#LEMME BANG THE WALKING CORPSE PLEASE

[godlygivenanxiety]

"There's a part of me that doesn't wear a badge. And there's no telling what he'll do."

I WOULD DO UNSPEAKABLE THINGS FOR YOU, SEAN RENARDDDDDDDDD ❤️💕💓🥰💘❣️💞✨

[mysteriawrites]

Hello! I'd like to ask for a bnha match up :)

Zodiac sun: Aries

Zodiac moon: Cancer

Zodiac rising: Sagittarius

Favorite color(s): pink, black

Favorite artist(s): Lumi athena, Melanie martinez, lil peep and lovejoy

Favorite movie(s): Scream, titanic, corpse bride

Hobbies: reading, writing, gaming, cooking

I'm 5'4 and kinda chubby

I have black hair with red chunky highlights that's down to my mid back with bangs

I dress in a 2000s fashion but more on the alternative side

I'm socially akward but really fun once you get to know me

I'm more on the quiet side and don't really speak unless spoken to but have alot to say when I do get the chance to talk

I prefer someone who enjoys staying home rather then going out, I'd also prefer someone with similar interests.

When looking for a lover, I tend to want someone who can make me laugh, I don't care for looks I just want someone who'll treat me right. I'd love my partner to be very loving and vocal about how they love me!

Thank youu<3

Hello hello thank you for the matchup I hope you don’t mind but imma make this my first female matchup because you didn’t list whether you wanted male or female and I thought this person was a good match for you, but if you would prefer a male one just lemme know and I’ll make you another one. With that out if the way let’s get to the matchup…drumroll please!!!

🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁

ASHIDO MINA!!!

No other reason for this pairing other than yall would be cute and mesh well.

You and Ashido met as soon as you stepped in the door of the UA classroom on day one. It's no secret that Ashido is a social butterfly, she makes friends with whatever person she meets even bullies. The minute you walked in she was already introducing herself and asking you questions. She saw when you came in how you were shy and awkward, so she wanted to make you feel more comfortable.

After that you had basically been adopted into her newly made friend group. She knows you prefer to be on you own though so she lets you have your space when necessary, but sometimes she will bring you out with a few of the others (not too many as not to overwhelm you). She also speaks up for you so you can say what you need to say and feel heard, plus usually you be spitting facts anyway.

You two hang out one on one as well because you have similar interests. As pink, energetic, and peppy as she is she loves horror movies, video games, and Melanie Martinez (personal headcanon). When everyone moved into the dorms, and everyone comes out for movie nights they dread when it's you guy's turn to pick the movie because they'll be screaming their heads off as you two just gush about the film.

Ashido also likes to take you out clothes shopping. Whether with the others or just the two of you (preferably just the two of you) she likes to take you to find clothes that you like that best suit your figure, make you feel confident, and make your inner beauty shine (all my knowledge of fashion is from barbie movies I'm sorry).

You and Ashido actually started dating pretty early on (aka Mina doesn't get enough screen time during big battles for me to fit this in) during your time at the training camp when the villains attacked, she was so worried about what happened to you. She fought villains as fast as she could so she could find you and make sure you were ok. Once it was all over, she ran up to you and hugged you so tight you thought she'd be the one to kill you instead of the villains. When she pulled away you saw her crying her eyes out and she told you how worried she was of losing you. After everyone was taken back home, she confessed how she loved you and how she always wanted to be by your side to protect you.

After things calmed down you two officially started going out. Nothing much changed after that except you two became way more affectionate. Ashido had a lot of cute nicknames for you, teasing you and seeing you get flustered, and loved showing off and making you laugh. You love to run your fingers through her fluffy hair and rub her horns to make her blush for once and compliment her on her fighting technique. There are a lot of stories of people loving their lover "despite their shape", but Ashido loves your body so much the way it is. So cuddly and soft like a human body pillow.

Dates between you two go from having horror movie nights with the class to having horror movie nights cuddled up in one of your dorms together, and if you're at one of each other's homes then expect cooking dates filled with food fights, laughter, and ordering pizza in the end.

You and Ashido are the introvert and extrovert couple. You two practically speak a different language and always know what the other needs. You have plenty of passions to share and love to give. You'll also do whatever it takes to reach your dreams together and protect one another no matter what despite being confident the other can more than protect themselves.

Alrighty another matchup down. Sorry it took so long and is short, but I'm pretty proud of this one so I hope you like it.

Runner Up: No one rn

[jeeperso]

D&D Quotes Without Context

Ravenloft, Hazlan Arc part 2

"I’ll sell this ruby." Marshall decides to keep an eye on Jonni. “What? I was’t gonna use it to hit on revolutionary girl!” Several stone arches leading nowhere, strange cubes, a motar and pestel. "Wizards showing off on who has the most over the top ride. sigh" "Uhm...I'll wait outside. Not going inside a giant head's mouth." "Totally understandable." "Feel free to make yourself at home by the way, we got water, wine, ruminating powder." OOC: Grab some ruminating powder, we can make out like bandits in other domains. It's raining desiccated corpses. Jonni: “Not me.” Marshal grabs something sturdy to use as cover to help people escape the raining men. Jonni uses Marshall as something sturdy. "DIBS I CALL DIBS!" "I'm going to assume this is a Necromancer thing and not comment." "I've been working on a biodome project outside town, I'm trying to restore life to this land, unfortunately I require kind of a lot of corpses to do it." "Before he died, he feared Hazlik grading his project. It is pleasing death is no escape for him." OOC: Ooo, we could join a cult! They usually have food! And weird sex acts! You meet two lovely ladies at the local tavern. “Ladies,” Jonni says. “I made the corpse that made all those other corpses.” "Neat." “What I’m saing is, now that you’re here, my fireball is not the hottest thing in the room.” "So, our place or yours?" Edmund will, though he would contact Jonni and Marshall with his whispering voices to see if they were free. You hear passionate moans for about ten minutes... ”Okay, think I wore them out. Lemme get cleaned up.” Edmund: *covers his face* “You got the cash, we got the crash.” "JUST NORMAL SIZED RATS YOU'LL BE FINE." “So… burn down the building and walk away?” "Jonni. You can't burn down every problem." "That is not a challenge." Jonni: “I’m sure something will survive the fire.” “I say we unlock the basement, deal with that first. Work our way up. Otherwise it’s just gonna annoyingly taunt us every time we kill its minions." "Did I just hear the door ominously slam and lock?" [sarcasm] “Oh, yeah, that’s gonna stop us.” ...the second you touch the door, a bolt of electricity goes through you. "Okay... that's more than Rat nonsense." “Aaaand talking’s out the window,” Jonni says hitting the door with Eldritch Blast. The door is made of heavy steel, your blasts hit it, but only dent it. "They have very sturdy doors in this farm..." As you blast a hole in the wall, you see something tumble out of the wall, it looks like a heavily gnawed skeleton. There is also a small, loaded crossbow. “Nyx, got you a present!l" Gorbash: "If we see that couple again I'm going to beat one of them to death with the other." The light also lets you see the rats for the first time. And their flowing craniums which shows their brains. Gorbash: "I think I remember these things... sort of...They taste decent spit-roasted." You hear a voice in your collective head. YOU NOT LEAVE. MEAT. HUNGRY. WE PLAY. THEN YOU DIE. LIKE OTHERS BEFORE YOU. Jonni: “We play. You burn.” "They are rage, brutal, without mercy. But I...I will be worse. Rip and tear, until it is done." “I’m telling you, we burn down any house we aren’t familiar with. It’s the only way to be sure.” "Next time I say a job with just rats will be simple, please someone remind me about this incident." Jonni uses the Create Campfire cantrip 147 times. They blink, then push back you [sic], seeing the house burning to the ground. "Good news...you don't have to worry about rats, or dust." "Um. you probably wont accept 'they made us do it' as an excuse will you?" Marchal: "Enh." *gesture with side eye at Jonni* “You may live.” "Oh we've been dead inside for years." "The rats would breed an army to wipe out every first level commoner in 10 KM." Edmund:"Gorbash...you're not going to eat that, are you?" Gorbash: "I'm feeling nostalgic recently." Edmund: "It might have a parasite!" Marshal: "Gorbash can eat my cooking. Any parasite that survives his stomach deserves living there." "How bad could a mill slug be?" OOC: Makes you run out of cards. "Doing the right thing is its own reward.........when an actual reward isn't possible..." Jonni: "Nerd." "And..-Jonni got to burn down a house...so its cathartic." Jonni: "Okay, now that is a reward.” "I say we check out the bulletin about losing contact with a nearby farm, maybe it will turn out to be this farm and thus easy. Wait, forgot I said that. By saying that I just jinxed us, that is how it has been going lately." Jonni knocks. “We are powerful wandering troubleshooters here about your posting. If anything here is trying to use you to lure us here, say so now or your house and lives are forfeit.” "She's had a ... rough day." Jonni blows up a near by stump. “How big and what does it do? Fire breath? Lightning Vision? Ice farts?” "How much salt do you have?" "70 feet long from tip to tip. And its obsessed with my windmill." "Sounds like your help will be greatly appred-- 70 feet!?" “Gonna need a lot of salt.” "That is the 2nd biggest slug I've ever heard of." "Fecking thing comes over and tries to mate with it every time I run it." "I can see how an amorous 70 foot slug can put a damper in your work..." "That sounds incredibly troublesome and very disturbing to witness." “Halflings are DTF. Shame she’s married to a dude.” "Like I noped out of there after they served me a wad of butter between two slices of bread." "Ah, the diet moon waffle." "So...buttered toast?" "No like a hamburger with a huge stick of butter in the middle." "And that's a DIET moon waffle?" "The proper moon waffle requires thick salted caramel and what is called liquid smoke." OOC: Alright, everyone who got below a 13, you get a strange and disturbing dream. “No! No I can’t. Not again! No more Big Bang Theory marathons!” "I've heard of nightmares from eating food...but TALKING about food giving nightmares?" "Standard Fundertainment advertising space." "...they want us to know we have made enemies of their entire species now." "They can get in line." OOC: First you get the ruminating powder, then you get the power, then Jonni gets the women. OOC: Its ravenloft, like 90% of the houses are creepy. OOC: Then we just classify it as urban renewal project. OOC: Bad news, Jonni is tired. Good news. Her favorite toy fully recharged. OOC: .... oh god I just got it. Instead of a Toe with corns.. its a corn with toes...

[bisexualsforprompto]

An Unrefusable Promise

A/N I got like a mega case of inspiration, I don’t even know how to explain it.

She was promised a better life and a loving home.

How could she refuse?

She still remembered the first time she met him.

It was storming in Paris, Marinette could hardly see a thing. Even with her powers as Ladybug, she couldn’t manage to get the upper hand in the fight with the rain being so violent. She was fighting Muyara, and winning, until her heard a deafening snap. She and Muyara had both stopped immediately.

Marinette ran over across the rooftop to where Chat Noir had been facing off against Hawkmoth, she recognized the snap, it was the snapping of bones...specifically the neck. The noise was so sickening that Marinette almost knew what had happened. Hands shaking she ran over to her partner, who was laying lifeless on the ground, in the form of Adrien Agreste.

Hawkmoth stood there, bewildered, tears about to start invading his eyes.

“Adrien...no...Ladybug, please believe me I didn’t mean to-“

Marinette didn’t hear the rest of his plea.

She saw red.

And she lunged.

She vaguely registered Muyara grabbing her arms and pulling her back from Hawkmoth. She had spun around and punched Muyara in the face, off of the building.

Another snap.

Marinette snapped out of her stupor.

“NATHALIE!” Hawkmoth cried.

No...she didn’t. Marinette choked violently as she looked at Muyara, a pool of blood surrounding her from the drop off the thirty story building. No. Ladybug didn’t kill.

Ladybug didn’t kill.

Ladybug didn’t kill.

Ladybug didn’t-

BANG

The unmistakable sound of a gunshot.

Marinette turned around in horror to see Hawkmoth fall over, a bullet wound graced his forehead.

Marinette’s hands were still shaking as she saw the man behind Hawkmoth, the one who had pointed a gun at him and pulled the trigger.

He was dressed in black on one side and orange on the other. Marinette could see that he had other weapons besides his gun. She visibly tensed when she saw a sword peaking out of his utility belt.

His gun was still smoking.

Would she be his next victim?

He placed the gun down and walked over to Marinette, approaching her carefully.

She was trembling, but paralyzed, like a deer in headlights.

“I’m not gonna hurt you kid.” He said calmly, holding his hands up. “Are you okay?”

Marinette shrunk in on herself and shook her head.

“Come here kid, lemme help you.”

Marinette wavered and took a step back, hyper aware of how close to the edge of the building she was.

She felt herself start to panic.

“Hey hey.” Shushed the stranger, “Don’t be afraid. I’m here to help you. I know you. I know you Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Marinette’s eyes widened at the use of her real name. “H-how?”

“I know many things Ladybug,” he said gently, “I know how your classmates have turned their back on you. I know that your parents don’t believe you. I know the only one you could trust,” he motioned to Chat Noir’s corpse, “is dead. And I know, I’m the only one who can help.”

“W-who are you?” Marinette stuttered.

“My name is Slade Wilson, I’m a good guy. I can give you everything you want. A better life and a loving home, don’t you want that?” Marinette didn’t need to answer. “I just need your help, is that okay Marinette?”

She nodded, and in turn, unknowingly signed her soul to the devil.

~~•~~•~~•~~•~~

“Do you really need another one? You already have me.” Asked an irritated blonde girl in a short costume.

Marientte eyed her warily, her costume was brown and orange, with a tacky belt on her waist. She had a bridge of freckles across her nose, not unlike Marinette’s, and her hair was in a short, unflattering pixie cut. She wore a mask, however her eye holes were cut out like Marinette’s, her eyes were blue.

“Now Terra, play nice.” Slade said mockingly, “Marinette can help us against the Titans.”

“Fine, but don’t try anything funny with my man, bug. Or we’ll see how you get squashed.” Terra said, clenching her fists, before leaving the room.

Marinette was taken aback, the girl couldn’t have been much older than her, was she really with Slade?

“Is she...Are you two together?” Marinette squeaked uncomfortably.

“No.” Slade chuckled, “She wants us to be, but it’s not going to happen.”

Marinette relaxed a little. Slade was kind to her, he didn’t seem like the kind of man to take advantage of a girl like that, she rationalized.

“Come on, lemme show you your mission.” Slade said ushering her into a new room.

There was a boy, encased in rock. He had spiky midnight hair, a domino mask with green surrounding it on his face, and he was a beautiful shade of tan. He was wearing a dark green, red, black and dark yellow bordering on gold costume. There was a small R on the corner of his costume.

“Slade, brought another minion in to torture me?” Grunted the young boy. He had to be her age.

“Ladybug, this is Robin. He’s not a good person, he’s working for someone who hurts a lot of good people. I need you to watch him, for the greater good.” Slade said, placing a hand on her shoulder before leaving her and Robin alone.

Marinette’s hands shook as she sat on a nearby stone. Robin narrowed his eyes at her.

She cleared her throat and began to speak in broken English, “I-is it true? H-have you- do you hurt people?”

The boy’s face softened, not by a lot, but by a little.

“Listen to me, whatever he’s promised you, it’s a lie. Do you hear me? You have to free me before it’s too late.”

“W-what?” Marinette said, feeling panic rise in her.

“What did he say to you?” Robin asked, furrowing his eye brows.

“H-he- I-...Everyone hates me back in Paris. M-my parents don’t trust me, and my classmates t-they tried...even the only one I could trust...he’s gone now. Mr. Wilson, he offered...he told me he could help. And he said the only way for me to be free was to come with him...here.” Marinette said, everything spilling out.

“Listen to me- Ladybug right?” Marinette nodded, “He can’t help you. But we can. I’m from a group called the Teen Titans.”

The Teen Titans, Marinette had heard of them, they were heroes.

“We can take you in. We can help you. Slade can’t, no matter what he says. Slade’s a murderer and a villain, you don’t want to align yourself with him.”

Marinette shook.

Murderer.

That’s what she was.

She was a villain too.

She saw flashes of Muyara again, flashes of Chat again, flashes of Hawkmoth again.

What if she stopped it?

But she couldn’t...she didn’t…

‘All that’s necessary for the triumph of evil is that good people do nothing.’

Marinette gulped.

She could’ve done something, anything. Stopped their deaths.

“I-I can’t. I’m as bad as him.” She said dodging his gaze.

“Ladybug listen, I’m...I’m a murderer...I’ve killed people before. When I got older though, I was given a chance to redeem myself and I took it. I see the look in your eyes and I know it too...You chose the path of vengeance not justice. But you can get help for yourself. You don’t have to live with these demons in fear forever. Get me out of this stone.” Robin said, struggling against the rock.

Ladybug picked up her yo-yo hesitantly.

“Can I be forgiven?” She choked.

“You can.”

“Can I forgive myself?”

“I...don’t know.”

His answer wasn’t reassuring, in fact it was the opposite.

So Marinette knew her decision.

She broke the rock.

~~•~~•~~•~~•~~

In the end Slade sort of did keep his promise.

Marinette stared fondly at the picture of her with the rest of the Titans.

He promised her a better life and a loving home.

Beast Boy, Raven, Starfire, Nightwing, Robin, Blue Beetle, and her in the middle, all standing in front of Titans Tower with smiles, even Damian!

And she got just that.

~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~

A happy ending? In my fic? It’s more likely than you think... Oh don’t worry...angst apocalypse April is coming up 😈

Taglist:

@northernbluetongue

@queen-of-the-trash-planet-tm

@luciferge

@legendaryneckjudgestudent

@interobanginyourmom

@beaversuenightly

@worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry

@mochinek0

@shamefullove

@emjrabbitwolf

@actual-disaster-human

@littleredrobinhoodlum

@elijahcoser

@daminett4life

@18-fandoms-unite-08

@kawaiigiantjudgefish

@corabeth11

[itoshit]

Everyone was connected with headsets as we navigated into the building. Gun shots quickly reached my ear but strangely enough, I haven't met anybody yet. My knife and my gun in my hand, I was on guard, ready to shoot. A door opened quickly behind me, and turning around, I saw her. Natalie. She hasn't realised I was here yet so i kept silent, ready jump on her. Looking behind her frantically, she sighted and finally, walked ahead, right on me. Head connecting with my chest, she raised her eyes, and I could see it. The fear. Smirking at her, I just gave her enough time to do a 180°. Giving her the impression of being able to escape, I waited. But soon after I took a fistful of her hair, and forcefully banged her head against the nearest wall. I didn't care anymore, I was mad.

Please I-

Shut. Up.

Pinning her against the wall, arm choking her, I approached my face and observed the blood running from her nose. Pouting, I patted her cheek.

Did I hit too hard? My bad baby.

Hearing some loud noise from my headset, I listened attentively.

Manjiro? We found your girl. Our sniper shot the fucker right in time, he was ready to blow her brains out. The guys are gathering now, where are you?

Hiding my relief from Natalie, I answered quickly.

Will come later. Take care of her.

Don't do anything stupid yeah?

Taking the headset off and tossing it away, I smiled smugly.

You're gonna come with me Nat. Have some surprises for you.

Dragging her by the hair to the empty room she came from, I pulled my gun out and pointed it at her.

Sit on the ground

Leaving her no room for discussion, i watched her kneeling.

You wanna know where you fucked up? I'm gonna explain it to you briefly. Your father died months ago, his body was found in Tokyo's Bay. Well, more like parts of his body. Then...

Tapping the tip of the gun on my chin, feigning reflexion, I snapped my fingers.

Then you assumed I would fall for your trap, giving me Vee. That would have been convenient for you yeah? I'm sure you didn't even know I would come that early. Lemme tell you something sweetheart, I want Venus. And not only for her body. What you failed to acknowledge is the fact that I could get attached. Unfortunately for you, it happened. So now, what I'm gonna do, is bring you back. Vee will decide what to do with you, you were one of her best friends after all, weren't you?

Why didn't you... didn't you tell me for my father...?

We were going to, but only after destroying Yamaguchi-gumi. If you would have waited a bit more, you could have had opportunities to buy yourself a dignity. I was gonna play nice, not telling you the state we found your father in. But no. You were so impatient.

Crouching at her level, I tugged at her hair harshly, making her head go backwards.

You're lucky Vee is still alive. I would have feed you to my dogs if she wasn't. Stand up.

Hearing her sobs made me want to throw up. Now she was playing the victim?

Stop crying, you're the one who took all the bad decisions. Don't make me laugh with your acting.

Pressing the knife on her throat and restraining her wrists, I exited the room. Directing myself to the exterior, I was cut by rapid footsteps behind me. Throwing Natalie on the ground violently, I drew my gun from my holster, turning off the safety.

I was wondering when you would show yourself, Yami.

Eyes focused on him, I pressed the gun on his forehead. Raising his hands in abandon, Yami smiled at me.

Oi oi oi Sano! You should relax. Why couldn't we-

I knew it. It was expected. Bending his arm and hitting my hand with his elbow, Yami picked up my gun in the air. But before he could aim at me, I took my knife and stabbing if strongly in his palm, I took his head and kicked him with my knee. Blood staining my black pants, I smirked at him.

Don't fuck with Bonten, traitor.

Shooting him in both of his knees, I slammed my foot on his face, surely breaking his nose in the process. Hitting him until making him faint, I was panting, a maniac smile on my face. I was enjoying the cracking noises and the whimpers. Red splashing all over my body, I stopped when I assured he was out.

Turning back to Natalie, I dragged her by her hair, ready to finish it. After a long walk in the dark hallways, I eventually found the exit. Opening the door, I was met with my men, Dante and his subordinates.

Sanzu, go find Yami. He's laying somewhere in the corridor. You'll deal with the interrogation.

No one commented on my physical state. I assumed I had blood all over my body and face. My hands were all red so I figured it was the same for the rest.

Now, where's Venus?

-Mikey

I was so slow I couldn't find the right words so I might have made grammar mistakes with verbs and stuff 😭 how are you today ?♡

i’m good, actually have to go out later tonight so I have to get ready for that but how are you?? and ps you’re fine!!! this was so good!!

My eyes were shut tight, not wanting to stare my certain death in the face. I waited for it, breath held and head foggy.

Say goodnight! Koda laughed madly, then there was a bang so loud it rattled my head. Something thick and viscous splattered around my face, making me feel dirty as it dried on my skin. My hearing went in and out, ringing in loud blares. Is this what death was?

Clearly it wasn’t, because the next thing I felt was being untied. I slowly peeled my eyes open to a a heterochromatic man with a scar across his face, gazing at me with equal worry and relief. My heart raced. Mikey’s men were here.

…alright? His voice came in and out as I tried to regain my senses. Venus, are you with me?

I let out a loud groan that must’ve pleased him. The second I was free I was hoisted into his arms, carried out to where the rest of them were. In and out of it, I saw many unfamiliar faces, but they all more or less exuded the same amount of power. The same authority. Bonten executives, perhaps.

Where’s the medic? My savior gruffly asked. Perhaps they pointed, because I didn’t hear an answer, lightly bouncing around in his arm with every brisk step he took. He lowered me on a table that was metal and cold; I shivered the moment my skin made contact with it. The doctors immediately got to work on me, combing through my hair and shouting things like concussion and head injury from the car accident.

But something was happening to me that I couldn’t quite speak on. All I knew was that I was cold, freezing even, but I could also feel the sweat soaking through my clothes. My head was dizzy. My body felt like it weighed tons.

A doctor noticed my state, and went to patch up my thigh, thinking the wound was responsible for it. I could barely feel as they patched it up, but I sent what I hoped was a grateful smile toward them. Then I heard them talking again, speaking about how my condition wasn’t stabilizing.

It doesn’t make any sense, we cut off the blood loss, one said. Other than her head and minor scratches on her face, she’s without injury. She should be showing signs of bettering.

The other one questioned the person who took me out of the room. What was in that room? Any gas? liquids?

Nothing but the corpse, a gun he didn’t get to use, Venus and the knife in her thigh.

I could hear the frown in the doctor’s voice. She was in that torture room for atleast two hours and they only used a knife? That’s absurd why would they… shit. Poison. Check if the dagger is poisoned!

There was silence, a pretty bad one I supposed. The doctors started spewing orders rapidly. Get Mikey! Quick!

Mikey? I raised my head at the name, smiling loopy. I like Mikey, I muttered mindlessly. I could barely see now, black dots swimming in my vision. I waved a hand toward where I think scarface was, pulling him down to meet my lips. Tell Mikey, t-tell him that I—

I’m glad to have met him. I can’t wait to see him. I-

My body fell limp right before I could finish the thought.

[the-uptake]

The Uptake, The 704. 3|0|1|-. Book 1, Chapter Twelve

TW: body horror, suicidal ideations, hard dissociation

Galen felt lost in the access tunnels which ran alongside the subway lines. Autopilot had seized his legs with little attention to direction. The bare concrete walls were lit by LED bars recessed in their upper seams, casting an uncomfortably uniform shadow straight down. The sounds of the public were so far away that all he could hear was the flickering of an electrical short somewhere, intermittent dripping, and himself. He couldn’t place the faint smell of burnt plastic, nor the off-puttingly sweet smell which abutted it. He’d silenced the city, coming down here. It was just him and his thoughts.

He’d put everything into running as fast as he could. Powering his cumbersomely-heavy figure that hard and for that long, the exertion had caught up to him finally. His head clawed for oxygen, and he tried vainly to steady his breathing. It wasn’t enough; typically, a significant amount of his respiration was from his diet. His gut screamed, his mouth and nose running fiercely, suffused by the mild asphyxia. There wasn’t anything down here to eat, though. He gripped his stomach, sniveling, and kept walking. Maybe he’d find a storage closet or something. Staying still could only make the pain worse.

Nothing made sense. How had Saurer tracked him down? And why had there been people at the Hanbrook complex? Really, everything made sense, in hindsight. He’d left a sloppy trail of activity in his wake, between vandalizing supermarkets with his appetite and discarding the copper in such a shape that must have been alarming to anyone besides himself. And when he thought about it, he must have gotten in the habit of eating padlocks off fences, that he assumed he had to have accidentally done the same for his hiding place rather than lockpicking it–that had to have garnered attention of the police that patrolled that area.

Wandering directionlessly a while, Galen came across a section of tunnel which had either fallen into disuse, or had never been completed to begin with. The materials had been abandoned on-site. Bags of concrete. Subway rails. Several enormous spools of wire. He tried his best to ignore the hunks of brass rail and prioritized descending upon one of the bags of concrete to shovel it into his mouth with both hands. After making a mess of one bag, he sat back on his heels and tried to breathe more evenly. The silicates broke down in his gut rapidly, and once he had better faculty, he eyed the bag tiredly. This stuff had been down here a long time untouched: it wasn’t wolframized. From there he presumed that the brass wasn’t wolframized, either. He downed a second bag of concrete, but some of it went down the wrong way and gave him a coughing fit.

He sat down and glared, tormented, at the brass. Not at all unlike the pile of copper tailings that had been abandoned unceremoniously in the alley. He hated himself, and everything he’d become. He’d blown it with his family, and there was a good chance that if Saurer had gotten close enough to find Galen, he was close enough to find his family.

“I shoulda stayed away. I shoulda died–”

And with that, he dropped all composure and began grabbing every piece of broken brass he could shove in his mouth. The taste of it felt off from what he remembered brass tasting like, but he reminded himself he’d never eaten subway rails before, and let his appetite run its course unfettered.

“Wh–” Galen heard the female voice gasp and he looked up abruptly to get a face full of flashlight. “Oh god–”

“–Nn, ndon’t go,” he wheezed, reaching out toward her. His head felt heavy. “Please–”

“What are you… doin’!”

The light blinded him to how he must have looked, crouched over garbage like that, and he grunted, trying and failing to stand up. The girl’s fear sobered him more than anything else about this encounter.

“I could… ask y’the same ques, ss, tion,” he turned. Everything felt off. He squinted at her once she rectified the fact she’d had her flashlight right in his face. His pallid, disfigured face, with its mismatched eyes and clustered craters of scars along the right side. Suddenly self-conscious, he tried to tug the side of his hood over his cheek. “Y, y, yy’not a ss, subway worker. Slag y, y’doin’ down here.” He flinched into his last tic, anxiety creeping up the backside of his scalp. A second attempt at standing succeeded.

“I’m lookin’ for a friend,” she replied, backing away further. “Supposed t’meet her down here.”

His eyes adjusted to the lighting in the area again. Her sapphire hair was cut in straight bangs and nothing else, and she wore hybrid-denim overalls and calf-high boots. The more he took in her tattooed features, the more his mind grew muddy, and he struggled against the fog. He knew her. Like he knew the voice in the alley earlier. But who…?

“Y, y, y’down here f’ver, verbot. That’s, ss, s it. Ss, sss, slag y’expect t’find down here? It’s just… this. An’ me.”

She squinted at him similarly, unable to shake that he felt familiar. His tic and paranoid demeanor had her worried, and she started taking slow steps backward. With her free hand she pulled out her reader and checked her GPS.

“Ain’t down here after verbot,” she muttered. “Ain’t y’ever heard a urbex?”

“Stalker. Y, y, y’a sss, sssssssstalker. Ss, stalkers don’t go sTUPId places f’no rea, ea, eason.” He wheezed again, feeling even heavier. Everything felt taut. Just how much had he eaten unchecked? She backed up enough for him to notice finally, and he reached out toward her, pleading. “Please– Lemme use y’j, j, GPS. I’m. Sss, c, cared.”

“You’re the scared one here? Slag is wrong with y’face anyway? An’ how long y’been down here like this? Y’livin’ down here or some truck?”

Galen took a starting step toward her, and regretted it. His right leg had begun to swell up, and he could feel the tightness of the hybrid-denim restricting his range of motion. But he pushed himself forward, as though to spite his mental fog, and took several more steps before he could hear stitches pop. The pressure lit his inguinal folds and jaw on fire, but still he persisted.

“What’s… that sound…?”

Worry threw her wide-eyed. Shakily, she shone her flashlight in his face again, to keep him blinded enough to keep back, but she wished she hadn’t. He’d begun to unzip his hoodie to make room for the masses of semi-translucent edemic lumps subsuming his neck, mired in wiry vascularity, and she could only imagine in her nightmares that it must be happening all over him.

“Oh fUCK what did you get into down here–”

“Ss– h– please–”

Her fear made him panic, and he lurched forward trying to grab her and keep her from running. But somewhere he went wrong, the pressure having built too high in his right leg, and he let out a sour scream as the bones in his leg broke from the weight of his own body. He fell on her, the flashlight clattering against the wall and rolling too far away, and she, too, yelled, interpreting his injury instead as an attack. His swollen bulk slumped atop her, rapidly subsuming his features.

She sniveled fiercely with a gloved hand clamped over her mouth, kicking him in the face a few times with her free leg. Her right foot was trapped in his armpit. The force of one stomp burst a neck mass and splattered a rotten-smelling fluid everywhere. She stopped cold when she started to hear a sizzling effervescence, because she couldn’t tell if it was him or whatever had just come out of him, and her scalp crawled. She rested her left leg atop his right arm, scared to put it down.

“Get offa me, asshole!” She whispered in furious defeat. The disgust felt ironic, like she was asking a corpse to move on its own. Once she settled down, the only sounds were fluorescent static and the slow procession of stitches failing as Galen gradually continued to swell ever larger. “How are you this heavy. So gross.”

She grunted, brow crumpled as she reached for her flashlight. Scooting nearer to it was not an option, and she gave up. After a moment, she slapped her forehead.

“Ame, get a hold of yourself. Y’reader, dumbass.”

The device came back out of her bib pocket and she awkwardly tried to maneuver it in a way that it came nowhere near touching the increasingly bloated face in her lap.

Ame whined then shuddered, squinting in disgust when she couldn’t not notice the sensation of two armpit lumps swelling around her ankle. In a kneejerk she started into stomping him again in whatever must have once been his neck or shoulder. The pressure had built up enough as to force all the air out of his lungs in a gurgled, flat wheeze. She slapped her hand right back over her mouth to keep from screaming or throwing up. Suddenly where she was certain before, she wasn’t entirely sure whether he was dead. Terror regained hold over desperation.

Shakily, she turned on the back-facing flashlight on her reader to get a better look at the state of the monstrosity atop her. The bloating had much of what had once been his face nearly clear, the fluid filling them orange. His eyes had swollen near-totally shut, but she could tell he’d still squinted once she’d flashed the device in his face. She couldn’t chalk that up to a postmortem nervous system response. He really might not be human, and might do her real harm in this state, so she quickly turned off the flashlight. But…

She pulled up her camera app, and tried to take pictures of him in the low tunnel light. Dissatisfied with the results, she resigned to quickly using flash for a few. He reached up with one arm seeking comfort, and she started hyperventilating and fumbled with the device. Trying to squirm away shifted his swelling bulk of face and upper body forward and prevented her from sitting up fully by this point. She groaned, no longer holding back tears at having to lean on him to keep his mounding form from suffocating her. At least she could be grateful that, for now, his hoodie covered up enough that she didn’t have to touch him.

Shaking, Ame flipped through her photo gallery until she decided which pic was clearest, and hit [share] to send it. She @’ed the whole group with it, and made sure it was GPS-tagged. TRAPPED UNDER THIS DUDE. OLD HOLLAND-JOURNAL ACCESS TUNNELS. HELP

A sigh escaped her and she slumped over the monster’s shoulder. When the reader buzz-chirped, she whipped to see who would come running. Message not sent. Please check your Web connection. It took every ounce of resolution in trembling rage not to fling it when a chain of buzz-chirps signaled each subsequent failed recipient of the mass-message. Message not sent. Please check your Web connection. Message not sent. Please check your Web connection. Message not sent. Please check your Web connection. Message not sent. Please– Barely, she put the reader back in her bib pocket.

“No service. Fuck. Of course there’s no service this deep down.”

She tried to get her right foot free again and groaned furiously, pummeling his back with her balled fists.

“Fuck…!” Her trailed whine escalated into a broken sob. “This fucking sucks–!”

Ame laid back down on top of him and shut her eyes in denial. She couldn’t feel her foot anymore. Prickling replaced sensation.

“You still even in there…?” she uttered.

A slow, thick, wet tongue-click was his only reply, too tired and heavy to move.

“At least y'stopped growin’.”

She frowned, and did her best to stay still. Her mind ran through hundreds of different thoughts in the coming hours before falling as still as her body and the mound of flesh beneath it. Had he stopped growing on his own, or had whatever that had transformed him run its course? If he had control over this rotten-egg corpse-bloating, what had made him stop? Plausibility of any number of reasons fell flat. Her thoughts arrived to how she’d burst the lump that had clustered up on his right shoulder, and she eyed the crispy dark orange stain she’d made of the dingy green hoodie’s right shoulder. Abruptly she jolted fully lucid and blindly reached into her left pocket to fish around, producing a knife. Sweating, she eyed the left shoulder.

“If y’still in there… I’m sorry.”

And she punctured the mounds of distended flesh in rapid succession, to loose the fluid that had built up, all the while trying her best not to think whether the stuff coming out might hurt her. Her conscious gratefulness latched onto her fully clothed legs clad in weatherproofed hybrid denim; but soon, the fizzing sound became a furious and prolonged hiss, and she frenetically pushed off with her left foot. Suddenly she spilled backwards, and she half-expected to look down to find no foot.

Ame was half-right, finding no boot.

Whatever had been in those bloated masses had deteriorated the vinyl of her boot, loosening it so her force had cracked it open. It took her a few minutes hyperventilating to process she had gotten free, but the moment it clicked, she scrambled for her flashlight. Mechanically, she beat it against her palm a few times before turning it off and sticking it back in her thigh pocket. Standing, she stared down at Galen a moment, knife still in hand.

Pained, slowly, that bloated, disfigured limb reached out to her, but slumped down against the concrete when he couldn’t hold it up any longer. She jumped, snarling in horrified revulsion he was still going. Her foot had gone from a prickling numbness to a cross-wired mess of burning ice.

“No!” Defiance did little to assuage her, and she flourished the knife at him. “Somehow I don’t think you’re somethin’ anymore that could get stabbed t’death. Won’t stop me from tryin’ if y’so much as think about followin’ me.”

Slowly at first, she backed away, eyes locked on him, then more quickly. Once she was around the corner of that stretch of tunnel, all Galen could hear was the uneven one-soled gait of someone running with one shoe.

Please…