min)

4.3 Planet of the Ood (48 min)

4.4 The Sontaran Stratagem (45 min)

4.5 The Poison Sky (45 min)

4.8 Silence in the Library (43 min)

4.9 Forest of the Dead (45 min)

4.11 Turn Left (49 min)

4.12 The Stolen Earth (45 min)

4.13 Journeys End (63 min)

S.1 The Next Doctor (60 min)

S.3 The Waters of Mars (62 min)

S.4 The End of Time Part One (60 min)

S.5 The End of Time Part Two (75 min)

5.1 The Eleventh Hour (65 min)

5.2 The Beast Below (42 min)

5.3 The Victory of the Daleks (42 min)

5.4 The Time of Angels (42 min)

5.5 Flesh and Stone (43 min)

5.6 The Vampires of Venice (49 min)

5.8 The Hungry Earth (44 min)

5.9 Cold Blood (46 min)

5.10 Vincent and the Doctor (47 min)

5.11 The Lodger (43 min)

5.12 The Pandorica Opens (49 min)

5.13 The Big Bang (54 min)

6.0 A Christmas Carol (62 min)

6.1 The Impossible Astronaut (44 min)

6.2 Day of the Moon (47 min)

6.3 Curse of the Black Spot (46 min)

6.4 The Doctors Wife (47 min)

6.5 The Rebel Flesh (43 min)

6.6 The Almost People (46 min)

6.7 A Good Man Goes to War (49 min)

6.8 Let's Kill Hitler (49 min)

6.9 Night Terrors (43 min)

6.12 Closing Time (46 min)

6.13 The Wedding of River Song (46 min)

7.0A The Doctor, The Window, and Wardrobe (59 min)

7.1 Asylum of the Daleks (49 min)

7.4 The Power of Three (41 min)

7.5 Angles Take Manhattan (44 min)

7.0B The Snowmen (60 min)

7.6 The Bells of Saint John (45 min)

7.7 Rings of Akhaten (46 min)

7.10 Journey to the Center of the TARDIS (47 min)

7.11 The Crimson Horror (47 min)

7.12 Nightmare in Silver (47 min)

7.13 The Name of the Doctor (44 min)

S.6 The Day of the Doctor (77 min)

S.7 Time of the Doctor (61 min)

8.1 Deep Breath (76 min)

8.2 Into a Dalek (47 min)

8.4 Listen (47 min)

8.5 Time Heist (45 min)

8.6 The Caretaker (45 min)

8.9 Flatline (43 min)

8.11 Dark Water (47 min)

8.12 Death in Heaven (57 min)

9.0 Last Christmas (61 min)

9.1 The Magicians Apprentice (49 min)

9.2 The Witches Familiar (50 min)

9.5 The Girl Who Died (48 min)

9.6 The Woman Who Lived (45 min)

9.10 Face the Raven (46 min)

9.11 Heaven Sent (55 min)

9.12 Hell Bent (60 min)

S.8 The Husbands of River Song (56 min)

10.0 The Return of Doctor Mysterio (61 min)

10.1 The Pilot (49 min)

10.5 Oxygen (44 min)

10.6 Extremis (48 min)

10.7 The Pyramid at the End of the World (46 min)

10.8 Lie of the Land (44 min)

10.11 World Enough and Time (45 min)

10.12 The Doctor Falls (60 min)

S.9 Twice Upon a Time (60 min)

11.1 The Woman Who Fall to Earth (60 min)

11.2 The Ghost Monument (48 min)

11.10 The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos (50 min)

12.0 Resolution (60 min)

12.1 Spyfall Pt 1 (60 min)

12.2 Spyfall Pt 2 (61 min)

12.5 Fugitive of the Judoon (49 min)

12.8 The Haunting of Villa Diodati (49 min)

12.9 Ascension of the Cybermen (49 min)

12.10 The Timeless Children (66 min)

Total Watch Time:

10,199 minutes

169.983333 Hours

7.08263889 Days

75 notes · View notes

fanfic-corner · 4 years ago

Text

Okay- not technically to do with fanfiction - but this took me over an hour to do and it would be a waste if it just stayed in my notes.

I listed every (new) Doctor Who episode in chronological order of when it's set.

I absolutely do not suggest you watch it in this order (especially not for the first time!) but it is chaotic and I love it. And I know I've probably made a mistake somewhere, and some I've had to put in the order I think best, but here it is.

Key

9/Christopher Eccleston

10/David Tennant

11/Matt Smith

12/Peter Capaldi

13/Jodie Whittaker

FIRES OF POMPEII - 79 AD

THE PANDORICA OPENS - 102

THE EATERS OF LIGHT - 2nd century

THE GIRL WHO DIED - 9th century

ROBOT OF SHERWOOD - 1190

CAN YOU HEAR ME? - 1380

THE DAY OF THE DOCTOR - 1562

VAMPIRES OF VENICE - 1580

THE SHAKESPEARE CODE - 1599

THE WITCHFINDERS - early 17th century

THE WOMAN WHO LIVED - 1651

THE CURSE OF THE BLACK SPOT - 1699

THE GIRL IN THE FIREPLACE - 1727

THIN ICE - 1814

THE HAUNTING OF VILLA DIODATI - 1816

THE NEXT DOCTOR - 1851

THE UNQUIET DEAD - 1869

A TOWN CALLED MERCY - 1870

TOOTH AND CLAW - 1879

EMPRESS OF MARS - 1881

VINCENT AND THE DOCTOR - 1890

THE SNOWMEN - 1892

THE CRIMSON HORROR - 1893

DEEP BREATH - 1890S

NIKOLA TESLA'S NIGHT OF TERROR- 1900s

HUMAN NATURE - 1913 (Nov)

FAMILY OF BLOOD - 1913 (Nov)

TWICE UPON A TIME - 1914

THE UNICORN AND THE WASP - 1926

DALEKS IN MANHATTAN - 1930

EVOLUTION OF THE DALEKS - 1930

THE ANGELS TAKE MANHATTAN - 1938

LET'S KILL HITLER - 1938

THE DOCTOR, THE WIDOW AND THE WARDROBE - 1938 (Dec)

THE EMPTY CHILD - 1941

THE DOCTOR DANCES - 1941

VICTORY OF THE DALEKS - 1941

DEMONS OF THE PUNJAB - 1947

THE IDIOT'S LANTERN - 1953 (June)

ROSA - 1955

DAY OF THE MOON - 1969

HIDE - 1974

COLD WAR - 1983

FATHER'S DAY - 1987

THE BIG BANG - 1996

ROSE - 2005 (4th March)

ALIENS OF LONDON - 2006 (March)

WORLD WAR THREE - 2006 (March)

BOOM TOWN - 2006 (Sep)

THE CHRISTMAS INVASION - 2006 (Dec)

RISE OF THE CYBERMEN - 2007 (Feb)

THE AGE OF STEEL - 2007 (Feb)

SCHOOL REUNION - 2007

LOVE AND MONSTERS - 2007

ARMY OF GHOSTS - 2007

DOOMSDAY - 2007

BLINK - 2007

THE RUNAWAY BRIDE - 2007 (Dec)

VOYAGE OF THE DAMNED - 2007 (Dec)

SMITH AND JONES - 2008 (June)

THE LAZARUS EXPERIMENT - 2008 (June)

THE SOUND OF DRUMS - 2008

THE ELEVENTH HOUR - 2008

THE LAST OF THE TIME LORDS - 2009

PLANET OF THE DEAD - Easter 2009

PARTNERS IN CRIME - 2009

THE SONTARAN STRATEGEM - 2009

THE POISON SKY - 2009

TURN LEFT - 2009

THE STOLEN EARTH - 2009

JOURNEY'S END - 2009

THE END OF TIME PART ONE - 2009

THE END OF TIME PART TWO - 2010

THE LODGER - 2010

CLOSING TIME - 2011

THE IMPOSSIBLE ASTRONAUT - 2011 (Apr)

THE WEDDING OF RIVER SONG -2011 (Apr)

NIGHT TERRORS - 2011

DALEK - 2012

FEAR HER - 2012

THE BELLS OF SAINT JOHN - 2013

THE CARETAKER - 2014 (Oct)

AMY'S CHOICE - 2015

THE TIME OF THE DOCTOR - 21st century

INTO THE DALEK - 2010s

LISTEN - 2010s

FLATLINE - 2010s

IN THE FOREST OF THE NIGHT - 2010s

DARK WATER - 2010s

DEATH IN HEAVEN - 2010s

THE MAGICIAN'S APPRENTICE - 2010s

THE WITCH'S FAMILIAR - 2010s

THE ZYGON INVASION - 21st century

THE ZYGON INVERSION - 21st century

FACE THE RAVEN - 21st century

THE RETURN OF DOCTOR MYSTERIO - 2010s

THE PILOT - 2017

KNOCK, KNOCK - 2017

EXTREMIS - 2017

THE PYRAMID AT THE END OF THE WORLD - 2017

THE LIE OF THE LAND - late 2010s

THE WOMAN WHO FELL TO EARTH - 2018

ARACHNIDS IN THE UK - 2018

IT TAKES YOU AWAY - 2018

RESOLUTION - 2019 (Jan)

THE HUNGRY EARTH - 2020

COLD BLOOD - 2020

SPYFALL PART ONE - 2020

SPYFALL PART TWO - 2020

FUGITIVE OF THE JUDOON - 2020

PRAXEUS - 2020

KILL THE MOON - 2049

THE WATERS OF MARS - 2059

UNDER THE LAKE - 2119

BEFORE THE FLOOD - 2119

THE REBEL FLESH - 22nd century

THE ALMOST PEOPLE - 22nd century

DINOSAURS ON A SPACESHIP - 2367

THE BEAST BELOW - 3290s

SLEEP NO MORE - 38th century

PLANET OF THE OOD - 4126

THE IMPOSSIBLE PLANET - 4221

THE SATAN PIT - 4221

42 - the 42nd century

A CHRISTMAS CAROL- 44th century

TIME OF ANGELS - 51st century

FLESH AND STONE - 51st century

SILENCE IN THE LIBRARY - 51st century

FOREST OF THE DEAD - 51st century

A GOOD MAN GOES TO WAR - 52nd century

THE HUSBANDS OF RIVER SONG - 5343

THE BATTLE OF RANSKOOR AV KOLOS - 5425

THE DOCTOR'S DAUGHTER - 6012 (July)

THE TSURANGA CONUNDRUM - 67th century

THE LONG GAME - 200,000

BAD WOLF - 200,100

THE PARTING OF WAYS - 200,100

THE END OF THE WORLD - 5 Billion

NEW EARTH - 5 BILLION & 23

GRIDLOCK - 5 BILLION & 53

UTOPIA - 100 trillion AD

With no date

MIDNIGHT

THE DOCTOR'S WIFE

THE GIRL WHO WAITED

THE GOD COMPLEX

ASYLUM OF THE DALEKS

THE POWER OF THREE

THE RINGS OF AKHATEN

JOURNEY TO THE CENTRE OF THE TARDIS

NIGHTMARE IN SILVER

THE NAME OF THE DOCTOR

TIME HEIST

MUMMY ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

IN THE FOREST OF THE NIGHT

LAST CHRISTMAS

HEAVEN SENT

HELL BENT

SMILE (far future)

OXYGEN (far future)

WORLD ENOUGH AND TIME

THE DOCTOR FALLS

THE GHOST MONUMENT

KERBLAM!

ORPHAN 55

ASCENSION OF THE CYBERMEN

Big thanks to the Doctor Who wiki, I literally couldn't have done this without you.

#doctor who #chaos #idk what you'll do with this but here

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lshark-cs · 1 year ago

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Iron God Chapter 7 [Kolo]

"No way you can break these all in one hit, Lalek." Channei stacked four slabs of glistening black stone on top of each other between two chairs.

Lalek grinned. "Wanna bet? I can beat Yayaba in an arm wrestle no problem."

Kolo raised an eyebrow. "Yayaba?"

"Lightningfishers don't have arms, Lalek." Channei shook her head.

"All right, an arm and wing wrestle!" Lalek paced back and forth. "You really think I can't do it, huh?"

"Breaking Rizval's crystal's not like splitting a plank, remember?" said Channei.

Kolo muttered under her breath. "Bet I could do it easy."

They stared at her. Lalek glanced at Channei and then back at Kolo. "What was that?"

Kolo smiled. "I bet I could do it easy."

Lalek laughed. "All right, you got me there, I never would've...wait, are you serious?"

Kolo nodded. "Totally."

"So, Lalek, are you doing it or not?" Channei asked.

"Oh, no way. I wanna see this." Lalek stepped aside and gestured to the black crystal slabs. "All yours, little devil."

Kolo nudged past the muscular woman. She eyed the challenge. The slabs were thicker than they had looked from far away. She had a split second of second thoughts, but when she looked over her shoulder, Lalek and Channei were both watching. Kolo glared at the stones. Now she had a point to prove.

"Wait, hold on." Channei interrupted. "What's the bet?"

"Oh, I've got one, I've got one." Lalek bounced on her toes. "If Kolo can't break those stones with one hit, she has to wash all of our socks."

Channei shook her head. "Boring."

Kolo concentrated all her power in one hand. She raised her arm above her head.

Channei sputtered. "Wait, hold on, we need to...whoa!"

Kolo focused everything into that strike and shattered all four slabs of black crystal. Her head jerked back with the impact and an earsplitting ringing shot through both her ears. She yelled and could barely hear her own voice. The floor rushed toward her. It was scattered with rubble.

Channei grabbed her and steadied her. "You did it. You really did it!"

Her voice snapped Kolo out of the shock. "Huh?"

Lalek clapped her huge hands. "That was amazing!"

Kolo flushed, then laughed so hard it made her belly ache. The other girls cackled right along with her.

Channei elbowed her. "So, Kolo, what's the biggest thing you've broken with that mighty fist?"

"Biggest thing I've broken?" Kolo beamed. "Azvalath."

Channei wheezed.

Lalek snorted and tears spilled down her cheeks. She patted Kolo on the back with a huge hand. "Now that's a badge of honor!"

Kolo almost fell again from the force of Lalek's shove.

"Say, do we get to rough him up too now that he's been demoted?" Channei asked.

"After what Master Xigon did to him? Sounds mean," said Lalek. "Wait, Kolo, did you hear about that?"

Kolo shrugged. "What happened?" She knew he'd been unconscious for four days, but still didn't know the full details.

"Get this. Master Xigon gave our man a rather heart-stopping scare." Lalek plopped herself down in one of the chairs and nearly knocked it over. "And I mean that quite literally."

"Master Xigon, redefining The Look for however long he's been around." Channei yawned. "Wonder if Azvalath still has a thing for him."

Kolo's head snapped up. "What?"

"Channei, that was never proven!" Lalek crossed her legs. "Or do you have a little something for him, and you're trying to dump the blame on Azvalath again?"

Someone spoke up from the other side of the door. "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear any of that."

All three of them jumped. Kolo grabbed Channei's arm. "Master Xigon, we..."

"Food is ready," he said. "That's all I came to say."

"Good, I'm starving." Channei ruffled Kolo's white hair. "You need a haircut."

"I think my hair is perfect," said Xigon.

"I was talking to Kolo!" Channei charged forward and threw the door open. "I thought all you came to say was that it's dinnertime."

Xigon leaned against the wall and tapped the floor with one crutch. "You're the ones giving me plenty to run with."

Kolo followed Channei. Lalek half-laughed and half-barked at Xigon. "Do you get that much of a thrill from embarrassing us?"

"Damn right I do." Xigon maneuvered around them. He looked down at Kolo. "Making friends?"

Kolo thought about it, then nodded. "I guess."

"Better if you do. They're your new roommates as of tonight," said Xigon.

"Great," said Kolo. "Who has to sleep on the floor?"

Xigon chuckled. "That's up to you three."

When they arrived at the table, Kolo's mouth watered again. The soup smelled rich and fantastic. The room itself, however, was very hot. Between the steaming soup, the fireplace, and the sudden crowd, Kolo was melting in her own sweat within seconds. She looked by the door and saw a coat rack. She tried to hang hers up, but it fell to the floor in a heap. Kolo didn't bother trying to fix it. Channei grabbed a seat at the table and patted the chair next to her. "C'mon, Kolo."

Kolo came and sat down next to Channei. The shapeshifter smiled. Her golden hair was all frizzy. Kolo couldn't help but wonder if what she saw was Channei's real face, or another disguise. The thought unsettled her, but she did her best to smile back.

"I'm dead serious." Lalek sat down at the other end of the table, next to the person who looked neither male nor female, or perhaps both at once. "One hit. Pow. Shattered like thin ice."

Rizval sneered. "Bull-sh..."

Master Qila interrupted. "Watch your language." She ladled soup into bowls and passed them around. "Anyone who volunteers to clean up gets priority on seconds."

Azvalath grabbed a bowl. "I cleaned the kitchen, does that count?" He sat down on Kolo's other side. Kolo stiffened and inched away from him. Phantom pains shot through her left torso even though the wound had healed rapidly. Even if she weren't still bleeding, how could he sit next to her like it was nothing?

Channei reached around Kolo and prodded him. "Azvalath, you sure you aren't dead? You sure reek like a dead thing."

Kolo shook her head. Did Channei not understand? Or was she trying to break the tension? If the latter were the case, she wasn't doing a good job of it. Azvalath folded his arms. "Shush."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I can't." Channei leaned back and put one leg up. "You no longer hold any commanding authority, remember?"

"That doesn't mean you get to be a pest!" Azvalath smacked his spoon on the table. Broth sloshed out of his bowl. Channei stuck her tongue out.

Xigon shot them a warning glare. "Mind your manners, you two."

"Right! Where are my manners?" Channei handed Kolo a bowl of soup and a spoon. "Here you go."

Kolo took a deep breath. It smelled delicious. She dipped her spoon in and took a bite. It was so hot it burned her tongue, but she didn't care.

Something nudged against her foot. Kolo looked under the table and gasped. There was an enormous sabretooth cat curled on the floor. It gnawed at a haunch of raw red meat.

Channei noticed Kolo looking down. She bent to scratch the beast's head. "Hello, pretty girl." She turned to Kolo. "This is Jai-Lag. She's not exactly your neighbor's cat, is she?"

Kolo shook her head. The longer she stayed with these people, the stranger they became. She snuck a glance at Azvalath. He had not even touched his food. His face was pale, his hands were clenched up, and he bit his lower lip.

Kolo swallowed hard. She knew it was ridiculous to be afraid of Azvalath. But was it really? He was her monster. He had chased her for so long. He'd stabbed her. She had almost died. And there he was, sitting next to her at dinner looking troubled, like he was the one who had been through a nightmare. Kolo had an urge to laugh.

Azvalath glared at her. "What?"

Kolo's heart hammered. She wiped sweat off her forehead. "Are you all right?"

Azvalath's eyebrows rose in surprise for a second, then he scowled again. "No."

"Why not?" Kolo asked.

Azvalath hunched over the table. "I thought coming home would feel good. But no, it's been an ordeal. The masters are treating me like a disobedient child, and I can't stand it."

Kolo looked over to where the masters sat. Qila and Xigon were next to each other, but she noticed they, too, looked stiff and wary of one another. "Sounds irritating," she said in a vacant tone.

"That's an understatement." Azvalath rapped his fingers on the table. "Hm, you notice it too, then?"

"Notice what?" Kolo asked.

"They might look happy." Azvalath murmured under his breath. "They might look like they're friends, Qila and Xigon. That's because they have an image to maintain."

Kolo watched them. The old woman and the towering man both laughed at something. Qila put her hand down on the table. It brushed against Xigon's for an instant. He jerked his hand away. All the while, they kept talking and smiling like nothing was wrong, but there was clear unrest. "An image, huh?" Kolo pursed her lips.

"You and I aren't the only ones with a silent war going on," said Azvalath. He kept his voice as quiet as possible. "I wish I never knew how much the masters actually hate each other."

Kolo squinted. "Do they really?"

"Yeah. I don't know the full story." Azvalath leaned back. "A word of advice, if I may?"

Kolo looked at him. "What is it?"

"You've already won our war, so stop fighting it." He touched where Kolo had punched him before. "You've given me hell, and I surrender."

"I gave you hell?" Kolo growled. "You're really one to talk, sabretooth."

Azvalath grabbed her shoulder. "You and I also have an image to maintain, believe it or not. So, if you still feel like you must conquer me, then do it with your mind and not with your fist."

Kolo scoffed. "Conquer you? You're not worth it."

Azvalath nodded. "You're learning."

Lalek leaned over and pointed to Azvalath's soup. "Are you gonna eat that?"

"No, go ahead." He slid his bowl to the muscular woman. "Anyway, Kolo, I heard you're moving in with Lalek and Channei." He smirked. "Good luck sleeping ever again."

"You can shut up," said Channei.

"So can you," said Azvalath. "Maybe then we'll all sleep well for once."

Kolo stood up. "It's too hot in here." She grabbed her bowl and left. She could only handle so much, but at least the soup was good. Better than small talk with her monster.

She sat down on the floor in the hallway. It was much cooler and much easier to breathe. Kolo looked around and noticed for the first time that the walls were covered in paintings. Not simple graffiti, either, but marvelous depictions of beautiful and terrible things. She spotted a sabretooth cat chasing an eagle across the stone. Then, a little ways down, the two predators clashed in a fury of talons and teeth. Was that Jai-Lag? Or, perhaps, it could be Azvalath.

Who, then, was the eagle? Kolo thought for a while as she ate. Maybe she could be the eagle. Maybe she could soar one day.

When her bowl was empty, Kolo set it down and began to explore the paintings further. She found a proud stag, its antlered head tipped up to meet the eyes of an immense serpent. The same stag and serpent appeared all over the walls once she looked closer, along with a few other animals. A bull charged one way, then another, then toward the sabretooth cat, then the two charged together. At one point, a fox snuck its way into the pictures and never left.

Sometimes there was a crocodile. It didn't appear very often, but whenever it did, it stole the attention away from every other creature on that part of the wall. The fox sometimes put on masks to impersonate other creatures. Only in those first two images did she find her eagle. Kolo pressed her hand to the cold stone and traced the wingtips with her fingers. The smoothness of it soothed her.

Something flimsy hit her from behind. Kolo jumped. "Hey!"

"You forgot your coat," said Azvalath.

"Go away," she grumbled.

Azvalath grabbed her bowl. "You're welcome!"

#original work #dark fantasy #fantasy #my writing #writing #web fiction #web novel #creative writing #iron god #original writing #writeblr #writers on tumblr

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