#Pallette game that I have Yet to name

[saltysunflowersugar]

ADD 'EM ALL UP AND YOU'LL STILL GET ZERO

[sephirthoughts]

This is like a reverse jehovah's witness knocking ur door but who's the haunted hotel bellhop that u pair vincent with? convert me 👀

OH HO HO strap in my friend because Haunted Hotel Bellhop has been living in my head rent-free ever since that genius of destruction @soundcrusher came to me one day and was like "look at my upside-down man isn't he cute" and i was like "WTF WHERE HAS THIS INVERTED WEIRDO BEEN ALL MY LIFE AND WHY IS HE SO HOT" and soundcrusher was like "he's right there in the haunted hotel how could you not have seen him" and then i had to admit i haven't played rebirth yet cause i'm waiting for PC release (i needs my mods y'all) and then soundcrusher called me a n00b and a fake fan and stuffed me in a locker**.

[**may not have happened]

[IMPORTANT NOTE: all dialogue with @soundcrusher referenced herein has been wildly paraphrased and only represents the basic gist of our actual conversations]

anyway the point is soundcrusher sent me videos and screenshots and more screenshots of bellhop so i could giggle and kick my feet about how adorable he is, and eventually brought up that "hey...this guy kind of reminds me of someone. like kind of a LOT reminds me of someone. you know who i mean right?"

and i was like "yes my cousin goth greg who lives in new orleans and does vampire the masquerade in-person roleplay like it's 1998 and there's not a robust roleplaying community on the internet"

and soundcrusher was like "no. how the hell would i know your weird cousin? i meant he's a lot like nero the sable"

which i totally knew and wasn't even oblivious to the many many ways bellhop's design is clearly supposed to evoke nero.

these include: his color pallette, his skin and hair color (possibly his eye color too though the lighting the game has him in makes it hard to tell), his bandages looking exactly like nero's muzzle, his mannerisms and way of talking being like nero's, etc.

the more we examined the character model (as much as we could with the bandages) the more we realized he really really looks like nero. for example, they have the same exact eye shape, and if you use a character model ripper to extract nero and remove the muzzle, the same exact weird eyebrow shape).

obvs we don't have the bellhop character model to strip the bandages and find out what's goin on under there, but for now it holds up.

(screenshots shamelessly stolen from @soundcrusher 's post about it)

he also hangs upside-down in the pose from the hanged man card from the tarot, which may or may not be relevant to the nero theory but is an interesting tidbit

anywhoozle, soundcrusher whipped up a whole bio and backstory for bellhop, which included the absolute master stroke of naming him Benjamin Hopkins, so that is what he is named forever in my head.

in soundcrusher's backstory, benjamin was originally the unnamed identical twin of nero the sable, born in deepground a moment after nero, and before the darkness consumed their mother. subject N-2 was considered to be defective and thus only kept around as literal spare parts, in case big brother ever needed them. he was not allowed to interact with his brother or half brother and never knew them.

a lot of things happened and a kind scientist hatched a plot to smuggle the kid out of deepground, before promptly dying a tragically heroic death, and thus the child was raised up on the surface world, apart from his twin and half-brother weiss, never knowing them, eventually coming to work and live at the haunted hotel.

it's a lot more complex than that but i am the only one privileged enough to have read all the as yet unpublished parts of soundcrusher's wonderful story world for benjamin so everyone else will have to suffer for now

RE: pairing bellhop with vincent since, in our shared delusion, nero is (unknown to anyone) vincent's son, that makes benjamin also vincent's son, which leads to all kinds of shenanigans when everyone eventually meets.

i also ship bellhop with vincent sometimes outside that fic, but i contain multitudes of universes, so i ship almost everyone with everyone in different contexts

i love soundcrusher's bellhop benjamin so much that i begged and whined asked politely for permission to borrow him for this fic, which is canon to this fic's world, which makes him part of the tangled web that is the valentine family tree.

IN SUMMATION: bellhop's strong resemblance to nero is almost certainly a little joke on the part of the devs to be like "wooo creepy he's like that scary weirdo with the hannibal lecter muzzle and straitjacket who failed to kill yuffie thus making him history's greatest monster" but joke's on them because they have NO IDEA how microscopic and fragmentary a piece of evidence we can base a gigantic web of headcanons on.

🖤THANK YOU FOR THE ASK ABOUT OUR PRECIOUS SON 🖤

[mmx-zero]

My headcannons for certain robot masters and reploids:

Crashman: *horny ass bastard* I like men~

Hardman: *a gentle giant that probably wants someone to cuddle with but also knows how to throw hands when he needs to*

Elecman: *GAY AS TWINK MOTHERFUCKER THAT'S HOT AS FUCK* (his voice in mega man powered up got me feeling something)

Quickman: *in sonic voice* GOTTA GO FAST-

Geminiman: *narcissistic but still has a nice heart* God I'm the most beautiful thing alive~

Iceman: *makes very cheesy ice jokes whenever he can but a gentle soul for someone with ice powers*

Flashman: *serious and confident yet knows how to treat a man or woman right and is probably one hot gentleman and probably can show you a good time*

Blastman: EXPLOSION IS ART- *starts singing baby bye bye bye*

Burnerman: I WILL BURN THIS PLACE TO THE FUCKING GROUND! *becomes a giant fireball*

Shadowman: *bro is like Espio or whatever the chameleon's name is from sonic both of them look like they'd get along*

Woodman: call me woody one more fucking time I'll shove a whole damn tree up ya ass *Scottish accent*

Tundraman: *zesty ass motherfucker standing in the doorway like your highschool crush looking so damn cool*

Diveman: *inserts Zuma reference from paw patrol* LET'S DIVE IN!

Axl: *crazy ass hyper motherfucker who is restless and a bit reckless and probably occasionally sleeps on the job but he gets the job one one way or another and many people love him*

Bass/Forte: I LOVE LATINAS MEGA MAN- *even though he existed before sonic the Hedgehog did depending if you want to go off by game dates or by lore of their timelines your choice*

Zero: *is sad Iris died but realized according to most of the fandom is gay for X which I approve of the ship but I would imagine he's bi or pan so it doesn't matter to me but he's still cute and handsome as fuck*

MMZ Zero: *is rebuilt in the future to look more like a twink and is still cute for the most part and still slays*

X: *one of the most sympathetic and empathetic people you will ever come across yet some people probably take it for granted but I genuinely love him*

Proto: I'm the coolest robot around *every time before he spawns you hear the whistle in the background*

Sigma: *is just tired of the gen alpha brainrot slang that has his name in it* and you wonder why I want to destroy humanity

Vile: I AM NOT SIGMA'S FUCKING LAP DOG! *Proceeds to sit on Sigma's lap with an angry face*

Pallette: AXLLLLL YOU DIDN'T GIVE ME MY GOOD MORNING KISS THIS MORNING!!! *whines*

(I have more headcannons for mega man characters but this is all I can think of on top of my head for now)

[masked-and-doomed]

heya do you got any oc's or anything? like funger oc's n stuff? i'm obsessed with oc's

*since this post mentions her relationship with pocketcat, implied csa warning. also she's depressed so suicide warning ig*

Also. this is 2k words. waow.

Not specifically funger OCs, but I do have a self insert character that I've put in the funger universe!

(the hair is supposed to be black btw it looks more brown to go better with the colour pallette)

I welcome you to- uh. Right. *Turns to face her* You don't have a name. It's been what, fuckin' 3 years? You still haven't decided anything? Oh, now it's kinda maybe meaningful for your character to have no name? Poetic shit? Yeah sure. *Turns back to face you* So, no name. For our sakes, I'll call her Unnamed Girl(ie). UG for short.

She was a human that suddenly got snatched from Earth and put into a white void. And she was trapped there. With memories of nothing. Why she has no name. Well she has some vague memories of her previous life, like her being fatherless, she doesn't remember any names, faces. Just some interactions.

We dunno what the hell happened to Earth nor her, really, all we can assume is that there's probably some sadistic ass higher being that's putting her through that shit? Watching her suffer every moment here. But, we never got to know. They don't really matter to us really, they've never showed up. Not important.

In the white void, she also gained. Some sort of Godhood? She got powers of some sort. So that's one upside. Downside with this is that she's immortal. And as you see, a white void. Is well. A white void. Nothin in it. Sure, she's made a room for herself to get comfy but then you start to go insane with the fact that you're isolated and that there's no one to talk to and you have no purpose in life and that it feels like you were an unwanted part of the universe that wasn't meant to ever be existing but yet you still do, and then erm she can't take it anymore and tries to. Off herself. Multiple times, in fact!

Too bad for her, immortality exists. Or perhaps better called, eternal youth. She hasn't aged since she got here. Perpetually 12, what a hell to be in, huh buddy? Fucked up thing to add on, the way her immortality works is that she suffers the wounds, damage, pain, before her body starts to regrow it back. (Usually like a minute but if she pushes it, it can be instantaneous.)

After a few days in the white void she starts conjuring up friends in her head to try and combat the eternal loneliness. Barely works. She's got three guys in her head, that talk to her from time to time. They're pretty flat and 2D in personality, UG really isn't that much of a creative girl.

(Oohh tumblr compression...)

So, with these characters, let's show you how horrible she is at naming, hm? We got the furry one, Kats. Sadistic and mean one. Guy with the hat is Meowzerz. Cheerleader, also tries to advise UG to be kind. Gas masked fellow is Koolmeow. Wild card, she does whatever she finds fun. Mostly burning things up.

Really shitty names for those last two. No wonder she hasn't picked a name for herself if these are the names she gave these mfs.

...

Well, fuck. Friends aren't really friend-ing great unfortunately. What to do?

Oh, lookie that. That's a buncha.. games and anime. Huh. Well, might as well get through them. All this white is awfully boring.

So after some days of hell, she got to see stories she's vaguely familiar with. Must been stories she experienced back in her previous life. Entertainment is entertainment.

With nothing else in the void really, she gets heavily attached to these media. Filling her time with making fanart and obsessing over the characters. Three in particular she got attached to, but only one of them is of importance considering where we're headed to in this timeline.

Ahh the cat. The horrid horrid cat. I mean she's a young child, having a man tell him she loves her even when it's just a character written by someone else to be a creepy piece of shit is. Well a charming and interesting specimen such as him sharing affection? She can't help but reciprocate back.

With all the time in this non-existence, she makes a whole shrine of shit. Plushies, posters, figures. She loves recreating his likeness and having something physical to hold. Well, she is most well versed in digital art. That she does remember about herself. She was an artist. And most of him is drawn in a computer over and over again. She has no other way to show her love other than to put him in silly situations and emulate how he reacts. Yes I do mean fanfiction. She has a lotta files of just art of him she made, you don't wanna know how big it is.

Even besides him, she's pretty enamoured with this world of Funger. She'd much rather go through that hell than this hell. At least you can die there. And things actually happen.

...

Oh? We can finally go out? After all this time?

You really did get to find a way out, Kats?

It's.. Ahah. The multiverse thing does actually exist, doesn't it? This.. this is the dungeon...

...

Ah, so much explaining her backstory and I haven't gotten to her personality! Well she's. Seriously mentally ill for one. Isolation for god knows how long and all that. I can only conclude Depression or some variation of it for now, though there is definitely another mental disorder at play here. Erm. We might never know. I don't think she'll ever go to therapy or a psychiatrist.

Due to her being in that void for so long, and with barely any memories, there's some things that she's real bad at. Of course, she retains her memory of how to walk, how to speak and communicate, and most basic human things.

However, this bitch cannot social interaction. How unfortunate, my friend.

She can be very blunt and clear with her words. Oh she also has this stupid thing where she's either really crass and informal or just talks fancy and with a thesaurus. Fucking weirdo. can't talk normal ever.

Next note, she has no respect for anyone. That's not to say she doesn't appreciate anyone's company, she definitely likes a good amount of people. Thing is, since she saw this all in a game she played and saw as fiction. Little dolls for her to play with. She never really got to get out of that thinking. Also that with her being some sorta higher being? Yeah, she thinks a little high of herself. Sometimes. Sometimes. (She also think she's the worst thing ever that existed lmao)

Adding on, she also possesses no self respect. No shame. No dignity. No regrets about anything ever. She just lives on. She's a very YOLO it is what it is kinda gal.

UG has a very normal perception of love. She thinks of violence as a sort of love language to her, she just wants to rip her beloveds to shreds. She also has an intense hatred for the cat, despite him being the one she loves most. The hatred plays along with her obsession of the cat. Also. Um. Yandere. yeah. She's obsessive. Isolation and all that. Makes you intensely crave affection and attention. And also being a child. Forever. Yeah she's quite an attention whore. (self label)

Other effects from the isolation also happen to be extreme boredom. She wants to do anything. In her life. And hey, she's got a lot if it to spare.. plany of time. It is mildly boring her that she knows she's most likely gonna win any battle with enemies but still, the experience of fighting is pretty banger. The adrenaline... Thrill seeking. Ahh... She loves fighting.

So um, with those last two paragraphs, she does normal things to both the party that dared step into the dungeon, and the termina contestants. She's normal about them. She is both heavily protective and extremely violent murder maim.

Ah, next thing! She's quite the contradictory thing. Mental disorder again, she can go from one extreme scale to another. Like her love and hatred, protecting her allies to killing them. High self confidence and self praise to self loathing. Sometimes a little bit of a hypocrite. She's weird.

Her morals are. Eh. Eh. Again, she both cares about everyone's lives yet is also apathetic. She doesn't mind murder too much, as she'll dirty her soul a lot through experiencing the funger universe. This. Image.

Everything might as well just be a game to her.

With all o' this. There's multiple timelines of her doing many different things because of how much she can vary and still be in character (well to me, at least). She can do so much. Silly girl.

--

That's all I can think of for now about personality! Little tidbits about her powers before onto the brief timeline. She has some future telling. If the future is far, she can see more possibilities it can go in, not giving an exact determined route of what will happen. If the future is soon, as in, will this guard swing at her right arm or her left arm in 5 seconds? She can check and the future will be certain, that it will be her left arm that will get cut if she doesn't prevent it.

Most of her powers stem from the other media she watched during the isolation period; she rarely uses the Gods' powers in funger purely to fuck around with it and also confuse smart asses. (enki)

--

After finding an escape from the white void, she wakes up in front of the.. dun dun dun... funger dungeons...

She does what any sane person would do and explores with glee.

They aren't really all that scary to a creature like her, only serving her to activate fight mode and get a rush.

She recruits everyone possible with her knowledge of these dungeons, and decides to change some things.

She approaches Pocketcat as she is done with her journey. There are no more battles to fight. No more exploration to be done in this dungeon. She is satisfied. The girl wishes for Pocketcat to eat her, since she hasn't tried that method of killing herself. (Also because she is crushing hard on this man and she knows he loves her too)

He instead gives a different proposal...

...

Remember how she's a sort of 'god' (but not in the funger way) and has OP ass powers? Well there's actually 2 drawbacks to them.

First one, it is quite exhausting. It is also exhausting just living and breathing in fact, but that's the mental disorders. She can go on long without rest but she will be extremely fatigued if she pushes. And my, she pushes a through a lot.

Second, there's one thing that nullifies her powers. Fear. But ah, with a soul like hers, it is quite difficult for her to fear anything. With problems in her way, she either brushes it over, gets enraged, or drowns in sorrow. How on earth could anything scare her?

Ahaha... Well a few actions made by a specific person could scare her...

(he soo gets off being the only one that can get her into such a submissive state, btw)

The one thing keeping her heart from total darkness, now entirely painted black. What a sad soul.

...

So, he didn't kill her. big whump. Fine though, she thinks about the termina festival in 350 years. She wouldn't mind living for that long to see more silly people. Plus, the dungeon took a lot out of her. A lot more magic she used than usual. This period will be... A nice and long break, she thinks positively. One hell she has endured in here, she will prepare to live through and enjoy another. Plus, if it's all adrenaline rushes, how is she meant to savour Termina?

She occupies her time by living with Pocketcat, and.. His usual activities. She joins in on his child murders from time to time. Not as fun as killing monsters that are fully intending to end her life but snuffing another life is still somewhat satisfying, nevertheless. And hey, fun bonding activity, right?

She also does the same as she did in the void, making a bunch of art and stuff. But this time, she actually has someone she can show it to! Speaking of the cat, they do typical lover activities time to time. Dates, and stuff. Doing things together. Fun!

Both of them had their fair share of isolation for a long period of time and needless to say, their 'eternities' are much more lively and worth living through with a like-minded being by their side.

She also.. has a little fun with the contestants before they enter the worst period of their life..

(This part is totally not because of recent events) After spending 350 years with Pocketcat, she picked up some of his mannerisms to her misfortune. Her hand feels like it should be doing something within conversation, so her subconscious makes her jack off a ghost dick. She's gonna have a fun time with talking to people.

...

Now we're at the festival, one meant to end all festivals! And boy it'll end more than just festivals, alright! Hehe.

At the end of this festival, she has one plan.

And that is to finally rest.

She will not be returning from this trip.

...

So, some stuff were left vague because. well. yeah. I don't fully expect to write this into actual fanfiction, but no worries, I'll reveal the gist of what happens at some point. Whether I actually can find it in me to write it out or just make a post about what happens, we shall see.

Extra stuff to mention:

This is basically her. In every universe she visits.

You can check out the '#unnamed OC core' tag to see. More of her vibes.

I also got a playlist.. of her..

(Also, since this is a self insert about half of the traits mentioned are. me. so. yeah. I should try getting diagnosed for something but idk man I can't find shit)

Got any questions! Feel free to ask anything!! >:3 Hell, I'll even answer in character for fun.

[sinceileftyoublog]

Jennifer Castle Interview: Recognize My GPS

Photo by Jimmy Limit

BY JORDAN MAINZER

I first came across Canadian singer-songwriter Jennifer Castle ten years ago, upon the release of her fourth album Pink City. Enraptured by its lush arrangements, I caught her live at the Hideout later that fall, only to watch her play the record front to back, with no breaks in between, on solely acoustic guitar, putting its awe-filled lyrics front and center. Ever since then, I've realized Castle is an artist who can do it all--she'd follow up Pink City with 2018's grief-stricken, expansive Angels of Death and 2020's unvarnished, semi-improvised folk record Monarch Season. And whenever she comes out with an album, it seems like it comes just when you need it, at the right time of year to boot. Alas, earlier this month, Castle dropped Camelot (Paradise of Bachelors), another autumn opus that finds something celestial in the earthbound.

On Camelot, Castle culls from the best qualities of her previous records. Unsurprisingly, it returns many of the same personnel, like members of her venerable backing band: guitarist Jeff McMurrich, who co-produced it, as well as drummer Evan Cartwright, bassist Mike Smith, guitarist Paul Mortimer, and vocalists Victoria Cheong and Isla Craig. Jonathan Adjemian, who played piano and organ on Angels of Death, bolsters the choogling mid-album highlight "Mary Miracle" and sweeping ballad "Fractal Canyon". Legendary composer Owen Pallett, who provided string arrangements to much of Pink City, does the same for dramatic ballad "Blowing Kisses", a song that, prior to Camelot's release, appeared in an episode of the third season of The Bear. In a sense, Camelot could be a good entry record for those unfamiliar with Castle's albums and performances. It's got a gentle guitar waltz ("Trust") and solo performance ("Earthsong") as well as expressive, upbeat folk songs (the title track, "Louis").

Yet, Camelot simply sounds bigger than Castle's prior music. That's partly attributable to her looser control of the band. For the first time, Castle played only acoustic guitar on the record, giving control of the piano and keys to Carl Didur. The band's mission to unlock the rhythms of the songs, like puzzles waiting to be solved, eventually sees them play up their 70's rock and country influences. "Lucky #8" finds something holy in dance. Backed by slide guitar from none other than Cass McCombs, Castle sings, “So just give the money to the dancers / While their hips go figure eight / And they entrance us with the answers / And we hope and pray the message ain’t too late.” "Full Moon in Leo", meanwhile, juxtaposes a psychedelic keyboard groove with saxophone from in-demand multi-instrumentalist Stuart Bogie, a strutting country tune with a hazy, flower power AM radio edge. It's one of a few times on the album where the song is self-aware. "I did not come here to talk about orange / And all of the things that have come up before us / And Florida and that warm catchy chorus," Castle sings, her free association-style rhyming giving you a front row to her state of mind. The song is a mix of absurd substance and style: At one point, Castle actually sings, "Big hair, don't care."

What's best about Camelot, though, is Castle's mere control of language. For one, she can write tongue twisters that make your ears itch. On "Earthsong", she sings, "Names are small, and names are games / And forces gain good ground / When light moves tat the speed of sound." On "Blowing Kisses", she declares, "I'm not a beggar to language any longer," and later follows it up with a well-timed obscenity that's a humblebrag statement of conquering: "I'm so fucking honored." On "Fractal Canyon", she sprinkles details of people who sound so mythical they have to be real. "I'm with Paul, who's speaking in an Irish accent / Him and I wear tiger eye, and that's no accident / I take comfort in the stripe, the stone of protection / From Daffodil Bill and the thrill of rejection." Whether or not you know who these people are, it's the line repeated over the song's verses that matters most: "I'm not alone here." In the world of music--from her backing band to the characters in her songs--the writer who often performs on stage by herself is anything but solitary.

I spoke to Castle last month over Zoom about how Camelot fits in within her discography, her writing and recording process, capturing negative human emotions, and stripping down her songs for stage. Read our conversation below, edited for length and clarity.

Jesse Harris' Camelot cover art

Since I Left You: The themes on Camelot alternate between the very real and tangible and the more cosmic and abstract. Can you talk about that interplay?

Jennifer Castle: I wonder if that interplay is always present with my songwriting, which tends to feel like an opportunity to travel great distances while, at the same time, tipping your cap to exactly where you are. In writing, it feels very beneficial for me to recognize my GPS, where I am at the moment, whether that's details, something very literal, or something very grounding that I can mention, I can take to ground the concepts, which often tend to try to transcend where I am at the time. I think both distances, the small, minute place, and the large, vast, potentially infinite spaces, are interesting to try to map out when I'm making a record.

SILY: I see that in all of your songs, but it did stand out to me on this record.

JC: I think you're right. There were definitely times when I was recording where I was trying to address larger orbits, larger spheres.

SILY: I might be a little bit taken by the sound of it, too, because your previous record was comparatively minimally arranged. What inspired your decision to make this a much fuller sounding record with a band?

JC: I think Monarch Season was more of a definitive decision than Camelot was. It's challenging for me to be as consistent in vibe as Monarch Season was. I [wanted] to make a record where I set a tone and [continued] that tone all the way throughout. I tour a lot solo because it's accessible, and people afterwards would come to me and say, "What record is like what you just did?" And I'd say, "I don't actually have one." I was always describing my records, saying, "Pink City has these arrangements," and "Angels of Death has a band," so I really made a decision to make Monarch Season the way it was. Camelot returns back to a natural musical sensibility where I like all different types of songs.

Monarch Season also came out right as the pandemic happened. I had made it while I was really busy touring. I stole away a weekend in 2019. It was released at a time when some people were in really still, quiet places, at home. It was seen as something bare and minimal, and collectively, we were going through something that was more essential or quiet. While I was going through those years, I was back to imagining all those great spaces I can take up. I envisioned the Camelot songs sounding the way they did before we even made them.

SILY: Some songs on Camelot do lend themselves to the way you play live, but others I'd be interested to see how you bring down to something more stark. Did you write the songs on guitar before fleshing them out?

JC: More or less. Maybe "Blowing Kisses" I wrote on piano. I think that might be it on this record. I just played acoustic guitar in my kitchen. My son was home a lot--he wasn't in school at the time--so I wrote them at home with my little life happening around me. I have distinctive memories of, not writing in lyric, but strumming out "Mary Miracle" and thinking, "What a funny tune!" It has a propulsion to it. I could already hear it. It's almost like it was already there and I was waiting to get to go and record it.

SILY: That's funny--I wrote down "propulsive" a lot when listening to this record. I love on "Mary Miracle" how you're ranting and you don't finish your sentence before you go back into the chorus: “And I want to know how you came to value / The practice of dragging by the hair those pals who / On their invisible crosses / Of their capitalist bosses / Who in the trash tossed out / That red beating thought that / That all is not lost and / That belief at all cost and...”

JC: I felt this record had a little bit of a breathlessness to it in general. It felt lyrically exhaustive. I don't mean that as a diss to myself, but it had a run-on-sentence aspect to it. Monarch Season, the songs were more lyrically refined or even taking a page from haiku. This one felt like the narrative always could have had one more thing to say. That even presented itself in the recordings and performances. They're wordy.

SILY: Were there any newfound aesthetic or instrumental influences on Camelot?

JC: I certainly have never just played acoustic guitar all throughout a record before. I gave the majority of the piano and keys to Carl Didur, and the rest to Jonathan Adjemian, who does the run on "Mary Miracle". I sat back and let us perform as a band ensemble. I hadn't done that consistently throughout a record before. I often perform bed tracks and build them, and maybe a handful of songs we'll do together, or there's more of a balance between built bed tracks and recording. Other than the two spare guitar songs that I play, [on Camelot,] we went in together. It has a cool ensemble feel, which I love, and I'd like to learn more about how to do that and trust that process.

SILY: That makes a lot of sense. For instance, I had never heard a song of yours ever quite like "Lucky #8" or "Full Moon in Leo", that give jangle pop and Dolly Parton/Emmylou Harris vibes, respectively.

JC: I don't know all of everybody's songs or catalogs, but I've gotten their downloads. I know the energy. Often, people are more taken back live when I share that, but I can embody the energy really easily. I don't know that I had necessarily put it on record before. Even "Sparta" on Pink City was built up from a really spare bed track. Songs that are more rock songs that I've made were more architecturally built. "Lucky" has flourishes, but we got it as a band together. Same with "Full Moon in Leo".

SILY: Even the songs you recorded as a band together have an aspect of restraint that's reminiscent of some of your earlier work: the calmness of the title track, the way "Louis" is built around the bass line.

JC: I always have a fairly funny joke with the people I'm recording with: I don't mean it literally, but I always say we're in a crew. It's kind of like Lord of the Rings. We all have to hunker down together, we all have to find the groove, and not many people get to have fun. Then, there'll be a moment where the bass gets to go for a tour, or maybe we hear something from the guitar player. There's lots of rock music where everybody is doing tons of stuff. If we're going to be together, I like us to hunker in together and hit the groove. That's more of a style I think I have.

SILY: I wanted to ask you about the following lines on "Trust": “Scientists insinuate / That facts are facts and lines are straight / Doctors say they can help / Then stoke you with the fear of death," and, “Church is good / church is great.” Are you bouncing back and forth in tone on those lines? Are you at all being facetious? From what perspective are you singing?

JC: I think that song was the last song we recorded. The band had never heard it. It wasn't even really a song before we recorded it, but I had a hunch it was maybe a song. That song starts with really basic human negative emotions we're all prone to and then scales it out to places where people are in a position of power. The way I think about it, you have the church, then the medical fields and science, then government. [The song] keeps going for places where power is played up. I think it's interesting that it at first links it to these basic human emotions we all feel. I didn't have something I was trying to get across in that song. I had a hunch it would be interesting to include something more paranoid and uneasy with this collection of songs, even though I wasn't quite sure how it would fit in. I thought that was kind of cool, in a resonant way.

I learn a lot about that song when I listen to it, too. I still have things to learn about it. I don't know where it's necessarily entirely coming from, or what it means. But I don't think it has a particular meaning. What I've gleaned is that what starts out in our tiny resonant selves can escalate. You can be in a massive position of power and just work from core human emotions, and those are the negative ones: cynicism, jealousy, anger. I'm not saying they're not good or that I've never felt them. I'm just saying they're there and they run through us. How do those work? At what place do they stop being within the cages of our own being, and more into what we think of as social and collective?

SILY: "Trust" fittingly comes after "Some Friends", a song that deals with the complexities of friendship and interpersonal relationships. I feel like "Trust" is like "Some Friends", but amplified.

JC: ["Some Friends"] has betrayal right up front. Sometimes, I like to get the tough stuff out at the front of the record. I remember when I was sequencing Pink City, I was like, "We have to have 'Working For The Man' and 'Nature' up front." People were saying, "Put 'Sailing Away' up front!" and I said, "No, no, no, we gotta...introduce the spectrum of feelings that might be on the record." There are hurt feelings on "Some Friends". I hadn't really explored that too much. I don't think it's bitter, I think it's more hurt. When you're a writer, you can turn a phrase really quickly and cast it off as being bitter or cynical. I've done that a million times and probably still will. I like sharp wit. But I thought there was something sitting a little more complicated in those first couple songs.

SILY: On "Lucky #8", when you sing, “And I don’t want to lose ya / You’re my only audience / Nor will I abuse ya / By not making sense,” are you breaking the fourth wall and making a comment about obtuseness in songwriting?

JC: [laughs] I like the idea of breaking the fourth wall. It's another thing that would fall under the GPS context, making it suddenly very clear where your position is and where you're at, at the very moment. "Suddenly, I'm singing, and I'm looking directly at the audience." That song is an absolute run-on sentence to me. By the time I get to that place, there is a part of me saying, "Don't turn away yet, I'm trying to get somewhere." At the same time, I think there's me, the human, that wants to communicate so much, and me, as an actual person, I really struggle to communicate. I'm probably really obtuse on a good day when I'm in my kitchen. So I try to communicate really clearly in song, but at the same time, I believe song is like an abstract art. I like abstraction. I've even thought about that line but then thought, "Don't go out of your way to make too much sense if it doesn't serve the moment." Allow things to kind of be multi-faceted or have lots of ambiguity in them. I like that [songwriting is] an abstract art. I want [my songs] to live in spaces that aren't mine and minds and hearts that aren't mine, so I have to cherish abstraction on some level. I have that in common with a lot of people, that it's hard to communicate from our deepest wells of what we think and feel. As a writer, I stab away at it.

SILY: I also wanted to ask you about the album art. If I had heard the record first, or picked up the record in a store based on the art and listened later, I'd feel there was a definite contrast between the starkness of it and the lushness of the record. Was that an intentional contrast?

JC: I gave it all to Jesse Harris, a Toronto artist I admire. He has a severity to him. It's like he's carrying a sword. He cuts away everything in his artwork that doesn't need to be there. There's a very severe austerity to his work, and he's deeply funny. I offered him an opportunity to design the record. Lyrically and sonically, it's really detailed and rich, so I sent him the link to the record, and it wasn't too long until he sent me back the door. I was like, "Oh my god, what does it mean?" and then thought, "Okay, yeah, the door, I love it." [The cover] could have been baroque or a whole visual world to match. In that simple gesture, I think we got to go through the door, and from there, it unfolded. I don't want to speak for him, but I remember in the early days when we were designing it, he saw Camelot as a land he was referencing, like on an old board game like Snakes and Ladders, where you never know where you're ending up, where you can fall down and lose everything, or you can keep climbing and get somewhere. He saw it as a hard place to navigate and wanted to convey that, not to make linear sense of it but to know that there's a journey, or that somewhere, someone's trying to get somewhere. I love the door now. I think it's iconic for this particular record. It's so simple.

SILY: Have you performed these songs live?

JC: I'm just starting to. I performed "Lucky #8" a few times a few years ago when I was on tour with Godspeed You! Black Emperor, as well as "Louis". That's when Jeff McMurrich, who co-produced the record with me, heard them, and asked, "What are those run-on sentence songs you were singing?" [laughs] But I haven't played that many shows. I played "Trust" for the first time last week when I was in Halifax. I hadn't ever played it save for when we recorded it. I just started to play "Fractal Canyon". I've never played "Mary Miracle". They're just starting to come around now.

SILY: Is it just as rewarding as an artistic endeavor to bring the songs back down to their bare elements for an audience, as it was to make them in the first place?

JC: Yeah, it's kind of cool to start to get to know them. I've never played "Full Moon in Leo". I think a band is going to start to rehearse for some shows. That will be cool to hear them with a rhythm section and the vocalists. Me playing them solo is tender. It reminds me of where I was when I wrote them, which can be a really weird element of time-travel.

SILY: It puts you in the same headspace as their original inception. Does that help you connect more with the audience?

JC: I think it does. Catching it on these early incarnations is cool for the audience. You're really hearing something more becoming even if it has a recorded version. Years from now, I'll have played "Full Moon in Leo" dozens of dozens of times, and I'm sure it'll be great, but it'll be really cool to hear these songs start to come to life.

SILY: Are you planning on coming to Chicago?

JC: I'd love to! I'd love to come to the States. The UK is popping up, and Canada is popping up, but it's challenging with the visas to get over to the States. I have to trust, and if people want me to come, I always like to go. It just takes a couple of people, a festival or a promoter reaching out, and I can start to piece it together. But I don't have anything planned. It's challenging I can't just pop over [to Detroit]. I had to say no to a couple shows a couple weeks ago because they would have put me in that region. But it was last-minute, and these visas are very expensive. They take quite a long time to process, months and months. Hopefully, in 2025, I'll come to the States. It would seem weird not to. We are neighbors. [laughs]

SILY: Is there anything else next in the short or long-term for you?

JC: I'm just gonna be trying to get these [songs] up and running to tour. I have a couple shows coming up for the Winter Solstice I play every year. In terms of writing, just a little bit. I'm not taking a break, but I'm focusing more on how to present this music.

SILY: Is there anything you've been listening to, watching, or reading that's caught your attention or inspired you?

JC: I'm sure there has, but I can't really think of it right now. I'm mostly just getting outside and walking around. But I love my friends and the music they make.

Tour dates

12/20: Tranzac Club, Toronto, ON

12/21: Tranzac Club, Toronto, ON

1/22: The Artesian, Regina, SK

1/23: Handsome Daughter, Winnipeg, MB

1/24: TBD, Saskatoon, SK

1/25: CKUA Radio Performance Hall, Edmonton, AB

1/26: The Palomino, Calgary, AB

2/13: The Globe, Cardiff, UK*

2/14: St Luke’s Church at Queens Park, Brighton, UK*

2/15: EartH, London, UK*

2/16: Hare & Hounds, Birmingham, UK*

2/17: St Mary’s Creative Space, Chester, UK*

*with Jake Xerxes Fussell

[thepeonysbackup]

◇Dry Humping◇

Pairing: Alastor x Fem!Reader

Summary: Gumbo, a soup that brings out more then just the taste of its ingredients, but desire from within from a source only taste can trigger. A broth that acts as a honey sculpted cup that holds the aphrodisiac to the minds most fondest of memories. Affection. That is its purest name.

Tags: Mdni, boring plot, dub con (She ultimately enjoys it), dry humping, something I came up with on the spot.

Word count: 2.2k (not proofread)

Request: Yes/No

Part two at: Meal Time

As you stirred the ladel within the large deep pot from your place at the stove, atop your stool with your apron. You gently leaned over the pot as steam rose, inhaling the heated air so you could smell your progress, it was daring to graze the mark of heavenly, much to your excitement as you shifted to finish chopping up the vegetables that were set up on a chopping board on the off side of the stove as the radio played soft jazz in the background.

Being the kind and sweet little vixen you were, you thought you'd do the hotel a favor by cooking the rest of the staff a meal. Taking care to check on the individuals before you went all in on your choice. Angel wanted Asian food, claiming that he'd seen one of the girls at his work snacking on rice balls and wanted some too. Husk said he'd been craving seafood, groaning about how none of the places near the hotel had anything good to sell. Vaggie was bias, 'okay with whatever was cooking in your noggin' in her own words while Charlie urged you to surprise her with excited squeal. Nifty had ended up finding you before you could her, and then handed you a bag of maggots that were still very much alive and asked for a paste. Creepy, but you said okay before actually thinking it through. Pentious had taken a rather long while of thinking before he settled on soup, he wanted a tomato soup. That left you puzzled at what you could possibly make for everyone to equally enjoy, because fusing palletts with rices and seafood was a breeze, but adding a soup into the mix? Oh dear, your idea was becoming difficult to come into flourishan as you trekked down the halls of the hotel to locate the facility manager and overlord whom was currently residing in his pocket dimension like room, which never seemed to stay in a singular one of them, but shift everytime he wanted it moved. So it was a game of chance, knocking on every door you knew as vacant before finally having one opened by the smiling radio demon. He held his cane in the same hand that he had for the door, the other arm folded behind him as he tilted his head to the right in question down at you. "A meal, you say? My, I was going out this evening but I must ask what it is!" He had enthusiastically voiced through his static, but when you said you hadn't decided yet because of how different everyone's cravings were he seemed interested in also giving an option to you. "You always choose Jambalaya, why not another meal?" You complained while thinking of what you could do with all these choices. "I'm afraid it's Jambalaya, my dear. Unless you have any access to some truly delicious venison!" He chuckled out, lightly twirling his cane in his hand as he tapped it on the ground so he could lean his chin on the handle. This was so unfair, what could you possibly make that would—

"Wait, Jambalaya- Jambalaya, Cajun‐ Cajun means that rice, shrimp and- Yes, wait, hold on- Soup- Tomatoes- Vegetables and add extra meat like chicken and venison—" You babbled quickly aloud, drawing Alastors attention a bit more. He cocked a brow at you, lips thinning out as he grinned at your unintelligible banter, "My Dear, you must speak up. I simply can't understand anything when you mumble." He straightened himself up so he could examine his nails as you let out an excited noise, in all fairness it was so sudden that he had every right to tense up as you grabbed his arms suddenly in a tight grasp so you could pull him towards you, "You're a Genius Al, thank you!" You beamed, bouncyness following your stride as you began to quickly make your way back down the hallway to the stairs after letting him go like you hadn't even realized that his static was buzzing like a hornet around the two of you. You were something alright.

As you had just finished throwing the rest of the vegetables into the pot, you pulled out the spices from the lazy susan on the counter, choosing the more mild spices and only about four drops of tabasco before the basil and parsley were dashed in on top. Now the lid was placed, holding in the mouth watering scents that were to come later when they were ready. The music continued, your figure bopping gently around the kitchen as you began to get the plates ready with the rice, plopping large scoops into the bowls so you could hallow them out by pressed them inward with the bottom of the ladel you were using. At the bottom of each of the rice bowls you'd made, you added thoroughly cooked slices of venison to everyone's except Al's and Niftys. Those two were getting their own special snacks added in, the maniacs. Al's bowl got raw, uncooked deer meat at the bottom instead that and a few on a plate below his bowl that had the maggot paste for the side dip. Niftys maggot paste was poured into her bowl and topped with raw shrimp and then the cooked venison. After all of them were prepped, you picked up a rag and wiped your forehead because all you had to do was wait just a bit longer.

"Ah, so you're really cooking. I would have assumed the hotel would be in flames if anyone else were to take a chance in this room, of course Nifty can make some delicious demon spik."

"Haha, very funny Al." Your back was facing the radio demon, ears on alert as his footsteps slowly but casually drew him over to your bubbling pot, inhaling while lightly using his hand to bring the scent of the steam rising from the sides of the lid. He made a delighted noise, static almost completely gone as his claws grasped the handle of the lid and tugged it off, steam bursting upwards to show the contents within. “Well, this sure isn't Jambalaya but by good golly it's gumbo! How clever of you, little darling!” He spoke loudly, amused and seemingly with a truly gleeful smile on his face as his other hand grabbed your waist to pull you near him as he examined your work, nose catching whiff of a different scent near as well. “And if my nose doesn't deceive me," He inhaled deeply near your ear, nose just barely grazing your cheek as he leaned further up until his head was resting above yours, using his height to allow himself to break character for a moment, his eyes turning wide with dials fixed in the center as blood stains began to run down his chin from how hard he was grinning,

"₮Ⱨ₳₮ ĐɆⱠɆ₵₮₳฿ⱠɆ ₴₵Ɇ₦₮ ł₴ VɆ₦ł₴Ø₦.."

The harsh sound of his static made you wince, body tensed further, “Yes, I thought it would be a nice addition, the meats flavor is a bit different and so when you eat it with the broth i-it tastes mildly spicier then without it.” His voice buzzed, a satisfied noise leaving him as he side stepped around you, now back to his normal cheery grin as he took hold of one of the raw slabs of venison and dangled it above his mouth before slowly opening his jaws like a snake threatening to attack. Then, with a swift move, he clamped down on the thin piece of meat and tore it out of his hand in a single whip of her head to the side. “Truly a marvelous snack you've provided here, darling doe.” His nicknames were slowly progressing to more dearing comparisons, making you flush as you lifted you ladel and placed it back into the pot to stir it, but not before you climbed back onto your stool to do so.

-

Time went by as you cooked, Alastor remaining hovering with his quiet buzz of static as he enjoyed the meat that you had to offer, the fact that you had taken so much time just to get everything you had needed for him making him feel as though he was more important, even if you were making dinner for everyone. His eyes held true to your figure, that smile that forever kept its place on his face widening as he slowly lost himself in thought as he observed your lips lightly shy away from the utensil you'd pulled from the hot boil to get a taste of the broth, the contents being too hot to consume so suddenly before you blew on it. He reveled in the way you moaned at the creamy liquid, eyes shutting blissfully as a hand came to cover your lips like it would hide the long trickle of the broth from his sight. No, he saw it, and how he craved to be the very thing that would lick the taste off you, the tongue that would replace your own that darted so quickly out to take the drop for itself. That, nostalgic.. that warm and soft, dare he say heavenly taste from your lips, from your tongue. Alastors static began to grow in volume, his body inching closer to yours on the stool as he felt a growing pain from below at your half bent over form over the stovetop. “Do you often leave yourself so openly vulnerable to just anybody.. or… Am I just lucky?” He asked, suddenly right against your ear from behind, both hands atop each of yours as his physique pressed you into the dangerously hot Kitchenware. “What?-” You had asked, bewildered at the sudden change in atmosphere the room was in just moments ago. 

Alastor hadn't really heard you, ears pressing back into his head as he pressed his crotch against the plush softness of your ruffled skirt, lightly moving the fabric of his bulge against your rear in slow rolls of his hips. It was sudden, hesitant almost, as if Al hadn't been planning for this to happen whatsoever. “I asked you a question, hmpf- d-dearest..” He hushed against the back of your neck, nipping it with his teeth with a hiss, his hands that had yours pinned down gripping harder to keep you in place as the stretchy fabric of your skirt rode up on your ass at the force used in his motions. The friction had you boggled in the brain, a few noises of concerned pleasure rising up into your throat as you thought hard about his question. “Ahn- N—no-..” She answered, earning a tut from the overlord behind her, the fabric of your panties were getting bunched up and pulled down about half way, “That's not a proper answer, now is it Mon Cher?” A little cry escaped you, the feeling of his pants rough texture against your soft petals making tears of overstimulation well in your big doe eyes. “I-I— I don't know- I can't- Ouu- Fuck!-” Alastor hushed you, a hand freeing one of yours so his could trail up to your neck so it could wrap around it in a firm grip. Your pretty face being cranned upwards and back so he could see the fucked out blissful expression on your face as your own hand reeled back to hold fast against his hip, a last attempt to push him away being futile as his movements became more spurred by you noises, faster and faster. "Such vulgarity," He groaned into your ear, breath hot and growling excitedly, "Speak again, speak to me. Tell me how you crave more, Mon Cher-" Your voice called to him, his name slipping past your lips like a hymn, a lament, a song.

Oh, how he adored your voice, strained and laced with need.

How he desired more as the coil in his mind snapped, antlers growing in size as he hunched over and into your back, head lightly using you as stability while his demonic form grew, long arms and gnarly claws digging into your clothes enough to tear the flesh, not only fabric. The dials of his eyes spun, his legs buckling as your bare cunts juices flowed lazily down his front, the warmth he felt as he released as well pulling a guttural growl from his throat as the both of you eased into a slower more controlled pace.

This hadn't gone as planned, but he sure as hell wasn't complaining.

[dawn-falls]

Is FNAF still relevant? I don't know, but I'll share a little (or not) idea I had for a fangame/story. I actually had this since 2019/2020, but to my lack of motivation, drawing skills (which I still don't have), social media and other personal reasons I'd not like to share, I gave up on it. Without taking any long, I'll share what I have in mind for now.

Five Nights at Moon's.

(Written in first person, since the player/you will control the MC).

You're a senior high schooler and you're a new nocturnal bodyguard of a local store of your town, the Moon's Sweets and Pies. Just in there for some extra money to pay for prom tickets and college. Before your shift, you met Ella Waldridge, the manager, who takes you around for a tour to meet the main five animatronics, who were all named after natural satellites: Europa, Triton, Phobos, Deimos and Moon; Moon was the leader of the group.

On your first night, you're assigned to keep an eye on the kitchen, since the employees have complained of things going missing at night. What you didn't expect was to find out that the animatronics of the bakery were not turned off and they were programmed to attack. But, were they really just animatronics...?

The truth is far beyond that, but you'd have to investigate yourself, since your coworkers denied everything. It would take you five nights of lurking and surviving for you to find pieces of two sides of a very dark story; one in an old newspaper and the other one in the spread pieces of a teenager's diary.

Notes

I have not planned much of this, since it's a story I brought back to my memories not too long ago and decided to build it up. Too bad for me that:

I suck at drawing, especially digital.

I can't make any games.

I have a thousand of stories, both digital and physical ones to complete.

But I didn't give up yet! I am lucky that my mind races like a machine with very little need of being fueled back up, since it's always charged.

If you're wondering if I have any plans for a greater antagonist, more animatronics, or if I planned the MC's name, the answer is yes. About the MC, though, I didn't think of a surname.

Two extra animatronics:

Callisto;

Ganymede;

Greater Antagonist:

[Redacted] Hughes

She has a past connection with FNAF Purple Bunny Man.

MC's name:

Allison Lytle

That's all I have for now. If someone shows interest or I start finding my style more likeable, then I'll get to drawing it all. The animatronics will be the hardest for me, as they all have humanised traits but with colour pallettes and details of the moons they're named after.

Thanks for reading this! See you next time.

[ye-local-simp]

Warnings: Chapter 5 spoilers, theories

Just for those who have not yet done it since you know, ENG version

So wait... Mickey doesn't know us either??? But it's also kind of a coincidence as well. Like I feel like Crowley knows about Mickey though. Otherwise he wouldn't give us a room with this mirror and a ghost camera to top it off. Plus it might explain why he isn't particularly that worried about us getting home. And he isn't worried at all when it comes to us(as if he knows), like he isn't worried about evacuating us even though we would certainly not have the magic to defend ourselves.

Plus this makes me even more curious about RSA:like how do their students get picked. Is it something like the dark mirror. Maybe Ambrose may know(he's based on that Wizard in the sword in the stone), so he does know a lot about magic and maybe other dimensions. And if Ambrose and Crowley are rivals in a way, who is Crowley even based on. Because it seems that most of the rivals are enemies in the actual story.

I feel like at some point we would visit RSA too because I dont think one Malleus overblot is going to get us home.

And Grimm, I feel like he also knows something. I mean more about how we got there. I mean it may not look like it but he was written in a way that it makes it look like that. Even his name,(Grimm is the surname of the twins that originally wrote these most of the fairytales that Disney animates). Plus the monster we fought at the very beginning of the game(it had the same pallette of colours Grimm had and it had blue flames/a monstrous cat appearance. Basically, I'm trying to say that maybe it wont end with Malleus but rather Grimm. In addition, I think that Grimm is a actually based on a character but the question is what character?

Another thing is that I think the dark mirror does know something as well. It's just how it was portrayed that it makes me think that it was hiding something. Like it somehow knew where Epel should go even though the nature of his heart isn't the goal of Pomefiore. Plus this mirror has a connection to every story somehow despite the role of a mirror being essential in snow whites story(Im trying to say that the mirror is closely linked to for example,Savanaclaw, even though a mirror hasnt been shown in the lion king even once.

Anyway that's all I have for today so now I want to hear your ideas!!

Feel free to also type your theories/ideas

[justanotherfanartist]

Realizing now that 12 year old me wrote some deep and unnecessarily complicated shit, included but not limited to:

-a main cast and storyline of Splatoon 3, mostly with original characters and crossed over with the CoroCoro manga. Including new bands, idols, main enemy story, new weapons, stages, ranked modes etc. I made goddamn character lineups for these, I have a ton of sketches. There were complicated dynamics including the falling out and repair of a drunk fight between an older brother and his bipolar younger sister, realistic friend group reactions to that, how it pushed her on her femme retake yet unstable path. Includes Mutual pining between other characters, relationships. One of them was flamboyantly gay.

-an entire new tf2 class that I balanced out, detailed down to ammunition and health (+ Uber charge) character backstory etc, relationship dynamics with the other classes and specific taunt/dialogue lines. Included character sketches.

-a main villain for agents of shield, included a character design, personality to a tee. Included specific scenarios and character deaths she would cause. Femme fetale but murder energy. Signature weapon, her whole thing was hiding in plain sight. Fancy antagonist.

-wedged a character and storyline into the force awakens when it first came out. Relationships, sibling reveal, followed the canon.

-when Fucking insane for the clone wars. Jedi commander, a shit ton of clones whom I fleshed out to a t, CC numbers, unique armor. Jedi commander whom I loved, nickname backstories for all the clones, a complicated rivals to best friends storyline that ended in a self sacrifice that left the rest of them with trauma and ptsd. Followed them through order 66 and after, all of their deaths planned out, I even wrote the reuinion between the commander and her surviving battalion members. They had a unique name and custom armor designs/symbols. Followed the canon timeline while doing all of this. barely any canon characters however r, when I tell you I went batshit with the originality I mean it.

-AN ENTIRE FUCKING VIDEO GAME.A DETAILED PLOT LINE COMPLETE WITH CONCEPT ART, BOSS FIGHTS, ABILITIES, ENDEARING SIDE CHARACTERS AND SO MUCH SYMBOLISM. I WORKED OUT GAME MECHANICS, I KNEW HOW THE PROGRESSION WOULD FEEL AND HOW THE ANIMATION WOULD LOOK. I HAD EVERYTHING SHORT OF A SCORE. I HAD THE SEQUEL AND THE DLCS PLANNED OUT. I DESIGNED IT TO EMOTIONALLY INVEST THE PLAYER AND INTRODUCED UNIQUE MECHANICS INTO THE GAME TO SET IT APART FROM OTHER TITLES. Main themes included internal conflict, revenge, the morality of deciding whether you’re human or not, so much gore, choosing your own path, destroying capitalism, environmental issues, how to cope with you being the monster, watching The main characters morality deteriorate. Bomb ass character design if I do say so myself. Would have been a pixel art metroidvania with a distinct Pallette and art style I created. that wasnt detailed at all compared to the real thing but when I tell you I literally have an entire video game franchise I made in my head I am not kidding. The one person I’ve detailed the entire thing out to thought it was genuinely cool so I’m happy about that.

-had a really gay webtoon I plotted out. Character dynamics, pining, coming out, will they won’t they, diverse cast. Punching homophobes included. Lovable characters. Emotionally investing. Cute name. Not as detailed as everything else but I still like my idea. A trans big sister figure who I don’t think anyone could hate.

-an entire warrior cats book series, loosely plotted out. I wasn’t alone in making this actually, a friend and I did it together. All original characters, we made all for clans. Drew and developed self inserts. Complicated dynamics. Included outcast trope, kinda creep behavior (to me at least). Naive characters, sibling dynamics, very good art my friend made- Full pallettes and ref sheets to.

BRO I WAS TWELVE HOW DID NO ONE REALIZE I HAD ADHD JFC

the problem is most of the details are in my head. I’ve written and drawn a large chunk of this out but I have so much more to do ugh. I do have some old writing I’ve been going through and a chunk of it holds up so there’s hope yet.

*protective of my own ideas sorry if these are vague lol. I love some of these and I’ve filled sketchbooks and notebooks with them. I’m just paranoid sometimes.

[equestrianwritingsstuff]

OH MY GOD YOU HAVE TO CONTINUE THE DROWNED SERIES, IT'S SO DAMN GOOD

Thank you for the ask, it makes me excited to see that people are still interested.

Drowning Part 10

@shydragonrider @asrasmysoulmate @sunflower1000

This one is kind of short, and probably makes no sense, but it starts to explain the story line a bit more and what my goal is with Supervillain (and perhaps the reason I am not having him rescued... yet 👀). Anyway, not edited.

Ask games for this series are here and here.

Masterlist

Warnings: referring to person as "it", altered state of reality, dehumanization, muzzled, talk of surgery, weaponizing a human, fear

~

"Okay thank you for your cooperation," the director said as he stopped the recording. He looked up, smiled, and began to pack away his things- an array of various instruments to enable both Villain and Hero's voices to be clearly heard all the way at the Hero Facility.

"Yeah well, I expect my pay within the next two days," Villain crossed his arms and swung his leg over top of the other one.

"That may not be-"

"Director. I am doing this for you guys. I have my record cleared, Hero in my custody, and a billionaire. I don't need to this for you guys."

"But you are in love with the cash," Hero chimed in, rolling her forestry green eyes. Not with attitude or snarky annoyance, but out of pure loathing.

Villain shot her a glare the second she closed her mouth and stood up, pacing. "I want my pay, fifty-thousand for a mere conversation isn't something you come by everyday," he said, rubbing his hands through his blonde mane.

"Yes but-"

"The only reason it was fifty-thousand," Hero interrupted the director. "Is because you pushed it that far." She didn't exactly understand her exasperation. After all, she agreed to do this with him- not that she had a choice. She was, in fact, thankful for him for breaking her out of the facility, even to the point of restoring friendship.

"Well they consented..." Villain's voice trailed off as he stopped his aimless walking. He sneered, a mischievous look dawning on his face. "I could, just for the record, break Supervillain out of his cell easily. Actually, I bet a novice could."

The director stiffened, fingers tapping the screen on his phone, prepare to call the authorities. Hero smiled slightly. After her aided escape, the heroes didn't bother to recapture her or Villain. And it was all because her rescuer threatened the Hero Facility if they tried to reclaim her. It was like he controlled the heroes- and maybe in a way, he did.

"Okay you will get the money! Write him a check or cash him over some. I don't care, just give it to him."

Villain snickered at the director's desperation and fear.

Hero watched as a young girl scribbled a check and handed it to Villain. Then, after than transaction, the whole team wrapped up and left without another word.

"Hmm," Villain said, eyeing the check he possessed.

"What do you want for dinner?" Hero asked, repeating the lines her current maid position required of her- not that she had to, Villain was not strict enough to enforce rules, but cleaning and cooking seemed to put his explosiveness at ease.

"Nothing. I have a date."

A date?!

"You have a girlfriend?" Hero chuckled. "Who is the unlucky damsel?"

"That's besides the point, but she is quite pretty."

"How long have you been dating?"

"This is our third date within the course of two months."

Two months... that was duration of time since she and Supervillain were kidnapped.

"Not that consistent then," Hero commented instead of voicing her curiosity.

"She works as a nurse, so she is quite busy," Villain replied, folding the check and placing it in his jean's pockets.

"I see," Hero replied. "Where is your date? Please tell me you are not taking her to McDonald's."

"That coffee date in the park sounded great," Villain replied. "Then I was thinking Taco Bell."

"No, no, no!" Hero scolded, pushing herself to her feet. "You are not taking this poor girl on a date to a fast food restaurant. You are a billionaire, Villain. Take her to one of those places where they serve an ounce of food for thirty dollars and spoil her."

Villain blushed, pulling at his fingers nervously. "You know a couple months ago I thought I would be taking you on a date."

"Me too," Hero sighed, placing her hands on her hips.

"I guess life took a turn, didn't it?"

"Yes," Hero replied, extending her arms and wrapping Villain in an embrace. Before she let go, she whispered:

"Torture was in that turn to, wasn't it?"

Villain's muscles tensed, he coughed and pulled away. "See you tonight," he said and ran up the stairs to go get changed.

《~~》

All at once, a piece of light, a string of consciousness sprouted through the dark unconsciousness of the patient's mind. It swirled, bombarding lidded eyes with intolerable brightness. They strained, trying to shut, but it was as if the motor lost control- or gained control, depending on which side of the metaphor you are one.

Then the light formed into various shapes, some holding objects of humanoid form whereas others were cubical, rectangular and circular- making the world around the patient pixelated and blurry. Colors rounded to the basis of their hue- cyan swirling into blue, pale yellow whisking itself into an off-white- until the world was a pallette of bland coloring.

The noise, lolling in a sense, but also increasingly obnoxious. Beeps and rings, rumbles and grumbles, but all the vowels and consonants equaled a series of off-tune words, some faded, others marked with clarity.

Not safe, were the only cognitive thoughts. Not safe not safe not safe. He tried to thrash, anything to get away from the looming danger, though his protruding limbs were too weak, will devoid of any resolve.

More sounds rumbled and purred around him as equally slow restraints grappled at his arms and legs- or were they fast paced? The man didn't know. The perception between reality and unreality was dim, as was his ability to process sleed and direction. Heck, he didn't even know his own name, just the anticipated danger.

He coughed, or tried to, some form of blockade in his mouth inhibited any sound, cough or otherwise, to escape. Tears pricked at his eyes, later streaming down his cheeks- he wanted to go home. Home to that dank apartment that couldn't seem to leave his very intellect. He wanted home, needed home...

The shapes around him once again began to evaporate, but this time instead of mixing into like shades and tones of color, they all shifted to one mass of brown-colored mud before it all vanished into blackness again.

《~~》

"Vitals?"

The doctor's voice ran throughout the room as nurses scrambled to check Supervillain over. The room soon sung with a chorus of "Good".

"Then everyone is dismissed other than Doctor and Medic," a new voice, equally as authoritive yet significantly much more of a feminine type.

All the nurses practically galloped out of the room as a hoard, not daring to look at the woman who just stepped in.

"Leader," the doctor greeted the woman. "What brings you here?"

"I've come to look at the project. I heard it just underwent surgery?" The lady spoke, walking up to the bed where the unconscious patient rested.

"Yes, knee replacement surgery," the doctor replied, joining Leader by the bed. Medic appeared across from them, tenderly rubbing her fingers over the supervillain's hand.

"Fifteen hours on the table," Leader continued to speak, observing Supervillain with contempt in her gaze. "Why?"

"We had to replace the entire knee cap with a newly engineered material made from cells of donors and a type of substance formed from titanium to enhance strength and durability. Then we had to connect the nerves and ligaments to the knee so he can control it like normal."

"Also known as a high-tech prosthetic? Why, may I ask, did my project have to get one?"

"Broken knee..."

"Shattered, Doctor," gray eyes darted around to meet the doctor's humble brown ones. "Not broken, but completely shattered. It needs to be fully operational by the end of the month."

"Ma'am, the recovery is going to be rough-" the doctor tried to protest.

"We have serums for that," Leader groaned, throwing her head into the air.

"It is not safe to drug him with much. His cells and blood need to adapt."

"I don't care. I put a lot of time and effort and money into this project. The enemy is going to launch an attack soon, our spies have gathered enough data to anticipate it by the end of the month. You have been soft Doctor, in his training."

"It's been working," the doctor reasoned.

"It's submission, not training. Ever hear of conditioning?"

"I have done some research into it and I believe that we need to take a more-"

"Yes you are right," Leader smiled. "I don't want a bodyguard. I want a weapon with one, single purpose. Eliminate Hero."

"I don't get that," Medic spoke up, her voice soft, yet filled with courage. "Why get rid of Hero when she is not the enemy?"

Leader chuckled, eyes thinkling. "What an ignorant little girl, so cute though. Did you do your make-up today? Hmm." The baby talk rapidly switched to a more serious tone, "She is a threat, even bigger than this newfound enemy. The moment she joins sides, which we know she will, the odds will be... let's say any attempt to stop them will be suicide."

"We contained her once before..."

"She will be mad, you'll see," Leader acquired a distant look in her dreary gray eyes. "Start weaponizing it. Immediately."

《~~》

Run.

Duck.

Jump.

"I love you."

"Love you more."

Punch.

Supervillain was panting for breath by the time he collapsed on the ground, exhausted to the highest extent. Sweat beaded around his hairline- recently trimmed in a convenient, yet flashy style, with a lightning bolt shaved into the side.

"I love you."

"Love you more."

Supervillain groaned, rubbing shaking hands over his face. Turn it off turn it off turn if off...

Everyday started with a morning workout in the gym. The gym had a track running around the whole thing with obstacles for him to duck under and jump over. The center only had a punching bag and a benchpress, but equally sweaty and daunting.

Suddenly, the loudspeaker rang, signaling that Supervillain could leave.

Once, of course, training was done.

Workouts weren't training, they were extra credit designed to get him further, to get him a higher GPA.

The doctor entered the room, so Supervillain stood up- respect, expected and therefore delivered.

"How many laps?"

"Twenty-five, sir."

The doctor took note of that on his clipboard, frowning before asking his speed.

"5 miles per hour, sir."

This time, the doctor smiled. "Good," he praised, then looked at the benchpress.

"Three hundred pounds," the doctor tapped the dumbbell with his pen, still grinning widely. "Nice work, but yesterday you did three-fiftey."

Supervillain whimpered, squeezing his eyes shut. He failed he failed he failed he failed.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, proceeding to walk towards the nearby intern to receive the needed correction.

The intern raised her hands, holding a contraption of metal and leather, and slipped it into Supervillain's mouth. He whimpered upon feeling the cold metal slid onto his tongue. A leather strap held it in place, tightly buckled in the back of his head. From that extended more leather that went over his nose. A chain was linked through the nasal strap, more cold metal on warm skin.

Abruptly, he was pulled forward. The metal pinched that nerve- the one that always ached from the commonly given treatment.

The intern pulled him into yet another white room.

Yet this one contained the most dreaded torture implement.

[saltysunflowersugar]

POV: you just pronounced Veniza as Venice

[wm-paintbrush]

🖊

So you're letting me pick? ... *laughs maniacally* THAT WAS A BAD IDEA HUN ---------------------------------------- So i have alot of ocs actually- and alot of sonas also from the past, present, future- so excuse me but you GAVE ME PERMISSION TO GUSH. But to keep you sane, i'm gonna skip over most of the "dead" characters Savvy is one of 4+ characters that i absolutely still adore, and keep in my little oc-world A grey to red and reddish pink color pallette, fennec fox-plushie. I mainly inspired her personality of the vibe i give off to any newcomers- and well- she also has 1 different form that i previously called "Darkus" for some reason Void is the next, a white to turquoise and cyan color pallette, glitchy fox. I think she's kinda like the vibe after you've known me for awhile? But that might have changed- all i know is she glitchy and cool lmfao Also previously shown to melt, might keep that Mayah and Daeva simultaneously are Bacterial Contamination Cats Because DAMN if being edgy wasn't enough, add the spooks! and stabs Enough of the jokes though, Mayah is the one with a scarf and is overall shy for some fucking reason and Daeva is an edgelord due to- well i'll mention them later. Both are (darker) grey and red with possible pink/white stingers... idk yet it's been a while! Molse, who i actually felt like should have kept the albino-mouse-rat species, might become a rabbit later on. White-black-red and neutral. Smol boi lmfao. Might have been a victim to either Mayah or Daeva- I forgot the name of this one, probably was too complex- I have a molecule-alcohol-dog character and i think they're absolutely NOICE! Might have to explore this character more so their story could begin showing to me. I have a few others somewhere but those are the most interesting... But i bet you wanna know that guy who corrupted Daeva, didn't cha? Corrupto is currently their/his name, and currently is a loose runaway corruption. Took a liking to Daeva, but.. they still are a fuckass even if that liking exists (= Oh and they probably will stay like that until showing a clear sign of redemption muahahahaha i'm evil Now for some of the interesting ones Starting of with another corruption who'se previous host i won't say.. We have my little experimental creature, Vortex! They're a little mess, learning as they go. But man, they're a BIT different from the others, and fun to draw for some reason. Btw both corruptions are black (white or red) goopsters lmfao Honorable mentions before the ones i've drawn more often: Pencil [AU], kinda child and bean, might not be innocent deep down though. Zodiac dream demon, and of course you already have the possible right guess at who their origins deprive from. That one roomba and (grappling+something else) gun who if i draw more often, will be to background tests or other fun shit Emma and that one sign, two characters i entirely made up just from the game and previous arg that i love(d) as fuck [Changed | Pooche and Pansy] Now excuse me, but i wanna talk about Tempus! That one bibically accurate angel looking clock! I love that one. A time entity who i'm starting to suspect might be related to Painty over there- Also they have a cracked side of glass for some reason?? Hmmm.. Well i obviously know why for that one, but go ahead and theorize. Also i haven't choosen their colors yet but they have a tail, lmfao- that's mostly all Chi, who i might be mashing up with the other heart character in a weirdcore post, is my little emotion/soul demon who started of as a pure vent character but now might just be an emotionally unstable bean. Can't decide if they're blue or purple, but otherwise i just love my little heart fello <3 Also she chills around PaintBrush cause yes. And PaintBrush, my dearie self, multidimensional zodiac dream demon! Creative, unpredictable, and matched to my chaotic personality, and i absolutely love her so much i swear to axol- Um anyways, she is really respecting and caring, but can lose herself to demonic senses and also emotions (cause i lose myself to emotions sometimes

no cap) and might or might not have been- [spoilers] Also she's friends with a Bill cipher, how perfect, totally not the same Bill cipher that hangs around me. And i think that's most that i can gush about.. for now. If it sounds like i rambled then sorry, but.. not sorry agDSGOPIEOSPRHI- Anyway this is from a while ago, but shows alot of the characters i've talked about here. NOW MERRY CHRISTMAS SHOOKAS

[dr-mesmer]

I.The Carpenter

Rumor "With many skeletons in her closet, she came to the manor in search of her lost lover."

Name: Lucy Fritzel Sex: Female Age: 28 Date of birth: October 17th Good at: Working with wood Like: romance novels, housework Hate: fake people Role: Contain Tool: Hammer

External traits:

Handyman: Carries around a hammer that is used to fix broken palettes, bringing them back to their laid down state. There is 20 seconds cool down between each use. Fixing the palette alerts the hunter.

Lovestruck: Not wanting to hurt her lover, the Carpenter is not able to stun the Hunter.

Alert: Due to her excellent knowledge of surroundings, the Carpenter can't be hurt while throwing down the pallette.

Woodwork: Wood is the material she knows the best. Her vaulting speed while vaulting through palette is increased by 10% but window vaulting speed is decreased by 10%.

Deduction Target:

1. Forever together There is an unbreakable bond between them.

Conclusion A photo: A young girl and a boy standing in front of an orphanage, holding hands.

2. Innocent There is nothing more pure than young love.

Conclusion A list: Piece of clothing, toothbrush, lighter, wrapping paper, envelope

3. Splitting up It's a heartbreaking experience

Conclusion From a letter 1:"Please. This got out of hand. We can't be seeing each other anymore. You have to leave me alone..."

4. Following The want to be as close as possible.

Conclusion From girl's diary 1: Today I've seen him with some people I don't recognize. Are they close?

5. Protection This is for your own good.

Conclusion From a letter 2: "I beg you. Leave them alone. They did nothing wrong."

6. Warning Sometimes things don't go as planned.

Conclusion A restraining order: "Violations of restraining orders is associated with certain stalking themes and the number of stalking actions." 7. Labyrinth If you love me, you can find a way out.

Conclusion A plan of a labyrinth. The path to the exit seems to be changeable.

8. Reunited The day has finally come

Conclusion From girl's diary 2: "It's been a week since we started living together. For now, the construction seems to be working. He is still searching for the path."

9. Searching Where are you my beloved?

Conclusion From girl's diary 3: "I don't know how, I don't know where but he escaped. The only thing left is this envelope."

10. Missing What happened here?

Conclusion From police's investigation: The owner, just like the victim, has not yet been found.

11. Clue It must be true.

Conclusion Lucy Firtzel's Invitation Letter: We sincerely invite you to join a special game. Someone is waiting for you in the manor.

[hankkd7]

OG Bass is finally here in DiVE!

RiCO: Everyone~ Player-san has recruited a new member. And you will be surprised to see who it is. Come on in! Gates open Forte (Bass): Tsk. I dont have to listen to you. Netto (Lan): Is he... Rockman.EXE: Looked like... Forte: Well. Well. Well. If it isn't my arch enemy, Rockman! Rockman: Forte?! Forte: Rockman! Rockman: Forte! Forte: Rockman! Rockman: Forte! Forte: Rockman! Rockman: Forte! Spongebob (TV): Spongebob. (From episode 'Imitation Krabs') Rockman & Forte: Would you turn that off!? Pandora: What? I want to watch it. Forte: So, Rockman. I heard from Tab Girl say that you, Shady (Protoman) & Blondie (Roll) are here as Player's recruits. So, I thought I could be Playable so I can deal with you. Rockman: Face it, Forte. We're Player's recruits now. We don't fight each other. We fight against other Players' recruits. RiCO: He's right. So let's be good friends and- Forte: Friends? BAH! I wish... X: So, this is Forte you guys talked about. Blues (Protoman): Correct. Forte is made by Dr. Wily to destroy Rockman. Forte: Tsk. Says to that Old Fool (Dr. Wily) had failed many times. And, who the hell are you? X: M-me. I'm X. Forte: X? That's a ridiculous name I ever heard. And your design looked like Rockman is awful. Vava (Vile): Hmph. I like that guy. Roll: Shame on you, Forte. He is my 'younger' brother you're talking about. Forte: Your brother? Hahahahahahahahaha. Rockman: What's so funny? Forte: Don't make me laugh. He... is your 'Younger' Brother. Where do he comes from, the future? RiCO: That's right. X was created by Dr. Light it was after he & Rockman death. Forte: Rockman is dead? Does that mean that I killed him in the future? RiCO: Oh no no no. It was Zero. Forte: Who? RiCO points at Zero Forte: What?! You?! RiCO: Zero was created by Dr. Wily. It was his masterpiece to destroy Rockman. Zero: No matter what she's talking about. But, I'm not made by Dr. Wily. Forte: Gr... That Old Fool make this hunk of junk to replace me?! I want to kill that fool! RiCO: No chance. Because Dr. Wily is already passed away when Zero was born. Which of course you died too. Forte: ... I see. By the way, Blue-haired girl. Where's my partner? RiCO: You mean Gospel (Treble)? Well, he's not available yet. But, I'm sure Capcom will complain to me for added him into the Deep Log. After all, I am an administrator of this game. Forte: Hmph. Well, you've better. You! X: Me? Forte: Show me what you've got. Show me your strength. I want to see that you're stronger than Rockman. X: Uh... Alright. At Simulator Room X: I won't go easy on you, Forte. Forte: Ha. You're just being a robot chicken. Bring it! Later Forte: Ow... How did I lose to him? X: I guess I am stronger than Rockman. Or not. Next Forte: Name & Occupation. Volnutt: Rockman Volnutt, I'm a miner. Forte: Lame. Fight me. Later Forte: Ow... Why am I lose to a miner!? Next Forte: Name. Rockman.EXE: Rockman.EXE, a Navi. And this is my operator & my brother- Forte: Enough chitchat. Fight! Later Forte: Ow... Oh, Come on! Next Forte: You are? Copy X: Copy X. Do you have what it takes to take me down? Forte: Pfft. You're just being a showoff. Have at me, Imposter! Later Forte: HOW DID I LOSE AGAIN?! RAAAAAAAAAGH... Copy X: That's for calling me 'Imposter'. I'm outta here... Forte.EXE: It seems you had trouble with battling all Rockmen, eh. Forte: Who the hell are you? You looked just like me. Forte.EXE: I'm a Navi version of you. Forte.EXE. I heard that you're powerful just like me. Forte: Forte.EXE. Ha. Only one who can named Forte. And that is, ME! Bring it on, chum! Let see who is the strongest! Forte.EXE: Show me. Forte: Oh, I will. Take that! Later Forte: Depressed Why... Forte.EXE: Hmph. What a drama queen. Guess I'm powerful than you. Walk away RiCO: Okay, Forte. That is enough. And it looks like Player-san is choosing you on this mission. So, come on. Forte: Bah! Player, you better control me carefully or else. Player texts 'OK' Forte: You'll see... You all see...! That I am better than Rockman! I am Forte! I AM FOR- Trip on the teleportation panel Ow. Transported RiCO: Hmm...

Layer: What's wrong, RiCO? RiCO: Oh, nothing. It's just... about what Bass-sama said to me during the event mission. He said that a mysterious girl that looks a lot like me. Iris: Oh, Kinda like Iris C, where she & Nii-san merged together. Iris (Another): Really? A girl looks like RiCO. That was surprise. RiCO: I know right. Ooh, I can't to meet myself. I feel like something for me. Pallette: And what's that? RiCO: Well, I really want to have a twin sister just like Iris-sama & Iris C-sama. But... I will be older sister to my other self. Iris: I see. Teehee. Iris (Another): Kinda like Player, eh. Alia: What do you mean? Iris (Another): You see, Our Player named is 'Soon'. He has a twin brother that is his older brother, 'Nega-Soon'. X: 'Soon' & 'Nega-Soon'? Axl: Our Player sure is mysterious person that we met. Zero: Hmph. Tell me about it. End scene

[currently-in-fanfiction-hell]

Days at the Hunter Base, CHAPTER 3: GAME ON! (Originally from my Quotev account)

Axl was bored.

Well, it was to be expected, with no Maverick incidents around, he was bound to be bored, while he did think that it was nice that Maverick Hunter HQ was quiet for once, he also found it quite...well, boring.

He'd go to the training room sometimes and fight against old Mavericks, but after a while to him it had the same entertainment value and skill needed to watch paint dry.

Occasionally, he'd use his A-Trans ability to take the form of X or Zero in an attempt to confuse and prank the two, but it stopped being fun when they learned how to figure out it was him, the joke lost its charm quickly.

Needless to say, when there weren't any Mavericks around, there wasn't a lot to do around HQ.

But then, a conversation with X and Zero immediately fixed this problem.

"Y'know, Axl, you haven't really been acting like yourself recently." X said, "is there anything going on?"

"Yeah, Axl," Zero nodded his head in agreement, "Normally you'd be pretty...active around HQ, but these days you seem to be quieter than usual, and, since we're talking about you here, well, I'm a little concerned." He smirked, X let out a poorly muffled laugh.

"Yeah, I'm fine, it's just..." Axl paused.

"It's just what?" X asked.

"It's just that I've been pretty bored lately, there haven't been any big missions lately, and there isn't a whole lot to do, so..."

"...So you've been really jaded recently, is that it?" Zero concluded.

"Yeah...that's basically it." Axl said, "Now I really don't know what to do and it's just... bothering me." He looked down, he wasn't sure how much longer he could stand the boredom, He just wanted to do something.

He waited for a response, and when he didn't get one, he looked at X to find that he was deep in thought, after a while, X came up with a solution.

"What about going outside? If you can't find anything to do inside Hunter Base, then why don't you try to find something to do outside Hunter Base? That's what I do most of the time."

Axl's eyes lit up like a candle, instantly bringing back the energetic Axl everyone knew, "That's a great idea! Thanks, X! I'm heading out now!"

And with that, he sprinted out of the door.

"Well, that seemed to solve his problem quickly." Zero remarked.

"Yeah, let's just hope that things don't get out of hand." X joked, they both shared a good laugh.

_______________________________________________

Shortly after his chat with X and Zero, Axl arrived at an arcade in a local shopping plaza, he'd never been to an arcade before, but he'd heard a fair amount about them thanks to Palette, who seemed to go to one every now and then.

While he knew that there were a lot of games in an arcade, he wasn't expecting THIS much.

Come to think about it, Pallette never told me about the kinds of games they had in here. Axl thought, all of the arcade machines looked foreign to him, Rhythm games, Claw machines, Street Brawler, and... Dance Dance Robo-lution? Sounds interesting. He thought to himself.

All of these games looked fun to him, but he had a hard time choosing, finally, he settled on trying out Dance Dance Robo-lution first.

He stepped on the platform connected to the arcade machine, energetic music started playing, and on-screen he saw arrows rising up from below going to the top of the screen, they disappeared once they overlapped with arrows of the same type above, marked as a "miss".

"A miss?" Axl thought, he looked below him, the platform he was standing on had arrows, just like those on the screen.

Suddenly, it made sense, it wouldn't be called "Dance Dance Robo-lution" if there wasn't, well, dancing.

He began to move his feet and step on the arrows according to the ones on-screen, he figured that the closer they were to the arrows on top, the better his score would be.

"GOOD!"

"GREAT!'

"PERFECT!"

"MARVELOUS!"

By the end of the game, he did surprisingly good, despite the major mistakes in the beginning.

"Phew!" Axl wiped sweat off of his face, "That was actually kinda fun!"

"Hey, Axl! Didn't expect to see you here!" A familliar voice came from behind.

Axl turned around, seeing an equally familliar face, "Oh, hey Palette! I was just bored and decided to check out the arcade, you keep on talking about them, after all! I just finished up a round of Dance Dance Robo-lution, I think I did pretty good, whaddaya think?"

Palette stepped closer to examine the screen, "Pffft, you scored a B? Good, maybe, but nowhere near impressive, move aside."

"Wha-?"

Palette shoved him off the platform and started the same level up, "Watch this." She winked.

Axl watched very intensely, the longer she played, the wider his eyes became.

Every movement Pallette made was very precise, and, the more he watched, the more he couldn't believe it.

She hadn't made a single mistake.

By the end of the game, Axl's jaw dropped to the ground.

She managed to get a perfect score.

Palette stepped down from the platform, smiling as she noticed the face of a very shocked Axl.

"So? What'cha think, Axl? Is that impressive or what?" She grinned.

Axl still was trying to recover from his shock, he was lost for words, "Y-y-you wha-? H-how-"

"Relax," Palette put an arm around him, "It took me ages to ace that level, wanna try some other things around here?"

"O-okay..." Axl said, slowly beginning to calm down, "What about that machine over there?"

He pointed to another arcade machine across them, it was a drum-themed rhythm game.

"Sweet! Heheh, Palette, professional drummer, prepared to take the spotlight!" Pallette beamed.

"Heh, we'll see about that," Axl smirked, "Prepare to get your butt kicked!"

They rushed to the nearby machine, going one-on-one, the competition was intense, as the beat got faster, they were getting more and more tense, the sticks on their hands hitting the drums harder and harder, their eyes narrowing closer and closer to the screen-

Finally, the tension broke, the screen rallying up their scores...

P1: RANK A

P2: RANK AA

Axl's screen showered with confetti, the young Hunter raised his arms up in celebration.

"YES!" Axl cheered.

"What?!" Palette gawked in disbelief, "I was so close!!" She pounded her fists on the drums, "How'd you do that?"

Axl beamed, "Heh, I have a few tricks up my sleeve..." By "tricks", he meant sneaking out Red's old drum kit back in his days at Red Alert for secret practice sessions, but hey, Palette didn't need to know, did she?

"Anyways..." he continued, "what about that claw machine over there?"

"A claw machine?!" Palette panicked, "Axl, that's a bad idea, don't-" it was too late, Axl had already sprinted ahead and plopped a Zenny coin inside the machine.

Palette rushed up to him, "Axl, this is a bad idea, it's a claw machine, you're basically paying for nothing!" She pleaded.

"Pfft, what's so bad about a claw machine? All you need to do is grab a toy like so and-"

Plop.

The toy that Axl had successfully grabbed had fallen back down the moment the crane reached the top.

"What?!" Axl frowned, stomping his foot in defeat.

"See? I told you so, here, let me try." She flicked another Zenny coin into the machine.

"And who was the one who said that this was a bad idea?" Axl teased.

"Shut up, this is a matter of personal pride now." Palette snapped, keeping her eyes on the crane, she successfully picked up a toy.

Plop.

It dropped back into the pile.

She placed another coin inside.

"Y'know, you're starting to sound a lot like Zero now." Axl smirked again.

"Stop teasing me, I'm trying to focus here." Palette grumbled, visibly annoyed.

Plop.

This time it dropped the moment she grabbed it.

"UGH! WHY DOES THIS MACHINE KEEP DOING THIS TO ME?!" Palette whined, banging her fists on ths glass of the machine.

"Y'know what? Let me try." Axl stepped forward and flicked another Zenny coin into this demon of a claw machine.

He focused his eyes on the crane in front of him, attempt after attempt, the toy kept on falling, after several more rounds of grumbling and screams of pure agony, they definitely had an audience watching them now.

Axl looked at his free hand, one last Zenny coin, reluctantly, he slid it inside, hoping for the best.

Eyes were watching closely and intensely, his own staring at the crane, as if he had telekenisis of some sort, c'mon, move! And don't drop! He said in his mind, knowing that the claw machine wouldn't listen.

The machine successfully managed to grab a stuffed rabbit out of the pile, grabbing it by the ear.

The crane moved closer and closer to the tube, he was nearly there-

Plop.

A few moments later, A small, white bunny came out of the claw machine.

He did it.

He actually did it.

Cheers and applause from humans and Reploids alike roared in the background, it was almost deafening.

"You did it, Axl!" Palette exclaimed, "I never thought this would happen, but it did!"

"What? I'm sorry, Palette, I can't hear you!"

...

A few moments later, after the crowd had quietened and broken up, Axl and Palette walked out of the arcade.

"Well... that was... something." Palette grinned, "What did you think of your first arcade experience, Axl?" She asked.

"I thought it was pretty great!" Axl grinned back. "Except for the part where I went broke trying to grab a bunny, but hey, at least I got something!" He beamed.

"Hey, you started it!" Palette playfully nudged him on the shoulder.

"And you insisted to keep going." He smirked back.

"Ugh, I hate it when you're right." She groaned, "But you're right, it was fun."

She looked at the stuffed rabbit in his arms, "Have you figured out what to name it yet?" She asked enthusiastically.

"Oh, this?" Axl looked down, staring at the rabbit with it's cute pink bow, "I dunno, here, you get to keep it." He tossed it over to Pallette, who thankfully managed to catch it.

"Well, if you say so..." she paused, "I guess I'll call it Fluffkins..."

"Aw, c'mon, that's all you could think of?" Axl frowned.

"What? Do you have a better name?" She smirked.

"What about something like, Ms. Hopps the 3rd?" He grinned, they both burst out in laughter, "No way I'm calling her that." Palette chuckled.

"..."

"..."

'Hey, Palette?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think we could do this again sometime?"

"Sure! But don't expect me to go easy on you just because you got me Fluffkins!"

"Oh, you're on!"

_______________________________________________

(Author's Notes): This was definitely the most fun chapter to write so far! Axl may not be my favorite, but I still love him and this was interesting to write.

The entire chapter was inspired by the scene in the arcade in "Puella Magi Madoka Magica", where the character Kyoko has a conversation with Homura while playing what appears to be Dance Dance Revolution, the entire chapter idea kinda morphed on it's own after that.

I hope you enjoyed it! There's definitely more coming up, so stay tuned!

[genderfreezone]

Do you like the Evil Within 2?

Yeah! Certainly not as much as the first one (i was not immune to being sad they left out fan favorites Jojo and Ruvik's Cube)

The rest of this post is me rambling about things i didnt like about the game, and then things i did like (most of my issues are how they treat the female characters tbh)

Its missing kind of the action-noir-gone-horrifically-wrong feel of the first game. The scare factor also suffers bc our player character has been through this before, hes a veteran at dealing with this crazy shit, it doesnt phase him anymore and by extension it doesnt phase the player. They really like tripled down on the Evil Corporation thing and both the intrigue and horror suffer for it.

This game did not drink its respect women juice (the first one didnt really either, case in point: Everything About Kidman) Sebastian is surrounded by 5+ female characters and only 2 of them survive (and one of them is his 7 year old daughter hes spent the whole game trying to rescue... and yet they never bothered to give her any kind of characterization or agency. A highly empathetic and supernaturally powerful little girl in a monster-infested hellscape?? HELLO???? Lily really had the potential to be the most interesting, sympathetic, and complex character--especially as she slowly lost her innocence--in the WHOLE GAME, but she was just sort of relegated to Plot Device McGuffin) The rest of the female supporting cast are killed off for Sebastian's Man Pain. In fact, THIS ENTIRE GAME IS CENTERED AROUND SEBASTIAN'S MAN PAIN. Torrez is a walking stereotype, shes literally just Vasquez from Aliens. Hoffman was the most likeable and believeable, except when it Turns Out She Was In Love With Liam Or Whatever (psst, guess what, i dont care. Also O'neal was kind of a dick anyway? I dont care x2)

And you know who i SUPER dont care about? Bland-White-Bread-And-Mayo-Sandwich Myra. Where's the no-nonsense firecracker of a police lieutenant Sebastian married? Not here, thats for sure. Her entire personality is "mother" and "worries about stressed-out husband". We got more characterization of Myra in seb's jornals from the first game, where she never even made a physical appearance! Horror media does this SO MUCH, women are either A. Sexy Lamp B. Hurts Men (Sexily) C. Mother or D. Innocent Virgin. It sucks. Do better.

The story lacked the "digging up old buried memories" and "theres more to this than meets the eye" of the first game. It felt too...... Straightforward. Everyone told Sebastian the truth. EVERYTHING WAS EXACTLY WHAT IT SEEMED. It all felt too simple, too easy, like there SHOULDVE been something else beneath the surface. And yet there wasnt. (I watched markipliers playthrough and i loved his theory that Kidman was actually Lily. It had such potential. Kidman's entire resume for the police station was fabricated, who's to say the rest of her past wasnt fabricated as well? It would retcon a lot of stuff and like 80% of her backstory from the DLC, but you know games like this arent above retconning important shit, and at least it wouldve been sacrificed for something with actual intrigue. Maybe it wouldnt even retcon anything! Consider: tiny Lily is taken by Evil Corporation and dropped off in a non-nurturing environment that would lead her to become the kind of person who would willingly join & work for an organization like Mobius. At least wouldve been a nice excuse for why Kidman and Lilys face models looked so similar... other than... yknow.... "WomEN ARe hArD tO DRaWwwwwee")

Okay okay ive been ranting for long enough. It probably makes it sound like i kinda hate this game, but i dont! It certainly doesnt hold the same place in my heart as the first one (which i still have very glaring issues with lmao Kidman deserved WAAAAAAY better), but i do like it! It brings back salty, grizzled, tsundere Sebastian Castinellos. It brings back spooky monsters that kill you dead. It brings back having a fun theatrical over-the-top villain who takes himself a litte too seriously.

I love Stefano. Probably not in the way some other fans do, but i love him as a ridiculous theatrical over-the-top villain. He sucks! And i love that he sucks! I love him BECAUSE he sucks! Hes terrible and exaggerated and completely up his own ass and ITS GREAT. He isnt as ACTUALLY THREATENING as Ruvik was (even in his bad assassin's creed cosplay. I could go on and on and on about why Ruvik is simultaneously a ridiculous AND frightening antagonist and how much i love it but uh..... maybe later) but hes such a FUN villain! Hes the kind of pretentious art snob shitheel i cannot STAND irl, but in this game i LOVE to HATE him. Hes just SO over-the-top you kinda wonder if he actually subscribes to the pretentiousness he spouts, or if hes just being Exceptionally Extra.

The other villains? Theodore was.... forgettable. His monsters were forgettable. (Its like how i completely forgot that Frank Manera was a character in Whistleblower for like... 5 years lmao i guess this game also kinda followed that "having multiple named/characterized antagonists in one game" thing that Outlast did) Myra, i just didnt care. Her final design was kinda cool, i liked the red clusters of insect eyes. Her monsters werent really gross enough to be memorable. The only reson theyre gross at all is bc they kinda look like theyre made of semen. (I checked the wiki and apparently Myra's white goo is "psychoplasm" and her monsters lost 99% of their gross factor. I just dont care.) The Administrator literally just looked like a 3D human model of Maxwell from dont starve, and i have to laugh every time i see him. Hes not terribly threatening, all he does is threaten characters to work faster and doesnt actually follow through on those threats. He doesnt even make fun threats like HABIT or anything. He thinks hes so powerful and ominous that his mere presence will frighten the player but hes just kinda all bark and no bite. Hes The Big Bad Company Man so you know hes gonna get whats coming to him, and you know Kidmans gonna be the one to do it to him, so hes not even that much of a threat. Hes whatever.

Stefano definitely got all of the coolest monsters. Many Arms Buzzsaw Lady was terrifying and i love her. And OBSCURA was just *Chef's Kiss* Anima was cool, she kinda looked like a mix of Laura and Samara. The Harbingers were neat, but really only bc ive got a thing for gas masks. The rest of the monsters werent really unique or weighty/threatening enough to be memorable. Now the first game is a fucking TREASURE TROVE of unique monsters *muah* you got Sadist, Sentinel, Keeper, Amalgam, Heresy, Laura, Shigyo, the Twins, Alter Egos, and im probably forgetting some!! But holy FUCK!!!!! And if we're includong the DLC?? MOTHER FUCKING SHADE. SPOTLIGHT LADY. LIGHT WOMAN.  SEXY LEGS.  Whatever you call her, i fucking love her. Her design is so simple. Helmet. Sheet. Legs. Her voice? Unnerving as hell. Love it. (Also i just personally love the diving helmet. Also like you know how a lot of games have a spotlight mechanic where you have to avoid the light and if it lands on you, you're fucked? LET'S MAKE AN ENTIRE MONSTER OUT OF THAT. She's PERFECT.) Oh and also those weird crawling exploding dudes. They made gross sounds and it was great. (Tbh Keepers still probably my favorite, if only for horny reasons)

TATIANA HOW HAVE I NOT FUCKING TALKED ABOUT TATIANA. Shes like the ONE female character that i fucking LOVE in the sequel. I love how they finally gave her a personality, and that personality is literally just "fuck you, Sebastian" Oh GOD its great shes SO FUNNY. I just.... god i love Tatiana lmao. I love how she makes you kinda uncomfortable too, like she knows something, but she wont tell you bc youre stupid. I didn't like the kind of "all-knowing guide" thing they did to try and make her creepy (like she's a "guide" but then also turns around and is like "no i wont tell you what you need to know bc you """have to discover it on your own""" or whatever") it serves no purpose since she never gave you any actual information, and it didn't succeed in making her creepier, all it did was frustrate me. She was at her creepiest when she IMPLIED she was doing something behind the scenes or knew something you didn't know and then didn't elaborate (not REFUSING to elaborate, just... stopping talking and leaving the statement to hang in the air, like the "getting her nails done" and "its been a long time, detective" and the "now what makes you say that" from the first game) and she was at her funniest when she was interacting with Sebastian from the sidelines, her snide little comments and sarcastic clapping cracked me the fuck up. Tatiana not treating Sebastian seriously was a fantastic touch for a game that otherwise would probably take itself so seriously it would double back around to being silly. Without Tatiana, it would've been just another male-centric gun-toting "survival horror" game, and for the most part, it was just that. She was definitely a much-needed source of slightly derisive comedy and a definite high-point for me, even if they didn't so a great job of making her creepy or fulfilling her "purpose."

Oh I also really love the COLORS in TEW2. The first game fell into the trap of having the colors be totally washed out that a lot of horror stuff does, but it also kind of worked for it. Especially with the color pallette of our main villain and how the whole thing was His World. The saturation of the colors in the second game is a breath of fresh air and gorgeous to look at, and you can even see the color motifs of the game change with each new villain: the game starts out with Stephano has lots of blues and purples and dark reds, when Theodore takes over we get bright orange and yellow contrasted with black and brown, and in the climax with Myra the game goes back to having washed out colors and white (and with her villain design? Let's face it: they were kinda just trying to do Ruvik again) We did get portions that were still kind of wahed out whites and greens and greys, but it wasnt the ENTIRE game, even the big blood-and-brains splatterhouse sections of the first game kinda had their colors weirdly muted for that "Horror Aethetic."

In conclusion, i do like the evil within 2, but i also had a lot of problems with it. And i complain about these problems because i like the game and know it couldve done better, tried harder, and been a LOT more than it was (the wasted character potential is my real overarching pet peeve, probably becuase i loved the characters in the first game, and character development is kind of my whole jam) . But all in all, it was still a fun monster-zombie romp with at least one entertaining villain and fun-to-look-at designs and environments. It wasn't character or horror or even REALLY story driven in the way I know it COULDVE been, but i still had a fun time and enjoyed myself.