#event –– hall of hidden knives .

[achickennamedcheese]

OHHHH CHEESE~

I HAVE BROUGHT MORE UNDERTALE AU LORE FOR YOU

and yes, it is Bloodmoon related :3

There he is, the guy himself. He’ll set up traps all around Snowdin and the forest in order to capture (or outright kill) Lunar. Lunar though spooked actually finds the twins to be cool, but they both kinda intimidate them so they’d only actively want to befriend them both in a replay. Now as for Blood’s fight.

He technically has five total fights, but the first four are more just him ambushing Lunar and attacking a bit and then getting distracted with something else. In those four first fights he’ll use a mace, a bow, a scythe, and a chainsaw to fight. One of those fights, probably the scythe one, would be interrupted by Snow complaining about Blood stealing her favorite weapon, which would lead to a small argument between the twins which Lunar would use to run away. In short, Lunar has to run away from all four fights. And then, the actual fight. In the outskirts of Snowdin during a snow storm, Blood will use every single weapon they had used before and some knives to try and fight//kill Lunar, by then he’d be pissed by the fact he hasn’t been able to kill them and would absolutely not hold back. There’d be multiple insta kills at various points in the fight. And of course, the blue soul mechanic. Lunar would have to actively avoid traps that had been set in the battlefield by Blood all while dodging the bot’s attacks. It’d be a very fun fight over all, well, for the player, Lunar would be terrified on their first run. And then comes the special attack, Blood chases Lunar all around the battlefield with the intent of leading them to a giant fucking bear trap hidden in the snow or something. If activated, the trap is an insta kill. If not…

The trap still activates. And Blood falls on it.

from here there are five different ways the battle could end, I have made a chart though I forgot one of the variants.

There are two turns where neither Lunar or the player can act, due to the shock (and angst >:)) of the event. Once free to act, there are three turns left to the battle. This isn’t the case if Lunar had been fighting prior to this happening and had lowered Blood’s health over 50%, in that case Blood would straight up die from the bear trap, EXP would be gained from this. If his HP is over 50%, he’d lose a good chunk of it, the rest slowly draining as the turns pass.

If the three turns are up and nothing has been done to either help, escape, or end things, Blood will die, no EXP would be gained from it.

If choosing to attack, Lunar will hit the trap so it hurries draining his HP up, Blood dies, EXP is gained.

The canon thing that happens in Lunar’s first run is they run away. They exit Snowdin, shaken up by the events that just transpired, and will refuse to go back to Snowdin if the player tries to go back. They would try to not think about it and keep going through the underground, only other mention of Blood being Solar (haven’t thought that through yet), and it isn’t until they reach Judgement Hall that they remember that. They are confronted with what they did by facing the person who’d be the most affected by Blood’s death, though she doesn’t mention it at all, she just gives Lunar their judgement and leaves, her wearing her dead sibling’s scarf being the only giveaway that they know what happened. Needless to say Lunar feels extremely guilty about it, but y’know, final boss, so they deal with that post game in the phone call, where Snow addresses them coldly and uncaringly.

The happy ending is the one where Lunar helps Blood by disarming the trap. He scrambles away and the battle ends. Lunar looks around and finds him sitting against a tree, processing what just happened, when he notices he doesn’t know what to say, he simply stares at Lunar then at the trap then at Lunar. He mutters a small thank you before running away. That’s all Lunar hears about both twins for a while. And then, the second half of waterfall is reached, and Lunar receives a phone call.

“Uhhh, is this the human? Hey. Hey! Hi, it has been some time, uhhhhh. So I uh, I wanted to say thanks for helping me out back there, I uh, I appreciate it… god that feels weird to say— anyways! I know we got off in the wrong foot, so uh, sorry for trying to kill you? I can, like, make it up to you? Just drop by our place or something, I got rid of all the traps (I think) so, yeah… Wha? How’d I get your phone number? Other caught it while looking over your shoulder as you used it, anyways— later!”

And so, the blood twins can be befriended.

You might notice I’m missing a variation of the fight, and that’s because the No mercy route is so incredibly different that any other. I also have a thing to illustrate what I mean with this

Blood will straight up not fight in the No Mercy route. The first four encounters do happen, but by the time the outskirts are reached he has decided he simply won’t fight you again. You had no reaction to any of the traps, you hadn’t even flinched when he took out the chainsaw, he’s creeped out by you. He tells you he won’t even bother since no human in their right mind would ever not react to any of that, he also gloats about it also probably not being a fair fight because he’d probably win easily if he didn’t hold any punches. The fight starts, and there are two ways to go about this, kill him or don’t.

If you kill him, he’ll be very taken aback by the strength of your attack, he won’t say anything, he won’t move, he’ll just stare at you. In the last second he’ll turn away to run, but it’d be worthless by then, he’d turn to dust a few feet behind you.

If you don’t kill him he’ll be relieved, he had been very anxious about this confrontation for what he assumes to be no reason, he’ll just be like ‘cool’ and walk away. Just like him living in any other route, he calls you once you reach the second half of Waterfall, though he isn’t as chipper as he could be, in fact he’d still be very creeped out by you, but be willing to talk about murder and bones over some prepackaged meals or whatever.

That’s all I have for now, please give me your thoughts and please give input on if this is too much or something

Later ;P

BRUH PLS I- AHDJFKWJFJJEF

You even got everything down to the routes and mechanics??? Dude omfg this is sick

Also- love how... how should I say this- uh- fruity/zesty Blood is 👍

[blackkatmagic]

Are you writing something for the Sith Obi event?

;)

There's an edge of fascination to encountering something so delicately dangerous, hidden in plain sight. Granta slips through the halls of the Senate Building like a shadow, unremembered even when he’s seen, and tells himself he isn't looking for Stewjon’s senator, but knows full well that it’s a lie.

Sano thinks he’s assessing weak points in the defenses. Jenna couldn’t care less what he does, if she’s even looked up from her research long enough to notice that he’s gone. Granta should be finding the best access points, gathering more blackmail for Sano, testing the Chancellor’s security, but—

There's a sweep of white and gold at the far end of the hall, red hair catching the lights. Kenobi is laughing with a group of other senators. Leaning back against a balcony railing with perfect, languid ease, a fluted glass in one hand and his other handing loose and open. The woman beside him is devastatingly beautiful, dressed in red and black with a choker of blood-red gems like a slit throat, but somehow it’s Kenobi Granta can't look away from.

They're celebrating something, he thinks. A glance over the others proves they’re all sometimes-allies Kenobi can rally with relative ease when he wants something passed, all influential and in control of their own factions. All at ease with him, too, like they can't see the knife-edge to his smile, the way his eyes slide across them like they’re a tally to be counted up and nothing more.

Granta stills deep in the shadows where the balcony’s lights can't reach, fingers curling tight around the hilt of one of his knives. For one mad moment he wants to step out into the crowd, walk right up to Kenobi and smile and slide a blade into his belly. No one would notice until it was too late. No one would remember him in the aftermath. It would be easy.

Or—it’s the sort of thing that’s supposed to be easy, given what Granta is and what he’s trained to do. But as blue-green eyes flicker up, across the expanse of dull white tile and pale walls, and settle right on Granta's hiding place, Granta realizes with a shiver of unpleasant awareness that Kenobi isn't anywhere close to an easy target.

Laughing a little, Kenobi says something to the woman beside him, who glances up as well, though her eyes don’t quite find Granta. She smiles, lips the same bloody red as her dress, and raises her glass, and Kenobi pushes away from the railing, slides through the other senators like a shark through a school of minnows that are entirely beneath its notice, and approaches the darkness with light steps. His white cape sweeps the tile, swallows the shadows, and he meets Granta's gaze as he steps into the dark alcove, blocking the way out like it’s a natural movement and not a calculated thing.

“Hello there,” he says, light. “Come to take me up on my offer of assistance?”

[i-am-still-bb]

No. 28

“We might not make it to the morning; so go on and tell me now.” | Bloody Knife | Sacrifice | “You'll have to go through me.”

Pairing: Fili/Kili Rating: T Universe: Book Words: 2066

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A/N: I haven't read The Hobbit in quite a while, so the sequence of events and the timing between them, etc. may not be accurate to the book.

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The tunnel smelled strongly of dragon. Kili had not been expecting the smell. Fire? Yes. Claws? Yes. The smell? Absolutely not. It was like rotting meat and overturned earth. There was also the smell of smoke, but he had been expecting that smell. And it was not the main thing that you could smell. 

Everyone had laid out their bedrolls along the passage way. They were uncomfortable being too far from the hidden door and the crack of light that let in fresh air and a little bit of day light, but the exposure of it made them uncomfortable as well. And if they went deeper into the tunnel then they were closer to the opening that lead them into the throne room where Smaug lay curled on his hoard of gold while brooding and plotting. So they were situated nearly half way to between the two ends. 

They had to be quiet because any sound they made echoed down the tunnel. A kicked stone, a hissed curse made them all freeze. Waiting. Listening. To see if Smaug had heard them, if they were moments from discovery. When there was no rumbling or glow of fire they would relax enough to lay down or return to whatever hushed conversation they were having. 

Desiring some privacy there was some distance between different groups of them. Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur all sat together, talking, and sleeping as a group, while Oin and Gloin were bunked down with Ori, Nori, and Dori. 

Fili and Kili had set up their bedrolls some distance away from the others. Bombur snored and neither Fili nor Kili could sleep well if they were still awake when Bombur fell asleep.

Right now they were all waiting for Bilbo to come back with word about what he had seen and heard in the throne room. Some were sleeping, but Fili was slowly but steadily sharpening his swords, knives, and axes. They all started on his right side. And, when sharpened, he would set them down on his left. He was nearly done with the small pile by this point. 

“What do you think is going to happen?” Kili asked. 

Fili’s hand paused its continuous motion. “I don’t know, Kili.” He started running the whetstone down the length of the sword again. “There’s still a dragon to kill, so I imagine there will be fighting at some point. 

Kili sat down and scooted so that his back was against the smooth stone wall. He was impressed with the care that his ancestors had taken with crafting even this small hallway that was not meant to be used by many. They could have easily left rough edges, and an uneven floor, but Kili had looked and had been unable to find anything that could cause you to trip in the dark, or a chip in the wall that could slice open a finger as you felt your way along. He could not help but compare it to the halls of Ered Luin. He missed those halls. He had longed for their rough warmth more than once in the past months. But Erebor was something else entirely. If they were successful. If they reclaimed the mountain then things would not be the same. And there were bound to be good ways, but also bad ways. 

He probably would not get to see those halls again. Amad would travel with the rest of their kin to Erebor to take up residence in the halls of their fathers. 

“Do you think that there are enough of us?” Kili asked hesitantly. “We’ve never fought in a battle. Thorin, Dwalin, and Balin did, but that was a long time ago.”

“Gandalf seemed to think that fourteen was the right number.”

Kili hummed.

“What do you think it will be like if we do manage to evict Smaug the Terrible?”

“I think there will be a lot of work at first,” Fili replied.

Kili nodded and watched Fili’s hands continue their work while he spoke. 

“Obviously there will be a lot of cleaning to do, repairs to be carried out, furnishings, dealing with the hoard of treasure won’t be the least of all those tasks. I imagine Thorin is going to want the Arkenstone found as quickly as possible.”

“The Right to Rule.”

Fili nodded. “Then there will be dealing with the land around the mountain. Sorting out what to do with the ruins of Dale. Then there will be the political aspects of it all, Lake Town, the Elves of Mirkwood, and anyone else who lives nearby.”

“What about us?”

“I imagine we’ll be busy.”

“Yeah…” Kili trailed off, trying to think of how to phrase what he wanted to ask. What about them? What about their futures? Clearly living here was going to be very different from living in Ered Luin. There would be a great deal more pressure, a lot more expectations, more people watching and commenting on their actions. 

What about marriage?

Kili had never really thought about that before and, therefore, had not been bothered by the prospect of either of them marrying. But now, with Erebor, nearly within their grasp, the thought bothered him. Fili had been just his for so long. And the prospect of having to share Fili with another, much less multiple others of Fili had children with whomever he married, was… discomforting. 

“That’s not really what I—” Kili started to say.

He was distracted by Bilbo running down the corridor at full sprint, his cheeks pink, and he was breathing heavily. Everyone took notice, some standing up, others remaining seated, but their attention was clearly fixed on Kili.

“What’s happened?” Thorin demanded.

Bilbo was bent nearly double, hands on his knees while he fought to catch his breath.

“Smaug…” he gasped.

“Figured that much,” Dwalin growled. 

Bilbo saw the sliver of light at the end of the tunnel where the door was still propped open. “We should close the door.”

“What! Why?” Many of them exclaimed at once. 

Then they all heard the rumble and rush of wind as Smaug took flight via the main gate. They all looked at one another, their eyes wide with fear and surprise. Smaug had not left the mountain in nearly 60 years, or so they had heard. 

“Please shut the door,” Bilbo pleaded. “I fear that he will see it and know where we are.”

“But then we will be trapped in the mountain!” 

“With no way out!” 

“We’ll be stuck in here with Smaug until we either starve or he eats us.”

“Please!” Bilbo repeated. “You were not there—”

“Shut the door,” Thorin ordered. 

“But,” Nori started to protest. 

“Now,” Thorin barked. 

Dwalin and a few others went to the door and managed to heave it back into place. It closed with a sharp crack. And they were left in complete darkness. Kili had thought the air had been close, thick, and stuffy before, but without the fresh air and light from the outside it quickly became worse. 

They all stood in silence in the pitch black. Kili had never been comfortable with this level of darkness. He knew his eyes would eventually adjust and he would be able to see a little, but it had nothing to do with sunlight, starlight, or moonlight. And Bilbo’s eyes would not adjust to the same level, he would be left in the pitch black darkness of the pungent tunnel. 

The roar was closer.

Then the earth shook. 

Kili grabbed for Fili’s shoulder. 

“Kili?”

“I’m okay,” but Kili’s voice shook. There was the distinctive sound of metal on metal while Fili quickly returned all of his weapons to their sheaths. Fili knew each weapon by touch and worked quickly. 

The earth shook again. This time knocking some of them from their feet. Kili caught himself on the smooth wall. 

“Away from the door!” Thorin shouted.

There was the unmistakable sound of stone cracking. 

The plink of small stones that preceded a landslide. 

Fili dragged Kili down the tunnel by the placket of his borrowed jerkin. There was the metallic sound of at least one of Fili’s weapons being left behind on the floor of the tunnel as they ran. Kili was nearly jerked from his feet by Fili’s speed even before the next earthquake hit. The earth shook so violently that none of them were able to remain standing. 

“Keep moving!” Fili’s voice came from behind Kili, though how he had ended up there was a mystery.

“I’m trying,” Kili said before the moving earth pitched him sideways and then forward on to his face. Fili’s hands were on him, checking. “I’m not hurt,” Kili assured him, answering the silent question. 

Then it stopped. As quickly as the earthquakes began they ended. 

“Is everyone accounted for?” Thorin shouted from the front.

“More or less,” Bofur grumbled.

“Yes.”

“But we lost any of the supplies that we had brought inside.”

Everyone was present and accounted for and other than bumps and bruises, and a bloodied nose everyone was uninjured. 

“What exactly happened with Smaug?” someone demanded of Bilbo

And Bilbo told them.

… Smaug sticking his head in the hole

… the fire he had unleashed that had singged the back of Bilbo’s calves. 

A few of the dwarves went to check on the tunnel’s entrance. But it was thoroughly gone. Everything had been smashed and there was the scent of smoke even though there had been nothing to burn anywhere near the door. 

Kili wondered if dragon fire could melt solid rock. And he wished Gandalf was there, because he would probably know the answer. 

“That’s just great,” Nori grumbled. “We’re trapped between a cave in and a pissed off dragon who is interested in what Hobbit tastes like and is still willing to eat Dwarf even though he’s tired of it.”

“We’ll stay here and wait,” Thorin said authoritatively, interrupting any discontented grumbling. “Smaug might not come back. If he does not then we will find our way out through the treasure chamber.”

“And if he does come back?”

Thorin did not answer. 

They all settled down in the dark, overly warm tunnel to wait. 

“What were you going to say before?” Fili whispered. The tunnel echoed at this point, and the sound of the others’ breathing filled their ears along with the rumble of Bombur’s snoring, and Bofur’s cursing when he woke his brother every few minutes only for him to fall back to sleep shortly after waking. And then shortly after falling asleep he would start snoring again. 

Kili shook his head. “I’ll tell you later.”

“We might not make it to the morning; so go on and tell me now.” 

Kili swallowed hard. Then he reached for Fili in the dark. He could now see the outlines of Fili’s face, the broad gestures of his features in the dark. And the longer they were underground without any light, the more detailed his sight would become. 

“I just… I…” Kili struggled to find the words. 

Fili did not say anything. He listened and waited.

“I…” 

Fili squeezed Kili’s knee. Kili covered Fili’s hand with his own. 

“I love you,” Kili said so quietly that he could barely hear his own words over the sound of his own heart beating.

“I love you, too.” Fili replied. 

“Not like that—” Kili started to explain.

“I know.”

“You do?”

Kili could see the line of Fili’s jaw and his quick smile, and the glint of his eyes when he looked past Kili for a second. 

Fili kissed him then. 

Kili made a small surprised sound before he could stop himself. Fili’s lips were warm and soft, but there was a pressure to the kiss, and urgency. Fili’s beard rasped against Kili’s skin. Kili moved his hands to keep Fili close. He had stopped thinking full sentences or even anything coherent the moment that Fili’s tongue touched his lower lip. His fingers caught Fili's braids, tugging and tangling them. 

“Like that?” Fili asked on an exhale when they parted.

Kili nodded and took a deep breath. “Like that.”

Fili dropped his head forward so their foreheads were touching. 

Fili started to speak then, his fingers dancing on the neckline of Kili’s shirt. But his words were interrupted by Thorin starting to rouse the company. It had been a night and most of a day. It was time to move.

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[writingwhimsey]

All's Fair IN Love & War- Nobunaga Ch. 13

Chapter 13

It was the day before the festival. The day my plan was coming together. I woke up with Nobunaga next to me once again, my head resting on his chest. How he had become such a comfort…I didn’t know.

“Did you rest well?” Nobunaga asked me, his fingertips stroking my cheek.

“Yeah.” I answered. “You make a pretty good pillow.”

Nobunaga chuckled. “Is that what I am?”

“Among other things.” I answered, smiling up at him. “You’re a great Go partner and a wonderful conversationalist as well…well and with the way you hold me I guess you qualify as a blanket and pillow.”

Nobunaga chuckled. Then his face took on a more serious…and concerned look. “Are you not worried about today?” He asked.

I shook my head. “No…I’ve kicked his ass before and I’ll do it again.” I replied. “Though a large part of my plan depends on my generals and my council…but it’s too late to back out now.”

“What is your strategy exactly?” Nobunaga asked, curiously.

I gave him a confident smile. “You’ll just have to wait till you see it in action.”

Just then a group of my maids were coming in the door. “Good morning my lord, we have come to help you get ready for the day’s events.” Kinu, my head maid said. Then she and the other maids were all gasping as they finally actually looked at me in my futon…cuddling with Nobunaga.

Nobunaga and I both sat up as the maids seemed to be tripping over themselves. “I-I…W-we are… sorry for interrupting, my lords.” Kinu said.

“It’s fine.” I replied, waving off their imagined offense. I mean I couldn’t blame them. They’d never seen me with anyone before.

“We’ll come back in a few minutes.” Kinu said, bowing once again as she and the other maids made a hasty exit.

“Well, I know what the gossip will be amongst the castle staff today.” I said with a laugh. “Well, at least until the meeting.”

Nobunaga was chuckling. “We had the staff in Azuchi talking from our games of Go.”

“Oh, I know.” I replied. “As well as our vassals.”

“Yes, I think they have been plotting something for this trip.” Nobunaga replied.

“Probably.” I agreed. “We’ll have plenty of time later to figure that out, though. We should probably start getting ready.”

Nobunaga nodded. He was then kissing me on the forehead once again. It was the softest brush of his lips to my skin…and yet it warmed me and made me tingle all over in the most pleasant of ways. Assuming everything went well today…I would maybe start exploring these feelings more.

Once Nobunaga was gone it was just a few moments later that my maids were coming in to help me prepare for the meeting. I would look every part the lord I was. Dressed ready in fine quality robes and yet still battle ready. I wore piece of light armor beneath my fine robes and my hair was pulled up and held together with hair sticks that doubled as weapons. I carried an iron-ribbed war fan and had my sword and a few hidden knives.

Just as I finished getting ready, Sato and Jiro were coming into my room. “Are you ready, my lord? The council and the generals are gathering.” Jiro asked.

“And my scouts have reported that a man in black robes and a mask has been spotted outside the castle walls.” Sato said.

I nodded. “I am…and make sure to let him in. It’s time to end this.”

Nobunaga…

Nobunaga sat in the council chamber of Ava’s castle. He sat with Hideyoshi, Masamune, and Ranmaru across the hall from where all of Ava’s men sat. She had a council consisting of elders from the villages and towns she ruled over. They were all dressed rather comfortably. She also had around ten generals under her command. From what Nobunaga had been told, she originally only had three generals and they were the ones who had served her father. The other seven had come from the lands she had conquered. And each general had a small contingent of soldiers at their backs.

“This audience is much larger than I anticipated.” Hideyoshi murmured.

“I think the lass is about to put on a pretty big show.” Masamune said, grinning.

“I still am not sure what her strategy is, but I am curious to see it.” Nobunaga replied. They were all keeping their voices low.

“Do you think we should be prepared in case…something doesn’t work out?” Ranmaru asked, concern in his voice.

“This is a lot of men if something goes wrong.” Hideyoshi agreed.

“It will all work out.” Nobunaga said, confidence in his voice. After witnessing Ava in battle and seeing her brilliant mind at work in Go…he had no doubts that she could handle herself. Though he did have some nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach. Something he wasn’t familiar with. While he had all the confidence in the world in Ava and her abilities…there was a part of him… that almost…feared something happening to her. “Ava is strong, fierce, and has a brilliant mind. She knows what she is doing.”

The other warlords looked at Nobunaga. He commended people and gave them their due when they deserved it, there was no doubt of that…but to hear him expressing such praise and what appeared to be faith in someone else, caught them all a bit off guard. Of course none of them knew of Nobunaga’s inner fears for Ava’s safety.

It was moments later the doors were opening and Ava was stepping in the room, Jiro and Sato right behind her. Nobunaga’s eyes were on Ava as she entered the room, dressed her her finery, though he could tell even these clothes were made for ease of movement. He also took note of the numerous weapons she had on her person.

Of course it wasn’t just her dress, but the way she carried herself that caught and held his attention. She was the smallest person in this room and yet she carried herself as if she were a titan and the rest of them were mere mortals. She exuded as much confidence as any great warrior.

As Ava made it to her seat at the head of the room, she looked around, greeting everyone. “I want to welcome all of you and thank you all for coming.” She said. “Thank you to my esteemed council and generals for coming and on such short notice. And thank you to my honored guests from our new allies.”

There were a few rumbling greetings from the crowd, but nothing solid or coherent. Ava continued. “Today we gather to celebrate how much we have accomplished and to celebrate our alliance with the Oda forces. I want you all to have a wonderful time and enjoy yourselves.”

Kitchen staff were then coming in, bringing in the food and sake that had been prepared for the feast. Just as everyone was getting settled in and the party was just beginning, the doors at the back of the hall flew open and a man in black robes and a golden mask stepped into the room.

“You enjoying your happy little banquet I see.” The man said, venom clear in his voice.

Ava had just picked up her sake cup and was looking up over her cup as she sipped. She gave the masked man a rather bored look. She then set her cup aside as she prepared to speak. “I was wondering when you were going to make yourself known, Ebisu.”

Nobunaga sat still, silently watching what was about to unfold. Though he could feel the tension in the room. Of course, he also had to admit there was something he didn’t like…knowing that this masked man not only caused Ava trouble…but that he had hurt her…and touched her.

“You were expecting me?” Ebisu asked.

“Of course.” Ava answered. “Bugs do crawl out of the ground once spring arrives.”

“Just what do you think you;re doing here, Ebisu?” Jiro asked.

The masked man turned to Jiro. “I’ve just come to take what should have always been mine.” Ebisu answered. “You once agreed with me.”

“Yeah, and I was an idiot then.” Jiro replied.

“Just what do you think should be yours, Ebisu?” Ava asked, her expression unreadable, though Nobunaga could see the fire burning in her eyes.

“This clan.” Ebisu answered. “I should have been Lord Riku’s successor. You are no lord.”

Ava was looking at him, hard. “And how do you plan to do that?” She asked as she slowly rose from her seat, approaching Ebisu. “I know you don’t have any army backing you.”

“I don’t need to bring anyone.” Ebisu answered. “I just need your council and your generals to see that I am clearly the better fit.”

Ava looked at him and threw him a rather confident grin. “Really? You’re planning to steal my forces from me?” She asked. She was then turning and addressing her council and her generals. “Any of you who thinks Ebisu would be the better ruler of this territory, please speak up.”

Nobunaga saw what Ava was doing. It was a brilliant plan so long as there were no dissenters among her generals and council.

“I won’t hold it against you.” Ava went on. “If you want to follow Ebisu and pretend he is your lord, please by all means you are more than welcome to.”

No one was speaking up. 

Ava turned to Ebisu. “Do try to persuade them.” She said, waving her hand towards him as if giving him the floor.

Ebisu was turning to the crowd. “Gentlemen, you know I trained closely under Lord Riku. I worked hard and gave everything to the clan. I am the best warrior and I can truly lead this clan to greatness.”

There were murmurs amongst the troops before one of the generals stood up. “You say you can bring us to greatness, but what can you do that Lord Ava has not done?” the general spoke. “When Lord Riku died, she led us in battle to defeat those who had snuffed out our lord’s life in such a cowardly way. Then she led us once more to bring peace to our warring lands. Our people live and prosper as they never have before thanks to her efforts and her policies.” He was then turning to Ava, lifting his fist to his chest and kneeling before her. “My loyalty is and always has been to you, Lord Ava. You are your father’s daughter. You are my lord.”

The other generals were soon following suit, their soldiers behind them doing the same as well. The men were all slowly kneeling to Ava, declaring and reaffirming their loyalty to her. Nobunaga could tell these men truly respected Ava and would follow her into the fores of hell should she ask it of them.

Ava was turning to Ebisu. “Well, I don’t think that worked out for you.” She said. “It appears they approve of my rulership.”

Ebisu’s fist was shaking at his side. “Fools.” He muttered. He was then moving and fast, his hand raised with a blade he had concealed within his sleeves. “Just die!”

Ava was faster, pulling out her own hidden blade to block his attack. “I don’t think so.” She said. “I have much still to do in this life.”

“My lord!” came the cry from all of Ava’s men.

Ava lifted her free hand to them. “No. I can handle this.” She said, not taking her eyes from Ebisu. “You need me to kick your ass again?” She asked him.

“I will be defeating you this time.” Ebisu replied, anger in his voice. He was then lifting his blade once again, ready to strike. He was moving in a way that was clearly meant to be deceptive and unfair…yet Ava blocked every attack.

The room was tense as everyone stayed back, watching as Ava and Ebisu fought. Nobunaga felt his own body tense wanting to intervene, but knowing that he needed to let Ava handle this. Knowing she could…but some of Ebisu’s attacks came too close for comfort.

“You should have never come.” Ebisu said. “You should have died on that battlefield the day you appeared.” He charged at her once again.

Ava nimbly dodged his attack and then lifted her leg, kicking him in the face as he dove towards her. The golden mask he wore went flying off even as Ebisu landed on the floor. Nobunaga and the others saw the man’s face…one would think he didn’t really look human anymore.

Ava glared hard at him as she came for him, delivering a kick to his ribs. “And you should have stayed in the hole you crawled into to hide.” She told him. “Now pick up your weapon and fight me.” She was then kicking his fallen sword towards him.

Ebisu seemed to be torn between going to his sword and his mask. “Don’t worry about your mask.” Ava told him. “Everyone has already seen your face. Besides, you now look like the demon you are.”

Ebisu was letting out a cry at that, picking up his sword and charging at Ava once again. Ava blocked the blow and was flinging him back with her own sword. It was clear she was the better fighter despite Ebisu being twice her size. Nobunaga couldn’t help but to admire the way Ava turned Ebsiu’s own momentum against him again and again. She was a master at letting her enemies do the work in defeating themselves.

Ava had knocked Ebisu down to the ground once again. “Have you had enough yet?” She asked as she approached him. “Or would you rather I put you out of your misery this time?”

“You…” Ebisu began panting, moving slowly, his hand gripping his gut where she had kicked him. “...I want…you to…DIE BITCH!” He screamed as he began to move.

The world seemed to slow down in front of Nobunaga as he watched the next moments unfold. “Ava!” He found himself shouting as he realized too late what was happening.

Ebisu draw a pistol from within his robes and pointed it at Ava. She had a split second and turned just as Ebisu fired.

Nobunaga felt his heart hammering in his chest as he watched Ava fall to the ground, letting out a grunt as she did so. Ava’s generals were rushing Ebisu grabbing him and disarming him. Sato and Jiro had started to run to Ava, but…Nobunaga was also up and moving towards her.

Before any of them could get to her though, Ava was pushing herself up. She was gripping her left shoulder, blood pouring from the wound. “You think…I can be taken down…that easily?” She asked as she looked at Ebisu being detained by her men.

“W-what…”

Ava glared at him. “You will spend the rest of your days rotting in a cell.” She told him. “Living with your own humiliation.”

Ava’s men were then taking Ebisu away even as Nobunaga made his way over to Ava. She looked up at him. “Don’t tell me…you’re worried about this little shoulder wound?” She asked, a brave smile on her face, though sweat coated her brow and her skin was incredibly pale.

“It is still no small injury.” Nobunaga replied.

“My lord, we really need to get you to the castle doctor.” Jiro said.

“I’ll be…fine.” Ava replied, though she was unsteady on her feet.

Moving on instinct, Nobunaga was moving to Ava, his arms wrapping around her and catching her as she began to wobble and fall. “Stay awake, Ava.” He told her. “You are not allowed to die, especially to such a coward.”

“I…I won’t.” She replied.

“Alright, come on this way.” Sato said.

Nobunaga nodded and followed Sato, still carrying Ava. The idea of Ava dying…he didn’t like that. The thought of a world without her in it…he didn’t even want to imagine that possibility. She had to live and she had to heal.

“I promise…I’m not going anywhere, Nobunaga.” She told him, almost as if she could tell what he was feeling. He wondered if she could feel the tightness of his chest as she rested against it as he carried her. “This fire can’t be put out easily.”

Nobunaga smiled down at her. “You are indeed a fireball.” Of course, he wasn’t about to leave her side until he knew she was alright. He NEEDED to be by her side and needed her by his. He didn’t even know why, but he knew it deep within his bones, he knew that a world without her… it was one he did not want.

[sleepdepravity]

DISTRUTHS - case 3

sorry guys let’s see how much I can recall, hope you remember the case 2 recap

NOTEABLE EVENTS AND INFO (as I remember them)

After the trial and as soon as she’s able to, Akane immediately locks herself in her room again. Everybody is tired and goes to sleep for the moment

Next day is understandably very awkward for Mizoshima “I sort of participated in a murder scheme that would have killed all of you had I succeeded” Yuu.

There’s some amount of schism amongst the kids about what to do with him. Tsubame is surprisingly forgiving, considering that his initial murder plan was to kill her. (She mentions it would be sort of hypocritical to condemn him, since she herself did try a murder as well (K-1))

Kotone and Noboru also actually want to forgive him. They’re all in a difficult situation, after all, they can’t really blame him for being desperate

Matsui, Shinobu, and Koizumi definitely don’t want him hanging around, and suggests even confining him. Megumi also aligns with them (but in a way that somehow antagonizes everybody).

Katashi isn’t even there because he continues to do his own thing.

Yamaguchi tries to calm things down, but Matsui immediately turns on him, accusing him of trying to take control and isn’t that suspicious? Hm?? Why are you trying to be the leader??? Also obviously Matsui should be the leader.

Yuu decides that he should just leave, not wanting everybody to fight over him. (He immediately hangs out with Katashi instead, who hates this.)

Since Mori had hidden a knife on her, there’s a discussion about weapons. Yamaguchi insists that nobody should hide a weapon, it doesn’t help their situation. Everybody agrees (supposedly).

After that, they decide to see what rooms have been unlocked this time. Its not many. The workshop (room that Yuu had set up his death trap in) is now permanently unlocked. One of the second floor rooms turns out to be an infirmary. (I forget what the other rooms are need to find my notes later) (honestly I was struggling with making rooms in the first place I ran out of ideas quickly for the second floor back at the design phase)

The workshop noticeably has blueprints, including of the house. There’s a blueprint of what appears to be Monobear, but Monobear confiscates it. There’s other blueprints of other machines, and a leg, which seems to be signed by…Mizushima Yuu??

Yuu doesn’t recognize the blueprints, but does admit that it’s his signature…mysterious…

Someone happens to think of checking the red box in the entrance hall at some point. It is found to contain the IDs of deceased classmates. However, K-1’s ID is missing. Mysterious……….

Next day, three knives are missing from the kitchen. Yamaguchi is Disappointed.

Yamaguchi wants to search everybody, but basically everybody objects. He accuses the objectors to be the ones hiding knives. Tsubame says that her objection is based more on human rights. Also, letting people search their rooms is an opportunity for someone to plant evidence.

Shinobu suggests that Monobear maybe hid the knives to induce suspicion. Megumi jumps on that, wondering out loud if maybe he’s just saying that to avoid being suspected himself? It’s really just a miserable time all around.

Monobear also finally drags Akane out of her room, forcing her to actually be out. She keeps avoiding everybody, telling them not to get close. However, she seems to trust Noboru the most.

In general, the dynamics are: Katashi and Yuu keep hanging out (against Katashi’s will); Akane tries to be alone as much as possible, but will allow Noboru to be with her or will go to him for help if she needs any; Matsui tends to stick with Kotone, sometimes tries to enlist Akane, and sometimes tries discoursing with Tsubame but quickly gets annoyed with Tsubame’s philosophy thing and will leave; Tsubame doesn’t seek anybody out and lets herself be shunned, but Kotone and Noboru seem to be on the same wavelength as her and they will hang out; Yamaguchi is a somewhat popular guy and tries to check in with everybody, will often be followed by Shinobu, Koizumi, or Megumi.

For some reason, Megumi seems to have gained some sort of interest in Shinobu and often pesters him, much to his dismay.

Megumi heavily implies that she Knows Something, but does not let on what it is.

Life goes on for a bit. Tensions continue to build as nobody seems to know what to do now, escape doesn’t seem possible, and it sort of seems like nobody will rescue them. Yamaguchi tries to maintain hope.

And then, one day, early in the morning, there’s a body announcement! Kotone, Matsui, and Koizumi run out to the main hall as Katashi is coming down. Katashi asks what’s going on, and Kotone stutters, “Na-Naka—“ and Katashi says, “the football player?!” And Matsui is like, “what?? No, not Nakazawa! It’s Nakayama!!!!” And Katashi is like, “the photographer?!?!?!”

The three have found Megumi’s body floating in the pool, and that’s what triggered the body announcement.

Yuu also comes running into the main hall, shouting frantically about a body, and everybody is like, “yeah, we found it in the pool” and Yuu is like “what???? No, Yamaguchi’s dead in the gym!!”

As everybody is confused and panicking, Shinobu suddenly crawls out of the laundry room with a knife in his stomach, looking quite bad, causing more panic.

Someone runs to the infirmary, and also tries to find Akane, only to call for more help because they just found Akane’s body, in the infirmary.

As everybody freaks out about this new thing, Akane wakes up, not dead! She immediately sees Katashi and points at him furiously, saying he attacked her. Katashi is flustered, but doesn’t seem to deny it. Akane demands that he be tied up, which they do. Then she starts working on helping Shinobu with his knife wound.

Anyways, with all this chaos, the investigation starts.

INVESTIGATION AND CLUE THINGS

Monobear’s notes on the bodies say that Megumi died of asphyxiation. Yamaguchi died from blood loss. Akane has nothing to add, because she’s busy stitching up Shinobu during the whole investigation.

Yamaguchi was stabbed, the general consensus is that he was probably stabbed by one of the missing kitchen knives.

The gym isn’t really in much disorder. There are some dropped weights, implying that Yamaguchi was holding them when he was stabbed. Nobody really knows when it happened. The only real thing of note is some spots of blood on the door of the girl’s changing room.

Megumi’s body has to be fished out of the pool. There are marks around her neck and blood under her fingernails, but no other sign of wounds. Notably, she doesn’t have her camera.

The hall in front of the pool has some blood drops on the floor, there’s also blood on the pool door, on the inside but not the outside. It looks like someone had struggled opening the door.

In the laundry room, where Shinobu had been attacked, one of the laundry lines seems to have flecks of blood on it. There’s also some blood on the floor, probably where Shinobu was stabbed.

Akane was attacked in the infirmary. There’s a statuette with blood on it. Not much else.

One of the missing kitchen knives has been returned to the kitchen. Nobody knows when that happened.

Since one knife was used to stab Shinobu and one was put back in the kitchen, people focus on figuring out where the third missing knife is. It turns out Matsui has it. It’s not bloody, though of course everybody points out that you could just wash it off.

Megumi’s ID is found in the red box, apparently placed there intentionally. Using it to get into her room, everybody finds her camera, which has pictures of…their class…?

Looking through the pictures, it becomes clear that, actually, it’s been maybe two years. Megumi has taken some normal pictures but there’s also some pictures that were taken secretly. A few things of note:

In class photos, there are two girls nobody recognizes. (The audience would recognize one of the girls as the one from the opening cutscene.)

Shinobu is not in any of the class photos.

At least one photo shows Mori, hanging around with Yuu.

One of the photos is an ominous shot of everybody inside what appears to be an armored car or something (this includes the two mystery girls). Noboru can be seen lying down in the back with Akane leaning over him.

The most recent photo is…a picture of Monobear’s blueprint, apparently taken right before he confiscated it. Everybody quickly decides not to react to it, in case Monobear isn’t aware the picture exists.

[awritingcaitlin]

Book 1 POVs

I walk a line between *keep it reasonable* and *hand out POVs like candy* (and definitely tipped to the latter)

Killian

Killian’s heart stopped and his gaze flew toward the safe holding briefcase he was to deliver even as his legs propelled him towards it. He was not a mage, but with his minor talent he saw the play of energies as the shield around the safe was snuffed out by the powerful null field.

Nathaniel

Adler checked his pockets, hoping for some currency, but no billfold with Schmiedish notes or purse with Berthan coin graced his fingertips. He had a knife, some gun oil, and his pistol.

Rinnie

Rinnie’s boots squeaked as she walked down the marble hall of the Edansa Embassy to Schmiedland, the sound overpowering the usual swish of her skirts. Damn. Squeaky shoes were unbecoming of her position. The waterproofing enchantment must’ve worn off after getting caught in one of Himmelmauer’s scheduled rains yesterday. She wasn’t surprised. The boots were old, and all enchantments wore out eventually. She deliberated if it was worth it to re-enchant them, or if she should buy new boots.

Riela

Feeling exposed, Riela shifted the parcel in her hands. The woman’s guard looked right at Riela and tossed her own dark locks behind her back. She had various knives strapped to her belt and a pistol strapped to her right thigh. She didn’t have visible tattoos, but Riela knew they were hidden somewhere underneath her clothes.

Mica

The hulls of the ship shook with turbulence again. Mica hissed under her breath and steadied the flame on her small burner. She sat on her bunk in the small room that functioned as a lab and her quarters. She hadn’t slept in the crew quarters since shortly after her initial kidnapping. And she’d certainly been staying in this room more frequently in light of recent events.

Taryn

Taryn smiled mischievously. Technically, it hadn’t quite shaken out like that, but there were reasons Taryn had been picked over others. “Punishment for outshooting the Marines,” she answered, giving the reason that would likely interest her charge the most.

Paul

There were only a few regulars who were sometimes rowdy. Lubbock half kept an eye on them while the rest of his attention watched everything else. A look out the door showed him three ruffian-types coming up to the Tom. They looked both tired and frustrated. Lubbock stood up straighter.

However, beyond the mains (above), many are restricted to interludes or prolonged battle scenes.

Lily

Lily shrugged. Up until a few days ago, they hadn’t heard of any disappearances and Lily thought that maybe she’d made a point when she’d bloodied the Nidtrin Priestess. But then Allison had been nabbed against all convention. It had been barely after noon!

Mama Cass

Mama Cass normally prided herself on her composure. What was the point of living as long as she had if you could easily be surprised? But here she was. Flabbergasted.

Thea

Thea sat straddling the bedroom windowsill of her home on the third terrace ring of Berthingtonn. She watched the smoke from her cigarette curl up into the night air and drift past the electric streetlamp near the wall of her yard. She wore only a short bathrobe, her pale legs dangling outside the window. She was at peace here. The gentle breeze was cool on her bare skin, and it seemed to melt errant thoughts away.

Ilani

Ilani drifted in and out of consciousness. Healing magic and numbing spells. Spells to limit her movement. Painful breaths followed by ones controlled by spiritech. It was all so much. She drifted away.

Kanjo

Colour Sergeant Kanjo Skythorn’s teeth felt like they were rattling loose inside his skull as his car bumped over the cobblestones of the fourth side street their query was trying to lose them on.

Kiyo

Kiyo turned to face Thea, eyes narrowed with anger. “What a great mouthpiece you are, condemning the acts of those bastards without lifting a finger. Isn’t your Embassy in that area of town? What were you doing to stop the riot?”

Annaliese

Annaliese shuddered as she ended the call with the Low Council. She never liked delivering bad news, especially when it reflected poorly on her. Nevertheless, there was still time to salvage this.

Pirates (omniscient)

Five people sat around the table of the tavern called The Salty Seawench, located not far from South Berthingtonn’s eastern docks. They were a mismatched bunch: a tall, clean-shaven man whose eyes glinted too red for him to be anything but an astral; a scrawny elf who’d filed his canines to be extra pointy; a big-busted woman whose dark hair was intricately done in dozens of tiny braids; and two largely built men, one with a scraggly beard and the other with a well-trimmed moustache. They all drank varying types of beer and were enjoying their evening. There was a sixth place at the table, the beer mug empty, the chair vacant.

[gyldowen-draws]

Results time!

She has a bitter rivalry with the calculus professor: ✅Truth!

At her university, Greska and the calculus professor constantly argue over whether magic can be represented by mathematical equations or not. Greska believes that anything can be represented by math, including magic, while the calculus professor believes that math can only represent the physical world and magic is too ethereal to quantify. This disagreement has led to a very bitter rivalry, which is unfortunate since their offices are right across the hall from each other in the math department lol. Normally calm and even-tempered, the only time Greska ever raises her voice is when she's defending her mathematical proofs.

Her hidden talent is juggling: ✅Truth!

As a child, she thought that juggling always seemed really cool so she taught herself how to juggle all sorts of things (but her parents drew the line at knives.) Unfortunately, juggling did not win her a ton of friends like she'd hoped as a kid, but now when she whips her talent out at faculty event, people are really impressed (and yes, she's calculated the parabolas of every item she juggles).

Her and Opal have 3 tuxedo kitties: ❌Lie!

She is actually allergic to cats, and has always been more of a dog person. Currently the couple have a giant old wolfhound named Rufus whom they love very much. Opal even trained him to fetch certain items for Greska when her knee acted up. He's a very good boy 💕

This was so much fun! Please let me know if you want to see me do this with another of my OCs 😋

Two Truths, One Lie: Greska Edition!

@snowy-weather also requested a Greska version, let's gooo!

I'll reveal the answer after 24 hours, so stay tuned. . .

Let me know if there are other OCs you'd like to play this game with!

[icarusfclling]

WHO: open! WHERE: Symposia’s lounge WHEN: January 2nd, 2130. Late evening. WEARING: Brunello Cucinelli ensemble (x) with boots by Versace (x)

It’s been forty-seven hours since the Heteraidia festivities officially kicked off, ten days since preparations began to intrude on daily life for those residents, and nearly two months since he learned that Zeus would be inviting his brothers - and the entirety of their respective retinues - to Olympe for the occasion. All told, Icarus has been wound tight since early November and he’s exhausted, wants nothing more than to vanish into his quarters and not emerge until the citadel in the sky is calm and quiet once more. But rest and privacy are luxuries he is not permitted at the moment, so he’s settled for bowing out of a trip to Electra Hours in favor of the somewhat less crowded lounge at Symposia. At least here he’s less likely to be surprised by one of the (numerous) people he’s been carefully avoiding over the last few days.

Of course as soon as he steps up to the bar for something to take the edge off, the sound of a door opening behind him says that was a poor assumption. Icarus keeps his eyes on the bartender while he knocks back a shot of ambrosia, then tells her to pour a few more and turns to the person who’s just slid into the place beside him with a smile that he hopes is less tense than it feels.

“Enjoying the party so far?”

[achillespithia]

status: closed for @athenarhea​ ! location: the nemean hall, olympe. event: the hall of hidden knives ! 🛡

he’s here in pursuit of hypnos. keeping track of everyone hasn’t been an easy feat, but achilles has managed so far. he could probably just text hypnos, but what’s the fun in that? sometimes it’s fun to sneak up on someone and see what happens. he hasn’t actually been in the nemean hall, before. the hall’s ceilings seem to rocket upwards past the point of reason. everything is a strange, golden hue that makes him feel like a headache’s on the way.

people walk by at breakneck pace, their heads bowed as they review... whatever it is that’s related to the news, probably. he doesn’t know. cutting through the sea of faces, he spots athena rhea. she’s easy to spot, recognizable as any of zeus’ children are from the sway of nepotism. achilles weighs his options, connects the dots in his head, and then decides to throw logic and reason out the window in favor of poking around in business that isn’t his. that’s half his job, after all. her quick exit from tartarus and tisiphone’s subsequent change in mood hadn’t slipped his notice. there’s no better day than today to figure out why. “athena!”

[deathsknife]

Location: Thanatos’ private room, Xenios estate; mid-first week of festivities. Status: for @zagreusrhea

                                                                 𝟶𝟾:𝟷𝟽 𝙿𝙼

                                                                                                                 𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚜 𝙴𝚛𝚎𝚋𝚞𝚜:                                                                                     𝙽𝚘 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚖𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚢 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘.     𝚉𝚊𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚞𝚜 𝚁𝚑𝚎𝚊:     .....     𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚒𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚎 𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛, 𝚘𝚔𝚊𝚢? 𝙸 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝     𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛 𝚒𝚝 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚒𝚝 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜𝚗'𝚝 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝙸'𝚖 𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊 𝚐𝚞𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍

Thanatos doesn’t think he’ll ever grow used to the shape of night on the mountain. The dark is too deep, too easy to sink into by the elbows, too difficult to escape once its set. But here, moonlight carving like marble across the planes of Zagreus’ bare chest, he can’t bring himself to hate it. It’s been a night of indulgences already; shared breath and muffled moans, skin mapped by hands and teeth and open mouths. Taking each other in hand, swallowing down, a carnal geography. Here, the place to leave kiss-shaped bruises like secrets. There, scattering pleasure behind the eyes like stars. 

By all accounts, Thanatos is boneless and blissed-out. The sweat on his skin is barely cooled. Still, he allows himself a little more. His fingers trace the mound of Zagreus’ bicep, the cleft of his pectoral, the lines of his stomach. He presses his thumb where gooseflesh erupts, ghosts over the purpling evidence of their pleasure. He won’t say it, but he searches for any bruises left by his indelicate right hand. 

A cloud passes through the window and Thanatos tucks his cooling cheek to Zagreus’ shoulder. Beneath the twisted sheets, their legs tangle together. Thanatos tries very hard not to think about their earlier exchange and fails miserably. What he’d tried to say, how Zagreus had interpreted it instead. 

He pushes onto his elbow. His face drifts over Zagreus’, a midnight penumbra. 

“Does it count now? If I tell you again how happy you make me.” The levity of the night still humming in his chest, Than lifts the nearest of Zag’s hands and inspects both sides. “I don’t see a gun.” 

[pandoraind]

DURING THE LATTER HALF OF HETERAIDIA, PANDORA INDEPENDENT DROPS A SCATHING BANGER OF AN ARTICLE, WITH ATTACHED DOCUMENTS SUBMITTED BY AN ANONYMOUS SOURCE

[ ATTACHMENT: SHAKY VIDEO TAKEN AT SYMPOSIA. Thanatos Erebus can be seen grabbing a man in the first seconds, whose howls soon grow louder than the pulsing beat. Artemis Rhea pushes Erebus behind her and can be seen accosting security, who drags the injured man off. The video remains on the pair before following security and cutting off. ]

[ ATTACHMENT: TEXT. My friend was a bit overexcited when coming across Artemis Rhea at Symposia. We had gotten in through a friend of a friend and it was just a lot! So maybe he got too touchy, but then her friend or bodyguard or psycho puppet, who knows, got a little too touchy himself. I don’t know his name, sorry. His wrist got shattered, which you can see in the video. The hospital bill was taken care off by Rhea’s people, I’ll send that along but I have redacted my friend’s name per their suggestion. I don’t know if you want anything with this, but they really think that throwing money at this will make them seem like the good guys, but come on! It looks like Artemis Rhea and her friend had fun for the rest of the night while my friend was in surgery and got a permanent ban from Symposia, too. ]

[ ATTACHMENT: HOSPITAL BILL FOR A SHATTERED WRIST, PAID IN FULL BY ARTEMIS RHEA. ]

[gorgonias]

𝚏𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐  :    @redseek . 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 :    a  bouquet  of  flowers  for  u  on  vday  <3 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 :    night  ,  mid  -  january .

she’s  alone  in  the  estate  gardens  ,  looking  every  bit  like  a  nymph  ,  or  a  ghost  ,  as  she  waits  for  company  to  fill  the  empty  space  at  her  side .    just  down  the  path  ,  there’s  a  rosebush  in  full  bloom .    walk  even  further  ,  and  you’ll  find  carnations  ,  lilies  ,  hyacinths .    dusa  can’t  quite  put  a  name  to  the  pale  purple  flower  she  is  paused  before  ,  but  it’s  almost  unassuming  compared  to  the  rest  of  the  lot .    who’s  to  say  if  it’s  benign  or  poison ?    fingertips  skim  across  one  of  the  small  flowers  like  they’re  performing  a  sleight  of  hand  ,  as  if  they  might  just  pluck  one  of  them  from  the  collection .

she  thinks  her  fatal  flaw  might  be  wanting  to  trust  every  pretty  thing .

this  time  of  night  ,  busts  cast  moonlit  -  washed  shadows  ;    next  to  an  olive  tree  ,  a  fountain  spewing  water  is  a  constant  drip  ,  drip  ,  drip  in  the  quiet .    there’s  a  statue  of  what  looks  like  zeus  standing  near  it  ,  and  his  attention  almost  feels  judgmental .    it’s  as  creepy  as  it  is  reverent .

“  took  you  long  enough .  ”    the  greeting  is  light  ,  taking  a  teasing  lilt  as  she  looks  to  her  left .    “  how  are  the  stitches  healing  ,  by  the  way ?    heard  we  foot  the  bill .  ”

[prcmethevs]

CLOSED STARTER || icarus volati ( @icarusfclling​ ) LOCATION: somewhere in xenios TIMESTAMP: heteraidia festival – seventh day ; early morning

Months had passed Prometheus were uprooted to Olympe. Yet they had never felt stranger for living in the fever dream they had found themselves thrusted into. They were surrounded by bright neon lights shining bright and high in the night sky, changing weather that always remain too perfect, frivolous trends that change faster than the season, and webs of favors that bind everyone to the ruler of the land. Others continue to proclaim Olympe as heaven of the mortal realm, but Prometheus found themself restless sometimes and seek for a semblance of familiarity. The closest thing they had found was a phantom from simpler days, a past long gone and out of reach.

It was a wonder, how they managed to slink away from one another for such a long time. Though it was perhaps for the best. He’s a liability to your cause, Prometheus told himself the moment they suspected he was now drunk with greed and power. Though perhaps the bigger reason to their hesitation to reach out was the truth that would caused the ghost to fade away into the night, leaving them alone to brace this strange world.

But the need for an answer had grown far too great, and unwittingly, so did their yearning for something old they could maybe hold on to. And so when they had spot him in the halls of Xenios that early morning, after carefully threading the tightrope for the past months, Prometheus dove in. “Has sleep eluded you as well, Legatus?” they asked, careful to maintain the distance separating them.

[hermies]

 who :    @zeusrhea​ ,   hermes   rhea .

 what :   caught   sneaking   in  !   take   twenty   points   of   paternal   disappointment   damage .

 where :   a   formal   sitting   room ,   under   renovation ,   in   the   southwest   wing   of   the   xenios   estate .   (   you   know ,   the   one   closest   to   the   gate ,   with   the   jimmy  -  able   window ,   and   the   climb  -   able   tree .  )

 when :   heteraidia  ,   week   two .    3 :  37  am .

 why :   regression ,   mostly .

  ❛ ❛    fucking    shit .   fuck .   fates .   fucking  .  .  .   shit ,   shit ,   shit .   ❜ ❜    hermes   remembers   this   being   easier .    with   one   foot   anchored   in   the   knot   of   the   lemon   tree ,   another   pushed   through   the   open   window ,   they   wish   they   could   fly .   shoes   with   wings  :   there’s   a   thought .   for   the   burglar   on   the   go  !    eventually ,   they   hoist   themselves   up   and   over   the   windowsill .    hermes   tumbles   into   the   room ,   tripping   on   an   out   of   place   chez  -  longe    and   kicking   dust   into   the   air .   he   bumps   into   the   fireplace ,   causing   a   vase   to   tumble   off   the   ledge .   he   catches   it   before   it   smashes   into   the   hearth ,   and   out   loud ,   hermes   praises   himself   for   his   reflexes .    he’s   carefully   returning   the   hideous   crime   against   ceramics   to   it’s   home   when   he   finally   feels   eyes   on   him .   shit .   shit .   shit .   shit .   shit .   shit .   shit .    hermes   spins   on   his   heel ,   reluctantly   looks   up   to   face   him .      ❛ ❛    fucking   –––   fates ,   dad .    how   long   have   you   been   standing   there  ?    ❜ ❜     wisely ,   they   refrain   from   joking ,   though   several   options   come   to   mind .    you   need   a   bell .   that’s   creepy   as   fuck ,   dad .   do   you   not   breathe  ?   how   are   you   so   quiet  ?   you’re   radiating   dracula   energy .   what   are   you   gonna   do ,   ground   me  ?   hermes   silently   thanks   the   fates   that   he’s   sober .   sober  -  ish .   at   least ,   sober   enough   to   handle   this   conversation .    (   he   also   thanks   the   fates   that   he   had   the   common   enough   sense   to   put   out   his   cigarette   before   crashing   headfirst   into   the   study .   )

  ❛ ❛    i   used   to   be   better   at   this ,   i   think .   ❜ ❜     notably :   this   isn’t   an   apology .    it’s   strange .   in   this   room ,   cast   in   the   moonlight ,   hermes   is   suddenly   fourteen .   and   his   father   is   eight   fucking   feet   tall .   they   think   about   the   first   time   the   two   of   them   stood   here ,   in   this   room ,   in   the   middle   of   the   night .   that   hermes   was   not   sober   enough   to   handle   the   conversation   they   were   about   to   have .   that   hermes   had   no   idea   zeus   would   be   waiting   for   them .   that   hermes   was   so ,   so   afraid .   that   hermes   was   tall ,   and   this   hermes   may   be   taller ,   but   their   father   is   tallest  still .   this   hermes ,   the   adult   hermes ,   with   the   job ,  and   the   life   far   away   from   this   fucking   room ,   smooths   out   their   clothes .   they   look   around ,   feeling   very   much   so   like   a   child   first   beginning   to   understand   something .    can   you   say   panopticon  ?      ❛ ❛    why   do   we   even   have   this   room   ?   what   exactly   is   it’s   function  ?    aside   from   our   father  -  son   bonding   time ,   of   course .   ❜ ❜    remember   earlier ,   resisting   the   urge   to   joke  ?   that   didn’t   last   out   long .   is   anyone   surprised  ?    hermes ,   a   deer   in   the   laser   light   of   a   sniper   rifle ,   attempts   to   act   cool .   shoulders   roll   back ,   hands   find   pockets ,   sneakers   kick   at   a   fraying   carpet   edge .   there   is   a   key   commonality   between   that   hermes ,   and   this    hermes :   they   are   both   fucking   terrified .

[prcmethevs]

Prometheus glanced at the woman next to them. They tried to remember if they might have recognized her from somewhere – perhaps an up-and-coming politician, one of nemean many partners, or a socialite that frequent these events – yet their mind failed to match a name to her face. No matter, they thought to themself. After all, expanding their network was the main point of this whole event. 

“Other than the new, glorious year?” Prometheus tilted their head slightly and hummed. “Well, how about to new opportunities and a little bit more good luck.” Prometheus turned their head to face her finally, the corner of their lips tugging upwards as they raise their drink. “Anything else to add?”

where: nemean hall when: during a cocktail party who: megara and open!

The glittering opulence of this place was nauseating, how many different ways could one man possibly need to fucking show off? Megara took a sip of her drink, hiding an eye roll behind the rim of her glass. She missed the muted elegance and hedonistic excess of her home - at least there they called it what it was. But, she could judge decadence at a later time, the politician beside her was finally being fucking interesting. That was until his whispered confession to try and impress her was something she’d heard a month ago. Disappointing.

Everyone wanted to think that they were so fucking interesting, so special and unique. That their stories and opinions made them different from everyone else, made them matter more, made them worthy of attention. Megara knew better. She collected all of their secrets, picked apart stories and opinions for what actually mattered, and laid them out before her king. No one was so special, so interesting, so powerful, that they couldn’t be brought down by the right information. Herself and Hades included.

Which was why she guarded her secrets so closely, playing whatever part was needed to achieve her goal. Tonight that meant dazzling like everyone else in this room, and it meant listening to arrogant, drunk old men. She excused herself from this conversation as quickly as she could, the politician having failed to serve any purpose other than trying her patience, and made her way to the bar. Slipping into an open space, she smiled sweetly at her neighbor.

“What are we drinking to?”

[lovelybarnes]

juxtaposition- b.barnes

pairings: bucky barnes x reader, sam wilson, may parker, mentions of peter parker, steve rogers, and natasha romanoff warnings: cursing, oblivious idiots, bucky with a crush, a smidge of angst, it’s basically all fluff. about: the times bucky pretended he wasn't interested and the event that showed he was or prompt: ngl we all shipped them before they made it official bc he kept scoffing that he didn't like her but always looked at her first whenever someone told a joke just to see if she was laughing too a/n: I FINISHED THIS THREE MONTHS AGO IT’S BEEN IN MY RTPs FOR THREE MONTHS (i hope this does not suck)

“they’re so sweet together, don’t you think?” may parker croons from sam’s side, a flute of bubbly champagne in between her fingers and her eyes on the happy couple huddled behind a table, unaware of the eyes on them as they hum sweet words to each other, blinding smiles permanent on their lips. her nephew is speaking excitedly with some of the other guests under the guise of refilling may’s plate. sam isn’t sure how he ended up sitting next to her, but he doesn’t find himself complaining, especially after getting to know her for the entirety of the night.

sam snorts good-naturedly, a small grin beginning to pull at his cheeks as he watches you tug bucky’s lips to your by his loosened tie, your new husband obeying you like a loyal subject to his queen. “‘wouldn’t have believed that before they got together.”

may raises an eyebrow in surprise, turning to sam, “really? i find that hard to believe.”

sam nods, “buck would say the opposite. ‘pretended she annoyed him and always teased her.”

the slam of the soft-close fridge is loud in the compound’s kitchen, making everyone in the living room jump. steve turns from his spot on the couch, eyes settling on your fuming figure in front of the fridge.

“who—” you begin, eyeing everyone as you lift an accusing finger, “ate the mango ice cream in the freezer?” at the lack of responses, you huff, planting your hands on your hips. “you know, the one i bought last week during the mission to guatemala clearly marked with my name and a very real threat.”

“oh,” a voice cuts in, totally nonchalant and unbothered, “was that yours?” bucky asks through a mouth full of ice cream, an empty tub of the artisanal ice cream in his hands with a metal spoon clattering around inside it. “sorry.”

“her things would always go “missing.” so she showed up in his clothes until he didn’t have any left.”

bucky grunts in frustration as he pulls drawers open, shoving them closed when none of them contain any semblance of what he needs. running a hand over his face, he looks down at his bare chest, realizing his only option would be to get one of steve’s ridiculously tight shirts. his open door gives him a view of your strut down the hall, draped in a familiar material. your eyes catch his and you wink, waving at him and letting him catch the stain he’d made on the sleeve of the shirt he’d lost a few days ago.

a hand tugs up sweatpants he immediately recognizes as the ones that he couldn’t find yesterday. you pointedly stare at the knives that are poorly hidden underneath random things on his desk—your knives. favorite ones, actually, that you couldn’t seem to find for the mission two days ago.

he grins at you when he notices where your attention is, forgetting about his predicament for a moment as he waves back, watching you leave with a smile and empty closet.

“and—ha! i almost forgot, he’d always turn up the temperature every time she was in a room with him and take all the blankets. drove her insane.”

“why is it always so damn cold?” you complain, wrapping your arms around yourself and looking to bucky. “it’s always when you’re here, too.”

“it’s my frozen heart,” bucky deadpans, continuing to watch how i met your mother and pretending to ignore you. he pulls a blanket up to his chest, smirking when he knows you’re glaring at him.

“give me that. you’re a super-soldier, you don’t need it.”

bucky shakes his head, tsking, “now, doll, don’t go entertaining harmful super-soldier stereotypes. we get cold, too, especially when it gets so—” bucky pretends to shiver and covers himself further with the blanket, “chilly.”

you pout, “i need it, give it to me.”

bucky shrugs, turning back to the screen, “come and get it.”

expecting you to give up, he’s startled when he suddenly feels you settle in next to him, forcing him to open the blanket up a little so you can tuck yourself between his arm and underneath the cover.

gulping, he tries to ignore his racing heart and the sweet smell of your hair.

“man, he annoyed her, but i don’t think i saw her so much as touch a door once they met. more importantly, he was always there when it counted.”

you hadn’t come out of your room in nearly two days. missions usually never affected you, not after everything you’d seen already, nothing even close enough to compare. but when something did, you dropped to your knees hard enough to break them.

bucky was worried, heavy with the knowledge that he hadn’t seen you so much as eat, which is what drove him to make one of the recipes friday said you liked, praying harder than he’d ever done before to someone he didn’t even believe in that your meal came out edible.

it was a way-too-large relief when it came out good, and he balanced the plate of warm food in one hand as he carried a chilled bottle of water and packets of your favorite snack in the other. his finger was barely able to press the button on the elevator to take him to your floor, but it was worth it if there was any chance he could get you to eat.

like he expected, there was no answer when he knocked at your door, so he quietly snuck into your room, gently setting down the tray he’d set up the nicest as possible on your bedside table, pausing for a second to observe your tear-streaked face as you slept, surrounded by pillows and engulfed by a variety of blankets. he pushed a strand of hair behind your ear, telling you you’d be okay like a prayer before he left your room.

the next day, he entered the kitchen to you washing the plates he’d left in your room, wrappers of the candy he’d picked out for you in the trash can. you offered him a strained, thankful smile before getting back to it.

bucky was only more surprised when he found you sitting in his bed, solemn confessions already spilling from your lips and tears ready to fall on his shirt when he pulled you into his embrace.

“bucky swore up and down he wasn’t head over heels for her in the first month she came to the compound,” sam rolls his eyes.

“come on, man, ask her out. i know you’re interested.”

bucky sighs at his friend, stubbornly shaking his head, “i dunno what you’re talkin’ about, sam.”

sam huffs a laugh, elbowing steve as if to say please do something.

steve obeys, knowing exactly how much bucky likes you, “you and i both know she won’t be available for too long. i mean, you know her, i’m sure you’ve seen how the other agents look at her.”

sam catches the clench of bucky’s jaw, nodding along to steve’s words if there’s any chance they’ll give bucky the push. “yeah, i heard pietro was thinking of asking her out. and, i don’t know, the man ain’t ugly.” sam fully knows that you reciprocate bucky’s feelings, and even if what he was saying were true, you’d reject pietro in a heartbeat, just as you had all of the other agents who had asked you out before.

“‘don’t see how this involves me,” bucky lies.

“but, damn, he made it so obvious it was a little sad,” sam laughs. “i mean, every time he’d make one of his stupid jokes, he’d immediately look at her to see if she was laughing, too.”

steve is beside his best friend, shaking his head in defeat as he helplessly listens to the stories bucky is telling about the two of them.

“i’m surprised he’s still alive. he’s an idiot,” bucky sighs, taking a sip of his beer as the team laughs around him, nodding in agreement. without his permission, his eyes drift to you, hoping to catch your lips curled into a smile, or even caught in one of those pretty laughs of yours.

“he really is,” natasha agrees, “the first day i met him, he jumped out of an airplane without a parachute. ‘couldn’t believe the guy was an avenger.”

at the sight of you laughing, bucky feels a ridiculous urge to one-up nat, digging into his mind to come up with something funny. “imagine that, but stuffed in a fifty-pound, four-foot-seven guy picking fights with everyone he shouldn’t.”

when he hears you laugh at that, he sips at his beer again, pleased with himself at making your eyes crinkle so prettily.

“he even started looking up those lame jokes and telling them to her! lovesick fool made himself look ridiculous,” sam chuckles, fondly shaking his head.

anxiously pushing his tongue against his cheek, bucky eyes you as you enter the kitchen, not looking away as you heat up some water, even when you tilt your head at him, curious eyes scanning him. “what?” you implore, a small smile pushing up your cheeks.

“what kind of streets do ghosts haunt?” he finally asks, the unmoving commitment on his face betraying the zaniness of his question.

“what?” you say again, word tangled in a short laugh. bucky repeats his question, fighting a smile back.

“what kind of streets do ghosts haunt?”

finally giving in to the absurdity of him, you lean on the counter of the kitchen, taking a moment to think before shaking your head, shrugging with a poorly held back smirk, “which kind?”

the smile nearly breaks through, even if bucky himself thinks the joke is ridiculous, “dead ends.”

his seriousness is what does it, and you can’t stop the sniggering that floats through the air at the awful pun, your hand reaching out to gently push bucky away from you.

“that was horrible,” you giggle.

“wait ‘till you hear this one,” bucky starts, the grin on his face open now, unstoppable now that he’s heard the music of your laugh, his excitement to hear it again with his next joke clear, “what do you give a sick bird?”

“i already know this is going to be bad.”

“tweetment.”

your laughter is enough for him to get over the fact that he doesn’t even completely understand the joke.

“although, she wasn’t much better. as much as he stared at her, she stared back. the looks on their faces when one of them turned to look at the other who was already staring back— priceless!”

bucky can’t help it; he swears. you’re just so pretty, from the slope of your nose to the eyes he swore he could look into forever. the television is on, the team surrounding him, and there’s light chatter drifting in the air. one of his new favorite shows is playing—something he’s watched enough of (not that much. you’ll see why) to realize it isn’t all that bad. but, to be completely honest, bucky couldn’t tell you the name of the main characters for the life of him, since the only reason he watched the damn show was you

you introduced him to it, you laughed along to each of the episodes, lightly elbowing him when something you wanted him to see passed on the screen, attention turning to him to watch for his reaction.

something happens that makes the team giggle, and steve pokes him, forcing bucky to take his eyes off of you and look at steve.

he doesn’t notice the way your eyes immediately drift to him, or the way they scan over his face, trailing over chiseled features and glimmering blue eyes. they stay on his lips for a second too long before they return to his entire profile again, a subconscious soft smile pulling at your lips as bucky begins to chuckle at something on the television. a hot flame of pride at picking something that makes him laugh burns warmly in your chest, only making you itch to thread your fingers through his more.

you’re drowning in his eyes again when his pupils flick to you, the conversation with steve finally done and his attention available to be fully on you. your eyes lock for a solid, time-pausing second until both of you look away awkwardly. your teeth nibble on your lip, butterflies erupting in your stomach as you resist the urge to look back at him again, feeling like a kid in middle school all over again.

“i think i was honestly the happiest when they finally got together. no more secret pining from far away. but then they started pining right in front of each other out in the open, and i can’t really tell which one is worse,” sam sighs, looking away from you and bucky when you both pull away from another small kiss, brightened with dizzied laughs and the touch of each other. your hands are splayed on bucky’s face, so completely aware and yet oblivious of entranced bucky is with you, the lovesick look in his eyes fully clear to everyone but you—something sam realized when you finally came to him for help with the man.

sam is squinting at tiny screws and a mess of colored wires, sighing in frustration at the disaster he’d made of his wings. the wires he’s been unable to connect and the screw he can’t seem to screw in lay there, mocking him. he welcomes the knock at his door, throwing the tools he was using on his desk before he runs a hand down his face, “come in!”

his door creaks open, and you step through, a different sort of air surrounding you. you’re quiet and buzzing with nerves as you shut the door, worrying sam enough to make him stand. “hey, sam. i was wondering if you could help me out with something?”

“yeah, of course,” sam nods, walking towards you, “everything alright?”

you inhale, face contorting in discomfort at what you’re about to say. “um… it’s just—” you begin to pace around his room, “i don’t know if you know that i…” you cringe, beginning to tinker with the things at his desk as you try to figure out the best way to phrase it. sam is about to tell you to be careful when you suddenly mumble something and the wires are connected. “like?— am interested in,” you correct, easily screwing in the little screw sam had nearly thrown at the wall before, “bucky?” you finish awkwardly, “in the least sixth-grade way possible.”

sam pushes his tongue against the inside of his cheek, nodding slowly. “yeah. ‘had an idea.” you were so obvious. less so than bucky, maybe, but painfully obvious.

“i just—” you sigh, frustrated with yourself, you leave his things alone, basically fully fixed thus leaving your hands with nothing to busy themselves with. “i don’t know if… he feels the same way? i was thinking of asking him out or something, but i don’t know…”

sam can’t help but squint at you, nearly believing you’re lying because you can’t not see it.

“what? are you kidding me right now?”

you look taken aback, shaking your head, “no.”

“l/n, bucky looks at you like you hung the freakin’ stars. he feels the same way—beyond.”

you pause, your smile beginning to grow on your face, “really?”

“yeah,” sam says breathlessly, “it’s a little gross to look at, actually.”

you laugh, nerves beginning to dissipate. after a silent second, you look up at him, “you’re serious, right? no jokes?”

sam comes up to you, placing his hands on your shoulders, “no jokes.”

“ben and i were like that,” may says. sam remembers the name from the kid mentioning it once or twice. “so in love.”

“if anyone deserves it,“ sam begins, turning back to you both to find you still in your own little bubble, own party nonexistent when the other is in front of you, “it’s them.”

even when they are feeding each other cake on their wedding day, or when it’s years into the future, and they are still as lovesick as the day they met.