#They do it to all the backdoor entities

[diantheia]

Curious Light strikes me as the type to say some bullshit like "Look, man, I hear what you're saying, but-" when arguing with Lookman because it pisses them off.

[tritoch]

i've seen a lot of people complain about the dawntrail final dungeon for being a thing that we have basically already done and i understand and in many ways agree with that complaint but i do think it varies from the usual in ways that are actually pretty compelling.

spoilers for dawntrail follow, natch.

like okay in amaurot and the dead ends and the lunar subterrane (okay this is definitely a well CBU3 has gone to too many times), the premise is the fights you're engaging in are all kind of historical. behold, the dooms of amaurot. tremble before ra-la, a real sphinx that actually existed once somewhere. face durante, just as golbez faced him in real life.

and accordingly, because all the fighting is supposed to match the energy of the dungeons, these are moments of panic and peril. the world is ending. the worlds are ending. the kingdom is on fire. there's a solemn villain voiceover to really drive the point home (we just wanted to play...on da amaurotine playground...). amaurot is falling and look how sad it is. every world died and look how painful it was. my best buddy golbez died and it was really sad. everything is Fucked Up.

what's really fun about alexandria by contrast, particularly in the first part, is that things are fine, actually! sphene's here (well, "heah"), and we love her, and she smiles because we smile and we smile for her :). oh no alexandria is falling and it's so sad and noble because of everyone's chivalric sacrifices :( oh yay we're rebuilding from the ashes :)

it's a beautiful, tragic, noble story. and the whole time no one's talking to you, not like normal. sphene's kind of reciting the lyrics to memory from cats listlessly but everyone in her memories is talking to each other, not to you. none of them are interacting with you. you're not fighting alongside her against her enemies or taking down conjured horrors from the past.

no, the whole time you're being reminded of one very specific fact.

You're foreign. You're not from here. This is not for you. This is not yours. This peace was not yours and never will be. This grief, this hope. You chose otherwise. You were offered the chance to be Alexandrian. You rejected it. Stay over there. Stay out. You are not wanted here.

in what i personally choose to interpret as a bit of dark comedy, when things start breaking down, it's literally one of the only words you still understand.

ultimately what distinguishes alexandria from amaurot or the dead ends (intentional "this is why i'm sad" slideshows made specifically for the warrior of light to experience) or the lunar subterrane (accidental memory recreation) is that you are choosing to invade sphene's memories. you are doing a cool little backdoor heist at the luxor casino by causing chaos all over the strip before you crawl through the vents to get to the mainframe or whatever.

but in the context of dawntrail, alexandria is the invading power, the rapacious techno-dystopia that intends to carry out forever wars so it can use the literal souls of its enemies to power its treat machines and which not so coincidentally spawned in north america. and alexandria has literally invaded both tuliyollal and yyasulani at this point. so the conceit of the memory guardians helps make clear the hegemonic logic at play. you are a foreign entity. you are not a subject of the state. your life has no value. you must be removed.

or, if removal proves impossible, exterminated.

[txttletale]

(Other than the really weird bit about "Male presenting Doctor") what were your thoughts about the specials?

pretty mixed bag, pretty messy, but good overall. i think they were very obviously a nostalgia trip for people around my age lol and it worked! i loved seeing tennant and tate back onscreen together, their chemistry hasn't aged a bit, and honestly just watching doctor who that wasn't written by chris chibnall was a breath of fresh air. they weren't boring, like seasons 11 and 12 were, and they didn't go too far off the other end into nonsense like flux did. characters want things again! the show can let itself just be silly! i was literally cheering out loud when donna and the doctor were just saying random scifi gobbledegook at each other for like a solid several minutes during the star beast.

the structure of the specials kind of baffles me. i love wild blue yonder--i think it's definitively the best of the specials as a standalone, it's absolutely fantastic, creepy and atmospheric and bringing things around to RTD's strength, which is well-written characters interacting with each other and letting good actors just act. but at the same time i dont understand why it exists? it feels like...idk. imagine if you watched the star wars original trilogy but instead of the empire strikes back the middle film was just a feature length film about luke and han surviving on an ice planet with no reference to anything that happens in the last film except the two characters' relationship. and then the next film was still return of the jedi, unchanged. it felt like that

i liked all the weird campy silliness of the star beast and the giggle, and they were both very fun! neil patrick harris gave a fantastic performance, there are a lot of very memorable sequences from the giggle, but it's very very all over the place. so many threads get kind of picked up and go nowhere. the toymaker's haunted house dimension goes nowhere. RTD's eyerolling social media commetnary goes nowhere (thank god tbh but yknow im illustrating something here). even the toymaker kind of goes nowhere, after ncuti gatwa shows up he's bascially an afterthought who loses by dropping a ball. obvious parallels to david tennant's first episode with that ball scene could be made, but just... aren't. it feels like load-bearing sectikons of the plot and themes were cut out to make room for a backdoor pilot for the stupid fucking UNIT spinoff

oh and it goes without saying i fucking hate all the UNIT wank in the star beast and the giggle. i hope space nine eleven 2 happens to their stupid fucking avengers tower i cannot stand kate stewart who is constantly a murderous bonehead (in the giggle alone she gets two pepole killed by not listening to the doctor and assuming that this teleporting godlike entity could be restrainted by Two Guys) who is both in and out of universe just a boring nepo baby with no merit of her own

um. i still dont know what happened with the regeneration. i think the implication is that when david tennant dies hell time travel back to become ncuti gatwa inside himself--at least the rehab dialogue seems to make that implication. but it's not really explained or explored? baffling. i do think that fourteen getting to settle down and live a peaceful life with his friends is cute.

oh yeah and the ask said other than that but goddd there was some good stuff in the star beast and honestly with the state of the UK media i will take any perspective on trans people that includes baseline human erespect but some of those lines made me cringe so bad. anyway overall i am cautiously optimistic for the future of the show--oh ncuti was fucking great did i mention that i instantly bnought him as the doctor he owned the scene, the moment he was there it was clear he was the protagonist, and i liked the church on ruby road well enough too--i am cautiously optimistic but i worry that a big UNIT-shaped tumor will devour huge chunks of it and it'll be annoying. also russel t davies is like 60 and i just dont want to hear what he has to say about twitter so im not looking forward to dot and bubble

[seledkamari]

Infopost about AU #1: What is happening and how did it all start?

Before I tell how it all started, a quick explanation:

The hotel, mines and castle are located in the state of California, USA

All entities except some - People who died in the hotel/mines/rooms/backdoor

Figure, Glitch, Jeff and Bob – ZX Lab Test Subjects

Red Light and Haste–Born from this Place

____________

So where did it all start? Once upon a time, there lived an aristocratic family, and that family did not do the best things, for which a curse was sent to them: Those who died within the walls of their possessions with some chance turned into monsters... however, this worked very slowly, until one moment.

In an accident at the mine on June 16, 1825, two miners, David and Evan House, died, and then the curse turned them into crazy monsters—the Grumbles.

Then the souls of the other two dead, Laidine and Hatsu Libern, were turned into saviors for those who wandered into the abode of those two. They were called the Guiding Light and the Curious Light. Which disappeared after the closure of the mines.

Let me explain: Now the Guiding and Curious souls of other people - Eran Deckard and Kyle Lament.

A little later, in 1832, the luxurious Gate of Light hotel was built and opened. Hundreds of rooms, banquet and ballrooms, its own mini-museum, garden, greenhouse and much more. The huge, majestic building was very popular among the upper class, although later people with lower incomes also joined it. Despite all this majesty, according to prophecy, a terrible fate awaited the hotel...

"159 years after the hotel opened, three innocent souls will become monsters and begin a series of horrors that will never let this place go"

In order to avoid this, a protector without a name was created, which we now call the red light (Spoiler: According to the statue of a faceless angel in the garden, it depicts him)

But as you know, it didn't work out for him.

And so, June 1990. in two days, on the 15th and 16th, three employees died, were killed and turned into monsters... and the soul of the last one, poor Rosarine Green, began a nightmare that will never end, and the hotel’s defender fell... he was replaced by new souls.

That's all for now, you will learn more about what happened, about the ZX laboratory, about the entities and their stories in the following posts. Thank you for your attention and those who read to the end and see you in the next posts! ^^

[doorrobloxstuff]

I’m back on the prooooowl, these bitches better have my moneeeeeey—-

Backdoor entities headcanons!! + a bit of au lore

Blitz

He/She/it, Bigender

Rush’s sister/brother (goes by both!) + littermate, was separated from from it before they were 14 or so after a certain..incident.

Was Raised by Rush’s sire, who was in a QPR with Rush’s mom.

He never stopped looking for them.

Makes a lot of SHEEEEEEEIT jokes because of her pronouns.

They are only funny to her. (And Rush. And Sally because she’s a daddy’s girl.)

Holds a lot of confusion and a tiny bit of resentment towards her mom.

Currently sharing Lookman w/haste (polycule with Lookman as the hinge.)

Curly fur/fog but in a raggedy way. Torn lookin almost. With less scars then her brother and Gray-ish.

Teethers are a lil crooked.

So, interesting thing about bbg is she has heart issues. Worse that her brother does, so to counteract this, she has this funky collar thing that buzzes really hard and then injects her with this funky glowing red liquid that makes her stop and take a breath and THEN injects her with an even FUNKIER green one to keep going.

Has a lot of strain on his heart, takes a lot of naps with her brother/with Lookman.

Curi + Lookman made him the collar <3 TCL loves technology and Lookman added the comfy parts to the collar so it’s ez to wear.

Bbg is VERY pain resistant.

also has a tiny vision issue (one of her eyes is bigger then the other).

Makes up for both disabilities with extreme, EXTREME sheer aggression.

Will barrage people with near constant attacks. Exhausting them.

Rush and her don’t meet for AWHILE, and when they finally do it’s a bit confusing but then it’s super happy and they pretty much just cuddle like they were never separated at all!!

They still do have their “oh yea we were separated for several years” moments though.

They look at eachother autistically.

Very touchy. Loves to preen Lookman with his teeth.

She loves Sally and Dupe, gives them little rides in her fur and frequently dashes around with them on her back.

Has insane reaction time, would be awesome at rhythm games.

Simultaneously is extremely observant and yet has the attention span of a gnat.

Lookman

It/he

Nicknames includes looksie loo, Looker, Looks, Lookie Cookie.

In a polyamorous relationship with Blitz and Haste, with himself as the hinge.

Extremely skinny, moth-like creature with long, thin wings, fucked up glowy eyes, and just, slenderman lookin headass.

Drinks up blood and fat primarily through its fucked up proboscis straw mouth, but can also drink nectar and would actually prefer some fruit tbh.

Kills you via the large spots on its wings, which by looking at them. They’re not really shaped like eyes, more so like the big red star things you see in game.

Very persistent, and arguably the best hunter right next to Haste. Practically on you for the entire experience.

Was romanced by Haste with some raspberries it picked for it outside the hotel.

Loves having its wings massaged and Blitz is happy to oblige.

Has long antennae with little balls at the end of them.

Squeaks like a deathhead hawkmoth when excited, anxious or hungry.

Baby of the group, the other two take good care of him.

Really Chill, all things considered.

Probably the most normal out of all of them.

Haste:

He/Him

Formerly human.

In a poly relationship w/Lookman and sharing him with blitz

Really violent, he probably did something bad while he was a human being.

Has an alarm clock that Curi has to reset the seconds via levers to keep that mf asleep.

As soon as he hears BEEP BEEP BEEP that guy is GONE.

Emits a really toxic gas that kills a human being in minutes.

Makes the person sees red, makes them bleed from the eyes as he speeds over to finish the job that the gas and his teammates started.

He’s very good at it, and kept the other two fed through the famine.

Works well with Blitz and Lookman, hunting-wise anyways.

Mostly just gets along with Lookman outside of that. He’s okay with Blitz because she’s dating Lookman too so-..mean as shit except to literally two people in existence.

Able to throw his head at people.

He’d bully you if you if he were a real person.

Very spiky

Smells rotten.

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Anonymous asked: Of all the many languages you speak which is your weakest one? Do you use those languages?

It’s privilege to learn any language that isn’t your mother tongue. As Ludwig Wittgenstein correctly observed, “The limits of my language means the limits of my world”. If English is our native tongue we put ourselves at a disadvantage because we expect every other nationality to take the trouble to speak it. There seems no incentive to learn a foreign language. We become lazy not just in language but also in other ways including our cultural enrichment, our imagination, and a misplaced sense of our self-importance in the world.

Of the European languages I know, I probably think German would be my weakest. When I was in school in Switzerland you’re brought up in three languages: French, Italian, and German (even if the Swiss speak Swiss German). When I say weakest I mean I can converse fluently, but I don’t have time to read German literature in the same immersive way I would say with French literature or take any special interest in German affairs.

I would say I’m fairly fluent in French now but still prone to silly mistakes. I’ve been told that I can speak without an accent and that is heart warming to know, because that was always the goal once I moved here to France. I don’t really use French in my work as it’s a multi-national entity and so English is the default language of corporate world, but I’m speaking French pretty much the rest of the time outside of work.

I was extremely fortunate to be born into a multi-lingual family where Norwegian and English were spoken from birth. All my siblings were being versed in Latin (not Greek which came years later after doing Classics at university) by the time I was 8 or 9 years old because my father was a classicist and he felt Latin was the building blocks to mastering other languages.

All this occurring whilst we moved lived and moved around a lot in the world such as China, Japan, India, and the Middle East. When I was initially sent to one of the first of my English girls boarding schools I was horrified that most of the girls only spoke English. I thought I was the stupid one for only knowing 6. Boarding school, if nothing else, gave me a great privilege to hone in on the languages I did know and start to learn others.

My parents didn’t take the easy way out and put us children in international schools like all the other expat children. That would have been too easy given how tight knit the British expatriate community was out there. Instead we were left to sink or swim in local schools in places like Tokyo and Kyoto in Japan or Shanghai in China or in Delhi, India. It was a struggle but you soon find your feet and you stumble towards some basic level of fluency.

I’m fortunate that before Covid my corporate work took me often to the Far East and it was a great opportunity to hone what I already knew. The result is I can converse and take business meetings in Chinese and Japanese (though English gets thrown into the mix too).

I would say Chinese is more of a struggle for me these days because I’ve not been back since before the Covid lockdown in 2020. Chinese is one of those languages that can easily melt away if you don’t get the chance to converse in it on a regular basis. Japanese less so, probably because the culture had more profound impact on me than Chinese culture.

Hindi is less of an issue because I have close Indian friends and also I watch Bollywood movies as well as converse with Indian immigrants here in Paris who have local stores. Urdu I learned through the backdoor because Urdu has a spoken affinity with Hindi (if you know Hindi then you know spoken Urdu, more or less, especially in Northern India and cities like Delhi where Urdu was born in the burnt ashes of Mughal India). Reading is another matter because they each use different scripts - Sanskrit for Hindi and Arabic and Persian script for Urdu.

Strangely enough when I was doing my tour in Afghanistan years ago with the British army, I would speak Urdu with local Afghans who served as official translators or were selling goods on the base. These Afghans knew Urdu because an entire generation of Afghan boys and girls grew up in refugee camps on the Pakistani border during the different phases of the Afghan war. I have very fond memories of their friendship and hospitality, but less so of the war itself. 

With Arabic, it had lapsed woefully until I did a posting in Dubai in the past year (as catalogued in my blog) and I found myself suddenly remembering a lot and asking Arab friends. Soon I was able to hold my own amongst my colleagues and corporate clients. In these cultures it’s really hard to stay focused because so many of them speak very good English. So it’s hard to get them to stick with their own language because you want to learn from them - but they want to show off their English proficiency - and so you have to be polite but persistent to stick with Arabic.  

If you’re learning a new language then I hope you stick with it. There’s almost nothing more rewarding in your life than the disocovery a rich culture through language. The key is to find a way to make it fun rather than a trip to the dentist chair for a root canal operation.

Thanks for your question.

[theworldibuilt4you]

[Sonny had decided to just make himself useful by checking the world's key files. He was assuming by now that the entity had... Supposedly managed to freeze the place and work within their own window. It's not unheard of. He's able to do such things as well, just at a much smaller scale. He can freeze people and assets, such as when he froze Kinito to get a message out during his first appearance without detection.]

[But this... This was everything. The whole world, any RRA that they had access to- It all just... stopped.]

[And this entity was a mere child, as stated by Addie... It's so... Bizarre... How could a child gain so much control over the system..? They must have figured out quite the backdoor...]

[Just as he was doing another glance over, a new feedback window opened. He was surprised at first, but relaxed quickly upon seeing who was in view.]

"Uh... Hey... Sonny..? I uh.. I'm okay and... All. Look, I like, still can't see you or hear you like everyone fucking else can I guess... But Jade wanted me to talk to ya so uh.. Just gimme a sec."

"...When everything went out, Jade could still interact with topside. Erica- I guess that's who uh.. attacked me-? She was too distracted with uh... whatever it was she was doing.. I'm still a bit dizzy, so I don't exactly remember what it was... i can just remember a lot of... Purple? Urgh it's... so weird talking to someone I can't see..."

"Anyway she....'

"...Finished the job for us. Decrypted it and everything. It's... it's almost over."

"I'm sending the files over now- Uh, she.. she taught me a bit while I was stuck waiting down there so- But anyway... She wanted me to give you a message when I do.. Her words exactly;"

"Don't do anything stupid."

[YOU'VE GOT MAIL!]

[TO: 🐙]

[FROM: Casey.RRA]

[ATTACHMENTS: CREDENTIALS.TXT, SERVER.TXT, PASSWORD.TXT, ACCESS.TXT, CONFIRMATION.TXT]

"B…Kbnm..?! I… Vb.. Scn.. aht gry- Wn… vm's bbt sueey…"

"Q…V'r big keiqd myg…"

[fandomandangstlover]

..... ah've kept these Curious Light Headcanons for WAY too long, so uh. here;

Curious Light prefers She/He

unlike Guiding Light, she is an inner-dimensional being that guards Rooms due to it being an non-euclidean area just like the Hotel. except for Rooms, it's more of a parasite that leeches on to different Areas™ to infect it, with Curious Light being the only one to make sure that doesn't happen.

Rooms is leeched on the Hotel and stayed that way because of the Travelers. CL could control what's already in Rooms, but anyone coming in, he has less control over. so it just... happens. and this time, she lets his curiosity go ham.

no one really visits, so the Travelers coming in was enough for him to take interest. she finally learns more about his Entities by them, and as such he's also curious by them as well. though she does get a bit annoyed by them since they... well, them dying means she has to throw them back into the Hotel, and that takes a LOT of energy to do. if there's too many souls, it's gonna get crowded, after all!

he doesn't like talking too much, but does so anyways because it's well, her job. to maintain & guard this Area.

CL meets GL by the Travelers that died recently and stayed mentioned CL to GL, soo GL goes to the entrance of Rooms and basically asked if anyone's there. surprise surprise, CL answers and they became frens!! well, CL says they're coworkers but whatever.

the Backdoor is another Area that CL didn't actively exist in. she just, found himself there one day and. went with it. he now looks over both Areas, and yes she told GL. GL has no idea what he's talking about but is a little upset(sad) that they can't help her.

CL is lonely. very lonely. she doesn't know how to be supportive very well, yet he tries anyways because, well. she finally had people to support. and it has always been an urge for him, like she was supposed to be doing this.

and uhh.... yeah that's all i got. enjoy?

[elfmoon3]

The Hollowed Woods (Transformers Animated story)

Pairings: Prowl x Oc, Bumblebee x Oc, Oc x Oc

Summary: As Halloween arrives, sightings of a tall creature have the Autobots' attention.

In the forest near the Mansion of Unknown, Meagan was walking on a path as she was heading back towards the mansion. However, she felt like she was being watched as she reached the backdoor. She turned around to see nothing, but she still felt like she was being observed. She sighed as she went inside.

Later at the Autobot Hideout, the Autobots and the agents of The Unknown Agency got notified by Captain Fanzone about weird sightings of an entity that he thinks they'd be interested in. "A tall humanoid?" Bumblebee asked, "Captain Fanzone said that he didn't know if it was a creature or if it was a decepticon wondering around. But if I could remember from the height description, it might not be a decepticon at all." Optimus said as Meagan looked through the reports, and her eyes got wide. "I think I know who this thing is." She said as she remembered a mission from her teenage years. "Ok, then what are we dealing with?" Bumblebee asked as she looked at him. "Slenderman." She said as she explained about who and what Slenderman is. A tall, faceless being who was originally known for taking people away to do who knows what to them. She even told them that children are his favorite targets. "Now that's alarming!" Bumblebee said as he didn't know what this thing might do to Cybertronians. "And with it being Halloween, he might be more active. We gotta go find him." Meagan said as Shadow Mist transformed into her vehicle mode. Meagan looked at her fellow agents and picked a few agents who were willing to go on the search for the tall creature.

While one group of the team searches the city, Meagan's group goes to the forest where Slenderman would most likely be. "So, how'd you know about this creature?" Prowl asked, Meagan sighs, "He saved me once. Despite his reputation for being a monster, he can be merciful to those he sees as a person of interest." She explained. She told them the story of how she met Slenderman during a mission from The Unknown Agency when she was sixteen. "He saved you from being attacked by something else that would've tore you to shreds? Wow!" Bumblebee yelled in shock. "By giving me his blood. But somehow, we're still connected in a way." She said as she felt that same feeling she felt earlier. "Stop!" She yelled as they stopped in a clearing. The group noticed a tree that was not like the others in the clearing, and standing in front of it was a tall figure with no face and wearing a suit. "Is that the creature?" Shadow Mist asked as Meagan got off her. Slenderman stared at them as the three Autobots transformed into their robot modes. Meagan got closer with no fear of him. "It's been a while, Slendy. What brings you to Detroit?" She asked him as the creature spoke despite not having a mouth. "I came with a dire message from The Order. They are concerned about the odd energy around the world." He said as Meagan sighed. "And they want The Unknown Agency to deal with it?" She asked him as he nodded. Bumblebee wanted to get closer, but everything he did, his optics get static. "Don't get close to him, Bumblebee. Slenderman has an ability that can mess with technology. That includes Cybertronians." Meagan explained as Bumblebee backed away. "I see you've made some interesting friends during your time here." Slenderman said as the weird tree opens a portal. "I must return to my world. Have a happy Halloween, Meagan." He said as he entered the portal, and it closed. Prowl's comlink soon heard Optimus said that they should return to the Hideout.

Back at the Hideout, Meagan reported to Director Mavis on the phone about what Slenderman told her. "If The Order is concerned about the strange things going on in the world, then we should investigate it before things get worse. I advise you to stay in Detroit since weird things are going on there, also. Good luck, and have a happy Halloween." Director Mavis said as she hung up. Meagan sighed as she was going to be super busy with this mission.

The End!

(Creepypasta meets Transformers is the only idea I have today. Happy Halloween, everyone.)

[ilikemyteawithmilk]

I tried writing a fanfiction after a while :3

Also I know Al is Ace. Since Asexuality is a spectrum I took some research into that matter and used one interpretation in here. He is more Demi romantic asexual though. hope thats okay

Alastor didn't know what consequences this ritual would hold.

Looking back at it when he first arrived in Hell, he would do in again in a Heartbeat.

Looking back at his Deal now, with all the constraints, with how he has to fiddle around his Masters orders, he does regret not having thought about a backdoor clause.

But than again, he was just a child when he killed the rabbit, and used it's blood to draw the circle in the snow. Just a child when his father shoved his mother to the floor, and punched him a black eye when he dared walk towards her. Just a child, that wished his father would simply die.

Funny, it was so cold outside, and this rabbits blood was so warm.

It wasn't that difficult to draw a summoning circle on the Ground. This Book that the old lady gave him had all the instructions. In his defense he couldn't understand everything thats written in there as he rarely looked presentable and unbrused enough to go to school, and therefor still had trouble reading. But even experienced readers would have trouble with the cursive in this Book. The Lady clearly wrote this in a hurry. Despite her poor calligraphy he liked her. She had a shop a couple streets away and claimed to be a Witch. Though the others called her a Lunatic, it didn't went unnoticed to him that she often seemed to look younger than the day before.

Once the circle was complete, and the Spell was spoken, young Alastor expected to have Lucifer, the Devil himself appear in front of him and offer to kill his Dad in exchange of his Soul. But faith rarely acts as one expects does it?

No, the entity he made a feal with was less powerful than Lucifer. But far, far more sinister, and a tad more cruel. But Al didn't mind at all. Because instead of Killing his father, his new Friend as The Entity introduced themselves, they offered Alastor some 'ways' to deal with this Drunk himself. And put his new found powers to use. _____________________________________________

A decate later young Alastor just exited a Radio Station where he applied for an Internship. He was humming a song that just played inside, wearing a big smile on his face. He has behaved his best, displayed all his charisma and manners. He was sure to hear from them soon. 'Ah, what a delightful day' he thought. The wind was a refreshing chill against the warm summer heat. He did enjoy the interview, his mother always said he had a way with people. And he did could never get enough of his own coice, so reaching, and influencing, people as a Radio host was a given.

While walking through this ever growing town in the best suit he could afford, he slowly strolled from the mansions, to the apartments, and finally to the slums he and his mother called their home. Never would he admit that he spent a big part of his live in poverty, never behaved or dressed like that either. What would that even bring. He still looked down at the beggars, at the prostitutes, at the drunks. His mother and him never would have lived with theese people If his wretched failure of a father would have been able to hold a job for a week or more, or if he didn't spent all their money on cheap booze.

Al came home and locked the door, quickly getting out of his tailored suit as to not ruin it with dish soap, or stain it with what he plans on doing later that night.

"I'm Home" he announces, Opening the door to his Mother's room and walking to her bed. A quick glance to the empty Glass of water and the half empty Bowl of Soup indicate that she ate. This time. "Good." He whisperes, scared of waking her, but still testing if she's not to far gone into her dreamworld. He quietly refills her Glass and stealthily exits the Room, quiet as a Mouse.

Opening the Pantry, he let's out a deep sigh. Bread, some moldy Carrots, and not enough rice to feed the both of them. But that's okay, he planned on going hunting anyways. And most of the time he does return with something.. more than edible.

_____________________________________

"Have you added enough sage dear?"

"yes Grandma, " you sigh. "And enough Cow blood, and not to much " wait how much wolfsbane was to much?" you laugh as a display of horror grows in her face "A joke a joke Im joking" you laugh while stirring the Pot. Potion Making was never your strong suite, but you where no amateur. Witchcraft was a Family business, and you were an excellent apprentice.

"Yeah keep on laughing, but when our Client comes back and wears a pitchfork with his blue warts and Lizard eyes I will grill a Sandwich on the sltar they burn you on"

Now the both of you were laughing. Witches haven't been caught in centuries, and the small coven of you and your two Grandma's isn't big enough, or suspicious enough to get caught. just two Old ladies who raise their Granddaughter together. Well, in theory Marlene was not your grandmother, but as long as Grandma loved her you will too. "Grandma, Pitchforks? really? " "They used those to hunt us back in the day! didn't forget the time one of those idiotic Farmers threw one of those at me." she winked. "That man became a nice and warm Furcoat for xou when you were a baby you know? "

Another laugh escaped you while pouring the potion into a small vial. Autumn's with your Gramdma are always the best part of the Year. A nice escape from your modern life with your Mom, and a welcome to get back to your Roots.

"Why would that man need a potion of strength anyways?" you wondered. "He's scared someone might kill him. And eat his remains for dinner" A sinister smile on her lips. "Wouldn't he than rather need a protection Talisman? or a Rune on his front door to sanction his House?" your Granny's smile grew. "Sold, sold and sold. Oh those cowards have always been my favorite clients. Poor Soul lives alone with his Dog. When he comes in to pick up his order I'll offer him a talisman for the dog too. Cute thing. a German Shepherd. From it's fur we could brew some fine Lycantrophy antidote" "Grandma, you know as good as I tha- really? I thought Australian Shepherds had better Fur for those?" She giggled and gave you a small slap with the Broom "just testing you my little raven of the night! Don't want you to loose all your wits while beeing away from me"

Again, both of you giggle. While you do your work for a while, filling two more Viols with the Potion and stealthily cleaning the counter where you spilled two drops, you wonder, and ask "Hey Grandma, Why is that man so scared?"

"ouuuuhuiii" She barely can contain her grin and walks other to you, using the Broom as a cane. "haven't you heard it yet? " you raise an Eyebrow, mentally going through all the things she told you since picking you up on the Trainstation merely 4 Hours ago. "We. have. a. Serial Killer in New Orleans" joyfully like a teen cousin who just told you about her crush of the week. "Marlene and I have restricted each other in scrying about who it is, but we are fairly sure they must be young and charming, the way the crimes are comited, oh" She takes a bite out of the air and moans as if eating the most delicious strawberry parfait she has ever tasted, then giggles misheviously. "It's mostly the same old scheme. Once or twice a month, a scream appears, than several more. Theese screams go on for a couple Minutes, but never enough for anyone to trace where exactly they come from. just the direction of the forest." This time, grandma interrupts to actually eat a Cookie, after chewing it painfully long, tasteing the suspense she's creating, she continues. "When police searchey the forest, they always find drops of fresh blood on several places, up to 300 feet apart. They usually never find the Victim, or their remains. Though last time they did find a Pinky finger and a piece of liver." You wrinkle your face. Ew. But the fact that the killer left traces last time means that they grew less cautious. That amused you. Most serial Killers where narcissists after all, and it wasn't unusual for them to make mistakes when they though no one could ever catch them. This brought a smile to your face, and your Grandma took it the wrong way. "Should I peek a look into the crystal ball and see if they're available for courting? "

Before you could correct your Grandma, the bell rang as Marlene opened the door and entered the shop. "Ah ah ah, no peeking my Spiderleg, we won't spoil our game will we? " The thin Woman Dropped her Bag and took off her flat Black hat. First she gave your Grandma a small peck on the cheek before coming up to you. "Come here little dove of doom. How have you been? how was the train ride? how is your stomach doing after the long time apart from my good cooking?" You embrace Marlene in a tight hug and answere her Questions with a smile on your Lips. Marlene's cooking was the best you ever had. You're not a hundred percent convinced she wasn't casting spells on it to increase the flavor though. Than she spoke the words you were afraid to hear since last year, and your stummic dropped to your feet.

"Are you ready for the Ritual tonight?"

Are you? You should be. You have been prepared for this. You have weighed the consequences, You could live as a Normal Human like your Mother choose. Or you Choose Magic.

"I. I think I am." "Have you decided on a Demon yet?" "She should pic one of the Sins. I picked an Ars Goetia and look where that left me." Your Grandmother exclaimed, still swiping the floor on the exact same spot. "My powers are great, but I'm nearly 250 years old, and already look like I'm close to the Grave." "You and I both know your age and appearance isn't determined by the demon, but by our use of magic. Play nurse for some more children, get some vials of their blood and you will look like 170 in no time" Marlene said smoothly while putting a hand on your shoulder. "We don't have to-" "I am ready. And I have choosen. I just need to reread the Spell for tonight." You interrupt her. " to chant it correctly you know? I left My book about Demonology at home so Kalista could read it, to ease her nerves. May I use yours?" You quicky glimpse at your Grandmother while fiddling with your necklace. You have been so sure when you packed your Bags yesterday, when you entered the train, even when you took a seat and started to mentally go through simpel spells. Only when you saw the look of worry in yours Mom's eyes as the train departured did your confidence stutter, and your insecurities grew. "Pah, Kalista should have rather visited us aswell. Support her big sister with such a big step" Granny's swiping grew more aggressive. "She will come when, and only if she's ready spiderweb." Marlene baisicly floated over to your grandmother with how light her steps where. She took Granny's chin in her hand and slightly tilted it up. "not everyone wishes for the life we share, but that doesn't mean we won't enjoy it the best we can"

You did love Marlene for the way she made your Grandma loose her track of thought and her temper. How one bewitched the other without spells just with a look.

After a few moments of you puting the vials, two talismans and a parchment with the correct Rune in a small Box, you cleared your throat.

"The book?"

"Oh.What book?"

You sigh.

"The book about Demonology?"

silence

"The Book I need for Tonights ritual?"

silence.

"Your Book about Demonology wich I need to lend in Order to fullfill my Ritual and keep my powers even After my 6999 Day on earth?"

Both you and Marlene stare and Your Grandma.

"Spide-" "I gave it away."

This time, the silence came from you and Marlene

"Look, there was A boy, always covered in Bruises and.. I .. My contract stated that I was to be mishevious! and I thought a little chaos, a little...well he never did anything with it though!? stleast his Parents never contacted me, and just last week I saw him buying whisky in the"

"Buying Whisky?" Marlene shook her head, letting go off your Grandma to look her in the Eyes. "yes." "I thought you gave the book to a child. "well yes. About ten years ago. Maybe eleven."

Both you and Marlene were speechless. To be fair, none of you really kept the whole 'beeing a witch' thing this secret. Wearing long Robes, collecting herbes, openly cuddling black Cats.. but your Grandma always had to be extra. Going as far as to tell kids how she would have grilled Hansel and Gretel instead of baking them. But giving away a Spellbook to strangers, that was could have consequences. For all three ou you. "He clearly didn't do anything! I'm sure the book is just dusting Away in his Attic! I can Summon it ! I just need.. " she left the room. You could hear her rummaging through her storage, angry huffs and puffs when whatever she was searching for wasn't where she expected it to be. Meanwhile Marlene came over to you. Picking up her bag on the way there. "I brought you something Applepie. It might be a bit early, and a bit old fashioned, but tradition is tradition." She took out a black, simple pointy hat, with a ribbon in your favorite color. You thanked her and took her into a tight embrace. Marlene was a treasure you intended to keep in your life.

"Aha! found it!" Granny re-emerged with just the right tool. A piece of paper. "A spell to summon what one once lost. If you need it back no matter the cost. Just chant its Name, with hope in mind. And the Object you will find. My Book of Demonology" She spoke in singsang. It was odd that your Grandma didn't now the spell by heart. given how easy It was, and how often she lost her belongings. But after some moments and a fine Orange glow the Book appeared howering in front of her. "Ahaha! there you are! ihihihi!" She was practically glowing and smiling, it faded a little while she took it in her hands, but her expression was still happy. "oh, eell you do look a but worn out? And youre cold. Have you been kept outside? Dumb boy must have kept you in an outside shed rather then a nice dusty bookshelf in the attic huh?" She shifted her Fokus back to you and handed the book over. "here Pumpkinpie, the Book should contain all the information your copy had. Go on and learn a little, it's almost midnight already" she wore a Soft smile now. gazing into your Eyes. "We will start at 03:00 o'clock. Witching hour." You noded and made your way up to your room. Eagerly putting on the Hat and flipping through the pages to the demon of your Choice.

Back in the shop, Marlene and Your Grandma Shared a sigh, looking after their little girl practically running up the stairs. "Are you sure he didnt do anything with the book?" Marlene asked, having a sense of foreboding. Granny took Marlene's Hand in hers and squeezed a little. "Ah, don't worry dearest, I'm sure he wouldn't even notice.

But Alastor did notice. This was Bad. Very Bad

[shambless-life-blog]

I dont want to set the world on fire ~

I tried writing a fanfiction after a while :3

Also I know Al is Ace. Since Asexuality is a spectrum I took some research into that matter and used one interpretation in here. He is more Demi romantic asexual though. hope thats okay

Alastor didn't know what consequences this ritual would hold.

Looking back at it when he first arrived in Hell, he would do in again in a Heartbeat.

Looking back at his Deal now, with all the constraints, with how he has to fiddle around his Masters orders, he does regret not having thought about a backdoor clause.

But than again, he was just a child when he killed the rabbit, and used it's blood to draw the circle in the snow. Just a child when his father shoved his mother to the floor, and punched him a black eye when he dared walk towards her. Just a child, that wished his father would simply die.

Funny, it was so cold outside, and this rabbits blood was so warm.

It wasn't that difficult to draw a summoning circle on the Ground. This Book that the old lady gave him had all the instructions. In his defense he couldn't understand everything thats written in there as he rarely looked presentable and unbrused enough to go to school, and therefor still had trouble reading. But even experienced readers would have trouble with the cursive in this Book. The Lady clearly wrote this in a hurry. Despite her poor calligraphy he liked her. She had a shop a couple streets away and claimed to be a Witch. Though the others called her a Lunatic, it didn't went unnoticed to him that she often seemed to look younger than the day before.

Once the circle was complete, and the Spell was spoken, young Alastor expected to have Lucifer, the Devil himself appear in front of him and offer to kill his Dad in exchange of his Soul. But faith rarely acts as one expects does it?

No, the entity he made a feal with was less powerful than Lucifer. But far, far more sinister, and a tad more cruel. But Al didn't mind at all. Because instead of Killing his father, his new Friend as The Entity introduced themselves, they offered Alastor some 'ways' to deal with this Drunk himself. And put his new found powers to use. _____________________________________________

A decate later young Alastor just exited a Radio Station where he applied for an Internship. He was humming a song that just played inside, wearing a big smile on his face. He has behaved his best, displayed all his charisma and manners. He was sure to hear from them soon. 'Ah, what a delightful day' he thought. The wind was a refreshing chill against the warm summer heat. He did enjoy the interview, his mother always said he had a way with people. And he did could never get enough of his own coice, so reaching, and influencing, people as a Radio host was a given.

While walking through this ever growing town in the best suit he could afford, he slowly strolled from the mansions, to the apartments, and finally to the slums he and his mother called their home. Never would he admit that he spent a big part of his live in poverty, never behaved or dressed like that either. What would that even bring. He still looked down at the beggars, at the prostitutes, at the drunks. His mother and him never would have lived with theese people If his wretched failure of a father would have been able to hold a job for a week or more, or if he didn't spent all their money on cheap booze.

Al came home and locked the door, quickly getting out of his tailored suit as to not ruin it with dish soap, or stain it with what he plans on doing later that night.

"I'm Home" he announces, Opening the door to his Mother's room and walking to her bed. A quick glance to the empty Glass of water and the half empty Bowl of Soup indicate that she ate. This time. "Good." He whisperes, scared of waking her, but still testing if she's not to far gone into her dreamworld. He quietly refills her Glass and stealthily exits the Room, quiet as a Mouse.

Opening the Pantry, he let's out a deep sigh. Bread, some moldy Carrots, and not enough rice to feed the both of them. But that's okay, he planned on going hunting anyways. And most of the time he does return with something.. more than edible.

_____________________________________

"Have you added enough sage dear?"

"yes Grandma, " you sigh. "And enough Cow blood, and not to much " wait how much wolfsbane was to much?" you laugh as a display of horror grows in her face "A joke a joke Im joking" you laugh while stirring the Pot. Potion Making was never your strong suite, but you where no amateur. Witchcraft was a Family business, and you were an excellent apprentice.

"Yeah keep on laughing, but when our Client comes back and wears a pitchfork with his blue warts and Lizard eyes I will grill a Sandwich on the sltar they burn you on"

Now the both of you were laughing. Witches haven't been caught in centuries, and the small coven of you and your two Grandma's isn't big enough, or suspicious enough to get caught. just two Old ladies who raise their Granddaughter together. Well, in theory Marlene was not your grandmother, but as long as Grandma loved her you will too. "Grandma, Pitchforks? really? " "They used those to hunt us back in the day! didn't forget the time one of those idiotic Farmers threw one of those at me." she winked. "That man became a nice and warm Furcoat for xou when you were a baby you know? "

Another laugh escaped you while pouring the potion into a small vial. Autumn's with your Gramdma are always the best part of the Year. A nice escape from your modern life with your Mom, and a welcome to get back to your Roots.

"Why would that man need a potion of strength anyways?" you wondered. "He's scared someone might kill him. And eat his remains for dinner" A sinister smile on her lips. "Wouldn't he than rather need a protection Talisman? or a Rune on his front door to sanction his House?" your Granny's smile grew. "Sold, sold and sold. Oh those cowards have always been my favorite clients. Poor Soul lives alone with his Dog. When he comes in to pick up his order I'll offer him a talisman for the dog too. Cute thing. a German Shepherd. From it's fur we could brew some fine Lycantrophy antidote" "Grandma, you know as good as I tha- really? I thought Australian Shepherds had better Fur for those?" She giggled and gave you a small slap with the Broom "just testing you my little raven of the night! Don't want you to loose all your wits while beeing away from me"

Again, both of you giggle. While you do your work for a while, filling two more Viols with the Potion and stealthily cleaning the counter where you spilled two drops, you wonder, and ask "Hey Grandma, Why is that man so scared?"

"ouuuuhuiii" She barely can contain her grin and walks other to you, using the Broom as a cane. "haven't you heard it yet? " you raise an Eyebrow, mentally going through all the things she told you since picking you up on the Trainstation merely 4 Hours ago. "We. have. a. Serial Killer in New Orleans" joyfully like a teen cousin who just told you about her crush of the week. "Marlene and I have restricted each other in scrying about who it is, but we are fairly sure they must be young and charming, the way the crimes are comited, oh" She takes a bite out of the air and moans as if eating the most delicious strawberry parfait she has ever tasted, then giggles misheviously. "It's mostly the same old scheme. Once or twice a month, a scream appears, than several more. Theese screams go on for a couple Minutes, but never enough for anyone to trace where exactly they come from. just the direction of the forest." This time, grandma interrupts to actually eat a Cookie, after chewing it painfully long, tasteing the suspense she's creating, she continues. "When police searchey the forest, they always find drops of fresh blood on several places, up to 300 feet apart. They usually never find the Victim, or their remains. Though last time they did find a Pinky finger and a piece of liver." You wrinkle your face. Ew. But the fact that the killer left traces last time means that they grew less cautious. That amused you. Most serial Killers where narcissists after all, and it wasn't unusual for them to make mistakes when they though no one could ever catch them. This brought a smile to your face, and your Grandma took it the wrong way. "Should I peek a look into the crystal ball and see if they're available for courting? "

Before you could correct your Grandma, the bell rang as Marlene opened the door and entered the shop. "Ah ah ah, no peeking my Spiderleg, we won't spoil our game will we? " The thin Woman Dropped her Bag and took off her flat Black hat. First she gave your Grandma a small peck on the cheek before coming up to you. "Come here little dove of doom. How have you been? how was the train ride? how is your stomach doing after the long time apart from my good cooking?" You embrace Marlene in a tight hug and answere her Questions with a smile on your Lips. Marlene's cooking was the best you ever had. You're not a hundred percent convinced she wasn't casting spells on it to increase the flavor though. Than she spoke the words you were afraid to hear since last year, and your stummic dropped to your feet.

"Are you ready for the Ritual tonight?"

Are you? You should be. You have been prepared for this. You have weighed the consequences, You could live as a Normal Human like your Mother choose. Or you Choose Magic.

"I. I think I am." "Have you decided on a Demon yet?" "She should pic one of the Sins. I picked an Ars Goetia and look where that left me." Your Grandmother exclaimed, still swiping the floor on the exact same spot. "My powers are great, but I'm nearly 250 years old, and already look like I'm close to the Grave." "You and I both know your age and appearance isn't determined by the demon, but by our use of magic. Play nurse for some more children, get some vials of their blood and you will look like 170 in no time" Marlene said smoothly while putting a hand on your shoulder. "We don't have to-" "I am ready. And I have choosen. I just need to reread the Spell for tonight." You interrupt her. " to chant it correctly you know? I left My book about Demonology at home so Kalista could read it, to ease her nerves. May I use yours?" You quicky glimpse at your Grandmother while fiddling with your necklace. You have been so sure when you packed your Bags yesterday, when you entered the train, even when you took a seat and started to mentally go through simpel spells. Only when you saw the look of worry in yours Mom's eyes as the train departured did your confidence stutter, and your insecurities grew. "Pah, Kalista should have rather visited us aswell. Support her big sister with such a big step" Granny's swiping grew more aggressive. "She will come when, and only if she's ready spiderweb." Marlene baisicly floated over to your grandmother with how light her steps where. She took Granny's chin in her hand and slightly tilted it up. "not everyone wishes for the life we share, but that doesn't mean we won't enjoy it the best we can"

You did love Marlene for the way she made your Grandma loose her track of thought and her temper. How one bewitched the other without spells just with a look.

After a few moments of you puting the vials, two talismans and a parchment with the correct Rune in a small Box, you cleared your throat.

"The book?"

"Oh.What book?"

You sigh.

"The book about Demonology?"

silence

"The Book I need for Tonights ritual?"

silence.

"Your Book about Demonology wich I need to lend in Order to fullfill my Ritual and keep my powers even After my 6999 Day on earth?"

Both you and Marlene stare and Your Grandma.

"Spide-" "I gave it away."

This time, the silence came from you and Marlene

"Look, there was A boy, always covered in Bruises and.. I .. My contract stated that I was to be mishevious! and I thought a little chaos, a little...well he never did anything with it though!? stleast his Parents never contacted me, and just last week I saw him buying whisky in the"

"Buying Whisky?" Marlene shook her head, letting go off your Grandma to look her in the Eyes. "yes." "I thought you gave the book to a child. "well yes. About ten years ago. Maybe eleven."

Both you and Marlene were speechless. To be fair, none of you really kept the whole 'beeing a witch' thing this secret. Wearing long Robes, collecting herbes, openly cuddling black Cats.. but your Grandma always had to be extra. Going as far as to tell kids how she would have grilled Hansel and Gretel instead of baking them. But giving away a Spellbook to strangers, that was could have consequences. For all three ou you. "He clearly didn't do anything! I'm sure the book is just dusting Away in his Attic! I can Summon it ! I just need.. " she left the room. You could hear her rummaging through her storage, angry huffs and puffs when whatever she was searching for wasn't where she expected it to be. Meanwhile Marlene came over to you. Picking up her bag on the way there. "I brought you something Applepie. It might be a bit early, and a bit old fashioned, but tradition is tradition." She took out a black, simple pointy hat, with a ribbon in your favorite color. You thanked her and took her into a tight embrace. Marlene was a treasure you intended to keep in your life.

"Aha! found it!" Granny re-emerged with just the right tool. A piece of paper. "A spell to summon what one once lost. If you need it back no matter the cost. Just chant its Name, with hope in mind. And the Object you will find. My Book of Demonology" She spoke in singsang. It was odd that your Grandma didn't now the spell by heart. given how easy It was, and how often she lost her belongings. But after some moments and a fine Orange glow the Book appeared howering in front of her. "Ahaha! there you are! ihihihi!" She was practically glowing and smiling, it faded a little while she took it in her hands, but her expression was still happy. "oh, eell you do look a but worn out? And youre cold. Have you been kept outside? Dumb boy must have kept you in an outside shed rather then a nice dusty bookshelf in the attic huh?" She shifted her Fokus back to you and handed the book over. "here Pumpkinpie, the Book should contain all the information your copy had. Go on and learn a little, it's almost midnight already" she wore a Soft smile now. gazing into your Eyes. "We will start at 03:00 o'clock. Witching hour." You noded and made your way up to your room. Eagerly putting on the Hat and flipping through the pages to the demon of your Choice.

Back in the shop, Marlene and Your Grandma Shared a sigh, looking after their little girl practically running up the stairs. "Are you sure he didnt do anything with the book?" Marlene asked, having a sense of foreboding. Granny took Marlene's Hand in hers and squeezed a little. "Ah, don't worry dearest, I'm sure he wouldn't even notice.

But Alastor did notice. This was Bad. Very Bad

[vaicomcas]

Summarizing a few things about Crowley's achievements as King of hell:

Making fundamental changes to how hell tortures souls, breaking from "fire and brimstone" tradition of hell based on Asmodeus' statement

Creating specialized roles for demons, R&D and decption production (aka fake Dean and Sam and that whole production crew) are the two we've seen for sure, and there seem to be all these bureacrats as well. Some of us discussed earlier there must be more of various roles Crowley introduced.

Along with giving demons specialized jobs (rather than being the stereotype of demons just doing generic evil), in his speech to the demons under Abbadon he promised each demon would have a say and have their "share of entrails" under him. In a way, like Cas trying to introduce free will to angels, he was trying to introduce democracy to hell (not necessarily followed up on it, but comparatively speaking I believe he was far less of a tyrant than other kings of hell).

4. Expansion and maintenenance of his (and hell's) power through external connections: Crowley had backdoor deals or spies with these entities: Heaven (had an angel on his payroll), the Catholic Church (he was informed of all possessions, and takes care of the ones that are from rogue demons), and the NSA (Cecily). What other powerful entities he had connections or influence in?

Even the title of "Ruler of Fallen Humanity", bad ass though it is, does not adquately address the uniqueness of Crowley. The other rulers of fallen humanity were your sterotypes of the demon or devil, and they exert their power through personal strength and authority based on demon hierarchy (the same world order as the oppressive heaven). Crowley broke out of that world order, exerted his power through building systems and institutions, and made profound changes to hell--most of it before his "humanization" already.

[corpsebrigadier]

Affections - CorpseBrigadier

Ao3 may be down, but this will not stop me from providing piping hot Mustadio/Worker 8 content.

Part of my series of 1,000 word rarepair fics and definitely G-rated. Not terribly romantic, but Worker 8 tries.

Mirrored on my website and Dreamwidth.

Mustadio moved smoothly through the tavern--a deliberate and mechanical step that did not allow Ramza time to ask how things went or Alicia time to giggle as she pushed by with cake. The heat coming off his pale face would show crimson; he did not want it to be seen.

He cut a path to the inn's backdoor, back arched back with the confidence of a man who belonged wherever he was walking. It was only when he arrived at the stables that he let his shoulders droop. Rafa's flighty hen fluttered backwards as he approached, black down floating away from her to cling to the great steel orb that lay nestled in the straw.

He was miserable. He was alone. He was 500,000 gil poorer.

He was going to work on the damned robot.

Worker 8, for all the ill auspices of their first meeting, little minded being worked upon. As Mustadio knocked about its shell, there was a soft purr as the blue veins of its circuitry flamed back to life. When it began to rouse itself, metal limbs unfurling like a chick come out of an egg, its demeanor seemed almost friendly.

"I await your command, Master!"

"Your right arm's grinding again," Mustadio said in a flat monotone. "Your command's to hold still until I get my spanners and some oil."

---

The black chocobo had crept back--just enough to betray her curiosity--by the time Mustadio had the machine's arm off. He sat by gently filing the mechanism, a steady scrape of steel against steel as he tried to smooth out new made imperfections.

"Must've been those bandits out by Germinas. Their swordsman knocked you about pretty good."

"Entity: Swordsman knocked me about badly, Master. It was not good."

"It was good for him."

"Given that he met with 1,257 units of sterilizing heat shortly after, I do not assess the action as desirable."

Mustadio, for the first time that day, smiled spontaneously--without any hope somebody might smile back.

---

"The lubrication in the right arm is now decreasing friction 1.23 times more than in the left arm. I fear this will lead to uneven coordination of upper body tasks."

"You can just say you'd like me to do the other."

There was the thrum of something setting itself into new motion. It's eyes flashed for a second. The chocobo--Mustadio thought he recalled now it had been named Primrose--took a step back.

"I'd like you to do the other, Master."

---

It's arms were lubricated to its satisfaction: a 0.16% difference so he'd been told. Mustadio had started to do a circuit test on the mysterious globes on its back, hoping it would actually be of some benefit and that nothing would explode. He thought, as he applied the multimeter to the presumable power nodes, that exploding wouldn't be the lowest point of the day. He and the machine had some rapport there anyway.

"I can't believe it." He clicked his tongue as the reading registered. "Were men prone to reverse wire hackjobs even when the Saint walked the earth?"

"It is not my place to question the designs of any Master, Master."

"I'd question any Master setting me up for a short circuit, but you're free to question me there."

The came a whir of heat from somewhere within its casing, as if some thoughtworks piece was spinning very hard to process the statement.

"Don't question me then. Take my word for it." He patted its side as it began to slow to a gentle hum.

---

"Might I ask why I am being provided with this much attention, Master?"

Its joints were all freshly cleaned and re-oiled. The reverse polarity orb was fixed and would be much safer in doing whatever it did. Its head had been polished, and it glittered in the cast off lantern light from the streets beyond them.

"I hadn't wanted to pay much attention to anyone else the rest of the day." Mustadio bit his inner lip as he tightened a plate screw. "I made a few miscalculations."

"I am VERY GOOD at calculations, Master!"

"I'm not sure you'd have a better read on her, friend." He picked up his emery cloth and began to work on a patch of rust on its chest. "It wasn't the sort of thing you'd be good at measuring."

"What was being measured, Master?"

Mustadio looked around a moment, uncertain as to whether he was comfortable answering even with only the birds to bear audience. He sighed.

"A woman's regard."

--

He noticed, now that they'd been together for a few hours, that it had begun to mimic some human mannerisms instinctively--that it waved its hand and turned its head with a conversational ease.

"--and this 'lipstick' was supposed to measure units of 'affection'?"

"It was supposed to convey units of mine, Eight. It's not something I think you would understand."

"Affection: a quality signifying emotional preference."

Mustadio nodded. He started to put his spanners away, folding them into their leather wrap in order of size.

"This would be conveyed by the exchange of the 'lipstick.'"

Another nod. He felt very foolish now but didn't want to cut it off.

"And lipstick may be defined as..."

"It's--uh--something a one puts on their lips to look... attractive. I really don't think I can explain."

"Can you specify the originating plant for the stick, Master?"

--

Everything was packed up. The robot was as worked over as it could be. It was almost past the hour when anybody at the inn would have cold meat left to feed a lodger.

"I hope you feel in better shape now. See you in the--"

Mustadio had not quite noticed that they had reached their hands out to one another as if to shake them--not until the machine reached past his to touch his face.

He grimaced as it traced a diesel slick circle over his lips.

"Very attractive, Master!"

Mustadio laughed through the taste of grease. Worker 8's eyes fired brighter.

[bringbackwendellvaughn]

Do you happen to have a reading list or suggestions for Genis-Vell?

The omnibus coming out later this month collects the majority of his solo comics. All 60 issues (across two ongoing titles) by Peter David. That's all you really need.

But to expand...

He also had a very quickly cancelled ongoing in 1996 by Fabian Nicieza and Ed Benes which was ended mid-story and has never been collected. An issue in the omnibus brings Nicieza back to do a flashback issue that "resolves" the loose ends (by not telling any of those stories sadly).

Silver Surfer Annual #6 is his first appearance (and as much as a backdoor pilot for the character). Cosmic Powers #4 was his first solo story. Both are written by Ron Marz who has written him a bunch over the years - and a lot very recently in Silver Surfer and Warlock continuity insert stories - but he has never really moved away from his original vision of the character or seems aware that there was a character after he stopped writing him. A character who had grown a lot and forged stronger bonds to characters like Rick Jones, Marlo Chandler and Moondragon rather than just Silver Surfer over and over again.

He has decent-ish presence in Jim Starlin's Infinity Abyss and Marvel Universe: The End (Starlin also co-plots/draws 3 issues in the omni). Genis was the only Captain Marvel successor/legacy that Starlin treat with respect. Possibly because his friend and former co-writer created him or maybe he did actually think it was the most appropriate way to continue Captain Marvel's legacy.

Some other stuff...

He was also in Thunderbolts for a few years but didn't really do much there and editorial kept forcing changes on him every few issues just so other people could take the Captain Marvel name - the final one being to utterly destroy Genis-Vell's form across all space and time so that he could "never return". Not a good time.

His recent solo miniseries, again by Peter David (not in the omni - fortunately!), started decent enough but had an enormous wet fart of an ending that soured my opinion on the whole thing. A story beat that nobody wanted to see happen to a long neglected supporting character which also completely messes up and misunderstands the abstract entities in the MU.

I don't recommend Avengers Forever.

[seledkamari]

Dr. Kyle Lament/Curious Light: A story about how easy it is to shift responsibility to other person when you have money. (Agnst)

Years of life: 26.11.1961—13.06.1990

13.06.1990-now days

Little is known about Dr. Lament’s childhood; it is known that from the age of 11 he lived in an orphanage, and from an early age the boy was interested in helping people and studying the human body. This is probably why he decided to become a surgeon. It is known that Kyle was very smart and successful in his business, although he was quite ... renounced, so to speak, communication was not the main thing for him, an introvert, what can I say. And after many years of studying, the guy was still able to get the job he had dreamed of since childhood, what could have gone wrong?

Remember the title? I think you remember

Money, money, money, only money, rules the world, because with money you can do almost anything, including making mistakes on someone else.

This ruined Kyle's fate and career.

During the operation on July 14, 1989, one of the doctors made a mistake due to which the patient died. The matter could not be more serious, it costs the reputation of the hospital and a long sentence for the doctor... but that guy had an ace up his sleeve. Yes, yes, money and connections. With the help of large bribes and falsification of evidence, Lament was made the scapegoat

Imprisonment, deprivation of a medical license and the last funds, all this fell on Dr. Lament’s head. But help came from unexpected places, although it would have been better not to have come. A shady personality - Headcliffe Peterson released him and hired him...

Laboratory ZX (Zero xenobiotic)..a terrible place, to be honest, monstrous experiments on people and so on..but Lament, fortunately, did not do this. He had a much worse job.

Lament's type of employee is the study of anomalous zones, often life-threatening. And Headcliffe turned out to be a boss who was stingy with protective equipment. This is how Lament got his scars, at one point, his work led to his death...

06/12/1990 Kyle went to the Gate of Light Hotel. but not for a well-deserved vacation, but for the next assignment. Exploring the anomalous zones in "The Backdoor" and the recently discovered "The Rooms". And he will never return from this expedition... Time was up, and the guy, despite fighting for his life, ran into a dead end and was killed by an ancient curse - Haste.

Then Lament became what is now called "Curious Light"

Three employees were sent to search for the guy, but their fates are a completely different story.

Interesting facts:

1. It is known that Curious is Irish by nationality.

2. Before Kyle and the hotel incident "Curious Light" was another person: Hatsu Liber.

•One of my friends came up with this name. Even though I haven't used it.

3.Information that is not completely canonical for the AU: Kyle’s family were cultists, which is why he ran away from them

•In this version, Curious has an older sister, Angel (she is normal person), the character of one of my friends.

4.During his life, Kyle at different times had a pet lizard named Ferum and a hamster named Carotid.

5. After the operation incident, Curious suffers from atychiphobia.

6.Kyle hates A-60 for its...you'll understand later...

7.Curious has difficulty communicating with people and entities. One of the few people he trusts and communicates with is Eran Descartes (Guiding Light)

8. His main task is to contain the entities of The Rooms

9. Kyle loves peaches and anything that has their flavor or aroma.

10. Curious has two forms: Normal and “Enlightened” (the rest of the lights have the same). His height in normal form is +-6.5 feet. and in the second about 7.64 feet.

11. Kyle's favorite book is a collection of problems in higher mathematics and trigonometry

12. Kyle feels slightly guilty for Glitch, Figure and A-500 (about the latter: another character of a friend, more about him in the following posts). For not being able to help them at the time.

(I'm sorry for weird mistakes i'm using translator)

That's all for today, thanks for reading!

[fangirling-phoenix]

Literally started writing an essay in the tags so I might as well write it out here instead. This analysis will heavily rely on the "Alastor Made A Deal With Lilith" theory, because when a show gives you such pointed connections you might as well, until proven otherwise:

We don't know Alastor's true motives for not taking up angelic arms against Adam, as we don't know his true motives for a lot of things (yet). He did arm his force field tentacles with angelic weapons to swat exorcists like flies, and by the Angelic Shadow Tentacle Shield being deployed first, we can assume that Alastor facing Adam was always a plan b in case the shield failed (obviously, him being the strongest hotel resident after Charlie, who is opposed to such violence and inexperienced in fighting). Another thing we can assume: Alastor likes playing with his food, and he already went into the fight cocky and overconfident, seeing as he was so surprised that his cane snapped his voice filter failed, even before Adam landed a physical blow on him. He was so confident in his ability to hold him off and toy with him - and spell out every single way Adam sucks ass while doing so - without the aid of angelic arms, because he has been unopposed in his power in literal decades of being an overlord.

He also knew he literally couldn't kill Adam without an angelic weapon.

It is a fact of the world that no one knows of any other way angelic beings can be harmed/killed other than angelic steel (or another angelic being - hi Lucifer). By cockily going into this fight without an angelic weapon, with the details of the world the audience is privy to, it was a given Alastor would have not been able to actually kill Adam. Alastor has (rightly-earned) confidence in his abilities and power, but I don't think he was careless enough to assume those would be enough to allow him to actually kill an angel, and a high-ranking one at that. He might be one of the most powerful overlords, but he is still just in the middle of Hell's hierarchy.

Simplest answer: maybe he would have picked up an angelic weapon later in the fight, but never got a chance to. The man is a serial killer and likes toying with his victims before jumping into the main course, it's all chill. And again, the force field was armed.

But let's take it a step further.

What if he was not allowed to kill Adam?

What can we gather from the vague last scene of the show with Lilith?

Lute: "Adam is dead. Your deal is done, and I am in charge now. Your brat is threatening the very foundation of Heaven. And if you want to stay here, you're going down there and stopping that bitch."

Lilith's stay in Heaven, for whatever reason that may be, was contingent on Adam staying alive. Again, we don't have all the information at hand, so we don't know why Lilith made that deal with Heaven in the first place. Hell, we don't even know if she wanted the deal to intentionally fail in some way. But for the sake of this post, let's assume that for whatever purpose, she wanted that deal to last. Which means: Adam stays alive.

What ruins this? Your own sworn minion killing the pillar on which your deal relies on.

Where can we find clues to pull to support this assumption? The very mental breakdown referenced in this post.

This place reeks of death, there's a chill in the air And I barely escaped being killed by a hair "Great Alastor, altruist, died for his friends" Sorry to disappoint, that is not where this ends I'm hungry for freedom like never before The constraints of my deal surely have a backdoor Once I figure out how to unclip my wings Guess who will be pulling all the strings?

I've seen a lot of people taking these two verses as separate entities and analysing them independent of each other. I really don't think that should be the case.

There are references and allusions made in the show that Alastor did not volunteer to oversee and protect the hotel out of the goodnessevilness of his heart, nor solely out of utter boredom. Alastor is overseeing and protecting the hotel because someone is forcing him to be there, presumably Lilith (see the scene with Mimzy endangering the hotel and how he "can't have that [intentional danger and problems] here"). Of course this is a sweet deal for him, because he gets proximity to the Crown Princess of All of Hell out of it, which is a very powerful tool in his arsenal to have for a rainy day, and also gets to flex his muscles and show all of Hell how he's still Got It(TM) and can still snap demons in half like twigs (and make little snacks out of them) - which is probably one of the reasons he agreed to it in the first place. But all this does not negate the fact that he was still guided by the leash to the hotel all the same.

All this to say, based on the lyrics above: Alastor would be forced to protect Charlie/the hotel even if he didn't want to.

The second verse of Alastor's section of "Finale" is there to punctuate the first. His deal forced him into a near-death situation, from which he barely escaped; the deal almost made it look like he would sacrifice his life for his friends out of the goodness of his heart. That entire lyric is in quotation marks because it is said completely ironically - the entire mental breakdown Alastor is having happens for many reasons, but a major one is that the deal he is trapped in almost made him, the Radio Demon, Most Notorious Overlord, seem like he cares enough for people to die for them, and he almost did. Had it not been for the deal, Alastor would not have come so close to eternal death, to not holding on to power. The breakdown is literally him rabidly biting the bars of his cage because he almost died for it, and almost ruined his reputation as ruthless and uncaring for it.

If he had picked up an angelic blade, he would have diced Adam into tiny little cubes. He would have been hailed as the Most Powerful Overlord, Slayer of the First Man.

But killing Adam would mean negating Lilith's deal with Heaven.

And not fighting Adam at all would mean leaving Charlie, and by extension the hotel, unprotected.

So what does he do?

He has confidence in his ability to simply keep Adam occupied. And he does not pick up a blade for himself.

And he almost dies for it.

And he realises: oh this deal won't do anymore.

IM JUST

ALASTOR LITERALLY GOT HIM IN THE THROAT YOU MF RADIO DEMON I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WOULDN'T USE AN ANGELIC WEAPON

HE COULD'VE CLAIMED TO BE THE MOST POWERFUL OVERLORD, SLAYER OF THE FIRST MAN ON EARTH- LIKE WHAT

HE GOT HIM A FEW TIMES

HE GOT HIS MINIONS ON HIM

MINIONS THAT COULD'VE HELD ANGELIC WEAPONS

ALL THESE MINI LIL NIFTYS

ALASTOR YOU DO IT TO YOURSELF