#au where Turbo survives

[slapstermasterr]

[bitchfitch]

idk man. Vincent's mom has been on my mind recently. Mostly the question of why she would choose to return to the bunker when the complications got to bad to be treated with the post war supplies of the little encampment she'd come to call home. Bc like. Paloma's choices in that situation were

A. Go home to a zealous family that would openly hate her and her child, never see the light of day or any of her new friends and family or her lover ever again, but live to? do what? Suffer and protect a child who she knew would be doomed to the same fate? Who might hate her as much as the rest of her birth family did for the sin of bringing it into a world that didn't want either of them in it? Would she and her child even be allowed back in? or would she die in the mud outside the bunker making it all truly for nothing.

or B. Die, mostly peacefully, mostly painlessly. surrounded by her new family in the only place she ever felt was truly home.

Whether or not the baby would make it was a moot point, it's chances were the about the same either way. It was only her own fate she was deciding, and she still chose the bunker. and obviously thats because that's what needs to happen for the rest of the story to happen. but on a watsonian level, what would have compelled her to do that?

and then I realized it was the same reason Vincent spent two decades totally alone and alive despite him being convinced he didn't deserve to live.

He didn't kill himself because nothing scares him more than the prospect of hell, something he feels he is destined for no matter how saintly a life he leads. She went home because her new family's love for her couldn't uproot her belief in what fate she had earned by leaving her god fearing birth family, and joining with the born-damned vermin so completely that she was going to have one of their kids.

They both feared hell so bad they trapped themselves in lives that might as well be hell.

[a-scary-lack-of-common-sense]

I missed drawing for my old WIR AU, so I came back to it for a bit!! Exploring the lore and the characters is just as fun as I remember it being.

Mini summary of the character lores and random tidbits under cut to remind myself, because I forgot everything :) I might revamp some of the lore as well.

The Turbo twins just barely managed to escape being unplugged along with their game after Turbo game jumped years ago. They survived, but homelessness for a game sprite is dangerous, since it implies a lack of protective anti-virus barrier their consoles would typically have offered them. The twins' raw codes were now completely exposed to external errant bugs, viruses, and other malware, which could prove to be fatal. So, they were stuck going around stations picking up odd jobs and services in exchange for temporary shelter in other games' consoles. But because of Turbo's actions and his disappearance, the twins' reputations were forced to take the full brunt of the arcade's backlash and scrutiny. This ruined their chances at a permanent home, not to mention the fact that letting an outsider stay too long in your game was considered very taboo at the time (especially with the whole game jumping scandal). Thus, they were stuck hopping from one game to another, never staying for longer than a few days at most.

- Felix and the Turbo trio knew each other before the Turbo incident :) He and the twins are still in contact after the incident, and he sometimes lets them stay in his game.

- Felix' in-game story is pretty much the same as Ralph's. There's still the stump, except that in the beginning of the game it's actually a full tree that Felix and his father used to care for before the latter died. The animation shows the bulldozer knocking it town to a stump to make space for Niceland, which basically is the whole opening of the game where Felix gets mad and wrecks the building, blah blah blah, you know the rest :)

- Felix used to be mistaken as the hero of his game a lot since he looked so small and unassuming. It annoyed him to no ends, because he despises having to talk to strangers.

[equinoxartz]

WHAT IF

AU where the Turbo Twins were totally down for turbo's plan of destroying Roadblasters and they both end up surviving after both games are unplugged

And then they become Royal advisors whenever he takes over SugarRush

Like

Imagine

Just imagine with me here

[sparklesdogs]

A Drabble for TF: One

First off: A warning.

This drabble WILL contain spoilers from TF: One. Everything that is a spoiler will be under the -keep reading- line. This, unfortunately, includes the summary because I couldn't think of any other way to describe what I'll be writing about.

And hey, if people enjoy this, maybe I'll write more? Can't help it, I love this type of AU and it was the first thing that popped in my head. Starscream's appearance SLIGHTLY made that AU-itch happy.

Summary: Something that D-16, Elita One, and Bumblebee didn't realize when they encountered the mecha-deer herd on the surface was that they had a care-taker.

Characters: D-16, Bumblebee, Elita One, Orion Pax

Background: In this AU, D-16 was more rebellious and participated in the race himself. Orion Pax does not exist in the mines. More will be explained in the drabble.

Without further adeu:

Cybertron's surface was truly beautiful. Despite the fear they initially felt from the unknown and the constantly shifting surface, when you took a moment to just look, you could see why everyone used to live there.

Mountains grew and disappeared in a blink. Old structures were hidden and unveiled in moments.

Wild turbo-foxes and mecha-deer hunted and grazed in the rolling fields. Cyber-wolves prowled along ridges, seemingly able to tell how the terrain would shift before it even began.

This was the surface that greeted D-16, Elita One, and Bumblebee after their train crashed.

Despite their initial crash from the unexpected tsunami of metal, it was stunning.

D-16 idly recalled the ancient texts that had been smuggled to him during his few breaks or right before recharge. He knew that, once, Cybertronians didn't need to hide underground. Back in the times of the original thirteen Primes, Cybertronians had been divided into tribes.

The ever-graceful Seekers. The quick and musical Polyhexians. The stern and no-nonsense Praxians. The violent, but mostly misunderstood Warframes. The Pullers who relished in hauling large objects long distances. And so on and so forth. All nomadic, following the mechanimals that drove their way of life. All avoiding each other. All destroyed in the original Quintesson War.

It was assumed that large cities like Iacon and Kaon arose when the thirteen joined together and ushered the remnants of their tribes underground. They each recognized that their own tribe would only be able to survive through co-operation. And so, the surface of Cybertron was abandoned.

But as the small trio stared out over the vast open spaces, D-16 couldn't help but wonder why nobody had ever bothered trying to return. Yes, Sentinel Prime had said that the surface was uninhabitable and it was too dangerous, but had no one ever actually tried to return?

Maybe it was because mechs started emerging cog-less. It was dangerous enough for mechs to survive WITH their cogs. What chance did a cog-less mech have? If they couldn't transform to speed away from danger or to evade a rapidly-changing landscape? Somberly, D-16 brushed a servo over the empty hole in his chest. Right where a cog would be in a mech that had one.

"They're so.. elegant." Elita One suddenly whispered, yanking D-16 out of his thoughts.

"And friendly too!" Bumblebee chuckled, somehow having gotten close enough to one of them to swipe a servo over it's flank. Even more surprisingly, the mecha-deer didn't move away or even seem startled by the action. In fact, it turned to nuzzle it's face into Bumblebee's servo and started snuffling around, as if looking for a treat. They reminded D-16 of the cyber-hounds that only the most elite of the elite owned in Iacon.

"Yeah. How.. strange." D-16 said, shifting forward to hesitantly pet the mecha-deer himself. Despite being made of metal, they were surprisingly soft on the head and wiry on the rest of the body.

Unbeknownst to the trio that was now excitedly petting the mecha-deer (who was greedily lapping up the attention), they were being watched by someone far less friendly.

A pair of light blue optics glared at the group from where they were hidden in a nearby uncovered set of ruins. The figure that belonged to the pair of optics had darted into the ruins to observe the group as they got closer. Their eyes darted between the herd and the group, clearly wanting to keep an eye on both.

Suddenly, the mecha-deer jerked their head into the air, no longer responding to the petting. The other deer and the hidden figure shortly followed. One after another, the lights on the mecha-deer's antlers started flashing red and they bolted. They scattered in many directions, much to the frustration of the hidden figure. If only he still had his cyber-hound. Now, it'll take forever to round them back up himself.

His optics snapped to the trio who was just staring after the herd. It was only when they finally turned around did they finally see the danger looming above the clouds. Poor mechs seemed confused and startled. They began to run towards the ruins.

How ineffective, the figure thought. Why not just transform and speed away?

As the group raced by, the figure reached out and grasped one of them (the small, yellow one he silently noted) and pressed him up against the wall. The other two (the pink one and the gray one) quickly took note and, even though they glared at him in suspicion, followed his action.

D-16 observed this new figure with suspicion and surprise. The figure was primarily red and blue with silver accents. The most startling part of him were his light blue optics and splatters of.. paint? that stood out against his primary colors. He had seen blue optics before, yes, but none as bright and light as these. The strange paint was mainly splatters of purple, green, and white. They marked the mech in elegant (but messy) swirls and symbols he had never seen before.

The mech put a digit up to his intake, indicating that the group should remain quiet. Since this new mech seemed to know more about what was going on than they did, they listened. Even though they didn't need to breathe, every bot present held their breath.

Suddenly, one of the mecha-deer darted into the ruins. Almost immediately, a red light beam from above began to track the deer. The new mech's engine started to quietly growl before he quickly cut it off. After a few seconds of tracking the deer, the small red beam burst into a blinding light. Each mech was briefly blinded. When they looked back where the deer had been, the deer was gone. What looked like bits of metal and energon were sucked into the sky and the air returned to silence.

A small distance from the ruins, a red grid emerged from the sky. The red and blue figure's optics widened and he began to usher the group towards one of the buildings that still had enough of a roof to cover them. The trio saw where he was shoving them and nodded, quickly and quietly starting to run. They had to avoid stray red beams occasionally, but Elita and D-16 made it over quickly.

Bumblebee, on the other hand, was slower and more clumsy. The red and blue figure clearly slowed themselves to keep pace with the ex-trash-sorter, but was looking more and more nervous as the grid grew closer.

Finally, clearly fed up with the slow pace, the figure swooped up Bumblebee into a bridal carry. Both Elita and D-16 were shocked that the small, lithe figure was able to lift Bumblebee, let alone without slowing his pace!

Right before the grid reached them, the figure lunged towards a narrow beam that covered a small patch of ruins. The figure clutched Bumblebee as close to himself as possible and both they and Bumblebee closed their optics as the grid slowly passed over them.

When nothing immediately happened, they cracked their optics open just to see as the grid completely passed over the beam. The figure kept Bumblebee clutched to their chest until the beam finally disappeared. Even after that, they continued to hold Bumblebee for a few kliks before letting the small yellow bot drop to the ground with a yelp.

The figure then turned very angry optics onto the entire trio.

"Who are you?! Why are you here? Do you have any idea what you just caused?! Now I have to move the herd again!" The figure started shouting, pointing his index digit at the group angrily.

Unfortunately for him, the trio did not understand his language at all and only heard what sounded like rather irate clicks, whistles, and beeps. When he realized that the group was just staring dumbly at him, his irritation turned to confusion.

"Um, hello? Do you understand me?" He asked, optical ridges furrowed.

"Uh, hello!" Elita, ever the go-getter, responded first with a wave. The figure simply tilted his head and managed to look more confused.

"Great. Cybertronians who don't speak basic." He mumbled to himself.

"Do you speak Iaconian?" Elita asked.

"I-uh-cone-ee-an?" The figure asked, testing out the word in his intake.

"Yeah, Iaconian. You know? What everyone in Iacon speaks." D-16 piped up. The figure's gaze turned to him.

"I-uh-con?" The figure asked, olfactory sensor scrunching as if the words had a nasty smell.

"Yup! That's where we're from! Iacon!" Bumblebee cheerfully added.

"So I'll take it that you don't speak it based on your reaction to words most mechs know." D-16 stated gruffly. The figure may not have known what he was saying, but he could certainly understand the tone. His gaze turned to a glare again. As he opened his intake and raised his index digit again to likely start lecturing the other, Elita piped up.

"Ok! How about introductions? I'm Elita One." She said, pointing to herself with a smile. "Elita One!" She repeated.

"I'm B-127 or Bumblebee, but I'm trying to make Badassatron a thing!" Bumblebee said. When the figure only looked at him more confused, he chuckled and rubbed the back of his helm. "Bumblebee." He said simply.

"D-16." D-16 said simply. When three sets of optics turned to him, the figure responded.

"I'm named after the constellation Orion, but sometimes the others call me Pax because they say I'm generally one of the peaceful ones." The figure chuckled to himself.

"So.. Orion Pax?" D-16 asked. The figure- newly dubbed Orion Pax- shrugged.

"Close enough."

Ending note: Whew! That's all I've got. Let me know if this sounds interesting. I welcome all critiques and comments. Will probably post this on my AO3 in the morning too. Probably.

[vanilla-rainbows]

Wreck-it Ralph AU - GUARDIAN

Ok, let me preface this by saying three (3) things:

English is not my first language. I’m currently incapable of writing fanfiction in a language that is not my own, so please forgive me. Feel free to correct me if you see any mistakes!

I welcome all kinds of feedback. Just don’t be rude, please TTwTT

This might get long and messy. I haven’t really planned out anything with this AU and all of this is 100% vibes, but I’m open to suggestions and might expand/change/delete things as I go.

The (quite long) premise of this AU is basically this: Turbo survived the events of the first movie (original I know) because he rewrote so much of himself into Sugar Rush that the game now thinks he’s actually part of it. So he respawns, but gets kicked out of the game and is forced to go back to his previous life as a gameless character in Game Central Station. Only difference, everyone this time KNOWS he’s alive and what he did (because Ralph and/or Vanellope explained the whole situation to the rest of the arcade). So everyone basically treats him like shit (more or less like Vanellope). He’s both shunned and mocked by the other characters, and is forcefully kept away from every game in the arcade, to prevent him from “going Turbo” again.

But the thing is, he’s actually powerless now, and can’t actually do anything dangerous anymore. He lost the cy-bug part of his code (sorry kcb fans but the tall menacing cockroach doesn’t exactly give out the pathetic wet cat vibes that this au demands) because of the reset, and even glitches between his Turbo and King Candy model at times. He’s hit rock bottom and he knows it. And obviously he blames it all on Vanellope and Ralph, and wants to take revenge on them. So, knowing how powerful his cy-bug form was, he decides to wait for a chance to sneak into Hero’s Duty and get himself eaten again by one of the creatures. THEN he will be free to wreak havoc on the arcade and happily destroy every single game in it (starting with Sugar Rush of course). And ABSOLUTELY no one will be able to stop him.

So naturally he gets stopped again. This is where I’d introduce the OC I’m planning for this AU. Her name is Luna and she is the titular protagonist of Luna’s Adventure (might change later), a fantasy adventure that resembles the first Zelda game in terms of graphics and mechanics (also might change later). Luna is essentially an optimistic, but not an hopeless one. Being one of the oldest characters in the arcade (she’s from the 80’ as well), she knew who Turbo was back in the day and is fully aware of the situation, but doesn’t really like the “let’s all laugh at him” mentality. So she mostly ignores/pities him, and makes sure he doesn’t try anything funny with her game. That is, until she spots him as he’s sneaking into Hero’s Duty during opening hours. She immediately takes action and follows him into the game. At first she tries to talk him out of it, but her pleads fall of deaf ears, as Turbo is too fixated on his revenge plan to even listen to her. He feels like he has no other options. He lost everything, again. In the eyes of the other characters, he’s but a pest. Better be feared than respected at this point. This desperate attempt (which seems more like self-destructing behaviour) is his last chance.

The heated back and forth between the two grabs the attention of a solitary cy-bug, which immediately attacks them. Luna quickly avoids the creature and safely gets to a hidden spot, but when she notices that Turbo has no intention of running away, on the contrary, he’s purposefully exposing himself like the snack he is, she jumps on him and saves him from the incoming cy-bug attack. So for a few minutes we have the comical situation of Luna continuously saving Turbo and herself from the cy-bug, and Turbo trying so hard to get eaten but getting saved everytime. Eventually the cy-bug is shot to death by Calhoun herself, who IS SO READY to blast Turbo out of existence with all of her arsenal, but desists when Luna explains the whole situation to her. Still, the sergeant has no intention of keeping the glitchy gremling in her game a second longer, and escorts both of them out. Turbo lashes out at Luna for ruining his ultimate plan, but before she can say anything back, the arcade opens. Luna leaves in a hurry, telling Turbo to behave while she’s away because she’s not done with him. So he’s left in the middle of GCS wandering what the hack she meant by that.

That night, all main characters from each game reunite to discuss what to do with Turbo. Felix, Ralph, Vanellope, Calhoun and Luna are all present. Turns out they have no idea how to handle the situation. They can’t let him run freely around the arcade. What would happen if he tried to infiltrate another game? Unsurprisingly, no one mentions Surge Protector. Someone suggests they could simply kill him. He deserves it, after all. Ralph is neutral, Vanellope is slightly against the idea, but Felix jumps up and firmly says that they are not going to kill anyone. If they did, they wouldn’t be better than him. Then Calhoun makes a proposal. Just like keeping the cy-bugs inside Hero’s Duty is also part of her, well, duty, someone should take on the role of a warden to Turbo, keeping him inside their game and out of everyone else’s. Obviously she can’t do it, neither Vanellope, so another character will have to.

The problem is that no one wants to have anything to do with Turbo. They may mock him during the day, but they really are all just terrified by him. The fear of getting unplugged is so strong that no one is willing to take the risk. No one, but Luna. While everyone argues, she slowly stands up and offers herself to be Turbo’s guardian. The room goes silent for a few seconds, but eventually everyone applauds her courage.

Now comes the hard part. Luna has to find a delicate way to break the news to her colleagues. They obviously have A LOT to say about it, but she is able to convince them. Sort of. Things might not be so simple after all. Even though she agreed to keep an eye on Turbo, she’s not sure how exactly this decision will affect her and her game. Was it really the right thing to do? What if he became really dangerous? She’s actually starting to reconsider, when an idea forms in her coded mind. What if… she were to teach him goodness? What if she offered him a chance, instead of treating him like a criminal? All I have to say is that Turbo will definitely take advantage of the situation and play along, all so that he can finally have his sweet revenge.

That’s all for now. I have a few ideas on how the story could continue, and a few interactions that I absolutely want to incorporate as well. Also I already have a finale in mind, and I hope to eventually get to that (the final scene is the one most clear in my mind right now). So, if you actually managed to read all that, thank you! Now I can go back to being a normal human being again (delusional).

[radioactivepeasant]

Snippets: Free Day Thursday

As per the poll results, we are giving Damas stress via Just Plain Silliness. It builds character. Not that I needed an excuse to Inconvenience Characters in the first place 😆 it's become my favorite way of writing anything. Not Angst or Adventure, but Aggravation of Character in ridiculous ways 😂

This falls into the Trespasser au (last "episode" of that found HERE) a bit before the second Arena fight in the game.

The king of Spargus, Jak decided, was a killjoy.

For a city where strength and survival were supposed to be the most important traits, he sure didn't like any of Jak's demonstrations of strength or survival.

"You can't race Leapers in the middle of the market."

"Don't swim over the reef."

"Stop antagonizing the monks."

"You can't race Leapers on neighborhood roofs, either."

"If I told you not to swim over the reef, why would you assume I'd be okay with you feeding the sea monster?!'

It was like he was vehemently opposed to the mere concept of fun.

Jak folded his arms and tried not to roll his eyes while Kleiver complained about the scuffed up suspension and undercarriage on the Dune Hopper. Sure, he'd cut it a little close on the broken bridge, but he'd gotten away with the artifacts and left the Marauders in a two car pile up, so who was the winner, here?

Not Jak, apparently.

Damas listened to Kleiver yell about how he'd have to redo the entire suspension -- a gross exaggeration -- and how there was half a metalhead stuck in the undercarriage. Now that, Jak hadn't known about. When had he run over a metalhead?

"Hey! We didn't do that!" Daxter protested, "How do we know you didn't put that there last time you drove?!"

"Because I don't take the Hopper if I plan to do a run down Turquoise Canyon!" Kleiver snapped.

Damas steepled his fingers in front of his mouth and examined the damaged vehicle.

"One of these days, kid, I swear to Volcan-"

"What?! I got the job done, didn't I?" Jak protested indignantly. "Did you want the Marauders to get their hands on a functioning power cell?"

Damas’s jaw tightened so much that his mouth appeared to be folding inward. He inhaled slowly, and let it out again, ears twitching while he was very obviously counting to ten.

"There are no jumps in the canyon," he said slowly, "So how did you manage this?"

Jak shrugged nonchalantly. "The 'rauders chased us out to the ruins," he explained, "Ran out of turbo, so I had to get creative with the jump."

Kleiver started swearing very creatively under his breath. Damas turned an interesting shade of red.

"That does it."

The king grabbed Jak by the channeling ring and near dragged him out of the garage before Kleiver could clobber someone with a wrench.

"One more stunt like that out of you," Damas threatened, "and I'm entering you into an apprenticeship. Let's see you foment chaos with an actual structure in your day."

"You're not gonna do that," Jak scoffed.

Damas’s eyes narrowed. "Try me."

Jak did not take this nearly as seriously as he ought to have. In fact, he seemed to regard the threat as more instances of Damas "worrying too much". Damas did not worry too much! If anything, he wasn't worried enough about the insanity this young unknown relative had brought into his city! More than one advisor or guildmaster had been privy to the king muttering darkly, "I'm either going to kill him, or start training him myself. I'll let you know when I've figured out which."

And of course, Jak kept being Jak. Climbing the Arena walls because he saw a Precursor orb someone had dropped. Messing around with some kind of evil alien satellite on the beach. Inciting other inhabitants of the youth barracks to join foot races in the barrack halls in the dead hours of night. And he seemed to regard all of this as perfectly normal behavior. It was like all the impulses he'd had to shove down in Haven, all the ways he'd had to be perfect to fit under the yoke of that terrible word, hero, everything came crashing down in Spargus. He had almost no limits here, and that kind of freedom seemed to awaken a wildness that was above the paygrade of the dorm supervisor.

It came to the point where Damas was actually allowing the kid to go out into a sandstorm, just to get some of that boundless energy out! It wouldn't have been his first choice. Or even his tenth. But the storm rolling in was much larger than anything else they'd seen that summer. And for all his recklessness, Jak was their fastest driver.

"Four scouts have not reported in," the king told Jak and Daxter. His face was grim. "Two just set off their emergency beacons. At the rate this storm is going-"

He shook his head, cutting off his sentence.

Daxter had worried that Spargus would be another Krew situation at first. But here was the king of the cranky lizard-riders, flipping out because a handful of scouts -- one of the lowest ranks in the city -- weren't accounted for before a deadly storm.

In Haven, their absence wouldn't have even been noticed until roll call.

The old timers in the market were right, weren't they? "King's eyes see all." This guy watched everyone like a hawk, didn't he? Daxter wasn't sure if that bothered him, or if it just reminded him of Jak.

He supposed that was fitting, considering the two were probably related, no matter how in denial Jak seemed to be about being an Heir of Mar.

"Where's the Crawler right now?" Jak asked.

The mobile sandstorm shelter wasn't invincible, but it could take a lot. That would be the scouts' best bet.

Damas looked out the windows, glaring at the dark clouds as though he could hold the storm back by sheer force of will. It took a moment to hear his voice over the water.

"The Crawler is in the steppes at the moment. She's not a fast vehicle, Jak. I need you to get those scouts to either the Crawler or the city."

"I will."

Damas turned a stern look on them both.

"No stunts. These are people's lives we're talking about."

"I know!" Jak sputtered, a little offended. "And I won't bust the car up this time, so Kleiver can give it a rest."

"No. I'm serious, boy," Damas warned, "If it comes down to abandoning the car for shelter or trying to drive in the storm, you leave the car. Do you understand?"

Jak huffed. Damas had seen him outrun sandstorms before! What was so bad about a slightly bigger one?

"I got it, I got it," he grumbled.

Damas glared.

"No. Stunts. You get back here in one piece."

"Okay, I got it already!" Jak groaned.

"Jak-!"

"I know, Dad!" Jak complained.

An instant later his eyes widened.

The water suddenly seemed much louder than usual.

Daxter wasn't even sure any of them were breathing.

Three pairs of dramatically widened eyes darted back and forth between them as silence built up like steam under pressure. It was going to erupt sooner or later, the question was how.

Damas made a very small, strangled noise in the back of his throat.

Jak snapped out of his moment of horrified realization.

"Uh. I'll let you know when everyone is accounted for!"

He pivoted and bolted for the elevator before Damas could see his entire face burn crimson.

A guard at the back of the chamber opened his mouth to comment and in one rushed tangle of syllables Jak hissed,

"Youdidn'thearanything!"

Damas didn't blink for a good two minutes after Jak had left.

He didn't move for a good two minutes.

He stood exactly where he'd been, staring blankly at the empty elevator shaft.

The captain of the tower guard, an older man named Cephus, left his place by the windows to lean into Damas’s peripheral vision. He waved slightly, and the king finally blinked.

"Are you alright, sire?" Cephus asked.

Damas made a curious wheeze before speaking through a groaning inhalation.

"Oh no."

"Hm!" Cephus stroked his long beard. "Guess the wild one imprinted on you! Do I offer congratulations or condolences?"

Damas nodded slowly and stiffly.

"....help."

There could not possibly have been a worse time for the monks to finally send him the results of the blood test.

[alexandraisyes]

how much am i aloud to know about the Hunger Games AU :glancescutely:

TEE FUCKING HEE BITCH BUCKLE UP

And y'all this is gonna be so long but this is an AU I've been working on with Turbo for *months*. We love our TSBS hunger games.

So these are the tributes, this is just a sketch obviously

And here are the mentors, they haven't been sketched yet but have heights

And a few important people from the capitol (there will probably be a few more added later on as we work on developing the plot some more).

Each character will have several refs for the different parts of the story.

Information about the tributes. "Group" is the age group for the Games. In this world the age of maturity is 17, and once you are 17 you are considered an adult in the eyes of the law. Teens are between 12-16, Young Adults are 17-21, and just like in the States while they are adults there are a few restrictions on what all they can do, and certain jobs they can't work until they are 22. Adult is 22-29, and really the only difference between Y.Adult and Adult is that there's certain jobs you can't do when you're below 22 because young people aren't expendable like that according to this government. Elder is the last age group for the games, 30-35, and once you've crossed 35 you are no longer applicable for the Games.

(Poleart is supposed to say polearm)

Information about the Mentors. Then vs Now is how old they were when they won their games, and how old they are in the current narrative.

Tributes are selected by one female and one male tribute, in the lists for the tributes it says which group they represent in that aspect too. The government doesn't care what your pronouns are, they just care about if you're AFAB or AMAB because of tradition. The single exception is Harvest, who is lying about being AFAB and he was so vicious at the reaping about being with Blood that they didn't even bother to question it for the sake of their fingers.

We have done entire descriptions for the past arenas, but there's so much that I'm not gonna include here. Maybe in a separate post? Or when I open up a blog specifically for this AU since it's so convoluted. For an example of how long the arena descriptions are it's 5000 words. I will give you the description of the arena design for the one they're in during the story though.

72nd Annual Hunger Games Victor: Theme: **Apocalypse Forest** A post-apocalyptic wilderness where nature has reclaimed the remnants of civilization, turning it into a sprawling forest of tangled vegetation and decaying ruins. Set in the aftermath of a catastrophic event, such as a nuclear war or environmental collapse, this arena presents tributes with a harrowing landscape where survival is a constant struggle against both the elements and the remnants of humanity's downfall. The once-thriving cityscape has been engulfed by dense foliage, with skyscrapers now reduced to crumbling ruins and highways choked with overgrown vegetation. Tributes must navigate through the twisted remnants of urban infrastructure, facing hazards such as collapsed buildings, hidden traps, and radiation hotspots. The forest itself is a tangled maze of towering trees, dense undergrowth, and winding creeks, where tributes must contend with natural hazards such as toxic flora, mutated wildlife, and unpredictable weather patterns. The air is thick with the scent of decay, and the eerie silence is broken only by the distant cries of scavenging creatures and the creaking of rusted metal. Despite the desolation, pockets of life still exist within the forest, including desperate survivors, feral mutants, and rival factions vying for control. Tributes must navigate this hostile environment while also avoiding conflicts with other survivors, scavenging for resources, and deciphering the secrets of the apocalypse that brought about the forest's transformation.

There are ships, but they're not really a huge focus of the story. The main ones are surprise surprise, Blood/Sun/Harvest. If you've read my writing you should have expected this. There are a few background ships as well.

Unlike the uh canon Hunger Games, we're gonna give everyone the chance to talk to each other, hang out etc. Form alliances, friends, and rivalries. Instead of it all happening in three days before the arena, they get a whole month of training and publicity. Some parts of the story may be grueling for that reason, since we really want to give perspectives on all of the tributes. We're probably going to do a two or three-parter fic, before the games. The games. After the games.

We already know who dies, how they die, who lives, and how they live the rest of their lives after the games.

Oh yeah this is a bio-organic AU. Some of the characters are partially mechanical, like most of the celestial-based ones, but the rest are purely organic. The society is a mix of cyborgs, anthropomorphic animals, and humans.

Here's a few snippets of the plot that we have planned.

Sun and Moon are an oddity. Never has there been a set of (actual) siblings in the games before. Moon tried to tell Sun it would be okay when his name was pulled, and made sure to put on a brave face for the sake of Sun. He knew there was a 1/24 chance of him surviving the games. That was a risk he was willing to take. He would come back to Sun. You can only imagine the way his blood ran cold when they then pulled Sun's name and there was nothing he could do about it. He swore to himself he would find a way to get them free so he didn't have to see his little brother die in his arms. When Blood's name was pulled Harvest immediately pitched a fit. Blood had to pull him off of him so he could go up to the stage (and got bit for his futile effort). The second the female tribute was drawn Harvest volunteered for tribute. No one was going to kill his best friend unless it was him, thank you very fucking much. The guards tried to protest since he was coming from the male group, but they backed off after one almost lost a hand to sharp teeth. Ronty and Frank were from the same district but didn't know each other until they were both pulled for the games. Golden, Freddy's mentor, is his father. Freddy has two younger brothers who aren't old enough for the games yet. Foxy and Roxanne both have kids they need to win the games for to get back to. The Creator is the President.

[moonamite]

would LOVE to hear about ur au based on the beloved side character O_O

OK OK so you might wanna get comfy because this is gonna be a long post…

So this guy. Beat (Or Fang if you wanna go by his dub name) who was the main antagonist of episode 90 and 91.

As most aus go this is gonna contain a lot of headcanons lol

So my headcanon is that these guys were… exploring each other’s bodies. Gay bikers. I mean why the hell is Beat so bear-coded. I’m just going over the basics of my au so I won’t get into the juicy gay shenanigans. (But I will say that I hc young Gus being a smug little shit)

So yeah they get up to a lot of trouble, driving their bikes through towns at night, fucking shit up, being menaces to society, making out sloppily ect ect.

Then they challenge the legendary biker Steppenwolf, lose, and then they break up. (Obviously I’m going over the bare minimum, to keep this post as small as possible. I have whole scenarios in my head but yeah)

Gus does regret it- Worrying about the man he left, remembering how Beat yelled after him when he drove away, his voice breaking from all the screaming. He often questions if he really made the right choice that night… and what became of Beat.

Meanwhile, Beat was miserable. He didn’t know where to go, or what to do. Eventually he meets Axel and Turbo, and they form a strong bond with each other, meeting each other at their lowest points… they almost fill the hole that was left by Gus. Almost.

They go from town to town, searching for Steppenwolf, with Beat’s grudge eating away at him. (And while they’re doing that, Beat is secretly keeping an eye out for Gus.)

(Also I feel like I should add that in my au Beat only starts to go after Kirby later when Kirby causes his bros to crash their bikes- in this au, they both survive, but Beat is still completely enraged by this, vowing to get revenge for his brothers)

Then the stuff in the episodes happens, Gus learns his ex boyfriend is a demon beast, and the raceway collapses on top of Beat. As soon as the dust settles, Gus runs into the rubble trying to find Beat. Despite everything he did to his town, his home- he can’t stop himself from shouting Beat’s name, digging furiously through the debris, and praying that Beat is still alive. As soon as Gus finds him, he gets digging, and is quickly joined by Beat’s brothers- Gus realizes that Beat must mean a lot to them- they’re more than just his goons.

Beat ends up in the hospital, his brothers and Gus waiting for him to wake up. Even while bedridden, Beat still manages to act like a stubborn dickhead to Gus. Gus says he’ll let Gus and his friends stay at his place. Beat is upset, but he’s in no position to make demands. The mayor will let them stay with Gus only if they agree to do community service (under Gus’ supervision).

Gus and Beat have a couple of arguments (then getting smacked in the back of the head by Ax for being an asshole) But he always backs off, knowing about Gus’ nasty temper. (His bros staring wide eyed as Gus manages to get their big bro to listen to him and do what he’s told)

This is getting long so I’m just gonna summarize even more- Beat has a panic because he’s falling in love with Gus all over again, they rekindle their friendship, eventually getting back together, baby happens, marriage blah blah blah happy ending

[kysoncat]

Yes I did mention Speed, Crystal, and Flare are still Coastal Eevees. The reason I didn’t get rid of the Coastal Tribe for this AU was so Speed and Flare could still have their “special power” which are “Primus” and “Inferno” or as everyone calls them “Turbo” and “Blaze”. The way their ability works is like with Ash’s Infernape with Blaze where their eyes would turn glow and they get a massive power boost. The power has two stages where stage 1 is just the eyes changing color and they gain a portion of their Coastal power while stage 2 has them change their form into the Coastal form (Nothing to drastic but a form change similar to the Ash-Greninja form) while having the full Coastal power which can rival against Mega Evolved Pokemon.

As for the lore… it’s also one I need to put more thought into but my idea is that this particular tribe is very hidden in Kanto that some Pokemon believed this tribe is just a myth. The tribe of Eeveelution evolved with their type’s powers and learned how to give themselves a power boost with the Coastal abilities as a way to defend themselves against predators when the world was still natural with prey and predator Pokémon. Giovanni of Team Rocket (Who is a Rhydon) heard of the tribe and their special power and wanted to have them work for his evil team. They managed to locate where the tribe lives and start a raid (SC12b one) and if any Eeveelution fights back (which was all of them) he said to kill them. When the raid ended every single tribe member was dead and a few survived by running away.

So that’s what I got for the Coastal Tribe. It still needs some fine tuning but I got a pretty good idea of what I want for it. What do you think of it? Let me know and if you got anymore questions keep asking them please.

Hello again. I answered your question regarding ES Journeys with Sunshine and Axel in school and I was wondering what you thought of it.

Also if you have another question about characters, the story, or potential problems please keep asking as I’d love to answer them

OOOOOH I FORGOT TO RESPOND!! I like what you did with them! (especially with characters from the anime being Pokemon in this!) Sunshine and Axel being completely platonic as well is something I like!!

Sorry if I’m getting this wrong, but I believe you mentioned that Speed and his siblings are still Coastal Eevees? If they are, do you have any lore for the tribe? :0

[alllovegoddess]

okay tell us about soushin

after 2000 years. i am finally doing this. let's get into it gamers

describe their canon relationship/dynamic: what if you were just some freaking guy, unremarkable out of all your peers, maybe a little bit spoiled by your parents, but overall you're just a guy. there's nothing interesting about you. you are so utterly middle of the road that you're not even remarkably bad at anything. what if you were truly, genuinely Just Some Guy. and then this other guy, someone amazingly intelligent and talented at just about everything he does, comes to you and acts like YOU'RE the amazing one. he's a little weird, sure, a little off-putting, maybe you can't look him in the eye for very long, but that doesn't change the fact that someone that amazing thing you're amazing, y'know?

and, well, you're happy with him. it's comfortable to be with him. he teaches you about all sorts of things, answers all your questions, teaches you to think for yourself and try to become your own person. he's your ideal, in a lot of ways. maybe, just a little bit, you have him on a pedestal.

and then one day he vanishes. he's Gone. is he dead? did he abandon you? he left behind the apartment the two of you shared. he left behind enough evidence that he existed that you start trying to look for him. eventually, before you really realize it, finding him, seeing him again, is your whole reason for being alive. no other aspirations or ambitions, floating listlessly through life except for this one connection to someone whom you realize that honestly, you didn't know that well, but who had such an influence on your life that you can't really bring yourself to care.

then you get thrown into a death game, find out you're slated to super turbo die, and decide to fashion yourself a bit after him in an attempt to live and survive. you're willing to lie, manipulate, even kill, as long as it means living.

and then you find out that the guy you so idolized, the guy you fashioned yourself after so you could live, the guy who you centered your existence around, was actually one of the people behind the death game and actually only approached you in the first place because of it! and your whole life has been pulled out from underneath you! and now you have to live with this for the rest of your short, guaranteed-to-die life! isn't that so fun.

or, perhaps, you might imagine you're the future figurehead of a cult, raised to be the charismatic leader who stands at the forefront while the people behind you do the real work. you've been raised from birth in an environment surrounded by people who think very little of human lives except as a means to an end, and contrary to what most people would think, if you have no reason to challenge that kind of mindset, you simply don't! it's life! it's normal! you killed someone your own age when you were like, ten!

but then you're instructed to look after some guy. he's completely regular, completely normal, nothing remarkable about him. and this is, to you, inherently fascinating. even outside the orders you were given, you're completely enthralled by him, by this person who knows nothing of what you've done, of the legacy on your shoulders, of the fate waiting for both of you at the end. and, inevitably, your life ends up just a little bit too centered around him, too.

and so when you mess up, you are separated from him. and because you cannot bear to be separated from him, you recreate him, and you wait, because you know you will see him again, eventually.

and you do.

your ideal/headcanon version of it? how does it differ from how it is in canon & why is this your favorite version? any other alternate versions of it you enjoy?: honestly? i'm perfectly fine with the canon version of it. i do enjoy toying around with aus where asunaro isn't dictating their lives though because i think it would be so great if they could get to keep living out their simple, normal, happy days together for as long as they want to

what do you like about their relationship, why is it interesting or enjoyable to you?: i love...complications. i love it when the love itself is the problems and issues they have. i love it when two people are so obsessed with each other it's hard to pull apart the difference between love and hate. i love it when the word "love" isn't enough to fully encompass the kind of love they share. i love dying and being dead also

what about the individual characters involved? what does this relationship mean to them, what makes it unique among their relationships?: for both of them, this is arguably the one single most important relationship in both their lives. for shin, hiyori is the ideal that he aspires to, the comfort he centers his live and existence around, to the point where even when that ideal has been smashed to pieces he STILL continues to use hiyori's name and scarf and mannerisms to protect himself. and for hiyori, shin is...god not to sound dramatic but for hiyori shin is something akin to a savior? honestly? even as he says he hates normalcy and being bored and ordinary days and life, he clings to the normal, boring, ordinary life he had with shin. for someone like hiyori, who is notably a very hollow kind of person given how he was raised, someone like shin who is still infatuated despite all of that gives him an unbelievable anchor, and it shows extremely plainly that shin is also at the center of hiyori's life in a lot of ways. basically, they're mutually obsessed with each other to a pretty unhealthy point. good times all around

favorite interaction they have in canon: every day of my life i think about hiyori telling shin that he taught him to reach out and grab the truth with his own hands

favorite interaction they have in your head/a situation you want to put them in: oh i love putting them in situations you have no idea. i'm actually running out of situations to put them in which is why my fic production has slowed down so much. i love suggestions

[stairre]

Driftrod + no-war AU?

Hey, Space :D Well, this oughta be fun –

1. Since this is a No War AU, there cannot, y’know, be a war. So, the Functionists continue to be… the Functionists, A.K.A. robot fascist allegory, and they are, unfortunately, the puppeteers holding all the power in Cybertronian society. But they care about Cybertron, y’know? They want what’s best! And so all the usual concerns of government – taxes, unemployment, homelessness, etc. - all come under their purview. They are the only ones who know how to fix it all the Right Way.

Cue a two-birds-one-stone programme to tackle both homelessness and unemployment in one fell swoop: gathering up the homeless mecha of Cybertron like they were cattle and assigning them to work in the factories and foundries that this late stage capitalism economy. Indentured servitude? Slavery? No, no, these mecha are in need of jobs, and homes, and they are being provided for. Aren’t the Functionists doing well by Cybertron and its people?

2. So guess where Drift has ended up? That’s right: in a factory in Nyon. He hasn’t seen Gasket in years, they got separated when the enforcers raked through the Dead End with a comb and emptied it of all the undesirables. Some to the smelter, of course, but more to the employment programme.

Nyon’s an old city, full of rusty factories and foundries still chugging along. It was beautiful, once, and in some parts still is, but Drift lives in the compound on one of the factory sites, and he can’t leave. He has a roof over his head, and a steady source of fuel, but even though objectively he could be considered to be in a better position than he was before, it certainly doesn’t feel like it.

But he’s a survivor: he doesn’t want to die. So he keeps his head down and does his job, just one more cog in the great machine, another station on the assembly line, and takes each day as it comes.

3. But what of Hot Rod? Well, did you know that the skills required by Cybertronian veterinarians and Cybertronian doctors have a huge amount of overlap? It’s true! Systems are systems, and there’s less difference than you think between the fuel processing system in a turbo-hawk than there is in a mech. And, of course, it’s a lot, lot easier to be accepted into a veterinary school than it is into medical school – don’t have to be forged a medic, for one, or be of a high caste.

And Hot Rod wants to help people, all right? And this, it seemed to him when he had this incredible cheat-the-system idea, is the best way. He daylights as a vet in Nyon’s east quarter, and moonlights as a backstreet doctor. He’s well-known to the beast-former community, and from there other mecha in Nyon who just aren’t quite acceptable to the Functionists. They may or may not be a resistance movement lurking beneath the surface, but that’s neither here nor there.

4. Hot Rod and Drift first meet when a machinery accident – far too common – lands Drift in the factory’s medical wing, with the staff there taking one look at him and decrying even trying to salvage him. You would lose more resources saving him than you would get back by having him survive, they say, because that’s all Drift is: a resource. An expendable one. Take him to the scrap heap, they say, and Drift’s friends – for solidarity is the only light in this darkness – do. Still alive, but Drift’s hardly the first to meet this fate. But these are his friends, and there must be another way.

One of them is a beast-former, one of the Nyonic workers who gets to leave the factory grounds at the end of the working day, and he knows somebody who knows somebody who might be able to help Drift. And besides, the factory’s scrap heap gets taken out to the general dump once a week, and if Drift – now in stasis-lock – survives that long, then he’s home clear should this friend manage to get to him in time.

5. Drift wakes up on the sofa of Hot Rod’s apartment. He’s doing a lot better than he was – not that that’s hard – and as far as anyone else is concerned, he’s dead. He’s managed to fake his own death while being totally unconscious for practically all of it. He’s… free.

Hot Rod, meanwhile, now has a handsome mech who he’s helping get back on his feet hidden in his apartment. Guy’s gonna probably have to get a new name and paint job to fully sever himself from his old life and the threat that still lingers there, but – he’s here, he’s alive, and that makes all that stress and work worth it. This is great, this is what Hot Rod wants to do more of, and Drift can now get out of Nyon and leave all this misery behind him –

“So, how do I help?” Drift asks, and that’s the question that changes the course of Cybertron’s history.

[make-it-mavis]

@quadrantvacillation

Oh my dude…. I got some AUs for that very thing

Turbug AU is my fav. His code was still in Sugar Rush when he “died” so he did respawn, but the cybug code had merged so deeply into his that he was still a bug when he woke up, but respawning with the viral cybug code messed with things so the cybug brain is more dominant. At least for a while. He doesn’t remember who he is or who he was but oop for some reason he can’t bring himself to eat Mavis. So she stays with him and helps him get his memories back. For real my fave AU

And there’s another where Turbo survives the volcano, respawns with some wicked code scars because the cybug destroyed some of his code, but eventually he and Mavis run away into the internet together. Other than Roadblasters Never Happened AU it’s probably their happiest ending because they make it out of the arcade like they always dreamed of. (Then they meet another Turbo and it’s a whole fun thing)

And TBH dawg. Him respawning after just makes more sense? Because he had to have written his code into Sugar Rush. Otherwise he’d have died real quick after being crushed by a gumball. And the game actually wasn’t reset until a little while after he died. And as we saw at the end of RBTI when Vani was so casually like “Yeah Shank wrote me into the game so I won’t die,” it’s possible. And do they mean to tell us that Turbo, an evil genius of code manipulation, who survived about 25 years under the radar by manipulating the code of other games, would not know how to do that? Bullshit, I say!

[a-scary-lack-of-common-sense]

Omfg I adore your au (especially ur turbo design like oh my god it seriously goes hard af) but I was just wondering where Callahan would be in the au? Like since venellope is in sugar blast which is a candy themed shooter would that mean Callahan would be in some sort of dark broody racing game? Just kinda writing my thoughts here lmao

Hello, hello!! I'm so glad ur liking my AU :) and you're actually right on the money, anon! Because Hero's Duty is now indeed a dark broody racing game. So I guess Hero's... Race? Would be more suiting (I'll come up with a better name later).

Sgt Calhoun is now the lead racer of the game, leading her gang of "soldiers" with her badass bike. I haven't figured out an exact story for the game yet? But so far, it's an apocalyptic world where Cybugs has completely invaded the Earth and interrupted a nearby race mid-game at the time of the outbreak. Now Calhoun and her gang of racers must survive and race their way to the tower in order to trigger the beacon! The game mechanics is basically like any other racing game, but you have to try your best to avoid the Cybugs crashing into you and the road.

I based her uniform off of other motorcyclists' suits I found on pinterest. It took me so long to figure the design out, but I like what I got so far!

I would design her bike as well, but I'm not insane, so maybe next time!

[airplanned]

Zelda Trill AU part 3!

It’s absolutely shocking that I’ve never written anything involving Star Trek.  SHOCKING.

So this was really fun and useless.  Enjoy!

***

Part 1

After his unpleasant time in Hylia's presence and his turning down an away mission and his mild sinus infection, Link was very much looking forward to spending some time with people who liked him and appreciated him and weren't about to spread rumors that he was untrustworthy or...or...

She wouldn't say anything about the actual mistakes he'd made.  She couldn't with implicating herself too.  If she took him down, he'd take her down with him.  But it was the things that he hadn't done that concerned him.  She was not above lying.

And he couldn't stop thinking abut her.  Not just Zelda, with her flashing hair and flashing eyes.  But hauntings of Tetra.  Of Sheik.

He'd made the mistake of reconnecting with her once.  He wasn't going to make that same mistake again.  He'd seen how it turns out, how inevitably after too long, people turn on each other.

He needed to spend some time with his short-term friends.  Friends who knew only Link and could pull him out of his own history.

He wasn't the last to arrive at Ruto's quarters for her weekly card game.  Most of his friends were endearingly bad at cards.  He half suspected that they enjoyed losing.  Otherwise they'd find something else to do together.

"Liiiink!" Ruto called.  "You made it!  I was worried, because heard you weren't feeling well."

He flopped into a chair between Yunobo and Russel.  "I've had the worst day.  I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Ruto preened.  Yunobo gave him a concerned look.  "We're all having...what's this again?"

"Andorian barley ale," Groose said, holding up his mug.  In addition to trying out card games every week, the group tried out "drinks from around the galaxy."

"Yeah, that," Yunobo said.  "But we can get you some tea if you want."

Link grinned.  See?  Best friends.

The door chimed and Ruto straightened.  "Oh!  Since Malon couldn't come, I invited the new girl.  Come in!"

Link's blood froze.

And there she was.  All the memories hitting him again like a hammer.

So maybe they weren't the best friends after all.

"Zelda!  You made it!  This is Groose, Yunobo, Link, and Russel.  Everyone, this is Zelda."

There was a chorus of "Hey, Zelda," and she flashed a brilliant smile at them all.  Her eyes met Link's briefly, then swept away without even the slightest hint of  reaction.  Groose popped out of his seat to pull out her chair for her, like a smitten gentleman, and Link thought he might throw up at the lovestruck look on his friend's face.  "Thank you all so much for inviting me."  She beamed up at Groose, and the guy's ears turned red with pleasure.  When he took his seat, he scooted it closer to hers.

Link would have to pull him aside later and make up something horrendous about hooking up with Trills.  Would Groose believe they had spikes?

"I'm actually feeling pretty bad," Link said, half way out of his chair.  "I think I should--"

"You do not feel bad.  You're just shy," Ruto said.  "This is why I didn't tell you a new person was coming."

Rude.

"Anyway, we're playing a game called Ben'tick and we need six people."

Ben'tick.  Of course.

Yunobo slipped a mug of tea in front of him and Russel grabbed his shoulder, pressing him back into his seat.

Zelda sat directly across from him.  Which meant they were going to be partners. 

"Excuse Link.  He's shy."

"You're both Trill," Groose said.  "Do you know each other?"

"There actually is a whole planet full of us," she teased.  Her half smile made his heart hurt.  "We don't all know each other."

"Oh.  Right.  Sorry."

That lie wasn't going to last, especially after their scene in the commander's office.  But he did appreciate it for the moment.  They could pretend they didn't know each other.  He could do that.

Goorse asked, "Have you played before?"

"No.  You'll have to teach me."

Link was ignoring her, so he didn't roll his eyes.  Tetra Hylia was a fiend at Ben'tick.  She'd taught him.  Her eyes caught his again, and her fingernail tapped twice against the table.  Shut up.

"Of course we'll teach you!" Groose said.  He stretched an arm over her chair to lean in and run through the rules.  Her eyebrows puckered in confusion, and she asked a series of simplistic questions.

Tetra would roll into a bar on the outskirts, and flop down into a seat at the highest rolling table, announcing that she was the best player in the quadrant, and proceed to take everyone's currency without a shred of guilt.  Zelda, it seemed, was ready to con everyone.  Not surprising considering Hylia was a champion liar.  Not surprising considering Zelda had a level of innocent cuteness that Tetra couldn't have pulled off.  She held up her hand of cards to show Groose and bated her eyes with her lips slightly parted.

"She'll figure it out as we go," Link said.

"Link's going to be your partner," Ruto explained, gathering up the card to shuffle them.  "Don't worry.  You're in good hands."

"It is good to have a partner you can rely on," she said.  Only Link picked up on the edge in her voice.

"He's good at this game."  Ruto grinned at him.  "If you need it, he'll carry you through.  And he'll kick you if you make a mistake."

That was a good idea.  He aimed a swift kick at her shin.

And missed.  "Ow!" Groose barked.  He glared at Link and retreated to his own seat, pretending that he was pulling in his arms to collect his hand of cards.

Zelda lifted her eyes over her fanned hand and smirked.  He was not going to survive the night.

She folded up her cards and tapped them twice against the table as if neatening them--A signal from a hundred years ago that she had four face cards.

Link sighed.  There was nothing for it.  He found a low number to throw out, letting her take the first hand.

#

Ruto threw down her hand.  "Okay, we have to have a rule where the Trills aren't on a team."

Yunobo said, "Don't the symbionts communicate with an electromagnetic disturbance?  I think they're talking to each other."

"No, it's the tapping," said Russel.  "We always thought the way Link tapped his cards was a tick.  But she does it too.  They're signalling each other."

"No way!" Groose said.  "Zelda would have to have played this before to know any signals."

Everyone groaned.  Ruto rubbed her temple.  "She has played this before.  She's hustling you!"

Groose snapped around to give her a betrayed look. 

She gave him a sympathetic look.  "Link was carrying me most of the time."  Then she gathered all the chips in the pot and pulled them towards her.

"I'm on shift at 0700 tomorrow," Russel said.  "I should get going." 

That effectively ended the night, and as much as Link tried to delay leaving so her wouldn't have to walk with her, Groose unfortunately noticed and shouted after him, "Hey, Fi, you making a move on Ruto?"

The dangers of Ruto thinking that was true outweighed a brief walk in the hallway, so off he went, following awkwardly behind Groose and Zelda as they discussed his recent shore leave.  He went mountain climbing.  Link knew he fell, but Groose made no mention of that.

"I'm down that way," Groose said, pointing down a corridor away from the turbo lift.  "If you wanna..."

Link would have been better off if he'd left Ruto's claiming he'd needed to be somewhere else, headed to the opposite end of the ship.

Zelda laughed.  "No thank you, but that was a good try."

Groose beamed and gave her a thumbs up.

Link didn't have much choice but to fall into step beside her to the turbolift.

"You don't talk a lot, do you?" she said.  The edge in her voice was back, but not nearly as sharp.

"Leave Groose alone," he said.

"Why?  Are you jealous?"  The turbolift arrived and they both stepped aboard.  "Deck 7."

"Deck 5.  He'd not the brightest, but hes my friend, and I don't want him to get hurt."

"Because I'll murder him?  That's really the story you're sticking with?"

Link clenched his teeth.

"Look," she said.  "I didn't pick this assignment.  If I had a choice, I'd stay as far away from you as possible.  But I don't have a choice, and neither do you.  So are we going to make this work and ignore each other like professionals, or are you going to be broody and impossible forever?"

He turned on her.  "This ship is my home.  If you put a toe out of line, if you put anyone here in danger, if you do anything suspicious at all--"

"As if you wouldn't put this ship with everyone you claim to love onboard on course to fly straight into a star while you escape in a shuttle craft like the coward you are--"

The turbolift jerked and shuddered.  The lights flickered, and suddenly they were falling two floors, three.  They grabbed for each other's elbows as the emergency locks activated, hauling them to a stop with a sickening lurch.  For a moment the lights were off, the hum of the ship silent around them, and there was only the harsh sound of her breath and the fierce grip of her fingers on his arms.  The emergency lights came on, low and red, and they straightened away from each other, instantly on alert.

"We've fallen out of warp," she said.

"Fi to ops...Revali come in."

"Hylia to engineering."

"Fi to the bridge...Emergency override: doors open."

The doors did not open.  Zelda tapped at the dark console, before shaking her head and popping it open, immediately pushing her hands into the wires.  "Power's out.  Let me release the door locks."

There was a hiss, and Link crammed his fingertips into the slit between the doors, gritting his teeth and prying them apart.  The floor of Deck 8 was visible about a meter above the floor of the turbo lift.  The hallway was lit with emergency lighting as well.  Link shook out his hands and then cupped them, offering her a foothold and then hefting her up and out.  He hauled himself up after her and went straight to the console on the wall.

"Main power is down.  Some sort of energy spike."  He tapped away as she eased closer to watch over his shoulder.  She was so close that it pricked his neck.  "Propulsion is down.  Engines are running on auxiliary power.  Life support is functioning off the backup systems. And I can't reach anyone."

"What about comms?"

He shook his head.  "I don't know.  They're running on auxiliary power, so they should be functioning.  This is Lt. Fi to all hands."  They both stared vaguely at the floor, waiting for a response.  Link shook his head,  "Why can't we reach anyone?"

"A localized dampening field?"

"Maybe.  I need to get to the bridge."

"Preferably quickly."

"Yeah." He nodded.  "Let's go."

Part 4

[yinyangswings]

L&L Single Parent AU

So I was kind of inspired by @musicfeedsmysoul12 headcanon of the Love & Legends MC being a single mother. As I also like that AU I decided to give it a go. I tried to keep it as different as I could to @musicfeedsmysoul12‘s which is here.

It’s a bit long so I’m placing them in the Read Below

August Falke 

The kid is a shy and quiet five year old bio daughter of MC, and is incredibly mature for her age. The father was abusive towards both of them, and MC managed to leave. 

It was after a particularly bad beating where MC realized that if she didn’t leave, she probably wouldn’t live much longer and she would be damned if she was going to leave her daughter in the hands of that man.

She basically blackmails him with the threat of going to the police to get him to leave them both alone.

Sophie is protective of the girl and babysits when MC has to do multiple shifts for work.

August is still initially suspicious of MC, and still very angry and argumentative with her over it. He doesn’t have as hard of time letting go of the idea of MC being the Witch Queen, because of her daughter.

However she takes a lot longer to trust him because of the anger and suspicion.

When MC ran away after the whole ice crystal incident, all the little girl saw in her mind was Mommy running away from Daddy.

It takes her a lot longer to trust August after all this and she is pretty much glued to her mother’s side, and never really lets any of them out of her sight when alone with her mother. 

She was a shield for her mother back in Chicago, she’ll be her mother’s shield now.

She does her best to keep away from him for a little while in season 2, even after her mother reconciles with August, much to his confusion and concern.

August is aghast when MC explains the reasons for her daughter’s behavior around and general distrust of him.

The very idea of someone laying a hand on either MC or the little girl makes him sick. Even at his angriest he wouldn’t have dreamed of channeling his anger into hitting either of them. 

With her permission he tells the others, and she’s honestly surprised and relieved with the reactions. 

They all make sure both mother and daughter are alright and know they are willing to listen if they need to talk. 

The kid winds up making a connection (and reconciling) with August due to her love of horses. The two obsess over horses which amuses MC. She begins to come out of her shell because of this, though she is still generally shy.

In general she follows Solaire and Ryland around the castle when not following her mother. But she begins to open up to the others after a little while. Her favorite person to stay with is Saerys. He has no problem teasing the others that he’s the favorite. 

Reiner is a close second and it takes very little persuasion to convince him to teach her how to play the piano

August is extremely protective of MC and the girl, even more so after MC tells him of the abuse. Almost vicious, especially when he goes to Chicago and they run into the father. It’s really only because MC is there that stops August from beating the man into a pulp. 

She calls August ‘papa’ when they are visiting the Falke Inn during Season 3

He’s surprised to say the least and has some explaining to do with his mother.

MC tells him later that she can ask her daughter to not call him that if it makes him feel uncomfortable, but he reassures her it doesn’t. 

The little girl isn’t with August and MC when MC is sent back to Chicago. So she’s quite startled and scared when August is brought in injured, and her mother is nowhere to be found. 

She barely leaves August’s side and tries to be as helpful as she can. When her mother comes back, she is pretty much glued to her side. 

When the WQ’s curse begins to affect her, MC practically begs August to take care of her daughter, panicking at the idea of leaving her alone. August tells her that there was no way he would leave the girl alone and he would raise the girl if MC doesn’t survive.

He does also swear to MC he will do anything in his power to make sure she doesn’t die.

August’s parents find her adorable and Asta absolutely dotes on her. As far as she’s concerned, she’s the girl’s grandmother now and becomes that . Bayard takes a little bit longer to warm up to the girl, in part of her shyness around other men, but eventually he grows close with her. 

August’s sisters become incredibly protective of her. Especially Heloise.

August asks the little girl if he can marry MC first, because her comfort is just as important to him as MC. 

When he and MC talk about having other kids, August is quick to assure her that he sees the girl as his own daughter as well. 

Saerys 

The kid is the adopted 8 year old daughter of MC. MC had been dating her father when he was killed in an accident when she was 5. Her mother didn’t want custody of her because she had started a new family, so MC took her in. 

The kid at first doesn’t like Saerys, due to her bio mom choosing her new family over her and fearing that MC would abandon her too if she winds up getting a family with Saerys. 

Especially when Saerys runs away and MC runs after him to try and convince him to come back. MC tells her that she would have come back, but it takes a few days for her to forgive her. 

In season 3 while in Chicago, they run into bio mom who basically ignores her right in front of her new family at the coffee shop. 

It just breaks the kid and she just storms off, which leads to a frantic search from both MC and Saerys. It’s Saerys who finds her in a park. 

It does lead to a heart-to-heart conversation between the two, and Saerys promises that he wouldn’t ever make MC choose between either of them and that as far as he’s concerned, she’s his daughter. Her mother didn’t know what she was losing. 

It’s Season 4 where she starts calling both MC and Saerys Mom and Dad. Saerys is stunned, but MC just smiles. It’s a very happy day for them.

Saerys in turbo mode never attacks the girl, and is incredibly protective of her in that mode. 

They don’t tell her right away about what happened to MC with having half of Saerys’s soul. MC does tell her a few days after just so she doesn’t find out by other means. The girl understandably freaks out, though is more freaked out that MC died than the soul part. She likes Saerys more because of that.

The demon souls don’t know what to make of her. On the one hand a child. On the other hand it’s not her biological child. MC is not pleased by this. 

Saerys is protective of her and MC, like extremely protective of them. That little girl begins to learn self-defense from Saerys.

He begins to teach the girl the demon language. He has to try really hard to not laugh when she says curse words in demon language and try to scold her when MC figures it out.

Initially she’s scared of Saerys’s Demon God Mode, but she gets used to it. 

She’s initially nervous about meeting the other demons, because unlike MC, she doesn’t have any demon connection other than Saerys. After all, just like what the Demon Gods say, she’s not biologically MC’s. Saerys is quick to remind her of the promise made in Chicago. 

Altea Bellerose

The kid is the four year bio son of MC. He was conceived via in vitro. His other mom unfortunately died due to an illness, and he doesn’t really remember her because he was so young. All he remembers is Mama being sad for a little while after Mommy left. 

At first Altea is still suspicious, because anyone knows that Reiner has a soft spot for protecting children. WQ would totally use that against them. However as she watches them, and she can clearly see MC loves the boy. Something the WQ wouldn’t be able to act out

He is absolutely enthralled by Altea, like full on staring before growing completely excited over Altea’s magic. And begins to ask a lot of questions to MC’s embarrassment.

Altea finds it adorable.

The little boy winds up following Altea wherever she goes as much as possible, though MC tries to distract him as much as she can when Altea is researching in the library so she can read more than two words.

Altea gives the boy the nickname ‘Little Shadow’. It fits.

Altea begins to teach the boy how to speak French and he just loves it.

Being a princess thing was a shock for MC and a big worrying factor for her, because she wondered what that would mean for her and her son. She’s a ‘commoner’ and a single mother. She doubts Altea’s parents would be happy with her or her son.

She’s right.

Altea is protective over him, especially with her parents attitudes towards MC and the boy.

Altea’s parents take a little while to accept MC and the boy, but when they do they become rather attentive grandparents.

Lionel loves the idea of being an uncle

When Altea gains her wings, she and the boy go flying. It’s fun for the kid, but the other retainers and Reiner have to watch as MC nearly has an aneurysm watching the two of them fly around.

Reiner Wolfson

The kid is a seven month old bio daughter of MC. The father, while not physically abusive, was incredibly manipulative towards her but she put up with it. However, when she discovered he was cheating on her, she broke up with him. 

She found out a week later she was pregnant. When she told him just so he would know, he first denied the baby being his and accused her of being a cheater, before ultimately saying he wanted nothing to do with the baby.  

Reiner (and the other retainers) were just stunned by the infant. They all pretty much become protective from the start.

It’s easier for them to figure out that she isn’t WQ due to the fact that the girl is only a few months old and she’s been gone for several years. And Reiner’s spies would have discovered offspring of the WQ way before this. 

Admittedly when they first arrive, they are suspicious. The baby girl does not understand why people hate her mommy initially and just begins bawling when August begins to yell at MC. Cue panicked attempts to get her to calm down before MC manages to do so.

She enjoys teaching Reiner the song of her people on the piano...AKA bashing the piano keys with her tiny hands. MC apologizes multiple times but Reiner just laughs and laughs and says it’s understandable and he’s just happy that she seems to be enjoying herself.

She enjoys listening to Reiner play the piano though, and usually falls asleep listening to it.

When MC gives herself up to the generals, her only thought is that her daughter is safe with Reiner and the others, and she can live with that.

MC’s initially hesitant to get into a relationship due to her daughter’s father and that whole experience with him, though her heart warms whenever she watches Reiner with her daughter

This is even more evident when Reiner asks her to marry him. At first she’s really hesitant, but then sort of realizes that Reiner loves both her and her daughter and accepts

The baby senses something is wrong with her mother in Season 3, and gets fussy a lot easier when being held by her.

Reiner is super protective of her and of MC, especially when they get word that WQ intends to keep her alive and raise her.

Example of this is when Magnus makes a veiled threat in season 2 when the Generals attempt to get MC again that if they cannot have the mother, the daughter will do. Reiner fires an arrow at him so Magnus understands what he would have to deal with if he even attempts that.

Reiner is not a happy man when he finds out about the girl’s father, which is early on in Season 2. It surprises MC quite a bit, but also makes her heart skip a beat.

Ryland absolutely adores her. Almost rivals Reiner in the protective streak.

The baby is in that age range where everything goes into the mouth. It’s cute at first until she starts trying to put Reiner’s arrows into her mouth.

Then cue panic and trying to gingerly get her to release the arrows.

When MC and the baby meet Reiner in Chicago, the baby is so excited to see him, though he doesn’t recognize her. It leads to a lot of confusion on her part, and breaks MC’s heart.

Reiner thankfully takes it in stride (he just assumes the father looked similar to him).

Reiner formally adopts the girl after he and MC marry, making her his heir. They happen to run into the girl’s biological father after the papers are signed. Reiner has some choice words with him, but does thank the man for at least helping create his daughter.

She’s his daughter in his eyes, no matter who disagrees.

He and MC do talk about whether they want another child. They decide that if they do decide to have another child, they will treat and raise both of them with the same amount of love, but there isn’t a rush.

Iseul Idreis 

The kid is a three year old adopted son of MC. He’s a very quiet kid and just tends to stare at everything and everyone. 

Iseul didn’t want to be the one to watch the both of them. Because children=a lot more responsibility

Iseul initially doesn’t understand what the kid wants when he just stares...and stares...and stares some more at different things, but mainly him.

It’s...actually quite off-putting to start off with.

It takes him a little bit to realize he just stares because he wants to and doesn’t really have anyone his age to hang around. 

He gets used to him and eventually begins to understand what the boy wants when he stares at him. MC is there to help him out on that

It’s a slower burn relationship because of Iseul’s hesitance of being responsible for the kid and MC’s hesitance of him and the situation in general.

The two begin to bond through the kids' interest in archery. Like when he and MC watch Iseul training, it is the most interest MC has seen him take in an activity other than being read to.

Eventually Iseul develops a soft spot for the kid

Ishara absolutely adores him. Becomes grandma Ishara pretty quickly.

The rest of Iseul’s family follows suit and his siblings are so protective of him.

He is spoiled so much by Iseul’s family.

It is revealed that he was a test made by the WQ using Magnus and then discarded him, followed swiftly by making MC.

Both Iseul and MC decide to wait until he’s older before telling him this as it would confuse and scare him at this point.

He becomes a very gentle and quiet brother for Iris, who will go to him if she gets annoyed with their parents. He generally leaves her to her own devices, but is the occasional partner-in-crime

Iseul and Ishara fully plan on him drinking from the well as well.

The dragons at first actually scare him...and they learn that he would be the first one killed if a wild animal attacked because he just freezes when he gets startled. He gets used to them, but still.

Helena Klein 

The kid is a ten year boy that MC adopted. He is the son of a friend that died. His mother was murdered by his father, and he had no one else. He was unfortunately witness to this, and at the start is mute due to the trauma. 

Both MC and Sophie are protective of him, and whenever he has nightmares MC just holds him until he falls back asleep. 

When MC and him arrive, he’s understandably terrified, but is then really confused. MC makes an excuse as to why she arrived with a ten year old boy. She doesn’t tell anyone the truth for a little while, though she suspects Helena was figuring it out before she told her.

He begins to develop magical abilities, that they can only assume was because they were sent there. Helena begins to teach, though she is extremely hesitant due to how she learned and was taught by the WQ

Helena is protective of the boy and the boy is actually pretty protective of Helena, especially when he gets the Spark Notes version of the abuse she suffered from the WQ. Like he literally stands in front of Reiner and the retainers when they go to arrest her to protect her.

It’s really hard fro him to come to terms when she forgets everything in Chicago, but tries to help her as much as MC does.

He begins speaking in later seasons, only a little at first but eventually starts talking completely in Season 5

It is a very happy day for MC

He starts calling MC ‘Ma’ and Helena ‘Mom’ in Season 6

Helena begins crying uncontrollably when he calls her that the first time.

When Alain is killed, the boy worries about Helena’s mental state a great deal afterwards, and has flashbacks of when his mother was killed.

Alain Richter 

The kid is a one year old bio daughter of MC and the result of a one night stand. MC doesn’t remember much of that night other than she had consented, though it can be considered dubious consent at best (especially if you ask Sophie). She looks exactly like her mother.

She manages to convince the other Generals that she had made this child as an experiment, but does confide in Alain that the girl is biologically hers.

He’s understandably hurt and confused, but she confesses that she really doesn’t remember a whole lot that night.

This opens a completely different can of worms for Alain, who really, really, really wants to kill the man.

Alain winds up adoring this girl. Like he holds her for the first time and MC sees him relax in an instant and his guard goes down just as fast. 

The same can be said about the baby, who calms down rather quickly when given to Alain. 

Becomes overprotective Papa the moment he sees her.

When WQ learns of the child, she sees the toddler as her own and begins to make plans to take and raise her. 

This terrifies MC because of her memories of what WQ has done and she knows she could never let that happen. 

MC uses her love for Alain and her daughter to fend off Jinhai’s creatures when they escape.

When his heart is frozen, the girl seems to sense it, leading her to not like being held by him. MC knows he’s truly back when he picks her up, and she giggles, and then hugs him..

She begins crying out of relief which scares the shit out Alain, who fears she’s hurt.

She tells Alain if she doesn’t survive to take care of their daughter in her stead. He at first denies the request, but when she makes it practically an order, he complies, albeit reluctantly.

When they’re in Chicago, they run into the baby’s bio daddy. It does not go over well when the man insults MC in front of Alain, especially when the man mocks the toddler as well.

MC is pretty much convinced that anyone who tries to be in a relationship with their daughter when she’s older is going to have one hell of a fight on their hand.