#Landscaper Near Me The Woodlands | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

fr3sh-tragedies · 10 months ago

Text

Hurt What's Mine

[Shadow of the Tomb Raider] Lara Croft x Female Reader

Word Count: 8.05k

Proofread: No

Content Warnings: Language, mentions of blood, heavy descriptions of gore and death, hospitalization, brief mention of medication

Categories:

Angst Fluff Mix

One-Shot Preference Headcanon

[A/N]: Thank you for 170+ followers! I've got a couple of people who have requested things through my inbox, and I'm hoping I'll be able to answer them soon! I will be open to requests soon, but there are a few more characters I want to write for ahead of time so it's easier to get an idea of what fandoms I'm open to. If you sent in a request, thank you! Once I've posted for a bit longer, I'll upload the masterlist I've made as well as the rules for requesting, then I'll answer requests!

[A/N] #2: If you do have a request that you'd like me to write in the future, please let me know! I'll get to it eventually, things are just hectic right now. Thank you for reading!

Enjoy!

Amongst the loud snapping of twigs combined with the rustling of the leaves overhead, softened chatter could be heard throughout the entrance to the forest. The sky, which had been painted warm shades of red and orange mere moments before, had grown murky with hues of purple and black. Small stars illuminated the sky as it grew darker, bright pools of light poking through the inky atmosphere to aid the moon in flooding the landscape with a soft glow. In accompaniment with the darkness seemingly swallowing up the woodland area that Lara and [Y/N] wandered into, a harsh breeze rushed through the air.

As the two walked deeper into the forest, Lara made sure to reach over when coming across drywood and break it free from the ground, tucking it under her arm. After seeing her do this, [Y/N] mirrored her actions and began to gather wood as well. The two had decided they’d head into the nearby forest to gather kindling for the fire they planned to build back at camp. There, Jonah was waiting, sorting through his supply of herbs and a small flask of water he’d said he would use to stir up a broth of sorts that would help all three stay warm for the night. The only problem being there was no fuel for a fire nearby, so both women volunteered to scavenge for some together.

It had taken quite a while to make it to the woodland area safely, but the conversation they had struck up with each other managed to keep the journey bearable. Thankfully, Lara had remembered to snatch her makeshift machete before heading out. Using the sharpest part of the rusted blade, she sliced through the brush that obstructed their path, allowing them to meander forward with a partial trail behind them.

Soon enough, neither of them were able to carry more of the drywood they came across. With a huff, Lara spun on her heel and jutted her chin toward the path she had made. “We should head back. We can always come back later if we need to gather more.” [Y/N] nodded, trailing behind the brunette as she led the way. A few minutes passed in silence, both women focused on not tripping over the loose roots or pebbles that littered the dampened blades of grass. Ultimately, as they neared the halfway point of the path, [Y/N] decided to break the silence.

“God, I’m glad we haven’t had any run-ins with Trinity. Those guys are a huge pain in the ass,” she complained. At her words, the corners of Lara’s lips perked up into an amused smirk. “Yeah, they are. We still need to keep our guard up, though. There weren’t any traces of them following us here, but that’s been the case the last couple of times as well. They’ve got the wrong motives, but they’re clever, and they know how to handle stealth operations.”

A grimace painted [Y/N]’s features as she nodded in response. “Yeah, I guess that’s true.” Silence once again fell upon them, allowing their senses to return to the sound of their own footsteps beneath them as they staggered ahead. While they recalled the way they came from, they struck up another conversation with one another, trying to keep the mood light in the eeriness that made itself known between the towering trees. It seemed to work–both felt more at ease as they chatted away. Merely a moment seemed to pass, however, before a loud clamp echoed throughout the area, followed by a ticking and whirring noise nearby.

Before either had time to react and understand what had happened, Lara flew backward with a holler and collapsed onto the ground. She was yanked forward once she made contact with the soil. The whirring noise returned, louder this time, and she was soon dangling high in the air by her foot. She groaned, her ears ringing and vision blurry from the way her head had bashed against the floor. Her eyes were pinched tightly shut, though her hand instinctively reached for her belt to find her gun.

Squinting and blinking her eyes rapidly, Lara managed to clear her view. All at once, she could make out what had happened. Just a few feet away, [Y/N]’s leg had been caught in a similar trap, but she wasn’t conscious enough to try and escape. Lara’s arm whipped forward to take aim, watching with a newfound sense of terror as a horde of shielded soldiers, clad in black, swarmed forward to the two. Even as she struggled to steady the hand that she gripped the gun harshly with, Lara began to fire warning shots, striking several of the soldiers and watching them plummet to the ground in waves.

A few that hadn’t been shot dashed toward [Y/N] and took hold of her limp arms. They hollered at each other to get her down, using her as some sort of human shield to avoid being killed as well. Upon seeing them grab the unconscious girl, the blood pumping from adrenaline underneath Lara’s skin lit aflame with fury and a desire to defend. Her aim became far more accurate, more fatalities becoming visible as she fired away at them, a wolf’s snarl lacing her words as she bellowed at them to leave her alone.

She knew she just needed to get enough of them down so she could break free from the pulley that tightened the rope around her ankle to a painful degree. If she could do that, she could protect [Y/N] and help her flee. A false spark of hope flushed through her veins as she noticed she had cleared most of the squad, the lie of it evident as her clip ran empty and more men emerged from the distance. She cursed at herself, her hands unsteadily flying back up to her belt to find another magazine and reload. As she struggled with fiddling her pack open to search, she failed to register the sound of thundering footsteps nearing her from behind.

Finally, she pulled a clip free with a small huff of relief. She let her empty mag drop to the ground, flicked upward with the new one to reload, then cocked the hammer back before taking aim. A single bullet fired from the barrel, and everything went black.

Everything seemed to come back at once–every sense flowing forward and overwhelming Lara’s mind. A muffled groan slipped past her lips as she managed to lift her head. Entirely unaware of her bearings, her eyes flitted around in confusion, unable to see with her eyes wide open. She jerked her arms forward, hoping to grab hold of whatever fabric covered her face, only to feel cold steel dig harshly into the skin on her wrists. She hissed in pain, wriggling for a moment as she tried to understand what had happened.

Her focus returned to what she could feel. She had been chained to something, though it was hard to make out exactly what it was. Against her back, she could feel jagged wood scratching at her scarred skin each time she moved. Her arms encircled whatever it was she was pinned up on. Piecing things together, she figured she had been cuffed to a wooden beam somewhere. That didn’t explain where she was, though. Aside from the village she and the others had passed through once they arrived, there were no structures of any kind as far as she could tell. Had one of the villagers turned and taken her hostage?

She could feel the frigid grated steel beneath her, which confirmed she had to be somewhere else. The ground in the homes of the village had been purely dirt and tattered cloth.

Then where the hell was she?

What had happened before she blacked out?

“Oh, look who’s up from her nap,” a booming voice called out, pulling Lara from her thoughts. Her head shot up, a quick yelp of pain greeting her as her head throbbed from the sudden motion. “Who the hell are you? Where am I? Where’s [Y/N]?” She couldn’t recall what she had been through beforehand, though some part of her told her she needed to defend herself regardless. A deep chuckle rumbled nearby before the owner of the previous voice stepped closer. Lara braced herself for a hit, fighting back a flinch when gloved fingers gripped the top of what had been obstructing her view and tugged upward.

She squinted with a hiss as the overhead lights flashed their way into her eyes, effectively blinding her for a moment. As her vision cleared and adjusted, she jerked her head to the side to face whoever had granted her the ability to see again. A moment hardly passed before her face contorted with anger: her brows furrowed tightly together, practically knitting themselves as one, her jaw clenching as her teeth ground painfully against each other.

“Who the fuck are you?” She snapped. Quickly, her outrage completely replaced the feeling of distress, only worsening when her gaze flickered down to see Trinity’s emblem stitched into the man’s tactical vest. He laughed, tossing the woven bag that had been tied around her head to the side. “You don’t need to know who I am, but I certainly know who you are.” He grinned, then reached behind Lara to pick something up from behind the pillar. Briefly after, he leaned back again, dangling her tactical belt tauntingly in front of her, still fully equipped with all of her weapons.

Her eyes widened a fraction at the sight, instinctively flying down to find and confirm that she had indeed been stripped of her only means of defense in this position. Immediately, she knew she needed to free herself. With the methods she had been taught after tussling with offenders before, she knew she could easily wrestle this man to the ground and overpower him. With her arms restrained, however, she could only fight back at an infuriatingly close range.

He seemed to notice the stress that had returned to Lara’s mind, letting out another cackle at her misfortune. He stood, twisting his torso far enough to hurl the belt over the railing. As he made his way over to squat in front of her again, she took this opportunity to look around. She had been right: she was chained to a wooden support beam, and she was seated against steel. Through the holes in the grated plates, she could see she was far up off the ground, at least three or four stories high.

Looking up, she could see layers of other platforms above, towering to an ungodly height. Dropping her gaze back down, the platform she was on curved around a circular building just behind her, and ahead of her, a long metal bridge stretched out to connect to an identical structure. As her eyes focused in on a figure across the platform, her blood ran cold, wishing she hadn’t recognized what was happening.

Everything that had happened before she ended up here came flooding back. The forest, the traps, the soldiers, everything. Now separated, [Y/N] was similarly cuffed to a pillar. Her binds seemed tighter, red lines already formed on her wrists as though she had been struggling against them for a while. For the first time since making it to the town, Lara felt genuine fear. Had they already hurt [Y/N]? Had they forced her to give away where Jonah was?

“[Y/N]!”

“Ah, so you noticed,” the man voiced, bringing her attention back to him. Shakily, she lifted her head, She screamed at herself, willing her voice into intimidation. “Let her go. She has nothing to do with this.” Internally, she cursed at the way her voice wavered and cracked.

The man grinned devilishly, shaking his head. “You don’t get it, do you? The moment you brought her here, you forced her to be a part of this. Like it or not, she has everything to do with this.” He leaned forward, blocking her view of [Y/N] and forcing her to look him in the eye. “It’s your fault.” Bringing his hand to his chin, he glanced up and mockingly pretended to think. “I suppose the saying, “like father like daughter,” is true after all. Wouldn’t you say so?”

At the mere mention of her father, a concoction of emotions bubbled beneath the surface of Lara’s skin. Even so, she forced her expression to remain stern. “Don’t you fucking talk about him.” Once again, she was met with a laugh.

A soldier that had been stationed nearby stepped closer to the two, concern laced in his tone. “Sir, shouldn’t we be careful? She’s taken out half of our men already, and most of it was entirely on her own.” The man in front of Lara rolled his eyes and stood, giving a small shrug. “Relax, I’m just having a bit of fun. There’s nothing she can do like this,” he gestured toward her. “With respect,” the soldier started, “she’s gotten out of tougher situations. Maybe we should–”

In an instant, the man, who Lara assumed was the captain at this point, whipped his gun from its holster on his hip and stood. He flicked his arm upward and pointed the barrel directly against the soldier’s forehead, prompting him to freeze. “I’ll fucking take care of it, you got it? All I’m gonna do is get her to tell me a few things, then we’ll blow both of their brains out, then be on our way. Stop me like that again, and the first round will go through your thick skull. Understand?”

Quickly, the soldier nodded and stepped back to his station. “Yes, sir.”

The captain then tucked his gun away. He turned and made a motion with his head to the group across the bridge. Lara glanced behind him to see what was happening, only to panic further as they crouched beside [Y/N], who flinched away at their touch. “Don’t touch her!” She screamed, thrashing violently against her restraints.

“Oh, don’t worry,” the captain teased, crouching down in front of her again to look her in the eye. “As long as you answer some questions, we won’t hurt her anymore.” Anymore. That word bounced through Lara’s head as she barely managed to notice that [Y/N]’s skin was littered with bruises and cuts. She swallowed hard, glaring at him. “What do you want? What questions?” He again acted as though he was deep in thought. “Well, for starters, you could tell me where the artifact you're looking for is.”

She scoffed. “So what? You can use it to wipe out humanity? Like you tried to do with the Divine Source?” The captain forced a smile. His hand lifted from his side and made a motion toward the group behind him. Lara watched, horrified, as one soldier used all his strength to kick [Y/N] in the stomach, another grabbing a fistful of her hair and slamming her head back against the pillar. She cried out in pain, desperately trying to free herself.

“Like I said, tell me what I want to know, and she won’t get hurt.”

Lara practically growled at him when she spoke. She ordered him to call the group back, threatening to make his death hell if he didn’t comply. “What do you think you can do? Can’t exactly kill me while you’re stuck here.” She scowled, her fingertips tapping at the chains in search of the padlock. Her arm shimmied a bit, allowing one of her hairpins to slip from the cuff of her sleeve and into her hand that she kept tucked away for situations exactly like this.

As she fiddled with trying to find the padlock, the captain continued to hound her with questions.

“Where’s your camp? I know you brought someone else here too.” She shuddered at the thought of Jonah being dragged into this as well. “I don’t know. I don’t even know where the hell I am, and you expect me to remember how to get back?” Another motion was made, prompting another harsh punishment to be given to [Y/N]. Lara shouted her name, begging her to hold on and promising she’ll get the two of them out.

The captain scoffed and crossed his arms. “Are you really not grasping what I’ve said? Answers for me means less pain for her.” Panicked, Lara thrashed again, her hands trembling as they continued their search. “I’m trying! But you aren’t giving me questions I can answer!” It was hard to mask her relief when her fingers finally found the padlock, though she instead focused on wriggling the bobby pin into the lock. “Well,” the captain huffed, standing again and slipping his gun from his belt. “I think I know something that might trigger your memory.”

At that, he turned and began walking toward [Y/N], wordlessly ordering the group of soldiers to back away. “No, don’t hurt her!” Lara was practically screaming at her hands to still, and with another brief moment, she finally managed to pick the lock, wrestling her arms free from the chains and stumbling as she stood. Without an ounce of hesitation, she lunged forward toward the captain, grabbing hold of him and trying to keep him away. He hollered in surprise, reaching back to claw at her and get a grasp. “Get off of me, you bitch!”

The team of soldiers that had been abusing [Y/N] only a mere moment before were now hurtling toward her. With a bit of a struggle, three of the soldiers managed to pry her off of him, throwing her back before forcefully pinning her against the pillar yet again. She fought against them, screaming for them to let her go. The captain ahead grumbled and stared her down for a moment, though he was quick to turn and walk toward [Y/N] again.

As Lara thrashed against the soldiers holding her down, the head of the team reached up toward a sheath against his hip, his gun having been smacked out of his hand and over the ledge from Lara’s outburst. Something felt as though it were burning in her mind, growing hotter and hotter as the captain closed the space between him and [Y/N]. She couldn’t let Trinity take another person she loved away from her. She wouldn’t allow it.

Hardly managing to remember her training, she turned and lunged her torso forward, using all of the momentum to headbut the soldier grasping her right arm in the face. He howled in pain, letting her go and falling backward. She then turned to the man holding her left shoulder. In the blink of an eye, she whipped her arm in a circular motion, gripping his wrist and forcing his arm to twist until he let go. Just as quickly, she shuffled forward and kicked the third soldier square in the chest, effectively knocking the wind out of his lungs.

Before she could stand, two more men sprinted forward and blocked her path, one of them managing to land a few rough kicks to her face and head. She hooked her arm beneath the back of his leg, jolting up to stand and flipping him backward. The second soldier struggled to free his rifle from the band on his back. By the time he managed to try and aim at her, her forearm flew sideways and struck his wrist, the impact catching him off guard and causing him to drop his weapon. Lara then leapt forward and gripped the straps of his tactical vest. She spun around to gain more force before driving him around again and launching him over the railing, not bothering to watch as he plummeted toward the ground countless meters below.

She turned, determined to get to the captain, but froze in place. Still so far away, he had freed [Y/N] of restraints, knowing she wouldn’t have been able to fight back. He pinned her against the platform, his knees planting themselves on either side of her hips as he drove his knife down into her stomach. Lara watched as [Y/N] tried to gasp for air, only to choke and let out a silent scream.

She felt everything grow heavy, ready to give into the temptation to drop to the ground. An inhumane level of fury coursed through her veins, and soon she found herself running forward at full speed, no longer in control of her body.

The neared the captain in only a few seconds, leaping from the ground and thrusting her arms forward. She tackled him off of [Y/N]’s writhing body and ripped the blade from his hand, dropping it and instead using her fists to beat any part of him she could see. Hit after hit, punch after punch, a new bruise formed on his skin, thinner sections splitting open into gashes. His blood seemed to all pool together beneath his head.

Lara let out a yell with each strike made against his skill. She lost count of the amount of times her knuckles made contact with the swollen form beneath her, not even noticing that her knuckles had begun to tear open and bleed from the sheer force alone. As his arms and legs fell limp against his sides, Lara’s punches came to a stop. Her bloodied hand reached over and grasped the handle of the knife, knuckles white from the tightness as she lifted the blade above her head.

Instantly, she plunged the knife down, listening with a sick joy as the thin metal ripped through layers of skin and organ, cracking through parts of his ribs. Mirroring what [Y/N] had done, the captain hopelessly tried to gasp for breath, instead wheezing and sputtering while his hands weakly scratched at her arms. Only for a moment, she kept the knife there. Before she could watch the life leave his eyes, she drew the blade out and immediately thrusted it down into his jugular with an equal force.

Her hands let go of the handle and dropped to land at her sides. She stared down, gleefully studying the way the captain clutched at his throat, a thick puddle of blood erupting from his mouth and trickling down his cheeks and jaw, disappearing into his hairline and accumulating with the crimson red under his trembling form. Glaring down at him with dull eyes, she lazily tugged the rifle from his back, forcing herself to stand and turn around.

She hadn’t heard the group of soldiers thundering up the stairs, but she had apparently sensed it. Effortlessly, she lifted the rifle and took aim, crouching down and firing away as the men made their way up one by one. By the time the team died out, she heard the gun click. Her gaze bored down at the rifle, realizing she had burned through the ammo. With a grunt of disapproval, she discarded the gun, then ripped another one away from a nearby lifeless body. She used that rifle to finish off the squad, blankly staring ahead after lowering the gun.

As her mind clouded over, taking in the scene before her, she tossed the gun to the side, straining to hear as it clattered against the steel platform. A bloodbath. That was the only way she could possibly describe it. Piles of bodies across such a small space, silver metal now stained red from blood and black from gunpowder. Lifeless eyes of the fallen seemed to watch her as she lifted her hands, taking in the way blood coated her skin. She wasn’t sure how much of it was hers and how much of it was the captain’s. She paid it no mind, instead rotating her hands to examine her knuckles. She had most definitely broken a few, if not all, of them,

Had she actually done all of this?

Nothing felt real.

The sudden sound of harsh coughing broke her out of her trance, forcing her attention toward the source. She scrambled over to [Y/N]’s side, holding her head up as she processed just how badly she had been hurt. Adding onto the gaping wound in her torso, countless bruises and cuts peppered every exposed inch of skin. The back of her head had been dripping blood from being hammered into the wooden beam. Lara gasped and frantically helped her prop her head up to prevent choking on her blood, her eyes scanning the surrounding area for something to help stop the bleeding. She grimaced when [Y/N] whimpered from the way she stretched over to grab a torn uniform.

Thinking on her feet, she slid to the wall of the base and leaned the wounded girl against it, apologizing tearfully each time she yelped in pain. After tearing the uniform into a thinner piece, she began stuffing part of the wound, earning more cries. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” she whispered, finally using the rest of the cloth to ball it up. “This is going to hurt, but I need you to trust me.”

Before [Y/N] even opened her eyes, Lara forced her hand downward, applying an immense amount of both pressure and pain to the wound. At this, [Y/N] screamed in agony, her eyes beginning to roll back as her breaths quickened. Lara cupped her jaw and shifted forward. “[Y/N]? No, [Y/N], I need you to stay with me, okay? Keep your eyes open! Everything’s going to be okay, I promise. Stay with me,” she said, struggling to keep her voice steady.

“[Y/N], please, I can’t lose you. Not like this. Keep your eyes open–that’s all I need you to do!” Her words fell upon deaf ears, no matter how desperate they became. Before Lara could beg for her to listen again, [Y/N]’s head drooped down, her body now completely limp.

“[Y/N]?” Lara whimpered, shaking the unconscious girl’s head as a silent plea. When no response came from the motion, the Croft felt her tears beginning to spill, only being able to whisper “no” repeatedly. Her hand, the one that had been holding up the woman’s head, slid down to check for a pulse. She gasped softly when she found it, though realized she had to act quickly from how weak it was. “Shit,” she blurted, once again examining her surroundings. That bastard had thrown her radio over the railing with her weapons. There was no way she could contact Jonah without alerting any other potential Trinity bases of where they were. One look down at [Y/N], however, forced her to take that risk.

She stood and quickly rushed over to the nearby bodies, her calloused, bloodied hands desperately searching their equipment for a radio of sorts. She cursed with each failed search, though lit up only a fraction once she found one. Quickly, she ran to sit by [Y/N]’s side again, holding her up and pulling her close, keeping an eye on her as she sent out a message.

“Jonah? Jonah, are you there? Can you hear me? I need your help: [Y/N]’s bleeding out!”

She released the button, only earning static in response. Her eyes shot back to the woman beside her, her only shimmer of hope dimming immediately. Her finger clicked down again, lifting it closer to speak into it once more.

“Jonah, I need you here! Jonah, please, can you hear me?”

A choked sob erupted unwillingly from her throat. She felt like curling into herself and breaking right there. Now hunched over, she clutched the radio tightly against her chest, grasping a handful of her hair as she tried to come up with another plan. All she could bring herself to do for a moment was weep, terrified of losing the woman propped up by her side.

Her mind cleared for a brief second, and although she had no idea where they were, she knew they couldn’t stay there. More reinforcements were bound to show up sooner or later, and she was in no state to fight them all. She stood, peering out at the landscape in hopes of finding a landmark she had passed before. The lids of her eyes threatened to shut, heavy with fatigue from the loss of adrenaline and the salty tears that had fallen.

She staggered closer to the rail, gripping onto it tightly as a way to ground herself as she searched further. Her heart felt like it was going to sink down into the pit of her stomach upon spotting a village in the distance. She turned to [Y/N], unsure if either of them could even make it that far. There was a chance it wasn’t the village she had been in either, on top of the fact there could be more traps hidden in the forest.

That only stopped her briefly. She knew they needed to leave, and she knew it was better to head out with the chance of finding Jonah than staying there to die.

Willing every ounce of strength she had left, she plucked the rifle she had thrown to the side back up, slinging it over her shoulder before wobbling back to [Y/N]. She huffed, sucking in a deep breath to ready herself, then bent down to pick her up, one arm tucking itself underneath her knees, and the other wrapping around her torso.

She turned, stumbled forward toward the stairs, and wrestled with the urge to look down at the unconscious form in her arms.

Each step down felt like a mile, Lara’s calves straining and aching, feeling as though they would give in and snap like twigs. By the time she managed to make it to the ground, it took everything in her not to collapse. She just kept telling herself they’ll be there soon. That was all she could do to keep moving forward. If she didn’t make it, not only would [Y/N] die, but she would as well. The marks from the beating she had taken had begun to finally sink in, adding to the difficulty.

She swayed every few steps. Her body threatened to fall over anytime she leaned too far.

She had no way of knowing she was going in the right direction, only able to rely on her instinct. There was no path, no landmark, no sign of nearing the village, which is why it was such a surprise when she could hear hollering up ahead. She strained her ears, hardly managing to make out that the unidentified voice was calling her name.

“Jonah?” She whispered hoarsely.

“Lara! [Y/N]! Are you two out there?”

“Jonah,” she weeped, unable to raise her voice any further.

Her feet continued to stumble toward the sound of his voice. The closer she got, the stronger the small spark of adrenaline she somehow still had grew. Finally, realizing he was only a few feet away, Lara managed to pick up her pace, lightly jogging forward. “Jonah, we’re here,” she cried out weakly. She moved ahead, breaking through the entrance of the forest to reveal the small patch of land they had originally tried to set up camp at. There, Jonah turned around and instantly ran over.

“Lara, you’re alright! I heard gunfire, but I didn’t know where you were, and–”

“Jonah, we need to get back to the plane right now. [Y/N]’s losing too much blood, and I don’t know how much longer she’s going to last,” although her tone was weak, there was no doubt she was terrified. Jonah finally looked down to the woman in Lara’s arms, his body tensing at the sight of all she had been through.

“Shit, what did–okay, but what about what you came here for? We can’t come back! Trinity’s going to–” Jonah knew that even mentioning the artifact in that moment was a mistake, but his mind was racing, preventing him from thinking logically.

“Forget the artifact, Jonah!” Lara snapped, her raspy voice finally reaching the volume she’d wanted to have when calling for him. “I don’t give a shit about that right now! I just want [Y/N] to survive! I’m the reason she’s in this state to begin with–I don’t want to be the reason she dies!”

At her sudden tone, Jonah could only nod and motion for Lara to hand [Y/N] to him to carry her there. Reluctantly, Lara did so, only after realizing she wouldn’t be able to make it to the plane in time if she were the one taking her. Without a moment to lose, Jonah began rushing up the path toward where they had landed, shouting behind him for the Croft to follow.

The ringing returned the closer they got, her vision blurring and growing dark. Everything was spinning, and she had to force herself to keep track of Jonah. By the time they had all made it into the plane, Lara’s body finally gave out.

“You know, I don’t think I had ever scared my father that badly before,” Lara murmured, a gentle chuckle escaping as she smiled fondly at the memory. With a sigh, she felt the pad of her thumb caress the tattered skin on the back of [Y/N]’s hands. For just a single moment, the ticking of the clock hanging above the door synced up with the beeping of the monitor beside the bed. Just as quickly, they fell out of rhythm again, and Lara waited for them to repeat it. Every few minutes, for the past several weeks, both would beat together for just a brief second, only to fall apart again.

It was the only thing she could look forward to anymore. It kept her distracted so she didn’t have to process everything just yet–so she didn’t have to look up at the woman deep in a coma in the bed she sat by. Jonah would come in here and there, reminding her to eat something small or to bring her a spare blanket for the night. Nurses would step inside to take vitals and update Lara on what was happening. And even though [Y/N] was there, whenever everyone else would leave, Lara still felt alone.

She could talk to her, but it was more like talking at her. She had no idea if the woman could hear anything she said, nor did she know when she was going to wake up. It had been seven weeks since they made it back from the expedition. Lara’s injuries were treated fairly easily, but [Y/N] had fallen into a medical coma from blood loss and excessive blunt force trauma. Her chances of survival in the beginning were slim, but things started to steadily improve as the days passed by.

Those days, however, felt like years to Lara. The woman she could once talk to and joke around with, the woman she could once hold and be held by, the woman she could once gaze into the eyes of, now lay before her, unmoving and silent. She was alive, but to Lara she seemed dead. She had been so lively before, and now she couldn’t even open her eyes.

To fill the never-ending silence that weighed heavy upon her shoulders, Lara would talk aloud, pretending as though she was sharing her thoughts with [Y/N] like she had done before everything went awry. Recently, after running out of small-talk she had murmured like it was scripted, she had resorted to retelling memories she had of her father back as a child. Somehow, even as [Y/N] stayed unconscious, Lara felt comfortable sharing her favorite times spent with her late father. Anyone else would’ve been waved off and told she wasn’t comfortable, but [Y/N] had always been the one person she could come to to speak of him freely.

Even seemingly dead, [Y/N] was still the only one she trusted. It was funny, in a way.

She huffed out a sigh, lifting the woman’s hand to her lips and pressing a featherlike kiss to her knuckles. Once her lips left the clammy skin, she brought her head down to lean it against the back of her hand. Her eyes closed, brows furrowed as she bit back a sob.

“I wish I had never brought you with me. If I hadn’t, you would still be comfortable at home, watching TV and sleeping in. You wouldn’t be here. You wouldn’t… You wouldn’t be hurt, or strapped to this machine, or fighting for your life. You wouldn’t be in a coma.” She sniffled, squeezing the hand still against her forehead. “This is all my fault. I’m so sorry, [Y/N]. I would take it all back if I could.”

Some part of her waited, half-expecting a response. She whimpered, clearing her throat to prevent herself from bursting into tears again. With a hard swallow, she lifted her head, gaze trailing up to [Y/N]’s face. She smiled. “I have no idea how, but you still look so beautiful. Even when you’re out like this.”

Her free hand lifted far enough to caress the girl’s cheek, then pinch the bridge of her own nose, internally groaning at how heavy her eyes felt. Once her hand planted itself back on her thigh, she glanced over at the heart monitor, watching each movement on the screen intently for a moment, allowing herself to gather her thoughts. Finally, she faced [Y/N] again. Her hand squeezed her leg, unsure of what to say.

“I love you. So, so much. I should’ve said it more before… all of this, but I’m saying it now. I do love you, [Y/N], more than anything in this world.”

She huffed out a pained laugh.

“I don’t know why I’m so mad at you. None of this is your fault. I’m the one who dragged you into the expedition, and I’m the one who ended up getting you captured. I wish I hadn’t begged you to come with me. You deserve to be at home, not in this bed. I should’ve protected you, and I didn’t, and for that, I’m so sorry. You deserve someone better: someone who wouldn’t have gotten you into this mess.

“The worst part is: I don’t even know if you can hear me. I’m not sure if you’ve heard anything I’ve said this entire time. I’m not sure why knowing that you might not hear me hurts so badly, but it does.” Tears once again pricked the corners of her eyes. “God, I wish I could hear your voice again. I miss you so much. I know you’re right in front of me, and I know you’re still breathing and alive, but I’ve never felt so alone. It doesn’t feel like you’re really here. It feels like you’re not you.”

The tears stinging her eyes now blurred her vision and poured down in thick masses. Her free arm raised, allowing her to use the sleeve of her jacket to wipe them away. Once they dried, she looked up at her again, hands trembling harshly.

“Please wake up. I’m begging you.”

Grumbling was all Lara could do in her unconscious state. Any small sound she could hear had her grumbling louder: pages flipping, pens scribbling, pills rattling, doors opening, monitors beeping. Everything that she could hear seemed to be working against her, screaming at her to wake back up. It was late at night when she finally let herself drop her head onto the edge of the hospital bed to rest. Hand still clutching onto [Y/N]’s, she managed to drift off for the first time in days.

The sounds grew incessant, however, stirring her partially awake. Each little noise irritated her further, and she had to fight the urge to muffle the scream bubbling up in her throat with the sheets cushioning her head. To add onto her growing frustration, something squeezed softly at her hand, forcing her back to her senses.

“For fuck’s sake,” she mumbled, lifted her head, then looked down at her hand. Her brows pinched tightly together, she sat there, processing what she had just felt. Again, her hand was squeezed.

Her brain, although severely sleep deprived, finally managed to register what had happened. Immediately, she looked up from her hand, her eyes landing on [Y/N], who finally opened her eyes for the first time in months. She gazed back at Lara the way the brunette had been craving the entire time. Upon seeing that she was now awake, tears instantly trickled out from Lara’s eyes, a shaky sob accompanying them.

“[Y/N]?” She whispered, unsure if she was actually awake.

“Hey, Lara,” came her raspy reply, a tired grin gracing her cracked lips.

Right away, Lara sprung up from her seat by the bed and leaned forward, capturing [Y/N] in a tight embrace. “Oh my god, I don’t–” She sniffled. Her leg lifted up, allowing her to sit beside the woman now practically cradling her in return. “You’re awake. You’re finally awake. I don’t believe it.”

She leaned back from the hug, cupping [Y/N]’s face in her hands and studying every little feature she could see. Sob after sob wracked through her body as she pressed a kiss to the wounded woman’s lips, only shifting back to pepper the rest of her face in similar kisses. “I thought I lost you,” she whispered after calming down enough to speak. Her voice trembled and broke more with each passing word, rambling about what she had feared.

“God, I love you so much.”

Again, she captured [Y/N]’s lips in her own, pure relief washing through her senses when she felt her kissing back. Weakly, the bandaged girl chuckled. “I love you too,” she rasped out.

Lara instantly leaned back into the embrace, clutching desperately at the hospital gown she rested against. She swayed side to side, shivering as [Y/N] soothingly rubbed up and down her back. She couldn’t begin to explain how she felt at that moment. All she could say was she was so relieved to know that the woman she held closest to her heart was alive and breathing.

“Can I ask you something?” A soft voice whispered. She leaned away again to look her in the eye. “Of course. Anything at all.”

“What happened after I was stabbed?”

Lara froze, now growing uncertain. “You don’t remember?” She sucked in a shaky breath when her only response was a shake of the head. Her gaze dropped down, unsure of where to start. She scratched the back of her neck anxiously, took another deep breath in an attempt to steel her nerves, then cleared her throat. “Well, I’m not really…”

She turned to glance behind her, ensuring no one else was in the room before she spoke again. There was no shame in what she had done–not for her–but she’d be torn away instantly if someone overheard. [Y/N] had just woken back up, and she wasn’t going to risk losing her all over again. Although, that still might be a possibility, depending on how she took the news.

She explained herself, sparing no detail of what she had committed in her blind rage. From wrestling with the soldiers to stabbing the captain of the team in both the chest and the throat, she confessed every little atrocity that had been brought about by her hands alone. As she spoke, she averted her eyes, too afraid of being gazed at with disgust. She focused on the pattern stitched into the bedsheets bundled up atop [Y/N]’s legs.

Finally, she managed to tear her eyes away from the sheets and look back into [Y/N]’s. She swallowed, surprised to see that familiar glint of admiration in her eyes. There was no sign of repulsion or discomfort at the heinous things she had admitted to. “You’re not mad?” Was all she could ask. [Y/N] snickered and shook her head.

“Are you kidding? Those asswipes beat the shit out of me, and one tried to kill me. I don’t exactly have sympathy for them after that.” Relieved, Lara sighed and grinned. It was a breath of fresh air to see her laugh again, even though it was rather weak.

She turned to sit next to [Y/N], who she then pulled into her side. With a quick peck to the top of the head, she closed her eyes and yawned. “Tired?” “Mmhm.” “Yeah, same.” Lara laughed, looking down at her in confusion. “You were in a coma for nearly three months. Why are you tired?” [Y/N] smirked and rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t willingly unconscious. Plus, my body just sucks,” she murmured, earning another chuckle.

“Well, I love your body,” Lara mumbled, tugging her closer. “Every bit of it.”

Waiting a moment, [Y/N] leaned against the brunette fully, her head dropping onto her shoulder as she closed her eyes. She grinned, listening to Lara yawn again before she shivered. “Move your legs for a second,” she whispered to the already half-asleep woman. “Hm?” “Move your legs.” “What? Why?” “So I can cover you up with the blankets.”

Lara seemed to take a moment to understand what she had said. Finally, though, she lifted her legs with a groan, letting [Y/N] slip the covers out from under her and essentially tuck her in beside her. Both sighed in relief: Lara from the warmth of the sheets and [Y/N] pressed against her, and [Y/N] from the feeling of Lara holding her close.

Lights had been turned off throughout the ward for a while, which both women were silently grateful for. As they shuffled to lie down more comfortably beneath the covers, everything seemed to settle down for the first time in months. Lara’s body finally relaxed, the lack of sleep from the past several weeks catching up to her at a rapid speed. She hummed softly as she turned onto her side, pulling [Y/N] into her chest.

“I’m never taking you on a trip like that again,” she slurred out. “At least, not until I know Trinity won’t be there.”

[Y/N] nodded as she listened, also partially asleep. She squirmed a bit, sliding closer while trying to mind her IV. As her head settled against Lara’s chest, she yawned. A moment passed before she spoke again.

“You do know the nurses are gonna come in any minute and realize I’m awake, right?” A groan sounded from Lara, prompting a snicker from [Y/N]. “I’m gonna crawl back into the bed again the second they leave. I just want you in my arms right now.”

“Well, either way, I want you to know that I could hear you for most of the time I was out. And I also want you to know that I plan on saying “I love you” as many times as you did before I woke up. I really do love you. I mean, you were right here the second I woke up, and I don’t know if you ever…” She thought for a moment, opening her eyes and looking up at Lara. “Did you ever leave the room?” Even as she fought to stay awake, Lara scratched her cheek nervously. “Only when I used the restroom. I was afraid I wouldn’t be here when you woke up.”

[Y/N] grinned. “Well, I’m glad you were here. I was worried you wouldn’t be here at all when I woke up. I figured you’d leave and head home, or maybe go back to the village we were at.” Gently yet reassuringly, Lara squeezed her closer. “I would never do that to you. You’re everything to me.”

“And you’re everything to me.”

Another yawn managed to escape the brunette’s lips. She pressed a small kiss to the top of [Y/N]’s head and sighed, already drifting off again. “I love you, so damn much. No one’s going to hurt what’s mine, never again.”

“I’m yours, huh?”

“Of course.”

A gentle smile graced [Y/N]’s features as she shuffled closer, pressing a kiss to Lara’s collarbone as her eyes fluttered shut.

“Of course I’m yours.”

#fluff #x reader #female reader #angst #tomb raider #rise of the tomb raider #shadow of the tomb raider #lara croft #lara croft x fem!reader #lara croft x reader #lara croft x female reader

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solarpunknow · 8 months ago

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Solarpunk work day

So I've spent the last two days pulling out invasive species! Which, honestly, is very tiring. I'm really glad we have a four-day work week, but even so, I'll be glad to get home and relax. I'm working with Wren and Bobi on this site which, before the mass migrations north, was someone's second (third?) home, and there had been some attempts to incorporate native plants into the landscaping, which is awesome. Unfortunately, who ever had been taking care of this land didn't recognize that Spruge Laurel (Daphne laureola, not a spurge and not a laurel, but a stinky, poisonous daphne) was an invasive species and had actually set up irrigation for some of them.

Now, of course, it's part of the climate immigrant resettlement housing network, and the land around the house is being transformed to be better habitat and to grow food. It's steep, shady, near saltwater (on a fucking cliff in fact, why did rich people think it was such a good idea to build on these crumbling cliff sides anyway? It still has about 30 meters until it gets to the house, but still), with native soils, so it's not a great option for so-called western-style agriculture, but it will grow our native plants quite well.

Pulling out the spurge laurel, and the Himalayan blackberry, and the english ivy, and the vinca, cutting down the english holly, and digging out the italian arum is only the first step. We need to help a healthier ecosystem re-establish. Fortunately, there's already beaked hazelnut, salal, service berries, dewberries, and evergreen huckleberries that are surviving despite the carpet of invasives... and the particular pruning choices made in the past. Who thinks it's a good idea to hedge prune a hazelnut???? As we pull out the ivy and others, we'll be replanting the native woodland strawberry, riceroot, springbank clover, native oxalis, western bleeding heart and western lily of the valley, which in addition to holding the soil in place with either be food for native animals or us. Or, as is the ideal case, both. There's a lot of culturally relevant foods in that paragraph, and it brings me joy to see them becoming a bigger part of the people's diets again. If you want to learn more about them, I suggest reading up on the ethnobotany of the Salish peoples. It's really interesting!

On Thursday we'll be renting a truck and trailer, and taking all the invasive species that we've pulled out to the folks who specialize in composting invasive species. Eventually all this stinky daphne will be a really nice compost for someone's vegetable garden. Which is a welcome and encouraging thought.

That's just this year of course- going forward for quite sometime will be regular invasive species removal, along with harvesting of nuts, berries, and roots, and pruning of the berry bushes. Can't do a controlled burn so close to housing, and it wouldn't work on the English ivy anyway. So manual pulling it is.

#solarpunk fiction #solarpunk writing #be gentle I'm new

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totkdaily · 9 months ago

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Day 23: Satori, and Misko

It's pouring down when I wake in the bunker at Lookout Landing.

I collect Pumpkin from Lester and follow his instructions to head out of the east gate to find Woodland Stable.

I almost ride past Addison in the rain. Almost.

I'm looking for shrines through the scope when I see strange movement. Someone's under attack! I ride Pumpkin over the bokoblin and speak to the Gerudo who was under attack - Calisa. She's a treasure hunter. She's been dreaming about riding falling rocks back up into the sky. I wish her well. But it's a neat idea.

Yamiyo Shrine is on the way - I might as well.

Just down the hill is a cherry blossom tree surrounded by fruit. There's a Gerudo sitting under it - Konora - who's waiting for her one true love.

Konora says Satori are sometimes seen near trees like this. I remember the blossom tree on Satori Mountain, years ago. She might be right.

I offer a wildberry, and a glowing blue Satori creature appears. Glowing banners unfurl across the landscape in response.

I use the scope to see that a couple of the closer ones look like cave entrances? I wonder… I race to the crumbling Castle Town wall for a vantage point, and mark as many of the banners as I can on my map. I don't know how long they will last.

A thought strikes me - the Satori creature looked not dissimilar to the bubbulfrogs. Is it possible that the banners denote not the caves, but the frogs? I'm not sure it makes much difference at this point - I've only found a few. But it might be something to keep an eye on.

I cross back to my horse to check out a couple of the nearest spots before I move on, when I bump into Meeshy on the road. She's wearing a very mushroom-heavy outfit, and is seeking Misko's treasure - it's a day for treasure, it seems.

Misko the bandit is known to hide treasure - I've found some of theirs before. It sounds like these caves opening up has revealed some old caches. She marks two places on my map where one is known to be. The first will give me power, the second protection from lightning… She reminds me also that the Great Fairies can imbue clothing with power.

Interesting. The piece of clothing nearest me of the two is right on one of those Satori marks. I've found clothing in a cave before - perhaps that was Misko's too. Let's check.

I use Tulin's power to cross the river and find Crenel Hill Cave. Keese fly out, and I head in. Looks like an old luminous stone mine. And there's more of those flags - I wonder if they only appear in caves that hide Misko's treasure?

I spot the frog first. And the gem lands right on a rock that turns out to be a Talus. I look around desperately for Misko's flags - and spot a large luminous stone deposit on the wall. A bomb flower clears it, and I scramble up the wall to escape into the tunnel. Beyond, a piece of barbarian armor. Might be just the thing to kill a Talus.

It's not. I flee.

At midnight, I fail to ambush some bokoblins, and Tulin saves my life from the moblin with them. It would be ridiculous, when the Princess is relying on me against the Demon King himself, to fall to some bokoblins - or even a Talus. I have to keep moving.

#totkdaily #day 23 #totk #zelda #loz #legend of zelda #bit of a travel day today #but the satori are so cool #perfect aesthetic perfect vibes 10/10 no notes

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wannaeatramyeon · 2 years ago

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Samuel Seo: Melancholia

Me at 2am: I can fix him

Light Samuel SEO angst drabble

One of the first lessons Samuel Seo learnt is that life is better for those who have money, and now that he has money, one of the perks is being able to afford this view from his home.

Serene, tranquil, peaceful. Or at least that was what the seller said.

He pensively takes a drag of his cigarette and surveys the landscape from his balcony. The darkness of the woodlands, the quiet of the night, and the stillness of the lake at odds with his thoughts.

It is another crisp, cold night.

The kind of night where it hurts to inhale extra deep, and exhaling water vapour used to feel mystical; the sort of night that lends itself well to melancholia.

These evenings tend to start with a Workers problem.

Nothing hugely important, just enough to keep his brain active afterhours. Maybe it's something to do with how to boost the profits further of NewTube, or a major shareholder meeting, but it's the same mundane shit of corporate life - never anything truly interesting.

It's enough to keep him up, and keep him thinking. Even after the solutions have long been found and the problems have worked itself out.

And then the thoughts stray, everytime. Always leading to thinking about Jake and Sinu and Alexander and Jerry and Brad and Jason and even Old Face.

About Big Deal in its Golden Era.

The grimy street, the shitty food, the grotty house that he would share with the crew. How he would get woken up with the sound of Jake singing in the shower, never get any peace with Jerry playing the flute, have Alexander clinging after him, and Jason and Brad squabbling all the time.

And then that lighthouse, that fucking lighthouse.

It was a somewhat simpler time.

If he didn't want to be King, perhaps he could have liked the number 3.

But he does, so he couldn't.

His fate was decided before was born. Born to nothing, and sentenced to nothing. Everything he has, he clawed for himself.

Even though it's still bitter to think about, he's risen far beyond his birthright. So why isn't he happy at all?

Why hasn't he felt an ounce of satisfaction or contentment?

"Is it because I'm still nowhere near my potential?"

The lake does nothing to answer his qualms, just silently reflecting the moonlight and stars above.

"Why do I do this to myself. I should just let the past stay in the past."

The self doubt and hatred and inferiority finds him without fail in moments like these. Connects to him and welcomes him like an old friend.

"After so many years... Jake, Sinu, Alexander. Why can't I find anyone willing to stand by my side?

Do I have so little to offer?

Is there something wrong with me-"

Samuel chuckles to himself. Even he realises that thought is a step too far, a thread he doesn't wants to unravel.

He continues to look out over the water, and to the bright lights of Seoul.

It's impossible but he likes to imagine if he squints he can see Big Deal street. And if he imagines he's further away - lightyears away, he can still see the years when he was happy.

The cigarette by now has dwindled to nothing but ashes. He discards it and retreats back to another night alone.

#lookism #lookism headcanons #seo seongun #samuel seo #lookism fic #lookism fanfics #wannaeatramyeon

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echoesofwisdomcountup · 2 years ago

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89 Days Until Tears of the Kingdom Release. The Trailer Breakdown is here. Sorry Tumblr killed the image quality. This is Part One of Three.

Warning: This will be obscenely long. I have spent hours of my life on this and I even went around Hyrule in BOTW to double check things. I have also watched only one reaction/analysis video (Limcube) whose ideas I reference a few times but the rest is all me. Now, I know many of the oddities and differences could easily be explained by saying we time travel into the past but I’m going to approach this for the most part as if we are not time traveling because it's more fun this way. Also, the colors refer to the corresponding arrows/circles on the image above it.

First thoughts: Dang the sky is mad. Do not wear metal in this weather. Red: Malice spewing out of Death Mountain. Never not gonna be interested in that. Green: Green swirlies. I’m assuming this is something that lets you travel into the sky. Maybe lets you phase through the ground like one of the past trailers has shown us. Liquifies Link even. Orange: Weird funky rock. Meteorites?? Yeah I’m gonna point these out a lot.

Red: Malice pool right next to the green swirlies. Blue: Tiny glowing dots in the distance. Other green swirlies? If so they seem to dot the landscape like shrines in that you can see the glow far off. Unless they are more of those symbols/drawings inscribed on ground/grass that we see later.

First thoughts: Keese on steroids. My friend suggests calling them Geese. Second thoughts: Actually, they remind me of the flying enemies from Twilight Princess, Twilit Kargarok, only yellow. Hmm yellow and orange… I hope they are not electric or fire although there seems to be a lack of that in the trailer. Note: The area is clearly where the Sheikah Tower near the Korok Forest (Woodland Tower) should be, except well it’s obviously not there.

Blue: Glowing towers that are clearly not Shiekah Towers. I like the spotlights though. They look kinda prehistoric. Orange: Big glowy symbols/drawing. I really want to know what these are for. Green: It’s kinda hard to see but I think it’s a big storm tornado thing in the sky. You can see it much better later in the trailer. Reminds me of the stormhead dome in Skyward Sword.

Blue: Glowing orange thing down there. Can’t tell what it is but maybe a chest? Idk why but I have this idea you might have to jump down from higher and angle yourself to land on it. You had to do this for platforms in Skyward Sword. Red: This island being at a lower altitude from the one taking up most of the shot pleases me. I like the idea of layered sky islands. Might be a nightmare for stamina and paragliders until we can get those vehicles.

General thoughts: Brand new underground area. I’ve never seen anything like this in BOTW. Green: Blue flame spirit things. These are so interesting. I wanna know what these are. They remind me of willow the wisps or maybe the Bluepee. I hope this means more spirit things in this game. I will be quite sad if they are only an environmental design choice. Red: Malice infused Lizalfos. Again I haven’t seen elemental enemies yet. Only malice ones. Huh it’d be pretty funny if they bled black but then that’d be infringing on the Linked Universe and enemies don’t bleed in Zelda games. Pink: Why are they mining? Seriously, Ganondorf, what are you having your minions mine for? You lose something? Do the bokoblins need money or ore for something? Hmm, a bokoblin run market would be interesting. Blue: This glowy snake tree thing kinda looks like a tunnel of some sort. Maybe it’s a way to travel from the surface to this. If so I’d treat it like a slide but then I’d break my knees cause you can bet fall damage is still a thing… hmm can’t wait to see people time how long it takes for Link to fall from the highest island to the ground and go splat

Note: The Bridge of Hylia is the same. Yes, I double checked. Words: “Rise, rise my servants.” I’m fairly sure this is Ganondorf. Red: DRAGON. THREE HEADED FIRE DRAGON. Yeah so this is one of the few elemental enemies shown in the trailer. I want to fight this thing so bad. I’ve heard people say it's a Gleeok possibly (an enemy from the first Legend of Zelda game.) It reminds me of a much cooler version of the Hydra enemies from Skyward Sword. Blue: Vaguely green glow that probably denotes a green swirly thing. Pink: Malice holding up the castle looks sick. I like that you can see it glowing red from far away.

General Thoughts: It’s Hateno and it mostly looks the same but not quite Words: “Sweep over Hyrule.” Yeah, yeah Ganondorf we get you have a grudge. Green: Green swirly thing is new. It’s not quite in the same place as the shrine which is absent from this picture. Blue: Purah’s furnace is gone and so are the blue flame lanterns along the road and the ancient furnace down in the village. Purah’s lab also isn’t glowing. Actually, this makes me wonder about teleportation since no Sheikah slate. Maybe we get so many new vehicles because no instant teleportation.

General thoughts: First time we see Link. Hello buddy. Also sequels and moons as enemies am I right? Words: “Eliminate this kingdom and her allies.” This Ganondorf doesn’t want to rule over people but wipe them out which makes me think about Demise’s anger and hatred. However, Ocarina of Time Ganondorf devastated the land pretty badly so maybe all of the Ganondorfs/Ganons like extreme destruction. Also, I’m pretty sure Hyrule’s allies are all the different races, Zora, Rito, Gerudo (talk about betraying your own people Ganondorf), Shiekah. I’m not holding out hope for other nations/kingdoms getting involved. Blue: You can see islands in the background. I wonder what the long trailing thing is. Pink: The shield is the same one we’ve seen in a past trailer but of course Link had a different outfit then. Also the bow is a brand new one that’s not in BOTW. The sword handle also makes me think it's a new weapon. I like the triforce triangles on the shield and the not-really-Sheikah-eye eye. It’s got eyelashes.

General thoughts: I wonder if we get a super strong blood moon in the beginning and then the cycle returns to normal like BOTW or will we get more frequent blood moons or maybe blood moons are every night but they don’t work quite the same like moon is just red everynight and enemies are stronger but every once and a while we get a super blood moon that respawns enemies. Words: “Leave no survivors.” This part really makes me think more Demise than Ganondorf. The way the VA growled this part also made me think of Pig Ganon or Ganondorf’s beast form. Blue: It's kinda hard to make out but that’s a lot of malice. It’s really consuming the castle there.

Green: Green swirly thing is already present when the Ganon moon starts raining meteors. Does this mean that this footage isn’t from the first cutscene the trailer is alluding to but a later blood moon cycle? Do the swirly things appear as soon as the green seal breaks on Ganon? Or do they appear before and that's why Link and Zelda were exploring underneath the castle? Also this one happens to be in the same spot as the Jee Noh Shrine. Pink: Great plateau walls appear to be fixed and this is the area that should be full of snow. The spot is on the south side of Mount Hylia. Trust me I double checked and Ganon was so helpful as to spawn a blood moon while I was checking out the walls so I accidentally recreated this part of the trailer. Why did the climate on the plateau change so drastically and did Link and Zelda repair the walls?

First thoughts: WTF IS THAT THING??!! Second thoughts: Either it's some form of Ganon or it's a mutated malice guardian enemy. It reminds me of the corrupted evil egg guardian from Age of Calamity. I can’t decide if I want to fight it or run from it. Black: On the third look, it has bone claws/hands. Uhhh weird bone growths line up with the other enemies but this thing is disturbing me the longer I look at it. Time to move on.

General thoughts: So besides the dragon this is the only other elemental enemy. At least I think it's an enemy. Seems like a really massive and powerful Igneo Talus. Unless it's a piece of Death mountain area rising into the sky to become a lava island but that seems like a stretch.

General thoughts: Just wanted to note that since pieces of the castle are breaking off, the layout of the castle is probably gonna be changed from BOTW. Idk how much but it makes sense that they would want to alter the interior map. Not like the Castle wasn’t already a bit of a pain to navigate.

General thoughts: The red lighting looks extremely intimidating. 10/10 Pink: Malice pools where the Magnesis Shrine should be. Did Ganon’s malice eat the shrines? Where is it even coming from? Is it bubbling From underground or from the blood moon? Considering it’s so close to that bit of water near the shrine, it makes me wonder if certain water sources will be infected with malice and what that will do to the Zora. Green: Glowy symbols again. I really really want to know more about those. Yellow: The plateau walls here are damaged unlike the more fortified ones in the previous plateau picture. I also double checked and as far as I can tell this is the same exact damage that exists in BOTW. Maybe Link and Zelda didn’t get around to fixing it yet? Also if I acknowledge the time travel possibility then this just tells me that the blood moons happen in both time periods.

General thoughts: So Ganon is spawning these guys in. What does this mean for the regular bokoblins? Were they all cleared out by Link, Zelda, and a recovering Hyrule so Ganon just spawned in evolved versions? Also I can’t quite tell where this is (unless this is on the plateau walls, the nice fixed up ones we saw earlier considering the trees in the background). Oh well.

Blue: First off this is a Redead. This is a hundred percent a Redead and I give Nintendo 15/10 for scary design. Redeads are always meant to be terrifying. That being said, I will ancient arrow these things (that is if ancient arrows still exist.) Of course this begs the question. Which unlucky dead person got resurrected and mutated to be a Redead? Did Ganon turn dead Yiga into Redeads or is he using the dead Hylians that he killed during the Calamity? I wonder what the lore on these things is gonna be. Green: Big guy. A very large dude. Reminds me of the Moblins from Skyward Sword. Yellow: Bone growth on the red Moblin reminds me of a Pachycephalosaurus (dinosaur.)

Orange: Big storm in the sky but much better shot. As I said before it reminds me of the storm dome thing from Skyward Sword. Blue: Again I really like the way the malice looks streaming up and out from under the castle. It looks sufficiently ominous enough for my taste. Like that’s an evil castle right there. Green: I hunted for this area since there aren’t exactly many paved/cobbled roads in BOTW. The best I can tell is that this is the road between the Sacred Ground Ruins and the Mabe Village Ruins. Yes, I zoomed around Hyrule Field on my motorbike dodging guardian blasts every five seconds. Yeah, I felt pretty cool right up until I failed to dodge but then I murdered those two guardian stalkers so all was well.

General Thoughts: Looks like the area where the golfing minigame is in BOTW, that same valley that leads to the Forgotten Temple. Blue: There is a Molduga in that avalanche. What the heck is that about?

Green: What is that arm holding? I know it's likely a mechanical part of some sort but I thought it was a brush at first lmao Red: Makes me think of Purah and/or Robbie but this area is definitely brand new. Maybe one or both remodeled. Or it’s neither of them but a secret third option. Still the blue glow also makes me think of teleportation so maybe it's not completely go

General thoughts: Poor Link getting accosted by Doctor Octopus arms. Blue: That’s the Shiekah eye so this is probably a Shiekah place. Still, why does this place give me Yiga vibes? Pink: Let me just appreciate actual chainmail under that Champion's tunic. Green: Clawed ancient hand. I’m very fascinated by it so just noting that it’s not glowing here.

Blue: The strange rocks. They make me think of meteorites but also the big guardian pillars that surround the castle and the material that make up the shines. Did Ganon explode those pillars and pieces of them are now littered across Hyrule? Did they just emerge out of the ground? Or, if we’re thinking about time travel, are these the materials that the Shiehka later use to make the shrines and those pillars.? Green: Big dude has a large horn. The skulls on him remind me of the bokoblin skulls that you could collect from defeated bokoblins in Skyward Sword. Also does he have an ax on his head? Pink: I went to check all the areas I could with this type of tree (Taoba Grasslands, Oseira Plains, and the area right beneath the words Gerudo Canyon which by the way has fairies lurking around) but not a single one has greenish grass with flowers. Maybe the grass literally grew greener after Calamity was defeated for a bit. Hyrule restoring itself and all that jazz.

General thoughts: Hehe look at that Hinox with his dumb little hat. Also we are in a cave. We are totally getting underground sections. Pink: This green orb looks like the one you find on the Thundra plateau. It’s also making me think of the three orbs you have to collect in Wind Waker and place in those statues. Farore vibes. Red: What is this glow? Is it the orb or something else?

General thoughts: Yes, another one of the Hinox chase. I want you to appreciate Link’s running animation… jk. I’m just noting that I’ve never seen those plants in BOTW. You must be telling yourself OP how could you expect to know every little plant in BOTW but I’m telling you I’ve played the game for somewhere around 1000 hours and I’ve watched too many BOTW videos to count. Also there are plants growing on the cave walls in the back. (I kept an eye out while I was double checking other things for this breakdown and still couldn’t find these plants. Pls correct me if I’m wrong)

General thoughts: New paraglider, yay. I mean it doesn’t seem that different but I now know we can customize it with different fabrics. I hope there are in-game customizations as well as the amiibo ones. Also, no Ridgeland Tower. I really wonder where the heck all of them went. Red: I like that you can see all these islands in the sky from down here. Also what the heck is that cube island? Limcube said he thought it was related to the mazes but I don’t wanna think of dealing with a rubix cube maze that's vertical and horizontal. I’m gonna be lost for weeks.

General thoughts: Obviously, the symbols are driving me nuts. I wanna know what they are for so badly. I do think it's funny we can just ride a horse right through them. I just know someone is gonna try and set this grass on fire to see what happens. Red: What is this thing? It’s hard to make out but it looks like it has four limbs, a tail, and tusks maybe? Yeah it looks kinda like an elephant. I wonder if it's another new enemy. Blue: Just think it's funny that there’s a random rock here.

Blue: They are like the Twilight Princess Kargarok. I know I’m not the only one getting flashbacks to that one minigame where you had to hit those fruit balloons while the Kargarok was carrying Wolf Link similar to this. Green: New weapon that looks like a primitive hatchet. Yellow: So in BOTW this is the area that’s covered in darkness (Typhlo Ruins). I wonder why it isn’t covered in shadow here. Pink: Storm in the sky. I just like pointing this out. I wanna explore the storm tornado cause I just know something is interesting there. LET ME IN!

Pink: This guy has bull horns like a Longhorn (sorry it's hard to see here). I like this design. I didn’t get a picture of it but he slams his head into the ground so I’m assuming it's a new type of attack. So that means, even if the enemies look mostly the same, we should watch out for new attack patterns. Yellow: This is the Wooden shield so not new. Green: again looks like the Pachycephalosaurus (dinosaur).

General thoughts: They really just stacked stuff on top of the enemy skull camps. Blue: What is this stick weapon? Maybe, it's at an odd angle but it doesn’t look long enough to be a wooden spear and it’s definitely not a regular BOTW stick. It’s like a slightly heavier stick lol.

General thoughts: Whoa this is such a cube enemy, a block man. Square. Obviously, it reminds me of both Tetris and Minecraft. Also I really like that it’s so bright because the islands are closer to the sun. Red: Probably very much a glowing weakness. I hope we can break that specific block. It also glows the same shade as Link’s new arm so Zonai tech?? Blue: Pointing out the sky islands again. I really like the variety of shapes and altitudes. I can’t wait to explore these.

#part one of trailer breakdown #tears of the kingdom #totk #botw2 #botw link #botw totk #loz botw2 #loz totk #loz link #legend of zelda #totk trailer #loz #princess zelda #ganondorf #picture

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maryellencarter · 9 months ago

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have started a new playthrough of breath of the wild with the intention of practicing the combat techniques, which i am quite bad at. (look, shield surfing and flurry rushes both require using three of the control inputs at once, i know i have ten fingers but i was never very good at playing chords on the piano either)

i don't know how far i'll get on any of these goals, but i'm also sort of vaguely considering:

* 100% run? have never finished one. there's at least one korok (near the akkala tech lab, uphill boulder golf with a lynel in the middle of the course) that i'm genuinely just not sure i can complete. i want to do this part glitchless if at all, so no seed duping allowed.

* clear all enemies no blood moon run? this is technically possible, although the timing to get the blood moon shrine to spawn without actually respawning enemies is quite tricky. there's a save-reload exploit that lets you delay the blood moon for a full cycle at a time, which would be pretty necessary for some of the night quests to be completable. my main interest in trying this is to force me to actually fight more enemies (and therefore get better at the combat) rather than rely totally on sneaking around and avoiding them. also to make weapons rarer and therefore more valuable/exciting to find, because in a normal playthrough i usually get overloaded on high tier weapons pretty quickly, especially once i get woodland tower with the respawning royal claymore. it's not actually possible to completely clear the map, because there will always be random spawns, like nighttime stalkoblins, or yiga after you defeat master kohga, but i feel like it'd be pretty entertaining to just be waltzing around past enemy camps you cleared and having them continue to have been cleared.

* all chests run? this would not be a true 100% objective because i have no interest at all in the glitching required to get "impossible" chests. perhaps "poke my nose into every nook and cranny" run would be more accurate -- there are so many tiny hidden things in BotW that even people who've spent thousands of hours in the game have never seen. this kind of goes hand in hand with the no blood moon run, because i'll definitely run out of hero's path time long before i finish any such playthrough, so the main way to tell if i've already been somewhere (other than my own memory, which *is* pretty good for BotW locations because the geology is so realistic it feels like an actual landscape and sticks in my memory the same way) will be if i already killed off the enemies there.

* no guides run. at least until like 99% completion or so. i've been playing pokemon violet with a collectibles map constantly open, which is about the only way i can enjoy that game because the geology/geography is just impossible for me, and i have played BotW the same way on other saves, but... hyrule feels, idk, homey enough? it already lives in my bones enough that i can, and want to, run around it like a real place and get to know every corner. like i did with my childhood hometown, and have not had the spoons to do irl since. i'll definitely make a great deal of use of the sheikah sensor (i've done all shrines before -- on the switch lite, which is a *trip* for motion controls shrines) and any other detection things like the korok mask, any ingame method i'm granted to find the collectibles.

* no amiibo run? this is more practicality because i left my botw amiibos at leia's. but also they always feel a little game-breaky, not even so much with the exclusive drops as just with the extra resources you get early -- i don't even remember most of the places you can find safflina in the game, just because i always get so much from zelda amiibos if i'm scanning them daily, for instance.

i'm playing on my switch lite again because the regular size switch really kills my hands in handheld mode. my beat-the-game save is also on the switch lite and i didn't want to overwrite it so i made a secondary profile. so far i have done the magnesis shrine (failed deeply at using the metal boxes in the shrine to bop the guardian on the head, which will kill it if you do it right but you have to either use motion controls to fling it down or get the guardian to stand under the box while you drop it from a great height) and almost shot king rhoam for a squirrel because he was wandering around in the forest (as the old hermit, of course) and i didn't know he could spawn there if you dick around long enough before completing the plateau. so i'm already discovering things! ^_^

(the main issue with attempting a no blood moon run is that i am absent minded and usually fail to notice it's a blood moon night until it drops the cutscene on me. that will probably be the major obstacle there. i don't expect to run completely out of weapons -- at minimum i can always get more yiga gear, champion gear, and once i have the master sword it recharges. i've never attempted trial of the sword, idk if i will? certainly not until i'm much more confident with my combat techniques)

one of my favorite things about playing video games is that there's always an intended way for you to solve whatever puzzle is presented to you. in games where the intended way is the only possible way, i get pretty frustrated, because i do not have the 30+ years of gaming history knowledge that most games assume -- i got my first controller in 2021 (for PC, so as to decide if i even wanted to get my first console, the switch, which i also did in 2021). but botw is so committed to the open-world creativity thing that there are usually a bunch of different ways to solve the puzzles -- for instance, there are many "stand on this switch and the door opens, now find something to put on the switch and hold it down so you can go through the door" puzzles, and there's always something provided like a barrel or a chest to put on the switch, but on many of them you can also use the stasis rune or 1-3 campfires (which are weirdly heavy) to hold the switch down. so it feels... idk how to articulate this... when i know i *can* just use stasis or a campfire, it's more fun and less frustrating to try to figure out what the game devs were thinking, what the intended method is and especially how they signposted it. (i have watched so many botw streams just trying to get a feel for how the devs handle signposting, because i don't have much of that assumed gaming background -- mainly mass effect trilogy, which handled signposting and loot placement extremely differently in each game -- and i'm not naturally very observant. leia says i'm high INT/low WIS, and that definitely applies to my irl perception score too :P another reason to try for an all chests type of run. getting in the habit of Perceiving things more)

(mass effect 1 is why i even bought botw though. i absolutely love the open world aspects of dicking around on the uncharted planets, except when i trip over thresher maws, so i was like "people are calling this the best open world game ever? i will Investigate" and they were correct)

(also i am very impressed that moldugas are not thresher maws. so damn many things copy dune and have their desert sand burrowing giant enemy be sandworms, complete with the blue tongues, which i always think of as thresher maws because i encountered those way before dune. moldugas are completely unlike thresher maws except for the burrowing and popping up at you. i genuinely can't figure out if there's any rl critter they're supposed to resemble, but by god they're not fucking sandworms)

#jt plays botw

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istandonsnowpiles · 1 year ago

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You have a natural talent for photography. Your work consistently evokes emotions and leaves a lasting impact on viewers. Congratulations! The question I want to ask is this: What is the best photograph you have ever taken?"

Thank you much for your kind words! I'm so glad you enjoy my photography! I doubt I can pick one best photograph, but I'm happy to talk about a few of my favorites, and I'll say a few words about "natural talent" at the end.

To me photography is so great because it gets me out into the world doing cool things. It gets me to explore places that I wouldn't have otherwise and gives me awesome insight into the world. That's more important than any photo I've taken.

Flickr links are attached to each photo if you'd like a higher quality look at them.

Waiting

Okay first favorite photo is this shot at Dulles Airport. This was taken right after the Dulles Metro station opened in late 2022. I think this was the first time I really nailed the alien blue/green night time look. I've used it a bunch since.

The photo perfectly captures the distant, disconnected feel I often try to capture in my photography. In this case, the photo was taken from a parking garage next to the metro station with a long lens. Love it.

Forest in the Tidal Basin

Next up is this landscape taken at The Tidal Basin on a foggy night. So many things I love about this photo, first just being the experience of capturing it. I love foggy nights and this one was perfect. Thick fog all night, not too chilly.

In many ways this photo is an anomaly. It's a pure landscape which is reasonably rare for me to shoot living in DC, and it's a woodland shot which I've never really understood and generally do not like. I used a tripod for this shot, which is fairly rare for me. Yet it has a lot of elements that are familiar in my photography. Long lens, devoid of people, night shot, and a bit spooky.

As soon as I took this shot I knew it was gonna be good, and I was flabbergasted that this was first truly great shot for 2023.

Castle and The Sunset

Third we've got this panorama taken on Whiteface Mountain in The Adirondacks, above Lake Placid. This photo also comes with a cool story. @lesbianredpanda and I were headed down Whiteface Mountain as the place was closing.

We got caught up in this gorgeous sunset. We took our all of our cameras and started shooting. A truck full of employees pulled up behind and told us the place was closing & they were gonna shut the gates when they got to the bottom & we'd have to call the State Police to get out.

We packed up and Avery sped us down the mountain, burning brake smell the whole way. I was scaring her by taking pics out the window. Awesome time. Terrifying.

Technically, I did everything wrong in this shot. I took this HDR panorama that consists of 40 photos, shot handheld with a 28mm lens wide open at f/1.4. It shouldn't have worked out but it did!

What's in the Dark?

Last shot is my most popular photo here on Tumblr. It also should not have worked! An 8 minute exposure into darkness in the middle of the night near Lake Placid in The Adirondacks. The vibes are immaculate.

This photo has inspired me to keep trying weird stuff to see if it works. Usually it doesn't. I don't think I've ever really replicated the feeling of this shot since. Doesn't matter tho, it's cool & has inspired so much.

Those are my favorite! There's so many important photos to me, it's hard to choose a few.

Natural Talent

Okay, so I do have a bone to pick with the concept of natural talent. I doubt it really exists. For me specifically though, I don't think I'm naturally talented in photography.

I've tried to get into photography several times, and failed many times! Heck, I didn't even think to get a camera until I had been hiking around NY for a year. When I finally did get a camera I didn't like it and quit photography soon after.

There is no natural talent here. Instead, there's years of trying, failure, and, most importantly, a ton of time spent learning and going out taking photos. Then repeat the process to learn how to edit photos.

I would much rather have this time I've invested in photography be recognized, as I think it's what has made me any good at this stuff. Not inherent ability.

#my life #my work #photography #answered

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rueroyale · 7 months ago

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Lines Written in Oregon

Vladimir Nabokov

Esmeralda! now we rest Here, in the bewitched and blest Mountain forests of the West.

Here the very air is stranger. Damzel, anchoret, and ranger Share the woodland’s dream and danger

And to think I deemed you dead! (In a dungeon, it was said; Tortured, strangled); but instead –

Blue birds from the bluest fable, Bear and hare in coats of sable, Peacock moth on picnic table.

Huddled roadsigns softly speak Of Lake Merlin, Castle Creek, And (obliterated) Peak.

Do you recognize that clover? Dandelions, l’or du pauvre? (Europe, nonetheless, is over).

Up the turf, along the burn Latin lilies climb and turn Into Gothic fir and fern.

Cornfields have befouled the prairies But these canyons laugh! And there is Still the forest with its fairies.

And I rest where I awoke In the sea shade – l’ombre glauque – Of a legendary oak;

Where the woods get ever dimmer, Where the Phantom Orchids glimmer – Esmeralda, immer, immer.

Annotations

Title. In Oregon. VN rented an apartment in Mount Ashland in the summer of 1953, where he wrote Lolita and hunted butterflies in the local woods.

1. Esmeralda. A butterfly or moth. Several species of moth or butterfly share the species name esmeralda/-us, or are commonly called “emerald”, but it seems clear to me that this is a mythical green butterfly that reminds Nabokov of one he found during his boyhood. Cf Speak Memory, Ch. 6, in which a butterfly flew (in VN’s imagination) from Russia to North America, “and southward along the Rocky Mountains- to be finally overtaken and captured, after a forty-year race, on an immigrant dandelion under an endemic aspen near Boulder.” “Esmeralda” recalls Victor Hugo’s gypsy, Lucette, called "our Esmeralda and mermaid" in Ada, Esmeralda and Her Parandrus from Look at the Harlequins, and Gerald Emerald from Pale Fire.

3. … West. Cf LATH, Part 4.1 on rediscovering Russian landscapes in the Rocky Mountains: “I spent what remained of the summer exploring the incredibly lyrical Rocky Mountain states, getting drunk on whiffs of Oriental Russia in the sagebrush zone and on the North Russian fragrances so faithfully reproduced above timberline by certain small bogs along trickles of sky between the snowbank and the orchid.”

5. Damzel, anchoret. Damzel, Cf The Blessed Damozel by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. An anchoret is a religious recluse.

11. coats of sable. Other examples of heraldic language in Nabokov include the obvious Bend, Sinister; in Pale Fire, the crest of King Charles and the multiple appearances of a “heraldic butterfly, volant in arrière, sable, a bend gules”; Nabokov’s family crest in Speak Memory; The Blazon, a poem from Poems and Problems, in which: “I adopted the blazon of exile: on a field of sable a starry sword.”

12. Peacock moth. The Great Peacock Moth Saturnia pyri is the largest moth in Europe.

17. L’or du pauvre. French, poor man’s gold.

20-21. Latin lilies… Gothic fir. Metonyms for the southern France and Russia of VN’s youth, respectively. Lilies are the symbol of France. Cf VN’s poem Provence, a Russian poet in a French setting: “What bliss it is, in this world full of song,/ to brush against the chalk of walls, what bliss/ to be a Russian poet lost among/ cicadas trilling with a Latin lisp.” Also parallels the European languages used herein, ie French and German. Russian is notable in its absence.

26. L’ombre glauque. French, pale green shade.

29. Phantom Orchid. Endemic to the Pacific Northwest, the Phantom Orchid Cephalanthera austiniae is a species of orchid whose entire body is white.

30. Immer, immer. German, always.

#vladimir nabokov #poetry #annotations #making my way through vn’s corpus

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bdhlandscaping1 · 6 months ago

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#spring landscapers #the woodlands landscapers #cypress landscapers #landscapers the woodlands #magnolia landscapers #landscaper the woodlands #landscaping in the woodlands #conroe landscapers #houston landscapers #professional landscaping in houston #Landscapers Near Me Magnolia

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ink-flavored · 2 years ago

Photo

“Have you met me? I’m Pride. Being full of myself is the point.”

CHARACTER INTRO: PRIDE & JUSTICE

Name: Pride, Root of All Sin

Pronouns: he/him

Being: Demon

[character playlist]

Art by @auroblaze, stock photos from Unsplash and Pexels

Background:

A forgotten soul wept alone in Purgatory.

No tears stained their distraught face. They had no body to shed them—just an approximation of the body they once had, a shimmering gray shadow of a form. They were less than a memory, and every echoed sob played back in their ears to remind them of it.

No one from their life would be alive to remember them. Everyone was where they belonged, except they never got to follow. They never reached a resting place, neither gate nor pit awaited them at the end. Just an endless plane of twisting gray forests, curling mists, and other lost souls, just as distraught. Being stuck for centuries sapped most of their hopes of ever getting out. Comfort was beyond any of them.

So the forgotten soul did the only thing they could do, and grieved. Alone on a stump in the middle of a sea of woodland, they sobbed into their hands over what could have been. Few other souls wandered near. Those that noticed didn’t slow down. It was fine. The forgotten soul preferred it that way. They’d rather cry alone than be offered half-hearted words of encouragement they both knew were lies.

With a shuddered gasp, they lifted their head to wipe their unstained cheeks. The instinct from the faint memory of life compelled them more than the logic of this place, as it was all they had left. The dark trees loomed overhead, tightly packed, dense with leaves and shadow. Staring into the dark, the soul hiccupped to silence.

Two glowing red eyes stared back.

They froze, choked by fear. They’d been spotted by someone—something—so what more could they do? What was it? Did creatures hunt through the forests of Purgatory? Was it possible to die twice?

The eyes bobbed closer. Leaves rustled like an ocean wave, building to a crackling crescendo. Heavy steps thudded like war drums. Dark black smoke, heavier than the thin mists of Purgatory, spilled out from between the trees. As it drew nearer and nearer, the soul realized it was much bigger than it first looked. The two eyes rose taller and taller and—more eyes blinked open. Three, six, seven?

Shakily, the soul stood from its stump. The thing got closer, the smoke poured faster and thicker, creeping across the ground toward them. They tried to run, but a hand clapped over their shoulder. It clamped tighter the more they tried to fight it off—

“Hey, take it easy, will you?”

The hand released and the soul tripped into the dirt. They scrambled around to stand up, preparing to run or fight or do something, but found themselves stuck doing nothing. In place of a monster or beast there was a person. Or something that looked very much like one.

He stood unnaturally solid against the hazy landscape of Purgatory—evidence of a soul preserved and powerful. A sandy complexion contrasted starkly against his dark clothes, rough and torn at the edges. His hair was half-pulled against his scalp, a deep black, but held a few inches of honey-blonde at the roots like a bad disguise. A scruffy goatee perched below his unimpressed frown.

“Last time I ever try to introduce myself,” he muttered, boots kicking up dust. He plopped down on the abandoned stump and stretched out like he’d been sitting there all along. “Seriously, what does a guy have to do to get respect around here?”

The forgotten soul watched him warily, standing perfectly still. He could have been human, if it weren’t for the curved horns breaching the front of his scalp, bone-white and coughing smoke. A thin whip-like tail with a curved barb draped over the stump to twitch at his feet. It wasn’t hard to deduce what kind of creature he was.

“You gonna say something?” he asked, and the soul caught their non-existent breath. “I know I’m easy on the eyes, but I usually like to know your name first.”

“I don’t remember it,” the soul replied. A pang of grief threatened to bring their false tears back.

The irritation on his face melted away into a soft sympathy. “Damn. Already forgot, huh?” He gestured with a hand. “Come on, sit down with me.”

They didn’t move. “You’re a demon. Aren’t you?”

“Yeah.” He grinned with too-sharp teeth. “And?”

“I don’t trust you.”

“Pfft. If I wanted to hurt you, I would have done it already.”

If that beast and this demon were the same creature, the soul had no trouble believing that. What could harming a soul in Purgatory be worth to a demon who had thousands of souls to torture back in Hell? But what would a demon be doing in Purgatory anyway?

“Trust me or not,” the demon said, “I’m not going anywhere. So feel free to leave if you want to stay alone and miserable.”

The soul pursed their lips, temper piqued. “I didn’t ask for your help.”

“Oh, nobody does. Who would? I’m a forgettable piece of existence, just like you.”

“We’re nothing alike.”

He tilted his head. “No? Then what are you doing in Purgatory?”

“I—!” They swallowed the lump in their non-existent throat. “I don’t know.”

“Of course you don’t. You’ve been promised eternal rest, and the Almighty throws you down here to rot instead. You think I don’t know what that feels like?”

The soul shifted on their feet. Everyone in Purgatory was miserable. There wasn’t much lively conversation. This demon might not be trustworthy, but he might be nice to talk to for a little while. To get everything off their chest. Cautiously, the soul wandered over to the stump and sat down.

The demon nudged them with an elbow. “What are you in for?” he asked.

It was a strange way to ask the question, but they answered, “I wasn’t pure enough for Heaven. I’m here to repent until I can—”

“No, no, no. I know that.” He put a hand on the stump, leaning in close. “What are you in for?”

I don’t know, they almost answered, but it wouldn’t be true. “I was turned away because I… took my own life. Back when I was alive.”

“Wow. They’re still doing that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing, I just figured they would have gotten rid of that rule by now.” The demon tsked and shook his head. “Can’t do a damn thing right up there, can they?”

“All life is property of God, and destroying it is blasphemy.” At least, that’s what the soul remembered from life. And what they’d been told before being turned away from the gates.

“You know who makes those rules?” The demon pointed up at the gray sky, thin brows raised.

“God?”

“Exactly. He can change them any time He wants. But He doesn’t. And what good does keeping this one around do, exactly?”

The soul didn’t answer because it didn’t have one. They were sent to Purgatory to repent, to be re-judged by God when they understood the gravity of their sin, but they didn’t understand.

“Think about it,” the demon pressed. “It’s not like you were thinking about how much you wanted to get back at Him. I bet you weren’t thinking about Him at all.”

“I just wanted to get out,” the soul admitted. They hugged their own chest, and the demon put a comforting arm around their shoulders.

“You needed a change—you needed help. And where was your guardian-fuckin’-angel when you needed it, huh? Nowhere. All those dipshits up there don’t care about us. They care about staying in charge. Staying worshiped.”

The soul sniffed, glancing at him. “What did you do?”

“I tried to change things. They didn’t like that too much. Left me to boil alive in a river of fire. How’s that for mercy?”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Hey, I got used to it. I’m living large if I do say so myself.”

“Really?”

“Damn straight. And it means I can help people like you before you’re gone. Us forgettable pieces of existence have to stick together, right?”

The grin on his face was infectious, and the soul found themselves smiling on instinct. “Before we’re gone? To Heaven?”

“Before you fade. Obviously, I can’t help you after that, but until then I’m your man.”

“What’s fading?”

His smile flickered out. “You don’t know? How long have you been down here?”

Suddenly apprehensive, the soul tore through what little memory they had. “I—I don’t know. At least a century?”

The demon drew back, eyes wide. “Then you don’t have much time left.”

“What do you mean? Time until what?”

A grave shadow pulled his features together sharply. He took their hand and layered it over his own. It was nearly translucent, his skin and fingers clearly visible through their own.

“You’re fading,” the demon explained. “In Heaven and Hell, a soul lasts forever. In Purgatory—not so much. You lose memories, your name, who you are. Eventually, there’s not going to be much of you to send… anywhere.”

Dread seized the forgotten soul. A mousetrap snapped over their non-heart and squeezed it in half. They snatched their hand back and held it up to their face, against the trees. Horrified, they saw the branches and leaves through their palms, wrists, and arms. They saw the stump clearly through their legs and hips.

“I’m fading,” they whispered, dizzy and panicked. “I’m going to die again?”

“Not if you can get somewhere else first,” the demon reassured, but the soul barely heard him.

“My family, they haven’t seen me since… And they never will?”

“Oi!” The demon jerked them around. “You got family in Heaven? Friends?”

“Yes?”

“Perfect. I can get you to them.”

The confidence of that promise slapped the soul out of their stupor. “What? How? You’re a demon!”

“I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but I’m not exactly on my home turf. I’ve been sneaking around for a long time. I know how to get in and out of that place, and I can bring you with me.”

For the first time in a century, the soul found a glimmer of hope in those words. Something other than hollow misery and wallowing. “Really?”

“Sure can. You won’t be awake for the trip, but we can leave right now if you want.”

They nodded vigorously. “Yes! As soon as we can.”

The demon hopped off the stump like he had springs in those boots, and the soul followed with joy. Someone was going to help them—someone was going to pay attention to them at last, after more than a century of nothing.

“Oh, one last thing,” the demon said. “Just one, quick question I need to ask you.”

“Anything,” they said.

He smiled again, in that easy, friendly way, and put out a hand to shake. And maybe it was just their imagination, but the forgotten soul could have sworn his eyes flashed red.

“Do we have a deal?”

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