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arc-saber · 3 years ago

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The Way Forward - Did I write a Mandalorian Fic?

I fic-ing did. Or part of it. Look. I was bored and I’m almost always thinking about Star Wars. It was bound to happen.

No, but really. I’m not really a fanfic writer. I’m not great at it. and clearly, I start with a single, stupid idea and get side-tracked until I have a WAY TOO LONG bit of story. But my main pet peeve about a lot of fic is inconsistent characterization. So then I was like “WELL CAN U DO ANY BETTER, SMARTASS?” Answer? Mmnnmmnsssnng? I dunno. We’ll see.

Din Djarin finds himself in a predicament some years after parting ways with Grogu. Someone unexpectedly shows up to help. I W0ndEr WhO!?

Forgive my lazy backstory-ing... Story below the cut.

PART I

The Dark Saber. It had once been described to him as a symbol more than an item of power on its own. But its history said otherwise. It was both. The ancient blade was not only a feat of engineering that wedded ancient sorcery and Mandalorian tactical sense, but it was the manifestation of power on Mandalore itself. It had been forged, stolen, retrieved, lost and found again — its past was as dynamic as the story of Mandalore itself.

But today it was a tool and Din Djarin was using it to cut a hole in a scrapped hull so that he didn’t burn to death in a sudden deluge of acid rain.

The screeching metal and insulation giving way to the unyielding blade manifested on his helmet’s HUD as static while the rest of his feed grew grainy with sensor damage from the rain. Very technically, Din had known what he was getting into when he arrived on Lotho Minor, but he hadn’t been presented with a lot of options during the chaotic spiral landing he’d been forced into by his pursuers. It bothered him that he hadn’t known their affiliation and it was a troubling indictment of his life that there were too many groups with cause to target him as a general mark to make an educated guess … let alone the number of people scattered across the galaxy who had cause to target him specifically. It also bothered him that he didn’t know if these particular pursuers had broken off when he’d plunged into the junk planet’s acidic atmosphere. Or if it was personal and they had followed him to the surface.

With a heavy kick, he toppled his impromptu door into the cavity of the remains of a freighter and plunged inside after it. His armor had deflected most of the acid damage, but everywhere that beskar wasn’t was smoking and starting to sting as the rain soaked through the padding. He knew he should strip off what he could and try to allow it to dry, but after depositing himself with gravity against the far bulkhead, he was having trouble finding the will to move just yet.

About two clicks away, his shabby X4 gunship was little more than a smoking heap — his less than graceful descent having caused some pretty severe hull damage, not to mention now whatever connectors the rain was melting away. So unless he could miraculously a) find the parts he needed buried in Lotho Minor’s literal mountains of scrap or b) even more miraculously find an operational ship to get himself off the surface, he was stranded. Letting his head tilt back wearily, he let out a sigh that felt like it had risen up in him like a bubble through pitch. He was tired. He had been tired for three years — possibly longer than that — but when he’d been caught up in the concern for someone other than just himself, it had distracted him from it. His people. Then of course the kid. He sighed again, feeling as though the first hadn’t quite reset him as much as he needed. He should be relieved to only be responsible for his own skin again; what would he do here if he was also trying to keep a helpless child alive along with him? But the fact remained: whenever that brief time he’d spent as the child’s guardian crossed his mind, he missed it. Missed Grogu.

He didn’t know why lately in particular the odd little sorcerer had crossed his mind so often, but now hardly a night passed when he didn’t factor into Din’s fitful dreams somehow. Most of it was pure memory, but some seemed different — moments when he felt like he was being reached for. It was probably a result of wishful thinking. And right now, wallowing was not going to fix his situation. When he’d either sat out the worst of the acid evaporating, or simply dulled to the sting of it, he laboriously reached for the lightrod that was tucked into his belt. Raising it over his head, he could just make out the shapes of the ship’s interior by its meager glow. Most of what was left of the freighter had been picked clean by whatever locals there were here. Staying put would give him shelter, but nothing more than that. He lowered the lightrod again, disappointed, and pushed himself back to his feet. His unceremonious entry had granted him about a three foot opening through which he could now peek out and try to assess the weather.

A flash of movement and light bouncing off a metallic barrel was all the warning he got. Din jerked himself back behind the hull, milliseconds before a red blast scored the metal right next to his head. Falling back with a grunt, he wedged himself into the dark as much as he could while drawing his own blaster. He checked the charge. Decent. Outside, the sound of footsteps had distinguished from the rain just enough for him to guess at two pursuers. He edged back to the opening and did a quick double glimpse, ducking down as he popped his head out the second time, lining up a shot with the movement he saw. Two figures. Humanoid for the most part and well equipped against the hostile environment in full vac suits. “Dank — “ Another blast lit up the hull briefly overhead. “Ffffarrik.”

His free hand went to the hilt that hung at his belt. He could stay here and deplete his charge trying to take them both out before either got to him�� or use the blade in the one capacity it had that had never failed him. Intimidation. Din could use a sword. He could use pretty much anything. But it wasn’t his first choice. If the Dark Saber was any other blade, he wouldn’t consider it, but the few times he’d ignited it, the effect was notable. Most people didn’t know exactly what it was, but they knew enough that they didn’t want to try to fight it. Maybe that was part of the reason he hadn’t dumped it down a canyon somewhere for Bo-Katan Kryze to go find on her own. It had caused him enough trouble over the past few years that that would make the most sense. Yet he held onto it and because of that, had suffered not a few varied encounters with Kryze and her clan and their attempts to force him into a tradition and history he knew nothing about and found he didn’t care for. That wasn’t his path — his way. It was something else entirely that had, before it knew him, labelled him a zealot.

He ignited the saber in his off hand, keeping his blaster at the ready. They were close now, but they had slowed down in the absence of return fire, approaching his shelter with caution. They would crowd to one side of the opening, one coming in first to provide cover, the second following up with the needed accuracy. Sure enough, he felt the hull vibrate as his pursuers flattened themselves against it. With little time, Din stepped back to give himself enough room to plunge the dark blade straight through the hull at about where he figured the second body would be. It met some affirming resistance and a modulated shout of shock came from the other pursuer. Din had hoped the sight of the blade would have scared off the remaining enemy, but with a stubborn war cry, the other was suddenly upon him, having whipped around the opening with a barrage of blasts chasing Din chaotically back to the back wall. When he felt one ricochet off his beskar, he’d lunged forward into a roll, losing the hilt of the Dark Saber in the process, but coming up at an advantageous position to fire his blaster.

A direct hit. He saw the flare of energy meeting his enemy’s breastplate and had almost enough time to lower his blaster with a spin towards the holster before the full weight of his attacker plowed into him. Confusion barely had a moment to sink in before he realized his error. He wasn’t the only one in beskar. Now this up close and personal, he could see the vac suit peeling away from the coated breastplate of Mandalorian armor. He only had a very brief moment to gasp out an admittedly daft: “What — ?” before the second attacker, proving to not be as skewered as he’d have liked, flung themselves into the opening, one injured arm hanging at their side, but the other wielding a blaster in an attempt to train on Din amid his grapple with the other.

“Wait— wait!” but they weren’t there to talk. He knew precisely what they were there for, and it was laying on the ground a few feet from any of them. Din had tried to yield the Dark Saber before. A few times, actually. But its inherent rules seemed to have cornered the clans, and him, into a more deadly negotiation for it. They would take it when he was maimed or dead. So now he would just as soon they didn’t take it. His attempts at getting their attention had only earned him a hard elbow to the neck, tossing him effectively into survival mode. With an uncomfortable twist of the body, he got a foot up on the bulkhead behind him and activated his jetpack. The unexpected surge caught his attacker off guard and plowed both of them straight out the opening, into the second shooter and rolled them for several yards along the littered ground.

The impact of their landing flung them apart, but the advantage of that for Din was an advantage for all of them and he was still outnumbered when he rolled to his feet, blaster raised. He swapped his aim from one to the other of his attackers, trying to give the impression that he had both of them covered at once while they simply had to train their blasters on him and start to close in slowly. “Are you with Bo-Katan?” he called out, hoping to get at least one talking. They did pause, but the grim chuckle told him he’d not only guessed wrong, but he also might have encountered a rival of Bo-Katan’s for the throne of Mandalore. “Of course.”

The prospect that he might die here — on a literal garbage planet — only filled him with weary resignation. But then — for just a moment — immense disappointment as he suddenly remembered a promise he’d made to Grogu as they parted. “Sorry, kid,” he murmured to himself as he stood on the brink of lowering his head and his weapon.

But the two others had stopped and craned around, one rapidly looking back at Din as if they suspected whatever he’d murmured had just summoned a problem for them. Unbeknownst to them, it was simply his outlandishly bad luck that had summoned a problem for all of them.

With a shriek like wrending metal — and indeed that was probably partially what it was — one of the mountains of scrap that had previously been looming over them, gave a violent buck, smaller bits of scrap now joining the acid that pelted them, shaking free from the towering metal monster that emerged and resolved into a four legged, open-mawed form that seemed to be made of the planet’s refuse itself, but fuelled by an oily hot fire from within its belly. As it swung around, a pronged foot came inches from flattening Din where he stood. He reeled back from the monstrous intrusion, no longer able to see his previous two attackers while he scrambled to get away from the brand new horror making itself his problem.

No words. No thoughts. Just survival as he reflexively activated his jetpack again and pushed off at an acute angle front he ground and away from the beast as it dove past him, mouth gaping for an improbable bite of pure scrap metal from the side of one of the hills. Perhaps the monster itself was distracted by its meal, but the teetering hillside caved and an avalanche of spare parts was suddenly rolling down from higher than even Din’s current altitude. Bits and pieces rang as they bounced off his armor and he strove to outrun the larger chunks he knew were coming. He managed to dodge the caved in hull of what looked to be part of a Mon Calamari cruiser, but found himself straight in the path of an untold tonnage of metal that was soon sweeping him out of the air and along with it in a tumble of junk that splayed out between the hills like a river of metal… and then in a breathless moment, charged straight over the edge of a dark ravine, carrying Din down with it.

#star wars #the mandalorian #din djarin #fanfic #luke skywalker #grogu #i dunno i tag like i'm dying #will it get sexy!?#PROBABLY A LITTLE!?#dinluke #hopefully #we'll see if I can pull this out of a nosedive

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frosteee · 4 years ago

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Undertaker and the Dispatch Conspiracy Theory

@frederickabberline

So I loved your discussion about UT and a possible conspiracy within the grim reaper dispatch that I went through the manga and found some bits and pieces which, I feel, support the theory.

[Long ass post under cut]

Background

For those who are unfamiliar, the theory is that UT had discovered something damning about the grim reaper organisation that caused him to defect.

This discovery, we post, is that the forgiveness all reapers are promised is a lie, perhaps even extending to the idea of salvation in general, disillusioning UT and morphing him into the individual we know today. Full details can be found in the awesome ongoing discussion by @frederickabberline, @midnight-in-town et al.

Because of this, UT is experimenting with creating a definite ‘after’ to the end that is death, because the ones he previously believed in, like the P4 did tradition, like the Watchdogs did duty, was fake and only fit to create a cycle of misery. He currently believes himself incapable of salvation, and so creating immortal Phantomhives is the only way he can possibly be with them.

I believe that several aspects of UT’s personality as we know it support this.

UT’s interest in breaking free of fixed, unchangeable fate.

We are shown as far back as Chapter 13 that UT has particular interest in the concept of destiny, commenting that the tie between O!Ciel (and the entire house of Phantomhive by extension) and Queen Victoria is like a ‘chain of fate’, and gets quite angry when O!Ciel declares that he put himself in that position willingly.

Grabbing Ciel by the tie and holding him there is the most directly aggressive we’ve seen UT towards O!Ciel, besides the time on the Campania when UT used him to bait Sebastian, so it seems that comment irked him.

From this it appears he holds a bit of resentment towards O!Ciel for so willingly following the path towards death and damnation.

He also seems to hold similar frustration towards the rest of the Phantomhives for ignoring his warnings and following the cursed path of the Watchdog to the grave.

He is highly amused by twists, and takes great satisfaction in the unexpected, especially when it goes against the grain. Like, for example, when Undertaker is surrounded by enemies on the Campania and he wonders which of them is truly the hunted party.

This before rapidly changing things around and making it no longer a one-sided hunt of an outnumbered rabbit but a struggle to take down a powerful hunter. In this arc, everyone is second-guessing and while UT is the one with the most control over proceedings (with his element of surprise), even in that scenario there were events he could not see coming (e.g.: the iceberg) that he had to work with/around.

Essentially, he enjoyed the unpredictability of the situation, where multiple powerful forces were clashing to decide the end. Fate was in all their hands.

What UT finds amusing also seems to revolve around this idea.

He is amused by two things:

Those who do terrible things to keep the status quo, like the P4 in their murders, which causes UT to burst out laughing after the full story is revealed. The P4 probably remind UT of who he used to be as a model grim reaper - the rigidness of their thinking, repeating the mantra that tradition and rules ‘are everything’ most definitely reminded him of his former life and the ‘grim reaper code’ he lived by. Hell, William is currently the ‘rule-abiding/spouting’ grim reaper of the bunch.

Those who go against the grain in unexpected but positive/game-changing ways. In the same arc, for example, UT comments on O!Ciel’s decision to save Harcourt from the attacking zombies, as such as a selfless act would never have occurred to his more selfish, pragmatic ancestors.

In short, UT is pleased to see actions taken by people, most notably the Phantomhives, that break from the acts/mindset that killed those who came before, and scorns those who try to keep things the same no matter the cost and meet terrible fates.

This also extends to R!Ciel, who I talk about in this post in relation to the Evil Twin theory, where R!Ciel is a direct participant/accomplice to his parents’ murder. I theorised that to create a perfect record, while having only ‘future desires’ and a soulless body to work with, UT had to improvise by splicing what he knew of R!Ciel’s past onto the boy’s record, thus creating memories/knowledge of his past and the ability to function off that.

However, this combined with R!Ciel’s ‘yearning for the future’ records also created a boy who was all too willing to replace O!Ciel as Watchdog and basically resume the terrible march towards danger and death that UT had worked so hard to avoid. His and Tanaka’s reaction to R!Ciel’s announcement that he will resume Watchdog/Earl duties reflects this, I think.

As far as UT is concerned, R!Ciel is making the same mistake as O!Ciel by following the path set out for him from birth, like all Phantomhives.

Then, finally, there’s UT’s interest/obsession with the ‘predetermined end’ that death entails, screwing with which is the driving force of his actions so far, he claims.

It feels strange for a grim reaper to be so curious about that. After all, he has died himself, and entered a sort of limbo existence which, while a punishment, is basically an afterlife.

Grim reapers are promised forgiveness, which can be paired with salvation and entry into Heaven. Demons also exist, which live in an alternate realm not (as far as I know) stated as Hell, but considering souls can be eaten by the demons who live there, so perhaps that is also a destination for souls when they die?

In any case, it would seem strange for a grim reaper to not have knowledge of some sort of afterlife, other than their own, to which souls can go to.

Unless the reapers are simply told it exists, and that they can go there if they ‘serve their time’ - and that the reality is very different.

With this idea in mind, it makes a lot of sense for UT to be a staunch advocate for breaking the chain of fate the Phantomhives are under, to the extent that death itself is overturned, because he never wants to lose another Phantomhive again, as he now believes that reuniting with them in the afterlife is impossible.

UT is so dead set against the idea of following the status quo and one’s ‘fate’ that he is ready and willing to rock the very world ‘The Superior’ governs.

UT’s focus on lies/deception.

UT also appears to be quite focused on lies and deception, either to oneself or others. We first glimpse this in the Circus Arc, where he tells Ciel to take care of his soul, for he only has the one. When Ciel responds that he already knows that, UT questions that (’Boy I know you be talkin shiiiiit~!’).

Then later in the arc, he confirms his own belief - that Ciel cannot/does not know the true weight of what he is losing by continuing down his cursed path, that Ciel is lying to himself in order to continue down it. This is clearly part of his frustration with the Phantomhives as a whole, that they keep lying to themselves in order to keep going towards a fate that only continues its destructive cycle.

Really, all of the people UT has laughed at are lying to others or themselves, or both, in order to justify destructive, morally bankrupt and questionable beliefs and actions. Ciel, the P4, Rian Stoker, etc., etc.

UT is also very concerned with the idea of people lying to others for their own benefit, as all reapers, according to the theory, are lied to.

The people who most reflect UT’s past situation are the Noah’s Arc circus troupe, who were deceived by their trusted elder, Kelvin, that in order to maintain/achieve happiness they had to dirty their hands and continue doing terrible things with no knowledge of when it will end.

Similarly, UT also continued to perform a (literally) punishing and emotionally traumatic task to the best of his ability on the orders of an overseer for the sake of eventual happiness that he discovered to be a false promise. While some of them may have believed Kelvin to be evil and perhaps lying to them, like Joker, they continued anyway because lying was the only way they could handle the weight of what they had done.

It might not be so much of a coincidence that UT begins and ends his role in that arc by pointing out the cost of self-deception/being deceived. He would know - he and all reapers are lied to and effectively kept as eternal slaves and then possibly either killed or damned in some way, but never actually ‘retired’ to Heaven.

Speaking of which, UT specifically notes that one of the most beautiful things about his bizarre dolls is the fact that they no longer have the capacity to tell lies.

Of course, this is all said with the knowledge that UT himself has/had told plenty of lies himself, and is probably deceiving himself that his goal, which is probably impossible, is possible. It’s the only thing keeping him going, after all, and UT is not without hypocrisy.

Hey, he never denied that he had a few screws loose!

UT and Sebastian’s differing views on death being ‘the end’.

Finally, the big one, UT and Seb’s very different views on death as an end. We don’t know Sebastian’s views on the afterlife, or if souls can be cast into his realm like Hell, or if there is a Heaven, but regardless Sebastian believes that a ‘definitive, hopeless end’ has beauty in it.

In response, UT only smiles, but says nothing in response, perhaps not wanting to give away too much personal information at this time. He does not agree, and his actions and words have proven just how much he disagrees.

UT, according to the theory, has entirely lost faith in forgiveness and salvation after death - at least for himself as a grim reaper. Why else would he go through so much trouble to extend life indefinitely? Why would he create a form of immortality for the living Phantomhives he could hope to see again...

Unless he believes he cannot.

Unless he believes he has lost the ones who have died forever, and that the only thing he can do for the ones he has lost is keep mementos of them (like the prayer lockets, which he treasures).

All reapers are promised forgiveness and, it’s implied, salvation in Heaven or something similar. If this was the case, if UT did not have reason to suspect otherwise, why would he bother defecting, when he could just be a model grim reaper for x amount of time and then join his loved ones once he has served his time?

Clearly, UT once believed that death was beautiful, but not because it was the end. Because there was an ‘after’ that he could aspire to and meet those he lost. He cannot agree with Sebastian’s ‘beauty in an end’ idea because to him, a hopeless end is just that - hopeless, miserable, lonely.

The death Sebastian speaks of means only eternal slavery, loneliness, hoping for salvation that never comes. Maybe once he believed death being the end to one’s life was beautiful in its way, as Will discovered in the grim reaper OVA, but not anymore.

Hope this makes sense and gives some food for thought!

#/ phew this was a monster hope I made sense through it all - not feeling well atm so not sure ^^;;;#Dispatch Conspiracy Theory #undertaker black butler #undertaker kuroshitsuji #Sebastian Michaelis #Sebastian Michaelis Kuroshiitsuji #Sebastian Michaelis Black Butler #black butler spoilers #kuroshitsuji spoilers #black butler #kuroshitsuji #theory #discussion #thoughts #meta

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yourpakichic · 4 years ago

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Episode 11 thoughts ⁃ A hand hold and a cheek kiss all within the opening scene? Someone call me an ambulance cause I’m dead. Also peep that smug smile on Serkan’s face after grabbing her hand. Sir sit down, you are already doing too much! That’s the most natural skinship scene I’ve seen between these two. Serkan has always looked a little bit uncomfortable with hand holding and other things but that was just so natural and just flowed! ⁃ The lyrics of that song and their expressions throughout were absolute perfection! ⁃ Gosh I really have a love and hate relationship with Aydan. She keeps pushing Selin and Serkan to be together I’m like so over it but on the other hand, she’s had such sweet and heartbreaking scenes and moments and my heart goes out to her. I know she’s a complex character and I love that about her but it’s also so frustrating to watch. ⁃ The similarities and contrasts in Eda/Ceren and Serkan/Engin conversation were so cute. The way Eda is so hopeful and Serkan is still in denial, like y’all need to get it together! Ceren being very straight about Serkan and Eda’s journey and feelings while Engin uses reverse psychology to get Serkan to understand was interesting cause being straight with Serkan never works out. ⁃ Serkan gets his pettiness, attitude, and jealousy tendencies from Aydan and no one can tell me otherwise. ⁃ I will forever love and cherish scenes where he comes to pick her up/drop her off. They might be the smallest scenes but they are the true evidence of their chemistry/attraction. Not to mention they always are witty and playful and shows the way their conversations flow and the little hints of magic their words contain! ⁃ So the grandmother is Ayfer’s mother and clearly they blame her for, I’m assuming, Eda’s parents death which is why they have kept their distance. But from the call Ayfer made, it seems that the grandmother still loves and cares for Ayfer and Eda and will do anything for them. Her entry will absolutely change everything for the family and Serkan/Eda as well! ⁃ “You never worked for me, Eda Yildiz.” Those words. I had to pause and just think. Serkan never considered Eda as his subordinate. She was his equal. To him, she was always a free bird. To come and go as she pleases. He never could or will cage her and I think that is absolutely beautiful and powerful. He acknowledges and accepts her carefree nature and presence and understands that she will fly as she pleases. For Eda, that freedom is necessary and core of her being. To be limited was never Eda’s style. So can you imagine? Being in a relationship where you have complete freedom to be what and who you are without any hesitation with a man who appreciates and loves your talent/knowledge and is always supportive of your endeavors. And that too with Serkan Bolat who has a controlling nature and being. Just need a moment to process that. ⁃ THAT IS GOING TO BE THEIR HOUSE. I’m calling it now. The show NEEDS to end with them in that house with their two robot-like children playing in garden designed by Eda and them over looking that beautiful view from their bedroom. ⁃ Serkan going FULL PANIC over Eda leaving and telling Engin to make her offer was the most pleasing to my eyes. That man out here creating a crisis over this. ⁃ The defeat in his eyes when she tells him to leave her alone. ⁃ Eda claiming her man in front of Selin was top notch! She said girl, I can take care of my man, no need for you. ⁃ The entire Serkan’s sickness scene was just heartbreaking. We knew Serkan had a tragic past and was still suffering because of it but to find out about his trauma was just... I have no words. To be so young, sent away abroad without knowledge about your brother, away from your family. To be left alone so young to grow and work through your trauma all by yourself. No wonder he doesn’t trust anyone. No wonder he doesn’t let anyone in. His own parents abandoned him so young, how is he supposed to rely on anyone else . And he has clearly internalized everything really deep. It’s one thing to have traumatic childhood experiences, but in Serkan’s case, he never worked through it at all. And now as an adult, due to that fact, it manifests itself into actual physical sickness. I literally just wanna give him a hug and make all his problems go away. ⁃ One more thing on this scene, one of my favorite things about their relationship is that despite their differences and previous conflicts, Eda and Serkan can both be easily open and vulnerable with each other when the other needs it. Just how they were sad/angry at the office early, but Eda came to take care of him and not only that, they had a conversation and were so open with each other as they read from the book. To have that openness with someone is just absolutely precious. ⁃ NOT THE WAKING UP WITH EACH OTHER SCENE I WANTED. I DESERVE BETTER! ⁃ Okay. That’s it. I’m never forgiving Aydan for breaking Eda’s heart like that. After everything Eda has done, she deserved to be said goodbye to properly. She made my girl cry after getting what she wants from her. I hope Ayfer goes in on her as their relationship progresses. ⁃ I FUCKING HAD A FEELING LAST WEEK AND THE FACT THAT AND THEY JUST CONFIRMED IT. So last week when we found out about Eda’s parents death, Serkan’s face reaction made a small little voice inside my head go “that’s gonna be related to their relationship and be an obstacle in some way” BUT I DID NOT EXPECT IT TO BE TRUE LIKE THIS! Alptekin is responsible for Eda’s parents death. That is going to be the breaking point for these Eda/Serkan. Serkan already has issues with Alptekin but this is gonna push him over the edge. Also, I do not like the fact Ferit has this vital information. At this moment, I absolutely do not trust Ferit. ⁃ That was Ferit’s breaking point. Being left all alone while prepping for the wedding. I’m pretty sure he’s not gonna go through the wedding and he will blame Serkan for that I can already tell he’s gonna use his position as a shareholder and the secret about Eda’s parents to destroy Serkan. Not to mention, he’s probably gonna find a way to use the fact that Eda covered for him and Selin about the contract leaking to create a conflict. And here I was thinking Kaan would be our biggest problem. ⁃ THAT FINAL SCENE WAS ICONIC AND EVERYTHING. I don’t think they could’ve chosen a more EdSer style to do the confession! After everything they’ve been through and the situation, it would’ve been totally weird to have a sweet, slow confession (yet at least). The arguing, the sunset, the slight hint of humor WERE ABSOLUTE PERFECT DIRECTION FOR THIS CONFESSION! the way he stopped the cab, got her suitcase, straight up told her to not go like multiple times and then said those magic words we’ve been dying to hear AND THEN GRABBED HER AND KISSED HER! Perfection. Just literally got goosebumps and was giggling like a child throughout it!

Overall: THEY ARE OFFICIALLY TOGETHER. That is literally all that matters in the end. Hands off to Kerem and Hande for their amazing acting and expressions, cause this episode was strong solely due to their performance. There was no room for weakness or downplaying any emotion, and man did they deliver every line and every emotion absolutely perfect. We’re finally onto the next phase, which will be going through conflicts and working through family issues which is going to very exciting but also filled with angst. As per the 2 previews, the next episode seems to have a lot to offer: their romantic scenes, the bolats learning about Eda, Ayfer confronting Serkan, and of course Selin/Ferit wedding. Tbh, I am no nervous for this next part because how they choose to handle Serkan/Eda and portray their relationship at this new starting point is so important in solidifying their bond and their love.

I’m going to be mess until all these issues resolve and I already don’t have good coping mechanisms!

#sen cal kapimi #hande erçel #kerem bürsin #eda yildiz #serkan bolat #knock on my door #edser #turkish dizi #I literally am not going to survive the next couple of episodes #sen çal kapımı

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elencelebrindal · 4 years ago

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Honest Opinion - Wyvern Rhadamanthys

This is a pre-written entry. Due to personal reasons, there is a chance I will not be able to post anything else but the Three Judges. A slight chance, mind you, and maybe only for a week or so, but I wanted to tell you. And now, onto this shady wyvern with too many limbs to be a wyvern.

Also, name change alert! His name in the Italian dub is Radamante, which is basically the same name, but in Italian.

Uhm... there might be some slip ups of me commenting as I went. I normally do that when I write stuff down (and then delete everything), but I am not in the mood to keep an eye out for everything. I’m sorry about that, and hopefully it will just be funnier for you to read. If you see something in these [ ], that’s my commentary. Don’t take it too seriously.

Overall score (character, not looks): 10/10

You guessed it, I love my goth English gentleman here. I don’t know why, maybe because of all the fanworks around him, but the lone fact of him being a noble English gentleman just... I love it, but at the same time it makes me laugh because this man can crush you to tiny little pieces with his pinky finger. Anyway, back to the point.

I know he appeared in both the Sanctuary Chapter and the Inferno Chapter, but I will not be splitting this honest opinion like the Bronze Saints. Mostly because he’s the only Specter that really appears in more than one chapter, and I want to keep all the entries similar between them. So, let’s talk about his first appearance.

I loved the way he was introduced. Subordinate? Yes. Still demanding people to obey him? Absolutely yes. To me, despite feeling a little frustrated at him for disregarding Pandora’s orders, this described the character as it is. Later on in the show, we discover that Rhadamanthys is not a calm person. He’s not patient, and he gets violent very quickly (and on a Saint Seiya scale, that’s pretty high). His introduction, with him listening to Pandora but still doing as he pleases, summed him up pretty good.

And then, we see how powerful he is. There’s a lot of cases of characters who seem intimidating, but then are weak and useless. Rhadamanthys is not one of them. The “fight”, if we can even call it that, against Aphrodite and Deathmask started off this character completely. Yes, you can argue that those two were weaker than before they died, but I don’t think Pandora would send out the resurrected Saints to kill Athena if they were weak. Rhadamanthys not only brushed them off like nothing, but he destroyed them with the same exact technique Deathmask tried to use on him. A technique that didn’t work on him. Again, you can argue that maybe it didn’t work because Rhadamanthys is a Specter and not a normal human being (normal for a Saint standard, not normal normal), but if that was the case why would Deathmask use it on him? So, and I might go a little too much towards him, he has to be damn right powerful. He is one of the Three Judges of the Underworld, after all.

Now, with this part... yeah, he was definitely using the barrier around Hades’ castle in hi favor. Because he would never have won against three Gold Saints in their full power and vigor. Judge or not, no way he would have been able to overpower three Gold Saints. Especially not Milo, Aiolia and Mur together, since they all have different attack and defense techniques. But he played it smart, relied on the barrier, and guess what. He won. Half an episode later, and BOOM. Three Gold Saints sent straight into the Underworld. Dritti all’Inferno. One way ticket.

The absolute bullshit of him almost losing against our dear Bronze Saints, though? Yeah, no. They should have all died as soon as he used his Greatest Caution (I am very tired as of writing this, I don’t remember if that’s the actual English name or the original one), but apparently not even a technique like that can kill those four bastards. I rest my case, they should have died, end of the war because Rhadamanthys would have killed Shun as well. Well, maybe he could have survived Because of Hades. But still. All dead.

And this is why I am not taking away points from him. Normally, if a very powerful Saint, or Specter, or whatever loses (or, in this case, almost loses) against a weaker character, i take away some points. But what happened with Rhadamanthys and Pegasus (alongside the energy of his companions? This is too much bullshit already) was so obviously plot driven that I just cannot blame him for that. This was one of those instances in which you want to yell at the character that’s losing, but you just can’t. Like, physically just can’t.

But let’s continue.

First of all, his interaction with Lune was good. He didn’t belittle him or anything, on the opposite he got quite concerned upon seeing him like that, in so much distress. And then, of course, his interaction with Kanon. I loved how quickly he understood the real problem behind Lune freaking out, and honestly I don’t blame him for falling for Kanon’s technique [Fantasma dell’Oscurità, I forgot the English name dammit]. And the way he straight up said “oh, let’d fight later, my boss is more important than you” and teleported away. I just... I know that scene was to be taken seriously, but man it was funny. It was basically Rhadamanthys saying “you’re not worth my time, hit me up later”, and I loved it.

And now, we can get into one of the two scenes I loved the most about him. Can you guess it? [Yeah, they can, non hanno un solo neurone come me]

This part right here showed how clever and cautious (get it, ‘cause of the Greatest Caution? I’ll stop now) he is. This scene was, at least in my opinion, the one that showed us his full potential. It showed us the reason why he is in the position he is. And I know you’re going to say “but insert my name here, it’s obvious that he’s a Judge, look at his mythological counterpart” and you’re right. BUT there is a reason why he is still in the position he is. Rhadamanthys didn’t blindly trust Orphée [non azzeccherò mai gli accenti su sto nome], but kept his eyes open (quite literally) and didn’t fall for his strategy. Pandora, Minos and Aiacos all fell asleep, but Rhadamanthys? No, he acted carefully, and ended up not only getting rid of Seiya [best part of the show], but also killing Orhpée (through Seiya). Now that is what I call good work.

Onward to the next scene on my favorite list (but first let’s talk about what brought him there). First of all, remember when I said that yes he is powerful enough to overthrow [man, i sure hope that’s the right word] both Aphrodite and Deathmask without taking advantage of an outside factor? Well, it makes sense that Kanon got an almost insta-kill on him. Why? Because Kanon is one of the most powerful Saints out there, and Rhadamanthys is not [come si diceva onnipotente in inglese?] almighty. I liked that he got the shit beaten out of him, because I don’t like characters who always win. Also, Rhadamanthys getting so angry about the other two Judges cutting in? Brilliant. This character stayed true to his personality from start to finish.

But let me tell you. The scene that I loved the most about him. The last fight against Kanon.

His fear was so genuine. Sure, at first he belittled Kanon, laughed at him when he gave up the Cloth and still wanted to fight, but then? As soon as he realized Kanon was not fooling around, and was ready to die just to defeat him, that fear kicked in. Rhadamanthys, despite his rank, despite him technically not being that much alive to begin with, reacted like a proper human being. With pure, unadulterated fear. He was scared to the point of trying to talk it out with Kanon, dammit. That’s what I liked the most, that’s what truly made him tridimensional and real. That’s what made him one of my absolute favorite Specters of all time.

Well, that... and the fact he basically drinks on the job.

#saint seiya #i cavalieri dello zodiaco #los caballeros del zodiaco #os cavaleiros do zodiaco #knights of the zodiac #wyvern rhadamanthys #my opinion #honest opinion

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kattegat-kittycat · 5 years ago

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Fates Entwined, part VI: Safe In A Dream

After your former clan was brutally murdered, you agree to an arranged marriage with Ivar to keep your social status. You may not always see eye to eye and sometimes even find yourself on different sides of one war or the other, but somehow you can never escape each other no matter how much you try to forget, deny and run. Somehow you always end up in each other’s faces. Sometimes quite literally.

A/N: As the fact checking goes, there actually was the possibility of mills and flour during the Viking age. I doubt that the mills in Ribe/Ripa actually date back that far, but well...

Don’t get me into the physical locations of all the Viking towns and stuff. It is incorrect in Vikings, so I don’t try to fix it now. Took me around seven hours from the German border to Ribe by bike, so I guess it would be about a day’s worth of travelling by horse. Anyhow.

There is a little teeny tiny bit of smut in the end, slightly dubcon, little fingering, little oral, nothing in the grand scheme of things, seeing that in Vikings there are people having sex and being raped all the time. I am not that comfortable with that, so, well, it is pretty vanilla.

As I will have to go back and rewatch a few episode to make sure I get the story woven into the series’ context at least a little sensibly, it might take a couple days (read: might be weeks) for me to update again. Just a heads up. I had this planned out a little differently first, but now I will probably have to wait for the series to end, so I know how to end this story.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

On the edge of life.

After all these days are gone. The endless haze will rise. I close my eyes. I'm safe from all harm. I'm safe in a dream.I want you to stay. I want you to be there for me. 'Cause I need your love. I need your touch. I long for your embrace.

Entwined - Safe In A Dream

The people of Ripa had gladly accepted me back in their town and as head of the earldom. Many of them had stories to tell of my uncle ruling them with a hand harder than necessary. I was happy to be back in my hometown at the bank of the river leading through the marshes to the sea. It was beautiful and so much calmer than the hustle and bustle in Kattegat. It was softer than the fjord-environment; there were endless marshes and fields to be farmed and the sunrises were the most beautiful I had ever seen, I was sure of that. I also loved hearing the watermills at Neder-, Mellem- and Overdammen in the inner city, producing all the flour we could wish for.

My family’s estate had been ransacked, but with the support of a few helpful hands, we were able to rebuild it pretty quickly. I knew I would have to return to Kattegat in time to be back when Ivar came home, but I also had to think of my earldom now. Ripa was the oldest town in the north, and I was proud to be its earl.

I talked with my old teacher, Ole, about setting up a council to decide over all important matters in my absence and I trusted Ole to be its head. I was more than happy when he agreed to my suggestion. He had been my teacher when I was younger, so I knew I could place the fate of my home and my people in his hands. After a couple of weeks in Ripa, when I was sure peace could and would be held up even if I went away, I gathered the shield maidens Lagertha had sent with me and we made our way back to Hedeby.

But there were no signs of Lagertha or most of the inhabitants here. The town was uncharacteristically quiet considering the amount of warriors and shield maidens that usually roamed the streets and went about their daily businesses. As we drew closer, we realised that except for a few men guarding the town and the traders, villagers and farmers, the city was empty. We rode up to the Ting house, where I expected to find Lagertha or at least someone who could tell us, what had happened. As I had thought, all we found was her secondary, a woman called Ragnheiđur. She came toward us as we neared the house and greeted us calmly.

She was an imposing woman, broad shoulders and long blond hair, even for a viking warrior she was really muscular. She was as strong as most men and you could see the silent confidence in her every move. She had grown up in Hedeby and had been taken under Lagertha’s wing when Lagertha came here. As I trusted Ole with Ripa, Lagertha trusted Ragnheiđur with Hedeby, because she knew that she wanted the best for her hometown. Astrid was the person Lagertha trusted most, but Ragnheiđur was a close second. I also had to admit that it was a compliment to Lagertha’s tactical thinking that she had left some of her best fighters in Hedeby. Firstly, they could keep foreign forces at bay and second of all, it led people to underestimate Lagertha’s real military power. I made a mental note and then frowned. It only left one question:

“Where is Lagertha?” I asked Ragnheiđur, as soon as I was within earshot.

“Well, hello to you, too. I hear you had a successful journey to your hometown, Earl of Ripa.” Even though she had just shoved my nose into my own impoliteness, she was easy to laugh and did just that.

“I am sorry, there was a lot on my mind. Hello and greetings to you, Ragnheiđur. How come you are here to greet me and not Lagertha? I wanted to thank her personally for her help.”

Ragnheiđur shook her head, but smiled. She was young, but pretty unimpressed by my impatience. She herself was not the most patient person, so she knew how to take my blunt question.

“Haven’t you heard? Lagertha is now the reigning Queen of Kattegat. She overthrew Queen Aslaug who renounced her claim on the throne.”

I was about to just turn my horse around, but Ragnheiđur stopped me.

“It is about to get dark and you probably haven’t eaten. Please come in and sit with me before you leave for Kattegat. You won’t be able to change anything anymore. What has been done, is done.”

I gave her a stern look. “What has she done?”

Ragnheiđur’s face turned sad. “You know what happened. You know why she took the opportunity while you were away. You might not have been Aslaug’s greatest fan, but Lagertha knew you would try to stop her, when she wanted to kill the Queen.” She grabbed my horse’s reigns and petted its nose. “Come in and eat. You won’t change the past by endangering yourself. Don’t forget, you are important now.” She grinned at me as she spoke those words. She was so open and easy to listen to, I didn’t think twice and followed her advice.

I got off my horse and she gave its reigns to her servant girl, who brought it into the direction of the stables. I followed her into the Ting house and the shield maidens who had followed me to Ripa entered just behind us. It would probably be the last quiet evening for a while. The last evening I would not have to talk and act politics, because Ragnheiđur already started asking me about my hometown and if it still looked like I remembered it. As dinner was served, she suddenly turned a little quieter.

“Would you mind taking the princes with you to Kattegat when you are leaving?” she then asked.

“The princes?” I asked, a little confused.

“Yes, trust me, it is a long story.” And with that she started to recount the happenings of the last weeks, clearly marking her distaste in some of the events, but who was she to question her earl? I could see how I would have to treat around Lagertha in the future, because I, too, had sworn her allegiance, just like Ragnheiđur had. When I asked her if it caused her any problems, she smiled again.

“Of course we are not always of the same opinion, but in the end, I find it easier to follow Lagertha than any other earl or queen. I know who she is, I know what she wants, she doesn’t play unnecessary games. She is a just ruler. I am also in a unique position to learn a lot from her, about leadership, about life, about making hard decisions.”

I considered her words and felt relief wash through me. Maybe I had made the right decision, even if it hurt.

Ragnheiđur came to wake me up the next morning. “Y/N, you want to wake up. Margarete just freed the princes and they are getting ready to leave.”

I sat up in an instant, looking straight into her dark brown eyes, as I opened mine. “Gods, Ragnheiđur, you scared me.”

She just chuckled and grinned. “Haha, sleepy head, get dressed and get yourself ready, I’ll tell the princes to wait.” She gave me another look, then she left the house.

When I got out into the broad daylight, Ubbe and Sigurd stood beside their horses, obviously frustrated by the delayed departure, but waiting for me. Or at least Ubbe was, Sigurd was flirting with Ragnheiđur as best he could. She smiled at his jokes, but I could see that she wasn’t impressed. When Ubbe saw me, his face turned darker than before.

“Oh, nice, the traitor makes her entry.”

Ragnheiđur suddenly turned to him and gave him a shove. “Hey, you don’t get to talk about her that way! She is worth more than the two of you.”

I smiled ruefully. “Thank you Ragnheiđur, but he is kind of right. I did betray my promise to his brother.”

Ubbe threw me a dark look. “You know as well as I do, that I am talking about you turning your back on my mother and leaving her defenseless.”

I snorted. “You mean like you did when you came here? Don’t try blaming that on me.”

We stared each other down for a moment, until Ragnheiđur had enough. “You wanted to leave, Ubbe, now you are free to go. Don’t make a scene, just go.”

I expressed my gratitude to Ragnheiđur and then got on my horse, waiting for the princes to do the same. When I heard the sound of their horses following me, I could feel myself relax a little. We rode in silence for the first part of the journey, until Ubbe rode up next to me. Sigurd was still behind us and he didn’t make any attempts at riding up either. He seemed to be content where he was. Ubbe on the other hand had something to say.

“So, you made a pact with Lagertha to gain her support in your attempt at overthrowing your uncle. How did that go for you?” he asked way too sweetly. I wanted to slap him.

“Fairly well for the second part. Turns out, she didn’t really want my help though, but rather to get me out of the way.”

Ubbe’s eyes fixated on me. “So, you were not a part in the battle for Kattegat?”

“No, I got injured claiming Ripa and I only came back yesterday. And that was what Lagertha had hoped for. She knew I had no trouble leaving Kattegat to her, but I would not have let her kill your mother.”

“Why would she…”

“We are pretty similar. She did not only want her home back. She wanted revenge on the woman who took it from her.”

Ubbe objected: “Our mother has not stolen anything…”

Sigurd gave a humorless laugh from behind us. “My dear brother, you of all should know that our mother is far from perfect, she is manipulative and used to getting what she wants, whatever she needs to do for it. I mean, she came back to Kattegat, pregnant with you, driving Lagertha out of her own home. She used the trouble of a girl without a family to get her crippled son married. I am more confused that Y/N would have defended her than by the fact that Lagertha would want to kill her.”

It was the first time, I actually appreciated something Sigurd had said and I looked at him with surprise. “I was indebted to her. And while it might seem unlikely, I did like her. Not very much, but more than a little.” He threw me a sceptical look.

“You do realise she only used you, do you?” he asked.

I shrugged. “I cannot claim that I have been at a disadvantage because of that. I did not like the way she went about it, but I do think that she believed herself to be kind in helping me, even if it served her own ends.”

Sigurd snorted. “You really do like our brother. How very odd.”

We rode in silence again, until Ubbe said:

“So, I hear you’re an earl now.”

I snorted. “I guess I am. But don’t tell Ivar that I am more important than him.”

Ubbe burst into laughter. And Sigurd shook his head in amusement.

“So, I guess congratulations are in order?” Sigurd said from behind us.

I shrugged. “I only claimed my rightful title. And I got my revenge.”

“Like Lagertha?” Sigurd asked again.

“No. I killed all his heirs and loyal followers as well. You don’t want to keep around people who hold a grudge against you. Look where it brought my uncle. Or your mother.”

“That is cold blooded.” Ubbe remarked and I shrugged.

“It is war. There is no place for feelings in a war.”

Sigurd frowned. “Why do I still keep on being surprised by how similarly you and Ivar are thinking?”

“Thank you.” I smirked at Sigurd.

His frown went deeper. “That was not a compliment.”

Ubbe and Sigurd turned uncharacteristically quiet. Until Sigurd piped up:

“Should I feel guilty for not really feeling grief about the loss of my mother?”

Ubbe’s face turned dark. “We do not know that Lagertha killed her! Maybe she is still alive. All we have are speculations.”

I gave a nod. “I cannot see your mother any more. But then again, I could only see her future when I touched her.”

“So, what can you see, if you cannot see what is going on in Kattegat or with our mother?” Ubbe asked.

“Your brother. I can see your brother.” I answered solemnly.

“He is sitting in a dark room somewhere in England. Your father is still with him, but Ivar is sure that they are going to kill him. He is ready to die with your father. He cannot really understand their language, so he doesn’t know what is going on and Ragnar won’t tell him much. He is afraid of losing him, now that he spent some time with him.”

Sigurd rolled his eyes. “Precious little Ivar was probably a big help for father.”

“He was. Ragnar had to carry him through the woods, yes, but Ivar helped him kill the traitors in their midst who were ready to sell them out to the English.”

“How do we know you don’t just make that up?” Ubbe asked. It was not a vicious question, just a curious one.

“You don’t. I don’t even know how I know this. But I can tell you one thing, your brother will not come back the same person after this. I am a little afraid of what the news of your mother’s death might do to him. He will need his brothers after that.”

Sigurd’s voice turned bitter. “We don’t even know if Ivar comes back and if our mother is dead. But I am quite sure that our little momma’s boy could use some harsh reality to wake up and realise the world does not revolve around him.”

“That, Sigurd, is the problem.” My voice had turned sharp. “He is aware of that and that is why he will want to create a world that revolves around him.”

“Should you be speaking about your husband in that manner?” Ubbe asked more amused than actually affronted.

I cocked an eyebrow. “Ubbe, I will do anything to prevent my husband from going on an insane quest to prove his worth to the Gods. But to keep him safe, I have to face the harsh reality of who he is and who he could turn into.”

Ubbe’s piercing blue eyes met mine. “Is he your husband or your quest?”

I shrugged. “A little bit of both. But before all else, he is my life.”

“Well, good luck with that.” I heard Sigurd whisper.

When we arrived back in Kattegat, I found my fears proven right. Lagertha had crowned herself queen and killed Aslaug. But there was nothing, I could do or could have done. Even if I had been in Kattegat, there would have been no chance for me or the princes to help. The people of Kattegat remembered their former leader and Ragnar’s first wife and they supported her. Nobody had liked the etheral and distant Aslaug much, whereas most people still remembered how Lagertha had helped built the foundations for Kattegat to become what it was now. I looked at Ubbe and Sigurd and I could see in their faces that they understood as well. I wondered about Margarete, but Sigurd quickly explained to me that she would be coming back to Kattegat the next morning, at least that was what Ragnheiđur had told them.

I entered the longhouse behind the two princes and watched on as they witnessed what we already had suspected; there was no way to fight Lagertha. Ubbe tried to avenge the death of his mother in a fit of rage when he saw my visions had turned reality and became even angrier when he heard that they had been quick to burn her body as well.

I had held myself in the background, because I had no reason to fight Lagertha, but after the commotion had settled and Ubbe and Sigurd had left the longhouse, Lagertha stood up and came over to me. It was no leisurely stroll, it was a prowl, she was ready to pounce and rip my throat out, if I did anything wrong.

I took a knee and bowed before her. “My queen.” I addressed her and left no doubt where my loyalties lay.

“Y/N, for a moment there, I was confused as to what to think about you appearing with the sons of Ragnar.” She remarked, making sure beyond the shadow of a doubt that I was hers.

I stood and looked at her calmly. “We had the same road to travel, so Ragnheiđur suggested we travel together. Greetings from her and Hedeby, they extend you their congratulations.”

She gave an appreciating little nod. “Thank you. So, tell me, how did your voyage out west go?”

“The earldom of Ripa also extends its congratulations and is at your service should our help be needed.” I said and beamed at her proudly. She took my shoulder and drew me into a tight hug. Even though she touched my shoulder only lightly, I cringed a little in pain. The wound had healed up well, but it still gave me some pain and aches. Lagertha’s eyes followed her hand and noted the reaction.

“I am sorry my queen, I got injured in the battle.”

“That’s a small price to pay to restore the world as it should have been in the first place. We just followed our fates. So you were able to overcome the usurper and kill him?”

“Him and his whole kin. I do not believe in misguided clemency. He tried to erase my family from the world and so I erased his.”

“You probably don’t think it wise of me to keep the sons of Aslaug around?”

I smiled at her wearily. “I am in no position to question your judgement on the matter. And I am thankful as my husband is one of them.”

She gave a nod. “I know. So be assured that unless provoked, I could never kill any son of Ragnar. Also, I know them to act before they think and that makes them less of a threat. The only one not lacking their father’s vision is Ivar, but as long as you can convince him to refrain from going after me, you must fear no harm.”

“It will be hard work, but I will do my best.”

“Surely he will listen to you.” Lagertha said and left no doubt that he better do as she said.

“You haven’t really met my husband until now, have you?” I asked her, slightly amused.

She frowned. “Well, you better find a way to appease him, because I will not spare him if he makes an attempt on my life.” There was a definitive edge to her voice that told me how serious she was.

I bowed my head and gave a nod. “I am aware of that, my queen. I am, however, also aware of the fact that he can be very impulsive and please consider that he is the youngest of the sons and had a close bond with his late mother.”

Lagertha looked at me for a long time, then she gave a nod. “I will take that into consideration”, then she smiled, more to herself than at me, “Ragnar was impulsive as well, when he was young. But well, we don’t even know if they will come back. And then Ragnar will have to…”

“Ragnar will not be coming back to Kattegat.” I told her.

Her eyes narrowed. “And how would you know that?”

“I saw it. I am not as gifted a seer as Aslaug, but Ragnar will be handed to King Aelle. And you know that there is no love lost between those two.”

“And what makes you think your husband will survive if even Ragnar had to surrender?”

I smiled at that. “You really don’t know my husband.” There was a sense of pride that came with these words. Ivar was sly. He was cunning and he was stronger than people gave him credit for. But the less she knew, the better.

She gave me a pitiful smile, but I knew, I was right.

I found Margarete in the kitchen the next day, preparing food for the night. She seemed slightly scared, but mostly angry. There had been no love lost between her and Queen Aslaug, but at least Aslaug hadn’t played her for a fool and used her to her own ends. She resented Lagertha for playing her.

“Can you not free me from Lagertha? I do not wish to serve her, she tricked me into deceiving Ubbe and Sigurd.”

I shook my head with a sad smile. “I am afraid not. I have yet to prove my worth to Lagertha, also, I do not have the money or the means to buy you from her.”

Margarete made an impatient gesture. “What good was your becoming an Earl, when you don’t have any power?”

I lost my patience with the girl. “Margarete! You know how to get out of this! You were already on your way to convince Ubbe to marry you.”

Margarete looked at me with wide eyes. “How do you…?”

“I know these games. A lot of slaves have slept their way to freedom. I don’t judge you for it, people have to do what they can to be free.”

“Like marry Ivar the Boneless, gain military power and overthrow their uncle?”

It sounded almost as bad as sleeping your way to freedom. Well, to be honest, had Ivar not been Ivar, it would have been exactly the same. I still smiled at her.

“And this is why I like you. We are very similar in some regards.”

Margarete took a deep breath and looked at me levelheaded.

“But Ubbe has nothing to say in whatever Lagertha does. She might very well just kill him.”

I shook my head. “He is still a son of Ragnar and that means something to the people in Kattegat. She could never kill one of them, least of them Ubbe. He looks too much like his father. So go on, take your chance. You deserve more than this. But be careful, Margarete. I cannot save you, I hold no power in this town.”

Her head bobbed in understanding. As I was about to go, she grabbed my wrist.

“Thank you. For not judging me based on what I have to do. If you ever need my help…you know where to find me.”

I smiled at her. “Just promise me to be careful.”

I could feel the mood change in Ivar, when Ragnar was handed to Aelle. I mostly felt it through the flare of anger being lit in Ivar’s mind. I could feel the slow burn of hatred consume most of his thoughts and cloud his mind, as he set sail to Kattegat.

I wasn’t there when Ivar’s boat landed at the harbour and when he confronted and challenged Lagertha, I had been to Hedeby for the day and as I returned, I heard people talk and chatter. And then I felt his presence in the town. It was not only his own anger that seeped through the streets, but also the people’s apprehension as they all knew that Ivar coming home to the news of his mother being dead at the hands of Lagertha did not bode well. I heard from somebody that Ivar had been escorted out of the longhouse back to his old dwellings. So, I entered our home, unsure if this even was our home anymore. I took a deep breath and pulled aside the curtain dividing his space from the main room of the house. He was sitting on the bed and his head shot up, as soon as I entered the space. An unreadable grin spread across his face, splitting it in two, making it look like a horrible grimace.

“My wife. My beautiful moon… Tell me, how is your shoulder, love?”

I quickly touched my fingers to the scar on my left shoulder and knew from the calculating look in his eyes that he knew. I closed my eyes.

“How do you know?” I asked calmly.

He snorted and tilted his head. “It’s kind of a funny story…” And with that he took the helm of his shirt and pulled it over his head, revealing a scar that looked exactly like the one I sported and that had not been there before he had left for England. “I had a dream. I got hit by an arrow while conquering Ripa, a town that I had never seen before, but now know better than I care for. I woke up screaming in agony. So… if this is true, you probably went to Ripa.”

I gave a nod. Why did I feel my cheeks burst up in red hot shame, when I had nothing to be ashamed of? “Yes, I did.” I said in a little voice that didn’t even sound like me.

“Even though you promised me to stay in Kattegat.” And there was the accusational tone, I had been waiting for.

“Well, I am here now, am I not?” I countered and felt more like myself again.

His eyes glared at me like blue flames. “But you went to Ripa and endangered yourself.” He pressed at me through clenched teeth.

“I did what I needed to do. And now I am back here for you.”

“You could have been killed!” He screamed at me, which took me aback. I knew his low growling, his mocking, his sardonic undertones, his playful threats, but never had I heard him scream like this. He sounded more like a wounded animal than angry. That surprised me the most. Ivar wasn’t only angry, Ivar was afraid.

“But I wasn’t killed, that’s what matters.” I tried to soothe him.

“No, it is not! I cannot have you traipsing around getting yourself in danger!”

He had pushed me over the edge of my empathy. “And what is it to you?! You were in England trying to get yourself killed!”

“It matters because I don’t want to spend the rest of my life alone! I cannot lose you!”

“But I am supposed to lose you and be fine with it? I know you are planning to go back to England!”

That took him by surprise. “I…They killed my father! I have to go back to avenge his death!”

“Exactly!!!” I screamed at him. “As did I! I also had to avenge my father’s death! So what is the big difference?”

Ivar looked at me for a moment, before he growled. “You are mine!” As an afterthought he added: “Also, it seems like I get injured if you get hurt. So, you die, I die.”

I raised my eyebrows. “But that probably works the other way around as well!”

Ivar had become quieter and quieter. Now he looked at me, eyes wide with simple fear. “So…you don’t know what is happening to us?”

I calmed down instantly. Shook my head. Looked him in the eyes. “I don’t. Your mother was the only one who might have known.”

His face fell and he shook his head. “I cannot believe that my mother and father are both dead.”

I took a step toward him, still hesitant, still not sure how he would react. He looked up to me, his eyes glinting with moisture. When I was close enough, he took my wrist. His grip was painfully hard on my skin, as he tugged me toward him. His other hand took hold of my upper arm and he pulled me down onto the bed with him. His lips found mine before I could say or do anything, the kiss forceful and possessive. He pushed me down beneath him and shoved my dress and underskirt up to my hips, pushing it further up, until he had me pinned beneath him, dress up around my waist. I felt exposed until he kissed my stomach, his hands gliding beneath the folds of the fabric to my breasts. I wanted to protest, but I couldn’t find the words.

“Ivar…”

He growled as he bit into the flesh just beneath my right breast, then kissed it.

“You are mine, Y/N, you will always be mine.”

I sighed, my hand gripping his hair that had become longer and a little shaggy. I liked it and gave it a tug.

“And you are mine, but you cannot just do with me as you please!”

Ivar looked up at me, across my upper body, his eyes like those of a feral animal.

“Then tell me you don’t want this!” he growled.

For a moment, we stared at each other, Ivar motionless above my naked lower body.

I made a frustrated sound and wriggled out of my dress all the way just to unceremoniously drop it over the edge of the bed. Ivar looked up and down my exposed body, then his eyes caught on the scar on my shoulder. He touched its twin on his own body and compared the two with wonder. I was just as fascinated by the scar he should not have, so I sat up and asked him to turn around. It really went through. Just like my shoulder, his had been pierced through, he had the same identical scar on the back of his shoulder that I had. I swallowed hard and looked into his eyes.

“Ivar…”, he looked back with concern, “I am scared.”

At that, he took me into his arms, his skin feeling comforting on mine.

“I am as well. Do you understand now why I cannot have you getting yourself in danger? I don’t want us to die. It is bad enough that I have to fight the English and risk your life.” He placed a kiss on the spot where my neck met my shoulder and I sighed.

“Let us not argue about this any more. I have missed you, my husband.”

“Well, you kept yourself busy, that much is clear.” He chuckled. “If you hadn’t broken your promise, I would be immensely proud of you, my earl.”

I kissed his jaw. “Tell me about your vision, how was it?” I asked, genuinely curious.

“If I am being honest, it scared me. Seeing you, seeing you in danger, it was bad. Father threw an empty cup at me, because I did not stop screaming.” He smiled, almost fondly.

I kissed the side of his cheek, gently tracing his cheek with my fingers, then placed a kiss on his pulse point. I could feel the life humming through his veins, the life he shared with me, and suddenly, I felt possessive, too. I nudged him down onto the furs and almost jumped him, kissing his jaw, his throat, his collarbone. Ivar dragged me onto him and was only happy when I straddled his waist. He looked up at me and his hands reached for my breasts. He kneaded them, then sat up to put his mouth around one of my nipples that already stood at attention. He softly bit down, sucked, making me moan as a shiver ran down my spine. He had talked about women with his father and he was all too eager to try his hand at some of the things his father had mentioned.

As he sucked my nipple, his hand massaged my other breast, pinched the other nipple. I took in a sharp breath.

His brothers were sleeping in the adjoining rooms, only divided from us by a curtain. I had heard Ubbe and Margarete often enough to know what positions Ubbe favoured, but I did not want the same notoriety. As I thought about that, I missed Ivars second hand drifting down and slipping in between my legs. Only when he touched me in my most sensitive spot, I gasped. He rubbed a little, moved his fingers back and forth, always gauging my reaction. He smiled when I bucked my hips forward as he touched me, before he quickly turned us around, lying above me, hand still between my legs. He kissed my lips shortly, then kissed down my midline, until he was just below my belly button. He looked up to me, as if asking permission, and when I gave a slight nod, he slipped further down, parting my legs and suddenly sucking on my clit. I almost squealed at the sensation, but bit my lip instead, my hip pressing upwards. I could feel Ivar hum appreciatively against my skin and the vibration almost drove me wild. His slight attempt at a beard didn’t look like much, but it teased me even further, when his lips explored a little further and he found my entrance. His tongue darted in and out of me a few times, making me grab at his hair. He took that as the right direction and inserted one of his fingers into me, as his lips found their way back to my clit. He pressed his tongue up against it, then licked along all the while moving his finger in me. He added a second finger, which was enough for now. He went back to sucking and his fingers fucked me faster than before, my hips meeting his pace. As his tongue once again lapped at me, my hips stuttered and in spite of my former promise to myself, I loudly moaned his name and tugged on his hair as I came.

My eyes fell closed for a moment, but when he came to rest beside me, I looked into his eyes. He beamed with pride and licked his lips. Then he kissed me with the fervour, I had missed. I could taste myself on his tongue and sighed into the kiss, making him chuckle.

“Did that feel good?” he asked mischievously.

I beamed at him and let him have the glory. “No, not good. Amazing.”

I had never seen the joy that spread across his face before, not on Ivar, and it made my heart jump a little.

“Gods, Ivar, I do love you.”

He chuckled and nuzzled his nose in the crook of my neck. But I was more interested in something else. I slowly let my hands wander across his body, felt his abdominal muscles contract beneath my fingers, until I reached the helm of his pants. I heard his breath catch, but he did not stop me, as my hand dipped into the front of his pants and touched his almost totally hardened member. My hands closed around his shaft and started to move gently back and forth and I could hear the change in Ivar’s breathing. He did feel something. His hips started to move in time with my slow strokes, became a little more demanding after a while, as I felt his prick harden a little more. He moved with me and after a while I let my finger swipe over the tip and then pump him a little faster. Ivar’s breathing became eratic until the movement of his hips stopped and he gave it one violent snap of his hips and shuddered. There was only a few driplets, but Ivar still seemed content and happy. It wasn’t much in the way of a climax, but it was more than nothing. I looked at his face a little worried.

“Did I make you feel something?” I asked him, shyly.

He smiled back at me. “You always make me feel something.” He gave me a kiss.

“No, I mean… did that… did that feel good for you?”

He sighed, then hummed contently. “Yes, yes, that felt very good. One could even say…amazing.” A cheeky grin spread across his face, when I looked at him a little outraged, and his eyes only sparkled with humour, before he kissed me again.

“Y/N, I will never have sex like other people do, but this? This was enough. For once, pain has not been the predominant thing I have felt and that means a lot.”

I smiled a little smile. “Yes?”

“Yes.” He chuckled in my ear. It was one of the most beautiful sounds in the world. It was a pity that I would not hear it for years to come.

#ivar the boneless #ivar ragnarsson #ivar lothbrok #ivar fanfic #ivar x reader #ivar imagine #ivar x you #ivar the boneless x reader #ivar the boneless fanfiction #ivar ragnarsson x reader #vikings #history vikings #vikings fanfiction #ubbe #sigurd #lagertha #fates entwined

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floatingcatacombs · 5 years ago

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Top 10 Sexiest Mechas

12 Days of Aniblogging, Day 4

Mecha is one of the most intimidating genres for anime newcomers. The plots seem overly complex, the episode counts too long, and the giant robot war settings difficult to relate to. I think that all of these are valid concerns, but that mecha often gets a bad rap when most people don’t even want to try it. What both newcomers scared of the genre and hardcore mecha fans often fail to recognize, though, is that on top of the messages of the series, mechas always represent bodies. They are giant robotic representations of their pilots, the visions of their creators, collective psyches, and/or the work’s central themes. The degree of anthropomorphism, the level of abstraction with which the pilot controls the mecha, the colors and shape and size…all of these bodily elements directly tie back to the mecha’s role in the story. Of course, if mechas are bodies, then they are also vulnerable to sexualization. So let’s take all of that into consideration and chart the top 10 sexiest mechs! I’ll be keeping it capped at one entry per series, and will talk about all media, not just anime and manga.

10. EQUUS from Concrete Revolutio

Starting off the list we’ve got a pretty weird pick, but I wanted to make sure that I shouted out this show. Concrete Revolutio is a kaiju and superhero-deconstructing delight, but when it comes to mechas it really plays things by ear and aims for the coolest setpieces possible. The protagonist’s mecha is essentially a Transformer that unfolds from a car into a centaur mecha. While the car body middle leaves a little to be desired, overall the design is a very good synthesis of Car and Horse. It’s certainly a better implementation of the centaur mecha design than say, Overwatch’s Orsia, who has a very visually muddled walking pattern because her legs are far too tiny and packed closely to each other. I’m especially a fan of the wheel joints on the knees and hooves on EQUUS, as well as the unicorn horn. Much as a centaur is an identity crisis between man and beast, Jiro is constantly in self-conflict over whether he can be a heroic protector of all superhumans or if he’s just a monster in disguise.

9. Metal Gear Zeke from Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Metal Gear Solid is one of the most iconic mecha series out there, so picking one specific Metal Gear over all the others proved challenging. The classic boxy REX, the smooth aquatic RAY, the upright Sahelanthropus, the arachnid EXCELSUS…there’s lots of good ones to pick from! It was a tough battle, but ultimately I had to go with ZEKE, the first named Metal Gear chronologically. Designwise, the railgun and Z-shaped legs are a nice touch, but it’s the story arc around ZEKE that interests me the most. A lesbian-sourced war crime machine, ZEKE was created by MSF, the nationless nation of soldiers run by Big Boss. It ended up being hijacked by terrorists from within and nearly caused a globally eradicating nuclear exchange, which is as good of a metaphor as they get for why deterrence is a fucked ideology. Accidents happen, stockpiles become more and more sunk costs, and sometimes anime girl triple agents infiltrate your military base and steal your cool robot.

8. Char’s Zaku II from Mobile Suit Gundam

Confession time: I haven’t actually seen any Gundam. I’m more of a Macross gal myself. But I felt like not having any Gundam on this list would be like ignoring Star Wars on a space opera list. Anyways, Char seems like one of the most awful bastard characters of any series ever, so I’m happy to use a spot on this listicle for his mecha. The Zaku II is infamous for being “three times as fast” as its generic counterparts despite its only difference being its red paint, but c��mon – that’s Char’s absolute moral purity buffing his ship. You deserve that stat buff if you’ve Never Betrayed Anyone In Your Entire Life, Ever.

7. Deus Ex Machina from Promare

--Promare spoilers ahead--

Promare ends, as all Trigger works should, with a whole lot of Act 3 Bullshit. Plot twist after plot twist until all of the themes dangled at in the first half no longer matter, with nonstop fighting getting more ridiculous by the second. At our protagonist’s darkest moment, their problems get handwaved away and they are handed a deus ex machina of a mecha literally known as….Deus Ex Machina. A fusion of Lio’s jet black triangle armor and Galo’s knightly firefighter mecha, the design of this mecha represents their connection and understanding of each other. Yes, of course they’re gay. Why else would it be glistening in rainbow colors?

6. Terminus typeR909 from Eureka Seven

Another mecha anime I’ve hardly seen.. but one that I definitely want to get around to! Eureka Seven just seems like a genuinely delightful time, and I’m a sucker for romance-based mecha shows as well. Anyways, the piloted mechas in Eureka Seven are named after Roland drum machines, with the typeR909 is named after the classic TR-909. They’re nicely proportioned and there’s something sweet about the cutesy magenta robot of the fleet being piloted by a 30-year old man. I guess I’m just a sucker for the gentle undoing of gendered associations and music gear.

5. Eva Unit-01 from Nylon Genesect Evangelical

All of the Eva units are quite tall and bestial and wonderful, but it’s Eva-01 in particular that really stands out due to its conspicuous tendency to disobey its pilot and go berserk, fully unhinging its jaw. NGE takes the “mechs as bodies” thing pretty damn seriously, but throws in the delightful wrench of “what if it’s not your body that’s being represented?”

4. VF-1 Valkyrie from Macross

Macross was the first popular mecha series to utilize transforming robots. What makes Valkyries so sexy is that they’re not just limited to Spaceship and Gundam forms – they have an intermediary form. In GERWALK mode, the cockpit remains exposed having not folded into the mecha headpiece yet, and the wings are still popped out. However, the Valkyire has sprouted its arms and legs already, making it capable of landing, walking on the ground, and wielding a gun pod as a rifle. It’s kind of adorable! Stuffed to the brim with weapons and tech, Valkyries are the perfect blend of stylized and realistic robots. The Itano Circus will live on forever in our hearts as the go-to tactic when you have plenty of talent on your animation team and your mechas are armed with way too many missiles.

3. Jehuty from Zone of the Enders

While the VF-1 mecha is sexy because of its utility and folding form, the Orbital Frames of Zone of the Enders are sexy because…they’re designed with a sexual angle. They’re famous for their literal cock pits, but combined with their broad shoulders, slim hourglass waists, and pronounced thighs, they exude a strong androgynous energy. Jehuty is one of the most recognizable frames simply by virtue of being the playable mecha, but definitely one of the hornier ones too. Case in point: at the end of Zone of the Enders 2, it receives an upgrade after absorbing its sister frame to become Naked Jehuty, a stripped-down but ridiculously powerful mecha with gold sections emulating bare skin. Yoji Shinkawa’s brain is simply too big.

2. Bohrok Pahrak

Look, I can’t just not include any Bionicle on this list. They’re some of the most formative lil’ robots to me. But which one is the sexiest? That’s not really something I’ve had to consider before. While some of the titan sets such as Roodaka and Axonn have a certain sexual angle to them, it feels contrived, carrying the same kind of creepiness as horny OC designs. The Great Spirit Robot might be the super robot of the series, but its design is rather barebones and reminds me too much of The Iron Giant. So I ultimately settled on the Bohrok, the hivemind villains from 2002’s story. While most Bionicle are a combination of biological and robotic, the Bohrok are strictly mechanical – and piloted by the masklike Krana, making them mechas! You really shouldn’t fuck the Bohrok, but there’s just something so perfect about their design. They’ve got it all – not only transformability and an orb design, but transformability into an orb design. Their hunched-over stature reminds me of GERWALK Valkyries – it’s cute and functional! As for why Pahrak in particular, well, the shields it wields are vibrators. Just ignore the fact that they’re powerful enough to seismically level mountains, and you’ll be set.

1. The Entirety of Heaven Will Be Mine

You can tell that Aevee Bee and Mia Schwartz did their homework for Heaven Will Be Mine. They understand better than anyone else that a mecha is a representation of the pilot’s psyche and body, and that damage to the mecha is indistinguishable from that to the pilot. This is reinforced by the mechas being referred to as Ship-Selves – they are literally an extension of oneself more than anything else. By looking at a ship-self, you can almost immediately infer what kind of person the pilot is, what her position in bed is, and what her fetishes are. The layer of abstraction between pilot and mecha ranges from wafer-thin to nonexistent depending on the character. The side effect of this is that since HWBM is about a bunch of gay girls in space having sloppy ideologically charged hookups, the mechas have to be designed just as sexually as everything else. And by god did they deliver on that front. Some of the ship-selves, such as Mare Crisium and String of Pearls, take clear direct inspiration from Zone of the Enders frames. The Krun Macula takes some inspiration from Char’s Zaku II in terms of color and shape, but its face chimes give it a uniquely divine and powerful feeling with no mecha parallel. This perfectly mirrors Pluto’s powerlevel advantage over all of the other pilots, and her humanoid-but-not-quite ship-self perfectly represents her faction’s goals. On the other hand, the assimilationist Memorial Foundation believes in ending the space program and grounding all ship-selves to prevent the splintering of humanity. Their mission manifests literally in that each member of the faction wears some form of bondage gear to represent their shackles to the Earth, and even their Ship-Self has a spreader bar. Heaven Will Be Mine is ridiculously horny, and it has the vision, design, storytelling, music, and everything else to back it up. Truly, the best of all worlds. And if anyone who worked on the game is reading this post.,.thanks.

#12 days of anime #12daysofanime #mecha #hwbm #mgs #bionicle #macross

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cynthiaandsamus · 5 years ago

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New visiting muse poll is up! Since this is the biggest poll I’ve ever had I thought I’d give some snippets about my thoughts on each pair to let everyone know what they’re like and where their place in the villa would be.

Maki Oze and Tamaki Kotatsu from Fire Force: Fire fighting cuties! Anyone who’s seen the show knows what a delight these two are, between the toned and beautiful big sister witch with a hair trigger Maki and the fire cat that literally can’t keep her clothes on Tamaki, these two would be sure to liven up Villa life!

Caulfila and Cheelai from Dragon Ball Super: Spunky girls with a thing for Super Saiyan Berserkers. Both are used to rolling with bad crowds whether it’s Caulfila’s gang of Saiyan ruffians or Cheelai’s street gang before she joined the Frieza Force, both don’t take any guff from anyone. Caulifla tends to be more brash and loud and Cheelai is more kind yet sneaky, these muscle loving girls of destruction will sure bring some energy to Cynthia’s place.

Ayla from Chrono Trigger and Kohaku from Dr. Stone: The cavegirl duo, Ayla tends to be more of what you’d expect from a cavegirl, brash, blunt and comes with a horde of trained dinosaurs, but this prehistoric beauty also has a flirty side as well, coming from a time before shame was invented she makes no bones about what or who she likes and will take what she wants. Kohaku is more eloquent and thoughtful but no less skilled and dangerous. Living in a stone world where people are out for her hide has taught her how to defend herself from all kinds of nasty surprises, though she too is puzzled by the modern conveniences of Cynthia’s villa and will likely have a few fun surprises during her stay.

Shino Ashido “Sinon” and Suguha Kirigaya “Leafa” from Sword Art Online: A long-time tenant of these polls, these girls may have teenage tastes but they are no doubt young women of class. Gifted with special holographic collars by Cynthia that lets them take the form of any of their game avatars while at the villa, these two are looking for more escapist fun than a normal game world can provide. Sinon has grown a taste only for women after her previous experiences with men and though she’s a bit prickly she’s still the badass gunslinger we all know and love. The busty gamer Suguha tends to prefer hanging out in her normal appearance while she’s away from prying eyes but the elf girl Leafa is also down for some vacationing as well. After her experiences in several game worlds she’s looking to try new things and see what the real world has to offer.

Lusamine and Dawn from Pokemon: Two girls that need no introduction, both these ladies have a pre-established relationship with Cynthia and have been waiting for a chance to stay long-term at the villa. The Aether Corporation head is a strong and determined if slightly out there mother that like Cynthia knows what she wants and takes it. The two have long held meetings about who the cutest trainers are and what to do with their mounting fortunes. Meanwhile, topping said list for Cynthia most of the time, Dawn is an up and coming Sinnoh trainer with her eyes not only on the Championship but also on the Champion~ She and Cynthia have quite a playful relationship and on the outside she’s as cute as a button, but seeing Samus getting so cozy with Cynthia may bring out some jealous thoughts in her.

Skyla and Elesa from Pokemon: Another long time visiting muse option, essentially Cynthia and Samus 2.0, a busty determined airhead and her slender blonde companion that has to put up with her, truly these two were made for the villa. The experienced pilot and lovely bubbly Skyla has more enthusiasm than sense sometimes but the pun-loving fashion model Elesa will be sure to keep her straight... figuratively speaking of course.

Ayaka Sunohara from Miss Caretaker of Sunohara-Sou and Mamako Oosuki from Do You Love Your Mother and Her Two-Hit Multi Target Attacks? (shortened for brevity (and mercy) in the poll): What would a visiting muse poll be without Milfs? Shorter, that’s what! The busty caretaker of Sunohara boarding house Ayaka Sunohara has been left to care for the place after her grandmother retired and is now looking for a place to stay and relax for herself. A beacon of motherly kindness and dependability, Ayaka is everything you could ask for in a soft lover but also a determined and stern parental figure that is seemingly good at all domestic skills and gets extremely handsy when she drinks. Mamako Oosuki is a doting yet flighty mother who doesn’t know the first thing about video games and yet commands RPG powers that would make Kirito blush. This mother seems to more often than not find herself in lecherous compromising positions despite her ability to take out almost anything in one hit. Deep down her kind and gentle soul will (literally) light up your heart.

Kagome Higurashi and Sango from Inuyasha: Well there’s a sequel coming, so why not? A normal (if by normal you mean the reincarnation of literally the only person that can purify an ancient jewel with phenomenal mystic power) schoolgirl, Kagome Higurashi found herself in a world of demons, warlords and gravity-defying miniskirts. Despite being a fish out of water Kagome proved herself to be someone of upstanding character who always helps those in need. Wanting nothing more than a feudal fairy tail, this beautiful girl has become somewhat disillusioned with her old world and needs a break, once again heading for another world: Cynthia’s villa, hijinks ensue. Meanwhile the prodigy of the demon slaying clan, Sango and her pet demon Kilala also join Kagome on her trip. Sango’s a kind but no-nonsense kind of girl and it can take a while for her to open up, but it’s worth it to find out because you’ll have a beautiful partner... or a giant boomerang to the head, place your bets.

Riza Hawkeye from Fullmetal Alchemist and Yuffie Kisaragi from Final Fantasy VII: A last-minute entry, Riza Hawkeye is a straight-laced military woman mostly here to keep an eye on the troublemaking ninja she has in tow. That being said, her stern demeanor will surely clash with the villa’s laid back approach but maybe once she warms up to Samus and some of the others she’ll learn to loosen up and have a little fun as well. At the same time, Yuffie Kisaragi is a mischievous ninja who came to Cynthia’s villa for one reason and one reason only: to cause trouble and get into people’s pants.... okay maybe that’s two reasons. But whether it’s stealing their underwear while they’re wearing them or using her unorthodox dorky kunoichi seduction, she’s going to get into those pants one way or another.

Note: Tifa will still be around for a little bit, since she’s so popular I’ll be phasing her out more slowly as the new muses get settled, though Lara will be leaving once the new girls come in

#visiting muses #long post #poll

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mobius-prime · 4 years ago

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212. Sonic the Hedgehog #144

Mobius 25 Years Later: The Die is Cast

Writer: Ken Penders Pencils: Steven Butler Colors: Jason Jensen

We've finally made it to the final installment of this damned arc! Man, that doesn't seem to leave us a lot of time to solve the main conflict of the world ending, does it…? Well, I suppose we have to read the issue first. Knuckles arrives back home after his visitation to Locke's grave, and tells a delighted Lara-Su that he's rethought his stance on training her as a Guardian and plans to start straightaway - after, of course, his current mission with Sonic. When he makes a vague allusion to asking her mother for help on her instruction if he doesn't come back, Lara-Su tries to insist she come along to help, and Julie-Su, who was listening in, becomes indignant.

Aww, that's actually sweet. I think that's the first time we've seen actual, real affection between any of this arc's married couples. Julie-Su sees Knuckles off to his shuttle, driven by - who else - an elderly Harry, and Sally makes him promise he'll bring her husband back to her. He tries to find Lara-Su for a final goodbye before his mission, but is somewhat baffled to not find her anywhere, assuming she was too angry at not being taken along to stick around. The shuttle flies them out through the worsening storms to the "badlands," a horrifically-polluted section of the planet that's so toxic the group has to wear sealed suits as they traverse the terrain and make their way to Robotnik's old hidden base.

Sonic immediately volunteers himself to go back in time despite the dangers Rotor warns him of, and we cut away to the shuttle for a little surprise - Lara-Su has stowed away in a cargo box, determined to come along and help despite what her father thinks. However, before she can even take a step outside the shuttle, she begins to vanish from reality like that scene from Back to the Future. What could be causing this? Well, back in the base, we might find our answer:

And… that's it! No, seriously, that's literally the end of the arc. No context is given for what we just saw happen. It's not explained if this time travel venture indeed caused the world to end, or if Sonic going back in time erased this timeline in favor of another, or what. This is such an abrupt and unsatisfactory ending that I have to wonder if Kenders was forced to end the story early on short notice, because absolutely nothing is explained here. We spent over a dozen issues building up to something, enduring trite teen drama and old stuffy adults arguing at each other while locked into loveless marriages, and got the most vague and useless ending possible, after all of that. I mean, what was even the point of all this then? Some chapters in this arc had literally no plot or character progression whatsoever! The aversion of the end of time and space was literally the most interesting potential plot hook in this entire arc, and it's basically swept aside in the last few pages with no explanation. This almost makes the actually good writing of last issue seem useless, if this is what came directly afterwards. *sigh* Ah well, we're finally free of this nightmare. And as it turns out, we're very close to the end of Penders as a whole! Those of you who have read the comics before might have noticed that we're rapidly approaching the 160th issue, which is when a certain fan-favorite writer took the reins and started to fix a lot of the messes that the previous writers left him with. So if you're one of the ones who despises everything Penders ever wrote, you don't have much longer to suffer - just a few more issues and we're in the clear!

Love and Loss

Writer: Romy Chacon Pencils: Jon Gray Colors: Josh Ray

This story is a bit of a bizarre one, being very unlike any others we've read so far. There's very little action and a whole lot of solid blocks of text to read, but in a way, I do feel it's interesting and contributes to several characters' arcs in a positive manner. A poor bear is doing his best to sell some newspapers to the denizens of Knothole one Wednesday evening when he suddenly finds himself mobbed by a horde of rabid women all grabbing for a copy.

Now that is quite interesting. No, I don't mean the love advice column - I mean the little signpost in the second panel, the one listing the prices for products at the stand! Now, Jon has a habit of making up things to put on posters and the like in the background of his art, many of which are clearly just meant to be humorous and not to be taken seriously, but this is literally (as far as I can tell) the very first instance we've ever seen of an actual unique currency in this world! "Mobiums", huh? They seem to be kind of equivalent to Japanese yen, in that a single one is barely worth a penny - I mean, I'm pretty sure they're not meant to be like dollars anyway, as $75 for a single comic seems incredibly steep. For now, I suppose we'll have to add "Mobiums" to our list of potentially-canon bits of worldbuilding info about Mobius.

Anyway, as you might expect, several of our favorite girls in this comic have gotten themselves a copy today, and as it turns out, they've all written in their own letters and are eager to see the advice this "Aly" will give them. First up is Bunnie, who writes in under the pseudonym "Feeling Terribly Alone." Obviously, her main problem is with Antoine. She details how they've grown apart and how she feels like she doesn't even know him anymore - and yet, despite all their recent difficulties, she's still in love with him and wishes things could go back to the way they used to be.

Poor Bunnie. One of the things that seems to crop up for her now and again is her well-hidden insecurities about her cyborg nature. From her recurring nightmares, to her concern over the idea of Antoine still being able to be attracted to her despite her robotic parts, it's clear that she struggles a lot more with her nature than she lets on, and her relationship with Antoine boosted her confidence immensely. They were clearly happy together, and just as they were getting past the honeymoon phase and settling into a more steady relationship, he became cold towards her without a clear explanation as to why. It's clearly broken her heart at a time when she desperately needs to be able to hold it together, and the idea of her sitting in her house at night, alone and sobbing to herself uncontrollably, is really sad.

Next up is Mina, AKA "Singing the Blues." Her letter discusses how lately she's feeling torn between old crushes and new relationships. Her new boyfriend, Ash, was briefly shown in StH#134, but apparently they've grown quite close in the year that Sonic was gone. However, with Sonic back, Mina has been feeling the old familiar butterflies around him, and questions whether she truly loves Ash in the same way she cares for Sonic. (Obviously, however, in the usual vein of these kinds of ask columns, everything she says is vague, not mentioning any names.) Aly's letter advises her to not give up on a current happy relationship to chase someone else who may not even be interested, and Mina appears to genuinely take this to heart, deciding to give her boyfriend a call despite the late hour.

Well, good for her! Mina's a sweetheart, and it does seem like she and Ash genuinely care for each other. The third letter comes from Amy, or "Wishing for Love," who lays out her crush on Sonic and how she's tried to get his attention here and there, including going so far as to "look and dress older" (bit of an understatement there, Ames) to catch his eye. However, she's frustrated that she can't seem to gain his affections, and wants Aly's opinion on whether she really is putting too much effort into a silly crush, or whether she actually has a chance. Aly begins by tactfully pointing out that it sounds like she's still young, and it's not a good idea to rush into love too quickly when there's so much more life ahead.

…yeah, that's about what I'd expect from Amy. After all, remember that despite her physical age, she still mentally skipped half her childhood up to this moment, and she's also the hopeless romantic type, so it's not surprising she'd be unimpressed by advice telling her to look away from her crush. The article appears to be winding down, but everyone reading is struck by what they see in the last entry, from someone called "Royally Scared." The writer dives into her story, about her deepest love and how they made a commitment to each other only for her love to be "lost," which broke her heart. When he came back, she tried to get him to walk away from his "job" for a better job in her family's "business," but he refused and they had an ugly break-up as a result. She still loves him, but she's too scared of losing him again, especially because he's so brash and throws himself into danger without a care.

Everyone immediately realizes that this is Sally's letter, and are riveted to the page for Aly's response. Aly admits that she doesn't have a solid answer for this one, but says that it seems like they both have valid points. She points out that Sally's "dramatic confrontation" might not have been very fair to her lover, and urges them to both talk it out like adults after they take some time apart to reevaluate their own priorities, before wishing her luck and concluding the article. I just want to point out that the entire section where she lays it out and Aly responds is masterfully put together, with the heart-filled background slowly transitioning to a deep, tangled mass of purple and black as the letter goes on, interspersed with silhouettes of Sally crying and looking very alone in a dark void. I've pointed it out before, but Sally was very clearly traumatized - badly - by everything she's been through, with Sonic's supposed death being a breaking point for her, and the backgrounds of this issue symbolize this struggle very effectively. But here comes the real twist. After all, "Aly" is clearly a pseudonym, and no one knows who's really running this column. So who do you suppose it is?

God damn. Even in the middle of dealing with severe PTSD, Sally's still got a damn good head on her shoulders. It seems that people were starting to suspect her as the writer, so she deliberately wrote in a letter that was obviously her, and then answered it herself to throw readers off the scent. And her answer to herself was well thought out and reasonable - it's clear that she wrote her entry letter first, then forced herself to take a step back and evaluate her situation as though she were a third party who didn't know any of the finer details. The result is a response that doesn't betray her true identity, and isn't obviously colored by her own biases, where she gets a chance to look at her situation with a clearer head (probably helped out substantially by Nicole as an outside perspective). She flat-out acknowledges that her own actions on the stage the night of Sonic's welcome home party were unreasonable and unfair to him, and calls herself out on it in a public newsletter (even if most people aren't aware of the circumstances behind this entry). I feel like this only supports what I said about The Slap several issues ago, that she wasn't acting rationally that night and needs to be cut some slack on account of her (now-canonically-acknowledged) trauma. And in the end, her Aly persona is right. While she and Sonic still love each other, their differences have made a stable relationship between the two currently impossible, meaning it's best for them to take that time apart to figure out what each of them want before they think about getting back together. I think this is a really good follow-up to what happened in that issue, and gives a lot more insight into just why Sally did what she did, and how she's handling it after the fact.

This issue ends with a single page reminiscent of the Sega Data Files of issues past, this time covering the entire Acorn Royal Family. There's not much info here that we don't already know, but we do find out that Elias and his wife Megan's child has been born by now, a daughter named Alexis. Hope we get to see them all again soon!

#nala reads archie sonic preboot #archie sonic #archie sonic preboot #sonic the hedgehog #sth 144 #writer: ken penders #writer: romy chacon #pencils: steven butler #pencils: jon gray #colors: jason jensen #colors: joshua d ray

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drun-in-a-million · 5 years ago

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[ @little-justice And introducing @egan-first-of-his-name ]

Mefnan didn’t look anything like Drun had expected.

Then again, he wasn’t sure *what* he’d been expecting.

The planet was brilliant green, almost emerald, glowing brilliant against the dark backdrop of space. It was also very small, not looking much bigger than Earth’s moon. It almost seemed to glimmer and shine as they got closer. Drun felt his sydark pound. The voice was louder than it had ever been

Ah ahh ah ahhh~

“Mmm I can’t wait until we figure this out,” Ada said sleepily as she woke from her nap. She stretched, her back cracking a bit. “Just to get the voice to shut up and I can finally fucking sleep.”

Drun rolled his eyes. “Like you slept before- Ow!” He narrowed his eyes at his sister and rubbed his arm where she’d hit him. “I am driving you know?”

Ada scoffed. “Don’t be such a baby. You’ve had way worse than that.”

Drun couldn’t argue with that. He was Denivar, after all. Getting kidnapped frequently by various assholes came with the territory.

As they began to approach the atmosphere, the ship suddenly jolted sideways. The lights on the console began to flash repeatedly and a loud buzzing sound was coming from the dash.

“Um?! What is happening?!” Ada demanded, sitting back up in her seat.

Drun clutched onto the helm with a death grip, trying to steer the ship to no avail. It felt like something was literally trying to keep him from completely getting through the atmosphere of the planet. He growled. The voice was so loud. Desperate, even.

Ah ahh ah ahhh~

“DO SOMETHING, DRUN!” Ada shouted.

“I’m working on it!” Drun yelled back.He gave the helm a quick, violent jerk, forcing it forward and to the side. Finally the clouds of the atmosphere cleared, showing a large clearing in the middle of a forest. However, the ship continued to jostle and jump with turbulance, and he couldn’t seem to get it to come back up.

Shit.

“Hold on to something!” He told Ada, pressing a button to ensure they were fastened into their seats tightly.

Ada didn’t bother to argue, closing her eyes and bracing herself.

00000000000000

When Drun came to, he was still in his seat surrounded by rubble.

His antennae were ringing, not helping his aching head at all. He blinked a few times to try and shake the feeling off, grunting. There was something cold dripping down his face.

It was a struggle, but he managed to find his consciousness once more, especially when he began to hear a loud whimpering next to him. “Ada?” He blinked a few more times, trying to focus. Blood. There was blood. And… “Oh shit, Ada!”

For the most part his sister seemed fine, until you got down to her left ankle. It look almost twisted out of place, obviously broken. Something was sticking out of it, and it was covered in purple blood. Ada let out a painful cry followed by another whimper.

Drun sprung into action, ignoring the pain in his head as he quickly unfastened himself from his seat. “It’s okay. You’re okay we’ll find you some help.” He carefully unfastened her seat belt before gingerly scooping her up.

“Yeah, from where, genius?!” Ada snapped, only to cry out and sob when her ankle was jostled a bit from being picked up.

“There’s still people on this planet,” Drun told her. “I’m sure they have to have doctors or some-”

“Stop!”

Drun did as he was told, stopping at what remained of the door to his ship. He found himself surrounded by several people, all with deep blue skin and one eye. All of their eyes seemed to be the same shade of green, while their hair colors varied as much as humans’ did. He swallowed. “Hey, listen...we’re...we’re not here to cause an trouble we just-,”

Ah ahh ah ahhh~

At that moment Ada’s hands began to crackle and spark. Nothing shot out, just a bright glow of electricity around her fingers. A small flurry suddenly appeared above Drun’s head. He looked at the crowd nervously. A few of them had their elements on display, but none of them fluctuated like his and Ada’s suddenly did.

One of the older members of the crowd stepped forward, looking them up and down. He didn’t look quite as suspicious anymore, his gaze holding more of a cautious curiosity.

“Ozynite or Zehara?”

Drun’s brow furrowed. In all his research, he hadn’t heard those names. “I’m...I’m sorry?’

“The Call. You can hear it right?” the man asked. “It happens every so many years, but it can only be heard by the members of two families. So which one are you from?”

Drun shook his head. “I...I don’t know. I don’t even know what you’re talking about.” He heard Ada whimper again. She looked like she was about to pass out. “Listen...we just recently found out we were part Mefni. My sister is injured really bad. Can you please help her?”

The group exchanged looks for a moment before the leader gave a nod. “Okay. But not without answering some questions.”

Drun nodded. “Yeah, of course. Thank you.”

0000000000000

“Lazuroth, huh? You must be from the Zehara clan then,” the man (who was names Brix) told them after Drun told him about what had lead them here. “The head of it, Viggo, was captured for some time back by the queen.” He seemed to notice the horrified look on Drun’s face. “Don’t worry. We know there’s been a new queen in charge for years. We may look primitive, but we just like being more one with nature is all.”

Drun nodded as they entered the village. It was strange, towers of lit up dwellings spinning around the trees around them. The lights were of recent technology but for the homes themselves seemed to almost blend in with the wood of the large, tall trees. Brix led them to one of the bigger ones of the ground, which upon entry looked very much like the med bays Drun had become accustomed to.

He carefully laid his currently unconscious sister on the nearest bed, where she was immediately surrounded by staff. One of the, a girl who looked to be around Ada’s age, tilted her head. “She’s cute.”

“Rejika,” One of the older staff members scolded.

“I’m just saying!” Rejika replied. She looked back at Drun with a smile. “Your sister’s in good hands. Don’t worry.”

Drun nodded. “Thank you.” He turned back to Brix. “Could you like...explain what’s going on? You obviously know what this...Call is. But I...I don’t understand why it’s calling us or...anything else you just asked about.”

“Oh so that’s why you’re here,” Rejika said as she began placing an I.V catheter in Ada’s arm. “I was wondering why some strange aliens would be on our planet. We barely get people here for trades, let alone for some kind of vacation.”

Brix sighed, giving Rejika a look. Drun, however, was curious. “So you know about the Call, too?”

“Pfft. Everyone knows about the Call,” Rejika explained. “It’s just that only a few of us can hear it. Ooh! Which clan are you from, then?”

“Um…” Drun turned back to Brix. He had already forgotten.

“Zehara,” Brix replied.

“Really? Sweet!” Rejika replied. “My friend Lumi is from that clan. So I guess she’d be like...your cousin or something?”

Drun’s eyes widened and his antennae perked up. “Really? Do..do you know where I could find them?”

“Oh yeah they-”

Brix suddenly cleared his throat, silencing Rejika. He turned to Drun. “You have to keep in mind that...they may not want much to do with you considering...well considering who your grandmother is. Not to mention the Call comes they tend to haul up somewhere where they can muffle it. The Ozynites are the same way.”

Drun’s antennae drooped. “Well...can’t blame them for that. But...can you at least tell me what this is about. I just...why is my family being called at all.”

Brix sighed. “You sure you wanna know?”

“I’m positive. I...I’m supposed to be here. I just don’t know why.”

Brix looked up at Rejika, as if to tell her to get back to work. She sighed but went to completely focusing on Ada. Brix waved his hands and Drun watched with fascination as water flowed from them in different shapes around them. The began to form that of settings, buildings, people, moving around to Brix’s words.

“Several generations back, our planet was ruled by two clans. The Zeharas and the Ozynites. For years these clans were rivals, constantly finding any excuse to fight with one another. Until one day, a couple of new heads of the family came into power, deciding perhaps it was time to bury the hatchet.

They decided to arrange a marriage between the oldest Ozynite daughter and the second oldest Zehara son. A few people showed concerned, because the bride possessed the most unpredictable and rare element of our kind.” His water turned orangey red and rippled around. “Fire.”

Drun blinked. “Is it really?” He suddenly thought of Addie, and her ability to change flame into different colors.

Brix nodded. “Yes. However, the Ozynites assured the Zeharas that the bride had impeccable control of her powers, and that any offspring the two had would most definitely be strong and powerful.

“At first, it seemed the match was prepared well. The bride and groom got along swimmingly, and it seemed there would be finally be peace between these warring clans. However, it was not to be.

“The day before the wedding, the groom was found burnt to death at the feet of the would be bride.”

Drun actually gasped. Yes, it sounded like some old tale that probably had some kind of meaning to it or whatnot, but that actually had shocked him. He never thought of his sister’s powers as any more or less dangerous than his own. “Did...did she lose control.”

Brix shrugged. “Some say yes. Some say it was intentional. Either way it sparked a battle that lasted for days. The bride herself nearly killed so many people during before finally being subdued.

“Ever since then, even after both clans lost the power they had to time, they have never tried to reconcile again. Not that they fight in the street, persay. But they’re not inviting each other over for dinner or anything.”

“Heck, during this time we don’t see members of either family,” Rejika said, finally done getting Ada hooked up to her pain meds, nanites, and antibiotics. “The Call can be pretty overwhelming. At least that’s what Lumi tells me.”

“That story doesn’t explain why there’s a Call in the first place. Why is it calling? Who is it?”

“No one knows,” Brix replied. “Some say that ever since that great battle that because so many Mefni were slain that day, it created an imbalance and the Call is sort of a punishing reminder of what the families caused.”

Drun frowned. That...didn’t seem right. This couldn’t be just some..punishment of sorts caused by his ancestors. At least...it certainly didn’t feel like it. No...something was calling him to action. He could feel it in his bones.

Ah ahh ah ahhh~

His antennae perked back up and he found himself looking over his shoulder. He narrowed his eyes. “What’s in that direction?” Drun asked.

Brix and Rejika exchanged glances before the girl answered. “It’s where the town of Madej once stood-”

‘Rejika!” Brix scolded.

“Look. I know you old folk like to pretend that any inconvenience will just pass on it’s own, but you can’t deny the way the erratic the weather has been! The rivers running backwards? How it will snow in one place but not five feet away it’ll dry up and catch fire.” She narrowed her eye. “The planet has been out of balance for years because two families decided to just kill one another! And honestly, if he thinks he can stop then, hell, let him!”

“There is nothing to stop. This isn’t some curse to be broken! We simply all just need to be more devout in our offerings and-,”

“Yeah, sure, whatever. You clearly haven’t been around someone when they’re hearing the Call. You ever have to stay up all night with someone while they cry and beg and pray and wish it would stop? Hmm? Didn’t think so.”

Drun couldn’t help but look over back at his sister. She seemed so peaceful right now, asleep and resting. He was glad they’d found people to help her. He was not like his mother. He had no idea how to deal with a splinter let alone a broken ankle. He was suddenly reminded of how she was acting when they’d finally decided to come here. “Make it stop. How do we make it stop?”

Ah ahh ah ahhh~

Drun took a deep breath, rising to his feet. “Do you mind keeping an eye on my sister while I’m gone? She’ll probably be mad I left her, but she can’t come with, obviously.”

“You can’t possibly be serious-,”

“I have to know why I’m here. Why the Call crossed over galaxies and star systems to make sure my family heard it, too.” He looked to Rejika. She seemed like she’d be more help. “I could use a map or something to help me get to Madej. Or where it used to be, I guess.”

Rejika pulled out her phone. “I can give you the coordinates Will that be enough?”

Drun beamed. “That’s perfect. Thank you.”

“No problem!” She shot a quick look at Ada before giving Drun a grin. “So...is your sister single?”

0000000000000000

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ash ridden valley that was once the town of Madej, a young half-Mefni found himself sneaking around the small town he’d found himself in, scouring for supplies and information. He’d heard how feared and mistreated fire users are, so he knows if he’s caught, it could spell his doom.

He had to find the town of Madej. That was where the voice was coming. That was where the answers would be.

He could only hope that his mother and father didn’t become too angry at him for taking off...

Ah ahh ah ahhh~

#[Denivar Dynasty}#(( heh heh heh ))

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borisbubbles · 6 years ago

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ESC 2019 Preshow #09

09. ITALY Mahmood - “Soldi” Autoqualifier

youtube

👏SOL 👏 DI 👏 SOL👏 DI 👏

ENTRY ANALYSIS

Much like Jonida, Mahmood sort of slipped for me when I grew more attached to other songs, but that does not mean he’s not fucking amazing! I, too, fell in love with “Soldi” on first listen when I noticed the lyrics rhymed “Ramadan” with “Jackie Chan”. 😍 😍 😍 😍.

Other amazing things about “Soldi” include: the 👏 use 👏 of 👏 clapping 👏 as 👏 punctuation 👏, the ~Iconic~ lines in Arabic during the middle eight and the wonderful message. It was the FIRST SONG IN THIS YEAR WHICH MADE ME SHED A TEAR!!! 😭😭😭 I don’t know how or why, but I listened to the song with translated lyrics and it just *clicked* for me. I WAS LYING SICK IN BED WITH THE FLU, OKAY. Forgive me my momentary weakness!!!

So is it any wonder “Soldi” was greeted with near-unanimous critical acclaim and support? No, of course not. It’s a fantastic song and 100% deserved to win San Remo!

...

okay, so San Remo... I did *NOT* watch it but I’m aware of Irama, Loredana and Simone, so consider those the reps if I had bothered with an NF corner. Ideal Husband Material, Blue-haired Rocker Hag and Random Dude Who Reads Poetry (not sings. reads.) respectively <3

Slated to win San Remo this year was Ultimo, who entered San Remo with some pretentious piano ballad called “I tuoi particulari” which as the name implies was particularly boring. God what a yawnfest. However, it as also the audience favourite somehow? Him?

So, the juries marked it down just enough so ‘Soldi’ won instead because again, BORING don’t work. Ultimo, instead of being like “well I lost, but oh well, I wasn’t going to Eurovision anyway*”, showed his true Salvador colours by throwing a temper tantrum on social media and spent the entire press conference uglysobbing about how quality was denied (his own words! He refered to *himself* as quality!).

(*he said he would never do Eurovision because he believes it is Eurovision is beneath him 😬) Oh and some right-wing Forza politicians chimed with their usual drivel that Mahmood was unfit to represent Italy because Mahmood is gay & half-arabic while Italy is a vafanculo blob of fragile masculinity which can only be properly represented by drug-riggen, ugly-tattoo’d brats. Guess what? WE 👏 DON’T👏 CARE. 👏 FOR YOUR 👏 MODERN TIME 👏 PREACHIN’ 👏 FORTUNATELY, Mahmood agreed to do ESC (after a week long thinking period lol) and all was well in this world . 👏 ANOTHER VICTORY FOR QUALITY 👏

Edit note: it has become apparent that my brash and snarky assesment was largely malinformed, but user @wingednerdydude provided a pretty detailed summation of the situation.

It’s a quite long explanation I’ll put a tl;dr to appease the fans: Ultimo did indeed not take the loss well, but the media also took an off-hand comment he made about Mahmood out of context and he retaliated, which led a lot of a unnecessary drama and mutual poo-slinging. It’s not just the ESC fans that overdramatize shit, who knew.

For those who want to read it:

Ultimo never insulted Mahmood or said one single bad thing about him or that his song was better than Soldi, let's make this clear from the start. It's also true that he never even said anything complimenting him or his song. Mahmood actually said he never spoke to him nor heard from him in any way. The only thing Ultimo ever said is that he is happy for Mahmood and his success, that's it. If Ultimo really did compliment him then I never read or watched such interview

The mess during Sanremo's press conference blew up right when Ultimo said he was happy for (I'm quoting) "the other ragazzo, Mahmood". Ragazzo is a really neutral term in Italian, it just means young man, I wouldn't know how to traslate it. The journalists found it "insulting" for some weird reason (Mahmood actually said he thinks it's a totally okay term) and said Ultimo was disrespecting him. More context: Ultimo clearly was disappointed about his 2nd place

The press knew it and since the moment he entered the press room they literally started rubbing his missed victory in his face and kept asking him "yeah, but don't you think you should have won?". Ultimo eventually got pissed like mad and rightfully so. They were literally trying to make him lose his temper because they knew he had a bad character and was disappointed. They wanted a scoop and they got it.

Ultimo told the journalists that they were just trying to get an article out of it and that any thing he would say, they would turn it into something else. Then he said (quoting) "I'm fucking done with you". Boom, all of the press room went crazy and started throwing insults at him (sore loser, shit, bastard, ungrateful etc...). At some point Mahmood entered the room and the situation got chill again. By the way, look at the Il Volo guys while he speaks. They agreed.

Which takes us to the next step: why did Ultimo explode like that? I'll get ther: the day after there was a tv program the contestants were supposed to take part in. Ultimo didn't show up. It was full of journalists who obviously insulted him, they showed the clip of Ultimo insulting the press. One of the journalists though, she gave no fucks and just said the things as they were: and that is, the press insulted him. Not only after Ultimo's insults, but also earlier.

Ultimo wasn't the only artist who got insulted: the guys from Il Volo were too, during their performance and while the results were being announced (everyone cheered cause they hadn't won). The journalist says there were clips of it. Ups, looks like they "couldn't show them". Funny how they found Ultimo insulting journalists, but not the opposite. And those videos exist. In particular, there was a video of Ultimo being insulted by press, days before

There were a lot of talks, clickbaity articles written etc... Ultimo tried speaking in a video he posted and told his point of view. Now, mind you, I don't agree with some of the stuff he said. He said that he was sad about the whole thing and that it had been blown out of proportion, his words twisted to show him like the bad guy. And this is true if you read what I wrote. About the results: he was pissed because he had won the televote by a very large margin but lost.

Here I think he was really wrong, cause those are the rules, jury and televote results add up to the final result, it's maths. It may be disappointing, but that's how it is. Still, he was sad that people had to PAY to vote and their votes didn't matter in the end to choose the actual winner. Debatable. But he did make a good point about one thing: the jury votes are made of the votes of some experts (they're like 10 and actually often are people with no music knowledge)

And the rest of the jury votes are journalists. Now, wait a second: the same journalists who threw personal insults at him and Il Volo for no reason if not a personal anthipathy were the ones deciding if they could win or not. Now this is interesting, cause the jury is supposed to be unbiased. His complaining about this is just right in my opinion, something should have been done about it (journalists faced no consequences for their insults to contestants).

This is where the whole thing ended. Ultimo just asked not to speak about it again, Sanremo's week has now well passed and everyone moved on, so that's literally all. I hope I was of some help to better understand the situation. And please guys, no fighting, let's just enjoy Mahmood's song.

AND LET US NEVER SPEAK OF HIM EVER AGAIN!!!!!! ~moving on~

Autoqualifier Odds: very good

The most important thing one has to take away from “Soldi” is that it’s a fucking excellent song. There’s a reason it received near-universal critical acclaim from all sources.

But, as the saying goes, it’s not the song but what you do with it. Mahmood is making great ~live performance progress~ as more pre-parties are showing his growing expertise, but at the same time I feel like everyone has sort of forgotten about him as a potential winner? Actually my friends posited the idea that Mahmood might be a Jamala-esque winner (by finishing second in both jury AND televote) and I think that is an intriguing possibility we should consider! If Duncan somehow doesn’t come through (and he won’t because Expected Winner’s Curse), it will be Mahmood who shall pick up the pieces and win instead. (unless the audience wants to go for the novelty act again, in which case Hatari or Bilal will win) I recognize that Mahmood could go down the usual Italy trajectory and be sandbagged by juries into a mid top 10 placement, I guess. I don’t want to get my hopes up and overrate his odds like I did with Gabbani. Even under the worst circumstance, Mahmood is definitely finishing somewhere in the top 10 though, as all Italian men (fragile or not) do.

Projected placement: 1st-8th in the Grand Final.

Link to the masterpost

#Eurovision #Eurovision Song Contest #ESC2019 #Eurovision 2019 #Italy #Mahmood #Soldi #ClapClap

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improving-my-lifestyle-blog · 5 years ago

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5 foods to lose fat that actually taste good.

Your weight is a form of balance, and calories are parts of the equation. Weight loss results from burning more calories than you eat. You can do this by reducing the extra calories from food and drinks, and increase the calories you burn with physical activity.

When we are told about healthy food for weight loss or something similar, we immediately think of green juices or salads. These things are effective, but they don't really taste very well. This belief of healthy ≠ delicious is what limits many people when starting a weight loss diet. This is why I bring you foods that contribute to fat loss, and at the same time taste good.

Foods you shoudn’t eat.

First, let's talk about what you'll not see on this list. Basically those who not only provide us with large amounts of energy, but also do so quickly. This is the case of sugar, refined flours and rice - present in most pasta, breads and rice that we consume regularly, as well as soft drinks and industrial juices. These products generate tremendously rapid increases in blood sugar, which stimulates a hormone called insulin that acts by introducing sugar into our muscles - which a priori could be positive - only when the rise in sugar is sharp and large amounts this insulin can also stimulate the entry of that energy to another type of cells called adipocytes, which are related to the increase in fatty tissue.

Now that you know the key to a good diet and what things aren't helping you with your goal, here are 8 foods to lose fat that really taste good.

1. Chocolate

I know, it seems incredible, but chocolate - although it contains monounsaturated fat - helps burn belly fat. Of course, to benefit from these effects, the chocolate you choose must have a high cocoa content (at least 85%). So you know, we are not talking about Hershey's or M&M'S or chocolate ice cream, we talk about real chocolate and although many people consider such a very high percentage a little bit too bitter, there are also many people who prefer a bitter chocolate than a sweet one.

2. Avocadoes

There is a false belief that avocados get fat, but it is not. On the contrary, avocados are full of healthy fats and are especially rich in oleic acid (a monounsaturated fatty acid) the same type of fat found in olive oil and that eliminates or delays the feeling of hunger. In addition, it has fiber, ideal for a flat stomach. They make salads 1000 times better and are perfect for creams and sauces, impossible to resist their taste. In addition, they also contain a lot of water, so their energy density is not so high, and they are rich in other important nutrients such as fiber and potassium.

3. Berries

Blueberries: These fruits have large amounts of antioxidant vitamins and minerals, help eliminate abdominal fat, reduce cholesterol and control blood sugar levels. Infallible in reducing belly fat.

Cherries: These small fruits have very few calories and a lot of fiber, which helps you feel satiated much longer, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Raspberries: In addition to delicious, they are very nutritious. In fact, a cup of raspberries contains only 64 calories, 14.7 grams of sodium hydrate and 1.5 grams of protein. You can consume them in food and beverages, or as a snack during the day (a fist).

Blackberries: They are as nutritious as the ones we have presented, since they contain antioxidants that, constantly consuming, accelerate fat burning. As if that were not enough, they have a diuretic effect that helps you reduce fluid retention.

Strawberries: These delicious red fruits are of great benefit, since they help to purify the body, eliminate toxins and prevent the accumulation of liquids, due to their diuretic effect.

4. Eggs

For a long time, eggs have been unfairly treated, limiting their consumption due to their supposed harmful effects on cholesterol levels. The myth is gradually disappearing, in part because eggs have shown in several investigations to have very beneficial properties for cardiovascular and metabolic health. Also because they help burn fat. Several studies have shown that breakfast eggs reduce the feeling of hunger and therefore excessive calorie intake during the morning. The cause could be its high protein content, which increases the metabolism by about 20% during the hours after eating them and gives a feeling of being satiated.

According to a controlled study, although limited, done in 21 adult men, those who ate 3 eggs consumed 400 calories less per day and reduced their body fat by 16% more than those who followed the same daily routine but ate anything for breakfast.

5. Apple Water

Apple water is not only effective for weight loss, but also for accelerating metabolism and eliminating accumulated fat in the abdomen. The apple, thanks to its pectin content, helps regulate blood sugar levels and contributes to the elimination of excess fat. Cinnamon, on the other hand, accelerates the metabolism due to its thermogenic power. In addition, it reduces body fat, especially in the neck and abdomen.

Here is the simple recipe on how to make apple water.

Best of all, you only need two easily accessible ingredients: apple (preferably green) and cinnamon.

1- Boil the cinnamon pieces in a liter of water.

2- While you leave the cinnamon boiling, cut the apple into small pieces.

3- Once it boils and the water looks brownish, add the apple pieces.

4- Drink the infusion preferably hot. It is best to drink this drink on an empty stomach and before going to sleep. If you are constant, you will notice great results in a short time.

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miguel-manbemel · 5 years ago

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Aspects & Fanfics Ep. 19: The Pact - Part 1

New entry on the “Aspects & Fanfics” blog inspired on Sanders Sides by Thomas Sanders, Joan S. and the Foster Dawg team. When I conceived this story, I initially conceived it as a finale, because I feel that it has got progressively disconnected from the original source to a point that I feel that there are so many good stories I could make and I can’t to conform to my own created continuity... but as I was writing it, I couldn’t help adding snippets of storylines for future episodes. What can I say? I just love writing it, and I’ll keep on writing it until I run out of ideas.

This story is a two-parter, and here comes the first part. Part two will be released in a few days, as it is almost ready. As usual, if you wanna check any previous entries, you can find them right here. And I leave you now with the story. Until next time.

SYNOPSIS: Roman has been turned into a Dark Side and he misses Virgil. A mysterious sorcerer asks him to get some objects and a black cauldron from Remus’ room in the Dark Realm. With them, Roman could become a Light Side again, permanently.

WARNINGS: As usual, lots of Prinxiety. There are mild references to Deceit suffering physical mistreatment in the past.

EPISODE INDEX

[there’s a sign that reads “In the previous episode...”, and scenes from the previous episode are shown]

LOGAN: Roman… I’m so sorry, but… you were corrupting Virgil.

ROMAN: What? But that… that would mean that…

LOGAN: You have turned into a Dark Side.

VIRGIL: Wait, what? But that’s impossible! How could he suddenly become a Dark Side?

LOGAN: I don’t know if it’s for Roman’s union with Remus or for their abrupt separation, but the symptoms are clear. [...] …as for now, you must stay away from us, and I’m sorry.

VIRGIL: No, no way! You are nuts if you think I’m gonna leave my husband behind just like that!

ROMAN: Virgil, you have no choice. If what Logan said is true… you can’t stay close to me, or I would destroy you.

VIRGIL: But I can’t just leave you!

ROMAN: Don’t worry, my love. I’ll be okay. Besides, there’s no way this could be permanent or irreversible. If you changed from Dark to Light, then I can do it too. We’ll find a way to be reunited someday, you’ll see. [...] Goodbye, my love. Until we meet again. Because I assure you, even if I have to move heaven and earth to find a way, we’ll be together again, somehow.

VIRGIL: I know. Until we meet again, Roman, I love you…

[Virgil walks some steps. Then suddenly turns back, runs and gives a long kiss to Roman, then runs to the door in tears. Patton runs behind him]

ROMAN: [also in tears] I love you too, Virgil.

[intro sequence]

[Thomas, Logan, Patton, Virgil and Deceit are already in their places]

THOMAS: What is up, everybody? Here we are. It’s been five days, and we’re still thinking on something to help Roman. Logan, have you got anything yet?

LOGAN: I’m trying, Thomas, but I can’t come up with anything. The only thing that comes to my mind is too big of a risk, especially now that Roman is not in a good shape after what he had to go through.

THOMAS: You mean Roman inhibiting himself, right? No, we already tried that method twice, and both times the Side almost died. We can’t try that again.

DECEIT: Tell me about it. If I hadn’t been saved by the Dark Master on the last minute, because he needed me for his evil plot, I wouldn’t be here now. We have to find a way to get Roman out of his dark self and back into the light, as soon as possible.

PATTON: Yeah, Roman being a Dark Side is an awful idea. I mean, Roman is still Roman. We would love him the same whether he is a Light Side or a Dark Side. The problem is that it’s his relation with Virgil what is at risk. The prospect of living away from your one true love for the rest of your life must be devastating.

VIRGIL: Thanks for reminding me, dad.

PATTON: I’m sorry, son, I…

VIRGIL: It’s okay. That’s not gonna happen. I’m sure of that.

THOMAS: At least I’m glad that your hopes are high, Virgil.

VIRGIL: I have no choice, Thomas. Thinking negatively would only be harmful for Roman. I must stay positive, for him and for me. Isn’t it ironic? Only a few months ago, I was the embodiment of negativity, and now it’s me who must act positively. You never know what life has in store for you.

PATTON: You’ve grown so much, son, and I’m such a proud dad!

DECEIT: Keep up with that positivity, Virgil. You’ll see how, when you least expect it, Roman will be appearing in front of the TV as if nothing had happened. [sighs] I wish this was true right now…

[Roman suddenly rises up in his place]

ROMAN: What’s up, guys?

[everyone gets startled at Roman’s sudden appearance]

VIRGIL: Roman? What are you doing here? You shouldn’t…

ROMAN: Relax, Amado Emo, I’m fine now. Everything’s solved! I’m a Light Side again!

VIRGIL: Is… is that true? But how?

DECEIT: [closing his eyes and crossing his hands] I wish for a million dollars to fall on my hands right now! [nothing happens] Well, it was worth a shot…

LOGAN: How could this happen, Roman?

ROMAN: Well, it’s a little long to explain.

THOMAS: Go ahead. We have plenty of time right now.

ROMAN: I don’t have so much time, but I can spend a few minutes, I guess… Okay, then it’s flashback time. I’ll show you what happened.

[a flashback begins. Roman is in the royal castle, talking to his brother, the Prince Guy]

ROMAN: [sighs] These days back in this castle are bringing me so many memories, brother. Most of them so good.

PRINCE GUY: Me too. You know, Roman, you could stay here forever, and reclaim your throne. And we could be like the brothers we used to be, as if no time had passed.

ROMAN: I couldn’t. I mean, I’d be happy to rule this country, and living with you again as a family would be a blast, but…

PRINCE GUY: …you miss Virgil, right?

ROMAN: No matter how much happy you could make me, and how much love you could give me… my life would be empty without Virgil.

PRINCE GUY: It’s so beautiful how you two love each other so deeply…

ROMAN: He’s the one, you know? We complement each other, like two pieces of a puzzle that forms a perfect entity capable of doing anything. We could not fit in with anyone else, you know? We’re a perfect match just for each other. And it’s funny how it took us so long to realize. But when we did, everything was so obvious that the idea of not living our life together suddenly became nonsensical. We’re meant for each other and must be together or we won’t have access to happiness, you know? Gosh, I must sound so corny…

PRINCE GUY: No, Roman, you don’t. You are just a hopeless romantic. You can’t help it. It has always been a part of you. And that’s a virtue, not a flaw, because true love, the true unconditional love, could never be a flaw, could it?

ROMAN: Gosh, how I wish he was here right now. Do you know how hard it is for me to repress the impulse of running away from this castle, going back into the Mind Palace and jumping in his arms?

PRINCE GUY: I don’t need to tell you that you cannot do that, right? For Virgil’s safety.

ROMAN: Yes. I know. When I restored Sandersia, I used a lot of energy, and that energy is still emanating from me in great amounts. And as it is Dark Energy, it would destroy Virgil almost on sight, like it almost happened the last time. Not only him, all my friends would be endangered too.

PRINCE GUY: There’s one thing I don’t understand. You are a Dark Side now, right? Didn’t all the Dark Sides have physical animal motifs? Virgil was a panther, Deceit was a snake, and Ira was a bear. Shouldn’t you have developed some animal shape too?

ROMAN: [sighs] You mean something like this?

[Then, Roman shape-shifts. A half of his face looks now like a majestic red fox]

PRINCE GUY: [startled at the sudden change] Oh! Wow… When… when did that happen?

ROMAN: The morning after the incident, I woke up like this. I’ve been shape-shifting ever since, hiding this from sight.

PRINCE GUY: Why?

ROMAN: Isn’t it obvious? Look at me! I’m a monster!

PRINCE GUY: As Logan would say, falsehood! Did Virgil look like a monster to you when he was half a panther?

ROMAN: No… but he looked gorgeous in that shape. All of them, even Deceit with his scales, they all looked gorgeous in their feral forms, unlike me.

PRINCE GUY: You do look gorgeous too, Roman! And I don’t wanna hear you again saying you’re a monster, cause that’s not true. It’s the inside what makes us monsters or not, and you are still the same regal hero inside, the same wonderful prince I look up to and aspire to be like. Who cares how you look on the outside? Heck, hearing you say that, one would think you have never watched Beauty and the Beast. What kind of Disney fanboy are you, Roman? Dishonor on you, dishonor on your cow!

ROMAN: [mischievous smile] Hey, do not question my Disney knowledge, you brat! Or I’ll tickle you!

PRINCE GUY: [same mischievous smile] Not if I tickle you first!

[the two brothers start tickling each other in the middle of lots of laughter and giggling, until they end up hugging each other]

ROMAN: I love you, brother. These days would have been so hard if I didn’t have you here. Thank you for being there for me always.

PRINCE GUY: I love you too, and I’ll always be there for you, Roman. You know it. And don’t hide yourself again. Be proud of who you are and how you are, always. We’re gonna love you always, regardless of your appearance. Look on the bright side. Now at last, you can say you are… foxy.

ROMAN: What do you mean “at last”? I have always been foxy. Only that now I am literally.

PRINCE GUY: [giggles] Of course you are. Okay, now I gotta go. I’ve got an audience in five minutes. This principality is not gonna get ruled all on its own, you know?

ROMAN: Okay, bro.

PRINCE GUY: Wanna join me? You’re the royal prince, after all and maybe this could distract you and make you think about something else.

ROMAN: Nah, my head is too absent right now, I would be totally useless. I trust this is in you, as always.

PRINCE GUY: I’ll do my best, Roman, but will you be okay in the mean time?

ROMAN: Yes, don’t worry, I’ll go for a walk around the castle while you’re working. Some fresh air will do me good.

PRINCE GUY: Yes, it will… Okay, see ya in a couple of hours, if I’m still alive, of course.

ROMAN: [giggles] You dork… See ya.

[the Prince Guy heads his way to the throne room, while Roman gets out of the castle and starts walking. After some time, he finds himself in a forest, next to a little pond. He sits down in a white rock next to the pond and looks at the water. A red fish and a purple fish are swimming there twirling in circles, doing little jumps]

ROMAN: [talking to himself] Were these fishes always there, or did I create them unconsciously? [sighs] If only making you appear here was as easy as making these fishes appear here… I miss you so much, Virgil. I’d do anything to be back with you.

VOICE: [behind him] Anything?

ROMAN: [startled] What the…!?

[Roman looks at where the voice came from, and he sees an old man with a black cloak, his face is hidden behind the hood]

OLD MAN: I’m sorry I scared you, young man. It was far from my intention.

ROMAN: You didn’t scare me, you just surprised me, that’s all.

OLD MAN: Of course, young man.

ROMAN: May I ask who are you?

OLD MAN: Oh, just an inhabitant from this forest. I was going for a walk, just as I do every morning. It really is a beautiful day, isn’t it?

ROMAN: Yes, it is…

OLD MAN: But it’s raining… raining in your heart. Am I right?

ROMAN: Sort of…

OLD MAN: Perhaps I could do something to help you, you know?

ROMAN: Oh… No offense, I wish you were right, but… no one can help me on this one.

OLD MAN: Oh, I think I could help you, your majesty.

ROMAN: How do you…?

OLD MAN: The shields on your shoulders are quite revealing, your majesty.

ROMAN: Oh, you’re right. I forgot.

OLD MAN: And I really think I can help you, Prince Roman. You only need a little magic, and you could be rid of all the Dark Energy that floods your whole being. And you could be a Light Side again. Isn’t that what you want?

ROMAN: Okay, how do you know so much about my problem?

OLD MAN: Oh, your majesty, everyone in the principality knows what happened to you. Word has spread everywhere, you know?

ROMAN: Really? And how could you help me?

OLD MAN: Well, first I must say that doing the change is easy, but keeping the change permanently is a taller order.

ROMAN: How?

OLD MAN: I could make a little spell that would turn you into a Light Side, but only for six hours. That’s all I can do with the ingredients I can fetch in Sandersia.

ROMAN: Six hours only? They would fly as if they were six seconds. That doesn’t solve anything.

OLD MAN: However, you can help me and yourself if you do me a little favor.

ROMAN: A favor? What favor?

OLD MAN: As one of the renowned Sanders Sides, not only you can get out of Sandersia, you can also get out of the Mind Palace and manifest in the outer world.

ROMAN: Yeah, so?

OLD MAN: If you bring me a few certain items from the Mind Palace and the real world, I could cast a stronger spell, so that you’d be a Light Side permanently.

ROMAN: That sounds way better. What kind of items?

OLD MAN: I’m going to need a piece of garment from your host. His name is Thomas, right?

ROMAN: A piece of garment from Thomas? What kind?

OLD MAN: Oh, anything would work, as long as it’s made of fabric. For instance, an ordinary shirt would do the trick, but don’t bring me some stinky leather shoes cause that wouldn’t work. Understand?

ROMAN: Okay, a shirt. What else?

OLD MAN: The rest of the items, you’ll find them in the Mind Palace. From the Light Realm, I’ll need similar pieces of garments from all the rest of the Sanders Sides. The same kind of the host’s garment. If you choose a shirt, bring shirts from all the others.

ROMAN: Shirts? What do you plan to do with them, opening a yard sale in the forest?

OLD MAN: Please, your majesty, listen carefully, cause this one is the most important. Next, you must enter the Dark Realm.

ROMAN: The Dark Realm? But the Dark Realm is empty now. There are no more Dark Sides. Other than me, that is.

OLD MAN: I’m afraid you’re wrong. There is another Dark Side. One that became Dark because he was repressed… by you.

ROMAN: You mean that… my brother Remus is a Dark Side?

OLD MAN: That’s right.

ROMAN: So that’s why he appears and disappears like that, with those dramatic jumps… so that we don’t see him popping up when he appears… even though he gave himself away when he appeared to tempt me into fuse with him. Why didn’t I realize then? Oh, well, I was so unnerved by his appearance I couldn’t notice anything, could I?

OLD MAN: Are you finished talking to yourself? Cause I haven’t finished speaking, you know?

ROMAN: Oh, sorry. Go ahead, please.

OLD MAN: As I was saying, Remus is a Dark Side, and like any other Dark Side, he has a room in the Dark Realm.

ROMAN: I never saw it, and none of the former Dark Sides mentioned their existence.

OLD MAN: However, it is there, and you must go there. Cause there’s an important thing you must retrieve, the most important of all the ingredients. A black cauldron.

ROMAN: A black cauldron? Why would Remus have a cauldron in his room?

OLD MAN: That’s not important, but you must retrieve that cauldron. With that, and your friends garments, I can cast the spell that would turn you into a Light Side permanently. That is what you want, right?

ROMAN: Okay, now the fine print. What is the catch?

OLD MAN: Catch?

ROMAN: I’m sure you’re not doing this for altruism or because you would be a monarchical person. I’ve seen enough Disney movies to know that a black cloaked individual appearing out of nowhere in the middle of the forest is usually not trustworthy. What do you get from this?

OLD MAN: Okay, you got me there. I do get something from it. If you bring me all these items from the Mind Palace and the real world, I could cast a spell on myself that would let me be free to get in and out of Sandersia as easily as you do.

ROMAN: Why would you want to do that?

OLD MAN: Because I want to see the world. The real world outside of this bubble made up of figments from Thomas’ imagination. I truly wanna be part of that world.

ROMAN: Okay, am I suddenly a real gay Disney prince, or something? Because it’s too many references to Disney movies up to this point.

OLD MAN: Just bring me these items, Roman. If you do, you’ll get your dream come true, and I’ll also get my dream come true. Have we got a deal?

ROMAN: I don’t know…

OLD MAN: Think of Virgil. Think of how happy he will be to see you again. Think of all the years of happiness ahead of you two together.

ROMAN: Okay. I will do as you want. But there’s one condition.

OLD MAN: One condition? What is it?

ROMAN: I’m gonna trust in you, but I need you to solemnly swear that you won’t try to do anything harmful against my friends or anyone in Sandersia.

OLD MAN: Your majesty, that’s offensive, you know I would never…

ROMAN: I know nothing, and that’s the point. You come out of nowhere and expect me to trust you unconditionally? I’m not jumping blindly into this without some security guarantees. You mentioned earlier “part of that world”. Let’s use that as an inspiration. I’m the creator of Sandersia and therefore I have power in here, so… [Roman invokes a shining scroll and gives it to the old man] There. I want you to write all the stipulations in our pact in this scroll. It is magic. Once it is signed by both of us, none of us will be able to break these stipulations, and if one of us does, everything will automatically turn as it was before signing the contract, that is, you’ll lose all these objects and any magic benefit obtained from them, and I’ll turn back into a Dark Side. Is that okay with you?

OLD MAN: Okay… I know what you’re talking about. As you’ve noticed, I’ve also watched The Little Mermaid. All right Ariel, I mean Roman.

ROMAN: Yes, Ursula? I mean, um…

OLD MAN: Madilim. My name is Madilim na Haku.

ROMAN: Wow… that’s a weird name.

MADILIM: It’s of islander origin. As I was saying…

[Madilim makes a gesture with his hand and text appears magically on the scroll]

MADILIM: Here’s the contract you asked for. You can read all the stipulations and sign if you agree. I have signed it already.

[Roman picks up the scroll and reads it]

ROMAN: Okay, it reads that you will turn me into a Light Side and I have six hours to get one piece of garment from Thomas and each of the Light Sides, as well as the black cauldron from Remus’ room. If I bring them to you before the sixth hour is over, you’ll turn me into a Light Side permanently. In exchange, you will keep all the garments and cauldron to cast a spell onto yourself to be free to travel out of Sandersia and out into the real world, and you take the compromise of, and I quote verbatim, “not actively doing any harm of any kind to Thomas or any of my friends or their relatives. Should any of us break this pact, each and any spells cast onto any of us related to this contract would be immediately broken and everything would turn as it was before. For all eternity, signed...”

MADILIM: Is it everything to your liking now?

ROMAN: Yes, I think so. I don’t see any tricks or shortcuts anywhere.

MADILIM: You have such a keen eye, your majesty. Then here, you can sign with this pen.

[Madilim gives Roman a pen, and Roman, after quickly re-reading all of the contract, signs it. Then the contract magically multiplies by two. One copy stays in Roman’s hand, the other flies to Madilim’s hands. He saves it under his cloak]

MADILIM: You can keep the pen. Very well. Let’s get to work, then. Stand up and stay still.

[Roman stands up while Madilim stands in front of him. Madilim rises his hands and a dark mist comes from them, then he points at Roman with both hands and the mist flies to Roman, who starts floating]

ROMAN: Whoa…

[While he’s floating, the dark mist slowly turns into a bright white aura, and Roman’s face starts transforming until it’s full human. Then he softly lands and the aura disappears]

MADILIM: All right, your majesty. It’s done.

ROMAN: Is it?

[Roman looks at his reflection in the pond and checks his face is now full human]

ROMAN: [happy] It really is! Thank you so much, Madilim! How can I repay you?

[Madilim has disappeared, but Roman hears his voice]

MADILIM: You already know, Prince Roman. Now it’s your time to do your part of the pact. Bring me the items I asked from you. Your six hours have started counting. I’ll be waiting for you here.

ROMAN: I will, I certainly will. See ya in six hours!

[the flashback ends]

ROMAN: And so, I came back here.

LOGAN: This is all too weird, don’t you think?

DECEIT: Yeah, who is this mysterious Madilim, and how does he have power over Light and Dark? Do you really trust him, Roman?

ROMAN: I mean, he kept his word. I’m a Light Side now, and if I give him one garment from each one of you, the spell will be permanent. It’s signed. [pulls out the contract] You can see it here.

[Logan picks up the scroll and starts reading it]

VIRGIL: I am more than ready to give you my finest shirt, if it helps to bring you back for good. But I don’t trust him. Will he keep his promise?

ROMAN: [while Logan gives Roman the scroll back] Guys, I can’t believe you’re asking me this. We signed a magic contract!

THOMAS: We just want you to be careful, that’s all. Besides, being able to explore the human world at will, it’s a dangerous power. Are you sure he’s not going to use it against us?

ROMAN: Again, we signed a contract. I read it carefully. “not actively doing any harm of any kind to Thomas or any of my friends or their relatives”, that’s what we signed. Please, guys, don’t hesitate now. With all the time I’ve lost to tell you the story, I only have three hours left.

THOMAS: Okay, okay. If you’re so sure, okay. So, you need one of my shirts, let me see… Hold on a second, okay? I’ll go check my wardrobe upstairs.

[Thomas goes upstairs, while Virgil goes next to Roman]

VIRGIL: With the surprise, and then you telling the story, I had forgotten to do this.

[Virgil kisses and hugs Roman]

VIRGIL: I have missed you so much. You don’t get an idea.

ROMAN: Yes, I do, because I’ve missed you even more. I thought I would never have you in my arms like this again. I don’t even want to let go…

VIRGIL: If that Madilim keeps his word, we hopefully won’t be separated again.

[Thomas goes down the stairs. He’s carrying an old shirt]

THOMAS: Here, Roman. Will this do?

ROMAN: Yes. It is perfect. Thank you, Thomas.

[the other Sides invoke some shirts too and give them to Roman. He invokes a bag and puts them all in]

ROMAN: These are all great, thanks guys. Now all that remains is getting that cauldron.

VIRGIL: Okay, but I’m going with you. I know the Dark Realm.

ROMAN: Yet, you didn’t know of that room of Remus’, did you?

VIRGIL: Well, I left the Dark Realm before you split from Remus, so I never had the chance to see that room.

DECEIT: I stayed in the Dark Realm longer, and I never saw it with my eyes neither knew of its existence. Are you sure that wizard of yours has his facts straight?

ROMAN: I think so. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked for it. He has a lot to gain from our pact too. We’ll have to look for that room, then.

THOMAS: We’re all going with you, though. We’re doing this together from this point on. You have been away from us for too much time now, Roman. We also want to spend some quality time with you too. And twelve eyes see better than two or four, don’t you think?

ROMAN: Thank you, Thomas. I have missed all of you too, for the record.

[a green sprite appears in the living room, and starts flying around Roman]

ROMAN: Oh, Ira? Is that you? What is it? I can conjure a temporary body for you, but since you’re out of Sandersia, it will last only for a few moments, so speak quickly.

[Roman points at the sprite and it transforms into Ira]

IRA: So, here you are! Your brother and I were so worried about you! You just disappeared from Sandersia!

ROMAN: Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to warn my brother, but time was short and I… [suddenly thinking, as if he got a sudden idea] Say… Ira, you were a Dark Side before. Have you ever heard of Remus’ room in the Dark Realm? We need to find it soon.

IRA: No… I didn’t even know that Remus was a Dark Side… Wait… weren’t sprites allergic to Dark Sides? How could I bite Remus and remain intact if he was a Dark Side?

ROMAN: Yes, sprites usually are allergic to Dark Sides, but Remus is not an ordinary Side, anyway. He’s part of me and it’s me who repressed him, not Thomas, so perhaps he’s different to the other Dark Sides, somehow. Anyway… so you don’t know anything about Remus’ room? Dang it. How are we gonna find it?

IRA: I had never heard about that room, but if it exists, I could help you find it.

ROMAN: Really? How?

IRA: I’m a green sprite. I’m designed to detect traces of green energy anywhere, so that I can find a green Side, like Remus, and bite him. Hunting resources if you will. That’s how I found the island the first time I came there. The room must contain remnants of green energy if it belongs to Remus. Following those remnants, I could lead you there.

ROMAN: Really? Oh, Ira, you’re a life saver! If you help me find that room I could become a Light Side permanently.

IRA: Really? But… you’ve turned back into a Light Side? But… how? I don’t understand…

ROMAN: There’s no time to explain it all again, Ira. Just take us to that room, and I will tell you when everything’s over, okay?

IRA: Okay. But you must also tell your brother. He’s really worried about you.

ROMAN: I’ll take care of that pronto. [rises his finger for a second then lowers it down] Done.

IRA: Done… what?

ROMAN: I created an emissary on Sandersia who will bring my brother up to date on what’s going on.

THOMAS: You can create characters even outside of Sandersia?

ROMAN: Of course I can, Thomas. Most of my characters, I have created them while I was out of Sandersia. Now, are you ready, Ira?

IRA: Yes, I…

[suddenly, Ira’s body disappears and he’s again a green sprite]

ROMAN: Oh, sorry, Ira, your time is up. Lead the way, okay?

[Ira emits a sound of jingle bells]

ROMAN: I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s go.

[all of the Sides and Thomas sink down. Then they appear in the Dark Realm. There’s nothing on sight, everything’s pitch black except Thomas and the Sides]

THOMAS: It’s all so quiet in here, now that this place is unoccupied.

DECEIT: Yeah. It’s depressing in a way. I wasn’t happy here, by any means, but still… this used to be my home. I know it’s contradictory but… it hurts me now seeing it so… dead.

THOMAS: Nah, I understand you. When it was the only thing you knew for so many years, you clung to it, even if it wasn’t the safest space for you.

LOGAN: And when we indulge on the memories of the past, sometimes we put a mental filter in the bad parts and magnify the good parts, so that’s why you may be feeling like that, Deceit.

DECEIT: Maybe… However, the bad moments that I lived here… I don’t think I’ll ever be able to remove them from my mind, not completely.

[Ira emits some jingle bells sounds]

ROMAN: I think he’s telling us to follow him. Maybe he’s got a trace.

[The gang start following Ira through the Dark Realm. After a while, they reach a weird wall made of perfect square gray ashlars. Ira tries to go through the wall, but bounces on it and can’t cross it]

ROMAN: What is this wall doing here, in the middle of nowhere?

DECEIT: I think I never wandered to this part of the Dark Realm. This is on an area that was strictly forbidden to us by the Dark Master. And he knew how to make us obey, you know?

ROMAN: Wait a second… these ashlars… they look familiar… they’re just like the ashlars from my Dream Factory! Remember?

THOMAS: Yes, I do remember. Didn’t you say that those ashlars were made from the material that separated my notion of fantasy from my notion of reality?

ROMAN: Exactly. For one reason or another, Remus’ room is completely isolated from the rest of the Dark Realm.

THOMAS: How are we going to get in? I don’t see any doors in this wall.

ROMAN: Do not fear, your creativity is here. I can make us all go through these walls as if they were made of air. Are you ready? [not letting them answer] Let’s go!

[Thomas and the Sides suddenly cross through the wall at great speed, and appear on the other Side. There, they see Remus’ room. It is almost the same as Roman’s room, except that it is covered with dust and it lacks the forest of thorns, and instead of a throne, there is a torture chair]

VIRGIL: Wow… I’m not sitting there, not even if you payed me double, Thomas… which would still be zero, by the way.

ROMAN: Where may that cauldron be? Oh, well, the first place we should be looking in would logically be the kitchen, but Remus has never made any sense, so…

[Roman starts searching in the kitchen. Meanwhile, Patton approaches the front door]

PATTON: What may be there, behind this door?

LOGAN: Probably just the Dark Realm, Patton.

PATTON: Yeah, but the wall outside did not have any doors, Logan. So how could this door be here? Now I’m too curious, I have to check out.

[Patton opens the door and sneaks outside]

PATTON: [yelling] Guys! Look at this!

[all the Sides, except Roman who keeps searching the kitchen, go to the front door]

THOMAS: Oh, wow…

VIRGIL: Isn’t this…?

DECEIT: … Remus’ throne room in the castle from the island?

ROMAN: [leaving everything and going to the door] What? Oh, wow… so Remus’ room is also connected to Sandersia… Well, I should have seen that coming. He’s creativity too, of course his room had to be connected to Sandersia too. Guys, I need to you to help me find that cauldron. My time is running out. I don’t wanna be a Dark Side again.

THOMAS: You’re right, Roman, we’ll help you.

[everyone starts searching the whole room. It’s Virgil who has luck, when he looks behind the torture chair]

VIRGIL: Roman, look! I think I found it!

ROMAN: Really?

[Roman goes to check out. Virgil pulls out a little black cauldron from behind the chair]

ROMAN: Wow… I thought it would be bigger, but it is a black cauldron, so I think this is it. [giggles out of excitement and joy] Virgil, you’re so great! I could kiss you! What the heck, I’m gonna kiss you right now!

[Roman gives a quick kiss to Virgil, then starts bopping with joy, while Virgil smiles, rejoicing in Roman’s happiness.]

VIRGIL: Okay, Roman. How much time do you have left?

ROMAN: Oh, we’ve got plenty of time. We’ve got one hour left.

VIRGIL: You call that plenty of time? We still have to get back to that forest before time is over! Come on.

ROMAN: You’re right. Let’s go through Remus’ door. I’ll invoke a ship to take us there.

[The gang goes through Remus’ door into the castle. As soon as Ira crosses the door, he regains his Sandersian body. Then, they go to the island shore. Roman invokes a ship and they use it to sail to the shore]

IRA: I’ll go talk to the Prince Guy. I won’t be at ease until I talk to him face to face about what’s happened. You go ahead, okay?

ROMAN: Okay, Ira. Thank you so much for your help. We wouldn’t have made it without you.

IRA: You’re welcome. Be careful, though.

[Roman and the others go to the forest. Soon they get to the pond where Roman found Madilim]

THOMAS: Nobody’s here. What time is it?

ROMAN: Ten minutes left. I hope it’s not him who arrives late now, after all we’ve been through.

[Madilim appears]

ROMAN: Oh, there you are Madilim.

MADILIM: Greetings, Roman. And good evening to the rest.

THOMAS: Good evening, sir.

MADILIM: So… did you bring what I asked for?

ROMAN: Yes, everything’s here.

[Roman gives Madilim the bag]

MADILIM: [examining the bag’s content with joy] Yes… this will do. Well done, your majesty!

ROMAN: Okay, I did my part of the pact. Now it’s your turn.

MADILIM: Certainly. Just let me prepare the ingredients for the spell…

[Madilim puts the garments inside the cauldron and starts reciting a spell in a strange language with a sing-song voice]

PATTON: Am I the only one who’s finding this kinda creepy?

LOGAN: No, you’re not. Something’s not right here…

[after a while, a light comes out of the cauldron, a light that changes color in a pattern of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and purple. Then, a beam comes out of the cauldron and impacts on Madilim, who starts laughing with an evil voice]

MADILIM: Yes! At last! I’m free!

ROMAN: … free?

THOMAS: I don’t feel so good…

PATTON: Thomas? Are you okay?

THOMAS: No… I’m feeling suddenly weak… as if I suddenly had got the flu…

ROMAN: What’s going on? What have you done to him?

MADILIM: I did nothing, Roman. But I must thank you again. Your everlasting gullibility has been quite useful again!

ROMAN: My… what? Who are you?

MADILIM: I told you from the very beginning. I’m Madilim na Haku, a name of islander origin. With islander, I meant from Philippines and Hawaii. Too bad that you don’t know a word of their languages. Too bad for you that is, that helped me retain that mask in front of you, as I just told you my real name in these two languages. Let’s take the mask off, by the way, this cloak is too hot for this time of the year…

[Madilim shape-shifts into his real form. Roman gasps in a mix of horror and anger]

ROMAN: The Dark Master! Again? You’re so stubborn, aren’t you?

DARK MASTER: Yes, I’m stubborn, but my stubbornness is giving fruit at last. Now I’m free and there’s nothing you can do about it!

ROMAN: However, we had a pact, signed in a magic scroll. You are forced to oblige! What have you done to Thomas? The pact said you couldn’t harm him

DARK MASTER: Read the stipulation again. It said “actively harm him”. Emphasis on the “actively”. And I haven’t touched him at all.

ROMAN: You trickster! You son of a b…!

DARK MASTER: Language, Roman! Don’t forget your upbringing! But you are right on one thing. I must oblige with my part of the pact. So…

[The Dark Master points at Roman and a white beam comes out of his finger. It impacts on Roman’s chest who groans in pain]

VIRGIL: [scared] Roman!

DARK MASTER: Relax, ex-catboy. I’m just doing what I promised to do.

[the beam disappears]

VIRGIL: Roman, are you okay?

ROMAN: I… I think so. What have you done to me?

DARK MASTER: Just what I promised. You are now a Light Side permanently. My part of the pact is done. It’s not gonna be of use to you, anyway…

ROMAN: What? What do you mean?

DARK MASTER: Be careful with what you wish for. Your wish was to get rid of me. And now you will. I’m leaving this Mind Palace to live in the real world. Too bad that a host without one of his two Masters… cannot survive.

ROMAN: [distressed] Oh, no! Thomas!

DARK MASTER: By the way, the ingredients and cauldron were just to set me free. I am a Master. Turning Dark into Light is child’s play for me. I could have turned you into a Light Side permanently all the time. So long, guys! I’m gonna enjoy my freedom!

[The Dark Master flies away, carrying the bag with the cauldron with him]

ROMAN: Wait! Come back!

[Thomas suddenly loses balance and has to be grabbed by Logan and Patton]

THOMAS: I’m… I’m feeling so cold…

PATTON: [putting his hand on Thomas’ forefront] My God, you’re burning! You have high fever!

ROMAN: [approaching Thomas] I’m sorry, Thomas. This is my fault.

THOMAS: [weak voice] It’s… okay… But, guys, please… take me home…

[Thomas faints]

ROMAN: [horrified] Thomas? Thomas!? Oh, no, what have I done!? Thomas!!

[a sign reads “To be continued, guys, gals and non binary pals”]

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