#currently playing tale of two wastelands

[kr0wsn3st]

Fallout New Vegas is such a great game, everyone that played it as young boys will come back to it as beautiful women and NBs as adults!

The FONV to Trans pipeline is very real and I'm tired of pretending it's not.

[subjectsix]

hey can people who have played more fallout nv than me rate this dialogue exchange between my amnesiac courier and raul ft. arcade

Arcade: "So you go by Clay, and that guy who says he knows you called you Cash."

Raul: "Boss. You think you might be named Cassius Clay?"

Clay, upon some thought: "...I am."

Raul, clapping a hand across his back: "Well congratulations! Named after a great fighter."

Clay, upon further thought: ".......not named after the fighter."

Raul: "...who the hell would you be named after man?"

Clay: ".......the abolitionist."

Raul: "you couldn't remember being named Cash but you can remember the word abolitionist?"

Arcade: "why do you even know about the abolitionist"

[demifiendrsa]

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance - "The Sacrifice" Trailer

Japanese version

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC (Steam, Microsoft Store) on June 14, 2024 worldwide.

■ What is Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance?

Released in 2021, ATLUS’s renowned RPG Shin Megami Tensei V has sold more than one million copies worldwide.

This highly acclaimed title has evolved in every aspect, including the system and scenario, and will be available on multiple modern platforms!

At the beginning of the story, the player is presented with two divergent paths. The story told in Shin Megami Tensei V, the Canon of Creation, and a brand-new route, Canon of Vengeance, a dramatic tale of revenge by the fallen.

The Canon of Vengeance follows the scenario of Shin Megami Tensei V</em but changes drastically from the latter half of the game. The outcome will be completely different. Enjoy the two divergent stories to your heart’s content.

The battle system, demon fusion, and field exploration have also evolved in depth with the addition of new elements. We are excited to deliver a full-fledged RPG that can be enjoyed by those who have already played Shin Megami Tensei V</em, as well as those who are playing this series for the first time.

■ Story

Thou shalt be God—.

When a grisly murder scene in modern-day Tokyo blocks our protagonist’s walk home, an unplanned detour leaves him buried and unconscious. He awakens in a new Tokyo, a wasteland ravaged by apocalypse now called Da’at… but before bloodthirsty demons can claim his life, a savior emerges, and the two of them unite to become a mighty being, neither human nor demon: a Nahobino.

Revenge Awaits

Demons attack humans and seek to create a world of chaos. Defying them is Bethel, an organization seeking to protect God’s order. Caught up in the conflict between the two, while exploring Da’at, the protagonist meets and starts traveling with Yoko Hiromine. Using magic, Yoko and the protagonist stand together on the front line.

Four female Demons know as the Qadištu. “And so we have found it…The key to the resurrection…” A member of the Qadištu, Lilith, calls protagonist the Key of Resurrection, and herself The Oppressed. What is their purpose? A tale of revenge by the fallen begins.

■ Characters

Protagonist/Nahobino (voiced by Casey Mongillo in English, Kouhei Yanagi in Japanese)

An ordinary high school senior living in Tokyo. He transforms into a Nahobino, a powerful being capable of using supernatural powers to fight demons. Awaken an epic new form in Canon of Vengeance!

The protagonist has completely altered from his characteristic blue appearance. With a sickle-like blade, what is this form capable of?

Hayo Koshimizu (voiced by Sean Crisden in English, Kenjiro Tsuda in Japanese)

“To that end, I would like you to assist with the investigation and cessation of the current threat.”

Koshimizu is the Prime Minister of Japan, as well as head of Bethel’s Japan Branch. Calm, collected, and strategic.

Recruits Ichiro and others to Bethel’s cause, giving them the Demon Summoning Program to aid in the war against demons.

Abdiel (voiced by Cissy Jones in English, Romi Park in Japanese)

“As decreed by our lord, the Nahobino cannot be permitted to exist.”

An archangel and commander of the forces of Bethel.

Very strict and hard on herself and others, she will eliminate by force anyone who disturbs Bethel’s order.

Having absolute faith in God’s order, she is devoted to protecting and maintaining His will.

Shohei Yakumo (voiced by Ben Lepley in English, Tomokazu Sugita in Japanese)

“Humans need the will to survive at any cost. And those who lack that strength of will… no longer deserve to live.”

A mysterious man who stands in the way of the protagonist in Da’at.

A man of few words who calls himself the “exterminator of demons.”

His purpose and identity are unknown. He works with the demon Nuwa.

Nuwa (voiced by Laura Post in English, Ayana Taketatsu in Japanese)

“Whether I am there or not when Yakumo’s world comes to be is of no concern to me.”

Goddess in Chinese mythology. She has been working with Yakumo for unknown reasons since he was a child.

They arrive in the netherworld unexpectedly and confront the protagonist.

Mastema (voiced by Doug Erholtz in English, Wataru Takagi in Japanese)

“I am Mastema, an angel in service to the kingdom of light.”

A mysterious archangel and member of Bethel.

Says that he has received permission from God to tempt humans and test their faith.

He has come to Tokyo in pursuit of Qadištu, after they desecrated his own faraway jurisdiction. Could the strange incidents in Tokyo be related to his arrival…?

■ Demons

In addition to the demons that appeared in Shin Megami Tensei V, this title features more than 270 demons, including new demons newly drawn by character designer Masayuki Doi and demons from previous titles!

Nahobeeho (Fairy)

Jack Frost in a new form, resembling the Nahobino.

He loves snowy mornings and hopes to one day create a world made of silver.

Amabie (Enigma)

The game’s new demon.

A Japanese yokai that is said to have appeared in Higo Province during the Edo period, it is said to have emerged from the glowing sea and prophesized to the people.

■ System

The Parallel Ravaged Tokyo: Da’at

The story takes place in the Tokyo we know and the parallel world of Da’at. Demons roam in this vast netherworld, attacking the protagonist.

Da’at varies greatly in aspect from place to place, from desolate deserts and collapsed buildings, to areas lined with surreal geometric structures. Each location may contain different demons, often with tricky terrain that you’ll need to use your wits to navigate.

In Canon of Vengeance, Da’at includes a sprawling new area, Shinjuku ward will become available to explore.

—Various demons roam Da’at, blocking the hero’s way.

—Discover the mysteries of Shinjuku ward. A sacred atmosphere created by a huge object that resembles a great tree.

Netherword Exploration

Da’at is interspersed with a variety of elements, some of which will obstruct the hero’s path, while others provide advantages in his Da’at exploration and combat. Explore every corner of the vast netherworld by using these new features.

—Magatsuhi Crystal

Magatsuhi Crystals present in Da’at can be collected to provide various benefits. Green crystals recover HP, yellow crystals recover MP, and red crystals will increase the Magatsuhi Gauge.

—Magatsu Rail

This path formed of Magatsuhi connects and allows for travelling between the two locations in Da’at. Activating it not only provides a shortcut to a specific location, but also allows the user to navigate to hidden locations that are normally unreachable.

—Abscesses

Occasionally, there are large red obstacles growing in the path of the main character.

This obstacle is known as an Abscess. Powerful enemies appear in the vicinity and attack the protagonist. Defeating Abscesses will awaken new Miracles.

—Magatsuhi Demon

Demons cloaked in an aura of Magatsuhi will sometimes spawn in Da’at, called Magatsuhi Demons

Unlike normal demons, they are dangerous enemies with powerful skills, but may drop valuable items if defeated.

Da’at Exploration

Da’at is interspersed with a variety of elements, some of which will obstruct the hero’s path, while others provide advantages in his exploration and combat. Explore every corner of the vast netherworld by using these new features.

—Relics

Relics can be obtained from vending machines scattered throughout Da’at. Take them to Gustave, who will exchange them for Macca.

—Demon Navigator

Demons that accompany the main protagonist and support him in his exploration. They do not participate in combat, but will search for items, Magatsu Rails, and other useful items on the map and notify you.

—Treasure Chests and Amalgams

Yellow objects will give you items and Macca, and silver objects will give you Glory. Both are useful for adventures, so keep your eyes out.

—Aogami Husks

Aogami’s Essences can be obtained by examining the husks of Aogami scattered throughout Da’at. Once the husks has been examined, the Essence can be obtained again by after a certain time has passed.

—Demon Haunts

The Demon Haunts can be visited by accessing the leyline founts connecting the various regions of Da’at. In the Demon Haunts, the protagonist’s demons appear and gather, and the player can enjoy interacting with their allies by conversing with them and giving them gifts, as well as viewing them up close and taking photos.

In addition, special conversations may occur regarding game progressions, such as battles and field exploration, and these may offer rewards such as items or status enhancements of demons.

If you see a conversation notification in the menu, why not visit a demon haunt!

You can have conversations not only with your demons, but also with Aogami. Some of these conversations may lead to stat and ability bonuses for the Nahobino!

—Cadaver’s Hollow

The Cadaver’s Hollow shop is accessible via leyline founts. You can pay Macca to purchase items or sell Relics you have collected to Gustave.

Gustave (voiced by David Errigo Jr. in English, Yusaku Yara in Japanese)

The keeper of Cadaver’s Hollow with an interest in human-era items. He will buy any Relics found within the netherworld.

Gustave will reward you for locating Miman, his relic-seeking pawns, when you report back to him with the number you have found. The number of Miman determines the type of reward.

Discovering Miman will also help you obtain Glory, which is necessary to learn Miracles. Be on the lookout for hiding places throughout the netherworld.

World of Shadows and Demon Fusion

The World of Shadows can be accessed via the leyline founts.

With help from Sophia, the ruler of the World of Shadows, you can perform a Fusion to create stronger demons.

Aside from a two-demon fusion, there are fuse by result that allows you to choose a resultant demon, a special fusion that can be performed by choosing from two to four demons, or an Essence Fusion that utilizes Essences to lower or increase the ranks of the same race.

Most skills can be inherited by other demons through fusion, with the exception of a few select special skills.

Sophia (voiced by Erin Yvette in English, Sayaka Kinoshita in Japanese)

A mysterious being who rules of the World of Shadows. Her introduction states “I have come from a plane bar beyond this one to act as a guide to both the world and the Nahobino.”

There are multiple ways to create new and powerful demons: two-demon fusion merges two demons of your choice, fuse by result allows you to determine which demon you want first, a special fusion performed with up to four demons, and Essence Fusion, which uses a demon’s Essence to provide additional bonuses and skills.

■ Godhood Guild

Godhood awaits. Go and claim it! Become a Nahobino and sign up for SMT emails to join the Godhood Guild, a special club for Shin Megami Tensei fans!

By being part of the club, you’ll receive special perks such as getting a sneak peak of content drops, special surprises, and exciting news about Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance!

Join the Godhood Guild here!

[chempack]

ok everypony it is now 11pm and i am less sleepy so i will chatter about my oc idea. also @mnikhowozu hi :)

so my working name for him rn is adam white (bonus points if u can figure out the origin of these names. hint: consider some of my other characters names) but i will likely change at least the given name. i’m considering lucas but not sure, i just generally want something Classic European bc i feel like that’s what two mfs named James and Catherine would name their kid (bonus points if it’s biblical). as i’ve said i’m making the character so i can do tale of two wastelands (hopefully. if i can figure out the mod. haven’t tried yet and dk how it works so it might be complicated…) so obviously he starts as the lone wanderer

to contrast charlie (who has always dealt with barely contained rage and loathes his dad, blaming james for all the shit he had to go thru in the wasteland), adam is more forgiving to him. not that he doesn’t also have conflicting and negative feelings abt james, he does, but he also sees him as ultimately a Good Man doing things for the Bettering of Humanity. adam never had much ambition in the vault and was just kinda drifting along as he grew up, was probably gonna be a maintenance worker or something “basic”. he didn’t learn medicine from james because james never bothered to teach him and he never thought to ask to learn. BUT! later in the wasteland — most pointedly after james dies — he takes it on himself to become something of a doctor because he wants to Continue his parents’ Legacy. etc etc

i also have it in mind for him to wear a mask while traveling (think along the lines of the blastmaster helmet. except i’m actually thinking of something from the pitt i just don’t remember the name.) so just imagine this nervous 20 year old in full armor with an assault rifle comes running up to you after you were brutally beaten by a raider or something, one year post-project purity, and he’s like TRUST ME LET ME HELP IM A DOCTOR meanwhile he looks like an overblown raider boss

at his core he is a Coward and, again, not ambitious. chronically indecisive. he Wants to help but he does Not want to risk himself (though of course he does since it’s. kind of the nature of the games if ur playing a mostly-good character). this then leads him to just going along with mr. house when he gets to vegas, because he doesn’t want to rock the boat and, honestly, probably won’t even think to kill house. he has his own opinions, for sure, and he’s not a saint — the choices he does make still are bad at times. but generally, he takes the road of “what is the most helpful at large but also the easiest for Me”

also, i think the followers of apocalypse have a university in california or smth? isn’t that mentioned once or twice in fnv? not sure need to research. and also i’m aware it generally doesn’t really Match for the courier to be the lw but obviously i’m ignoring that for the sake of the mod. but, depending on whatever is going on there, the followers’ university is what i’m currently thinking of for why he went west, and he… idk, gets roped into courier work for money or for a relatively easy way to Help or something, and ends up caught up in new vegas politics

if anyone read this whole thing i love you forever and ever i’m hugging you in my mind palace rn. and if you know anything about this supposed university that i might have just made up in my head then please let me know. okay thank you love you byeee

[satashiiwrites]

Snippet Sunday

Tagged by @monsterrae1 for a six or seven sentence sunday… and sharing again a bit of the andromeda re-write due to circumstances 🙃. thanks for the tag lovely!

Tagging with no pressure @quietborderline @tkwritesdumbassassins @alyxmastershipper @outtoshatter @westernlarch @missanniewhimsy @whimsyswastry @megasaurus-regina and anyone else who wants to play along.

Banner by radio chatter, chapter art is mine.

Title: An Andromeda Tale, Book One, Chapter One—rewrite edition (DRAFT).

Fandom: Mass Effect Andromeda

Pairing: Endgame MRyder (Reyes Vidal/Scott Ryder) various others

Fic Summary:

Scott Ryder never saw his life going this way, not that anyone ever asked him his opinion. Now he's pathfinder with too many people depending on his young shoulders and trying to figure out what he actually wants for himself. Reyes Vidal, man of mystery, former pilot and now sometimes smuggler. Who knows where he came from or his motivations but he's come to Andromeda to change his destiny. What neither Scott nor Reyes could have predicted is what their lives would be once they came to Andromeda.

Tags/warnings: this is a revised first draft—meaning that things are probably still going to change further. I’ve aged up both Reyes and Scott for this fic by a few years (not hugely).

2818 CE July 2nd

Reyes Vidal, Shuttle Pilot, callsign Anubis 

Location: Andromeda Initiative Shuttle

Status: Increasingly concerned about Initiative short and long term viability

Things were not going as they were supposed to. It's been six months since the engineering and transportation crews awakened to find that the planned arrival in Heleus had not gone according to plan. This was followed by more awakenings than were reasonable, given the dire supply situation. 

A major blow was dealt to the Initiative when the Nexus crashed into the Scourge. Jien Garson and several other high-ranking administrators had all perished in the accident, leaving the Andromeda Initiative without an experienced guiding hand to see them through what had been anticipated to be a critical moment. 

The current administration had made the questionable decision to awaken more and more people than they should have. The resources available with the hydroponics farms were significantly reduced as the entire section had been damaged in the collision that had halted the Nexus—or perhaps the awakenings were not part of the administration's plan if rumors were true about the unauthorized awakenings. 

Decisions coming from the top were slow and of questionable value. Tensions were running at an all-time high between the security and administration teams and everyone else as supplies continued to run low or go missing. Hoarding was starting to be reported, and two humans had been punished severely by security last week for hiding rations.  

Reyes had been one of the first pilots awakened to run exploration teams to and from different planets and had a first-person view of how bleak things were on that front. He'd been the pilot of one of the eight expeditions to explore worlds to see if they were habitable. The system and planet he'd been sent to was a barren wasteland without a breathable atmosphere. 

Two days ago, there had been an announcement from the administration suggesting that people needed to start volunteering to be put back in cryosleep or there would be mandatory re-entrants. 

No one had volunteered, and the atmosphere on the Nexus had been balancing on a knife's edge since. 

Supplies would run out within two months at current usage rates, and selective rationing and meal skipping had been in enforcement for the last two shipboard weeks. Sloane's security forces had been harassing the scientists, who were barely restrained as Corvannis and his cohorts spread malcontent and disagreement with the admins among the other personnel.  

Repetitive threats from the "professional" security staff run by Sloane Kelly had encouraged him to keep his head down and out of the trouble brewing as a valuable pilot with a military background. It wasn't hard to read the tea leaves that a power struggle was going on way over his head. 

The scientist team he'd just picked up from Eos had a defeated air around them and were quiet on the transport despite attempts from the administrative analyst to engage them in idle conversation. Not all of the team had left—three scientists insisted on staying no matter what the analyst had said. 

Leaving the three scientists behind had left a bad taste in his mouth. Reyes wondered if he was leaving them to die on the planet. The last attempt from the analyst to get them to get in the shuttle—that he'd overheard—had been a threat that no further help would be coming and that staying was a death sentence from either the environment or the hostile alien raiders. 

That threat finally got the scientists and engineers to mostly pack it in. As they boarded the shuttle, every one of them refused to make eye contact with Reyes or his co-pilot, Kenax.

He wasn't supposed to have heard what the analyst said. He wasn't supposed to have heard a lot of things lately. 

Scuttlebutt had it that the administration was going to employ the Krogan as mercenaries if things got worse. Reyes had never had a problem with a Krogan and didn't want to find out how painful a disagreement with one could become. His limited interactions with Kesh aside, he'd rather not get anyone's attention that way. 

Entering the course corrections for the Nexus, Reyes takes a deep breath before making eye contact with Kenax. For a Turian, Kenax is a solid pilot with an eye for barely staying on this side of trouble and a penchant for discussing the merits of different sniper rifles. Reyes hasn't worked with many Turians before Andromeda, but it appears that Turian stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason. 

Kenax taps on Reyes' wrist as he finishes inputting the course correction. "Be careful when we get back," he says while glancing significantly back toward the hold where the analyst is trying to get the most senior scientist to engage with him in discussing his favorite types of cheese loudly. 

As if there is any more cheese to be had left on the Nexus to dream about eating.  

Reyes would consider crime if it got him some cheese instead of another chalky protein bar that claimed to taste like chocolate. 

"I plan to stay out of things," Reyes murmurs back.  

"Before we left, there was talk of a meeting to discuss things without admin present—I'd stay away if I was us," Kenax returned his attention afterward flight display. "Us pilots need to stay out of the gunfight when it starts. There'll be enough of a mess to pick up afterward."

"I thought all Turians were genetically inclined to trouble and gunfights…."

Kenax's mandibles flare in the turian version of a smile, stretching the three vertical black lines of his colony marks on the right side of his face until they are crooked. "Us Turians like odds in our favor and keeping our friends at our backs. Kaetus—Sloane's pet—has been implying something will happen soon."

"I'm glad it's you referring to him as her pet and not me," Reyes says with a mischievous and flirtatious wink that he knows Kenax won't take seriously. "I'm going to stay out of things. I plan on helping out the engineering teams with the hydroponics repairs when we get back since the life support repairs are mostly done. It's not like there's any shortage of repairs that a part-time mechanic can't help with."

Not taking the bait, Kenax flares his mandibles into an even bigger smile that resembles staring at a friendly shark. "Yes, your tendency to get completely covered in grease and oil while repairing all things mechanical should keep you out of trouble. It's a good thing I'm not your type. But stay out of the levels below Operations for the next few days."

Exchanging knowing looks, Reyes focuses on the nav panel as they make multiple small jumps to navigate around the odd dark energy tendrils that ensnared Heleus back to the Nexus. 

Reyes trusts that Kenax's connections as a Turian are probably a lot more accurate than the reluctantly forced camaraderie that exists between the three human pilots he shares quarters with. he generally spends more time with Kenax than with the other humans as they have been hot racking until 'more resources can be secured' and more living units provided with power and water. 

Neither Reyes nor Kenax speaks further. They worked well as a team despite never having met before arriving in Heleus and being assigned co-pilots. 

When they reach the limits of Nexus flight control, Reyes hails the flight deck and gets assigned a docking bay which they then guide their shuttle into with minimal fuss and effort. 

As they unstrap from the pilot cradle, Kenax gives Reyes one more significant look before darting his eyes to the human analyst in the back, who was now escorting the scientists out of the airlock and into the bay. "Stay out of trouble, my friend. There are dark clouds on the horizon."

Feeling a forbidding chill that causes a shiver to run down his back, Reyes nods and clasps hands with Kenax in farewell. "And you stay out of it as well, my friend." 

Pausing at the end of the airlock, Reyes watches as his passengers all exit the bay under the close watch of the analyst and several security guards. There is a general lack of people in the area, which is unusual. 

Something is up. 

Kenax glances back again, wondering why Reyes hasn't followed, then turns around and follows the guards out of the bay without drawing attention to Reyes' remaining behind. 

Returning to the shuttle, Reyes grabs his old flight jacket from where he had stowed in his pilot's chair compartment during their preflight checks. It was his Uncle's old leather jacket and is frayed at the cuffs, and he could get a newer Initiative-branded one; however, Reyes swears it still smells of home even though he'd left home behind for Andromeda six hundred and some odd years ago. 

The jacket is one of his few personal possessions and had taken up almost a quarter of the limited extra weight allowance he was granted as a lowly pilot. Pulling the jacket on over his flight suit, he grabs his small flight pack and hits the latch to close the shuttle airlock, initiating shutdown and sleep mode for the engines. 

As the shuttle settles into an electronic version of sleep, he hurries away toward hydroponics instead of stopping at his quarters like he usually would upon returning to Nexus. 

Something tells him to keep his limited personal possessions on him for now and to stay out of the more populated areas where people liked to gather and discuss the ongoings of the administration.

[starrabbitmedia]

I have a some questions about Tales of Gartha!(if you don’t mind me asking that is.) What is the geopolitical climate like in Gartha? (I’m assuming Gartha is the name of the planet, rather than a country) We know of the kingdoms of light and dark, but are their other kingdoms? Do other forms of government exist in other places? And if so do they reflect what season that area is stuck in? Charade and Nimble’s kingdom is stuck in darkness so it makes sense that they would be stuck in an eternal winter making it impossible to grow their own food, thus destabilizing their entire economy and forcing them to rely on other governments for imported goods. Does this put them at odds with other countries? Are the expenses of imported goods causing civil unrest in the dark lands? Does this cause resentment between the countries because of the unfair power dynamic being tied directly to geography?

This is actually REALLY fun for world building and to get out the details that have been knocking around in my brain for years now. So thanks for asking!

So while, yes there are specific areas trapped in light and specific areas trapped in the dark, there are only two areas left on all of Gartha that have functioning societies. There is quite literally a barrier that keeps them separated from the rest of the world. (More on that when we actually get into the story because if I say anything further, it'll be a spoiler.)

Normally, climates stuck under extreme sun or lack there of would have them be effected, but the barrier itself is made of magic and is more of less messing with what nature would normally do.

Outside of the barrier, everything is a wasteland. Everything is caught in a weird sense of stasis. Again, if I go too much further, it'll spoil some stuff in the story. Just consider everyone outside of the barrier to be "asleep."

There are other cultures, but everything is either covered in snow, or has found itself shifting into something completely new in order to survive the sunlight. The actually beings of the land though? Consider them "sleeping." The Gillythorpe is the name of the town that Charade, Nimble and Ery live in. Town isn't exactly accurate though. It's a very small village that is under their floating castle, built in what is referred to as the Diamond Dessert. It's not a hot dessert, but there's a lot of sand due to the lake that had originally been there having dried up. The grains of sand reflect like diamonds in the moonlight. Again, take the magic barrier into consideration.

While Sunniva's kingdom, Lusterwick, should be more of a dessert thanks to the sun, it's a thriving little fantasy town with taverns, homes, and lots of food being grown. (Though not many tend to ever stay in the tavern.)

I will say that the ruffians in Gillythorpe do tend to steal food from Lusterwick if they can't grow things in their own area.

Just keep in mind: there is a BIG aspect at play here that's caused the world to fall into the state that it currently is in. All of that will be explored in the actual storyline.

[atombombbaby]

Changing my (mod manager) religion

After years of using Nexus Mod Manager, trying out Vortex, and going back to the community-maintained edition of NMM, I am now a complete Mod Organizer 2 convert. It has the best features of the other two put together, but is less confusing (for me) than Vortex. Yes, I find Vortex confusing. Shut up; I'm old.

And ironically, if I understand correctly, the guy Nexus hired to build Vortex is the one who originally made MO or MO2?

I had avoided MO2 for years, assuming it was obsolete, but it's the recommended tool to install and manage Tale of Two Wastelands, so I was like, "Fine, I guess I'll bite the bullet." And then, as I learned more about how to use it, I was continuously amazed.

There's a little bit of a learning curve compared to NMM, but after that, it is SO GOOD! So far I've only used it on Fallout New Vegas/TTW and Starfield, but it works flawlessly with both of those.

Starfield support is only in the beta version of MO2 so far, but the beta works just as well for me as the official release--and the main version will most likely support Starfield within a couple of weeks. (To get the beta, just install the current version, go into preferences, and opt into beta updates.)

Now I have to convert my Skyrim and Fallout 4 installations--which is going to be tedious, but worth it, I think.

I guess there's a reason MO2 has been making a big comeback lately.

(Tale of Two Wastelands is a mod that takes your entire FO3 installation and turns it into DLC for New Vegas, so you can seamlessly travel between both wastelands with the same character. They are completely integrated--you can even take followers from one to the other. It is widely regarded as being the best way to play FO3, and even Josh Sawyer, although AFAIK he hasn't played it, has said he thinks the idea is pretty cool.)

[player-1]

To anyone that's somehow still alive in the Micromon fandom, do I have some news for you. For just the simple price of $0.99 (or just looking in the wiki), the game already gives away plenty of hints about the state of Pixekai and how much of a impact Black Root plays in the story (among other things).

Major spoilers for Micromon (and slight spoilers for Nexomon 1) and enjoy the typical rants/theories below:

First up, Pixekai as a whole and the Growtown Accident. While Nexomon mentions in passing that Pixekai (Project) was a digital doomsday bunker for humans should Omnicron be revived and destroy the world (mainly uploading their minds and creating digital avatars), the only people that are aware it's a digital world are Malk, Leah, Zeth, Cyborg, and that random guy Edward who gives you a side quest about player costumes (also the Legion members, but that'll be mentioned later). Besides that, everyone else the MC meet are all happy and cheerful (to an extent) and go about life just like any other person despite a vast majority being fabricated humans.

But of course, not everything was sunshine and rainbows before. While the exact date/year when Vaithe destroyed Growtown is unknown (a town known for Micromon breeding and was the original entryway for humans to be imported into the program), its impact on Pixekai led to a blockade only accessible to S-ranked tamers and even a firewall cutting off the (clearly irradiated) forest wasteland known as Ground Zero. Despite the obvious assumption that everyone in Growtown was killed from the disaster (literally half of Pixekai's population lore-wise), it is later revealed that Cyborg was one of Growtown's residents 1-2 years pre-incident; and even when she wasn't in the blast zone, her avatar and voicebox was badly damaged and was hunting down Black Root for being a possible cause (which is true, but for a completely "normal" reason). Another survivor is Lavinne ("The Punisher") who vowed to kill Vaithe for destroying Growtown (not true) and Malk for essentially creating the hostile environment that currently plagues Pixekai (rampaging Micromon, natural disasters, and making the Growtown residents destroy themselves with a power source that drains their own energy); but it's somewhat implied that he was cut off from Pixekai all that time that since he only shows up after MC repairs the bridge to Ground Zero. But while the bleak humor of Malk playing dumb about his involvement in Growtown's fallout with Leah (since they used to be scientists before and possibly worked together situating ported humans into Pixekai), looking back on his extremely thinly-veiled hints show a terrifying amount of foresight to not say too much and kept stringing the MC along about becoming a S-rank tamer and (possibly) planning ahead on silencing the two known victims that might reveal too much about the real truth.

Malk: It's such a shame Growtown got destroyed like that. While we have some rumors that Vaithe was the cause, there were no survivors to tell that harrowing tale in full. MC, later meeting Cyborg: But what abou- Also Malk, wiping out Growtown's stragglers to create a world-ending digi-nuke: -Like I said, there were no survivors...

While I'll give the game credit for fleshing out the Legion instead of making them pseudo-Elite Four, it's kinda interesting knowing that they're the beta players of Project Pixekai (ie. the first humans) and had their own dreams fulfilled in the digital world, possibly with their own input on what they wanted they couldn't be fulfilled in real life. Even their respective region might connect to their previous life in Nexomon too, though their past may be foggy depending on how long they've been in the program (or Leah tampering with their memories after their "rebellion" (re: trying to stop her from destroying Pixekai from the inside-out)), but they also mention being unable to return the real world either from their original bodies dying from the transfer or years after until the main story, or they were supposed to be erased when the project was patched out (implied/mentioned in battle gauntlet). Slider (Navia): Slider was ported into Pixekai when he was 4 (mentioned by npc at Navia arena) and has a older sister Angelica to reign him in, but he mostly spends his time goofing off or napping, likely lived in Palmaya but (obviously) lived most of his life in Pixekai. Lethar (Magma): Was suffering from health problems at a young age (maybe lived at Ignitia, mentions similar pollution problem in Magma), but was given medicine by Moonborn to heal him (also has a absent father, but it's not fully explained); was known as the rough-and-tough leader of Magma with his trusty Dinoto and Diroaster. Moonborn (Aera): The wife of Aera's chief and adoptive grandparents of the Tornado Twins Aria and Aaron (different to Captain Aaron); possibly lived in Khan's Jungle or Hidden Village due to her magic abilities, spirituality, and skills in medicine. It also might be implied in the gauntlet that her human husband might've died when she was younger so she wanted to have a family for herself in Pixekai (Also her husband giving/making a special incense the first day they met and reminding her of her younger days falling in love with him T_T). Jade (Mineralia): The daughter of head miner Lincoln and rival to lover/fiance to the headstrong goofball Aiden, also considered the strongest Legion member and is obsessed with Micromon battles and protecting the peace with brute force (might've lived in Frozen Tundra or Solus Deserst since they also specialize in mining too). While the initial age when she was ported is iffy, since Lincoln mentions her past mom naming her after the most precious jewel in their lives (and her hair being all green when younger), but she also mentions how "Our time ran out a long time ago, but we (the Legion) loved being here. We had lives here that we couldn't have back in the real world"...So I'm guessing she was in Pixekai when she was a teen/mid-teen and Lincoln was implanted with false memories about her childhood. Ouch :'(

While I initially thought the main antagonists (and Cyborg) were the only ones aware of the real world, it turns out all of Black Root knew that Pixekai isn't as it seems...To varying results, of course. While most of the grunts were either too brainwashed from diving into the Mainframe on Leah's command (or Captain Aaron knowing more as second-in-command), I kinda like the added context that they can freely teleport around because they exploit Pixekai's code (which is rarely shown from non-BR characters or Legion members) as opposed to Malk programming B002 to teleport to specific points in the world (with a fee of 300 coins one way). Also cool to know that Black Root got the name because of the root folder/root directory of Pixekai's mainframe to have nearly absolute power in the program and cause crimes on purpose. But with that revelation also gives way to Leah's motivations for escaping Pixekai: to live a free and fulfilling life outside of code and to give her son Zeth a happier life that she worked so hard to provide...After creating a rogue organization from the ground up and going crazy from evil Mainframe experiments, of course. But even her execution of the plan is still lacking, since she has no real information on why humans created Pixekai in the first place (same for Malk), and her main plan of capturing Vaithe from the Mainframe requires a pure organic human (ie. the MC) "for some reason" since they're the only one that won't get their brain fried and turn into a braindead husk.

Despite all the lore dump, it brings me back to the whole twist of Malk being self-aware since the beginning and plotting to destroy Pixekai and escape into the organic world for vengeance...Again, he and Leah had no idea that they were coded into a bunker program and have little to zero info on how much shit humanity are in right now cause of Omnicron and his kids. While there's not a specific date/time when both of them became self-aware, but Malk later learned the truth about the project in full after he escaped and adjusted to real life (see Malk's revenge rant here and here), already plotting to destroy the real world too so his vengeance will finally be complete since all humans are corrupted in his eyes.

And what better person(?) to turn to for more information about humanity's weaknesses is Metta/Nexolord; eventually becoming mentor and student to learn about the world around them (Malk learning about Nexomon and Metta w. human behavior/psychology), while also preparing a massive middle finger in the form of a world-ending doggo for giving both of them a shitty life in general.

And you know this kids game was made in 2014, right?

[freeuselandonorris]

https://www.tumblr.com/freeuselandonorris/749208898251177984/httpswwwtumblrcomfreeuselandonorris749117811

ok i just saw this one ab cyberpunk and ur fallout ask so im gna reply in one! sry for the long fallout reply bethesda games are a special interest of mine.

i hated everything to do w arasaka. i feel like you just can’t trust them not to turn you into an engram to use you in some way. i wanted to destroy them the entire time so siding with them would have been ass backwards. it feels like an easy way out, if you just don’t want to fight them but don’t want to take the pills.

portal 1 and 2 will always be some of my all time favorite games. top five probably. i haven’t played all of half life, but i’ve played enough to understand the comparison and it makes me want to play PL more than anything else i’ve seen

you don’t have to play the fallout games in a specific order and they can be played as stand alone games, so you don’t have to play all of them! 3 and NV can be played together if you have a PC. you can download a mod called the tale of two wastelands that combines the two so you can play them seamlessly, and it upgrades 3 to NV’s mechanics so its just.. so much better all around. 1 & 2 are really old and have 2d graphics, 3 and 76 came out after bethesda purchased the rights and they started developing it in 3d w the gamebryo engine that they used on oblivion. 4 and 76 are on bethesda’s own creation engine

the spin offs: the games above and dlc for them are the only ones i have played/know about enough to talk about. the rest are not important/not big games. die hard fans play them for the lore, and i watch the youtube videos they make about said lore.

i haven’t played fallout 1 or 2, but i’ve been playing 3 and new vegas since they came out! i played on ps3 growing up but im currently replaying new vegas for the millionth time on pc and im going to play 4 and 76 after. wasn’t a big fan of 4 when it first came out but i want to give it another shot. 3 and NV have aged a bit graphically but are incredibly enjoyable despite any issues. there’s more good than bad. there is so much lore. lots fun mechanics and goofy things. incredible stories. lots of side quests. companions with side quests. exploration is a big thing, they have big maps and you aren’t sent everywhere with the main story, so you have to just wander sometimes. they have their issues, but if you play them on pc you can use mods to fix most of them. tale of two wastelands fixes most if you play that, so you don’t have to search for bug fixes.

the show is incredible, i didn’t have high hopes but i binged it in a day and it made me replay the games. also, the show lowkey spoils the games because the entire mystery is revealed in the show, like The Big Theory that has never been officially confirmed was confirmed at the end of the show. which is really cool and great. but sad i did not get to play it in game, and now if i do, then it won’t hit as hard because the reveal is already done.

omg don't apologise this is great!!

RIGHT totally agree about arasaka, it just feels so weird...which is kinda what makes me think maybe you get a completely different ending but somehow i can't imagine it would be any kind of positive one. i could def see them turning V in to an engram and imprisoning them in their own cyberspace ngl. maybe i'll play corpo lifepath at some point and do the arasaka ending out of curiosity but it'll def be the last one i choose.

the fallout advice is sooo helpful ty! sadly i don't have a PC and from my researching it looks like the only way to play it on PS currently is to play the stream from the PS+ premium tier which ehhhh doesn't sound like a great solution. so that's a bummer 😔 i actually reinstalled steam onto my macbook this morning to see if i could still play half-life on it but macs no longer support 32bit games so that's most of my steam library obselete lol.

anywayyyy that narrows down my options to 4 and 76!! would you say the dlc for 4 is worth it? there's a bundle for 4 +the 6 add-ons for like £36 on the store.

SIDE NOTE but on the subject of portal... i only found out yesterday that portal 1 & 2 are on the switch now!! i bought them both immediately and i'm having SO much fun replaying the first one omg. it works so so well on switch too, it feels like the perffect game for the device. i forgot how fucking funny and perfect the dialogue is. and it looks SO good on the switch screen (i have the oled so it's super juicy looking).

[memeytaco]

You've cursed me. How could you

Last song: Disco City by That Handsome Devil

Favorite color: green and purple

Last show: I think hazbin hotel

Savory, sweet or spicy: spicy all the way

Last thing I googled : calamity wiki (spent a few days playing it with some friends)

Current obsession: Fallout (music wise it's That Handsome Devil)

Last book for school : Feed by M.T. Anderson

Last book for me: haven't read for myself since middle school

Looking forward to : TALE OF TWO WASTELANDS NOT TAKING OVER 10 HOURS TO FUCKING INSTALL. Otherwise waiting to not be sick

Tags : none

Get to know me/People to know better

thank you so much for tagging me @cosmmicdancer :)

last song: bobby sox by green day, I think

favorite color: yellow or a yellowy orange

last movie/tv show: the OA

sweet/savoury/spicy: I need a perfect balance between sweet and savoury/spicy, because of the tism, but my wife would say its definitely sweet

last thing i googled: bahnstreik 2024 (hello fellow germans)

current obsession: moral panics and everything surrounding them

last book: currently reading stone butch blues

looking forward to: my wife getting their passport and moving in with me after almost 4 years of long distance <3

tags: @leaskisses444, @signforsign, @starsendlessly, and @amarettofemme and @sunkissedbutch, because we recently became mutuals and you seem like darlings :)

(absolutely no pressure to participate )

[prince-les]

Subway twins reaction to any elders? Namely the Triumph Twins?

Let's start from the top:

Daleth (Isle): Emmet didn't get the chance to meet Daleth like Ingo did, so this will mostly be Ingo's opinion.

During his first encounter with the Isle Elder, Ingo's first impression of the old looking figure is that he seems rather composed and in pain. Well that part is quite obvious by the fact that he watches Daleth's mask just casually assembling itself.

The two doesn't really have much to comment about Isle of Dawn and the elder. Isle of Dawn is.. Definitely something bad had happened there and something way more horrible have happened to the elder. Nothing but pity, I suppose.

More utc because if you know me you know it gets long lmao

——

Ayin (Praire): Ingo doesn't have much to talk about Ayin but that he's definitely friend shaped! The Praire's elder size sure is a surprise to him, however embarrassed he is, he won't lie, he didn't expect the giant on the ground would actually be a person.

Emmet loves him! In the younger subway boss' eyes, Ayin is like a gentle butterfly magician. The way butterfly just burst from his can (can?? Bucket??) Is just simply beautiful that are nearly comparable to Ingo's Chandelure's light!

The two overall enjoyed both Praire and the elder! Butterfly and manta go bbrrrrrr oh also Oreo! Can't forget about the good boy.

——

Teth (Forest): Oh she looks sad. The first thing they saw as they entered her temple is Teth sitting in what they can only assume to be grieving as she sit on top of her anvil.

But then they're a bit intimidated by her presence. She seems rather rude and strong headed (?? I forgot the English word I'm sorry). They see Teth as someone who are forced to keep up a harsh look to keep her people strong. Overall she seems like a respectable figure, or at least, she used to be one.

——

Sah - Mekh (Valley): Twins!!! Emmet was ready to fist fight Sah and Mekh when both of them jump the subway bosses from the sky!!!

The Valley twins are as competitive as the subway bosses. While most of the time Sah and Mekh are competitive against each other, they won't hesitate to commit a truce to challenge other competitors. They too, like winning more than anything else. They're the Valley Elders for a reason you know.

Ingo is looking at the other pair of twins with competitive respect. Compared to all the previous elders, Sah and Mekh seems like the youngest of all yet they seem to hold a high ground in the Kingdom as the leader of the Valley.

Emmet wants to battle them so bad!! The twins looks like they would be a strong trainer if they were ever to be one! It's verrryyy unfortunate that Emmet couldn't play the sport sky people play and the Valley twins can't do Pokémon battle.

——

Tsadi (Wasteland): Just like Teth, they seem to take pity on the Wasteland elder. He was a warrior, as obvious as it seems. Now stripped away from his power and authority to become a sole, lone guardian of the Vault.

Ingo takes pity more than Emmet does. He was a warden afterall, he used to have the responsibility to protect Lady Sneasler and her Sneasles. He can't imagine the anguish he'd feel if he were to fail his task back then, and he certainly can't imagine the pain Tsadi is yielding on his back after losing so much in war.

——

Lamed (Vault): The twins feels a bit indecisive in meeting Lamed. The scene that played before them showed that the Elders are a sort of protectors of the world where they currently visit in, but hearing tales about the tragic fate the God of the world had given sky kid somewhat chipped away the respect and pity the two held on the elders.

Though Lamed seems just as in pain as everyone else. They seem like they too, don't like the situation they've been put in. To wield such responsibility by your King and your God. The scar on Lamed's face somewhat brought back the pity, the twins refused to elaborate further about their thoughts on the Elders role in the world.

If only they can talk to the elders. Maybe then they'd received some answers.

[rotten-games]

Current Wips

Okay so while I’m thinking about it I’m just gonna post links to both of my games and pin this post rather than just have Rott and CoI separate--it’s just kind of getting annoying. I’ll make update posts still but this pinned post will remain at the top for easier access to my games.

Just wanna have a look at them and not hear the sales pitch? RotT is here, and CoI is here.

City of Immortals

Last Updated 12/10/2024

You follow a pair of siblings worlds apart as they get accustomed to their new realities in two very different worlds. One trapped in an unnatural desert wasteland where every resource has a scarcity, not knowing if they’ll be the only one left when everything turns to dust, the other working as a private investigator in a sprawling underground metropolis of the undying. Each not knowing the other is alive, will they unravel the mysteries that somehow connect their two new homes?

The game switches perspectives between the two protagonists and you play as two werewolf sibling. There’s 13 love interests split between the two. It’s of the scfi-fi genre -- though I guess in this case it’s probably closer to fantasy in space.

Currently chapter one is complete.

Character list is here!

Features:

- Two werewolf mc’s

- Two branching storylines

- A stabbing

- and more :)

Regrets of the Traitor

Last updated 02/04/2024

You are the Ruler of Hadaria after killing the previous Queens and betraying all who once trusted you. Sat upon the throne with all the power available to you, one would be forgiven for believing you finished with your quest. With a strange figure in your dreams speaking vague prophecies of magical artifacts, a mysterious cult moving into the city, and a group intent on unseating you from your place, perhaps you’re way in over your head for a farmer’s kid.

RotT is the first of four books telling the tale of the Queenslayer. It’s high fantasy and features many love interests, branching paths, and plots to unravel.

Character list is here!

While I had initially completed four chapters it is getting rewritten for Twine. Of the rewrite chapter one through four is complete, though it is labelled in-game as one through three.

Features:

- Customisable mc (Gender, race, appearance, orientation)

- Three factions to join

- Four skills to master (swordplay, daggers, magic, and archery), and multiple personality stats that change throughout the game

- + More

[ussgallifrey]

a glimpse behind the scenes at my current line-up of wips and story ideas that have slowly been haunting my every waking hour.

BUCKY BARNES

And They Were Quarantined (Ch. 3) • Notes: Reader takes the time to explore more of the HYDRA facility, ignoring her companion entirely until things take a sudden turn. • Last Updated: 09.11.21

The Long Return The world had turned upside down and despite your best efforts to save it, you were now stuck here without a clue of how to return to to your time or to the team - and the man - you had left behind. • Notes: A sequel to What's Left Behind, a slowly twisting tale that leads the reader down a path that they will never be able to return from. • Playlist: Here

BUCKY & SAM

Mountain of the Sun (Ch. 4) • Notes: The crew makes it to their new destination and a messy tangle of feelings and desires begins to unravel in a night of fading inhibition. • Last Updated: 09.06.21

BUCKY & STEVE

The Kids Aren't Alright (Ch. 3) • Notes: The final chapter of the mini-series, told from the perspective of the reader. • Last Updated: 02.24.22

The Nomad, The Panther, and The Wolf The Earth has been inhospitable for over two centuries now; an apocalyptic wasteland reclaimed by mother nature. And while the previous inhabitants have long since fled to the stars, one lone scientist is determined to save the last bit of untouched wonder still left on the planet. Enter two battle-weary soldiers who have been sent to retrieve the young princess from imminent danger - despite her best efforts to evade them. • Pairing: Stucky x Wakandan!OC (Zari Udaku) • Playlist: Here

JAKE "HANGMAN" SERESIN

Where We Land This mission requires all of your attention, all of your focus. Too bad someone else didn't get the memo.

STEVE ROGERS

Fool's Gold Brock Rumlow was a perfectly respectable match - one that any of the ladies within the upper crust of society would have dreamed of one day marrying. But Brock Rumlow was not a good match for you, nor was the idea of marriage all that desired. No, what you were seeking was something far more interesting; adventure. • Notes: Time travel AU featuring the Golden Age of Piracy all wrapped up in a mysterious land far from well-to-do Edwardian society.

In Safe Harbors A man washes ashore in the midst of a storm. He wakes with no memory of who he is or how he came to be on this small island in the North Atlantic. He only has the kindness of a sweet-natured lighthouse keeper to help him piece back the puzzle of his very existence. • Notes: Amnesia, hurt/comfort, language, minor angst, slow burn • Playlist: Here

In The Grey Brooklyn Mercy General Hospital is one of the premiere hospitals in the city. Your residency begins there, under the watchful eye of some of the best doctors in the state. If only you could focus on your work and not the pointed gaze of the stand-offish Dr. Rogers. • Notes: Dislike to like, forbidden romance, questionable power dynamics, smut, workplace romance - this is going to play out like an early 2000s medical drama.

Meet Me in The Woods The battle's won, but what's been lost is more than you can handle. Escaping to the woods in search of solitude. Everything seems to settle and a calm begins to form - only for a familiar face to show up on your front porch, unannounced, three months later. • Notes: Dark themes and psychological horror amidst the backdrop of sweet cottage/cabin-core vibes • Playlist: Here

(She Moves With) Shameless Wonder (Ch. 21) • Notes: After retrieving the scepter, revelries are to be had. • Last Updated: 11.05.22

Starlight These are the voyages of the USS Shield, traveling through uncharted space - on the front lines of war. Captained by the most volatile leadership team this side of Alpha Centauri. Steve Rogers has been given command after disappearing in the Delta Quadrant for nearly seventy years. And the admiralty has rewarded his service with an unprofessional and unyielding first officer who thinks Steve is far past his prime. • Notes: Rivals-to-lovers, slow build, Star Trek au. • Playlist: Here

Tis The Season The Christmas season is filled with a contagious sense of merriment this year, as Holly finds herself drawn closer and closer to Steve Rogers. Will the holiday give Holly a true miracle or will she find herself alone under the mistletoe? • Playlist: Here

Unsteady No one ever said parenting would be a walk in the park. The first year on your own with a four-year-old gives a whole new meaning to the phrase it takes a village as you soon discover that sometimes it's okay to ask for help. • Notes: Ex-boyfriend!Brock, physical therapist!Steve, single parent!Reader

When I Kissed The Teacher The year is 1976 and you are set to finish your final year at Stark University. Nothing can stand between you and your MFA until the art professor is suddenly replaced with a breathtakingly beautiful man. Steve Rogers is a recently-divorced veteran who's finally getting a chance to put his passion to good use, teaching the next generation - you're the hiccup in his plans. • Notes: Age gap, consensual professor/student relationship, all to the backdrop of an ABBA song list. • Playlist: Here

[yostresswritinggirl]

Lullaby for the Gods

You have two options

"Stories brought on to the wind will bloom into legends in due time; An ancient tale comes whisked into the wind; In time it will grow and sprout once again." The Weaver and Nurturer of Tales, how they came to be and how they have gone.

Pairings -> Venti x God of Time (Ambiguous, Can be Reader)

Word Count -> 1976

Themes -> SCENARIOS, Background, Timeline, It's sad kinda

Series -> #Bonafide specials (100 followers event) Special slot from a special someone : not sure if they want to be tagged

Warnings -> This is my interpretation on the God of Time based on the Sacrificial Weapons Series. And since the prompt only mentions Venti, I won't focus much on their relationship with Decarabian.

Winds of the North are migrating through the crown of the continent once again. The clouds and breezes shift at the peak of day and the grass, the trees, the flowers they all sway. This was the first encounter, as one of the threads of the thousand migrating winds that is Venti, he had always been fascinated by the strong gales that covers a vast land beyond his reach. The city of Mondstadt protected by raging winds far stronger than he.

"Come now, little guy, are you not straying from your stream?" Such beaded eyes of the little sprite detaches from the crown of the North, with its giggles accompanies a sound reminiscent of bells as he nuzzles at the outstretched hand, fair and smooth. A finger consoles his little cheek as the God of Time echoes his snicker. As the sprite settles on their hand, they both spare a minute to watch the God of Storm's dominion. And then they turn to guide Venti back to his current, to his family of winds.

And the little sprite will not witness them until the second cycle of wind passes the cold land of Mondstadt.

So when the time came, several weeks after, Venti once again strays from the winds to venture to his own current. Where are the satin robes that flows with the breeze, that witnesses the rage of another God? The sprite follows tinkling of tin carried by the thousand winds, harmonizing to produce a soft and sleepy melody that lulls those to sleep.

In a distant island he finds himself upon a huge sundial atop a mostly quiet temple. And there stood again the God of Time, with a distant look over the ocean horizon, eyes clouded yet sparkling from the stars that bounced from the surface of the water. Their skin never frails nor wrinkles, hair lustrous and thick, yet their eyes carry a thousand yard stare of shrouded sadness.

"Little wind..." the sprite nuzzles against the cheek of the God, vibrating in worry as he urges them to smile. And they did, even if did not reach their eyes. "You've strayed again, your achon is far from here," cradling the elf to their neck, they turn away from the horizon to the west.

Yet when they urge him to go back, he stubbornly stays.

A stubborn wind playing around the wielder of Time itself. His courage was admirable, and he is lucky that this God is benevolent to his advances.

So they entertain Venti, and the wind begins his stories. Tales of those he'd witnessed when the wind ventures through the continent; and in every word he spills the God of Time is attentive, for when his accounts finally come to their end, Time puts into their memory for keeping. You weave the tales and I treasure them for that is my duty, they spoke with melancholy.

Decarabian is a God that loves his people more than others would know, more than the people would know. And he is also a lonely God. Perhaps it is this distance and disconnection from the world and his people that had made him naive to what he has forced upon his subjects.

The first prayer was heard beyond the wall of storms, only befalling to the ears of the God of Time and the wind spirit who were enjoying a leisurely stroll through the frozen land Andrius had covered in his territory. A man's woe for salvation of the city beyond the gales first reaches the God.

Yet they are unmoving and silent as they watch from afar the Gunnhildr.

But the wind spirit was not that, he was curious and as always he is carried away to his own feat. So without warning he strays from Time and listens to the crying one ever so patiently, and there he receives a glimpse of power that shall manifest one day to greater good.

God of Time offers a smile in the forests where they hid. But only that. For despite being the God of Time, they are solely there to protect its flow. To maintain balance and what should be.

There is nothing they can do to help the people of Mond.

"Little wind." The moniker carried a hard edge of worry unlike the other instances it was used. "The land of Decarabian is... treacherous and suffocating. You are but a tiny wind against his storms." Yet they knew such words will not remove the resolve in the tiny spirit. "Come back to me in one piece, alright? Remember your tales."

Venti softly bumped his hooded head to the God's cheek in reassurance, before he too disappears past the walls of gale front.

And so the God of Time can only do nothing but stand in wait. Like they had always been. Like they had always done. For Decarabian then, for Venti now.

"Bring forth the freedom we all desire."

Many of those that dwell the King of the North's cold wasteland once talked of an ethereal being of satin and silk, of flowing sands, that which overlooked the land of the storms with a somber look. Perhaps it was the waiting and the hoping, but many felt great semblance with the deity. Of the longing look for a distant freedom.

"Little wind," immediately after was a chorus of laughter at the irony brought upon by habits. Venti, now Barbatos with his great wings loom over the God of Time, hands outstretched to feel upon their smooth hands. "I always knew there was more to you."

"My muse," he tastes the new name with his newfound voice, and with his there was a chorus of angelic echoes. "There are festivities upon us, for the city of Mond trapped that was. The people had prepared a grand temple, for just us two Gods it is already ample."

Yet the God of Time smiled only with their lips at the mention of a shrine. You told them about me, they mused as the archon carried them both with the wind where the temple by the east cliff resides.

Give yourself some credit, the new Anemo Archon responds in light banter.

But the God of Time does not.

And so days of reenactments and performances were all that they were driwned upon. For daily, between the peak of the moon and the glimpses of the sun, devoted subjects would appease to the two Gods of Mondstadt through retelling and theatrics of their hard-earned journey to freedom.

Although they cannot glimpse upon the forms of the deities, the light giggles reminiscent of bells that comes from amusement and the flow of draping satin are enough reassurance that their important audience still lingers and listens to their offerings.

This dwelling became their place of rendezvous. And whenever the amphitheater was not crowded by devotees, a lyre plays with a melodic voice, weaving tales of Mondstadt's anew. The God of Time would be there to treasure every story that is weaved, but their subjects remember such moments in a different light: the strum of the strings and the lilt of Barbatos carries with it a hint of serenades.

It seems as tho the faceless God enjoys the Anemo Archon's tales the most.

Whenever it is the Gunnhildr's clan that performs their tale of courage in honor of defending Mondstadt, life and freedom, Barbatos' happiness was the most extraordinaire. The winds breeze by to caress everyone with comfort.

The Imunlaukr receives praise from the God of Time when they are the one on stage. Of courage and bravery, with their desire to not only protect the city of Mond but to appease the Gods, time slows when they follow their script. As if honored by time to stay and linger for the amusement.

And finally, the Lawrence clan holds with them a different reaction, for when their time has come it is quiet. Other clans would comment that perhaps the Gods do not favor their performance but they continued regardless, and they carry with them the essence of wisdom and strength, from the frozen lands to the new city. And only after they perform are they graced by the softest winds and the kisses of youngness that they carry with them even after.

This clan's performance sings with expertly woven symphonies and journeys of hardships through the cold, not harsh but comforting, soft melodies and that of longing. During their performance unbeknownst to their eyes is when the wind embraces the passage of time, where it is in its calmest moments, cradled between his arms and resting against his chest.

The bloodline of the Lawrence always ends the rituals for the morning, for the God of Time had finally found themself free from the shackles of the storms, peacefully resting in the arms of freedom. And it is in these moments that the people appreciate the lessened harshness of time.

Time is harsh and unrelenting, and should always be moving.

The God of Time protects time, nurtures time, and urges time. No force or law shall break the equilibrium of time nor tip its balance. And this unbreakable rule applies to them.

For this reason they ask one day, to the Anemo Archon, why they praise Time. What do they expect from time. And there Barbatos finally sees the burden of a thousand years, of the constraints of that whom is held down by prayers, held down by incapability.

Time only knows harshness. And they cried to the winds without restraints, for not once will they be able to gift the people that so desperately long for their blessings.

And for once, the wind was silent.

For once, the winds... understands the insanity of being one with time. A force made to be unmoved and unrelenting, to be shackled to a single tale when you are burdened with the pleas of many others.

Time is harsh, because they are meant to be.

So when the Anemo Archon finally desired rest and detachment to procure the essence of freedom, they too felt the chance to finally breathe. "Can you set up my awakening five hundred years from now?" Venti laid his head upon the lap of Time, teal eyes and smile somber yet gentle and reassuring. "Preferably at the peak of Ludi Harpastum, if you would allow." An hour glass manifests next to him, allowing his wish.

"When you wake, I will be here," they mumbled as the archon lets his eyelids rest, feeling a soft kiss to his forehead that lulls him to sleep.

"Tell me the tales like a balladeer." And he slumbers away the years.

"When I came to be, the Lawrence ruled over Mondstadt, governing with the most disgusting aristocracy. It was only right that they lost the blessings of thy winds, after all it is only for those who fought to be free," Venti sighed with pure disappointment, "Honestly."

"What happened to your Time friend, then? Did they tell you what happened during your sleep?"

The windborne bard looks at Paimon with a wide yet steeled gaze so daunting it made her squeak and hide behind the traveler. Who silently watches as Venti once again sighed and resigned to strumming his lyre.

"They're gone." No rhyme, no smiles, no cryptics.

Barbatos sought out the help of the winds of Teyvat to tell tale on the dwellings of the God of Time yet came out empty handed. And his only salvation, the oldest of the Seven, can only shake his head as he too does not know of the whereabouts of the God.

The fragments of time lingers in cursed windswept ballads and stories. And as the years go by, all worshipers and records had forgotten about the deity.

They only sing praise to the wind shrine now.

Now who shall nurture the stories brought by the winds?

I seem to have a knack for hurting Venti.

@creation-magician @boxofteenageideas @zelos-simp @ellitx @your-local-venti-simp @indigodreamtime47

[onlydylanobrien]

Coup De Main Magazine Interview: Dylan O'Brien on 'Love and Monsters'.

Dylan O'Brien really, really, really loves dogs. Fondly referring to his adorable co-star as "completely the star" of his new Oscar-nominated film, 'Love and Monsters, O'Brien's face lights up like a Christmas tree when reminiscing about the two Australian Kelpies, Hero and Dodge, who together portray his onscreen best friend, Boy (a.k.a. the best dog in the world).

At the heart of 'Love and Monsters' is this dynamic duo, with O'Brien as Joel Dawson, who in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by giant monsters decides to set off on a dangerous journey to reconnect with his high school sweetheart (played by Jessica Henwick), seven years after the Monsterpocalypse forced all of humanity into hiding underground.

An endearing tale of a wide-eyed boy and his loyal dog, we caught up with Dylan O'Brien to discuss 'Love and Monsters' which was filmed in Queensland, Australia...

COUP DE MAIN: Congrats on the Best Visual Effects Oscars nomination for 'Love and Monsters'! You're in the film, so for the purposes of this interview, I think you can own that.

DYLAN O'BRIEN: Thank you! Oh absolutely, I am nominated. I've been telling everybody: I'm an Oscar nominated actor now.

CDM: You did it!

DYLAN: Thanks! <laughs> It really is amazing.

CDM: It's funny that you filmed this movie back in March to May of 2019, but the whole situation of Joel finding himself separated from Aimee probably feels very familiar to anyone who started a relationship pre-pandemic that doesn't live with their partner.

DYLAN: Yeah, it's really weird. It's really weird how what we ended up going through when this movie was due to come out, how much it related to these themes that we're exploring in this movie. It's a very crazy coincidence.

CDM: Also, the sort of aversion to venturing out again into the outside world, that feels very relatable.

DYLAN: I know. Like when he first comes out of that hatch, he's breathing in the fresh air like it's strange. It's really strange.

CDM: I also thought of the current mask-wearing situation when Clyde says: "You can always tell in their eyes, just look at their eyes." People have had to do a lot of eye-reading this past year?

DYLAN: Right?! Oh, wow wow wow. I hadn't thought about that one.

CDM: One of my favourite things you've ever done is the 'Life Of A Hollywood Actor' video. What do you think the 2021 version of 'Life Of A Hollywood Actor' would look like?

DYLAN: <laughs> Thank you so much, first of all.

CDM: I rewatched it yesterday in preparation for this interview.

DYLAN: No way, thanks! That's really cool. Yeah, I love that character. I want to do something with him. What would the 2021 version be? I think he would definitely be taking the Oscar nom for himself, very seriously - like, the visual effects Oscar nom he would apply as being his, basically, and I think he'd try to bring that up and try to really ride that to get some work. He thinks this is gonna be a big career thing for him, and then he somehow fucks it up by being too overzealous.

CDM: Joel clings on to his memories of Aimee for seven years, replaying them in his mind so he can continue to relive them. Why is it that it's in human nature to mentally retreat into the past for comfort? And to look for a home in other people instead of building a solid home within ourselves?

DYLAN: That's really interesting... I feel like that's something instinctive, especially if you're going through a hard time or especially if something's shifted in your world negatively. I think there's uncertainty about the future and I always find in those situations a common link to wanting to find comfort in the past. I've gone through things, like times like that in my own life, and I've always found that when I've gone through a time like that, there's this level of uncertainty. I think it's human instinct and sort of this instinct to protect ourselves in a way. We're a wild species, aren't we? We're very emotional creatures. I think that's part of what makes humans so special. And instincts like that, to preserve and protect our heart and mind, and to hold on to things like that. And the way we're attached to memories like that and nostalgia. There's a reason these things are a part of our fabric. We're very emotional creatures.

CDM: Do you think that love or fear is a stronger emotion?

DYLAN: Whoah, that's pretty wild. I would say love - only because I feel like it has this sustainable power to endure over time. Whereas fears can be fleeting, and even if it comes quick, it's gone. But then also... yeah, I don't know. <laughs> We're getting deep. Real deep!

CDM: Is love an action or a feeling?

DYLAN: WHOAH. <cracks up>

CDM: I'm putting you on the spot, sorry.

DYLAN: No, no, I'm good! I love it! They're very interesting questions. I'm cracking up at you choosing me to answer these. Fuck. I mean, I think it's a feeling. I believe that, at least. I'm trying to think of ways it could be an action, obviously, but that's not love. I feel like if it's an action, it's something else. There are actions that come from love, but the love, it's a feeling. That's what I believe.

CDM: I always think about how in the TV show, 'Fleabag', The Priest says, "Being a romantic takes a hell of a lot of hope. I think what they mean is, when you find somebody that you love, it feels like hope," which I feel like Joel would also relate to.

DYLAN: Yeah! I love 'Fleabag'.

CDM: It's so good.

DYLAN: It's SO good.

CDM: Clyde says to Joel: "Good instincts are earned by making mistakes." Do you agree or disagree with Clyde's life lesson?

DYLAN: Yeah, I think there's a lot of truth to that, for sure. I think that mistakes absolutely help us grow, in many ways, in terms of instincts and stuff. Yeah, I think that's a wise and sensible perspective to have, especially in an apocalyptic wasteland.

CDM: Do you have any cooking specialities like Joel's talent for minestrone?

DYLAN: Yeah, I've got some go-to's. They're all my mom's, like the things that are nostalgic for me that I grew up with that my mom cooks, like her chicken soup. It's the first thing I do if I go on a job or somewhere where I'm going to be for a little while, just to feel like I'm at home, the first thing I'll do is I'll make a soup and then I'll have it in the fridge for the first week that I'm there. I'll make my mom's chicken soup and it's a really nice comforting sort of a feeling. And chicken cutlets. Two very chicken-y things!

CDM: There's a line I love from the TV show, 'The Good Place', in which one of the characters says: "Sometimes, when you're feeling helpless, the secret is to help someone else. Get out of your own head." I was reminded of it in the scene where Joel is forced to take action against a monster to help save not himself, but his dog. Excluding the life or death element, have you ever felt similarly that it's been easier to help someone else first in order to help yourself?

DYLAN: Yeah, sometimes to a fault. I think that that's something that's been a bit of a learning curve for me, interestingly enough, pretty recently as well in the last year or two, to sort of realise that I need to try to help myself sometimes a little more. I think I have an instinct to help the people that I love and want to be there for them, or even a stranger sometimes, over myself, which can definitely be an interesting quality, but yeah, I think that's helping yourself. Taking care of yourself is extremely important and I think that we all sort of go through our own path of learning the importance of that, and ultimately, too, if you want to be helping others and helping your loved ones, you actually need to be taking care of yourself, first and foremost. Everyone comes to their own kind of realisation over it. It takes time. It takes your 20s, sometimes more.

CDM: Do you miss your dog co-stars Hero and Dodge?

DYLAN: Yes! Yes!! I do. Yeah, I really, really do. And Zelie [Bullen] as well. Their mom and trainer.

CDM: Do you have a dog yourself?

DYLAN: I've got little dogs, yeah. I've got little babies. You?

CDM: I don't sadly, but it's my life goal to adopt a dog one day.

DYLAN: You should. Do you want one? You should get one!

CDM: I'm gonna just tell everyone: Dylan O'Brien told me to get a dog, so I'm getting a dog now.

DYLAN: <laughs> I'm just part of this major life decision for you, forever now.

CDM: Social media can be such a vanity project, but I love that you only have Twitter, and use it mostly just for helping give a platform to important human right issues and sharing your love for Taylor Swift and Harry Styles. What are your favourite Taylor Swift and Harry Styles songs?

DYLAN: Oh my goodness. Like ever? For Harry, from Harry's last album, 'Watermelon Sugar', obviously. I think my my favourite one of his though is... What's it called? I can hear it in my head. They sing it on 'American Idol' all the time.Falling'! That's a huge one for me. T Swift, I mean, it's amazing - give any of the rest of us like six months in quarantine and we look back on it and we're like, 'Shit, I should have done more,' but give Taylor six months in quarantine and she writes fifty hit songs. It's incredible. Off 'Folklore', I think 'Mirrorball' doesn't get enough credit. I'm a big 'Mirrorball' fan. I love 'My Tears Ricochet', and 'Mad Woman', 'Epiphany', 'The 1'.

CDM: Basically the whole album.

DYLAN: Yeah, I really liked that one. There's so many more, but those are my highlights.

CDM: You used to be in a band, Slow Kids At Play, right? Would you ever want to get back into music professionally again?

DYLAN: I still play all the time, and I still play with friends who play as well. Even those guys. They're all still my good friends. We actually had a reunion show in 2019 and it was really cool. We jammed in our friend's garage for our hometown friends. Music will always be a part of my life. I always try to not let it be one of those things that you lose in life. I think that's important to do. If it's not your primary thing, it's sometimes easy to. Often years pile up and then you're like, 'Oh, man, I haven't done this thing that I love in so long, like, I should build that into my routine.' So yeah, I'll always play drums and always jam with friends and play. And yeah, it'd be cool to be in a band again. Maybe someday. Or even just to play a show again, like even just to sit in for someone would be awesome.

CDM: Then maybe you can come to New Zealand on tour.

DYLAN: On tour?! I don't think I'd get to that level, but I like that you have aspirations for me.

CDM: Why is it important to you to use your platform for good?

DYLAN: I think that's influenced by the time that we're in. Also coinciding with a time that I went through in my life and just sort of getting older. And for me, it just feels right in terms of the things that I want to use it for, or try to support, or bring to life, or amplify, or bring a light to, and I guess it's influenced by my own learning and growing and trying to be more involved in this stuff and educate myself on it. It sort of just mirrors that a little bit, and I do think it's important.

CDM: Thank you for your time today. And thanks for telling me to get a dog.

DYLAN: Go do it! Send me a pic when you get them. It was such a pleasure talking to you, thanks so much.

[concussed-to-pieces]

The Mettle Of A Man; Part Twenty

Fandom: Fallout (4)

Pairing: Paladin Danse/Female Sole Survivor

Rating: Holy shit M.

AN: Welcome to the end of our tale, everyone! Thank you so much for reading and enjoying over the years. I love you so much and appreciate you more than words can say. Here's to 2021, my friends! Ad Victoriam, and stay safe! Tagging @anonymouscosmos​, @culturalrebel, @wrestlingfae​, @toxiicpop​,  @mercy-and-malice, @deepkittycollecto, @nelba, @mechanicalism, @commandershepardshtole, @valkyriejack and @kovu-the-mythical-being. Enjoy!

Part One: ArcJet

Part Two: The Prydwen

Part Three: Orders

Part Four: Finding Brandis

Part Five: Weston Water And Oberland

Part Six: Meeting Preston And Matthew

Part Seven: Radstag And Radstorm

Part Eight: The Return To Sanctuary Hills

Part Nine: Domestic Ruminations

Part Ten: Institutionalized

Part Eleven: Two Weeks, Three Days

Part Twelve: Haylen’s Warning And The Glowing Sea

Part Thirteen: Under Fire

Part Fourteen: Dichotomy

Part Fifteen: The Litany Trial

Part Sixteen: Nice Try

Part Seventeen: Preparations

Part Eighteen: Divide And Conquer

Part Nineteen: Lucky

[!TRIGGER WARNING!: This installment contains holiday celebrations, brief emotional distress and unprotected sex. Stay safe!]

Time seemed to pass both too fast and not fast enough. 

  Synths were accommodated, reprogrammed at their wishes or helped to adjust to their new lives. Doctor Amari and the rest of the Railroad had no shortage of work, and Desdemona eventually tapped MacCready and Cait to oversee their caravan logistics back to the Capital Wasteland. 

  "And the people of the Commonwealth slept soundly, for the greatest monster was gone." Nick had remarked, touching the brim of his fedora in a half-salute. The old detective quickly appointed himself as head of first impressions in Diamond City, making certain that no trouble befell any wayward synth that accidentally wandered in. There was still a lot of work to be done to repair the Broken Mask incident, after all.

  New settlements sprang up overnight and while there may not have been total harmony, there was the sensation of the whole Commonwealth heaving a sigh of relief. Recruits flocked to the Minutemen and Brotherhood in droves as Piper's Publick Occurrences spread the word of their successful campaign against the Institute. 

  Commonwealth boogeyman decimated by combination effort: Brotherhood Of Steel and Minutemen join forces to save Boston from bodysnatchers!

  Deacon had effortlessly deflected Piper every time she asked for an interview, the mysterious man more than content to keep the Railroad shadowy. The less everyone knew, the less they could tell, and that suited him just fine. "You did real good, Icebox. Helped a lot of people."

  Elder Brandis sought approval to establish a permanent outpost at the Boston airport ruins, the former paladin keen to send the Prydwen back to the Capital Wasteland. "Oh the Prydwen's a fine ship, but put me in the field any day!" The airship, once a proud symbol of the Maxson reign, now served little purpose aside from blocking the sun on occasion. Scribes laughed and played in the massive shadow, kicking up dust until the circle where the litany trial had taken place was nothing but a memory.

  X6-88 had floundered for several weeks, the courser falling into a depressive slump that not even Curie could rouse him from. Oddly enough, it was Preston who ended up being able to haul him out of the darkness, the lieutenant making a point to visit the courser to drag him from his room for target practice and other low-effort patrol duties. "Sometimes all folks need is a hand, General." 

  The courser went on to reluctantly take the role of defective defector, working as a consultant to the Minutemen to help ward off any future attacks by desperate coursers or Institute scientists. Preston found his input invaluable, and the duo could often be found in the lieutenant's quarters poring over threadbare maps and trading tactical information. Preston also seemed to have a calming effect on the synth hunter, helping to blunt some of the cold steel edge that X6 had honed his entire life. Add on to that the constant caring presence of Curie, and they made a strange but surprisingly effective trio. 

  With the new supply line firmly established between the verdant utopia of Starlight Drive-In and Oberland Station, the strain of the prior lean months finally eased a bit. Faces grew less pinched even with the increased burden of the synths, and many settlers began to tentatively plan for a small celebration in the beginning of the winter. 

  "'The Holidays' is what they been callin' it, real simple and succinct. Some freaky hodgepodge of everyone's traditions. I guess a lot of folks on that fancy director's board also celebrated around this time of year. Not that the synths would know, naturally." Hancock had muttered, his expression sour. "Poor bastards always workin', and they ain't got fuckall to show for it. Seems like a shit deal."

  Elder Brandis granted Danse an extended leave of absence after the toppling of the Institute without the paladin even requesting it, the large man dumbfounded for a moment upon receiving the news.

  "If you're up for it, I could use a hand back at Sanctuary." Vega had grinned up at him, her eyes squinting a little under the force of her smile. "A lot of prep work goes into a holiday, after all."

  ...

  Danse had taken it upon himself to retreat from Shaun's previous bedroom when he accompanied Vega and her son back to Sanctuary. He debated heavily on returning to the airport; after all, there was no real reason for him to stay in Sanctuary Hills, at least none that he dared to dwell upon. The few small projects that Vega had to manage were easily accomplished and he was left a bit lost in the wake of the excess of his leave.

  Vega, however, had begun framing in what was once the carpark for her house. Sturges helped of course, and once Danse caught on he was touched by the gesture. 

  "I don't want you to feel like there isn't room for you just because Shaun is back." Elizabeth had said, lugging a chunk of scrap metal from the wreckage of her car. 

  The paladin had to take a moment, claiming sawdust in his eye as the culprit.

  Now Danse lived in the area she had partitioned off for him, uncertain if he still believed he was intruding. Those thoughts were troubling, because if he could get comfortable…

  What if Vega eventually decided that Shaun needed a father and what if...what if she chose a real man? Really real, not a sham like Danse was. And if she did, what man would permit Danse to stay? What real man would permit a synth that was currently entangled by these...human emotions to remain on their property, even if Danse proved he wasn't a threat?

  What man would believe him if he claimed to have no interest in Vega? Hell, Danse didn't even believe himself. 

  But he didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay. He wanted to tell Elizabeth...well, there were a lot of things he wanted to tell her.

  His silence was more of a burden each day, and Danse knew he must seem sullen. It gnawed at him; it felt like lying every time he choked the words back down because it wasn't the right time or he just didn't know what to say, and he didn't trust himself not to say something foolish.

  He decided he would wait until after the holiday gathering. Whatever the verdict was, it shouldn't take away from the joy she was clearly feeling over the festivities. So Danse threw himself into helping Sturges, Mama Murphy and the Longs around Sanctuary.

  Secretly making a toy truck for Shaun had been a painstaking process fraught with peril. Mainly because Danse was somewhat indelicate and carving tiny wheels had never been his area of expertise. Oh certainly, he could build a survival camp with nothing but a combat knife and time, but a toy...

  The paladin had spent countless hours creating prototypes in his cobbled-together room as he pondered the path he should take, sometimes working into the wan light of the morning. He eventually showed the truck to Jun, immensely fearful that Shaun might not enjoy the toy. Danse couldn't recall his own interests when he had been Shaun's age, and thus fell back on the other man's expertise. 

  "It looks good! Sand the wheels a little more, maybe give it a coat or two of paint." Jun praised the pensive paladin, turning the vehicle over in his hands to examine it. "Kyle loved these kinds of things y'know, trucks and trains and little toy boats." His gaze grew distant for a moment, the rough plaything stilling in his grasp. "Marcy thinks she's pregnant." He said abruptly.

  "Pregnant?" Danse repeated without meaning to, his eyebrows shooting up to his hairline.

  Jun nodded jerkily. "It's been three months now. She's scared, Mr. Danse, real scared. Thinks something bad will happen."

  "What can we do?" The paladin asked sharply. 

  Jun gawked up at him, seeming confused. "We?"

  "I am unfamiliar with this process. What needs to be done?"

  "I...I don't follow, Mr. Danse."

  "To simplify the duration! What precautions can I-"

  "Whoa, hang on." Jun protested. "We aren't sure if the general will even let us stay here with an extra mouth to feed. I've been trying to figure out how to bring up the subject." He admitted. 

  "You haven't even told General Vega yet?!" Danse squawked. 

  "W-Well, no! I figured maybe we would...we'd see how the winter went and play it by ear." Jun mumbled, seeming defensive. 

  Danse seized the other man's arm, heedless of his protests as he hauled him across the front lawn to Vega's abode. Today was the day that Vega had planned to sort through decorations; there were many left over from the fall holiday the Commonwealth had been preparing to celebrate before...well, time had stopped for most when the bombs fell, it was understandable that faded pumpkins and skeletons would still grace crumbling walls with their orangey-cream presence.

  Vega looked up from the veritable pile of brittle, salvaged decor in confusion when Danse barged into their...her home, the paladin immediately halting and offering a sharp salute. "Danse! I...uh, what's wrong?"

  "Mr. Long has something he needs to discuss with you immediately." Danse informed her, tugging the other man forward. 

  "I-I...er, General, you…" Jun struggled to speak, twiddling his fingers wildly. "M-Marcy--"

  "What's wrong, Jun? Is she okay?" Vega asked, getting to her feet and shooting Danse a worried look. "Did something happen?"

  "B-Baby." Jun squeaked. "Pregnant."Backhand went still, her freckles stark against the fresh pallor of her face. "I'm sorry, General, I know we haven't discussed it beforehand a-and I know food's been better as of late...I-I guess she got enough nutrients and got healthy enough for...er, well, you know." Mr. Long looked like he wanted to disappear into the ground. "We should have spoke to you sooner; I don't know if she can leave with the weather being--"

  "Wh-Where are you going? Why leave, what?" Vega stammered, "Jun, you can't travel now, if something goes wrong-!"

  "We weren't sure if you'd let us stay!" The thin man interrupted her frantically. "This is your base, after all, and you didn't sign on for an extra person to worry about."

  Vega inhaled deeply. "Danse, could you give me a minute with Mr. Long?" She requested, her voice suspiciously even.

  Danse obeyed, closing the front door gently and meandering a pointed distance down the main thoroughfare so as not to eavesdrop. He had a relatively good idea of how the conversation would go, despite Jun's misgivings. So he wandered down to the huge tree at the end of the cul-de-sac, fiddling with the truck in his pocket absently as he stared upwards at the barren branches. 

  "Y'know kid," Mama Murphy piped up from her customary chair on her porch and the paladin turned to face her, giving the elderly woman his full attention. "When I had the Sight, I saw this place. Sanctuary." She nodded in the direction of the river, then gestured upwards. "The bridge, and this tree. Massive and old, worn out from all those years." She cocked her head, giving Danse an appraising look. "The tree though, it was...covered in lights. Like what you see in the pre-war mags. The Holidays, shinin' like a beacon of hope at the end of the tunnel." 

  Danse hummed, the vaguest beginnings of an idea taking root in his mind. He couldn't bring Vega's old life back, but maybe...maybe he could bring something from it back to her. Like what you see in the pre-war mags.

  "I think you're pickin' up what I'm puttin' down, kid." Mama Murphy's smile was knowing, the old woman reaching over to pet Dogmeat. The dog seemed to materialize out of thin air sometimes! "Now get to it."

  ...

  Backhand was already scurrying around the kitchen when Danse rose on the morning of the Holiday celebration, the paladin pausing only momentarily to yawn in the doorway before sleepily offering his assistance. "Is there something I can help with, Vega?"

  "Uh, Sturges, he said something about you and stuff from Goodneighbor, I think?" Elizabeth replied, obviously preoccupied with whatever she had in the semi-functional oven. Danse nodded, trudging across the kitchen to tug on his boots by the door. 

  Shaun bounded out of the bathroom, his face still damp from his morning wash. "Oh, can I help too? Please Mom, let me help Mister Danse and Mister Sturges!" He begged.

  "You'd better stay right where Danse and Sturges can see you." Backhand instructed him sternly, one oven-mitted hand gesturing to indicate the gravity of the situation. "Otherwise you're coming straight back inside. Go put on your warm coat."

  Shaun cheered in delight, racing back to his room.

  "It's okay that he's with you two, right? I know he's not your responsibility." Backhand continued in an undertone to the paladin.

  Danse's throat tightened and it took him a moment to respond, "I don't mind at all. He's a very well-behaved child." 

  "Let me know if he's an issue and I'll bring him back inside. I just need to get this done and the oven is being all-" 

  Danse stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders, deliberately schooling his expression into something more stern. "General, you're doing a fine job. Stop worrying."

  "Am I? Shit, I really hope so." Elizabeth mumbled, tipping her forehead until it rested against his chest. Danse prayed she couldn't hear his heart, hammering merely from her proximity. God, his body was nothing but an embarrassment waiting to happen. "I've never really done this crap. Not sure if I'm cut out for it."

  The momentary respite was broken when Shaun reappeared in his oversized flannel and oilcloth jacket, the child bolting past the two adults to put on his boots. Danse reluctantly released Backhand, noting how flushed her face was but not really daring to dwell on it. "I'll...I'll watch him." The paladin said, his voice a bit stilted. "I promise."

  "Thank you." Backhand mumbled, wiping her eyes and then returning to coddle…whatever it was in the oven.

  "Ready, Shaun?" Danse asked the boy, who nodded rapidly and extended a hand. 

  The snow outside was still fresh from the night before and Danse took a moment to appreciate the view of the Commonwealth covered in a thin layer of white. Off in the distance, the towering crimson insignia of the Red Rocket gasoline station stood stark against the backdrop of the gray sky. Even further down the road slumbered the empty shell of Concord, the tallest of the town's dilapidated buildings only just visible from the paladin's position. 

  Shaun tugged at his hand, pulling his attention back to the present. "Mister Danse, Mister Sturges is waiting for us!" The child announced, waving up at the engineer who was currently settled into a crook of the brittle branches that graced the tree on the cul-de-sac island. "Hi Mister Sturges!"

  "Howdy fellas! Come to give me a helpin' hand?" Sturges called, grinning down at the two of them. 

  "What assistance can we offer?" Danse queried, wary that the other man might suggest Shaun climb up to him. His fears were quickly allayed when Sturges instead asked Shaun and Danse to begin untangling the long strands of old lights. 

  Hancock and his ilk had arrived from Goodneighbor, bearing the gifts of dubious treats and many, many mangled strings of lights. Goodneighbor had always been drenched in neon, after all, so Danse had assumed the ghoul mayor would be the best person to call upon for aid. It would appear that Hancock had delivered in spectacular fashion.

  "With your help, we'll have this place lookin' pretty as a picture in no time!"

  …

  Maybe she had bitten off slightly more than she could chew, trying to cook a traditional dinner. Backhand sighed, glumly poking at the cold poultry with a wooden spoon. Her cooking skills had never been much to write home about in the first place, and this only served to solidify that fact. 

  "Oh Mum, I'm so sorry. The old oven just isn't how it used to be." Codsworth commented, his mechanical voice tinged with melancholy. 

  "It's not a big deal, Codsworth. I hate to waste the food, that's all." Backhand muttered, assuring herself that she wasn't fighting back frustrated tears, her eyes were just tired. "Damn thing didn't even get to the warm phase."

  "Mum, if I might suggest…?" The robot started hesitantly, carrying on when she nodded. "Perhaps it can be salvaged. After all, we make bread in that same pan by tucking it beneath the hot coals out front. What do you say, shall we give it a go?"

  "Got nothing to lose, right?" 

  "It will be just fine, Mum! You're an adaptive sort." Codsworth remarked, drifting out the front door to stoke the usual cooking fire to life once more. "Indeed, just fine!" He called. 

  Vega shook her head ruefully. "Oh I'm sure." The woman grumbled. "Can't cook and comes with baggage. What a catch ol' Vega is." At least the bread had come out well, in spite of the brisk weather. She could thank whoever for that small favor.

  Once Codsworth had coaxed the embers to life in the fire pit, Elizabeth bundled up and brought the still-cold cast-iron pot outside. Maybe it had been wishful thinking to believe that the oven portion of her stove would still work. Or even heat at all. It had been promising earlier in the week, but this might be a blessing in disguise. If the whole house had gone up due to a cooking malfunction...well, the holidays wouldn't be too happy then, would they?

  "Please cook." She begged under her breath, troweling hot coals onto the battered dutch oven lid. "I need this, y'know? Just a little victory, that's all I'm asking for here." 

  "Shall I get started on the tatoes, Miss Vega?" 

  Elizabeth nodded, only half-listening to Codsworth. She knew she would have a good forty five minutes to an hour to wait, and it wasn't as if it was colder outside than it was inside. The joys of semi-functional heating! 

  Vega shook her head at herself after a second, since when did she dwell on everything that Sanctuary wasn't? At the end of the day, it was her home. She wouldn't trade it for the world, and she knew she had much more than most people.

  At that thought, her gaze wandered to where Danse and Shaun were. The larger man had Shaun on his shoulders while he patiently unwound a massive bundle of flickering string lights. Shaun, for his part, was passing the untangled lights up to Sturges. The engineer slid down the ladder so he could reach the child, looping the lights over his arm before climbing back up and painstakingly placing them in the gnarled grasp of the tree's limbs.

  The manufactured cheer that the lights had given off pre-war was still somewhat there, though the radiant colors were washed out to pastel and the warm whites had gone dingy gray. Instead of it being a melancholy reminder that her life had changed irreparably, Backhand was overcome with gratitude. For her son's safe return, regardless of his synthetic makeup, and for the man who was currently carrying Shaun on his shoulders. For her home, for her family.

  A family. 

  Perhaps she was getting a little ahead of herself. After all, Danse was still adjusting to life in ordinary time. It would be selfish of her to voice her feelings to him while he was coming to terms with everything that had happened. For better or for worse, their lives were different now. 

  It ought to be enough that he was in her life at all. She should be content. His presence alone was a miracle; for all intents and purposes he should be dead. Yet there he was, mere feet away, helping to brighten up the holiday celebration.

  Tonight there would be a multitude of visitors. God only knew how many would arrive from settlements near and far, to say nothing of Goodneighbor, Diamond City, the Prydwen and the Castle! It would be an incredibly busy evening for certain. Hancock had arrived early with a posse of ragtag drifters from Goodneighbor, all of them offering gifts of food or scavenged ornaments to decorate. Hence the massive mound of lights that was currently being diligently sorted through.

  The aforementioned ghoul appeared to have delegated the task of quality checking the lights, as his form currently leaned against the faded blue siding of her house. With cigarette smoke wafting from his mouth and nasal cavity in equal amounts, he seemed content to just watch the chaos unfold. 

  "Aren't you a little chilly?" Backhand queried, raising an eyebrow. The mayor was still clad in his usual garb of...for lack of a better term, repurposed period dress. Granted it wasn't seasonably cold out, at least not like how she remembered it being before the bombs dropped.

  "Nah, we ghouls run pretty warm. Ham's like a portable space heater." Hancock answered, giving her a lazy grin. "Cute of you to worry, though. I must be growin' on ya'."

  "Whoa there, let's not get too crazy."

  "Whatcha' think, General?" Sturges shouted from his perch, waving to get her attention.

  Danse turned in place, appearing to realize that she was watching as his hands flew up and grabbed Shaun's legs, stabilizing the small boy on his shoulders. 

  Backhand couldn't keep from smiling when she called back, "it looks wonderful! Keep up the great work!"

  "That ain't the only thing that looks wonderful, right Sunshine?" Hancock snickered, rolling his eyes at the now-sputtering woman. "You better give the Brave Little Toaster the ride of his life, that's all I gotta' say."

  "Hancock!" Vega hissed, making a half-hearted swipe at the mayor. "You fuckin'--"

  "Ah ah, little pitchers!" Hancock scolded, tilting his head to the side to draw Vega's attention to the rapidly-approaching form of Duncan, MacCready's son. "Gotta' watch that mouth of yours, Sunshine."

  "This ain't over, ya' raisin-lookin' bastard." Backhand snarled under her breath, pasting on a friendly smile for Duncan while Hancock wheezed with laughter. "Hey bud, how's things?" She greeted the child, who grimaced. 

  "Dad's kissin' Miss Cait again. S'gross." The little boy announced, wrinkling his nose in disgust. 

  "That does sound pretty gross." Hancock piped up before Backhand could reply. "But you like seein' your old man happy, right? The lady makes him happy. Simple as that."

  "Yeah, I guess. Can I play with Shaun?" Duncan asked Vega, eyes wide as he seemed to take in the tree covered with lights. 

  "Go ahead, kiddo! Just be careful and stay away from Sturges' ladder." Elizabeth warned, grinning when the little boy took off with a whoop. 

  Cait and MacCready strode up after a moment, both of them red-faced. MacCready bent double, his hands on his knees. "I'm not built for these bullsh--awful conditions." He panted. "I don't know how the kid does it. He was nearly dead a few months ago and now he's out here kicking the snow in the a--er, butt."

  Backhand glanced around, and then snorted. "You call this snow? It's a dusting. Back before-"

  "Ah ah, easy now Mumsicle, we ain't got time for yer trip down memory lane." Cait teased. "Work to be done, aye? C'mon then, General, shape up. What you doin' on the ground anyway, all crouched like a mother hen broodin'?"

  "I'm cooking." Vega replied tersely. 

  "Oh aye? Looks like yer shirkin' t' me, love. Codsy can manage that mess, c'mon." Cait seized her elbow, levering her up out of the snowy grass. "Now, what needs doin'?"

  ...

  The day was a whirlwind of arrivals, preparations and well wishers. Elder Brandis even stopped by briefly, taking precious time away from his all-consuming duties to distribute some useful supplies and catch up on the gossip. 

  The Diamond City trio graced Sanctuary with their presence shortly before noon, Nat scurrying off to play with Duncan and Shaun while Piper made a beeline for Hancock's merry band. Nick was more keen to meander around the outskirts of the groups forming, amber eyes taking in his surroundings.

  Preston appeared midafternoon with X6, Curie and the entire O'Brian clan in tow, later than expected but apparently they had stopped to help out a settlement along the way. 

  The cul-de-sac soon rang with the laughter of the rambunctious children; even little Siusan was permitted to briefly toddle about in the trampled snow under the watchful gaze of Eamon. The weather was chilly but the sun had broken through the clouds throughout the day, sending momentary waves of brilliance across the Commonwealth. 

  Every table and chair that could be salvaged had been assembled on the old foundation at the end of the cul-de-sac, and it was there that the adults began to gather as the sun set. Metal drums loaded with wood were lit, providing heat and illumination to the many guests of the Commonwealth's first official potluck dinner. 

  "Or rather," Piper amended, clearing her throat with a touch of self-importance as she tapped her notepad, "the first documented official potluck dinner."

  The large tree twinkled and shone in the fast-approaching darkness, the occasional flicker or broken bulb doing little to diminish the cheer it provided. The food was distributed, Backhand's roast chicken disappearing without a hitch. The young woman couldn't help doing a mental dance of victory, delighted that Codsworth's quick thinking had saved that particular endeavor.

  Vega found a place to sit somewhere in the middle of one of the many long tables, red from the praise of her companions and the persistent chill in the air. She got even redder when Preston loudly proclaimed a toast, to the General!, her lieutenant tipping his bottle and everyone else following suit. 

  "I remember when I first met the general, she was half-dead on her feet." Preston began the story, his smile fond. "Sturges couldn't even believe our luck. Hell, none of us could. When freedom called, our general answered!"

  Backhand, who had lived the story and knew all the ins and outs, found her attention wandering to Danse while Preston regaled the crowd with his tale. The paladin seemed to be listening closely, his meal forgotten. Deacon even began to thieve bits of chicken and tato out from beneath his nose, the Railroad agent shooting Vega a sly wink over his sunglasses. 

  Backhand shook her head at the other man's antics, then focused her attention on Preston. "...'Lurk queen, a huge, mean seabug, taken out by landmines! The Castle was ours once again, and we all had General Vega to thank for it." The lieutenant stated firmly. "The one who can get things done in the Commonwealth, the one who gave folks hope when it was in mighty short supply. We uh, we owe you a lot, ma'am." He raised his bottle once more. "To General Vega, leader of the Minutemen!"

  "To Elizabeth!" Hancock yelled, echoed by half the damn populace as Vega tried to wave it off, the young woman laughing awkwardly. "To our Sunshine, the hero of the Commonwealth!" 

  "Synth savior, a regular knight in shining armor." Deacon teased.

  "Well done, General Vega." Danse said warmly, "I can't know for certain whether the Brotherhood itself would be proud, but I certainly am." His praise for whatever reason made Vega's blush feel like it would scorch her skin. 

  Oh she knew damn well why, she was just being willfully oblivious at this point.

  "Speech! Speech! Is that not zee norm for zis sort of occasion?" Curie called, the diminutive synth currently sharing X6-88's coat as well as his plate of food. X6 didn't seem to have any reservations about the matter, his arm slung around her shoulders without a care in the world.

  Much to Vega's chagrin, the majority appeared to be in favor of such a vocal endeavor. She attempted to laugh off the suggestion to no avail, and finally got to her feet. "Alright, alright, settle down. I'll say a few words if it'll get you all off my damn back." She grumbled, her body thoroughly warm now with a combination of embarrassment and gratitude. "I uh…" 

  Vega trailed off as she looked out over the ragtag gang of expectant faces staring back at her. So many friends and neighbors, finally getting the chance to breathe. The chance to celebrate the fruits of their labor...it was sobering.

  "I can't thank you all enough for...well, for everything that you've done. You all sacrificed so much for this peace, stuff I could never imagine doing even before the bombs dropped." She cleared her throat. "My mentor, Sergeant Shaun Cathan, was a great man, and he often had some very succinct or choice words which I'm not about to repeat in polite company."

  "Aw c'mon-!" Zeke began to protest loudly, his voice fading as he noticed the small gaggle of children still gawking at his power armor.

  Backhand continued, her jaw set firmly, "but one thing I can say that he told me is this: a leader who permits their pride to impede their decisions is doomed to failure. Pride built the Institute, and that same pride rotted it to the core. Pride built the Brotherhood of Steel, the Minutemen, and we've seen the both of them nearly toppled." Vega clenched her fist. "Pride brought nuclear fire down on Boston, but people hauled themselves outta' the ashes of that fire. Good people, tough people. Folks I knew. Folks I cared for, even if some of 'em did spend a little too much time on the Cape. If pride can do so much effin' harm, I expect simple compassion and decency to do just as much good. Hell, more than that. Humanity's built itself back up after the cluster that was armageddon, and we ain't through yet." 

  She tipped the jar she had been drinking out of towards the crowd, sternly studying the collection of scavengers, families both new and familiar.

  ...

  "So here's to you, my friends. To all that you've done, and to all that you will do." 

  Vega's salute was rigid, pre-war. Like her helmet on the table beside her, scraped and covered in faded sigils. The mixture of candlelight and the lights on the tree reflected off the worn lenses of her glasses, shielding her eyes from view. Danse wished desperately that he could see her eyes; more than anything he wished to stand up and flat-out state what she had done for him to every soul there, display his...admiration. 

  Was that even the right word? Admiration, adoration, affection--

  His face was strangely warm all of a sudden. Danse flinched, staring down at his mug of coffee with single-minded intent as the buzz of conversation around him picked back up. His mind raced, pieces falling into place in a nigh-unstoppable rush.

  Affection. Like...what he had felt for Cutler? Almost. A little to the left of that. Brighter. 

  Happier. 

  Not perfect, nothing could ever be perfect. But...

  "Elizabeth Vega?" A male ghoul's voice barely penetrated the paladin's consciousness, his words not really registering until, "Beth, it really is you!" The ghoul exclaimed. "I thought I was crazy! It's me, Beth. It's Nate."

  "...Nate?" 

  Danse's head whipped up so fast his neck popped in warning, the paladin having been only tangentially aware of the conversation happening mere feet away from his position. But at that particular nickname his entire being snapped to attention, eyes darting sidelong from where he had been intently studying his mug of coffee. 

  The ghoul man that Vega was currently speaking to was an inch or two taller than her, with a single tuft of dark hair that still remained over his left ear. He appeared absolutely delighted, but Vega seemed...wary.

  "Beth," Danse heard him say once more, and he watched Backhand visibly tense. "I never thought I would see you again! After the bombs dropped--I mean how the hell did...is that Shaun? God, he got so big!"

  "Nate, is there something I can do for you?"

  Nate. 

  Danse's breath caught in his throat and his mouth went dry. Nate? Nate her ex-husband from before the war? Nate, the man who had divorced her once he found out she was pregnant with his child? 

  Somehow he had managed to survive? 

  Oh, what an incredibly bitter thing to think! Danse was somewhat startled by his own dark path of reasoning. But it wasn't untrue; his mind railed at the unfairness of it all. 

  The paladin stood up, his mug of coffee forgotten. He wasn't exactly certain what he was about to do, but he also wasn't going to do nothing. He cast around wildly for a plan as he approached Elizabeth from behind around the table, and Danse latched onto what was probably the least intelligent course of action that he could have conjured up.

  "Elizabeth," the paladin called, loud enough to be heard over the general hubbub. She turned and Danse briefly spied a look of intense relief on her face before he enveloped her in his arms. "You appeared cold, figured I could warm you up a bit." He reasoned aloud, smiling benignly over her head at Nate. "Who's this?"

  Vega began to introduce him even with her face still comically buried in Danse's chest, "Nate, I'd like you to meet-"

  "Paladin Logan Danse, Northeastern chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel." Danse interrupted her smoothly, extending a hand to Nate. "I've heard a great deal about you, Nate. It's a privilege to meet you, and a welcome surprise to see that you endured the radiation."

  "Uh, is it? Well I-I guess it is." Nate looked flummoxed and crestfallen all at once, glumly shaking Danse's hand. "I suppose you two are, er..."

  "Vega is my partner, yes. For over a year now." Danse replied once the other man had trailed off, his tone saccharine-sweet. He heard Vega gasp against his chest. "She is a truly incredible woman. I'm immensely lucky."

  "Yeah, I...yeah. Uh, I have to go...talk to--I'll see you later, Beth." Nate squeaked, sidestepping away from the two of them and making a beeline for the road.

  "I can't even believe it." Backhand's voice grated with tangible irritation. "I cannot even fuckin' fathom--I...dammit, why him?!" She seethed into Danse's jacket, clenching her fists on his hips. "Phew, boy, I sort of thought I'd already dealt with all that resentment." The woman admitted unhappily.

  "You do things in your own time." Danse replied quietly. "Are you alright?"

  Vega went still for a second. Danse felt her unclench her fists, hands going slack on his body. Had he misspoken-?

  "In my own time, huh?" Vega muttered, almost like she was thinking out loud. "I...I'll be back in a little while, Danse."

  …

  I'm not panicking. Definitely not panicking. One hundred percent not panicking, totally fine.

  Backhand scurried away from the paladin, trying to hide the tell-tale redness of her face. She needed to find either Mrs. O'Brian or MacCready, fast. 

  As luck would have it, MacCready found her. The former merc tapped on her shoulder as she bounced up on her tiptoes to search for Mrs. O'Brian. "Hey boss, Shaun wanted me to ask you if he could sleep over with Duncan tonight." The man began after she whirled around to face him.

  "Yes." Vega replied, perhaps a little too quick and definitely too enthusiastic. "Mac you're a lifesaver, I was just about to ask-"

  "-for me and Cait to watch your kid so you and the tin can can get some alone time?" MacCready smirked, giving her a wink. "Dang General, I don't think I've ever seen you so red! Don't worry, your secret's safe with me."

  "Shut up, Mac, you're so exasperating." Backhand jabbed a teasing finger into the center of his chest. "You talk, Mayor, and I'll know." The threat was toothless; the both of them grinned at each other after their fierce staring contest. "Thanks for everything."

  "Don't mention it. I figure getting you some Brotherhood...uh, Steel, heh, is a pretty decent way to make up for the fact that I didn't bring you a present." Mac shrugged, fiddling with the bill of his hat. "I have beef with the Capital Brotherhood, but these guys...I mean, they don't seem all bad." He allowed grudgingly, giving Vega a gentle nudge with his shoulder. "Go on."

  A bracing shot of whiskey shored up her tenuous spark of confidence and Vega marched back to Danse, the large man now engaged in conversation with X6 while Shaun, Duncan, Bridget, Nat and Matthew swirled around their ankles. 

  Danse was saying, "--collateral ramifications would be inadvisable, I suggest a soft breach. With adequate preparation-" 

  "Adequate preparation on your part borders on over-caution." X6 interrupted him dismissively. "However, I will take it into account and speak with Preston on the matter. He seems to share your morality. A pity."

  "Play at the unfeeling machine all you want, X6." Danse retorted. "It does you no favors. You have people who care about you now, and you would not have asked for my input if you believed the endeavour would be futile."

  "True enough, Paladin." The vaguest hint of a smile tugged at X6's mouth. "You are capable."

  "I suppose that is the best that I can hope for."

  "Hey, Danse? Can I uh, have a little chat?" Backhand asked, stifling a hysterical giggle when Danse immediately looked guilty. The paladin nodded, bidding X6 farewell and attempting to sidestep around the children who were currently playing tag in an ever-tightening circle. "Not um, here though. Let's go to my house, okay? Shaun, you're all set to stay overnight with Duncan, Mac and Cait, right?"

  "Yeah!" Shaun replied breathlessly, pausing in his chase to give his mother a massive grin. "Already brought my blankets over and everything. Mister MacCready said Duncan and I could sleep in their wagon, and that he'd tell us Grognak stories!"

  Danse's brow furrowed. "We are leaving the gathering, then?" He asked, looking a bit distressed when Elizabeth nodded. "A moment, please." He turned back to the children, calling for Shaun. 

  The boy bolted away from the group, skidding in the muddy slush. "Yeah, Mister Danse?" He asked, his impatience plain.

  "I, er. I...happy holidays." The paladin mumbled, extracting a small bundle from his jacket pocket and giving it to the child. 

  "Whoa, for me?!" Shaun practically crowed, tearing through the old newspaper to reveal the gift.

  It was a sturdy carved vehicle, its edges sleek and smooth. The wood was coated in shiny green paint, giving the little truck a distinct air of newness in this post-apocalyptic world. Danse swallowed audibly as Shaun stared down at the toy without saying a word. 

  Backhand closed her eyes, hoping and praying that the kid remembered his manners. She hadn't even known Danse had planned on giving him something. Did he make the truck himself? It was wood, not the usual plastic or aluminum of pre-war children's toys. When had he found the time to make a toy? She suddenly remembered his uncharacteristically wide yawn that morning and her eyes flew open, darting to look at Danse. He had been staying up, hadn't he?

  "I love it, Mister Danse!" Shaun interrupted her mental panic with his enthusiastic eruption, smiling wide and bolting forward to hug Danse around the waist. Danse's own relief was evident, the large man patting the child on the back with an awkward chuckle.

  Oh Jesus, I'm not going to cry, Vega insisted, taking a deep breath. Nope, won't do it.

  "Mom look, look what Mister Danse gave me!" Shaun exclaimed, as if she hadn't been standing right there the whole time. 

  "It's really cool, right?" Backhand grinned, rumpling his hair and then giving him a kiss on the forehead. "Make sure you wash your face and brush your teeth before bed, okay? I hope you and Duncan have fun. I love you." 

  "I love you too, Mom, I will. Thank you again, Mister Danse!" Shaun rushed to say, clearly eager to return to his friends. 

  "Alright, go on." Vega tapped the end of his nose, "go have fun." She watched him scramble through the slush, nearly tripping again. "Jesus, he's a bull in a china shop," she sighed, making Danse snort. "Shall we, Paladin?"

  He fell into step beside her, his hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket and his back ramrod straight. He was silent until they were actually in Elizabeth's living room, the young woman barely able to shut the front door before he started babbling, "if I offended you earlier, if I-I overstepped my bounds, I apologize. I just recalled what you had said about the name he used for you and I'm afraid I started moving before I could reconsider-"

  "Danse, do you remember how we started all of this?" Vega cut off what promised to be a downright incredible justification, cocking her head to the side. "How we met, and what happened?"

  "You came to our aid at the Cambridge police station. Then you carried on assisting me with our mission. You helped acquire the deep range transmitter. You greased my armor." Danse paused, fidgeting. "You...said it was alright if I wanted to kiss you."

  “It’s alright if you want to kiss me, you know.” Her smile was gentle. “I wouldn’t mind.”

  Vega nodded, smiling once more. "The offer still stands, naturally."

  "I...things are different now. I'm different. You still...even now, after everything that you know about me?"

  "Of course."

  "I didn't want to believe you felt that strongly about our...about us." Danse was smiling, actually smiling! "I'd given up hope a long time ago that I would ever be enough for anyone. I was never...enough. Smart enough, or strong enough or...well, just enough, I suppose." He shrugged, his smile fading. "With what happened between Maxson and I, and previously with Cutler…" The large man trailed off.

  Vega took a deep breath, nodding furiously. "I do feel strongly for you. Danse, I know that this is a lot, b-but I...uh, I think I love you." She gestured up and down at the speechless paladin, feeling the heat that bloomed fresh on her cheeks. "Not just the wrapping, y'know, but uh. The whole package. You."

  His look of shock and confusion slowly dissolved into something unreadable, and he broke eye contact for a moment to stare down at his boots. 

  "Uh, it's okay if you don't reciprocate! O-Or even if you can't reciprocate, I'm not going to be offended!" Elizabeth rushed to add, waving her hands nervously. "I know that this is a lot to dump on you all at once, I-I'm sorry. I don't want you feeling pressured to give me an affirmative answer just because you don't want to hurt my feelings or whatever."

  "I...I can't say that I haven't thought about it." He admitted softly. "But Shaun, he needs--Vega, I'm not really human." 

  "Neither is Shaun, but I don't love him any less." Elizabeth replied. "Shaun is my son. For all intents and purposes, he is my real son, Danse."

  "It's one thing to overlook it for a child, Vega. But I'm...what if something goes wrong with me? What if there's some sort of fault in my programming, and that's why I'm like this? What if-"

  "It's alright if you don't want me, or even if this is too much right now. I know, it's a lot." Vega interrupted him, her heart sinking but determined to make damn sure he didn't feel pressured.

  "Christ, that's not what I meant. I just want to make certain you know exactly what it is that you're agreeing to." Danse cut her off, his shoulders rigid like he was bracing for impact. 

  "I understand, Danse. I've understood for a while now." Elizabeth dared to rest her hand on his arm. "I want to be with you. I know that nothing in this shitshow of a future is guaranteed and I want to have something good in my life before my inevitable demise at the hands of some overconfident mole rat."

  Danse nodded stiffly, and then grabbed her by the lapels of her canvas coat. Vega found herself abruptly pinned against the wall, Danse's mouth hungrily seeking her own. "You mean that?" He panted.

  The brush of the stubble on his face reminded her of their first kiss in the Cambridge station and drove home the differences between he and Nate for the hundredth time. Nate was always clean-shaven, favored pecks on the cheek and lived saturated with cologne. But Danse was grizzled, earnest, reeking of the outdoors and power armor grease. Nate had been eloquent, while Danse was taciturn or tripped over his words. Nate was cold and calculating, and Danse…

  Danse was fiery and raw, more vulnerable now than she could ever recall him being before. His knee nudged against her thigh and without conscious input, Elizabeth parted her legs for it and threw her arms around his neck to try to urge him even closer. "Yes, Danse," she gasped. "Oh, Jesus, yes, fuck-ing shit--"

  She ground herself down against his leg, relieved that everything seemed to be functioning normally and somewhat impressed by her body's ability to mount such a rapid response after a two hundred-plus year dry spell! 

  "Language," Danse rumbled in reply, his hands tugging her heavy coat off of her shoulders. "Too fast?"

  "No, hell no!" Backhand protested, "not fast enough."

  "Shh," Danse rested his hands on her hips, shoving up her shirt slightly so he could touch bare skin. "I have you, Vega." Vega pushed herself excitedly into his grip, grinding on his thigh and arching her back. The way his breath hitched sent shockwaves to her core; the way he watched her...

  "Danse we should...we should-" Vega's voice wavered as Danse laved her throat with tender kisses. "-should--bedroom, bed."

  "Yes." The paladin growled, making no move to actually follow the direction. That is, until he hoisted her up to rest on his hips. 

  Backhand yelped, her thighs gripping his sides tightly. "H-Hey!"

  Danse pressed his forehead to her own, brown eyes attempting to read her soul. "Elizabeth…" he sighed, his expression gone hopelessly soft. "I should warn you, if we...if you do this, I...listen, I can be a little--a little wordy, sometimes. If I am speaking too much-"

  "Hey, no, you talk as much as you'd like, okay? Doesn't bug me at all." Vega assured him, slightly curious about what this might mean. Wordy? 

  "Elizabeth, you are everything that I never knew I was looking for." Danse murmured. "When I lost Cutler, I didn't think I deserved to be happy again. I assumed that my failure would continue to darken any future triumph, and when the majority of Gladius was...I feared that I was unfit for my rank. How could anyone have faith in my skills after such a catastrophic loss of life?"

  "It's hard being the one making the choices. You have to be able to bear the burden of responsibility and also the burden of guilt." Vega reasoned, sympathizing with his plight.

  "You had faith in me, though. You didn't even know me, but you didn't judge me for my inadequacy and you allowed me some damn peace. I'm just sorry you had to go through that abuse at Maxson's whim for my sake." Danse cupped her hand in his own, pressing kisses to her scarred knuckles. "You've already done so much for me, Vega. Let me undo you?" He offered seriously, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

  "Well, I uh, I-I can't say I've ever been propositioned quite like that!" Backhand stuttered, certain that her flush covered her entire body at this point. 

  His laughter, heard so rarely, washed over her like a tidal wave. "Forgive me."

  "Only if you keep asking me to have sex like that." Vega shifted her hand in his grip, intertwining their fingers. "C'mon, bedroom."

  "It's not just that." Danse tried to protest, shaking his head. "I care about you. About your wellbeing. I want to make you happy."

  "You do. So happy. I'm so glad that you're here with me still." Vega turned in the doorway of her room when he set her down, seizing Danse by the collar of his worn t-shirt and tugging him into her arms. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Danse."

  "You don't know how much it means to me to hear you say that." 

  "It's the truth, though!" She insisted.

  Danse surged forward, his kisses still rough and demanding as he fought to claim her affection. But she gave it freely, all he could ever want and more.

  He stripped her of her shirt and dragged his own off over his head, chuckling at the way she greedily drank in the bare skin he presented. "See something you like, General?" 

  He was hairier than she was used to, but Backhand decided it suited him. Nate, after all, had been absolutely adamant that body hair was grotesque, and now look at him. He'd likely never have to worry about that again.

  Thinking of Nate yet again put a frown on her face and Danse paused, giving her a quizzical look. "Is something amiss?"

  "Oh! No, I'm sorry. I was just remembering. Nate was all…" Elizabeth gestured vaguely at Danse's chest. "He shaved everything. I'm not used to all...well, seeing so much."

  "Is it off-putting? I assure you it's within the Brotherhood's hygiene guidelines, but if you don't like it I-"

  "No, I love it. It's new. I've seen your arms, after all, I knew what I was getting into." Vega teased, grinning to ease his worry. "If you can accept all my stretch marks and leftovers, I can definitely handle your chest pelt."

  "I'm planning on doing far more than accepting." Danse cradled her breasts in his palms, the paladin lowering his head to draw his tongue over one of her nipples. "I don't care." He soothed when Elizabeth tried to stammer out something else in regard to her stretch marks. "I don't care. It doesn't make you any less desirable to me, Elizabeth."

  Vega squeezed her eyes shut, kissing his forehead as he continued to cautiously rouse her peaks until they were stiff and aching for more. Then his thumbs took over, stroking in slow, firm circles that made her quiver from head to toe. "You...you're really good at that." Elizabeth said faintly.

  "I'm pleased you think so." Danse grunted when her fingers found his belt buckle. "It has been a significant amount of time for me as well, I...my excitement may be a bit obvious." He admitted, his smile sheepish. 

  Vega's breath caught in her throat, her hands trembling as she struggled to draw down the worn zipper of his jeans. The underside of his cock throbbed against her palm when she dared to slip her hand into his briefs, his skin searing and smooth. 

  Danse huffed out a breath, crumpling a little at her tentative touch. "Elizabeth," he groaned, hiding his face in her neck as he rolled his hips eagerly into her hand. 

  "Keep saying my name like that." She ordered, laughing when the paladin nodded rapidly into her shoulder. "I love you, Danse."

  ...

  Danse rumbled again, words failing him while Elizabeth's fingers wrapped around his cock. This seemed like a dream, another one of his fantasies brought into being. He couldn't seem to do anything aside from stare down at her hand. 

  "Hey, Danse?"

  He jerked to attention, eyes flying up to meet her own guiltily. "Y-Yes, Vega?" He stuttered.

  "Do you...uh, y'know." Backhand fumbled to undo the button on her jeans. "You can, if you'd like." She finished awkwardly.

  No sooner had she given him permission than Danse was pulling her hand out of his pants, urging her backwards onto her bed even as he kissed her battered knuckles again. "Yes." He grated out, kneeling to untie her boots so he could get her pants off. "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes."

  "A for enthusiasm, big guy." Elizabeth teased, lazily fingercombing his short hair back. Her veneer of composure was shattered when the paladin eased her underwear down her legs, the young woman covering her face as if she was embarrassed. "Listen, just uh, go easy on me. It's been over two hundred years, after all." She reasoned weakly.

  Danse swallowed hard. Cutler had always praised his dirty talk, the calculated way he could take apart a person with his words and touch alone. Maxson hadn't appreciated his speech, granted, but perhaps…

  "You're saying you don't want me to bury my fingers in you, Elizabeth? You don't want me to open you up, work my way into that beautiful, flushed little cunt of yours?" Danse rasped, two fingers tracing lightly on her pubic mound. Her cesarean scar was faintly visible, and he felt a brief flare of concern before recalling that was indeed where the scar was from.

  "Oh, Jesus. Okay." Vega gasped, blue eyes wide in what Danse could only assume was shock. "Keep that up and you won't have to worry about using anything else. Fuck, Danse, have some pity here." She pleaded, burying her hands in her hair. 

  "Language. Do you deserve my pity? How would you earn it?" The paladin queried, the heel of his hand applying steady pressure to her mound now. 

  "I can be good, Paladin! I can be really good. So good." Her breathless use of his title had Danse's cock pounding, though he tried not to make it obvious. "Please Danse, please touch me…"

  Danse climbed up onto the bed alongside her, gently parting her labia with his fingers. "You'll be good for me, Elizabeth?" He asked, propping himself up with an elbow.

  "Yes, please."

  She had wonderful manners. Danse grazed her clit and her breath stuttered, the paladin spreading the liberal lubrication that she had already created with deft, slow strokes of his index. "Please, what?"

  "P-Please...Danse."

  He cautiously eased one finger into her, exhaling raggedly when her hand sought out his cock. "Vega-"

  "Shh, let me." Elizabeth hushed him, her smile a little dreamy as Danse crooked his finger and rubbed in just the right spot. "Oh, f-uck, Paladin, you--"

  "Language, Vega. Can't have you being a bad example while I'm knuckle deep in your cunt." Danse admonished, groaning when she whimpered. "You're so tight, this could take ages. We'll need to come up with some stretches to cope with this." He teased gruffly, sliding in another finger and spreading her open. "Mm, Elizabeth, you need to relax. Relax." He murmured, latching onto her breast.

  He felt her pussy clench down around his fingers and he took a greedy suckle from her breast, making Vega cry out his name, "Danse!" She twitched and writhed under his deft attack, her thighs quivering even as she tried to spread them wider for him. Her hand fell still on his cock, not that Danse minded. It had always been more about his partner, he couldn't care less if nothing was done for him. Watching someone else fall apart because of him...now that was its own reward.

  "What do I need to do to get you there, hmm?" Danse taunted playfully, tonguing sloppily over the peak of her breast. "What will it take, Elizabeth?"

  She arched her back in response, pressing her breast firmly against his mouth, and Danse gently nibbled on the sensitive area she had offered up. Elizabeth sobbed out, shoving one hand down to her cunt to spread herself even wider for his plundering fingers. "More, Danse! Please please please-" she begged, her moan when he pressed a third finger into her absolutely enough to have Danse hurrying to talk himself down. "Yes, Danse." She was practically growling, her arousal something primal and untamed. 

  If Danse had his way, it would stay like that forever. 

  "What is it that you want, Vega?" His inquiry was almost lazy, three fingers stroking in and out with much less resistance now. "Hmm, I wonder if you're wet enough to take me."

  "You can't just-" Vega made a noise of dismay. "That's not fair, Danse, that's not fair, you know it's not. Please, please fuck me." 

  Jesus. Danse almost choked on his own breath, letting his fingers slip out of her cunt. "How do you want me?" His voice broke noticeably. It felt like a lifetime since he had been desired, wanted in such a blatant and strangely pure fashion. She loved him. She wanted him inside her. Wanted him to make love to her. Wanted him.

  The speed at which she flung herself up a little higher on the bed made Danse want to laugh, but then she was arching her back and looking over her shoulder at him and he suddenly forgot how to breathe for a moment. "This okay?" She panted, brown hair all tumbled around her face as she took off her glasses and pitched them in the general direction of her bedside table.

  Danse nodded hurriedly, kicking his pants off. "If you need me to stop, just grab my hand." He instructed.

  "This isn't exactly my first time getting fucked, Danse-"

  "Language," the paladin reprimanded her with a chuckle, greedily fondling her rear as he mounted up behind her. "You have such a beautiful form, Vega." He murmured, leaning over to press a kiss between her shoulder blades. "An absolute vision."

  "I do have nice tits." 

  Danse rolled his eyes, slipping his hands down to grope said breasts. She gasped out, rocking back against him as he agreed, "yes you do, that can't be denied. Soft, the perfect size, they fit in my hands so well, and so sensitive." He found himself laughing when she whimpered again. "Don't offer up all your weak spots unless you want them taken advantage of, Vega."

  "The only thing I want to take advantage of right now is the raging hard-on I can feel." Elizabeth wriggled and Danse grunted, shuddering. "Pl-ease Danse, please put it in me."

  The paladin slipped his cock between her labia, the hot, slick flesh pressing against him mercilessly as he teased her. He suddenly felt her fingers on his cock and then-

  "Fuck." The paladin grated out the uncharacteristic curse through his teeth, his fists meeting the bedding on either side of her body as he fought the urge to thrust himself home in one breath.

  Elizabeth half-collapsed while he slowly, slowly rutted into her, the woman panting and clawing at the blankets. "Mmmgod, Danse-" she slurred, sighing loudly. "So good, fuck, Danse…"

  Danse toyed with her nipples, stupidly snarling "language," as she keened in reply. "I'll take care of you, Elizabeth. Be good for me." He pressed a kiss to her temple, smirking at the way her body quaked when he finally bottomed out in her. "That's it, look at you, taking all of me so well," he praised. "Now, how can I make you come?"

  "Fu--Please use your big cock to get me off, oh please Danse!" She begged and Danse fondled her breasts yet again.

  "You don't want me to touch you here, just like this?" He asked, stroking over her nipples and lingering to tease the area. "They're so hard, though, begging for my attention."

  Backhand made a noise of despair, burying her face in her pillow. 

  "I think you need me to play with them, don't you? You like when I touch them like this." Danse muttered, thinking out loud and coming to that realization even as the words left his mouth. "What is it about it that you like?"

  "S-Sensitive." Vega whimpered, "feels good."

  Danse rumbled again, bending over to press his chest to her back so he could whisper in her ear, "does it feel good when I'm inside you, Elizabeth? Can you feel how hard I am for you? Feel how badly I need you?" 

  Elizabeth gifted him this pitiful sound, canting her hips and clenching down around his cock so tightly it took Danse's breath away. "Yes, I love it. I need you too, Danse." She murmured, shifting back and forth ever so slightly.

  "Good. I'm glad." Danse took hold of her hips, seating his cock as deeply as he could in her cunt. Elizabeth whined, burying her face in her pillow again as he slowly began to make love to her. 

  Paladin Logan Danse, pride of the Brotherhood of Steel, had never been a man who took sex lightly. It was too important. Even after everything that had happened with Maxson, Danse still held to that belief. The display of vulnerability, the offer of power in exchange for pleasurable release, the brief moments of tenderness in an existence that was soul-crushingly difficult…

  It was serious. It always was. 

  Vega's arms gave out and she slumped onto the bed, but Danse followed her down. Covering her with his body, the paladin thrust into her again and again, her soft whimpers and cries of his name music to his ears. "What do you need, sweetheart?" He asked raggedly when she began to squirm and arch back against him. "What can I give you, Elizabeth?"

  "Fuck me, Danse!" She pleaded, turning her head to the side so she could see him. 

  "Language," Danse smiled, kissing her temple again. "But understood, ma'am."

  …

  For the first time since she'd awoken to an irradiated hellscape, Vega was wholly content to just lay down and be taken care of. 

  Danse was huge, proportionate to his already overgrown size, and he made the most incredible sounds when she inadvertently squeezed down on him. Groans burring in his chest like some untamed animal; he seemed content to just slowly fuck her into oblivion. Which was honestly more than she thought she would ever get. 

  Her fantasies, much as she'd believed they were wrong or silly at the time, didn't hold a candle to the reality of having Danse on top of her. She had gotten off more than once to this exact idea, being dominated and pinned by the massive paladin. This was a dream come true.

  Elizabeth whined when he bottomed out in her again and just rutted himself back and forth slightly, making her feel every inch of his cock. The underside of his dick throbbed against the spot that made her see stars and then, the bastard, he slid his cock out of her cunt to press the head to her clit for a second. "Turn over for me?" He requested, punctuated by a gentle smack to her ass.

  Vega rushed to obey, eager to have him back inside her as quickly as possible. The woman spread her legs wide so Danse could settle in between them and when the paladin did, he shifted upwards to kiss her tenderly. 

  "I've wanted this for so long." He admitted quietly.

  "So have I!" Elizabeth replied in delight, her grin beaming. She was sure she looked like a mess, her hair stuck to her forehead with sweat and her face all flushed. But the way Danse was smiling at her…

  She found she didn't really care about her appearance at this point in time.

  "I love you." Danse murmured as he slid back inside her. 

  "I l-love you, Danse." Vega stuttered, the natural curvature of his cock applying steady pressure to her g-spot. "Make me feel so good, fuck."

  "Language." He growled, making her laugh and then moan. 

  "Feels too good, brain can't cope." She gasped, wrapping her arms around his neck and tugging him closer until all he could do was grind down into her in a merciless manner. The motion flung her towards her peak, disconnecting her mouth even further from her brain and making her ramble into his ear, "God, I love you so much, make me feel so good--"

  "I love you too, Elizabeth." He panted into the hollow of her throat, "you feel incredible. Outstanding."

  Elizabeth wasn't sure how she could feel both so aroused she thought she might die and so annoyed that she wanted to explode. "Danse, did you just call my pussy outstanding?"

  "It's not an incorrect statement, from my perspective. It's perfect. Wet and tight and hot." The paladin praised her freely, a hand lowering to apply gentle pressure over the scar on her lower stomach. "Beautiful."

  I am not going to cry, Vega told herself sternly as she hid her face in Danse's neck. Definitely not going to cry, not going to.

  A sob somehow escaped her as she came and Danse froze, his whole body flinching when her cunt clenched down on his dick. "V...Vega?" He asked tentatively.

  "I'm fine! I'm fine, I promise, m'not hurt or anything. My brain is just dumb." Elizabeth hiccupped, rubbing her eyes. "I'm okay, Danse, I'm fine."

  The paladin seemed uncertain and she couldn't blame him, she didn't seem fine even if she felt a thousand times better than she had in literal months. 

  "I swear I'm okay, that was just...it was really intense, y'know?" She mumbled awkwardly, unable to make eye contact anymore. 

  She felt Danse shift his weight and then he settled down on top of her, holding her close and tight. "You're sure?" He murmured, "if you're overwhelmed, that's entirely acceptable. I'm not hurting you, am I?"

  "No, shit no, you feel incredible. I'm not going to be able to walk after this." Vega huffed, giggling a little when he rolled his eyes. "Keep going, okay? It feels fantastic."

  "If you're certain." Danse acquiesced, kissing a hot trail down her neck when she nodded. "Let me know if you need me to stop." 

  Watching his forearms cord with muscle as he propped himself back up again, Vega's mouth went dry. "I have to say, this might be the best night of my life." 

  Danse pressed a sweet kiss to her forehead, the tenderness of the action a wonderful contrast to the needy way he sheathed his cock in her body once more. "I've thought about this." He confessed again, punctuated by a roll of his hips. "What you'd sound like, look like beneath me. You put my imagination to shame." 

  "What did I do in your dreams?" Backhand asked, unable to keep from breathlessly laughing when Danse hid his face in her neck. "So shy, Paladin! Even with that huge cock in me?"

  "It's lewd, Elizabeth, I-I'm not proud of it." He mumbled. "Shouldn't have thought of you that way." He spread her legs wider, one hand on the back of each knee to urge her to bend. 

  "Mm, you thought about fucking me? Nice to know I'm not the only one with dirty thoughts." 

  "I did not." He protested staunchly. His cock slid back and forth between her pussy lips in a purposeful teasing motion. "I thought about how...I thought about how good it would feel to make love to you." He continued, his voice wavering slightly as his dick brushed her entrance and he plunged deep yet again. "Thought about how good I could make you feel."

  Now it was Vega's turn to be shy, the woman looking away from him and flushing.

  "It was still inappropriate at the...time, but I assure you it was never about that. I am not-" Danse struggled for a moment to find the words, before he sighed and rested his forehead against her own. "This already isn't simple, and I know I make it miles less so. Forgive me."

  "I feel like it's pretty simple." Vega gasped, twitching as his fingers landed on her clit. "I f--fuck, Danse--I feel like it's real simple. You like me. Love me, yeah?"

  "It's more than that, dammit." Danse growled, rubbing her clit in merciless circles. "What you did for me...how can I ever be worth your affection? Hell, your time?"

  Elizabeth threw her head back, arching her entire body up into his chest. "Whatever good I give to you," she moaned, almost exasperated that they were even having this discussion, "you deserve it. Take it." 

  Danse's hands latched down on her hips, thumbs stroking back and forth over her pronounced stretch marks as he fucked into her so fiercely that Vega swore she saw stars. His pelvis ground against her own, body hair providing a delicious new sensation that had Vega grasping at the blankets in an effort to keep herself grounded. "I'm going to come, Elizabeth." Danse panted. "Where do you-"

  "Inside." Backhand implored him, "come inside me, Paladin, please come inside me-" Her voice broke as she begged and Danse groaned loud, the sound incredulous.

  "You...inside? Are you sure?" He asked through gritted teeth, dark brown eyes conveying his uncertainty. In reply, Vega dug the heels of her feet in beneath his rear, effectively locking him in place. 

  She caught a handful of his hair, gently tugging it until he leaned down again so she could seethe in his ear, "yes."

  "Oh, dammit." With that wonderfully characteristic swear, Danse shoved his mouth against hers gracelessly. The heat in her belly spilled over from the onslaught of his enthusiastic thrusts and Backhand cried out, fingernails digging into his back when she came a second time. 

  Danse, either spurred on by her sounds or by the way her pussy gripped his dick (maybe a combination? Backhand mused) found his release seconds after, his voice breaking and dropping into a lower tone as he moaned her name. Her real name.

  Elizabeth.

  Vega cupped the nape of his neck, guiding his face into the hollow of her shoulder. "Lay down, sweetheart, you're shaking." She murmured, stroking over his quivering back.

  "Don't want to flatten you." Danse rasped, his dick still throbbing inside her.

  "Lay down. It's okay." Elizabeth flexed her bicep. "I'm strong, I can handle it." Danse laughed wearily, almost immediately going limp on top of her. She wrapped her arms back around him, fingers digging into the knots that she found to ease out the tension. "There, isn't that better?"

  "Mmmmuch." Danse slurred into her neck, sounding exhausted. "Love you."

  "I love you. Sleep, okay? We'll get cleaned up later. Right now though you seem like you could use a nap."

  Danse nodded, the tangled mess of his hair mashed flat against her cheek in the process. "Want...to be a good parent." He mumbled several minutes later, just as Vega had thought he was dozing off. Danse propped himself up with one arm, cradling Vega's cheek in his palm. His thumb absently traced the cryo burn marks from the stasis as he continued, "a true partner for you. I don't know if you...if you even want me in that capacity, I--I don't know whether you would prefer that Shaun thinks of me as simply your friend, but I-"

  "Danse," Elizabeth interrupted him sternly, raising an eyebrow. "Someone who's simply a friend wouldn't be balls deep in me."

  Danse sputtered, his blush spreading down his neck to his chest. Despite his proclivity for dirty talk in the moment, he was endearingly embarrassed by her blunt words. Vega felt her heart pound as he floundered to collect himself, the large man looking away. 

  He's really nothing at all like Nate.

  "Danse." Her voice was gentler this time, unmistakable affection bleeding through. "I would have to ask Shaun, of course, and I'd like to have an adjustment period before I do so that he can get comfortable with the idea on his own, but…" The young woman swallowed hard. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden? Oh sure, she could handle the vulnerability of being naked and fucked with absolute abandon but this? This was where her brain drew the line? Unbelievable, Backhand grumbled at herself. "I think the odds are in your favor." She concluded with a grin.

  "You...even though I'm not-?"

  "He's probably the last person to care about that kinda' stuff, Danse. C'mon." Vega chided, running her fingers through his sweaty hair. "Now. We are...absolutely disgusting. We need a bath big time."

  "I...you're right, of course." Danse agreed absently, still seeming shocked at the whole scenario. "I should...w-we should bathe. Er, at the same time. To save water." He didn't meet her eyes, his attention focused somewhere by her left shoulder. 

  Elizabeth laughed, bumping their foreheads together before carefully scooting up the bed. His cock slipped out of her and she couldn't help her sigh, the noise echoed by the paladin who tilted his chin to catch her with a kiss.

  "You are amazing." He breathed when they parted, his smile small but sincere. "I'm...I'll be hard-pressed to keep my hands off you, Elizabeth."

  "Why bother?" Vega asked, chuckling as he ducked back in for another kiss. 

  ...

  Hours later, Danse laid awake while Elizabeth slept peacefully on his chest. The paladin stared up at the ceiling, his mind running rampant.

  The future.

  He hadn't really dared to think about it since discovering his true identity. Hadn't felt like it was something he deserved. After all, if he was just a machine, it hardly mattered. But Elizabeth…

  She thought it mattered. She wanted him. Wanted him to stay with her. Wanted him to act as a father. Pending Shaun's approval, of course. 

  It was surreal how much his life had changed, how far they had come in such a short amount of time. Danse was a little overwhelmed by it all, if he was being honest. Scared, yet hopeful at the same time. And, he thought as he wrapped his arm around Elizabeth, incredibly, immensely grateful.

  This new world was unforgiving, the universe coldly testing the mettle of a man time and again. But Danse had finally come out the other side, and he liked to think he had changed for the better. 

  Whatever the future held, they would face it together. 

  Ad Victoriam, General Vega. Thank you for having faith in me.