#Vortex's Beasties

[lunaticpsyker08]

Mmmmmm Mad Paradox , 1 of my many beasties, I have alot....

HE is so much monster all the way through though(my HCs), even his low power'd form... Oh, so much innocence (no)

May or may not make a Monster Mad Paradox appreciation post, looks at him and his pretty artwork….

I feel like I've drawn him the most and have given him the most goodies out of all the Adds

[sashasdoodles]

Commission for @shiningsilverarmor based on the RP scene of Vortex stealing the last chip/crisp

[lillinapoc]

Commissioned by @slashersnrobots , their friend’s character Beastie with Vortex!

[messessentialist]

chapter four cometh

A little sneak peek, as always...

The sky flashes, everything briefly backlit in furious crimson and bruised purple-blue. Around him, a swirling vortex of razor-fanged menace tightening their spiral until he can feel the wind kicked up by their leathery wings. A knife-tipped tail slices across his cheek, and he starts swinging.  For a time there is only this: the metallic clang of bat after bat sacrificing themselves against his shield, the ineffective whirling of his own blade-tipped spear through the torrent of bodies. One lands on his back, and he spins violently to dislodge it. Another digs claws into his leg, piercing through denim and biting into flesh. He gives a violent kick, brings his boot down and hears a satisfying crunch. No sooner has he steadied his footing than he feels the whip-vine tail of another beastie circling his neck, and: oh, shit. He’s falling backwards; being dragged. By the time he realizes what’s happening to him, they’ve got his arms and legs, and he can’t get enough leverage to shake them off. He’s being fucking drawn and quartered. Only no, of course not. That would be too easy, too immediate. They’re going to eat him alive.  The last thing Eddie knows is a burning in his throat - a scream, clawing its way out. Terrified, desperate, dying.  He’s going to die.  He has to wake up. He has to wake up. He has to– “WAKE UP, Eddie!”

chapter four of my big bang fic start by pulling him out of the fire drops tomorrow, 11/29!

[hrodvitnon]

Just saw GxK, and in all honesty, my first thoughts upon leaving the theatre were something to the extent of asking myself how I was supposed to integrate it with what I've already written for The Golden Demise.

Overall, I liked it, and it's great to finally have some solid confirmation about some of my theories. It was great seeing Tiamat, even if I'm distinctly displeased with how they relegated her to a momentary obstacle after setting up her strength in the comics to be on or above Godzilla's level. I'm also happy to see Mothra's return, and have *ideas* about how to fit her history with the Iwi into the established canon. And the existence of the Tribe itself, and the antigravity technology? Hehehe.

Finally, two questions: Does the Abraxasverse Mū have a Hollow Earth portal? We've seen the Warbats and that serpent/eel thing Kong fought, so there's precedent for anguiform creatures down there. But did Manda ever go back and forth?

Secondly, what was the Thunderers' relationship with the great apes? They're similar enough in structure that I could see one of the Thunderers using tools, but was there ever anything specific?

I might need a second viewing to really consider GxK's place in the AbraxasVerse, but for now!

I'm gonna say right now, Scylla and Tiamat can live in AbraxasVerse. Scylla creeps me out and she was fucking around, but that Hubristic Tech Bro in the prequel comic The Hunted started it, and Abraxas Tia doesn't need to deal with the Worf Effect.

I'm going to say yes, Mū did have a Hollow Earth vortex. Now that we know the Great Apes and also the Iwi civilization are in hitherto unexplored areas of the Hollow Earth, this gives me the thought that the Hollow Earth may be even bigger than we think. There could be entire oceans down there with all sorts of aquatic beasties and fauna that can make even the most alien of real life deep sea fish seem like goldfish. It's entirely possible that Manda's species could have explored these unknown regions of the Hollow Earth, or even act as emissaries or messengers between worlds when the need arose.

Hell, why not go the extra mile? What if Mū's people aren't extinct but were evacuated to the Hollow Earth by a member of Manda's species, like his mother, and their descendants have adapted to life down there with all the cultural and technological and physical evolutions that entails?

The Thunderers once could have had a peaceful alliance with the Great Apes, and thanks to their penchant for stone armor could have had some connection to Iwi culture. But Skar King could have played a hand in decimating or enslaving the Thunderer population, forcing many like Thor to move for comparatively safer passages on the surface world... at least until Ghidorah showed up.

[helicrazy]

husky. my muse reacting to your whispering in their air from behind. (oops looks like some Russian accent that has approved slipped out from Beastie~)

send me a word / phrase and i’ll write an erotic drabble.

Beastie's presence was something else, as it always sent a shiver up the Combaticon's spinal strut, and in the best way possible. Each interaction was like a wild card of what mood he'd get out of the mech. Friendly? Cuddly? Horny?

The latter seemed obvious when he heard a growl near his audials. His rotors quivered as the large frame pressed against him from behind, and something stiff and warm slipped between his legs. Vortex doesn't need to look down to know what it is, but the glow of lava-like bio-lights catches his attention, remembering them from the first time the beast had shown his equipment to him.

"Mate with Chicken two." Beastie wraps his arms around the teal helicopter, holding him in a tight embrace as he huskily whispers into his audial. Seductively growling but almost demanding.

It makes Vortex shake, practically melt in the large mech's hold as he hums and grins. "I won't oppose, but you have to come up with a better nickname someday. The chicken slag is getting old." He gasps as he's lifted off the ground and shivers again, feeling hot vent and fangs grazing against his neck.

Beastie moves an arm to grab his spike and press firmly between Vortex's squirming legs. "Alpha put Chicken two in place." He snarls before biting down on the teal shoulder, sinking his fangs deep into the plating and drawing blood.

How Vortex was holding himself together, he really couldn't say.

He just knew he was in for one hell of an experience.

[frostbittenfemme]

Amica, Conjunx, Deactivate:

Vortex, Beastie, Blaze

"Conjunx Vortex, Frag Blaze and while I wouldn't deactivate Beastie I don't know him enough as of yet. Although he is quite nice to look at so I can appreciate him."

[kaimp4]

・     𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑔   . . .   𝐊𝐀𝐈  𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐑.

drew  starkey  ,  cismale  ,  twenty6  ,  he / him.  whip  off  those  shades  ,  cool  cat  !  looks  like  𝐊𝐀𝐈  𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐑  or  better  known  by  their  friends  ,  𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐓  just  hit  the  sand  ,  ready  to  enjoy  their  summer  of  relaxation  .  word  around  vortex  is  that  they  are  𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐄𝐎𝐔𝐒  &  𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓  ,  𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐔𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄  &  𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐃  𝐎𝐅𝐅  ,  and  are  typically  described  as          (     the  wheels  of  a  skateboard  rolling  against  pavement  ,  cigarette  butts  pressed  underneath  tattered  shoes  ,  callused  fingers  pushing  back  soft  light  strans  of  hair  and  an  impulsively  curious  gaze  .     )        hope  they're  ready  for  the  summer  of  a  lifetime  !

・   ⏤   quick  links   :   pinterest   +   playlist   .

・     𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂  𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍.

name   :   kyle  wilder  .   nicknames   :   kai  .   age   :   twenty - six  .   gender  /  pronouns   :   cismale  &  he / him  .   hometown   :   beaufort  ,  north   carolina  .   career   :  aspiring   pro  skater / extreme  sports  athlete  .   trait   :   the   miscreant   .   positive  traits   :   spontaneous  ,  charismatic  ,  curious  ,  free   spirited  &  independent  .   neutral  traits   :   realistic  ,  sarcastic  ,  stubborn  ,  curious  &  impulsive  .   negative  traits   :   destructive  ,  closed  off  ,  irresponsible  ,  selfish  &  pessimistic  .

𝐄𝐗𝐓𝐑𝐀   ,

𝑝ℎ𝑦𝑠𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙  𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑠   ;

hair  color   :   light  brown   (   will  dye  it  at  any  moment  if  he  gets  bored   )  .   eye  color  :   blue  .   height  :   six  foot  ,  two  inches  .   tattoos  :   currently  25  various  tattoos  .   piercings   :   2  ,  both  lobes   .   faceclaim  :   drew  starkey  .

𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑐   ;

artists  streamed  :   nirvana  ,  rage  against  the  machine  ,  badflower  ,  soundgarden  ,  alice  in  chains  ,  pearl  jam  ,  led  zeppelin  ,  metallica  ,  audioslave  ,  beastie  boys  ,  boston  manor  ,  cleopatrick  ,  bad  omens  ,  joey  valence  &  brae  ,  bring  me  the  horizon  ,  dead  poet  society  ,  royal  blood  ,  the  pale  white  ,  radiohead  ,  nothing  but  thieves  ,  grandson  ,  system  of  a  down  ,  korn  ,  tool  ,  finger  eleven  ,  foo  fighters  . . .  and  many  many  more  .

・     𝐁𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐓  𝐏𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐒.

𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦  𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑐𝑘   …

kai  wilder  ,  more  knowing  as  an  agent  of  chaos  some  would  say  . . .  that  some  being  me  . . .  i'm  the  one  .  it's  very  hard  for  kai  to  feel  settled  ,  always  needing  some  sort  of  rush  or  adrenaline  .  that  mostly  leading  into  him  getting  himself  into  some  sort  of  trouble  along  the  way  .  he'll  never  admit  to  anything  actually  going  on  with  him  and  claim  he's  just  trying  to  have  a  little  fun  .  even  though  ,  there's  no  doubt  that  he  does  everything  he  does  because  of  the  chaos  that  sworms  inside  his  head  .  always  seeming  unserious  ,  kai  can  flip  around  in  his  moods  easily  .  one  second  he's  joking  around  and  the  next  he's  bored  and  flips  the  script  .  he's  very  unpredictable  in  a  lot  of  ways  . . .  then  again  ,  if  you  really  know  him  ,  you  probably  feel  his  unpredicatable  chaotic  behavior  is  to  be  expected  .  underneath  it  all  ,  there's  just  a  very  lost  human  being  but  . . .  that's  a  secret  .  or  ,  he  thinks  so  .  he  could  be  very  high  energy  ,  mainly  because  he  needs  things  to  keep  moving  or  he'll  lose  his  mind  .  then  again  ,  i'm  pretty  sure  that  his  mind  is  already  lost  .  there's  a  lot  to  uncover  but  . . .  is  it  worth  it  ?  maybe  not  . . .  he's  not  a  bad  person  . . .  but  not  exactly  a  good  person  either  .  his  morals  a  little  lost  . 

!!!   𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐑  𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆  𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐓   !!!   :   drugs  /  addiction     (    there's  a  tiny  mention  !  i  put  a  warning  before  it  starts  and  after  it's  over  !   )

kyle  wilder  or  as  he  likes  to  be  called  ,  kai  wilder  was  born  in  good  ole  beaufort  ,  north  carolina  .  growing  up  in  his  small  family  of  four  .  then  again  ,  it  wasn't  much  of  a  family  to  begin  with  .  

kai's  mother  ,  kathy  davis  felt  as  though  she  wasn't  living  the  life  she  was  meant  to  .  playing  pretend  and  trying  to  fit  in  with  every  other  country  club  wine  mom  .  not  understanding  why  she  couldn't  live  her  dreams  of  sitting  pool  side  gossiping  with  the  ladies  about  her  life  while  her  husband  played  golf  with  the  boys  .  alas  ,  things  didn't  come  that  easily  for  the  woman  .  her  idea  of  country  club  living  was  sitting  at  the  public  pool  with  a  box  of  wine  and  overpriced  sunglasses  .  trying  her  darnedest  to  ignore  the  screams  of  children  around  her  .

daddy  dearest  on  the  other  hand  was  too  distracted  with  his  own  issues  to  ever  really  involve  himself  .          (     TW   :   DRUGS  /  ADDICTION.     )         carter  wilder  wasn't  one  for  the  family  lifestyle  .  which  was  exactly  why  he  didn't  really  entertain  the  idea  .  it  didn't  matter  that  his  on  and  off  girlfriend  became  pregnant  twice  with  his  offspring  .  he  wasn't  interested  in  kids  or  marriage  .  the  only  thing  that  really  interested  him  was  getting  his  next  hit  .  whatever  hard  drug  he  could  get  his  hands  on  ,  that's  where  he  drifted  off  to  .  it  didn't  matter  where  it  took  him  ,  it  didn't  matter  if  he  was  off  the  radar  for  days  ,  months  or  years  . . .  that's  where  he'd  be  .         (      TW  CONCLUDED  !     )

that  left  kai's  brother  ,  sawyer  wilder  .  only  older  by  a  year  ,  the  two  got  along  relatively  well  for  how  dysfunctional  the  two  became  to  be  .  in  a  lot  of  ways  ,  sawyer  was  the  one  that  raised  the  both  of  them  .  but  as  life  goes  ,  things  change  and  kai  and  sawyer's  relationship  fell  apart  .  the  two  brother  not  really  having  anything  to  do  with  each  other  in  current  years  .

as  for  kai  ,  he'd  never  really  felt  as  though  he  belonged  anywhere  .  never  feeling  as  if  anything  felt  quite  right  .  nowhere  ever  felt  like  home  to  the  male  causing  him  to  run  off  or  jump  from  place  to  place .   never  really  wanting  or  being  able  to  call  one  place  home  .

the  only  thing  that  the  male  really  clicked  with  was  extreme  sports  .  there  was  something  about  the  adrenaline  and  the  constant  movement  that  kept  him  entertained  and  excited  .  although  ,  his  aspiring  career  hasn't  jet  off  just  yet  ,  it  doesn't  stop  him  from  continuing  to  try  and  be  the  next  tony  hawk  or  big  bmx  guy  .

that  being  said  ,  he  needs  a  way  to  pay  for  the  random  places  he  finds  himself  .  working  any  jobs  he  could  get  his  hands  on  .  nevertheless  ,  most  of  the  poor  people  that  decide  to  hire  him  ,  regret  it  .  never  really  taking  anything  too  seriously  has  it's  downfalls  .

although  ,  kai  tries  to  stay  away  from  north carolina  ,  he  ends  up  being  pulled  back  in  .  this time popping in vortex . sometimes ( or all the time according to kai , ) a change was needed . but obviously , especially for the male . . . nothing comes that easy and trouble is bound to follow . . . or be chased .

there's  some  things  missing  ,  i'm  sure  !  but  for  now  ,  this  is  what  i  got  .  going  with  the  flow  as  i  figure  him  out  more  !  please  ,  have  this  trash  as  my  token  of  gratitude  .  and  i'm  sorry  you  had  to  endure  this  struggle  and  ramble  .

・     𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃  𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒.

wanted  :   i  currently  don't  really  have  anything  other  than  just  vibing  and  seeing  what  will  happen  !  but  i'll  update  this  when  things  start  flowing  in  my  head  .  always  down  to  brainstorm  !

i  do  have  a  section  in  his  pinterest  that  could  be  potential  ideas  for  some  plots  !  if  that  interests  you  !

・ 𝐒𝐊𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐒.

you don't like being liked and you don't want to be liked . you moved to vortex to get the hell out of your podunk town . you just traded it for another podunk town ? whatever , at least it was somewhat better and the people here didn't know you . you wanted an escape . the only downside is it didn't take you long to become well - acquainted with 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐄'𝐒 family , and not for anything good . so , you lied and stole and maybe busted a few kneecaps . it doesn't mean you're a bad person , you just like to think you're scrappy . maybe the group that just touched down in town could use someone like you . you know , if you ever give up the tough guy act .

[shiningsilverarmor]

Your special gift Beastie, many gifts actually, a box of limbs just for you. <3

Gifts like this one were meant to be tear open and dig in. Like Beastie usually does with his meals.

As if he has to wolf it down to have his fill before anything else takes it from him..

--Instead, something out of the ordinary happened. When Beastie goes through each limb, inspecting the quality and heartiness of it's shape, he place one in a pile while some others..

..towards Vortex. He done good after all.

[beastie-anon]

*he staggers a bit* the hell... ? what... is that necklace LINKED to him or something? what did you DO Beastie?

"..letgo.ofmynecklace."

"I saw one of the dead kids wearing a similar locket, But with the name 'vortex' on it. He wouldn't hurt us because the 'livestock' who lived here, Weren't livestock. He cared about them. Didn't you?"

"LET GO OF MY NECKLACE!!"

[cursed-40k-thoughts]

If you could release a sizable portion (different amount depending on power) of any WH beastie onto the world in various random places, what would you choose?

I think mutalith vortex beasts would be fun. Or grots.

Squigs all through America's southern states. That shit would be wild

[shootertron-stuff]

"The Leader of the Vortex Coursers warband gives a very important presentation to his allies."

A Black Legionnaire of formidable bearing stood in front of an audience dressed in colors of the 9 Legions. The long, calligraphy-engraved horns on his skull-faced helmet were polished to a burnished gleam, as was the rest of the black ceramic he wore. A red cape hung about his shoulders and wax seals with rabbit skin parchment hung from his breastplate. He gestured to the screen at the front of the room.

A gaggle of Daemons had materialized to watch him. Benign beasties that looked like children's toys.

"As evident from the photographic evidence in front of you. My wife Clothilde is a lovely person, and I wish they could be here with me right now."

"Here you can see them standing with my son [redacted] - and we're expecting another baby soon! My wife is a great mother. You wouldn't expect an Astartes from the Imperium to know how to handle young children with care, but Hilda is a fast learner."

"I had this fully armored portrait of them taken in front of the most beautiful pink flowers. They are shy about being seen without a helmet, but I did manage to get this back shot from when we went to [redacted] together and hiked up to the peak of [redacted] Ledge. The dust in the air creates the most beautiful sunsets. Perfect for getting shots of Hilda's glorious hair."

"Oh and here is a drawing I made of them reclining on the sofa. Fully dressed of course. I showed them a sketchbook full of human women and suggested it. My wife is always so accommodating to my requests."

The audience was quite puzzled that they'd been assembled here for just this.

One raised a hand, but the Black Legionnaire gestured for him to wait until the end of the presentation, and kept talking on and on.

On the next slide were photographs of handicrafts. Carved bones, painted figurines, even stuffed animals that had been patched over and over again.

"My wife loves to make art. This is but a small selection of their work."

There were a great many slides, all filled to the brim with pictures of the speaker's ex-Loyalist wife. Some audience members snickered and made lewd gestures to each other, about finding out if the speaker's wife was a good lay as he made them out to be. That had to be the reason motivating him to create this slideshow.

Oh, we must meet your wife, then!

[therapardalis]

eightandonly​:

-

The Doctor followed her and nodded at her statement before he realized the pressure felt familiar. Far too familiar this time and he wondered why it felt so recognizable to him. Once they were inside the library the door slammed shut behind them. There was no one inside and the darkness was incredibly deep for the afternoon. The Doctor stopped a few steps in and reached out grabbing Thera’s hand “Stop” he whispered. 

The Library seemed to shift a little almost blurred in and out of existence. A small frame peaked around a book shelf and watched them. It was a young child, almost a ten or twelve year old, staring at them in fear. It was radiating with temporal energy and the doctor recognized it instantly.  “The Untempered Schism” he said in awe as he felt it all around them. “Its a time lord child” he said stepping forward and looking at them worried. He still held Thera’s hand “Listen…what we are in right now…is a special opening between the time vortex and Gallifrey…my home planet…” he answered as the child continued to hide from them. “When a time lord comes of age we look into the space time vortex and the Untempered Schism…it allows us to be time sensitive but it can also have dangerous side effects” he remembered Koschei’s/The Master’s reaction far to vividly. “This child…must have been pushed through it in the coming of age ceremony and been brought here by accident” he was in awe of what was happening. “This is highly unstable…and this child might have regenerated prematurely…it can cause telepathic abilities to go haywire…hence the headaches and distortions in the area…its being amplified by the Schism” he gasped as he realized what had happened. 

The Library tended to get rather dark rather early, its central location and the newer buildings that had sprung up around it casting shadows well before the sun actually set. And maybe it was the cold that sent a shiver along Thera’s spine, although the heating had only been turned off a little while before. Or maybe ...

Or maybe she was rationalising too much, as the frisson tingled and spread, the tiny hairs on her skin and the longer ones at the back of her neck beginning to rise - making her shoulders lift like a cat’s arched back, and all of her jump when the Doctor grabbed her hand. ‘The Untempered what?’ she wanted to ask, but the words died in her throat as she caught sight of a small, frightened face framed with blond hair.

A child - ? Of all the ghosties, ghoulies and long leggity beasties she might have expected to find, this was definitely not one of the cards!

“The poor thing!” The same protective instinct that had sent ‘Professor Smith’ off to bed the night before - gods, had it only been the night before? - surged to the front, and only his hold on her stopped her from moving closer to the child. The rest of his explanation washed over her, the gist of it sticking, and she took a deep breath. “It’s alright,” She called toward the little figure hiding in the stacks, “we’re not going to hurt you.” Then to the Doctor, “So if we get him away from it, his abilities might calm down?”

[bthump]

If you were Miura's chief assistant and decided to end Berserk in a couple of chapters, how would you do it (ofc it'd be an open and abrupt ending, but still)?

hmm interesting question. this is tricky lol, all the endings I like to imagine require like, another arc of build up to work.

well, casca sees moonlight boy, remembers fetus, flashes back to eclipse bc that's all interconnected in her mind, behelit opens. i know that much lol.

OK I KNOW. Casca sacrifices moonbaby which is not a werebaby but is an astral projection by the fetus griff grew out of or whatever. Sacrificing it removes any fetus influence from Griff. OH that's why NGriff is here also, and it's a bit of a fakeout, like, it seems like he showed up bc fate required him to be sacrificed but then only the fetus part is sacrificed and it actually maybe makes him more undefeatable, oh no. also maybe he gets a black swordsman femto-esque villain moment where he gloats about this. Or if not him, Ubik does.

This would be better if Griff takes off and we got a whole nother arc in between but w/e, so basically Casca goes monster, Farnese is also there and like, power of friendship convinces her to chill and not get between Guts and Griff, bc I need them to just fight without distractions. idk. or maybe she does try to attack Griff too and Guts goes beast of darkness and injures her. whatever.

guess they're still in the vortex for this bc elfhelm being around would be too much to deal with. Femto goes back to Griff form to taunt Guts and they sword fight and the godhand just think it's funny I guess. void is like, 'really guys, do we have to do this' and slan's like 'shut up i'm trying to watch the show' and griff is basically toying with guts. Oooh also their commentary tells us that Griff is not all powerful, like 'yeah sure he's got the advantage, but after all he did return to that pitiful human form, and the black swordsman is full of surprises, don't count him out yet' that kinda thing.

from guts' beasty pov griff is a shining light in front of him.

uhhhh this can't go on too long bc you said only a few chapters lol. so like, it's not an epic battle, it's just guts trying and ngriff easily evading/countering him.

hmm Guts being all hidden away in the armour makes it harder to get a moment for NGriff to fuck up because of his feelings which obviously have not actually gone with the fetus :/ Well okay, how about Griffith ends up standing on the dragonslayer and they both have a whole ~moment~ where they stop and stare at each other. Kiiinda want Guts' consciousness to return here but it might be too much. Hm. Actually yeah, ok here's what happens: from Guts' pov we get a whole bit where he remembers human Griff and his consciousness returns, his helmet retracts, they fuckin make eye contact, Griff smiles, and then Guts sends them both over the edge of a platform.

Bc they're in the escher room from yk chapter 7 and also the swirl of hell souls is there below them. gotta mention that.

griff grabs the edge of the platform, guts grab his hand, they look at each other again, maybe guts is like, 'i'm not letting go this time,' if i want to be really heavy handed about it, close up of their hands - and griffith is holding on just as tightly to guts' hand. then griffith's fingers slip.

during their fight we also got a moment with casca and injured farnese, bc yeah I guess what I'm saying is Casca tried to attack and Guts fucked her up and now she's huddled in a corner with Farnese. And their moment is something like Casca, in mostly humanoid form, knocking Farnese aside with "a what are you doing, didn't you see what happened? what I became?" while F is trying to bandage a gaping wound and Farnese coming back and resuming with something like "Stop it, I'm staying right here at your side." They just need /something/ vaguely conclusive and hopeful, bc I'm not brainstorming an epilogue montage lol.

So yeah. idk maybe the final panel should be Casca and Farnese clinging to each other, while the godhand retreat, with Guts and Griff's swords lying on the ground.

so let's see that's like, 1 chapter for behelit to open, 1 chapter to make sacrifice, 1 chapter of everyone going holy shit and guts going beast of darkness and injuring casca, 2 chapters fighting, 1 chapter end. Rushed, like even just this should be like 10 chapters with an epilogue, but can't really help that.

That said, if you literally just meant a couple chapters as in two chapters, thennnnnnnnnn fuck it, moonbaby transforms into Danann who tells Guts she helped guide them all there and asks what he's going to do now, Guts looks back at Casca and Farnese and smiles sadly and asks for a lift off the island, alone this time, without even Puck. Danann gives him a magic thing that unlocks the fast travel system and mentions that Griffith can use it too, and in fact he's on the move right now (bc we gotta have some explanation for griff's disappearing act). Maybe with some implication that Griff knows he’s off to meet Guts for a final duel or whatever lol. (And the assumption is he can manifest clothes and armour. Or is it. Maybe that’s the secret hint they’re actually going to fuck when they meet up.) The last page is like, Guts walking into a portal or whatever, shot of his pouch ft behelit, shot of the brand, shot of him from behind with dragonslayer slung over his back, doublechecking he’s got a condom in his wallet.

lmao i spent all those paragraphs on the long ass first answer trying to squeeze in as much of the stuff I like as I could but honestly the 2nd one is way better when you don’t have any opportunity for build up and it has to be v truncated. Just Guts going off alone back on his revenge bender. i’m leaving my stream of consciousness answer as is anyway.

ty for asking! this was fun :3

[helicrazy]

It's sometimes-- sometimes fun and games, great hunt and catch with his mate.. but at the end of cycle sometimes there should be a time to engulf each other's existence and catch a breath as one say.

That meaning Beastie lowering his level to his mate's, forehelm pressed against the other along of a brush of his nasal bridge lightly that came with it.

At first it made it seem like the beastly knight wasn't going to do anything but his hidden glint his calm focusing optics said so otherwise, making sure Tex's optics stare back at his while the magic of taking a breath happens.

Servos that were capable of doing incredible amounts of damage came to rest between his panel plating, touching him gently, almost teasingly. They slid in opposite directions along his plating, gliding smoothly between hidden mesh and tracing their edges, sharp digits even once in a while made some jabs.

"Good mate..~"

Vortex is confused about Beastie's intentions, staring back at those crimson optics with curiosity.

He keeps a straight face as the larger mech touches him, but a hum slips out and rotors happily flicker. His legs shift apart to give Beastie more room as he leans back into the wall. Unsurprisingly, he's already warming up by those wonderful servos at work.

"Am I being rewarded for something~?"

[amethyst-wind-uk]

Was in a creative mood, but not enough of one to write a full story or anything - anyway, here’s a Yu-Gi-Oh! one-shot duel between OC girlfriends.

Two duelists walked into the arena. Both smiled easily at the other.

Readying their duel disks and decks, they took their positions.

“I’ll start, shall I?” 

The taller woman, Prata, whipped her six cards from her deck. Chestnut-brown eyes scanning her hand, she made her selection.

“Two backrow cards set,” a pair of facedown cards appeared before her, “and I’ll summon Phantom Beast Cross-Wing to finish.”

A burst of pixels heralded her monster, a golden-feathered avian with wings on every limb.

[Phantom Beast Cross-Wing - Level 4/Light/Beast-Warrior/1300 atk/1300 def]

Flipping a stray silver strand away from her face, Prata winked at her opponent. “All yours, honey.”

The shorter woman, Dawn, beamed back at her girlfriend. “Since you were so kind as to start the dance, darling, I’ll give your monster a partner.”

Dawn gently slipped her card onto her disk. “Since you’ve got a monster and I don’t, I can forgo tributes for this fellow. Arisen Gaia The Fierce Knight takes the floor!”

A blue-skinned knight, atop a purple unicorn steed, materialised onto Dawn’s field. In each hand, it held a lance that was identical to the unicorn’s horn.

[Arisen Gaia The Fierce Knight - Level 7/Dark/Warrior/2300 atk/2100 def]

Dawn regarded Prata’s monster ruefully. “Now, I know your monster and the graveyard go together almost as well as your hand in mine, but I’ll press forward anyway.”

Thrusting out a finger, Dawn ordered her attack. “Begin, Gaia!”

The cavalry knight thundered across the field, quickly closing the distance between the two monsters.

“You keep up that sweet talk, and I’ll almost be ready to give up and let you win.” Prata clicked her fingers. “But not quite yet. I activate my trap, Next To Be Lost.”

Another Cross-Wing ghosted from Prata’s deck to the grave. Instantly, her monster on the field gained 300 atk.

The gap in strength was still too much, and Gaia quickly overpowered Cross-Wing as they clashed.

Gaia’s lance piercing its chest, Cross-Wing burst into shards. Prata’s lifepoints dropped by 700.

[Prata: 7300 / Dawn: 8000]

Dawn raised a blonde eyebrow at Prata, who seemed completely unbothered by her monster’s demise. “And now you have two Cross-Wings in grave. Lucky you.”

Dawn made no other move, as her Gaia trotted back to her side of the field, except to nod her permission for Prata to take her next turn.

“Aaabout that.” Prata grinned as she drew her card, “It’s actually gonna be three in a sec, so all my cute little Phantom Beasties will get themselves a chunky 900 atk power-up.”

She slipped a spell card into her disk. “Apparitions In the Aether nets me another Phantom Beast for my hand, and also another for my grave. The latter being my third Cross-Wing, naturally.”

“Naturally,” Dawn echoed as Prata’s final avian disappeared into the grave, “but it cost you 500 lifepoints to do that.”

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 8000]

“Worth it.” Finding who she was searching for, Prata held up her new monster. “Let’s see how Gaia likes it when somebody else leads for a change. I summon Phantom Beast Torque-Scale!”

Tiny clawed hands burst up from the ground. Levering itself up, an orange pangolin-esque monster snuffled into position. As it stood there, its scales tensed against each other, filling the air with soft creaks and groans.

[Phantom Beast Torque-Scale - Level 4/Fire/Beast-Warrior/1500>2400 atk/1800 def]

“Aww.” Dawn cooed, as the tiny mammal waved its little fingers at her.

Prata’s expression was much harsher, making the critter burst out into a cold sweat.

“Every time with you, Torque-y! Can you, just one dang time, not flirt with Dawn? That’s my job!”

Her monster could only look back at her and shrug, as if to say ‘then give me something to do’.

“Fine!” Prata grumped. “Get that guy on the horse, whydon’tcha?”

Locking its long tail into a curl, ‘Torque-y’ pulled its entire body inwards. The creaks and groans rose sharply in volume. After a few seconds, with a mighty SPANG!, the Phantom Beast shot forward, blasting right at Arisen Gaia before the rider could even raise a lance to defend.

The pangolin’s claws tore a long diagonal slash, from left-hip to right-shoulder.

The fierce knight could barely gasp before disintegrating.

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 7900]

“Since he got a hit in, Torque-y’s effect kicks in. I get to send another Level 4 or lower Phantom Beast from my deck to my grave, and you take two-hundred times the level in damage.”

Teary-eyed, Torque-Scale sidled up to Dawn. It gingerly reached out a claw, to give her the tiniest scratch on her ankle.

Unperturbed, Dawn reached down and petted the distraught critter. “It’s okay, Torque-y. I still love you.”

Brightening, it rubbed against her hand.

“HEY! I’M DAWN’S FAVOURITE, NOT YOU!” Prata stamped her feet at the cheeky critter trying to steal Dawn’s affection.

She all but jammed a card into the grave for her monster’s effect. “I send Phantom Beast Thunder-Pegasus to the grave, yadda yadda yadda, 800 damage.” She crossed her arms in a huff. “Whatever, I’m done. My turn’s over.”

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 7100]

“Aw, sweetheart. You know I love you most.” Dawn shoo’d Torque-y back to her opponent’s field, as she drew her turn card. “He’s cute, but he’s not my favourite.”

“Hmph!” Prata squeezed her eyes shut, pointedly looking away.

Dawn just rolled her eyes. “You keep that face the way it is, it’ll stick that way.”

“I’ll give you my full attention now, but don’t end up regretting it when I do.” She slipped her next card onto the duel disk. “I summon Skilled Blue Magician.”

[Skilled Blue Magician - Level 4/Light/Spellcaster/1800 atk/1800 def]

“Next, I activate Polymerization, fusing my Origin Gaia The Fierce Knight and Curse Of Dragonfire, to summon Sky Galloping Gaia The Dragon Champion!”

As the swirling spell vortex blended the two monsters into a new form, a ball of light appeared in an orbit around Dawn’s magician. [1 spell counter]

[Sky Galloping Gaia The Dragon Champion - Level 7/Wind/Dragon/Fusion/2600 atk/2100 def]

Soaring and aflame, Dawn’s new Gaia kicked up a strong wind as it descended onto the field.

Dawn transferred another card to her field, leaving her with just one left in hand. “Next comes this: Spiral Spear Strike. My Gaias can deal damage through defence now.”

A second spell counter joined the first, in Skilled Blue’s orbit.

Dawn smirked at Prata. “Shall I show you how much I care?”

She thrust out her hand, fingers outstretched. “Sky Galloping turns your monster to defence when it attacks. It’s time for you to go now, little guy.”

The dragon breathed out a small flame, enough to make Prata’s Phantom Beast shrink back, before charging straight in.

“Ngh, dang it!” Prata reluctantly banished a card in her grave. “He’s a traitorous little snuggle-stealer, but I can’t let you get rid of Torque-y just yet, Dawn. Banishing Thunder-Pegasus negates the battle damage and destruction.”

Electric wings settled around Torque-Scale, deflecting the Dragon Champion’s blow.

Dawn couldn’t help but smile, happy that her girlfriend was giving it her all. “You are on rare form today, Prata. Much more of this and I might even get worried.”

Even this small compliment was enough to get Prata blushing and giggling. “Oh, stop. I mean, you’ve been teaching me so well in our lessons.”

Spreading her arms wide, Dawn beckoned to Prata. “Show me your best, Prata! I want to see you pull out all the stops!”

“You bet, babe!”

Dawn set her last card. “I can’t beat your monster’s defence with my magician, so it’s your move now.”

“Coming right up!” Prata jerked a thumb at her monster. “Time’s up, ya little turncoat. I got what I needed from you. You’re getting tributed.”

Torque-y leaned back in shock, paw on chest, before vanishing from the field.

“This guy’s Level 7, but only needs one tribute if it’s a Phantom Beast. Come on out, Rock-Lizard!”

A massive reptilian behemoth coalesced onto Prata’s field. Stony armour surrounded its might form, easily towering over the airborne Gaia.

[Phantom Beast Rock-Lizard - Level 7/Dark/Beast-Warrior/2200>3100 atk/2000 def]

Prata’s backrow card, set in the first move of the duel, flipped up. “Horn Of The Phantom Beast boosts my beastie even further!”

Rock-Lizard’s atk rose to 3900.

Prata pumped her fist. “Rip that dragon right outta the air, Rock-Lizard!”

Letting out an arena-shaking shaking bellow, the huge monster lumbered its four legs forward. Both hands closed around the Fusion monster, and squeezed.

Dawn had to shield her eyes as the two hands met in the middle, blasting the remains of her monster into dust with a resounding clap.

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 5800]

“And there’s an extra 500 damage for good measure when you lose a monster to my guy here. Turn end.”

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 5300]

“You’ve certainly got my heartrate up, Prata.”

Dawn drew her card, and frowned. “Your monster is quite a wall for me to tear down, but I promise I will in time.”

“For the moment, however. I summon Charging Gaia The Fierce Knight through its own effect. It’ll cost it 400 atk, but it won’t require a tribute.”

A new knight, in similar armour and with a helmeted horse, appeared.

[Charging Gaia The Fierce Knight - Level 7/Light/Warrior/2300>1900 atk/2100 def]

“I’ll also turn my Skilled Blue Magician to defence.” She turned the card sideways, then wagged a finger at Prata. “Soon, though, I promise. That wall is coming down.”

“Sure about that?” Her swagger was in full swing, backed by a creature almost four thousand attack points strong.

“Let’s give the wall some spikes, shall we? I summon Phantom Beast Wild-Horn!”

A bipedal moose, with antlers identical to those from Prata’s trap, appeared next to Rock-Lizard’s… leg.

[Phantom Beast Wild-Horn - Level 4/Earth/Beast-Warrior/1700>2600 atk/0 def]

“This one’s like your Spear Strike. It can pierce defences for extra damage.”

While Dawn was happy to see her girlfriend doing so well, her own pride was rising in response. She curled her finger at Prata, beckoning. “Come with it, then.”

“As the lady wishes… GET THAT GAIA, ROCK-LIZARD!”

The colossal monster’s fist slammed down onto the knight, leaving a crack-strewn crater where Dawn’s warrior had been.

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 3300]

“With another monster destroyed, the damage effect kicks in again.”

[Prata: 6800 / Dawn: 2800]

Prata put both hands behind her head, grinning with ease. “Now for your wizard. Wild-Horn, if you would?”

Braying harshly, Wild-Horn brandished its wicked-looking serrated blade as it bore down on Dawn’s remaining monster.

The corner of Dawn’s lips turned upwards. “I’m afraid you’re not the only one who can keep a monster alive. I banish my Origin Gaia in my grave, to return your Wild-Horn’s attack power back to its base of 1700. Your three Cross-Wings cannot help it now.”

An after-image of a Gaia knight flew into the Phantom Beast, causing its hands to shake and drop its sword. Weaponless, it couldn’t muster enough power in its charge, and the defending magician easily rebuffed it.

[Prata: 6700 / Dawn: 2800]

Prata deflated. “Well, that’s a bummer. I guess my turn’s over.”

Dawn drew, smile evolving into a smirk as she saw her card. “It’s time. I’ve collected the tools that will tear down your wall.”

“Quit sweet-talking me, baby.” Prata mimicked Dawn’s earlier finger-beckon. “Put your money where your gorgeous mouth is.”

“Gladly.” She revealed her card. “Summoner’s Art nets me a high-level Normal monster from my deck. I choose Curse Of Dragon.”

Adding the new monster to her hand, she then pointed at her existing creature. “That was the third spell, and thus the third spell counter for my spellcaster. Skilled Blue Magician’s effect kicks in, and I use it to summon the original Gaia The Fierce Knight from my deck!”

Disappearing into its magic circle, Skilled Blue Magician was replaced by yet another armoured horse-knight.

[Gaia The Fierce Knight - Level 7/Earth/Warrior/2300 atk/2100 def]

Prata wasn’t smiling now. “You know that’s not enough, so what are you planning?”

In response, Dawn simply triggered her facedown card. “Spiral Fusion.”

Prata regarded it coolly. “Another Sky Galloping? To turn my ‘wall’ to defence, and rip it down that way?”

Dawn shook her head. “That won’t be necessary. Gaia The Dragon Champion classic will suffice here. This particular fusion spell doubles the attack points of any Dragon Champions summoned, and also lets them attack monsters twice per turn.”

[Gaia The Dragon Champion - Level 7/Wind/Dragon/Fusion/2600>5200 atk/2100 def]

Meeting the gaze of Prata’s monolithic beast, Dawn didn’t blink. “Wall…”

She lazily directed her newest monster, emitting its own incredible aura, to attack. “...fall.”

Rising high into the sky, the dragon-rider plunged down towards Rock-Lizard at breakneck speeds, one lance thrust forwards. As it descended, it began to spiral, faster and faster, until the monster itself couldn’t be seen for the whirlwind it had cloaked itself in.

Rock-Lizard reared up on its hind legs, punching one meaty fist up at the whirlwind.

The cyclone didn’t even slow down, ripping through the fist, the arm it was attached to, and the body that arm was attached to as well.

Rock-Lizard, Prata’s great wall, collapsed. The entire arena shook when its corpse crashed down.

[Prata: 5400 / Dawn: 2800]

The storm didn’t end there, though. It swept up Wild-Horn, spiriting away into the sky.

Only the Dragon Champion came back down.

[Prata: 1900 / Dawn: 2800]

Prata could only gape. “My… my Rock-Lizard… just like that?”

Her hands clenched into fists. What does it take to bring her down?

“Come on, Prata.” Dawn’s slender hand reached up to cup her girlfriend’s face. “You’re not done, not yet.”

“Easy for you to say.” Prata groused, even while leaning into Dawn’s hand. “You’re winning.”

“But I haven’t won yet. You were so strong earlier. Show me more.”

“Don’t you want to win?”

“Not if you give up before you’re out of options.” Dawn’s fingers traced the knuckles on Prata’s hand. “You’ve still got cards. I’ve only got my one monster.”

Dawn winked, causing both girls to blush. “It’s just another wall.”

She leaned in to whisper in Prata’s ear. “I overcame yours, now break mine.”

“D-Dawn…”

Turning on her heel, she walked back to her side of the field. “I’m waiting, darling.”

Reignited, Prata ripped her next card off the top of her deck. “Okay, Dawn. Just you watch.”

Her smile resurfaced as she took in her hand. She played another spell. “Revenant Reinforcement banishes two Phantom Beasts from my grave, but I can special summon a Level 4 or lower one from my deck. I’ll banish Wild-Horn and Torque-Scale for Phantom Beast Frost-Bison!”

A massive bovine, fur full of ice, appeared in a misty haze.

[Phantom Beast Frost-Bison - Level 4/Water/Beast-Warrior/1600>2500 atk/1400 def]

“I’ll also summon Phantom Beast Poison-Coil.”

A snake with wicked fangs looped itself around Frost-Bison’s horns.

[Phantom Beast Poison-Coil - Level 3/Wind/Beast-Warrior/Tuner/0>900 atk/800 def]

“You summon a Tuner in this late stage of the game?” Dawn clapped her hands together happily. “That’s wonderful, Prata!”

“You’re not the only one with an Extra Deck, after all. I tune Frost-Bison with Poison-Coil, to Synchro Summon my Level 7 Phantom Beast Shock-Howl!”

Biting its own tail, Poison-Coil made a circle with its body. The circle then split into three rings of light, which surrounded Frost-Bison. The icy bovine then split into four starry orbs, before a pillar of light shot up, surrounding rings and orbs alike.

Out of the light charged a fearsome albino werewolf, electricity arcing between its fangs and eyes.

[Phantom Beast Shock-Howl - Level 7/Earth/Beast-Warrior/Synchro/2500>3400 atk/0 def]

Growls rumbling from its throat, the werewolf stalked back and forth on Prata’s field.

“For every Phantom Beast in my grave, Shock-Howl lowers every one of your monsters’ attack stat by 200. I’ve got six, so that’s a twelve-hundred point drop.”

Static pulsed from the lycan’s fangs up to the dragon-rider, who shuddered as it passed over him. Dragon Champion’s atk dropped to 4000.

“As you said earlier: ‘you know that’s not enough, so what are you planning’?”

“You know me so well, babe.” One of Prata’s six Phantom Beasts was ejected from her graveyard. “Poison-Coil is banished for its effect. Only five mons in the grave now, so your wall monster gets 200 atk bigger again, but then loses another 800 from my snakey-snake.”

“Putting the final total at… what?”

Prata grasped her hand into a fist. “Why don’t I show you instead? Shock-Howl, attack!”

Another electric shock ran through the dragon, dropping both it and its rider down to just above ground level. The beast-warrior took the chance, springing forward with claws outstretched.

Gaia got a lance up in time. The knight ran Shock-Howl through at the same time that the werewolf’s claws opened his throat.

Both monsters vanished into a huge dust cloud.

Prata set her final two cards, ending her turn. “I decided to build another wall, just big enough to topple yours.”

Beaming with pride, Dawn drew her card. “Splendid work, Prata. I knew you could do it.”

She looked down at her card. “Hmm, not one of my knights.”

“You’re the only knight I need.”

Dawn hid her blush with her duel disk. “You’re so cheesy. I set one backrow card, and end my turn.”

Happy at Dawn’s reaction, Prata jovially drew her card. “Ooh, looks like I got a monster first. You might be in trouble here, ‘knight’.”

A chameleon, changing colours rippling across its body in waves, appeared on Prata’s field.

“Phantom Beast Shade-Tongue can destroy one of my backrow cards,” her set Beast Rising trap shattered, “to banish one monster from your grave. I’ll get rid of that meddlesome Sky Galloping Dragon Champion.”

Said Fusion monster was ejected from Dawn’s grave.

“Since that’s done, Shade-Tongue gets a boost equal to a hundred times your monster’s level during every one of my Main Phases, including this one. So, since your monster was Level 7, that’s a big chunk o’ change each turn.”

[Phantom Beast Shade-Tongue - Level 4/Dark/Beast-Warrior/1000>1900>2600 atk/400 def]

Dawn braced herself for what was coming.

“Sorry, but… direct attack!”

The chameleon’s long tongue shot out, connecting with the duel disk Dawn had hastily thrown up as a shield.

The force of the attack still forced her stumbling backwards, as her lifepoints dropped critically low.

[Prata: 1900 / Dawn: 200]

No longer smiling, Dawn stalked back to her starting spot. “The knight is still standing, princess.”

“Yeah, but it’ll be an even bigger attack next turn. Is this gonna be it, Dawn?”

Brown eyes met hazel. “Is this gonna be my first win over you?”

Both of their hearts beat a little faster at the idea. Prata’s from hope. Dawn’s from excitement.

I wouldn’t mind if it was, my love. “I suppose it all rests on this draw. We’re both out of walls now. Will the knight claim the hand of the princess, or bend the knee at long last?”

Prata chuckled. “This metaphor’s getting pretty strained, isn’t it?”

Dawn couldn’t help but agree. “Indeed, so let’s wrap this up, one way or another. Draw!”

Wheels began turning behind her eyes, the moment Dawn laid eyes on her final card. It’ll depend on Prata’s facedown, but this could be it.

She gestured to her own facedown card. “My Spiral Reborn revives my Gaia The Dragon Champion-”

“-classic,” Prata quipped.

“Do I need to muzzle you?” Dawn joked back.

“Well, my birthday is coming up...”

“AS. I. WAS. SAYING. Dragon Champion revives!”

The fusion monster burst back onto the field, dragon and rider soaring airborne.

“Then,” Dawn placed her final card onto the field, “I’ll sacrifice my dragon to Special Summon Soldier Gaia The Fierce Knight from my hand!”

A new Gaia, taller and broader than the others, appeared. His armour was more ornate, as was his trident lance. A billowing cape covered his strong back.

[Soldier Gaia The Fierce Knight - Level 8/Dark/Warrior/2600 atk/2100 def]

“Without fusing, he’s the strongest Gaia I have.”

“Still only as strong as my Shade-Tongue, and that’s only for this turn.”

“Yes, but…” 

Soldier Gaia pointed its trident at the Phantom Beast. It curled into a ball, tongue wrapping around itself.

“...Like the Sky Galloping you banished earlier, he can also turn one of your monsters to defence mode, and your lizard only had 400 defence.”

“Oh yeah?” Prata challenged, triggering her facedown card. “Well, Phan-tomb Beast Curse says ‘no’! I banish a Phantom Beast from my grave, and drop your strongest monster’s atk by the banished monster’s stat. Banishing Shock-Howl will leave your monster at just one hundred attack points. Not enough to beat ‘only’ 400 defence!”

Taking a deep breath, Dawn closed her eyes. “And you were so close, too. Maybe next time, Prata.”

“What was that?”

Dawn opened her eyes, gaze not unkind. “Seems I still need to teach you patience. If you waited for the battle to start before using your trap, you’d have won.”

Prata’s pride wouldn’t let up. “There’s not going to be a battle, is there? Soldier Gaia still only has 100 attack!”

“True, it doesn’t have much in the way of damage potential. What it does have, however, is another effect to fall back on.”

Prata deflated. “Oh.”

“Yeah, sorry.” Dawn made a ‘what are you gonna do?’ gesture. “Soldier Gaia can tribute itself, and search out another Gaia to add to my hand instead. I pick Swift Gaia The Fierce Knight…”

“...which, being the only card in your hand, can be summoned without tribute.” Prata finished. That last lapse in judgement aside, she did know Dawn’s deck very well.

I love watching you duel, but it’s hard being across the way from you.

[Swift Gaia The Fierce Knight - Level 7/Dark/Warrior/2300 atk/2100 def]

Prata laid down on her back. “Twenty-three-hundred attack vs four-hundred defence. With Spiral Spear Strike, that’s-”

“Exactly enough to take you to 0.” Dawn barely looked at her monster as it began its attack.

“I win, darling.”

Neither blinked as Prata’s monster, and remaining lifepoints, disappeared.

[Prata: 0 / Dawn: 200]

Dawn crossed the field as the hardlight monsters disappeared. Kneeling down, she pulled Prata’s head into her lap, stroking her hair. “You really did do very well. I’m so proud of you.”

“Mhm.” Prata sniffled, fighting her own feelings.

She pulled Dawn’s hand to her lips, giving it a soft kiss. “Next time, yeah?”

Dawn smiled down at her girlfriend’s vain attempt to hide her frustration. “Next time.”