#action/adventure romance

[rainbow-taishi]

'Random Anime-style story concept'

Snow White but they're a fairy tale demon fighting against the descendant of the Queen and Huntsman

+++ Bonus stuff++++

[torpublishinggroup]

This advertisement is for The Sky on Fire, a daring new fantasy heist adventure from the acclaimed author of the Chorus of Dragons series, Jenn Lyons.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT 

If you ever wished for a book that's a mash-up of Fourth Wing and Six of Crows, behold The Sky on Fire.

Steal from a dragon who already wants you dead? It's not much of a choice, but in order for Anahrod to maintain her survival, it's a risk she has to take. In a world where humans are ruled by merciless dragons, Anahrod joins a sexy dragonrider and a gang of misfits plotting to steal a dragon's hoard. They'll have to rely on each other to pull off this impossible heist or this deadly mission will be their last.

[dailyflicks]

The Mummy (1999) dir. Stephen Sommers

[wangxianficrecs]

The Price of Forever by Witch_Nova221

The Price of Forever

by Witch_Nova221 (@witchnova221)

T, 22k, Wangxian

Part of the Summer Solstice

Summary: 'It is the nature of men to claim a prize rather than earn one,' said Lan Wangji, blinking past the tears in his eyes, 'Now, to capture a unicorn and to become an immortal means you can claim so much more. Had I...I would have been able to claim a wife, land, fortunes. My own brother, older than me, would have had to bow when I passed. I would have been held amongst the greats but...' 'But you would be cursed,' said Wei Ying, 'That's what they've never learned.' When Lan Wangji injures a unicorn, he learns the truth about the age-old traditions that his clan and the world have undertaken for generations. With a new friend to protect and the pressure of the world upon him, he knows he must pay a price, the cost of which is high on either side. Kay's comments: This story has the loveliest fairytale vibes and I really loved seeing Wei Wuxian as an otherwordly unicorn and the journey Lan Wangji went through in this story and of course, their relationship progression! Very sweet. Excerpt: Short, panicked breaths echoed back at him through the darkness and he conjured a light, letting it hang in the air until it illuminated the narrow cave. The blood glittered darkly on the floor, the trail a little thinner than it had been. 'Get back hunter or I'll kill you where you stand.' A voice. A human voice, hissing at him in anger. Did the unicorn have a protector? One of Lan Wangji's own kind, turned against the practices of old and dedicated to the protection of the creatures the rest of the world hunted? 'I mean no harm,' said Lan Wangji, daring another step further, 'I injured a... an animal and followed it here. I wanted...' 'I know what you did and I know what you want, hunter. Leave now and you may do so with your life.' Lan Wangji took another step forward, the light falling on a bare foot, a long strong leg marred with a bloody gash from knee to hip. The left leg. The same leg Lan Wangji had hit on the unicorn. He took one final step, the light fully illuminating the man curled as close to the cave wall as he could be, only his injured leg outstretched. He was almost naked, caring little for his own modesty in ragged clothes that looked as though he had worn them as a child then torn them as he sprouted into adulthood. He glared at Lan Wangji with eyes that looked too old for his face. Grey eyes that knew everything of the world and still saw wonder in it even if they were now filled with fear.

pov lan wangji, canon era, unicorn wei wuxian, unicorns, fairy tale elements, romance, action/adventure, adventure & romance, blood and injury, angst with a happy ending, hurt/comfort, mythical beings & creatures, families of choice, strangers to lovers, enemies to friends to lovers, falling in love

~*~

(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for this hard-working author if you like – or think others might like – this story.)

[mediamatinees]

So Let Them Burn and the Tragic Power of Love

Content Warning: So Let Them Burn contains violence, depictions of colonization and imperialism, racism, discussions of vengeance, child soldiers, and teenagers making very questionable decisions. On the bright side, it’s a Jamaican-inspired fantasy with hints of dark academia that celebrates women’s rights (and, more importantly, women’s wrongs). 🙂 Reader discretion is not advised because I need…

[jay5464]

Yin & Yang: Between the Moments of Life and Death---A Light Novel of Spiritual Romance and Action Available on Tapas Now!!

Yin and Yang, spirits who were the polar opposite yet the same. Their only purpose of existence was to ensure that the souls of the dead would pass on safely. This went on without change until one day, Yang was overcome with boredom and decided to disobey orders and step away from the gate.

As Yin runs up to try and stop her, a strange event occurs. The moment he grasped her hand, a vivid memory of their lives flashed in their eyes. Mesmerized by what they saw, they tried to make sense of it and find the truth about who they were when they were alive.

While successfully escaping from the Spirit World, they possess the bodies of two high schoolers——Mitsuki Risho and Higane Utose. This story is a romantic and action pact tale of two spirits in love trying to regain their memories while the forces of the other world try to bring them back by force. Can Yin and Yang find the truth in their story?

[hanayori89]

🪶🪶🪶Lesson 14: The Captivating Captor 🪶🪶🪶

You were dreaming again.

Only this time you were thankful that there was no half-naked Link snuggled against you.

You were back in Skyloft.

It was nighttime. You knew this not just from the barren void of a dark sky visible through your sheer curtains but from the moon's lustrous shadow that cast a spotlight on this one particular piece of kinked wood on your floor. 

You pulled your covers up to your chin with a shudder, unable to get warm. Beneath the cotton fibers of your quilt and the thick wool of your Skyloftian pajamas was your body drenched in cold sweat and shivering. You decided to form a chrysalis, rolling around in your bed like a roly-poly and taking your blanket with you. You turned over and curled your knees into your chest, assuming a fetal position that made you feel satisfied.

Now content with the blanket encompassing you snugly, warmth beginning to trickle down the base of your spine, you went to loosen the grip of the blanket and found that you couldn't.

And that it was growing tighter.

And tighter.

Your eyes flew open in alarm; the soft glow speckling your floorboards transformed from one of saturated gold to a shade of blue that made the room look like rigor mortis set into flesh. You lifted your head off the floor, surprised to see yourself actually curled in the fetal position. 

And a blanket snugly wrapped around you, only this wasn't a cotton quilt, but soft spun threads of silk. The fragile gleam emanating from them, reminding you more of a lethal nylon-coated wire.

Where am I?

You observed the dark habitat you were now imprisoned in. The walls were painted with overgrown vines of moss like the ones you had flicked away before you were kidnapped.

OH! Kidnapped?!  The memory of the arm wrapped around your neck came flooding back to you.

You writhed on the cold cobblestones, your body nothing more than a limp cocoon. After a few more thrashes of panic, you surrendered, allowing a warped piece of the ground to scratch against the side of your face. 

How do I get myself out of this?

Any calmness that may have remained began to seep out of your body as you became more aloof. You had been kidnapped. You were now hogtied and in some sort of dungeon.

A second round of adrenaline-powered fear causes you to begin to scream. "HELP! HELP! HELP ME! ANYBODY!?"

After a few minutes of a slightly unhinged temper tantrum, you paused; a soft thrumming sound came from above you. Unable to move your head, you lifted your eyes upward the best you could. 

The cadence grew louder; with every vibration, it sounded closer as you realized whatever it was began to suspend itself from the ceiling.

Beyond the pall of the gloom at the top of the room came the outline of a creature you had never seen before. Its many legs shimmied slowly.

Menacingly. 

The same gleam coming from the silk wrapped around you glinted from a single strand that was lowering it to the ground. Three eyes, rusted like old red rupees, but animated with the desire to eat, began to ogle you as it continued to lower itself. 

"OH, HELL NO! HELPPPPPPP! PLEASEEEEEE"

The echo of your cries did nothing but motivate the creature to fall at a faster pace. 

"EEEKKKKK!"

Just as the entity was about to do a crash landing on top of you, the sound of fingers snapping made it cease to move. It swung suspended a mere inch above you.

"Ah, what beautiful music. The sound of fear." A voice silkier than webbing crooned from a corner of the room. 

You pivoted your chin as far upward as you could, your eyes rolling almost to the back of your head so you could take a gander at the figure emerging from the umbrage of the shadows. 

And you best believe it would be hard to miss him. 

The garish pale of his skin glowed like the various fungi that had emerged through the crevices and cracks of the broken flooring. He sported an elegant silver bob, keeping long tendrils over one of his eyes and the other neatly tucked behind his arched ear. His fashion was quite alien, but it was the only thing that helped you decipher him as a male. Certainly, the eggplant charcoal smeared beneath his low lash line, and highlighting the emptiness in his hematite irises, did not. A flimsy piece of fabric worn as a one-piece was swaddled around his body like bondage, possessing peek holes, allowing you to unrepentantly see certain parts of his slender and toned physique. 

Having never seen a male dressed so scantily clad, the whole ensemble left you more embarrassed than frightened. You turned away with a startled blush.

"Ew, how lewd! No wonder you are kidnapping people; you obviously need clothes."

This caused the figure to vanish, transporting right in front of you. He squatted, grabbing your chin and forcing you to look upward at him once again.

"I'll give you a pass because you're no more than an ignorant sky child. But- the great Ghirahim does not tolerate anyone who dares mock my fashion choices."

Ghirahim... the name tickled something familiar in the back of your brain. 

He slowly stood back up, leering over you. He jutted his arm upward, flicking his wrist and snapping his fingers. Before you knew it, you were levitating before him.

He pinched both of your cheeks in observance.

"You're quite pretty, but not quite as pretty as the goddess." His words hurt more than the pressure of the web bonded around you. "With a little work, however, you may be on par. A perfect distraction."

His gloved thumb trailed down to your bottom lip. "But will that distraction be enough to pull away that meddlesome boy from the goddess?"

"Meddlesome boy? Hold on—do you mean Link?" Ghirahim took his fingers and clasped your lips together, muffling your voice.

"OH—how I hate that name! The sound of that name—you have no idea what it does to me!" He threw his hand up again, snapping his fingers and allowing you to fall to the ground with a thump.

The sound caused him to tsk at you. "A few pounds could be spared also."

He began to fan himself, continuing his tirade. "When I hear that name, it's almost as bad as hearing... hero!" You watched as he jerked his wrist backward and a small purple flame hovered above his palm.

"But I must learn to control my anger. After all, that's what ensured his victory last time. But this time"—his eyes fell down to you. "This time I have a plan. And this plan is sure to be a seamless one—almost as seamless as my eyeliner. Yes—and you, sky twerp, will help me."

"I don't take orders from anyone! Especially a man who puts his eyeliner on his lower lash line and not upper!" 

Ghirahim let out a gasp, flinching and resting his hand among the hardened pecs of his chest. "A girl with knots in her hair the size of my earrings should refrain from offering me advice on glamour." 

He tilted his head, amused by your spunk. "Now, as I was saying before the rude interruption. You will assist me. But no need to reveal my hand just yet—oh no—don't you worry your knotty little head. I can guarantee your assistance; after all, you would go through great lengths to protect that annoying little brat you call Link." 

"Link can handle himself."

Ghirahim let out a shrill laugh. "Not when it comes to you."

You weren't expecting that response. Your face became a heated grill, splotches of red peeking through like embers. "What does that mean?"

"Patience, sky child, patience. All will be revealed soon enough. And soon, I shall revive my master."

His master...?

"In the meantime, do try not to get eaten by that spider up there." Ghirahim turned his back to you; the sound of his obnoxious earrings jangled as he turned to glance at you from over his shoulder. 

"You certainly would be a hearty meal." He laughed at this. "See you soon, twerp. "With one more snap, the creature you now understood as a spider began to resume where it left off, craving to ravage you. Ghirahim vanished into thin air, only leaving the faint echo of his laughter resounding in the air.

And finally, he was gone.

And you weren't too far from being gone yourself." Great. Just great. I really should have paid attention when Strich was showing me how to catch those critters with a net." Now in true Skyloftian knight fashion, it would be silly to assume you didn't have some other tricks up your sleeve.

Unfortunately, that trick was a pocketknife tucked away in your pocket, and with your wrists bound and then double-tied beneath the impenetrable grasp of the spider's web, it would be nearly impossible for you to retrieve it.

One of the spider's legs reached out, gently stroking your hair; little pricks that you recognized as claws jutted from the leg and began to tangle into your hair.

"AHHH!" You scrunched your eyes shut, trying to wiggle your face away from the next leg about to come down.

"Y/N?!"

A voice you never thought you'd be happy to hear made your eyes shoot open. "Groose?!"

"See, this is why I told you to stay put. Lucky for you, you're in the hands of the bravest man in all of the skies AND the surface." He lifted his bicep to flex it, his other hand patting it so you could hear the hollow sound of muscle.

"GROOSE! SHOW ME THE BEEF LATER AND GET OVER HERE!"

"Little Y/N, scared of a spider. Watch and learn!" Groose darted forward, pulling out his own pocketknife and swinging it to cut the only thing keeping the spider from being on top of you, its one strand of web. 

The spider landed on you with a thud, causing you to yelp. The sensation of scratchy fur and filaments from its legs made you lurch. 'GROOSE! YOU IDIO-"

Groose aimed his foot, kicking the spider off of you and letting it flop next to you and revealing its vulnerable underside. "You see Y/N? You got to stab the part where the "echoskeleton" isn't at. And yes, I know big words like "echoskeleton" too!"

"You literal buffoon, it's called an exoskeleton." You rolled your eyes at him. 

"Excuse me, Y/N," Groose swung his knife around in his hand like a nunchaku. "I'm a little busy saving your ass right now!" He launched the blade down into the spider's gut, causing sticky innards to spew all over the walls. A few droplets splashed your cheek.

You sighed, watching the spider blood trickle down your face. 

Groose leaned beside you and began cutting away at the web to set you free. You were fairly certain you'd rather be eaten by a spider than admit Groose saved you, and you might actually hug him. The realization he wasn't so bad when he wasn't being a pompous doofus dawned on you.

"How's that Y/N? I'll take your payment in praise and compliments—for the rest of your life." 

"Yeah, yeah, thank you. You aren't so bad sometimes, Groose." As you felt the webbing fall away, you sat up and took a deep breath. The last tie around your wrists came undone, and you reached your arms up, stretching them, feeling some of the remaining web from the ceiling weave around your fingers.

"Y/N, how did you get in here?"

"I—" You weren't sure if telling Groose about the ominous warning would give Ghirahim leverage. You weren't even sure he wasn't shielded somewhere else in this dark sanctuary, listening.

"I, um, wandered in here and got myself in a sticky situation, I guess?" 

You stood up, your knees feeling slightly stiff. Now that you weren't waiting for a spider to gobble you up and you didn't have a flamboyant man threatening you with sass every two seconds, you could observe better.

"Groose? Where are we?"

As you walked toward the entrance, you caught note of branches that swirled down and massacred spider webs, denoting the creatures besides the one you encountered had all been destroyed. The fluorescent mushrooms gave it a glow that reminded you a lot of the moonlight hitting your windowpane, perhaps erring you into that dream you had before waking it up. The dilapidated walls and archaic carvings combined with the bioluminescent algae pooling at the bottom of the temple's swampier areas made it hauntingly romantic.

"This is the Skyview Temple. It's my first time seeing this also."

"What? You mean you have never been here?" You asked, astonished.

Groose shook his head; the sound of both of your feet splashing in muddy puddles reverberated around you both.

"Link was here before. I always wanted to check it out myself. And see? No more monsters." Groose hit his chest proudly.

"Yeah, because Link came and killed them all before you. Dork." 

You could see sunlight trickling into the temple, letting you know you were getting close to the outside. You couldn't wait to get out of there and process Ghirahim and his warning.

A certain paranoia now settled in your bones. He could be around like nitrogen existed in the air, and you would never know. How were you supposed to protect yourself?

And Link?

Now you had two secrets to keep. First Gaepora's warning, and now this leotard-wearing villain telling you he was going to use you to get back at Link. 

As you stepped outside, the familiar choir of birds overhead in trees greeted you. And compared to the strumming of a spider web in your ear, it was a welcome sound. "Come on, Y/N. Let's get back to the sealed grounds before Link finds out."

"Before Link finds out what?"

You both gasped. Ahead stood Link between two trees, his arms folded and his bangs doing a poor job of hiding his one eyebrow piqued upward by his displeasure. 

It was apparent he hadn't heeded Fi's advice. 

And hey, for once you didn't mind being the only one that didn't follow directions.

Edited: 1/1/25

[willow-salix]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHN!

To celebrate my boys (TAG) birthday I'm FINALLY launching season 3!

Here's the TAG line:

We last saw the Tracy family dealing with their biggest threat yet, a mysterious foe who lurks in the shadows, pulling strings and putting the whole world in danger.

Plans are being put into action, true allegiances are being formed, patience and resolve is being tested and the Tracy family is feeling the strain.

Secrets will out, world views will shift, the threats will keep piling up and the Tracy family will have their eyes opened in more ways than one.

Who's as excited as I am? This season has been a long time in the planning and I'm sooo happy to be finally sharing it with the world. I'm planning on publishing a chapter a week, but I'll be writing as I go and life happens, so we'll see how it goes lol.

Gods I'm so happy that I'm back writing these gorgeous people, I've missed my two idiots so much, I can't even describe it.

Chapter 1 is up and you can find it here ➡️

So, if you're new, welcome to the madness, and if you're returning, welcome back!

We hope you enjoy the ride.

[gachawolfiebloom]

A Grumpy Troll and A Prince

Chapter 1: Lives of Misery and Joy

Tags: Comedy, action, adventure, and romance

Once upon a time...

In a happy forest, in the happiest tree lived the happiest creatures ever known...

The trolls!

These cute and tiny creatures loved nothing more than to sing, dance, and hug, dance, and hug, and sing, and dance, and sing, and hug, and dance-

Well you get the idea -_-

But then one day the trolls were discovered by a bergen!

The bergens didn't know how to sing, dance, or hug. They were the most miserable creatures in all the land. Once they saw how happy the trolls were, they wanted some of that happiness for themselves.

Eating a troll made them feel so happy that they started a tradition...

Once a year, every year, the bergens would gather around the troll tree to taste true happiness.

On a holiday called...TROLLSTICE!!!

—

The king of the bergens was fast asleep until the door slammed open. His son, prince X was already up and had come to wake his father up.

"Good morning dad!"

It was very early in the morning so it was going to be quite hard to get him up at this hour. "Dad wake up!" He was quite pestering, but since he was just a kid it was perfectly understandable why X had so much energy.

He began jumping over the bed as he just kept shouting "Dad! Dad! Dad!" If this exhaustion continued then they might miss this special day. With not a second to lose, the prince grabbed the king's chest hairs and ripped them clean off at full force.

"AHHHHHH!!!!" The king's eyes shot open and he yelled "X! What time is it?" The young prince squealed as he replied "It's trollstice!"

The castle doors flew open as the king yelled out to all of his kingdom "Trollstice! Our one day to be happy!" All of the bergens didn't spare a second as they all hurried to the troll tree that was in the middle of town. They all chanted "We want trolls! We want trolls! We want trolls!"

As they all gathered around the troll tree, a familiar voice addressed the crowd.

"Please give it up for your keeper of the trolls. Your master of happiness. Your royal entertainer..."

The figure that the voice belonged to turned around to find that it was...

"Me."

It was none other than the TV Adware, Mr Puzzles himself. All the bergens cheered, which pleased  him very much. He did love a good show after all. "This is a very special trollstice as one of us has never tasted a troll before." The young prince in the crowd gasped. "He's talking about me!" Mr Puzzles stuck a hand out to X .

"Prince X, your time has come." The king gave a warm smile to his son as he reassured him that he had been quite the nervous one when he had his first troll. The prince nodded and took his royal entertainer's hand.

"I present you to the ways of true happiness."

He opened the gate to the tree and pointed to a flower that was sitting on a branch. "I have chosen a extra special troll for you." He took the supposed "troll" and bent down to the little bergen.

"The happiest, most positive, sweetest troll of all...and because every prince deserves royalty, I give you the one they call prince Smg4!"

In pure excitement, X snatched the troll out of Mr Puzzle's hands and whispered "Please make me happy Smg4." He stuck him in his mouth and began chewing. The ominous TV man watched with a smug and curious grin.

"What are you feeling?"

Suddenly, the prince spit out the troll in disgust. "That's rotten!" It actually wasn't a troll at all. Mr Puzzles examined it to find it was only a wooden replica of the actual prince. "It's...fake!?"

"FAKE!?"

Mr Puzzles turned towards the tree in shock and kicked it, causing thousands of copies to rain down, teasing the entertainer for being tricked like that. X started to get worried as his breath quickened. "They're gone!?" The king's anger started to rise as he sternly asked "Where are they..."

Mr Puzzles stuck his hands out defensively and said "Don't worry. I'll find them!" The prince could hear some kind of disturbance in the ground as he placed his head down closer to the ground. It sounded like...the pitter patter of little feet?

Underneath the tunnels, all the trolls were hurrying to escape this hellhole of a kingdom. "Here comes Smg4!" The trolls passed along the little prince up to his father. He had just been born and it was very crucial that the poor little troll was protected at all costs. The king of the trolls breathed a sigh of relief when his son was safe in his arms. "There's my little prince."

One of the trolls informed him that some of the others couldn't keep up. The king had sworn to make sure that none of the trolls were left behind and he was intended to keep that promise. He scooped up any troll that couldn't make it and generously used his clothes to cover mud puddles.

It started to become increasingly harder to catch up as the tunnels were broken into by shovels and pickaxes. What could be going on up there? That question was answered as all the bergens were ferociously digging away on the surface while the king yelled out "DON'T JUST STAND THERE! MAKE MY SON HAPPY!"

Mr Puzzles grabbed a pickaxe and yelled back "HE WILL BE HAPPY!" as he threw it into the ground. As the tunnels were collapsing, that very tool used to slash the ground had caught the king and he was stuck. A shovel was about to block the path so in a flash of heroism, he threw the injured trolls he was carrying to safety.

Luckily they all had made it to the end with the others, but one thing was missing. Where was the king?

"I don't think the king made it..."

They all gasped as it was fair to assume that their heroic and brave leader was dead. He had sacrificed himself for his kingdom. Just when it seemed like all hope was lost, a voice echoed through the tunnel.

"When I said no troll left behind, I meant it!"

The king was okay and...*ahem* uh lacking some body coverage.

One of the trolls realized someone was missing as he piped up "Wait! Where is prince Smg4?" The king gave a reassuring look and said "Don't worry. He's safe." He pulled the prince out from his hair as the cute baby chanted "No troll left behind!"

"Awwww." That was the most adorable thing they had seen all day. The king got back to the matter at hand as he ushered all his subjects away from this terrible place. "But we'll be a lot safer the further we get from bergen town." The trolls had all successfully escaped and were off to find a new place to call home.

Meanwhile at bergen town, the bergens had formed an angry mob and took away Mr Puzzles. "That's right! Take him away! Get him out of my sight!" No matter how much this adware struggled to escape, he could not break free from the angry grasps of the citizens.

"YOU ARE HERBY BANISHED FROM BERGEN TOWN FOREVER!!!"

When the overcome could not be achieved by physical force, Mr Puzzles tried to convince them to give him a second chance. "We can all be happy again! I'll find the trolls!"

They tossed him into the dirt and closed off the passage into the kingdom. Getting up and wiping mud off his face, Mr Puzzles was very irritated on losing his status and reputation. He had a broken antenna and a glitching screen while replying with a cold expression "And I'll shove them down your ungrateful throats..."

Poor X watched the chaos outside as he went up to his dad to ask him a question. "Dad...I never got to eat a troll. What's going to make me happy now?" The king's servant, FM, who was just as old as the young prince, watched the conversation while cleaning the floor.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You will never be happy."

X sulked and wallowed with one final reply. "Never?" His father nodded and the realization sunk in that he would be miserable for the rest of his life. FM couldn't help but feel sorry for the prince as there was a strong feeling that just wanted to make him comfort that young bergen. With nothing but cleaning duties to do, FM sighed and got back to work.

_

After days of searching, the trolls finally found what they were looking for. A beautiful forest that was filled with luscious resources. The king looked at the sight and announced to his citizens "Here! This is where we will rebuild our civilization! It has everything we need. Fresh air, clean water, and...SWEET ACOUSTICS!" The prince took out his cowbell and began banging it as a catchy rhythm began to play.

~20 years later~

The prince had just finished reading this very story to some troll children. "Twenty years ago today, the king made us safe and now every troll is free to live in perfect harmonyyyyy..." The kids joined in on the sweet sounding key. "That's why we hug every hour!" One of the kids cheered. "Yup!"

"I wish it was every half hour." One of the other kids replied. "So do I, but that wouldn't leave much time for singing and dancing would it?" Suddenly, a question of curiosity entered this innocent child's mind as they shyly raised their hand. "Prince Smg4? Do the bergens still want to eat us?"

"You bet!" They all gasped. Dang. Very subtle to drop that statement on a bunch of young children after reading that terrifying story...

"But just because it's the only way they'll ever be happy."

"Isn't there anything else that will make them happy?"

The young trolls tried to think of solutions that could solve this problem. If it still hadn't been resolved for 20 years then it seemed very unlikely to easily clear that up.

"What about having birthday parties?"

"Or slumber parties!"

"Or staring at your parents while they sleep."

"..."

"I don't want to be food!" Four came over and comforted the frightened little troll. "Don't worry. No troll ever will be." Now back to the more positive side of things as there was a special event going on tonight. "That's why we're celebrating with the biggest party ever! Everybody is going to be there!"

One of the trolls piped with interest about a certain someone. "Everybody...?" The prince was quite confident that  "everybody" would be there and he was going to make sure of it. He took out the cowbell that he had ever since he was a baby and began banging it with excitement. The leaves of the plant that they were in, opened up as Four did what he did best.

"Everybody, move your hair and fell united! Ohhh!"

He danced down the staircase and began sliding down a stem as he used his hair to flip himself into the air.

"Everybody, shake your hair and feel united! Ohhhh!"

He began making dramatic poses that models do as the music pumped him up.

"Yeah!"

Four started to hand out invitations from a basket he was carrying for the big party.

"Everybody's coming to the celebration. Imma hook you up with your invitation. Let your hair swing and party with me. No bad vibes just love, you'll see."

He and Bob began to pull out some wicked dj skills on top of some kind of bug-like creature.

"Do the D-A-N-C-E. One-two-three-four fight! Stick to the B-E-A-T. Get ready to ignite!"

The bug creature exploded into hundreds of butterflies as Four and his friends all danced together with all the trolls and all the other creatures that seemed to live with them in the forest.

"You are such a P-Y-T. Catching all the lights. Just easy as A-B-C. That's how you make it right!"

Meggy pulled out a sick beatbox trap as she danced some fancy footwork.

"It ain't hard out here when you're doing it right. Put a smile on blast. That's the troll life!"

"And I'm here to help you through it! Come on Boopkins, I know you can do it!"

Boopkins was trying to lift a huge dumbbell as Four's confidence made him shoot it high into the sky. Using this as an opportunity, Four took the basket of invitations and dumped it down for all the trolls to collect one. Mario wanted to take a picture of his pet, Mario Junior with the invitation. He framed the picture on the wall and tapped his chin in thought.

"Still needs something..."

Luigi got an idea as he took some glitter and threw it on the picture. Mario stood in silence until he turned back to his brother and stared intensely at him.

"That's gay!"

Four and all of his friends, Mario, Meggy, Luigi, Bob, Boopkins, Tari, and Melony were singing and dancing on a leaf that was sliding down the same stem from earlier.

"Don't stop, don't stop, don't stop the beat! I can't stop, can't stop, can't stop the beat! I won't stop, won't stop, won't stop the beat! Go!"

The trolls all began to hold hands as they danced and sang around the forest.

"Everybody, shake your hair and feel united! Ohhhh!"

Turns out troll hair could do a lot more than we knew because the trolls had made their hair blue and wavy to resemble and ocean while using leaves to make the boat while poor Boopkins was stuck as the sail.

"Sunshine day! Everybody's singing! Sunshine day! Everybody move your hair and feel united! Ohhh!"

The trolls began stacking themselves on top of each other with displays of rainbows, hearts, flowers, and of course...glitter.

"Yeah!"

They all breathed heavily as that performance was quite a mouthful. However, not everyone thought it was terrific...

Case in point, one troll was slowly clapping with an disapproving expression on his face. It was Smg3, the grumpiest troll in all of the village. He had quite the faded tone of skin and hair, a prickly beard, and of course, the sourest expression out of all the trolls. Unlike the others, the thought of singing and dancing made him disgusted and he hated all the trolls...especially the prince.

"Unbelievable guys. Really, really great. Good job. I COULD HEAR YOU FROM A MILE AWAY!"

"Good. I was worried we weren't projecting enough."

"Four. If I can hear you...so can the bergens."

The others all rolled their eyes and groaned in annoyance. Three was always complaining about the bergens and how they were going to come back to eat them all. It really made you wonder why he was the only one who was so concerned about this.

"Oh boy."

"Here we go again...🙄"

"Oh Three..."

"You always ruin everything."

"Warning us about the bergens."

Three looked confused. He didn't do it that much. Did he? Turns out he had ruined a birthday party, wedding, and even a funeral with that stupid bergen talk of his.

"Oh come on. We haven't seen a bergen in 20 years. They're not going to find us."

"No. They aren't going to find ME! Because I'll be in my highly camouflaged, heavily fortified, bergen-proof survival lair."

"You mean you aren't coming to the party tonight?"

The others tried to hype up and encourage him to come.

"But it's going to be the biggest..."

"LOUDEST..."

"The craziest party ever!"

Three couldn't believe these idiots. He never showed up to these things for the fear of what risks he was taking if he did. 

"Big? Loud!? Crazy!? YOU'RE JUST GOING TO LEAD THE BERGENS RIGHT TO US!"

Mario was getting sick of this guy's attitude as he leaned over to Four and whispered "Are you sure you want to invite this party pooper to poop all over your party?" Four responded with a much more positive tone, despite these two being total opposites of each other.

"Yes! I think everyone deserves to be happy!"

"I don't do happy."

"Three, I know there is happiness inside you. You just need our help to find it."

He pulled out a creative looking invitation that had a little Three, holding a heart that said "Three you're invited!" The mini version of him sang "Celebrate freedom from the bergens!" Three didn't look impressed. That annoyed expression stayed stuck on his face, even when the card spit out glitter all over his face. Four on the other hand, looked at him with a willing face in hopes he would say yes.

"What do you say?"

Three's expression relaxed as he took the card, but then he threw it on the ground and stomped on it as hard as he could.

"Oh my god." Boopkins replied in shock. Nobody expected that, even though Three always acted like a jerk to them. He wiped the glitter off his face while making it perfectly clear to them (for the millionth time) that he would never attend one of these stupid parties.

"I wouldn't be caught dead at your party, but you will be. Caught and dead."

Suddenly, another troll came down from the sky with a more relaxed tone.

"Whoa whoa. Let's calm down here Three."

Tag6 hopped off a firefly that was carrying her, and embraced the sweet bug. "Thank you for my safe passage here. Goodbye." She waved farewell as the firefly flew off. Now let's clear things up shall we. She turned back to Three and said "Okay, first of all, thanks for sharing your unique perspective of things...again."

Mario and Meggy snickered a little as they exchanged glances with each other.

"But just for now, why don't you try a little positivity okay?"

Three sneered at the sweet, polite troll. He always had a grievance with her as she always seemed way too friendly with the other trolls. Not only that, but Four kind of seemed to like her and that only deepened There's hatred. He always tried to tell himself "Why should I care. It's not like I'm jealous or anything." Despite that, something bugged him about seeing those two get closer together.

"Okay fine. I'm positive that you all are going to get eaten."

A glint sound of chimes began to ring as it turned out that their hug time bracelets were going off. "Hug time!" They all squeezed together to include everyone, including Three. He tried to squirm his way out when Luigi wrapped his arms around him. That was the last straw. He pushed out and said to Four "Someday, when the bergens find us and the survival of every troll is in your hands, I sure hope the answer is singing, dancing, and hugging because that's all you know how to do!"

Mario tried to stand up for his friend as he shot back "That's not true! Smg4 can also make memes!"

Three looked angrily into Four's eyes and said one last thing that really hurt his feelings.

"I can't believe you're going to be king one day."

He then walked off with a bunch of sticks that he had collected for his evil villain lair of protection. Four sighed glumly as Tag6 went over to comfort him.

"Don't listen to him. He's just mean and toxic. Some of us just don't want to be happy."

"...I guess."

"You guessed right. Boop."

Tag6 booped his nose as Four smiled and they all went off to get ready for the party. Little did they know, a fearsome foe would soon make his arrival.

Chapter 2: An Unwanted Visitor

[soulja-boi]

“Trigun”

“love and peace” once said a wise man

episodes: 26

genres: action, adventure, sci-fi, comedy

premiered: spring 1998

status: completed

studio: madhouse

rating (MAL): 8.22

[thisnameisnotspokenfor]

Kingdom of the Stars Masterlist

((Note: This is more of an AU/original works than a rewrite! So MANY and I mean MANY creative liberties were taken here! And it is still updating! I am not sure how many chapters it will have...))

ETA: as of 2025 KOTS is set to become an original work in it's own universe!

((Synopsis: After her father's untimely death, 17-year-old astronomer/apprentice Asha has never wanted anything to do with magic or wishes again. So while trying to get time off for her grandfather's hundredth birthday, Asha unfortunately finds herself in the last place she wanted to be; at the heart of a magical conspiracy that could spell ruin for Rosas. Desperate to take action, Asha unknowingly calls upon a powerful force, which leads to far more trouble and adventure than she could have ever dreamed of.))

((Huge thanks to @wings-of-sapphire for giving me this idea))

The Prologue

Chapter 1: The Regrets

Chapter 2: The Market

Chapter 3: The Meeting

Chapter 4: The Proposition

Chapter 5: The Blackbird

Chapter 6: The Well

Chapter 7: The Star

Chapter 8: The Key

Chapter 9: The Prince

Chapter 10: The Starling

Chapter 11: The Dream

Chapter 12: The Return

Chapter 13: The Worry

Chapter 14: The Plan

Chapter 15: The Antecedent

Chapter 16: The Problem

Chapter 17: The Disaster

Chapter 18: The Solution

Chapter 19: The Reunion

Chapter 20: The Accommodation

Chapter 21: The King

Chapter 22: The Reception

Chapter 23: The Library

Chapter 24: The Clock

Chapter 25: The Spark

Chapter 26: The Scroll Part 1

Chapter 27: The Scroll Part 2

Chapter 28: The Scroll Part 3

Chapter 29: The Tree

Chapter 30: The Date

Chapter 31: The Date pt 2

Chapter 32: The Gathering

Chapter 33: The Favor

Chapter 34: The Game

Chapter 35: The Bakery

Chapter 36: The Breaking Point

Chapter 37: The Asterius pt 1

A03:

Character Design/Visuals: ((Bear with me because these updates will be SLOW))

Asha

I'll release character notes and stuff after

CELESTIAL COURTS/Star Mythos:

Alpha Stars:

The Celestial Courts:

PSA:

Since I’m pretty much making it an original work in its own universe now I am going to introduce the concept of

HARVESTERS

Special humans who have the ability to harness the energy (aether) of the world around them in order to achieve incredible feats! They have different levels of ‘potential’ that allow them to tap into various levels of energy.

Most people are born with some level of potentials! (It’s very rare to see someone who has zero level of it) and the higher levels are often denoted by strange eye colors (yellow, silver, pink, etc) and was also the way the king found his apprentices.

Being a harvester is also genetic too.

TLDR: KOTS is more alchemy/supernatural based and doesn’t really operate on the level/concept of magic.

[torpublishinggroup]

This advertisement is for The Sky on Fire, a daring new fantasy heist adventure from the acclaimed author of the Chorus of Dragons series, Jenn Lyons.

“The love letter you’ve been looking for to all the things you’ve cherished about the fantasy genre.” —R.R. Virdi, author of The First Binding

WHAT’S IT ABOUT

If you ever wished for a book that's a mash-up of Fourth Wing and Six of Crows, behold The Sky on Fire.

Steal from a dragon who already wants you dead? It's not much of a choice, but in order for Anahrod to maintain her survival, it's a risk she has to take. In a world where humans are ruled by merciless dragons, Anahrod joins a sexy dragonrider and a gang of misfits plotting to steal a dragon's hoard. They'll have to rely on each other to pull off this impossible heist or this deadly mission will be their last.

[dailyflicks]

Val Kilmer in The Saint (1997)

[burningexeter]

This is something I'm thinking of doing with a good friend of mine on Twitter, a chad friend as far as I'm concerned, named KKODDI5. I was thinking maybe we could collaborate on some type of I guess "headcanon shared universe" since we both have similar tastes and yet I want to know more of his taste and what has he seen, what he likes and what he loves.

I'm calling it "The Deathwick Universe" and I think I've figured out the reoccurring theme with it being unconventional protagonists of all kinds - a high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with cancer, an outlaw in a large gang whose perspective is changed when he's diagnosed with tuberculosis, a cold and ruthless deceased government assassin coming back to Earth as a Hellspawn, two Roman soldiers who find themselves in the middle of famous conflicts, a shy and often bullied and ignored boy who befriends a girl next door who turns out to be a vampire and so on - having to not only fight against the odds but also facing the most uphill battles and highest and dangerous stakes that affect them personally in so many ways.

Think of it like the finest and bestest food that you'll have, the best of the best food at a top notch restaurant and the one you wait a decent amount for than when it comes, it's more than worth the wait.

[tapperhet-em]

14

Chapter 13

Meeri may have run off from the men at the cabin, but NO ONE escapes Melba...

Lorcan was walking back up the trail to the cabin with Melba when she took off and strained hard against the end of her lead.  Since it was pitch black, with the moon behind clouds, he had her on a lead so they didn't get separated.  Whatever had her upset, she was damn near yanking him off his feet but wasn't barking.  What the fuck was up with his dog?

Then he heard it, light footsteps coming towards him fast.  Meeri!?  That explained Melba not barking, but what the fuck had Meeri running in the dark, alone, and with no light?  More importantly, where the fuck were the other three to let her out there alone?  He couldn’t hear any heavy boots behind her, so she was most definitely ALONE.  It wasn't just the King's soldiers that were a danger, there were wild animals in the woods.  Someone was going to hurt later, severely. 

Listening closely to the sound of her approaching, and using Melba's reactions as a guide, Lorcan zeroed in on how far Meeri was from him, and where in the road she was.  Standing still, he whispered to Melba to be silent and hold position, she sat at his side in obedience.  The wait seemed to stretch on forever but he could hear Meeri getting closer.  Was she barefoot?  Why did it sound like bare feet on the dirt and not the shoes she’d had on earlier?  No!  She certainly wouldn't have left the cabin without shoes.  It still sounded as if she was as she drew closer. What in all the hells had gone on at the cabin?! If the others were still alive, they might wish they weren't when he was done with them.

Finally, she literally ran right into him like he'd planned, so hard in fact that it knocked Lorcan back three steps to get her to a complete stop.  His arms banded around her to keep her from fleeing again, and his head dropped so he was talking right next to her ear.  She hadn't just been running, she'd been at a full sprint.  Not only that but she immediately went to struggling with him for freedom.  What the fuck?

“I don't know who you are running from, or why.  I don't fucking care either, right now.  What I DO care about is your understanding that you are not taking one more goddamn step, in any fucking direction, without me. It is NOT fucking happening, Meeri.  I will put you up over my goddamn shoulder and carry you if I have to.” He didn't yell.  He wasn't harsh.   He was firm.  It was all he could do not to shake her with the adrenaline running through his system.

“Lo!”  Meeri’s arms instantly went around him, and she clung to him like a child to a parent as she sobbed into his chest.  When she had first run into him, he'd felt like a damn tree.  But when his arms had gone around her, she'd been more afraid she'd found one of her uncle's soldiers. Of anyone to find her, at the moment, he was the only one she wouldn't argue with.  Even if she'd caused problems for the others, Lorcan wouldn't hate her.  Would he?

reblog banner - @cafekitsune

[hanayori89]

🪶🪶Lesson 10: Believe in the Boy 🪶🪶

Each ripple of seismic quaking beneath your feet was nowhere near as lethal as the rumbling of insults that were currently cascading from your lips.

Your hand continued to jangle a knob that jutted out and was adorned with a grip of decorated grooves meant to fit your fingers. The more you tinkered with it, the more you felt anger laced with panic regurgitate in your throat. Were you wrong to assume this was the launch lever of this apparatus?

But you knew Groose; you had grown up with him after all. Whatever made sense to most likely be the launch lever was most definitely not the launch lever. When another minute went by without any result, you yelled into the empty chasm of spiraling hills. You stomped around and stuck your head into the machine's barrel, the wind from your own voice slapping you in the face as it echoed back at you. The heavy rock you had stuck into the barrel remained secure, nestled so tight that not even the force of the earth's crust convulsing was moving it.

"GRRR Groose! When I get my hands on you-"

But your screams of aggravation were subdued compared to the howling of the old pinecone.

Ugh. Impa. Link would want me to help her. But how?

Around you, cannons of wind spiraled upward from below, and with them, an idea was shot in your general direction. You slid off your Skyloftian tunic, standing in nothing but a billowy undershirt and your knight pants. You ran toward the precipice of the level you were on and jumped toward the air current, your hands gripping securely around each sleeve of your tunic.

The risk was great, but you couldn't stand idly by as the old hag continued to screech. You weren't a mighty hero, but you were still a knight. And even if Skyloft no longer had need of a knight, who was to say the surface didn't?

Did this evil, the imprisoned, somehow lead you to fall into your own destiny?

You slowly backed up until your back hit a mound of congealed soil, the plateau of the next tier. You took a deep breath and, with a calm mind and knees bent, blasted yourself into a running start and leapt into the closest gust of barreling air. The fury of the gale was something you had underestimated, as the air propelled you upward, but not without slicing up some of your flesh. You bit your bottom lip, relieved to see your tunic puff out, and it began to parasail you away from the current and toward the center of the chasm. As you descended downward, you frantically scanned each tier of spiraling land for any sight of Impa.

But it wasn't Impa you spotted first.

Beneath you, almost as inconspicuous as the soil, a gargantuan entity began to move. 

And you were falling straight toward it.

Your mouth fell faster than your floating body as you looked at the monster that was sprouting through the ground. Layers of grimy scales coated its body, and the light reflecting off of them gave the illusion of movement, as if it were covered in millions of worms. This was nothing compared to the alarming number of teeth protruding from its gums. Its long-fossilized fingernails sprung from the pads of its colossal feet as it kneaded at the mess of decaying dirt encircling its body. From where it broke forth, the stone column that had been in that part of the ground now sat lodged at the top of its skull.

"EEEK! No, no, nooooo!" You began to flail your body, hoping to guide yourself toward another of the powerful and abundant zephyrs scattered about.

But as it goes, Hylia had other plans.

"EEEKKKK NOOO! I'm sorry I laughed at the remlit joke! I won't do it again- ahhh!"

From one of the many coiled layers of land, Impa's voice rang out. "Brainless Sky child! Why didn't you stay put!"

"You ungrateful old pinecone! I was coming to save you!"

"Nonsense! I told you the hero would come!"

Link. He won't come. He has to keep his goddess safe. Is this thing what he was going on about? Is this... the imprisoned?

Before another thought could come to you, your body crashed down on top of its head. The impact of your landing forced your knees to bend and crumple. You began to slide backward off of its slick scales. But not before managing to catch the stone pillar on top of its head, your tunic somehow was tangled around it as you hung from your sleeves.

"EEEEE!"

Like a flea on a remit, it began to shake its head in an attempt to buck you off. As you whirled through the air, the verdancy of the grass and the singed sienna of the dirt began to bleed into a nauseating swirl of puke inducing bile-colored tie- dye.

Your hands began to slip as you felt vertigo take over.

"AHHHH!"

You could hear Impa praying in consistent chants. "Hylia, help her."

But she wasn't going to help you. You were the collateral to lead Link back down to the surface to destroy this beast for Zelda. Beyond that, you were an obstruction to the divine love story between a hero and his goddess.

She had no reason to save you.

But Link, you may not have been Zelda, but at the very least he considered you, his friend.

Even if you hadn't been much of a friend to him these past few years.

Between life and death, there was nothing more left for you than to believe in a boy you once called friend. 

As you felt yourself begin to slip, your vision blurred by the array of temporal colors whisking together, your hands slowly released their grip from the sleeves of your tunic.

The feeling of fabric within your grasp was replaced with the texture of human flesh instead.

"Y/N!"

Link pulled you up, anchoring your body against his with a strong arm around your waist. The possession of dizziness made it hard to focus on his face; the green of his tunic seemed to weep into the vestiges of the grass and dirt that had been whipping around you. When the vertigo began to ease up, you looked up at him, your head buried in his neck as he held you against him. Your eyes caught the glint of a sword. One you had never seen before.

"HYAH!" You could hear the creature beneath you cry out; Link's sword bulging from the stone pillar in its skull.

"Hold onto me. Don't let me go." His voice was a comforting sedative to the anxiety of looming death that had just controlled you.

You obeyed without a single retort. You held onto his waist as you both fluttered down to the ground.

You landed on your feet first, falling over, only to be scooped up by Link's arms.

"This isn't over. Stay here." And just like that, the tranquility in his voice was replaced by a burning husk of rage.

You watched as he ran away toward an air current, allowing it to shoot him upward back on top of the imprisoned's head to finish the job he started.

The job he would always have to finish for as long as he existed. 

Your fingernails dug into the soil your sore body rested on, as your head weakly hung. But your eyes couldn't help but remain upward, following Link and his fancy footwork. Every grunt, every bead of sweat, and every swing of that blade was that of a hero. He was no longer the Link you knew. In fact, you realized now that you never knew him well at all.

The Link you had thought you had known, the feeble little dork of a boy who struggled in Eagus's dojo, was schooling the ultimate of evils right before your very eyes.

And for some reason it made your heart rush. 

But the next part—the next part—is what made you wonder if, in fact, you were, if not dead, dying and your brain was being deprived of oxygen. Certainly, it had to explain the high level of emotion you were feeling toward Link in that moment.

Because around him, swishes of lavendar and navy. You scrunched your eyes closed, hoping it was just another dizzy spell.

But then you heard a voice beckoning him.

"MASTER!"

Before you knew it, Link grabbed you and pulled you into his chest as the creature began to writhe in agony. You saw another whimsical blur of the same colors that surrounded him like a spectral aura. Droplets of Link's sweat streamed down his face and pelted your own. You could feel his chest rise and fall, each breath a satisfactory heave of his deft skill.

"Y/N... close your eyes. Don't look at it. I don't want you to see something so evil." Link's voice came out in labored whispers. His fingers trailed circles on the small of your back as he held on to you, as if you had just witnessed a nightmare and he wanted to put you back to sleep. 

Then a soft, seeping tone of remorse hit your ear. "I want to preserve your innocence from this for as long as I can."

Link...?

You kept your eyes shut, but even beneath the umbrage of closed lids, it wasn't enough to block out the forcefield of evil. Ink drops of violets and reds—specks of black darker than your own closed eyes—rotated around, threatening to swallow your very soul. The wind wailed, as if it were crying in anguish that it was being repelled and embedded beneath the tomb of soil with this creature.

Then you saw flashes of light. Through squinted eyes, you observed a circular crest carved into the ground begin to flicker. The seal instantly ushered in the unfamiliar, robotic voice from earlier to speak again. 

"Master... you must use your skyward seal."

Link released you from his stronghold and walked over toward the center of the seal, where the stone column now stood back in its rightful place in the ground. He raised his sword, and a procession of light flitted down the shaft. Link's soaked, dark blonde locks swayed in tandem with the rhythm of malevolence being retracted back from where it came.

Then you saw an orb jump forth from his blade. An ethereal twinkle of a girl without a face, levitated by his side. Despite not having a face, you could feel her; she was watching you. And just as quickly as she appeared, whispers of the same amalgamation of blue and purple condensed back into Link's sword.

From the form of Link's strong back, you saw his head slowly turn to meet your frightened gaze.

"L-L-Link, there's a g-g-ghost in your sword..." 

The sound of his exhale told you he knew he owed you an explanation. It also told you he knew whatever he was about to disclose was only going to deepen the hero plot to a ridiculous and incredulous length.

"Y/N... what you just saw was the imprisoned. And this... is Fi... she is the spirit of my sword." 

He turned back to the task at hand, striking his sword downward. Not bothering to elaborate any further.

As if all heroes had phantom women living in their swords. 

Edited: 8/18/24