#did riptide just teleport?

[bloodinthegutter]

So where did they go?

[sparkbugs]

My liveblog reaction post for JRWI Riptide 114! :3 SPOILERS AHEAD if that wasn’t obvious.

I completely forgot. About the bastion/stronghold. IF THEY LEAVE THE SHIP THEY LOSE THE TELEPORTER.

Haha! Ha. Wowie this is extremely stressful to start a session Jesus Christ. Pls get good perception AGGG. The laughter but it’s so stress LMAOOO AAAA

If anyone dies this episode! Haha.

How is this all 10 mins into the episode it’s just a terrible chase scene I am so. Aughhh

THANK GOD TBEY GOT TO THE DOCKS. BUT IS THE SHIP OKAY. if the ship fucking denigrates they lose their teleporter man they need that to get home if anything haha! Aggghghsh

The fucking. Fish shoes. Also PORTABLE HOLE LMAOOO

Gryffon :( my boy protect the ship my guy ily

Godddd because of the title I’m so fucking sure there’s stuff about Jay’s family here. I’m so sure there’s lots of things here but it’s so not safe.

Darkness lets gooo… oh.. that audio… ohhhhggg ahhdnjs oh goddddd

“Hello..?” *unimaginable horror response in a roar*

HOW HAS IT ONLY BEEN 25 MINS THERE ARE UNIMAGINABLE HORRORS THIS IS TERRIFYING

Portable holeeeee that’s a smart play, but that’s terrifying to think bout the helmet

“GUYS YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS” “what is it gill?” “Stairs!” “… that’s a ladder gill-“ I love them so much

More unimaginable horror sounds! Oh boy! This is. It’s been 30 fucking minutes.

Oh yucky.. skin… Jesus.. oh noooogghdjhdns

ITS GONE?!?!? WHERE THE FUCK DID IT GO.

THIS IS NOT THE FUCKING TIME TO BE ARGUINGGGG AAAAGGGG

I hate this so fucking much actually

The bit shoes.. Charlie please

We have made it 40 mins in let’s goooo haha. Ha!

A GLHYPHHJDHHSHS JAY NO WHAT HEY. FIREEE????? 37 POINTS HOLYYYY FUCKKKKK

HAHSJFHSJAIDJSUHWKS CREATURES THEYRE HERE AND THEYRE ANGRY

Haha it’s all fine now. Also the fucking bones aren’t real??? What. HAHAHAHAJGSIW UH OH BIZLY PLEASSEE

LMAOOO HAHAGGGSHDA THE PARANOIA IS SO FUCKING REAL

HAHSHSHSHA THE FUCKING MICROCHIPS IN THE WATER NOO STOP FUCKIN WITH GILL LMAO

Almost an hour in!! Woooooo! No ones dead thank fucking god

Thank god Chip please make sure no one dies thank u skelly man <3

Floor threeeee baybeee surely nothing happens here. :)

There’s someone waiting for themmmmm hahaha

“Jay can you do me a flavor right now?”

AHAHSHSHSHA WHATTTT WDYMMMM EVERYTHING GULLIOKFNXUSHSO GILLION NOOOOOO WHAT THE FUCKSHAIABA also the last quote being Gillion’s last words man. Yikes

Where is my boy where is my boy where is my boy. IS THAT HIS FUCKING SKIN

ITS HIS FUCKING SKINH IM SO MOT OKAY WHWRE IS MY BOY WHEFE IS HE. GIVE HIM BACK THEY JUST GOT HIM VACK

Haha. I’m fine :) I’m gonna ignore that for now haha cause why. Would that be an issue :)

I’m so worried about him actually. Bring him back

THEY WERE FUCKING EXPERIMENTING ON THE ICHOR. I KNEW IT BUT GOD THE CONFIRMATION IS. UGHHHGHDJSK yea this is such a navy thing to do. Yuck

Oh my god they didn’t see what skin the trition in the ground was. What if that was Edyn. Oh I’m so unwell.

GODDD THEYRE USING THE LEVIATHAN AND THE FUCKING ICHOR AS A SUPER WEAPON. WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THE NAVY.

NOT EVEN HALFWAY THROUGH THE EPISODE YET WHAT THE FUCKKKKKK

Chip is so me I would totally. Grab bone pieces. EWWWW WHY MORE SKIN GROSS HOW MANY PEOPLE DID THEY FUCKING KILL

DEATHWARD SAVED THIS MAN PLEASE STAY MY GUY I LOVE YOU. this man is being crucified.. oh my god,,

Holy shit.. Kuba kenta :o is that u bitch

ITS HIMMMM HOLYYYY SHITTYTTT HAHSHSHSHAHA he’s such a bastard but also such a good villain… godddddd he’s just a fluffy guy :3

Mmmmmm machineeeeee

Giving me The Core from Amphibia vibes. This is fucking TERRIFYING. I MEAN I WAS RIGHT HERE CAUSE GILLION WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU. PLEASE. GILLION WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT. WHY DID YOU SIT IN THE CHAIR

WHWIDUDISHWJDJEIEJAIWHDIRJE GILLION. WHAT THE FUCK. Oh

Oh my god. 0 initiative. Oh my god Gillion please

“I would like to touch myself… and say- there’s more wait” PLEASEEE CHARLIEEE LMAOOOO

AWAAA RUN GILLION RUNNNNNN

“Oh my god, Gillion’s not fast.” HES RUNNING FOR HIS LIFE RIGHT NOW SO MAYBE HE IS??

It’s totally him right. YEA it’s Gilly :) why hasn’t he told them about Kuba Kenta.

Aughhhhghhfjskb CONDI?!??? LMAOOOO

Why. Are you. I. I despise them so much.

FIREWALL AUGHHGH NOT AGAIN

“CHEEBO” the rest of chips skin is fucking burnt off Jesus Christ

.. oh fuck. There’s more people going in????? It better not be the rest of the crew. INVISIBLITY WENT DOWN IGHDHDHSJS

Bones… gill I’m so sorry man :(

CHIP STOP BEING LIKE THAT YOU LOVE THEM. You love them. They you’re besties.

NATURAL 1 BUT IGS A FUCKING 23 WHAT THE HELLLLLL

Aughhhhhhhh paijnnnm pleaseeee surely nothing goes wrong mannnn what the hell

… conch shell time haha uh oh surelyyyy this will be fine

Jay my beloved <3 you got this girl

AAAA Grandma Ferin… SHES FUCKING CRAZY HOLY SHIT. Vault… time.. oh no. Woahhhh wonder. If that’s the true prophecy in there

CONDI DEAFENED AUGSJHSJGA WHATTT NO BRING HIM BACK OH FUCK

Haha they’re trapping themselves in this room. Uh oh.

OH. GILLION. OH NO. OH NOOO WHAT. HELLO. HEY. Uh oh. Hey. WHAT THE FUCKKKKKKK WHAT IS GOING ON

WHERE IS MY FISH MAN WHERE IS HE WHERE IS HE

THE HORRORS ARE THERE THE HORRORS. THATS WBY HE DIDNT TELL ABLUT KUBA KENTA OH MY GOD

…

The sword. Thank god.

PELASEEEE DONT LET ANY OF TJEM DIE OM GONIFNIBSJA GILLIONS GOING GO SAVE HIS FRIEND HES FOINF AS FAST AS HE VAN

JAY PLEASE GO HELP PLEASE FUCKKKK ING HELL

Ichor creature. Godddddd

I don’t even have words this is just combat that’s terrible and I hate it

Aughhdhxhsishdjsn man. People have been so right about how this episode is Bad bad. Like. Wow.

2 and half hours in. Pain and suffering. Please don’t let Chip die again. Charlie did really fucking good playing his doppelgänger without breaking that’s insane.

Gillion’s yelling at each other would be so much funnier if it wasn’t. A life or death situation

CHARLIE SALUTING IM SO UPSET PLEASSESS LET THEM LIVE

YEAHAHAHAHDHDHS GET HIS ASS JAY

HAHA HEY.

HOW ARE THEY TYING IM GONNA CRYYYY

HE WCJDJDSHS HE DID IT HE FUCKING DID IT OM GONAN THROW UP OHHHHGG MU GOD

GILLIONS STUFF FUCKKKKING WAITAAGGG

HAHAHDHSGWGE KUBA KENTA MENTION.

Oh. He’s. Opening. Kubas cage. Gillion. Hey.

Haha they have to go back UP?!? Well. Riptide pirates, it was nice knowing you.

Chip. Can’t be healed I am so upset. Also I feel like the creatures are just going to escape. And Kuba Kenta is going to be Right There.

Dopplegilly you bitch ass mother fucker give my boy back his stuff

WHDIXHSIDHS THEY PUT HIM IN THE HOLE??? Well. I mean. Go off

I hope they don’t fucking fall into the lava. Like seriously after all that.

Well. Gillion. Please let this man get his stuff. WALL OF WATER THANK GODDDD

How is there a half hour left.

HE HAS MISTY STEP. CHARLIE WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU

I am so. AUEGUESHS THE LIFE DEBT OF DOPPELGILLY GOINF BACK INTK THE HOLE PLEASE LMAOOOO WHAT IS THIS

Please get out of here please just get the ship off the island oh my god

So much murderrr please go n get them and get out im so ahdichdiebz

oh . The fucking. Turrets. LMFAO COUNTER SPELL THE FUCKING ASS TURRETS JDDIDBKS

THE FUCKCONF DECK IM GONNA LOSE IT PLEASE. DONT LET HIM DO THAT PLEASE

WHY NOT JUST FUCKING THROW THE DECK OF CARDS UP. WHY. I’m gonna.

THE IDIOT CARD. OH MY GODDD HAHAHDJDHAUA 3 INTELLIGENCE IM SOGONGNDHSBA

THE VOID. LMAOOOO HES FUCKING GONE THANK GOD. Anyways the TURRETS.

THEY FUCKING DID IT LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO

Well. That was. An episode. Well. I can see why everyone was freaking out about it LMAO THEYRE ALIVE THOUGH LETS GOOOO RIPTIDE PIRATES

[darkx-the-dragon-kn1ght]

Chapter 40- Part 15

Really making Nostra out to be a true menace, huh-

I don't like that at all…what does that mean…

But aren't you standing by the doorway too?? Ah, whatever-

Not stronger than a poisonous snake, I guess! But regardless, let's head up to the bed and heal up.

And now, we can finally get the usual team back in order! Save the others for Noel proper…assuming Noel is still the seventh Gym Leader.

I also used my remaining Exp. Candies to get Prong, Crater, and Kirin up a little more.

Now, let's at least get back to Tanzan Mountain, and-

Huh- that really is a prominent hole. I wonder…

Oh, it is a new entrance- okay, that's kinda funny, I kinda love that.

Anyways, that…was definitely one of the chapters of this Let's Play! It turned out to be super eventful, just…not at all in the way I was expecting. A little embarrassing to spend all that time preparing for a Gym battle that wound up being completely postponed, but in my defense! I did not expect an entire surprise attack! I thought Team Meteor would come back sooner or later, but not like that!

So I suppose next time's gonna be seeing what exactly Team Meteor's been up to in Tanzan Mountain- hopefully, whatever it is, we can put a stop to it and finally get those stupid tremors to go away! Or maybe my theory about a PULSE causing the teleportation problems in Spinel Town will be confirmed. Either way, seems like the action's not over yet, so I'll see you next time to see how it all concludes!��

…but let’s be real, Saphira’s probably gonna be carrying us all the way, and she’s the kidnapping victim-

CURRENT TEAM:

Riptide

Species: Feraligatr

Gender: Male

Level: 55

Ability: Sheer Force*

Item: Protective Pads

Brave nature; Alert to sounds.

Glare

Species: Arbok

Gender: Female

Level: 55

Ability: Intimidate

Item: Black Sludge

Naughty nature; Highly curious.

Bloom

Species: Roserade

Gender: Male

Level: 55

Ability: Technician*

Item: Big Root 

Docile nature; Alert to sounds.

Prong

Species: Vikavolt

Gender: Female

Level: 51

Ability: Levitate

Item: Zoom Lens

Rash nature; Loves to eat.

Crater

Species: Camerupt

Gender: Female

Level: 51

Ability: Magma Armor

Item: Quick Claw

Hardy nature; Often scatters things.

Kirin

Species: Girafarig

Gender: Female

Level: 51

Ability: Sap Sipper*

Item: Odd Incense

Quirky nature; Thoroughly cunning.

CURRENT BOXES:

NUMBER OF RELOADS: 30

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[xaeyrnofnbe]

i’ve seen multiple people now responding to this with the explanation that albatrio, in and out of character, have said that aphonze as the ship is a temporary solution, and that’s actually precisely my point.

spoilers for #102 in case you haven’t seen it yet. you’ve been warned

entering the black sea has been the primary objective of the riptide pirates for a long time now, and ever since discovering the entrance, they’ve been building themselves up so that they can take on that challenge.

when alphonze “died,” they did not have the ability to repair his broken body, nor to make him a new one. what they could do, however, was integrate him with the ship as a temporary vessel for his consciousness, so that he could still be involved in their adventures before they reach edison kingdom (the place he was created as well as the only known location with technology advanced enough to make him a new body,) to get him back to normal, and then proceed to the black sea.

i’ve said before that with sailing the ship being the first order alphonze ever directly refused to obey, it’s beyond messed up that they then made it his sole purpose. but with this being temporary, i figured i could let it slide as not that big of a deal.

i expected alphonze to at least be disoriented, maybe even upset when he awoke as the one thing he ever expressed he didn’t want to be, but it was like all personality was gone. he was just… a voice for the ship, really. no personal drive or motive. but sure, it was a tense moment, maybe he just didn’t have the time to express himself in the moment.

as time drew on, he stayed the same. just the voice of the albatross, there to get orders from the captains and to drive the ship for them. i hesitate to say that jay would reprogram him like that, but that really does seem like what happened. it’s the only possible explanation. and as painful as it is, it isn’t out of character, either. none of the captains ever really viewed him as a person. he was always less than the people around him. always just viewed as a machine, even when he showed noticeable discomfort when he was treated as such.

back when he was being fused with the ship, ensa was creating a teleportation circle. as a way to travel to and from the ship, but it would also serve as a handy escape route for the crew if the black sea ended up being too much for them. keep that in mind.

when they left zero, alphonze was woken up as the ship, and they had a fight with the navy, edison kingdom was supposed to be their next destination.

i don’t know which is worse, them simply forgetting about alphonze, or making the conscious decision to keep him from his free will and autonomy. because they never went to edison kingdom. they went straight to allport, and barely paused to even think as they made their way to the beyond section.

and they went through. they were prepared, after all. all but one, who seemingly did not have even the ability to speak out against what had, and what continues to happen to him.

as of the most recent episode, #102, they just entered the black sea, and they might have made a mistake. it’s terrifying, but luckily for them, they have that teleportation circle that can take them back to zero if need be.

a perfect backup plan, once again, for all but one. who because of either inconsiderate forgetfulness or conscious subjugation, does not have a body that can carry him through. so even if things do get too bad, and the riptide pirate crew jumps ship and goes back to zero, they will have no choice but to leave what little is left of alphonze behind, in the black sea.

i need to go back in time into the riptide universe so i can grip alphonze by the shoulders and shake him intensely and tell him not to join the riptide pirates!!!! don’t do it!!! don’t go with them!!!

they’re such well-meaning people but they never give him the light of day and i have so many emotions about it. he went with them for the promise of freedom, to learn who he wanted to be and pursue that. they promised him.

and then they change his voice. his whole thing, really. and they have him be the helmsman. he’s free to do whatever he wants, technically, but he’s not used to that yet, so he continues to follow orders.

then chip gives him and the rest of the crew a speech. he tells alphonze he can do whatever he wants, and can follow true freedom if he wishes. he can be his own man.

and alphonze tests the waters, he says no when he’s told to do things. he tries out his new freedom. we never learn what he does or what he wants to do, because no one ever asks him. he’s brushed aside. no one on the ship cares about alphonze, it seems. not enough to talk to him directly, that is.

and then he “dies.”

and what do his captains do? the first people who ever offered him freedom?

they reuse his very consciousness. they make him the soul of their ship. the one thing he ever tried refusing to do, saying no to, he now is inseparably a physical part of.

and he doesn’t say no anymore.

[haloshornsinkstains]

Demons In My Head

Demiurge [Overlord] x F!Reader

Warnings: canon-typical violence, smut, deviation from canon.

When Yggdrasil shut down Momonga wasn’t the only one left behind, you were trapped there with him, as the world shifted and all the NPCs came to life. Trapped in Nazarick with an NPC you’ve always had a crush on, what will you do with your new life?

Hearing a soft ping I looked up from where I’d been reading on the floor to pass the time, a new message flashed at the corner of my vision. Sighing I opened it, at least whoever it was had been courteous enough to let me know they weren’t coming.

[Momonga] Just logging in now, sorry I’m so late!

I smiled softly and dismissed the message, no point in messaging him back when you could speak in person in a moment. Seeing the familiar glow that signified one of my guild-mates logging in I pushed to my feet, ready to greet Momonga one last time. “Hey Momo.” I smiled up at the litch. “I’m glad you came.” “Hey Rip.” He nodded his head, and you were sure he was smiling back. “Sorry, I got caught up and it took me longer than I thought to get here. Did I miss everyone?” My chest tightened and I shook my head. “You’re the only one so far Momo.” “Oh.” He drummed his bony fingers against his chin. “Maybe they’ve been and gone? How long have you been here?” “Since midday.” My voice was flat, claws picking at the edges of my armour. “I don’t think they’re coming…” “I’m sure they’d have been here if they could. C’mon, we’ve still got a couple of hours, shall we go and say goodbye to everyone?” I blinked at his outstretched arm for a moment, not sure what he meant, until I remembered the NPCs of Nazarick, those lovingly created by the guild.  “That sounds lovely, Lord Momonga.” I answered softly, glad for once that the game limited my expressions. “Indeed, Lady Riptide. Shall we head to the first floor and then work our way back down?” “Makes sense, I’d like to end things in the Throne room. It just feels right.” Momonga nodded, teleporting the both of you to the top floor. I eyed the rickety bridge while Momonga looked around for Shaltear, neatly teleporting to the other side with a huff. “Still not a fan of heights Rip?” “Nope, besides, Shaltear is over this way.” I called, making my way towards the Vampire’s usual spot. “Floor two, numbnuts.”

Saying goodbye to the fourth floor pulled at something painful in my chest. The Underground Lake had been my domain, though the main guardian was Gargantua, there were monsters of my own creation in the lake itself. They weren’t true NPCs in the way the others were, my skills hadn’t quite been up to par for that, but they did a good job of picking off a few of the fools who made their way this far down. Besides, Ulbert had insisted that my aesthetics fit this floor the most. The next few floors were easier, at least until we reached the seventh. “This was always my favourite.” I sighed, running my fingers over the back of the white throne. “Really? I thought it was the lake?” Momonga hummed. “Nah, that was where Ulbert thought I fit best, but I do really like fire. And this place is so beautiful, he used to chase me out of here all the time. Told me Kelpies shouldn’t stay in hot places long, and to stop ogling his creation.” I laughed, gently patting Demiurge on the shoulder. “Do you think he knew Demi was my favourite NPC?” There was a low rumble of laughter from Momo beside me. “No. None of us would ever have guessed that.” Meanwhile Demiurge was practically vibrating with delight. His Lady, one of the Supreme Beings, favoured him above any other? He couldn’t think of a greater honour. And she even deigned to touch him? Him, a lowly servant. But why were the two remaining Supreme Beings speaking as if they were leaving? It couldn’t be.

Finally we made it to the tenth floor once again. I brought up the menu, glancing over the time. “Ten minutes left.” I sighed, glancing to where Momonga was over with Albedo, looking over something in her description. “You two going to need some time alone? Remember, this place has rules against R rated actions!” “Oi!” I laughed, happily settling on the floor to wait for the final countdown. As the last thirty seconds started to tick down I looked up at Momonga once more, surprised to find that he’d settled himself on the throne. Pushing to my feet I went to join him, perching on the arm, glad that I couldn’t feel how uncomfortable it probably was. “Hey Momo, after this… do you… do you think we can still keep in touch?” “Of course we can Rip.” I hoped he could tell how happily I was smiling at him, I’d used the emote but it didn’t seem enough to convey how truly happy and grateful I was to have his friendship in all this. Gently resting one of my own hands over his boney one I watched the last few moments of the clock count down, bracing myself for the unpleasant sensation of rejection from the gear. “5… 4… 3… 2… 1…” I closed my eyes,ready for the last moments of the game… but then nothing happened. No unpleasant zap in my brain to signify I’d been forcibly disconnected, no sudden feeling of nausea as I came back to the real world. Nervously opening my eyes I glanced around, expecting to see the darkness of my headset only to be greeted by the equally startled face of Momonga. “Did we get the time wrong?” I asked, looking around. “No… I don’t think so… wait, Rip, your mouth is moving.” Momo answered, his eyes flashing green at me. “So is yours!” I yelped, “really moving, not the standard animations. Holy shit, Momo, are we in the game? I swear I saw an anime like this, but if you died in the game you died in real life? Do you think that’s what’s happening here? We’ve been Isekai’d into a game. Oh, I hope we still have all our skills…” “Rip, breathe, we can work this out.” Momonga sighed, gently patting my shoulder to try and distract me from my racing mind. “Lord Momonga? Lady Riptide? Has something happened?” I whirled at the sound of Albedo’s voice, blinking up at her. “It is nothing to worry about Albedo. Could you gather the floor guardians? I believe something has changed here. Sebas-” he paused just long enough for the man to appear “-go and scout the exterior of Nazarick, see if you can determine what has changed.”

[Riptide] Holy shit Momo, how are you so cool right now? I’m still kind of freaking out.

[Momonga] I hadn’t noticed. Don’t worry. I’ll work things out for now. Looks like we still have our skills.

[Riptide] Thanks Momo <3

Time passed almost smoothly after that, once my panic died down I managed to settle back into my old role as vice-leader of the guild, though there were pitfalls that came with our new existence. The burning temple, which normally brought me great solace, made my skin dry out too quickly, and for the first time your expressions were truly visible on my face. It had taken weeks for me to stop blushing whenever you saw Demiurge, my skin taking on a deeper blue-grey tinge whenever I remembered what I’d said to him when we thought we were saying goodbye to the tomb, or how he’d spoken about me when Momonga had asked how the Guardians felt about the two of you. But I’d finally got over that, I could face him like a normal person now, even give orders when I needed to. At least I thought I was over it.

I’d been relaxing in the lake when a group of adventurers made their way into the tomb. I don’t know how they got past Shaltear or the Grave, though I had seen Shaltear chasing after Albedo earlier. They weren’t exactly hard to dispose of either, though I guess I had a bit of a home-field advantage in the water. Still, the encounter had left me dirty and a little sore, one of them had tried to ride me, clearly seeing a horse and thinking nothing of it. Shuddering at the memory I sank into my bath, letting the warmth of the water soothe me. At least until someone knocked at my door. “Come in!” I called out, not thinking anything of it. Momonga had been in here enough times while I soaked, he’d gotten over it fast enough, the water was dark and as it happened having a Kelpie as a guildmate meant spending way more time with them in water than either of us had bargained for, at least until we could get hold of an artefact that helped. Except that wasn’t Momonga, instead standing in your room with a pink dusting on his ears was Demiurge. With a startled yelp I sank under the water, only letting the top of my head and my eyes peek out over the surface. Until I remembered the Demiurge shaped plushie on my bed, the one Albedo had so kindly made for me (after only the briefest of disgusted looks). Another burbled yelping noise and I’d practically flown across the room, landing on the bed on top of the plush. “Lady Riptide? Is everything quite alright?” I blinked at Demiurge, noticing the way he refused to look at me, and the red tinge staining his face. Then I looked down. Oh yeah, still naked. Oh shit, still naked. With a squeak I grabbed a pillow, using it to shield as much of my body as I could. “I had heard some insects made their way down to the fourth level my Lady, I wished to express my deepest apologies that something of that kind would happen. And to promise my Lady that Shaltear will be duly punished for abandoning her post.” I sighed, it was irritating to be attacked, but it had been decent practice at least. And it wasn’t bad enough for whatever punishment you thought Demiurge had put together. “It’s alright Demi, it wasn’t that much bother.” I waved a hand tiredly. “They weren’t much more than practice dummies in the end.” “Then allow me to accept punishment for seeing you like this Lady Riptide. Perhaps you should pluck out my eyes?” He was kneeling before the bed now, head bowed and hand over his chest. “No! No, Demi. It’s fine! I should have checked who it was before asking you to come in, and even then, you came in because I told you to. If anything I should be apologising to you for seeing me in this state!”  Demiurge glanced up, his ears wiggling slightly and tail thumping against the floor as he looked at me once more. “Oh no my Lady! You are a most wondrous sight to behold, one the eyes of a mere servant aren’t fit to see.” “I… I wouldn’t say that.” I murmured, clutching the pillow a little tighter to myself. “I, um, I wouldn’t punish you for seeing me…” “I am honoured my Lady. If that is the case, would I be forgiven for asking a question?” He murmured, still not quite able to keep his eyes on me. I nodded nervously, something about him kneeling there fully clothed while I was still sat here naked stirring a fire in my stomach. The effects of which I was almost sure he could smell, if the excitable thrashing of his tail was any indication. “The item I saw on your bed earlier, that wouldn’t be-” “So what if it was?” I gasped, cutting him off. “Then I would be most honoured Lady Riptide, and I would happily offer my Lady my services should she ever be in need.” His ears were bright red, but he was finally looking at me, smirk fixed back on his lips. I dropped the pillow in shock, my heart racing in my chest. “You would?! Do you understand what you’re saying?” “Of course my Lady. Though if you are displeased by the thought…” He stood and turned towards the door, only to freeze when I called out to him. My mind was racing almost as fast as my heart. Was it even ethical to ask this of him? I was technically his superior, but he had offered… And he looked so eager… “Then… then perhaps I might wish to make good on that offer. If you wish.” “Nothing would please me more Lady Riptide. After all, I am your favourite, am I not?” His voice was practically a purr, one that went straight to the fire now building in my stomach. “I… yes.” I breathed, leaning back on the bed as he prowled over me. “If you’re sure…” “My Lady, I do not think I have been more sure of anything since I took over guardianship of the seventh floor.” I sighed out a breath, leaning back slightly as I allowed him to crawl over my body. He paused over me, tail flicking behind him and head cocked as if asking for permission. My knees squeezed against his hips, neck stretching out almost involuntarily. “Please Demi.” Demiurge almost purred, his head dipping to nip at my neck. I let out a breathy gasp, my body arching up into his. I could feel his claws running down my sides, reminding me once more just how naked I was compared to him. His tongue flicked over my gills, sending a strange ripple through my body as I clawed at his suit, trying to pull the offending layers from his body. Chuckling darkly Demiurge pressed himself up on his knees, stripping himself much more quickly than I ever would have been able to. I licked my lips as I watched his skin reveal itself, his body broader and more muscular than I would have imagined under all that material. My eyes widened as he caught me staring, his mouth pulling up into a wicked smirk, finally removing the last of his clothing and settling between my thighs. “Now my lady, allow me to worship you.” I didn’t get a chance to reply, not when his mouth was on me sending fire through my veins. My hips bucked up against his tongue, claws shredding the sheets beneath me as I writhed against his ministrations. I wanted to cant my head back and close my eyes to enjoy the sensation, but something about watching him made me unable to look away. He was watching me so intently, registering every twitch and gasp and repeating the motions that made it happen, I couldn’t not watch him. At least until my orgasm crashed over me, in a flood of electricity and a flutter of ripped cloth and feathers as I tore into the bed. I tried to call his name, wanting nothing more than to let him know how good he’d made me feel, but only gibberish came out, my brain fried by the pleasure coursing through me. 

As I trembled with the aftershocks Demiurge lifted his head, his mouth glistening with the remnants of his feast. “Now now My Lady, I hope you aren’t tired already. We’ve only just begun.” He grinned, crawling up my body to press his lips to mine, letting me taste myself on him - like fresh water and vegetation. I purred against his lips, careful not to let my claws dig into his skin as I ran my hands down the expanse of his back, feeling the muscles tense and flex under my touch. I wrapped my legs around his back, pulling him into me. “It’ll take more than that to tire me out Demi.” I chuckled against his neck, letting my sharp teeth scrape against his skin. “Do your best, hmm?”

[thanksjro]

More Than Meets the Eye #30 - The Cybertronian Judicial System is a Friggin’ Joke

Have I mentioned that I’m not a huge fan of court case stories? I think they’re pretty boring, on average, so the last couple of issues have been slightly dragging for me.

Anyway, back to Megatron’s trial. 

Our issue opens up with a full back shot of Ultra Magnus.

Artists take note, he really is built like a capital T.

As Magnus reads out Megatron’s statement retracting his “guilty” plea, we get some decent points as to why. See, telling a guy that you’ll stab him in the brain, so his trial can be over as quickly as possible, maybe isn’t such a hot idea. Megatron wasn’t a huge fan of that, or of how those memories they would’ve yanked outta him would have been used to fuel the Autobot propaganda machine. Why, you may ask?

Well, I don’t know if you knew this or not, but Megatron… doesn’t particularly care for the Autobots, nor the rhetoric they uphold.

I know, I was surprised too!

There’s also the fact that Optimus Prime is the judge on this whole thing. You know. Optimus Prime. Off and on leader of the Autobots, whenever it suits him. The guy who fucked off into space for a year after the war. The guy who threw a hissy fit when someone pointed out that he was compromised the last time they did something like this with Megatron. This guy:

Yeah, there might be a slight conflict of interests here. Remind me again why this had to be a military trial?

Anyway, enough of that, it’s time for a fight scene.

A swarm of Decepticons storm the arena, going after Megatron so they can help him escape. Magnus, though acting as Megatron’s defense, cannot abide by this disorder in the court.

Wild to think there’s a tiny little Pringles man with anxiety in there, isn’t it?

Optimus joins the fray, because there really are, just, so many guys to deal with here. A dude goes to collect Megatron, stating that they brought teleport packs for this little shindig. Megatron isn’t super jazzed about that though, not bothering to grab on before the dude gets shot to death. There’s a brief recess, I guess so the janitorial staff can deal with the mess of corpses littering the courtroom.

Meanwhile, in the present day, Rung’s building a model spaceship in Swerve’s, which is a very brave thing to be doing, seeing how sticky and gross bars can be. Brainstorm’s brought a flask to the bar, and proceeds to pour the contents into a funnel sticking out of his arm.

Our bartender for the evening- I’m assuming it’s evening, but I doubt the concept of time has any real weight in space- is Bluestreak. Bluestreak was stationed on Earth for a while, which is some Phase One stuff, and took a liking to human media while he was there. He’s the guy who handles movie night these days, seeing as Rewind’s too busy being dead to do it, and I doubt Chromedome has the emotional bandwidth to take over for his late spouse.

Bluestreak’s favorite movie is Zulu, a film glorifying the colonialism of the English over the native populace of an African kingdom. Make of that what you will.

Whirl wants to watch À Bout de Soufflé, or Breathless, as it was translated for the English-speaking world, which is a French New Wave film about a criminal who shoots a cop, hides from the police in a journalist’s home, who he seduces and likely impregnates. She eventually finds out what he did, reports him to the police, but then has a change of heart and lets him know what she’s done. He runs, but is shot, and dies in the street. The film is notable for its final scene, in which the following dialogue happens, between the dying criminal Michael, his lover Patricia, and an officer.

Of course, any poignancy would almost certainly be lost on the average comic book reader, and is also somewhat nullified by Whirl praising the film with internet lingo.

Then again, I suppose Whirl would be the type to dismantle any deeper reading of his interest in such a film, lest he be subjected to the horrifying ordeal of being known.

Over with Skids and Riptide, it’s revealed that Megatron’s been teaching classes on the Lost Light, specifically on the Knights of Cybertron. Riptide’s getting an education, because he’s been feeling pretty lost since the war ended- we’ll get to the potential whys of that later on. Swerve isn’t a fan of this community college thing that’s going on, stating that Megatron’s using it as a distraction, so he can devise plots most foul.

Back in the past, Autobot high command is having a talk about what Megatron’s demanding, and man is it a doozy— turns out, since the trial’s happening on Luna 2, the trial proceedings are subject to the laws of the moon. One of these moon laws is the right to request being judged by the Knights of Cybertron. Now, this is a problem, seeing as the Knights of Cybertron have been AWOL for the last several million years, but the law is the law, and you can’t just go ignoring it when someone’s pointed it out.

Bro, your SIC just suggested y’all pull the trial so you could slap it on Cybertron, thus negating any need to pay attention to the Knight law. That’s such a gross miscarrying of justice, it’s genuinely baffling. You’ve got bigger issues going on than flouting. My god, Optimus, you were a cop—

Oh wait, that’s right. Carry on, then.

Back on the Lost Light, First Aid’s checking to make sure that the coffin Rodimus they revealed last issue is true and proper dead. Now, this may seem like a given, but you’ve got to remember that Brainstorm was mostly dead for over a year and a half, and nobody fucking noticed, so it’s probably for the best that they’re checking.

First Aid’s been pretty withdrawn since Ambulon died, so this autopsy is really good for him, since it got him out of his room. Pretty fucked up that it would take a dead body to get him out and about. Has Rung checked in on his poor son of a gun, or has he been spending the last six months getting his professional rocks off psychoanalyzing a genocidal warlord?

Our coffin Rodimus died from having parts of his brain removed, and potentially died screaming.

Yes, that is a Furmanism, thank you peanut gallery, moving on—

Ratchet hands the phone over to Ultra Magnus, saying that a call has to be made, and it can’t be by him, because the callee is mighty upset with Ratchet at the moment.

Oh, I guess he’s fine after all. This must be where the sci-fi bullshit really starts kicking in for the series.

Because seeing your own dead body is likely very traumatic and awful, Rodimus is taking a while to string together his thoughts on the matter. Megatron doesn’t particularly care, because he’s not terribly sympathetic to this sort of thing, and the two get into a spat, where it’s revealed that they’re co-captaining the Lost Light.

Because things weren’t chaotic enough on this fucking ship. Need to mix in some peacocking between the McDonalds twunk and the man who killed half of Beijing.

Back in the past, Optimus Prime visited Megatron in prison to have a little chat. It’s not about that little rescue attempt, though the fact that those Decepticons may have been released from the Lost Light’s brig is certainly interesting. No, Optimus is here to sit way too close to his mortal nemesis on the floor of his room and talk about how Megatron is a sneaky bastard.

You remember the Hellraiser puzzle box from a couple issues back? Yeah, that was a communicube, one that was passed to Optimus to suggest that the trial be held on the moon, so the arena there would be able to hold all the people wronged by Megatron. This seems pretty damn convenient in hindsight, but Megatron swears that the legal loophole wasn’t his only intent when he sent the cube.

Because it’s all about you, isn’t it, Megatron? It’s all about how you’re perceived by future generations. Fuck the guys who had to actually deal with what your personal choices caused to happen.

Megatron wants to make amends with all those who were wronged by him. This doesn’t include being acquitted of his crimes, which, y’know, good- at least he’s being slightly realistic about how this is going to turn out for him.

What he wants to do is find Cyberutopia, so the Cybertronians have a replacement planet, since Cybertron kind of sucks now.

Oh, sorry, did I say realistic? I take it back.

In the present, Rodimus is still bummed out about being dead. Still, the day doesn’t stop just because it’s a bad one, and he calls in the experts.

CHROMEDOME YOU PROMISED TO STOP THIS SHIT

Yeah, no, Chromedome’s fallen off the wagon again, and does his thing on the coffin Rodimus. As he does, Megatron suddenly gets squeamish, Brainstorm pulls out his early early-warning device to lean on the fourth wall, and it’s revealed that the coffin that coffin Rodimus was in was built in the fashion of the Spectralist faith.

All Chromedome can suss out of coffin Rodimus’ memories is the really big important stuff, which includes the speech at Rivet’s Field inviting folks to come join the Knight Quest. Aww, that’s sweet.

With the analysis of the innermost energon complete, the results are in— the coffin Rodimus is a Rodimus. A real one, from the near future. Bummer.

I suppose denial is one of the seven stages of grief, isn’t it?

As everyone argues over whether or not Rodimus is going to die, Nightbeat brings up a good point— there aren’t any numbers carved into the coffin Rodimus’ hand. Rodimus is about to reveal some Ratchet-original wisdom, when things start getting really weird; whole sections of the Lost Light are disappearing.

Over at Swerve’s, Tailgate is regaling his peers with the story of his derring-do against Chief Justice Tyrest. Everyone is very impressed, and this includes our good buddy Getaway.

Jeez, think you’ve got enough antagonist shadows on this guy? It’s almost as if the art’s trying to tell us something about him.

Getaway lays it on real thick, saying that Tailgate could totally be the next Prime, with how courageous and awesome he is, all while completely ignoring Tailgate’s personal space and having a weirdly tiny hand. This seems to seriously bother Cyclonus, who is watching this shit go down from the doorway. Our purple space jet leaves once the drinks start being poured and conversation starts happening. God knows he hates talking about his insecurities.

Then the Pipes is Friggin’ Dead alarm goes off. But Pipes has been dead for a while now, so that must mean something else awful is happening.

Back during the trial, I guess because Optimus has a soft spot for Megatron, he allows him to join the Lost Light’s Knight Quest… even as he says that he could keep the guy locked up until Rodimus and pals find the Knights. However, there are rules to this, and one of the rules is that Megatron must publicly denounce the Decepticon cause.

It is a slow and painful experience for everyone involved, as he reads the statement he was given. It’s an immediate call to action- or rather, inaction.

Geez, think they could’ve made it any more obvious that this was being ghostwritten? I can’t wait to see how long it takes for “Megatron was blackmailed into saying this by the Autobots” to be a plotpoint.

Outside the prison, Ratchet and Rodimus are taking in the brand new Rod Pod, which is genuinely ridiculous in how large it is. Rodimus admits to having taken Atomizer’s list, though he knows that trying to use it to keep those who voted him off would be a pretty shitty thing to do.

Also, no one’s told him about Megatron coming along on the trip. As captain.

Or you could, I dunno, lock him up from the start. Or, if you want to give him a chance to prove himself, slap him into a bottom-rung role, like bilge cleaner, or sewage mucker, or whatever the equivalent would be on a spaceship full of giant gay robots. We don’t have to give the guy any power to hold him to scrutiny— any minimum wage worker will tell you that scrutiny comes far harsher for those who actually carry out orders than those who give them.

But what do I know? I’ve never fought in a several million year war, and I don’t plan to.

Getting back to the list, it seems as if Ratchet and Rodimus are on the same wavelength, in that both agree it’s only going to cause trouble and hurt feelings to keep the thing around. Rodimus destroys it with his usual flare, only to be blindsided by the fact that it was fake this entire time. How does Ratchet know this?

Because his name wasn’t on it.

...Man, that’s gotta sting. No wonder Rodimus was upset enough to not take his calls.

In the present, everyone’s in a panic, as they all bolt for the shuttle bay and start pouring into shuttles. The Lost Light is disintegrating around them, which is sort of a problem. Despite this nightmare scenario happening, Rodimus and Megatron still find the time to be assholes to each other. That’s dedication right there.

As the two bicker, multiple shuttles zip away from the rapidly disappearing ship, including the Rod Pod.

Man, now it really is the Lost Light.

[itskatastrophe-x]

Far Off Places (CH 4)

Chapter 3 , Chapter 4 , Chapter 5

Word Count : 3,919

^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^v^

When you walk back into the den, Ranboo is writing viscously. You want to ask what he’s writing about or if you could read anything, but decide against it and instead head to the kitchen to make something to eat. The analog clock on your wall reads 12:48. Too late for breakfast, so you pull out some fish, carrots, and broth to make some soup. You hoped that Ranboo would be ok with whatever you made so that maybe he might join you for lunch. You started preparing the fish first and then brought the broth to simmer. Just as you were going to check on Ranboo, he came through the door and he let off a soft grunt as you bumped into him. You gasp in shock and look up at him and laugh. He looks around at the half prepared meal and smiles. “Do you need any help?” He looks back down at you and you shrug. “It’s honestly almost done. All that needs to happen is to dice the carrots and put everything in the broth to boil.” He nods and makes his way to the counter where the carrots are drying and begins to cut them up. You thank him quietly as you dump the fish into the bubbling pot and he hums a happy response back. 

You both sit down to eat and chat idly through mouthfuls of warm stew. He talks more about his life living with Phil and Techno, as well as his platonic husband and adopted child. He talks more about the latter, smiling all the while, and you could feel the love and enthusiasm practically radiating off of him with every word he spoke. He told you stories of his kids first moments that he could recall, the journey to the house, and even flipped to a page in a journal where he had hastily drawn a doodle of him in the margin. Michael and Tubbo. The three of them sounded the most trustworthy out of any of them here, and you came to find out that they were some of the youngest people living here. 

After lunch was finished, you took to the kitchen to clean and offered to let Ranboo stay for as long as he liked, which he respectfully declined, saying he had things to take care of in Snowchester. You said goodbye from your place at the sink and he turned and left your house, only to come back minutes later to knock on your door and let himself in again. “Did you want to go with me?” You looked at him with a puzzled expression as you set the last dry dish in the cupboard. “What, to Snowchester?” He nodded, an air of caution surrounding him. “If you trust me enough to, I would love to. I haven’t seen anything outside of this house and the surrounding land. It would be good to get out.” He nodded happily and patiently waited as you went to your room to pack a light bag and attach your weapons and fresh armor. When you came back downstairs he was idly messing with the strap of his own bag, completely spaced out. 

“So,” you started quietly, snapping him back to reality. “What will I say to anyone we see along the way? No one knows who I am and I doubt they’ll accept a stranger so willingly.” He smiles at you and looks at the clock, as well as flips to a page in his book. “Well, most people will be out doing their own things today at this time. The trip should only take us a little while and not many people live in Snowchester. Foolish has been working on our mansion there but he’s really sweet and accepting. Other than that, we just have to avoid Bad and Ant. They’re with The Egg and we don’t need any of that kind of interaction.” You nod and fasten a buckle on your boots and follow him out the door, turning to lock it, then back to catch up to Ranboo. Curse his long legs. 

You both didn’t say much on the journey there. You were mainly amazed by all the sights and buildings. You had to travel through the nether at one point, which he gave you a gold helmet so as not to be attacked. He fought off any of the mobs that neared you so you didn’t make them angry, and also since he had the best armor and weapons. The cobble highway was a sight to behold, you thought. They told you about it the previous day, but you were not expecting this much cobble and obsidian. From the portal you came out of, it looked like a maze with paths leading in all directions. Off in the distance you could see a large structure, to which Ranboo said was the main portal that led directly to DreamSMP. You weren’t sure what kind of name that was for the land but he said it had been that way since before he even arrived. When you went through the portal, you were in shock by your surroundings as they blurred in and out. The teleportation affects made you dizzy and nauseous, something you were sure you would never get used to. 

Ranboo took you past what he called the community house. He said it was one of the first buildings to ever exist on this land. He quickly gave you a summary of George and who he was, but said it would be rare to ever see him, seeing as he was almost always sleeping. You travelled on, only passing one person on the way. They didn’t say anything, but waved from their spot under a small dirt covering. You smiled and waved back and turned to Ranboo. “Who is that?” Ranboo hummed and turned to where you mentioned but gave you a confused look. You turned back to where someone had previously been just seconds before, only to find the small space completely empty. “I swear someone was just there,” you muttered. Ranboo only shrugged and turned on his heels to continue on, you following closely behind.

You both neared a long tunnel full of water, gates holding it back from spilling out. Ranboo stopped a few feet away, rolled up his sleeve, and tapped a small gem on his arm that would have gone completely unnoticed if he hadn’t brought attention to it, seeing as it was so small. A virtual screen popped up and you gasped in shock. He looked at you as you stared at the screen and tried to tap it, your hand phasing through it completely. “What is it?” He dropped his arm and the screen disappeared. “Don’t you have one?” You stood there in shock and looked down at your own arm, nervous to pull back your sleeve. Eventually you did, but saw nothing. Ranboo extended his hands, asking permission to touch your arm, and you held it out for him as he inspected it closely. He asked to see your other arm, so you rolled back the sleeve and he looked at that one as well. He smiled up at you and took your other hand, extending your pointer finger, and tapped a spot on your wrist just under your thumb. You felt a small bump there and rubbed gently as Ranboo took back his hands. A screen popped from where the bump was and you put your free hand to your mouth. 

“What is it,” you ask again, staring at the translucent, light grey panels in front of you. “How did I never notice this before?” He chuckles at you and brings his back up. You put yours next to his, noticing that his boxes were full of little icons. “We call it the inventory. We don’t really know how it works, but it stores extra items you can’t carry in a normal bag.” He taps one of his icons and the screen fades away as a box fizzles into reality and drops into his open hands. He sets it down in front of him, purple sparkles dancing around it in a flurry. He opens it and scans another screen until he finds what he wants, clicks it, and a trident appears in front of him. He grabs it and hands it to you, clicks on another one to make it appear, then grabs the box and opens his inventory to put it away. It blurs out of vision and you watch as the little icon reappears on the box it was previously on. “These tridents have what’s called ‘riptide’. We’re going to go into this water and activate them to cross to the other side as fast as possible.” You looked down at the heavy weapon in your hand and stood it up next to you. It was tall and cold and gave off an iridescent glow, signifying that it was in fact enchanted. 

Ranboo opened the gates, took a big breath, and stepped into the water. The trident in his hands caused the water to pulsate around it, casting a dim glow on the liquid around him. He motioned for you to get in as well, and you did. You shut the gate and watched as he activated the enchantment. He looked at you and motioned with his free hand to follow him, and just like that, he was gone. The jolt caused the water to rush around you violently and you had to put your hand against the glass to steady yourself. You looked at the trident and imagined what he had just done, and the trident reacted, lighting up the water and causing your hand to tingle. You positioned it in front of you the way Ranboo had done himself, and it flung you forward at an alarming speed. You used your opposite arm to shield your eyes, and when you slowed down and uncovered them, you were at the end of the tunnel. You swam the short distance to the exit and let out your breath, gasping in oxygen and hunching over. Ranboo closed the gates behind you as you shook out your hair and leaned your weight against the trident that acted as a staff. 

When you finally caught your breath you looked up to see Ranboo covering his mouth, trying to hold back his laughter. “What?” That sent him, and he burst into full laughter. It was contagious and you couldn’t help but also laugh, though you were still unsure what had caused the fit in the first place. Ranboo calmed himself and smiled at you. “The look on your face was priceless,” he said in between gasps. “It’s always funny to watch people’s reactions the first time they use the loop. Just wait until we go back. It’s even faster that way!” You stare at him in shock, and he giggles more. “Come on,” he says as he turns and waves at you, his tail swishing side to side as he walks with a pep in his step. 

You walk the rest of the short distance in comfortable silence until you hear a small rumbling and the sound of wood being put in place. It didn’t take very long until your eyes landed on possibly the biggest mansion you had ever seen. The largest building you had seen was your castle and this mansion in front of you had to easily be almost as big as it. Ranboo called out to someone out of sight and you followed him forward and into the mansion. There was a glass chandelier high above your heads and a grand staircase in front of you, the railing carved with excruciating detail. “How long has this been going on?” Ranboo ran his hand along the railing and smiled. “Three weeks almost. I think he might take a break here soon, though.” Ranboo called out again and finally got a response. An excited sounding voice called back to him from somewhere farther back. You followed Ranboo through the main hall behind the staircase to a door in the back, a strange statue displayed through the open doorway. You saw a shimmer of gold that looked like it was almost moving, and as you got closer you noticed that it was in fact moving. You came through the door and squinted, your hand coming up to protect your eyes from the harsh midday sun. Your jaw dropped and you stood there in awe.

There, standing next to a very tall, poorly depicted Ranboo, was a man. A man dressed in gold robes and chains, rubies glinting in the sun from a large necklace, and what looked to be a shark helmet over his head. He looked down at you both and you couldn’t help but gasp at his shining emerald eyes. “Ranboo,” he boomed, a large smile spreading across his face. He turned to face you fully now, his jewelry and chains jingling as he took a step and squatted in front of you both. “Ranboo you didn’t tell me we would be having guests! I would’ve gotten out the fancy silverware!” He laughs at his own joke and you can’t help but to giggle. 

Right before your eyes, you watch as he shrinks in size slowly, until he’s roughly the same height as Ranboo. He looks very much more human now than he did before and he extends his hand out to you. He beams at you as you place your hand in his and he tugs and pulls you into a short hug, then releases you again. “My name is Foolish! Well, it isn’t really, but that’s what everyone calls me! Sorry if I gave you any kind of spook. I’m part demi-god. Part totem of undying, part shark god. So I guess I would just be a regular god. Anyway,” he cuts himself off with a wave of his hand and walks past you. You turn on your heel and jog to catch up to his fast pace. He hums a happy tune as he leads you through some empty halls then up the stairs all the way to the top floor balcony that overlooked Snowchester. He smiles at the sight before the three of you, then turns to look at you. 

“What do you think of it? Pretty neat, huh? I think this is the biggest build I’ve done for anyone other than myself.” You leaned over the railing slightly to look down at the walls of the structure then looked back at him, eagerly waiting and bouncing on the balls of his feet. “It’s really impressive! I’ve never seen anything like it. Ranboo told me how long you’ve been working on it and that in itself is just amazing.” He was visibly pleased with your response and let out a yell in excitement, bouncing around in circles. He stopped mid circle and pointed a finger to the sky. “I think it’s celebration time. Would you two like to accompany me in some arson?” Ranboo laughed heartily and you looked at him in confusion. “Arson? Will you be burning the mansion down?” Foolish chuckled as he lead you back through the halls and out the back door to the statue. “No, this! I make a ‘muppet’ statue of people and then on big events I do a sort of ritual to burn it down!” He got out his flint and steel and opened his inventory, bringing out a jukebox and a disc. “I made this disc special for these moments,” he said, looking back at you before placing the disc in. 

Low drums sounded from the box and he began the ritual. To what and for who he was doing this for? No clue. But he seemed to be having fun dancing around the statue to the music. He lit one of the feet on fire, then another, then reached up to about mid level to get the front and the back. The smell of burning wood and wool hit your nose and it made you anxious. Thoughts of your kingdom came back to you and you had to turn and leave. Ranboo took notice and followed you away, catching up to you in a few swift steps. He put a hand on your shoulder to turn you and past him you could see the smoke. He spoke in a careful tone as he asked you if you were ok. “Honestly, I don’t know,” you replied quietly. 

You watched over his shoulder as the statue of him was falling apart, raining fire down as Foolish stood in front of it, looking up in awe. “Could… Could Foolish have…” You cut yourself off, hoping Ranboo would catch on. Ranboo looked back at Foolish and was quiet for a minute. “I’m not sure why he would. We’re nowhere near you, according to your details of your trip. He does love arson, but he’s a pacifist. He’s never even killed.” He looks at you in a soft way and you relax slightly, almost comforted by his reassurance. You were still wary, but for now you trusted what Ranboo had to say. 

Foolish looked back at you and waved happily, the fire dying down behind him as he jogged his way inside. “Wasn’t that fun,” he sighed happily. “Why’d you come back inside?” You looked away and Ranboo cleared his throat. “They were just a little tired is all. They had a long day and wanted to just relax for a minute.” You internally thanked him for not telling the truth, but you knew one day he would have to know. They both talked for a while about the mansion and the layout, so you sat on the stairs, lost in thought as their voices echoed through the halls. They walked up the stairs and down some halls and soon their voices were barely a whisper to you. You leaned against the pole for the railing and shut your eyes, not focusing on any thought in particular, but letting things pop out. Soon enough, you were drifting to sleep without even meaning to. Your body slumped farther and eventually you shifted to lay on the stairs next to you instead of the pole. 

The sun was blaring hot. Your legs kept giving out on you and your vision was black. It took you a minute to squint in the sun to get a good look at where you were. There were trees everywhere, not a building in sight. Just you in the woods, completely alone. You looked down at yourself and took note of your clothes. Tattered and torn. Your bow and arrows were missing but your axe was next to you leaning against a tree. The smell of flowers and citrus filled your nose as you grabbed your weapon and began walking. Honeysuckle was growing nearby so you grabbed a couple flowers to suck some of the nectar out to try to hydrate yourself slightly. Your arms were sore and your head was pounding. Your vision blurred at the corners and you had to catch yourself from falling over, using your axe as a crutch. 

Then you saw it. The same green as before. Adrenaline kicked in and your senses came back to you as you yelled out. The person stopped, back facing you, then started to sprint. You readied yourself and held onto your axe tightly as you took off after the person. They were fast, but you knew how to use your terrain to your advantage. The person turned quickly and shot an arrow at you and you dodged it by a hair, hearing it whistle past your ear. You dipped behind a tree and caught your breath momentarily and listened to the person's footsteps as they slowed, then came to a stop. You took this time to attach your axe to your hip and reach up to a branch, bringing yourself quietly up into the trees. You peeked out and watched as the person cautiously made their way closer. Their hood was pulled up and the angle from where you were perched made it impossible to see their face. 

When they were almost under the branch you were on, you silently brought out your axe and prepared to jump. The fall wasn’t far but the wind from it felt nice on your heated skin. You landed directly in front of them, the shock causing them to stop and stagger backwards. You used this opening to grab the handle of your axe with both hands and shove it against the person’s torso and push them to the ground. Their hands came up next to yours as you both fell. Your left knee landed next to them, your right foot on the opposite side, and the bar of your axe pushed against their throat. The only thing from keeping this stranger from choking was their own two hands pushing back. 

“Who are you,” you practically yelled. You looked down at them as they chuckled roughly through gasps of air. They wore a mask with a simple smile etched into it, a crack going down the right side. “Who’s asking.” By their voice, you now identified them as male. “I am,” you state. “You aren’t supposed to be able to interact with me. Now answer me. Who. Are. You.” You pushed harder and he squirmed, trying to get a better grasp on your weapon. He coughed and took in a breath before speaking again. “I go by Dream,” he says quietly. “And why should I trust you, Dream? I was told you were put into prison for murder, arson, and a whole list of other things.” He let out a laugh. “So you met them. That’s what they told you? And you believed them without a second though?” He brought a knee up and pushed against you as hard as he could. The sweat from your palms loosened your grip and he broke free, taking your axe with him as he stood and backed up, readying said weapon in front of him. “You know, I saw your kingdom,” he started. “You should know then that you should always listen to the other side before coming to a decision. You listened to those people and took their word for everything without even hearing what I had to say.” You breathed heavily from your spot on the ground. 

Dream lowered the axe and threw it behind him as he extended a hand towards you to help you up. You stared at him for a moment while you calmed your nerves and decided to take his hand. Pulling you up seemed effortless and you wondered if he had held back at all and allowed himself to get captured. “You wanted to tell me your side, and yet both times I ran after you, you ignored me. Why?” He shrugged and laughed a breathy laugh. “I’m bored,” he said nonchalantly. “I’ve been stuck in a prison cell for months with only a couple visitors. I reached out to see if I could do anything else and found that I could hop into dreams. But only yours. So I thought maybe you would be the one that would be able to help me.” You stared at him, partially confused. Your body shook and you fell to your knees. “God damn it,” you whispered. “I guess I’ll see you in another dream,” he said as he turned and ran off. 

[s0lar-ch3ri]

i got so so many more (spoilers, minor again)

"put dirt in the eye or be a free guy" "chip is an honorable man so hes gonna put dirt in this woman's eye" "im gonna pants everyone" mfing gillion tidestrider yall "IM GOING TO PANTS GOD" "however, because your gillian (charlie instant laughter)" "THIS IS WHAT I WAS BORN TO DO, PULL PANTS" "HOLD ONTO YOUR PANTS, JOHN" "and then pretzel comes" you should have finished the sentence charlie... "YOUR PANTS WILL JOIN THEM" "your just making him wetter" "NO MY PANTS ARE ON FIRE" "shouldnt have lied bro" "this is the jeans island" followed by "im pretty wet too so i should be fine" "im not in 5 feet of wet man right" "well i wasnt trying to kill anyone today" horrifying sentence starter go on "we're playing capture the flag and your gonna kill him" "we're very protective of copywrite here at jrwi" raspy voice bizly "NO GRANDMA NO" "never knew an old lady could hit so god damn hard" "ah what the fuck did they put in your meds" "steroids" "does anyone got any juice?" "I DOOOOOOOO" "i hope its to pants you" "WHY DOES SHE GET LEGENDARY ACTIONS WE HAVE THE SAME TRAUMA I SHOULD GET THAT" "but she hasnt pissed herself" gillion tidestrider bloodlusted fr "5 MINUTE TIMEOUT IN THE CORNER DM" "you take 18 points of slashing damage...and your pants fall down" "i am knocked out from being pantsed" "'wait your down?' 'yes!' 'SO ARE YOUR PANTS BITCH'" my god gill killed the same man twice "what underwear is chip wearing" woah gill calm down buddy /j "the thought of gillion running through the fire with a line of pants and 2 flags behind him and the nfl theme just playing" "i have shield of fate on and no one has attacked me i have just eaten shit so many times to other things" "god i wish that were me" gill in responce to the samurai guy being restrained by marshal john, whos tryna head butt sg (samurai guy), hello??? "ive come to die on the battlefield" "GIVE HER THE DEATH SHES EARNED CASPIAN" "foolish man" ok im a jay simp now hello hi yes gay me! "HE KILLED ME WITH MY OWN HOMEBREW I FOUND ON REDDIT DOT COM" "caspian this is not awesome 100" "he tried to wet a wet man" old lady jay threats in general belong here but i gotta have "ill forgive you for that only if youll forgive me for this" "dude all i did was tie pants around stuff and die" "the old bag takes the bag lets go" WHY IS BIZLY OUT OF CHARACTER JUST SO AMAZING "grandma, everyone here is so much cooler then us" "SHE JUST WANTS TO DIE" "is the DEMENTA setting in whats going on" i love the idea that gill forgot this was jay and not her grandma "holy shit you can die in riptide?" "'it is still an action to put a flagpole in' 'UNLESS'" followed by charlie saying "so i have an INSANE idea" "i put pretzel where the pants are and i cast GUST OF WIND, PRETZEL GO" "YOUR GOING TO LEARN SPEED LITTLE ONE" "wow nice teleport do it again"

minor episode #31 spoilers!

quotes i love and collect now: "where should i sign my autograph fanboy" holy shit im gay as FUCK for this pirate lady now "you gonna pants her" what a crazy line that i almost didnt catch condi say "thats a lot of pants chip who has that many legs' 'we will, after we win'" did he not hear gill?? like this caught me so off guard "he actually looks...kinda hot" "I KNOW I KNOW" no needed comment just charlie slimecicle my beloved another charlie one but hearing him say "to live is to suffer and to suffer is to live" after grizzly said he still has pants on is one of the funniest moments to ever "HOW COULD SOMEONE WEAR PANTS ON JRWI" I CANNOT SAY ANYTHING FUNNY ENOUGH TO COMPLIMENT THIS "i wanted to half his movement by pantsing him" again no needed comment "CASPIAN YOUVE ONLY MADE ME MOISTER" im sorry so many are of just charlie but with banger lines like these how could i not include them all "yeah uh i get really wet" out of character and out of context gotta love it "jit got mad and popped off" bizly hyping up grandma jay

would do the full episode but id rather finish and enjoy it, besides would also like to look thro the quotes on the other episodes then do a lot more of these but ye

[victoria-daydreams]

Of Vices and Virtues

Chapter Nineteen: The Embargo Line

AN: Sorry about the brief disappearance I needed to prep for a job interview and I got the job! The unemployment drought is over! Anyways, we are nearly to the end of this story, can you believe it?

Word Count: 2.1k

Trigger Warnings: none

Taglist: @azayamari​

Chapter Twenty: The Cuban Missile Crisis 

I woke up with an acute pain in my head and the bitter of taste blood in my mouth. Letting out a shaky breath, I slowly opened my eyes and everything around me seemed to be inverted. I then realized that I was seated upside down, unbuckling myself I fell to the floor, using my hands to brace myself. I pushed myself up and looked around just as I heard a groan at the back of the jet. Flipping my head to look back I saw both Charles and Erik getting up, once Charles' eyes met mine he quickly made his way over to me.

He held his hands out to me, "Are you okay?" Charles asked softly, scanning for any injuries as I pulled myself up.

"Peachy," I answered, with a strained smile.

"Are you sure you can fight?" Charles pressed, worry clearly written on his face.

"Yes, I'm perfectly sure Charles," I replied, pushing my now messy ponytail out of my face. "Now go help the others out," I ordered lightly, pulling my hair back into a neater ponytail.

Charles nodded and flashed a small smile before he moved forward to help Hank and Moira.

Erik walked past me and lightly patted me on the back, "Nice job, Blythe," he smiled to me as he helped Alex up.

"Thanks," I groaned, massaging my neck and the back of my head.

"I read the teleporters mind," Charles prompted, as we all moved around to look out the windows at the wrecked submarine, across the beach from us with Angel, Azazel, and the other man, Riptide, standing in front. "Shaw's drawing all of the power out of his sub. He's turning himself into some kind of nuclear bomb," Charles informed, lips drawn into a thin line.

"We've got no time, the Geiger counter's going out of control!" Moira shouted, staring at the sensors and trying to make sense of them.

"All right Moira, this is what we're going to do," Charles began. "Get on the radio and send both fleet's out immediately," he ordered, and Moira went straight to work.

"I'm going in," Erik announced.

"Beast, Havok, Blythe, back him up," Charles continued and got nods back from all of us. "Erik, I can guide you through once you're in. But I need you to shut down whatever it is that's blocking me. Then we just hope to god it's not too late for me to stop him," Charles finished, looking at all of us.

"Got it," Erik nodded and turned towards the massive opening in the back where the jet had ripped apart.

The boys and I all shared a look with each other before we exited the submarine. Erik, Alex, Hank, and I all stepped out the jet, our feet finally touching the sandy beach of Cuba. Stepping out into the open, we lined up with Azazel, Riptide, and Angel as they stood in front of their submarine. The submarine was only a few hundreds yards away from our crashed jet.

We all stared down at each other. Angel fluttered her wings and flew into the air, Azazel unsheathed his two swords, and Riptide created two miniature tornadoes that hovered above his hand. Without even a slight hesitation, Alex fired an bright, red energy beam at Riptide, making him fly backwards. He smacked the submarine with a resounding thud and Azazel soon disappeared afterwards.

The battle had begun.

I let out a yelp of surprise as Azazel appeared behind me instantly swinging his sword at my neck. Luckily, I managed to jump backwards, only earning a small scratch on my neck from his sword. As Azazel lifted his other sword up into the air, Beast attacked him, stopping him from taking another swing at me. However, Azazel had another plan and quickly grabbed a hold of Alex with his red tail Hank had grabbed onto the teleporter's shoulder and all three of them were gone.

I watched as Erik ran towards the sub as I stood up. I heard the tell-tale sign of insect wings and turned just in time as Angel attacked me. Ducking and rolling I threw out my hand causing Angel to fly back. She righted herself and floated above me, just as Riptide ran out towards me.

I took a quick look around to see if I could find Angel, but she was nowhere to be seen. Well, at least I only had one person to worry about now. But, I had to move fast before he could make another one of his tornadoes and blow me away. I narrowed my eyes allowing my violet aura to flare up around my hands in a show of power, waiting for him to get a little closer.

Once he was closer, I threw sphere of violet quickly threw it at his feet, I didn't want to kill him, but unfortunately this is a war and casualties are apart of it.

The blast sent him in the air and onto his back, I charged straight at him as soon as he landed, focusing my aura into my hand I jumped up and went to land a blow on his face, but he moved out of the way, rolling next to me. He got up and grabbed a hold of my leg, easily picking me up and throwing me to the side. I was able to land on my feet and straighten myself as he made his was closer to me.

Riptide swung punches left and right and I easily dodged them, sending him a few of my own. I had to rely on my hand to hand training that Erik taught me to get me through this as it was too dangerous to try and use my powers as I too could get hurt if I tried to use another telekinetic blast. Though I would never admit it to Erik because I don't want to inflate his already large ego, but I'm very grateful for my training with him for if I hadn't had any, I would have easily been done for.

Riptide went to hit my side and I slid down under him, pushing him from behind so that he'd fall on his stomach. I took this time to send a disk of energy and throw it at a Palm tree in front of us, causing it to fall down towards us. I quickly moved out of the way so that the tree would only hit Riptide, and it completed its purpose of successfully knocking Riptide out.

I looked up at the sound of Sean's shrieking and saw him falling down towards me with none other than Alex hanging onto his arm. Although I was very happy to see that they were mostly unharmed, I was more worried that they were about to land right on me at the moment to be glad to see them. Sean seemed to have one of his wings burned so he had to resort to a crash landing. I held out my hand using my hands to slow their fall, but they were coming too hot and just as I predicted, they landed right on top me.

I let out a groan as Alex's weight was pushed onto me, not gently what-so-ever at that. Sean had landed a little bit away from us, thankfully not on me as well, as Alex had.

Alex got off from on top of me, "Thanks for the help,"

"I try," I joked, as he moved to help me up.

I looked up to see Angel coming straight for us. I quickly maneuvered us and shot bolt towards her before she can reach us, sending her off course. Angel spat acid at me and it ended up hitting my leg, causing me to cry out in pain. Alex whipped around towards Angel and fired a beam in her direction, finishing what I had started, slicing off one of her bottom wings. Flipping around out of control Angel crashed to the ground with a shout, but she was still breathing.

"We work pretty well together don't we," I smirked up at him, ignoring my pained leg with the help of the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

I could hear Sean laughing from the side with relief after seeing Angel land on the ground with a thud after Alex shot her down. Alex helped put out the small flames on my leg while Sean tore away his ruined wing right.

My eye went to Alex's chest and I noticed that his plate was gone, "What happened to your chest plate?" I asked, amazed that he had been able to fire at Angel even without it.

"Angel got a hold of it," he answered gruffly, sounding very displeased as helped me to my feet.

I couldn't help but smile and laugh until a sudden, a sharp, searing pain entered my head. I collapsed to my knees, kneeling in the sand, clutching my hands to my head tightly. My screams grew louder as the pain grew stronger. It felt like something was being pushed through my skull. My screams grew louder and louder as I felt a small object float through my entire skull, it felt like my brain was being ripped right through. It had lasted for only for moment.

But it easily felt like an eternity.

"Claudia? Claudia!" someone was shaking me. "Are you alright? What's going on? What's happening?"

I blinked multiple time as my vision was blurred from the invisible pain before I was finally able to focus on Alex and Sean. The horror was over, but I still clutched my head as I still felt the lingering pain of whatever just tore through my skull. I was at a lost of words, I had no idea what had just happened.

"I don't-I-" I stammered, looking around of what could cause that amount of excruciating pain. "H-Help me up," I breathed out, and Alex and Sean quickly obliged, putting each of their arms around my waist to lift me off the ground.

My mind was clearing up, but the residual mind splitting pain was faintly pulsating in my head. As I recollected my thoughts I mentally did a headcount of everyone on the beach through their emotions. Something wasn't adding up, everyone on the team seemed a little worse for wear, but otherwise fine. Hell, even in Shaw's team were battered themselves...wait a minute.

What about Shaw himself?

"Holy shit...it's Shaw," I gasped, when it hit me not realizing that Raven and Hank were now with Sean, Alex, and I. "He's-" I started, but couldn't the finish the sentence.

The loud sound of metal creaking pierced through the air, looking over to the submarine my eyes widened to the size of saucers at the sight before me. Shaw's corpse was floating in the air, with Erik himself emerging right behind him now wearing Shaw's helmet.

"Today our fighting stops!" Erik shouted, as he levitated Shaw even higher. All of us, including Shaw's team, started walking towards him slowly. As we got closer I could see a line of blood on Shaw's forehead right as Erik let go and he fell to the ground with a sickening crush in front of us making me wince. Slowly, he descended to the ground, looking around at us. "Take off your blinders, brothers and sisters. The real enemy is out there," he pointed to where the ships of the USSR and the US were. "I feel their gun moving in the water; their metal targeting us. Americans, Soviets, Humans!" He spat out the last word in disgust, as both Charles and Moira appeared, walking up to join him by the water.

"United in their fear of the unknown. The Neanderthal is running scared, my fellow mutants!" Erik looked over towards Charles and I, he was walking alongside him out to the shore. "Go ahead Charles, Claudia tell me I'm wrong,"

Charles narrowed his eyes at Erik, but reluctantly raised two fingers up to his temple. While I also looked to the water, probing out to sense what emotions were running through the heads of the men on the ships and sadly I felt it. I felt the ships running together and if I concentrated more I could feel the guns turning towards us.

"He's not," I whispered and felt all, Alex's, Sean's, Hank's, and Raven's eyes look to me and then to Charles.

Charles, who slowly lowered his fingers, looked to Moira and nodded. Quickly she took off to the jet, to call off the attack or something. We waited, staring out at the ships when I felt a shift in the air and automatically let out an audible gasp as missiles from every ship fired heading straight for the beach.

We would all be dead.

Chapter Twenty-One: Whose Side Are You On?

[shaineybainey]

“Noble Intentions”

Lab Rats [T]

The Lab Rats and Mighty Med teams face off with the greatest threat to humanity yet: The Incapacitator, a supervillain bent on becoming the most powerful in the planet. …Which makes things super awkward for Leo, considering that their newest nemesis is his father. AU. Lab Rats vs Mighty Med redux.

** DISCLAIMER: SEE CHAPTER ONE FOR DISCLAIMER **

tagging: @vcnting @serpent-princess @clockradio93 @verified-dumbass @weareoutofmaplesyrupdave @aaaaahhhhh1234 @neshatriumphs @lettersandwhiteroses

Special shout-out to @vcnting, @neshatriumphs, @clockradio93, and @verified-dumbass for the kind responses. I really appreciate you all. 

TW: mentions death of loved ones, allusions to crime

VII: The Night of Infinite Hours, Side A

Leo wonders if he should go out. It’s already late at night, about 10:49 PM, and the house lies in relative silence. Relative, because he can still hear faint echoes of tools being used down in what he assumes is the garage.

On the one hand, he has a gauge on his father’s whereabouts. If the music of a man at work stops, then he can just hurry back into the room.

On the other hand, his father has the nose of a bloodhound when it comes to things not being right. He can teleport, too. In one second, he can be up there and…

Leo doesn’t know. Before today, he used to think that although his father will hurt many, he will never hurt him. He still thinks his father cares about his safety and that he loves him, but now that thought has all turned acrid and defiled. He doesn’t know anymore if he’ll just get yelled at, get a gentle reproof, or actually get hurt.

He shakes his head. Maybe not the last one. Besides today, his father’s never laid a hand on him once. His father did acknowledge that he overdid it. He will probably never do it again.

Finding that good enough, he leaves the room, the shackle on his ankle lying on the floor with the few hairpins he’d found scattered under the rug. He looks out the door – right, left – and then comes to the hallway.

He realizes then that he doesn’t really have a destination. Where can he go? He’s free and outside. There must be someplace he could go to.

Then again, his father never showed him around the house – at least not yet. He talked about a sewing room downstairs where his uncle used to sleep in. He assumes the kitchen is somewhere downstairs, too.

From the sound of it, the garage is farther away yet still connected to the house.

He cautiously peers over the banister to check for any movement down the stairs. Nothing. He hears a song from the 70’s (Motown, he thinks, which has been playing since late afternoon). There’s also still the sound of tools being used.

Finding it safe, he crosses quickly and sticks closer to the walls.

In his wandering, he finds a locked room, a closet, the bathroom, and another room he assumes is locked also. Out of curiosity, he tries it.

He startles a little when the knob clicks open.

After checking behind him for company, he sneaks inside. There’s a light switch, but he doesn’t think it smart to call that much attention to his presence there. Straining his eyes around the dark room, he notices light from the moon shining through the window that the curtain has left exposed.

He carefully closes the door behind him, wincing as it squeaks when leaving it partly ajar. Finding it still safe, he heads over to the window then pulls it open.

“Ugh…” Leo mutters quietly as he does his best not to cough. Dust rains down the floor, and the palpable scent of mildew and mold dominates the air.

Still, the night sheds a different picture of the room. Under the silver glow, Leo sees that he’s found a nursery-turned-library. There’s a big shelf displaying photographs and a variety of books: cookbooks, story books, fiction. There are even some notebooks wedged in here and there.

Right beside it is a crib, unused for so many years.

Across the room, close to the window is a rocking chair. Sitting right beside it is the smaller shelf, a bunny stuffed toy on top, guarding the storybooks packed within.

It’s then he sees a toy flashlight. He takes a chance, and under the light of the night he shakes it then switches it on.

For some reason, it works.

Leo grins, victorious. He doesn’t know how long the battery will last so he resumes snooping.

He checks the smaller bookshelf first. He almost chuckles reading the titles: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss; Frog and Toad are Friends; The Biggest House in the World. It’s strange to imagine his father as a four year-old, sitting with his grandmother as she rocks the rocking chair, listening to her read a story to him.

He guesses it’s because it’s discordant, too - like the room. Peace versus war. Innocence versus knowing the world too much. It’s still hard to imagine that a quiet and normal life like that existed for his father before all of this.

Intrigued, he draws out The Biggest House in the World. It surprises him to see the name of the author: Leo Lionni. His mother told him that his father wasn’t present during his birth, and his father really didn’t appear in his life until he was six.

Still, he finds it a little funny that he shares the same name of the author who had some influence on his father’s childhood.

He opens the book up, intent to read, when he notices an odd spacing between the floorboards. It’s not very noticeable that he’s even surprised he caught it. It stands out, though, so much so that it presses on his curiosity until he can’t take it anymore.

So, he puts the book away then investigates.

Since the majority of it is stuck underneath, he carefully lifts the spinning shelf then moves it aside. He checks behind him for his dad, finds that the door is still as he’s left it, and then proceeds with his plan.

He sticks the nail on his right thumb in the slim space then attempts to lift it. It takes a couple of tries, but thankfully it’s loose enough that it eventually comes off.

When it does, he’s greeted by insulation foam, still firm but also yellowed with time. He pulls on it, unsatisfied.

It pays off. It comes with a soft tug and reveals a space as wide as a hand span and as deep as a hand span and a half. Tucked cozily within is a black safety box.

However, what wakes him up fully is the emblem on it: two Ms, one teal, one white.

Mighty Med.

“What?” he whispers. The hinges give the softest of squeals when he opens it.

Its contents are underwhelming yet still intriguing. There are folded pieces of paper; a couple of cards that he assumes are credentials; some photographs; and a few pins that glint under the flashlight.

He picks up a card wedged inside a folded paper. The ID has considerably yellowed under the lamination, but the print is still legible. In fact, the picture on it has been left clear enough by time that he can still see how similar he looks to the man on it.

Dr. Hezekiah Castle, the name on it says. Chief Neurologist.

The simpler but unmistakably similar symbol of Mighty Med pops out at him.

Is this really Pops? I thought his name was Harold Jones? Was he a doctor at Mighty Med? Leo wonders. From his father’s stories, he’d always gotten the impression that his grandfather worked as a desk clerk in a local office. Never a doctor.

Now he wonders if what his father told him is just something he was made to believe.

Putting the ID back, he picks up a photograph next. It shows the same man, but this time there’s a woman with him. He’s hugging her from behind, both of them smiling brightly at the person taking the picture as they lean on the hood of a sea green Cadillac.

He turns it over and sees the note: To my darling one – I love you, my love, with all my heart. You’ll forever be the ‘solstice’ of my life.

A frown furrows his brows. Solstice.

Why was that emphasized?

He pockets the picture, sure that his grandparents wouldn’t mind him keeping a picture of them as a young couple. He finds another ID in the box—but this one is sturdier, more proud and pronounced.

There isn’t a picture, just a name: Doris Snow. NASA. West Area Computers.

The information that rushes in like riptide stuns Leo. He was told that his grandfather was an office worker, his grandmother a housewife who was beloved by many of their neighbors and friends. Now he’s finding out they weren’t who they seemed? That they were actually, respectively, a respected neurologist and a genius mathematician?

Voracious for more of their life, he leafs through the box for any other interesting finds. He finds a letter from his grandmother to his grandfather a few days after his father was born. He also finds an enamel pin that looked like a ricocheting shooting star.

He glances behind him, finds no one there, and decides he’ll look at one more paper before heading back. He picks up one, tucked underneath the pile, and opens it, expecting to find another handwritten memo.

His brows furrow as he sees the typewritten letter, which comes as a shock of crudeness after all the personal documents he’s seen. He skims it, expecting nothing.

Then, ice washes over him.

He shuts the letter close.

No. He didn’t read that. It kind of makes sense, but…

His brain buzzes. There are questions, puzzle pieces, and answers that fly around like a tornado in his head.

The words stick out: proposal for a special unit; Doris Snow (codename: Solstice); for the benefit of earth.

League of Heroes.

Incredulous, he opens the letter again and reads it closely.

He was right. He read it all correctly. It’s a letter of confirmation for potential recruits.

A letter of confirmation drafted by a superhero named Solstice.

Out of panic, he stuffs everything back in and closes the box. No. He can’t look at all of this right now. Does his father even know these exist? It’s buried under the floorboard, in a place only his grandparents would know to access. And his dad never mentioned any of this.

Did he not mention because he didn’t know? Or did he choose not to mention because he deviated from the trajectory of his whole family on purpose, and he didn’t want him to know?

He does his best to remain steady, even putting the flashlight down to work faster. However, his grip on the floorboard isn’t as strong as he thinks.

It lands with a thunk!

He grimaces, hissing at his clumsiness, and continues his work in the dark. His father can’t know he’s here, can’t know what he knows. He places the board back on the slot successfully then lifts up the smaller, swiveling bookshelf back into its place.

By the time he sits back on the heels of his feet, his heart is beating so loud that it drowns every other sound.

He takes a moment to calm his nerves. Then, he picks up the flashlight, setting the snail storybook on his lap.

“How’d you get out?”

Leo gasps, spinning around. He finds his father standing at the door, light from downstairs flooding past his feet. His chest prickles at the fear. Has he seen him and the box?

Joel flicks the light switch on, and for a minute Leo doubts the anger he thinks he sees on his father’s face. Joel looks around the room, and then he smiles. “You found the library.”

“I…I-I was just…” But the words don’t come out of his mouth.

Joel sighs, the smile on his face unmoving. “If you wanted out of your room, you could have just told me.”

“Dad, you chained me to the floor and told me I was a hostage,” he points out, now indignant. “Hostages don’t get the option of requesting out.”

“Come on, Leo. You know your case is different. I would have let you go a bit if you wanted to look around the house.”

Leo resists the urge to glare. He doesn’t know if it’s because of the nerves or because he’s tired, but his father irritates him highly now.

“Hey.” Joel grins as he comes and sits beside him. “You found Uncle RT’s favorite storybook. You know, he used to ask your Nana to read that to him every night.  And Nana always did, like it’s the first time she’s reading it to him. She’s so patient. We even had the French version of this. That’s why RT is so cocky. He thinks because he can speak French that he’s better than me.”

Nana. He turns his eyes down to the storybook and pretends to examine it. “Did Nana stay here with you and Uncle RT the whole time?” he ventures to ask.

“Mm-hm. Pops thought it was better for her to just stay with us and watch over us rather than go to work.”

“Like a housewife.”

“Yeah.”

He nods slowly, halfheartedly turning the page. “It would be nice if Mom did that, too. If she stayed home with me.”

“Well, she had to take care of you both. She didn’t…well, she didn’t have me like Nana had Pops.”

Leo looks at his father and stares thoughtfully. “If things were different – you know, if people weren’t evil, and Pops and Nana lived, and you still met Mom, would you…would you have married her?”

Joel chuckles humorlessly. “I know your mom probably hates my guts for running out on you both, but I knew neither of you would have normal lives with me in it. I’ve made many enemies; there’s no way any of them would leave you alone, or alive. That’s why I had to leave.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

His father looks at him for a long moment. Then, he smiles. “I would have,” he says. “If I have to marry her every day just to make up for how I’ve hurt her, I will. But things are different now, and there’s no undoing what’s been done.”

“Shakespeare would be jealous of this tragedy.”

Joel smirks at his son. “I still can’t work out how you got out.”

“I’d tell you, but I might need to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, so…”

Joel laughs.

With the room freer of tension, confidence fills Leo more. Still, he knows to be cautious. He makes a show of looking around the room before commenting, “With how nice this room is, I would have pegged Nana to be an interior designer or a librarian. Or, unless Pops was the one to put everything together.”

“No, they worked on it together when they found out they were going to have me.”

“Did they…” He hesitates. Will it be too direct? “Did they know you and Uncle RT might have some abilities when you grow up?”

Joel searches his face, eyes lightly narrowing. “Why’d you ask?”

Leo shrugs nonchalantly, hoping his father isn’t hearing the klaxon going off in his head. “Because, you know, you were kind of trying to see if I had them, too, when I was still, like, six.”

Joel laughs, bringing Leo some relief. “I only did that because I had them when I was young. Genetically, it was possible I passed something to you.”

“Well, maybe it won’t skip Uncle RT’s kids like it did with me.”

“Oh, I doubt you’d have any cousins. At least on my side,” Joel says, distracted by the opened window now. “That’s what absent superheroes took from him: they took away my trust in them forever, they took away his desire to have kids of his own. He’s afraid of leaving them suddenly like Nana and Pops left us.”

“Nana and Pops weren’t superheroes.”

“No. They were super basic, and super boring.” His father’s smile grows as he thinks back on his parents fondly. “But they were my favorite. Now, come on. It’s late. You have to get to bed. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

Leo gets back to his feet, following his father’s lead. “Big day, like…?”

“You’ll see,” Joel cryptically responds, pulling the curtain back on the window with a smirk.

Leo watches him closely. Suddenly, the same dread he felt when Bree told him Chase was attacked looms in his gut again. It occurs to him then that one of the reasons his father took him there was to use him against the superheroes.

Will tomorrow have something to do with that?

“Leo?”

“Oh! Okay, yeah I’m coming,” he says, turning off the lights then closing the door on his way out.

His father eyes the storybook tucked between his arm and his hip. “You’re not going to ask me to read that to you, are you?” he jokes.

“I’m 17. I can read storybooks on my own now,” Leo returns playfully.

Twenty minutes later, his father is back downstairs at the garage to wrap up. Meanwhile, he sits on the bed, his feet free of any binds this time, and he stares at the book his uncle loved as a child.

However, despite the huge snail on the cover, all he can focus on is the picture of his grandparents that he hid behind the wall of the book.

Solstice. His father doesn’t seem to know about her or who she might have been. To Joel Jones, she was nonexistent.

To him, though, her identity is very much alive and sure. She was Mrs. Doris Jones to many in the neighborhood, a housewife who raised her boys while her husband went to work.

But in reality, she was a Mathematician who worked at NASA, who at one point in her life met a neurologist perhaps during her career as a superhero.

And it seems her oldest child is not fully aware that his abilities were something he inherited from her.

All of us are hiding something, he tells his grandparents as they grin at him from the photograph.

Goosebumps creep up his forearms. Secrets.

Now he wonders if their deaths were truly a result of a random act of crime.

[bigskydreaming]

@seekingxanadu​

LOL I think you and I aren’t likely to ever agree on the subject of Jason’s role in the show, xanadu, as I actually like him being present and would enjoy seeing him end up more integrated into the team in the future. Yeah, there are a lot more classic Titans that they still haven’t gotten to, but IMO there’s a lot of reasons for that (like Wally and Roy currently being used elsewhere, Vic with the Doom Patrol, others perhaps ‘on hold’ because there’s always any number of projects or potential projects in the works that aren’t even announced to the public yet, etc).

Personally, I think its likely Jason’s role in the show and mythology has been expanded instead of introducing more Titans in his place for the same reason Hawk and Dove are here despite never being hugely present in Titans stories for the most part: they’re cheap.

Like tbh, that plays SO much more of a role than most people realize with shows like this, where budget concerns are constantly an issue, and special effects tend to carry the highest price tags. As far as the showrunners are likely concerned, the more they can bring in non-powered characters and give them screentime, the better....because it saves money.

For that matter, superhero projects belonging to the various live action shared universes love to cheat special effects whenever and wherever possible....and roster choices are absolutely made with an eye towards if any existing properties produced by the same companies have special effects that can be repurposed and used with other characters. Like, creating the special effect for the first time tends to be the most expensive part by far, whereas its often relatively simple and cheap to reuse it in a variety of ways....so they all like to do this as much as possible.

Just as an example, take the X-Men movies (sorry if they’re unfamiliar to you, they’re just the instances I can speak to as a sure example of this).....to most people, a LOT of the mutant characters used in the various films seem random as hell....like Azazel in First Class, and Sunspot in DOFP, etc. Thing is...those two and other characters were picked primarily because of the special effects. Azazel’s similarities to Nightcrawler wasn’t a coincidence, it was the point. The studio already had the special effect they’d created for Kurt’s teleportation power signature, and it’d been easily one of the most positively received and talked about special effects of the original trilogy....so they wanted to use it more. Cheap and easy, compared to making new ones for characters with entirely different powers. So by making Azazel one of the primary villains, they just used Kurt’s special effects and gave it a slightly different tint. Same thing with Riptide, Shaw’s other henchman in that movie....totally random choice given he’s never been remotely associated with the Hellfire Club and what they showed in the movie isn’t even really how his powers work in the comics...but the way they portrayed him in the movies allowed them to reuse some of the tornado effects they’d created for Storm in the original trilogy. Havok’s power displays were just repackaged versions of Cyclops’ special effects, and for Sunspot in DOFP they just reused stuff they’d developed in the original trilogy for Pyro...even though again, what Sunspot was shown doing in that movie isn’t remotely how his power works in the comics.

So like....this is a very very big consideration for studios with any and all superhero projects, both film and TV...its why WB picks nonpowered characters to center TV projects around whenever possible, like Arrow and Batwoman and the reason Hawk and Dove were referenced as being looked at for a possible spin-off pretty much since Titans started...and its not a coincidence that the Flash was the first superpowered character they chose to expand their TV universe with, as superspeed has always been one of the cheaper effects to create (its also why Smallville utilized Clark’s superspeed even more often than it did his superstrength). Same thing why when picking another ‘powered hero’ to add to Arrow early on, they went with Ray Palmer and gave him basically just an Iron Man style suit to start...because even when they eventually had him develop his shrinking power....again, super cheap. Size changing effects just involve shooting a lot of different takes using scale models or messing with proportions in post. Compared to what’s required for a lot of DC’s more high profile heroes....that costs nothing to do.

Odds are, Jason was originally introduced in S1 purely because they could use him to advance Dick’s solo storylines in ways very few other characters could allow for, given a key point of Dick’s story arc in becoming Nightwing over the course of two seasons has revolved around touching on where he’s been and come from, and how he’s now grown past that. To really make the most of that, you need something connected to his past, to Batman, and given its notoriously difficult and complicated to secure approval to use Bruce in any and all live action projects, with the sheer volume of different people you need to get on board with it....Jason was a much easier alternative.

And then once he was relatively well received, they jumped on the chance to expand his role because he enabled them to expand their core cast of characters without dramatically inflating their budget at the same time. Just like that’s why Hank and Dawn were never going anywhere any time soon.

So tbh....he’s very likely not taking anything away from any other Titans’ chances of appearing...since the same hurdles and reasons to take it slow are still there for a lot of the other characters. After Arrow ends, it might be a different story with that freeing up Roy to start making appearances...and who knows with Wally because even though he plays an entirely different version of Wally, bet you anything they’re waiting to be sure Keiynan is definitively done playing Kid Flash or the Flash show is for sure never going to bring him back, before considering either Wally for use elsewhere. Like, I know he already said he was done playing Wally but actors change their minds, so I doubt anyone in the studios took that as an immediate green-light to launch a new Wally project elsewhere.

This almost certainly played a factor in their killing off Garth in just his first appearance....water effects are notoriously hard to make look convincing, and this one’s on the writers too given that I bet people in the writers’ room in general weren’t pushing really hard to make Garth a core character for the show....a lot of TV writers reeeeeally hate trying to write for characters who are intrinsically affiliated with say, the ocean, if they’re not otherwise an ocean-themed show already.....because its just another version of why a lot of comic book writers say they have a hard time showcasing Arthur in JLA books, due to a lot of his most thematic abilities being so location dependent. (I mean, personally I say in both cases this is just a lack of imagination and not a good excuse for not using Garth or Arthur more, lol, but like, it is what it is. This tendency among writers as is still already exists).

And the DC expanded universe and which production companies are affiliated with which properties and studios and stations and all that is a huge complicated mess, so I’m not even going to try tracing the connections to verify for sure, but I’d be willing to bet Titans has access to either some of Supergirl’s special effects or some of Superman’s movie special effects or both (or possibly just to Superman special effects developed for various projects that have come and gone over the years without ever making it to completion). Either way, bet you anything that has as much to do with the decision to introduce Superboy into this particular ensemble, as does just them wanting to have a Super-family character in the mix and Superboy was next on the list, not already being used elsewhere.

*Shrugs* But yeah. Never underestimate the power of the dime even with something as fundamental as picking a core roster. Actually, ESPECIALLY with something that fundamental, since that’s the foundation any and all budget concerns spring from. As much as I love the original Judas Contract storyline, I’m not at all bothered to see Rose kinda shoehorned into Terra’s role in a truncated variation of it here....because first, that story’s been adapted a ton in a variety of different ways, so its not really a huge loss to not have it fully adapted again, but second.....its less likely that Rose took Terra’s role here and more likely that Terra was never remotely an option for the show given how ridiculously expensive her powers would be to render well....so they looked at what else they could make fit a similar role and decided hey, why not bring Rose into this as well, even though she’s not primarily associated with this generation of characters?

And Joey was obviously always a strong candidate to add to the cast as early as this, of course. My bet is other than possibly Roy, depending on WB’s overall plans for him, like, I would guess the next most likely Titans to show up/be added to the cast are Lilith, Mal and/or Karen. Telepathy’s cheap and easy to gimmick up some power signature for.....tbh, I wouldn’t be surprised if the only reason Lil HASN’T shown up yet is because they’ve been saving her for after the Jericho storyline is done, given that her powers would cut through all the stakes and suspense and reveal Joey was riding shotgun in Slade’s head from the very first time the Titans encountered Deathstroke this season. For that matter, it’d be extremely difficult to write her as not sensing the sheer chaos going through Dick’s mind this entire season and cutting off that storyline early, and it does seem they’ve known exactly where they wanted to go with Dick this whole time so I can easily see them having decided early on they viewed this as a necessary part of his evolution into Nightwing, and Lil’s mere presence would throw a spanner in those works.

And as for Mal and Karen, again, the shrinking powerset is relatively easy to pull off and its likely more just not wanting to invest in Karen’s suit/flight just yet that’s been the delay there, and Mal’s sonic powers OR his teleportation powers are both relatively easy and cheap.

And of course, other non-powered characters not usually affiliated with the Titans are always a possibility. I’d put money on freaking Golden Eagle being a more likely contender to show up than some of the other powered Titans, for that matter.

Anyway, just my industry take on the matter in general, lol. You know I’d always be for Jason as a Titan as I think he would have ended up one eventually if he hadn’t died when he did, and I’d love to have just one adaptation that doesn’t stick to his death and Red Hood storyline. He doesn’t need it to be an interesting character, just good writing. Its not like Bruce or Dick are definitively chained to one specific storyline outside of their own origin stories, so no reason Jason should have to be either. (And honestly, in line with everything I was talking about here......IMO the nonpowered characters are always a degree safer from being killed off than the powered characters. Doesn’t mean they’re ever totally safe, and it doesn’t mean the show’s necessarily ‘at capacity’ for powered/expensive characters already, but at a certain point the cast list likely will end up sticking with just the powered characters they have until one of those powered characters is killed or otherwise written off...before adding another ‘expensive’ character to take their place.)

But yeah, anyway, lol. Don’t know if that might make you a little more positively inclined to Jason taking up a slot on the show....all things considered, I truly doubt that it was ever a case of them picking to make Jason a series regular OVER adding another classic Titans character in that place instead. It really is more likely IMO that the cast list we have this season was more or less already otherwise in place and they just looked at things and said “we can’t really afford to introduce an additional character on top of the other ones we want to add already this season, like Joey, Slade, etc, and especially not one with special effects heavy powers...BUT we can bring Jason in as more of a presence in the ensemble and bump him up to series regular without too much trouble.”

[gold-from-straw]

Consequences - ch 3/3

How Cuba went down in the Consequences ‘verse... especially tackling Charles’ STUPID ‘just following orders’ comment! I hope you like it ^_^ Thank you so much for all the love this has had! This has been the first full fic I’ve written for this ship and everyone’s so lovely! I’ve got another story to come soon, the chapters will be a lot shorter but there are more of them. Thank you!

There was something different in Charles now, a resignation. He was quieter, even with the children’s training, spoke less of morality and the greater good, and when Erik narrowed his eyes at that realisation, he simply sent an image of his stepbrother being led off into one car to return to California while his stepfather carried on into New York city without a backwards glance. Who am I to speak of ethics? he asked softly, and turned to walk away.

Erik followed him, caught up with him in the corridor outside the study and pushed him against the wall, kissing him breathless. “You’re the only one I’d listen to,” he answered, and lifted him up, breathing kisses into his neck as he clung to him like he was drowning.

They lay close together afterwards, not bothering to emerge for dinner, wrapped in each other’s arms until the sun rose on the day they’d be flying to Cuba.

Charles flew with his jaw set, his eyes hard, and Erik was the one left to encourage the team, keep them calm and safe. He kept his focus on them, on the serenity needed to protect the children, both older and also so much younger than he had been when he first hunted down the same evil.

He faced Shaw. He heard Charles’ voice in his head, calming him, talking him down from the panic. I will not let you die here, Charles said, and Erik found his balance. He whipped the helmet away from his monster, felt Charles’ mind wrapping around Shaw’s, holding it in place while Erik drove the coin forwards, his mother’s brave smile at the front of his every thought.

As the coin burrowed into Shaw's skull, Erik thought he heard a truncated scream of pain .But it was gone in an instant, and he kept his focus, driving the coin through and out, ending it. He almost slumped when he saw Shaw’s body fall an empty, lifeless thing with no more power than a stuffed animal, and for a moment hysteria overwhelmed him. Was this it? Was it truly over? How could that be possible, with him still living? Charles had told him, over and over, breathed into his ear, into his very mind as they moved together, as they played chess, as they handed each other coffee, he wasn’t going to let Erik die destroying Shaw, but… he hadn’t realised until now that it had all felt like a dream, an impossible wish.

He stumbled out of the risen submarine, met Charles’ eyes as he staggered out of the downed jet, and laughed. Charles smiled, his face tense, and Erik started forwards to him, and stopped.

“The missiles… they’re firing…”

“What?”

“Charles, check! They’re both firing, both navies.”

Charles turned to the ships, his face going slack with horror, and he turned back to Erik, speechless.

“Oh my God,” Raven said, almost under her breath. Moira raced back to the jet, screaming into the radio.

Erik felt the rage rise in his blood again, tipping the balance, only this time, the balance had shifted. Shaw was dead. He had done the impossible, and come out the other side, alive. He held up his hand as the missiles screamed towards them, and stopped them, every single one bobbing in the air, peacefully.

How dare they? How dare they try to take everything from him again, after everything he’d lost, everything they had all given to stop the annihilation of their world, and the humans had the audacity to fire on him? He turned the missiles, his focus complete, and every single one aimed itself towards its origin.

“Erik… Erik, please, no…” Charles’ voice shook, and he reached out to touch Erik’s arm. Flashes of panic started to come through. Going to die Someone save us.

Erik projected calm towards him. He wasn’t going to let anything happen to Charles, not to any of them. Our Father, who art in Heaven. “Please… oh God, there are innocent people on those boats!”

The panic rose as the missiles got closer to the ships, I’m never going to see them again and Erik wished, selfishly, please God let us get through this that he could block out Charles’ worry, my children, what will they do the way it was disrupting his concentration. Will she name the baby after me

He frowned, and several missiles fell into the water. “What?”

“They’re just oh God I should never have signed on following my little girl, only four orders will it hurt Erik”

And suddenly, I don’t think I can handle feeling them all die.

“What?” he said sharply, and all the missiles fell. Erik turned and grabbed Charles’ wrists, shaking him, and the skin contact made the voices flow faster are we safe oh my God my heart is it gone what are we going to do oh God please don’t let them tell us to fire I can’t do this we’re outgunned I just want my babies I just want my mother oh God, my head

“Charles!” Erik snapped. “Block them out, shut them down!”

“I… I can’t, it hurts!”

“You, Azazel,” he said, turning to the teleporter, held tightly by Hank. Like all of Shaw’s people, he had seemed to deflate when Erik had emerged unscathed. “Take all of us away - if you get us all to safety you can go wherever you like after that, I don’t care, just…”

He nodded, and everyone gathered together, linking hands. Erik wrapped his arm around Charles’ waist, held Moira’s hand tightly, and nodded. The beach disappeared in red smoke.

They appeared in a field, and Charles sighed, his tense muscles relaxing and slumping closer to Erik. Erik glared at Azazel, not willing to trust him yet. “Where are we?”

“Wisconsin,” Azazel said. “Am I free to go now?”

“He’s telling the truth, Erik,” said Charles, straightening up. “Although,” he added, looking from face to face in the Hellfire club. “You’re welcome to come with us, if you’re interested in a different path for mutantkind. One that doesn’t lead to a nuclear winter.”

“The humans obviously aim to destroy us,” Erik ground out. “We’d be better staying together, all of us.”

“Not all of them wish to destroy us,” Charles said softly, glancing to Moira.

Erik rolled his eyes. “Only the ones in power, Charles.”

Charles made a face, and rubbed his temples. “I’m too tired to argue.” He looked up at Janos, Angel and Azazel, shifting uncomfortably. It didn’t take a telepath to see their mistrust and confusion. “The offer stands. Stay as long as you like.”

“Why are you so trusting?” Angel shook her head.

He gave a false smile. “I’m a telepath. I don’t have to trust you. I know when someone means me harm.” His face hardened. “And you should know I am perfectly capable of protecting myself and those I care about.”

Angel stared at him, then nodded once, sharply. “I’m in.”

Janos shrugged. Azazel held out his hand. Erik held tight to Charles’ shoulder, just in case the teleporter had a trick up his sleeve, but Charles simply shook on the agreement. “If I give you the location of the mansion, will you be able to take us all there?”

He nodded, and the world disappeared once more, replaced by the lawn outside the Westchester mansion. Erik felt something under his ribs uncoil at the sight of the pretentious old pile. As if some part of his body and mind recognised it as home. Charles smiled tiredly at him, and at that, his entire soul recognised home.

They couldn’t simply collapse into their room as they both wanted. There were rooms to find for the new people, by unspoken agreement in a different wing to the current inhabitants of the house. There were ground rules to cover, and even, thanks to Alex and Angel, a screaming fight about Darwin, which resulted in both of them storming off in opposite directions, Alex down to the bunker to burn off some grief.

When Erik started noticing Charles wincing and rubbing his temple every time someone snapped or glared, he realised the steady migraine he was feeling wasn’t actually his own. He slapped some money in Sean’s hand, told him to call for pizza, and hauled Charles off to bed.

“I’m really fine,” he protested, which was clearly utter rubbish by the way he was rubbing his eye socket. “I should be there to keep the peace.”

“It’ll be good for them to sort out their own problems - you’re not their parent, Charles.”

He sighed and let Erik manhandle him into the huge, dimly lit room. “It’s only eight o’clock. Would you like a drink?”

Erik just shrugged and sat on the window seat, staring out at the dusk. Now that he was finally at rest, his mind went back through the battle. It had always been like this. He’d focus on the present until the fight was over, then, exhausted, he’d revisit it and dwell, and analyse.

It was a good thing. He always remembered more than he realised at first, and he’d learned new techniques and strategies from analysing his own actions after the fact. He was just a little surprised that it was hitting him while he was still in Charles’ company. He had thought it would wait until he was completely alone.

Now he revisited the beach, a fierce pride at having lifted the sub, irritation at having lost his focus and allowed Riptide to knock the jet off course. At least he had been able to stop Charles from tumbling around as they crashed, and he shuddered at how close they had been to ending the battle there.

The fight with Shaw drew out in his mind, every moment observed from every angle. Charles was right, there was no new peace to be found from killing the man, but he did feel like he could take a breath at last, his greatest demon vanquished, his greatest threat eliminated.

And then the nukes. He clenched his fists at his sides, the thought of those ungrateful, stupid humans turning their weapons on them - and Charles! Now, without the whirlwind of voices coming through from the humans’ minds he remembered what Charles had said, how he’d tried to stop him - ‘they’re just following orders’. How dare he? What was he thinking?

There was a clatter of glass on glass and Erik looked up to see Charles staring at him in horror, whiskey dripping onto the tablecloth. “Erik… oh my friend, I’m so… I can’t believe I said it like that, I’m so sorry.”

Erik raised his eyebrows as Charles approached him, his hands fluttering. “I’m sorry, I heard… my boundaries are all shot to hell since… but I’m so sorry for being so thoughtless!”

“Charles, Charles! It’s fine,” he said, standing and touching Charles’ cheek.

“It’s not,” said Charles, looking distraught. Erik could hear his regret, and a current of fear underpinning it, and he frowned. Charles closed his eyes, and the fear peaked. Stupid stupid careless insensitive stupid boy.

“Charles! Calm down, you’re projecting.” Charles gasped and opened his eyes again, and the sound cut off completely. So did the throbbing pain in his head. Erik had expected that at least some of the pain would have been his own headache.

He pushed it to the side for a moment, running his fingertips through Charles’ hair. “It was… a stupid thing to say,” he admitted, and Charles nodded, eyes damp. “I’ve already lost one family to men who were just following orders - and I know that’s all it is for some of them. They were just too weak, too scared to do what was right, so they did what was easy.” He pulled Charles close and kissed him on the forehead. “I refuse to lose another family to men just following orders.”

Charles whimpered and pressed himself close to Erik, his fingers gripping his shirt. “Erik, I know… I know you probably don’t want me anywhere near… it’s so selfish, but… please…”

“What is it, liebchen?” he asked, trying to pull back to look at Charles’ face.

Charles struggled against him, trying to press closer. “I… I need…”

“What do you need, love? Anything.”

Charles reached up a trembling hand to Erik’s temple. “Please?” he whispered.

Erik held his hand there and nodded. “Of course.”

Before he even finished speaking Charles was sinking into his mind with another whimper, and he gasped. Charles seemed to be completely immersed in him, his mind spreading out with a greedy sigh, tangling into his very soul. I’m sorry I’m sorry so selfish I need you, your mind, so safe, I’m so sorry.

“Why are you sorry?” he asked, with a little laugh.

 It must feel so invasive… I just… you’re my anchor. You feel so wonderful.

“I’m glad to hear my mind is comfortable. And it doesn’t feel invasive,” he said, wrapping his arms around Charles’ back, plastering him against his chest. “I like it.”

“You… you do?” So cool so safe doesn’t hurt any more

“Why was it hurting?” Erik frowned.

Charles pulled back, tendrils of thought going silent. Erik tightened his arms. “Charles,” he said, warningly.

“It’s fine, I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not. Don’t lie to me, my friend. What was it? When you heard all the sailors?”

Charles shook his head, and tried to pull back again, but as he did so, a memory slipped out. A coin, a struggle to hold two minds, and a scream that went on and on.

Erik stumbled back, gasping, his hands pressed up to his head.

“Erik! Erik, are you OK?” Charles scrambled for him, touching him on the face, the head, the hands.

“Wh… why didn’t you tell me?” he croaked, his throat as raw as if it had been him screaming. “You felt Shaw die, you felt the coin… I hurt you!” His eyes widened with horror. “The scream that cut off, that was you!”

“I’m so sorry,” Charles said, his blue eyes rimmed with red and tears. “I never meant for you to feel it, I pulled back from you as soon as…”

“I don’t want you to apologise for that!” he shouted. “I hurt you, Charles, how can you be apologising?” He grabbed his hands, torn between shaking him and protecting him from the world. “Why didn’t you tell me? I would have… I would have…”

Charles closed his eyes. “There was nothing you could have done, no other way for us to… to kill Shaw. And I know we had to, I agree with that. I told you I would take the consequences with you, Erik, and this was one of them. If I hadn’t been in control of his mind, he would have been able to absorb the energy of the coin.”

“You say you will take the consequences with me, but it seems like you’re unwilling to actually share these consequences with me! Charles…” he cupped his face in both hands. “Are you trying to punish yourself?”

“No! Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Because that would, truly, be ridiculous. Sebastian Shaw was a monster, who did his best to turn me into a monster just like him, and you do not need to force yourself to suffer for his death.”

“I’m not, Erik,” he said, sighing and slumping into him. “It really was the only way.”

“Then why, when you started feeling the pain, did you pull away from my mind? We were in this together, I would have borne the pain with you. I should have, as the one inflicting it.”

“It… it would have distracted you.”

He raised his eyebrows. “It could have distracted you, but you managed to hold him immobile the entire time. You may say you’re not punishing yourself, but I think you are. I think you’re punishing yourself for your stepbrother, as well.”

Charles seemed to give up, closing his eyes and looking wretched. “My stepbrother… I went too far.”

“He was hurting you. He hurt Raven. What were you supposed to do? Just allow him to do so?”

“I was stronger than him--”

“No, you weren’t. Your mind was stronger than his, it’s true, but you weren’t in full control of your powers then. You acted out of fear for you and your sister, and you stopped the abuse.”

“I went too far. I could have--”

“But you didn’t. You can’t punish yourself for that forever, you know.”

“I deserve to be punished for taking a life.” Charles was almost whispering now, and Erik wrapped his arms around him. Even now he could feel flashes of pain and grief and guilt.

“You know, you can come back,” he said softly, lifting Charles’ hand to brush over his temple.

Charles looked up in shock. “Oh, I’m sorry, am I… God, my defences are just shocking right now, I’m so sorry.”

“Stop saying sorry, Charles! I’ve said before, you’re welcome.”

“Are you sure?” he asked, looking up, deep blue glinting through black lashes. “I know it’s uncomfortable and intrusive, and--I just, your mind, it anchors me, I sometimes don’t even… I think my mind reaches out for yours without my intent.”

“I like it,” he shrugged. “I like the thought that I’m holding you in my mind. Protecting you.”

Charles stared at him for a moment, then surged forwards and kissed him, and their minds sank into each other at the same time. Charles sighed and went pliant in his arms, nuzzling into his neck, tendrils of thought twining around Erik’s, soft and peaceful.

“We’ll face it all together,” he said softly, stroking Charles’ hair, the strands matted with sand and sweat. “We’ll fight, and we’ll protect each other, and we won’t let anyone get away with treating us, or other mutants, like we’ve been treated. And we’ll face the consequences together, you hear? No more hiding the pain from me.”

Charles didn’t answer, but pressed even closer, clinging on, and in his mind Erik felt a whisper of yes, thank you, I love you. He smiled, and wrapped him in love.

[daddy-winter]

I was tagged by @cas-fulleditmode

Tagging: @gunthermunch (again), @a-kind-red, @cillaben, @naelu and anyone else who wants to do it!!!

Traits: cheerful, creative, friendship

You have to make a simself and put whatever you wish there, traits, anything about you.  After the keep reading thingy are +100 questions I found that you can answer if you want, but you don’t have to.

𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨:

What is your full name? Amelia

What is your nickname? Milly, Mimi, Mills, or if autocorrect has anything to do with it, Milky

Birthday? December 11 (eyes emoji)

What is your favorite book series? Harry Potter

Do you believe in aliens or ghosts? Aliens ofc

Who is your favorite author? Mitch Albom

What is your favorite radio station? The Last Podcasr On The Left?? idk theyre my uncles

What is your favorite flavor of anything? Vanilla!!

What word would you use often to describe something great or wonderful? “oh my god???”

What is your current favorite song? Riptide - Vance Joy

What is your favorite word? Extraordinary

What was the last song you listened to? Smithereens - Twenty-One Pilots

What TV show would you recommend for everybody to watch? THIS IS US (finished first season and im sobbing what the hell ok)

What is your favorite movie to watch when you’re feeling down? What We Do In The Shadows

Do you play video games? YOU KNOW IT

What is your biggest fear? My anxiety coming back

What is your best quality, in your opinion? My kindness

What is your worst quality, in your opinion? Jealousy i guess?

Do you like cats or dogs better? dogs even though my dog has the worst farts im smdh i raised you

What is your favorite season? Winter!

Are you in a relationship? bitch im tryin

What is something you miss from your childhood? lack of responsibility 

Who is your best friend? my friend(s), Tori and Maisie!!

What is your eye color? Green

What is your hair color? Brown to blonde ombre

Who is someone you love? john boyega my mum

Who is someone you trust? My mum

Who is someone you think about often? ,,,,,,my mum

Are you currently excited about/for something? I’m excited for Mindhunters season two (WHENEVER IT COMES OUT)

What is your biggest obsession? Currently Michael Langdon from AHS: Apocalypse (HE DESERVED BETTER GODDAMMIT)

What was your favorite TV show as a child? The Emperor's New Groove 

Who of the opposite gender can you tell anything to, if anyone? None spring immediately to mind

Are you superstitious? Occasionally

Do you have any unusual phobias? When someone walks upstairs behind me (could be someone i know but ill still fucking BOOK IT)

Do you prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it? Behind

What is your favorite hobby? Drawing and writing

What was the last book you read? The Five People We Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom

What was the last movie you watched? What We Do In The Shadows

What musical instruments do you play, if any? None, im an uncoordinated swine

What is your favorite animal? Greenland Shark

What are your top 5 favorite Tumblr blogs that you follow? -

What superpower do you wish you had? Teleportation!

When and where do you feel most at peace?  At home.

What makes you smile? My friends

What sports do you play, if any? ,,,,,,,,,,, next

What is your favorite drink? Coffeeeeee

When was the last time you wrote a hand-written letter or note to somebody? ahhahahahhaah NEXT

Are you afraid of heights? Nah

What is your biggest pet peeve? When people dont use manners jdkdjdk

Have you ever been to a concert? Yep!

Are you vegan/vegetarian? Nope

When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up? Paleontologist 

What fictional world would you like to live in? Just like,,,, any alternate political timeline djdkdjk

What is something you worry about? School, mocks, revision, boys, girls,,,, oh,, one thing

Are you scared of the dark? Partially.

Do you like to sing? I do!

Have you ever skipped school? Like for the last 4 years except this school year

What is your favorite place on the planet? Tenby

Where would you like to live? Anywhere in Wales

Do you have any pets? Two dogs!!

Are you more of an early bird or a night owl? Constantly tired pigeon

Do you like sunrises or sunsets better? Sunsets

Do you know how to drive? not yet!

Do you prefer earbuds or headphones? Earbuds??

Have you ever had braces? Nope

What is your favorite genre of music? Movie OSTs, Game OSTs, Indie, Rock-ish

Who is your hero? My mum

Do you read comic books? Sometimes!

What makes you the most angry? poltics (eyes ohio)

Do you prefer to read on an electronic device or with a real book? Real book

What is your favorite subject in school? English.

Do you have any siblings? No.

What was the last thing you bought? Work out clothes

How tall are you? 5′3

Can you cook? Somethings???

What are three things that you love? Too many!!

What are three things that you hate? Ignorance, intolerance and impatience

Do you have more female friends or more male friends? Female

What is your sexual orientation? Boys and girls (atm im swinging more toward men though im smdh)

Where do you currently live? England

Who was the last person you texted? My dad

When was the last time you cried? Like,,,,, two hours ago (This Is Us finale)

Who is your favorite YouTuber? Call Me Kevin 

Do you like to take selfies? Depends on the outfit

What is your favorite app? This godforsaken hellsite 

What is your relationship with your parent(s) like? Good? better with my mum

What is your favorite foreign accent? European or Welsh

What is a place that you’ve never been to, but you want to visit? like nowhere ??? hate planes

What is your favorite number? 11

Can you juggle? god no

Are you religious? Satanism sounds p good but no

Do you find outer space or the deep ocean to be more interesting? Deep Ocean,

Do you consider yourself to be a daredevil? Sometimes??

Are you allergic to anything? Yes.

Can you curl your tongue? Yes.

Can you wiggle your ears? No.

How often do you admit that you were wrong about something? Most times i believe

Do you prefer the forest or the beach? Forest.

What is your favorite piece of advice that anyone has ever given you? Everything will be okay in the end

Are you a good liar? God no

What is your Hogwarts House? Hufflepuff

Do you talk to yourself? No

Are you an introvert or an extrovert? Extrovert

Do you keep a journal/diary? Nope

Do you believe in second chances? Yes, but not for all people

If you found a wallet full of money on the ground, what would you do? leave it probably

Do you believe that people are capable of change? Yes.

Are you ticklish? Yes.

Have you ever been on a plane? Yes.

Do you have any piercings? Nah

What fictional character do you wish was real? Jack Pearson :,,,,)

Do you have any tattoos? Nope

What is the best decision that you’ve made in your life so far? To go on anti-anxiety meds

Do you believe in karma? yep.

Do you wear glasses or contacts? No.

Do you want children? Sometimes

Who is the smartest person you know? -

What is your most embarrassing memory? -

Have you ever pulled an all-nighter? yep!!

What color are most of you clothes? Basically all of them

Do you like adventures? Sometimes?

Have you ever been on TV? Yes

How old are you? 15

What is your favorite quote? “We cannot become what we want by remaining what we are”

Do you prefer sweet or savory foods? What richard said

(if you read through that, thank you!!!

[darkx-the-dragon-kn1ght]

Chapter 41- Part 7

Mmm, the tiles are back…kinda. Where's Xera getting rotated to? The bottom? Okay-

Well, no way to get to the right side for now, so let's go beat up this lady on the left.

Huh? Team Meteor's…not causing the earthquakes too? Am I reading into that right?

Well, we'll have to solve that mystery after this battle. Let's just see what Eruption does.

Well isn't that just peachy-

ISN'T THAT EVEN PEACHIER-

It can try and Sing more all it wants, but Earth Power ought to put a stop to it!

Now this one, I can send in Riptide for.

Just like before, we should get by using just Water Pledge.

Ooh, that…might be a problem. I need to remember to keep track of that…

Well- I would send in Crater for that, but what her current HP, Future Sight could easily kill her. So maybe Prong would be better?

If I use Bug Buzz enough, it should be fine…

…Mmmm…it's definitely gonna use an Electric attack next, but I'm still worried about the Future Sight…ah, to heck with it, I'm switching in Crater to take the Electric attack!

Like that! Now we can kill with Earth Power!

You're telling me- if Team Meteor's not causing the earthquakes, then what else could it be? I mean at least I was still right about the teleportation, but still-

Another tile? I don't know where that's gonna take me, lemme just heal at the Shard real quick-

Now, back to that room, and away we go!

…wut

Oh wait, actually, something did change- that rotation spot!

But which way to go…? Blue or magenta? I guess I can just…try blue first?

Nevermind, that just takes me back to the prior side, so I need to go pink.

Oooor not, okay, that's different now too. Where's this room lead to?

Previous

Next

[fullmetal-the-last-alchemist]

mtmte issue #50 hmmm boy the big 5-0 let’s get to it

love love love the cover

ohh jesus, nautica, what??

oh god cdrw my heart

optimus: ok what the fuck. what the whole fuck

starscream eugh

minimus can barely say the word ‘fun’ pffft

jesus, everyone’s goodbye messages are so fucked up and sad - and is everyone receiving the message? what’s up?

three weeks ago?? oh fucky

and we know this isn’t like an old message from the OTHER lost light, somehow, the one that the djd fucked up in the first place, bc nightbeat and nautica are there and bc of what cd said....hmmm

ok three weeks ago! brawl time, fuck yeah

I LOVE TAILGATE SO MUUUCHHH

rodimus is..so good

AWW MEGS GETTING TO SAY ‘AUTOBOTS, ROLL OUT’ IM SO :’)

riptide didn’t pass hghdkjshgjh

i can’t believe megs is running a classroom like that’s so funny to me somehow

oohhhh the eyeball thing said that weird symbol to skids during the whole tyrest thing??? hmmmmmmmm

oh my GODDDD, nightbeat is SO obnoxious

uhhhhhh megs? you good? you gooch, buddy? pal?

hghhHF DID HE JUST PUNCH HIS HUSBAND??? MEGS NO

megs.....

‘i’ve never been happier’ ;___; my FUCKNG kokoro

‘THOUSANDS - well actually five’ HHFHDSKJH swerve i love u - but also WHat is wrong with u and also, fuck, cdrw and rung and tailgate?? oh geez oh boy

hearing things?? ooooh

cyclonus: i have never shown weakness in my entire life, ever

ooh it’s like, a worst nightmare kinda thing?? spicy as FUCK, thank u

megs: u do realize he uses bad grammar to distract u from stopping him from doing whatever he wants

mags: WAIT WHAT-

ough i love whirl in the best of times

rodimus: this is a teleport drive, nautica built it so i would shut the fuck up

ok loooooong page, long long page of a lot of darkness, ok, alright

big sphere..big sphere-y

oh we’re back on the necrobot’s..planet..? i saw some dying flowers, though, so that can’t be a good sign....

ok explosions time! oh fucky

OK MORE EXPLOSIONS! oh geez there goes nautica’s face, fuckkk

HH CYCLONUS IS PROTECTING TAILGATE FROM THE BLAST, OUGHH MY HEART

hghdfgHHHGFHDJFG REWIND!!! RIDING!!!! ON CD’S BACK!!!! IM GONNA CRY i know it’s in the bg of a very big panel with a very big explosion but!!! that’s THE best thing i’ve ever seen

ohhh no, the necrobot....thats...

ah so the psychic thing was the necrobot trying to warn them! too bad he didn’t think of the fact that they’re all stupid dumb gays who don’t think about anything, ever

me seeing getaway more like >:(

FUCK this guy

wait

everyone? let getaway out?

wait

what??

ok so getaway has a point, but, he’s being a fucking asshole about it, so fuck him

ohh fuck, getaway thot gun’d everyone after asking them those questions?? what a bitch..

‘you bastard.’ hhdjskhd same skids SAME

‘here kitty kitty’ hhfhdskhDHHHHHHHH

ah. fuck. the djd. well.. fuck

FUCK GETAWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GOD

ohh jesus, the djd and death...deathsaurus...i’m sorry but, god, that’s the worst name

hhHHHHHH THAT SHOT OF EVERYONE.. CDRW HUGGING....CYCLONUS PROTECTING THE TWO MINIS... EVERYONE LOOKING SAD..IM SO :’(

ok flashback, the lost light is some ship called u1? aight

ghost..skids..>? aight!

DRIFT...AND PIPES....IM SO SAD BUTALSO GOD I LOVE DRIFT, IMMEDIATELY READY TO SPIRITUALLY UN-HEX HIM

hghJDJHG PIPES WANTS A THREESOME WITH DRIFT AND RODIMUS IM

Leg Man...im laughing AND crying

‘love you, too’ hhhhHHHHH ;__________;

ok i am. so sad. my heart is hurting. jro why

but i also finally get to see TOASTER, the autobot who turns into a TOASTER. i feel blessed

‘FUCK OFF MEGATRON’ hhfkdsjh IM DYING

ok so that whole thing - all the flashback stuff - that was in a flashback, that was BEFORE the whole mutiny thing. interesting..

ok, so, fuck getaway

[mark-xeen]

Top 10 Unpopular opinions of IDW Transformers

This week to start off the countdown for the end of IDW I created a list of the top 10 unpopular opinions I had with the series. please be aware that these are just my personal silly opinions. And if you liked them or not. Then good for you for finding something I, myself couldn’t find or understand.

Warning it’s very long

1. I did not find TAAO all that enjoyable to read.

        Do not get me wrong, TAAO is a decent series. I just couldn’t really get that into it. I have a couple reasons why I didn’t enjoy it:

        Reason one (and the main one)- I’m not a big fan of stories revolving around politics. I just never find these sort of stories interesting and TAAO, which is a continuation of the Windblade series, is a story revolving around the politics and government of Cybertron, albeit with some good moments, similar to ex-RID and its continuation Optimus Prime.

        The second problem I had with the series was that it did a lot of “tell don’t show”, where we are told through character POV narrations and dialogue that certain characters or actions are good/just or bad/evil, but aren’t given much proof or present day story events or arcs that cement said claims. For example, with Elita-One we’re told she’s dangerous and shouldn’t become leader of Cybertron, but has barely done much of anything to prove these claims except being intimidating and saying “half-truths”/letting people believe lies. While these actions do raise caution, they don’t make her any worse than any other leader *cough*OPTIMUS!*cough*.

        The third problem I have with the series was the ending. Yes, I know the series was being cancelled by executives, but the ending with Windblade winning the election didn’t feel earned. While she was the least twisted of the candidates, but she never truly developed past or overcoame many of her flaws that she started with to become the leader Cybertron and, by extension, the colonies. Also, she only won through Starscream’s self-sabotage. While some of these problems could have been fixed if the series wasn’t cut short, I felt Scott should have handled the ending a bit better.

2.  I don’t like Windblade

        I know I’m going to be bashed and hated for this one but please hear me out. First I am a girl, a non-neurotypical girl with high functioning autism, but a girl none the less. Windblade’s gender and looks never bothered me- yeah, it was different, but not bad different. My issues with Windblade are just how the story treats her and her character.

        In term of character, Windblade’s personality and morality/standards are all over the place. Though she is shown to be kind hearted and compassionate, Windblade has been shown to lie, cheat, and perform actions outside the law and authority only when she feels it’s necessary. Yet if somebody else does anything even remotely similar, she will condemn them for it. To describe her morality, it’s a subjective morality with double standards. For example: When Optimus went against the council to free the Joes [HA2] in order to save Cybertron in First Strike, Windblade condemned him for it, but during the TAAO annual she also went against the council to tell all of Cybertron about Liege Maximo. It also doesn’t help that Windblade easily forgave Chromia for not only bombing and killing a few people, but also for trying to teleport Metroplex to Caminus which would’ve killed hundreds if not thousands of Cybertronians as a result.

        These issues with her character wouldn’t be as bad if the story didn’t gloss over it. This is where my main issue actually comes from: For every morally questionable thing Windblade has ever done, the narrative treats it as a good or necessary thing and she never truly faces any potential consequences from them. The worst thing that happened to her personally was Chromia going to jail and being tried for her crimes. Things like her cover up or her cheating in a race would’ve had big consequences if they were done by any other lead character. And, let’s be honest, if Bumblebee, Optimus Prime, or even Ironhide did even one of those things that Windblade has done, they would be chewed out by their comrades at best or become persona no grata to the public at worst if they were revealed.

3.   I don’t like Pyra Magna/Victorion

       The reason I don’t like Pyra Magna is very simple- she’s a one note critic character. Majority of the time she appears, she’s complaining and bashing Optimus for everything he’s ever done or believes he’s done. Sometimes even criticizing him for doing something she was criticizing him for not doing earlier. Making it near impossible to tell what her ideals are, her beliefs, or even what values she holds close. Making her criticisms about Optimus weak and criteria for a “perfect” Prime all the more vague. She essentially complains just to complain. Also she’s a terrible hypocrite: In one arc she hates Optimus for manipulating the colonists for his own purposes, but then starts doing the same thing to Slide- feeding and manipulating the colonist into embracing her hatred and bitterness towards the Junkions who killed her twin, referring to her desire for vengeance as justice, thus resulting in Slide becoming skeptical and bitter towards Optimus Prime as well as harboring a hatred and a desire to kill all beings she views as enemies (like Junkions and humans). Also, while she hates Optimus, she views Prowl as an ally. Yep. PROWL- the one who literally sees people as numbers. Though whether or not she actually believes he’s a good person or their goals just align is unknown. In short, she’s the Autobot equivalent of Starscream.

        Victorion isn’t much better. While her design and powers are cool to look at, she’s just Pyra Magna 2.0, but bigger. Her other components, the Torchbearers, individual personalities are almost nowhere to be found in there. Though to be honest the other Torchbearers didn’t have much personality to begin with. They pretty much served as Pyra’s comrades (or cheerleaders) who will pretty much always side and agree with whatever their leader says and participate in Optimus Prime bashing. The only things I remember is that two of them are sisters, two of them are lovers, and the single one Rust Dust is there. I’m not kidding this is literally all I can say about them as individuals.

4.   I don’t like the IDW version Optimus Prime.

        To be honest, I don’t considered him an interesting or complex character in the slightest. IDW Optimus Prime, in my opinion, is a character who writers spend so much time creating flaws in an attempt to make “realistic”, they forgot to give him any GOOD characteristics that could balance those traits. He doubts himself constantly, gives up easily, and ditches his responsibilities whenever he gets the chance. I know what you guys are saying, “But didn’t Rodimus do some of that in the G1 cartoon?” Yes, Rodimus has done that, but there is one small difference between the two: Optimus has been leader of the Autobots for millions of years, whereas Rodimus JUST became leader recently. I can understand and even sympathize with Rodimus, forced into leadership because his actions indirectly lead to Optimus’ death and now he has to lead the Autobots while being in the shadow of Optimus and dealing with his own guilt, but Optimus has been like this since the war and never learned or developed past these traits [HA4] even after the war ended. Also, for all of Rodimus’ flaws, at least he showed more care towards the people under him than Optimus. In fact, every time something goes wrong, he leaves them when things couldn’t be any worse or when he’s still needed. I just find it impossible to imagine how this guy managed to fight in a war for 4 million years against Megatron.

5.   I don’t think Lost Light is bad or a bad sequel to MTMTE.

        Lost Light really isn’t a bad a sequel or comic series in my opinion; maybe it’s because I focused more on comics where each issue has something going on besides the buildup for some climax. Don’t get me wrong, there has been build up for the Grand Architect and Cybertopia for a while, it’s just all the issues don’t feel like they’re only existence is to build up these two events. They have their own plots and arc where, while the buildup is there, it’s not in your face like some comics I’ve read in the past. Another thing I don’t get is all the hate for Robert using British words or slang when he writes- he’s from the United Kingdom, of course he’s likely to use words he’s used to hearing and speaking. It’s the same habit we do when any of us write: we use words and slang that are common to us.

        As a sequel, Lost Light hasn’t lost a lot of quality to its predecessor. While some areas do feel rushed, similar to TAAO, it had quite a bit of executive meddling going on in the background. However, despite feeling a little rushed in some areas, it still pretty well written. Also, I know some people complained about how some of the characters have regressed or become worse in Lost Light, but remember, the cast was betrayed and were (albeit unknowingly) thrown at the mercy of the DJD, a 500 Decepticon army, and Overlord, then, soon afterwards, believed Megatron, the reason the crew betrayed them in the first place, abandoned them to stay in the Functionist Universe. Of course they’re going to have major issues and regress to old habits, it’s how some people actually behave after going through a terrible event like that. Rodimus in particular who has been betrayed and had friends/comrades dying as a direct result before in IDW, would want revenge, it makes sense. Also, the Lost Light is, by far, one of the few series that have a pretty good depiction of someone dealing with betrayal. Seriously, when the Rod Squad meet up with First Aid, Thunderclash, and Riptide, Rodimus is so angry at them, he just refers to them as Mutineer 1 and 2. It’s nice because while he still largely blames Getaway and wants to kill him, he still acknowledges their role in the mutiny as well. Most writers would have a character betrayed by a group only blame the one who caused it, but here Roberts shows Rodimus is angry at the rest of the crew for what happened, though not the same amount as Getaway.

6.  I don’t like the “Shockwave is behind everything” twist.

        I always find the twist where one villain is directly responsible for everything messed up in the story to be a boring and bad twist. It makes everything that happens in the story feel kind of cheap; it makes all the things the characters have done, worked for, and/or struggled for in the past feel pointless because this one bad guy somehow planned for it. It also make the villain feel like a villain-sue to the point where when their actual plan is revealed, it feels almost ridiculous or stupid in comparison to all the things they had done just to get it to work. In terms of Shockwave’s plan itself: why? Seriously, he could have done so many things while trapped in the past, but decided to make sure everything happened the way it was written. Why? To prove religion is fake? I don’t know, but the things he claimed to be trying to stop, he caused them in the first place and his overall plan is so unclear and bizarre, I believe he’s just insane.

7.  I don’t hate Anode and Lug

        They’re not perfect, but they’re not the worst either. They’re side characters with questionable morality, but they’re neither main leads or treated as these amazing always right characters. Yes, Anode had a main role in the first arc. Yes, she decided to resurrect her Conjunx, Lug. But 1.) It was to introduce new readers to the rebranded series, and 2.) If you had the ability to bring your loved one back, wouldn’t you do the same thing? After the 1st arc the two of them were regulated to the background, occasionally participating in B-plot antics. Also, Anode herself doesn’t bother me as certain other characters do because she gets called out on her antics and her antics makes sense for her character- she’s selfish and reckless, thinking only about herself and Lug. Also, compared to some of the other Neutrals introduced in IDW, they aren’t bashing the Autobots constantly during the comic- which, to me is a breath of fresh air. So yeah, while they’re not my favorite characters, they’re nowhere near my least favorite characters.

8. I do not hate the Hasbroverse idea.

        I thought it was an interesting idea with a bunch of the Hasbro’s old toy lines sharing one universe with a chance to interact with one another. It’s just the execution of the Hasbroverse that sucked: bad writing, bad pacing, too many crossovers back to back, and unnecessary and terrible redesigns on several characters in an attempt to attract more viewers. While ROM, Action Man, and Micronauts were good additions to the TFs, the rest was not well managed or written. If the editors, writers, and the artists thought about what made these series unique and special and not what was trendy, they may have had an amazing expanded universe. But poor decisions in the writing and editorial departments messed up what could have been a fun and interesting expansive universe. If they tried to make another Hasbroverse in the future, I would give it another shot.

9. I did not enjoy the Autobot faction origin story.

         I know the premise of the origin story was to create a morally grey story for both factions, but I felt all it did was make the Autobots out to be even bigger jerks than the Decepticons. I wouldn’t have minded having a few Autobots originate from less than stellar backgrounds, but majority of the Autobots who did show up in flashbacks were shown to be a part of the police forces who worked and aided the corrupt senate, or worked in a twisted institution that brainwashes anyone who was considered a threat to the government. With a few exceptions, almost every Autobot that was shown had either turned a blind eye to or actively participated in the messed up stuff the government was doing to its population. It’s not creative, it’s lazy. Though Barber’s and Roberts’ writing have made the group’s origin more tolerable and complex, the damage was done. And, if anything, it makes it even more baffling why anyone that wasn’t already a part of either group even wanted to join the Autobots in the first place.

10. All the terrible things that happened to the Lost Light’s mutinous crew was completely deserved.

         Okay, I know the crew, with the exception of Getaway and Atomizer, did not mean to leave Rodimus and his allies to be killed by either the Galactic Council or DJD (which nobody, not even Getaway, was aware of), and when they learned what actually happened they were horrified. However, before the message they had several red flags about Getaway being a, while more efficient, bad captain. First, Getaway admitted about using the Nudge gun on anyone who didn’t agree with his mutiny. Soon afterwards they learn he also made a deal with the Galactic Council-you know, the ones that HATE technological lifeforms. Then, later on, we find out Getaway knew a faster way to get to Cybertopia: a series of quantum tunnels known as the Warren that he learned about while he was held captive by Tyrest. The twisted part about this was that one of the reasons for Getaway’s mutiny was how the quest was taking forever to find Cybertopia. So he knew a way to get to Cybertopia, but waited until after the mutiny occurred to share the information. And let’s not forget how no one they left behind was contacting them days or even weeks after the mutiny. Did they honestly believe none of them wouldn’t called or more likely yell (and swear) at them for leaving them on Necroworld?

        To be honest, I think the reason why it took them so long to realize Getaway was bad was because once they admitted Getaway was in the wrong, then, by extension, they would also be admitting that they themselves were in the wrong too. It’s probably the reason why they didn’t try to contact the others all that time as well- they wanted to believe they were in the right so badly. Calling them would admitting to it as well, that’s why they waited. As a result, they ignored all the warnings and red flags surrounding Getaway until it was too late. Was what happened to them awful and terrible? Yes. Definitely. Without a doubt. But when you put a lot blind faith into someone who is shown to do questionable stuff you’re essentially asking for something bad to happen to you