#aerial snippet

[willamaybeck]

pjo/hoo @/amusement park headcanons

idk i thought of this forever ago and it's been sitting in my notes forever, so here

piper throws up on a rollercoaster

percy cannot, for the LIFE of him, win annabeth a prize.

"let me show you how it's done, seaweed brain." she calculates how to throw and wins him a tiny stuffed trident.

rachel has to quickly pull grover away from his feast in the trash cans before someone sees

leo & calypso fix a broken-down ride

jason tries to convince thalia to do the bungee jump dive w him--she offers up piper instead but ends up doing it anyway

(she may or may not nearly strike percy w a lighting bolt)

hazel helps a little girl find her lost earrings and frank is basically in love

everyone realizes they "lost" percy & annabeth at the water park ;)

jason was sent to find them and boy--HE DEFINITELY FOUND THEM

frank accidently gives archery lessons

jokes about grover becoming the amusement park janitor

hazel kinda wishes nico were there but she knows he wouldn't have had fun

rachel & calypso befriend each other

piper gets a piggyback ride from leo & vice versa, as well

frank & grover are "guests" in a hypnosis performance

thalia finds this too amusing and takes pictures for the hunters to enjoy

percy & annabeth stroll around themselves for a while just being cute <33

jason mentions smth about nico being gay to piper (an aside, just a short snippet):

annabeth was trying to sneak up on piper w her yankees cap but now she stumbles back to percy by the restrooms and almost cries laughing.

"all this time we thought he had a crush on me, but it was you!"

percy is so mortified

calypso slaps percy when she first sees him (they were all kinda nervous about them meeting again, esp annabeth even tho she knew not to worry; if your bf can turn down a roman praetor for you w/o even fully remembering you, then you should be fine) but then she thanks him for leaving. he's not her happy ending, and she isn't his.

honestly, he was most shocked to see her wearing jeans

leo somehow catches a water ride on fire??

jason & percy volunteer to be in a sword fighting demonstration--somehow none of the mortal audience notices they discarded the prop swords they were given

piper & annabeth are slightly worried they're going to kill each other

calypso guarantees them this a "rather healthy" confrontation

"of course, verbal communication is the best way, but guys think differently."

grover has a picture of juniper in his wallet. rachel finds this incredibly sweet

leo jokingly volunteers to give grover's goatee a trim

no one appreciates the pun.

grover declines.

hazel almost uses golden drachmas as payment for her lunch and frank just can't help but laugh at her

jason & piper fly around the park

the aerial tramway is for chumps

piper fangirls very much upon seeing percy & annabeth's seat--midair snuggling and forehead kisses

jason calls down to thalia to be calm

she's gripping the ride so tightly

she wasn't even supposed to be IN the cart bc it's only fit for two people but rachel & grover pulled her into it

leo's super fuckn fascinated when learning to braid calypso's hair

he tries to copy piper's braids, but she has to inform him it's complicated due to her uneven hairstyle

thalia, rachel, grover, percy, & annabeth all eat lunch together and it's so comfortable.

thalia had never fully met rachel but now she's just crying from how rachel blatantly broke up w percy w/o even dating him

[eyra]

I hope you’ll forgive my selfishness, but I am dying to ask: What did Remus think the first time he saw Sirius in Beneath a Big Blue Sky??

today is your lucky day. I've mentioned a few times that I've dabbled in the possibility of one day writing more bits and pieces in the Beneath a Big Blue Sky world. whether or not this will ever all see the light of day I'm not sure, but since you asked, I'll share a little snippet of Remus and Sirius meeting for the first time - from Remus's point of view.

enjoy 🐑🐑 x

“Mr Lupin, is it?”

Christ.

Remus nods slowly, shaking the other boy's hand. "If you like," he mutters. If I must be, he thinks. What a mess. What an absolute pain in the arse. "Two strong lads," Lyall had asked the agency for, and Remus knows because he was in the next room listening, and still smarting over the fact that his old dad wanted to hire help anyway. "We'll be reet," Remus had insisted, shaking out his left arm in proof that his shoulder was mostly healed, which it was. They would've managed: he still had his other arm, and all the ewes looked in good health so far, and bringing in two strangers to help run the season seemed like a fine waste of money to Remus and something they'd not done since he'd turned fifteen and proven that he was good and capable of handling just as much work as Lyall during the lambs, and he'd felt all kinds of embarrassed when Lyall had implied that this year he might need some help. As if he were now a problem to be solved, or somehow less of a man this year than he was last year, and certainly less than he ought to be.

But if they must get help - if Lyall must hire someone for a few months - then at the very least Remus had hoped that the workers who arrived would be up to the job. A couple of veterinary students, or something; someone who knew their way around a sheep, and it hadn't seemed too big an ask. As it is, the two boys standing dumbly in front of him on the station platform look less suited to farm work and more like they should be standing in a shop window somewhere, with their brand new boots and spotless, neatly-pressed cream trousers. Cream trousers, and all.

Remus remembers, one night in the late winter not long after the accident, being laid up in his bed in front of the fuzzy little television Hope had insisted on setting up in his room to keep him occupied during his recovery. It had a remote held together with Sellotape and a funny round aerial which didn't quite pick up the Freeview signal, and he'd been mindlessly flicking through the scant channels when he'd happened upon some reality programme or other; something about a load of toffs titting about London with daft haircuts and those cream trousers, and he wonders now if the two boys standing in front of him have seen the show, or realise how ridiculous they look.

Or at least, one of them looks ridiculous. The lanky one with the glasses and the palm that's far too smooth to have seen any real work in its life. He's still beaming down at Remus with a sort of manic smile, which sets Remus's teeth on edge - man looks insane - and then Remus lets his eyes slip away to the shorter boy standing next to him. And he's something else altogether. He's all cheekbones and soft, shoulder-length hair, the colour of Whitby jet, and it's tucked on the one side back behind his ear and then there's one pretty strand hanging loosely over his brow, and he's watching Remus uncertainly and when they make eye contact - when the noise of the four-by-four across the car park fades away to static, and the train on the platform huffs out a great cloud of smoke that Remus doesn't see - Remus feels his cheeks grow hot under his tan and something funny happens in his throat, and he thinks to himself: "Wow," and then, straightaway: "That’s bloody inconvenient."

They drive back to the farm in silence, mostly, and Remus swallows three times before asking the boy in the back seat for his name. Sirius, as it turns out; the dog star, and Remus suddenly recalls a night a decade ago when they'd been up on the fell and the air had been balmy and close and Lily had been reading out of that funny old book about the constellations. "What's that one?" Remus had muttered, pointing at a cluster of stars somewhere over the top paddock. Lily had yawned, and flicked over a few more pages. "Canis Major," she'd said around another yawn, and then: "That bright one's called Sirius, it says here," and Remus had squinted up at it, and frowned, and thought it was pretty good, as stars go. 

⋆｡°✩ ⋆｡°✩

[wordy-little-witch]

Buggy brainrot-

I spent a few hours today in the EER with mama and had to distract myself Somehow so you get my silly lil snippets of music video stories in my head-

Buggy accidentally seduces a bunch of people and doesn't even NOTICE because of his special brand of oblivious survival rizz

Basically during the 2 year skip where he gets named a Warlord, he does in fact attend a meeting or a few. The first one, he's a mix of audacious loudmouth show boating and critical assessing eyes.

By the second one he's decently comfortable with knowing the names and faces of his vicinity - he's plotting and he's got more than a few cards, knifes, and other items up his sleeves.

At some point, the meeting goes from relatively calm to absolutely hog fucking wild and somehow, someway, someone's belonging winds up damn near launched into the upper rafters of the room. There's a strict No Devil Fruit policy, enforced by a seastone earring, so while the arguments and in-fighting ensue, Buggy just kind of scoffs, walks put, comes back with a pole, jams it into the broken tiled flooring and proceeds to ignore them while he climbs. Pole art isn't too terribly different from his aerials and trapeze, and he's done just about EVERYTHING under the sun at last once, so it's nothing unfamiliar. His gloves are uniquely textured so he can safely handle his Muggy and Buggy Balls, too, so carefully using his momentum and muscles to climb and shift up the pole smoothly is a pretty simple matter.

He gets to the top, hooks his legs and feet properly, and twists his spine to reach out, unaware of the sets of eyes boring into him.

Mihawk is stone faced, but there is a heat to his gaze. Doffy's sunglasses have slipped down his nose a little. Kuma is pointedly Not Looking. Hancock is... frankly pretending to be uninterested but lowkey is staring. Buggy is oblivious, retrieves the hat or sash or earring, whatever it was, and shifts his weight, releases a hold and smoothly drops, stopping just before the floor to daintily rise, sashay over, and plopped the item on the table, fixing his gloves.

It's the silence that has him looking up, arching a brow. "What?"

Then he sees the time.

"Oh. Meeting's over. Bye~"

And baby boy DIPS.

(Nickelback - Midnight Queen)

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Shanks POV post-Rogers-disbanding, pre-Execution, the cabin brats solo on the seas

He's watching Buggy charm the absolute hell out of a guy at a bar in some no name little town. They've been landlocked for nearing a week now, their previous ship shot to hell by a pirate crew hounding their tail after they'd been sighted some three islands back. The ship held together long enough to pull a full miracle put of nowhere, helped along by a storm. Since then, they'd been gathering cash to pay off her repairs to keep moving, unwilling to part with Speed after all she'd done for them so far.

One source of income came from Buggy's silver tongue and sticky fingers.

The blue haired pirate was leaning over the counter now, twirling a loose lock of hair as he giggled, fluttering his lashes. The man he was buttering up was a few years their senior, bejeweled and slicked hair, a flush of intoxication on his cheeks as he warmly regarded the pretty thing at his side. Shanks could relate, at least a little, on the way the man's attention was focused so thoroughly on Buggy.

Pink tinted lips quirked into a smile, head tilting invitingly, to which the man responded as expected. He was under the blue haired pirate's spell already - Shanks checked the time - three minutes in. Not a new record, but close.

He wasn't sure how to feel about it all, honestly. It was not jealousy, not truly, that curdled his stomach. Instead, something bloomed viciously in his abdomen, something akin to possessiveness. Sure, he figured absently, people can find Buggy pretty in his disguise.

But Shanks was the one who saw his entirety.

Shanks saw the tan lines on pale skin; Shanks knew the taste of his freckles and skin; Shanks knew the scars on his left hip and between his shoulder blades; Shanks could map Buggy's face from memory with lips alone, and he damn well knew it.

The world can be played by Buggy, but Shanks would know the game.

And an hour later, outside of that little bar, he would welcome the smaller body leaning unflinchingly into his side, arm around the other's shoulders, heart full and his lover's pockets heavy, and Shanks would look back, would meet wide, dark eyes with a pink smudge on his chin. And Shanks would grin, sharp and unrepentant, turning to guide those same pink lips up to his own.

He's wear his boyfriend's lipstick with pride.

((NEFFEX - Rumors))

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Buggy wears skirts whenever the fancy strikes, and sometimes it works perfectly for parties. He'll be the first to say that people who don't love dancing in skirts have never tried it before. While his fashion tastes aren't always expected, he revealed in the freedom there - and his crew thrived in such environments.

That was why he hadn't thought to make a big deal out of the first skirt day since Cross Guild was established. It simply WAS, in the same way as the weather, the same way as the meal plans, simply just footnotes in it all. He'd gone most of the day without seeing the two newest additions to the island, and frankly had forgotten to be vigilant of them.

It was a good day, a new shipment, a celebration, nothing too extravagant, just a fun night with his people. Really, Buggy hadn't even thought to glance up for yellow or violet eyes.

The crew was boisterous, but that was normal, music playing and laughter ringing. Buggy was sandwiched between Alvida and Marianne, a newer islander from a small island out East. The dialect there was unfamiliar by and large, but Buggy had grown up learning it from a man he considered a father, and Mari had so few who spoke her mother tongue.

Buggy simply had the idea to make tonight Extra fun.

After all, nobody partied like a Roger, and Roger always had the best songs. Bugs wasn't too bad with a fiddle. When asked, Mari beamed, no slouch herself, and offered to take the lead.

So they took to the stage, each swiping an instrument with playful glares, and heels tapped the rhythm as they began, hop-skipping as they bobbed and weaved, clapping joining as people whooped and hollered, making merry and enjoying themselves.

It was midway through that Buggy was caught playfully, fiddle lifted as one of the older mercenaries bowed him out, picking up the tune. He laughed happily, hands fisting his skirts as he twirled and danced, thoroughly enjoying himself-

And then he caught sight of Mihawk. He was watching, an odd note in his eyes, and Buggy could just barely see the way the other seemed to lean into the music. Fueled by a wild idea, high on the adrenaline and joy, Buggy walked over and offered his hand.

And Mihawk accepted.

He was a great dancer, and Buggy was delighted to be lead in a familiar dance, beaming boldly at the goth man before him. Traditional dances like this were few and far between - it only made them more fun.

That night began a change - first of which culminating into Mihawk fluffing Buggy's skirt with an almost-smile, a quiet statement following. "I should quite like to do this again some time."

Buggy only realizes later what that implied.

((Celtic Woman - Níl Sé'n Lá))

[adracat]

The Possible Significance of Notrette

Notrette Rembran is the most mysterious figure in G Witch, beating out even Prospera. We only know her from second-hand mentions and those are threadbare since it's a topic neither Miorine or Delling are keen to dredge up. She's a vast unknown but we do know one thing for certain.

She 'made' this specific breed of tomatoes. This doesn't mean she was a farmer, Mio clarifies that her mother genetically modified these specific tomatoes to taste better. So a scientist and geneticist. But why is this detail important?

Because in the second cour, we're treated to the reveal Suletta was never Eri. We naturally wonder where Suletta came from and why does she look just like Ericht Samaya, but the obvious answer would mean cloning (or Elan surgery but I doubt it tbh) We know from the Prologue Elnora is a deft pilot and engineer, but for all her talents she isn't a geneticist.

In Episode 14 we're treated to the revelation that Quiet Zero was initially Notrette's project. But how did Prospera know that and was she at one point affiliated with Notrette? This exchange seems to point in that direction. That would give Prospera access to a geneticist, of whom would be interested in her plans for Aerial aiding QZ's end goal. I wager a specific pilot would be needed to make sure Aerial could operate as planned; a pilot with Eri's brain pattern and a familial bond so A(Eri)al doesn't reject them. It would also make the symbolic significance of Suletta and tomatoes quite clever. Remember how Mio explained her mother creating them while the show focuses on Suletta feasting on one? (like a feral raccoon but that's a different problem)

In episode 12 we discover a few details about Notrette's death. Delling's words imply it was a failed operation of some sort and both couldn't escape. So Notrette sent him to live for Mio's sake. Since both her parents were involved with QZ you can safely assume this fatal incident (and maybe Prospera) are linked. Considering the brief snippets we get from Aerial in Cradle Planet, this might be the same incident causing Prospera to seek refuge on Mercury.

Take note, the youngest Suletta is stated to be is the same age as Eri was.

I'll be anticipating the rest of the season to see whether any of this is true!

[shroombell]

sunny and sides binary stars au pt.3 Praxus

bluestreak incoming :3 pt 3 of my aerial sparks apocalyptic cybertron with sunny and sides au called the Binary Stars au <3 (not in plot order) sunny is watchful of their surroundings even as sideswipe dances down the ruined streets of Praxus. A certain Praxian sniper is out of sunny's range tho >:)

pt 1 Vos pt 2 Tarn

bluestreak is an autobot, rescued just after the bombing of Praxus as a bitlet just about to get his adult upgrades (hes slightly older than sunny and sides in this au). currently, he is on a mission to scout out his former home to find any leftover resources or survivors/scavengers, as unlikely as that is, until he comes across a strange set of a yellow and red mech. autobot command advises for him to accompany them when they invite him on their travels... but it seems like sunstreaker and sideswipe have a dislike for both decepticons and autobots so Bluestreak will have to pretend he is a fellow neutral. No secret can be kept forever though.

tiny snippet i wrote before drawing this scene under the cut!

Sideswipe's giggles echoed from building to building, even as most of them were now husks once apart of the bustling street this used to be. Sunstreaker felt a pang of regret they weren't able to see it in its full glory, before the bombing of Praxus, like Sideswipe had so desperately wanted but better late than never.

His red twin was twirling through the abandoned and desolate street like he was performing to an imaginary audience, or maybe the ghosts of the many greyed out frames that still lay beneath all the wreckage. Sunstreaker wanted to protest at the loud noises Sideswipe made without concern of attracting the beasts that could be prowling nearby, but as always, he couldn't bring himself to interrupt his brother's happy mood.

A few scratches on his finish from the inevitable fight was an acceptable sacrifice for Sideswipe's happiness.

[aviatrix-ash]

Little snippet for a future comic, one I've been planning out for a loooong time! >:3

Starscream and Powerglide will have to put aside 4 million years of aerial combative rivalry in a factional war in order to save the life of the Skyfire they both love.

[ore-ion]

i have finished a snippet from Helion and Pacificus' lore :D!

Close-up:

Lore is under the cut;

- This is probably a few [a lot of] centuries after these two got separated from the crash landing and Helion being recently repaired by a small group of scientists, he hasn't been online for long compared to the other bots on earth. Pacificus, being ever so worried about the small crew he had, has definitely checked up on the other bots that are still left on earth (in their defence, they also didn't want to go back to cybertron, mind you, they left before that one time Zeta tried to use the bots in Nyon as fuel to a fire.) Not the best memories, even in peacetime.

- His alt mode at the time he saw Helion again was a Typhoon class submarine.

- For being a former Starship you'd think Pax would atleast have a little bit of grace when landing and appearing to his crew, but no. he broke the Antarctic ice sheet and left a giant hole. Not like anyone minds about that, except for Helion. He is still miffed about that hole.

- Heli definitely doesn't hate him, not really, he can't. these two just bicker a lot that it's just hilariously silly. if something pissed either one of them off, they'll tell it to the other, and now you have 2 pissed off bots.

Design and lore notes:

Pax/ Pacificus' alt is usually either a big submarine nearing and/or similar in size as the Belgorod submarine, and occasionally an Aircraft carrier ship. He's changed alt modes often to keep away from being a target in case his small crew needs him for transport. There's also that one time he had a purple Cruise ship alt mode.

Pacificus ALWAYS chooses an earth aquatic transportation vessel as an alt mode, he does keep his former Starship alt but never the dire need to use it. However, he does have giant flight engines and can take an aerial alt mode anytime.

As a bot considered as a Titan, he's definitely on the smaller size. Earth comparison to his full Cybertronian Starship size would be the ISS, a little bit bigger than the ISS. He's his own ship, but he had smaller spaceships bonded to him as extra engine support and smaller carrier ships. Most of them left to their own directions while Pacificus' crew was en route to earth.

As most cybertronians do, Pax runs on mainly energon (most efficient, long lasting), however, for being a multipurpose transport starship designed to carry bots to far places with the possibility of no available energy sources, he can adjust his engines to run on any carbon, nitrogen and hydrogen based chemicals. Jet fuel and Hydrogen lasts him a while, and as an aquatic vessel, he has a system to turn sea water into Hydrogen!

[side note: as is Helion having built with a cryocooler and 2 Nitrogen engines (thus why he's cold and has Nitrogen reserves) Pacificus has multiple Nitrogen engines much larger than Helion's and mainly used for emergency power. yes, he can run on nitrogen too, hell, he filters it himself from the sea.]

[kachikirby]

NEW SD GUNDAM GAIDEN WORK HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED

So, first is the little intro about this work. It's a new entry banner called SD Gundam Gaiden NEO. (The Knight Gundam series is separated into different banners that each series falls under. The previous one was New Testament SD Gundam Gaiden.)

The motif for this series is the 2022 Gundam series Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury.

The title of this first entry is "The Forbidden Magic" and this first arc is "Shrine Maiden of the Dragon God".

I'll be translating stuff from the snippet on the P-Bandai page. (VPN needed to access it from outside Japan)

STORY

Many years ago, the Benerit Clan wiped out the Dragon Village. However, some villagers, mainly children, were able to flee into the deep forest. It has been said that mysterious magic since ancient times has been hidden there…

In the Benerit Clan, which destroyed the Dragon Village and built a city in the remaining wasteland, a struggle for supremacy was underway among the young chiefs of the three families. The control of that power spread to the surrounding area, and the people of the Dragon Village are once again discovered by the Benerit Clan.

Under orders from the head chief, Delling, the elites of the three families approached the silent forest…

CARD LIST

In numbered order: (1-01, 1-02, 1-03, and so on.)

Knight Gundam Lfrith VS Knight Beguir-Beu

Knight Gundam Lfrith

Knight Gundam Lfrith Jr.

Elder Cardo

Warrior Nadim

Summoner Elnora

Soldier Heingra

Knight Beguir-Beu

Magic Knight Aerial

Mage Suletta

Summoner Prospera

Spirit Spirit Geist

Spirit IceBurn

Sprit Ericht

Shrine Maiden Miorine

Warrior Demi Trainer

Hunter Demi Trainer

Hunter Keinanji

Hunter Chuchu

Blacksmith Nika

Shopkeeper Martin

Waitress Lilique, Aliya

Monster Goblin Kapell-Kuu

Monster Orc Clibarri

Monster Bear Azrawan

Monster Killer Hosler II

Soldier Demi Garrison

Warrior Dilanza

Fencer Heindree

Mage Zowort

Noble Knight Dilanza

Noble Knight Michaelis

Noble Knight Gundam Pharact

Monster Pharact Dragon

Noble Knight Guel

Noble Knight Shaddiq

Noble Knight Elan

Chief Delling

Shaman Nugen, Kal, Nevola, Golneri

Item - Shrine Maiden's Tomato

Revealed Individual Card Translations

Magic Knight Gundam Aerial

"Water, Fire, lend me your strength! Magic Sword Gunbit Rondo!"

Welder of the Magic Sword Escutcheon

Mage Suletta

"If you move forward you gain two, if you run you gain one...I-I'll protect you!"

Dragon Village Mage

Shrine Maiden Miorine

"I made this tomato. Eat this, and you'll definitely win!"

Shrine maiden who worships the dragon

Noble Knight Dilanza

"I'll correct the ignorance of these hicks!"

Unites the Warriors of the Benerit Clan's Jeturk Family

Noble Knight Guel

"I'll get the priestess, I'll get the chief's position, I'll get it all, I'll show you!"

Benerit Clan, Next Head of the Jeturk Family

Noble Knight Gundam Pharact

"I can expose your true form."

Unites the Mages of the Benerit Clan's Peil Family

Noble Knight Elan

"I'd like to hear more about you."

Benerit Clan, Next Head of the Peil Family

Noble Knight Michaelis

"The dragon's shrine maiden is still alive? This is getting interesting."

Unites the Fencers of the Benerit Clan's Grasley Family

Noble Knight Shaddiq

"If you're a survivor of that village, I won't leave you alone."

Benerit Clan, Next Head of the Grasley Family

Additional art

Current Thoughts

I hope these aren't the final card artwork because it looks a bit bland with the default silver background. The ones with gradient look a bit better, but they are nowhere near as the fully rendered backgrounds in New Testament or previous works.

They do not give a gender, but I feel like Aerial is male here and idk how to feel about it. The card list does mention Ericht separately as a spirit, so that kind of alleviates my concerns. I just don't know how to feel about it.

The first chapter is Shrine Maiden of the Dragon God, which likely refers to Mio.

One of the spirits is Spirit Geist, which is one of Roux's main summoned Spirits in Kikoushin Densetsu, which makes me think this is in the Dabat Kingdom, but at the same time, I'm not sure since we've yet to learn where and when in the SD Gundam Gaiden timeline this takes place in.

It would make sense to have a story that takes place in that kingdom's area, since Seikihei Monogatari is the only one whose yet to have a post-Saddrac Knight Saga era work connected to it.

[lurking-latinist]

When I read enough easily-crossed-over stories, such as for instance all of these boat and boat-adjacent books, what inevitably happens is I end up with a nebulous meta crossover setting where they can all hang out outside of their respective canons, because I have spent far too much time in This Time Round.

Also I was thinking about that post I made about how Aubrey and Laurence are not that similar actually, and speculating that if Aubrey had (in an equivalent situation) taken the cure to France he wouldn't have spent the next however many books regretting everything, he'd come around a lot quicker to just owning it.

That's not what happens in this snippet but I did write a snippet from the nebulous meta crossover setting, see below. I am terribly afraid it is wildly out of character but I actually don't think it is.

Edit: Now on the Archive.

****

“So you are Laurence,” observed the big post-captain, accurately; “the lunatic who gave up the Reliant to go flying about in the air. Aubrey, in Surprise.”

Laurence looked at the other man’s extended hand for a moment as if it were a foreign object. He took it and felt his own hand vigorously shaken. “That’s what you object to?” he said, unforgivably blunt, but he had not expected such a greeting, not now, not from anyone in that uniform. Some of the spacefarers had been kind, but he found the nature of their service still more disconcerting than the Aerial Corps had once been.

“Object? Why, you must do as you see fit,” said Aubrey, puzzled, and then his face cleared. “Oh, that. I own Dr Maturin—my particular friend, a physical gentleman—” (he nodded across the room towards a small dark man in a shocking old wig, deep in conversation with one of the starship physicians, who was distinguished by a sky-blue jumper which evidently passed for a uniform) “I own I did not see just how it was, till he explained it to me. I am only sorry to hear the Government should have behaved like such very mere scrubs.”

“So I thought,” said Laurence, quietly. “And yet I fear there are worse names for my own actions.”

“None to be used in this company. Now come,” said Aubrey, sweeping him along to a table, “tell me how you navigate, seeing there is a vertical component….”

****

[NOTES: a. In fact Jack and Stephen had a massive row which he's not describing; he didn't start out this OK with Laurence's treason but I think he and Stephen together would end up there, especially as it wasn't his England that got invaded as a result. b. I know Laurence comes to terms with it in the end but this is set before that. c. Stephen's new friend is Dr McCoy of Enterprise but neither of them know him yet.]

[shardminds]

the gods grow tired

pairing: gwyneth berdara x azriel rating: e (for everything hurts) wc: 8k and some change primary tags: angst, hurt/comfort, major character injury, arguing as a form of foreplay, sex. for more detailed tags, see ao3. read on a03

In the aftermath of battle, Gwyn follows her heart… what's left of it. It leads her to the edge of chaos, where there is one more life to save.

a/n: happy gwynriel week(s) everyone! this fic isn't necessarily in line with any of the prompts (sorry!) but it tore its way out of me just in time to join in with the festivities. thank you to @gwynrielweeksofficial for throwing such an amazing celebration! i can't wait to work through all the fresh gwynriel content!

@damedechance - here's the tag you asked for, bestie. couldn't have done it without you 💕

warnings: there are some heavy topics in this one, boys. this is the seed that plants the PTSD… or like, exacerbates it. it's rough. the only way out is through and BOY are they going through it. please check the full tags list and take care of yourself first ♥

snippet under the cut!

When the last soldier fell and the scarlet rivers fracturing the battlefield slowed to thin veins, then, and only then, Gwyn let herself breathe. Gentle morning sunlight on the horizon lit the clearing for what it was— a massacre. Where once verdant green and lush copses of sycamores spread through flat meadows, there was now only blood, mire and scorched earth. Bodies, face down in viscera, were all the same. Friend or enemy, and all of them still. Silence, in the wake of war’s cacophony, curled tight around her spine — awaiting the ring of steel against steel, the sting of an arrow.

Koschei met them evenly matched and, in the end, equally damned.

Exhaustion dragged at her bones in the aftermath of adrenaline, its iron chains clasped to her boots and leathers. Five days. It had taken five full days for the battle to wage. Rhys had warned of how long it could take. A fortnight, his estimate. Heavy with hope, rations were packed to last the week. 

Hers were lost the first night, along with four males from her cohort who died to protect it, and her, while she clutched at the edges of rest.

Sleep, apparently, was a luxury the Mother did not allow them. She did not attempt it again.

Food, water — all of it became second to survival. Second to the blade in her palm, the stained ribbon at her brow. 

Despite the training, the blood rite, the experience gained along the way… nothing could’ve prepared for the ferocity, the unyielding brutality, of real and true war. 

The bitter taste of victory was the only thing keeping her upright now, from falling to her knees on the sodden ground and screaming. As if tears could somehow cleanse the filth from her hands. 

No, she had to keep going — to keep moving through violence’s cruel remnants, to find her team, her friends, her Valkyries.

Feyre and Rhys attacked from the field's distant edge, infernal power allowing them to mist entire battalions with hands entwined. Nesta had been back-to-back with Cassian the last time she’d seen them, manifesting death and destruction in their wake. Emerie had taken to the skies in one of twelve aerial legions, an obsidian pegasus lifting her above the cloud cover with over a dozen chosen riders heeding her command as gospel, Morrigan among them.  

Gwyn had volunteered to take the flank, a smaller group of their swiftest, most vicious warriors tasked with infiltrating the scores of Koschei’s hoards by surprise. She’d taken the south and Azriel— oh Gods, Azriel — he’d headed north.

When the first explosion hit on the second day, it had been far from her side of the battlefield. Yet, her chest spiked with fear. 

Then, silence. Horrific, terrifying silence. As if the mountains themselves had held their breath to hear it. 

read more here!

[problematicbots]

Winged Sentinel au: Act 2

Warning: to any new readers , This is a sequel of my AU where Sentinel Prime updated himself into a jet so he could teach the Jetfire and Jetstorm how to fly properly during the events of the rise of Safeguard aka after season two of TFA so I would highly recommend reading the full original story here: https://www.wattpad.com/story/381680025?utm_source=android&utm_medium=link&

Once this sequel is done I plan to post the full story on Wattpad too. Also my OCS who were originally fankids play a different role than they usually do in this

Snippet 1: Time Skip

Two years have passed since Sentinel's speech and Cybertron has changed a lot since the introduction of the Aerialbots unit. On the now wide streets of Iacon with now towering buildings there were seekers in the skies helping grounded bots, grounded bots dating seekers, and vice versa. Many see this as a new golden age of Cybertron, with neutral bots now joining the Autobot due to change with dreams of soaring to great highs, while others look on in disgust with vile hopes that this will all be crushed and burned into ashes soon.

Alpha Trion was one of these others who wished to see the downfall of the aerialbots and despised Sentinel’s assisting that Alpha Trion should stay in the garbage chute or at least be thrown in a cell for nearly endangering the twins: Ultra Magnus and the council seemly wanting to get on Sentinel's nerves let the old mech off scout free with Ironhide as his parole officer.

Sentinel couldn't believe the audacity of Ultra Magnus and the council to let an attempted murder still wander on the grounds of the Fortress Maximus with the worst part being that the only one who voted against the parole was Wheeljack.

Sentinel swore to the all spark if he were Mangus he would make sure Jetfire and Jetstorm get the justice they deserve by throwing the old mech into the deepest part of Knon where he belongs.

Speaking of Sentinel Prime: he was inside his quarters sitting in front of a mirror with his servos on a table seemingly preparing for something as he put ornamental orange epaulets on his shoulders and an orange military beret on his helm.

A minute later he picked up an Autobot badge that was the shape of a phoenix on the table that he quickly tucked away in his glove compartment.

On this table, there were many framed photos, one of these framed photos was Jetstorm's “us” drawing, and the rest were regular photos of himself with the twins hanging out in various places, although there were a few that had him with Jazz and Blurr or with the Aerial bots.

Sentinel, for a moment, just stared at the photos with a soft smile across their faceplate before getting up to leave his quarters.

Outside of his quarters, Sentinel encountered Jefire and Jetstorm, who were wearing the same outfit as him, but in white instead of orange. The twins appeared to be arguing about something, but they fell silent as soon as they noticed Sentinel. Jetstorm quickly hid what looked like a drawing in his glove compartment before the Prime could see it.

It’s obvious from their faceplates that the twins have matured over the past two years. They are no longer the small students they once were; now, they have both grown taller than Sentinel himself. They are currently mentoring the Aerial bots alongside Sentinel, with Jetfire serving as the combat instructor and Jetstorm as the defense instructor.

“Are you two ready?” asked Sentinel, putting his arms around Jetfire and Jetstorm’s shoulders affectionately.

In the past, Sentinel would probably never do this towards the twins, especially in the middle of a hallway where others could see him be openly affectionate, but things have changed, and he has changed a lot, whether he realized this or not.

However, there was still one part of him that stayed the same: thinking about Elita One. He was still not over losing her since her memory still haunts his hard drive every day, and he wondered if she was still around today and if she would be proud of him.

“As we ever be” smiled Jetstorm with a deeper voice as he crossed his arms proudly

“Let's get this party started!“ added Jefire, pumping his fists in the air in excitement.

“Hey remember you two the party takes place after the graduation not before “lightly teased Sentinel “Now let's get this show on the road”

The three walked down the hallway towards the training grounds; however, during the walk, Sentinel spotted Alpha Trion in the corner, mopping the floor with Ironhide supervising him.

Sentinel gave the old mech a death glare with Alpha Trion staring back at Prime with the same burning hatred in his optics.

“I am watching you” muttered Sentinel over to Alpha Trion before exiting toward the training grounds with Jetfire and Jetstorm by his side.

The Training Grounds, just like the rest of Cybertron, had changed too; there were now many new training courses, with the most notable ones being one for air combat and the one for defense. At the very edge of the training ground, there was a temporary stage with an aisle of chairs in front of it that was filled with taking Cybertronians that Sentinel recognized including Jazz and Blurr who were sitting up at the front

Sentinel and the twins got on the stage, gesturing for the crowd to lower their voices, which they followed.

“Aerialbots, Elite Guards and others", announced Sentinel Prime over a podium. "Today we are all here today to witness a bot going from a trainee to soaring into the ranks as an intelligence officer, “

Jazz watched Sentinel continue his speech with a spark of pride, but there was an underline of regret: he couldn't believe he, at one point, wanted to get rid of Project Vedette and Project Safeguard when they did so much good for Cybertron. Sure, everything was fine now, but Jazz couldn't help but still feel selfish for his actions, and he still wanted to make up for everything.

While drowning in his regret, Jazz didn't notice that Blurr was looking sick a bit the minute as the blue speeder clutched his chestplate

“ And with that In mind: First Rate come up here and collect your badge “ announced Sentinel

The crowd clapped as First Rate got up from her seat with the loudest cheers coming from a pair of twins named Bebop and Punkrock.

“Punkrock look at her, she's killing it like a superstar” Squealed Bebop barely able to stay still in his seat.

“I- I just hope nothing goes wrong, Bebop,” replied Punkrock in anxiousness, fidgeting his servos together. “She's our friend, and I don't want her big day to be ruined.”

“hey, she got this, and you know it,” comforted Bebop, playfully punching his brother's arm.

“Y-yeah, she got this,” uttered Punkrock nervously, watching First Rate approach the stage

First Rate got on top of the stage and approached Sentinel Prime with a stoic look across her faceplate although there was a clear underline of nervousness as she watched Sentinel pull out the badge from his glove compartment and attach it to her chestplate.

“Welcome to Aerialbots First Rate and remember to soar to great heights” spoked Sentinel saluting First Rate.

“Thank you, sir. I promise I’ll do well,” saluted First Rate.

Soon everyone got up from their seats to salute First Rate however Blurr got up too fast and to everybody's horror the blue speeder began throwing up blood on the ground causing many to scream in terror.

“Blurr! “ shouted Jazz, Sentinel, Jetfire, and Jetstorm at the same time while Blurr with his body twitching all place suddenly fainted

Jazz quickly caught Blurr before his body could hit the ground while Sentinel, Jetfire, and Jetstorm jumped off the stage ordering everyone to clear out of the way for the medics which happened to be Punkrock and Bebop who quickly went to work to stabilize Blurr’s condition while Jazz gently places him in the ground so the medics could properly do their work.

“How is he?” asked Sentinel kneeling next to Blurr with Jefire and Jetstorm as they watched the medics at work

“Online but unconscious and highly unstable “ sighed Punkrock scanning Blurr’s spark with a scanner while Jazz held his still twitching body down and Bebop cleaned off the blood from his mouth

“his inners are collapsing within themselves, he needs to be taken to an infirmary for surgery immediately otherwise he’ll be offline soon “ continued Punkrock picking up Blurr with Bebop

Sentinel's hard drive Immediately flash to Elita One’s horrified face when she fell to her doom: he failed to save one Autobot; he wasn't going to fail to save another one, not this time.

“Then let him out of here; Aerial bots open every door towards the infirmary and clear out the area for any passerby,” ordered Sentinel.

The aerial bots quickly obeyed Sentinel’s commands, opening every door inside Fortress Maximus as Bebop and Punkrock passed by, carrying Blurr. Sentinel and the rest of The Elite Guard followed behind until First Rate reached the infirmary’s doors to open them up for Blurr. Once inside, the twin medics signaled for First Rate to close the doors behind them.

The only thing that Sentinel, Jazz, Jetfire, and Jetstorm could do now was to stand outside of the infirmary anxiously and wait for any results.

“So, what do you think is going on with him“ asked Jazz, leaning against the wall with crossed arms.

“Scrap, if I know, it's probably from him being, you know, brings turn into…a huh cube, “ replied Sentinel, sitting down on the floor and pressing his wings against the wall.

Jazz raised his non-existent eyebrow at Sentinel: it didn't matter how many times the prime told him about the whole cude accident it was still weird to hear each time.

“You know you are saying that every time doesn't make it less weird, “ sadly chuckled Jazz a bit. “I mean, I can't even imagine an Autobot in the shape of a cube.”

Sentinel Prime sighed a bit, sitting down next to Jazz, leaning his helm against the wall, and the Jettwins sat down right beside them.

As time passed by each minute Sentinel’s spark raced as this reminded him of his nightmare of Elita falling to her death and him unable to do anything about it. He tried his best to remain tough however his optics told a different story: one of pure fear.

“Trust me, I know, “ breathed Sentinel heavily. “But that's what happened and who knows if..if he going to survive “

Jazz noticed the fear in Sentinel's optics and put a comforting servo on his shoulder to calm him down while Jetfire and Jetstorm watched while whispering to each other seemingly arguing about their previous conversation.

“We’ll get through this. I promise, SP,” sighed Jazz, wrapping his arm around Sentinel's shoulder.

Sentinel didn't say anything; he just sighed again before resting his helm against Jazz's shoulder which caught Jazz a bit off guard with a tiny blush across his faceplate; however, he let it play out even though he felt like he didn't deserve it.

Jetfire and Jetstorm, on the other hand, were still arguing with each other in whispers so Jazz or Sentinel wouldn't hear them. “You know you eventually have to show him what you made; he’s going to love it,” whispered Jetfire over to Jetstorm.

“You don't know that, and he might not even want to be..well, you know… it's going be embarrassing “ groaned Jetstorm rolling his optics.

“or it could be awesome, just like that last drawing you made him,” encouraged Jetfire.

“Well, that last drawing didn't exactly have me directly call him our sire, “groaned Jetstorm defensively. “Look, I just can't show him this, at least not now.. “

“Well you can show him when you're ready“ replied Jetfire patting his brother's shoulder to encourage and comfort him

“Yeah..when I'm ready, “ sighted Jetstorm, placing his servo gently on his glove compartment.

After what felt like a million cycles had passed despite it only being two hours, Punkrock and Bebop finally exited the infirmary with First Rate moving out of the way to make room for them.

However, the medic twins have downcast looks on their faceplates when they leave the Infirmary, with Punkrock seemingly holding back tears. Sentinel, Jazz, Jetfire, and Jetstorm didn't like the look of this at all as they quickly got up on their feet to check on what exactly was going on.

“He’s online and conscious .. however, there's an unfortunate side effect due to the many surgeries we have to perform on him “ announced Punkrock holding a datapad with shaky servos while Bebop tried to comfort him by giving a shoulder pat

“What is this unfortunate side effect?” asked Sentinel almost hesitantly as his optics widened

Punkrock gulped for a bit seemingly unable to answer for a bit as his servos became more sharky however his brother told him to take his time which immediately calmed him down a bit as he managed to speak again.

“Blurr has lost his speed “ finally coked out Punkrock “and so far we haven't found a way to bring it back “

Sentinel, Jazz Jetfire, and Jetstorm, along with First Rate, all look on in absolute horror at the news: this was the first time in history an Autobot lost their ability without going offline first. This was devastating; Autobot and even Decepticon society were mostly built around certain abilities that a bot was forged with from the moment they first came online as sparkling. How could a bot without an ability live in a universe that was built upon certain abilities?

“C-can we see him? “ asked Jazz with guilt in his spark to what to Blurr.

Sure it wasn't his fault yet Jazz couldn't help but for like that it should have been him in that Infirmary, not Blurr after all he was the one who used to have a somewhat negative opinion of flying Autobots and did nothing at all until the last second Unlike Blurr who was nothing other than helpful towards Sentinel despise the prime’s winged form.

“Of course “ sighed Punkrock ushering the four mechs inside the Infirmary towards one of the urgent care rooms

Once inside the urgent care rooms, they spotted Blurr sitting backside on a bed, kicking his legs, seemingly trying to get himself to run fast; however, his movements were unsettlingly slow as a snail.

“Come on.. come on..work” muttered Blurr to himself with his voice choking in desperation trying to go faster however each result was the same

“Blurr, hey man are you ok ?” muttered Jazz, catching the Blue Speeder’s attention immediately.

Blurr turned around over to the four elite guard members behind him, revealing his angry yet saddened faceplate, which now had an eyepatch across it covering one of his servos, and his lower chest plate was wrapped in elastic bandages.

“I-I can't believe he took this from me; it was one thing faking being my friend. It was one thing crushing me to death when I thought I could trust him, but this is another thing... He took away my identity..” stuttered Blurr, still mostly talking to himself as his voice constantly shifted between a vengeful rage and lullaby of sallow. “How can I even call myself Blurr if I can't even do that one thing that I was named for”

This strikes a core with Sentinel. After all, his name meant protection on Cybertron, and yet he failed to do the one thing that he was named after, which was to protect his allies from danger, especially Elita One.

“ huh Y- you know Blurr I know a certain mech who held a name that doesn't exactly fit him either and sometimes he wonders why he was given this name “ stuttered Sentinel sitting next to Blurr

Sentinel wasn't exactly that good at comforting other mechs at least with words that were always an Elita thing so he immediately thought of what she would say and what she would do along with using his experience with his issues with his own name.

“but then well..he sorta looks around to see his…allies that he.. made and saw that.. huh.. maybe there more to life than you know just the name that you were given “ gurgled Sentinel clearly having idea zero what he doing but is at least he trying.

To Sentinel's complete surprise, his words seemed to hit a core with Blurr as the blue speeder warped his arms the prime in a tearful hug, although the rage was still there.

For a moment, Sentinel was completely out of the loop at what to do, staring up at Jazz for advice with the white mech simply telling him to hug Blurr back, which he followed, although it was a bit uneasy at first since he was being careful not to touch any of the bandages on him.

“I really need to hear that, you know, since honestly, aside from wanting to punch..you know who in the faceplate. I don't really know what else to do now “ sobbed Blurr

Jazz and Sentinel immediately knew that Blurr was talking about Shockwave; neither of them really blamed Blurr for wanting to beat up Shockwave for doing this to him; however, at the same, had just woke up from surgery, and there was no way he had the the the strength to walk.

“Wait you’re seriously not going to confront Shockwave scolded Sentinel pulling away from Blurr almost shocked ‘you just woke up from surgery”

“Yeah, I'm with SP on this one, man; you need to rest, “ added Jazz, crossing his arms.

“Look, guys, I get it, but I don't think I can ever rest without him knowing how much he hurt me since, as much I hate to admit it, there is a part of me that sees him as a friend, “ explained Blurr. “And I want to cut off that part for good, I promise It will be quick just.. please let me talk to him at least for a minute and then I’ll rest”

Sentinel and Jaz started at each both having a feeling that this was going to end poorly since nothing good came from an injured Blurr talking to Shockwave however Jazz wanted to give Blurr a sense of closure.

“huh about this you rest today and talk to..well you who to tomorrow, deal?” gulped Jazz.

Sentinel couldn't believe the words coming out of Jazz's faceplate. There was no way in the all spark that Blurr could be fully healed tomorrow. He may not be a medic but even his optics could tell that it is going to take a while for Blurr to recover.

“Why are you encouraging him” whispered Sentinel almost in a snarl as he got up from the bed and walked over to the white mech

“He’s needed closure, SP, and I don't think he is going to stop until he gets it,” whispered Jazz. “Just look at his optics and tell me if that is a mech that is going to rest without getting what he wants”.

Sentinel looked over at Blurr's optics which were filled with sadness and yet undying determination that was more powerful than a speeding locomotive. Damn it, he hates it when Jazz is right.

“Ugh, I hate it when you're right,” groaned Sentinel, rolling his optics, “But we are only doing this with the medic's permission; I don't want another bleeding Autobot on my servos.”

“Yeah I don't want that either Sp” sighed Jazz “None of us do”

Jazz took a minute to breathe before asking Bebop and Punkrock if Blurr could go out tomorrow at least for a little while since giving Blurr that closure that he needed was the least Jazz felt he could do to make things better even if he could never make himself felt better.

________________________________________

Shockwave sat down in his cell looking down at the amulet that Blurr gave him. Despite everything that had happened, he couldn't bring himself to throw it away, even hiding it when a guard came to check on him. It was strange he let the guards take away all his weapons without any fuse but this one amulet was the thing he chose to defend.

This wasn't typical Decepticon behavior and he knew it since usually, large weapons, collecting information for their cause, and having the largest body count hold vulnerable than anything sentimental at least according to Lord Megatron yet now Shockwave is beginning to question everything that he learned considering he seen how effective the Autobots are when they don't backstab each other constantly and keep their alliances despise that ally logically no longer being useful however this somehow always work in the Autobot favor and want to know why.

“Let me guess, still looking at that amulet that your Autobot boyfriend gave to you,” mocked Starscream in the cell next to him.

Shockwave groaned and rolled his single optic at Starscream’s annoying comment; he couldn't believe he was stuck next to the traitorous Decepticon that never knew how to keep his glossa shut. This was another thing Shockwave began to question: Why did Megatron keep this nuance around despite Starscream clearly having intentions to betray Megatron?

The Lord chose to ignore all the warnings that Shockwave gave him in favor of letting Starscream go with him into Autobot territory and look how that ended: for a while Megatron was presumed dead for years until he somehow managed to contact the rest of the Decepticon confirming that he was alive, sure it was relief but Shockwave was sure if Starscream never came with Megatron this would of never happen in this first place.

“I believe in Autobots culture; this would be called a symbol of what they call .. “friendship”.. It has little to do with romance, but you wouldn't know that condensing your history with your allies, “shot back Shockwave coldly.

Starscream laughed mocky at Shockwave’s words, for all this talk of “friendship” is making him sound like an Autobot, not the cold calculating Decepticoncon that he once knew.

“Friendship, wow, you really have gone soft on us; we both know there is no worth in sentimentality,” chuckled Starscream mocky. “It illogical”

Usually, Shockwave’s logical mind would agree with Starscream on this despite his negative opinion of him. However, he saw firsthand from the Autobot how effective sentimental relationships are, and perhaps there was some logic behind it that he was going to try to figure out.

“Then How come the Autobots keep winning every time against us even before Omega supreme? Questioned Shockwave. “How come they are way more effective despite all having different mindsets?”

Starscream tried to answer Shockwave’s question but he was cut off immediately by the one optic con ramblings.

“They have something that we don't..they call it a “community “ it is what I can only describe as a machine that has different gears that can work perfectly by itself yet choose to benefit the another without almost no gain and this causes the machine to somehow get stronger in the progress “ sighed Shockwave trying to explain the concept of friendship In a logically way. “Perhaps if we used this ourselves, we could get stronger too. “

Starscream once again laughed at Shockwave's faceplate not believing that the most logical Decepticon was suggesting that they used “friendship” to win.

“Ha, you really are an Autobot, aren't you? You might have taken off the Decepticon logo while you were at it, “ laughed Starscream louder.

How dare Starscream say that to him? Sure, Shockwave was questioning a few things, but that didn't mean he wasn't a Decepticon less than everyone else.

“I’m not an Autobot; I'm just suggesting we use different tactics to win,” growled Shockwave.

“Then why do you choose to keep that amulet?” pointed out Starscream. ”What is the logic behind that?”.

This stunned Shockwave into silence as try to apply logic to his decision to keep the amulet; however, he was unable to come up with an answer, and for the first time, he genuinely didn't know the logic behind his choice.

The silence from Shockwave gave Starscream a wide smirk across his faceplate knowing that he won this argument.

Suddenly, without any warning and to Shockwave's horror, Blurr entered the prison room, exiting the elevator with the rest of the elite guard by his side, excluding Ultra Magnus.

Blurr approaches Shockwave's cell slowly making the Decepticon spark beat quickly since the last thing he wanted right now was to see Blurr’s faceplate.

“Long- I mean Shockwave.. you used me to get the information you want, make think that we were friends, and destroy my speed, “ spoked Blurr bitterly, “so I have one thing left to say to you”.

The room filled into complete silence as everyone waited for what Blurr was going to say next.

“I know you were a spy but..did our friendship at one point ever matter to you?

“ questioned Blurr “I need to know”

Shockwave didn't know how to answer that question because, at first, he did use Blurr for information However, the time spent together did make him feel some kind of connection that may be the reason why he chose to keep the amulet. Shockwave didn't know what to do, so he stayed silent, hiding the amulet from Blurr's sight, knowing that he would prove Starscream right if he gave it the blue speeder, and he didn't want to give Starscream that satisfaction.

“I guess that answers it doesn't it, our friendship meant nothing to you” hissed Blurr with a clearly broken spark “Come on guys let's get out of here “

Those words stabbed right through Shockwave's spark, as much as he hated to admit it, as he watched Blurr leave the room with the rest of the elite guard.

“Blurr, wait,” yelped Shockwave, reaching out for the blue speeder; however, it was far too late: the doors to the elevator's door closed behind Blurr, and the elevator ascended upwards, leaving Shockwave alone with Starscream once again.

“I guess you two are done now” mocked Starscream, completely enjoying this whole situation.

“I supposed we are,” replied Shockwave in defeat, covering his single optics with both servos, trying his best to hold back from showing any weaknesses, especially in front of Starscream, yet a tiny tear dropped from his faceplate.

______________________________________

Jazz, Sentinel, Blurr, Jetfire, and Jetstorm stand in the ascending elevator silently. None of them don't know what to say after the whole confrontation with Shockwave; however, Jazz knew at that moment that he needed to check on the Blurr speeder.

“Hey Blurr, are you ok, man? “ asked Jazz, placing a servo on Blurr's shoulder.

“Yeah it's just that you know it isn't easy cutting off friendships even if they are you know fake” sighed Blurr “but I’m glad that I did, I finally got that weight off my shoulders”

This talk about cutting off certain relationships made Sentinel wonder about his current situation with Optimus as he watched Blurr and Jazz continue to talk to each other.

Sure Optimus got on his nerves, constantly got in the way and he wasn't still over what happened to Elita One and yet he can't really imagine completely cutting the other prime out of his life as strange as that may sound but Ultra Magnus telling him that he should have been sent to earth instead of Optimus and his short experience as a maintenance bot make him think about some things over these past two years even if he is still unsure.

Before Sentinel could think about Optimus anymore the doors to the elevators open revealing Cliffjumper on the other side holding a datapad

“Sentinel and Jazz, Ultra Magnus would like to speech both of you: it's about the Wasp situation “spoke up Cliffjumper.

Sentinel and Jazz turn their helm to each other, knowing that they are about to be sent to earth soon: some things can never really change, can they?

[priceofvanilla]

WIP Wednesday!

I'm trying to get back into the habit of writing and not stalling out halfway through.

This snippet is from my rebels x high republic time travel, current name Feel Hope Traveling Backwards:

The comms blinked to an incoming message. Hera answered on instinct, and the blue image of a woman with her hair tied back and basic layered robes appeared. "Greetings," She paused as she looked past the projection, most likely reading the ship's ID name, "Ghost crew. I am Jedi Master Avar Kriss on the Third Horizon." Behind Hera, Kanan inhaled sharply as the woman kept going, "We thank you for answering our call to action to assist the evacuation. Our scans show four sentients aboard your ship, as well as a weapon system. Are they all able enough to use your weapon system?"

"Yes, they are," Hera confirmed as she nodded to Zeb and Rex. They both broke off to man the laser cannons.

"Good. We are in need of more aerial support to divert these anomalies before they reach Hetzal." Avar typed into a datapad, and a corresponding ping came to the Ghost's map system. "You will be working under Jedi Knight Te'Ami's directions if you could head to these coordinates."

"Affirmative," Hera said, before hanging up the comms. The ship was eerily silent as Hera started to fly to the indicated coordinates. Most likely taking in the fact that there were jedi blatantly using their title over unsecured comm lines.

"I don't remember any jedi from the clone wars by those names," Rex called out over the internal comms.

"She said her name was Avar Kriss?" Kanan asked as he moved to the copilot seat. Even blinded as he was, the muscle memory of flying next to Hera remained.

"Yes," Hera said.

"She is the source of the Song I've felt. You guys trust me, right?" Kanan stressed the words out.

"Kanan?" Hera questioned.

Kanan took a deep centering breath, "I think we went back in time. Avar Kriss was a Jedi Master from over two hundred years ago," Kanan said, sounding very much like he himself didn't want to believe it, "And the Force. It's the the most balanced I've ever felt it. It-It almost feels-correct in a way."

"WHAT!!" Zeb yelled. He didn't use the internal systems, but the volume of his disbelief rang across the ship well enough.

"Regardless," Hera cut everyone off, "There are people in front of us that need our help. We can discuss this all later once everyone is safe."

I have 1.8k written so far! And a general overview as to the direction. Just gotta finish reading the High Republic books haha

[nightimedreamersworld]

Six Sentence Sunday

Thanks for the tags today, lovelies @you-remind-me-of-the-babe and @artsyunderstudy ❤️ love seeing your work as always!

I'm really behind on my NaNo goal, but it's okay because at least I'm writing consistently every day. And CORB is upon us! I've still got about two weeks before my posting date, but I'm excited to see what everyone has come up with!

Onto the snippets:

#Wip 1:

Suddenly, I’m aware of a pair of hands on my face, cool and soft in their touch. I’m aware of Baz’s eyes, grey and wide open—wide open, but in the right way; blinking, full of confusion and barely disguised contempt.

“Breathe, you menace,” he all but orders. I do. I try, at least. “Crowley, Snow, you’ll blow up the whole fucking tower.”

That doesn’t help. I grip his arms and squeeze. He pulls me further into him until his arms are around me and we’re chest to chest. I grunt—a sound that’s almost animalistic—and Baz shudders.

I let myself sink into him, feel the rhythm of his breathing, his chest rising against mine. I try to match it, as if I can pull his breath from his lungs and into mine.

I turn my head into his neck and bury my face there. The curtain of his hair covers my eyes, cedar and bergamot fill my nostrils, until there’s no space for the smoke. Merlin, this is so much better than sniffing towels and shampoo bottles. Straight from the source.

And from wip#2:

Right now, we’re going through the most common poses and moves performed on the straps—we still don’t have a theme for the act, so we can’t start working with Ebb or Rhys just yet, but Baz has been walking me through the basics of aerial.  “Eagle. Gazelle. Secretary,” he’d said, demonstrating each one for me. I’d just snorted and said: “Those sound like sex positions.”  He glared at me. That seems to be the start and end point of all our conversations.  (Although I do admit it was a stupid thing to say. I really didn’t need to make any correlation between Baz and sex, especially when we’re training together in so little clothing.)

Tagging! @bookish-bogwitch @cutestkilla @whatevertheweather @larkral @hushed-chorus @rimeswithpurple @captain-aralias @ileadacharmedlife @prettygoododds @alleycat0306 @iamamythologicalcreature @aristocratic-otter @alexalexinii @j-nipper-95 @forabeatofadrum @blackberrysummerblog @confused-bi-queer and anyone who'd like to join!

[philcoulsonismyhero]

Anything from the Temeraire or Torchwood sections of the RoL Crossovers?

So the concept behind the Temeraire crossover that I've been playing around with is still a bit loose, but the general idea is that some practitioners serve in the aerial corps because dragons And magic is a very fun concept, although I've yet to decide if Nightingale is the last active wizard or not. (Tbh he probably is, I just haven't figured out what happened to the rest of them yet.) And, as this snippet would suggest, Molly is a dragon:

Just as Temeraire was about to seize the cow of his choice, a small black and white dragon appeared out of nowhere and stole it out from underneath him in a gliding swoop. She sailed off down the valley with her ill-gotten prize, moving as quickly and as silently as she had arrived.  “Oh!” exclaimed Temeraire, outraged. “Oh! Laurence, that dragon stole my cow!” He was bristling, backwinging as if he was about to chase after her. Laurence tried to reassure him.  “There are plenty of other cows, my dear,” he called.  “Yes, but that one was mine.” Despite Laurence's best efforts, he pursued the smaller dragon down the valley. Perhaps knowing she would be outmatched on speed, the little black and white creature tried manoeuvring and looped back to fly over the heads of the onlookers and land in the courtyard. She dropped her now-dead prize on the ground and stood over it, hissing viciously in Temeraire’s direction and lashing out occasionally with an unusually long and barbed tongue.  “There is no reason for you to be hissing at me,” said Temeraire, indignantly, as he came in to land in the courtyard also. “You are the one who is stealing.” The small dragon kept hissing, shifting position to better guard the carcass, clearly determined not to give it up.  “It’s that damned feral again,” exclaimed Barclay. “Someone send for Nightingale, he's the only one who can talk any sense into her.”

And, since I also enjoy the Torchwood stuff, here's a bit with Nightingale and Jack after the episode 'Captain Jack Harkness' that's also my best attempt at imitating the narration style in the short story 'Miroslav's Fabulous Hand':

“You should have seen it, Thomas,” says Jack. “It was beautiful.” It is 2007, and I am sitting in the atrium of the Folly, in one of the overstuffed green leather armchairs. Across from me, also in an armchair, sits a handsome, square-jawed man with spiky brown hair and clear blue eyes. He wears a light blue dress shirt, grey braces and pleated dark grey trousers in a 1940s style. The Second World War RAF great coat that he arrived in is currently hanging on the coat rack by the door, hung there by Molly. His name, or at least the one that he chooses to go by, is Captain Jack Harkness, and he looks to be in his 40s. Like me, he is much older than that. “The 1940s, dancing and singing and living,  and we stepped right into it,” Jack continues. “A dance hall full of soldiers, shining out right in the middle of the Cardiff Blitz.” His gaze is far away, lost in the memory. “It must have been quite something,” I say.  “It was,” he says. “They were.” A long moment’s pause, and then he sighs. “He was.” “Someone you met?” I ask, gently. I know the grief that I can see behind his eyes. Jack nods. “It was him, Thomas. The original Captain Jack Harkness.” I feel my eyebrows rise involuntarily. “The man whose identity you -” I can’t think of a more tactful word before Jack completes the sentence for me. “That I stole, yeah. Way back when I first visited 1941. The man whose name I’ve been using for a hundred and [number] years. Of all the dance halls in all of history, I walk into his.”

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "The Antilles Extraction"

WEDGE WEDGE WEDGE WEDGE!

Hey, they had the budget to give at least one of these Rebel commanders a face!

This opening scene with the unfortunate redshirts serves two major purposes:

Establishes that the Rebellion needs pilots, and not just pilots but good pilots. (Recall the hilarity that in Legends canon they tested Wedge repeatedly for Force Sensitivity because they refused to believe he was just that good, lol.)

And it sets a baseline of the cruelty we can expect from the Empire. They wipe out this whole flotilla, even though the transport surrendered and is unarmed. Call Forward to Saw's Modus Operandi perhaps? At the very least hinting at the kind of blind dogmatic fanaticism the Empire encourages in its ranks.

Important to note: When the tips of a TIE are painted like that... that's an ace. That is someone you do not want to mess with in aerial combat.

Once again, the A-wings get a really raw deal in this show.

Hngh, Ezra's hopeful expression when Sato mentions "Fulcrum", he was so ready to believe that Ahsoka had somehow survived. *cries*

I think everyone in fandom and their dog guessed that the new Fulcrum was Kallus, lol. Once again, really should have gotten to see some of that arc onscreen. Didn't have to be much, just a scene or two here and there showing him researching into the Geonosian massacre or something and then attempting to get in touch with the Rebellion.

Ezra's objections to Sabine going in undercover play a little bit back into his overactive Hero Complex, that the holocron took advantage of to tempt him. Even though he's sworn off the Dark Side at this point, the underlying causes for why he was flirting with it in the first place--to prevent anything else bad from happening to the people he cares about--are still in effect. So having to wait in the wings and surrender control of an uncertain situation that could prove dangerous to his family is still going to be a source of distress for him.

Unfortunately, as Hera points out, Ezra's face has acquired lots more notoriety (at least in Imperial school circles), so Sabine's the one who's gotta do it this time. And she does not sound too eager about it lol.

This show is so good at lovely environments.

Sabine is the tiniest one there lol.

Kanan putting a supportive hand on Ezra's shoulder 'cause he knows Ezra's worrying. <333

"I'm just not a fan of these solo missions." "Unless it's you." That is kind of how his Hero Complex works, he doesn't want anyone else putting themselves in harm's way, would rather take on the dangers himself so that nothing bad happens to anyone else.

("Tari did the fandom have uncharitable interpretations of this moment too?" Ohhhhh yes you betcha. Fandom, please let the boys care about and worry for their women without turning it into some kind of chauvinism PLEASE.)

Oh wow, that was a snippet of Luke's theme transposed to minor key, that was a brilliant musical move.

HI WEDGE!

Officer Prissypants immediately shutting down any attempt for the cadets to maintain their individual personhood, insisting on callsigns only. See fandom, this what actual cult-like indoctrination looks like.

(Probably one of the reasons Wedge was bristling under their control, he's got too big a force of personality to keep under wraps.)

So another reason why I think the hints of Force Sensitive!Sabine in the Ahsoka trailers have to be a big red herring or else a giant-ass dumb retcon? Recall if you will the Empire has methods of testing for Force Sensitivity, if anything about Sabine's skills as a pilot here had pinged them as a little too good they would have flagged her and called for an Inquisitor to come investigate. (Even given that we lost three at Malachor.)

Or you know... just shot her.

Oh look, basically the same in-field situation they just showed us in the opening! Designed as a test of pilot loyalty: Unquestioningly follow these orders to blow up this ship or you're a filthy traitor to the Emperor.

We can see now a glimpse of how the Empire suppresses all individual thinking, personality, creativity, and humanity in its members, turns them into mindless drones to be pointed as weapons towards the Empire's enemy. Also that the Empire nominally has standards that purport to offer a sense of fair play and moral rule, but that it will immediately ignore its own rules when it suits them, again, in order to go after and obliterate its enemies.

Rebels said watch out for anyone who tells you not to ask questions or express doubts or concerns and who operates on Rules For Thee.

Love that they put the Ghost in the simulation lol.

You gotta know Sabine is chafing under this reprimand from Vult Skerris (the ace in our opener), this is her cadet days all over again, being told to sit down and shut up like a good girl and not worry her pretty little head off.

Wedge already admiring Sabine for her guts and dropping narrative hints that he's one of the defectors. We knew this already, of course, because it's Wedge, but still.

HI HI PRYCE! HI KALLUS. :D

Kallus must be so frustrated that ISB sent him personally to root out the sympathizers they learned about lol.

(Unless he volunteered for it himself, to try and cover their escape and help them if he could?)

Lol the stink eye he gives Pryce.

Sabine lucks out and stumbles across the very self-same sympathizers conversing in the hallway and of course no one is surprised to see Wedge.

Really can't praise the environment and lighting work on this show enough.

Sabine carefully feels Wedge out and confirms he's a defector and reveals herself.

Welcome to the Rebellion, hope you're good at Indy Ploys lolol.

Ezra's agitated pacing as he worries about Sabine. <3

And Kanan speaking directly to the insecurities and anxieties and fears that drove Ezra to consult the Sith holocron.

(Once again the parallels to Anakin "I need to be powerful enough to stop people from dying" Skywalker are great. The heart of Jedi philosophy is realizing you are not in control, and letting go of your fear of loss. Per Lucas, it doesn't mean you don't fight to preserve life if you can, but that if it is their time, you accept it. You don't go down into Hades to get them back, you don't break the laws of the universe to spare yourself that pain. You love them, and let them pass away. You let go.)

Ezra's immediate, "Of course I trust her." awwwwww.

Ahhh Kallus went along to be all, "We have investigated ourselves thoroughly and have found we have done nothing wrong." re. the defectors.

Hi Hobbie! Hi redshirt that absolutely bites it because we don't know him from the OT!

Still loving how Sabine is tinier than everyone there.

"These Rebels you say are waiting for us, do you trust them?" "With my life." UNQUESTIONING FAITH IN EZRA TO SWOOP IN AND SAVE HER AWWWW.

Yeah yeah Kanan is there too but Ezra's the one in the command seat LET ME HAVE THIS IT'S CUTE.

"Come on Ezra... where are you?" See, Sabine specifies him too.

The Rebel Alliance fanfare as the CR90 jumps in, yay!

"Sabine? Hope we're not too late." "Right on time." Sue me, I love cute banter.

And I hear the "Shenanigans" cue in heroic horns there.

Pryce reveals herself to be Actually Pretty Clever, having rigged the TIEs with kill switches beforehand.

HA HA HA HA NOT THE LAST TIME SABINE WOULD PLEAD WITH EZRA TO ESCAPE A PERILOUS SITUATION. *weeps in finale feelings*

And he still hates leaving people behind. But Kanan's right, they have to apply some Jedi non-attachment in this case or risk being unable to help her later. On account of, you know, being dead themselves.

:(

Pryce waltzes in being fabulously nasty and effortlessly reveals Sabine. Kinda wonder if the Imps just had this interrogation table on hand or if Pryce brought it with her.

Ooof Sabine's comment to Kallus here about "they found someone to do your job" had to hurt.

Have I mentioned I love Pryce yet? I love her, she's so casually patronizing and cruel and I adore that she's also a pretty effective brawler.

Love this little fight, it's not pretty or civilized at all, all grappling and dirty tricks.

Wedge is not quite skilled enough in the Indy Plot to pull off escapes like Ezra and Sabine yet lololol.

"Tell Garazeb Orrelios we're even." <333333 I love him.

Shades of Poe Dameron in Wedge's "I can fly anything." boast.

We sacrificed speed for durability, a smart decision when up against an ace like Skerris, actually. The bomber takes three direct hits without shattering like a normal TIE would. And Wedge handles it with much more maneuverability that it'd normally be flown.

Ho ho man this hero shot of the CR90 emerging from the clouds. :)

More adorable Sabezra banter. <333

Lol Hobbie not giving Sabine his real name (Derek Klivian btw) so she has to awkwardly give his nickname to Sato.

And congrats, we have successfully completed another Friendship Fetch Quest!

I remember being kind of bored with this episode the first time around (Sabine was kind of the least interesting member of the main cast for me, up until Season Three) but I think I appreciate it a lot more now. The look into the workings of the Imperial propaganda and indoctrination machine is illuminating, Wedge is pretty cute and it's nice to see him before he was a noted Rebel hero, and Ezra's concern over Sabine makes my shipper heart warm.

Amazingly, however, we managed to completely avoid getting any kind of backstory for Sabine out of an episode where she literally goes back to an Imperial Academy. So I guess if I had to nitpick this episode it might have been kind of nice to see her have to struggle a little bit more with being there, besides the one regretful look in the beginning and the bristling at her reprimand in the middle.

But aside from that, this episode was actually a pretty nice one.

[iwanthermidnightz]

Not only did Lana Del Rey start her Coachella headlining set early, but her entry was epic.

On Friday, April 12, at 11:16 p.m. the festival main stage screens showed an aerial view of Del Rey and her entourage rapidly approaching. As she neared, it became clear her crew was not rolling up on the expected golf carts that often shuttle stars around the Indio, Calif. fest, but rather motorcycles. And as a snippet of her never-to-be-officially-released song “Jealous Girl” played – with the lyric “Baby, I’m a gangster too” on loop – Del Rey’s motorcade took a lap through the crowd as she smiled and waved to the thousands of fans gathered for this very moment.

“What’s up, Coachella,” she asked casually, after making her way to center stage and offering a small smile before performing “Without You” into a fusion of Sublime’s “Doin’ Time” with “Summertime Sadness.” “I’m so happy to be here,” she added with another faint, and even briefer, smile. But keep in mind, this is Lana Del Rey – sad girl pop president and eternally committed to the bit, whether she’s headlining Coachella or not.

As such, her demeanor matched the elaborate set design that looked much like a dilapidated version of the Gatsby Mansion long after it had thrown its last party. Making it, of course, the perfect imaginary scene for Del Rey to host a late-night shindig of her own complete with a swing band and roaring 20s-inspired backup dancers.

Early into the set, Del Rey noted that she last played Coachella “exactly 10 years ago to the day” (during which she debuted single “West Coast”), before softly speak-singing, “We’re still doing it.” Yet, it’s not the fact that she is still here a decade in that’s impressive, but more so that she is still entirely and unapologetically herself after so many years – or at least, that the persona of Lana Del Rey is still so intact. In fact, across her nine studio albums, Del Rey has seemingly become even more herself, taking bigger experimental swings and offering longer, more eyebrow-raising track titles along the way.

And tonight, her headlining set seemed to be a quiet celebration of such, during which Del Rey sauntered across the stage performing career-spanning hits that, in a festival setting like Coachella, felt almost like underground gems that she was carefully unearthing. Even the expected “headliner stunts” were delivered with a delicate touch: She performed “Ride” while slowly spinning from within a circular, leaf-covered swing; delivered a gorgeous a cappella rendition of “The Grants” alongside her trio of backup singers; and, most notably of all, sang “Hope Is a Dangerous Thing for a Woman Like Me to Have – but I Have It” via hologram accompanied by collaborator and close friend Jack Antonoff on piano, who co-produced the track. (Earlier in the night, she was joined by Jon Batiste on piano for an extended version of “Candy Necklace.”)

The hologram – though a bit morbid, especially considering the lyric, “Hello, it’s the most famous woman you know on the iPad/Calling from beyond the grave” – perfectly punctuated the spirit of the set. As evidenced by her closing song selection of “Young and Beautiful” (which was prominently used in The Great Gatsby), it became increasingly clear that Del Rey had come to make a statement.

As she sings on “Young and Beautiful: “I’ve seen the world, done it all, had my cake now. I’ve seen the world, lit it up as my stage now.” All the while, the song’s primary question loomed: “Will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful?”

Earlier in the night, Billie Eilish delivered an affirmative answer.

Following online rumors that the superstar would be making a guest appearance during Del Rey’s set (an artist Eilish has long been a fan of), she appeared toward its end atop the arched trellis to duet on “Ocean Eyes” and “Video Games” with Del Rey. After the two were done, they sat a moment longer, seeming genuinely stunned by one another’s presence. “Get the f–k out of my face,” laughed Eilish, speaking to her hero.

“Yep, that’s the voice of your generation, the voice of our generation,” replied Del Rey. “I”m so f—ing grateful she’s standing next to me right now.” To which Eilish replied: “This is the reason for half you b—-es existence, including mine.”

That simple sentence cut to the core of the evening. Sure, the set was spotty at parts – with moments of darkness and silence in between many songs and a handful of issues with mic volume, all of which Del Rey audibly called out. And yes, Del Rey’s soft-spoken tendencies on and off stage may have not made her the most obvious headlining act to kick-off Coachella. But it’s her impact that remains undeniable.

But don’t take my word for it, take it from “the voice of our generation.” The artist who we may not have had it not been for an artist like Lana Del Rey doing what she has and will always do best: being Lana Del Rey.

As she delivered the final note of “Young and Beautiful,” the band picked up steam and her dancers reappeared with champagne bottles in hand as fireworks exploded into the night sky – all the makings of a signature Gatsby blowout. And as Del Rey rode off on motorcycle, just as she came in, the party on stage continued long after she was gone. And that’s the point.

Her undeniable impact is also unforgettable – and exactly what makes Lana Del Rey the icon she is. And one well worth the celebration.