#Lizard book 15

[mayyosgallery]

A Crown For Freedom

WIP i've since given up on, colors are a bit of a mess and Im not happy with the lineart Might redraw it completely later, here's this version 4 now

[denyymm]

She had live so long to be abused and she's just a dragonet 😭😭

[shethevampyr-gallery]

NEW CHONNY JASH SONG SPOILERS (day 2)

Day 2, this time for Tomcat Disposables!

This might be a hot take, but I prefer this one over Laplace's Angel? Just slightly, but I still think I like it a bit more.

Notes: Freedom is probably one of my favorite characters in Wings of Fire, if not my favorite.

Time taken: 2hr 7m

[walkman-cat]

if i get no sleep tonight im going to actually rosho bawl

[girlcraft2003]

winggggg fire. For a timeline video I'm making I need background visuals lmao. Maybe I'll do Whiteout later bc she's fund to draw :D

(In order: Freedom/Lizard, Darkstalker, Clearsight, Fathom, Arctic, and Foeslayer).

[azcactum]

Wings Of Fire!! My favorite character is Freedom/Lizard.

[probablybadrpgideas]

Little Known Biology Facts About D&D Species

Humans: Humans don't exist. The concept comes from misidentified sightings of weasels who have been given adorable people clothes for the purpose of Facebook photos.

Dwarves: Unlike other species who have long lifespans due to divine blessings, Dwarves don't age because their genomes aren't fucking quitters.

Elves: Elves are marsupials. Other species don't notice because instead of storing their young, their pouches are used to store the excess smugness they couldn't fit in their central nervous system.

Goblins/Gnomes: This is actually a single species with extreme sexual dimorphism. If you're wondering which sex is goblins and which is gnomes? Don't worry, so are they.

Halflings: Halflings physically require tea and biscuits once a week or their hair dyes itself edgy colors and they grasp the concept of dubstep. Only large amounts of Enid Blyton books and crumpets can reverse this transformation.

Dragons: Dragons are actually only 15 inches long at full adulthood. It's just that like many lizards they puff up when threatened and you're adventurers so you only meet them when threatening them.

Orcs: In an act often misidentified as raiding, Orcs are the ones putting people clothes on the weasels and sharing the images on facebook. It's part of how they achieve homeostasis.

Kobolds: Basically what they look like TBH. They're funky little lizard guys, what more do you want?

[tyrantisterror]

When I first took over as the lead teacher of the older school age room at my daycare, one of the activities I introduced into the room was making bead critters - a 90's kid tradition that has proved to have a timeless appeal, even if there's no longer books of patterns for this project to buy anymore. I mean, there's probably used ones, but I don't know any titles to look up on the usual sites so yeah they're more or less unavailable to me. Luckily, the internet has some patterns on it, and I printed out, like, 15 at the time and put them in my room. It's been a consistently popular hobby for the kids - sometimes they start up little production chains ad sell their creations to their classmates for the in-classroom currency we use, it's pretty rad.

Well, this summer they surprised me by finding and bringing in new patterns they found with their parents' help, and some of them had techniques I'd never seen before, which got my monster-maker brain working. So I went out, bought some pipe cleaners and beads of my own (both because I don't want to waste materials the center bought for my kids to use, and because the cheap pipe cleaners my work buys are made of aluminum and provoke a mild allergic reaction in me when I use them), and brought them in to do some experiments.

...and now we have some very big, very complex bead critterr to go with the initial batch of examples I made a couple years ago (as well as the lizards I used to decorate some of my cabinet doors). I'm especially proud of the big red and black dragon, it came out well. The downside is that the kids want to learn how to make it and, like, that was a frustrating three hour project for me, an adult with years of experience doing bullshit like this, I don't know if I want to inflict that on a kid.

But I could make it one of the new class prizes - "earn fifty varsity bucks and Mr. Will will make you a bead dragon, you get to choose the colors."

There's one new technique in the patterns they dug up that I only briefly experimented with today, but am proud I figured out how to do - it allows you to make protrusions in the middle of the critter, instead of just on the sides. Which means the one monster my kids suggested I make might be possible.

I could make a bead Godzilla.

Gonna need to buy more pipe cleaners, though.

[mothballarts0w0]

⚠️Spoilers for Wings of Fire book 15 ⚠️

My interpretation of Lizard/Freedom 💞

This is an older piece, I need to draw some more WoF characters :p

[thecreaturecodex]

Scalamanx

Image © Working Partners Ltd, accessed at the Beast Quest wiki here

[Sponsored by @glarnboudin. Beast Quest is a series of middle grade books that started publishing when I was in undergrad, but if they were around when I was in the target demographic, I probably would have imprinted on them hard. Each one is a monster of the week affair, with the Beasts being fought or rescued by earnest kid adventurers fighting against various evil wizards. The Beasts, even the evil ones, often have some sort of role in the ecology of the world. The post sponsor described it to me as "Harryhausen meets the Legendary Monsterverse", which I would have gobbled up as a kid. Although Scamandrax exists in universe kind of in a vacuum (he was slain by the protagonist's mother and is accidentally resurrected to wreak havoc in the modern era), I went ahead and added an ecological role for it that seemed to fit its general vibe.]

Scalamanx CR 12 LE Magical Beast This creature appears as a lizard the size of a wagon, its hide made of rocky scales that glow from an internal heat. Its eyes are large and forward facing, and ridges of tissue like those of a newt grow along its limbs and tail. Six fiery tendrils grow from the back of its head like gills.

A scalamanx is an enormous fiery predator with a dim and cruel intelligence. They lair in volcanic caves and other sources of geothermal heat, and are found on the Plane of Fire despite their mortal natures. Although they have crushing jaws and thick powerful tails, the most fearsome weapon of a scalamanx is their fiery feelers. Each tendril of flame can move independently and lash like a whip, setting creatures and objects ablaze. A scalamanx is a stubborn combatant, and they frequently fight to the death once they have tasted the blood and char of a victim.

Scalamances have slow metabolisms despite their inner fires, and may only feed a few times a year. These meals are typically other creatures that stumble into their lairs, although during the driest parts of the year, a scalamanx may venture into the lowlands in order to hunt. These hunting forays can create wildfires that span for hundreds of acres, and many plants that need fire to propagate grow in areas patrolled by a scalamanx. At the first sign of precipitation, the scalamanx will retreat underground, as the touch of water burns them like acid, and any scalamanx caught in a rainstorm would surely die. Scalamances can understand a few words in Ignan, and respect powerful and intelligent creatures that can speak that tongue. Fire giants or efreeti use them as mounts, beasts of burden and guardians. Most scalamances are content to serve, but if they are mistreated may turn on their masters with lethal force.

Scalamanx CR 12 XP 19,200 LE Huge magical beast (fire) Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +14, scent

Defense AC 26, touch 10, flat-footed 24 (-2 size, +1 Dex, +1 dodge, +16 natural) hp 172 (15d10+90); regeneration 3 (cold or water) Fort +15, Ref +12, Will +7 Immune fire Defensive Abilities blazing defense; Weakness vulnerable to cold, water vulnerability

Offense Speed 40 ft., climb 20 ft. Melee bite +22 (2d6+9/19-20), tail slap +20 (1d12+4 plus push), 6 tendrils +20 touch (1d6 fire plus burn) Space 15 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks burn (2d6, DC 23), push (10 ft.)

Statistics Str 29, Dex 13, Con 22, Int 3, Wis 10, Cha 16 Base Atk +15; CMB +26; CMD 38 Feats Blindfight, Dodge, Improved Critical (bite), Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack, Power Attack Skills Acrobatics +11 (+15 when jumping), Climb +21, Perception +14; Racial Modifiers +4 Perception Languages Ignan (cannot speak)

Ecology Environment warm mountains and underground Organization solitary, pair or maelstrom (3-6) Treasure incidental

Special Abilities Blazing Defense (Ex) A creature that strikes a scalamanx with a melee attack, natural weapon, touch attack or unarmed strike takes 1d6+15 points of fire damage. Manufactured weapons with the reach property do not endanger their wielders in this fashion. Water Vulnerability (Ex) A scalamanx takes damage from direct contact with water. A flask of water deals 1d6 points of damage to a scalamanx when used as a splash weapon, and immersion in water deals 10d6 points of damage to a scalamanx each round.

[madisonthetimewalker]

Got inspired by @loryn-art and decided to make some modern AU Wakfu headcanons because I always love making head canons when I see cool AU’s

1. Yugo cannot skateboard for shit. He always face-plants into the pavement (Adamai can skateboard and laughs his ass off at yugo’s misery)

2. Adamai is surprisingly good at baking, he can make a pretty good looking cake (if he try’s)

3.qilby has horrible fucking sleep schedule I cannot describe how bad it is but it is horrible.

4. Chibi is a morning person and has a decently sized ego.

5. Grougal has the best hair in the family (he gets it from his mom what do you expect?)

6. Shinonome (I cannot spell her name for the life of me oh my god) likes to live a cozy and organized life… qilby does not knowing the meaning of organized

7. Adamai works in retail and has clip on earrings (he doesn’t want to get his ear pierced again it sucked for him he hated it. I also have an example in one of my drawings!)

8. Phaeris is very very good at making sure shit doesn’t go down in the house. Mostly because he has a resting bitch face and I love it

9. Baltazar works at a daycare. He likes the job (quilby is not allowed near baltazar because of what happened in season 2, they will full on fist fight im dead ass)

10. Efrim isn’t very responsible with money (do not give him any he will spend it… and so will Nora)

11. Glip is often tired he has a pretty good sleep schedule (unlike qilby) but still often complains of being tired.

12. For mina I wanted to make her a teacher but since she was known to be basically a lawyer in Wakfu but I feel like a teacher would fit her as well.

13. Adamai doesn’t talk about his private life.. at all for that matter he keeps to himself a lot and you basically have to pester him to tell you what’s wrong.

14. Adamai has a creepy smile (this is canon.. oh my poor boy) and often times won’t smile in photos he just kinda grins and walks away.

15. Yugo has such horrible and I mean horrible taste in fashion (you can hear Adamai holding back tears in the background while Mina or Nora has to tell him to change or else he’s gonna scare their mother to death due to his shitty fashion sense.)

16. If you where to ask qilby about a specific historical event, he will tell it in such great detail it makes it seem like he was actually there.

17. The dragon bros cannot taste spicy foods (I heard somewhere since lizards are cold-blooded they can’t taste that thing that makes you taste spicy foods) so if you see grougal chowing down extreme spicy ramen don’t ask.

18. Efrim is very clumsy and often stubs his toes or accidentally hits something when he walks (everyone thinks he needs glasses but he has 20/20 vision this fucker just can’t walk straight)

19. I like to think Adamai is a bit of a nerd. In his own way of course (if you’re lucky you can catch him reading comic books in his room.. which is always locked)

20. Nora and Efrim collect random stuff they find on the ground and they have this huge stash of random shit. Nobody knows how long they have had this but god is it large

21. Glip can often be seen grading papers (I like to believe baltazar is a daycare teacher while Glip is a high school - collage teacher/professor)

22. Chibi does not know the meaning of “social cues” (and neither does yugo.)

23. Shinonome works at a flower shop (qilby doesn’t like flowers mostly because of bad allergies but he supports his sister anyway.)

25. Efrim hates having to work and I mean HATESSS it he will complain the whole time (Adamai is one step away from hitting him with a shopping cart at 100 miles an hour)

26. Yugo can’t focus for shit, but can surprisingly describe how to make a specific meal in great detail (alibert you have raised a good man.)

27. Phaeris is very good with solving puzzles and likes to do them in his free time, he says he enjoys the “thinking process”

28. Chibi is a horrible flirt if he sees a pretty lady and he wants to say hi? Immediately tripping and stumbling and accidentally embarrassing himself (grougal is laughing his ass off silently in a corner.)

29. (Can you tell I like Adamai?) he’s a pretty good babysitter although he isn’t a huge fan of it but he doesn’t mind helping people out.

30. Nora can’t roller skate while Mina is a fucking mastermind.

31. Baltazar and qilby can be seen giving the meanest fucking side eyes at family dinners (Adamai prefers to eat in his room. But once there’s drama he appears and watch’s from afar.)

32. Qilby has the worst back pain in the world.

33. For someone who can’t focus for shit yugo is an incredibly fast learner! And can learn anything in a matter of seconds (Adamai is often jealous out how quick of a learner he is.)

34. Glip doesn’t like being forced to work at such late hours but he has no choice (the curse of being a teacher)

35. Adamai often runs away from yugo when he’s at work. And yugo likes to chase him down for shits and giggles (yugo please he’s trying to do his job)

Great Lordy I have made so many! I might make some insert modern AU ones as well. Involving ecaflip and Xelor and the rest of the gods, I like to think they also live in the world of twelve but they don’t really show their faces (kinda like Greek gods? If you get what I mean)

Anyway I’m glad I got to share more headcanons! Have a great day!

[bandaidpennylane]

Who the hell does this raging lunatic think she is? Does she think she owns Pamela Courson? That she is the only one who has a right to post her? Get outta here! What is it about people writing books about Pam that makes them go fucking bonkers? First Patricia Butler. That one wrote Angels Dance Angels Die. Now we have this unhinged lunatic, who named her spider Pamela. Should we be so surprised? 🤦‍♀️

There's a reason why your Facebook page is a flop. 4 thousand followers after 15-20 years of "research." 🤭 You should have never abandoned your Tumblr page. 🤷‍♀️ It was a bit more successful with followers. But seriously lady, being an unhinged lunatic for 20 years doesn't help your reputation. How's that book going? Still can't get any publisher to publish it huh. 🤭 People don't like you Raeanne. This goes way back to the years on the Lizard Lounge where you attacked everyone. You were as crazy then as you are now. The only reason you have 4,000 Facebook followers is because people are interested in the photos you post. They don't follow you because they like you. In actuality, your followers despise you. Even the people who kiss your ass. If only you knew what they say behind your back.🤭 It shouldn't come to you as a surprise. You caused the divide and hatred. Your vitriol over the years has damaged Pamela's memory. You hold pictures hostage. You tag pictures you don't own. But you paid $900 for them! Of course you own them! That's not how it works and you know that's not how it works! You buy prints. Not the ownership of those photos! I could buy those same photos for $400-$900. The difference is I wouldn't tag them like you do because I'm not an asshole like you. The way you use to tag the Themis photos was gross. You absolute lunatic. Then you have a fit when people point out your behavior! 20 years! 20 fucking years Raeanne! Waaaah! I'm mad! You post my photos! Waaah you post ugly photoshops! Waaaah! I'm going to close my page! 🙄 Please do. Close it. Once and for all just close it. If it brings you peace of mind, just fucking close it. The way you rage about photoshopped photos of Pam but you posted a whole ass ridiculous set of AI images of her. 🤔 Guess what that makes you? A hypocrite with zero AI skills. 🤷‍♀️ I doubt you will close your page permanently. You love the ass kissing too much to quit it, even if it's coming from people who despise you. This is like the 10th time you quit. 🤭 But seriously lady, get some real help. Stop raging online and attacking other Pam fans. Do you know how pathetic you come across? 20 years of this vitriolic behavior. Close your page and self publish that stupid book of yours. Enough is enough!

A humorous and ironic update. Raeanne replied to a follower who basically called her out for her shitty AI Pam pictures. 😁🤌

It looks like Raeanne deleted some of Melissa's comments leaving just this one. I don't know who you are Melissa Owens but thank you. The hypocrisy and unhinged audacity coming from this bitch. Thank you!

It's been 48 hours and this bitch hasn't deleted her page. Of course she hasn't. 🥱

Yet another update! It gets more and more ridiculously entitled the more she speaks out. We are brats for posting photos of Pam!!! How dare other writers don't credit them!!!! They are ripping them off! How dare them!!! We are an epidemic of entitled brats!!! 😁🤭😄

Go fuck yourself Raeanne. You been eating out of your own ass for far too long. You have crossed every line of decency. Get help you crazy bitch! 🫣

[kerubimcrepin]

The Big Joris Physiology Post

Aka Liveblog - Dofus, livre 1 : Julith [PART 15]

This is the true most important moment of the entire movie because this is all of us @ Khan and Bakara.

Anyway, judging from his reaction, at this point, I would wager that Joris knows what sex is. As one of the Funny Jokes of the movie will imply in a few minutes, he has started puberty. While Kerubim is, at all times, irresponsible, maybe, just maybe, he decided to, just this once, be normal, and inform Joris of what is occurring.

The more realistic scenario is that Joris read about it in a book. And it was probably not an encyclopedia or anything age appropriate. He probably still doesn't even know what a puberty is. Tragic.

His father died. And they're trying to jump one another's bones.

I would literally just die.

Here's a list of all the things the Joris Puberty Joke implies:

As I've said, it's likely that Kerubim once again neglected him: Joris has no idea what this means, or that this might be an inappropriate thing to say.

Joris is growing up at a normal human rate, and will be physically an adult at the age one would expect him to be an adult.

Growing up is the maturation of an organism, while growing old is its slow and natural decline due to cell degradation. For this reason, it is logical to me that as a child, he is still aging normally. This might mean that Joris's cell degradation is that akin to a dragon: either entirely absent, or significantly slowed.

While it's obvious that his short stature is not due to his aging issues, it would mean that, just like with his skin and hair, the dragon posession messes with his hormonal levels. What I'm saying is that Grougalorasalar gave him fucking growth hormone deficiency?? If the guy messed with Joris's pituitary gland, then that means he probably messed with his entire brain.

I would assume it is likely that he messed with his cognitive functions. Without Grougalorasalar, Joris would literally be a different person with a different temper. And that's kind of haunting.

Joris being bald his whole life, but suddenly growing some hair down there, also means that the fucker gave him alopecia totalis. AND made him a scalie. What!!!

On the topic of growth hormone deficency, btw..,,..

New Joris childhood headcanon dropped. What if,,,. Can you see my vision here? Yeahg.

(No wonder Kerubim is fucking insane as a father. 'Salar's presence probably made Joris a very sickly baby, because his body just couldn't handle it until he was older.)

Scales...

Considering he is not usually covered in them, I assume that he does not moult like a lizard, and that they are, in a way, akin to invasive growths that hurt/itch a little. Kinda like acne.

[badbatchposts]

Quiet Corners of the Galaxy, Ch. 15

Fic Teaser: While on a routine mission for Cid, the Bad Batch encounter a woman fleeing from the Empire. Crosshair suspects her seemingly free-spirited, nomadic existence is actually a cover for something else, but struggles to keep his attraction toward her in check as their personalities and ideals clash.

Relevant tags/content warnings: Crosshair/Original Female Character, Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Periodic Smut, Canon-Typical Violence, Alcohol Use

Chapters posted 1-2x weekly!

Read the full fic so far on AO3

Read previous chapters on Tumblr: Ch. 1 l Ch. 2 l Ch. 3 l Ch. 4 l Ch. 5 l Ch. 6 l Ch. 7 l Ch. 8 l Ch. 9 l Ch. 10 l Ch. 11 l Ch. 12 l Ch. 13 l Ch. 14

Chapter 15 summary: The Batch deals with a series of complications in the villa heist.

“Talk to me, Tech,” Hunter growled. “Can you disable the alert?”

“Stand by.” The group shifted impatiently in the corridor, uncomfortable with being stuck out in the open while they waited. Their surroundings were incongruous with their tension: there were no alarms, lights, or sirens, the alert apparently being confined to the computers in the control rooms—at least, for now. They let out a collective sigh when they heard Tech’s voice again.

“It has been deactivated and coded as a false alarm, although I could not prevent the laboratory in town from being notified.”

Hunter grunted. “Then we’ll have to be quick. Can you override the doors?”

“The blast door, yes. The regular door will be more of a challenge without the clearance of an identification card,” Tech mused.

Wrecker grinned. “I got it. If I rewire one of these EMPs real quick, I can probably short out the door’s circuit so I can pry it open.”

“Good idea,” Hunted nodded approvingly. “Crosshair, any activity outside?”

“I think the guard out front knows. He reacted when the alert went out, but he’s not abandoning his post. He’ll likely send the patrol to check things out the next time that they pass his station, since he can’t raise them on comms.”

The Sergeant swore quietly. “Update us when that happens. We’ll try to be out before then.”

Finally, the blast door opened with a quiet hiss. A few moments later, Wrecker held up a small device gleefully and stuck it to the control pad.

“Uh…Echo, better step back a bit. Just to be safe,” Wrecker advised. Grumbling a little, the ARC backed off to a safe distance before his brother activated the device, which blinked before shooting off sparks. Flexing his biceps playfully, Wrecker heaved open the door.

“We’re in. Get over here, Tech,” Hunter instructed.

The squad wasted no time entering the lab, whose gleaming white tile and shiny durasteel matched the rest of the basement. It was a larger facility than they might have expected: a handful of rooms opened off of a wide hallway lined with cabinets and blinking computers, each area boasting equipment that betrayed various experiments in progress. One room let off a deafening racket of shrieks and hoots. A cursory glance revealed cages upon cages of enraged Kowakian monkey-lizards.

“Probably test subjects,” Echo murmured with a shudder.

“So where’s our vault?” Wrecker asked, cracking his knuckles as though he was planning on wrenching it open with his bare hands.

Hunter glanced up as Tech joined them. “I’m not sensing any unusual electromagnetic impulses. Are you sure the vault’s here?”

His brother frowned and shrugged. “I do not know for certain, but this is the most likely location.”

Dara stared toward the end of the hall, where a greater-than-life-size portrait of an older man with a severe expression took up the majority of the wall. He wore a lab coat, a beaker in one hand and a datapad in the other, and at his feet rested piles of books—the antique kind, made of bound flimsi. She approached the artwork, pointing. “That’s Prium, right? Kind of an old-fashioned guy,” she mused.

Wrecker tilted his helmet up, revealing his face, which was scrunched up in frustration. “Yeah, he looks like a weirdo.”

She gestured toward the portrait. “Wrecker, can you get this thing down?”

Hunter frowned. “What are you thinking?”

Dara glanced up at him. “I’m thinking that Prium is traditional and paranoid. Security systems and doors can be overridden. Electronic vaults can be detected and sliced. But antique vaults…not a lot of people know how to open those anymore.”

Sure enough, Wrecker removed the painting to reveal an enormous metal panel, inset into the wall behind it. The panel was divided into a series of squares, each with a round, metal knob in the center. It was not immediately evident how the vault door was meant to be unlocked.

“Can you blow it open?” Hunter asked his brother.

Wrecker rapped his knuckles against the metal, then shook his head with obvious disappointment. “With what I have on me? Not unless we want to take down the whole building with it.”

Tech was watching Dara with great interest, noticing a thoughtful expression on her face and a gleam in her eye. He nodded to her. “I presume you have an idea?”

Dara touched the metal knobs, allowing her fingers to roam, probing gently and rapidly. Finally, one of them shifted beneath her grasp; she twisted until one of the squares pulled out and shifted to the side, revealing a keyhole beneath.

“It’s kind of brilliant,” she observed idly. “Anyone would come ready to try to bypass an electronic vault, but you don’t see a lot of mechanical locks anymore, much less a historic thing like this. Ironically, sometimes when our technology gets more advanced, the traditional methods become more secure—the typical person doesn’t know what to do with them.”

She disappeared into one of the side rooms of the lab, returning with a haphazard collection of slim metal instruments. “I obviously don’t have the materials for this on me, but these should work okay. Tech, any similar tools in your pack might be helpful.” 

Hunter raised his eyebrows as she set to picking the lock, switching out occasionally between the apparatuses she had collected and those proffered by the technical specialist. “How long is this going to take you?” the Sergeant asked dubiously.

She tilted her head, still focused in concentration. “There’s likely three more locks to disengage after this one. It’ll be a while.”

Tech looked on with fascination as her fingers worked. “Where did learn this?”

“Working with primitive cultures means getting familiar with primitive technologies. It’s kind of a hobby,” Dara explained.

“Sure it is, burk’yc,” Crosshair goaded over the comms. “Patrol is approaching the front guard station. Orders, Hunter?”

“Signal us when they enter. Echo, go upstairs and get in position to take them by surprise. Stun them and put them with the others,” he instructed.

The ARC trooper set off with a determined nod. Fifteen minutes later, Dara had managed to spring the first lock, and Echo reported that the patrol was dealt with.

“This is taking too long,” Wrecker grunted impatiently. Dara cast him a glare over her shoulder, and he grimaced apologetically. “Sorry. I just mean, they’re going to get suspicious again.”

Hunter sighed. “Wrecker is right. How many guards are left?”

“Nine, by my count,” Echo informed them.

“Alright. Wrecker and I are coming to meet you—we’ll get them out of the way and take some of the pressure off. Tech, watch Dara’s back.” The former pair set off at a trot, leaving the latter bent in intense concentration.

Absorbed in observing Dara’s technique, Tech waited until she had sprung the second lock before speaking.

“This is an interesting hobby,” he probed, hoping his tone came out less skeptically than Crosshair’s had.

Dara smiled and rolled her eyes. “I always liked puzzles. I learned a bit about vaults like these doing research on idioms for secret-keeping. Then—I told you I’ve bartended in all sorts of shady places, right—believe it or not, I was briefly…seeing…this guy I met on the job who was a lock breaker and specialized in this.” She shook her head ruefully. “Obviously it didn’t work out, he was a sleemo. But he taught me some things.”

Tech allowed himself a small smile, feeling a flame of companionable sentiment towards Dara curl up inside him, despite his ongoing suspicions. They had kept many details of their life away from the woman, but still, it couldn’t hurt to mention some things—could it?

“I myself am…seeing…a pirate,” he confessed. “She, too, has an interest in what she refers to as ‘the liberation of ancient wonders.’ Though I have never had occasion to see it, I imagine that this skillset is within her repertoire. If not, she would certainly love to learn. I wonder if you can teach it to me sometime.”

Dara popped the third lock open and moved on to the next. “I’d be happy to, Tech. What’s your pirate’s name?”

“Phee. I believe that you would quite like her. She has been many places, and has many excellent stories, some of which may even be partially true,” Tech reflected fondly.

Laughing, Dara shook her head and took a moment to push a strand of hair out of her eyes as she continued her work. “I hope to meet her someday.”

They drifted into a companionable silence, which was only interrupted minutes later by Hunter reporting that the remaining guards had been taken care of.

“Excellent timing,” Dara declared as she sprang the final lock on the vault. She stepped back; grunting a little with the weight of the metal, Tech slid the panel aside and peered in. His mouth dropped open in a stunned expression that was out-of-place for his typically reserved and unemotional demeanor.

“Oh, kark,” he swore uncharacteristically.

Echo groaned over the comms. “Don’t tell me this stupid job has yet another complication.”

Tech sighed in frustration. “The records are not on computer or data chips. They are all on flimsi.”

“Boxes and boxes of them,” Dara filled in. “Too many to scan. It’ll take ages to move them all.”

“Seriously. What is with this guy?” Wrecker bemoaned.

“Crosshair, go get the Marauder,” Hunter directed. “It’ll go faster if we load it up here. The rest of us will get down there and start hauling boxes.”

While they waited for the others, Tech and Dara examined the inside of the vault more closely. The small space was crammed, mostly with uniformly sized white boxes. Tech opened one and skimmed the file folders packed inside with nimble fingers, taking in the neatly labeled project names and patent numbers, though what drugs and technologies they alluded to he could hardly guess at.

Dara’s eyes drifted toward the back corner of the vault, where a much smaller box sat on an otherwise empty shelf. A little clumsily, she shoved her way through the cramped space to reach for it. When she flipped open the lid, Tech detected the faintest blue glow reflected in her eyes.

“What have you discovered?” he asked. Behind him, Hunter, Wrecker, and Echo crowded into the small doorway, craning their heads to get a good view of the room.

She shook her head. “No idea. It’s not labeled.” She carefully plucked a small vial of blue liquid from the protective casing and held it out to Tech, who scanned it with his datapad.

“Hmm,” he mused. “It does not match any known chemical compound that I am aware of. Perhaps it is a new experimental drug.”

Dara looked preoccupied. “Strange that it would be in the vault at all. If it’s in development, samples should be stored elsewhere. This is meant to keep company files secure, not experiments in progress.” She returned the vial to its container and tucked it away in her bag for safekeeping as they all began to haul boxes into the lab beyond.

Suddenly Hunter stiffened and tilted his head, signaling the others for silence as he listened. “We’ve got company,” he growled. “Two speeders just pulled up in front.”

“Looks like Raab wasn’t satisfied that the alert was a false alarm,” Crosshair drawled. “He brought reinforcements. Another dozen guards. I’m landing the Marauder on the roof, we can load it up there.”

Wrecker grinned wildly. “A dozen? That’s nothing!”

Hunted rolled his eyes. “Alright. Crosshair, keep them busy. Tech and Echo will intercept them at the front entrance. The rest of us will get these boxes moving.” The pair departed, and only a moment later the tell-tale blast of Crosshair’s rifle and a handful of distant, panicked shouts echoing over his open comm line informed them that he was following instructions and had the guards pinned down. Meanwhile, Wrecker located an anti-grav cart in a nearby storage room and they began hurriedly stacking boxes. When the cart was full, Dara glanced backward into the vault, where plenty still remained.

“We’ll have to make two trips,” she pointed out. “There’s an elevator that should go to the roof two corridors west.”

“Go ahead, Wrecker, we’ll hold things down here,” Hunter directed. Grunting quietly, they continued moving boxes from the vault into the wider hallway, where they would be easier to access for loading when Wrecker returned.

The shrill screeching of an alarm made Hunter nearly drop one of the containers on his foot as he desperately tried to cover his sensitive ears. At the same time, the white luminescent lighting turned a deep, flashing red, leaving them in a confused, partial darkness. The monkey-lizards shrieked piercingly from across the lab, and blaster fire erupted from somewhere inside the villa.

“What is going on?” Dara demanded into her comm.

“Your boyfriend made it to the guard post and activated some sort of emergency protocol,” Crosshair snapped.

“It would appear that Prium does not distrust droids enough that he will not use them in extreme cases,” Tech panted. “I am clocking at least two dozen security droids that have just been activated throughout the villa.”

“Kriff,” Hunter muttered. He glanced at Dara with concern. In response, she unholstered her blaster.

“I’m fine. Put me where I’ll be useful.”

The Sergeant scowled. “Everyone, sitrep,” he demanded.

“Made it to the roof and loading up now,” Wrecker grunted.

“Took out six guards out front but the rest made it to cover and are working on breaching the entrance.”

“Tech and I are about to be surrounded. Our back is to the entrance and droids are converging on our location.”

Hunter mutter something incomprehensible under his breath that sounded suspiciously like a multilingual stream of curses. “Echo and Tech, I’m coming to you. Crosshair, cover Wrecker on the way back to the lab. Dara will stay in the lab and hide if any droids show up before they get here.” He punctuated his last order with a stern wag of his finger. Dara rolled her eyes and sighed, but nodded in agreement, and Hunter headed out to reinforce his brothers without another word.

***

Crosshair was antsy. Despite his often hair trigger temper, he did not get antsy. He was a sniper. He was patient. He was used to watching and waiting things out, finding the exact right moment to strike with deadly precision.

But he couldn’t deny, when Tech accused him earlier, that he had been carefully tracking Dara’s infrared signature as she moved through the villa, shifting back and forth a little with unease rather than settling into his characteristic stillness while on overwatch. And now that things had predictably gone to shit, he was even more agitated as he and Wrecker loaded box after box into the Marauder, eager to get back to the lab and get this all over with so that he could chew Hunter out for leaving a civilian alone while they were under attack. Even if the droids were centered around Tech and Echo. Even if they needed backup. He just didn’t like it—it was just like the jailbreak, only this time he didn’t have eyes on her.

Finally, they had loaded all the boxes and could return with the cart to the elevator. Crosshair checked over his rifle as they got inside, feeling marginally better now that they were on their way to the lab.

His irritation returned in full force with the crackle of his comm line.

“My scanners are showing six droids approaching the lab,” Tech warned. “The rest of us will not be able to reinforce.”

Crosshair swore. “Dara, hide. Wrecker and I will be there soon.”

They received no response. The brothers exchanged a look: though their faces were disguised by their helmets, long years of familiarity allowed them each to decipher the seriousness and determination behind it as they both tensed, preparing to fight the moment the elevator doors opened.

The sniper took the corridors toward the lab at a sprint, followed by Wrecker, who was still pushing the cart with one hand as he held his blaster with the other. He heard blaster shots ring out just as he rounded the corner approaching the lab; at the far end of the hallway he caught a glimpse of Dara, who was drawing the attention of the droids as she ran in the opposite direction. They pursued her, exchanging blasts with their quarry, who left two downed droids smoking in her wake.

“What are you doing?” Crosshair demanded over the comms.

“Keeping them distracted,” Dara panted. “Get the files!”

“You’re going to get yourself killed,” he growled.

More blasts rang out from elsewhere in the basement. “There’s only three left. Just hurry up before more come!”

Wrecker shrugged and entered the lab to start loading the remaining boxes. “I think she has it under control,” he determined.

Crosshair shook his head, but followed his lead and began to help, rushing the process as much as possible. When no boxes remained, Wrecker began to push the cart back in the direction of the elevator.

“I’ve got this,” he told his brother. “Go get her.”

Nodding, Crosshair headed down the hall in the direction she had been running. “Dara, I’m coming to you. What’s your location?” he demanded into his comm.

“Took the stairs to the top floor. Unfortunately, I may have found more droids.”

Crosshair yanked open the door to the stairwell and began making his way up, taking the steps two at a time. He passed a pile of crumpled mechanical remnants and was relieved that at least Dara had taken down more of her pursuers before accumulating new ones. “How many?”

“Five left.”

When the sniper reached the top floor and exited the stairwell, he immediately made his way toward the sound of blaster fire. In the next corridor over, Dara was backed into a dead end and was pinned down, using an overturned buffet table for cover. It looked expensive—or at least, it had before its polished wood surface became riddled with blaster burns.

Four droids now remained. Without hesitation, Crosshair reached into his belt for a handful of mirrored reflector discs, tossing them at carefully calculated angles against the walls. Propping his rifle up on the sniper rest which extended from his left pauldron, he fired; the bolt ricocheted, taking down every last droid before its energy dissipated.

Dara poked her head out above cover. “Nice shot.”

Crosshair took a few furious steps toward her, removing his helmet as he glanced over her. She didn’t appear to be injured.

“You were supposed to hide,” he snapped. He meant to continue his tirade, but was distracted by Dara’s eyes widening as she drew her blaster and aimed towards him. Suddenly, he felt the cold, metal end of a barrel in his back.

“I guess you aren’t really newlyweds,” came Nor Raab’s slimy, arrogant voice.

The sniper scowled, but didn’t move. “What a genius. You figured it out,” he snarked.

The scientist dug the blaster in harder, but he ignored the sharp pain that wedged its way between the gaps in his armor. “Drop your weapons,” Raab ordered.

Crosshair let his rifle go with a clatter. Down the hall, Dara bent cautiously and placed her pistol on the floor.

“Listen, there’s no need for anybody to get hurt here,” she began carefully as she stood back up.

Raab snorted. “I don’t exactly think that you are in a position to negotiate.”

Dara did not argue. Instead, she slowly raised her hands and placed them behind her head, the picture of surrender—if it were not for the meaningful eye contact she made with Crosshair, alongside giving him the tiniest nod.

The sniper was prepared for the moment she snaked one hand beneath her poncho to grab her hold-out blaster, throwing himself aside just as the stun blast shot through the air and caught Raab in the chest.

Dara toed the Sullustan’s crumpled form out of the way a little more harshly than necessary as she approached. “Creep,” she muttered. She held an outstretched hand to help Crosshair up. “Consider us even.”

Crosshair scowled. “Hardly. I could have gotten out of that. Plus, I saved you from the droids, so I’m still one up on you.”

She rolled her eyes and handed him his rifle. “And I could have gotten out of that.”

“In that case, you still owe me one,” he countered smugly.

Sighing, Dara ignored him in favor of checking in with the others. “Anybody need help out there?” she asked into her comm.

“Negative,” Hunter reported. “All clear, heading to the Marauder.”

“Almost loaded up,” Wrecker added.

“Alright. Meet you there.”

The whole squad was reunited on the ship in due course. Dara leaned tiredly into the cockpit as Tech and Echo hurried through preflight checks.

“Sorry, Tech,” she lamented. “I dropped my pack while the droids were after me and the chemical we found fell out. It got smashed.”

The pilot glanced at her over his shoulder as they began lifting off. “No matter. If it was an experimental drug as I suspect, I doubt Cid’s client was aware of it. We will still be paid in full for this job. You did exceptional work today, Dara.” She gave him a fond smile in thanks for the praise and returned to the main cabin.

Wrecker and Hunter were occupied in giving the haphazard piles of file boxes some semblance of order, while Crosshair had already begun disassembling and cleaning his rifle. Dara set about preparing her tea, taking her first taste with a sigh that was simultaneously weary and relieved. Then she reached back into her pack and pulled out several balls of thick, fibrous cord, beginning to weave and knot the strands idly between appreciative sips. Her fingers danced expertly, an elaborate band steadily taking shape between her hands.

Crosshair watched as his own hands occupied themselves with polishing, raising an eyebrow at her. “More hobbies, burk’yc?”

Her fingers stilled for a moment and she held the object up to him, displaying it for his inspection, before returning to work. “You could say that. It’s a traditional handicraft I picked up doing fieldwork in the Pelker system. I sell them to vendors and antique shops for extra credits sometimes. They probably overcharge people who think it’s the real deal.” She shrugged.

The sniper looked back down at his rifle, brow furrowed. There it was—an explanation for Dara’s regular visits to Old Ord Salvage. Perhaps she wasn’t there for the smuggler’s communications array at all, but the front business itself. It was an easy explanation, just like all those she had provided thus far, the pieces of her life falling into place just well enough to be plausible.

But never quite well enough to satisfy him.

He leveled his gaze at her again. “You’re just full of surprises, aren’t you?”

Though she didn’t look up at him again, Crosshair didn’t miss the barest hint of a knowing smirk that she was, perhaps, too tired—or too smug—to fully hide from him.

Next chapter

Tag list: @stardusthuntress @skellymom @megmegalodondon @somewhere-on-kamino

[castillon02]

Animals of James Bond Crossword Puzzle

Created for the 007 Fest 2024 scavenger hunt, prompt #58: "Create and post a Bond-themed crossword." Clues are available under the cut or you can play digitally at the link!

Across

1 A dog of this breed offers Bond some comfort after his escape from Blofeld's destroyed institute in OHMSS

6 The name of a plot-crucial Macaw in "For Your Eyes Only"

7 The name of one of Zorin's fiery racehorses

9 This Argentinian lizard is glimpsed in "Quantum of Solace"

10T hese birds flock around Piz Gloria in OHMSS

11 Macau features this gun-hungry dragon in "Skyfall"

12 This animal gives J.W. Pepper a dunking in "The Man With the Golden Gun"

15 These Barbary animals in Gibraltar observe a Bond chase sequence with bemusement in "The Living Daylights"

17 Stromberg quizzes Bond about this marine animal in "The Spy Who Loved Me"

18 The animals in Blofeld's volcano lair which dispose of Helga and Hans

21 In the book version of "Dr. No," Bond fights one of these

22 "Octopussy" features this kind of deadly octopus

23 Raoul Silva monologues about these animals

Down

2 Bond tells this big cat to "Sit!" in "Octopussy."

3 A blinged-out elephant wins at this game in "Diamonds Are Forever"

4 In "Skyfall," Kincade has a pair of these hunting dogs

5 This bird is famously edited to do a double-take at Moore Bond in Venice

8 This creature gives Connery Bond a scare in the movie version of "Dr. No"

13 Blofeld's white cat is this fluffy breed

14 Q's cats are this hairless breed

16 This glowing animal can be seen in the Shanghai fight scene in "Skyfall"

19 Sanchez keeps this animal as a pet in "License to Kill"

20 The name of the alligator that bit off the arm of a character in "Live and Let Die"

[blackbloodedisabel]

main characters for your mermaid thing?

>:) thank you (deranged cackling)

arguably some of the characters I've included here are not main main characters but they mean a lot to me and they have important roles in the story ok

I will include a character grid for everyone this is the format of the character grid:

'eyes' just means vibe, jewellery is the main component of their.. jewellery because everyone here has their own unique magic jewellery (part of the magic system/worldbuilding) except Calen who has a crown only because he's king.

Teagan is my lonely human skrunckly goober losing her grip on reality<3 15 years ago her older brother got dragged from a cliff into the sea by a big scary sea monster lizard, her parents blamed mermaids and have been going out monster hunting in their boat for weeks at a time. she went with them until she was old enough to stay at home and now she's going slightly insane from lack of human contact and thinks the wind and sea are old lovers/friends/rivals. she lives in a weird amalgamation of cornwall/north devon/mid-west wales and she's the most ridiculous author insert you've ever seen. she's very nice, sort of a peacemaker figure, she loves rock climbing and the sea and her hair is perpetually crusty with salt/sand. arguably the second main character and the secondary pov character.

Anemone is the shy princess who was the first picrew I made and she has been the main character and number one pov character ever since. she has the biggest character arc and she is SO precious to me. she's not very magically powerful and is horrifically insecure about it which is not helped by the fact that when she attended magic tutoring (because she’s a princess and her family has historically been very magically powerful) her best (only) friend was the most powerful witch for generations. then Ane left really abruptly and they didn't speak or see each other for close to 2 years. precious baby Ane has spent the last 2 years rotting in her room combing her hair and staring out of the window and the story starts when her brother the king forces her to leave and go on quests to help the people because she's the most useless parasitic royal ever and this is when she decides she needs her best friend's help with quests and thus the story starts. she is very shy and very much a pushover at the beginning but her arc is becoming a confident(ish) strong selfless leader <33 she is also so sapphic she rivals the og poet

Selma is that super powerful best friend!! she is arguably the most important character in terms of how she influences the people around her. she is also simultaneously a big weirdo and very cool!! she made her own magic jewellery and teaches at the magic tutoring system. her special interest is the ancient mega-powerful witch so she's obsessed with the magic jewellery/books the witch made and with the witch's descendant. she is very passionate and resilient (sometimes to her detriment) and defeats (almost) all her enemies with the sheer power of her lesbianism and homoerotic girlbestfriendships. she was very hard to name and only got her name when 'Selma' came to me in a dream (I had a different dream beforehand where the name Olympia came to me but I don't like that as much)

Iolanthe is the last living descendant of said ancient witch and Anemone’s thematic foil. this is because she has similarly mediocre magic when she should be very powerful. unfortunately she is in denial about this and still believes she has yet to earn her magic (magic in this world is both inherent from genetics/chance and earnt based on strength/resilience. Ane is very privileged and emotionally weak so she doesn't have strong magic, Selma is much more emotionally resilient so she does have strong magic etc etc). this means Io spends all her time in her workshop paid for by her richass family trying to make the perfect piece of magical jewellery which she can form a conduit bond with (you can magically bond with a piece of jewellery which will massively amplify your power if you earn it, usually done by making it (like Selma, who Io is very jealous of and inspired to make jewellery by), finding it or buying it with money you worked for). then near the end of part one the questing gang (Ane, Teagan, Selma, Mel, Enith and to an extent Isther) show her the jewellery they've collected which was all made by her ancient witch ancestor. she becomes convinced that she needs these specific pieces of jewellery to become powerful, but obviously they're bound to various members of the questing gang. everything spirals from there. she seems really dull and a bit entitled but on the inside she's making such leaps to conclusions that she is my secret favourite

Melyde is a street singer who, at the start of the story, earnt a conduit bond with a necklace made by the ancient witch (someone threw it at her when she was performing). previously she had no magic (quite rare to have NONE most people just have very weak) but after forming the bond she became about the second most powerful witch after Selma. unfortunately she had precisely zero control over it and accidentally lured half the city to watch her perform and give her money, so Selma and the gang (just Ane and Enith at that point) had to step in and get her to join the gang so Selma could teach her magic properly. you can tell Mel and Selma are in love because their colour schemes make up the lesbian flag. melyde's whole shtick is being very brave and stubborn and while she may be the most pointless character of the gang she means a lot to me

Enith (with a VOICED TH) is the gang's navigator and the first person Selma and Ane recruited to join them. she is from the deep ocean and has an unfashionable haircut because she's making a statement! and I love her. she spent her childhood mapping out the cave system behind her house and when she was older she moved to the capital city to run a tour guide and map making shop because she didn't want to work in her parents' glass making business. she's also got no magic of her own. she's very kind and friendly until her parents are killed at the end of part one (spoilers) after which she becomes angry impatient and withdrawn. I got her name by misspelling enid as enidd, which my brain read as enith because of welsh phonetics. love her!!

Isther (isster) has I think the most duality out of the characters. she fluctuates between poor little traumatised baby and lying vengeful murderous little shit. the gang found her when they accidentally got into the huge sealed-off cave where all the sea monsters were imprisoned after the big attacks 15 years ago and for some reason she was imprisoned there too?? how odd. they freed her and she joined the group. she's actually the witch who controls the sea monsters though she doesn't know that until the end of part 1 and she wasn't born murderous.. unfortunately still a liar and she does end up being (one of) the actual villains even if she was manipulated into it a bit. she could've been ok. she could've been ok!! Ane could've fixed her honestly there's something a little jackieshauna about them (pink and green, homoerotic friendship ended by violent betrayal)

Calen is Anemone’s older brother and the king. he's not a main character but I feel obligated to mention him. he has Issues about his mother. probably the closest to morally grey out of all the non-villain characters because he ends up using child soldiers because he can't beat an angsty 17 year old and her 5-6 uncreative sea monsters

that's them!! thank you for asking about my goobers