#electric orange jessica

[lilacsugar5]

Check out these really cool icons that I have made :) feel free to use them, but please don't forget to credit me (lilacsugar5 on Tumblr is fine). All the love goes to Jessica, Stella, Emily, Nina, and Miyu from us fans <33

💜 Sophie

[jaidens]

But I can see us lost in the memory — Hobie Brown •°. *࿐

pairing(s) : hobie brown (spider-punk) x reader

warning (s) : small-ish makeout scene

a/n : end rushed cuz i didnt know how to end it sorry loll 🙏

requested? ✔

wc : 1697

Whenever Hobie lost you, he couldn't cope with himself. He watched as the portal closed, losing the connection between your souls. It let him to a place of darkness, enclosing himself in feelings and engineering. He sat upon hours and hours trying to figure out how to get a way to you. Every time he tried, it unfortunately would explode and ended up in a quick spray of a fire extinguisher. Hobie begin to lose himself in-between time, losing sleep which ended up in laziness made in the being Spider-Punk. Whenever he was contacted by Miguel and Spider-Woman, he knew it was time to get over himself and go help out.

When Hobie found himself helping the group of Spiders, he found himself losing focus from the mission. That would end up Hobie being yelled at for his cloudy head. He knew it wasn't a good idea to not think about you, but you'll never leave his mind, for as long as he lives, he swears. Spider-Woman confronts him about this, pulling him in a corner.

“Are you still thinking about her?” She speaks, quieter if someone might overhear their conversation. “If you are, I might be able to help you.” She suggests, watching Hobies’ eyes brighten. He immediately nods and walks behind her. She takes them into a room, with computers and wires crowding the walls. “We had a break through with finding her. She doesn't have a watch, and the web is falling apart, we have a small chance of getting her. But we'll take it.”

Hobie can't help but smile. He's leaning over the computer, staring at the one part of the signal coming from your universe. “I wanna go. Even if the chance is smaller than anything. I have to see her again.”

Jessica smiles at him, her hand laying on her stomach. Hobie's young, he's only 17, and she feels a motherly instinct to make him happier. Jessica explains how the connection works and what Hobie has to do. Hobie looks up at Jessica, “Are you sure this is going to work? You're totally sure?” His accent becomes thicker in worry, in the chance that his hopes are too high for his love again.

“I can't say I'm sure, Hobie, but if you're sure you wanna go, you can. I think you should do it.”

Jessica pulls the chair next to him. to sit down, her hand on his shoulder as he pulls his electric guitar off his shoulder and sets it down on the ground as he thinks. He sees Jessica's concerned look as he sets his hand on his forehead. “Don't stress about this. If anything happens, we're able to get you back.”

He nods once more, standing up, mounting his guitar back onto his shoulder. “I'm gonna do it yeah. It'll be good to try.” Hobie states, shrugging at the end as Jessica begins to set everything up. The computer whirring up covers any noises he hears, he focuses as Jessica's fingers tap rapidly against the keyboard’s keys. She hands him a watch, a Universe key popped up and he presses the small button, ensuring he is doing this.

A portal appears, colors or oranges and blues and squares spinning quickly causing the boxes around the room to begin floating from the unwanted energy. Jessica hugs him before he goes, tapping his back lightly. “Be careful. Now, go find your girl.” She smiles as she pulls away, her eyes have brightened seeing Hobie's behavior and self-conscious beginning to fade away as he pulls away and walks into the portal. He waves at Jessica before he's ripped away into the web of universes.

He's dropped into an unfamiliar world. It's New York City from what he recognizes, but the city is normal. The only abnormality he can tell is the fact that his powers are gone, he can no longer use his webs. He stands in Times Square, people crowding and pulling around on the streets, rushing to day jobs and tourists running around taking pictures of everything.

He looks at himself in a passing building, his clothes are normal, well for as normal as they can get. His baggy cargo jeans stay the same, and his t-shirt but he notices the fact that he doesn't look the same. He's more defined and the same to the other people he sees. After taking himself in, he notices a small coffee shop. He decides to walk away from the boring Starbucks he sees and into the coffee shop.

People are crowding around the counter, ordering quickly with no care to the barista, yelling their order before taking their direction and mind back to their phone. He stands behind a smaller lady, her hair pulled up into a wrap as she holds onto a bag and a pair of glasses. She turns her head and smiles at him and he gives a small smile out of kindness.

When he finally looks up, he sees you. Your uniform is tied onto your body, a small smile as you hand the man his coffee order. He feels as if he is dreaming. He pinches himself. He's definitely not dreaming. Here you are, standing in front of him after years of dreaming and working to see you. You're not paying attention as you're putting something in the register until you hear something.

“Can I have a small coffee and a biscuit Dear?” The British accent rings in your ears. Your head pulls up quickly as soon as you hear it. The boring indie album is forgotten as you focus on him. He stands there, smiling brightly with tears welling in his eyes. You're holding onto the iPad in front of you.

Hannah, your coworker, gets closer to you and whispers: “Who is that amazing tall sack of handsome that's making you freeze?”

“Is that really you? Hobie?” Leaves your lips quietly. Barley above a whisper, your lip begins to shake. Everything is coming back to you. The feelings, the breakdowns, the tears, the yelling, the everything. You've spent your time back on your Earth wondering about everything. Would Hobie come back to you? Would you ever see his beautiful face again? Feel his hands on you? You couldn't answer a single question until today.

“It's me darling. I've found you.”

You run around the counter and jump into his arms. Feeling in Hobie is the best feeling that has ever gone through you. His hand runs on your back as he feels you shake with emotions and you're gripping your arms around his neck. “Wanna leave and get home yeah?”

You fall off of him and tell your coworker Hannah to clock you out and you're leaving as you chase out with Hobie to get to your apartment you used to share with him years ago. You're holding his hand as you run through the warm, august air. New York City has never been extremely pleasant, the people and the grime everywhere lurks around, but the feeling of Hobie makes your mind give up any fears you may have had. He's him. He's the only boy who'll make your mind mush.

Once you get to your condo, you rush for your keys and unlock the door. Hobie walks in after you and notices it hasn't changed since the last time he saw you. His first concert photograph still stays framed in the hallway, his guitar is placed by the couch. You stare at his backside as he admires the apartment.

“It isn't that awesome, baby.” You snicker as he grabs a decorative piece of art from the table and stares at it. It's a remembrance piece from your first date with Hobie. After meeting him at a pub in London, you knew that he was for you. He helped you settle at your hotel room safely, leaving you a phone number and a small heart. He has had your heart since day one. He turns his head at you, a soft smile decorating his face. “Of course it is. I'm home. I'm home with you. My love.”

He walks over to you, his hands laying onto your face. He stares into your eyes before pulling you in for a kiss. He pulls away naturally after a few seconds. You're convinced that this isn't real. Hobie isn't standing in front of you, kissing you. “How’d you find me? After that mission, I just felt like everything was over.” You're lying against his chest, the warm musky smell taking over your senses as you lay your hands on his back. You stare up at him as he's stuck in thought.

“Jessica said she had a lead in finding you. But, with your world and all, it wasn't reliable. I took the chance for you, and I'd take a thousand more.” He explained quietly, holding you tighter. You pull away and start pulling his hand to drag him into your bedroom. “I’m already liking this idea..” He mumbled as you laughed at his behavior. You turned on your lamps and dragged him into your bed.

He was on top of you and you kissed him softly. His brown eyes were running across your skin as he stared at you. You were perfect in his eyes. “Take a picture, it'll last longer Hobie.” You teased as you ran your hands on his back. Your hand relaxes on his neck as you continue kissing his lips. He pulls away and his chin and lips are covered in your pink lipgloss.

You're smiling, your teeth shining out from your lips. He's the love of your life, and now you recognize why. You see the love in his eyes as he is in a trance staring at you. This is what you dreamed of as a little girl. Your “Knight and Shining Armor”. It's him. It's the man you met after he had to save you from a dangerous field of gravity. Hobie. Hobie Brown. Your Hobie.

“I love you. I'll love you forever, love” Hobie whispers as you feel him collapse onto you. “I love you too. Forever.” You mutter quietly before you hear his soft snores fall from his mouth.

[fictionadventurer]

Imaginary Book Recs Cover Thoughts: Round One

Two Passengers on the Last Train by A.G. Benedict: Obscure English literary fiction from the 1920s. I read it as a Gutenberg ebook, but the original cover was one of those clothbound classics with silhouette images. Any modern-day reprints are by very small publishing houses that provide minimal, low-budget covers using old illustrations (something like this version of Manalive.)

Song of the Seafolk by Marjorie A. Penrose: American children's fantasy from 1954, with illustrated cover typical of the era. Has had rerelease covers in subsequent decades (including one very nice painted cover from the '90s).

Bright Folly by Glorya M. Hayers: 1930s comedy mystery. Most representative cover is the mass-market paperback that looks like the more cartoony covers of Wimsey novels (like the editions that contain this version of Gaudy Night), though with a bit more of a sunny Wodehouse twist.

On Eternity's Doorstep by Willa Aldecott: Classic autobiographical novel about WWI nursing. Several rereleases over the years, all involving variations of historical photographs or historical-nursing-items on a colored background. (The Hiding Place keeps coming to mind as a cover comp, except with more sepia-toned photos and gentle browns and neutrals as background colors.)

The Queens of Wintermoon by Jessica Wagner: 1980s (or '90s, I can't remember) adult fantasy with an illustrated cover. A 2010s attempt to repackage it as a YA series split the book into four covers that each featured the heraldic symbol of the House of each of the four sisters (Raven, Eagle, Falcon, and Firebird) on a different jewel-toned background (probably blue, green, orange or red, and violet or black).

Caroline by Maria Layton: 1820s classic novel. Anything that's been done for an Austen book is applicable here.

The Lands of Dorothon series by Barbara Lamley: Off-brand versions of Narnia.

The Autumn Queen’s Promise by Rose Rennow: 1990s children's historical fantasy. Illustrated cover that combines the fantastical autumn colors of An Enchantment of Ravens with the more straightforward historical imagery of a book like The Sign of the Beaver or The Witch of Blackbird Pond.)

Island in the Stars by Carolyn Taylor Harris: 1970s children's science fantasy, with the period-accurate slightly wonky cartoony style.

The Camille series by Annette Nowell: Anne of Green Gables covers but with more exotic settings as the background. Both Camille in the Alps and Camille in the Andes involve her climbing mountains in intrepid Edwardian girl-reporter wear.

The Lakeshore Plan by Louise Zajac: Something between Swallows and Amazons and The Penderwicks. Could go full-on painted summer scenery, but simple drawings and/or silhouettes are also valid options.

Ever Miss Eliza by Charlotte Koning: 1940s slice-of-life light fiction. Honestly, I just picture the cover of D.E. Stevenson's Charlotte Fairlie, except the illustration is a woman in front of a rural schoolbuilding.

The Ocean’s Revenge by Edward G. Whitmore: 1940s pulp fiction in all its glory. Cover features a striking painting of a futuristic submarine in the grasp of a huge squid-creature.

The Book of All Days by Harriet Street: Painting of a little girl peering at an old-fashioned book.

The Guardian of the Nest by Aurelia T. Noah: 1960s children's fantasy. Probably a cloth-bound cover with the images (fairy tale carved right into the cover the way they are in some old books.

The Thief’s Debut by M.J. Ponders: Very recent indie-published fairy tale retelling that is unfortunately saddled with the genre-typical "girl in a sparkly prom dress" cover that probably involves her wearing a mask and standing in front of a vaguely Venetian-looking building. In a better world, it would get a digital-painted cover more along the lines of The Electrical Menagerie, (though the subject matter would be something between The Princess Bride and The Lies of Locke Lamora).

The Interdimensional Book Carrier by Martin Kaspar: Modern-day bestseller. Cover comps coming to mind are The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry and Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

[iamyouknow-yours]

I've seen a few people trying to decide between getting a mobility scooter and an electric wheelchair.

Mobility scooters are cheaper but both are expensive. I'm gonna tell you about my scooter and my experience with it. I have the CTM HS-115 scooter. She is red and has 3 wheels. I'll include photos at the end plus a bonus photo of my cat sitting on it.

Things:

The turning circle!!! My house has narrow passages and it can be quite difficult to maneuver the scooter because of the turning circle. Especially when I'm having a bad brain fog day. I have gotten better at maneuvering though.

Wheelchairs have a turning circle of themselves. My scooter has one that is I think around a metre? I don't remember, my memory is bad.

Also it has this really annoying function where it can't be pushed even on pushing mode if it isn't on perfectly flat ground because the automatic braking system kicks in.

I'd also have a look at the amount of rise any mobility aid you are looking at can go over because when entering inaccessible buildings (like my house, I have to lift it up/get someone else to lift it for me.

Some of these problems would not be fixed by getting not a mobility scooter but some would.

My back sometimes hurts if I'm in it for a while (because the back rest is not very tall) but I've fixed this by having a cushion and remembering to lean back all the way.

To be clear though I love my scooter. She is very useful and has loads of benefits.

And I don't know any of the downsides of a power chair because I have no lived experience with one.

She can go on pretty rough terrain. She's pretty sturdy. I've taken her to the park near my house and round my friend's garden. As well as more obvious places like the mall.

Only time I've had an issue was when I went to this very hilly place where the ground sloped to the side and then she didn't want to brake.

The driving system means I can switch which hand I use plus my friend can walk next to me and maneuver me.

There's enough space by my feet that I can put my backpack there too.

It's fit in every car I've tried it in with just regular disassembly. Except my friend's dad's two seater car but then he disassembled it more using Tools™ and it fit.

It has good battery life, it hasn't run out on me.

The system for viewing how much battery you have left is bad though. It has 3 lights (red, orange, green) and supposedly the green turns off then the orange then the red and it's dead. But me and my friends can never figure out which lights are on and which are off.

It has a blue warning light which flashes in various sequences when something is wrong. I've had the scooter for several months and have never had it flash.

Fastest speed is 6km/h which is like someone jogging.

I got them to remove the beeping it makes when it reverses because that was Terrible.

The only customisation I've done to mine so far is put stickers that tell me which direction (forwards or backwards) the controls make it go. Because it's the opposite on the left and right. Which makes it easier if you want to swap hands or have a friend maneuver you but I need the stickers to tell me which way to push or pull the lever.

I am looking for ideas on how to customise her so please give suggestions. If anyone has suggestions on how to make the back rest taller that would be so appreciated.

Please include your own advice in the reblogs/replies. Looking forward to advice for future wheelchair users who need it.

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhADVL2AiGX-gwr9ekt_SJC-UcURkXCOP

That's a playlist from the british youtuber Jessica Kellgren-Fozard. It's 4 videos of her trying out and picking a mobility aid. Includes useful advice and tips. And then 1 excellent video talking about mobility aids and "giving up". That video was quite useful in convincing various family members that that was not what I was doing by getting my scooter.

My scooter's name is Atalanta after the woman from Greek mythology who could run faster than any man. I think I'm very funny.

My cane is in the background of some of the photos because I rest it next to my scooter.

[toastingpencils37]

This is a pretty old drawing of my OC Jesiba from June 14th, 2022. This is the first ever drawing of her.

Below, I'll translate the Ninjargon into English, but I want to note that there will be some inaccurate things due to both how old this drawing is and how I accidentally missed things while writing the descriptions back then. I will note in blue bold italics if there is anything wrong that I want to point out, or something else I want to add. I will use green font to add more on to the end of parts. If anyone needs me to write it in another color, let me know and I will make a reblog with those notes in another color.

The (Lacky) Skull Sorceror

Right off the bat, I no longer call her the 'lacky' skull sorcerer. She is just the Skull Sorcerer. That was an early title because at the time I headcanoned that Hazza'Dur actually had a way to physically control her, which he does not in the lore currently. He is just a skull in her head trying to torment her by saying horrible shit or showing her what is happening in Shintaro

Jess

Her nickname is actually Jes rather than Jess. I don't remember for sure, but she may have been named Jessica rather than Jesiba at this point in time.

Oni/human

Elemental Being:

Light: Alters color spectrum based on mood

This wasn't written that clearly, but basically, Jes always has two secondary colors (as shown by the orange and blue in the drawing) that change depending on her mood. I myself currently do not know what all the possible mood colors for her are. I know a few, but I still need to make her character emotion ref sheet in order to know for sure about the majority of them

Shadow: Becomes invisible in them

Again, not written very clearly, but basically, when she goes into very dark shadows, she can become invisible. At the time, I thought of the power as involuntary, but now it is voluntary. At this point, even though she still has it, it is very irrelevant, and she barely uses it because it is a pain in the ass to actually find a good source of very dark shadows to hide in. (AKA I realized that shadows actually are not that dark regularly)

Water: Turns herself/others into water and back. Controls the water of what she changed

Basically, Jes can feel water molecules when she touches them. And when touching them, she can turn herself (or part of herself) into water. Then, touching something or someone else with that turned part, she can turn them into water too. (It is important to note that she must turn herself into water first to turn another object as well) Rather than "controlling the water" of what she's turned she controls the form it is in, due to her also being an Elemental Being of Form. She can easily turn herself and others back to normal. Due to the nature of this power, it can easily be very overwhelming, causing her to hate wet weather patterns, especially when it's snowing or is humid.

Form: Helps shadow and water

Exactly as said, assists those 2 powers. This is how she's able to control the form of her water self, and more importantly, not become a puddle the moment she becomes water. This power keeps her in her normal shape when she is not focused on it.

Amber: Resets powers. Enhances her own. Helps light, shadow, and water.

In the AU, I added more powers to the Amber element to make it work better. These two are a few of them. To go more in depth, in order to reset powers, she must reset her own first. This is not common among resetters, and is due to how her Amber mixed with her water, which requires her to become water before changing anything else into water. Her resetation is generally triggered when she gets electrocuted as a way to shut the current down, which is horribly painful for a cyborg with a metal arm and can turn into water. However, when this happens, she involuntarily passes the electrical current onto others and then resets their powers as well. The self-enhancement is common among Amber elementals, and just makes their powers stronger. Amber elementals with the ability to enhance other's powers are quite rare. Jes is not one of them.

Before we move onto her being an elemental master, I have 3 other elements I have to list out for her. She technically has 4 other elemental being elements, but one of them I don't want to go over yet because that just opens up to many questions that will dive into spoiler territory real quick. All three of the powers I'm about to go over mix together and create similar outcomes.

Ice: She is immune to cold temperatures, not being able to feel them. This way, in colder weather, she doesn't become ice while in water form.

Fire: She is fire proof (which allows her to take dishes out of the oven empty handed) and ignorant to hotter temperatures with this power. But this also means she is not allowed to touch the thermostat.

Heat: This is a newer power I've added after the element was introduced in DR. She has temperature regulation. This way, her body keeps a constant body temperature regardless of outside temperature. In colder temperatures, if she touches things like ice or snow, it will automatically melt. But in warmer temperature, Jes has no need for her body to cool down. Thus she doesn't sweat (because let's be honest. If someone with the ability to turn into water and constantly feel the water molecules touching them was sweating a lot, that'd be fucking hell) However, this makes her more uncomfortable when this power shuts off, mainly due to the fact that even though chances are, her water power is off too, she can feel the unfamiliar and disturbing feel of sweat running down parts of her body. Plus she is more aware of all the temperatures around her.

Elemental Master of Death:

Sense death/the dead

Basically, she can sense when people are dying and can also sense dead bodies or body parts. However, contrary to common belief, this does not mean that she is like the Grim Reaper where she senses when someone's time will ultimately run out. No. She is able to sense how close someone is to death. And it is important to note the people very close to death can come back from it. This is shown in real life many times.

Necromancy

More accurately, necrokinesis, the ability to control the dead. Necromancy is the ability to communicate with the dead for visions, typically through magical means. She can technically do necromancy, but that is not purely just elemental power, but relies on sorcery as well. There are many rules to necromancy. (You can tell I did research on the terminology a while after the drawing)

See ghosts

As said, can see ghosts. However, prior to the Merge, the only ghosts wandering around are either Cursed ghosts, which aren't always hidden to everyone, and Trapped Ghosts, which are pre-adolescent children that died traumatic deaths and are stuck between the Departed Realm and Living Realm, blocking them from properly interacting with much.

After the Merge however, the Departed Realm is like a layer above or below the other realms. And Jes can see and interact with everyone there, along with the Departed Realm's land. This part may change as later DR seasons actually come out, depending on what the actual show writers decide to do with the Departed Realm.

Now, to add more to the Death element, because it has greatly changed during the year since I have drawn this.

She is able to willingly (or forcefully, but that's usually against the rules, so it is not done often) let ghosts possess her. If the ghost that possessed her was an elemental before passing, they can temporarily share powers.

She can reject ghost possessions. If a ghost attempts to possess her, she can just reject it. However, if she is distracted or tired, the ghost still has a better chance of forceful possession.

Still on the topic of ghost possession, if a ghost forcefully possesses her, it will not physically drain her as much as a non-Death elemental would be.

The ability to control a ghost. This includes controlling whether she can touch it or not. Oftentimes, if a ghost doesn't want to be attacked, it can just go through the person, and then touch the person when it goes on the offense. Jes can decide if she wants to let the ghost pass through her or not, messing up the ghost's attack.

The ability to sense how old a body is and what killed it. With some bodies, the reading of what killed it is very unclear, whereas with others, it is very clear.

Abilities after the Merge

The ability to create Mergequakes. These Mergequakes are very different that the World-destroying ones, in many ways. (I will make a post later describing all the differences, if anyone wants me to) These Mergequakes are specifically Mergequakes between the Departed Realm (and sometimes the Cursed Realm, which is in the Departed Realm) and the living Merged Realms. These Mergequakes are green and blue rather than pink and orange. They are not as catastrophic as World-Destroying Mergequakes, nor do they spread, but dangerous things (mainly ghosts) still can pass through.

The ability to close Mergequakes. Jesiba does not have a projectile element whatsoever (and if Death was one that'd be really fucking disturbing). But, she can plug the Departed Realm or Cursed Realm in as the void that the World-Destroying Mergequake is opening up to. And due to being able to easily close her elemental Mergequakes, then she can close that one. However, plugging the Departed Realm into the opening is very draining, and is even more draining the bigger the Mergequake is.

Some of the ghosts she interacts with (particularly the Cursed Realm) are constantly screaming after the Merge, similar to how the Earth is screaming at Cole

There is still a lot I have to cover about the Death element, including it's companion power (which I need to cover what a companion power even is), its origin, and the rules.

Because there is a shit ton of rules for the Elemental Power of Death. Because even when doing the same thing, if you do it in a different circumstance, it can become morally wrong real quick.

If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask them in the reblogs or my askbox.

[intubatedangel]

Code Red : Chapter 5

Getting back in the groove now, hopefully going back to work won’t completely wipe me out and I’ll still have energy to make progress. We’ll see. In the meantime, enjoy.

Story Index  

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4

* * *

Anna could see nothing. Hear nothing. She felt no pain.

But she did feel something. Pressure. Deep, repetitive pressure in the centre of her chest. Enough to bend her ribs inwards easily. Chest compressions. Someone was manually pumping blood from her heart.

She was in cardiac arrest.

Is this real?

She couldn't tell. Maybe she was dreaming. She'd spent many nights dreaming of being under intensive resuscitation. CPR, defibs, artificial respiration. A whole team doing everything they could to keep her alive, to get her heart beating again.

Those dreams had never been so... terrifying. Flashes of memory, recent memory, came to mind. The gut-wrenching pain of a knife in her belly. A flood of red all around her. Carl's face, staring down at her with a fearful, heartbroken expression.

This is real.

She'd been stabbed. She'd bled out. And her heart had stopped.

More sensations. The pressure on her chest halted, then her whole body was lifted slightly, dropped a moment later. The compressions resumed, repetitive, almost hypnotic with so little else for her to sense.

A sudden spike of much more intense pressure broke through to her, on her leg. The same feeling, mirrored onto her other leg.

IO cannulas?

She must be in the trauma room now. They were arranging the rapid infuser, to give her more blood. Would it be enough? Or was it all too late? The compressions paused for a brief moment, only to resume. Something chill landed on her chest, joined by a twin a second later.

The compressions stopped again. Something landed upon the two spots, pressing hard. Paddles. The two chill squares must be gel pads. She was about to be...

A flash of white exploded in the darkness. Every muscle in her chest twitched in unison then fell still as her heart was jolted by electricity.

Defibrillated.

* * *

Carl pressed the buttons, the charge shooting between the two paddles, right through her heart. He watched her whole body spasm, as if the muscles in her chest had been plucked up then released. A short, sharp movement that spread her arms and legs wider.

He lifted the large black paddles off of the glistening orange squares, turning to look at the monitor. The ecg trace showed a large spike as the shock was displayed. It fell back to the centre line, which flattened for a second, before it returned to the chaotic squiggling that showed before the shock.

"She's still in V-fib. Push that epi and resume compressions for one minute." Carl said, prompting the team back into action. He turned to Mark. "Is someone from surgery on the way?" He asked.

The male nurse looked at him, taking an unconscious step backwards. Was he letting his emotions control him? Letting aggression into his voice?

"You called the code red, that includes a surgical consult doesn't it?" He asked again, reigning in his tone. Mark nodded. "Good, could you please find out where they are?" He said, pointing at the phone. "She doesn't have time." He whispered to himself as the nurse passed him.

Carl turned back to the trauma bed. Under the barrage of Jessica's compressions Anna's body shifted and flexed, her shoulders popping, head rocking gently beneath the mask of the ambu bag. Each time Sarah squeezed the blue bulb, Anna's chest swelled with the oxygen rich air, only for it to be pumped out by the compressions, forcing a soft huh, huh, huh, noise to emanate from her mouth.

He glanced over at the clock. 4 minutes. She's been down for 4 minutes. He grimaced, shaking his head as he reached out and grabbed her cold hand, giving her fingers a squeeze. Come on baby, come back to me.

"Charge to 300." He said to Trish, placing Anna's hand down gently on the bed before turning to grab the paddles again.

He held the paddles up as the whine behind him built, until finally it let out a double bleep.

"Everyone clear!" He announced, but the team was already raising their hands again. He planted the paddles on her chest and unleashed the second shock.

Anna twitched again as the shock coursed through her chest. Her arm flicked out to dangle from the edge of the bed. The alarm of Vfib cut out, silence reigning for a few endless seconds. Then the stretching whine began.

"Asystole." Trish muttered with a saddened moan.

Carl slammed the paddles roughly on top of the defib. "Sarah, take over compressions. I need to get her intubated."

* * *

Carl pulled open the airway drawer of the crash cart, grabbing the laryngoscope and a blade, clicking them together. He selected a 6.5 ET tube ripping the packing half open, then took a dark blue Thomas tube holder as well. He stepped around the bed, laying the tube and holder next to Anna's head. Trish had taken over compressions from Jessica, leaving Sarah still working the ambu bag. Carl opened the scope and flicked on its light, then tapped Sarah with his elbow. She gave one last hit of air then stepped to the side, dropping the bag on to the bed.

Carl slid into position, using one hand to tilt Anna head back and open her airway. He slid the blade between her gleaming teeth, mentally fighting to ignore her pale blue-grey lips. He advanced the blade, cranking back on the handle to open Anna's airway even further. Just like he had the previous weekend during their play. Again, he could see the vocal cords clearly, this time they were slack and lifeless.

"Cricoid on." He said, Sarah reaching over to press on the ring of cartilage around Anna's trachea, occluding the oesophagus behind. The last thing Anna needed right now was to aspirate. Sarah's other fingers helped to steady Anna's head as the compressions continued unabated.

Carl held the scope steady as he pulled the tube out of its packaging, shifting it in his fingers to line it up properly. He took a deep steadying breath, then plunged the tube into Anna's mouth, sliding it along the blade and pushing the tip between her vocal cords and into her trachea. She made no reaction. He eased it further into her airway, until the line marking 20cm was level with her teeth.

"I'm in, get that bag on!" He pulled the scope out, casting it to the side as he grabbed his stethoscope. Sarah removed the mask, connecting the bag to the tube and pumping it smoothly. Carl pressed his steth to Anna pale flesh, avoiding the electrodes, gel pads, and Trish's interlaced fingers as he moved the bell around after each breath. He clearly heard the steady whoosh of each breath entering and inflating Anna's lungs. It was the only sound he heard. Her heart lay silent and unmoving within her chest. "Good position."

He hung the stethoscope around his neck then picked up the tube holder, unravelling the strap and unwinding the plastic screw. He slipped it over tube, easing the integrated bite block between Anna's teeth and settling the foam rim over her mouth. "Where's that surgeon!" He shouted over his shoulder as he fed the plastic guide on the strap underneath Anna's neck, pulling it through and poking it through the clip. He secured the strap, then started to spin the screw to fully secure the breathing tube. "Well?" He finally looked over at Mark.

"They're saying she's already down here." The nurse said, looking fearful.

Carl shook his head, biting his lip. It wasn't Mark's fault. He had to remember that. He looked towards the trauma room doors. He knew where the surgeon would be. He felt his anger rising as he thought about who the surgeon would be looking at. "Trish." He said, his voice going cold, hard as steel. "I'll take over. Go to trauma 2. Bring that surgeon. Drag her here if you have to. On my authority." Other than the asystolic nurse on the table, Trish had the highest seniority. With his orders it would hopefully be enough. He straightened up, bringing his hands together. Trish waited for him to nod and pulled away.

Carl's hands landed on Anna's sternum. So cold. He drove the thought away, along with his fear, pushing them both into his hands, using them, to cave her chest inwards and squeeze her heart.

* * *

Trish was barely hanging on. She'd just given the most intense compressions she ever had. Her best friend’s life literally in her hands. And now she had to go and potentially argue with the clinical lead of the emergency department. She staggered back from the trauma bed, watching Anna's body shudder under Carl's, under her boyfriend’s, brutal chest compressions. She couldn't give anything less. A steel she never realised she possessed ran through her veins. Her trembling hands stilled. The tears prickling her eyes cut off as if a tap had been closed. She spun on her heels, storming through the doors of the trauma 3, and God himself help whoever got in her way.

She crossed the corridor in three strides, channelling an action hero as she kicked open one half of the paired doors. Her eyes took in the entire room in a quick scan, locking on the lone green scrubbed individual. The others were busy, but not "our patient is actively dying" busy. The green scrubbed doctor was talking with Dr Stelling, standing by the lightboxes where a series of x-rays were displayed. Stelling could be fearsome. Yet right now, something far worse was happening a dozen paces directly behind Trish. Stelling could rage and rant, and Trish knew she would stand fast. It would have been intoxicating, if it wasn't so necessary.

Trish walked over, dodging around Kristie, who only just caught the look on her face and pulled up short, but too late to intercept the determined nurse. Trish drew level with the pair of doctors and didn't wait on propriety. She sidestepped in front of Stelling, facing the surgeon with a quick glance down at the name tag.

"Dr Edwards. You are needed in Trauma 3. Now." Trish said in a clear voice.

The nurse knew it was coming. "Excuse me Nurse Fielding!" Dr stelling exclaimed. "Dr Edwards is presently occup..."

Trish spun blazing with justified insubordination. "Your patient is stable. Yes?" She said, her voice low, yet also carrying right the way across the trauma room. "Dr Teague's patient is not." She turned her back on Stelling once more. "You are needed Doctor." Each word was stressed and sent a shiver down the spine of every medical professional present. It wasn't something anyone could specifically identify. But it was clear all the same. Something terrible was happening.

The surgeon stared at her for just a moment, then nodded. They both moved, Trish and Dr Edwards, at the same time, leaving Stelling behind.

"What patient?!" Stelling shouted after them.

Trish didn't answer. There was nothing she could say that wouldn't cause the entire team to rush to Trauma 3. She wouldn't blame them. The hate she felt for the barely conscious figure on the bed of trauma 2 was new to her. But it was still a barely unsurmountable obstacle. Technically nurses didn't take an oath to do no harm. But it was implied, and there were certain codes of conduct. Right that moment, Trish would have happily walked over and personally throttled the scum who had attempted to murder her friend. He may yet have succeeded.

* * *

Carl couldn't look down. If he looked down he would see her. Anna. Lifeless, intubated, her heart forced to beat by his own hands. They'd both wanted this, Anna especially. But not like this. They'd wanted a clean fantasy. No danger. No risk. This was nothing like that.

This was real.

Her heart had come to a complete standstill.

If he failed to keep forcing her sternum down, squashing her heart against her spine, sending blood through her body, she would die.

His eyes looked around the trauma room, trying to find anything else to focus on. The big screen of the monitor showed a flatline above the slight pulses his compressions caused. The clock showed him that she had been without a pulse for 7 minutes already.

His gaze locked on the doors. He needed a surgeon. Without someone to stem the bleeding, he couldn't save her. He knew some procedures. He was already tempted to use them. But they wouldn't make any difference if she was still haemorrhaging from her abdomen. He knew the theory, where everything should be. But he didn't have the practice, and there were definitely blood vessels spilling out where they shouldn't. Maybe he'd seal the right vessel, eventually, after wading through the freely flowing blood.  But by then though, Anna would be ... gone.

He concentrated on giving her the best compressions he could. Deep. Fast. Steady. His stethoscope flicked and bounced as it hung around his neck, distracting and irritating. He transitioned to one handed compressions for just long enough to pull away the steth and cast it onto the bed beside Anna’s gently rocking head.

Finally, he saw a flicker of movement in the corridor. Trish's blue scrubs, closely followed by surgical green. The surgeon came through the doors backwards, peeling off her gloves as she did, heading for the bin without even looking over.

"This had better be good Carl. Pissing off Stelling rarely ends well." Edwards commented as she dumped her gloves and took a new pair from the box on the wall. She turned to look at the bed and stopped, eyes widening as she saw the sky blue of the cut scrubs beneath the naked body on the bed.

"It's Anna." Carl told her, almost choking on the words.

Edwards looked at him, and the nurses, seeing their expressions. She advanced on the bed, shaking off the shock and becoming clinical. "What happened?"

"Two stab wounds to the lower right abdomen. She lost at least 2 litres of blood. Hypovolemic shock leading to cardiac arrest. She's been down for 8 minutes." Carl managed to say as he kept thrusting his hands down between Anna's breasts. "You need to stop the bleeding so we can restore her volume."

Put like that, it sounded simple. Except none of them had any idea of precisely what the damage was. If it could even be fixed, let alone if it could be fixed in time to save her.

Edwards didn't say anything, she skirted around the bed, waving Lucy out of the way. The large gauze pad had soaked through with Anna's blood, overwhelmed to the point that it had run down her side, forming a crimson circle on the white sheet beside her. Edwards peeled away the gauze, letting out a grimacing moan.

"Cross match on the way?" She asked, probing the wounds.

"Yes, FFP and TXA too." Carl told her. Edwards nodded.

"Good. There's at least one arterial bleed. I'll need to open it up wider to see just how bad it is."

"Do it."

[cartoonfanaticmonsterrobotalien]

The New Members of the Ultra Opposites Suits Info (for @avaveevo and @crazychanuwu77)

The Description of what the new members of the Ultra Opposites look like:

Janiz/Lady Super Shlorpian

Her suit is just like Korvo/Legendary Super Shlorpian’s suit but girlier and the color for the suit is Icy Pink.

Miss Frankie/Shadow Lady

Her super suit is all Black and White.

Principal Cooke/Super Cooke

His suit is just like Superman but with a mask and the suit color is Tan.

Daryl/Dark Matter

Daryl’s suit is Black and White with a crescent moon on the chest. It should’ve look like Yumyulack’s but with long sleeves.

Nova/Lady Roseus

Her suit is like Rose/Pigella from Miraculous but more adult and her suit color should be Pink.

Kevin/Super Kevin

Kevin’s suit should look like Ivan’s Minotraux suit from Miraculous but different and the suit color should be Sky Blue.

Randall/Ultra Man

Randall’s super suit is look just like Invincible and his suit color is blue-green.

Jaime/Firey

Jaime’s suit is like the Human Torch and his suit color is maroon.

Darcy/Miss Darcina

Darcy’s suit is like She-Hulk and the suit color is Electric-Lemon.

Ms. Perez/Shout Out: Sonic Scream

Ms. Perez’s suit is like Shout Out from Danger Force but with a mask and her suit color is Yellow-Orange.

Sherbet/Violet

Sherbet’s suit is like Pinkie Pie’s super form from MLP: Forgetten Friendship but with a mask and the suit color’s is Violet with different shadings of Colors from the Rainbow.

Cherie/Agent Red

Cherie’s super suit is a lady’s Cherry Red ninja outfit but without a mask.

Montez/The Master

Montez’s suit is like Martian Manhunter and the suit color is Silver.

Pezlie/La Oscuridad

Pezlie’s suit is like Pinkie Pie’s Power Ponies outfit but with different shades of Pink.

Mia/Shine Light

Mia’s super suit is like the Jessica Cruz’s Green Lantern outfit and her suit color is Glowing Neon Green.

Janice/Master Smasher: Super Strength

Janice’s super suit is like Atom Eve’s suit but with a mask and her suit color is Orange.

[jessicachortkoff]

A Search for the Last (Pacific Electric) Red Car

This is the first episode of a series of short films I am making with my partner about the history of the Pacific Electric Railway. In particular the loved and fondly remembered red car! Way back in 2014 Jessica attended LACC and noticed remnants of train tracks that went right up to the school's entrance! Later she moved to the San Fernando Valley. Rich and Jessica began to see remnants around their neighborhood as well! "So we decided to keep exploring! One day our friend John Ulloth, who is a transit advocate, called us and let us know a red car had been returned to it's original right of way in San Pedro! Unfortunately we had little time to react to the news as it was about to be torn out all over again! So we went on the very last day and we rode the very last red car that existed on it's original tracks! Now I hear the old cars are in storage and termites are having at them as you read this. It was some sad news, but as you can see in the video, even on the last day John was not giving up! For the next episodes we plan to explore the Orange bus line, which now travels on paved streets were the train once ran. We also plan to visit the museum in Perris, CA where the very last trains in existence are carefully preserved. We had the best transit in the country and perhaps the world! We are slowly but surely returning the electric trains. But it isn't cheap and is taking a very long time. Still, we are overjoyed that the trains are coming back. Even if they are not cute and red and beautiful like they once were. Please subscribe! And please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ChortkoffandR... #red car #pacific electric #electric #trains #jessicachortkoff #richriggio #street cars #lost angeles #california #history #transit #transitadvocate #JohnUlloth #railway #railfans

[dustydoop]

Alright since cringe is dead, I'm info dropping about my OCs, idc if you don't want to know you get to now (I'm using this picrew since I haven't the time to make actual headshots for all of them)

Nova Robertson

Birthday: May 13th

Favorite Color: Jade green

Symbolism motifs: Sun, big cats (mostly lions)

Personality: Firey, passionate, stubborn, curious

Fun fact: She's very tall! Like 6'

Angela Gartner

Birthday: May 17th

Favorite Color: Bubblegum pink

Symbolism motifs: Daisies, stars

Personality: Bubbly, sensitive, selfless, sociable

Fun fact: Her house is based on a real abandoned dvd rental place that's across the street from my house

Jessica "Jez" Salucci

Birthday: November 19th

Favorite Color: Cherry red

Symbolism motifs: Trees, electric guitar

Personality: Independent, abrasive, determined, reserved

Fun Fact: She rollerblades in her free time

Millie Easton

Birthday: June 4th

Favorite Color: Lavender

Symbolism motifs: Meadows, gears

Personality: Intelligent, clumsy, creative, perfectionistic

Fun Fact: Her first name is Amelia, not Mildred

Kylar Sato

Birthday: December 2nd

Favorite Color: Charcoal grey

Symbolism motifs: Metal, maps

Personality: Bold, chaotic, direct, defiant

Fun Fact: She is so good at impressions and impersonations that it's scary

Brianna Rosa

Birthday: September 30th

Favorite Color: Goldenrod yellow

Symbolism motifs: Wheat fields, breeze

Personality: Organized, blunt, stuck-up, dedicated

Fun Fact: She's a distant relative of Catherine of Aragon

Gene Carter

Birthday: April 26th

Favorite Color: Teal

Symbolism motifs: Moon, ocean

Personality: Caution, supportive, emotionally fragile, willing to help

Fun Fact: He's a very musical guy, he knows a lot of instruments

Quill Torres Martinez

Birthday: July 6th

Favorite Color: Burnt orange

Symbolism motifs: Fire, beach

Personality: Goofy, easliy bored, charismatic, disordered

Fun Fact: His parents are very rich, he's a bit spoiled

Rae Woodfield

Birthday: February 10th

Favorite Color: Indigo

Symbolism motifs: Butterflies, rain

Personality: Impulsive, open-minded, dissatisfied, analytical (if she thinks about something first)

Fun Fact: She has port wine stain birthmarks under her eyes

Jesse Mintz

Birthday: October 29th

Favorite Color: Forest green

Symbolism motifs: Gladiolus, bricks

Personality: Quiet, calm, dependable, insecure

Fun Fact: He's naturally good at skateboarding

Benedict Lewis

It won't let me add more audio links so pretend its a link to Sparks by Coldplay

Birthday: March 27th

Favorite Color: Navy blue

Symbolism motifs: Dogs, photos

Personality: Prepared, unrealistic, altruistic, overly reminiscent

Fun Fact: He always carries a bag full of absolutely anything you could need

Thea Robertson

Again, only 10 audio links so pretend it's Gold Dust Woman by Fleetwood Mac

Birthday: May 23rd

Favorite Color: Tangerine

Symbolism motifs: Gold, sunflowers

Personality: Tense, rational, aloof, protective

Fun Fact: She's the oldest of the group, and Nova's older sister

[vitaminwaterreviews]

Girls' Generation - Oh!

Overall this album was teetering on the edge of becoming boring and repetitive, but it did enough for me. I definitely enjoyed the experience, and now I have a good idea of what SNSD B-sides sound like which is good knowledge to have gained. But yeah, I knew they were synth-pop, but the synth-pop songs are SUPER synth-pop. The songs that weren’t synth-pop were generally really good, even the slow jam was nice. The Taeyeon-Jessica duet was the highlight of the album – I feel like we don’t get unit songs nearly as much in kpop albums these days. Have Red Velvet ever had a unit song on an album? Have aespa? I know Twice did on Formula of Love, but even then it was divided evenly so everyone got exactly one unit song. Anyway that’s a bit of a tangent. If I was Key I’d feel a bit hard done by, I hardly even noticed him in the song he was on. Good album, not a Great album, to be honest I’m not sure I’d give this Album of the Year if it came out today. Average score of 7.4 (excluding Gee and Genie ofc) which feels about right. It’s miles better than the pre-SNSD stuff, it’s nowhere near Pink Tape.

Okay, I’ve cooled down a bit since yesterday, but I’m still fairly certain that Pink Tape is probably my favorite kpop album of all time now. Anyway, let’s see how it compares to the only girl group album to ever win Album of the Year:

Oh!

So yeah, believe it or not, I’ve never heard this song before

Opening reminiscent of I Got A Boy

Okay so I obviously don’t speak Korean, but I feel like SNSD had a very “cute” singing accent? Like, Orange Caramel do the same thing I feel. Any Koreans in chat wanna comment on whether their singing voices are particularly aegyo?

This chorus is actually really fun

The “oh oh oh oh” part feels really synthesized but I like that a lot

Wait hold on are they cheerleaders or football players?

No high notes? Taeyeon? Jessica? Where you at?

OH GOD ITS RUN DEVIL RUN lmao teasing the repack

Also it’s really telling that I know the repack title track but not the original title track

7/10, it was pretty good but nothing special. It’s no Gee, definitely no IGAB

Show! Show! Show!

Okay just for reference, I don’t know any SNSD B-sides

Actually wait I do know Lazy Girl so I guess I only know one SNSD B-side

Starting synthy

WOAHHHHH starting out with a bass drop lmao holy shit

The song as a whole feels kind of flat to me?

The hush section is nice but the chorus just feels like more verse

Yeah, they burned their drop. Like they started the song off as loud as they’re gonna get, so there’s n-

Okay nvm I guess there is somewhere left to go

The bridge 100% just saved this song

Who does the English speaking bit? Tiffany? Jessica?

Actually I do wanna know, I’m gonna look it up

Oh it’s both of them alternating, alright

8/10, the bridge and last chorus Totally saved it

Sweet Talking Baby

This is a song that I’ve heard of which means it must be good

…huh

…okay? Yeah okay, I like this, this is nice

Strings everywhere

The chorus reminds me of something

A bit of electric guitar in the post-chorus, I think that’s the first time it’s appeared on the album

But yeah, strings absolutely everywhere. This feels super disco

Nah, we did not earn that modulation

7/10, the intro was cool and then it was just decent

Forever

Whisper into my ear like

Omg is it slow jam time?? We didn’t get a slow jam on Pink Tape (thank fuck)

I think it might be!

Where’s the beat at

There it is

Dude I’m sorry but this style of music is so predictable. Like it’s cool initially, but I’ve heard this exact same formula for a song across every single group so far except f(x), and maybe aespa?

The area around 2:50 is nice

Oh this sounds really Disney

Y’know, this won me over somehow

7/10 which is about as high as I can put one of these

Be Happy

This album is so … what’s the word

Loud? Aggressive?

Nah more like Blunt. There’s no subtlety here, just Raw Emotion

Why are they yelling “be happy” at me so aggressively?

I haven’t spoken much about the instrumentation because it feels like very standard SNSD instrumentation

Yeah when they say “be happy” I am not convinced, they make me a bit scared that I’m not happy, they sure don’t sound happy

Like this isn’t a happy song, its a jam, but jams aren’t necessarily happy

This is why I like the Korean lyrics, because then I don’t get lyrical/music contradictions

6/10

Boys & Girls

Oh it’s with Key

Instrumentally it’s not that special

Woah Key is super processed here, he sounds nothing like how f(x) used whatever SM guy they borrowed

(At least they’re crediting their male artists by this point)

Chorus isn’t too special, we appreciate the slap bass I guess

Was that all that Key got? He was there for like two lines wtf

7/10, I guess

Talk To Me

Lol what is this, harmonica?

Okay wait whatever’s going on here it’s a great break from their synth sound

I see you there, bass

The percussion is excellent, piano is nice

This is actually such a good song wtf

Caramelllll

The sweet and pretty vocals over this beat is really fun

A HARMONICA SOLO

Okay wait who produced this?

Machan Taylor, not a name I know yet

And apparently this is just Taeyeon and Jessica which is So cool

9/10, that was such a cool song wtf

Star Star Star

Korean counting, whispering, the piano is fun, the strings are dramatic

OH NO SHES CRYING

Okay, I’m interested

Apparently these people produced Gee

There’s like, No percussion going on, I really like that

Yeah, if you’re gonna make a ballad, make it like this

I still don’t have much to comment on, but I enjoyed this a lot

8/10

Stick Wit U

Well this sure is a different vibe

I dunno what to make of the instrumentals, they feel different from the rest of the album but I cannot place why

“Go!”

The pre-chorus is fun. Bouncy, cute

Not sure about the chorus, what part is meant to be catchy?

That bridge felt kinda forced

Outro is fun

7/10, not bad, not special

Day By Day

They do use quite a bit of classical inspiration in this

Oh!

Well this is hardly classical, this is a jam

The chorus isn’t nearly as fun as the verse

That feels true a lot actually

But yeah, the guitar, the percussion, I like the verses

I wish the chorus was more syncopated

I’m curious what this one is about lyrically, it’s hard to gauge

8/10

Gee

10/10 obviously, this is the greatest kpop song of all time

Genie

8/10 tbh, this was never my jam but I do quite like it

[lilacsugar5]

Non Sweet and Amerilly as Sailor Senshis!

Sally (Sailor Passion), Ally (Sailor Healer), Jessica (Sailor Electricity), Stella (Sailor Mystic), Emily (Sailor Princess), Miyu (Sailor Dream), Nina (Sailor Honey)

[ggsworldstory]

Pilot

At the wall

A young boy wearing a red top hat that had a gold crown at its brim sits in his cell, with a look of hopelessness on his face.

“Ok, maybe not a good place to start with, you’re probably wondering how I got here.”

“First’s things first, my name is George, but my friends, er one friend calls me, GG. What does it stand for? … I don’t know, I can’t really contact the person who gave it to me.” “As for how I got here, if this little thing on my head isn’t any indication, I'm a member of the Toppat clan, for my whole life, in fact”

“Yep, you heard me, I was born to THE toppat clan…….’s submarine division, not many people care about it compared to the big guys, like airship, but at least we don’t have to worry as much about the government going after us.”

“As for how I like it personally? Eh. sure I couldn’t really go anywhere myself, and the view of the ocean got old, FAST.” “but I got 3 meals a day, a stylish hat and both my parents are alive, heh, not gonna lie, I definitely miss them.”

 “They always celebrated the small things: First steps, first words, first eye glow, first piece of metal melted.” “My family has a history of these weird elemental powers, My mom wields electricity while my dad wields fire, so naturally, I get both.”

 I got pretty excited when they promised to “bring out my full potential” but it just amounted to constantly being told, “burn through this” and “short circuit that” I couldn’t even do it right most of the time.” “It's especially discouraging when I hear about all the cool stuff my parents use their powers for,the massive flame blasts, the blackouts,can’t help but feel a little inadequate…”

 “Anyways, this all started earlier today, I was in my room, practicing mario 64 speedrun tricks, when I heard my parents come in.”As he walked in, dad uttered,

“So, how are you doing, son?” sounding slightly nervous.

”Ok, what’s the bad news?”

 “Wait, wha-?” 

“You say that everytime you’re about to tell me or mom bad news, and I should know, because I do it too.”

 mom then replied, attempting to de-escalate the situation “I wouldn’t say it’s bad news, quite the opposite, you’re finally going on your first solo-heist!”

 I felt my heart damn near jump clean outta my ribcage “Wait?! WHAT?! I can barely melt a crowbar or power a lightbulb, and now you expect me to do a heist all on my own?!” I panickedly spoke. Desperately trying to calm me down, mom said, “well that may be true, but we figured you could use some field experience before we head to the orbital statio-” “it’s the captain’s orders, we don’t have a choice” dad Interrupted “Sweety! not so blunt!” mom shouted

“Ugh captain Sharkbite, not fond of that guy at all,it gets annoying having my parents get orders barked at them more often than my feet touch the floor, very annoying, and when they’re not doing that, they’re always blabbering off about fish, boasting their razor sharp teeth, or being jealous of some guy with a train and a big gun.”

 Dad then tried to reassure me saying, “I know this is a tad sudden, but we do believe in you” he said before giving him a hug. “Ok, I feel better”

“Great!” Mom replied “be at the front of the submarine in 1 hour.” I simply gave a thumbs up as the two left.

From there, I'd say I reacted rationall…y by screaming hysterically. “I DON'T FEEL BETTER AT ALL! AAAAAHHHH!”

 Enter, Jessica, my best friend. She had long orange hair, a blue hat, cyan neckerchief, orange and blue eyes and orange shoes. She even has elemental powers as well (water and earth to be specific) not sure how exactly she got em though. As much as I love my parents, sometimes it seems like she does a better job at keeping me from doing stupid crap than they do. Even if we’re definitely prone to more than our fair share of shenanigans and mischief, she can be a bit in over her head at times, but she’s always so supportive of me, she even gave me my nickname, and this cool crown and.... What was I talking about again? Oh, right” 

“Something on your mind?” she asked “I then explained the whole situation, and like any good friend would, she offered me a helping hand” “what if I went with ya?” she suggested “then it wouldn’t be much of a solo heist” I questioned. She then relayed to me her plan in more detail. It sounded pretty good to me, so I agreed

One hour later

I walked up to the front of the submarine, where the captain greeted me, handed me an earpiece and described the goal to me, “yer task is simple, get in, get out with so much as a single coin, get to the nearest body of water and press the red button on yer earpiece and you’ll officially be part of the clan, be careful however, no toppat has actually set foot in this place, but it’s the last place for you to be able to steal from before we head to the orbital station, good luck lad.”

 They then pressed a button, causing part of the ceiling to lower and the entrance to the sub’s cannon to be revealed. I've seen plenty of others get launched out of it to their heists, I was definitely not excited to learn how it feels myself. I got in, taking deep breaths every step, as the door closed I could hear dad yell out “Give one of the guards a big smack for me!” Unbeknownst to the others, Jessica was waiting in the surprisingly spacious cannon, which she entered through the roof after the back door closed. It was comforting having her along with me for this. “3…2...1” I hear the captain announce, before slamming a button, “Launch!” They shouted, and we were off

Truth be told, I don’t remember much from the flight, I just recall a loud bang, screaming, and a nasty earache.

It’s almost like our division has no goddamn idea how to spend the little portion of the budget we’re given.

Anyway, I woke up to Jessica who said, “you ok?” I told her I was and she replied, “good,cause it looks like we’re here” 

Thinking about that sight still sends shivers down my spine, before me stood the largest casino I’d ever seen, the building was large, blindingly bright, lacked windows, was plastered with all kinds of card and luck based imagery, and at the center there were three golden letters, “MOC” with a small banner reading “Mansion of cards below it”

I gulped, took a deep breath and nervously muttered, “well, here we go” and tried to step inside, but jessica quickly stopped me, exclaiming “woah, woah, you don’t just waltz into a place you’re about to heist from!” before leading me to the less, glowing side of the building, examined it a bit, then let out an “A-ha! An unguarded vent! Amateurs.” She then used a large rock  to break the vent door, and we began to make our way through the tunnel.

As we were crawling, I talked a bit more about what I was going through, “Jess, ya ever wonder if there's more to life than just getting shot out of a cannon, taking crap, then leaving?” sounding concerned, she responded with, “I dunno, but what’s making you think so hard about it now? Usually you seem content making the most out of your life on the submarine. “'Well, yeah, but it’s just a lot of pressure thinking about the whole, ‘this is the rest of my life’ thing, especially when I'm no good at it.” I said back.

She took a moment to think, before telling me “I get you’re feeling boxed in, but who knows? Maybe a curveball’s coming your way that’ll let you pick a new path in this crazy life, and whatever it is, i’m sure you’ll find a way to enjoy it, like you always have!” I’ll admit, that definitely helped me feel better at the time.

After some time, we finally made it to the main vault and I was mesmerized. Not just by all the money, but also the feeling of doing something right for once, albeit with some help. I think Jess was trying to explain something about what to do next, but I was too distracted by the feeling of sheer awe I was in.

That, was when I made the biggest mistake of my life

I picked up a coin from the massive money mountain before me to get a closer look.

Then an alarm went off.

I was immediately taken out of that previous feeling of awe and in its place was sheer fear and panic, I turned to Jess. She was trying to tell me something and was waving her arms in a signaling motion. I think she wanted me to calm down but I couldn’t hear her over the booming siren and the constant stomping of the approaching security.

So I did the first thing that came to mind in my flight-or-flight instincts, I ran, I ran, ran and ran like hell.

As I was panickedly sprinting, I remember a strange sensation in my legs, as if some kind of energy was sparking out of them, making me run faster.

But I didn’t have time to focus on that, I only had one thing in mind: Getting the fuck out of dodge.

The guards began rushing towards me, I felt my eyes widen with fear, and as before my instincts were at the helm and I tried to swipe them away as they approached. I recall a similarly strange feeling, but it was more so as if something was burning and I could swear I saw my very hand engulfed in flames.

But as before,I didn’t have time to dwell on these anomalies, I could only keep running, faster and faster, as the barrage of bullets as well as other weaponry grew louder and louder.

I’m not sure how far I ran, but I got a good distance outside the casino. And by the end of it all, I was exhausted.

My arms and legs were in intense pain, I was coughing and wheezing, my head felt incredibly light, eventually I could barely stand, and eventually collapsed on the ground.

When I woke up, my earpiece was gone, so I couldn’t talk to the captain or anyone else, and I found myself here.

I’ve never been to the wall, but I've heard more than enough about the immense cold, depressing gray ‘aesthetics’ and the view of the massive drop to the sea from the windows. I guess word got around about my attempted robbery pretty quickly, or I was out for a long time. I also remember the many warnings about this place I got from other toppats, about it’s infamously high security

Either way, that’s basically my story. I fucked up, got stuck here in this notoriously inescapable hellhole, and now, I can’t help but wonder; is this the end?

At that moment, a mysteriously enthusiastic yet simultaneously threatening voice cried out to the seemingly hopeless Toppat, “Or is it just the beginning?”

GG looked around, confused, before noticing, a crack steadily growing on the cell’s ceiling  before it broke.

After the dust settled from his landing, the mysterious figure revealed himself, a tall man with yellow and purple eyes, sporting a dark purple and yellow jester hat, and a big, ominous smile.

After the mysterious figure made his landing, GG could only sit there for a few seconds before asking “Who the hell are you?”

“The name’s Lown, K.Lown! Entertainer, extraordinaire!” The jester exclaimed

“...ok, but why are you here exactly?”

“Is that a serious question? Any performer worth their salt knows where to find a frown to turn upside down!” K.Lown yelped as he began to play a goofy tune on a kazoo he pulled from his hat. 

GG simply stared at the jester as he questioned what the hell was even happening. Before eventually speaking, “Uhhh, thanks for, whatever this is…? But I don’t see why you’re going outta your way to do some party tricks for some guy stuck in the wall.”

“Ah, impatient aren't ya? I always save my big disappearance for last!”

“Wait, really? how are ya getting me outta here?” GG stated, sounding slightly annoyed

“Hmmm. I hadn’t quite thought that far, hmmm, how about this!?”

He yelled out as he grabbed GG’s arm and jumped out the window. At this moment however K.lown began to show his true acrobatic prowess as he leaped to the rock wall adjacent to the window before bouncing back to the side of the wall, repeatedly doing so, gaining height until he reached the roof of the complex. “How’s that for a big disappearance?”K.Lown proudly shouted, GG didn’t say anything, as he was in a large amount of shock, still trying to process what he just went through. 

Unfortunately for the two, the wall’s security quickly caught on two their escape attempt and soon enough, a large group of guards had them at gunpoint.

K.lown simply chuckled, Chucked GG high up in the sky, before roaring out, “Can I get a volunteer from the audience?!”

 As the gunfire rushed towards him, the clown somersaulted through the volley and right into the fray, pushing the crowd of armed guards,who were now left confused and at risk of shooting their own through the chaos.

All of a sudden, one of the guards noticed their assault rifle was missing from their hand. All of a sudden the group hears a whistle from behind them, they turn around to find…

K.lown holding one of their assault rifles, with a big, crazed, clownish smile. He laughed maniacally as he unloaded the hoard’s own ammunition against them, while quickly maneuvering to avoid the shots coming to him as well.

When all was said and done, K.lown jumped down from the roof and onto the front of the wall, which was a mostly empty field of snow, he then raised his hands into the air for GG to land perfectly on them, which he did... For a brief second before plopping face first onto the ground, at this point he was knocked out cold, so jester simply dragged him into the back of one of the wall’s trucks that was conveniently nearby and drove off.

Several hours later…

GG woke up in the dark back of the truck, greeted by a brief silence, before it was abruptly intruded By the clown’s booming, “Ta-da!”

“So we’re really out?” GG Skeptically inquired.

“Believe it”

“Truth be told, I don’t remember much after you… jumped out that window…”

“Eh, nevermind that, we’re outta that winter wasteland, now just sit tight and I’ll get ya where ya need to be.”

While he was thankful for being busted out of the wall, GG was still overall confused by everything that was happening and figured he might as well try to get some answers, “if you don’t mind me asking, are you sure  you know where you’re going, Lown, was it?

“Why of course, why wouldn’t I?”

“Well I never saw or heard about you back home and I wanted to know how exactly you knew the Toppats.”

“Oh Toppats, schmoppats! Do you really wanna spend all your time in some sticky space resort, surrounded by lunatics?”

“Sure I’m not good at stealing and such, but it’s my home, my family, they’re probably worried sick right now…”

“Don’t you worry my heterochromatic friend, everything will be alright once we reach our destination, and whadya know, we’re here!”

As the truck stopped, GG excitedly walked to the back of the truck, K.lown then opened the doors to reveal…

The same casino that he had just come back from robbing and barely escaping

“Well, come on in!” K.lown said as he casually walked towards the building

“You coming or what?”

It was at this moment, GG began to question the motives of his new friend(?) He knew he needed to get out of this somehow, but he also knew that K.lown was quite the powerful individual, considering all the acrobatics he pulled off while getting him out of the wall (even if he wasn’t conscious through most of it). GG tried to back away in silence, but the clown soon interrupted with, “Don’t tell me ya got stage fright!”

“No, o-of course not, I just think… uhh, maybe it’ll be harder for the wall to find us if we split up..?” GG nervously retorted, as he turned around and began walking faster.

The jester let out a slight chuckle before responding, “Don’t try to make me laugh, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!” he then springed towards GG. His shout however, put GG into full panic mode and he began to run for his life, unfortunately he kept on bumping into buildings, statues, as well as other of the city’s setpieces that kept him from going at top speed as the jester chased him down.

After some time, GG ran into a dark alleyway to hopefully hide and catch his breath, at that time he could only stand there and hope the demented entertainer wouldn’t find him. But he did notice, as he snuck up from behind, and punched right on the back of GG’s head, leaving him unconscious once again

“Talk about playing your cards wrong, you shity screw up.” K.lown smugly quipped, before dragging GG to the casino.

When he woke up, GG’s arms were stuck to shackles in the ceiling of a small, dark room, filled with strange devices and a glass door was in front of him. Soon enough, GG noticed a man approach the glass door, while he couldn’t quite see well in the darkness he knew it wasn’t K.lown, the man was wearing a dark blue top hat with a red stripe at the bottom, had some short, brown hair and black shoes, before long he spoke in a low stoic tone, “So, you’re finally awake, allow me to introduce myself. My name Is Dice. H. Roller I am the owner of the casino you and your partner have foolishly intruded upon.”

GG’s eyes widened realizing that Jessica could be here as well. “What did you do to her?!” He quickly bellowed, Dice was indifferent to his reaction however. Simply giving a, “hmph, such insolence.” before continuing his monologue, much to GG’s frustration.

I assume you’ve already met my second in command, you may be wondering why I sent him to get you out of the wall just to put you in another jail, are you not? Well it’s quite simple; I believe stealing from someone like me is a serious crime, and the wall’s idea of punishment is… inadequate.” he said as he reached for a remote control in his pocket and pushed one of it’s buttons. Suddenly the once nearly pitch black cell, glowed with the many instruments of torture surrounding GG “When those are done warming up, you’ll be experiencing the kind of pain that hell only wishes it could put one through, don’t fret, child. It was only a matter of time before those insatiable toppats would try to get their hands on my fortune, and thus, it was equally inevitable they'd lose some of their members trying to grasp such an unattainable treasure, at least they’re losing clear deadweight like you, you can keep that speck by the way, think of it as a reminder of how much of a failure you are.”

 GG then noticed that even after everything,he still had the single coin he originally took in his pocket. Dice chortled and walked away.

GG then noticed a countdown near the top of his cell, presumably for how long the torture device needed to warm up, he could only stay there, watching it slowly countdown to zero and reflect on how things got to this point “well, I fucked up,Couldn’t do a heist on my own, couldn’t stop myself from raising an alarm, couldn’t stay out of the wall, Couldn’t tell that clown wasn’t trustworthy when I had the chance and I couldn’t even do anything right with or without Jess’ help”

 As he continued to look around his cell, he noticed on his left, a window into the cell next to him, and he couldn’t believe his eyes when he realized, it was Jessica! She was was knocked out at the time, given how she had already gone through a round of torture while GG was gone. Without hesitation, GG immediately tried to get her attention, “Jess, Jess! Wake up, it’s me!”

Soon enough, she awoke, “huh…? GG? Oh no, oh fuck no, you’re here too?”

“Sadly, look, I’m so sorry, I left you behind back there, I can’t do anything right can I?”

“I-it’s ok, you panicked, but there’s no time to dwell on that. Especially with that ticking down”

The timer was only at one minute until the machinery had finished warming up

“So, do you have a plan?” GG promptly asked

“I think… even through all of that hell I might have a bit of power left in me”

Even though he was suspended in the air, GG could feel the ground faintly shaking beneath him, then a hole formed under him, it wasn’t particularly large but it looked like he could fit inside it.

“That tunnel should take you right outside of this city, after I take care of your shackles, I want you to go through, run for the hills, and never look back.”

“And you’ll follow after, right?

“...”

“Right…?”

“GG,you’re not a ‘screw up’ sure, you sometimes act without thinking, but you’ve always been there for me, you’ve always inspired me with how you always roll with the punches, treating all the struggles in your life as challenges to overcome and never giving up no matter what shit gets thrown at you. Promise me you’ll keep doing that.”

“I’ll try” GG said as he used his elbow to wipe tears from his eyes

“Good, even with all the shit that’ll happen to me here, it’ll be a bit more bearable knowing you’re still out there”

“Jess…” GG muttered before Jessica used a stream of water to slip his hands through the shackles, consequentially making him tumble through the tunnel before ending up at the Las pay-gas border “wait, wait!” He shouted, but Jessica had already closed the tunnel behind him to make sure no one else would go through it and find him.

Despite the feelings of gloom he was going through, GG took his friend’s words to heart, and was determined to not let her down. And he dashed off into the night, and into a new life.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~End of Pilot~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next

[ib2se]

🎶 B:sides ~ Hall of Sand

💿 All Albums from Chant Records 💿

1. [5:37]

MoGoToYoYo (Yasuhiro Yoshigaki, Keigo Iwami, Ryuichi Yoshida, Motoharu, Rabbit Arimoto) – introducing of Theme for MoGoToYoYo Performed by: Yasuhiro Yoshigaki ds,perc,vo Keigo Iwami b,vo Ryuichi Yoshida bs,perc,vo Motoharu sax,perc,vo Rabbit Arimoto tp,perc,vo Composed by Keigo Iwami Arranged by MoGoToYoYo Produced by Yasuhiro Yoshigaki Engineered by Watanabe and Keigo Iwami Recorded live at Shinjuku Pit Inn

2. [4:18]

Fire_Arms (James Dellatacoma) – Hall of Sand Performed by James Dellatacoma Composed by James Dellatacoma Arranged by James Dellatacoma Produced by James Dellatacoma Engineered by James Dellatacoma Recorded at Orange Music Sound Studio

3. [3:36]

Freakdom (David Konopnicki, Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz, Kenny Grohowski) – Konop’s Vamp Performed by: David Konopnicki – Fretless Guitar Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz – Double Bass Kenny Grohowski – Drums Composed by Konopnicki, Grohowski, Blumenkranz Arranged by FREAKDOM Produced by Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz Engineered by Marc Urselli Mixed by David Konopnicki Recorded at East Side Sound – New York Mixed at 4A Sound Factory – Forges-les-Eaux – France This track is a piece of a “one day album session” at East Side Sound

4. [4:11]

Grextet (Gregor Frei) – Instant composing # 4 Performed by Gregor Frei – soprano sax, alto sax, tenor sax, piano, drums Composed by Gregor Frei Arranged by Gregor Frei Produced by Gregor Frei Engineered by Gregor Frei Recorded at downstairs One hour of inspiration

5. [6:49]

Guy Barash – Quintet No. 1 “Flowers Between the Fingers” Performed by: Thomas Piercy, conductor Ryuta Iwase, bass clarinet Christopher Yohmei Blasdel, shakuhachi Makoto Aruga, vibraphone Go Mochizuki, mandolin Sansuzu Tsuruzawa, bass shamisen Composed by Guy Barash Produced by Guy Barash and Thomas Piercy Recorded by Atsushi Yoshinaka Recorded live at Ohmi Gakudo concert hall, Tokyo Opera City Unlike traditional piano or string quintets, Quintet is a work for mixed ensemble of Japanese and Western instruments. It was inspired by the poetry of Chika Sagawa. Unlike most female Japanese poets of her time, she wove Western influences into her work, used free verse to explore her interiority rather than relying on traditional forms, and expressed an individual relationship with nature. On a personal level, I relate to her condition: fragile physically, standing up alone, trying to make sense of the universe. And aesthetically we converge: deep pain and radiant beauty resonate throughout her work, often triggered in the same moment. Chika Sagawa died before her twenty-fifth birthday. I dedicate my piece to her.

6. [2:39]

Hiromichi Sakamoto – Ophelia In Ashes Performed by SAKAMOTO Hiromichi Composed by SAKAMOTO Hiromichi Arranged by SAKAMOTO Hiromichi Produced by SAKAMOTO Hiromichi Engineered by SAKAMOTO Hiromichi Recorded at my home studio in Yokohama Japan

7. [4:13]

Erik Friedlander – SHIVER Performed by: Brad Shepik, guitar Matt Darriau, winds Lucia Pulido, voice Satoshi Takeishi, percussion Stomu Takeishi, elec bass Erik Friedlander, celli Composed by Erik Friedlander Arranged by Erik Friedlander Produced by Erik Friedlander Engineered by Erik Friedlander Recorded at ArconomX Studios

8. [3:05]

Ian Clark Smith – Succulents Performed by Ian Clark Smith

9. [7:06]

Jessica Lurie Ensemble – A Tiger For William Kentridge Performed by: Jessica Lurie – alto saxophone Naomi Siegel – trombone Brian Marsalla – piano Mike Gamble – electric guitar Todd Sickafoose – acoustic bass Allison Miller – drums Composed by Jessica Lurie Arranged by Jessica Lurie Produced by Jessica Lurie & Todd Sickafoose Engineered by Billy Barnett Recorded at Gung Ho Studios, Eugene, OR Mixed by Todd Sickafoose

10. [4:59]

John Lee’s Chu Bubaloo – Fish Out Of Water Performed by John Lee – electric and acoustic guitars TJ Turqman – electric bass Graham Doby – drums and piano Matt Rippetoe – tenor saxophone Composed by John Lee Arranged by John Lee Produced by John Lee Engineered by Adrian Olsen Recorded at Montrose Recording – Richmond VA Mastered by Steven Wright – Wright Way Studios Baltimore Md

11. [8:06]

Kaiser Musso / Echoes For Sonny – Promises Kept Performed by Henry Kaiser, Robert Musso, Nick Didkovsky, Jesse Krakow, Weasel Walter Composed by Sonny Sharrock, Robert Musso, Henry Kaiser Arranged by Musso, Kaiser Produced by Robert Musso Engineered by Robert Musso Recorded at OMSS on 2/9/2015 Copyright MussoMusic.com 2015, MuWorks Publishing 2015, Additional Recording by James Dellatacoma

Veckans BibelVers: “Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.” ~ Luke 22:35🎧

Drink Espresso - God bless U! /MrZ :)

www.ib2.se Soli Deo Gloria

[crashedwave]

February Drabble Challenge - Day 14: Kiss

Stacie stood up with the bottle of whiskey and moved around the group of Bellas encircling the fire. She poured a heavy shot into everyone’s cups, not even pausing for a second at Emily’s. Which earned her a look from Aubrey, a look she ignored as she returned to her own seat.

“Dude, are you trying to get us blasted?” Beca asked, peaking into her red solo cup.

“Always,” Stacie answered with a wink.

“Let’s just not get so crazy that we blackout please,” Aubrey said, frowning.

“Aubrey, can you not be such a buzzkill, for one night?”  Stacie shot back.

“I’m not being a buzzkill, I did not say anything when Emily, who is a minor in the eyes of the law, was provided an illegal subsistence.”

“Yah yah, three, two, one drink pitches!”

It took Beca three gulps to get the large amount of whiskey down. She grimaced as the liquid burned her throat on the way down and glanced over at Chloe. The redhead was sitting next to her on the log, barely more than a few inches of space between them. But to Beca it felt like miles.

“Beale, finish your drink! I’m coming around again!” Stacie shouted.

Chloe tipped her cup back and downed the entire thing in one go without so much as flinching. She held the empty cup upside down then stood and took the bottle out of Stacie’s hands.

“I’m pouring, we can’t afford your pours.”

“Alright, alright,” Stacie held up her hands in defeat and sat back down. “What if we play a game? I ask a question, if you’ve done it, you have to drink.”

“Like Never Have I Ever?” Aubrey questioned.

“Yeah basically, except I control your faith.” Stacie's eyes locked on Beca’s and she smirked. Around the fire, the girls were nodding as Chloe returned to her seat.

“Ok so, drink if you’ve been arrested.”

Beca, Amy, Stacie, and Jessica all took a drink.

Stacie clapped her hands together, “Drink if you’ve been caught having sex.”

A handful of girls took a drink.

“Drink if your body count is higher than 32. Just me? Bottoms up losers!”

“Stacie, this is a dumb game, can we play Kings or something?” Beca complained.

“Hm, we can but first,” Stacie’s eyes flicked from Beca to Chloe before she leaned forward. “Drink if you’ve ever kissed a girl.”

Beca didn’t raise her cup but Stacie, Jessia, Ashley, Cynthia Rose, and…  A movement to her left caught her eyes and she turned to see Chloe finishing her drink. She looked at Beca with a frown.

“Woah, Mitchell hasn’t kissed a girl? I’m shocked. Good thing I didn’t put money on this, I would have lost it all.” Stacie mocked.

“You really haven’t?” Chloe questioned, her tone more sincere.

“No, but you have?” Beca replied.

“Yeah, girls are hot.” Chloe shrugged as Cynthia Rose whooped in agreement from across the fire.

“Okay, a new game? What about Truth and Dare?” Stacie leaned back in her chair - now a smug look on her face and her red solo cup held loosely in her hand. “I dare little innocent Beca to kiss that smoking hot redhead next to her.”

“What! Dude, no!” Beca held up her hands, thankful that the orange glow of the fire hid the red flushing across her face.

“I don’t mind,” Chloe said softly, gently taking one of Beca’s hands and pulling it back down so her face was no longer blocked.

“No, that’s, no. Stacie why?”

Stacie shrugged and took another drink. “I’m just doing the lord’s work, Mitchell,”

“Do you not want to kiss me?” Chloe asked in a voice that was soft and quiet that it pulled Beca in like water down a drain.

“No, I mean yes, I mean I don’t know,” she stumbled because she did want to kiss Chloe, but she was also terrified of the aftermath. What if this ruined everything?

Chloe reached over and cupped her jaw, and Beca’s whole world slowed down around her as she leaned in.

Their lips met for the first time and Beca launched into the atmosphere. Every nerve, every hair, felt alive and electric. She didn’t hear the cheering from the other girls. Didn’t hear Aubrey of all people saying ‘it's about time’. Didn’t hear Emily crying about how cute they were.

She entire world in that moment was Chloe.

All too soon they broke apart and Beca sat there in a haze. Either the alcohol was stronger than she thought or she was literally floating away. But there was Chloe’s hand in hers, grounding her.

“I’ve wanted to do that for such a long time,” Chloe whispered to her. Beca just nodded, lost in the ocean of Chloe and unable to do anything else but smile at her.

“Another successful mission!” Stacie exclaimed and raised her cup in a salute. “Dare you to do it again.”

“I don’t need a dare,” Beca said, and she leaned in and Chloe met her halfway. Whatever happened after that didn’t matter. Chloe closed the gap between them on the log and her entangled in Beca’s and her head on her shoulder. If this was a dream, Beca never wanted to wake up.

[rai-wick]

Gally x Reader Chapter 24: Free

Y/N'S P.O.V

"Jessica, Barry, Walt, Edgar, Samantha" Janson was calling out the names.

"I wanna know what's through that door" I heard Thomas mutter next to me.

"Aaron"

We all looked at him, before I shrugged at Newt.

"Now, we've been over this"He sighed "You said they were covered up, so you don't know what you saw"

"Dennis"

"It could've been anything under there"

"I know exactly what I saw. They were bodies"Thomas argued.

"Sally"

"Aris said they bring in a new batch every night"He lowered his voice as we all leaned a bit closer.

"Who the hell is Aris?"Minho asked.

"Henry, Tim"Thomas pointed over to the kid who was peering closely at a slice of orange.

"Well, I'm sold"I mutter making Newt chuckle.

"And last but not least, David" Janson finished "Thank you for your attention. Enjoy the rest of your evening"

"Okay, until we know anything for certain, we should just keep our heads down and try not to draw any attention to ourselves, all right?"Newt looked at Thomas who was staring at the door.

"Tommy..."I noticed the glint in his eye before he stood up and marched towards the door.

"What is he doing?"Newt asked.

"I think he's drawing attention to himself"I sighed as we watched him. He tried to get through a few times and got pulled away. The guard muttered something at him and Thomas turned away before trying to make a run for the door then being tackled. I quickly got up followed by the rest of them.

"What's your problem, man?" I grabbed Thomas' arm, attempting to pull him back as Janson came running "Why won't you let me see her?"

"Control your friend!"The guard yelled to me. I gave him a glare in return.

"What's happening here?" Janson got between the guard and Thomas "Thomas? I thought we could trust each other" He put a hand on his shoulder, looking around before leaning in"You know we're all on the same team here"

"Are we?"Thomas asked. Janson looked at him before dropping his hand.

"Get them to their bunks" We were grabbed and marched from the cafeteria.

"Get your asses in there! All of you!"I crashed into Newt as we were thrown into our room.

"What the hell was that about?"Minho questioned Thomas"You didn't really think they were just gonna let you through?"

"Nah, Of course I didn't"He pulled something out of his pocket. It was an ID card "I'm gonna find out what's on the other side of that door"

"Right"I crossed my arms as Newt sighed.

"Newt, ____, they're hiding something. Okay? These people are not who they say they are" He began to walk to his bed.

"No, Thomas, you don't know that!"Newt argued as we followed"The only thing we do know is that they helped rescue us from WICKD. They gave us new clothes. They gave us food. They gave us a proper bed. Some of us haven't had that in a long time"

"Yeah, but..."

"Some of us a lot longer than others"Newt let out a deep breath. All of a sudden the vent door was thrown open and Aris slid out from under Thomas' bed.

"Hey Thomas"

"What the..."

"You got it, didn't you?"He spoke over Frypan.

"Yeah, let's go"He held up the card"All right, look, maybe you guys are right. Maybe I'm just being paranoid"He got under his bed as we all crouched down "But I got to find out for sure. Just cover for me. I'll be back as soon as I can"He slid into the vent. I ran a hand through my hair and glanced at the door. That shank better be careful.

~LATER THAT EVENING~

"Winston..."I held my head in my hands at the guy who high fived a grinning Frypan.

"I'm serious _____!"I groaned and flopped back on my bed as they all smirked.

"It's a simple question really"Newt chuckled making me roll my eyes at him"Why Gally? No offense but there were other choices so what made you choose him?"

"This is not a slumber party"I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow at them "But since you all are such nosy shanks..."I sighed, feeling my cheeks getting warm "He made me feel safe and loved"

"I'm sure that's sweet and all but I think it was because you thought he was good in bed"My face went red hot making them cheer and laugh as I threw my pillow at Minho. We were interrupted by the vent skidding across the room and Thomas scrambling out followed by Aris.

"Thomas!"I ran to him and helped him up.

"We gotta go. We gotta go right now"He ran to the door and peered outside.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"What do you mean, 'We gotta go?''

"They're coming. Come on. We gotta go."He ran back to his bed "They're coming for us"He grabbed his sheets and tied them tightly around the door handles.

"Aris what happened in there?"I questioned him. He was staring at the ground in shock.

"Paige, she's still alive"

"Thomas, can you just calm down and talk to us"Newt told him as he frantically tied his sheets.

"She's still alive"

"Who's she? Teresa?"

"Ava"I felt my blood go cold.

"Ava?"

"Will you just turn around and talk to us?" I yelled at him.

"It's WICKD!"He shouted, finally turning around "It's still WICKD"He let go of the sheet and ran to his bed as we stared at him "It's always been WICKD" He grabbed his mattress and shoved it against the door.

"Thomas" I put my hand on the mattress making him turn around and look at me "What did you see?"

"I don't have time to explain right now"He let out a shaky breath "_____, please, we have to go"He looked at me with pleading eyes.

I glanced around at everyone's worried faces before turning back to Thomas "Lead the way"

~A LITTLE WHILE LATER~

"Come on, come on!"Thomas kept a lookout as we climbed out of the vent into an empty passage way "Okay, let's go!"

"You guys go ahead. There's something I gotta do"Aris waved at us, looking down the corridor for anyone.

"What are you talking about?"

"Trust me, it's important. You guys wanna get outta here, right? Just go"Aris climbed back into the vent.

"I'll go with him"Winston volunteered.

"Okay Winston, go! Go! Come on"Thomas nodded.

"Are you sure we can trust this kid?"Minho asked as we ran.

"You don't want to know where we'd be without him"Thomas replied. We turned a corner and ran into a doctor.

"What are you kids doing out?" She looked at us suspiciously. An alarm began to blare. I looked at Thomas then back at her.

"I'm sorry about this"I grabbed her arm and Thomas did the same "We need your help" We ran along the corridor heading to the med wing. As we turned the corner, we were faced with a guard.

"Freeze! Stay where you are!"He cocked his gun and shot at us. We turned back and ran.

"Why are they shooting at us?"Frypan yelled.

"I've spotted them! They're in L-3!"I turned back to see Minho staring at back the passage.

"What the hell are you doing?" I shouted at him. He ran back as a guard came running. He kicked him up and knocked him out. We ran to him.

"Shit, Minho!" I checked the guard's gun for ammo and threw it to Thomas."Let's go!"We arrived at the lab and pushed the doctor through first.

"Dr Crawford, are you here to..."The scientists looked up in confusion"Wait, wait. Okay, okay"They backed up as we barged in.

"Where is she? Where is she!"Thomas questioned them. They looked over to a bed covered by a curtain. He gave the gun to Minho who pointed it at them. While Thomas checked on Teresa, Newt tied the scientists up.

"Guys?"Frypan slammed the door shut "They're coming! Where do we go?"

"Frypan move!"I kicked over a table and pushed it against the door "Get back! Get back!"

"They've got the door barricaded. Send backup!"The guards pushed against our block.

"Okay, we gotta get outta here! Where do we go?"I turned to Thomas as he looked around the room.

"Everyone stand back!"He grabbed a stool, smashing it against a window"_____, Newt, help!"We both grabbed stools and broke the window.

"Go go go!"We jumped through as the guards and Janson made it past the door. Minho threw me the gun and we left the room only to be faced by a guard. I quickly pulled the trigger which caused the man to fly backwards in electrical shock.

"Shit. Okay, come on!"We ran past the twitching man and down the corridor.

"There it is! There it is!"Thomas yelled out.

"Converge on level 3"A voice said over the PA "All R-16 personnel, non-lethal force only"

"Thomas, the card!"I kept the gun ready as he tried to open the door.

"Shit! Come on!"The door denied entry repeatedly"No, no no!"

"Thomas!"We heard Janson's slimy voice as they approached behind us.I cocked my gun, marching towards him.

"Open this door, Janson!"I shouted over the alarm's ringing.

"You really don't want me to, ____"

"Open the damn door"I heard the beeping as they kept trying to open the door.

"Listen to me! I'm trying to save your life"He argued "The maze is one thing, but you kids wouldn't last one day out in the Scorch"They kept walking closer as did I "If the elements don't kill you, the Cranks will. ______, you have to believe me. I only want what's best for you"

"Yeah, let me guess. WICKD is good?"I replied in a sarcastic manner.

"You're not getting through that door" At that moment, the door clicked open revealing Aris and Winston standing there.

"Hey guys"

"Come on!"

"_____! Come on, let's go!"Thomas yelled at me as I looked back at Janson. I shot while running backwards. After the ammo finished, I threw the gun at them and ran like hell.

"Don't let them get away! Shut the main vault door!"Janson yelled. I sprinted as the door was slowly closing.

"No ____!"

"Come on _____! Come on!" I dropped to my knees and slid down just as the door sealed shut.

"Move! Move!"

"Thomas, what's going on?"I panted. Aris smashed the keypad so the guards and Janson couldn't get through. They begin to try to open the door while Aris finds a gun. Thomas gives the bird to a fuming Janson. We continue running for the exit.

"Come on, keep moving!" We find a large door and Thomas pulls it open. We wince as we see the high winded storm outside. I looked back at the soldiers trying to get through the door then back outside. 'Goodbye soft bed' I thought as I ran into the storm.

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