#all the dreams are people being replaced by a shapeshifting monster

[agent-jaselin]

days 21- 30 of Inktober 2024 starring Solas!

The last is based off the painting "Violinist in the Belfry Window" 1858, by Eduard Von Steinle.

I think Solas came out very pretty in that one. Though I also enjoy his turnip headed clone.

[calliecwrites]

Shifter HRT, part 1 – Egg, Cracked

So you want to be a shifter? You’ve read about humanity replacement therapy, or species HRT, but can’t find anything about the shifter version? You’re scared, you’re worried this isn’t the path for you, but part of you wants it more than anything?

You’re not alone. I’ve been there. I’m still there. And I’ve taken the first steps. Tomorrow I have my first appointment, though not with a doctor, and if all goes well, by this time tomorrow, I’ll have taken my first dose.

I’m writing this so you’ll have it easier than I did. Also, I want there to be a record, in case something happens to me. I’m not exactly doing this the traditional way.

* * *

I’ve known what I wanted to be since I knew shifters existed. Everything I heard about them – being fluid, shapeshifting – felt right. I started imagining myself as one. If you’re reading this, you probably know how that feels.

I hid it. Even as a kid, I knew people wouldn’t react well to what went on in my head. You’re not supposed to relate to monsters.

Then things got complicated when I realised I was trans. I told myself that wanting to be a shifter was all about wanting to fix my body, since being able to shapeshift would make that easy. I certainly did want that – but I’d imagined myself as a shifter since long before then. I’d imagined being able to change myself in many other ways, before transition became the most important thing. And after transition, so much was better, but that longing didn’t go away.

This isn’t a contradiction. Fixing one thing, even the most urgent thing, like I did, doesn’t automatically fix everything. But I was in denial. I’d transitioned (once); everything was supposed to be fine, now. I told myself the rest was a fantasy.

Then I heard about species HRT. I read about someone becoming a slime – and that did something to me. Slimes are fluid, and so are shifters. Shifters are slime-adjacent, for sure. Maybe this wasn’t just a fantasy. Maybe it could be real.

I’m not in denial anymore. Egg cracked. Time to transition again.

* * *

Were there signs? Oh yes, there were signs.

Nimona. Mystique. Slime girls. The Changelings. And when a character says no solid could ever understand, feeling it like a punch to the gut. Wanting to understand.

Wanting to fly, wanting to swim. Wondering what it’s like to be huge, or tiny, or a tree, or a rock. Wanting to be everything. Fluidity. Freedom. Flowing and pooling, wanting to be a blob of goo with no form at all.

Learning to phantom-sense extra limbs. Being a shifter in daydreams. Learning to lucid dream so I could learn to shapeshift in there. Still being sad because it could only ever be an approximation.

Sitting by the lake, longing to merge with the water and lose myself for a while. Wishing it wasn’t water, but other shifters, welcoming.

Sometimes want isn’t the word at all, but need.

And there are people who can actually do these things, and I can’t? How is that fair? What sort of world has shifters in it and I’m not one?

Sound familiar?

I read everything I can find about them. Not stories written by humans – those aren’t accurate. Most are just sex, or all about fear and hunger and absorption. Shifters don’t absorb people! – it’s their biggest taboo. I read stories shifters write for themselves – and I can’t get enough. Just don’t look in the comments: you’ve got humans calling them monsters, telling them what they should go do to themselves – and a few brave shifters saying how much the stories mean to them. Sometimes the stories disappear, but they always come back.

‘Fluid as the ocean, wild as the wind, and cannot be contained.’ That’s a thing they say about themselves. That should be me.

I don’t comment, don’t interact – hiding, remember? But the stories mean so much to me, too. They’re a window onto how my life could be. I tried to tell myself this was just a sex thing for a while – more denial. There are plenty other stories I could read, if that was all I wanted. But that isn’t what I imagine when I imagine shifters, or even shifter sex. I imagine being one.

Haters would call me a traitor to my own species. They’d call me sick, mentally ill, monsterfucker, monster. Like I haven’t heard all that before for being trans. I want to tell them I’m nothing like them, that they can keep their precious humanity if this is what it looks like – but I don’t dare. I’m too afraid: what if they’re right? I know what I want to be, I know what I should be, but I look at my body and think: this is what I am, fixed, solid, human. I can’t do anything about it, no matter what I am on the inside, no matter how much I hate it. And this is familiar, too – I felt the same way before my first transition. Trapped as something I hated being. Powerless.

* * *

Except, now, there is something I can do about it.

No doctors prescribe shifter HRT – unlike for other species. The only source is the few shifters who figured out how to make it. They keep it tightly controlled, so they can control who gets it. They want to make sure we meet their standards – that we’re shifter enough. I don’t like that. But other people, who want to make it freely available, haven’t figured out how to make it yet.

I’m not waiting for them, not now that I’ve decided. I couldn’t. I could die – accidents happen, after all. How would I feel, knowing I was dying human, still wondering what it would have been like? Never really having been me? No. I’m not waiting.

So I got in touch, and I spoke to one of them online. She arranged the appointment, and now she’s flying in – and I’m pretty sure that means as a bird, not on a plane. All I have to do is convince her. Tomorrow determines everything. If it goes well, I’ll be starting right away.

I still can’t quite believe it. It feels too good to be true. But it is. It really is. It was the same before – I couldn’t believe anything would change till I took my first dose of estrogen. Sometimes reason isn’t enough, planning isn’t enough, sometimes it takes direct contradiction to break the hold a belief like that can have on me. I’ll never take hormones, meet I am now taking hormones. Suddenly I see I was wrong, and there is hope again.

And tomorrow it’s going to happen again. Hopefully. Finally.

And then I really won’t be human.

Next

I'm doing one of these now too! Inspired by the many other animal HRT stories, especially the two slime HRT series by @sandyca5tle and @scrubbinn. In the beginning it's drawing a lot on my own transition, but will be going very different places.

If you want to read more without waiting for the rest of the series, take a look at my other stories – shifters turn up in lots of them.

Oh and that list of signs? They're all real :)

Tag list (tell me if you want to be added):

@leahnardo-da-veggie @sandyca5tle @scrubbinn

[monstersdownthepath]

Monster Spotlight: Vilderavn

CR 16

Neutral Evil Medium Fey

Bestiary 5, pg. 268

Unlike our last few articles, these horrors are decidedly not just little guys, and are in fact one of the most vicious Fey we've ever seen. Unlike many malevolent Fey which are merely born from mortal misery and anguish, Vilderavn were directly created by an unnamed fey lord for the express purpose of destroying mortal armies and kingdoms, something they excel at to such a degree that they make excellent overarching villains in a campaign featuring a looming war and political intrigue. A Vilderavn, more than any other monster we've seen in several weeks, is not a monster to simply be dropped on the party! These bloody birds thrive at being shadowy puppetmasters behind a conflict, advisors to (what the party believes is) the Big Bad, or even potential backstabbing allies and resources to the party themselves, turning on them at the climax of the adventure!

And the best part is that it's extremely unlikely the party will see it coming. Don't think it's just as easy as spotting an ominous black knight with a raven motif; Vilderavn are accomplished shapeshifters with an extremely wide repertoire of possible forms, able to take on the form of any Small or Medium Humanoid, a black-feathered Peryton, a wolf, or a Dire Wolf. You may find it strange that a raven-themed knight doesn't turn into a raven, and that's because it already is one! The above picture? That's after it's shapeshifted. A Vilderavn in its NATURAL form is a gigantic raven, and this is the form it uses to swoop over battlefields and kingdoms it plans to destroy... and to appear before prospective allies as an omen of fate, offering nobles, soldiers, and mages its skill as an advisor, an oracle, and spellcaster to give them the edge they need in the coming war.

If you can't believe some ostensibly smart people could be so easily tricked into believing a dog-sized bird is here to help them, don't be so judgmental! That might seem suspicious to someone from Earth, but on Golarion the culture surrounding such events is quite different; after all, not only do stories of heroes cursed into the forms of animals and deities appearing to people in the shapes of animals abound, but the Psychopomps as a whole are often associated with carrion birds and possess powers over fate and fortune, both of which Vilderavn can manipulate with their powerful spells and Raven Hexes. Those Hexes have numerous uses both in and out of combat, one of which includes the ability to send Dream spells to up to 6 people a day, letting them sculpt a first impression LONG before they appear physically before their target.

This isn't even getting into their skills, such as +30 to Bluff and +21 to Diplomacy (and further heightened by their Charm Hex), or their spells, such as at-will Suggestion or a 1/day Mass Suggestion to steer opinions, send anyone who could call their bluffs out on errands, and create trust where there was none before, or even a 1/day Modify Memory to completely rewrite a victim's knowledge of events until the fey appears to be some sort of saint or savior. They can also offer a Limited Wish once per month to a mortal being to sweeten any deal they make, making them seem trustworthy even as manipulative malevolence swells within their hearts.

Even if appearing as an animal doesn't work, they can freely change into generic wise sages, charismatic nobles, intelligent generals, or imperfect copies of just about anyone... unless they pull a kill-and-replace. Any creature killed by a critical hit from their bite (including a coup de grace if they're unconscious or helpless) has their soul devoured by the fey, and from there on out, the Vilderavn not only has the ability to perfectly assume their form, but has access to all of their memories, making their imitation literally flawless unless someone can see through their disguise with magic (and it will likely HAVE to be magic, because their Bluff and Disguise shoot up to +40 when imitating a devoured victim). Even then, good luck convincing anyone of what you see, as everyone else is likely under the raven's dewclaw as it steadily kills its way into more and more important positions until, eventually, it can take command of events entirely.

Wow, all this and we haven't even gotten to what it can do in combat! We're going to have to put the rest of this under a cut!

Vilderavn tend to avoid combat right up until the point they can destroy an entire army with a single blow to its leadership, right after it's spend weeks or even months carefully sculpting their confidence by leading them to numerous smaller victories. Until then, they serve as excellent advisors and powerful spellcasters, able to use Dispel Magic at-will to shield themselves and their allies from enemy magic, Detect Thoughts at-will to sniff out dissent and betrayers among the ranks (along with anyone who could view them with suspicion), and Scrying at-will to spy on anyone who lacks protection from such invasive magic. They also have a handful of constant spells which make it almost impossible to sneak anything past them: Deathwatch, True Seeing, and Tongues. No vampires, illusionists, or hidden conversations in foreign languages will corrupt and mislead the leader the raven is trying to corrupt and mislead!

And speaking of corruption, Vilderavn are masters of the corrupt art of curses. Immune to curses themselves, they can freely cast Bestow Curse to personally torment anyone they desire and Geas 1/day to force annoyances on petty quest, and their aforementioned Raven Hexes also have a menagerie of debilitating curses and debuffs among them as well, including the crushing Misfortune, the action-economy-ruining Agony, the absolutely Fighter-punishing Retribution, and the ever-reliable Evil Eye... and capped off by the damning Dire Prophecy, a permanent -4 penalty to not only their AC, but most d20 rolls as well, including saving throws. The Prophecy can also be cashed in at any time by either the Vilderavn (if it's nearby) or the DM (if it's not), imposing a -18 penalty on the victim's AC or on an attack roll, combat maneuver check, skill check, or saving throw.

Where's the -18 come from? Well, they use their Hexes as if they were an 18th level Witch, and all of their Hex effects (as well as the DC, which is 25) are modified by the fey's Charisma rather than its Intelligence. Powerful enough on their own, anyone who's played alongside a high-level Witch knows that Hexes are extremely potent force multipliers when the rest of the party can take advantage of them, and this means if a Vilderavn has allies, it can safely sit back and use its 110ft fly speed to keep it out of trouble as it debilitates the party with its powerful Hexes... and caw-haw-haws at them with Cackle, keeping the punishment of Misfortune, Agony, or Evil Eye rolling round after round as its allies tear into the debuffed party.

UNLIKE a Witch, forcing a Vilderavn into melee doesn't mean you're home free, oh no. They're dangerous enough in their raven form, where Bloodbird tacks a stacking 1d6 bleed damage onto its Claw-Claw-Caw-Caw attacks, the former doing 1d6+11 and the latter 1d8+11. If you think that's a mistake on my part, no, the Vilderavn can indeed make TWO bite attacks with its beak whenever it Full-Attacks thanks to a constant Haste effect on itself. If that beak damage looks low, it really isn't, because it's got a critical range of 15-20, threatening a critical hit 25% of the time instead of 5%. With a single Full-Attack, the unkind knight can deal an average of about 70 damage AND stack up to 4d6 bleed onto a single victim, then fly backwards the next round and strike them with a Hex or two before flying back in to do it all over again.

But of course, it's rare for a Vilderavn to have allies it doesn't plan to slay itself. When it has already used (or cannot use) its spells or Hexes to weaken its foes, or when it simply wishes to display its martial skill and fight on even terms with a human, it takes the shape of the Raven Knight, shedding its natural armor and its terrible beak and claws but gaining +5 Full Plate and a +5 Cruel Keen Falchion. Its AC goes from 34 to 38 in its knight form, and its melee goes from four weak natural attacks to four powerful sword swings (despite its low BAB; remember a permanent Haste gives it an extra attack!) dealing 2d4+21 damage... while also keeping the same 15-20 critical hit range AND the stacking bleed, potentially dealing around 50 damage with one swing instead of needing four attacks to achieve the same result.

So, let's see, that's the offense, how about the defense... High AC, check. High saves? +17/+21/+18, check. DR 15/Cold Iron and Good, check. SR 27, also check. Permanent Freedom of Movement? Of course, we can't have a battle end with a single Hold Monster now, can we? No elemental immunities, but it IS immune to energy drain, death effects, and all forms of fear. I'm also receiving a note about its saves, hold on. Ah, no, my mistake, its saves are actually +22/+26/+23, because the Vilderavn DO have power over fate, which includes the ability to add +5 to any one saving throw of their choice each round as an immediate action, something they're likely to save when they're targeted by a powerful Save-or-Suck that they're not immune to, such as petrification, sleep effects, or nausea. There's no per-day limit on this ability, only per-round, so maybe ask your allies to pile on all their most powerful abilities at once?

Hah. 'Allies.' There's no one here that's your friend. At least, that's what you're going to think while in combat with the Vilderavn; anyone within 30ft of it is not only vulnerable to its Frightful Presence, but its FP is also attached to Shatter Loyalties, an ability that causes anyone affected by it to treat all other creatures as an enemy, thwarting not only teamwork, but teamwork feats, as well as flanking bonuses, movement in tight spaces, and of course: willingly accepting beneficial effects. Any creature whose loyalty has been shattered has to be forcibly administered any positive effect (and is allowed to make a save to resist such effects), and doesn't count as a valid target for any effect or ability that counts 'allies.' This shattering effect lasts until the victim is no longer within 30ft of the fey and bypasses fear immunity entirely, so the party Paladin may not be shaken up by the Frightful Presence, but if they fail the DC 26 Will save anyway, suddenly all their beneficial auras shut off for everyone else, leaving them more vulnerable to the raven knight's fierce spells and Hexes.

If the Vilderavn pauses its assault momentarily when it has someone at death's door, do not mistake it for a show of mercy. Remember that they can tear the souls from their mortal victims, but they can only do so while in raven form, as Soul Eater very specifically triggers from its bite attack. A party held at bay by its magic or laid low by its damage may only be able to watch in horror as it assumes raven form, climbs atop their fallen friend, and drives its beak deep into their chest, shearing their heart from their body and their soul with it (frightening everyone who sees it, or shaking them up if they succeed a DC 27 Will save). From there on out, it has full access to their memories, their personality, their very face, ready to destroy their lives and everything they had ever hoped to create... and if the DM is especially cruel, it may use Modify Memory on the only conscious witness to the act to make them think their ally is fine, that they managed to get away from that fiend! A fiend slithering its way into the party as it wears the fallen allies' face. Waiting for the chance to tear hope away from you all one final time.

You can read more about them here.

[dominijoyce]

"Are you crying? Is everything alright?"

"Yes, I just- I have always dreamed of this opportunity and lost hope in it and yet- And yet, here you are."

Idea inspired by @starplatinumgold in which Fugo is a gorgon who went all of his life scared of hurting others and Giorno is a living stone statue and therefore immune to his deadly sight giving his lover the opportunity to be this close to someone without worry of doing them harm.

Also if you are interested, I included some of my ideas of other Vento Aureo characters in this Monster AU under the cut- Maybe someone might get inspired to produce something out of that, just how I did, heh.

Okay *cracks knuckles*

Vento Aureo Monster High AU (cause that's what happens when two completely different hyperfixations meet)

First things first, this AU doesn't take place in the high school itself, cause I don't wanna mess with character ages and etc. This AU (at least my version of it) doesn't involve mafia either, because I just imagine it as a simple Vento Aureo Simple Slice of Life shenanigans, but with monster twist (they deserve to not suffer at least once, heh)

The main idea for Fugo other than a gorgon is that he is specifically the child of Sthenno (was thinking of Euryale first, cause there is no canon child of her yet, but I think Sthenno fits him better)

The original poster that inspired this idea compared Giorno to a gargoyle but I don't think that fits him so he is a living statue, cause Araki based his design off of one. While they aren't connected in this AU, I also sorta got the inspiration from the myth of Galatea and Pygmalion which makes both Giorno and Fugo related to ancient myths ^-^ (also my friend pointed out that it also fits, because vampires are connected to Pillar Men - wasn't intentional, but also fun)

As for the rest of the main squad-

Bruno is a werewolf, but not because of the reasons that people might compare him to one (wolflike behaviors, leadership skills, sort of caretaking nature etc.), I mean those too, but I made him into one, because of a reason that only real true OG Monster High fans are able to connect :p

Leone is a banshee, because death follows him everywhere, heh. In all seriousness I just think it fits him and his aesthetic and also I have seen multiple reinterpretations of him as a ghost and I wanted to be sort of "original" (banshees *are* ghosts in MH, I know, but they are like weird and not full type of ghosts so *shrug*)

Narancia is a steam robot, who is a "failed prototype" of his creator, that was thrown away. He malfunctions quite often or even completely shuts off due to various issues with his design, quite often forced to replace his parts with any new ones he manages to find (can't exactly afford to buy new ones yet or do a full repair). Also he has a jetpack, a radar similar to his Stand and his shoes can switch to roller-skates.

Mista is a black werecat, because I honestly have no idea what else could fit him tbh. His main gimmick is luck and unluck, where he is superstitious about every little thing (not only fours) that could bring unluck - sometimes including himself, even when others reassure him there's no way he brings anyone bad luck with just existing. He is still paranoic though.

Lastly, Trish is a hybrid monster, because I fell in love with this concept back when it was introduced and I firmly believe we need more of that. She is a sea monster and boogeyman hybrid. Sea monster cause she grew up on the coast and boogeyman cause Diavolo ofc, but also I think it is funny cause in canon MH boogeymen hate being the center of attention and use shadows or shapeshifting to always be out of spotlight, while I imagine Trish would be the opposite of that and always strive to be the brightest star in a room. Sea monster also fits, because some of those underwater weirdos (like octopi among others) can manipulate their shape to such a high degree and fit into such narrow spaces and that kinda reminds me of her Stand.

If you read all of this, thanks for being interested in my random rambles and ideas and hope you like them. Maybe I will come up with more (was considering Part 6 Protagonists as Monsters, but not many ideas yet), but for now have these funky creatures!

[magentagalaxies]

me 🤝 soup spending an hour writing a long ass tumblr post about buddy cole

but fr tho to continue this thread i think everything you brought up was super valid!! the monstrous queer stuff is something i really want to look into more bc it's something i relate to a lot. not to insert aubrey into this discussion of buddy cole again but i honestly think it's fascinating which specific monsters are often chosen in the allegorical representation of queerness. like most of these monsters share the human-shaped-but-not-human aspect, but vampires have a specific implication of being symbols of opulence and the undead, being forced to live in shadows, and the fear of "normal" people being "turned" by a vampire. it's clear why this has been an avenue for exploring queerness for decades and how buddy cole himself could have originated in this process even if it was a subconscious thing. same with shapeshifters, like you said there's this idea of being replaced or able to alter your appearance at will as if you are unable to be contained by this human form.

but i was thinking recently about aubrey being a siren, and how even though outside of other girls i don't think i'm going to have that be canon it does say something unique with the character's relationship to zir queerness in a way that i haven't really seen depicted before. like, the trope is the genderqueer shapeshifter, but aubrey doesn't alter zir body in any way (aside from dyeing zir hair purple and dressing very creatively). instead, aubrey's power is being able to draw people in with zir siren song, make others see zir as perfect and worthy of fame and attention, even if it isn't earned. i think the siren quality kind of relates to a thought experiment that came to me in a dream a while back: if you had the power to make something in your preferred art form and have it be guaranteed that everyone would love it no matter the content, what would you make? I asked a friend and he said he wouldn't want that power, since the whole point of art is being able to elicit genuine reactions, negative or positive. but for me, i know i absolutely would take that power, no question, if only so i could be as unapologetically queer and trans as possible and no longer have to worry about that being an issue in my career. aubrey kind of personifies this side of me i think, existing in this world where ze doesn't have to worry what everyone thinks of zir identity, but also wondering if people would still like zir without these advantages. i think it's a very modern internal conflict, since we're at a point with queer "acceptance" where people act like if you say the right things and are good little lgbtq+ representation you can achieve this kind of status, but of course that's all a lie, you have to be very privileged to even get in those spaces and once you're there it's all conditional so that's not really liberation at all, and the true freedom comes in rejecting this respectability politics but knowing you may never get the same kind of success. the siren in this case kind of personifies this state of "i think i'm perfect the way i am but i know other people will see my honest self and call me a monster so i have learned to trick people into seeing me as the person they want me to be so i can use their love and attention for my own means"

that note on immortality is so well observed and tbh i do think that's a huge part of why buddy cole even resonates with me specifically. like i never used to let myself imagine a future where i got to be old bc of the state of, y'know, everything, and finding mouth congress is literally what finally allowed me to finally be like fuck it, i'm gonna live even if it's hard. like i don't know what the future holds but paul and scott have been through stuff i can't even imagine, and confidently saying i'm going to make it into my 60s is the most punk thing i can do sometimes.

tbh i totally agree with you on kith season six, i watched it just bc i wanted to know what it would be like and i did enjoy many parts of it but yeah nothing compares to the low-budget proudly-outcast version of kith we got in seasons 1-5. the lack of a live audience was mostly bc of covid (a few of the cast members, scott and mark iirc, were fighting with amazon up until the end to try to get live audiences but they just couldn't figure out the logistics) but yeah in general amazon just did not know what to do with kids in the hall. like the amount that they tried to suppress the queerness that was an inherent part of the show is bizarre and the kids just deserved so much more than what they were given.

also yeah i totally agree on the way you can't really make comparisons with monty python and snl (even tho that's a part of pretty much every kith discussion with casual fans lmao). i was a fan of snl for a while as a young teenager and one of the things that struck me most when i first watched kith was how different it felt to not have the constantly rotating cast and instead have the whole show center around these five dudes and their relationships with each other. like you really got to see their individual comedic voices and even how each possible duo was slightly different from each other (like a "bruce and scott" sketch is different from a "scott and dave" sketch which is different from a "dave and kevin" sketch etc etc) i think that combined with the lack of specific pop-culture and political parodies is what makes so much of it still hold up, since it's more focused on those human relationships than being topical, and of course a lot of that can be credited to that overlooked canadian sensibility. even the interstitials in the original show support this idea. like on snl sure you have the opening credits with the cast member names but all the b-roll footage separating sketches is of how majestic new york city is, showing you that the city itself is more important than anyone on the cast individually. vs with kids in the hall, it's always these very human clips of the cast hanging out and messing around, and the locations always felt like they could be anywhere rather than one specific city.

feeling the buddy cole brainrot today i just wanna infodump about him and research him so much thank god i'm getting academic credit for this next semester

[joviantwelve]

Here he is...my RtB S2 plans for Davey...by which I mean, Doomzone (II).

EXPLANATION BELOW! IT'S KINDA LONG.

Basically, I was going to finally use my Moment of Truth move once my Doom arrived and Pilgrim attempted to take over, as a way to make it so that there wouldn’t be an eldritch invasion into Halcyon City.  Davey would successfully resist on the ground, since his whole powerset came from this eventual eldritch takeover, leading to him increasingly understanding how the eldritch worked--not something he ever really recognized in himself, of course, but it was happening all the same.  Giving the protagonist the very weapon that could take the villain down, and all that.

This would take a physical toll on him.  As a final push from Pilgrim, Davey would then get whisked into the eldritch plane instead, and Davey's physical body on Earth would just be Gone.  Once there in chaotic abstraction, they would have...some sort of...final incomprehensible alien psychic battle.  Lots of shonen anime hot bloodedness from Davey, things about friendship and willpower and the power of humanity and whatnot.

I never came up with anything super specific because I wanted it to be vague and otherworldly, but as a consequence of this fight, the both of them would effectively be destroyed...but something was left behind in their place, with their combined, newly intertwined essence.  A mini eldritch creature, of sorts, with a strange attachment to planet Earth...who would decide to visit, and follow his instincts to Final Hazard's HQ.

Both thousands of years old and yet Born Yesterday, human yet eldritch in nature (all thanks to weird chaos logic), I would’ve introduced Doomzone II as the Outsider.  To acknowledge Davey's, well, doom, he wouldn't know anything about the guy or what happened to him, and yet act very similarly in personality (and appetite).  He would’ve used his abilities more in a “cosmic” way than a “horror” way, and additionally had full mastery of his shapeshifting.  Davey II would’ve appeared more human than Davey I could’ve ever dreamed of, while still being more of a monster than he had ever been.

I had told as few people as possible, hoping this twist would create fun tension in the party in a different, more personal way than a brand new character could have.  Depending on how well the PCs/NPCs would've accepted Davey II (especially with regard to "replacing" Davey I), it would’ve affected how "alien" he felt around them, and how much he accepted human morality.

I don't really plan TTRPG characters out this far, and I feel like the fact we never got to this moment is part of the reason why...but I was very excited about the idea.  I even planned that there'd be a whole session without me between Davey's sacrifice and Davey II showing up, to add weight to his absence and create speculation about what sort of character I could possibly introduce so late into the game.

Once upon a time there were even murmurs that we could have a S3...so I figured the back half of S2 would be Davey II’s awkward introduction, and S3 would’ve been where he actually got to come into his own character.

Ah well!  At least you get to meet him here.

Other random facts: He's shorter.  Compact Davey?  He's a bit more energetic and peppy too, since he doesn't have angst about imminent doom or anything.  The angst would've come later, if he felt like a freak due to how people may have treated him.  I imagined he'd go to high school just as a freshman; start him all over.  He has 15-year-old energy, basically.

[hazawatsugu]

I'm just embarrassed about some of them especially the name I came up with for the hero AU. I might add more later. Mystery, Dark Magic, and Opposite are based around Discord RPs with someone

I will allow magic anons

Most AUs have teleportation because of something I saw in the game and I thought it would be fun to give her actual teleportation.

Feel free to ask for a specific Tsugu for me to use and feel free to ask them questions too.

The edits on their info is done by me. If it looks weird it's because I'm not much of an editor. Noir version is from the game itself. I just thought it would be fun to use it for an AU.

Permanent Event for Experiment Tsugu

Event

Poll

Magic Anon

Birthdays (All BanG Dream ones I know)

Scrapped AUs

Afterglow Kids

Dream Tsugus

Favorite Animes

Unused Edits

Go to @oc-chaos if you want to interact with my OCs

Go to @ask-bang-dream-girls to ask or RP with any of the other BanG Dream girls or normal Tsugu

Go to @ask-bang-dream-monsters for a monster AU with all the BanG Dream girls

Go to @tsugus-art for my art

Go to @horror-tsugu for more graphic RPs. It will have trigger warnings like the Ghost one.

All AUs of Tsugumi I will use in RPs

Vampire

Normal (the one I normally use)

Pure blood (based on Vampire Knight)

Werewolf

Hero (different names for different AUs)

Dark Spring

Mystery

Dark Magic

Before the curse

After the curse (less crazy and turns into a vampire during October)

After the curse was removed (A lot calmer, but now has her own special power that activates if she freaks out too much)

Changed power (Activates if she gets too sad)

Weapon (Like Soul Eater)

Sword

Scythe

Cure Black (Precure)

Ghost (go to @ask-ghost-tsugu for this, but there will be trigger warnings for that one)

Demon

Missing (Her friends have no idea where she is, but she's hiding somewhere. Connects to one Robot AU)

Hiding (Hiding as a normal magic user in Fairy Tail)

Vampire-Werewolf Hybrid (I will rarely use this one because it might be too weird)

Robot (this one's complicated)

Real body in a coma

Replacement for the real one being missing (connects to one version of the demon)

Vampire Hunter (Vampire hiding as a hunter)

Dragon Slayer (Fairy tail)

Metal

Ice (might be moved to a different blog once the AU is fully done)

Shapeshifter

Mechanic (Has a prosthetic arm)

Opposite Tsugumi (Just the opposite of the Dark Magic one)

Before awakening

After Awakening (Has a power she can't control, but it only happens if she gets too upset)

Spirit Tsugumi (Can see ghosts, summon them, and switch bodies with people)

Fused (Dark Magic and Opposite)

Noir (Persona 5. This is because of the Collab that happened)

Golden Freddy (FNAF AU)

Werebear (I might explain it later)

Experiment (Depends on RP)

Zombie (Like Zombieland Saga)

[horrorslashergirl]

Slasher OC: Ambros Abendroth

Full Name: Ambros Abendroth (immortal evening/dusk)

Nickname(s): Amber, Thorn, Iron Devil

Age: N/A (died at age 32 but in human form he looks 32)

Gender: Male

Nationality: German, American

Place of Birth: Germany, Berlin

Current Location: Germany; Baden-Württemberg, The Black Forest

Occupation: Former Botanist and Gardener, Now Vengeful Spirit of the Black Forest

Languages: English, German, Italian and French

Appearance:

Height: As a human 6'3/ As an evil spirit 7'5

Weight: 290lbs

Body Type: As a human, he was pretty lean and athletic, nothing flashy, but as a vengeful spirit his body changed completely, turning into a massive in-human tall giant of a man that can crush any human's skull with only one hand without much effort.

Skin Color: As a human, a porcelain pale tone, but as a demonic spirit, his skin is a very dark shade of grey, covered by ivy with thorns, and sometimes you can see faint glimpses of rosebuds and even small bloomed roses

Hair Color: Midnight Black

Hair Style: Spikey and all wild, a wild mane with small branches with thorns coming out of his scalp

Eye Color: As a human, he had sky bright blue eyes, but as an evil entity, his eyes changed, his sclera all black and his iris a blood-red color, shining into the darkness of the forest

Clothing: He wears medieval-style boots, black or dark-colored pants with many straps and pockets, a black tattered shirt with a hood to cover his head, over his upper body he wears a brown colored jacket with dark creme colored fur details and his face is hidden by a grey iron mask with horns and some delicate accents around.

Other features: What's behind the mask is something out of nightmares. Like his body, his face is a dark grey color with cracks and branches with thorns twisting around his face. His mouth is split open with razor-sharp teeth and a long black split tongue. He has long black taloned claws covered with thorns. When he takes his fully demonic form, thick black vines like tentacles emerge from his back, covered in thorns and barbed wire. Plus, long sharp antlers emerge from his head, covered by scarlet roses.

Weapons: Supranatural Powers

Power/Skills:

Demonic powers

Possession

Advanced intelligence

Shapeshifting

Telepathy

Manipulation

Intimidation

Manipulation of the Forest Tundra

Inflicting hallucinations

Teleportation

Tentacle appendages

Absorbing people into the forest floor

In-Human Strength

Regeneration

Immortality

Torture methodology

Murder methods

History/Bio:

Ambros was born from a German father and American mother in Berlin, living a fairly normal, perfect childhood, having friends all around like him for his warm giving personality. His father worked as an engineer while his mother owned a flower shop. He found himself to be intrigued by all the plants and flowery decorations his mother did and so he pursued a dream to become a botanist earlier in high school, where he met his future wife, Hannah, to whom he proposed after they finished high school.

Just like his mother, Hannah was very intrigued and passionate about flowers and told Ambros that she would love to have her own flower shop after she finishes college. They pursued college together, Ambros getting a degree into Botanic and making Hannah's wish come true by opening a small flower shop into a small town where they moved together.

From their marriage, after they moved into the small town, Calw; Baden-Württemberg into a cozy two-story house, two children were born, creating a beautiful family picture that would later be destroyed by a horrible event.

While on a camping trip into The Black Forest, a forest close to the small town they lived, Ambros and his family were assaulted by a group of men, who slit his children's throats, raped his wife, gauging her beautiful green eyes out and finally killed her. He had to watch all of this, held back by the men, not having any upper power against them. The group of men broke all his joints, making sure he wouldn't be able to get up, and left him to bleed out into the forest next to the corpse of his family.

After he died, Ambros spirit never left for the afterlife but morphed into something dreadful, a creature out of nightmares, his soul turning into pure evil and becoming one with the forest.

After one month, the men returned with a woman, trying to sexually assault her, but they were all stopped and brutally murdered by the vengeful spirit of Ambros, their screams echoing into the darkness of the forest, ripping them slowly to shreds, the forest floor swallowing them down for their bodies to be never found again.

After that, Ambros offered his hand to the said woman, thinking in a delusion that she was his wife only for her to reject his help and try to run away. That only raged the forest spirit and before she could even leave the forest, vines with thorns started to erupt from deep within her body; mouth, ears, nose, and parts of her skin, killing her painfully and slowly.

Personality:

As a human Ambros was a laid-back, work hard, and chivalrous guy, caring for the people close to him, family, friends etc.

As the evil vengeful spirit that he became after he died; all warmness vanished and was replaced by cold and sharp thorns. Ambros is an enigmatic and foreboding figure, seldom exhibiting any characteristics outside of a burning desire to maim and torture those who enter The Black Forest; HIS forest for he became one with it after he died. Utterly relentless with his prey, pursuing his desired to kill and turn his victims into one with the forest floor, ripping their bodies apart, pushing his thick thorns covered vine-like tentacles through their bodies, inflicting immense pain.

Despite his sadistic behavior, he does experience intense emotions, such as when he sees a woman, reminding him of his long-lost wife and trying to pursue her, offering his hand, but if she rejects him, she will suffer a slow and gruesome death.

Despite being dead, he can shapeshift into his human form but only by day-light for at night he turns into the monster that he was destined to be for eternity.

He lives into the two-story cabin he bought when he first came into town, not able to leave it, for this is where memories of his family are, alone and mourning each day of this painful loss and wearing the curse of the Black Forest. He tries in vain to find his 'wife' in other women and to re-create his family back, wanting his children back.

In his human form: brave, chivalrous, clever, hard-working, assertive, enigmatic

In his demon form: aggressive, sadistic, cruel, mocking, ferocious, beastly

His favorite drink: Strawberry Lemonade

His favorite food: American style food like hamburgers and fries

Other Characteristics:

He has full sleeve tattoos of roses with thorns and a rose in the middle of his chest

His human form:

(Might add more info if I come up with something)

[whitexwingedxdoves]

Scream

Part Two: Pain Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader, Platonic Peter Parker x Reader Pronouns: She/Her Warning: Swearing, Summary: You wake up in the Avengers compound where Bruce and Tony are willing to help you figure out what was happening to your body. A/N: I’m really enjoying writing these. Scream is probably my favourite out of all the Symbiotes as well. ENJOY Master list of Chapters 

Your eyes slowly opened, still slightly dazed. You noticed a man stood beside you, his hair long and black, matching the black clothing he wore, you caught a slight glimpse of his arm or the metal that replaced it. The bright lights hurt your eyes and in attempt to stop the pain you raised your right arm over your eyes.  This caught the attention of the man stood beside your bed. “Bruce, she’s awake.” He announced, moving out the way so that Banner could get to you. “Where the hell am I?” you croaked, your throat was dry and scratchy. The smaller man, you assumed was Bruce leaned over you, blocking the light a little better, making it easier for your eyes to adjust. “Avengers compound...” he announced, his voice slightly bubbly... excited almost. You attempted to sit up in the bed that’s when you noticed all the wires attached to you. It was like waking up from a bad dream into another. You shifted around the bed, clearly uncomfortable. “Why?” you spat at the man, his expressions changing from excitement now to an uneasy smile. “One of the guy’s brought you back. Said you had been in an plane crash...” he paused for a moment and looked back the taller man, unsure of his next sentence. “He said you... shapeshifted for a lack of a better term” It was then when the dread finally set in. Everything you had experienced, it wasn’t a bad dream. It happened. You didn’t noticed the man with the metal arm leave the room, how could you, all you could focus on was what happened, what you had seen... what was living inside you. Oh don’t look so down, I thought we were having fun.  You looked up at Bruce, hoping he heard the voice too but he didn’t react. You just nodded at him as he explained how he was doing a few tests just to figure out what had happened to you. That’s when he hit you with the question. “Do you know what that was?” he asked, though he felt stupid as he watched your face grow more confused and scared, shaking your head. Your eyes felt watery again as you allowed the truth to settle in.

-

It had been a few hours since you woke up, you co-operated with Bruce with the tests despite some hurting a little too much. Finally he found something he could use, you heard him call out Friday as he instructed the A.I to tell members of the avengers to gather in a meeting room. He guided you down the hall until you reached a rather large room, with a large desk occupying the middle of the room, he instructed you to sit down and you did. You watched as the room slowly filled with people you had only seen on the news, The Avengers. You kept quite, hugging yourself slightly as you sat back in your chair, the last person to enter the room was the boy you saw before you passed out. He looked directly at you, almost scared yet relieved to see you awake. Bruce waited until everyone had taken a seat, that’s when he introduced you to the rest of them. You looked around the table and received a few smiles, a few blank faces and you returned each and every one. Bruce then went on to explain how you had got there, explaining the change Peter saw and the tests he ran on you. “That’s when I found this, in her blood stream.” He announced, now showing an image of the orange and yellow slime that was once in your handbag, swimming amongst your blood, you winced at the image as did most in the room. “What the hell is that?” the girl introduced to you as Natasha spoke out, her face clearly creeped out by what was seeping through your veins. “Well, it’s not from earth, that’s for sure.” He answered back, he himself looking up at the image trying to string his words together. “You mean, I have an Alien in my body” you finally spoke, your face probably the most disgusted of all. Oh, harsh! I prefer the term Klyntar. The voice drowned out the other voices in the room, you ran your fingers through your hair and whispered Klyntar to yourself, though it was loud enough for Bruce to pick up. “Klyntar?” Your eyes shot back up at Bruce and held back a breath as you looked around the table. “Yeah, that’s erm... the race I think” you spoke softly, hoping no one would ask how you knew but of course, they did... well Bruce did. “She speaks to me.” You shamefully admitted, you noticed how quiet the room had become. “Well did she tell you anything else” breaking the silence, Tony pushed himself up from his chair and cocked an eyebrow at you. You just shook you head biting down on the corner of your mouth. Don’t lie to them, tell them our name. You know exactly how you got me. You don’t think its a coincidence you’re blessed with me the day you meet Carlton Drake. You could hear the laughter in her voice as she mocked you. You couldn’t help the anger inside of you bubble up to the surface. Your face showing clear discomfort and turning a light shade of red. You looked back up at Tony who only shot you a look as if he knew you were holding onto something. “She call’s herself Scream. That I got her through Carlton Drake.” “Carlton Drake as in Life Foundation, I want to mess with DNA, Carlton Drake” You watched as tony walked around the table until he reached Bruce, his words filled with sass. Your only response was to nod as you couldn’t help but feel rage but it wasn’t yours... it was hers.

He used you, used you to get to the avengers. Her voice became more distressing the more she spoke. He’s using us to kill the Avengers and that’s exactly what we’re going to do and when we’re finished with them, we will kill him. You tried to scream out before she took over your body completely, showing her full form to the rest of the room. Without hesitation, they all stood up from their chairs, almost as if they were ready for a fight. “Well, if it isn’t the Avengers” Scream laughed, climbing up onto the table, her eyes scanning the room taking everyone’s expression which only made the situation more fun for her. She swung her head only ever so slightly before her long hair grew longer and wrapped around Peter, squeezing him tight. She looked at the boy as if he was pathetic. “You and me, we’re the same” she teased letting him go before she engaged in a fight with the rest of the team. Peter was frozen in his spot as she shot a web from her wrists, tangling up Sam making it hard for him to breath properly let alone move. Steve attempted to block her fist coming down on him, only just managing to hold it at bay, completely taken back by the strength she held. It wasn’t until Bucky grabbed her by her neck and squeezed tightly that Steve was able to let go of her fist and grab her arms and keep her in a lock. The rest helped him while Tony managed to put restraints around her wrists.

It seemed easy enough to take her down, especially with all them being there. She allowed an annoyed scream accompany her disappointment before allowing your true self to show again, you were sweaty and panting for air. You looked up at their expressions as they saw your face again, Natasha only felt pitty for you and turned to Bruce. “Lets get that thing out of her” and just like that you were taken back to the medical room.

-

You downed what felt like a million glasses of water, you could tell she felt weak, like it took everything in her to take over you. She wasn’t properly bonded to you yet but she wasn’t far off. You felt at ease knowing she wouldn’t make such a big appearance again for a while, hopefully long enough for Bruce and Tony to extract her from your blood. The process was scary but no where near as scary as turning back into a monster again. Bruce admitted he wasn’t sure it was going to work, never having to deal with such a being before, he was going on a limb but a limb was more than nothing and you agreed to the process. Tony warned you that you’d be uncomfortable and possibly in pain while they tried to separate Scream from you but you didn’t care. You just wanted it to be over. With you consent then men went to work. It only took 30 minutes for the procedure to come to an end both men happy with the work they carried out and unusually confident they had finished the job. “You’re gonna have to take it easy for a couple of days.” Bruce said, placing his hand on your shoulder as he watched you catch your breath, his face only showed worry for your well being. Tony had left for a moment but he soon returned to the room with Bucky, the one with the metal arm who was at your bed side before. “This is Bucky or James, who cares. He’ll be keeping an eye on you while you stay with us” Tony said, his words bothersome, he seemed a little uneasy being around Bucky but it didn’t seem like any of your business. “Stay with you?” you questioned, your eyes following Tony as he moved his way towards a counter. “Yeah, we need to keep an eye on you. In case it didn’t work. Only for a couple of days.” His attitude held that of a stubborn child who was use to getting his way and yet again he did. “His room is next to yours, if you need anything or if anything feels off” he finished before turning his back on you, looking down at the counter. You didn’t want to see what was inside of you but you assumed that’s what he was looking at so, you slowly pushed yourself off the bed and thanked them before being escorted to the room mentioned.

-

Bucky took you to your room and showed you inside, he seemed distant from everything but so did you. You nodded as he explained where to find dry towels and toiletries. Then the sweetest words came out of his mouth. “I have a bottle of whiskey in my room, you look like you could use a glass” alcohol is exactly what you needed after the day you just had and despite how tired your body felt, you refused to fall asleep without at least one drink. You smiled at Bucky nodding your head, a small laugh escaped his lips as he nodded right back at you. “I’ll go get it” You watched as he pushed past you, carelessly. You thought about the way his face creased when he smiled. Up until this point you were convinced he was practically mute. He seemed reserved with the way he held himself and interacted with others. Though you were curious, tonight wasn’t the night you’d pry.

He soon came back with the bottle and two glasses, he handed one to you and poured a shot into your glass before pouring one for himself. You allowed the liquid to slowly fall down your throat, the  burning sensation was welcomed as you inhaled and closed your eyes. Bucky watched in amusement before tossing back his glass and emptying the liquid into his mouth. His lips pressed into a thin line as he watched you take a seat on the corner of your mattress. You noticed the look on his face and responded to it with a puzzled one. “How you feeling?” he finally spoke, propping himself up against a dresser sitting opposite the bed. “Shit!” he laughed at your honesty, hanging his head a little low, his eyes peering at you under his brow bone. “It feels like she’s still there. I can still feel the pain she held, the anger.” You added, playing with the glass chewing on the corner of you mouth. You felt the weight of your bed shift as Bucky sat down next to you. You looked up at him, holding back tears... trying your best not to sympathise with the Symbiote that once occupied your body but you couldn’t help it. Bucky did nothing but look at you, waiting for you to say something else. “She seemed just as confused as I was, when she fought with you all back there... like she didn’t understand what she was herself.” Shaking your head, you laughed at the thought of even caring about what she was going through. Your eyes met Bucky’s again, you looked deeply into them, admiring the pattern his iris followed how the blue almost imitated the ocean. You turned your head quickly as you felt your cheeks flush a little. How embarrassing. “I’m just glad she didn’t hurt anyone.” You spoke softly, avoiding the fluttering feeling in your chest. You glanced back at Bucky, his expressions changed to remorse and guilt. You didn’t say anything further, you felt like you said it all. You nudged him slightly passing him back the now empty glass. “Thanks for the drink, I should probably try get some actual rest now.” You took a sharp breath as you picked yourself up off your bed, Bucky followed you up and nodded in your direction. “If you need anything, I’m just next door” his tone was plain but he tried to show sincerity on his features. As you showed him out you replied with a simple thank you before closing the door behind him. Once you were alone you took a deep sharp breath suddenly overcome with anxiety about your situation.

You tried to brush it off climbed into the bed and under the sheets, attempting to get lost in the feeling of the silk on your skin and just when you thought you were drifting off. You cant get rid of me that easy.

[sara-scribbles]

Superhero AU Headcanons (Brothers)

All the characters are in a superhero league working to keep the world safe. Diavolo leads the group and MC is a fledgling hero, who basically learns the ropes by being the sidekick to the current heroes. All super powered beings have above normal human strength, speed, and endurance but each have their own unique power/s.

Lucifer

He controls and creates black fire. Seems kinda boring but he’s very efficient and deadly

Produces six flaming wings when he wants to be intimidating or when he loses his temper, which isn’t often

Flames can melt through virtually anything it touches

Likes to keep his fights short and sweet. Also tries to do the least amount of damages only because he ends up doing the paperwork for all damages incurred on the city/town/country

Flaming black sword is his go to weapon of choice though if he’s not in the mood to fight, he’ll just rain down fire balls

Can also summon Cerberus to fight for him. Though bringing out a giant demon dog for battle usually causes more damage than not

Mammon

Ability to create an inanimate object with just a thought and snap of his fingers. However objects are always made of gold and usually encrusted with valuable gemstones. He can also make said object disappear

Will and has abused his powers for poker and other gambling games. Lucifer does not approve but that doesn’t stop Mammon

Once created a solid gold armor tank to fall on an enemy. It was decorated with rubies and could shoot diamonds the size of a grown man’s fist

When he likes someone he definitely uses his powers to give them gifts, but won’t hesitate to make them go away if they hurt him or he has a falling out

The gold on the items he creates are actually not regular gold and can withstand a lot of force without scratching let alone breaking. Many scientists have studied the objects but can’t figure out what they are

Has the ability to summon a flock of crows though he usually doesn’t use it for battle. Rather he’ll summon them as a distraction to escape enemies or Lucifer’s wrath, though the latter has happened more often than not

Leviathan

Has the ability to control electronics he touches and create electricity from them. However he doesn’t fight often and will do recon/hacking if needed

Always carries a handheld gaming device with him and his headphones

Levi “communicates” with the electronics and is able to get them to do whatever he needs

Creating electricity is a last resort as it usually drains the electronics completely leaving him defenseless if the enemy can’t be taken down with a shock

When he gets angry he sometimes causes things to overload and explode. A lot of tvs and computers have had to be replaced, which Lucifer does not like because the funds come from the league

Like Mammon and Lucifer, Levi can summon Lotan for battle if he needs. However this usually results in flooding the surrounding area and lots of damages. Lucifer forbids him from doing it unless he’s in the middle of nowhere or the ocean. Can also summon Henry, but he’s just a fish in a fish bowl that brings Levi comfort

Satan

Has the ability to create green fire but can’t control it very well and can read people’s minds. The smoke from the flames are toxic, especially to regular people. To other super powered beings, it causes nausea and dizziness, and if inhaled for too long, internal bleeding. Always wears a gas mask just in case; he got sick on his own smoke once

Usually fights alone or has his teammates fight at a distance. Whenever they do have to fight close, they always have a gas mask ready

Keeps his anger under wraps because it can cause things to spontaneously combust around him. Has set part of the HQ on fire a few times in the past

His room is specially made to be flame retardant as he doesn’t want his books to get ruined

Usually causes a lot of damages though not on purpose. Since he has trouble controlling his flames, they have a tendency to get out of control. Lucifer has to use his own fire to smother his green flames if need be

His mind reading doesn’t really come in use in battle but can be used during interrogation to pick for information. Satan is also very good at being scary during interrogation using part scare tactic with his fire and part mind games

Asmodeus

Can shapeshift into anyone he has seen and can release pheromones that cause people to relax and stop fighting. Doesn’t fight often as he does infiltration missions the most

Enjoys learning people’s behaviors and ticks so he can imitate them better. Has even acted as someone else in a movie when the actor got sick during production. No one was the wiser

However Asmo prefers to be himself as often as he can, so he won’t take too many infiltration missions if he can help it. It can be tiring to be someone else for so long

Uses his pheromones to gently coax information out of people. He’s the gentler side of the interrogation and usually goes before Satan

Shapeshifts into the enemy while in battle to cause confusion before taking them out

Has used his powers to imitate his brothers. Mostly done it to Mammon for selling his limited edition makeup collection and takes revenge by doing something dumb while pretending to be Mammon that usually get the older one in trouble with Lucifer

Beelzebub

He’s the strongest of all super powered beings so far and can basically Kirby style inhale things into his mouth. His extra super power is his stomach of steel or so his brothers say

While most super powered people are stronger than the average human, Beel is stronger than the average super. Has lifted things 10x his own weight and size without trouble

Has inhaled bullets, a bomb, pure nuclear energy balls and has never had a problem digesting it much to the horror of his brothers and other heroes

Nicknamed him Blackhole Beel not that he really cares. Says whatever he inhales ends up as fuel/food for him

Sometimes isn’t careful with his strength and will knock down a few buildings in the process of punching an enemy. Probably the second most destructive after Satan. Lucifer can just feel the paperwork piling on his desk when he sees Beel send someone flying

Will often stop at a food place after a fight even if he happened to “eat” a lot of things during the battle

Belphegor

Can manifest someone’s dreams/nightmares into reality as long as he’s touched the person once. It might look like a hallucination, but the giant monster from your nightmares is real and will kill you if he says so

Usually just manifests people’s worst nightmares to do the fight for him. The sooner he’s done, the sooner he can go back to bed

Only brings people’s dreams to reality as a form of torture because he can take it all away in a second. He is sometimes used for interrogation in this way

Will never bring Asmo’s dreams to reality because they’re just...yeah he doesn’t like thinking about it

Will find ways to sleep in the middle of battle if he thinks the others can take care of it for him. However if an enemy happens to find him napping and interrupts him, they’re in for a world of pain

The slowest of the heroes but most enemies run away from him because they’ve seen the nightmares he’s brought to life. None of them want to see their own come true

[meetthetank]

Cruciamen Chapter 10: Order of the Devoted

Rating: Mature Archive Warning: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Categories: F/M, Other Fandom: NieR: Automata (Video Game) Relationships: 2B/9S (NieR: Automata), A2/A4 (NieR: Automata) Characters: 2B (NieR: Automata), 9S (NieR: Automata), A2 (NieR: Automata), A4 (NieR: Automata), Emil (NieR: Automata), Kainé (NieR) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, genre typical violence, On the Run, Monster of the Week, 9S is a half demon, 2B and A2 are shapeshifter Dragons, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Smut in the future, inaccurate depictions of medical procedures, Fantasy Biology, A2 is Nonbinary

The first thing A2 notices is how soft the surface they’re sleeping on is. It reminds them of times as a hatchling when they would nuzzle into their mother’s downy feathers, safe and sound while they slept. Something is draped over their body too, just as gentle. For the first time in a long, long time, they are content and unafraid for their safety.

The next thing they realize is that this is not where they lost consciousness, and all of the warmth in their body rushes away, replaced by icy gripping fear.

Their eyes fly open and they sit upright, ready to fight their captors to the death and escape their prison. They expect to see a pit of rotting mud and meat, or a dank cellar of stone. Instead, they find themself in a small cozy room, complete with a mirror and dresser opposite of their bed. A quick scan around the place reveals nothing out of the aggressively ordinary beyond a plate of fruits and other, strange foods that A2 has never seen before.

They don’t lower their guard yet. If their time in the Bog has taught them anything it’s that horrible things can be waiting in every shadow. The soft bed and heavy blankets might be comfortable, the room itself might be bathed in warm sunlight, the foods beside them might smell inviting, and they might not feel like they’re on death’s door anymore… but it could be a trap or an illusion or a horrible dream. Any second their surroundings could shift back to the prison pit, or they could be hallucinating, on the brink of death while some Bog animals gnaw at their limbs.

… They stare around the room for a few minutes. Nothing happens.

Somehow, waking up in a safe and comfortable room is the most unbelievable thing that’s happened to them, in their mind.

A2’s stomach roars, and suddenly they remember that they haven’t eaten in… gods, they don’t know how long. They look over at the plate of… things, on the small table. There’s a bunch of small purple fruits hanging from little vines in a pile, a block of pale yellow stuff, something that looks in between the color of flesh and the writing paper humans use to record things, a cup of warm water, and a couple of bottles of odd colored liquids. The pale colored food has the shape of an oblong rock, but sags when they press their finger to it. Its outer shell crackles enticingly, but they turn their attention to the plants instead. At least they know that the purple orbs are fruits. They pluck one off the vines and roll it between their fingers for a moment. It’s somewhat firm with a thin skin around it, broken where it was connected with what reveals a soft flesh inside that drips with juice. They cautiously sink their teeth into a small portion of one end which explodes in their mouth.

A2 decides they like these purple fruits, and gulps down the rest of them in seconds, followed by the soft yellow block and crunchy but also soft paper colored food. All of it tastes strange, but pleasant. It isn’t as good as fresh kill, but it quells the hunger that gnaws at their gut. The darker portion of their mind chastises them for eating things that could very well be poisoned, but A2 doesn’t care. They’re fed for the first time since going into the Bog.

The sink back into the bed, full of strange new foods and ready to fall back asleep. However just as they begin to get comfortable, their body begins to itch. They groan and drag their nails against the focal points, mainly their thighs and shoulders, to find them wrapped in tight bandages. They hold their arm up to inspect, finding only clean white wrappings and the stink of some sort of chemical. It smells a bit like fermented berries but less sweet. Carefully they pick at the bandages on their elbow, unwinding them bit by bit once they find the end stuck between two layers. As the final layers start to unravel, their arm begins to sting and feel like their skin itself is peeling off. Sure enough, they pull back the last layer to find raw, red skin. Skin, not scales. Portions of their scales stick to the bandages, flake off when the bandage is removed, or cling to their skin by the smallest thread of mucus.

A2 puts the bandages back on as tight as they can.

Suddenly the wooden door to the outside world flies open and in steps a woman with black robes with a mess of curly black hair tied back. She’s much shorter than them, most likely coming up to where their chest would be, and either well fed or muscular under her robes. Probably both, if they had to guess. A2 freezes in place as they watch her cross the room with a ceramic pitcher in her hands. The woman’s green eyes widen when they meet A2’s

“Oh good!” she says, her voice warm and kind. A2 recognizes it as the same voice they heard just before passing out in the Bog. “I didn’t expect you to be awake already.”

They don’t respond. The woman keeps watching them as if waiting for them to say something. A moment later she clears her throat and approaches A2’s bed. They can feel their hair--now much lighter than before--bristle even though this woman doesn’t appear to be a threat.

“... My name is A4. I’m a nun in the Order of Devoted. I’ll be taking care of you while you recover.”

Still A2 remains silent, their eyes never leaving A4.

“You must have some questions. I know it can be scary waking up in an unfamiliar place, but I assure you this is the safest place you can be in this region.”

The only form of movement A2 gives in response is blinking when necessary.

“... You’ve been unconscious for about two and a half days,” the nun begins as she pours the water into a smaller cup. “You were in a very poor state when we found you, but our holy magic has been sufficient in helping you regain your strength.”

She sets the cup on their bedside table. “Unfortunately you seem to have contracted an illness from spending so long in The Great Bog, and it’s not one spells can fix. Bog Rot is something that requires the old medicines. Regular herbal baths, cleaning of infection sites, various salves, and-”

“I don’t need your help,” A2 snaps, brows knit tightly together. They try to look as intimidating as they can, despite how pathetic they feel wrapped up in blankets and bandages.

A4 smirks. “Ah, so you can speak. For a moment I thought you couldn’t or didn’t understand my language. But I’m sorry, you need treatment-”

“I’m not a charity case,” they growl.

The nun’s eyebrows shoot up in shock, but then she puts her hands on her hips and scowls, though her emerald eyes still hold kindness. “I don’t think you understand how serious this disease is. You-”

“I. Don’t. Need. Help.” A2 leans forward and snarls, baring their pointed teeth at A4.

For a split second there’s fear on the nun’s face, a brief flash of pallor across her face. “Yes, you do. This is only the beginning stages of the Rot. Your skin will start to become necrotic. You won’t be able to walk, stand, or even clean yourself. One by one your organs will rot away and shut down. Within a month you will be clinging to life while your body rots from the inside out.”

They scowl, but A4’s little sermon does strike a cord in them. They cross their arms over their chest and stare holes in the floor. Somehow wasting away in a sickbed is a worse fate than starving to death in a mud pit. Unlike in the desert with Emil and Kaine they’re in no condition to assist with anything, so repayment is out of the question for now.

Gods, they hate being stuck like this.

“Look,” A4 says, her stern expression falling into one of genuine concern. “I can tell you’re strong. Most people would have succumbed to the Rot and the pain. I’ve seen many warriors fall into torpor after a mere week, yet you remain conscious and alert. You’d be free to leave once you regain your strength, if you wish.”

A2 chews at their bottom lip as they think, still scowling at the floorboards.

“... Fine,” they huff. “But I’m not letting you wash me. And I can take the medicine myself.”

A4 lights up with a radiant smile that makes A2’s chest tighten. “Great! I’ll leave fresh bandages and salves for you on your table every day. You have to change them each morning or if they get too dirty. The salves will sting a bit but they will prevent further infections. Oh, and exercise is important to the recovery process as well. Helps combat muscle wasting. So I’ll be helping you walk around the Convent grounds every mornin-”

“Like hell you are,” they snap, “I’m not a dog-”

“The walks aren’t negotiable.” A4 doesn’t even look at them as she gathers up old sheets and clothes. “End of story.”

A2 sits back in their bed and scowls, once again, at nothing. Just before A4 leaves their room, they realize something of theirs is missing.

“Where did you take my sword?” It’s a question in technicality, but A2 says it like a command.

“Your sword?”

“Big, black iron blade. Has a…” A lump catches in their throat. “... A black feather on the grip.”

“Oh! Yes, we did recover that from the village.”

“Give it back to me.”

She sighs. “Weapons are not allowed in the medical wards, but…” A4 looks towards the door like a child sneaking treats from under their parents noses. “I can take you to it while we’re on a walk.”

A2 feels a growl rumble in their throat.

“It’s safe, I promise. I won’t let anything happen to it.”

There’s an air of sincerity around the nun that lends credence to her words. That, and A2 simply doesn’t have the energy to press the issue further.

“Mm…” Is all they respond with.

A4 nods, then shuts the door behind her, leaving A2 alone with their thoughts. They sigh and stare up at the ceiling, wondering why the world won’t let them die.

[spiralesbian]

ALRIGHT

here’s my full Stranger Avatar Sasha Archivist timeline:

(also, thanks to @artbyblastweave for being so interested in my lil au!)

SEASON ONE

sasha james is hired as the head archivist of the magnus institute!

her assistants are jon, tim, and martin

tim takes the thematic role of martin (aka getting tormented by my worm wife jane, and stays in the archives)

sasha reads thru statements and is a skeptic! she really does not believe it’s real until jane comes along.

“tim……………………..did you die here?”

“no, but every time i come to work i die a little more inside.”

cute timsha moment in the supply closet tho.

until martin kool-aid-mans through the door and gets them out of there

jon used to work in artefact storage so he hides in there. he’ll be fine

i actually can’t remember how they all get out but they do it KKJSDGFJHD

sasha takes everyone’s statements. tim is fucked up, martin is also fucked up, jon is actually fine though he seems pretty normal about this whole situation most definitely.

sasha realizes this is a bit more than a regular archivist job.

SEASON TWO

sasha gets paranoid of course. she learns more about gertrude because she never got the chance to meet her

she takes a statement from a guy named michael shelley. weird dude. then helen shows up :)

jon is most definitely himself he is just a normal regular grumpy jon i swear :)

sasha starts to manifest her powers a little bit. she doesn’t know it, but she is an avatar of the stranger, and a prisoner of the eye.

she starts to notice more things about jon? similar to this comic but with jon

eventually she + tim + martin help get jon out of the grip of the NotJon. this is my au and i get to choose who dies (it’s no one because i miss the s1 archival assistants too much).

jon is pretty fucked up from this though and at like a season-3-tim mindset already.

fucking goddamn leitner avatar of the fucking whore shows up to trap the NotJon in one of his shitty fucking novels. fuck this guy tho

he’s like Sasha We Must Talk and shes like okay but stay 8 ft away from me at all times you bitch

she leaves the room for 10 minutes and pipe murder occurs. good riddance

wait are the cops in the season i genuinely can’t remember. if they are, their roles don’t change very much. melanie and sasha feud, battle of the bi queens

SEASON THREE:

uh oh! girlie’s be framed for murder! she crashes at her ex gf georgie’s flat. also the admiral is there don’t think i would EVER cut him out of this story

(also jon is georgie’s ex too because i think that would be fun JDHBFHS)

sasha learns abt an upcoming web ritual (mirroring the unknowing), all that shit. gets kidnapped a ton of times, as usual.

helen is like “i am going to kill you because i hate gertrude <3 i was that dumb bitch’s assistant for too long” but michael busts out of the door like Hi Guys and traps her in the hallway.

sasha also gives her statement about a leitner she found as a child that marked her. its a stranger book and we learn her edgy orphan origin story how her parents were both murked by the stranger. fucked up if true!

back at the archives jon is like so fucking tired of this shit honestly and now martin is also pretty paranoid. also jm romance subplot is still very present!

tim is just trying to protect sasha at all times and he’s pissed she keeps leaving the country and getting fucking kidnapped

(remember when jon persuades the traffic cop?) sasha starts to fill her archivist role in a different way. she can shapeshift into the subject of a statement and uses her affiliation with the eye to coerce statements or info out of people. (example: if she needed a live statement from the guy in #90 Body Builder, she could temporarily make herself look like jared hopworth to the guy and ask “what happened to me?” or “what did i do?” and the guy would be like well he built some fucken bodies i guess let me tell you all about it) while reading the statements in america that refuel her, she fully shapeshifts into the statement giver while reading out loud.

once again i truly can’t remember daisy + basira’s roles until the end of the season. also melanie get shot by the ghost at some point

anyways sasha gets kidnapped by trevor and julia and they gerry lays out all the shit for her and she’s like ah! i’m fucked

tim offhand mentions the web ritual to martin and he loses his shit cause he’s marked by the web blah blah this isn’t a web!martin thing i swear i just need someone to fill tim’s role in the ritual and a lonely ritual would be fucking boring as hell as we learned from ass man peter lukas. i hate that man

so they make the plan to stop the web ritual (which is fucking hard when the offense knows your every move) so sasha, basira, daisy, jon, and martin go.

tim stays back at the institute to burn shit and distract elias. elias does some fucked up shit as usual and it makes me sad

the ritual starts! they have a plan to blow it up and run but like. u know how it goes

instead of the unknowing-stranger-dream-sequence, we get everyone kinda mixed up in a huge spider’s web on the big stage and its still quite confusing because this ritual not only manipulates the prey, but also the prey’s perceived reality. the web is also in current control of the buried coffin cause they think that shit is kinda fun. they yeet daisy into it.

hard to describe what happens, but basira keeps her cool, jon is a bit lost in his own mind, sasha tries to use her powers to escape but fails. she manages to get through to martin through the strings and mounds of spiders and she tosses him the detonator.

[squishing spider noises]

SEASON FOUR:

martin doesn't die, i told you i can't kill the og archival assistants! he does lose most of one leg though, he took the blunt of the explosion.

sasha in da hospital in da coma. tim is mad he can’t wake her up and then my man ollie says “ur fucked up mate” and she wakes up

(and because coma jon has such wild hair controversy, i’m establishing that her head was shaved when she was in the coma. it grows back thru s4. it she keeps one side shaved cause she’s cool)

meanwhile tim is recruited by that dumbass man you know who i don’t even wanna say his stupid fucking name

sasha gets daisy out of the buried. they become avatar pals!

(there is the biggest blank in my memory where all of season four should be. at this point i should just relisten to the entire fucking show but i would literally just forget it all again)

melanie says hm. fuck this! and blinds herself. she goes to live with georgie (and that’s the moment jon and sasha realize they are both georgie’s exes FHFHDJD)

tim continues to fight the lonely pull. he thinks that since p*ter l*kas is tied to the institute, he can blind himself out cause melanie was successful. he is wrong. he is also interrupted by elias midway, and only blinds one eye, and loses most of his sight in the other. elias’s hold on him is weak, but this just drives him way farther into the lonely.

gotta be honest i remember the end of season four but like i couldn’t visualize what was happening at the end so i like don’t understand what happened JGDKFJGD but sasha intervenes (???) and peter yeets tim into the lonely (???) and sasha jumps in (??????) after him. elias is just there i guess?

instead of “look at me martin,” sasha finds tim and at this point her form is warped and hard to recognize because of stranger powers, and tim is almost 100% blind, so she says “don’t look at me, see me. see me tim, it’s me.” and finally creates a clear image of herself. “it’s...it’s you. you’re my sasha.”

they break free and go to scotland i guess KHSDDKDSF

idk what happens with jon and martin im losing continuity at this point. fuck it, they smooch <3

“ah these are the statements.”

“yes. basira said last week she’d send some up as soon as the archives weren’t a crime scene. and she wasn’t sure which ones you’ve read already, so she, she just said she’d send a bunch.”

“.........Hello Sasha.”

(alternate ending: personally i think sasha would read through each statement before speaking them aloud cause that’s what i would fucking do, so she would get this statement and be like “lmao tim come look at this elias trying to prank me dumb bitch think i’ll start the apocalypse for him. fucking little puny bitch boy. anyways what do you want for dinner?”)

SEASON FIVE:

“just. listen.”

“...i’m dead. and you have been chosen to be my replacement as head archivist. hopefully, this means you, jon, but if someone else is hearing this, and elias has made a different choice for some reason, then these words are still very much intended for you.”

sasha in full stranger avatar mode and is like 8ft tall and her faces shift a lot as they go through the realms. except the stranger is the second to last one (the panopticon is last obviously).

helen and michael actually talk shit out in the spiral hallway and now they are mlm wlw solidarity and both like tim and sasha are such bi and trans icons <3 this is so fun don’t you love the fearpocalypse <3

oh daisy n basira trapped in the hunt, and jon and martin are trapped in the stranger. wtgfs + the admiral are like in space or some shit idk but they are ok :)

not much to report other than she is my monster wife <3

i really don’t have many theories to how everything in s5 is gonna pan out, and i would like to closely mirror the actual show, so maybe as we get closer to the end i’ll build more on to this! thanks a lot for all the notes on my first sarchivist post!! also if u wanna make art this specific au DEF tag me in it i’d love to see!!

[ineedsomethingoriginal]

dark pictures wishlist for future games

My brother and I were discussing some things we really wanted in the future installments so I compiled them in a list,(some are actual criticisms, most are just absurd hopes we can dream about:

*light spoilers for all the games*

feel free to add on if you want

Overall:

-no twist/supernatural fakeout. (both of us) I’m fine with twists but it’s been the same twist 2 times in a row so far

-please don’t villainize mental illness (me)

-no hallucinations (both of us)

-better character writing (me)

-please no ‘they were dead the whole time’ shticks (me) I actually appreciate the twist in little hope but trying your hardest to make the right decisions and save all/your favourite character just to find out they were dead the whole time and your decisions didn’t really matter kind of sucks if not executed correctly

-more open maps (my brother)

-more decision based consequences like in Until Dawn and Little Hope (me) 

-dubstep O’ Death remix (my brother) i want a new rendition of O’ death every game dammit

Characters:

-the headline actor plays the comic relief (my brother) we kind of had conrad be the comic relief and headline actor in MoM, but my bro and I specifically have a character/actor like Gaten Matarazzo in mind for later games

-having a child as a playable character (me) look, we fought a child in Man of Medan, followed a child in Little Hope, it’s only natural to have us play as one eventually.

-have a dog be a playable character (me) traits: loyal, good boy pleeeease supermassive i beg you we haven’t had a companion since until dawn i neeeeeed one

- a boi that’s name starts with a ‘D’ or ‘Z’ (my brother) I have to explain this one but ‘a boi’ refers to the character my brother and I attach ourselves to the most (which is usually the quirky, dorky lovable character) starting with Chris, lovingly nicknamed ‘cool guy chris’ by my brother, Brad, aptly titled ‘big boy brad’ and Andrew (we don’t have a nickname for him yet). my brother realized their names go through the ABC’s so he has deducted that the next character’s name has to start with a D or Z. we’ll have to see though.

-Characters have a theme(me) ex. the stages of grief, the seven deadly sins, etc.

Themes

-I’d love them to reference Robert Frost’s poem ‘the road not taken’, (”two roads diverged in a yellow wood...and I took the one less travelled by”) (me) maybe like how in little hope your goal was to unlock your traits, in another game your goal is to take the ‘road not taken’ by choosing the options that character/trope wouldn’t choose

-have the culprit be a different person depending on your choices (me)

-have the killer actually be a killer (my brother) what he means is he wants ‘the psycho’ in Until Dawn but he’s actually a killer in the likes of Jason, Michael Myers, etc.

-friday the 13th homage game (me) there doesn’t have to be a raging killer on the loose, but the setting is a summer camp or campsite, surrounded by forests and a lake. that would be a really cool setting

-Haunted House setting (both of us)

-boarding school/haunted school (me) I just want dark academia horror vibes T-T

-have the monster/antagonist be a shapeshifter (me) think of the possibilities that would have, like if your relationship bar isn’t high enough a character could turn against you thinking something horrible the shapeshifter did was actually you, and to add on to it...

-have a final stand off where you have to pick a character to kill (my Brother) my brother added on that what if the finale was you had to kill one of the characters but you know one of them is the shapeshifter and there’s a very real possibility you can kill an innocent friend.

-have a character be able to backstab/betray you based on decisions (me) yes I hated that ashley could get chris killed, and yes, I want them to utilize that again. the frustration that you are helpless to save your character because you decided to treat another character like shit, or leave them for dead. have more consequences come from decisions, not QTEs

-setting on an island/island is the monster (my brother) 

Predictions/totem mechanic:

-have them be children’s drawings (me)

-Have them be film reels (my brother)

-have them be tarot cards (me) I think it would be really cool because I miss the categories of the totems, (black=death, etc) even people who don’t know tarots would know that if they picked up the death card it’s an event where a character gets killed. 

THE ABSOLUTE MOST IMPORTANT THING ON THE WISH LIST:

-John Mulaney filling in for the curator (my brother) if john Mulaney ever fullfilled my brother’s dreams and he signed onto one of the games, I can only imagine him as one character and it is himself, being a replacement curator for an entire game.

[traincat]

If you could how would you rewrite the Lyja and John debacle?

I think my biggest problem with the Johnny and Lyja debacle isn’t the content – I’m not against disturbing content in comics, or bad things happening to characters I like – but the book’s refusal to commit to that content. And it’s not like they don’t know how to do this – in Namor #50, Namor is raped by a shapeshifter disguised as Sue. The book is very clear about what happened:

This happens at exactly the same time the height of the Johnny and Lyja egg baby drama is going on (like, they’re in the same issue, exactly), so it’s not that Marvel refuses to acknowledge male victims of rape in this exact circumstance altogether – it’s just that they refuse to acknowledge Johnny, specifically. 

So two things I would do if I had total creative control here: the first is stop using romantic terms to refer to Lyja in relation to Johnny in official material. No more calling her a love interest, and no more referring to her as either Johnny’s wife or ex-wife in character bios – this term automatically makes people think of a solid and consensual romantic relationship, and I would argue that both pre- and post-retcon that doesn’t apply: Johnny and Alicia’s marriage was not solid. Johnny and Lyja’s relationship was not consensual. That Johnny and Alicia’s marriage was not in and of itself abusive without the retcon in place doesn’t automatically mean it was healthy, considering Johnny twice despairs about being more attracted to someone else in comparison to his wife, and has an entire dream sequence about how great it would be if he wasn’t really in love with Alicia but had instead been psychically manipulated into the relationship. So there’s all of that to reexamine with the retcon in place, and the fact that if Alicia isn’t Alicia but rather Lyja, a lot of little innocuous scenes take on a sinister tone:

(Fantastic Four #275)

The second thing I would do with full control here would be to label Lyja a villain. This is part of what I mean when I say the material continually hits a point and then pulls back: Lyja marries Johnny to further her mission to infiltrate (and ultimately contribute to the defeat) of the Fantastic Four. It doesn’t matter whether or not she developed romantic feelings for him; she did so while using him to spy on his family and never came clean. This would be a very different story if, say, Lyja had realized her growing feelings for Johnny and revealed her real identity to him willingly and then given him the space to decide what he wanted to do with the relationship. That’s not what happens. Lyja, for all intents and purposes, appears to have never planned to reveal herself -- it only happens when she’s forced to. She continually lies to keep herself in Johnny’s orbit: when she can’t do it as Alicia, she lies about the egg -- you know, the one housing the monster that was going to eat Johnny and his family upon hatching -- and says it’s his child. When the egg game is up, she adopts another identity to stalk him halfway across the country. But, the narrative continually says with apparently zero self-awareness at all, she’s just doing it because she loves him. But there are certainly comic book villains whose motivation is an obsessive, abusive love. After all, Lyja does try to kill Johnny at one point (Fantastic Four #370). She forces him to live his greatest fear when he panics and goes nova in self-defense on a crowded college campus, a complete loss of his usual ironclad control (and his loss of control was already linked, in the narrative, to his feeling violated during Simonson’s run in Fantastic Four #342). Johnny’s afraid of Lyja at one point that he flees for his life after spotting her in a crowd. So why do Lyja’s abusive actions get painted with a “it’s fine because love” wash?

The most baffling case of “the book was going in a direction and then it abruptly pulled back” is Lyja’s most recent appearance in Secret Invasion: Fantastic Four. To set the scene: at the beginning of the Skrull invasion, Johnny, Ben, Franklin, and baby Val are alone in the Baxter Building while Reed and Sue are away. Lyja enters the Baxter Building disguised as Sue and transports the Baxter Building into the Negative Zone.

When confronted by Johnny, she speaks to him as if she really were Sue, and attempts to convince Johnny that Ben has been replaced by a Skrull. This is blatant gaslighting and an attempt to cut Johnny off from Ben and his family. Lyja only gives up the act when Johnny guesses she isn’t who she appears to be. Which to me has always begged the question -- what would Lyja have done if Johnny had believed her? What was the end game here? She later states that she transported the Baxter Building to the Negative Zone to protect Johnny, but then why continue the act after that goal was accomplished? Why attempt to make him believe she’s actually his sister and that Ben is a Skrull? Why prey on his -- understandable -- Skrull paranoia? It’s really easy to say she was just doing it to protect him after the fact, but that doesn’t seem to be the goal in the beginning. But this is a prime example of what I’m talking about: the beginning of the story frames Lyja’s behavior as villainous and predatory. Then, around the middle, like every writer who tackles this character seems to do, the furious backpedaling begins, and suddenly she’s not that bad, really! And it is infuriating. Things are continually set up, they are put on the page, there is a clear abuse storyline going on here, and then when it comes time to commit, nobody seems able to. So that would be my big thing: take away the love interest label from being used in official contexts and actually commit to making Lyja a villain, because there could be genuinely good stories in here if they did. (And no more alternate futures where Johnny marries his rapist. Looking at you, MC2.)

A dream book for me would be a retrospective from Lyja’s point of view about the initial mission and how those parameters changed when Ben remained off-planet during Secret Wars up through at least the Skrull reveal, something of a Fantastic Four: Green in the style of Spider-Man: Blue, etc. Something really exploring her mission in detail and her settling into “being” Alicia, and covering her seduction and abuse of Johnny, as well as how that got complicated when Ben came back, depicting Lyja as a victim of greater Skrull machinations (it’s canon that she was chosen for the mission because she spurned the advances of a superior) while refusing to romanticize her treatment of Johnny and not backing away from the fact that Lyja’s actions, particularly after the egg baby when she is, for all intents and purposes, a free agent, and she still chooses to stalk Johnny and insert herself into his life against his wishes, make her a villain.

[indigobluealchemy]

Eberron summarized in a page and a half

A really, really brief history. (This is best if you imagine it being read by Dame Judy Dench, starting slow and stately and speeding up to a rush, as you near the end.)

Demons ruled the world but Dragons discover the Prophecy and were able to oppose their demonic overlords and with help, locked them away but they are trying to get out. The dragons retired to study the Prophecy. Next, the civilization of Giants ruled but fell driving the creatures of dreams from invading the world but they have found a way to get back in. Next civilizations of goblinoids ruled but fell driving the creatures of the realm of madness from invading the world but the seals are getting old. 

It's human's turn. Humans are the dominant race of the continent of Khorvaire at the moment. Eventually the vast unified kingdom of Galifar ruled Khorvaire but 100 years ago, split into 5 nations and each nation is convinced they are the rightful rulers of the continent. Of the original five, Karrnath is the fighter nation, Thrane is the cleric nation,  Breland is the thief nation,  Aundiar is the wizard nation and Cyre was bard nation.  For 100 years, every nation battling against or siding with, every other nation again and again to attain primacy. 

Four years ago, Cyre was being invaded by the other four and was on the verge of being the first nation to be actually conquered. Instead something horrible happened, the Day of Mourning.  On that day the entire nation of Cyre was destroyed in a holocaust of grey fog and toxic magic that stopped exactly at the edge of the current Cyran border. Almost every living thing, including the massive armies from all five nations within the boundaries of the Mourning, died. The cause of the Mourning remains a mystery and it is unknown whether it could happen more if fighting continued  The remaining nations decided to call a truce until this could solved, but even still it took two more years between The Morning and the end of the Last War to sign the Treat of Thronehold. 

Everyone has been effected by the Last War.   Most every person has lost family or friends in the fighting. Tensions are still high and rule of thumb is 45%ish of every nation is willing to start fighting to finally win, to justify the sunk cost of loss of life and treasure. They all feel that their nation was on verge of being the real nation of Khorvaire and the Mourning stole their victory from them. 

Low level cantrips and magic spells have been turned into mass produced industrial items mimicking and replacing the tech levels of approximately the 1880s to 1910s.  Most every cantrip can be purchased as a magic item. There are the mage tech equivalent of steam trains and telegraphs and dirigibles. But "In My Eberron" cast magic always is more flexible and generally better than a magic device and "In My Eberron" there are still no mundane firearms and guns but there are mage parallels in the deadly Wandslingers.

 The Eberron game system threw out alignments and explicitly threw out and stomped on racial alignments. There are nicer cultures than others, but none are automatically evil.  You can have a good vampire and an evil angel or a kind beholder running a shelter for orphaned cyran children. That squad of goblins could be revolutionary freedom fighters trying to protect their new nation of Droaam. That war party of elves from Valinor could be spoiling for a fight just because they are bullies. The kobolds in the sewers are probably maintenance teams who just want to be left alone

 People worship the gods but in Eberron, the gods have never walked the earth so they may or may not actually exist. There is a good pantheon in the Sovereign Host and an evil pantheon of the Dark Six. But a cleric can be evil and still worship and gain their powers from the Sovereign Host or be good and get their powers from one of the Dark Six.

Dragons were horrified and mystified when the insignificant mammal races started manifested “dragonmarks” that granted them magical powers that have been leveraged into the dragon marked houses that dominate whole domains of commerce. The Houses often have a near-monopoly in certain kinds of businesses. For example, House Orien controls land transportation, House Cannith control magetech manufacturing, the halfling House Jorasco carries the Mark of Healing and run the hospitals of the lands.

 There are new species and classes. Changelings are clever shapeshifters that disguise themselves as members of other species. Any medium sized humanoid could be a changeling.  Shifters are sometimes called the weretouched. They are humanoids with a bestial aspect; while they do not fully change shape like a lycanthrope, they take on cool animalistic features and powers for short periods of time.  The first warforged were dumb killing automatons sold to all nations by House Cannith during The Last War. However, repurposed schema from the continent of the Giants bestowed sentience on the Warforged. Being sentient, they were freed, no longer property of the nations that bought them, by the Treaty of Thronehold. These scary murder constructs are trying to find their place in the world.  The Kalashtar are a psionic species, human hosts of benevolent dream-spirits, who battle nightmare-monsters that creep across the shadows of society. Artificers are a new class that are masters of unlocking magic in everyday objects  They are the supreme inventor manifestation of mage tech magic users

 Eberron is a world of cold war tensions as each nation still jockeys for advantage if war resumes. The old gates keeping the bad things out, are falling into decay and could reopen. The Mournland is one nation sized dungeon to be looted.  There are Goblin ruins to searched and Giant magics to be found and Prophesy divination to be understood and manipulated. Who knows what secret research labs run by the nations or the dragon marked houses are out there, left over from the Last war. Now go be heroes. 

[shiftersquad]

Felice März / 19 / f (she/her)

A bad temper hidden behind a laid back facade and a lazy smile, after being haunted by an unfixable reputation for years, Felice has finally turned her life around, getting together with her highschool crush Leia and closer to said’s friend group. All of this is too good to be true of course, when the paranormal she’s tried so hard to avoid saves her and her brother Riley’s life and she winds up indebted to them.

Qualities: good at punching, utter lack of shame, will get rid of the spider for you Schmualities: quick to anger, overprotective, morning person

Leia Pae / 19 / f (she/her)

Constantly operating on the stage of sleep deprivation that gives you boundless chaotic energy. It is rare to see this girl not Doing something, wether it’s actual work or just being out and about with friends. Currently in university, working hard to follow her mother’s footsteps as a PI, catching monsters wasn’t something she would have expected to be doing as well, but hey, if she shoe fits!

Qualities: works very well under pressure, social butterfly, smells like scented candles Schmualities: anxious coffee addict, no volume control, “its 28C, im dressed in all black, sometimes you have to suffer for fashion”

Aksel Melek / 20  / nb (they/them)

You know when someone seems so warm and and gentle it’s almost a little bit scary? Aksel isn’t a big fan of their friends treating them like they can do no wrong but they guess it could be worse. Helping their sister full time with her flower shop, their friendships are pretty much their biggest hobby anyway, so bringing some monster people into the mix can’t hurt right?

Qualities: good listener, pacifist, soft hugs Schmualities: surprisingly aloof, can’t ask for help, get ready to groan at purposely outdated jokes

Riley März / 18 / m (he/him)

The more socially competent one of the sibling duo, which sadly doesn’t say much. Guilty over leaving Felice in the dust back in the day, he’s trying hard to get over his cowardice. Wildly unsuccessful in that, he spent most of his time doing god knows what locked in his room all day. Felice can’t get a read on what he actually thinks about the shapeshifters at all. Has started leaving the house a lot more after the accident.

Qualities: cleans up nicely, good at getting information, gamer Schmualities: a wuss, trust issues, gamer

Florian Graf / 19 / m (he/him)

A youtuber with a focus on cryptids, he has the personality of an entertainer and an overenthusiastic journalist. He gets incredibly embarrassed if you mention his show to him IRL. His slogan is that he’ll be wherever shit goes down, and he means it. Paywalls or KEEP OUT fences are just another obstacle to pass by when he gets wind of something of interest happening. Luckily for him, not that much ever happens, so he has yet to be arrested! Really, nothing happens in this town! Right??

Qualities: on-screen charisma, passionate, *anime glasses thing* Schmualities: imposter syndrome, allnighters, hipster

Dennis König / 20 / (he/him)

Self proclaimed misanthrope and local gremlin. Dennis is obsessed with the paranormal, not out of intrigue or want for knowledge, but escapism and hatred/fear of people. Lucky for him, he found a certain shapeshifter break into the petshop/house that he got from his parents and mess with his stuff. And he fell in love instantly.

Qualities: great w animals, resourceful, under specific circumstances as loyal as humanly possible Schmualities: excessive idolizing, emotional walls for days, bitch

Halo / (they/them)

The one, the only, the King, Queen and Ruler of Shapeshifters! Welcome to their world, in which everything revolves around them! The last part is kind of literal, oddly enough! Despite their tendency to make everything they do seem threatening and an overblown ego, their intentions aren’t as bad one would assume.

Qualities: magnetic personality, good intentions, [redacted] Schmualities: obnoxious, bad execution of ^, [redacted]

Mori / (they/them)

Halo’s right hand and protector, they’re the dark mysterious and quiet one. They don’t seem to be able to speak but they do text! They use a lot of emojis. Jury’s out wether it’s sweet or creepy. Hard to read, their expression rarely changes. Doesn’t blink either. Erm. Despite their deep bond with the glittery Ruler of shapeshifters, there seems to be something else tying them together as well…

Qualities: loyal, good fighter, :D!! Schmualities: [this part has been scribbled out and replaced with a big] NO KNOWN WEAKNESSES

Secret / (any)

With the attitude of an angsty teenager and none of the actual problems a young adult would deal with, crude jokes and empty threats are to be expected with this guy, but nothing to be afraid of, as he is a huge coward and shrinks at the slightest sign of someone fighting back. Despite his weird rebellious phase, rough attitude, and his best friend being Dennis, he his hiding a good (metaphorical) heart deep down. And even further than that, there is something that even he isn’t aware of…

Qualities: surprisingly compassionate, easiest shifter to get along with, bunny ears Schmualities: all bark no bite, bad humor, THEYRE HORNS!! >O(