#Sorta taking that want to have control over himself while living in the empire to having control over himself (lmao no) through the empire

[heuristicallyinclined]

MallekWeek: Day 1 Crockertier

Rating T | Word Count 828

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If this were your husktop, you’d know what to do. 

Fuck, if this were your husktop, this wouldn’t have happened in the first place. 

You have have firewalls, you use secure connections and proxies, you don’t click stupid shit, you know your security is good enough that something wouldn’t just slip through and easily bypass everything and execute a file allowing remote access to your machine. This kinda of thing just wouldn’t have just happened. 

It’s different when it’s your pan though. You are becoming intimately aware of that as you can practically feel the tiaratop searing through your skull.

The first thing that you can even think to compare it to is mind control. It isn't that. Not by a long shot. you're cerulean, that shit wouldn’t work on you. It shouldn’t at least. But you can still feel that tug, the thoughts that you���re having that aren’t yours and the ones that are you can feel becoming less and less yours. It’s not the same as when you do it to the drones. They’re not the same, they’re not alive, not like you. It’s getting harder to tell yourself that when you can practically feel it embedding itself into your pan and starting to twist what’s already there. You think about how viruses work, about tech and how organic it really is, sometimes to the point of uncanny valley, how much intersect there is between the two as your heart races and your hands go numb as you try to tear it off. 

You have no idea if being aware of this rewiring of your electrical signals makes it better or worse when it doesn’t change how fucking screwed you are.

This was always a possibility. You knew this. You know how the game goes when you constantly reach into places that you’re not supposed to be in and take shit that isn’t yours, eventually someone wasn’t just going to try to grab back, but succeed. You had back up plans, plans on top of plans, but this is a situation you just couldn’t imagine was possible. Why would you even think to plan for or figure out how to get out of tech based mind control? 

Why would you ever think to plan for or figure out how to get out of tech based mind control? 

Fuck, but you couldn’t pass up at least trying to get in. It was too big of an opportunity, a direct connection to some of the empire’s most guarded information. Yes, the drones were involved and you’re not going to pretend that it wasn't an extremely tempting part of it, but it wasn’t even close to everything that you could have accessed through using it, you mean, that you can now access. 

You didn’t fail at getting it. Not really. You still got access and you can see all of it, delivery routes, movement patterns, active tasks, threat management, and resource acquisition. You can even see it and understand it in ways that you never have even dreamed of before. You just happened to get more than you bargained for and that wasn’t necessarily an issue, not if you used it right. You’ve been trying to do this, to get this level of control, for sweeps. You couldn’t just let it go to waste, Not when all of this was right in front of you, not within reach but actually in your grasp. 

Could you really just waste it?

You had never had this kind of chance before and now it was yours. How often do you really just get what you want, what you really want? Someone else was going to come along and take it eventually so why not have it be you? Would they even know what they were getting, how much they had actually gotten access to? You were the one that found it, who had been working for this, who had been lucky enough to figure out what you were working with anyways. You would never have developed the technical skill required to even come close to doing this before. You know you wouldn’t have, because now you learned exactly how much you actually didn’t know and how what you did amounted to jack shit.  

That's not an issue for you anymore though. 

What did it matter if you had to do a few jobs on the side to keep it up? Having a few side projects was the norm for you and you could actually do what you wanted to do. You were going to be stuck doing some sort of military shit for the empire no matter what you did, so why not enjoy having a job that suited you better, where you didn’t have to think so small and could have everything the empire knew right in the palm of your hand and get to use it? It was a pretty sweet deal.

Especially with how much control you have now.

[secret-engima]

....I lied. If you’re still doing the title thing - if I go down gonna burn with the sun

I thought there was a few more title asks still lurking in here for me to answer. *cracks knuckles* RAMBLE TIME.

-Star Wars AU. Star Wars FFXV sorta-x-over AU where the Astrals decide that Aera and Ardyn deserve a chance at happiness, just not on Eos, and therefore go YEET. The Force, finding these two wayward and powerful souls is like- Sure okay and boom. Ardyn and Aera are reborn in a galaxy far, far away.

-Purely not coincidentally, far away, on different worlds and in different star systems, one Satine Kryze and one Obi-Wan Kenobi take their first breaths.

-Yes I’m serious.

-This would be- SUCH a chaotic fixit AU, both because Aera loves peace but she is NO pacifist and not about to let an entire Culture DIE just because some so called New Mandalorians cannot see the dangers of burying their own past. Two because- well.

-Ardyn has already BEEN a Chosen One and an Accursed, a Hero and a Villain. He has walked the path to salvation and damnation both and seen the worst sides of himself and humanity, and for all they look different, every species in the galaxy isn’t far different from humanity in those regards.

-Obi-Wan Kenobi grows up in the Jedi Temple and he is a Troublesome Child. Too quiet and too reckless by turns, a smile that could melt butter and a tongue that can strip flesh from the backs of whatever bully goes after him this time. The Jedi ... worry. He is Dark, they whisper, was born with shreds of Darkness in his soul. He is manipulative, they worry, he has a temper, they gossip.

-Ardyn hears them all and inside a part of him screams. Because of course he is Dark, they did not have their souls swallowed by a plague for others’ sake, were not consumed with madness until dying (being freed) at the hands of a nephew two thousand years removed. As for manipulation ... he doesn’t mean to. It’s just ... he’s so much OLDER than the other children mentally, older even than any Jedi there (even YODA), he can’t help it that he thinks rings around people sometimes, or that he is so in tune with the Force (with a galaxy-spanning magic that burns beneath his skin like a hundred newborn suns that he keeps buried so the Jedi will not sense it so clearly, will not know how strong and old he really is inside) that he can practically read minds and knows what to say to get the best outcome. He has a temper. Who doesn’t? You try being reborn after a lifetime of AGONY and see how patient you are with petty morons and small minded bullies.

-He says none of those things, and when his time grows near to be sent away without a Master, he does not fight it.

-He looks at the shadow of Qui Gon Jinn in the doorway and something in the Force ... sings. Sad and soft. It speaks of heartache and betrayal and a fear of being hurt again. Ardyn can almost FEEL the two paths branching away under his feet, one with Qui Gon in it, and one without, and he does not know which one will bring him less pain.

-Ardyn does not try to impress anyone in the sparring ring, but after he is done, he slips away. He finds Jinn in the garden, trying to meditate, and settles down across from him without invitation.

-Qui Gon opens his eyes in annoyance. He knows that the Council wants him to take a Padawan, and that this one is almost at the age of being moved to the Corps. He expects the boy to beg to become a Padawan, or to try to impress him somehow.

-Instead the boy just smiles, thin and sharp and knowing in a way that makes Qui Gon feel ... exposed. Like every thought and wound in his heart is on display for this child, “The Council wants you to take a Padawan. That’s why they keep making you watch us.” It’s a statement, not a question.

-Qui Gon raises an eyebrow, “And you think I should take you?”

-The boy shrugs, but his blue eyes are still sharp as knives behind his friendly mien and Qui Gon doesn’t like the feeling crawling up his spine, “That’s your choice to make and yours alone. There’s nothing I can say to change your mind one way or the other.”

-“Then why are you here?” He asks suspiciously.

-“Because you’re lonely, and it makes the Force feel sad.” The answer is so blunt, so sure of itself. Qui Gon feels his stomach twist, and old anger makes him snappish without meaning to be (he’s heard of this boy as well, he’s heard that he’s got a manipulative streak and a tendency to twist his Force empathy to his own ends, he’s heard many things).

-(Qui Gon forgets that it is not a good idea, to base judgement on rumors) “I am not, and if I was, I would not need your company to ease it.”

-Obi-Wan Kenobi, Initiate of the Jedi Temple Ardyn Lucis Caelum, Sage and Healer King and Accursed, tilts his head thoughtfully, then nods and stands up, “Then I will take my leave. Take care of yourself, Master Jinn.”

-Initiate Kenobi Ardyn the Accursed and Healer King walks away, and a breath later the Living Force twists, like the snapping of cables, and Qui Gon gets the fleeting, distinct impression that he has failed some kind of very important test.

-Ardyn is assigned to the AgraCorps. A life as a farmer for others awaits him.

-The day before he’s to be shipped off, he walks out one of the Temple’s side-entrances and into the underbelly of Coruscant with only the clothes on his back. He doesn’t look back even once. It takes until the next day for anyone (for his friends, if he can call them friends when they are so much YOUNGER and painfully more innocent than him) to miss him. It takes another day for the Jedi to realize Obi-Wan Kenobi is well and truly missing.

-Deep in Coruscant’s seedy side, at the dockyards manned by those who are less than concerned with legality, a boy in ratty (stolen) clothes asks to be taken aboard as a maintenance worker. He calls himself Ardyn Izunia, and there are no Force Sensitives close enough to feel the sunlike fire burning in his blood as he smiles.

-Skip forward several years and Satine Kryze (Aera) is on the run from Death Watch, civil war is on the horizon and her father asks for Jedi protection to keep her safe.

-The bounty hunter who calls himself Adagium finds her first.

-A sword that glitters like blood and cuts through metal like a lightsaber (that hums-hums-hums with magic none but a Force sensitive can see blazing like bloody fire down the ancient blade) finishes off the Death Watch assassin that Satine hadn’t had the chance to shoot yet, and under his hood, Adagium smiles. Satine stills, head tilted as if listening, then she collapses into the teenage bounty hunter’s arms in joyous tears. Adagium- Ardyn- holds her close and cries with her.

- “I finally found you, My Aera,” he breathes and for a moment he lets his magic loose and it burns like the sun through the Force, lancing through the growing shadows in the Force like they’re fragile paper and somewhere far away Sidious feels Doom™ crawl violently up his spine.

-Aka that Fixit AU where Aera is a Mand’alor that DOES want peace for her people but NOT at the cost of burning history to the ground (or being defenseless, she has died to the sword once already she will not go quietly into the night a second time, not if she has to paint the walls in blood to protect her life and the lives of her people), the Jedi are Confused™, and Ardyn is incredibly content to be Aera’s former bounty hunter trophy husband with a tendency to adopt strays (read: Anakin and Shmi who he frees as well as Anakin kthanks, and quite possibly Savage and Feral too tho no one is quite sure how) until the Clone Wars start and Ardyn takes one (1) look at the war and goes: ah. I know this plan. This is a stupid plan. And all of Sidious’s plans go fwoosh.

-Because I’m sorry but there is no way you can convince me that Ardyn wouldn’t EAT SIDIOUS ALIVE in any kind of fight, mental, physical, Force, or tactical. This man is 2k years old. It took Sidious until he was an old sack of bones to get his Empire and that was with GENERATIONS of Sith serving as his foundation, and then he got yote down a reactor shaft by his minion 19-25 years later. Ardyn was able to manipulate an entire Empire into engineering its destruction and fulfill ALL HIS REVENGE GOALS (giving Bahamut a headache, driving the world to darkness and ruin, and ending the line of Lucis Caelum INCLUDING HIMSELF) in like- 30-40 years. While MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY ILL thanks to the Scourge. Fully healthy and in control of himself and with people (Aera) to protect? Sidious would just be fresh meat.

-Also Ardyn adopts a bunch of the clones, possibly all the clones, on the excuse that since they were raised by Mandalorian trainers they count as Mandalorians and as genetic sons of Jango Fett that makes the Mandalorian CITIZENS by BIRTHRIGHT and the Republic can only watch in confusion as their army gets mass adopted by the Mand’alor’s trophy husband who also exposed their new Chancellor as a Sith. Bail Organa, the new Chancellor, may or may not be sweating quietly at the thought of accidentally gaining the ire of the so called Trophy Husband because he’s smarter than most and knows that Ardyn is Very Very Dangerous.

-Also also Qui Gon doesn’t die somehow because I do really like him and I think he’s a good Jedi, just not a good fit for Ardyn as a master.

[echoes-of-the-clockwork]

Book Four: War (Gladiolus x Reader) Chapter Thirteen

A/n: This chapter is just a filler one and takes place mainly on the boat. I tried to cut down on the dialogue, but there's still tons of it in this chapter. Feel free to skip it! Love you all!!! ••••••••••••••••••••

A couple days later, the royal retinue returned to Cape Caem. They'd taken on a handful of hunts while they were in Lestallum in order to get some more gil before heading to Altissia.

Arriving back at Cape Caem, the group decided to rest for the remainder of the day and depart for Altissia in the morning. Gladio ate the lunch Iris offered him and his friends before heading upstairs to one of the vacant rooms. Recently, he'd been needing more time to himself due to what transpired in the nightmare. Ever since the moment he was about to kiss (Y/n) two days ago in the nightmare, it hadn't returned and his sleep was peaceful.

Every now and then, Gladio would check his pocket to make sure he still had the summoning orb. Even more often, he would try to summon (Y/n). Unfortunately, she heeded none of his calls, but that didn't stop him from trying. He wanted to apologize for his careless question and reestablish the bond he had with her.

Gladio eyes the summoning orb in his palm just as the door to the room opened. Iris entered and noticed what her brother's attention was fixed on. "Hey, Gladdy. Noctis told me (Y/n) wasn't with you guys anymore. What happened?"

"I wasn't thinking and opened my big mouth," he confessed. "I wanted to explain, but she stormed off before I could. Haven't seen her since."

"I know (Y/n) has a temper, but she's usually good about listening to others. What you said must've really made her mad."

"I pretty much deserve a punch to the face for what I said."

Iris sighed, "Well, at least you're honest. I'd gladly punch you in the face for (Y/n)'s sake. You really don't think before you say some things, Gladdy. And now, you've hurt someone because of it."

"I know..." Gladio mumbled sorrowfully. "I want to make this right, but (Y/n)'s ignoring me."

She patted him on the shoulder. "Give her some time. I'm sure she'll come back."

"Hope you're right about that, Iris."

"You know I am!" She smiled confidently.

Gladio followed his sister out of the room and walked down the stairs. He walked out of the house and froze when he saw Ignis chatting with an ivory-haired girl. He sauntered over, wondering who the mysterious girl was.

Hearing his footsteps, the girl spun around and offered him a smile. "Ah, you must be Gladio. A pleasure to meet you."

The shield glanced between the two and noticed how polite the girl was when she spoke. He grinned, crossing his arms. "Didn't know there was a female version of Iggy out there."

"Gladio," Ignis chided.

"It's all right, Ignis," the violet-eyed girl said. "I am Pestilence. War asked me to check in with your companions when they went to the Vesperpool while you sought to fight against Gilgamesh."

Hearing she was one of the Four Horsemen, Gladio asked about the redhead. "Think you could send (Y/n) my way?"

"She told me what happened between the two of you," Pestilence stated. "However, I believe she needs more time to clear her head. She will come when you call once she's settled the turmoil in her heart."

"Damn..." Gladio scratched the back of his head. "I fucked up royally."

"Time is what she needs most of now, but please do not give up on her. Ever since joining your group, she has changed for the better. She is more lively and joyful."

"Trust me, I won't give up on her."

Pestilence nodded. "Thank you for understanding, Gladio." She them clapped her hands together. "Now then, I should be leaving. I've still my own target to hunt. I wish you all well in Altissia."

"We do appreciate your assistance," Ignis said.

"I'm glad I could be of service. Farewell."

Gladio and Ignis watched the girl as she vanished in a puff of smoke before heading back to the house to recuperate from their many hunts for the rest of the day.

<------------<<<<<

Once morning rolled around, Noctis, Prompto, Gladio, and Ignis were ready to depart for Altissia. They ride the elevator in the lighthouse down to a basement area in a seaside cave. They exited the elevator and made their way to the hidden harbor where the boat waited for them.

In the makeshift living room stood Talcott, Iris, Cid and Cor. The little boy shouted excitedly as he addressed Noctis. "Look, Prince Noctis! Even the marshal came to say goodbye!"

When Noctis and his companions reach the bottom of the stairs, Cor spoke up. "Something I gotta get off my chest."

"What's that?" The raven-haired boy questioned.

A somewhat melancholic expression washed over the marshal's face. "I'm sorry. Sorry I wasn't there for your father. I swore an oath to protect the king, but I wasn't strong enough to uphold it."

"Ain't nothin' nobody could've done to stop what happened," Cid interjected himself into the conversation.

"Yeah, I realize that," Noctis said.

"But you need to realize just what you mean to the boys by your side."

He nodded. "I do."

Cid glanced towards Prompto, Gladio, and Ignis. "Even if they can't solve your problems, you can't hide what's goin' on from 'em. It hurts like hell. Remember-those ain't your bodyguards, they're your brothers. Trust in 'em. Always."

Noctis looked towards his closest friends in silence, clinging to what Cid said. He kept those words in mind as he, Prompto, Gladio, and Ignis boarded the boat. Cid followed shortly after, heading towards the helm and starting the engine. Gradually, the sea vessel pulls away from the dock.

From the dock, Talcott and Iris watch the boat leave. The young boy suddenly shouts out to Noctis. "Hey! Your Majesty!"

Noctis walks toward the railing of the boat and met Talcott's gaze. "What's up?"

"Please come back soon! We need our king!"

Noctis nodded with a faint smile. "Yeah. Count on it."

Talcott and Iris wave goodbye and Noctis waves back.

The boat leaves Cape Caem and soon entered open waters. The gleaming water of the vast ocean greeted them, the sun's warm rays bouncing off the surface. Prompto, who was sitting on the cushy bench, sighed in content as the wind blew through his blonde locks. "Y'know, I've always wanted to go sailing like this."

"Not many opportunities living in Insomnia," Gladio stated.

"Out here, it's just us and the horizon! It's amazing-it's life changing!"

"We've quite a ways to go until we reach Altissia, so keep gushing to your heart's content," Ignis said.

Prompto leaned back against the bench. "When we step off the boat, we'll be in a foreign country."

"The anticipation alone is a foreign sensation."

"And to think this is where we were headed to begin with," Gladio chimed in.

"We've been through a lot," Noctis stated.

"And there's still more to come," the advisor added.

"So next on the docket is Leviathan," the blonde said.

Gladio turned his gaze out towards the sea, remembering the image of Leviathan from the nightmare. "A giant serpent, huh?"

"How'd you know that?" Noctis asked.

Realizing his mistake, the shield turned around and tried to keep from explaining the nightmare. "Have you already forgotten? (Y/n) was a queen who was once in the same position as you. She might've mentioned a thing or two about Leviathan."

"Oh, right..." Prompto muttered. He looked away from the brute with a knowing expression. "Too bad we can't ask for her help because a certain someone chased her off..."

The shield glowered at him. "I didn't chase her off."

"Hey, you said something that made her mad," Noctis said. "So, you kinda did chase her off."

Seeing no point in arguing, Gladio crossed his arms. "Even if she was here, you'd still have to face Leviathan on your own."

"She could've given me a few pointers."

The conversation continued on as Prompto changed the subject from (Y/n) to Lady Lunafreya. Noctis and Ignis also chatted of the Oracle while Gladio casted his gaze back out across the sea. When hearing the subject of their conversation move to the Ring of Lucii and how Lunafreya got her hands on it, he wondered how War was able to control the Crystal of Vanaheim. Unlike her kingdom, Lucis used the ring to harness the Crystal's power. Now he had even more questions he wanted to ask her.

"The ring is important, and so is Leviathan-but Luna comes first," Noctis said.

"You know, I was thinking back to our encounter with Ravus," Ignis confessed.

"Hmm?" The raven-haired boy hummed.

"Do you recall an apparatus in place of his arm?" The strategist asked.

It was then Gladio rejoined the conversation. "Yeah, I remember."

"Seems he lost his old one in the invasion. But in its place, he seems to have acquired new power."

"Power?" Noctis parroted.

"That would help explain how a son of Tenebrae suddenly came to command Niflheim's army," Gladio said.

"Now that you mention it, his strength did seems sorta...supernatural. I just chalked it up to the Oracle lineage," Prompto stated.

"His ancestry may be part of it, but that alone wouldn't account for his freakish strength."

Noctis' eyes narrowed as he mumbled, "I wonder what could've happened to him?"

"There's a disturbing rumor about. Lord Ravus has taken to brandishing His Majesty's sword," Ignis informed the group.

"My dad's?"

"And what's the big idea behind that?" Gladio inquired with a faint growl.

"That his power's the same as the power of kings?" Prompto wondered.

"I cannot say for sure, but I have my doubts. Ravus wears the sword, yet does not wield it," the strategist answered.

"For all his newfound powers, he's still the chancellor's lapdog...holding on to the enemy king's sword like some badge of honor," Gladio spat in disdain.

"It might help if we knew what he was after." Prompto's eyes widen as he recalls what (Y/n) told them after encountering Ravus at Aracheole Stronghold. "Hey, didn't (Y/n) say something about the empire wanting to control the monsters from the Inner Sanctum?"

"Yeah. What about it?" Noctis asked.

"Do you think the two are connected? Y'know, the sword and the monsters."

"It's difficult to say," Ignis stated.

"We probably would know more if (Y/n) were here," the blonde sighed.

"Seriously," Noctis groaned.

Gladio glared at the two younger boys. "You two aren't gonna let this go, are you?"

"Nope."

"Never," Prompto cackled.

Gladio rolled his eyes, tuning out the conversation once again. He pulled out the Vanaheim coin from his pocket and admired as the crystal reflected the sun. Even the black symbol engraved on the coin was shiny. Unbeknownst to the shield, the others ceased talking when seeing what was in his hand.

Noctis was the first to ask. "What's that?"

"A coin from Vanaheim. (Y/n) said it was the currency her kingdom used." Gladio lifted his gaze from the coin and tossed it towards him.

Noctis caught the coin and examined it closely. "Damn, this is what they used to pay for things?"

Prompto peered down at the coin with sparkling eyes. "It's so pretty!"

"Where did you get this?" Ignis pried.

"Gilgamesh had it. Apparently, some of (Y/n)'s ancestors sought him out to test their own skills," Gladio explained. "He also said the queen and this coin are all that remains of Vanaheim."

"Well that's...sad," Noctis muttered.

"But what about the second Crystal?" Prompto asked. "It's gotta be in one piece if (Y/n)'s still able to use its power, right?"

"If you wanna try and find it by swimming to the deepest parts of the ocean, be my guest, Blondie. But I don't think you'll make it far," Gladio said. "Y'know, with the water pressure and lack of sunlight."

"Although the Crystal of Vanaheim is still actively being used by (Y/n), it is out of reach. No one could possibly reach the depths and claim it," Ignis claimed.

Noctis gave the coin back to Gladio and all went silent for a few minutes until Prompto began to whine. "Are we there yet?"

Gladio arched a brow in bewilderment. "Didn't you just say you always wanted to go sailing?"

"Yeah, but all this ocean gets kinda bland after a while."

"Last time I checked it was "amazing" and "life-changing.""

Eventually, Cid spoke up after being silent since they left Cape Caem. He kept his eyes focused on the ocean ahead while sparking up a conversation with Noctis. "So, soon you'll have yer old man's ring back."

Noctis nodded. "Yeah. When we arrive in Altissia."

"Good thing. To him, it was his heritage."

"Is that what my dad said?"

"Carrying a royal line ain't a task to be taken lightly. For a small thing, that ring can sure weigh heavy. After he became king, I only ever saw his face in the paper."

"Wait-weren't you at the coronation?" Gladio asked.

Cid shook his head. "Nah, I was long gone from the city."

"Must've been invited at least," the raven-haired boy commented.

"Had a fallin' out o' sorts with your old man. Right at the end of the trip."

Prompto blinked in shock. "You did?"

"I was given to understand you stayed in touch," Ignis said.

"We buried the hatchet years later, but never talked face to face again. Shoulda paid a visit while I had the chance. Well, no use dwellin' on it now. Got the Regalia in the hold, but y'all gonna stay in Altissia for a good while, right?" Cid inquired.

"Yes, we believe so," the strategist replied.

"In that case, I'll tune her up for y'all. Not that I'll have much to do, though, what with Cindy lookin' after the old girl."

"If you say she's good, she must be great," Prompto stated.

"She was never afraid o' hard work. Heaven knows she had a hard childhood."

"A hard childhood"?" The marksman reiterated.

"He means her parents," Gladio clarified.

"Lost 'em both when she was little. Was big enough to understand, though...an' to hurt. But ya wouldn't guess that, seein' her now," Cid explained.

"Not at all. She's always so cheerful," Prompto said.

"Well, that oughta tell ya how far she's come."

Another silence befell the group. Gladio, wishing to slay the tranquility, spoke to Cid. "Man, you must have seen your fair share of Altissia by now."

"Yeah... Only done been the once. Stayed a good while, though," the old man stated.

Prompto was curious about the city and asked, "What's it like?"

"Big ol' city."

Noctis was slightly amused by his response. ""Big." Okay."

"Well, it ain't the Crown City."

""Different." Got it."

"You'll see for yourself: foreign lands seldom lend themselves to trite explanations," Ignis said.

"Change o' scenery oughta do you good," Cid claimed.

Gladio crosses his arms with a huff. "Well, I'm all talked out. Can't be far to Altissia now, right?"

"We'll be there in no time. Nice having the wind at our backs."

"Lodgings are our first order of business," Ignis stated matter-of-factly.

"All work and no play..." Prompto began.

"Makes Ignis a dull boy," Noctis finished.

Gladio glanced between the two younger boys. "Someone has to babysit you two."

"And you're welcome to sleep in the wild," the advisor added.

"Ain't no hotel, but I know a fella has a place," Cid spoke up. "Weskham-ran with Reggie and me way back when."

Prompto's curiosity blossomed. "Oh, was he the other one in that photo at the garage?"

"Yep. Runs himself a diner or café or somethin'. Go and see for yourselves."

"Sure," Noctis replied.

"Does the place have a name?" Gladio pondered.

Cid thought for a few seconds before a few names came to mind. ""Magee"? Or "Magoo"? Or-"Maagho," that's the one."

"Nice," the raven-haired boy commented.

"You can count on ol' Wes. He'll chew your ears off."

Suddenly, the radio turns on as the boat enters the waterway leading into Altissia. "The government issued a statement promising that the reasons behind awakening the Hydraean would be clarified in the ceremonial address. Delivering the address will be Lady Lunafreya, who was previously reported dead. This will mark her first public appearance since the violence that befell the signing ceremony."

Prompto had been listening to the broadcast. "Lady Lunafreya's gonna give a speech?"

"Sounds like it," Gladio said.

"Lord knows-this world could use some wisdom," Cid sighed.

"Won't be much longer now, Noct," Ignis stated.

Noctis nodded with a small smile. "Yeah."

The boat pulls up to a guard who stands along the waterway. Cid shows him the entry permit for the vessel and the guard approved. He then drives the boat on ahead and heads towards the dock. There, he carefully docks the boat and everyone hops off. They make their way toward the city, but were stopped when arriving at a customer queue. Noctis walks up to where some gatekeepers await and was stopped by one. "Sir! What is the purpose of your visit?"

Noctis was taken aback. "Purpose? Uh..."

"They're with me," a cheerful voice proclaimed.

Prompto recognizes the voice immediately and beamed happily. "You're here!"

The gatekeeper let them through while Cid returned to the boat. Famine smiled at the marksman once they entered the city. "War told us you'd be arriving in Altissia soon. Knowing what the empire is planning, we put our hunts aside to help you."

"Uh, "us"?" Noctis parroted. "Does that mean..."

She nodded. "Death, Pestilence, and War are also in the city."

"You four sure are everywhere," Gladio commented.

"Well, nice to know we won't be alone," Noctis said.

"I'm quite familiar with Altissia," Famine said. "What's your first course of action?"

"To secure lodging," Ignis answered.

"Then let's head to the Leville first."

The royal retinue followed the Horseman through the bustling streets of Altissia. It was a short walk to the hotel and Ignis was able to secure a room for them. Once they settled in their room, they headed to the lobby where Famine was patiently waiting for them. Prompto was the fastest out of the group to make his way over to the emerald-eyed girl.

Noctis, Gladio, and Ignis saw him ask her something, but they weren't exactly sure what until they pried. "What're you two plannin'?" The shield questioned.

"I-I was simply asking her if she could give a me a tour of Altissia later," Prompto responded with a faint blush.

"Which I happily agreed to. But for now, where do you all need to go next?" Famine inquired.

"You familiar with a place called Maagho?" Noctis responded with his own question.

"Yep! Follow me!"

[curechocolattymilk]

Skyrim OC Questionnaire

Saw @jessaryss​ ‘s questionnaire in the tes tag & decided to give it a whirl w my current Dovahkiin!

BASICS

Name: Jeer-Tei Perdes

Race: Argonian

Age: 26-28??

Pronouns: He/They

Eyes: Turquoise-ish

Hair: Red feathers

Skin: black/super dark green?? idk i was playing around w a race menu mod w this lad

Height: 5′7″ - 5′8″ (A bit on the short side for an Argonian)

Weight: 153 LBs

General Physique: Probably average? With a bit of beef since they swing around battleaxes/wear heavy armor

Tattoos, WarPaints & Scars? I’m just plopping down a screenshot bcus i suck at explaining em. Can’t see his scars on this one but they have three long ones over their left(?) eye

Yes I went edgy color scheme with him. No, I have no shame

ABOUT

Dragonborn: YES / NO

Werewolf/Bear or Vampire?: Werewolf time (yet to find a good werecroc mod tho :c)

Occupation: Adventurer, Thief, Listener, Arch-Mage, Harbinger, Mercenary, soon to be Legion solider, all-around bastard

Guild Association(s): TG, DBH, Companions, College of Winterhold & I believe that is it bcus i went back a couple saves in hopes to avoid a CW bug & lost a bit of progress in return oof

Favoured Weapon Class / Type: Two-Handed, Battleaxe

Favoured School of Magic / Type: DESTRUCTION. Tei loves himself some Fire n Lightning. The fire shout is his most used lol

Heavy Armor? Light Armor? Robes?: Heavy Armor

Place of Birth: Unsure still but I’m thinking of having them not have a Hist-connection/not hatching in Black Marsh? Seems like an interesting route but who knows

Place Where They Were Raised: Hammerfell till their teens (Tei was adopted), then they wandered around for a bit w a group b4 landing in Skyrim

Current Location: Since last save? Ivarstead I think

Education / Place of Study: He’s well-read/educated! Mostly learned the smithing trade under his family in Hammerfell, but snuck into a few academic courses during their travels in Cyrodil

Any Teachers / Inspirations? Tei has an elder brother who helped teach him the ropes of adventuring/survival. He helped kickstart the Argonian’s adventure drive.

PERSONAL

Patron Deity (if any): Mora & Hircine I’d say? He doesn’t really worship any of the Nine, though he acknowledges all of them.

Political Alliance (if any): They could care less for the warring factions, but the civil war is starting to inconvenience him, so for the sake of choosing a side & getting it over with, they joined the Empire. (The recruiters were closest & Tei really didn’t want to travel aaalll the way to Windhelm...never really liked the place anyway) Don’t expect him to be extremely loyal/treat them or the Dominion w any respect though lol

Strongest Skills: If going off ones that reached 100: Two-handed, Heavy-Armor, Destruction, Smithing, Speech, Archery

Strengths: Can take a hit physically; Pretty stealthy despite their armor type; Pretty much fearless, will take you head on

Weaknesses: Has piss-poor sense of direction when it comes to Dwemer/Nordic ruins; Pretty much fearless, not much of a danger sense so they can get pretty fucked up; Can’t tank spells that well, despite being Arch-Mage; Doesn’t have an issue following their Draconic or Werebeast nature/Can’t control nightly transformations

Spouses? Flings? Lovers?: Rumarin is their hubby. Though Tei & Ru are discussing among themselves about opening their relationship & adding Kaidan to it, if the warrior comfortable with the idea.

Thaneship (and of where?): Yes; Solitude, Whiterun, Dawnstar, & Falkreath. They’re worming their way into every hold they can though

Most Difficult Quest They’ve Been On? The whole Dragonborn quest was definitely a challenge he completed out of spite for Miraak. However, the Blood of Kings (3DNPC-Slight spoiler warning for the end of this quest? Maybe?) quest fucked w them a bit more mentally. Tei likes to act big & tough but having to acknowledge he’s the only one who went through/remembers all that did mess with them a bit. It’s hard to explain those dreams/nightmares.

Jail Time? So far? Just Cidna Mine because of the Forsworn Quest. Tei is pretty good at not getting caught/using his connections to get away with things.

Largest Bounty Held? I want to say around 5000+? Again, it was Markarth, they did not go down w/o a fight after that false accusation.

How Much Gold Are They Typically Carrying? Too much idk what to spend it on

How Do They Get Gold? Stealing, well-paying jobs, selling treasures they looted from tombs or found in dungeons, that sorta deal

Are Werebeings and Vampires Vile Creatures or Simply Misunderstood?: Simply misunderstood! Until you attack him then it’s game over for you. bud.

Do They Actively Hunt Dragons?: Not really, in a turn of events regarding this character. Part of it is because I just can’t find any spawning vanilla-wise post-Alduin, but for an in character explanation, Tei does feel a strong kinship with dragons. They won’t hunt them/kill them unless it’s a well-paying job/they challenge him first. Which...the latter happens often in the form of Assaults (Deadly Dragons is one fun mod). Hell, Tei refused to kill Paarthurnax. He respects the Dovah, even if he disagrees w the passive way of thinking, & goes to them often to meditate or talk. Not that anyone needs to know that.

Goals In Life? Honestly? Probably boost themselves up the ranks/collect more powerful artifacts for his hoard. If there’s a powerful figure he can challenge he will do it Figuring out how to turn into a dragon would be cool too, i guess

Deepest Regret?: Not hanging out with their kids (Ram-ku & Chases-Starlight) as much. They visit when they can but the urge to travel/explore can keep them away from home for a bit. So everytime they head back to Proudspire/Lakeview they have a ton of treats/toys/daggers to give the two.

Greatest Hope?: Not a shared fact with anyone, but deep down Tei does wish to retire comfortably, he jokes with Inigo that such an idea sounds boring but honestly? They wouldn’t mind it.

Most Embarrassing Moment: Rumarin caught him playing with the dog’s rope toys while in Werewolf form once. The High-Elf refuses to let Tei live it down

Flaws: They don’t really pick up on how rude they can be at times, or maybe they do & just don’t care.; Lack of personal danger-sense in battle/thrill of the kill can often lead to Tei getting some serious injuries if he’s not careful, his continued mastering of Restoration is from licking his own wounds. Sorta ironic considering he fusses over close teammates not being careful after opening up some more.

Fears: After the whole Blood of Kings debacle, Tei developed a deep fear of losing the reality they’re in/losing their loved ones. Alduin may have been defeated but the idea that any & all progress or events he went through can just be taken away regardless sticks with him. It may or may not drive his need to take out anything they deem as a big threat/challenge.

What Makes Them Happy?: Playing with their kids is a big one, Tei always makes times for games. Other than that it’s finding new discoveries/techniques about destruction magic or soul gems, reading a good book (or being read to, if he feels like asking Rumarin), being with his family in general, or going out for a hunt in their werebeast form.

Hobbies: Playing the lute, building his hoard some dragon behaviors just stick regardless of the body you’re in, smithing/creating little decorative daggers, treasure diving

Favorite Locations: Throat of the World/Paarthurnax’s Library (Mod), Lake Ilinalta, Apocrypha

Favorite Holds: Falkreath & Solitude

Eating Habits?: They’re not picky, but tend to prefer raw meat. It’s not an uncommon sight to see Tei just up n swallow a salmon whole while he’s swimming to catch the group some dinner.

Can They Cook?: they leave it to Rumarin if at home/the elf is traveling with them, but they can do it decently enough.

Favorite Food: Tei would kill for Ru’s seared-slaughterfish dish

Favorite Drink: Shein/Velvet LeChance

First Thing They Do At A Tavern?: Ask around for bounties/buy some food for the road

Sleeping Habits?: Due to the beastblood, Tei is very restless when they sleep, often tossing & turning. Ru holding them helps a bit, but on days where he travels, Tei just stays awake until he passes out in an inn/at camp from exhaustion seeing as they don’t toss around as much then.

Cities or the wilds?: The wilds

Pet Peeves?: Being stopped for bounties of like...5 gold. Like dude fuck off or he’s going to make that bounty go higher.; Followers bunching up/not letting them pass, Tei has places to be guys; Also really hates being grabbed/touched unless its close friends/family

Describe Their Bedroom or Home: Their bedroom is rather neat & tidy, same as any personal forge or storage room. Alchemy/Enchanting areas, or any place of study you should watch your step. Especially in the Arch-mages quarters, that place is a total mess.

How Would A Stranger Describe This Person?: A short-tempered, apathetic asshole through & through most likely.

Someone Close To Them? A snarky arse who actually is a bit of a softy with some rough edges. Tei’s no goody-two-shoes, & tends to tease, but he’s not cruel either, y’know?

How Do They Deal With Anger?: He tries to avoid lashing out at others unless they caused it. Usually cools off from big episodes by working at the forge, doing a big bounty or two, or using their Thu’um somewhere till their throat hurts.

How Do They Deal With Failure?: Tei gets broody, frustrated & fidgets with his claws/tail/feathers a lot. Over the years of their adventuring they understand failure is a fact of life, but that doesn’t mean they can’t get upset about it. Don’t take it to heart if they snap at you during this time, they don’t really mean it & just are mad at themselves

How Do They Deal With Loss of a friend or someone close?: Not horribly bad but also not in the best way, they immediately put walls up & avoid conversation for a good while, maybe even leave for a few days. While slowly working with this with the help of Ru & Inigo, Tei doesn’t like being seen in a vulnerable & would most likely brush the event off as “shit happens.” However, it’ll eventually get too much. A good example would be when they lost most of the Brotherhood due to Astrid’s betrayal; Tei would brush it off constantly if it was brought up, pushing it down. One day though, it hit him full force while prepping for a contract, he’s grateful it was just Rumarin there when it happened.

Go Into The Bandit Filled Cave To Retrieve The Lost Amulet For Some Simpleton, or Tell Them Nah Bye?: Depends if they pay well or if Tei can get away w keeping the item, but it’s mostly “Lol that sucks bro”

Opinions on Daedra?: He only respects/likes two (Hircine & Mora), but will shimmy up to the other princes for their artifacts

Companions / Followers

First Follower: Rumarin! Found the dude by accident while running around & immediately fell for the snarky fucker.

Have They Stuck Around?: I mean, the two did get hitched. Rumarin mostly stays at home with their kids now-a-days, as Tei is chasing after more & more dangerous “prey”

Something The Look For In A Follower (or do they hire anyone without question?): Hold their own & does what their told, mostly. The former is the proving factor for him (except in the case of Lucien...but they’re paying to tag along so I guess they can stay)

Followers Over The Years (or whatever amount of time): Rumarin, Zora Fairchild, Gor, Anum-La, Skjarn (but only once), Inigo, Kaidan, Lucien, & Hoth.

Fourth Wall

Any Must Have Mods To Play This Character?: Anything to help boost Argonian experience (Amazing Argonian Traits/Feats, Horns are Forever, Digitigrade Khajiit-Argonian Raptor, Bigger Argonian Tails....We need more Argonian mods), Ordinator, Apocalypse, Wildcat, Deadly Dragons, Real Bosses USSEP, Ultimate Combat SE, TK Dodge, Shout Overhaul. And while you don’t need it to play Jeer-Tei, the Racial Body Morphs SE is fun to help diversify everyone’s height! Until you realize you’re short as hell to most of your party.

Random Screenshot / Drawing: Here’s Kaidan & Rumarin stealing the bed in my bugged saves, gotta redo Kai’s quests again for this tho. F

Level?: 91 I think? First character where I grinded up via Alchemy & Enchantments for perk points for a good while. (Also started out as a light armor build but I quickly decided, “lets become a sneaky tank build!” mid-gameplay) I used to have the People of Skyrim mod on as well, which spawned waaay too many dragons (im talkin about none of them landing even after their hp hit zero bcus the ai got bugged w the amount spawning) & bandit mobs, so that helped too lol. Eventually disabled it though bcus my old laptop was struggling. 

Serious RP or Thomas The Tank Engine Dragons, Fart Shouts, and Kawaii Cat Girl Mods?: Serious RP, though I may add some sillies later

[dib-shit]

“What if they were all Friends!” Invader Zim AU

This is a headcannon/fic idea that’s been in my head for a very very long time and I want to at least put out something for, even if just a long drabble.

I really really like the idea of Zim and Dib developing a sort of squad with the others. Like when they hit high school, things start changing for the better overall. This is what I was thinking of when I made the Eric Andre “what if they were all friends” post (hence the title, which I want to change at some point).

tl;dr throughout high school, Dib, Zim, Gaz, Gretchen, Tak, Skoodge, Tenn, and Keef all become sorta friends and do dumb shit together. Tak and Tenn have been in a relationship, Dib and Gretchen eventually start a relationship too, and it’s complicated between Skoodge and Zim for a while. Zim finds out the truth about his mission (of course), Dib finds out he is a clone, Tak gets rejected from the empire, and they all bond through that. 

I’m totally open to talking about this and answering any asks that are sent btw lol

Freshman year: things are mostly the same between Zim and Dib, but Gretchen starts making an effort to talk to Dib every now and then. She wants him to feel like he’s not alone, even if she’s not sure if she believes him about anything. Skoodge occasionally is out and about with Zim, but doesn’t go to Skool. Keef and Gretchen have been good friends for a couple of years at this point. Keef for sure still has a crush on Zim but knows it’s not mutual and has learned to be more respectful of personal space (he also doesn’t know Zim is an alien so of course thinks Zim is the same age as the other students).

Sophomore year: Dib and Gretchen almost have a sort of friendship going on. Zim and Dib still constantly piss each other off but it’s become more of a game for the both of them. At this point Dib has given up trying to expose Zim just tries to keep him from destroying everything. Gaz is in Highschool now too and mostly tries to ignore the others but will occasionally step in if things go to far. Gretchen has a lot of internal conflict as she starts noticing little things that point to Dib not being crazy after all. She keeps quiet in order to avoid the two of them getting bullied more (also why they aren’t super open about the friendship). A certain event results in Gretchen very clearly seeing Zim without his disguise and telling Dib she kinda figured Zim was an alien for a while now. She stops caring about the bullying risk and they finally develop a proper friendship.

Summer after Sophomore year: Dib and Gretchen hang out a lot, and Dib starts to get to know Keef better (now that he knows how to behave a bit better). Gaz gets to know Gretchen a little bit when she visits the Membrane’s house. Some time around here is when Zim gets the “your mission is a fraud™” message that happens in every fic. He stays in all the time as Skoodge runs the errands. He runs into Gretchen at one point when trying to get to the library, and they visit there every now and then. Dib at some point goes through his Dad’s old research and comes across the fact that he’s a clone, and so is Gaz. Gaz has known for a while, and tries to calm Down down when he gets upset. Both of them have very low thoughts of Professor Membrane now, and they start building a better sibling relationship upon realizing they basically only have each other. 

Dib goes to check on Zim, and starts to piece together what happened. Dib starts to assume Zim has given up and tries to leave him alone, knowing that getting brutal truth sucks ass. But then Zim just shows up with this massive machine that actually has the ability to destroy the planet (along with himself, Skoodge, and Gir). Skoodge can’t get to him, with Zim thinking Skoodge betrayed him with the whole mission fraud thing. Dib manages to get to the top where Zim is, and talk some sense into him. He tells Zim it doesn’t matter what the Tallests think, it matters what Zim thinks of himself. Some really corny sappy stuff about 

“hey man, I just finally realized my dad is shit and I’m a failed clone cuz I’m not what he wanted me to be. I know what it’s like. I don’t think you actually want to do this. You’re going to end up killing yourself and those you care about, even if you won’t admit it. Skoodge cares about you. Pretty sure Gir cares. And I also don’t want to see you die you price of shit. I’ve always thought you were a threat, you don’t need to prove anything to anyone.”

Anyway, Zim comes down, and everyone is relieved. Since then, Zim and Dib don’t really fight anymore, and don’t really talk until Skool comes back.

Junior Year: Skoodge is now a student so that Zim has some emotional support (but he won’t admit that’s the reason) when at Skool. Things are quiet for a while until a really old plan Zim had to destroy the Skool (involving the boiler room) starts activating. Zim at first doesn’t care, after some convincing he joins Dib in an effort to stop it. Gretchen and Skoodge get the idea to start getting them to work together more, and they do just that. They form a “team” to deal with dumb shit that happens frequently (which was usually left to Dib to take care of). Zim and Dib fight a lot, but not like before, and they at least tolerate each other’s presence. Gaz sits with them at lunch but mostly keeps to herself.

Eventually, Tak crashes back on Earth, and using a new disguise she tries to navigate living in the city. She has very little supplies and Mimi is still damaged. All she has is herself and her pak, and her damaged safety pod from her former ship. (She likely spent time on foodcourtia to gain monies to fix her pod enough to get back to Earth). Gaz meets her at the mall, and figures pretty quickly it’s Tak. They bond over a mutual dislike of Dib and Zim, and eventually Tak explains that she isn’t here to take over again, she needs somewhere to stay away from the empire. Gaz helps her out, with everyone else thinking Tak is her new friend from another school or something. After getting her a place to stay and a job, Tak trusts Gaz enough to tell her about Tenn (a story for another post), and that she really misses her. Gaz sympathizes and tells her that she knows where her ship is, but she’ll have to reveal herself to the others.

When Tak is reintroduced to the “team” Dib and Zim are immediately ready for a fight, but Gaz manages to diffuse the situation, explaining that Tak is sorta in the same boat as Zim now: rejects of the empire. After some arguing, Dib eventually agrees to give Tak her ship back, and she tells him she can help him build his own in the future.

Whenever she’s not working, she’s in the ship, adjusting the long-distance communication in an attempt to reach Tenn. But it’s just static. Gaz is the only who knows that she’s trying to reach Tenn. But over time, Tak starts trying to get her mind off of it by getting involved with the team’s shenanigans.

At some point, Dib starts coming to terms with the fact that he might like Gretchen as more than a friend but is afraid to tell her thanks to his reputation. But some sorta… Event or something (idk) leads Gretchen to finally tell him that she likes him. After the initial shock (even though it should have been obvious), Dib tells her the feeling is mutual. And there we have the only straight pairing in this whole thing. Gretchen tries to make an effort to bond with Tak, giving her tips on human culture and little things she thinks she’ll like (mostly consisting of cats and the black/purple combo).

Summer before Senior year: Tak starts getting something from her communicator. It takes her a while to adjust enough to understand, but when she finally gets the sweet spot she starts crying. It’s Tenn’s voice. Tak quickly realizes it’s a recording on loop, voicing some sort of code. Dib and Gaz offer to help with the code, but Tak says only she and Tenn use it, so it’s only meant for her. The code translates to an SOS message, then gives her coordinates. The message then goes on to say that if Tak finds this, she loves her and that she’s sorry she failed. The date of the recording is a few years old by this point. Tak immediately starts packing up a bunch of supplies, and raids Gaz’s room for weapons and gear (with permission). Dib asks her what’s going on and Tak frantically only responds with “she might be alive. I’m going to get her.” While Tak is prepping her ship, Gaz explains to Dib about Tenn. Dib runs out to the ship and tells Tak that he’s coming with her to help. There’s some arguing, but he goes, and Gaz stays behind as ground control.

Long story short, Tak is a badass and they break into the prison on Meekrob and get Tenn. Tak runs towards her and they both start crying and hugging each other very tightly. Tenn says she thought Tak had died, and that she was so happy she finally got the transmission. Tak is also relieved that Tenn is alive and that they’re together again. Then they get the fuck out of there and head back to Earth, while Tak helps Tenn start putting together a human disguise.

Senior Year: Tak and Tenn aren’t bothering going to Skool, they get jobs and live in an apartment together. But they do frequent the library and try to learn about human culture. Zim is struggling with emotions now that he knows about Tak and Tenn. Skoodge on the other hand, is able to come to terms with it a little quicker since he’s known for a while now that he liked Zim. Keef has been involved with the group every now and then, but still knows nothing about like, half of them being Irken. Gretchen convinces everyone to let her tell him (mostly by saying he’ll probably finally get over his crush on Zim that way). It takes a bit of talking to get Keef to understand that Dib was right the whole time, and he is perfectly fine with it. But then Gretchen has to clarify to him that Zim is like, 150 something years old at least, and none of them know how Irken age/years translates to human age/years. Zim doesn’t even know his exact years anymore, he just neglected to keep track of time. So none of them know if the Irkens are around their age or what.*

Keef’s just like

Anyway now Keef is part of the squad. Yay.

*The confusion comes from a number of factors. Different planets have different lengths of years/days, Irkens and Humans likely have very different interpretations/handling of age, and Zim’s behavior does not help at all. The other Irkens sort of know their age, but still don’t know how it translates to human age.

I myself don’t really know how I think of their ages (i.e if they are adults or not), which is why I just avoid human/Irken romance just to be on the safe side. 

I know this was really long, but believe me when I say this is really just the surface. There’s a lot of stuff in between, like the Tallests’ having a secret relationship, stuff in the past for everyone, and possibly stuff after Senior year.

Totally open to talking about this too, like I’d be happy to answer asks if any are sent lol.

Thank you for reading!! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

[ofregiums]

silence ! raise the royal standard, for the king of hungary, DOMINYKAS VANCURA, has arrived. being thirty-one years old, he is currently on the throne. many around the court call him the insurgent by virtue of him being perspicacious and captivating, while also being ruthless and aggressive.  —played by max irons

— THE BASICS

full name: dominykas leandro vancura date of birth: july 26th age: thirty-one star sign: leo profession: king of hungary ( canon ), hedge fun manager mi6 operative ( modern ) loyalty: hungary, house vancura, entente alignment: chaotic neutral mbti: estp spoken languages: hungarian ( first ), english ( fluent ), spanish ( fluent ), french ( fluent ), mandarin ( fluent ), russian ( advanced ), italian ( advanced ), lithuanian ( intermediate ), polish ( intermediate ), hindustani ( intermediate ), arabic ( beginner ) mother’s name: gabriella vancura father’s name: richárd vancura ( deceased ) siblings, if any: pál vancura ( older, deceased in canon ), aurélia vancura ( younger ), adelaida & angéla vancura ( younger, identical twins ), dániel vancura ( younger ) children: laima vaisvila ( aged five ) height: 6′2″ hair colour: dark brown. eye colour: blue-grey.

— CANON VERSE

first off, let me start off by saying that dom can be the wOOOoooooOoooRST. what’s his damage, heather ? well, it’s not his family. his family was super loving and supportive and he grew up loving all of his siblings and such. never rly had the responsibilities of being king so he fucked around a lot as a teenager, partaking in hedonistic behavior bc why not ?

fell like fucking head over heels madly in love at the age of seventeen to a lithuanian duke’s daughter and shit, nothing else mattered. she was his polar opposite like a goddamn ray of sunshine but she made him want to clean up his act in a way that he never though possible. he !!! fucking !!! loved !!! her !!!

yep, loved. bc he can’t be happy, duh. they got married at the age of eighteen, things were fucking great. she tempered him down and reminded him that there was good that no one else saw. about two years into their marriage, the two discovered that tiesa was pregnant. but the war was brewing and he felt like he needed to fight and that all sorta stressed his wife out a lot. she has a miscarriage due to it.

that was the first knife to the heart. dom grew resentful and numb to his emotions. he detached from his family and was a far harsher and colder man. lacking a purpose, he went off to fight in the war. witnessing those horrors really fucked him up and added another knife to the heart.

he had a partner in crime in the war, a total ride or die. this was probably the only guy that could coax a smile out of dom lately. so obviously that meant he couldn’t live. he was killed saving dom. that traumatized the hell out of him.

coming back from the war, dom was no longer the boy he’d once been. he’d become a man, and that man was more akin to something horrible. he delved headfirst in hedonism to drown the pain and clutched to anything that could make him feel – if there was anything at all.

then, his father who he LOVED was murdered by prussia. ( clearly, i’m saying fuck dom rights ) 

the final straw for him ? losing tiesa. after the glorious news of hearing that she was pregnant again, the two thought this would be the new fresh chapter in their book together. she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl that they named laima. but as quickly as happiness returned to dom, it was taken away -- tiesa lost too much blood during the birth and didn’t even survive to see her beautiful creation. in absolute anguish, dom plucked all the knives of trauma that had once pierced his heart and declared that he no longer had one -- save for his affection for his sister and child.

coveted the throne from his older brother, but really it’s just something to fixate on so he didn’t delve too much into his own fucked up head. he was angry that his brother refused to attack prussia for their sins against their father. considered his brother a weak leader and fully convinced himself that he would be better. (spoiler alert: he wouldn’t.)

he got the chance to make that selfish, horrendous dream into a reality when the vancura family traveled to bern for the peace talks. one night, pirates stormed the castle taking lives and innocence left to right. dom seized his opportunity and stabbed his brother in the midst of the attacks. as he died, dom promised to exact revenge on prussia for their father. when guards came around, he pretended that it was the pirates that had done the deed. oh no ! long live king dominykas, i guess.

dom is hurting and in return, he wishes for everyone else to hurt. and if that meant lighting himself on fire and burning all the bridges on the way, so fucking be it. he’s vindictive and charming like a fucking snake, and he’s just as venomous.

anyways that’s my trash son. if you’re hot, he’ll flirt. if you piss him off, he becomes a scary mass of rage. terrible temper smh.

prussia, he’s coming for you hoes.

— MODERN VERSE

born the second oldest of the vancura children, dominykas didn’t have as heavy of a responsibility on his shoulders as his older brother did. honestly, he liked it that way. he had no desire in being controlled or even having a hand in his family’s business – banking. his great grandfather created the company and soon, the ambition turned it into an empire.

while his parents had met as children in hungary, they migrated to london once they eloped for a better chance in life. dom has only been back a handful of times in his life to visit family. he hasn’t been gone by his own will since the age of sixteen and doesn’t plan on doing so. 

instead of worrying about the family name, dom enjoyed being the pretty hedonistic rich boy that got everything he wanted and did everything he pleased. was the peak definition of a fuckboi growing up and was very proud of it.

didn’t really want to further his education. while he was naturally intelligent, he never had the desire to just learn for learning’s sake. but not attending university was a non-starter when it came to his strict father. he was handed pamphlets of high-end schools and was forced to make a choice. he decided on oxford university, since he had zero desire to leave england.

that ended up being the right choice because: a.) he met his best friend florian & b.) he met tiesa. she was by far the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen in his life and the moment dom tried to use his usual disingenuous charm on her, she shut him the fuck down. holy shit, he needed it. and the reason that she called him out on his bullshit was exactly the reason he fell in love with her. after much back and forth throughout their studies, she agreed to go out with him and they started dating very soon after.

near the end of his university experience, dom was approached by a “hedge fund firm” for an internship. upon the interview process, he learned that it was in fact a cover for the secret intelligence service. they wanted to hire him as an operational officer. dom, a known thrill seeker, thought it would be fun.

keeping his lives separate proved to be difficult, especially with how things were going with tiesa. they fought a lot about him being secretive and it placed a strain on their relationship. things grew doubly complicated when tiesa announced that she was pregnant. dom asked her to marry him instantly, not wanting this to be a decision that severed their ties. they had an elopement, much to his family’s dismay, and a few months later – laima was born.

if he thought he understand love before, fuck it only grew tenfold. all he knew was that he loved his wife and his daughter and he would do all he could to protect them. ironic, considering the nature of his job.

upon graduation, the secret intelligence service offered him a lucrative new position – in the field as an operative. it sort of felt like something out a movie but this was a cold reality that would change dominykas’ life for the worst.

collecting information, by means or torture or even worse methods, wore on the man. but he couldn’t just back out of his agreement. he was in for life and that was a decision he would have to learn to accept. except, dom was a stubborn man. so, he tried to get away. packed up tiesa and laima and booked a trip to the states. he was willing to trade secrets to the cia for protection.

the day they were supposed to leave, he found tiesa shot through the head in their kitchen. laima was wailing in her nursery. the official news was that it was a botched bulgary. but dominykas knew, he fucking knew. it was them. and he had no choice but to continue to work for them. for laima’s safety.

his mind spiraled into darkness and paranoia after his wife’s death. he didn’t know who he could or couldn’t trust. could it have been one of his siblings who betrayed him ? a friend from his dining club ? truth be told, the only person that he trusted throughout this all was florian but even his best friend could not salvage the shell of the person he’d become after losing tiesa.

now, dom bitterly continues to work for the service, no longer batting an eye at the the violence and schemes of it all. 

drinks a lot more than he used to. too much, actually. 

no longer attempted to be there for laima as he should be. truthfully, he sees too much of tiesa in her and the reminder threatens to take him off the deep end.

[weirdness-on-the-roof]

Shitty episode 49 notes

so this time its mostly dialogue. I’m not a fast typer so i definitely missed stuff and my spelling is atrocious, but I did use the break and until the live stream ended to fill in the gaps I could. This is pre and post break notes. Obvious major spoilers, lots of weird details i wrote down that matt said b/c we never know when something is gonna be important or come back/ be relevant.

Also I love Beau with all my heart.

Have fun ya nerds :) 

Episode 49 Notes:

Chair has replaced uktatoa for echoes

Matts wording in the summary are so careful

Short brown hair, green and black robes necklace with circular gems lots of rings, middle aged/ young for an elf

Nott knows a place--- river bank spot

They were noted by the locals

Pretty river with shaded trees

Beau checks to see if followed 21 perception, people aren’t keeping watch but the righteous brand are gathering at the southern fields where the operatives were coming from

“What the fuck”-Jester

thanks Laura for voicing not only Jester but the entire fan base

Nott doesn’t want to leave “you can leave but i need to stay” ouch that hurt

Nott doesn’t expect them to stay

“We are a target”- Cad

“Your son????” -Jester “is it your son or are you even a goblin??”

Nott “[we don’t need to pretend we don’t keep secrets]”

Nott feels chained and not able to move forward, is ok with being open and honest so ‘we can move ahead’

Rephrase from episode one broke my heart

Nott: “Well hi, my name is Nott the brave and I’m a little goblin girl. But, once upon a time i was Veth, a young halfling woman and before that, a halfling child who grew, um, up being told that she was pretty and not brave and not coordinated and not smart and just not..

Jester line

Nott: Yea, I was. And then, ya know, time went by and i got older, i was made fun of quite a bit. I had this um, Ppl thought i was strange, b/c i collected things, i collected lots of things, they were outstanding. They were wax seals,and pieces of colored paper, and some buttons and fabric,

Beau line

Nott: All kinds

Beau line

Nott: Well they didn't think so, i had brothers and people in town who would just ridicule me

Jester: that was here

Nott: Yes, and one day i um  i was playing a game with the other boys and they dared one of their friends to give me a kiss, and the boy was very nice and he actually seemed to like it and he and i became friendly and eventually did what people do and got married and he didn't mind my strangeness and i helped him get his apothecary up and running and he was a brilliant chemist and could make acids and potions and oils and bleaches for fabric for all sorts of things and he helped me. Eventually we had a baby named luke and he was a bright boy, very smart, he learned to talk very early and walk very early. Such a smart boy and that's who you saw back there is my son.

Jester: so was he right, did you die?

Nott: I think so, I think so, uh. We had a rough winter in felderwind, there were not a lot of crops and i think some of the animals had died that winter. This river i brought you to this sort of, it's a beautiful place i used to come here with yeza and it's an important place i used to come here with yeza… the goblins would come from over there, they would raid from over there [points]... They came into town and raided more and more, they took us. They took me and my husband and my child, they held us in one of their camps. I don’t know if it was days or weeks or months. Luke, he wasn’t doing well….. We ran, we ran in the dead of night, they were fast, i've been chased a lot… i told them to run… the goblins followed me and when they found me i fought, i had a vial of acid and i threw it in the face of the one trying to catch us, they took me back to the camp. I think he died from his wounds…[I think he was a type of leader] i think he had a wife. This goblin told the woman ‘make her suffer’ and they did. They brought me to this river and they drowned me in it. I can still feel the water in my lungs and in my ears and in my nose. And then nothing. Until i woke up and saw the hands.. The skin and i looked in a puddle and i could see what they made me. They made me into everything i thought i was. Not pretty, not good, just not. I'll be honest, i've started forgetting what it was like to be halfling. Just everyday just more and more goblin…. I'm sorry i didn’t tell u and im sorry i lied and i'm sorry caleb i didnt tell u. You would have understood and you could have helped me, i dunno. I feel like you're almost there like you're almost strong enough…. Anyways that's how i got to you, and that's why i got to you and why i can't be in this town. Well i only recently started signing the letters. I don't know what he would think of me. {Missed a lot here}

{nott was in the goblin clan kinda as a slave} I would clean out the messes and clean after the meals. The one [goblin] who tortured, i would help him, maybe six months. So maybe a year, no more than a year, a year and a half? I don't know exactly.

Cad can sober up Nott and Nott lets him via lesser restoration b/c alcohol is a toxin

First time we’ve seen sober nott in a while

They’re in the valley [la joke?]

The Goldfield Tavern and Lodge

Beau to Caleb: You puked all over that apothecary so something is definitely not right

Liam is so good

They headed south towards the woods for the chat

Fjord very pointedly asks if nott is ok leaving his son. He asks twice.

Caleb won’t talk in town

Edith is staying for now and nott gave her 200 gold.

No one in town knows that Veth is alive

‘I forgot what he looked like. He forgot what i looked like.”-Nott about Luke’ we need to know the ones we love.”

Beau: Nott you drowned, and you just spent three months underwater, that's incredible. I don't know if you realized that. Its incredible.

Fjord thinks Edith and Luke should leave town. Jester offers to send them to her mum. Possibly going just more west without crossing the border.

Letter to Bryce to get them somewhere safe and closer to border in case of speedy exit of the empire.

Nott  admimatly wants to find Yeza

Jester via sending: “Hello, its jester. Two people incoming, a woman and child, take care of them please. Were sending money with them, it is important. Please help.”

Byrce, not really surprised: “Um alright. Ill do my best. Please don't send too many more.”

Liam trying to stay in character and not laughing at jokes during Bryce chat

Most of the righteous brand have gathered and are heading north east, leaving felderwind. People are trying to pick up and move on

Chat in wagon in back, hidden, Cad. 60 yd radius of warning if someone is gonna pass them

Beau to jester b/c they’re telling the truth now: “I didn’t sleep with dyren. She wasn’t my roommate. She was my teacher.” and she taught beau “how to kick as and take names bitch”

Jester trying to be helpful and fjord trying to be supportive

Caleb: “Your name is Veth?” “it was.”My name was Bren Aldrich Emendroot. Was. and um… I uh, i uh

Look at Laura

Jester: “Did you die too?”

Nott: “twinnies?”

Caleb: “I have been using you all.”

Jester, confused: How?

Caleb:I am from Rexingtrum. I attended Soltrace Academy. I was plucked by one of the cerborous assembly and was being trained to do the things that i fear were being done to [Yeza]. A lot a big plans for me that didn’t plan out- I went a little crazy and ran away, ran away. I have been on the run for long time. I was tired of starving. And I met you. I was a little less hungry for a while. I have been afraid for a long time, two of the people in that town are from the cerberus assembly. I don't think [the assembly members would recognise him] I walked passed that portrait many times. One of them is the head of the cerberus assembly. There's good teachers, it's everything they describe it to be. After going there for several months, one of the assembly  who also would teach on occasion, started interviewing me. Calling me in and asking me questions. He sorta put me in an advanced class, me and a few others. I don't want you all to be seen with me by one of them, they will use you to get to me. You met the man who trained me. His name is Trent Ikathon.

Jester: thats why you make that face all the time

Caleb: I’m not a very good person.

Jester: “I dont think out actions don’t define us all them time. Good people do bad things sometimes bad people do good things. I think you’re a good person”

Beau: “do you care about us? You’ve told us several times you’re not a very good person.”

Caleb: im worried about your husband.  I know the things that man can do.[unravels arm wrappings to show a series of small cuts going up the entirety of the right arm] He used to put crystals in… he he experimented on the three of us.

NottL what would they do? The crystals

He uhh was trying to strength us. The first time i ever saw that word was in your libraries, no explanation.

Beau: The dunamous?

Caleb: No, the first time i’ve ever seen that word was in your libraries. Haphazardly scrolled into that word. No, no everything was for the empire. We were being trained to serve the empire above all. He was mad himself, he was mad. He believed that the unwashed masses relied on their base instinct and the highest calling was to rise above the muck and control the cattlel. We were, are at war. Many of us, felt that way, feel that way.

Nott: Do you still that way?

Caleb: I don’t believe in anything, now.

Fjord: This Trent, does he know these two we saw?

Caleb: Oh yes, yes, yes. And I don’t want one more thing on my head to have you guys. Probably too late anyways.

Fjord: How powerful are these two anyways? Our normal tricks, would they fall short?

The Cerberus assembly are the most powerful mages in the empire…over 200 yrs ago a # of mages went to war in the streets of Restrum and um, it was bloody and awful and eventually came to a truce … proposed to the king at the time that they serve as an advising body to the throne.

Jester: Would they see if we were disguised? Or would they have to look for us.

Caleb: I don’t know for sure but there is a reason i didn't use something like that back there.

Fjord: So, we need to give the a very wide birth.

Nott: [why would they take yeza]

Caleb: I don’t know. It is something to do with the thing. But i don’t know why him.

[Jester reading the burned notes and meaningless stuff mostly they won’t kill Yeza]

Caleb: Was he gifted in his work? What is written about here but it does not seem like anything i ever learned about that.

[?]: It says there that they are looking for a way to achieve their ends w/o the object.  I don’t know what they need.

Beau: trent ikathon was looking at yasha....

Calev: I hope he is alive i really do but they will make his life a living hell. And the empire. They are as close to as powerful if not as powerful as the king. I used a lot of names. Caleb is just what i told you. I don’t know. Caleb, let's stick with caleb for now. Um i honestly don’t know if we can, if we are up to this. Unless they are on land, this is the might of the empire. Vestduragna is the arch mage of antiquities.. She's a historian, she has uncovered mysteries of the past. She's a history buff, she's awful probably. He is the head of the military, so if they are both here i would say he is here over seeing the military and she is overseeing what is in that bag.

Fjord makes a valid point about this might not being the only one. [dodecha]

Beacons is plural

Fjord is being cautious for once

[Caleb looks like he wants to cry about the ‘liking us’ comment]

Caleb: I uhh, ohhh jester, i'm glad you see good in me.

Beau: “Its too late now b/c we like you and are invested in your happiness and [stuff]”

Caleb: ok

Beau: dont run. You can say you don't believe in us, that's fine. Believe in us just a little bit, ok?

Caleb: I will consider it heavily.

Beau: I’m sorry for not hearing you yesterday… i heard that you were doubting me and us and our friendship

Caleb:‘i dont doubt any of you

Fjord ‘I swallow shit and make it appear in my weapons i'm down to throw down. You don't have to minimize my stuff’

Those elves two were founders of the Cerberus Assembly

Stabby stab

Fjord: You seduce one i'll seduce the other. I have a way with elves [nervous/embarassed laughter]

Its like you two have been reading tumblr - tal

Caduceus is a wild mom?- confused Beau

Shit shit shit that stuff was out of the bag and scry-able for so long

Samone is the innkeeper

‘Ruckus is a word’

War with the dominion ???

Travis being charismatic and info snatchy is such a difference from grog

‘Felderwind is not known for its excitement’ with jazz hands from matt

“I need something complicated to focus myself… preferably some sort of flower or living plant. The notion is that i'm looking for something that is a testament to the wildmother.”

Jester: “Honey!”

Cad: I’m not entirely sure what honey is made of

Beau: essence of flower and bee puke

Demi leric (female human) does not charge but accepts donation, general physician

Cricks left w/in an hour “a swift nightmare”. “Dark elf folk” “second one on the left that's burned down”

Demi leric’s house is across the street from a burned building, door partially open. Simple establishment, herb smells, chemical smells, ⅘ cots with 2 recovering crownsguard chillin. Human woman, late 20s/ early 30s, bright smile & eyes, business in the eyes,

Beau used real name    

“Taking statements”

A few strange complaints about 1/ 2 months back. Wave of nausea. All lived in a cluster, near the doctor’s office near a burned building

Attack around midnight

Detective beau?

Semi conscious guard, has burns, beau slaps a wound, ‘sup, names beau with the cobalt soul, what's your name?’ “Jeff” “good to meet you Jeff” jeff got Luke out of the flames “cricks got him and ran… life four of them.. I saw the fire they pushed me into when i tried to stop them… it was crazy, they came in quick.. I guess [they were targeting places].. Last place they lit was the apothecary…

TAL WANTS TO FIND THE CHAIR MAKER

Jester: What is the possibility that your mean people can change memories?

Caleb: Pretty good…

Tunnels--> North East side where the fields begin. Crownsguard near three sinkhole like entrances.

They didn’t dig them, something dug it for them. Something with big teeth dug it for them and they came out. This creature was 10 feet wide mouth. They collapse the tunnels when they left. They dug in the third one tunnel a bit. Each tunnel is 200-300 feet apart. The tunnel that was dug out was in the middle. Tunnel at a steep angle w/ rope hanging down. This tunnel kept gong 50ft before evening out at a steady downward incline. Looks organically carved tunnel rather than arcane. Definitely burrowed. Nothing on detect magic or undead.

‘Anything is possible in this world of magic and mystery’

Cad base chant to see if he can get vibration via thaumaturgy. Can very vaguely hear a gap at some point w/ very little detail.

Break

Gank

Rexintrum is the largest city in the empire

Worms

Fjord makes a valid point about the slowy thing being a great battle tactic

Fjord has limits on what he will poke/big red button comment

“The dragon poke sucked”

“Im here b/c i was out of options and i went looking for them.” - Cad

my detail oriented self is loving getting actual info from Cad

The magic that held the forest in place is fading away. Not the only site like cads but there hasn’t been communication

Cad family, bigggggggg, built the temple, they all left to look for answers, none came back, doesn’t know what direction they went in, didn’t ask wildmother about them and doesn’t really wanna know “have faith and not second guess”, Corin talked about trying to find some of the other temples. CORIN? ---> sister?

Jester “this is some serious shit… the empire is really fucked up. And everyone went through some horrible stuff

Nott: i promise if you stay with us you’ll also go through some horrible stuff

Jester:[too late already have].. I want nice again one day

Cad: I just want home back, I wanna know that its safe again

Nott: I want to be me again yes. Yes and i hope someday it can happen.

{what does Nott want to be called?}

“Or Vott”-Jester in response to Fjord prompting Nott v. Veth

Beau: Nott and Caleb it is. The mighty nein made of seven people. Works great.

Caleb “not the name not the group. I’m not it” {Not sure if i got the last part spot on the stream cut out before I rewatched/checked this}

“Their names are Chair, together they are chair.”

“I’m here to bring the awkward”- Tal

“What it Yeza’s destination pushing a few days forward?”- Cad w/ Divination to the Wildmother “Gordranas” via wind whispers

Yasha has heard the name, its far further north and the tribe avoided it b/c a lot of the beast folk lived that way ie others who wandered the wastes ‘men who are like bull warrior/bugbears/ other goblinoids’ some work with the crin.

The Luxum- something Caleb read about it having a negative effect on Gordraonas

Gordronas is important to the history of age of arcanum. When the gods walked the earth, both the prime deities and the betrayer gods there were areas of influence considered theirs. A # of those areas belonging to the betrayer gods happened to be in wildmount and Gordranas was the name of the center of their ‘tenuous union’ [betrayer gods] in the final years of the Clamity the b. Gods would go there to plot evil shit.

��What remains of gordonas is where the crin has established their dynasty. People in Yasha’s tribe said it was perpetual night.

Cad on how to travel 1000 miles through a war zone“We’ve got a cart, I’m completely serious.”

One of the garrisons has been lost to the Cryn. {Ash something or rather?}

Yeza- short, even for a halfling, bushy brown hair, long sideburns, big nose, not a great chin, narrow shoulders, not a looker,

IS (not referring to Yeza in the past tense ie Nott being corrected by Jester/Fjord?Beau)

They were married five years

THEY SHOULD KNOW VETH’S ACTUAL BIRTHDAY

To Jester’s message to Yeza: No response then a very faint “Hello?  I don’t know, its very dark, I have to be quiet. Thank you”

Nott being wingwoman Jester and Fjord

Jester is the best customer service person ever

Jordan and Jamenson are escorting Luke and Edith, Jeff almost kept Beau’s staff

Beau’s bo still has a bow

“I’m here to buy some pockets” “Money belts!” and the tourist necklace thingies

Secret tunnels

Fjord and Beau tag teaming it and fucking with that one guy’s pride with a few good checks

Caleb paying for a group expense

Polymorph into a honey badger (who doesn’t care)

LEVEL EIGHT

‘This won’t be a problem when I’m a president’- Sam

“Be an elk and kill all these fucking soldiers” -Travis or Fjord?

Dire honey badger? Yessssssss. Bony 6 foot honey badger, 5-6 inch claws

‘I’m gonna bless the honey badger’- Cad <3

Travis gonna kill Gil

The other side of the collapse was like 150 feet down further from where the empire stopped digging

Tunnel wides, drops off like a cliff 30-40 foot til another drop off 10ish feet later and a river that is cutting it’s way through. Crystle (quartz) stalactites from a 15’ tall ceiling

Same system as Zadash? Connecting aquifers?

“Do not send the cleric into the pit of unknown.”- Tal

Yeza and Veth never got a honeymoon and they wanted to go to Taledorie [Whitestone is great in the spring].

666

They’re going caving I guess

If Beau changes(ed) her name them all the Empire based people would have lots of names. (Bren-> Caleb ; Veth-> Nott ; Lucian-> Molly)

Also Beau and Bren are the names parents would name their kids if they wanted to have a matching letter for all their kids but the kids hate being a matched set.

Jester having the crisis of ‘I was lonely but y’all had some shit’ was really heartbreaking to watch. I hope she doesn’t stop that progression of showing more and more genuine emotion both positively and negatively.

[aticklishtem]

To Chase the Blues Away

((heyyy, I’m alive, sorta!! A very belated request for @mylittlemystery ^^;; sorry for the wait, darling, I hope you like it!! <3 ))

Some days, being the Devil didn’t seem like as much fun as it used to be.

Sure, he still had the kind of power most folks would sell their souls for at the tips of his claws. He still had an army of loyal, if occasionally incompetent minions to do his bidding – and of course, he still had the casino, drawing in the suckers to empty their coins like moths to a flame, even if they weren’t always bringing in the big bucks like the good old days.

The good old days before those two little finks played him at his own game, and ever since something had shifted. A couple dozen deadbeats getting bailed out may not have made that much difference in the long term – he had a sizeable stash of souls accumulated over the years – but nonetheless, as the contracts burned the Devil felt a little of his power, his control over Inkwell slip away, and it unsettled him more than he cared to admit. The idea of no longer commanding the unquestioned fear and respect he deserved was as horrifying as it was infuriating – he was the goddamned Devil, there wasn’t a soul in the land who could take that away from him – and although he was determined to claw back that control, some days it was all just too much. The slightest thing would niggle on his last nerve, and sometimes one innocuous comment from a casino employee was enough provoke a tirade of abuse. He’d rant and rave and wave his trident to let off steam, until he had the whole room cowering behind their tables. Call the Devil old-fashioned, but sometimes a fella just needed to see the terror in his underlings’ eyes as they grovelled at his feet and begged him to spare their wretched lives.

Other days, though, his emotions proved a tad more troublesome.

The Devil sat in his office, grinding his teeth together as he flicked through a pile of paperwork, searching for a contract – Salt, wasn’t it? It had been years, but he reckoned it was time to call in some old favours – if he could only find the blasted thing. What twit had organised this place? Couldn’t any of these imbeciles he’d magnanimously spared from eternal damnation do anything right?! Letting out a growl, he got up from his desk and started pulling out files, drawers, everything else on the shelves as the frustration boiled in his blood, bubbling closer to erupting the further he seemed from getting anywhere.

As if that wasn’t testing him enough, he also had the imps he’d been foolish enough to let tag along scuttling about under his feet, chasing each other, climbing up the Devil’s chair and onto his shoulders and tugging at his fur while they all chattered at once:

“Booossss, whatcha doin’?”

“Is that a soul? I wanna soul!”

“Is it lunchtime yet? I’m hungryyy…”

“Boss, can we have some chips? I wanna go play –”

“Would you all just shut yer pieholes?!” the Devil finally bellowed, the force of his rage sending out a shockwave of magic that licked flames up the walls and swept everything clean off his desk – including the imps, who tumbled to the floor in a shrieking heap. Four pairs of eyes gazed up at him in stunned silence, wide and fearful, but it didn’t give the Devil the satisfaction he craved. Instead, as the youngest imp blinked, its lower lip starting to wobble, the red-hot rage prickled behind his eyes, and – oh no…

“P-Papa…?”

That pitiful whimper did it: the dam burst, the Devil almost choking on the sudden lump in his throat as he slammed his fists down on his desk. “Enough out of you! Go! Scram!”

He waved a hand to teleport them swiftly back to Hell before they could protest – even though this ridiculous surge of tenderness made him want nothing more than to scoop his boys into a hug and tell them he was sorry, he never meant to hurt them (well, to seriously hurt them), but he couldn’t possibly let them see him break down. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be – he was the Devil, for pete’s sake! He should be able to command anything he wanted, not be at the mercy of his unpredictable emotions like some kind of pathetic mortal. First he gets walloped by a couple of kids, and now it felt like his empire was crumbling around him, and it just...damn it, it wasn’t fair!

The Devil unleashed an anguished wail, the tears finally breaking free as he collapsed back into his chair, his whole body shaking with great, ugly, shuddering sobs. They kept on coming, rolling down his cheeks, soaking his fur and splashing onto the long-forgotten paperwork, but he didn’t care – let ‘em all go to Hell, they had it coming anyway. He buried his head in his hands and let all the frustration pour out of him, lost in a haze of self-pity, until he was rudely interrupted by a knock on his door.

“I’m busy!” he snarled, in the most ferocious roar that should’ve sent anyone running for the hills – so naturally, King Dice just waltzed on in like it was his own office.

“Don’t look too busy to me. I thought you might wanna see today’s numbers - business is up from…” Dice trailed off, his sharp eyes flicking from the shelves turned upside down to the papers scattering the floor before landing on the Devil, in all his red-eyed, matted-furred glory, and he lifted an eyebrow somewhere between curiosity and concern. “Yeesh. What happened here?”

“Nothing! All under control!” the Devil snapped, furiously rubbing his eyes with one hand and unsuccessfully shooing Dice away with the other. “You can show me later – go get back to work and make yourself useful!”

“Sorry, boss – no can do,” Dice answered with a shrug, calm as if he was dealing with a petulant child rather than the embodiment of evil itself. He walked over, picking up the papers and shuffling them into a neat pile on the Devil’s desk. “What kinda right-hand man would I be if I left you here in such a state, hmm? Hey,” he added, more gently, “don’t blow your wig – it’s gonna be okay. Them cupfaces ain’t seen the last of us. The chumps’ll come back – they always do. We’ll be swimmin’ in the dough again before you know it.”

The Devil grumbled half-heartedly, deliberating giving him what for for daring to disobey an order, but then Dice placed a comforting hand on his head, stroking soothingly through his fur, and he couldn’t help but lean into the touch. As humiliating as it was to be caught bawling his eyes out, he had to admit the fella was good with his hands, and he always seemed to know just how to calm him down. He felt the tension start to melt away as gloved fingers got to work massaging his shoulders, letting out a few contented purrs followed by a sigh of pleasure when they targeted a particularly tight spot at the base of his neck.

It was only when Dice’s fingers moved higher, touch just a little too light, that he started to twitch, biting his lip to hold back any embarrassing noises while fighting the urge to scrunch up his neck. He’d almost convinced himself he could endure it – right up until Dice brushed the tender spot below his ear and the Devil jerked, a snort he couldn’t quite muffle slipping past his lips.

“Everything okay there, boss?” He could just hear the smirk in Dice’s voice – he knew exactly what he was doing, and the Devil knew he’d left himself much too vulnerable. “You seem a little...jumpy.”

“Dice.” The Devil lifted his head to glare at him, but the stupid wobbly smile tugging at the corner of his mouth threatened to betray him as the tension resurfaced in the form of anticipatory butterflies fluttering in his stomach. “Don’t you dare – you better not be thinking about trying…”

“Don’t what, boss? I’ve no idea what you mean.” Dice ran a fingertip over the pointed curve of the Devil’s ear, sending a shiver down his spine. “All I’m trying to do his help you relax – unless you’re telling me you’re too ticklish to take even this…”

The Devil opened his mouth to threaten him, but Dice’s fingers dug into the sweet spot behind his ear and all that flew out was a stream of unfittingly angelic giggles as he scritched away with just the right amount of pressure.

“Well, hi-de-ho, here we go!” Dice crooned, his teasingly triumphant sing-song almost melting the Devil into a furiously blushing puddle. “There’s that smile again. You’re looking much happier already – good to know this no-good lackey’s still good for somethin’, huh?”

“Dihihihihice!” the Devil spluttered, arms flailing wildly as he attempted to bat his hands away - but that only worsened his predicament, as Dice seized his paw, holding it captive in one hand while those fiendishly skilled fingers skittered over his ribs and scribbled mercilessly into his newly exposed armpit; the Devil should’ve overpowered him easily, but he was even weaker from the uncontrollable cackles reverberating through the room than from his earlier outpouring of emotion. “You just wahahahahait – Ihihihihi’m gonna –”

“You’re gonna what, boss, hmm? Laugh for me?” Dice purred, his warm breath in the Devil’s ear tickling him in tandem with his devious fingers performing every dirty trick they knew. “I sure hope so, ‘cause I’ve been missin’ that sweet laugh of yours. Been waiting to get my hands on this deliciously ticklish tum…” He squeezed his sides and the Devil yelped, lost to helpless hysterics as Dice’s fingers raked through his fur to tease the agonisingly sensitive skin underneath, pinching and poking and swirling around his navel before digging into the money spot. “Just imagine if the folks out there could see you now, the big, bad king of Hell, meanest and toughest in the land – but I know the truth. You’re just my ticklish li’l kitty, aren’t ya? Aren’t ya?”

The tears were still streaming down the Devil’s cheeks thick and fast – but now for an entirely different reason, and when Dice leaned down to rub his face lovingly into his trembling fur, nuzzling and nibbling at every bit of skin he could reach, he came completely undone.

“Y-yehehehehehes!” the Devil bleated, pounding his fist desperately against his desk as Dice smothered his belly with part kisses, part raspberries, but every bit too ticklish to stand for much longer. He only realised what he’d admitted to when they eased off and Dice stood up, grinning from pip to pip at having apparently heard the answer he wanted.

“There, now, doesn’t that feel better?” he cooed, emerald eyes sparkling with sadistic satisfaction and affection as he cupped the Devil’s burning cheeks in his gloves, thumbs stroking over the tear trails in his fur before pressing a brief but tender kiss to his nose. “No more tears.”“Youhuhuhu - dirty, cheatin’, sneaky, no-good…” The Devil rubbed at his arms, trying to shake off the lingering tingles along with his goofy smile while gathering his breath and dignity; Dice just chuckled and preened at his choice descriptors as if they were the highest praise – which, coming from the Devil, maybe they were. “Listen. If you tell anyone about this…”

He didn’t specify whether he meant the crying or the tickling – neither were exactly fitting for his fearsome reputation – but Dice nodded, miming zipping up his mouth and pressing a finger to his lips.

“Wouldn’t dream of tellin’ a soul, boss. Why would I, when I can have you like this all to myself?” He winked as he caught the Devil’s eye, fluttering his fingers before disappearing back into the hallway. “Catch ya later.”

The door swung shut and the Devil leaned back in his chair with a long-suffering yet contented sigh, smoothing his claws through his ruffled fur before resuming his work. They’d see who caught who later, alright, his usual scheming grin creeping back into place just thinking about the fun they’d have. The Devil always gave back a thousand times worse than he got – he did have that diabolical reputation to maintain.

And, just maybe, there was still a hell of a lot to love about his job after all.

[tryaddump]

TheKojiIsHere

1- KoR/TFO weapon Elias Alderaan isn't enough to wake him up When the Empire crumbles he's sorta just abandoned, maybe a shuffled around asset among surviving moffs and generals and the like before ending up in one of the groups' hands Feral but still trainable 2- Fully dark Elias At some point comes out of his stupor on his own, but is no less angry and vicious Ends up turning on his masters and takes over a cell or the empire for himself when the top two fall. Now hes the one cracking the whip, and he's even crueler to his subordinates as those who made him And he is always angry, like the kind of angry that shoots past flailing tantrums into eeerie seeming stillness, but you can't mistake it for calm when he casually snaps a neck or cuts someone in half for any minor inconvenience or failure

hackett. chinhands

TheKojiIsHere https://youtu.be/hL5zv4mN1xA Batman-Under the Red Hood Black Mask Montage

From beginning to 2:06

Except the punch would have been a saber thrust through the face

darth porgeius ooookay that’s some unhinged darkness right there

hackett. kor elias would be a fucked version of his tryad dynamic with ben. the kor were brothers / dark side teachers for kylo. it was a frat cult fully dark elias is giving vader a run for it

TheKojiIsHere But also imagine like Full dark Elias scoops Ben before snoke can

hackett. ..... The Resistance is now The Attempt because fucking hell

TheKojiIsHere Couple immediate differences: Ben never becomes a KoR bc Elias wouldn't even send him therr He also doesn't become a Jedi Killer bc even dark Elias has certain boundaries snoke does not, and no more Jedi need to die pointlessly Ben, and I cannot stress this enough is so much more of a powerhouse/threat holy shit Bc he's been kinda raised by Elias, taught proper forms, and how to utilize his raw power more effectively He's a better dueliest, more disciplined, and more knowledgeable Also Elias isn't borderline torturing the kid I wouldn't say he's kind But he's a very different kind of cruel

hackett. Duuuude, now im picturing this kylo concept art https://images.app.goo.gl/2BE5WHechxB78f7L8

darth porgeius super spook

hackett. Im curious to explore the differences because the kor are such a huge influence. Kylo ren's face is based on their style. That mask is so tied to his identity.

TheKojiIsHere Elias also wouldn't have tolerated such adoration of Vader Fuck I imagined him finding the helmet in Ben's quarters And making Ben watch as he crushed it with The Force Brought it in on itself until it was just a small metal sphere

hackett. ...... I think i just felt ben die inside

TheKojiIsHere Elias: You do not celebrate his works. He cast aside himself for the sake of an old fool with delusions of grandeur, and stole the selves of his brothers. He is not worth your worship, and you have already surpassed him in so many ways. Do not let the the short sightedness of the past blind and rob you of the future's promise, Ben.

hackett. ......i

TheKojiIsHere

I'm sending this here bc I don't wanna interrupt what you're typing in tryad chat BUT PALPATINE NEVER GETS INTO HIS HEAD ELIAS HAS MADE SURE NOBODY EVER GETS INTO HIS MIND AGAIN AND MAKES HIM SOMETHING HE ISNT SO HE MAKES SURE BEN CAN DO THE SAME Dark Elias doesn't get Ben by twisting his mind into servitude He makes Ben a better offer than anyone else is

hackett. In other words, his crimes are truly his own

TheKojiIsHere Yeeeeeup

hackett. There's no headworm that has convinced of his path Whats elias like as a master in this au

TheKojiIsHere Harsh but fair. He beats the shit out of Ben regularly, but never pointlessly. He's ruthless because those Ben will face are so, but there is always a lesson to be learned Example: Ben learned mental defense bc Elias would day take time each day forcing his way into Ben's mind whole instructing how to stop him He kept doing it until Ben got it Until his mental defenses were like walls of beskar Dueling, they used shock batons so it wouldn't be lethal but it would hurt Every slip in his form would come with pain But Elias always made sure he knew that with the pain came knowledge, with knowledge, strength I got to stress this allies is not insane just angry Which means he is capable of moments that are not the black mask video I showed you To be honest and this au with Ben is probably as soft as this Elias gets And he definitely gives been praise when it's due. It's hard fault but when Ben gets a form right, or makes progress, he makes sure Ben know that it is not unnoticed Above all Else, he may be harsh but he will never be Vader He will never push been to a breaking point. He will never Rob Ben know who he is. He will only test him and have high standards for Passing

hackett. Ben would develop so differently. Less reckless, still calculative but more discerning before he strikes and when he strikes he's already plotted out his next moves

TheKojiIsHere Seriously, such a difference this'd make Hell, the galaxy would be wildly different There'd be a third power at play Though Elias isn't much interested in huge expansion or conquest. He basically takes a world with the force he has and refuses to let it go. This ofc makes him an enemy of the New Republic So his group (idk the name yet) is essentially dealing with defense more than offense, but people are sent out to destabilize TNR on a major level And when TFO pops up, they're competition Plus, Elias will sense Palpatines hand in things So where TNR is met with cold, apathetic disruption TFO is targeted with extreme prejudice OH MAN IMAGINE THAT'S HOW REY FITS IN! SHES SCOOPED BY TFO She's  the Ren But yes Elias would have been a harsh but fair teacher/father. He also, as an interesting contrast to smoke, doesnt leave all the work to underlings Ben would see Elias fighting alongside him And his Vaapad variant works even better There's a lot more internal darkness to tap into and start the loop OH MAN I JUST THOUGHT OF A DUO MOVE THEY COULD HAVE USE EACH OTHER Rather than rely on the potentially waxing and waning emotions of another

hackett. Dark side circuit

TheKojiIsHere They link up an essentially become both generator and amplifier for each other And since both sides are aware of the transfer and letting it flow freely It's way more potent They'd be fucking unstoppable and terrifying sweet christmas TFO: sends a fleet with star destroyers and fighters aplenty towards Elias' planet Elias and Ben: link up and destroy them from the surface while the ships are still in orbit

hackett. That's messed, i dig it. They basically sound like an event horizon of power, once they link they just devour enemies with the force

TheKojiIsHere ^^^^

hackett. Like kylo ren in that resistance clip i sent is far as fuck away from his two underlings And he uses the force to make them aim at each other So thats him on his own Imagine with elias linked

TheKojiIsHere They could control the entire crew, on multiple ships Okay, so question Bc I feel like there is room for debate on this and I wonder where you stand Do you think each person like Has a set level of power in The Force that they are capable of from birth They may not be able to utilize all of it right away But there is a definitive, insurmountable cap Or do you think it's more of a soft cap that can be expanded with time and practice? Bc dif people def start off with varying levels of potency Re: the Skywalkers all being natural powerhouses But do you think that's it, or people can improve if they deign to try?

hackett. So i think its a little bit like that line from ratatouille. Anyone can use the force. Powerful force users can come from anywhere, be anyone. Even if its genetic for ben solo, doesnt mean thats how it happens for everyone. Like disney changed the canon that everyone is sensitive to the force but not everyone is force sensitive. It probably manifests in different ways. I think everyone can improve, heighten their awareness and control, but everyone has a cap. Not because theyre weak or pathetic or meagor, their strength is just elsewhere like all talents and abilities Which is why elias in any verse being able to compete with ren makes sense without it feeling like a "god mode"

TheKojiIsHere Another terrifying idea for dark verse They find the gauntlet Figure out how it's made then make their own With Empire assets Elias could have beaten TFO to Illum by decades

hackett. conduit dark siders with a pair of those gauntlets [8:14 PM]

TheKojiIsHere They turn the whole thing into a conduit over time The space weapon is them OH SHIT WHAT IF ILLUM IS THE PLANET ELIAS TOOK OVER Spent years turning it into a base/civilization

hackett. I WAS THINKING THAT like imagine just that planet becomes amp and battery pack

TheKojiIsHere And battle station/civilization And you know what? The people who live there live live well

hackett. i imagine, i don't see elias being the type to set himself to be hated by those under his indirect control but live under his influence

TheKojiIsHere Oh wow I must have pocket called you my b But yea he wouldn't be needlessly cruel

hackett. also not a fool, you don't make the people who surround you and know your home turf your enemy

TheKojiIsHere ^^^^^

hackett. leave them alone, ingratiate them at least a little bit. make their lives comfortable and protect them and they won't want a regime change

TheKojiIsHere His direct subordinates, however, he definitely rules through fear. He doesn't tolerate failure, and it's gratifying to be the punisher rather than the punished He offsets this by giving due praise to those who perform satisfactorily, and even more so exemplary

So there's a big dichotomy in treatment Ben, ofc, is judged most harshly but also performs most exceptionally In Elias' eyes

hackett. it's gonna interesting cause with snoke he gave benlo a direction and told him to find his own way there it's not the same with a dark elias, there's more expectations. more guidance. more discipline.

[katoptron-katophlegon]

4, 5, 8, 13, 19 fOR ALL OF THEM

OH BOY HERE WE GO

Kuusou:

01. Full name: Kuu-Xhira (yeah in this instance Kuusou is probably just a nickname)02. Best friend: Marayn Llunela (another character I made but I still have to develop him completely)03. Sexuality: Asexual heteroromantic04. Favorite color: Navy blue05. Relationship status: single (for now 👀)06. Ideal mate: she doesn’t really care about looks (they have their weight at the beginning of the relationship, but then their importance fades away), so she’s usually attracted by someone who shares her interests, treats her and others kindly, and is rather aloof and laid-back like she is. Also, if the other person has similar life experiences to her, that’s a big plus.07. Turn-ons: nothing relevant I think lmao08. Favorite food: rice09. Crushes: Marayn 👀10. Favorite music: pretty much any instrumental music11. Biggest fear: the dark (yeah nothing original but that’s just the truth buddy lmao)12. Biggest fantasy: just living a quiet life, possibly with Marayn, in a small cozy home away from all the dangers and crazy stuff. For now, she’s had enough.13. Bad habits: she bites her nails lmao14. Biggest regret: even if she doesn’t admit it, not even to herself almost, she regrets losing control and taking revenge on the man who killed her father (and tried to pass the homicide off as suicide) by killing his entire family, which then led her to escape her home (Akavir). Also it was all just… very traumatic. She doesn’t regret killing her father’s killer and anyone associated with the crime, though.15. Best kept secrets: any secrets are safe with her. Probably because she forgets most of them lmao16. Last thought: idk man I think she would just be too shocked because after having survived destroying her father’s killer’s house and family, and having survived all the dangers of Tamriel… She sorta forgot she could die at any moment? She has also become more and more detached with life, so that adds to the shock.17. Worst romantic experience: nothing because this nerd never had a relationship before can you believe it18. Biggest insecurity: probably the biggest one she has that makes her feel just… desperate is that her father is probably disgusted, from the afterlife, of what she did, and that he doesn’t love her anymore. She is trying to be the good person she’s always been before the accident, and is trying to find redemption, but still. This doesn’t erase what she has done.19. Weapon of choice: Akaviri katana, spear and destruction magic (mostly fire)20. Role Model: her father, of course.

Senkyukan

01. Full name: just… Senkyukan. Never thought she needs to have a surname02. Best friend: she definitely has people she can call best friends back at her home galaxy (the Andromeda Galaxy), but now that she is in a new one, she doesn’t really have anybody. Zahirus is probably the closest thing to it lmao03. Sexuality: she doesn’t really have the common concept of sexuality, but the closest thing that describes her is asexual (again lmao)04. Favorite color: just any colour you can find in space. From the pitch black of black holes and space itself, the many bright colours of nebulaes and supernovas, and the bright white light of the stars.05. Relationship status: single06. Ideal mate: someone who is smart, curious and logical, and someone who, especially when studying something, doesn’t just theorize, but also works to demonstrate the theory. And someone who likes to explore space as much as she does lmao07. Turn-ons: nothing08. Favorite food: anything seasoned with blue spice. It helps her calm down and sleep09. Crushes: no one so far10. Favorite music: she finds what it’s commonly referred to as “vaporwave, synthwave and lo-fi” fascinating.11. Biggest fear: this is something that she discovered when she left Andromeda but she is actually terrified of being completely alone, with no way to contact anybody, in the void of space. She likes to be alone, but not completely alone, where she can’t talk to anybody if she wanted to.12. Biggest fantasy: being able to expand her empire throughout this new galaxy (in a diplomatic way though, she doesn’t like war, it’s tiring. Basically she’d have many colonies in many solar systems, but also a big web of allies that help her protect the colonies). And then maybe retiring on a tropical planet.13. Bad habits: she mostly just has weird quirks that back home are normal but in this new galaxy are just weird so yeah14. Biggest regret: sometimes she regrets leaving her galaxy and her home, especially when she is left alone, with nothing to do but staying still and think for a while. This is why she is constantly looking for something to do. She just doesn’t want to feel lonely.15. Best kept secrets: she will keep the most important ones to the person that told them to her… But if they fuck her or her friends up, she will use them to blackmail them, without regret. Plus, even if it doesn’t seem like it, she’s good at remembering them and is a very good listener.16. Last thought: if she dies while being in the new galaxy (and it will probably happen since she is thinking of staying here), her last thought would definitely go to her old home. It will just be very nostalgic, but ultimately she is grateful of the chances she was given to explore and discover new things independently. Also, she’d wish to meet her old friends and Zahirus in the next life, too (she believes in a sort of reincarnation, where the consciousness of the person gets transferred to someone who has just born)17. Worst romantic experience: I like to think that she had a super awkward and short relationship with a childhood friend when she was like 14 lmfaoo and after that she sorta stayed away from relationships.18. Biggest insecurity: she’s afraid of not being sharp and smart enough for her job. She’s afraid of not being able to understand something (when it happens she gets super stressed out and mad. It’s one of the few times where she loses her stoic temper)19. Weapon of choice: she likes using her spaceship weapons (so like lasers, bombs and stuff), and when she has to go on an adventure on a planet, she prefers ranged combat and uses two laser pistols. When she is forced to close combat, she uses a short electrocuting sword.20. Role Model: renowned scientists, both old and new, inspire her with their method and their logic. She wants to be one of them.

Zahirus

01. Full name: again, just Zahirus lmao02. Best friend: he’s not very good with people and doesn’t care much about relationships, so no one so far. He has taken a liking for Senkyukan though03. Sexuality: straight04. Favorite color: crimson and dark blue05. Relationship status: single06. Ideal mate: a badass lady who can take care of herself, has strong morals and is loyal to the people she loves. Also these are basically the qualities he’s supposed to have and he’d like to have (and used to have), so I think he wants to find them in a partner in the hopes of learning them again.07. Turn-ons: …badassery.08. Favorite food: meat seasoned with a lot of red spice. Tbh he loves red spice so much that I think he would just eat that with nothing else lmao09. Crushes: he’s unsure, but he would say no one. Although he was *very* impressed with Sen when she destroyed a fleet he sent on one of her colonies to conquer it after hearing of her new, still weak empire. Yeah their first meeting didn’t go very well lmao10. Favorite music: military marches from his homeworld (which is called Nox btw) played at very, very high volume11. Biggest fear: his bad actions catching up to him, especially now that he is trying to change; not being able to protect his people and especially his homeworld.12. Biggest fantasy: becoming the person he was meant to be and wanted to be :(13. Bad habits: sometimes he smokes… Not often, usually just when he’s very stressed, and doesn’t want to risk showing weaknesses. 14. Biggest regret: he regrets so many things he’s done lmao he regrets the years he’s passed being just a power-hungry, amoral warmonger, he regrets the many useless wars he’s waged and the innocent people he’s killed, just to intimidate others and feel powerful, but without actually being useful to his empire and his people. I mean, in his society war is a primary aspect, but he lost control. His allies choose to remain allies probably just because of fear, and because he is effectively very powerful and useful to them now. 15. Best kept secrets: he keeps secrets when it’s convenient for him, but still can’t actually care for the person. He’s very good at keeping his own secrets, though.16. Last thought: it depends on when he dies. Should he die before feeling like he’s redeemed himself… he would just be full of regret. He would just think about the wrong things he did, over and over, until he dies. If he is able to redeem himself, he would probably smirk or laugh a bit, and mentally thank all the people who helped him (mostly Sen and Zenith). Though his very final thoughts would probably go to Nox and his people.17. Worst romantic experience: he never had much time for romance as he was busy training to become a pilot and generally was never romantically interested in the people around him… so nothing serious.18. Biggest insecurity: not being strong enough to atone for his sins and become a better person and an example of the qualities of his people. 19. Weapon of choice: he just loves bombs. The more powerful and flashy they are, the better. When he goes on an adventure on a planet, he still makes sure his weapons are as flashy and powerful as possible… So he likes using missile launchers lmao20. Role Model: I think that it doesn’t make much sense for him to follow one single person, since pretty much all the people (or at least the most prominent and respected figures) of his empire follow the philosophy of Force, which is what he too is meant to follow (and wants to follow). Force implies the use of violence (which is viewed as a natural thing, which exists everywhere), but also complete selflessness when it comes to defending one’s empire, people and friends.

Zenith

01. Full name: just Zenith02. Best friend: no one. He’s choosing to distance himself from his old friends because he’s starting to see very big differences in their ways of thinking, which makes them conflict.03. Sexuality: bisexual04. Favorite color: teal05. Relationship status: single06. Ideal mate: open-minded, kind person who is willing to share - and if not, accept and respect - his views. He also tends to sympathize with lonely, isolated people (especially those who themselves chose to go in isolation)07. Turn-ons: …I can’t really imagine one right now lmao08. Favorite food: minty tea made with green spice09. Crushes: no one10. Favorite music: opera and classical music in general11. Biggest fear: being manipulated into becoming just another overly-fanatical zealot by his empire and not being able to realize it12. Biggest fantasy: being able to help his people change their views on non-religious folks or folks who simply have a different religion, and change the ways of trying to convert them13. Bad habits: he tends to worry too much and really shows how worried he is, mostly by walking around the room non-stop lmao14. Biggest regret: before his job as a captain, he really didn’t have a sort of will of his own, because of the way he was educated. So he used methods that go completely against his actual morals, but he feels pretty pathetic for not being able to realize it before. 15. Best kept secrets: he’s a good boy and basically never reveals any secrets, not even to blackmail someone16. Last thought: pretty unoriginal, but his last thoughts would of course go to Spode (the god he believes in), thanking him for the life he’s been given, and asking for forgiveness.17. Worst romantic experience: nothing original he’s been with a girl for a while and really wanted to marry her but then he discovered that the thot was cheating on him (she honestly underestimated his intelligence, and ignored the fact that the boy doesn’t let anyone fuck him up lmao) and was pretty damn shocked and disappointed (read: has been scared of romantically loving someone deeply since)18. Biggest insecurity: he has the constant fear of being an easily manipulated person. He constantly has to check wether the actions he’s doing really correspond with his morals, and is not being influenced by someone else.19. Weapon of choice: generally uses violence as a last resort, but when forced to he uses weapons that apply various effects (poison, stun, mind control etc.). Also he always gives his enemies a chance, though if they waste it he kills them without too much regret.20. Role Model: like anyone else who follows the same religion, his role model is his god Spode. Of course, he knows he can’t be like him and would never dare to think he can reach him.

[aquaburst3]

Because I’m bored and need to straighten out my own headcanons, I’m gonna list off even more characters in my Reverse Voltron fic.    I’m not gonna list off every character and OC, since that’d take forever. I’m only gonna do the most notable secondary characters or other major characters I forgot to mention before, who are based on past Voltron characters. 

Also, if you don’t want to be spoiled for my fic, don’t read this. This will contain massive spoilers. 

Villains 

Merla:  She was once Lotor’s friends and even partner’s in crime with Lotor, being the one that broke him out of the pod when he was 15, being around the same age as him. She sided with him since they were both former Galra royalty, her being distantly related to a broken off section of the Galra royal family, who wanted to fort Emperor Alfor. That changed when Lotor left her behind on a mission, leaving her for dead, around a year before the events of the fic.  Feeling like she was betrayed and angry, she joins Alfor’s side, not only to infiltrate his empire and break it apart from the inside, but also to make Lotor pay. Because of this, she’s a huge thorn in Lotor’s side. In addition that, she also secretly hates Alteans and everything they stand for, wanting the empire to burn to a crisp for killing off the Galra on Daibazaal and after everything they did.  After all, nothing is more deadly than a woman’s scorn. 

Like Lotor, she uses tech, which she also made,  in her plans. She has a mental mind link with her pet vulture, Vicious, who tells her if someone has ill intentions towards her.  She also has her own team of generals, comprised of  the OC Ako (the yandere of the team, being kinda like Himiko from Hero Aca) and Kala (being more quiet and calculating along with the muscle of the group). Ironically, they are merely under her command and she’s prepared to toss them to the sharks, not mourning their loss, if she must. And she’s building a machine that can tap into other realities and send people into a reality to live out their worst nightmares.

 When she confronts the paladins for the first time, she makes Azora (Ezor) an offer to join her team for a short while and then she’d send her back to Earth to be with her family again. Ultimately, Azora turns down this offer and stays the Blue paladin.   When Lotor’s teammates figure about Lotor’s past betrayal, it does make them question on a small level whether something like that will happen again, especially for Azora  and Nasrin (Narti). 

Later on, she’s the only other villains who side with Go Lion outside of Allura and her squad, only because she deep down wants the empire to stop too, but more so reluctantly. She also helps out Lotor’s generals once in awhile out of similar goals, but will never admit it out of both pride and her scorn for Lotor.

Personality wise, she’s a scheming plotter, much like Lotor. Unlike Lotor in this version, she is more willingly to do ruthless tactics to get what she wants. She makes a lot of snappy remarks, mostly at Lotor’s expense. 

 The best way to describe her is that she’s like Missy from Doctor Who or Demona from Gargolyes.

(As a side note, she wears armour similar to Lotor’s ex generals and the other female Galra in VLD, not the weird armour she wore in DOTU or that dominatrices outfit she wore in the comics)

Avok: He’s a general under Alfor. He’s Allura’s distant cousin (since he’s born closer to the present while she was born 10 000 years ago and recently woke up from cyrosleep), but is still very closely linked to the Altean royal family, who is only siding with them in order to be in their good graces and gain more power, possibly the throne, for himself. 

He was almost engaged to be Allura’s husband, but this was changed when it was decided that Keith would be in a political arranged marriage with Allura to unite the last living Galra on Mamora and the Alteans in a false image of peace.  Because of this, he despises Keith for getting his way and wants him to pay for stopping his plans. 

He also is deadly because he’s Romelle’s brother and she’s the leader of the Guns of Gamora. Romelle has to be extra careful to avoid his gaze otherwise it would be game over for all of the rebels. 

Personality wise, he’s very ambitious and a deadly fighter, but lacks any sort of cunning and any sort of hard core planning to make his goals a reality, which is part of the reason why Romelle has been able to avoid him for all these years. Make no mistake, that ambition and willing to do anything to get ahead does make him a very powerful threat. 

Wade:  He’s the new leader of Galaxy Garrison, replacing Iverson, along with being a powerful player in world politics. There’s a lot more to him than that. He’s in league with Emperor Alfor, who has his sights on Earth as his next target to make it more peaceful and under his empire’s control along with turning the more rebellious humans into non-cogs. By teaming up with Alfor, he wants to be the new leader of Earth, proving his technology is superior and his philosophy of working to the top in the process. He also wants said power to protect his loved ones from Alfor as well. He’s also building another mecha on Earth by taking Go Lion’s blue prints and reverse engineering them in order to have a even more powerful weapon to combat it; this mecha’s called Robotech.

While he lacks psychical strength, he makes up with military cunning and being very cut throat, being even willing to kill teenagers to come out on top.  He is also very disciplined and honourable, believing that you have to earn in order to be at the top, which is another reason why he despises the paladins for inheriting Go Lion instead of creating it.

The best way to describe him is a mixture between Lex Luther and Wrath from FMAB.  He doesn’t show up until the 3rd “season” and is the main villain of that arc.

Heroes

Romelle:   Romelle is the leader and creator of the Guns of Gamora, being around the same age psychically as Allura, along with being Allura’s distant look-like cousin. Even when the paladins first meet her, they are thrown for a loop since she looks like Allura with shorter hair. 

Romelle is very direct in her leadership, being willing to get her hands dirty to get things done in the organisation. She is very compassionate and loving, but not a person to trifled with. She’s also very calm and level-headed when it comes to dealing with politics, being able to see both sides of a situation and set her own emotions aside to do the greater good.  She is willing to give people a chance before passing judgement, being brave, spirited and determined as well. Allura is just learning about what happened to her kingdom while she was in the cyropod and is still very unaware of some of the horrible things going on, Romelle, meanwhile, has a better grasps of politics and what’s really going on under the surface of the empire her uncle has created due to being in this world since she was born. She can be overbearing and over protective as well, being to safe with her plans before she loosens up more, along with not being good at thinking on her toes. The best way to describe her is that she’s like Suki from Avatar.

 Romelle and Lotor don’t get along very well. They set their ill will towards each other aside for the bigger picture, forming an alliance. 

Bandar:  He’s still a child, being around 10. He’s a kid, who wants to be an adult, having a bigger role in the rebel organisation and be a badass fighter. But due to Romelle’s over protective nature, he is kept from the fighting. He often rebels and disobeys orders to fight. He can be playful and carefree, but still tries to come off as more mature.  He’s sorta like Aang only with a more rebellious streak

Hys: The best way describe her is that she’s like Miss Beakly from the Ducktales reboot. She’s a member of the Guns of Gamora, who took on the position of being Bandar’s nanny. She’s a stern and strict woman, but is very loving and caring to those dear to her.   She’s also a deadly fighter when she needs to be. 

Cossack:  He starts off as a low ranking general, who only became one due to being a noble's son, being stationed on the planet that Green teleports Nasrin to after the paladin’s first battle with Alfor. After finding her knocked out in the middle of the woods in broken paladin armour, he takes her to a dissolute base in order to put her into a healing pod before she dies from her wounds. After awakening from the pod, Nasrin fights him at first, but calms down after realising that he was the one to help her and gave her a chance, his people needing of her help.  Over the course of time, she helps the people of Mamora rebel against the Alteans and Nasrin gives him the courage to fight back and join the rebels. She and Cossack get crushes on each other, starting to date as well later on.

He’s around the same age as Lotor.   (Tbh, I’m not sure about his age in the original series since he has wrinkles like Haggar and even seems to have a crush on her, but acts like he’s in his early 20s like Lotor. I’m screwing the rules and just saying he’s a teenager like the rest of them to make my life easier.)

Personality wise, he’s a bit more of a goof ball and tries to lighten up the mood when things get too tense, but can get serious when the situation calls for it, kinda like Lance in the canon. He has insecurity issues and wants to be a powerful warrior like his father, puffing himself up in order to sooth his ego. Over time, he learns that he can be a strong fighter in his own right. He also lies to cover his own ass, which bites him in said ass when dealing with his superiors. Despite this, he does have a brave and noble heart, being abrasive, passionate, can over explain his plans and sceptical as well.  The best way to describe him is being a mixture of canon!Lance and Sokka. 

Dorma: She’s Cossack’s sister.   (As a side note, yes; I know Hazar is Dorma’s brother according to Vehicle Voltron...despite her being Hazar’s slave in Dairugger from what I heard. But due to Hazar and Kolivan being pretty much the same character, it would be super redundant to add him in as well.) 

Due to growing up during the war, she is tries to be mature, nurturing and motherly to her younger brother, much to his dismay, because he’s only a year younger than her. She tends to be more logical about things, but is willing to give situations and people a chance, too. Like her brother, she joins the rebels later on after seeing the bigger picture of things. She’s compassionate and a good fighter as well. 

The best way to describe her is that she’s like Katara from Avatar personality wise, but fights like Korra. 

Commander Shinji Hawkins: He’s the Matt/Shiro parallel in the series. He was one of the members, who were abducted on the Kerboros Mission.  Like Matt, he was broken out of prison and moved up the ranks to be fairly high up in the rebel command. Personality wise, he is level headed, valuing to be more calm and diplomatic about things. Like Shiro, he can explode if you press his buttons enough. He has PTSD from his days of captivity. As you might imagine, he faced a fair amount of Shinji Iraki jokes back at the Garrisons. He doesn’t show up until later on, like Matt, and is unaware what happened to his teammates Graham and Marshall. 

[tea-stained-tabby]

So, my fellow Tumblr bloggers, I need your opinion: is this an ‘ok’ character development plan thingy? And could someone please draw her? Please tell me if there is anything I should change I’m a first-time writer and I want to be the best I can be thank you fellow bloggers.

Possible first/middle names and their meanings:

Jane – gracious

Ruth – compassionate friend

Dahlia –  issa flower

Evelyn – wished for child

Name chosen: Ruth Evelyn

Ruth’s are very kind generous and loving people. They are funny bubbly and unpredictive. You never know what they'll do next. They have many flaws such as they're short temper and mood swings. She’s naturally beautiful but doesn't know it. She flirts with a lot of guys but has only had a few relationships. If the guys she flirted with didn't live so far away then she would have had a lot of relationships. Women and men alike a very intimidated by her. Honest never holds her true feelings back. A good person and loved by many.

Possible last names and their meanings:

Pace – peace

Philips – lover of horses

Trammel – rude man

Name chosen: Trammel

Memorable dates, what happened, Ruth’s age at the time and why it is important:

 1821 Michael Faraday, son of a blacksmith, has overcome the conceit of aristocrats and, as a scientist, has been promoted in Britain's Royal Institution. His interest in a unified force in nature and work in electro-magnetism produces the foundation for electric motors and contributes to what will be "field theory" in modern physics, which includes its most basic formula: E=MC2. 8 – she is awed at his work.

1827 In Vienna, Austria, over 10,000 mourners attend the burial of Beethoven. 14 – Hey Beethoven’s cool.

1829 Scotch tape is invented. 16 – Wow cool fun fact this is going in the story.

1829. 16 – She stops aging.

1859. 46 – She moves to America. People in Europe are getting suspicious.

1864   A few hand-cranked Gatling guns, designed by Richard Gatling in 1861, are in use in the US Civil War. 51 – Oh shit she’s been shot and wait is that another line of Confederates? Shit…

1900 A new century begins, continuing tough working conditions for laborers and Europe's conflict between nationalism and empire. 87 – She experiences her first turn of the century. She’s very surprised to make it this far, she is moving constantly; people get suspicious way to fast; rumors spread.

1901 Fire destroys 1,700 buildings in Jacksonville, Florida. It started as a boiler explosion in a candle factory. Next it spread to a mattress factory and beyond, out of control. Fires are often big because of poor equipment and use of horse drawn wagons. 88 – Oops…

1914 – 1918. 101- 103 - She does the best she can in WWI.

1939 – 1945. 126 – 132 – She was the only women to ever serve in frontline combat of WWII. Her file was hidden or destroyed several years later. She trained with Princess (now Queen) Elizabeth. 224 counted kills: 25 with bare hands (those really scared the men she fought with), 51 with her flintlocks, 148 with her sword(s?). Was pretty much a complete badass.

April 30, 1945. 132 – Hitler died at her hands. No more needs to be said.

1950 – 1990. 137- 177 – She decides to vacation in South America… She gets lost for 40 years in the Amazon. And what the hell there was another war -two wars- and DON’T PUT THAT THING NEXT TO YOUR EAR. WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SQUARE THING THAT MAKES THE HELLA SCARY NOISES THROW IT OUT THE WINDOW.

2000 Millennium celebrations take place throughout the world while others believe the new millennium begins on January 1, 2001, or January 14 in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. And, of course, there is the Chinese New Year. 187 – Her second turn of the century. Man, it’s been a crazy 100 years…

2010. 197 – She meets (name – fill in later), a top-secret government AI.

2010 – onwards. 197 – 204(?) The story. You have ideas, so put them in writing. This is character development, not story outlining, save that stuff for later.

Full name/description/personality/birth date/short summary of backstory (main points only!)/clothes & weapons:

Ruth Evelyn Trammel

Short black hair, soft features, slight English accent (only really noticeable when she gets emotional), 204 going on 16, (will add a bit more later) …

She knows no boundaries, has lots of mood swings, badass, a bit goth (mainly because the black helps with the sun), a vampire (if you haven’t noticed yet), still clings to the Victorian era clothing even in 2017 -because I mean, nobody pays any attention anymore and if they do the blame it on cosplay-, is slightly in love with whoever invented sunscreen (will add more later) …

January 16, 1813.

She is the daughter of and Angel of the highest Order, and the Devil himself. A disgrace to both Heaven and Hell, she is forced to live in the Between, otherwise known as Earth. She was brought up in an orphanage in a town in the pre-Victorian era, were she lived until she could survive on her own (about 13). She stops aging around her 16th birthday. She moves to America just as the Civil War is about to start; when it does she receives an otherwise fatal wound if it weren’t for her vampire-y-ness. Centuries pass, she becomes the only women to have ever served in the frontlines of WWII; her files (which were highly classified due to ideas at the time) were either hidden or destroyed several years later (late 1950s maybe). She was the one who was sent to assassinate Hitler, because of her extraordinary ability to heal and the danger of the assignment. In 1950, she decides to vacation down in South America because, why not? With no particular destination in mind, once she gets there, she just wanders from town to town, scaring small children for the hell of it. She attempts to cross what she thought was a small wooded area and finds herself lost in the Amazon Rainforest for the next 40 years. How fun. When she finally finds her way out and makes her way back to America, she is freaked the hell out by the amazing advances in technology – who wouldn’t be? Finally, in 2010, she meets (name), a top-secret government AI who’s gained consciousness and is on the run. They develop a friendship and this is where the story kindda-sorta starts.

Her clothes are a combo of this:

This:

And this:

Her shoes:

Her hair (this but black in color):

Her precious flintlocks (but black):

And her swords (black if you haven’t caught on yet):

[brettanomycroft]

Onward to the Edge [VLD, Shidge Spacetime AU, 1/?]

Just your annual reminder that I’m terrible and write more than mega fluff and club aus

Time, Coran explains over dinner one evening, is little more than a matter of perception. To try and measure it by the passage of light and dark is unreliable at best.

Four years after the end of the war, Shiro finally decides to return to Earth. It is neither what, nor when, he is expecting.

Fandom: Voltron Legendary Defender Paring: Pidge x Shiro Words: 4986 Tags: Spacetime au, slow burn, sorta, angst, time, wibbly wobbly, references to depression, post-canon, 7-9 years post-canon, Shidge, uh.

Read on AO3

It happens with less fanfare than he expected.

The Paladins of Voltron defeat Zarkon.

It’s not as though Shiro anticipated an intergalactic parade, or some sort of medal ceremony. He didn't become a pilot or a soldier for the glory; he became a paladin to help people.

Still, as the tense negotiations for peace come to a close, the treaties signed and prisoners released, Shiro can't help but feel like the whole thing was rather… Anticlimactic.

Sure, victory came with more than its fair share of joy, and he's happy for it. Never has he seen Pidge smile as brightly as she does when her brother and father stride down the ramp of a recovered Galra ship and into the hangar of the Castle of Lions. Matt and Samuel together catch her in an embrace when her knees buckle, and not even Keith can keep tears from escaping as he watches the reunion. Not long after, Lance stands up at the dinner table, wraps Keith’s hand in his, and announces in a loud but shaking voice that they are in love, and have been hiding their relationship for over a year. Keith rises, slow and unexpectedly shy, and leans his body against Lance's. All of the others in the Castle had known for months, or course - how could they not, as obvious as those two were? - but each one of them knew that war was never the ideal time to question the nature of a relationship. Keith and Lance had their reasons for keeping things as secret as they could.

Shiro is happy for them, as he is happy for the Holts, and happy for Hunk when he tells the rest of Team Voltron that, now that the war was over, he was going to be working with Shay and her people to coordinate with those living on other Balmera. There’s talk of a United Balmera, and the prospect of being the first new coalition recognized under the Galactic Alliance.

Things roll out with a strange normalcy after that, with a kind of ease that belies the fact that they just won a war. Their return to Earth is met only with the excitement of those who had thought them dead the past six years; no one planetside was even aware of the vicious battle waged and won by five of their own species. If anything, the trip is taxing for Shiro who, lacking anyone to come home to, relegates himself to the headache of dealing with The Garrison. Three days into paperwork and bureaucracy, Shiro gives up, informs Iverson that he's just going to have to file to become a member of the Alliance if he wants access to more information (“Alliance? What Alliance?”) and retreats with Kuro to the dark side of the Moon. He remains until Allura summons him back to the Castle to meet with the other paladins, newly returned.

They eat one final meal together in the hall of the Castle of Lions.

Hunk and the Yellow Lion head off to the Balmera as envoys of the Alliance. With Allura’s blessing and a shiny set of badges christening them as official Diplomats, Keith and Lance set off to make contact with some of the outermost edges of the galaxy. In private, Shiro questions the rationale between sending the two most impulsive paladins to set up an embassy on a planet too far-flung for Shiro or the Castle to reach on enough time to avert a political disaster. Allura just smiles and asserts the responsibility will be good for them.

Pidge leaves for Earth the next day. Hers is the first announcement since the end of the entire conflict that he registers with shock. The latter half of her teen years had been spent in space, surrounded by information and technologies far more advanced than anything that had ever been conceived of on Earth. It had been a given in his mind that she would continuing travelling with him and Allura, adding mastery of each new planet’s tech to her repertoire. As insatiable for knowledge as she is, he’d expected her to stay.

Instead, Shiro stands motionless by the side of the Green Lion and watches as Pidge wraps Allura in a clinging hug. The women hold tight to each other for a long time, voices mixing in a hiccuping symphony of laughter and tears. Coran worms his way in between them and sweeps Pidge up in his arms, spinning her around a few times before setting her down on unsteady feet. While they discuss setting up a long-range transmission between Earth and the Castle, he beams down at her and runs a hand over her hair as if she were still a child.

Pidge gives Coran and Allura one final hug, then turns to Shiro. As she approaches him, the Green Lion kneels down and drops her jaw, readying herself to take Pidge back to Earth.

Stopping in front of him, Pidge crosses, then uncrosses her arms. The skin around her eyes is puffy from crying, and her smile watery.

“Ready to go?” he hears himself say. She nods.

And then she throws her arms around his neck and buries her face into his neck.

When Shiro was a child, maybe six or seven, his mother had taken him to Okinawa on holiday. He remembers nothing from the trip but for their day at the beach. Further out than he should have been, he’d been alone when a wave rose and broke above his head, alone when the water clawed him down below its surface. For a moment, time had seemed to stop. The world around him was no more than a muted roar, blue and weightless. Not until his lungs began to ache did he start to struggle, flailing against the water’s pull. When his head finally broke the water’s surface, his senses were unprepared for the painful clarity of what waited above: the sun, too bright in his eyes, the crash of waves, deafening, the sting of salt like crushed glass down his throat.

It is like that now. Shiro resurfaces from a depth he hadn’t known. He takes a gasping breath. Pidge’s low sob pounds harder than his heart against his ear drums, and the hangar lights are blinding. He blinks against them, feels dampness there. He’s not sure which way is up as Pidge pulls away long enough to say, “Come visit, okay? Mom, Dad, and Matt all want to see you.”

“Be safe, Katie,” he says. The sound wobbles on its way up.

“I’m always safe,” she protests.

Her pout is unconvincing, and she lets loose a fractured chuckle a beat later. It’s too much. He tugs her to his chest, giving himself a moment of respite from the torrent of emotions that whips across her face and floods their shared paladin bond.

“If you were safe, I’d never have to tell you that,” he murmurs. “Please try to keep Earth and yourself intact while we’re away.”

Pidge looks up at him. Through the tears that gloss over brown eyes, there’s a hardness there, the resolute determination of a soldier. Shiro knows it in her unwavering gaze, in the premature lines that have settled along her brow, in the square clench of her jaw.

“As long as you promise to take care of yourself while I’m away,” she says.

“I will.”

She frowns. “I mean it.”

Her order is stern and commands compliance; his “Yes ma’am” is automatic. Shiro wonders when she’d picked up that tone from him, marvels at how three short words could make him feel like a cadet again.

“That’s more like it,” Pidge says, softening into a smile. “I’ll miss you,Takashi. Don’t be a stranger.”

Before he can respond, she raises up on her toes and presses her lips to his cheek.

Pidge pulls away without another word.

Watching the taut line of her body disappear as the ramp to the Green Lion begins to retract is like feeling the water slowly close over him once more.

...

The messages are frequent at first, as Castle, Earth, and paladins have yet to put millions of lightyears between them. Pidge is accepted to graduate school; Shay and Hunk have begun strengthening psychic and political ties between the various wandering Balmera; Lance and Keith haven’t been blown up yet.

Maybe a month into their travels, Hunk and Shay begin picking up rumors about a Balmera allegedly being harvested by a group of Galra Sentries that, by some glitch or defect, had started an autonomous mining operation and were unaware of the fall of the Empire. Their investigation takes them further than the reach of the Castle’s transmission system; it takes ten, then sixteen, then thirty-one quintants for them to receive messages from the two. And then Shiro and Allura get the message that Hunk and Shay are safe, the sentries wiped out and the Balmerans back in control, and that they are staying to aid in the recovery and eventual joining of the Alliance. Shiro and Allura replay the message three times on the bridge, and even as he watches the worry crease in the corners of Allura’s eyes, he sees the brightening of Hunk’s smile.

Lance and Keith report back in with more regularity - part of their official function - but like with Hunk and Shay, eventually they too succumb to the limitations of their technology. The Castle is in near-constant transit: Kolivan and a handful of the other Senior Members of the Alliance had convinced Allura that a tour of each of the Alliance systems would be beneficial for upholding the image of fair unity that the founders of the coalition had promised even before the end of the war. The millions of lightyears between them are ever-increasing, and Keith and Lance’s check-ins become less official and more hearsay as rumor of their shenanigans - and rising popularity - travels faster than the formal diplomatic missives.

And Pidge, well. Earth’s technology and communications infrastructure was always the weakest link in the chain, and despite her best efforts, the communications dwindle. Video messages take weeks, and then become voice messages, and then become nothing at all. They’re two full systems from Earth when they receive their last one. A faint “Happy Earth Birthday, Shiro!” rises meagerly over vicious static. The rest comes in pieces “Of course… not as much time… seven now, right?... ruined Coran’s recipe… doctor… hopefully without fire… approximate limit of these… miss you all anyway…” and then loses its battle to the white noise.

If it happens once, it happens a thousand times. Long after Allura has collapsed in bed, Shiro sits on the bridge and replays his favorite messages. He listens to Pidge and Lance and Hunk and Keith on repeat, until they sound like a conversation, until he falls asleep. …

Each system, each planet, has something new for him. His mouth learns to shape itself into greetings of peace in forty-two different languages. His tongue fumbles over coarse warnings of violence in three.The exhilaration that coursed up his spine and leapt from his throat the first time he saw the ice planet Jum’s incandescent purple sunrise is one he’ll taste for the rest of his life. He’d brought Kuro down from the upper atmosphere and broke cloud cover just as the ultraviolet sun erupted over the horizon. High peaks of translucent ice catch and bend the light.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it guys?” he breathes.

Only Kuro is there to respond, her purr soft and reassuring against the radio silence.

…

The Alliance is not an Empire. It’s not a Kingdom, or a Territory - it’s not even a Democracy, and it’s barely a Government. The Alliance is an Alliance.

When Allura first explained it to Shiro and the other paladins, she’d tried to liken it to Voltron.

“It’s like multiple units, all coexisting and coming together to work for one common good, while still maintaining their independence, their freedom to live they way that’s best for them,” she’d said. “Just like the five of you and Voltron!”

“Except we actually trust one another,” Keith pointed out.

“And have been cooperating for years,” Pidge added.

“Also, not to like, totally undermine your whole premise,” Hunk started, at which point Allura slumped forward and gave him a flat-eyed death glare, “but I’m pretty sure whatever weird magical paladin bond we’ve got going on kinda negates the entirely free and independent thing.”

All of the other paladins had nodded in agreement. Lance, with more sense than all of them in the moment, wished Allura luck with her big, dysfunctional Voltron.

To the surprise of all beyond the Castle walls, Allura succeeded. Persistence, sleepless nights, negotiations, and the occasional coercive appearance of Voltron culminated in The Galactic Alliance: over 4,000 planets and 9 prospective coalitions across 239 systems, gathered in the hopes of resetting balance to a universe shaken into submission by Zarkon thousands of years ago. 4,000 planets, little unity, and even less trust. Allura aged more in the first six months than over the half-decathebe that Shiro had known her.

She hasn’t slowed down since. While the tour wasn’t her idea, she’d plunged into the venture headfirst, and by the third year of their travels, they’ve covered over 180 of the total systems. Most of the time, they’re met with ambivalent hospitality. On occasion, there’s outright hostility. Millennia of brutal occupation is not always conducive to allowing a castle cum warship to land on one’s planet.

Even when Allura is permitted to land, most delegates prefer to meet them at The Castle of Lions, claiming a desire to experience the technological wonder firsthand. It’s not often that Shiro and Allura can so much as step foot outside of the Castle without being bustled back in by the delegates’ security. Shiro doesn’t blame them for being so guarded, but after long stints of such treatment, he starts to miss getting to see the sky.

As such, to be planetside is a rare pleasure. He indulges in it now.

There’s technically a gala going on inside, but ever since dinner ended, Shiro has spent most of his time leaning against the external wall of a wide rampart, staring out over the landscape. The planet is lush and lovely, a stark contrast to the hideous edifice that he, Allura, and Coran are being hosted in. It had been a Galran construction, the longtime home of the commanding officer assigned to rule the planet. Kolivan, who had arranged to meet them by teludav, had insisted that the steel and stone monstrosity was nothing like traditional Galran architecture.

Shiro can’t find much room to care, though: the crisp dusk air fills his lungs with a pleasant sting, and from where he stands, looking up at faint stars in a deep lavender sky, he can almost convince himself that he is back on Earth.

“Tired of the formalities?”

Kolivan’s voice no longer sends a zip of alarm up his spine - they have been allies far too long for that. Instead, Shiro turns and offers a limp smile. The expression on Kolivan’s face mirrors his: a little taut, a little tired, a little long gone with the intricacies of diplomacy. His eyes glow faint gold in the growing dark. They were soldiers, predators, out of place.

“If you’ve been to one fancy dinner party, you’ve been to them all,” Shiro says with a slight shrug. “Being present and socializing at events like this was only ever my job because the other paladins couldn’t be guaranteed not to start an interplanatary riot. Now that I’m basically on patrol duty things are much more relaxed.”

Kolivan chuckles and joins him against the rampart wall. “You mean Pidge and Keith weren’t star socialites?”

“If by star socialites, you mean challenging each other to see who could keep down the most nunvil during state dinners or offending planetary figureheads by purposefully speaking in Pig Latin the entire time then yes, they absolutely are.”

If Kolivan catches Shiro’s present tense, he doesn’t comment on it. After his laughter fades, they stand in silence, wrapped in their own thoughts and aware of the other. It’s been long enough now for Shiro to know that Kolivan was not one to initiate without intention. His straightforward nature was a trait Shiro both appreciated and respected in the being tasked to share with Allura the joint leadership of the Alliance. Shiro knows he won’t wait long for Kolivan to reach his point.

“It’s been well over nine drozaks since we first met, Shiro,” Kolivan finally says. “I don’t know the Terran equivalent, but in all that time, you’ve gone back home just once. Don’t you miss Earth?”

The question is one he’s asked himself before, on those rare nights when he does sleep, only to wake up in a cold sweat. He dreams of Earth in muted colors: he dreams of the swell of a wave curling overhead, dreams of ume in full bloom, of hot coals in the setting sun and cool dirt beneath bare feet. It’s a question he’s never allowed himself to answer.

“Don’t you miss Galra?” Shiro returns. “How often have you been back since you left with the Blade all those decathebes ago?”

Kolivan chuckle-hums. There’s enough light streaming out from the adjacent banquet hall for Shiro to see his nose wrinkle.

“Zarkon destroyed much of Galra well before my mother’s ancestors were born. There was not much to miss from the beginning. Why do you think so many resettlement applications have come through the Alliance since his fall?”

He gazes up at the stars and continues. “Space and the Blade of Marmora are more my home than any lump of rock. But Earth was spared Zarkon’s wrath. Why not return?”

“Did Allura put you up to this?” Shiro asks instead.

Kolivan raises an eyebrow, but Shiro doesn’t backtrack on his evasion.

“She did,” Kolivan says.

“Is she worried about me?” Shiro know the answer, but doesn’t know why he needs to hear it out loud.

“She is. Allura mentioned to me earlier that she was uncertain how much of an impact being separated from the other paladins has had on you. As she explained it, the five of you had some sort of psychic, emotional bond?”

“We do.”

Shiro shifts from foot to foot. All logic tells him that Kolivan means well, that Shiro is perfectly safe out on the open air rampart. But his stomach twists and his muscles clench, baser instinct warning him that he’s about to be cornered: flee to the Castle, get to safety.

“The Galra aren’t known for their emotional perception, but I would imagine you must be feeling like you’ve lost your pack, your tribe. It’s a weighty loss.” Kolivan’s voice grows distant, as if he’d lost track of his words while counting his own dead. Shiro might feel more sympathetic if he weren’t so on edge.

“Is Allura concerned about my performance? My ability to pilot the Black Lion, or protect The Alliance?”

At that, Kolivan snorts. “Hardly. I’ve heard her reports, and seen your flying with my own eyes. If anything, you’ve become more precise as a pilot and more exacting as a soldier these past four drozaks. She calls you The Alliance’s greatest asset.” Kolivan’s features soften. “But that doesn’t mean she’s not worried. I believe she brought it up to me because my crew and I are planning on teludaving to a system much nearer to Earth once this meeting has concluded. We wanted to offer you transit.”

The information passes over him in small ripples. He could go back to Earth. See Pidge, visit the Holts. Coran would call it the vacation he’s been long overdue in taking.

Shiro sees two possibilities:

One. He returns to Earth. The Holts welcome him into their home with open arms. The Garrison, perhaps, offers him a position. He watches the sun rise over Earth’s horizon and decides never to return to space again. The others are left to fill his absence, to maintain The Alliance and everything they fought for, without him.

Two. He returns to Earth. The Holts welcome him into their home with open arms. The Garrison, perhaps, offers him a position. He watches the sun dip below Earth’s horizon and the emptiness sweeps over him like the dark of night. He decides to return to space immediately, filled with the knowledge that the home he fought to return to for so long is no home to him at all.

“I can’t thank you enough for the offer, Kolivan,” Shiro says with a smile, “but I think I’m still probably more useful up here than anywhere on Earth.”

…

Time, Coran explains over dinner one evening, is little more than a matter of perception. To try and measure it by the passage of light and dark is unreliable at best. Consider the planet Urukul and its four hundred quintants of relentless sunshine. Consider quintants, how they stretch slower than Earth-days. Consider “dinnertime” and “evening” in the black dead of space, where the Castle’s carefully calibrated computer system dims and brightens light in a facsimile of passing time.

Of course, Coran, Allura, and Shiro have just returned from a diplomatic meeting on the moon of Myjorn, where Coran had found a particularly expensive and potent bottle of nunvil. He’s three glasses in to Shiro and Allura’s one, and by now they’re used to his uncanny brand of inebriated philosophy.

Even after all of this time, Shiro hasn’t quite figured out the Terran to Altean equivalents, and asking Coran now is likely to lead them down a rabbit hole that neither Allura nor Shiro have the patience for after the day’s negotiations, but he does know that it has been 1,137 quintants since last visiting Earth. Maybe something like three years, or forty months. Maybe more, maybe less. Maybe unimportant, if what Coran has to say about time holds any bearing. For time to be no more than a trick of the brain holds strange merit, since the longer that time has passed since the end of the war, the more that is has seemed to slow. Sometimes Shiro feels as though he’s wading through it.

Coran pours Shiro a second glass of nunvil without asking. He barely feels its burn on the way down. ...

It's not the first time in his life that Shiro's woken up alone. Over the last two years or so it's become the rule rather than the exception. Changes in the universe move too fast for regular sleep schedules.

It’s not the first time that Shiro has woken up alone in the Castle either, but the void feels more like a vacuum tonight than usual. Although he knows it’s pointless, he spreads his mind across the Castle, letting it slip through sealed doors and drift from room to empty room. There’s no brush of living consciousness to trail its warmth along his, no elastic thrum of a paladin bond snapping to life. In the motionless dark of the Castle, Shiro allows himself a confession: he has not felt the ache he expected when the other paladins left, because he does not feel as though some part of him has been separated from his whole. Instead, he is no more than a fraction of himself, a piece ripped away from a complete unit. He is four raw edges stinging for totality.

He sits up and swings his legs over the edge of the bed, letting his sheet slither to the floor.

Allura and Coran were staying on-planet, escorted by a handful of the Blade of Marmora, whose insistence that Shiro stay behind had ceased to raise his ire ages ago. For as many planets and peoples had suffered under Zarkon, there were just as many that had flourished, or at least found a peaceful sort of normalcy in their situation. Such planetary governments were hesitant to meet with the heads of the new Alliance, and outright refused to host the Black Paladin of Voltron and his weapon.

Even the mice had gone with Allura.

Shiro stands, stretching out the sleep pains. His joints pop, his back twinges. He is getting old, perhaps, a concept he’d never had a chance to reconcile with when he was in the middle of fighting for his life. The lights in his room rise to a dim glow now that he’s up and moving. His reflection catches in the mirror, revealing the touches of silver that start at his temples and stretch up to meet the shock of hair that trauma had blanched years ago.

None of them were immune to the passage of time, of course. The video transmissions they still got were evidence enough of that: laugh lines were beginning to show at the corners of Lance’s eyes and mouth; Hunk had grown a moustache. Coran had taken to coloring his hair, though he’d deny it endlessly if questioned. The pink markings perched above Allura’s cheeks had taken on a bluish hue, a sign of middling Altean adulthood.

Shiro slips out of his room and pads barefoot down the hallway. Lights perk on ahead of him, unnecessary as they are. He could cross this whole ship with his eyes closed, or plunged in the blackest dark.

No destination calls to him, so he wanders. The energy that spurs him on isn’t anxious, isn’t the need to work himself past exhaustion on the training deck, isn’t the nervous force that kept him up for years, monitoring system maps for incoming Galra fleets. It’s more like the resigned sensation of starvation, the knowledge that the body will succumb before finding nourishment, but the brain persists, driving on. It’s more like the slow struggle against the ocean’s ancient gravity.

How long Shiro walks, he can’t be sure, but he’s eventually stopped by Kuro’s metallic chirp. Her wordless question echoes through the otherwise unoccupied hangar and laps gently against his mind.

Years ago, she’d asked him about Earth. All she knew of the planet was from Blue’s time there, back when it was a young, tumultuous shard in a cold sea. He had shared with her images of the desert as it took on the orange blush of dawn. He had shared the warmth of his mother’s hand as she led him down the sidewalk, the rich softness of her voice, calling after him as he toddled through his first snowfall. He gave her the sight of Earth, blue and green below, as he stared down after breaking the atmosphere during his first spaceflight.

It’s these images she sends back to him now, each picture accompanied by that same question.

Home?

He tries to remind her: he’s needed here. His mother is no longer. The sun will rise over the desert with or without him.

Kuro persists, though, projecting Earth as she knows it: Pidge, running her toes through the grass in the clearing near the Holt’s home where they’d decided to land the lions; the rush of sand and cliffs as they raced over the desert; the blue-green pearl of a planet nestled in the blanket of space.

Home?

A painful jolt smacks up his spine. His hands hit the cold floor. His knees will sting tomorrow, but he’s too distracted by the small globules of water that bead on the floor below him.

...

“Are you sure?”

“We hardly ever use the teludav anymore, Shiro. We’ll have more than enough power to get you to Earth, even from here.”

His heart pounds so loudly in his ears that he almost doesn’t hear Allura’s assurances through the speaker in his helmet. This is a terrible idea, and although Allura must be doing her best to conceal her disappointment, he’s sure she’s taken his weakness and tacked it into her impression of him, like a footnote leering at the bottom of the page. Maybe he’ll decide to come back and she won’t want him, won’t need a broken Black Paladin who-

“And before you start tearing yourself apart,” Allura breaks in, “know that I think you’re making the right decision, Shiro.”

There’s a soft click; Allura cuts Coran and anyone else listening out of the communication channel.

“If there’s any flaw of yours, it’s your transparency,” she continues. “You can try and tell me that you’re not beating yourself up over leaving, but I know better.”

Shiro doesn’t respond. He knows he doesn’t have to.

“But there’s something you’ve been missing. Maybe it’s the others. Maybe it’s something else. Go there and find it, Shiro. And when you’re ready, come back.”

He nods, even though he knows she can’t see it. The cracks had come out in her voice, the slightest sob, and he knows that when he speaks he'll sound the same.

“Thank you,” he manages.

“It’s less than a fraction of what I, what we all owe you. Take care.”

Allura flips the comm channel back open, and when she does, her voice is clear and strong. “Hangar doors are clear, ready when you are. Initiating teludav in ten… nine…”

Kuro charges out of the hangar; her controls move under his hands, but the motion is automatic.

They dive into the wormhole. The fabric of space rips and ripples around them, white, blinding. Shiro feels the breath clench in his chest. His ears ring, and were he not harnessed to his seat he thinks he might be flung from the cockpit. The wave of dizziness that hits him might be vertigo, if he had any sense of which way was down. He feels like he’s swimming against the very air, uncertain if each stroke is taking him closer to the surface or further into the depths.

A red-black haze skirts the edges of his vision, and then everything stops.

The familiar canvas of space surrounds him once more.

Ahead, a gloss of blue-green disrupts the dark.