#due to slashing resistance from rage

[rnelodyy]

"Deadlier" in this context doesn't mean "more PCs will actually literally die", it just means "harder". As someone who has been playing D&D weekly for the last 3 years, I don't think that "deadlier" is a good metric by which to judge campaign difficulty. 5e is pretty forgiving when it comes to death (like, unless someone stabs you while you're unconscious, you have to go at least 2 entire rounds without being healed to actually die even with the worst possible dice luck), so preventing deaths is actually pretty easy.

Vox Machina died so much because a) the players were less experienced, and b) they usually didn't have their main healer on hand. Pike was gone for large parts of the campaign, so that left Vex and Scanlan as the only two people with healing spells, except Scanlan only had Healing Word and needed his bonus action for Inspiring people, and Vex was a half-caster who only had Cure Wounds. Especially at higher levels, it's very important to have at least one person in the party who can heal multiple people at once, and without Pike, VM didn't have that. Pike's priority was also usually dealing damage, so she usually wouldn't start healing until someone was down.

For the Mighty Nein, the only deaths that weren't directly caused by Lucien in final boss mode or Fjord being blatantly targeted by Uk'otoa's servants were because of plain carelessness. Molly died because he used a Blood Hunter ability at low health and knocked himself out in front of Lorenzo, Nott shot an explosive arrow without realizing Caduceus was in the blast radius with two failed death saves, and she later opened a chest without checking and triggered a Power Word: Kill trap. The Nein were much better equipped to deal with people going down, since they had a mainline healer who didn't care much about dealing damage, and if Cad ever went down, Jester, Yasha, and later Fjord could also heal.

Bell's Hells didn't go down or die as much because frankly, they had better combat strategies. The melee guys (especially Orym and Ashton) were very good at distracting enemies and taking the hits for the squishies in the back, who could then deal massive amounts of damage. There was also never a point where the Hells were without a mainline support/healer (Dorian took that role after FCG died, and in fact spent most of his combat actions in C3E120 on keeping people alive). That's not to say nobody in BH ever died stupidly (cough Ashton), just that they, as a whole, were more careful.

So what makes C3 a harder campaign? Well, you know how the M9 campaign was like a year long in-universe while BH lasted maybe 3 months beginning to end? That's because BH never got to fucking rest. There are days in the BH campaign that take place over the course of five or six episodes, and most of the time they were fucking WIPED by the time they could get a long rest in.

To get some perspective: I'd say Predathos was about on par with Cognouza!Lucien difficulty-wise (both had two boss phases, Predathos could do a lot more damage and had more health, but he also had Thunder vulnerability, which multiple of the Hells could exploit. Lucien couldn't deal or take as much damage but he had a fuck-ton of legendary actions, an anti-magic cone, and the Eyes of the Somnovem were only vulnerable to Psychic damage, which none of the Nein had). The Hells and the Nein were also both going into the fight at level 15.

The Nein went into the fight against Lucien fully rested thanks to Essek and Caleb firing off a dunamancy thing that gave them a free long rest. They also got the chance to eat a Heroes' Feast before the fight kicked off, meaning they went in at full health and full spell slots with some extra buffs on top.

The Hells went into the fight against Predathos after traveling to Kreviris, fighting a bunch of Vanguard goons, AND fighting Ludinus, and while they also got a Heroes' Feast, only a few of them got to have a short rest before going into the Predathos fight. Most of them were down on health, the casters were low on spell slots, and Ashton had to make his last Rage charge last through three fucking combats. The fact that they survived at all is down mostly to good strategy, some major god buffs (the Matron leveling them up to 17 and the Arch Heart letting Imogen cast Meteor Swarm), Dorian pumping them full of healing spells every turn, and some EXTREMELY risky plays that could have backfired horribly on them if they hadn't been as lucky as they were (Ashton diving into Predathos's mouth to get KO'd Imogen, Laudna firing Disintegrate into Ashton's hammer despite the risk of her pulverizing Ashton, Imogen casting Meteor Swarm despite the risk of hitting herself with it).

(It's also worth noting that Lucien had an easier time killing the Nein because he had six relatively light melee attacks as opposed to Predathos's single massive hits. This made it very easy for Lucien to knock out and then kill Jester and Caleb within a single round, whereas Predathos would have been better off focusing its massive attacks on the party members who were still running around and causing trouble and not the ones who were knocked out on the floor).

The Hells have also generally been fighting tougher enemies (like, C3E18 had BH at level 5 against a creature with legendary actions as a random encounter), but the difficulty has mostly come from the amount of resource management needed to keep themselves alive. Otohan was an outlier in terms of difficulty, but even disregarding her, BH has been fighting tougher battles with few chances to recuperate inbetween.

"Pulpier and deadlier" Is a wild promise to make for a campaign that ended up having the least combat deaths of any campaign. All of which being caused by the same enemy. That doesn't read as deadlier to me, that reads as one enemy being an outlier. It gets even worse when you address the use of deadlier to mean deadlier than previous campaigns, given how Bell's Hells are easily the weakest party of the 3 main campaigns. So the "pulpier and deadlier" campaign, with a party that is significantly weaker level by level compared to previous campaigns, ends up being less deadlier than those previous campaigns? It feels like a lack of follow through to me.

[seresinhangmanjake]

The One I Want: Part 12

Jake "Hangman" Seresin x plus size!reader

Summary: You’re new in town and some guy named Jake is about to be your roommate. Being skeptical of new people keeps you lonely and uninterested in any entanglements, but Jake is desperate to change that.

Notes/Warnings: cursing, emotional stuff and vulnerability, typos

Words: 1766

The One I Want Masterlist

“How?” he says as you remove yourself from his lap. He immediately stands and runs a hand through his hair, then he looks at you. “When?”

The expression on his face is indecipherable, lingering in the realm of confusion and shock, and—looking a bit deeper into his eyes—nearing the cusp of anger. 

Your fingers fiddle with the hem of your dress. “After you left."

Jake takes a step away from you, the back of his knee knocking into the coffee table causing a slight stumble. A knife makes a little slash in your heart as he turns his back to you, but then he spins around, opens his mouth, closes it, shakes his head, and finally locks his eyes onto yours. “She knocked on the door.”

You shrug. “I guess so.” Not that it matters. Brit wanted to separate you from Jake so she could get you alone. Whether that was due to her own fist banging on the door or another’s, the goal was achieved. She got to you. 

Jake’s tone falls dark, much darker than you could imagine coming from him, when he grinds out, “What did she say to you?” 

You don’t instantly respond. It’s a delicate matter simply because you know that, in Jake’s eyes, a line was crossed. Well, not so much crossed as obliterated, but you're not sure how he's going to react, or where that reaction will be directed.

“Tell me,” he demands. You don’t miss the underlying plea.

Clearing your throat, you say, “In a few words?”

“However many you need.”

You nod, glancing down to find your fingers still messing with your dress. You could potentially ruin it with the constant rubbing and picking at the same spot, but that’s not enough to deter the habit. You lick away the dryness of your lips that came after losing the warmth and moisture of his, and you look back up at him. “That it’s only a matter of time before you hurt me.”

Jake’s face crumbles—all darkness lost to devastation—and his body loosens as if about to slump right onto the floor. He manages to stay upright enough to make his way over and kneel in front of you. Though fiddling with your dress is the most comforting method you have to keep nervous energy at bay, your hand doesn’t resist being taken into his. 

“You should have told me,” he says, but it’s so weak and desperate that it’s more of a whine. “I could’ve–”

“It was your birthday,” you stop him. “I wasn’t going to ruin it.”

Jake’s thumb runs over your knuckles in a back-and-forth motion—such a common reassurance between you over the last few weeks that you’re not sure if he even knows he does it. It has just become one of those things you do now. He takes your hand, caresses your skin, and in return, you squeeze your fingers around his.

“You think I care more about my birthday than I care about you?” he asks, but after a few moments of your silence, his brow pinches and he says, “Why aren’t you answering me?”

“Jake, I–” you pause to consider the response he’s likely to give, but you don’t want to—can’t—lie to him. So you let the words slide evenly out of your mouth and prepare yourself for the inevitable. “I don’t want to be the cause of good things getting messed up for you.”

Jake regains the strength in his body and stands on perfectly sturdy legs. Your hand falls from his as he, once again, backs away. His eyes narrow, his mind clearly running through all possible reasons why you would say something like that to him, but coming up short on anything that will make him feel better. 

“Don’t say that,” he says lowly.

You sigh. “That’s why I kept it to myself.”

Then there is fury growing; a rage threatening to coat the living room that only minutes ago was so peaceful while your bodies and lips and touches were slotted together like puzzle pieces. 

“Well that's a bad reason!” he snaps. 

“Why?” you shoot back, rising from the couch. “Why is that so bad?”

“Because I don’t want you to start thinking like that!” It’s a shout now; the beginning of a rapid tumbling of words. “You could never mess up anything! But I can’t keep her away from you! I can’t control what she does or says! She’s the one who will mess things up and then I will lose you because you’ll go looking for a twelfth new place, and fuck knows where that will be, which means I won’t have a chance to fix what she destroyed because I won’t even be able to find you!”

His voice echoes, bouncing off the walls, and as words settle in, every ounce of his anger melts into anguish. With a groan, his head falls forward into his hands. 

“Fuck,” is muffled by his palms. “I'm sorry.”

You allow yourself to look at him; at the man who is ready to fall apart before you, who cycled through every emotion you've been hoping he wasn’t keeping inside. But you knew of this possibility. You knew that sharing your past with Jake could plant seeds that might have him wondering if you will one day leave him, too, because of circumstances entirely out of his control. 

You pictured yourself much more persuasive, though. You’ve changed, Jake changed you, and you thought it was evident enough to keep him from believing that he could fall victim to your old patterns. As it shows, you were wrong.

Easing yourself around the coffee table, you go to Jake—the magnet you’re drawn to—pry his hands from his face, and press your lips to his. 

He doesn’t waste a moment adapting to its unexpectedness. Never does, though. Whenever you kiss him when he’s least expecting it, he reacts so quickly—snaking an arm around your waist, tangling his fingers into your hair, moving his lips with yours—as if the taste of your mouth flips a switch inside of him. He returns your kisses with the enthusiasm of a man not wanting to sacrifice a single second of the feeling you give him. He kisses you back like he wasn't just on the verge of shattering.

“Breathe,” you whisper when you break the kiss.

His forehead rests against yours. “I can't.”

“You can.”

Eventually doing as you ask, he inhales and exhales and inhales and exhales, his breath brushing your face until he’s calm enough for you to accept. His hold on you tightens, pulling your body into his. 

“Don’t leave,” he says, lips briefly ghosting over yours. “You’re the only one who has made me feel like this since I lost them.”

“Like what?”

“Whole,” he replies. He swallows. “Safe.”

One of your hands slides from his shoulder to rest over his heart. Despite the breaths you requested from him, your fingers practically feel the relentless jackrabbiting thump within his chest. Wild, and yet, heavy, strong. Were you to put your ear up to him, the sound alone would be enough to drown out your other senses. 

“Jake, look at me,” you utter, so faint that his non-compliance has you questioning if he heard you; if the drumming beat inside his body is overpowering his head, his ears, and your voice lacks the might to break through. 

But then, with great reluctance you can feel, he pulls back. 

You almost gasp. The green you love is too green. No longer the grassy hue of a shaded forest floor, but more vivid, like a single leaf from a single tree within that forest shining under morning’s sunlight. It seems odd—unfair—to only see such a stunning green when his eyes are glassy and surrounded by red.  

Don’t, you think. Don’t cry. Because then you’ll cry, perhaps sob, for the man who has spent so much of his time working to restore a bit of life into you. Had someone told you when you first moved in that he’d succeed, you would’ve brushed the idea under a rug and taped the edges and corners to the floor to keep yourself from neglecting the likelihood of being let down. But Jake doesn’t let you down. Jake was there and Jake is here, still here, and so are you.

“Why would I leave?” you ask, louder, clearer.

Jake’s gaze travels from your eyes to your nose to your mouth where it remains as he answers. “You said that’s what you do when–”

“When people break me.” The hand not above his heart cups his cheek. “Jake, you haven't broken me. You’re healing me,” you swear. “Ok? You're saving me.” 

Maybe it’s because you think of him so often, or that you’ve pictured his face enough to have memorized it, but you continue to see him perfectly through the blur of your tears, so much so that the blur goes unnoticed. When he should be an indistinguishable mass of fuzzy shapes and tan skin and blond hair, you see, as if completely unaffected, the sharp lines and smooth planes and sculpted features of his face.

He’s all you focus on. You don’t feel the tear that gets caught on your chin, or the second tear that joins the first, making it heavy enough to drip onto the floor. You do feel Jake’s thumb gently rubbing the salty trail into your cheek. 

“I'm not scared of her,” you continue. “I understand why you’d think I might be, but I’m not. She's not enough to change anything. She won’t make me leave.”

Everything slows after you’ve spoken. Painfully long seconds extend into a minute, during which your vision unblurs and the air surrounding you settles. Jake is silent, and you give him that time. He listened, and now he’s quiet—processing. It's when his eyes finally soften that you know he understands. He knows that what he feels for you is what you feel for him. 

His lips curve in a hint of a smile that encourages yours to do the same. 

“What?” you say.

He shakes his head and his forehead meets yours again. 

“I tell you something, you tell me something,” you remind him.

Jake hums as if he anticipated you calling out the deal he made with you that started it all. Bare heart for bare heart, that’s how it works, and though Jake has already expressed his fair share, you know he won’t deny you a little bit more. 

“You’re healing me too, beautiful,” he says, his nose nudging yours. “More than I knew I needed.”

---

Tags: @wkndwlff @kmc1989 @sagittarius-flowerchild @dempy @oliviah-25 @rosiahills22 @xoxabs88xox @matisse556 @hardballoonlove @lynnevanss @pono-pura-vida @tgmreader @amgluvsbooks @ravenhood2792 @djs8891 @shakespeareanwannabe @sailor-aviator @penguin876 @tgmavericklover @athenabarnes @emilyoflanternhill @wretchedmo @shanimallina87 @crowsreadsarahjmaas @mamachasesmayhem @sky2nd @jessicab1991 @rosedurin @averyhotchner @horseshoegirl @roosteraloha @elite4cekalyma @buckysteveloki-me @shelbycillian @kissmethric3 @fox-bee926 @hangmandruigandmav @waltermis @fandom-life-12 @a-serene-place-to-be @bruher @tngrace @mamaskillerqueen @emma8895eb @benedictsvestcollection @blackwidownat2814 @himbos-on-ice @hookslove1592 @alwaysclassyeagle @chaytea06

[empressgeta]

Geta The Butcher

A retelling of the 3rd act of Sir Ridley Scott's ‘Gladiator II’... with a twist.

Word count: 3.9K

A/N: Happy New Year, everyone! Enjoy my crazy ravings about my favourite crazy emperor!

By the time the sun had set, chaos had erupted in the streets of Rome. The people were crying in outrage at the brothers. General Justus Acacius had been killed by The Praetorian Guard, as ordered by the emperors. Acacius’ wife, Lucilla, and her estranged son, Lucius, had to bear witness to the execution.

Emperor Geta paced back and forth in the palace as Macrinus and Caracalla, along with his pet monkey, Dondas, watched the stressed older brother.

“What else could I do? He and his BITCH were plotting to kill us!”

Caracalla was angry with Geta, even though he was the one screaming for the guards to kill Acacius.

“Don't you hear them? They're calling for our heads!”

“The Praetorians will put down this crowd, like they have every other.”

“You brought this on us!”

“Filthy APE!”

Geta threw water on Caracalla, causing Dondas to screech in anguish. Geta was filled with rage. But, only for a moment. He was then filled with regret as he looked at his brother’s emotionless face.

Caracalla stormed off with Dondas, as Macrinus listened to Geta.

“Forgive my brother's outburst. The disease that infects his loins has spread to his brain. Every day, it gets worse.”

Moments later, as Macrinus was “calming Caracalla down”, Geta slowly pulled the curtain back to see the madness that unravelled outside the Palace. Screaming and fighting flooded the streets. The troubled emperor watched in horror, shedding tears as the might of Rome was crumbling before his very eyes. Caracalla approached him from behind, holding a knife.

“Brother.”

Geta turned around, noticing the fury in Caracalla's eyes and the blade slightly twitching in his grip.

“... put down the blade.”

“You lie.”

“Give it to me.”

“You always lie!”

“Give me the-”

Geta was then interrupted by Caracalla slashing his palm with the blade. Geta flinched and stared in shock at the cut as Caracalla wore a proud expression on his face. He then lunged at Geta, murder on his mind due to Macrinus’ tampering. Geta held his brother back in a desperate attempt to calm him down.

“Look at me! Look at me… look at me.”

“LIE!”

“Break this spell.”

“LIE!”

“BREAK THIS SPELL! We’re brothers! Remember all the times -- against our father, I protected you! With my own body, I shielded you from him! I took his blows, because I love you! You are my brother! I love you! Come back!”

Caracalla wasn't listening. He was too far gone in his delusion. Geta had to do something. Fast. He then recalled the day that Macrinus told them about Lucius biting the arm of a raging baboon.

Caracalla's neck was exposed.

Geta swiftly leaned in and bit into the left side of his neck, squeezing his eyes shut as he applied pressure.

But, Caracalla was screaming in pain. And, a thick liquid seeped into his mouth. Geta opened his eyes to see what he had done. He had punctured Caracalla’s neck and blood was leaking out of him. He was about to pull away… but then he had a taste.

It was strange. The dark elixir coats his tongue. It tasted metallic, like he had pure, melted copper in his mouth. But, something started to awaken inside of him. Something primal. And, it was compelling him to drink. The temptation was too powerful. He couldn't resist it any longer.

The wet sounds of Geta gulping Caracalla's blood down his throat and the pained whimpers passing Caracalla's lips reverberates through the palace. The blood that didn't go into his mouth dripped down and soaked the front of the younger brother's gaudy robes. Caracalla dropped the blade, the top half of his body going slack as his older brother was feeding on his blood. Tears formed in his eyes. He was getting weaker, his yelps becoming more pathetic as Geta drained his life.

Minutes later, Caracalla fell to the ground. Cold. Limp. Dead. Geta lifted his head to the ceiling, exhaling loudly as he bared his new fangs, and his chocolate brown eyes turned amber. Blood was splattered all around his mouth and had dripped down the front of his white and gold robes. He looked down to see the corpse of his brother. Geta's jaw hung open a little as his eyes widened.

His actions had sunken in. He had killed Caracalla.

Geta started to sob quietly for his brother, his tears falling onto his lifeless body.

“... what have I done? I-I… I failed to protect you from myself… I never lied to you… I was always happy to share with you… who has poisoned your brain?”

The realization hit him the moment Macrinus walked in. It was him. He filled Caracalla’s head with lies. Macrinus, the man Geta considered a true friend, tried to use his brother to kill him.

Macrinus has a subtle smug expression. The face of a man who had been plotting for years. He came into the throne room of the palace…

And froze.

Seeing Geta covered in blood and Caracalla on the floor wasn't quite enough to make him fearful, but he was surprised. Geta raised his head to see Macrinus, and his blood started to boil.

“... you… I should've known your tongue was laced with venom.”

Macrinus cleared his throat as Geta stalked towards him menacingly, like a predator about to sink its teeth into its prey.

“... y-your majesty… you're unwell.”

“SILENCE, you treacherous snake! The foundations of my brother were crumbling… and you destroyed him… I trusted you… I prayed for you… and you preyed on me… on us…”

Geta lowered his head, tears spilling from his eyes. He still grieved for Caracalla. Macrinus was about to speak, planning a way to get his guard down to strike… but Geta started to laugh.

It was quiet at first, just an unsettling chuckle. Then, it got louder. His laughter became unrestrained. Geta threw his head back as he laughed maniacally. His eyes were wide and his mouth was contorted into a bloodstained, open mouthed grin. Macrinus stared in slight horror as the Emperor's laughter echoed through the palace.

Emperor Geta… had snapped.

Geta lowered his head to stare at the slave owner. The movement was quick. The facet joints in his neck clicking from the sudden movement. His eye twitched, his smile was wide and his breathing was shaky.

“You are nothing to me, Macrinus. The Gods have filled me with divine power, yet you waltz in with a dream of control over Rome.”

Geta psychotically chuckled as he slowly walked closer to Macrinus, the fear now becoming evident on his face. Geta placed his hands onto his cheeks and kissed his lips. Macrinus kissed him back, but he was uncomfortable with this, squeezing his eyes shut as he had to taste Caracalla's blood on Geta's lips.

“The gods have bestowed a purpose for my reign… I have been chosen to perform the role of executioner… and you have been sentenced.”

The emperor then pounced on Macrinus, sinking his fangs into his throat. His screams of agony were washed out by the public rampaging through the night.

It's the day of the Gladiator games. The senate waited patiently for the emperors and Macrinus to make their entrance. Then, footsteps were heard. Heavy footsteps. The senators turned their heads to see Emperor Geta arriving. But, to their shock, he was not alone. Their eyes widened and gasps were heard as they saw the emperor dragging his brother and the trusted arms dealer. Trails of blood were left behind by their corpses as Geta dropped them to the center of the room.

“BEHOLD! The remains of the traitor… and his puppet.”

He was wearing the bloodstained white and gold robes from the night before. His mouth was still covered in blood. He gripped the table at the center of the room. He smiled wickedly as his bloodshot eyes pierced into the senators’ souls.

“... Lucilla… wishes to overthrow me… and return power back to you…”

He laughed maniacally.

“The power you seek… is already… coursing through my veins… I am... a vessel... of the gods... and those who try to draw my blood…”

Geta laughed more.

“... I will taste their blood as I sink my teeth into their throats.”

The emperor bared his fangs to the senators, his eyes turning amber as they stared in horror.

“Now… we can do this the easy way… where you accept my reign. Or, we can do this the hard way. But, I warn you… pick the hard way… and it will be a bloodbath… Well, warning for you, but I'll be happy to soak this floor with your pathetic blood.”

Senator Thraex stood up, showing his defiance.

“I will not put up with your tyranny any more! I stand against you, Geta!”

However, the emperor looked calm. He nodded softly.

“I accept your decision.”

Thraex was taken aback.

“You… You do?”

Geta nodded, smiling gently as he motions for the senator to come closer. Once Thraex was close, he put his hand on one of his shoulders.

“The gods have whispered your future to me… would you like to hear it? Would you like to receive some divine knowledge?”

The senator nodded eagerly, and Geta leaned in to whisper in his ear.

“... death.”

The senator’s smile dropped. The emperor snarled and bit into his neck. The other senators watched in sheer terror as Thraex’s life was being sucked out of him by Geta. Some of the others screamed as they watched. One even vomited from the sight of blood pouring from his throat and onto the marble floor. After a minute, Geta pulled away, dropping Thraex’s lifeless body onto the floor as he licked his bloody lips.

“Would anyone else like to oppose me?”

The room was dead silent. The emperor smirked.

“Good. See to it that I am bathed and my armour is polished for today's event.”

Geta laughed wickedly as he walked out of the meeting. The senators followed behind him, their heads hung in sorrow as they were reduced to slaves for the crazed emperor.

The Colosseum was bustling with hoards of people. Their elated cheers roared through the arena. Lucilla was in the centre. She stood on a well decorated platform, tied to a thick wooden pole. Emperor Geta walked to her. He looked like a god in his shimmering golden armour. The pristine white cape resting on his shoulders flowed gracefully behind him. His golden laurel leaf crown looked like a glowing halo as it caught the sun's radiant light. Geta stood right in front of her, gazing into her muted blue eyes. His expression was gentle, and she couldn't tell if it was a facade. The emperor leaned in and captured her lips in a tender kiss. Lucilla felt her resolve weaken, and she kissed him back almost timidly. His lips were soft, plump, no longer bloodstained. Once she had succumbed to his kiss, Geta bit into her lip, causing Lucilla to whimper as he drew blood. He moaned as he tasted her, sucking on her lip before moving to her ear.

“... you taste exquisite, my lady.”

Lucilla shed a tear, and Geta gently wiped it from her cheek.

“Do not weep, Lucilla. Today is a momentous occasion. Your son is fighting for your freedom.”

Her expression remains calm as the emperor showers her with rose petals.

“I will even be generous to you. If Lucius defeats my Praetorians, not only will you be free, but I will reward you with whatever you desire most.”

And, with that, Geta walks away, smirking devilishly as he vacates to the royal box in the Colosseum. Soon, the Praetorian Guard enters the arena, circling around Lucilla menacingly. Then, Lucius entered. Alone. Proudly wielding his father's gladius.

The game has begun.

Everyone watched and cheered in anticipation as Lucius valiantly and brutally fought the Praetorians. Emperor Geta slowly tilted his head to the side, his amber eyes burning as he glides his tongue over his aching fangs while he watches the bodies fall and the blood splatter against the dirt. Once the Gladiator reached Lucilla, Geta walked out of the royal box. Lucius swiftly cut the ropes that bound his mother to the pole and led her to one of the gates.

But, she stopped.

Lucius turned around to see that Emperor Geta was holding onto her, clicking his tongue repeatedly in disapproval.

“Oh, Lucius… did you really think it was going to be that easy?”

All of a sudden, Praetorian guards came up to the gladiator and restrained him. Lucius tried to fight it, but the emperor just laughed wickedly as he circled around Lucilla like a vulture.

“Yes, you may have won. And, I applaud you for that.”

He gently clapped his hands together, mocking Lucius’ short lived victory.

“... But, Lucilla was promised a reward.”

Geta stood behind her, pressing his armoured chest into her back as he placed his large, ringed hands on her hips.

“Tell me, my dear… what do you desire most? A large sum of denarii? Rare and beautiful fabrics? A feast fit for an empress? Or… to feel the embrace of your beloved Acacius once more? Would you give… your wish… to see him again?”

Lucius knew what was about to happen. He tried to pull away from the guards.

“Ah ah ah… let your mother decide.”

Lucilla sighed gently. She knew there was nothing left for her. Her father's dream had been long forgotten. This was her son's battle now. She closed her eyes, accepting her fate.

“... I wish…”

“Mother… no…”

“... I wish to be with Acacius.”

Geta slowly smiled.

“... your wish… is granted.”

He then leaned in and sank his fangs into Lucilla's neck. She threw her head back, drawing a pained gasp from her lips. Lucius screamed in rage as the Praetorians gripped him, forcing him to watch his mother's life be slowly drained by the emperor. Her blood gracefully oozed from her neck and dripped down her once pristine dress.

Geta smirked and moaned as he gulped her blood down his throat, relishing in this sweet victory. He placed one of his hands on her breasts and the other cupped her womanhood through the fabric of her white dress. Lucilla's back arched as Geta pleasured her while he drank her blood, whimpering as her mind was being clouded by the symphony of agony and ecstasy.

Moments later, Lucilla dropped to the ground close to Lucius. He fell to his knees as he gazed at her corpse. She was laying so gracefully on the dirt. She looked peaceful. He closed his eyes, shedding tears for her. Then, the shadow of the emperor casts over his grieving form. He looked up, indescribable rage emanating from his expression as he watched Geta throw his long white cloak to the ground and draw his golden gladius. Lucius slowly stood up.

Gladiator Vs Emperor.

Like father, like son.

Geta smiled devilishly, baring his fangs as Lucius stared angrily at him.

“ Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum.”

Lucius let out a war cry as he charged at Geta. Their swords clashed. As they fought, the emperor taunted the gladiator.

“You know… it took me a while, but I've finally remembered… The gates of hell are open night and day… smooth is the descent, and easy is the way...”

“Shut up!”

“But to return, and view the cheerful skies, in this the task and mighty labor lies!”

“I said shut up!”

Geta smiled wide as they faced each other, both of their teeth bared.

“You failed Lucilla!”

Lucius screamed in pure rage as he fought Geta, who laughed maniacally. But, as they continued to battle, the gladiator stumbled. And, Geta’s sword pierced through his father’s armour and into his abdomen. The crowd went silent as Lucius grunted in pain . It wasn't a killing blow. But, it made him fall to the ground.

Lucius Verus Aurelius had lost.

He looked up to see Geta tower over him.

“... go ahead… kill me… no mercy.”

The emperor smirked.

“Praetorians! Tend to his wound, and dress him up nicely… then bring him to my palace.”

The guards picked Lucius up and took him away to be cleaned up. Geta licked the blood off of his gladius as he walks away, leaving the citizens dreading for the future.

Rome was experiencing a total lunar eclipse. The moon was caught in the darkest part of the Earth's shadow, casting a red hue on the celestial body.

A blood moon ominously illuminated the starry skies in the city of Rome.

Back at the palace, Emperor Geta sat on his throne, wearing a black and gold tunic with a black cloak held by gold brooches. His wrists were covered by gold cuffs that were speckled with priceless jewels, and gold rings decorated his fingers. Caracalla’s throne had been removed from its place next to Geta. The mere sight of the empty throne hurt him deeply. Soon, two Praetorians roughly brought Lucius into the palace. He was wearing a simple, white tunic with gold threading. A small sprig of lavender was stitched on near his shoulder, to remind him of Lucilla. Gold encrusted cothurnus adorned his feet as he stood on the marble floor. Geta smiled warmly.

“Welcome to the palace of the Emperor, Lucius.”

The gladiator's face remained blank.

“Leave us, Praetorians. Your service isn't required for now.”

Once the guards left, the emperor got up from his throne and got closer to Lucius.

“Your time in Rome has caused quite the commotion, gladiator. It led to the execution of General Acacius… the death of my brother… the death of your owner… and the death of your mother.”

“You killed them.”

“Your existence… killed them.”

Lucius and Geta's eyes were locked on one another as their faces were close together. The emperor's blood was boiling, and the gladiator kept his cold, defiant gaze. Geta calmed himself.

“Despite every fibre of my being demanding that I drain you until you are hollow… I have a proposition for you. I will let you live with me. As my prized concubinus. You will dine with me. You will be rewarded with everything that plebeians can only dream about. The most dazzling jewels, the finest of fabrics, the luxury of pleasure. It will all be yours.”

Lucius listened as Geta stood behind him.

“... you just have to… submit to me… and I will share my divine power with you.”

He glides his tongue against Lucius’ neck, causing his breath to tremble and to let a groan escape his throat.

“I will never submit to you in this life or the next.”

Geta chuckled deviously as he stood in front of him.

“Then, how about I sweeten the deal?”

He leaned in and began to kiss him. Lucius froze. His expressionless facade began to crack as he felt Geta's plump lips on his own. It was a chaste kiss with a slight aggression to it. His eyes closed… and he succumbed to the Emperor's kiss.

Geta smirked as he kissed Lucius, knowing that he now has him wrapped around his finger. He guides him to an accubitum and lays him down against the plush cushions and the thick wool blankets. He got on top of the gladiator as the kiss grew in passion and intensity. He trailed kisses from his lips, to his jaw, to his neck. Lucius whimpered gently as the emperor kissed and licked his skin. Geta growled seductively in his ear.

“... submit to me… and the pleasure is yours.”

“... n-never…”

“... contumax.”

Geta then began to stroke Lucius’ hardening cock through his subligaculum, causing him to whimper more.

“Say it.”

“... I…”

“... say it…”

“... I submit.”

The emperor smirked as his fangs extended.

“... good boy... my dulcis...”

Geta then leaned down and bit into Lucius' neck. He gasped, whimpering desperately and gripping the emperor's hips as he threw his head back against the cushion. Flashes of Elysium invaded his reverie as his blood was gulped down the emperor's throat.

He was lying on the beach of Numidia, the sharp stones prodding into his skin. He arose from the ground, expecting to see Arishat being taken away from him again.

Nothing.

The air was dead. The water was still. It was just him. Alone. Nothing but the stones beneath his feet and the seemingly endless ocean in front of him.

Then, the grey skies became red. And, the water turned into blood. Lucius groaned in pain, falling to his knees as blood gushed out of his mouth and onto his white tunic. He then threw his head back, screaming in excruciating agony as his canines enlarged and his eyes became icy blue.

The gladiator was out of breath as he awoke from his trance. Emperor Geta smiled as he looked at his altered form.

“You're mine.”

He growled seductively, smirking as he leaned down and kissed him hard. They both moaned as they kissed. Blood filled their mouths as they bit into each other's bottom lip with their fangs. Lust, passion, and a few drops of anger for one another filled this moment. In the blink of an eye, their garments were cast aside. No words were spoken. Lucius was freshly transformed and wrapped in a cocoon of curiosity and raw, unfiltered desire. And Geta was happy to indulge. The emperor smirked as he trailed kisses and bites down his chest, gently kissing the honey coated dressing on his abdomen as a tiny apology for earlier. He licked a fat stripe up his shaft before taking Lucius’ cock into his mouth. Lucius moaned loudly, bucking his hips into Geta's throat. His senses were drastically heightened, thanks to the vampirism. The gladiator buried his hands into the emperor’s orange hair. He wasn't tugging. Just caressing his head. Geta moaned as he bobbed his head up and down, making sure that Lucius knew that the promise of pleasure was being rewarded to him.

The emperor pulled off of his cock with a lewd, wet pop. The gladiator whimpered as he looked down at Geta, his bottom lip quivering gently at the sudden halt. He smirked at Lucius’ pout.

“Awwww. Don't worry, my melculum… this is only the beginning…”

Geta leaned up and nipped at his ear before licking his hand and coating his erection with the makeshift lubricant.

“Wrap your legs around me… that's it… now feel my divine lust.”

He then slowly pushed into his tight entrance. Lucius gasped, arching his back as the hellish glow emanating from the blood moon washed over the dark, torch lit palace. Their shared ecstasy echoed along the unblemished walls as Geta fucked into him. The sounds of grunting and skin slapping reverberated across the halls as the night continued. Lucius wrapped his arms around Geta's shoulders as he moved inside him. The emperor's actions started to slow down and become tender. The moaning slowly changed, going from gruff to intimate. Geta then leaned down and kissed his lips. It was gentle and tender. No tricks. No malicious intent. Geta cupped his cheek as they kissed, feeling content as they made love.

“G-Geta… ah…”

He smiled against his lips.

“Mmmngh… Lucius… mea columba … tē amō.”

They moaned loudly together, ropes of cum decorating Lucius’ chest as Geta painted the walls of his entrance with his royal seed. The emperor smiled lovingly, kissing his muse's cheek.

“Let us retreat to my chambers, corculum.”

After they reached Geta's luxurious quarters, Lucius wrapped himself with the furs, woollen blankets and linens as he laid down on the big lectus. The emperor laid next to him, wrapping his arms around Lucius and snuggled into him to keep warm. Despite everything that happened…

Emperor Geta got everything he wanted.

An empire. A lover. People that will listen to him.

And if they didn't, he'd still be rewarded.

With an all you can eat buffet.

[rainbowstarheart-rp]

Rainbow StarHeart – Full Powers, Abilities, and Combat Skills Recap

Core Powers and Abilities

1. Omnificence – Can create anything, from weapons to entire realities.

2. Omni-Reality Manipulation – Alters reality, physics, and universal laws at will.

3. Omni-Teleportation – Instantly travels across dimensions, timelines, and universes.

4. Hyper Cosmic Speed – Moves beyond the concept of time, faster than light and thought.

5. Omni-Shape Shifting – Transforms into any form, including abstract concepts.

6. Omni-Elemental Mastery – Controls all elements, but specializes in light and electricity.

7. Omni-Blast Projections – Can unleash explosive energy attacks, ranging from precise beams to nuke-like blasts.

8. Omni-Weaponry – Instantly creates weapons from imagination, often unpredictable in nature.

9. Mental Control – Resists madness, illusions, and emotional manipulations.

10. Fourth Wall Awareness – Knows she’s fictional, can interact with the “real” world.

11. Immortality & Regeneration – Multiple layers of immortality; regenerates from any wound, even conceptually erased states.

12. Special Vision Modes:

Yellow – Sees the invisible, spirits, and hidden beings.

Blue – Sees through walls and across long distances.

Red – Functions as night vision and X-ray.

13. Flexibility & Agility – Inhumanly flexible due to ballet, acrobatics, and gymnastics.

14. Combat-Enhanced Flower Crown:

Nerine – Boosts luck and fortune.

Edelweiss – Forms energy blades.

Sterlitzia – Enables high-speed flying attacks.

Lily – Grants enhanced regeneration.

Freesia – Creates explosive bombs.

Milkweed – Fires acidic milk.

Dandelions – Shoots explosive petal projectiles.

Tulips – Generates force barriers.

Sunflowers – Fires rapid seed bullets.

Yellow Roses – Creates petal-based detonations.

Weapons

Signature Weapon: A paintbrush that transforms into:

1. Electric Scythe – Conducts energy and slices through dimensions.

2. Magma Dagger – Superheated blade capable of melting anything.

3. Neutron Star Crust Sword – Infinitely dense blade with gravitational slashes.

Other Weapons:

Obsidian Bow & Energy Arrows – Shoots arrows with varying effects (explosive, elemental, reality-warping).

Crystal & Laser Guns – High-powered cosmic firearms.

Meteor Cannon – Launches meteor-like projectiles.

Electrified Ballet Shoes – Conducts electricity through kicks and movement.

Tutu Blades – Rotating energy blades embedded in her attire.

Black Hole Shield – Absorbs attacks into an internal singularity.

Magnetar Armor – Enhances defense and gravitational attacks.

Alive Scarf (Handy & Dandy) – Sentient scarf used for grappling, strangling enemies, or shielding attacks.

Combat Style & Techniques

Ballet Combat – Uses elegant yet unpredictable dance moves, incorporating spins, flips, and pirouettes.

Acrobatic Gymnastics – Extremely agile, capable of dodging at impossible angles.

Electric Blitz Strikes – Uses electricity-infused attacks for rapid strikes.

Weapon Fluidity – Constantly changes weapons mid-fight to keep enemies off balance.

Chaos Unleashed – Manipulates physics and logic to fight in an unpredictable, reality-breaking manner.

Starfall Barrage – Calls down meteors imbued with elemental energy.

Omni-Dimensional Feints – Vanishes and reappears in multiple places at once, overwhelming enemies.

Insanity’s Best Friend Mode – When in a madness spiral, she becomes wildly unpredictable, making her attacks erratic but devastating.

Raging Starburst Mode – Unleashes all her suppressed power for a brief time, creating omniversal explosions.

Weaknesses & Limitations

Compassion & Empathy – Hesitates to kill or harm, even when necessary.

Madness Spirals – Extreme emotions can throw her into chaotic states.

Self-Imposed Limits – Holds back power to avoid collateral damage.

Loneliness & Isolation – Carries the burden of outliving loved ones.

Autistic & Neurodivergent Traits – Struggles with overstimulation, social cues, and extreme emotions.

What y'all think?

@starcrezt @ilovepeachplssm @starsdontshinetheyburn @borntobreakfree @kenakostarcat16 @undertale-person @baxstarmallow06 @chibitacolord @iookingle3rd @nightfox67 @scally-wiggles716 @youwillneverknowthingsblog @pastelpixel1987 @komeame @fictodreamer @countingthestarsthings @beecha @elizachangreaves @impostortheguyiguess @broskiimwatching123 @creativity4ever @suckaysuamigos200 @hauntedbelieverpaper @zestytyler @doom0424 @aponibloom @darnelldraws @railway323 @deer-genius-idol-unmatched @jwintix @kittenwatermemes @shadowwolfmemes @violetthediamondsblog @holorform2009

[stellawolfearts]

Hey, I found something in Investiture of the gods that i connected to the S5 trailer. If you are avoiding the trailer for spoilers reasons then feel free to ignore this post. otherwise if you wanna see my Nezha theory just click the read more button :3

Okay...so im making a post about why i dont like Li Jing personally and why I am exited to see him in LMK because of the severe tension between him and nezha due to thier history. and i noticed something while reading through the chapter of Investiture of the gods where Nezha tries to kill Li Jing. Taken from Chapter 14 - Reincarnation with Lotus Flowers

Running up to the man and hiding behind him, Nezha arrived shortly and explained the situation to this man, determined to vent his hatred. Giving in to Nezha's furiousness, the man spat on Li Jing and then clapped his hand to the former's back. As Li Jing was ordered by this man to fight back Nezha with little other choice, Nezha soon realized that his father's strength was far greater than originally — and thus the man standing at the pine tree must be none other than a Taoist who was a master at the enhancement arts. Realizing that if he effectively destroyed the Taoist, his father's strength would not be surpassing his own, Nezha lunged forward and slashed his lance into the latter's forehead. As a lotus flower appeared before the his face to negate Nezha's blow, the Taoist angrily unleashed forth his great golden pagoda from the heavens to trap the former within as punishment. Clapping his hands to additionally signal a great fire to rage within the pagoda, Nezha had no choice but to beg for mercy and declare his acknowledgement to his father — thus seizing the chance of being set free. Realizing that he possessed not a single burn from the Taoist's great fire, Nezha deduced the former's ability to be none other than Genjutsu. Threatening to burn Nezha further in his pagoda if he did not kowtow to his father with needed respect, the former had no choice but to do so in a rageful state. As the Taoist thus declared to Li Jing that he would teach him the burning pagoda art as a resistance against Nezha's potential future assaults, Nezha dismissed it first — and thus quickly rode back to Qianyuan Mountain in disappointment over his sullied vengeance. Now declaring his name to be Burning Lamp of Mount Divine Hawk, the former told Li Jing to forget about fame and riches under the Shang Dynasty and to live as hermit in the neighboring mountain valleys until the preordained assault upon the dynasty comes his way; at that time he should assist King Wu in the campaign.

and what do we see Li Jing with in the S5 trailer?

T H I S

Now i don't think this is the same exact type of pagoda, with it being a kids show I dont think he's gonna threaten to burn them alive forever with no chance of death cause the fire doesnt cause any real harm it just makes you experience the pain of burning alive.

BUT

He does try to suck them in.

I think he's also threatening Nezha with this pagoda. or another one? idk.

But i just- can't help but feel like there's a correlation between Li Jing and his Pagoda in LMK and that part of his mythology.

[the1entirecircus]

"If the Indomonstrum was a success, what kind of crazy was Scorpatrum?"

(Scopios Rex/Scorpion + Atrocious + Tyrantrum/tantrum)

This is definitely the weakest of the hybrids, which does make sense given thats its genome consists of only a few particularly strong pokemon. Originally, I was going to make it Poison/Dragon as Tyrantrum is its base genome, however, I decided against this as the Scorpios Rex is less draconic and more malevolent. It was sort of difficult to find good suiters for its DNA composition to match the Scorpios Rex as A) there is no pokemon that is based on the Scorpion Fish yet, B) no pokemon can asexually reproduce and C) there are not many tree frog pokemon.

So in order to keep Scorpatrum's name relevant, I made it part Drapion to still keep that part of its name. I also gave it the DNA of Overqwil so it still has those venomous spikes. As for the asexual reproduction, we'll just say that it naturally has the ability to do so thanks to a mutation in its genome. Then as for tree frog dna which gives it the ability to climb, there were only a few possible donors who could match that description. The first that came to mind were the Greninja line as they have similar capabilities as the tree frog, I remembered something from my old Frog special interest days. That being poison dart frogs can climb trees like tree frogs, and that Toxicroak is based on Tree Frogs. So that is where Scorpatrum gets its climbing abilities from.

As for other aspects of its DNA, Seviper was there to add to give Scorpatrum's tail a weaponized boost as well as the instinct to use that tail for fights. And given that Seviper is a snake, this would also provide Scorpatrum the ability to use thermal senses, hypothetically of course. Then theres Salazzle DNA. Salazzle gave Scorpatrum two things: to be only female and to have the ability corrosion. Now Salazzle only has this ability due to it being poison/fire type, and her body spewing flames when using her various moves is a byproduct of that. This leads into the unintentional self-harm that Scorpatrum's signature move causes.

The tyrantrum and archeops DNA need no explanation as the Scorpios Rex is part rex and raptor. You can see their features most prominently in the head's deformed sharp and the sickle claw on its toe. And by the way, yes, Archeops does have that toe claw. As shown below.

Scorpatrum's shiny form is based on the first Scorpios Rex we see in Camp Cretaceous with darker skin coloration. Not a great shiny, I know, but they can't all be perfect.

Signature Move:

Savage Slash Type: Poison Physical Damage: 100 Accuracy: 100 PP: 5 Description: The user ignites its weaponized tail in a particularly toxic fire and then whips it at the target to deal an incredible amount of damage and poison them. This attack will still do a regular amount of damage even if the target resists or is immune to the attack. The attack will inflict burn on the user however.

Other Moves:

Tackle, Tail Whip, Roar, Ancient Power, Bite, Dragon Tail, Stomp, Crunch, Rock Slide, Dragon Claw, Thrash, Horn Drill, Giga Impact, Head Smash, Quick Attack, Leer, Rock Throw, Wing Attack, Pluck, U-Turn, Scary Face, Agility, Tail Wind, Endeavor, Swagger, Lick, Poison Tail, Feint, Screech, Glare, Poison Fang, Venoshock, Gastro Acid, Poison Jab, Haze, Belch, Coil, Sludge Bomb, Thunder Fang, Ice Fang, Fire Fang, Poison Sting, Hone Claws, Fell Stinger, Toxic Spikes, Knock Off, Pin Missile, Toxic, Night Slash, Cross Poison, X-Scissor, Acupressure, Astonish, Nasty Plot, Mud-Slap, Low Kick, Minimize, Spikes, Barb Barrage, Stockpile, Spit Up, Destiny Bond, Pound, Poison Gas, Ember, Dragon Rage, Smog, Double Slap, Flame Burst, Flamethrower, Venom Drench, Dragon Pulse

[conradmorpho]

did tolkien get inspiration for Two Towers from Talisein's Battle of the Trees?

I was in Caer Nefenhirfn2 When grass and wood went to war. Poets were singing, Soldiers attacking. A new dawn for the Britons Conjured by Gwydion.fn3 He called upon Heaven, On the Christ of all powers, That he might deliver them, 50Their Lord who had made them. And God gave him answer: ‘Through language, skilled man, Make majestic trees seem Like a hundred-strong army, Resisting the vigorous,’ Spendthrift warlord. When the trees were enchanted – So our hopes were raised5 – They mowed soldiers down 60With their mighty boughs. They fell upon armies For thirty days’ battle. A woman lamenting: Mourning is budding. At the head, first mother;6 There was sleepless spoil-hunger. But it caused us no harm – Blood up to our thighs. Worst of three Commotions 70That came on the world – The one that unfolded Because of the Deluge: Then Christ’s crucifixion, Then Judgement to come. First came the Alder,7 Which struck the first blow. Willow and Rowan Came late to the muster. The spiny Blackthorn 80Was hungry for bloodshed. Skillful, the Medlar Made ready for battle. Rosewood advanced On a raging army. The Bramble came forth, Raising no rampart To save his own life. Privet, Honeysuckle, Ivy – despite seeming soft – 90Were fierce in the fight. The Cherry was wary. Birch, although noble, Was slow to get dressed, Not from being spineless But due to its greatness. Golden Rod was resolved – Foreigners by sea.8 The Pine was the best, Won the chair9 in the contest. 100Ash wrought great deeds In the presence of princes. Despite its great wealth Elm budged not an inch – Raining down blows On centre, flank, rear. Hazel gauged weapons For the tumult of war. Dogwood, be blessed, Battle’s bull, lord of all. 110Morawc and Morytfn4 10 […] Beech grew prolific; Though Holly turned pale It was brave in battle. Infamous Hawthorn Gave festering wounds. Though slashed at, the Vine Was cut down in the fray. Bracken grew rampant;

But broom, at the head, 120Was trampled in mud. Though unlucky, Gorse Still joined in the force. A spell brought Heather To join, famous fighter. […] in pursuit. Oak’s passionate shout Made earth and sky shake. Brave pillager, Woad, Was named in the record. 130Even the splintered tree11 Created panic. Repulsing, it repelled, And stabbed others. At force Pear excelled On the battlefield – A terrifying wave Of sweet-scented Clover.12 Though shy, the Chestnut13 Fought alongside bold trees.

[christmas-shenanigans]

Session 3: Sat 16 Dec 2023

This week's entry is written by Skabb, as I was unable to attend due to family commitments. With deepest thanks for such a detailed write-up!

"We all cobble together a recap for a hero point each! We’ve all been healed to full HP and Valeros has no lasting eye issues, nor is his ego remotely dented by last week’s shenanigans.

Wise Rokmoxa tells us there is a delicacy in the forest, cornered in a mushroom cave. The Gert Squiggler is big enough to feed the whole village. Halbrecht asks about the mushrooms- they are ‘sacred’ -we suspect that the whole village brews tea and gets shitfaceded!

Skabb recalls knowledge about the squiggler and learns that salt will hurt it. She also knows to keep distance as it has spiked radula that do a lot of damage up close.

We decide to salt our weapons and we collect as much salt as we can off of the gobbo villagers, which isn’t v much at all.

Rokmoxa says she’s keeping our halfling to work off her debt. “Can’t be trusted. No help you”. Skabb runs and hugs Zorya and shouts “byeeeeeee” in her ear.

We go to fight the gert beastie…they weren’t lying…He’s big

Initiative. Squiggler rolls 33 and goes first. Disgorged mucous. Hits weejock - 13 damage and covers everyone in the party, except Skabb who is out of range, with mucous: This means 4 persistent splash damage, -5 to movement speed and it will take 1 action to wash the filth off.

Weejocks turn. He uses 1 action to move behind cover, another to wash off mucus and a third to recall knowledge on the gert squiggler. A 24 means he knows that the creature is resistant to acid damage, has no particular weak spot and can squeeze through 5 ft space, which doesn’t slow it down.

Valeros is up. -4 persistent damage. First he heads to cover. Then washes off all of the slime apart from some which makes his hair look great. Then he leans around the cover and looses his shortbow: 29 hits for 5 piercing damage.

Halfbrick is next. “I’m not even gonna wipe” “He’s going in viscous” He heads to cover. Casts Searing Light, which hits (26) for 17 fire damage The Squiggler lets out the equivalent of a roar. He did not like that.

Mialee, who is hiding in the shadows, is up next. She dutifully takes her persistant damage (splash). Then she salts her arrows for one action. Shoots at it and rolls a 26, which hits, she rolls 3 damage plus sneak damage of 7. It takes 15 meaning salt=1.5 x damage She cleans the slime off of herself.

Skabb goes last. She casts elemental betrayal giving an extra two water damage to any subsequent spell. Then she casts hydraulic push which takes her final two actions. 28 is a hit and does 24 bludgeoning damage, making a total of 26 damage.

Girt boy Tramples weejock and Halfbrick. Both do reflex saving throws. Halfbrick gets a crit and takes no damage Weejock isn’t as lucky, he rolls a 20 and takes 23 bludgeoning damage

Weejock’s turn. He goes into a rage…and then attacks with his salty warhammer. 24 would miss but it is flanked by HB so it takes 22 bludgeoning damage. He hits it again but 20 is a miss, so no more damage.

Valeros swaggers into the fray. He sweeps his hair back with the slime, strides over, uses combat climber to climb up the slug with one hand free and then “gets stabby”. The DM asks for an athletics check -31 - he’s on its head holding on to its eye stalks. He stabs it with his Striking Long Sword, 25 is a hit, for 9 Slashing damage. Majestic.

Halbrecht’s turn He takes his persistent damage -4hp. “I’m going to unleash the warhammer” - 22 misses despite it being flanked. Next he casts Spiritual Weapon, which “just hits”, 9 force damage. The DM explains that its a constant spell so it can be sustained for up to a minute with one action each turn. HB just has to roll damage again next time.

Mialee’s up… She makes a diplomacy check to see if all of her arrows are salted after arguing that they were sticky from slime and she salted the quiver… 20 means all her arrows are definitely salty.

She fires an arrow, 20 misses, she tries again…number 2 attack for 19, which also misses. She rerolls with a hero point but again, 16 misses, she disappears back into the shadows.

Skabb’s turn, She uses one action to give grabby 2. Grabby picks up the salt Skabb is carrying, flies above the gert one and sprinkles… the slug takes 5 damage Then she casts Helpful Wood Spirits to distract the slug by crawling all over it - it fails its saving throw and is off guard (although this doesn’t stack with being flanked and achieves bugger all)

Gert uses its nasty radula on Halbrecht, 28 hits and it does 20 slashing damage, but luckily does not disrupt his continuous spell or his ability to sustain it. Next it turns it radula on Weejock, 39 is a crit and deals 20 bludgeoning damage. Now its attention turns to Skabb. It hurls Disgorged Mucous at her. 26 hits. 15 damage and 4 persistent damage from next turn.

Weejock’s up. He takes -4 from mucus as was squished with its nasty foot. The DM asks for a Diplomacy check -16 - the salt on his warhammer lasts for another hit. Warhammer misses at 16. He re rolls with hero point but also misses at 21. “I should just give up”, but he has another go with his warhammer and this time 26 hits for 15 bludgeoning damage.

Valeros’s turn from atop the beastie… He grabs the eye stalk with one hand, takes his Striking Long Sword to its eye, 25 hits and for 13 slashing chops it off. He slides to the ground, eye in hand. Next he combat climbs again (athletics check of 21) and is back up on its head. He attacks with his longsword again, but 21 misses. He uses a hero point to re roll and hits with a 23. It takes 8 slashing damage.

The slug looks poorly.

Halfbrick: “I’m going to begin by getting spiritual on it” - casts Spritual Weapon for 8 damage. (Valeros: “you are a spiritual weapon”) Then, “I will strike it roughly with a warhammer.” 25 hits. 11 bludgeoning damage. In shock “I hit it,I had the words hero point in my mouth” He tries to hit again but 14 misses. A hero point reroll still misses at 10. “My arms tired now!”

Mialee rolls a 28 and hits with her striking shortbow, delivering 4 damage. Howdedoodis!!! “Whumpf, it hits the deck”

Weejock drags the giant corpse back to the village. The Gobbos are delighted and break into song about squiggler jellies. We watch as the flesh is pulverised by teensie little gobbos with their stamps to create squiggler jelly. This delicacy has a very…unique…texture. Skabb, HB, Valeros and weejock all dig in. Skabb takes some squiggler jelly for Zorya (“sister”), she’s currently washing up filthy gobbo pots and pans, but will join us when we see the cailleach.

We are all healed by the tribe. Full HP. But we do not rest so don,t refill our spell slots.

Wise Rokmoxa tells us that Guardians were made by cailleach to keep her safe. They are magical and will reappear after we destroy them. She warns us that they are very beautiful and we may struggle to hurt them for this reason, so we should steel ourselves. She insists that we take hideous Lilly, klip klop and latlu.

Rokmoxa grabs skabb by the ear and informs her that she can seee through yaklee …”I will see if you do well. Go wild daughter….”

The DM confirms that for killing the squiggler each of us will be given a cold iron weapon…they should be ready when we return from the cailleach’s lair…⁃ Weejock and Halbrecht will each get a warhammer ⁃ There will be a sword for Valeros ⁃ Arrows for Mialee and Zorya ⁃ Skabb is going to get a cold iron grill for biting (bite attack). She is beyond excited about this.

We head off to find the cailleach’s cave and to fight the Guardians that stand between us and her…

All roll stealth. Joes kindly lets us do our own. Weejock gets a crit. Others all roll fairly well…we think!?

Skabb crit fails so runs up a tree and readies a level 3 fireball. She gets a hero point for ballsiness.

Mialee readies an attack with her bow.

There are gobbo offerings at the entrance to the cave. Weejock rolls a perception check to see what he makes of the offerings.. he crit fails…he can’t make head nor tails of them.

Valeros swaggers up, whistling a shanty. Before he reaches the mouth of the cave, the snow starts to shake and move. Two, 10-15 ft tall Icey guardians (Golems) appear.

They’re flat footed as emerging… Mialee looses readied attack - Shortbow hits one on left, for 14 damage of which it takes only 9. Skabb casts her readied fireball at the guardian on the right. It deals 20 damage. The guardian rolls its saving throw and takes half damage. The DM asks skabb to roll a further 4d6, for 18 fire damage = 28 fire damage total taken

We all roll initiative

Mialee rolls a 25 with her shortbow. It hits and does 9+3 sneak damage Attack 2, 27 hits, 6+2 damage. Finally she hides. The guardian takes half damage (10 less damage due to resistances).

It’s the ice guardian’s turn. It uses Breath Weapon on Valeros who fails a reflex save and takes 24 cold damage

Valeros is up next. “Let’s see this one physically resist this piece of man-meat”…19 misses…”He resisted” “When in doubt I’d like to climb on its back. Can I mount him?!” (“Valeros has problems with rejection. No means no”) Athletics check of 28 means he’s up.He takes 7 persistent cold damage for as long as he is atop the guardian.

Skabb’s go… She aims for the one Valeros isn’t riding and casts Elemental betrayal, which gives +2 to fire damage. Then she casts fireball again, which does 24 damage, it rolls 29 on its reflex save so takes half damage plus 4d6 (16) takes 30 damage total.

Halbrecht’s next… He uses 1 action to cast guidance on Weejock. Next he makes an arcana check and has a good think about what these things are. Is distracted by a snow pigeon and has no bloody idea what these things are!!

The 2nd guardian tries to bash the Valeros off of its friends back… Valeros “ you have to ask my permission before you bash me off” Valeros takes 17 bludgeoning and 3 cold damage and is knocked off.

The guardian has another go at Valeros, but misses. Phew

Weejock… Wanted to demoralise the guardian, but it Is a little too far. So he runs up to furthest one. Glances at his mate to demoralise. Then hits him with his hammer. The DM asks for an Intimidation check against the guardians will dc. 17 beats 11. Weejock calls him “icicle prick”…It is frightened 1! Weejock hits its mate with a hammer; 32 hits for 16 bludgeoning damage. It takes all 16. (Weejock notes that he has wounded rage- as soon as one of them hits him he will rage)

Mialee’s up… She points out that we should all attack the same one. We decide the frighted one is the weakest right now. She lights arrows off of her torch. 27 to hit with short bow, 12 piercing damage, 4d6 =10, 11 sneak damage. It takes 23 total

Guardian hits Valeros: 29 hits for 18 damage …And again but misses at 20 …aaand once more misses at 19

Valeros… …Is gonna try magic! He lights his torch.p for 1 action. Then he busts out his lynx Africa and flame throwers the guardian. Obviously this gets a hero point and Valeros rolls 4d6 to deal 12 fire damage. For his third action he disengages and runs away behind a rock.

Skabb is up next. She uses 1 action to light her torch. For her 2nd action, she gives Grabby Cat two actions 1. picks up the torch 2 travels towards golem Skabb gives grabby two more actions. 1. Moves up to golem. 2. Drops torch in it eye (all whilst Mialee hums flights of the Valkyrie). 4d6 does 13 fire damage.

Halfbrick Moves for 1 action. Heals Valeros for 13 hps (he was at 9/78 hp) For his last action, HB raises his shield.

The guardian/Golem fella’s up next and uses Breath Weapon. Grabby fails her save but rerolls with a Skabb hero point, gets 26 and takes half damage (13) Weejock critically fails and takes 52 damage (!!) and is in a rage (understandably!

The guardian hits (26) Weejock with its fists and he takes 18 bludgeoning and 4 cold damage. It’s lucky he is weejock the ever living!

Weejocks turn now… He wants to trip a guardian with titan wrestler. The DM asks for an Athletics check against targets dc of 23. Weejock rolls 26. It is prone. Flat footed. Can only crawl or stand. Weejock does the same to its mate, 31 knocks it on its arse. -2 to dc as prone. He then smashes the second one with warhammer (25 hits) for 8 damage and he’s raging so it does 6 additional bludgeoning damage….HOWDEEDODIS…it shatters into tiny pieces.

As it dies it triggers icy demise and explodes shooting ice all over the place. Weejock gets a saving throw, 15 means he takes 11 more damage.

Mialee’s up… She looses her shortbow; 22 hits. It is flat footed so she gets sneak attack plus fire 4d6 damage, so it takes total 21 damage.

Second attack hits (25) and does a total of 33 damage which was exactly his number of remaining hit points…and its dead…this one explodes too - icy demise, but this time Weejock critically succeeds at his saving throw (29) so takes no damage. All the others hear an audible crack of his neck.

Valeros tries to give Weejock a neck rub. He is met with a bite. He is still raging. Valeros finds this charming and hilarious.

Wiseling latlu hands Weejock part of broken finger from remnants. “This is lucky. It will never melt”. Can use to chill things. It’s like a perpetually frozen ice cube.

Halbrecht heals everyone for 18 hit points. Yum.

Latlu takes a rabbit out of her provisions. She opens it up and put as an offering at the mouth of the cave and says “you can all go in…”

As we are about to go in we realise that Zorya has been watching us fight and not helping. She saunters over and joins us to pile into the cave to go and meet the calliaech…

Next session is on Fri 22nd and the uk dwelling folk will be IRL because Christmas!"

[cherhys]

At The Eleventh Hour

Cassian x Reader

Summary: You’ve brought war to Prythian’s shores and find yourself battling the Lord of Bloodshed—almost as if by fate.

Word count: 1.6k

Warnings: Descriptions of war, canon-typical violence, angst

Notes: This is nice and short but it was an absolute blast to write. I can't always give you lovey-dovey content, can I? I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. ♡

The stench of rotting corpses assaulted your senses. Dead left beneath the summer sun now polluted the air with their putrid stink, their bodies bloated and discoloured. The odour was only bearable due to the wretched chaos surrounding you. 

The wails of dying soldiers and the whines of wounded horses chorused in the madness around you. Swords flashed in the late afternoon, cutting down warriors like wheat stalks. Friend could not be discerned from foe, blood and viscera coating any distinct elements on your person.

The muddied ground flung up around your feet as you ran from enemy to enemy, slashing and stabbing through their pliant flesh. You were a beast to be reckoned with. You blazed through the enemy's careful formation, forcing them on the back foot. Your leathers chafed uncomfortably, foreign blood already having dried and begun to flake. Up above, winged fae flew overhead, the unfortunate few falling from grace with a well-placed arrow. Flashes of loosed power in various jewel tones illuminated the darkening battlefield. 

The war had persisted for over a year now. After negotiations fell through with the High Lords of Prythian, countries from the Eastern Continent joined forces to commence a full-scale conquest. As the highest-ranking Commander in your nation, you had invaded, pillaged, and killed your way along the coast of Prythian. Despite the Continent’s projections of an easy victory, the High Lords had aptly prepared; the war had been at a standstill since the Continent’s initial win over Prythian’s coastal defences.

Likely, this was due to the work of the Night Court—their fae currently raging around you, some bursting bellies open while others lie prone in the mud. This court was by far the most skilled; their army consisted of talented cavalry and infantry soldiers, wicked Illyrians, and powerful Darkbringers—they were well equipped, that you would admit. However, it was their leadership that set them apart from the rest. 

You scanned the battlefield, but three Illyrians landed before you, stopping your rampage through their offensive line. You tilted your head as you inspected the males surrounding you, one on each side and the third before you. Each male had one or two Siphons—not who you were searching for, then. 

Tsking, you slowly spread your arms and dropped your sword. Without hesitation, the three hulking males swooped in. Except, you whipped needle-like daggers out from your vambraces directly into the supple necks of the two males bracketing you. As they fell, gurgling in their blood, the third stared in a beat of confusion. The Illyrian blinked to sober himself, but with a resounding crack, you snapped his head to an odd angle. 

You stepped over the body of the broken-necked male, picking up his sword along the way. A copper tang coated your mouth, and you grimaced. You wiped at your blood-splattered face, succeeding in only smearing it further. Out of the corner of your eye, an archer drew his bow and fired at you. With easy sweeps of your sword, you cut the arrow shafts midair, ashwood falling uselessly to the ground. You reached to throw a dagger between his brows–

A sudden boom shook the earth beneath your feet. It seems the aerial fleets were no longer airborne. The main legion had landed before you, the rest resisting the pincer formation you had contrived. Someone from above must have assessed the odd placement of your soldiers and noted the lines moving to surround the Prythian warriors. You couldn’t help but grin—these were worthy opponents, befitting your regard. 

A wet drop to your face had you looking up to the sky. The dark clouds that had formed earlier finally opened up, and heavy sheets of rain began to pour. The downpour quickly soaked you to the bone, the thick spray obscuring your vision. 

It was only thanks to those glowing red Siphons that you managed to lift your sword in time. Thunder crashed as his sword met yours, the impact reverberating up your arms and down your spine. Your smile from earlier returned; the joyous turn to your mouth was at odds with the blazing look on the face of the famed Lord of Bloodshed that had caused you so much trouble.  

Cassian, Commander General of the Night Court’s forces, pulled his sword back only to strike with what felt like double his previous strength. You traded a few jarring blows before you jumped away. Warily you both circled each other, predators assessing their prey. 

The male you had been searching for cut an imposing figure indeed. He was larger than the reconnaissance made him out to be—thick, corded muscles were visible through the contours of his leathers, a sinister helmet adorning his head. Seven crimson Siphons glowed eerily in the rainstorm, casting his figure in a menacing light. Massive membranous wings sprouted from his strong back; he was utterly monstrous to behold. Although it was the feral look in his molten eyes that had you clenching your sword tighter. 

You continued to stalk around, the other soldiers instinctually giving you a wide berth as you let your powers bubble to the surface. The ground rumbled with his matching display, a scarlet haze growing around him. Your power soon cocooned you, blazing across your features. The rain around you began to steam and sizzle, evaporating at the heat radiating from you both. 

A resounding boom split the sky, and your swords met once again.

The General, despite his size, was quick on his feet. You danced around one another in the mud, your weapons arcing around each other. He was aggressive in his fighting style; powerful jabs and thrusts were thrown your way, and it was all you could do to step out of his reach. However, your swift, lithe movements proved a problem for him—he couldn't land a single hit as you traded blows. 

Nevertheless, you had never experienced a fight quite like this. Neither of you could seize the upper hand, finding yourselves to be of equal mastery. While the ceaseless killing that war demanded had taken its toll on you, your heart beat with elation at the current battle. Soon, you found a wicked grin stretching across your face. The General was sublime; a part of you hoped this fight would never end if only to remain in this bubble with him forever. 

Warriors from each side stopped to gaze in awe at the masterclass before them. You were locked in a violent dance, all semblance of the combat around you forgotten. The only thing that mattered was the rapid swing of your blades, your twin heaving breaths, and the clang of steel on steel. Ecstasy flowed through your veins; you wanted to devour him whole. His scorching gaze betrayed his identical thoughts. 

Finally, the General closed in, hoping to overwhelm you with sheer strength. Using his forward momentum, you briskly slipped under his extended sword arm. With all your weight behind you, you slammed your fist into the divot beneath his sternum. His breath wooshed out of him, but a giddy thrum shot through you as he remained upright. That hit would have felled more males than not. Incredible. 

The opening he gave you was a fraction of a second too long; you whirled, spinning behind him to cut at the tendons of his knees. Even winded, the General foresaw your movements and stepped away. However, he was too slow–the tip of your sword nicking him just enough to force him to his knees. 

You rounded his kneeling figure, kicking his sword away. The frigid rain cooled your heated skin, your leathers slick with rainwater and sweat. You gazed at the impressive male before you, astounded beyond words. Despite his loss, his stare was steady and unfazed. You took a moment to look over his strong—and admittedly handsome—features, committing to memory the face of the most talented warrior you had ever confronted. To be so skilled—there is a profound sense of respect you had for the male before you. 

As befitting of that respect, you would grant him a clean death. 

You prepare the final blow, lifting your sword high overhead—and that’s when it snaps. 

The bond is there between you both. It shined bright but was tainted by the blood each of you had spilled. Your heart raced, and your hands shook; this couldn't be possible. 

In your shared shock, Cassian gaped up at you, disbelieving the insistent tug in his chest. Your blade was still raised, now hesitant to fall. But Cassian could not afford to die today, and certainly not at the hands of his supposed mate. 

He slashed out with a dagger he recovered from within his boot, swiping you along the abdomen. You roared in furious pain and blindly brought your blade down, your sword catching flesh. The blade cut a deep gash along his cheek down to his jaw; had he not backed away in time, you would’ve chopped his head off cleanly. 

Adrenaline coursed rapidly through your system, and you pressed a hand to the numb cut on your torso. Cassian hesitated, dagger in hand, but instead, you watched your mate scramble away, retreating behind enemy lines.

His pained hazel eyes are the last thing you recall before you fall into the mud. 

♡𝌀𝌀𝌀♥𝌀𝌀𝌀♡

You awake in delirium, the thrumming string in your chest vastly more intolerable than the wound on your abdomen. After the battle—once you both received a healer's attention—you confronted your first gift to each other: permanent battle scars. 

The next fight was no longer for the Continent or your legion. It was for you to face your traitorous mate once again. This time—this time, you wouldn’t hesitate.

Final Notes: WHEW LOL I told y'all

[cafecourage]

(Putting this in here again since I changed my mind at the very end and forgot to remove the reader-insert “label.” Also I’ve just noticed that my formatting didn’t copy over to Tumblr. I’ve fixed that too — it makes a little more sense this way)

Hi Enno! I already sent a happy birthday ask, but since you like to say that you “make friends by learning people’s weaknesses and making them yearn” I figured I’d try my hand at fan fiction as a birthday present! :)

(Yes I’m aware that I’m late, what’re you going to do about it?)

Warning: long ask

It was laundry day. Which of course meant that everyone was wandering around in spare outfits and getting up to mischief while waiting for their clothes to dry. Wolfie had shown up at some point and was playing with Wind and Hyrule. Sky, Warriors, Legend, and Time sat together opposite them — tending to their blades and watching the wolf and youngest(s) fondly. Wild had been cornered by a curious Four who had questions about his slate.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Sky nod and stand up. Sheathing his sword, you tried your damndest not to notice how the white tank top he was wearing was just a little tight, he stood and walked over to where you had been organizing your bag.

He stopped in front of you and you looked up, setting aside the organization for now.

“What’s up, Sky?” You asked you were not going to look anywhere but his eyes, you were not going to start blushing, you were not, you were NOT.

“The Old Man says we need some more firewood, but going by myself is boring.” You were going to go with him you couldn’t deny him most things, so what he did next was completely unnecessary.

Not that he knew that.

Sky bent down, held out his hand, gave you his best puppy eyes, tilted his head that action had NO RIGHT to be so adorable, and asked “keep me company?”

You felt heat rising to your cheeks, you couldn’t ignore it. You tried your hardest to swallow the butterflies in your stomach, and you looked anywhere but at his adorable face. “Sure, Sky. I don’t mind.”

You grabbed your sword and took his hand. And you ignored how he pulled you to your feet with ease. As the two of you walked into the forest.

You’d been chatting amiably for the last fifteen minutes or so, asking about Skyloft and being asked questions about your own home in return, when something grabbed your leg. It happened too fast for you to react, you’d been too absorbed in the conversation more specifically, you’d been too absorbed in listening to Sky talk.

Sky had startled when you’d been snagged, you hadn’t noticed your own shriek, but he had and it had broken his heart. His hand flew to his sword.

You were now being held by a giant moblin, your arms pressed uselessly, and painfully, to your sides. Belatedly, you registered that it’s height meant it had to be from Wild’s era and recalled its silver coloring. You didn’t even try to resist. Sky didn’t know why you weren’t fighting back but it did make him worry even more, but it was because your adrenaline filled state heightened your senses. You saw Sky preparing to fight and knew that you’d only get in his way if you squirmed. You also wanted to watch. You may have been grabbed in the blink of an eye, but the next ten seconds happened in slow motion.

Sky’s eyes darkened, his brows furrowed, and his jaw clenched. Pure, unadulterated rage flooded his system. He was not going to let this monster hurt you. He couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you. Especially on his watch. He drew his sword and charged.

Sky had been poised to slash straight through the moblin’s leg, but it used you as a shield. Sky felt his stomach drop. You knew you only survived due to his lightning fast reflexes. He knew it too and he hated that thought.

Sky’s entire aura shifted as he dodged you. While you’d been able to clearly see his fury before, now he was practically radiating bloodlust. Usually he was a very comforting, gentle presence. Even to some extent while he was fighting. Right now though, his aura was dangerous. The very air around him seemed to have an intense pressure to it.

You’d known all along of course, but the realization hit you like a ton of bricks all at once, that this man was extraordinary. Even by the standards of your little group. This man was a godslayer. And this, very mortal, moblin had taken the person he cared about most one of his dear friends.

And it was going to pay.

Sky’s sword arm shot up in between the moblin’s arm and body, removing the offending limb at the shoulder. There was no black blood. The moblin dropped you and Sky caught you easily. He cradled you to his chest with one arm as he raised his sword to strike again. You tried very hard to ignore how you could feel every muscle in his chest as he fought.

Sky tried very hard to ignore how nice it felt to finally get to hold you, even under these circumstances how tense you were and how you’d grimaced slightly when he’d made contact with your arm. The moblin’s grip had been so tight that Sky was worried you’d been injured.

You still had too much adrenaline in your system to notice the hand-shaped bruises forming on your biceps. You were also far too distracted by the fact that his heartbeat was right under your ear.

Sky killed the thing. You didn’t notice how, you just heard the thump as it’s body hit the ground. Sky sheathed his sword and gently sank to the ground, you were now in his lap.

“Let me see your arms,” his tone was gentle, and the air pressure around him was beginning to lessen, but it was definitely not a request. You couldn’t blame him. You did have a habit of downplaying injuries to avoid having to drink those vile potions. Nevertheless you complied, attempting to roll up your sleeves but stopped with a wince as the abused muscles protested movement.

The remaining anger in Sky’s features dropped, replaced now by worry, as he gently rolled them up for you to get a look. On both arms was a rapidly forming, hand-shaped bruise. Sky’s heart broke. He almost wanted to cry, he hated seeing you his friends in pain.

Sky reached into his pouch and produced a red potion. You tried to resist, insisting it wasn’t that bad, but you were cut off by his expression. It melted your heart and once again you found yourself unable to deny him you didn’t want to worry him, so you took it and drank.

Sky could tell the exact moment the potion did it’s work because you relaxed completely melting into him in a way that neither of you was ready to admit that you enjoyed.

You broke the contact first and stood up “thanks for saving me, Sky.” You offered him a hand as you smiled. If that was even possible, his expression softened further as he took it and let you pull him to his feet. “Anytime, Enno.” He said as he pulled your joined hands up to kiss your knuckles.

Epilogue: eventually the two of you started awkwardly chatting again as you finished gathering firewood and went back to camp. When you returned, both blushing and slightly avoiding each other, Legend prodded Warriors and pointed at the two of you, very clearly still avoiding your feelings for each other. Warriors sighed and handed over 20 rupees.

Happy Birthday! 🥳

- Glitter ✨

SO I FORGOT I HAD THIS AND IM SCREAMING ALL OVER AGAIN.

GLITTER WHY!!!

AND THANK YOU! Sorry for not answering so fast.

[bowandcurtsey]

That Nozel in armour ask made me think of something... How about our dear BC boys releasing a new, powerful spell during a battle, when they see their s/o in mortal danger? Some angst with a happy end, that would be cool!

Hello Anony! Thank you for this special request! I'll try my best to make it an angsty to flooffie headcanon! A longer fic like a drabble would be much easier to express the feelings though!

Nozel | Fuegoleon | William | Yami

Nozel Silva

It was a trap. And you fell into it. In order to save you, Nozel got himself captured along with you.

You were kept in two separate cells, your grimore taken away from you.

“How are you both holding up?” Your captor asked sarcastically, “we’ve got ourselves a royal and and pretty face, what a good day!”

You rolled your eyes at the huge man towering in front of your cell.

“Hey there pretty doll, I’ll be nice if i were you,” he placed his face close to your cell, “or I might just slash your pretty boyfriend right in front of your eyes~”

You spat at him straight in the face.

The man was livid, his face burning with anger, entire being shaking in fury. “Why you..” he growled as he opened your cell and dragged you out from your cell by your hair.

Your resistance was futile, his strength overpowered you. Nozel slammed at the gates, “let her go!”

“I’ll be teaching this lil brat some manners for ya” and he slapped you across the face when you continued to struggle.

Nozel could feel anger boiling from the pits of his stomach, he tried to will his hands free from the handcuffs they were in.

He looked at you struggling, your limps dragging across the floor, scraping your skin and leaving bloody trails all over you.

His grimore from the other end of the room starting shaking.

"Wha-" The kidnapper stared at his grimore, mouth agape. The grimore flew past him and floated in front of Nozel, engulfed by raging mercury mana.

Mercury wrapped around him like an armour, he looked like a knight on a shiny white eagle, with one swing the cell explodes into parts and your captor had to cover his head with his hands.

In a flash, strings of mercury wrapped the big man up, leaving him immobile and begging for mercy. You were wrapped in Nozel's sturdy arms as his fingers grazed your reddened cheeks, "You alright?"

You nodded and smiled at your man, unable to keep your mind off how handsome he looks in an armour.

Yami Sukehiro

Yami was just right in front of you, but his limbs were bound by the devils' power. You wanted to go to him quickly, you were so worried about him and time was running out.

You had to defeat this devil in front of you. You tried, but it was futile, you were thrown around like a helpless puppy. The devil was merciless, it wanted to end your life.

You were covered in blood, you had no idea which part of you was bleeding, your body felt numb all over, your magic was running out and everything started to get blurry.

"y/n! Run!" Yami shouted at you, but his voice was drowned out by the ringing in your ears as you struggled to your feet.

You started crying. Sobbing, to be exact.

"I'm so-sorry babe..." you said in between your sobs, "I'm not good enough to save you"

The entire ground trembled.

"An earthquake?" the devil thought.

The ground started falling apart as dark magic took over the place. A feral Yami with bloodshot eyes was still incapacitated, but his entire being was shaking.

Whatever curse or magic that bounded Yami shattered into pieces. He ran straight for you and held you in his arms, shielding you from the devil.

The place around you crumbled due to his new found spell, things were being crushed and reduced to nothing. Yami lifted up his hands and clenched his fist, and the devil before you started melting, he was being swallowed by the darkness along with the entire piece of land surrounding him.

"It's okay baby, it's my turn to protect you now," your husband consoled you, stroking your hair. It was one thing that Yami couldn't stand, and that was you crying.

William Vangeance

You were helping voluntarily at the church, when this huge army of attackers busted in.

Your priority was to protect all the citizens but your magic couldn't fend off so many of them at once.

You were badly injured in the process and the attackers decided to take you, a magic knight as hostage in hopes that they could exchange you for a good ransom later on.

"y/n!" William arrived on time, fending some of the men off. The army of men swarmed over to him, attacking him all at once. They managed to trapped him, rendering him to be unable to move his limbs.

You struggled against your captor's hold, but to no avail. "William.." you called out to him, worried about him regardless of you current plight.

"Sorry Captain Vangeance, but I'll be taking this girl here, she looks pretty useful.." the leader of the army grinned at you with evil intentions. His huge biceps choked you as he dragged you along. He summoned his spatial magic, getting ready to escape.

He was about to walk into his spatial magic portal when vines held onto him. William's eyes were closed as mana was overflowing from him, wing sprouted from his back as he seemed to evolve. His eyes reopened and he took the form of a fairy king. He looked so beautiful and graceful but his eyes were stone cold and laced with malice.

Within seconds the entire army that the leader brought with were paralysed by his new found power. He moved so quickly that you could barely see him. He stopped straight before you, floating in mid air.

"I believe you have taken what's mine, I will be taking her back now." He growled through gritted teeth.

"wh-what are you?! A fairy? You're not human?!" In panic, he threw your body towards William and fled for his dear life.

William caught you gently and carried you in his arms. He engulfed you with a warm ray of mana that emanated from his body. Your wounds healed up and left no traces of it being there in the first place.

With a few flaps of his new found wings, petals spread across the entire church and healed everyone's wounds like magic.

"I'm sorry I was late y/n.." he stroked your hair.

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" the kids playfully cheered, leaving the two of you in a blushing mess.

Fuegoleon Vermillion

Before Fue had Salamander! There was an attack at the base by an exorcist who managed to possess the bodies of some of the members of the crimson lion, turning them against each other. Mereoleona is nowhere to be found and Fuegoleon is at the capital attending a captain's meeting.

You and the rest of the members tried your best to defend the base, but the enemy proved to be too overwhelming.

Reports of the Crimson Lion base being attacked quickly got reported to Fuegoleon who rushed back as soon as he could and saw the mess at his own base.

Squad members were fighting against one another, some were dead and some were injured... Fue caught sight of you and Leo in a corner. Your body was pierced by a sword and you were laying on top of an unconscious Leopold. This weird looking man towered over you.

Fuegoleon almost lost his sanity at that moment. Flamed engulfed him and his mana shook the entire base.

The exorcist couldn't help but turn over to Fuegoleon's direction. The pages of Fue's grimore were flipping, a new spell was being written magically on a fresh page. Fue's eyeballs turned red as though they were on fire.

Red flames resembling a shape of a lion formed, then two lions and it multiplied to a dozen of flamed lions, prancing and getting ready to attack their prey.

The sorcerer raised his staff and summoned lightning magic only to be stopped dead in the tracks by Fue's lions. They bit on his staff, his limps and they slowly decapitated the man, leaving him with estranged cries for help.

Help from the Silver eagles arrived promptly and they helped to bring everyone to the hospital. A few healers were brought over to heal anyone that was in dire state, which included you.

"y/n, speak to me," Fue held you hand as tears welled up in his eyes , "I'm so sorry... Thank you for protecting Leo.."

He gently stroked your hair and you gave him a weak smile and squeezed his hands with whatever energy you had left. "I'll be ok Fue, thank you for saving all of us."

-end-

I hope this was okay Anony!! I know it wasn't really angst angst but I still hope you like it! Thank you for requesting this one.

And can I say, am I the only one that thinks Fairy King William looks beautiful???

[rainbow-starheart]

Amazing! But can't stop a reality creator

Rainbow StarHeart – Full Powers, Abilities, and Combat Skills Recap

Core Powers and Abilities

1. Omnificence – Can create anything, from weapons to entire realities.

2. Omni-Reality Manipulation – Alters reality, physics, and universal laws at will.

3. Omni-Teleportation – Instantly travels across dimensions, timelines, and universes.

4. Hyper Cosmic Speed – Moves beyond the concept of time, faster than light and thought.

5. Omni-Shape Shifting – Transforms into any form, including abstract concepts.

6. Omni-Elemental Mastery – Controls all elements, but specializes in light and electricity.

7. Omni-Blast Projections – Can unleash explosive energy attacks, ranging from precise beams to nuke-like blasts.

8. Omni-Weaponry – Instantly creates weapons from imagination, often unpredictable in nature.

9. Mental Control – Resists madness, illusions, and emotional manipulations.

10. Fourth Wall Awareness – Knows she’s fictional, can interact with the “real” world.

11. Immortality & Regeneration – Multiple layers of immortality; regenerates from any wound, even conceptually erased states.

12. Special Vision Modes:

Yellow – Sees the invisible, spirits, and hidden beings.

Blue – Sees through walls and across long distances.

Red – Functions as night vision and X-ray.

13. Flexibility & Agility – Inhumanly flexible due to ballet, acrobatics, and gymnastics.

14. Combat-Enhanced Flower Crown:

Nerine – Boosts luck and fortune.

Edelweiss – Forms energy blades.

Sterlitzia – Enables high-speed flying attacks.

Lily – Grants enhanced regeneration.

Freesia – Creates explosive bombs.

Milkweed – Fires acidic milk.

Dandelions – Shoots explosive petal projectiles.

Tulips – Generates force barriers.

Sunflowers – Fires rapid seed bullets.

Yellow Roses – Creates petal-based detonations.

Weapons

Signature Weapon: A paintbrush that transforms into:

1. Electric Scythe – Conducts energy and slices through dimensions.

2. Magma Dagger – Superheated blade capable of melting anything.

3. Neutron Star Crust Sword – Infinitely dense blade with gravitational slashes.

Other Weapons:

Obsidian Bow & Energy Arrows – Shoots arrows with varying effects (explosive, elemental, reality-warping).

Crystal & Laser Guns – High-powered cosmic firearms.

Meteor Cannon – Launches meteor-like projectiles.

Electrified Ballet Shoes – Conducts electricity through kicks and movement

Tutu Blades – Rotating energy blades embedded in her attire.

Black Hole Shield – Absorbs attacks into an internal singularity.

Magnetar Armor – Enhances defense and gravitational attacks.

Alive Scarf (Handy & Dandy) – Sentient scarf used for grappling, strangling enemies, or shielding attacks.

Combat Style & Techniques

Ballet Combat – Uses elegant yet unpredictable dance moves, incorporating spins, flips, and pirouettes.

Acrobatic Gymnastics – Extremely agile, capable of dodging at impossible angles.

Electric Blitz Strikes – Uses electricity-infused attacks for rapid strikes.

Weapon Fluidity – Constantly changes weapons mid-fight to keep enemies off balance.

Chaos Unleashed – Manipulates physics and logic to fight in an unpredictable, reality-breaking manner

Starfall Barrage – Calls down meteors imbued with elemental energy.

Omni-Dimensional Feints – Vanishes and reappears in multiple places at once, overwhelming enemies.

Insanity’s Best Friend Mode – When in a madness spiral, she becomes wildly unpredictable, making her attacks erratic but devastating.

Raging Starburst Mode – Unleashes all her suppressed power for a brief time, creating omniversal explosions.

@starcrezt

Hex..? 🥹🫢😱

hi skibidi-starheart

still smashing ray btw

[wearepaladin]

Oath of the Divine Beast Part 2

Fenrir by Joelin Tan

OK my friends, continuing on from the lore/inspiration part posted previously, this is my attempts at illustrating the mechanics of the Divine Beast Paladin. This I’m more open to suggestions, since I confess I’m borrowing a lot from the Lycan Bloodhunter and Zealot subclass. Probably needs balancing, but if you want to feel like a Divine Beast empowered but not controlled by sacred fury, this will do it.

Level 3

At Level 3, the Divine Beast Paladin can begin to learn to control the lycanthropic extension of their soul. As a bonus action, you can transform into your beast form for up to every hour times your charisma modifier. You can speak, use equipment, and wear armor in this form. You can revert to your normal form earlier as a bonus action. You automatically revert to your normal form if you fall unconscious, drop to 0 hit points, or die. This feature replaces the rules for Lycanthropy within the Monster’s Manual.

Harnessed Might. You gain a +1 to melee damage rolls. This bonus increases by 1 at 11th and 18th level. You also have advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws. Your unarmed strikes can also inflict 1d6 damage, upgrading to 1d8 at level 11.

Resilient Hide. You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks not made with silver weapons. While you are not wearing heavy armor, you gain a +1 bonus to your AC.

Relentless Hunter: You gain advantage on all climbing related strength and athletic checks, and bonuses on your running and high jump equal to your combined strength and charisma modifiers

Channel Divinity

1. Disciplined Soul: To become capable of harnessing the power of the divine beast, one must have a razor sharp will and disciplined mind. Further, they can also project that discipline on others. With a bonus action, the Paladin can give themselves or another creature advantage on charisma, wisdom, and intelligence checks and saves for one minute.

2. Sacred Fury: Willing the inner rage of the beast into a purified weapon with your body as the conduit, the divine beast is unchained to its most lethal potential. As an action, the Paladin can for one minute use their divine grace as weapon, adding their charisma modifier to all attack rolls (with a +1 minimum). If they are using their unarmed strikes, they can exchange their d6 to d10 for the minute Sacred Fury is in effect. When they reach level 11, this upgrades the d8 damage die to d12 while Sacred Fury is in effect.

Level 7: Aura of Rage:  Starting at 7th level, you and friendly creatures within 10 feet of you begin projecting an aura of cold rage, leading to disadvantage to any wisdom saves for any hostile creature who attacks in that range while you are conscious At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.

The Guardian Claw: At 15th level, you can further enhance your beast form into a night unstoppable physical threat, at the expense of losing the ability to cast spells for one minute when the effect ends. You must be in your beast form to trigger this effect.

You gain 50 temporary hit points. If any of these remain when the spell ends, they are lost. You have advantage on attack rolls that you make with weapons and unarmed strikes. When you hit a target with a physical attack, that target takes an extra 2d12 force damage. 

Level 20: Fenrir Ascendant

You unleash the purified extension of your divine fury, entering a purified berserker state worthy of legend for one hour.

1. Speed is doubled to 60ft per round, and all jumping actions gain an additional max of 20 feet of movement.

 2. While in this state,  having 0 hit points doesn’t knock you unconscious. You still must make death saving throws, and you suffer the normal effects of taking damage while at 0 hit points. However, if you would die due to failing death saving throws, you don’t die until your ascended state ends, and you only die if you have 0 hit points.

This form cannot be restored until after a long rest.

As for unique spells, I always have trouble with those. So if anyone would care to make suggestions or further critique, I’d love to hear them.

Update. Divine Beast Spells

1 Hunter’s Mark, Animal Friendship

2  Alter Self, Moonbeam

3 Haste, Clairvoyance

4. Dominate Beast, Polymorph

5. Telepathic Bond, Seeming

[wardensantoineandevka]

Can Fjord knock out any given member of the Nein in a single turn—without critting? Level 14 Edition!

Some of you may remember that I did a post like this a while back—found right here if you want to have a gander—but in the time since, something very important happened to Fjord's damage output: he got a third 5th level spell slot.

This only makes it EASIER for him to knock out members of his own party, so I'm back again to run the numbers on the question: can Fjord knock out any given member of the Nein in a single turn without critting?

The answer remains: yes, except Yasha. Fjord can knock out any given member of the Nein who is not Yasha in a single turn by casting Searing Smite at 5th level and applying a 5th level Divine Smite to both his attacks for a total of 146 points of damage for the turn.

Yasha will remain solely standing due to her passive resistance to radiant damage; this includes even if he takes the better damage output of Banishing Smite instead.

Just as a bonus: if he does crit, however, he can very easily knock Yasha out with a single swing of a Banishing Smite + 5th level Divine Smite; he can also instantly kill Caleb and Veth, provided she does not Uncanny Dodge, with this same swing.

The parameters of this thought exercise are:

Fjord must knock out one given member of the Nein in one turn.

This member of the Nein is at full hit points (numbers as of 2.133): Caleb, 87; Veth, 98; Beau, 120; Caduceus, 121; Jester, 140; and Yasha, 154.

Fjord's turn is the first and only turn of the initiative.

Because of the previous, the given member of the Nein is not under the effects of any ability or spell, such as Death Ward or Rage.

All attack rolls succeed, and maximum damage is rolled.

None of the attack rolls are crits. After all, if this is achievable without them, it is certainly so with them.

On the Star Razor’s damage

The Star Razor is a +3 versatile weapon that does 1d8 (1d10) slashing damage. I will be treating it as two-handed here, so it will be calculated as 1d10.

Technically, it takes a bonus action to invoke, but it's unclear how evenly that distinction is applied across Fjord's to hit and damage calculations at the table. I'm choosing to not be pedantic about this, so these numbers assume an invoked Star Razor. If you choose to be pedantic, subtract 2 points of slashing damage off each swing, turning the +8 damage bonus into a +6 (since it was previously simply a +1 longsword un-invoked).

Searing Smite, two 5th level Divine Smites

As covered in the previous edition of this, Banishing Smite is Fjord's best option for raw damage output. However, due to its effect of banishing a creature should the attack reduce them to 50 hit points or fewer, it's finicky to use when the goal is to knock out the target in a single turn. So, we're progressing directly to his second option: Searing Smite, one of my favorites.

We saw this little Smite spell against one of the frost salamanders in 2.113, and what makes Searing Smite (1st level, 1d6 fire) truly fun is that its damage scales to the spell slot used to cast it: an additional 1d6 of fire damage for every spell slot higher than 1st. When cast at 5th level, it adds a total additional 5d6 fire damage to an attack.

So, he uses his bonus action to cast Searing Smite at 5th level, then applies a 5th level Divine Smite (5d8 radiant) to both attacks. As a reminder, since this is the first turn of initiative, Hexblade's Curse was not cast.

[(1d10 + 8) slashing + 5d6 fire + 5d8 radiant] first attack + [(1d10 + 8) slashing + 5d8 radiant] second attack

[18 slashing + 30 fire + 40 radiant] first attack + [18 slashing + 40 radiant] second attack

[88 mixed] first attack + [58 mixed] second attack

146 mixed for the entire turn

That total for the turn will knock out Caleb (87), Veth (98), Beau, (120), Caduceus (121), and Jester (140). It isn't enough to knock out Yasha (154) even before her resistance to radiant damage is applied.

Veth can attempt to Uncanny Dodge the first strike, halving it to 44 points of damage. The first strike would reduce her to 54 hit points, so the second strike would still knock her out.

Can he get Yasha with Banishing Smite?

Since Yasha is still standing, it's worth revisiting the option of bonus action Banishing Smite (5th level, 5d10 force), then applying two 5th level Divine Smites to each attack:

[(1d10 + 8) slashing + 5d10 force + 5d8 radiant] first attack + [(1d10 + 8) slashing + 5d8 radiant] second attack

[18 slashing + 50 force + 40 radiant] first attack + [18 slashing + 40 radiant] second attack

[108 mixed] first attack + [58 mixed] second attack

Yasha (154) due to her passive resistance to radiant damage will take 88 points (18 slashing + 50 force + 20 radiant) of damage on the first attack, reducing her to 66 hit points; as this is above the 50 point threshold to banish, she will remain on the plane for Fjord to finish his turn, but the second attack is not enough damage to knock her out, even before her resistance is applied.

Bonus: what if he does crit?

If Fjord crits on a Banishing Smite + 5th level Divine Smite, well, the short version is that he only needs one swing. Reminder, he gets an extra 1d10 to his melee weapon crits due to Savage Attacks.

2*(1d10 slashing + 5d10 force + 5d8 radiant) + (8 + 1d10) slashing

2*(10 slashing + 50 force + 40 radiant) + (8 + 10) slashing

2*(100) mixed + 18 slashing

200 mixed + 18 slashing

218 mixed

This is literally 2.5 times Caleb's max hit points (87), killing him instantly. Even if Veth (98) tried to Uncanny Dodge, it would reduce the damage only down to 109 points, which will save her from instant death but it will still knock her out. Yasha's (154) radiant resistance will halve the Divine Smite and bring the total down to 178 points of damage, but that is still comfortably enough to knock her out.

And he'd still have a whole second attack and a 5th level spell slot for a Divine Smite leftover.

[theauthor0]

UNIFIED!TALE GRINS

=============================

GENERAL INFO

=============================

The lazy yet hard working monster

Grins used to own a own and bakery however he decided to combine the two making his own restaurant that sells food, drinks, and sweets

When working at his job, he works very hard to make sure it’s in tip top shape

However when at home he gets very lazy and he is usually tired from all that working

While he does care for his “brother” he doesn’t view him as a brother, just as a best friend

Grins love spiders and even takes care of some

He can turn off his flames if he wants to however if he loses control of his emotions the flames will appear again

=============================

PHYSICAL INFO

=============================

Gender: Male

Grins has the typical Sans body but his body is now the same height as Doggo, he now has 6 arms and 5 eyes, his body is englue in fire, and has Glyde wings

=============================

PERSONALITY

=============================

Grins is very lazy and laid back like sans however he takes his jobs very seriously, he still says puns (sometimes inappropriate ones) and generally tries to be make everyone smile but he can very greedy at times and making sure their customers pay (Unlike Muffet he is fair with the prices) but there are times where he gives food for free for customers that aren’t in the right mind.

Grins likes to smoke and he is stingy with his money sometimes however he is willing to share it with his brother or people he’s close with.

Do not make this monster mad because when he gets mad, hell rains down, Grins rarely ever gets mad however when he does, he no longer says puns instead threatens people or just be flat out rude even saying morbid things, when he’s mad its very easy to tell (basically getting everyone attention), calming him down isn’t easy, but there are times when he knows he takes it to far and apologizes.

=============================

COMBAT INFO

=============================

〔Statistics〕

HP: 1541

ATK: 111.8 (20-50)

DF: 26.8

〔Traits〕

Physical resistance: due to being merged with grillby, physical attacks do not damage Grins that much (about like half)

Great Hearing: Just like Doggo, Grins has great hearing just like Doggo

Flight: Due to Glyde, Grins Can fly

Wall climbing: Grins Can climb walls and any surface

Teleportation: Grins Can teleport

KR: you know what this does

〔Abilities/Attacks〕

Web creation: Just like Muffet, Grins can create webs/strings

Blue magic: Grins can control a person gravity (basically telekinesis)

Purple magic: restricts a being soul to a few strings

Star Bullets: Grins can summon bullets in the shape of stars that he can make explode on command

Gaster Blaster: the blaster have not changed much in power (the power has increased but not much) however now they have 5 eyes, can change direction and can bite

Bones: Grins can summon bones

Blue Bones: you know what this does

Fire magic: you know what this does

〔Weapons〕

Shortsword: Grins carries a shortsword that does 20-50 Dmg

Slash attacks: Grins carries a shortsword and can turn blue which acts like a blue bone

〔Weaknesses〕

-If you dump Water on him, his stats will decrease by half

-his rage can blind him (figuratively)

-His magic attacks only do 1 damage but his physical attacks do 111.8

[cloud9in]

You’re the only one who’s writing poppy x mc fics sooo, i have a request “ bea is a bad girl (like in a gang) in high school and also went jail couple of times for getting in trouble in high school senior year poppy was new transfer student and after 2 months bea join back school and met poppy bea and they just click yk like a connection slowly they started dating and in school everyone was shocked to see bea in a relationship ( bad girl and new girl) poppy is always worried about bea and few days before graduation bea got hurt really bad and poppy gives bea 2 options that she has to choose between her or her this (gang).. bea didn’t say anything to her so poppy left, after 2/3 years they met in college bea was a different person but so does poppy they become enemies (no one knows why they hate each other) one day they were arguing and poppy shout at her and says why you're back and bea put her hand on her cheek and smile and say i am here to win you back because i love you 😬

Promises (Poppy x MC)

Part 1/?

Can i just say I'm absolutely invested in this plot? You've got me hooked on my own story, as hectic as my life is, this is enjoyable to write. I hope you like it as well @iamsimpforpoppy

Word count: 1.8k (i got carried away)

“You know what to do Jackson, same old shit.”

“Yeah but it feels like a movie every damn time”, Bea responds confidently as she unbuckles her seatbelt. She sports a black mask with a yellow bandana, a vivacious color worn by only the Southside Spades, a notorious street gang who were known for robbery, and occasional blood.

Bea found herself wrapped up in the world of gangs when she turned sixteen. But before that the brunette would assist in transporting goods, also known as hardcore drugs. There was plenty enough to go around so Bea could indulge in any she wanted. Drugs didn’t give her the high she craved though, instead it was the thrilling game of cat and mouse with the cops.

Every now and then she’d get thrown in the slammer overnight. But this particular evening earns her one year in the NY State Penitentiary. See, the cops never gathered significant evidence to build a case against her, even though she was well aware of Detective Steinhelm who had some sick obsession with her. Following her everywhere, until Bea confronted her directly after noticing the same black sedan parked a street down from her house.

But she played the game right, and nothing ever led back to her. Until now.

“Where’s the money Bradley? I feel like I’ve been kissing your ass all week, the boss needs it now.”

A skinny blonde boy who looks like he had better days grunts in annoyance, “You’ll get your money...I’m just a little short right now.”

“Time’s up Ken doll, you know Carter will have your head for this.”

“Maybe he doesn’t have to know. Maybe this can be between us…”, Bradley strides carefully towards the blonde, a disturbing grin on his face which screams junkie. “Back the hell up now.”

Bea pulled her knife out with ease and pointed it towards him. She didn’t plan on actually using it. Murder was way out her budget for a simple money pickup but she knew that it would scare the boy easily. Except he kicked the blade out of her hold which prompted it to screech across the concrete before coming to a stop. Before Bea could think her fists reacted as she intercepted a punch that aimed straight for her jaw. She twists Bradley’s arm and he falls on his knees in pain. With his back to her, she kicks him down until he’s flat on his stomach.

“What is it exactly that you plan on doing now Bradley?” The blonde boy struggles under Bea’s foot but manages to reach around and slash at her ankle with a surprise shiv. Bea yelps in pain before kicking his head, rendering him unconscious.

“Stupid idiot. Had to make this harder than it should’ve been.”

Bea eventually finds the stash of money hidden under his mattress, an amateur hiding place at best. She congratulated herself for another job accomplished (kinda) and headed home. What the seventeen year old didn’t expect was the repulsive sound of a siren filling her ears as she stepped out onto her driveway. Her blood rushed to her head when she spotted Detective Steinhelm among the police officers surrounding her and retorts, “oh come on. I thought I told them about you harassing me. What do you want? Back here to strip search me again?”

The older woman only watches the blonde in eerie silence before smiling and gesturing to a police officer. “Beatriz Jackson you have the right to remain silent, anything you say or do can be used against you in a court of law-”

“What the actual fuck!” Bea yanks her arms out of the officers reach which initiates a struggle for dominance. This was nothing new to her, but it still felt sickening. Like she was some pet.

“You have the right to have a lawyer present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be appointed for you if you so desire.” Detective Steinhelm finishes speaking and approaches the still scuffling blonde, “if you keep resisting I will tase you myself.”

Bea bites back the urge to headbutt the old hag right in her stupid face but she didn’t need any extra charges, for whatever the hell it was she was being charged for.

“Tell me why the fuck I am being arrested and I’ll calm down.”

That’s when Bea notices a familiar (bruised up) face from earlier. His smirk was enough to eat at her skin and she felt burning hot rage.

“Your blood was found at the scene of Mr. Denbroughs assault. You are being arrested in the case of second degree assault with intent to hurt someone with a deadly weapon.”

***

Bea only got one year in prison due to her kickass lawyer Ina Kingsley who played the minor card at every opportunity given. She also pointed out the fact that the knife wasn’t bloodstained, and Bradley never had any stab wounds so there is no proof the weapon was ever used against him. And it technically wasn’t. Good thing she didn’t bring a gun instead.

She did miss her 18th birthday though. And a few months of her senior year. But that’s what summer classes were for right?

All eyes were on the blonde when she returned, and whispers spread throughout the school about a certain new girl. Bea paid no mind to the fingers that pointed in her direction but the newcomer did manage to catch her attention, and pretty quick at that.

“Hey Jackson, how was solitary confinement?”

“I heard they make you use the bathroom right through the tiny food slot.”

Bea rolls her eyes and pelts a piece of not-so-fresh bread right at Ford’s head. The other people at the table join in on the laughter and Bea shakes her head and smiles, “it was Juvie you dumbass, and they made us sit in a circle together every Thursday like we were in an AA meeting.

“That’s jail for babies, goldilocks here wouldn’t last a minute in a real prison”, Carter joins them at the table with a cocky smirk, yet his eyes soften when landing on Bea. She shares a similar look with him knowing they’ll have a real conversation later. Because they definitely didn’t get to have that when Bea was getting dragged away to the police station in cuffs, and every event after that.

“It’s our girl’s first day out, we have to celebrate. And it’s not like she’s on probation...right Bea?”

“I do have a curfew, and I’m on juvenile probation so…when we partying?” The crew laughs as Bea shrugs. Her mother will deal with it. Zoey scoots in next to the blonde and wraps her arm around her shoulder in a side hug. “So glad to have you back Bea, and we are not risking you breaking parole so let’s just go to a sport’s bar tonight.”

Bea nods her head in agreement as the first warning bell goes off and everyone starts to clean up. Zoey taps on her arm and points towards one of the farther tables where a lone figure sits, wiping her hands with a napkin. All Bea saw were blonde tresses until she turned and they made brief eye contact.

“She’s the new girl, Poppy Min Sinclair. Rumor is she’s got a rich white daddy. You should totally invite her to the party.”

“And why would I do that?”

Zoey squints her eyes and leans in closer, her hands under chin in thought, “she seems like the broody type, you two would click.” She laughs at Bea’s comical expression but the blonde can’t bother to look in her direction, she’s way too wrapped up in what little the stranger a few tables away had to offer. She would sit on that thought, Bea was not one to shy away from anything.

***

The two became friends quicker than anyone could think.

One day after school, Poppy’s car wouldn’t start. It just didn’t comply. You would think she’d be poised and call her mechanic to come fix it, but instead the blonde slumped against the driver’s side window and let out a visibly frustrated, high-pitched yelp. Bea watched her pace around the car and even...kick?...the front bumper with her heels in efforts to wake it up.

“You know I may be wrong but I think that only makes it worse..” She approaches the helpless blonde with a small grin. Poppy’s persistence amazed her though, she’s never seen anyone determined to beat a car up. An expensive one at that.

“I hope you have some idea how to fix it, unless you’re here to waste my time and ask me on a date.”

Woah.

Okay that definitely threw Bea on a whim. She lets out a sharp laugh and bites her lips in amusement. She strolls towards the front of her car, holding Poppy’s gaze the whole way. She liked that the blonde didn’t avert her eyes. “And if I did? We couldn’t take your car of course, it’s obviously impaired.”

Poppy smiles and turns to look at Bea properly. She checks out every inch of her with no visible shame. An assessment so to say, and she likes what she sees.

“It’s your lucky day Poppy, I happen to know a thing or three about cars, and I desperately want to get this thing working so we can go on that date.” She winks playfully but god does she mean it. Bea silently prayed that the blonde wouldn’t take it the wrong way, but she knew she won when Poppy didn't protest, instead getting comfortable under some shade and holding her hand out, “the stage is all yours Jackson.”

***

“So what you’re trying to tell me is that I can’t jump over this obvious not-so-protected fence?”

“Judging by the sign right next to it that says...oh wow who would’ve thought, “DO NOT ENTER”, I don’t think so”, Poppy deadpans. It didn’t phase Bea of course because she was already halfway up the fence when the blonde turned away from the sign. The girl had a point to prove, maybe not a valid one, but still a point.

Poppy pinches her eyebrows in exasperation before looking back up to a nonchalant Bea swinging her legs from the top of the fence. She winks down at the blonde, “join me?”

Poppy didn’t expect to be climbing fences with a charismatic girl who had the same color hair as her when she moved schools, but she found herself embracing every moment of it. Although the trip up there was a struggle and some.

“I swear to god there’s a wire in my ass.”

“You’re being dramatic.”

“And we’re both going to end up in the hospital. Get. me. Down.”

Bea tries to hold in her laughter the whole way down but lets it loose when she sees Poppy still up there, partly hovering in the air. “Pops...I’ll catch you, don't worry. Climb down slowly.” She doesn’t. But Bea had her feet planted and ready because any moment with the sassy blonde was unpredictable.  And she loved it. Especially because she had Poppy engulfed in her arms and they were so close their noses touched.

Bea promised herself she’d kiss the girl next time.

***

“You’re...in a gang?”

Bea felt a clasp of cold air enter her lungs as she stared ahead. It wasn’t like she could hide it from Poppy. She has a reputation, and word has gotten around about the two getting close. This was just like that one time at the end of sophomore year where Bea met Kelly Hall, a beautiful girl with golden rimmed glasses. Unfortunately she only could imagine what could’ve been after whispers ended up right on the doorstep of Kelly’s parents, and she suddenly changed her number, and switched out of every class she had with Bea.

The blonde didn’t want to entertain the thought of Poppy doing the same, but this was a lifestyle she chose.

“I mean...how?”

Bea sighs and turns to look at her, “I fell into the wrong crowd. Or maybe it’s the right one because I never found a true home until I met them. They’re family, I wouldn’t expect you to get it though and I understand if you want to distance-”

“I of all people know what it’s like to not fit in Jackson. You’ve found people who make you feel safe. Maybe I don’t agree with the troubles that come with being in a gang but I don’t know the whole story.”

“Do you want to?”

Poppy wraps her arms around Bea’s and lays her head on her shoulder, “I want to know that you won’t get yourself hurt but I know that’s nearly impossible.”

Bea exhales slowly, not knowing what to say. She knew that this would upset Poppy but her acceptance meant more. She didn’t know what this would mean for the two of them, if there was a “them”, but she felt more encouraged to share more of her other life with the blonde.

“Just promise me one thing Jackson.”

“Yeah?”

Poppy’s voice comes out softer than expected, and Bea ingests every emotion that comes with it, “Promise me you won’t ever put yourself in a position where you have to choose between me or the gang.”

Bea finds her hand in the space where their thighs touched and latches onto it like a lifebuoy,

“I promise.”

***

“I just remembered something Poppy.”

“What, that you have half a brain cell? I thought that was established Jackson.”

Bea launches a pillow that (purposely) misses Poppy’s head by an inch. If she actually hit her and frizzed up her locks then she’d never hear, or see..or walk again.

“I’m being serious. I just remembered this too, we never went on that car date we talked about.”

Poppy squints her eyes in confusion, but was fully aware of what Bea was referring to. “You mean the first time we met?”

The blonde smiles to herself as she replayed that day in her head over and over again. She couldn’t decide if Bea’s openly flirty behavior is what drew her in or if it was her ability to fix any of her possessions with ease. And for free.

Bea pulls Poppy up by her hands until her back is against the lockers. Another perfect opportunity for the blonde to make do of that promise she made to herself, but something told her to wait just a bit longer. “So what do you say? Poppy Min Sinclair, will you go on a date with me?”

Poppy rolls her eyes playfully, pulling Bea in closer by the collar of her letterman, “now who’s being dramatic?”

“I didn’t hear a no”

“I think you know what the answer is.”

That night Zoey helped Bea prep for her first date with the girl that she could say she was almost in love with. The taller girl brushed some dust off of Bea’s jacket and planted her hands on her shoulders, “remember Jackson, give her the ride of her life. And I mean that in every way possible.”

Thanks Zoe.

Bea watched Poppy drive up in front of her house and something inside her mind couldn’t deny the pang her heart let out when she saw Poppy smile the way she did.

Bea took control of the driving and told Poppy to recline her seat and enjoy the ride, with her seatbelt on of course. Safe sacrifices. They cruised through an empty highway blasting Poppy’s spotify playlist named “Rich Bitch Songs” because that was their ideal perfect date. It’s amazing that the two could even come to an agreement, but here we are.

She watched the beautiful blonde sing her lungs out and couldn’t help but mirror her joy, taking her hands off the steering wheel. The pump of adrenaline prompts a new excitement in the air and Poppy wraps Bea into a secure hug, her hair flying wildly with the wind. Bea slows the car down but the rapid beating of her heart made it seem they were going 100 miles per second.

“I feel so alive Jackson.”

Bea stared at the girl in the passenger seat with a look that could only be described as love.

“You make me feel alive.”

Poppy kept talking and Bea found a way to focus on both the road and the blonde next to her. Because when you truly enjoy something, you’ll find a way to keep experiencing it. And Bea enjoyed hearing Poppy’s voice, she loved everything about her.

“I feel like kissing you.”

“Then what’s stopping you?”

“...Nothing. I should’ve done this a long time ago.”

They kiss when Bea pulls over.  A hot feeling consumes them like fire when their tongues collide and Bea plants her hands around Poppy’s hips, pushing her back into her seat until she’s on top. The windows easily start to fog up in reaction to the heat, and not once did they take their hands off each other.

Promise 1/2 kept

--------------------------------------------------------

End Note: This chapter was to build their relationship, more angst incoming. BIG THANKS to @somewillwin for letting me use Jackson <3333

Taglist: @samanthadalton @somewillwin @clowneryme @baexpoppy @poppysmc @doey-eyes8 @veenast @straightlikewetspaghetti @phoennixxsblog @a-ghost-girl