#cerberus engine

[soundcrusher]

I don't know if I have said it before, but I really like their dynamic. They'll both flee from danger, until Reeve pulls out a McGuffin for Vincent to use, and then Vincent will fight whatever was chasing them.

First it was a turret on the Shadow Fox, some sleep-bullets for Shelke, and then a big ass cannon in the WRO building before fighting Azul.

Like, does Reeve just have stuff lying around for Vincent to use, or what? XD

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

You would have the biggest chance of knowing out of all the people I know, do you have any insight as to why Ortho’s gears only ever show either his eyes or his mouth at any given time?

I've actually talked about it before! You can read that post here. There's also this follow-up post. To summarize, no official reason is given as to why robo!Ortho is not depicted with his full face. Many fans theorize that only robo!Ortho's eyes or mouth (but not both at the same time) are visible because it pains Idia to stare at the "full face" of his deceased younger brother. Indeed, the only instance we see of robo!Ortho's full naked face is at the end of book 6, when the "true" Ortho speaks with Idia one last time after his OB. However, that's not the face of the robo!Ortho we know and love so this doesn't really count.

I think that theory holds only if Idia designed all of Ortho's gears... which is patently false. Fairy Gear was designed by Crewel, and it is highly unlikely that Idia tells his traumatic backstory to professors (especially since he doesn't seem particularly close with the aggressive, assertive Crewel). Ortho designs his Rabbit Gear himself while visiting Clock Town for White Rabbit Fest; Idia is not physically around, so Ortho has no diegetic reason to intentionally design the Rabbit Gear to obscure half of his face. Finally, Cerberus Gear was designed by his mother, STYX' Chief Engineer. It is made very clear that Mrs. Shroud is warm, bubbly, loves robo!Ortho, and considers him like her third son, so it makes less sense to project Idia's anxieties about looking into the face of a dead family member onto Mrs. Shroud too.

Though perhaps less emotionally impactful, I think it's more likely that this design choice was made not with consideration to Idia's in-universe trauma, but rather as an aesthetic choice + to differentiate OG!Ortho from robo!Ortho. Again, this is probably why we see OG!Ortho's full face at the end of book 6 but never robo!Ortho's full face.

[loveisanimaginarydagger3000]

The Babysitter (18)

I Love You

MILF Wanda Maximoff X Reader 18+

Summary: In need of money and a way to escape the problems at home, you get a job babysitting two lovely boys named Billy and Tommy Maximoff. What happens when you start to feel things you shouldn't for their mother? Will it bloom into love or leave you heartbroken?

A/N- I would just like to say that there will be some sensitive issues in this story such as alcoholism, homophobia, anxiety as well as more mature content such as smut so, if you continue to read this, please consider this warning.

The Babysitter Master list | General Master List

Chapter 18- W/c 3.7k- This chapter contains 18+ Content

Tag list- @natsluttt @cerberus-spectre @dorabledewdroop @bibliophilicbi @hopelesslyfallenninlove @simpform1lfs @get-the-fuck-outta-here @natashaswife4125 @marvelwomen-simp (Comment if you want to be added)

I Love You

Your heart shatters as you walk in the heavy downpour, the rain mixing with the tears streaming down your face as block out everything around you. The sound of rain thrashing against the concrete, the engines of cars, and the laughter of people in surrounding buildings all fade into the background, the noises fuzzy while your mind reels.

Completely losing yourself to the torment of your own thoughts, you miss how your name is desperately called out and how Wanda's steps quickly approach when she runs after you, only noticing when her arm reaches out to stop you.

"Y/n," she whispers, voice raw with emotion and eyes brimming with tears. You still due to her hold on you and turn slowly to look at her, taking in her features through watery eyes while letting her hands move to cup your face. "Detka," she murmurs, her own heart shattering at the sight of you so destroyed at what happened.

You don't say anything, another tear spilling from your eyes as you look into her pained ones.

"It's not what you think," she says, pushing back some of the wet hair that's fallen in front of her face.

"He kissed you," you mutter, the whole interaction replays in your mind while you try to focus on what else happened besides the kiss as it was distorting the way you remembered the interaction. All you could remember though was his hands cupping her cheeks, his lips pressed against hers, causing your heart to break a little more and insecurities to build inside you.

"Exactly, he kissed me," she emphasises, your mind now remembering how her arms moved to his chest to push him off, not returning the kiss at all, "I didn't want to kiss him."

You remain quiet, letting the rain continue its onslaught on you both while you stand on the pavement. You think about Melina's words, trying your absolute best to consider Wanda's side of it, trying to look at it from her perspective and not be rash but all that happens is you remember her hesitance.

"You hesitated." Her brows furrow at your words, the confusion and insecurity that's surfaced in your eyes replacing the hurt. "Why did you hesitate?" When she struggles to respond, you let out a sigh, lowering your head and avoiding her gaze. "You considered it, didn't you?" the tone of your voice almost pleads her to prove you wrong, prove that she didn't consider getting back with him.

"No," she says, her voice laced with honesty and desperation to show you that she didn't. "I hesitated because... all I could think about was the man I fell in love with all those years ago." Slowly, you raised your gaze to meet her own, astonished by the amount of emotion swirling in her eyes. "All I could think about was how much he changed, how much I hated him now."

Her hands are still cupping your cheeks, her thumbs wiping the rain and tears off your cheeks as you both stay locked in the moment. You simply both gaze into each other's eyes, losing yourself in her eyes like you always do before breaking the intimate stare.

"He still loves you," You say more out loud to yourself then her, his words causing doubt to stir inside you. He could provide for her better. He's the more stable option. He's the twins' father-

"I don't love him," she murmurs, stepping closer to you and letting her fingers softly brush your soaking hair out of your face. "I don't want him," she whispers, her eyes staring into your own with nothing but love and tenderness. "I want you Y/n. I love you."

Your heart splits into two at her words, part of you revelling with joy because she loves you, but the other half breaks once more as insecurities and doubts gnaw painfully at you. Your mothers words ring around inside your head, Vision's subtle little smirk after kissing Wanda, the pain and grief of the last time you heard those words joining the vile words of your mother.

Noticing the conflict on your face, seeing that disheartened and insecure look in your eyes, Wanda brings you out of the spiral of thoughts, sensing the things your mother had said were making you feel like you were unworthy of her love.

How could someone ever love you?

It won't last, you know?

Do you really think anyone will love you after what you did?

"It's true," she murmurs softly, caressing your cheeks and offering a comforting smile, trying to get you to think like yourself. The thoughts fade away at her soft tone, that gentle tone that causes warmth to take over your chest and calm you down.

"I love you, Y/n. You're all I want. All I could ever want."

The negative and insecure thoughts continue to drift away, your mind now able to comprehend what she's actually saying: she loves you. The revelation makes a small smile break out on your face, her immediately noticing the shift in mood.

"There's my Detka," she murmurs, your hands going to hover at her waist as she leans forwards so she can press her forehead against yours.

"I'm sorry," you sigh out, an apologetic tone lacing your words. "I'm sorry I freaked out-"

"Shh," she gently whispers, hushing your apology, "You don't need to apologise Detka." Her head moves so that her lips can press a featherlight kiss to your forehead, lingering at the wet skin before pulling back and gazing into your eyes.

"I..." You trail off, wanting to say the three words back to her but your throat closing up, the anxiety around the words stopping you. As always, she notices and understands you're not ready, pressing another soft kiss on your cheek before moving to ghost her lips over yours.

"You don't have to say it if you're not ready," she murmurs and her just being so, so perfect, makes you want to say it even though you can't.

"You're everything I want and more," you whisper with a raw tone, trying to convey the love you feel for her in your gaze and words. "You own my heart, Wanda, and because of you, I don't have to make an effort to be happy again. You're my everything."

Wasting no time, her lips crash to yours and the whole world seems to stop. All you can feel is the way her lips meet your own, the way her hands are cupping your cheeks, her body pressing up against yours. It's her, it's all her and that's all you want.

***

Your back hits the door as her body pushes you up against it, the contrast between her warm home and the bitter wind and rain causing a pleasant feeling to flow through you as you heat up a little.

Your whole body soon feels like it's on fire though when her lips press to your own again, her tongue dominantly sliding into your mouth and taking control. Her hands move to your soaked hair, pushing the wet strands back as they fall between your faces while your mouths crash back together.

She steals your breath away, both literally and figuratively as her lips are relentless and that sultry look in her eyes short cuts your brain. The look of pure desire and want causes an unbearable heat to build between your thighs as her body presses further against you, leg slotting between your legs.

A small moan leaves you at the action, your head lolling back while you pant for breath. The older woman takes this as an opportunity to mark your neck once more, letting her teeth scrape down the sensitive skin, which causes a shiver to run down your spine, before littering it in hot, open-mouthed kisses.

"Please," you whimper as your hands helplessly hold onto her waist, the submissive tone of your voice not going unnoticed by her.

"Please what?" she teases with a low tone, pulling away from your neck to admire your dishevelled state. Her eyes scan over your own, watching the way they somehow darken even more before glancing down to your lips, admiring the way your tongue subconsciously wets them. "You have to use your words Detka."

Her lips ghost yours, waiting eagerly for your response but you're rendered speechless by her, too consumed by your arousal to voice what you want.

"Wanda, please," you whisper once more, the desperate look enough to make her take mercy on you. Her hands guide yours to her blouse, helping you unbutton it before shrugging the item off, leaving her in a white lace bra. "Fuck," the word spills from your lips in an enamoured tone, your mind unable to comprehend how someone can be this beautiful.

As your lingering look comes to an end, she pulls away, hooking a finger in the belt loop of your jeans to pull you with her until her back reaches the wall near the stairs. Her hands roam your body while yours do the same to hers, confidence building in you at every little sensual sigh and low moan.

"Fuck Detka," she groans when you suck on the juncture of her neck, her fingers tangled in your locks as you mark her neck. She tugs your head back and manoeuvres so she can walk up the stairs while keeping you close.

It's as if the world would end if you stopped touching each other, the contact necessary to live as the two of you refused to part on the way to her room. You lost track of how many times you pinned each other to a nearby wall, unable to control yourselves as you passionately pour all your emotions into every kiss.

Eventually, you make it to her room, her body swiftly straddling your lap as her hands drift down your body, pulling on the bottom of your shirt.

"Is this ok?" she murmurs, her tone soft and gentle contrasting the hungry and rough kisses.

"Yes," you sigh out, voice laced with neediness as you look up into her enticing eyes. "I need you, please," the way you look at her indicates what you want, the older woman's gaze softening when she sees how much you desire her touch.

"Tell me to stop and I will," she whispers against your lips, pushing you back so you're laid on the mattress with her soft body on top. You move your arms so she can easily pull your shirt over your head, her eyes drifting down your body while she bites her lower lip. "You're beautiful Dekta," she husks out against your lips, pressing her mouth to yours briefly before letting her kisses trail down your jaw and neck. You blush at her words and the way she takes in your body, breath hitching when her kisses travel lower to your collarbone.

Her hands glide up your body, feeling all the soft skin under her fingertips and enjoying the way your muscles twitch under her touch, moving them until they reach around your back to unclasp your bra. Her eyes ask the silent question causing you to nod, her fingers swiftly taking the item off.

"Oh fuck," you moan out, hands shooting out to grasp at her hair when her tongue licks down the valley between your breasts, pressing sensual kisses around your nipple before casting her gaze up, holding the eye contact, and taking your breast into her mouth. A lewd noise is ripped from the back of your throat at the way her tongue swirls around your sensitive skin, her hand moving to your neglected breast and giving it attention.

Your fingers thread properly into her locks, the soft hair heavenly to touch as her mouth works wonders on you, moving to the other breast and letting her fingers pinch and pull your now wet nipple to make you groan beneath her.

When she pulls back, a string of saliva is attached from her mouth to your chest making you curse at how hot she looks peering up at you with that dominant and seductive look. Her thumb moves to her lips to remove it, the action fuelling your arousal as she smirks at the way your breath hitches at her movements, deciding to torment you a little more. Her face returns to yours, lips pressing against yours for a bruising kiss before pulling back and moving to whisper in the shell of your ear,

"Remember what I said to you on our first night," her tone is sultry while her teeth nibble gently on your ear lobe, a small hum escaping you as that's all you can manage in response. "I said I was going to ruin you Detka, and I will," she chuckles at the way you moan at her words, her index finger moving to the base of your neck so she can drag it teasingly down your body. Her nail scrapes softly at your skin, travelling down your desperate body, between your breasts, over your stomach until it reaches the waistband of your jeans, slipping a finger under briefly before taking it out as she gauges your reaction.

"Please," you whimper, eyes pleading her to finally touch you. "Please, I need you so bad, Wanda please," you beg and her lips silence you, a moan being muffled by her mouth.

"Hush Detka," she coos a little condescendingly and you're embarrassed at how much that turns you on, "I've got you, I'll take care of you." Effortlessly, her hands unfasten your jeans and slide them down your legs, you helping completely rid the item and watching as her fingers glide over the expanse of your thighs.

The green in her eyes has completely disappeared, replaced by hunger and desire as she takes in your needy form panting in anticipation while her fingers inch closer and closer to your dripping core.

A moan spills from your lips as your head lolls back when her fingers finally meet your soaked panties, hips pathetically bucking at the small action. She smirks at your reaction, letting her fingers slowly circle your clit through the fabric, gradually building the pleasure inside you. As she persists with her deliberately slow pace, your hips move against her hand, grinding unabashedly as you crave to feel her doing more.

"So needy, so desperate," she mutters against your lips, claiming them while she removes the drenched fabric from your body, your heart beating wildly in your chest. "So wet," she purrs when her fingers slide through your folds, your arousal coating her digits. A sinful noise escapes you at the feeling of her circling your clit, pleasure taking over all your senses, hands moving to clutch desperately at the sheets by your side.

"Wanda," you sigh out when her fingers move lower, a moan leaving her lips at the way you say her name. You're about to say her name again but it's interrupted by a broken moan when she slides a finger inside you and slowly starts to thrust it inside you.

"That's it baby," she praises, knowing how much you liked it last time, "Such a good girl, taking my fingers so well." You moan once again when she adds another finger, pumping both long, slender digits inside you and curling them beautifully inside you. Her leisurely pace soon vanishes when she seems to struggle holding back, teasing herself as well as you at how slow she was fingering you.

"Fuck!" you scream, her mouth claiming yours to muffle the noises she rips from the back of your throat as her fingers speed up, fucking you at a merciless pace. Her thumb moves to circle your clit, adding to the overwhelming pleasure as your hips grind frantically against her hand.

Her free hand moves to interlock with yours, placing it near your head and squeezing it encouragingly as your orgasm approaches quickly, her mouth parting from yours to whisper soft words.

"I've got you Detka, you can let go," you whimper in response, your legs trembling at the amount of pleasure coursing through your body. "Come for me," at her command, you crash head first into your orgasm, a string of moans spilling from your lips while you ride out your powerful release. She presses soft kisses over your face as you come down from your high, tilting your head to catch her lips for a passionate kiss.

"That was..." you sigh out, too blissed out to describe to her the way she sent you all the way to heaven.

"Amazing? Fantastic? The best you've ever had?" she mutters playfully, a chuckle escaping you as she knows it's the first time and therefore the best.

"Don't get too smug," you say, smiling up at her. Her lips tug upwards as she mirrors your content expression while you try and regain your composure.

"Can you do one more?" she asks while letting her teeth bite down on her lower lip, becoming irresistible. Your eyebrows raise at her question, body craving to feel her once again so you nod, letting her take a hold of your hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Swiftly, she removes her remaining clothes, her true beauty on show as she straddles your lap completely bare. It was as if Aphrodite crafted her body, sculpting it to perfection.

"Do you have any idea what you do to me?" she murmurs against your lips, your hands travelling down her body to where she guides you to. She lets you slide a finger through her folds, groaning into the kiss at feeling wet she is, how wet she is because of you. "You drive me insane," she moans out, your finger delicately circling her clit before her hand stops you, a confused expression taking over your face. "I want to try something," she explains, a smirk tugging at her lips as you watch her get into position.

A guttural moan escapes you when her dripping core meets your own, grinding down gently to cause pleasure to consume your body. Her hands brace themselves above your head, interlocking your fingers as she grinds down against you unabashedly.

"Y/n," she moans out near the shell of your ear, a pitiful noise escaping you at the overwhelming feeling of pleasure. The sensation of her clit brushing yours, the small sighs being released next to your ear and the fact you just orgasmed causes your next one to rapidly build. Your fingers tighten the grip on Wanda's, your hips bucking up in search of more friction to send you over the edge but restricted by the body on top of you.

A desperate noise rips from the back of your throat when she grinds a little harder, her mouth moving to press against yours momentarily before pulling back and gazing into your eyes.

"Wanda," you groan out, hoping by the way your body starts to tense and tremble she gets the hint that you're close.

"Hold it," she sighs out, grinding even harder and faster against you, the relentless pleasure wracking through your body causing you to throw your head back against the mattress.

"Please," the tone of your voice is nothing but submissive, laced with desperation as you plead the woman to let you come.

"Just a little longer," she pants out, nearing her own release as she thrusts her hips down against you, cursing lowly in Sokovian at the way your soaking cunt feels against hers. "Fuck, come with me Detka," she groans against your lips, both of you falling over the edge.

The room fills with quieting moans and sighs as you ride out the aftershocks of your powerful orgasms, your body twitching under hers as your body buzzes with a slight overstimulated feeling.

A few moments later, soft fingers brush along your jawline and at your cheek, coaxing you to open your eyes and look at her. She smiles tenderly down at you, pressing a kiss to your forehead before moving off you, pulling your body closer to cuddle into her side.

"I'm sorry about earlier," you murmur into the tranquil room, your head resting on her shoulder as your fingers trace random patterns on her skin, her hands scratching up and down your back.

"Detka-"

"No, please let me finish," you interrupted with a soft voice, tilting your head to look up at her. "I shouldn't have reacted in that way and assumed things without letting you say your side of it." You gauge her reaction to your words, her features softening, "I'm sorry."

"Thank you for apologising," she murmurs back, understanding that you felt like you had to apologise to her even though, in her opinion, you didn't need to. It was an appropriate reaction to seeing someone else kiss the person you care about but she could sense a certain guilt inside you, making her drop the subject.

The two of you remain quiet, simply embracing the moment together and relaxing into each other's arms, the comfort of her body slowly lulling you to sleep.

"Not yet Detka," Wanda whispers, waking you up a little bit to which you groan drowsily at, " You need to get cleaned up and go to the bathroom before we can sleep." You want to protest, too sleepy to do anything but the semi-stern look the older woman shoots your way for not wanting to do any sort of aftercare makes you begrudgingly slip out of the bed to listen to her.

Wanda does the same and helps your tired form, cooing loving phrases as the exhaustion from your orgasms catches up on you, scuffing your feet across her room back to the bed. A content smile plays on her lips at the way you steal one of her shirts and slip it on before joining her in bed, snuggling as close as you possibly could to her.

"I love you," she whispers into your hair as you drift off into a peaceful sleep, unable to stop the smile that forces its way onto her face.

She would never have thought that you, the babysitter, would have been the person to make her feel loved again, but here you were, giving her everything she wanted and more. 

[mysteryshoptls]

SSR Ortho Shroud - Cerberus Gear Voice Lines

Just a small reminder that Cerberus Ortho does not have a vignette.

When Summoned: Leave it to S.T.Y.X to handle magical calamities. We'll show that we have the world's greatest technological abilities!

Summon Line: Nii-san... Everyone, just you wait. I'll definitely come and save you all.

Groooovy!!: This is something that only I can do. That's why I have to go. This is the strength of my... "our" own determination!

Home: AI Data, migration completed.

Swap Looks: Resuming mission.

Home Idle 1: You can hide behind me. Don't worry, this body has high durability. No matter what happens, I'll protect you.

Home Idle 2: As long as I have this gear, I should be able to break through any strong magical barriers. I'll cut a path through.

Home Idle 3: The drive system and energy consumption is the pinnacle of efficiency. Mom's engineering skills are definitely top notch...

Home Idle - Login: Retrofitting complete. Commencing specialized anti-magical calamity functions with the 【Cerberus Gear】 attachment.

Home Idle - Groovy: We will definitely eliminate all disasters that emanate from blotting. That is both the mission and purpose of S.T.Y.X.

Home Tap 1: KB-RS01 gets its sustenance from electricity. But, for some reason, it also kind of likes pastries. Not that it can eat it, though.

Home Tap 2: The engineering division of S.T.Y.X is packed full of elite engineers. They all seem to be super interested in all the cutting-edge technology in my gear, too.

Home Tap 3: They both might be the pessimistic, downer types, but they're really reliable in a pinch. My dad and brother are really similar.

Home Tap 4: What's my brother like when we're back home? He's pretty much the same. He'll use chat functions to talk to the employees, and doesn't really talk to them, for the most part.

Home Tap 5: Careful! It's dangerous to reach out so suddenly like that. KB-RS02 might switch on his battle mode.

Home Tap - Groovy: The strongest person in our family has got to be my mom. She's usually nice, but... When she gets angry, she's really scary and no one's a match for her.

Duo: [ORTHO]: Let's clear this lickety-split, Nii-san! [IDIA]: Leave it to your big bro, Ortho!

Requested by @rotattooill.

[yuurei20]

Question!! But are we ever told or given hints about what the Shroud parents job entails? And is their mom's role different then their dad?

Answer!! ^^ Thank you for this question!

The details of what exactly it is the Shroud parents do at STYX might be a little vague at the moment, but we have received a few hints!

The staff refer to Shroud-Papa as "Director" and Shroud-Mama as "Chief Engineer," so it seems as though she is employed by Idia's father, reporting to him and referring to him as "Director" (when not calling him "Papa").

The Director mentions their previous director, Aidne Shroud, who was his mother (now deceased), so the position of "director" at STYX might be one that is passed down the bloodline to the next head of the family, insinuating that the Chief Engineer married into the Shrouds.

A common question that tends to arise is about the Shroud parents' helmets!

Idia says that his grandmother and father (the past and current directors/heads of the family) "supplemented their magic with technomantic devices" in an attempt to counter the family curse/blessing, which requires them to be constantly producing blot and will go after their magic itself when they don't.

This "technomantic device" is, presumably, the helmet that we see the Director wearing, but if the Chief Engineer married into the family and doesn't have a curse of her own, why would she need one?

From what I can tell this has yet to be explained, and it is possible that the helmets are not the technomantic devices at all? Maybe the devices that Aidne and the director used to supplement their magic are something else, and the helmets are for something else again?

Or maybe the helmet really is the technomantic device that Idia mentioned, and the Chief Engineer wears one in solidarity with her partner? It is still vague! :>

The Director built the base model for STYX's Cerberus System, which Idia perfected at the age of 12.

The Director says that he does "the average Joe work" during the crisis of Book 7, mentions taking a transport jet to a special disaster response base and working with "the entire tech dev division" to craft Ortho's Cerberus gear in in 48 hours.

While the Director may have been involved in the physical crafting of the gear (much like Ortho does for himself in Fairy Gala IF and the White Rabbit event), it seems it was designed by the Chief Engineer (there are many theories that Idia takes after their mother while Ortho takes after their father).

The Director calls her as an eccentric genius, and Ortho is shocked when it is revealed she was able to get through Idia's "super-ultra-ironclad security program" in order to access the schematics she used to design the gear.

And I think this may be most of what we have heard of the Shroud parents! :> Additional information catalogued below!

・Idia Shroud, Family (pt1) ・Idia Shroud, Family (pt2) ・Idia Shroud, Family (pt3)

[eldritch-spouse]

Can you tell me more about Kalymir's hell hounds? What do they look like what are they used for? Can I pet them?

Well. They look like an inferior cerberus, vaguely. They're quite large, Kalymir obviously fancies breeds that are larger than him and quite murderous.

I have no set visual reference for them, but they have hard keratin protrusions on several parts of their bodies generally. Some of them have bony faces and snouts, generally dark in coloration. They work closely with actual cerberi.

They're guards, they're war animals, and they're used to aid cerberi regulate traveling between Hell Rings, as well as stop demons from just carelessly entering random rifts to the surface. Kalymir usually only cares for animals that can aid him in acts of war or terrorizing others, so it's safe to say a lot of species in Wrath have been manipulated and forcibly tamed/engineered to serve such a purpose. Just like his nuckelavee steeds.

Can you pet one? Sure! You probably won't get to keep your limbs intact, but knock yourself out. In fact, trying to pet anything from Wrath is a wonderful idea! ((dripping sarcasm))

Kalymir will not help you in this. Like any standard dog breed, a Hell hound will sense fear and hesitation in you immediately. Even if you are entirely self-assured, they'll still snarl at you openly. You bare the size and smell of prey, so you'll have to frighten them to prove that you're more than just a snack. How you achieve this is what makes things interesting. Provided the King is around, the hounds will not attack you, for they know Kalymir can flip them upside down easily.

[phightingheadcanons]

HEY ITS ME

ahem anyways have some playgrounders theyre my favorite <3

Boombox Coil and Skateboard are all three best friends idc if boombox and coil haven't interacted yet in canon you cant change my mind on this.

Coil has a fuck ton of just. random skills. Like hes pretty good at engineering/wtvr field of science the crystals require but he can also just. do a bunch of shit. he has bad adhd so he doesnt usually stick w smth long enough to become super proficient but still.

Coil is also!! an avid fanfiction writer and reader!! He has stayed up wayyy to kate writing and or reading a random fic several times. Am I projecting??? Yes quite a bit. Live laugh love projecting on my favorite phighter anyways

Skateboard is constantly begging Coil for a speed boost! Like the playgrounders (+ Sling) will be going somewhere and Skateboard is just like "Hey man this could be so much faster if i has a speed boost" and Coil just. Grudgingly obliges (/silly)

Shuriken and Coil are absolutely besties. Like idk if i ship them (no hate to anyone who does its an awesome ship) but even if theyre not romantically involved they get along so well.

Coil Skateboard and Boomboc all talk with the most frat boy language like "DUUUUDE YOO WASSUP" "NOTHING MUCH BRO" like that sort of thing.

Skateboard started going out a lot less when Coil started living with him, he didn't notice bc he and Coil ended up hanging out a lot but everyone else was like "??? did smth happen to Skateboard why is he isolating so much????"

Also shout out to the purple anon i love the bb+bio thing and i feel like Coil saw this happening and was so fucking confused.

This mostly ended up being Coil hcs oops... </3 (/silly)

-⛓️‍💥🐺 Cerberus anon!!

dw, I love Coil hc posts. Might indoctrinate some of yours into my belief system

and yes, shout out to purple anon. I will happily consume more bb+bio hcs, thank you very much.

[felassan]

Email from Modiphius:

"MASS EFFECT NEWS! Mass Effect The Board Game and Mass Effect Miniatures are almost here! Commander Shepard, it’s time to suit up—the galaxy needs you again! Mass Effect The Board Game - Priority: Hagalaz is coming very soon! But here’s some top secret data just for you: we’re also releasing a range of high quality resin Mass Effect Miniatures! You can use these miniatures to upgrade the plastic miniatures and tokens in the base game, or field them in any miniatures skirmish game (like Five Parsecs from Home), and they’re great for for miniatures collectors and Mass Effect fans everywhere! Find out more on our Mass Effect blog and get a tease of the miniatures representing the crew of the Normandy, including both male and female Shepard minis (with optional helmets) and Wrex and Tali (with detachable drone)! If you haven’t already, sign up for Mass Effect news here, so you can be among the first to find out when pre-orders for Mass Effect The Board Game - Priority: Hagalaz and our Mass Effect Miniatures launch VERY soon! Until then, stay vigilant. The galaxy is counting on you."

[source: email from Modiphius]

Images of the miniatures (Sheps, Garrus, Liara, Tali, Wrex)

[source]

Info from the associated blogpost:

"Mass Effect Miniatures By Gavin Dady Art by David Benzal October sees the launch of Mass Effect The Boardgame - Priority: Hagalaz. In it, Commander Shepard and their band of loyal squadmates take on a new mission to explore a crashed Cerberus Cruiser on the storm-wracked world of Hagalaz. Within the cruiser they will face many dangerous enemies, from the survivors of the Cerberus crew, native life and even the dangerous captives and experiments that Cerberus were keeping aboard the ship. The enemies are represented by thick, full colour, illustrated card tokens in the game, but Modiphius are also producing a range of 32mm, multipart miniatures to compliment them. As with our previous Fallout and The Elder Scrolls miniatures, these are highly detailed resin collectors miniatures.    In this first phase of miniatures, we are concentrating on the core sets required to build up the forces for the board game. The first of these is The Heroes of the Normandy Alpha. It includes six miniatures in alternative poses for the PVC sculpts from the board game.  Commander Shepard is represented in both male and female versions. Armed with the M-8 Assault Rifle or her M-3 pistol and Omni-blade, Shepard is ready to take the fight to their enemies. Shepard also comes with optional parts to depict them with either bare head or their iconic helmet from their N7 armour. The former C-Sec officer, Garrus Vakarian, has been by Shepard’s side from their earliest days as a SPECTRE and is depicted in his role as one of the galaxy’s premier snipers (arguments about who is the better shot between Shepard and Garrus aside). Garrus is depicted with his signature M-92 Mantis rifle, repaired armour and the scars he gained as The Archangel. Next amongst Shepard’s staunch allies is Dr. Liara T’soni. A powerful Asari biotic, expert on the ancient Prothean race and, secretly, the powerful underworld figure The Shadowbroker. Liara  is depicted initiating one of her powerful biotic abilities, energy crackling around her hand. Tali’Zhora Nar Rayya is the young Quarian that Shepard first met whilst pursuing the rogue SPECTRE Saren. Tali is a gifted engineer and staunch advocate for the Quarian people. She is depicted with her drone, Chatika, who can be modelled attached to Tali’s Omni-tool, or kept separate to act as a marker during gameplay. Rounding out the squad is Urdnot Wrex, the veteran mercenary and leader of Clan Urdnot. Wrex is a powerhouse in battle, utilising biotic abilities, a powerful M-300 Claymore shotgun and, more than once, a well placed head-butt. As well as these miniatures, we are also producing further sets to compliment the boardgame, including Reaper Forces, Cerberus Troops and some of the Priority Threats that you will face as you make your way through the crashed cruiser. These sets are ideal for upgrading the tokens in the base game, or for use in any miniatures skirmish game (like Five Parsecs from Home) or for miniatures collectors everywhere. Look out for special collectors and gameplay bundles available exclusively from Modiphius  when the Mass Effect Board Game pre-orders go live soon! In the meantime, you can sign-up for more Mass Effect news here."

[source]

[utilitycaster]

This will possibly skew my poll (although you are encouraged to vote how you want and argue for other things - I would love thoughtful meta on Ludinus's true origins and this is still, ultimately, speculative) but I am really enamored with the idea that he is from the group of elves in northern Wildemount who beseeched Corellon for aid, but were not answered - not because they were ignoring them, but because they had been deafened in battle with Gruumsh. Those elves then attempted to encase their civilization in ice and fled to the Feywild, returning afterwards to rebuild, as the ice didn't work.

This has so many elements that not only fit Ludinus's story, but allow for interesting hooks into other Calamity-era occurrences. If you take the story straight (and then have him get separated from the others in some capacity at any point following not getting an answer from Corellon), this all comes down to Ludinus perceiving an inadvertent absence as a betrayal, setting up the tragedy of dedicating his life to destroying the world, all over a misunderstanding. Sure, Molaesmyr is also the hub of elven culture and few will question his presence, but his willingness to go against the priests of the Arch Heart and to destroy feels much more targeted if it's not a flailing strike at all the gods, but rather vengeance on Corellon's ground.

You also set up where he may have gotten the idea to feed on fey energy and the knowledge to do so effectively; this even could set up how he was able to develop an alliance with the Unseelie Court. The timeline is loose enough - the Veluthil burns for a century post-Calamity - that we don't know what else he might have done. There's a chance for him to return to the Material Plane and work with the original Cerberus Assembly, or to have been the one to have set the arcane fire in the region in the first place. I also think the idea of Ludinus as a terrestrial-based wizard in the era of flying cities makes sense both in that he'd know of Aeor and perhaps even envy it, but be unfamiliar with the details of their tech and therefore preserving the idea that he is painstakingly and cleverly reverse-engineering this tech rather than just badly returning to what he already knew.

Finally: it explains a lot about his base of operations. Why not establish himself in Marquet? Why On some level, he remains in northern Wildemount because that is his home. Maybe he really was in Ivaadel for a time, but this is where he's from, changed as it is. The Dwendalian Empire is a useful tool, and the Cerberus Assembly's new incarnation a seized opportunity, but he could have originally been from where Rexxentrum now stands.

If any of this is the case, and that's a big if, I do wonder if he knows why Corellon didn't answer; or if he ever will.

[strawberrykidneystone]

brief moments of intimacy with mass effect companions

the commander shepard showing affection to their lover <3

a/n: i kinda like this format bc i need more practice writing for the other companions besides garrus😭 some of these are set in ME2 and some are set in ME3 oopsies

gn!shepard x mass effect companions

ao3 version

garrus:

-during missions, shepard is always at the front and center of her companions, guiding them through even the worst circumstances

-however, the way back is a different story

-with the rest of the crew in front of them and walking back to the normandy, shepard hangs back and walks next to garrus, giving him a small nod

-he nodded back and flickered his mandible, looking straight forward as he felt their hand lace with his, giving him a reassuring squeeze as if to say “it’s okay, we’re both okay”

-garrus squeezed back and leaned down to their height, pressing his plate lips against their forehead very briefly as they finally arrived back at the ship they both called home

liara:

-she was holed up in her room, combing through all of the information they had on the protheans for the umpteenth time as if she would magically see something new

-unsurprisingly, she didn’t

-what did surprise her, however, was a pair of arms wrapping around her waist and a nose burying into her neck

-thankfully, she could recognize her lover's embrace anywhere

-by the goddess, she was so wrapped up in her research that she didn’t even hear the doors open

-and what better time to take a break than with her favorite person in the galaxy?

tali:

-she was busy tweaking the core reactor in the engineering room to run at full capacity

-apparently, more time had passed than she thought because the next thing she knew, there was a tap on her shoulder

-she looked over the shoulder that was tapped, but no one was there

-a tap came on her other shoulder so she looked, and the same thing

-she finally completely turned around and found a smiling shepard holding up a picnic basket

-tali apologized for losing track of time but they stopped her, taking her hand and leading her to the cat walk where the core shined above them

-shepard laid out a blanket, setting up tali’s sanitized food and their own human food

-they sat directly across front each other, each sacrificing a hand to hold the other as they ate their respective foods

-a picnic in the stars, at least a very warm one

kaidan:

-kaidan woke up to shepard’s side of the bed being barely warm anymore, they were always up before him

-he yawned and stretched his arms up, sitting up and tossing his legs over the side of the bed to get the day started

-the door suddenly opened and there was shepard with two steaming cups of hot coffee in their hands

-kaidan couldn’t help but smile, they even indulged his “ridiculous” moose head mug (he brought it from home)

-shepard yawned and walked over to him, gently handing him his cup before pecking his lips

-as they turned to walk away, kaidan caught their hand and pulled them down into a deeper kiss, tasting stale coffee on their lips from an earlier cup

-shepard withdrew with a smile and shook their head playfully, ruffling his already messy bedhead hair

-what a nice way to start the day

ashley:

-it had been a long day in the war room and ashley was more frustrated than ever, feeling helpless in this war

-shepard caught up with her walking back to the elevator and snaked their hand around her waist, pulling her closer to them

-she couldn’t help but smile, leaning into their touch and leaning her head on their shoulder

-she may not be able to do much in negotiations, but she knew humankind was in good hands with her fearless leader

jack:

-after narrowly saving grissom academy, the kids were set up in the common area as they waited for another shuttle

-jack was still heated from the entire situation and was currently ripping shepard a new one

-at the end of her spiel, she slapped them and pointed at their chest “that’s for cooperating with cerberus in the first place”

-then, she grabbed them by their collar and pulled them into a rough kiss, their teeth clacking at the first pull in

-jack pulled back for air and looked at shepard with a blush on her cheeks “and that’s for saving my kids… it might be nice to see you again too.”

-shepard chuckled and pulled her close by her waist, so close that their noses were almost touching, “it’s nice to see you too jack.”

miranda:

-meeting miranda on the citadel after hearing about her sister was hard, especially when miranda insisted she needed to do it alone

-but if anyone would understand wanting to do something by yourself, it was shepard

-so they did what they could, pulling her into a tight hug that she returned with full enthusiasm, their rib cages crushing against each other

-a small sob escaped miranda and shepard cupped the back of her head, turning their head to the side and kissed the top of her hair, shielding her from the world so she could compose herself

-miranda took a deep breath, taking in their familiar scent and calming down in their arms

-everything would be alright as long as she had shepard by her side

thane:

-he was sitting in his usual seat in the hospital at the citadel, he was here more than her liked

-a small coughing fit started and his chest heaved, a dizzy feeling going straight to his head

-suddenly, he felt grounded when he felt a familiar hand rubbing circles on his back

-he didn’t even have to turn to know who it was, shepard sat down next to him and he comfortably leaned into their embrace, resting his head on their shoulder

-this place wasn’t so lonely with them, he would embrace death once again knowing that they would join him across the sea

jacob:

-jacob was doing his daily crunches in the weapons room (unsurprisingly)

-shepard initially came in to switch out her shotgun for another she found on the field, but this was even better

-jacob acknowledged then with a small wave, staying committed to his usual workout routine

-that was fine, shepard smirked and walked over to him, kneeling down in front of his legs

-he was a little confused at first, but they had perfectly timed it to when he started his full-sit ups, kissing him every time he made it all the way up

-he did way more sets than he was expecting to that day and could barely move his torso the next day

-worth it though

a/n: if a request is made for more characters i would be happy to add them in!!

[sephirthoughts]

The Ghost of Shinra Manor

Chapter 5 of this

This chapter is a brief interlude just focusing on the bellhop. It's not a whole proper chapter, so it's part 4.5.

summary: It's been two years-ish since the events of Dirge of Cerberus. Cloud visits his hometown, and investigates a rumor of a ghost, haunting Shinra Manor. If you're surprised by who it turns out to be, you are beyond my power to save, comrade.

tags: g-g-g-ghosts!!! sefikura, sephiroth x cloud, sane!sephiroth (sort of), post advent children, post dirge of cerberus, canon timeline, delusions, intermitten amnesia, low drama, enemies to…whatever the hell they have going on

warnings: horror, ghosts being bullied, brief body horror, references to death, canon-typical violence

rating: teen and up [BE ADVISED: THIS RATING WILL CHANGE]

screenshots shamelessly stolen from @soundcrusher who also deserves 100% of the blame for my obsession with this guy

Part 4.5: About that Bellhop

The Gold Saucer’s renowned Haunted Hotel may have looked crazy and chaotic from an outside perspective, but in actuality, every element of the seeming disorder was thoughtfully curated. From the holographic ghost projections, to the mechanical hands flailing around in the ‘graveyard’, to the ‘haunted’ grandfather clock, to the gigantic, eerie sculptures and bizarre paintings, to the carpet, furnishings, and lighting—everything was specifically fine-tuned to contribute to the spooky atmosphere.

The bellhop was no exception. His seemingly haphazard facial bandages were wrapped exactly the same way every day, without a millimeter’s deviation.

His pillbox cap was carefully pinned so as to never fall from his head, or even sit askew. His uniforms were perfectly tailored and meticulously maintained, before the ropes and bandages were secured around his person. Even his idiomatic speech and outré manner of greeting guests, were part of the carefully orchestrated performance. 

For all the willy-nilly whimsicality of the place, beneath the surface, it was a well-oiled machine, and he was the operator, running things with a firm and unflagging hand. He had even personally contrived and built many of the actual machines, which provided the delightful little scares that his guests enjoyed.

Was he a control freak? Some would say so, but that would be to mischaracterize him. He thrived on order, regularity, and most of all, rules, but he didn’t share the same rigid and fastidious attitude toward rules that most of those type-A people did. 

To Benjamin, who had the mind of an engineer, rules were not restrictions, they were the operating principles, by which any given system functioned. Both the sheet music that maintained harmony in the orchestra, and the key to comprehending the inner workings of the cosmos. 

Everything in the universe operated according to rules, from private business policies, to municipal regulations, to the fundamental principles of physics. The only way to truly be safe, was to know the rules, inside and out. The only way to be truly free, was to fully understand the boundaries within which that freedom existed.

Somewhere between the esoteric concepts of man’s law and eternal cosmic law, lay the rules governing the supernatural. Or rather, the so-called supernatural. Benjamin disliked that term, because the things people placed in that category were as much a part of the natural ordering of reality as any tangible, mundane thing. It was just that most people didn’t know the rules by which those elements operated, so they seemed scary and chaotic. Much like his hotel. 

And this was, indisputably, his hotel. He may not own it, but it was his home. His territory. He knew it better than he knew himself. Like the face of a lover, he could flawlessly trace its every detail in his mind’s eye. There wasn’t an inch of the place he couldn’t walk blindfolded with perfect confidence (unless someone’s children were running loose underfoot, which often happened, and didn’t count against him knowing his way around).

Every evening, just before the shift change, he would come down from his hanged-man rigging and do what the other employees called ‘his rounds’. This consisted of scrutinizing each area of the hotel for proper cleanliness and ambience (he was notorious amongst the cleaning staff for his stringent white-glove inspections, which even included the inner edges of the ornate picture frames, that hung ten feet high on the walls), greeting guests, sending small gifts to one guest or another, adding little extra touches to room service orders, and herding stray children out of off-limits areas.

“Victoria, is that going to 1201?” he called down the hall, to a newly hired maid, who was pushing a room service cart out of the kitchen. 

“Yes, Mr. Benjamin,” the girl answered. 

His nose wrinkled behind his facial bandages, as he approached. “Something doesn’t smell right, do you mind?” 

“Yes, sir. N—no, sir,” stammered his flustered young employee. 

To her further discomfiture, her intimidating, possibly actually insane (also weirdly good looking despite having most of his face covered, she was just now realizing) supervisor lifted the silver cover, from one of the dishes, bent down, and took a deep sniff, of what appeared to be a BLT sandwich. 

“Just as I suspected,” he declared, pointing accusingly at the food item, with the air of a television detective, identifying the murderer. “This is regular whole-wheat toast! But the guest in 1201 is gluten intolerant!”

Victoria was beside herself. “G—gluten intolerant?”

“Gluten intolerant! Meaning that serving him this sandwich would be tantamount to feeding him a dose of poison.” He leaned closer, with a weird leer, squinting one magenta-red eye. “You don’t want to poison our guests accidentally, do you, Ms. Victoria?”

“No, sir! I wasn’t—I didn’t!” the girl sputtered, near tears. “I only took the trays the kitchen gave me, I swear!”

“Uh. Sorry. I have a…kind of dark sense of humor,” Benjamin mumbled awkwardly. Then he caught himself and cleared his throat, shaking himself back into his dignified-but-deranged butler character; spine upright, hands folded at the small of his back. “Nothing to be upset about, young lady, just go back and have the kitchen make it again. And tell them to be more careful, this time.”

“Yes, sir. Right away, sir,” the girl nodded, practically running away with the cart. When she was halfway back to the service window, she slowed down and frowned to herself. “Wait…how could he smell that it was the wrong bread, from down the hall?”

Benjamin, oblivious to the consternation he’d caused, was already on the next floor up, escorting an elderly guest to her room on one arm, while carrying all of her heavy bags in the other.

Apparently, she had so much luggage, because she’d come for an extended vacation, with her daughter and two grandchildren, who would arrive tomorrow morning. She was the cheerful and chatty type, but she quickly got winded, and walked with a cane and a pronounced stoop.

“My old bones ain’t what they used to be. I’m gettin’ tired so easy, these days,” she puffed, holding gratefully onto Benjamin. “I hope those two rascals will go easy on their gran, this time.”

Her little chuckle turned into a dry cough, as a pair of pale, boneless, sinuous arms, were twisted more tightly around her neck. From behind her head, another head peered out, with a bulbous, mottled scalp, sparsely covered by stringy black hairs, which hung over its ghastly, semi-humanoid face. 

Semi-humanoid, because its eyes were too large and far apart, to look really human, and its smile split its mouth open at a disturbingly wide angle, revealing rows upon rows of pointed teeth, like a lamprey.

In actuality, this creature was not the ghost of a human, at all. It had begun as a lowly leech sprite, and had cultivated a more human-like form, by feeding on the pure life force of human beings, over several thousand years.

Its lower half was still a tail, like a slug, but if one had the stomach to look closely, one would observe that it was beginning to divide into two, and that there were things almost resembling flippers, protruding from the end. Just a few thousand more years, and it would be able to walk among humans, unnoticed. Then it would live like a king.

“I think a good night’s sleep, in one of our hotel’s fine beds, will charge those batteries right up, Mrs. Geller,” Benjamin encouraged, squeezing the old lady’s gnarled hand. “When you wake up in the morning, you’ll feel like a huge weight has been lifted off you. I guarantee it.”

As he said those words, he glanced over, and for a beat, seemed to gaze directly into the enlarged, milky eyes of the creature hanging on her back. The parasitic spirit’s gloating grin froze, and a shiver raced up its developing spine.

Did that bellhop just…look right at it? No. No way. It must’ve been a coincidence. It had latched onto and slowly devoured the life energy of enough of these fools to know that humans couldn’t see or sense its kind, at all. It was the cunning predator and they were the oblivious prey. That was the way things were. 

So, why did it suddenly feel like a fly, that had stumbled into the web of a very dangerous spider? 

The troublesome bellhop walked the old woman into her room and set her bags on the bed. Then, to the leech spirit’s manifest annoyance, he proceeded to hang up her clothing, and conveniently arrange all her other things in the room, too, chatting amiably with her all the while. 

The conversation mostly revolved around her grandkids and how they were doing in school and how fast they were growing, but he never appeared bored or impatient. The leech spirit was beginning to suspect there was something wrong with his brain, when at long last, the young man made to leave.

“You have a lovely stay, Mrs. Geller,” he said, with a courtly bow, as he stepped out of the room. “If you need anything at all, day or night, dial zero on your hotel phone, to reach my desk. If I’m not there, the call will be forwarded to my personal cell phone.” 

“Thank you very much, Benjamin. Such a good boy,” the old lady replied warmly, thinking it was a pity her granddaughter was born about fifteen years too late to make a match with this fine young gentleman.

Meanwhile, the leech spirit breathed a sigh of relief. It must’ve imagined that bloodthirsty glint in the human’s eyes, after all. He was finally leaving, and talking his weirdly oppressive aura with him. 

Just as the door clicked shut behind the bellhop, however, a strange thing happened. Hundreds of wire-thin strands of something black and sinister swarmed in, under the door, raced across the room, and leapt at the old lady.

These horrifying things bypassed her, however, and whipped around the leech spirit, so fast, it didn’t even have a chance to react, let alone evade them.

Its reedy arms let go of the old woman and it fell to the floor, its ragged fingernails clawing impotently at the black strands that were winding around its face and throat, burning and itching wherever they touched, while more of them encircled its body, quickly binding its arms to its sides. The harder it struggled, the tighter they squeezed, cutting painfully into its flabby, white flesh. 

It quickly realized that it was being dragged toward the crack under the door, but it couldn’t even kick up a proper fuss, with all these horrible threads covering its mouth. The thing gurgled and wriggled pathetically, as it was forcibly squelched through that small gap, squished and flattened, and then stretched out the wrong way, making it a ridiculously miserable sight. 

It didn't even connect these bizarre strands to the bellhop, till it saw that the other ends were attached to his gloved hand. The spirit was enraged to the point of spitting blood, that this worthless human dared do such a thing, but it was completely helpless.

All it could do was weep inwardly for the injustice, of such an old and powerful spirit, nourished on thousands of human lives, properly feared and venerated among its kind, being casually towed around, behind a whelp of a human bellhop, like a particularly ugly sack of rubbish.

After a humiliating circuit of the hotel, the boy stopped in a back hallway, and unlocked an unobtrusive door, with a brass key, which opened on a dark, narrow stairwell.

The leech spirit had an ominous premonition. It was currently serving as the world’s most unappetizing dumpling, though, so it could only bear with being dragged up the stairs, its deformed head thunking against each step, along the way. 

At the top of the stairs, the bellhop entered a small, rather outdated room, and shut the door behind him. The leech spirit sensed the aura of other ghosts, all over the place, but they were comparatively weak and useless, not even a match for itself, so it immediately gave up any ideas about being assisted.

Standing with his back to his captive, as if to show his utter disregard for it, the human removed his bellhop cap and set it on a dresser, then slowly unwound the bandages from his head. The spirit’s stubby body curled up and began to tremble, where it lay on the floor, and for good reason. 

As the bandages came off, the thickest, heaviest black qi that even that ancient creature had ever seen, came curling off the boy’s body, like smoke from an incense burner; running in little wisps and rills down to the floor, where it pooled around his well-polished shoes. 

Ghosts and malicious spirits loved black qi, normally, and gravitated toward it, but this was so intensely dark, so concentrated and potent, that it was another matter, entirely.

It was the difference between basking in the ambient warmth from a fireplace, and sticking your hand directly into the naked flames. Darkness at this strength and purity would obliterate any spirit it touched, of any alignment.

“You like to feed on the energy of humans, don’t you?” the young man’s pleasant voice asked, over his shoulder.

When he turned to look down at the spirit, it saw that his pale, fine-featured face was crisscrossed with deep, blue-black cracks, which seemed to have something squirming and writhing beneath them.

His crimson irises were gone, and his long-lashed eyes had turned pitch black, sclera and all, as if they weren’t eyes anymore, but pits, opening upon the formless void.

If it had the capability, the leech spirit would have (quite understandably) pissed itself in fright, as the deceptively weak-looking human knelt down over it, and smiled eerily. 

“I’m human. Why don’t you try feeding on my energy?” 

As he spoke, in a resonant rasp, that grated painfully in its spectral ears, that noxious, black qi spilled out from between his lips, instantly corroding the spirit’s exposed flesh, wherever it touched.

“What’s the matter? Too rich for your blood?”

The beset creature could only thrash and howl in its bonds, half-mad with terror and agony and bitter resentment, as the cocoon of black threads constricted viciously.

The very last thing it saw, as it was torn apart and devoured by the Darkness, were the ink-black eyepits of that demon in human skin, observing its suffering with an expression of cool disdain.

Just as that abyssal miasma digested the last traces of the unlucky leech spirit, there was a brisk knock at Benjamin’s door.

“Benny, are you in there? I know you’re on your lunch, but the guests checking out of 1304 have a problem with their bill, and they’re demanding to see the manager. Can you come help?”

“Sure thing, Ann,” Benjamin called back cheerfully, as thousands of black, spider-silk tendrils retracted into his body. “I’ll be down in two shakes!”

When he returned to his room, late that night, Benjamin had a low fever and was aching and stiff all over, from exerting so much of that dark power, dealing with that creature.

He knew it was dangerous, and was aware of the heavy toll it took on his body, when he let it have its way, but he couldn’t just stand by and let evil things prey on innocent humans. Then he’d be no better than the rest of the monsters. 

He changed out of his uniform and hung it up neatly, then went to the bathroom, to take out the contacts he was required to wear for work, which made his cat-slit pupils appear round, and splash some water on his waxen face. 

With a shudder, he avoided looking directly at his own reflection. He couldn’t stand seeing those hideous cracks, close up and in the light, like this. Fortunately, the meal seemed to have made the thing inside sleepy, so at least nothing was squirming around under his skin, at the moment.

He was too nauseated to eat properly, so he opened a bag of salty-vinegary potato chips, which always calmed his stomach, for some reason, and sat down at his desk. Exhausted as he was, he still had half a gig of scanned books and newspapers and journal articles, from the public archives, to go through, for Cloud Strife.

It was too bad he couldn’t take time off work and just go up to Nibelheim, in person. He’d be able to tell what his shapeshifting-amnesiac ghost’s deal was, right away. And even if he couldn’t, he’d at least be able to get rid of it, for him.

Though, to be perfectly honest, he wasn’t entirely convinced Cloud wanted to be rid of the ghost, as much as he would have Benjamin believe.

Benjamin’s theory, based on nothing but intuition, was that the ghost’s attachment was Cloud. If so, it stood to reason that Cloud was also somehow attached to the ghost, too, despite his claim that he had killed the man and would prefer him to stay dead. 

Could a strong, mutual attachment have something to do with the ghost’s abnormalities? Doubtful. If that were the case, every person you had particularly strong feelings about would be hanging around you, after they died. That would muck up the natural order of life and death on the Planet, resulting in all kinds of imbalance, and eventually, total chaos. 

Benjamin gave a little shiver. Though he loved order and rules, and observing systems working in perfect harmony, there was a part of him, deep down, that was thrilled to the marrow by the idea of flicking the spinning top. Upsetting the equilibrium, just to see it all come crashing down. 

Not from malice, but from pure curiosity. A gnawing desire to find out what would happen, next. What new things would arise, when the old ones were destroyed. Because, as much as he hated to admit it—hated himself for the perverse pleasure he took in the idea—he knew that chaos wasn’t actually against the rules. 

God is change and death his prophet. The raging fire purges the detritus from the forest, leaving clean and fertile soil for new life. Entropy consumes order to feed chaos, which routs out stagnation, so that the system can be reborn.

Order leads to chaos leads to order. It was breathtaking to contemplate.

“But I’m against all the rules, so where does that leave me?” he muttered, to himself, as he munched on a chip. 

Gradually, as he scrolled through page after page of dry, long-winded, historical text, he began to droop. When the tiny words were dancing and blurring, on the screen, he leaned back to rub his eyes and stretch, knocking a pencil off his desk.

Before it hit the floor, a long, reddish thing, that looked sort of like a thick, rubbery ribbon, dropped down from the ceiling, caught it, and replaced it on the desk. 

“Thanks. And…gross,” Benjamin said, wiping the pencil off on his pant leg. “I told you not to pick things up with your tongue, Dan.”

The blue-faced hanged ghost, dangling above his head, who’d had the appellation ‘Dan’ bestowed upon it, when this human began living in the room it was haunting, sulkily retracted its tongue.

Meanwhile, a skeletal hand, attached to an equally skeletal arm, sticking out of a black cloak sleeve, which was notably not attached to the rest of a cloak, emerged from the shadows behind Benjamin, and set a steaming mug on the desk. 

“Warm milk and honey! Thank you, Mort!” he said eagerly, then hesitated. “But this’ll put me to sleep. I still have a lot of work to do.” 

The skeletal hand jabbed his arm with its forefinger bone and pointed to the clock, then the bed. 

“Alright, alright,” Benjamin grumbled. “You’re pretty bossy for a disembodied appendage. Mm, this is really good, though, so I forgive you.”

The hanged ghost, which was still pouting from being scolded, rolled its bloodshot eyes at the skeletal hand, and inwardly berated it for being a suck-up. It felt a certain sense of entitlement to the room and its inhabitant, since it was already here, when the young quasi-human arrived, and didn’t like the other ghosts getting too cozy with him.

The day Benjamin moved in, the hanged ghost hadn’t seen a living person in over a decade, which was when this disused room, in the old annex of the hotel, had last been rented to guests. Needless to say, it was extremely pleased to finally have something to do. 

It was dangling from an exposed ceiling beam, in a far corner of the room, plotting how it would scare this idiot out of his mind, later tonight, when the idiot in question came around with the feather duster and politely asked it to move, so he could clean out the cobwebs.  

The hanged ghost nearly fell off the ceiling. It had never been spoken to like this by a human, before. Why wasn’t he scared? How could he see him? Why was he dusting out all the lovely cobwebs?? 

Too stunned to know what else to do, the hanged ghost just did as the human asked and moved. He had planned on dominating the interaction, but he’d lost the initiative, now, so all he could do was hang around and stay out of the way, while the human cleaned the place, from top to bottom, while humming jaunty little tunes to himself, and everything.

“I’m Benjamin. I guess we’ll be sharing a room, now,” the human said, with a bow, after he’d finished his cleaning. “What’s your name? Have you been here long?”

The hanged ghost could only stick out its long tongue and gesture helplessly.

“Oh, sorry. You’re a hanged ghost,” Benjamin said, with a wince. “Of course you can’t talk. In that case, I’ll just have to give you a name, myself. How about…Dangly Dan!”

The hanged ghost, who’d had just about enough of this shit, made his most ferocious and terrifying grimace. Far from being frightened senseless, as would have been polite, Benjamin only laughed merrily and said, “Dan it is! Good to meet you, roomie!” 

Thus began Dan and Benjamin’s cohabitation. As it turned out, it wasn’t so bad. Benjamin’s cold, windy yin energy made the place exceedingly comfortable to Dan, and Benjamin seemed to like having someone to chat to, so things proceeded rather amicably. 

Dan had not considered the possibility of his human’s aura attracting other ghosts. That is, not until the skeletal hand sticking out of the cloak-sleeve followed Benjamin home, one day, and much to Dan’s disgust, never left. 

Not only was it an eyesore, it was always showing off, arranging little trinkets in ways that made Benjamin laugh, and doing the dusting and sweeping, even though no one asked it to. It liked to act as if it was attached to a whole being, which preferred to keep its true form hidden, but Dan was of the firm opinion that it was just a shitty arm, putting on airs. 

Their fourth roommate, the drowned ghost, had crawled up the tub drain to lie in wait, in Benjamin’s bubble bath, one night, to which he had apparently taken great umbrage. Dan had been dozing above the radiator, when he was startled out of his senses by a shriek, a splash, and a crash, from the bathroom. 

There was a scuffling noise, then an irate, bathrobe-clad Benjamin dragged the drowned ghost out to the kitchenette, wrapped up in the shower curtain, and proceeded to give her a stern lecture about decorum and modesty, and how it was improper for men and women who were not married to one another to share a bath, while she shivered and dripped all over the kitchen floor. 

After Benjamin cooled down, he apologized to the stupefied ghost for losing his temper, and told her that she was welcome to use the bath, so long as he wasn’t using it at the time, and provided she didn’t make a mess. She was christened ‘Eliza-bath’ (as punishment, one could only assume), which Benjamin mercifully shortened to Liz.

Since then, she’d been inhabiting the drains, and had undertaken the chores of dishwashing and cleaning the bathroom. Dan didn’t really mind having Liz around, since she stayed in her lane, and wasn’t a self-important nuisance getting involved in everything, like that stupid arm.

The final roommate was a creeping shadow, that lived under Benjamin’s bed, and minded its own business. The only reason Dan didn’t completely forget it existed, was because sometimes its weird eyeholes would open and peer out at him, when he was picking up Benjamin’s clothing from the floor. Also, if anything rolled under the bed, it would helpfully push the item back out.

Having finished the warm milk and honey, Benjamin put the mug in his tiny kitchenette’s sink and went to brush his teeth. When he returned, the pale and bedraggled drowned ghost (clad only in her long, murky, seaweed-like hair, goddess help us) had crawled up the sink drain, and was washing the mug, while blithely dribbling water all over the floor. The skeletal hand was used to this, however, and was chasing her around with a dish towel, mopping it up.

“Thanks, Liz, you’re a peach,” Benjamin yawned, as he passed by.

Dan, still desiring to redeem himself after being scolded, dropped his long arms down, to pull back the bedcovers and fluff Benjamin’s pillow. 

“Nighty-night, Dan,” the young man smiled sleepily, as he was carefully tucked in by the monster from other people’s nightmares. 

Dan returned a positively blood-curdling grin, before an indistinct, shadowy shape slithered up the side of the nightstand, and shut off the lamp.

[cannot-rest]

Ashley rare pair fics from Spec Reqs

Mass Effect rare pairs exchange @spectre-requisitions-exchange has revealed works! Here are the five Ashley ship-focused works (so far - people may yet add treats). The fShepley is strong this year!

Creators are anonymous until April 8 (coincidentally the start of Ashley Williams Appreciation Week).

Connection Lost by kesla fShepley, T rated, ~3900 words

Ashley Williams logs into an empty server. Williams 22:12 > you were a pain in everyone's ass shepard > epaulets shinier than your damn regulation shoes > half the time we'd wrap a convo with me feeling like you were short a punch in the face > but look. i like confidence. especially in my COs. ESPECIALLY in my female COs. even if that CO is annoying as hell and dumb as bricks > and that's how you got me.

Going Up by Kahika Willarian, G rated, ~2500 words

It starts in, of all places, an elevator. Or: Five times Garrus and Ashley rode the elevator and one time they took the stairs.

From: Ashley by CoaxionUnlimited fShepley, G rated, ~1100 words

They had the funeral yesterday. I shouldn’t be emailing you about this, but God only knows that I’m not going to take up journaling. Sarah would never shut up about it.

The Crack In Everything by FerindenCadash fShepley, T rated, ~1600 words

After her own near-death experience, Ashley has questions about Shepard's death.

Tell Me When by jusbeinkt what are we going to call Ashley/Samantha? I'm thinking Trayliams atm, E rated, ~3500 words

Chief Williams: Your orders for TDY are enclosed. One of our civilian engineers, Samantha Traynor, is currently visiting family on Horizon. She's a tech genius. I recommend connecting with her while on site. Anderson P.S. Reports are confirmed. Shepard is alive and flying with Cerberus. I thought you'd want to know. A comms emergency on Horizon results in an unexpected encounter. Written for Spectre Requisitions 2024.

[songofwizardry]

i want to know what the fuck has been going on in the cerberus assembly that has led to ludinus da'leth being able to cast a 9th level dunamancy spell (raveous void). the implications are fascinating. their beacon research/reverse engineering dunamancy has really been going well huh.

[vakarianshepard]

N7 Month Day 1- Poetry

Here's my first contribution to N7 month! I didn't think I was gonna have anything for today, but I was suddenly struck by this idea. Set in ME2, not long after Horizon; Alexa finds a book of poetry and reflects. Under a cut because it got longer than I planned 😅

The Complete Works of Alfred Lord Tennyson. The small paperback seemed ridiculously out of place. Rare enough to see a print book at all, let alone in a random footlocker in the Terminus Systems. Shepard picked it up, turning it over to examine the blurb on the back. 

��Shepard, come look at this,” Jack called from the next room.

She jolted, startled, before replying, “I’ll be there in a sec,” making the snap decision to tuck the book into her pack. 

Later, in her quarters, she flipped through the pages, pausing when she got to "Ulysses".

"I cannot rest from travel; I will drink life to the lees. All times I have enjoy'd greatly, have suffer'd greatly, both with those that loved me, and alone."

Ash's face suddenly appeared in her mind, unbidden.

"My dad loved this poem," she'd said, almost seeming embarrassed. “I still read it to his grave every time I go home.” 

Her breath caught unexpectedly. A pang of grief shot through her. Alexa sat back, lost in thought. What would Ash have made of all this? The Normandy's destruction? Alexa’s death and unexpected resurrection? Horizon? She sighed, pinching her brow. What a mess. Cerberus sure loved selling bullshit with a smile, she thought wryly. Ash wouldn’t have entertained it for a single second. 

She missed Ashley. Her dry wit, unafraid to speak her mind. God, what she wouldn’t give for ten minutes with her. Two years had passed, the rest of the galaxy had moved on, but her grief was still fresh. To her, everything was a few months ago. Tears pricked her eyes and she wiped at them furiously. 

“I cannot rest,” she snorted to herself; “sounds about right. Sure could use your fire right now, Chief.” Everything seemed so off-kilter, so… screwed up since her unexpected return. Her mind went to her friends—the people she loved, and her heart warmed. No matter how bleak things looked, she was lucky to have them.  She read on:

“Life piled on life; were all too little, and of one to me little remains: but every hour is saved from that eternal silence, something more, a bringer of new things and vile it were for some three suns to store and hoard myself…”

Strangely fitting; resurrected, only to set out on a suicide mission. A second chance with an expiration date. It hardly seemed fair, but it was more than most—more than Ashley, or Pressly, or her parents, or, hell, even the merc who’d carried this book. She stopped herself. It was a chance. Maybe they’d survive—she had to believe they would. Things weren’t perfect; some days weren’t even good. But she was recruiting some of the most talented people in the galaxy, and slowly, they were becoming a team. 

Colonists were still going missing. Horizon was not a victory, and every time she thought of the Illusive Man’s smug face, rage flared white hot in her chest. It would be selfish to take the chance denied to so many and squander it, standing idly by while innocent people suffered. Even if it meant working with Cerberus a little longer. Shepard bowed her head, closing her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, nothing had changed—the dim lighting, the glow of her fishtank, the subtle hum of the engines below. But, her resolve strengthened. She could, no, would do this. For the people she loved, for the people she’d lost. Alexa tightened her grip on the book; she would not waste this chance. She would stop the Collectors and survive on her terms—not the Illusive Man’s, not Cerberus’. She scanned the rest of the poem, her eyes lingering on the last lines: 

“We are not now that strength which in old days moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are; one equal temper of heroic hearts… to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”

Things may have changed; two years gone, she was disgraced, shunned by the Alliance, forced to work for the enemy. She thought of her and Kaidan’s argument on Horizon with a twinge of remorse. Hopefully he would understand; hopefully she’d get a chance to apologize. For now though, she had a job to do, and she hadn’t changed. Not really. Alexa closed the book, her hand lingering on the cover as she stood. 

“I’ll make it count,” she said aloud. As she turned to go back downstairs, she glanced back at the book, a small smile playing across her face, “thanks, Ash.” With a deep breath, she stepped into the corridor, ready to move forward. 

[fandoms-in-law]

Honey Alive

Summary: Steve asks for the convertible when hush money is being negotiated after the Battle of Starcourt. He gets a little more than expected when the car moves on its own while engineless.

Authors Note: My need to write chaos has been filled for now. This was the winning ship of my crack ship poll and honestly kinda fun to write

/\/\

Steve knew cars, and he loved them. Of course he had a good one, and his parents scoffed at the idea of ever letting him be the one to work on his beamer, but he learnt how, often did small maintenance when they weren’t in town and he could get the car out of view of the neighbours.

Now he was going to use everything he’d learnt and more, because the car Hop had given him to get the kids to Cerberus was not going to scrap under his watch.

It should, seriously, definitely should be scraped and destroyed after being driven full speed into Billy’s car, but no way was Steve letting that happen to such a gem of a car. He was going to repair it and keep it, no matter how odd the looks he got from the agents negotiating hush deals were when he requested it alongside the pay out.

Besides, it’s a 1984 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Convertible. Steve would be insane to not at least have a go repairing such a beautiful car.

And the car even wanted him to repair it, to work on it.

That did surprise Steve, enough to almost attack with his nail bat when the car rolled after him but stopped once he turned back to it. Cars aren’t meant to move on their own, and there was no way this one should be moving since he’d already asked for the engine to be removed and taken by a local garage to check for any damage and have that repaired separately.

Steve might have some confidence in his ability to repair most of the car, but the engine was not something he’s going to chance doing wrong, especially since getting it wrong could plausibly cause the car to explode.

So when the Eldorado followed his steps it understandably convinced him that weird shit was happening again and they weren’t getting even a few months before fighting for their lives again.

But when the others got there, nothing. Nobody else got the car to react no matter what they tried, and even Steve couldn’t with them there. They checked in every way they could that it wasn’t haunted or following him still and it remained as motionless as a car without a driver should until everyone else had left again.

Then it followed Steve closer to his tool box again, light somehow flashing when he went to remove the bonnet to start smoothing it out.

He decided then to just assume some of the weird shit from the mall had passed over to the car and as long as nothing deadly began happening he’d continue repairing it. Frankly with a car that wanted to be fixed and his willingness to look up car manuals meant it went easily.

/\/\

“That’s not a BMW part. You’re going to break your car, King Steve.” The drawl made Steve jump where he was checking the part he’d found matched the part name on his list and there was the schools dealer leaning against a shelf judging him.

“Good thing it’s not for my car then. This is what I need to fix the baby I’ve got to repair now up.” He rolled his eyes, holding it up and nodding, turning to head off since he wanted to get the Eldorado repaired as soon as he could.

Eddie didn’t let him leave, following curiously. “Oh, Has daddy’s money run dry so you have to get broken second hand cars instead of buying new?”

“I’d assume not, but if you see him please say it’s been 5 months and his lectures aren’t reaching me.” Steve huffed.

“Are you trying to tell me not to ask more? Cause I’m going to ask more.” Eddie laughed, keeping pace as he headed down another aisle, checking his list for the other part he knew needed replacing.

As he glanced over to Eddie, Steve shrugged. “Brought a haunted wreck from the mall ruins. Trying to get it moving without ghostly presence now.”

“Can I use that in a campaign? You sound like a DnD NPC.”

“Knock yourself out, I guess. As long as you don’t expect me to turn up and play the character myself.” Steve side-eyed him, but dismissed the bizarre sentence as Eddie dashes off, excited in a way he hadn’t expected, only yelling a goodbye over his shoulder.

/\/\

“Steve, can we please do something else?” Robin whined from the corner of the garage she’d made him put a sofa. “Or at least play some music while I work on your resume?”

“Sure, sure. I just need to get Honey’s engine reconnected then I can put the bodywork back on. If you can hear music over that then go ahead.” He agreed absently, head buried into the car, tightening a few connections.

Robin gave him a weird look that went unseen. “I’m beginning to think you’re dating that car.” She remarked.

“Eh, Pretty sure it’s alive so might need to check with Honey whether that’s the case.” He called back, stretching his back as he stood up and blinking when the car lights flashed again. “You saw that didn’t you?”

“Yup. I think your car just replied.” She stated sounding stunned.

Steve nodded slowly, “Okay, known it to do that before but never with anyone else around.”

“I remember. Thought you were having a weird trauma reaction and Joyce seriously considered getting Murray to confiscate the car for your healing.” Robin agreed. “Why is it doing anything though?”

“It wants to be repaired.” Steve muttered, thinking out loud from the times the car had reacted. “And wants to stay yellow as it literally reversed when I thought about changing the colour. Doesn’t mind if I get a different colour leather for the seats though. Not sure Honey’s views on dating me though. Can you flash once if you want to or twice if you don’t?”

The cars lights flashed once.

Steve looked over his shoulder to share a look with Robin. “How the fuck do I date a car?”

“Don’t know, but please don’t tell me repairing or mechanical work on it counts as sex for a car. I’m not going to stay if it’s voyeuristic.” She replied, words spilling as one idea came into her head. Thankfully two flashes of lights stopped her from going into a full ramble.

Decidedly not thinking on that more, Steve had another thought that got him snickering. “I don’t think Dustin meant cars when he said I could get all the girls and more if I helped investigate that Russian message.”

That got Robin giggling along with him for a while before he returned to working on repairing his new partner.

/\/\

“Okay, Honey. I think that’s you as repaired as you’re going to get.” Steve said, patting the hood of the car happily.

Today Robin had chosen to stay home, knowing how close to finishing the repairs Steve was and having learnt that Honey had times when it preferred to be alone with Steve. She guessed that once the repair was done he’d get taken somewhere on the first drive so made him promise to keep a walkie in his car just in case.

The car’s lights slowly came on then off as if imitating eyes blinking open. It reversed and manoeuvred around until the drivers door was beside Steve which popped open when it was stationary.

“Okay Honey, you take me somewhere nice, okay?” He chuckled, climbing in and belting up but doing nothing to start driving except inserting the keys.

This wasn’t like any relationship he’d ever imagined, and frankly wondered how anyone would imagine it, but he was definitely enjoying the adventure of it and how seemingly safe it was.

[yuurei20]

Dialogue Comparison: Book 7-3

Original Idia: Right, you’re a high school student…

EN Idia: Wow…it’s like you’re all grown up now…

(EN has a pattern of removing the word “high school” from the game)

Original Chief Engineer: If you weren’t a hologram right now, I’d give you a spanking!

EN Chief Engineer: If you weren’t a hologram right now, I’d make you sweep this place until you learned your lesson!

Ortho’s two robotic dogs are named “KB-RS01” and 02 in the original game, as “Cerberus” is pronounced with a hard “k” sound rather than the soft “c” sound of the English-language pronunciation. This is likely why their names were changed to “CB-RS01” and 02 on EN.

Small trivia: Cerberus is also the name of the character in Cardcaptor Sakura voiced by Onosaka Masaya, voice of Idia and Ortho’s father.

Their mother was voiced by Tange Sakura, voice of Cardcaptor Sakura.

If you thought it was strange that Ortho referred to his father as “ma’am,” this was likely just a proofreading error on EN.

“Ma’am” has been added to almost all the dialogue between the Chief Engineer and the STYX staff, likely because it is difficult to portray how politely they are speaking to her in English.

Bonus from 7-2:

Originally Silver comments on Roaring Drago's loneliness.

On EN "lonely" was changed to "sad," but Malleus coming to terms with feelings of loneliness, specifically, is proving to be significant to the story.