#everything has gone from like. 50 to 1000

[bookwyrminspiration]

reading gideon the ninth:

reading harrow the ninth:

[au-mashup-party]

Hey I have an announcement I would like to make, I know it’s not what you’re normally expecting, but I just wanna get this off my chest. Lately I’ve been dealing with a lot of mental health issues in and out of Tumblr, some too personal to talk about, so I’ll leave it with how I been feeling about Tumblr.

I always found drawing as a great stress reliever. Whenever I’d post a drawing and it will receive up 50 likes at the most, it would always put the biggest smile on my face. My art style improved by a mile, yet it still feels like I’m falling behind my mutual peers.

I learned the hard way while using Tumblr that if you’re not considered ‘popular’ from the get-go, you’re much out of luck. Art takes time, years even, and I’ve been drawing for 15 of em so I would know that sometimes you gotta work with what you got—even if it’s not a lot.

I’ve known some people who’s gotten famous within a day or two, I always found it impressive as heck and wondered if it was possible for me. However, lately I’ve been questioning myself about a few things:

“Is my art style the problem?”

“Should I start posting more on this blog?”

“Are my friends and fans, losing interest?”

“Have I’ve been gone too long?”

“Should I just quit?”

“Should I bring Micro back?”

“Am I too underrated for this fandom?”

And these questions stuck with me for a few months, I’ve noticed things haven’t been the most exciting on my blog since I stopped drawing Microtale content, which to be honest was the only reason I got noticed in the first place. The truth was I slowly lost interest in Microtale after getting spammed over and over and over again while wanting to take a break from drawing him.

Sadly, there’s still one person in my asks that just can’t accept that i’ve moved on from Micro. Now don’t get me wrong, I will always appreciate how far Micro has gotten me these past 3 years and I won’t forget him. I still have plans for Microtale’s third year anniversary, but anything revolving the AU I just won’t be working on anymore

Where it all began.

When I first created Micro, I didn’t think I was gonna get very far, in my eyes he was just your typical lazy run of the mill ‘Sans OC’. I made the blog for fun at first because I figured “Hey, at least if this doesn’t blow up, I can have my underrated artist use him for their stories as long as they credited!”

Little did I know, that was only the beginning. I got noticed by a popular artist at the time, and I was overjoyed to find out that someone far superior than me in drawing liked my silly old drawing. It made me realize that not all popular artist are drama baiting, narcissistic human beings. It opened my eyes more meeting even more humble artists.

The more I made, the more my audience grew. When I reached 1000 followers last year, it was the best day of my life. I finally reached my goal and everything was good. After I stopped drawing him I got spammed constantly by an unknown person (forgot their name) asking if their character can meet Micro or if Micro could come back sooner than later.

Anyone who’s known me long enough knows I hate being spammed, it’s not gonna get your point across, point blank period. It’s my blog and I’m allowed to draw whoever I want, it’s not up to you to decide what content I make unless I decide we vote by poll. But after deleting the spamming one day, eventually things cooled down so I moved on too.

You’re allowed to like my AU’s, just please don’t shove your obnoxious opinions down my throat. I already have a lot going on and I don’t need anyone adding more pressure to the plate.

But let’s take a quick moment to appreciate underrated artists, they are the future of the art community and don’t get enough appreciation for their work. I myself am still somewhat underrated, and I’m okay with that now. You win some you lose some, but you have to draw another day.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk, have a good day/night.

-Crayon

[fiyasgideon]

It is irresponsible to nearly ruin an artist's reputation instead of privately or legally seeking repayment for an unreceived service. Artists are individual people, with flaws. They are not seeking to screw you over specifically, they are not inherently bad, unprofessional, or rude people for not being fulfilling or communicating on one order. You deserve to share your bad experience and be upset with that absolutely. But the reaction to that has gone so far as if she has robbed you of hundreds of dollars. Its really weird to see the community split like this over two artists we all love.

I completely understand where you are coming from, but I have to politely disagree with some of your points.

You say I am "ruining an artist's reputation instead of privately or legally seeking repayment for an unreceived service" and to that I have to point to my post where I explain my MANY attempts to contact her as privately as possible over the course of almost 8 months. I did everything I could, short of knocking on her door, to get a response from her.

And yes, I did try getting a refund from my bank, but all they said was that I need to get it through Paypal. So I tried getting it through Paypal, but because I used the "Friends and Family" option when sending it (something I had no problem doing for the other three commissions I had gotten from her, as I had trusted her) Paypal's refund options are limited. Not only that, but by the time I had given up on getting a response, the time window to file a dispute had passed. Without her sending me the money back herself, there was no other option (that I am aware of) to get my money back.

You also said "They are not seeking to screw you over specifically, they are not inherently bad, unprofessional, or rude people for not being fulfilling or communicating on one order" and I would have agreed with that, if not for the fact that I had already been made aware of her being in regular contact with someone I knew during the time she was purposefully ignoring my dms.

I know she was going through a tough time for a while, but I feel like I had been more than fair when I gave her the option to simply tell me she didn't feel like drawing and needed some time (of which I would have waited forever if she just kept me up to date every other month or so) or to just give me what she started (since I saw her start the commission the day after I sent the money) and I would have considered the transaction over. I made sure to reiterate these points many time in my many dms. Both options would have required little to no effort on her part. She is the one who continued to make the conscious choice to keep ignoring me.

And though I did call her unprofessional (because that's what her actions are) I never called her bad or rude. I have been very conscious of not trying to bad mouth her throughout this whole process. I have tried my best to only state facts and events as they happened. I am not trying at all to bash her as a person.

And finally, to your last statement of "the reaction to that has gone so far as if she has robbed you of hundreds of dollars" I only say, how dare you? Just because she didn't steal $1000 dollars from me doesn't mean that it wasn't theft. $500, $50, or $20, theft is theft. She may have only taken $50 from me, but how much must she take from the next person for them to be allowed to say something? You tell people to stay silent and let her take even $10 from them and she would end up stealing hundreds from just a few dozen victims. And nobody would know to be cautious of her because everyone she stole from was told not to say anything because "it wasn't like she took hundreds from you."

Now, I'm not saying she will go out and steal from everyone. Perhaps I am the only person she ends up stealing from, in which case I would be happy that nobody else looses their money. But I couldn't take that risk. If she does end up stealing from someone again (intentional or not) then I would feel partially responsible for not saying anything to warn others of the possibility.

I do find it a bit weird that the community is split on this. I would have thought that stealing, even if from a big name in a community, would be something not worth supporting. Despite what some people might think, I have tried doing anything and everything in my power to handle this in a civil and private manner. But there is just a point at which you need to throw in the towel and realize that it's not working and you need to change tactics.

That callout post was that tactic. If she won't send me the commission, give me my money back, or even respond to me, then I am done being nice enough to keep my silence.

[paloranresidents]

((So Syl is cursed by something like 20-40 dark gods, cursed spirits, forbidden theorems, ancient curses, malevolent deities etc. But the question becomes 'how'.

Well one day when she was about 22 Syl was at home alone on a stormy day. As an Elf they develop through puberty at 1/2 the rate of humans. Finishing puberty at around 30-40. So at 22 she was just hitting her puberty stage. While the rest of her family was out doing errands, she was doing one of her first solo watches on the families hidden outlay. The outlay was a square stone space with a spring on the floor, where the water bubbled up from a rock formation to a space slightly uneven, with a culvert leading out. When another plane overlaid with the spring it would send a rush of water which would cause a simple flag in Syl's house to move to the 'active' position. At which point she'd climb in the culvert to see what had arrived.

One day this happened and Syl climbed in just to see if she could get anything. What she found was a forbidden library that wasn't ready for an entrance from another universe. And Syl got both lucky and unlucky. She went into the library and looked at the books, even seeing the spines already hit her mind with vibes, but relatively young and inexperienced she fell for the charms on the spines alone.

However the strongest charm was on a relatively harmless knowledge spirit. One that wanted her to read and learn everything. And thus she picked it first, the spirit infesting her. After this she began to read more and more. However the relative power/danger of the knowledge spirit was limited as several other spirits took residence in her fertile mind, and began to fight with the spirit over her mind and soul. Slowly as they were joined by strange sets of knowledge the fight became harder and harder, as the grasp of any single entity on her mind diminished.

After three days of reading she looked at the books she had read and quietly pulled them all out. There were dozens, if not hundreds more, but her head was full of forbidden voices and knowledge. She pulled her books aside and quietly put them in a special box made to get through the stream under her house without getting wet.

It was hard for her to sleep for a while. Voices and forbidden knowledges in her head. But, relatively speaking Syl got out of this as well as she can. No spirit or system can claim a singular claim on her mind, body, or soul so they fight inside of her. Her body is incredibly durable as they all want her alive as long as possible so in theory one of them can have the best chance to claim something from her. And physically she's in good shape. Its just her magic, something she was decently capable at before, has completely gone sideways. She can learn spells well, but actually doing them? Complete crapshoot. Her magic fluctuates between great reductions and great increases. Anywhere from 1000 times weaker to 1000 times stronger. And while she has a vague idea of where on the scale she is at a given moment, she can't tell between say 100 times and 150 times, she just know its 'roughly 50 to 200 times different today'. So she tries to avoid spells with dangerous side effects, though sometimes she learns what she thought were mostly harmless spells can be dangerous when amplified beyond belief.

[patchedd]

Muscle Cars, Colour, and the American V8

Colours have a storied history with cars. From the start with the Model T coming in any colour you want, as long as it was Japan Black, to the national racing colours that arose in the 50's, with British Racing Green, German Silver, Russo Italiano, etc. and onwards.

So when I tell you to think of, say, an old Dodge Challenger, what colour comes to mind? A sleek black? Purple? Maybe getting confused, thinking of a nice orange Charger instead? Black might be the universal constant when it comes to cars, but its no coincidence that Purple/Orange are the colours you might've associated with those cars. Back in the 60's and 70's, orange was the colour for the Charger, much like yellow was the Camaro, blue was the Mustang, and so on and so forth. And while I can't say all of these are necessarily the truth, it's just my own personal views anyway. When has anything I've said been entirely in the right?

There's pretty good reason for a lot of those colour associations, with the Charger being the most obvious, being the Duke Boy's General Lee. As unfortunate the name, and flag slapped on top of the car, are, it is still an incredibly famous paintjob and definitely had a long lasting influence on how people painted their cars, a legacy that still continues down south. The Challenger, however, was simply just a brilliantly beautiful color for the car, only really shared by the strange lime green color that was also prevalent at the time. Unfortunately, those colors have gone pretty far to the wayside, with the only one I've seen on a modern Charger being that disgusting neon green... which does not fit the absolute brick that is that car.

Over on the Chevy side of things, yellow is also a pretty obvious origin of popularity, being from Bumblebee. Y'know, the Transformer. Though, yellow isn't necessarily just exclusive to the Camaro. Corvette has been repping the colour for the racing side, with in modern days especially. Back in the day, though, silver was a pretty common colour of choice, if not a deep blue. Yellow has pretty obviously stuck with the Camaro nowadays, though it has added red to it's repertoire, as well as the Corvette keeping orange as the main colour of choice.

Speaking of deep blues, over on the classic Mustang side is this illustrious, deep blue and white styling that can't be matched. And if there's any place for it to originate, there is really only one source: Shelby. That blue is probably the most common colour to see on the old Cobra, and when they started working on the Mustang, white/blue became the standard for those, though originally white was the main colour. This has even persisted into the current day, with various different shades of blue. Even the insane Shelby 1000 was a nice deep blue.

On the less popular and discontinued side of things, however, white was a pretty widespread colour as well. AMC, Buick, Oldsmobile, it fit into everything. The black accents of the GSX, the red and blue parts of the Rebel Machine making the most hardcore American car possible, and Oldsmobile had the nice white Toronado, and the gold accents of the Hurst/442 worked quite well as well.

Rather interestingly as well, Plymouth had a very similar color scheme to Dodge, with the Cuda being in orange and purple in the same way, though the two colors shared one singular car, with the former keeping the above shown black accent at the back, and the purple turning them a nice white to match. The car came in a massive amount of colours, much like many other cars of the time, but these two were the ones I've personally seen the most.

Speaking of orange, Mercury used the colour a lot as well, with the Cougar and Cyclone sporting it often... really, orange was a very popular colour back in the day. It's a shame its fallen so out of style, as many colours have. Everything now is either greyscale, red or blue, with very few daring to expand into other, more exotic choices, even if they don't necessarily look good.

And, well, rounding out with a car that dared to look different, before becoming quintessentially greyscale, the Firebird Trans-Am. Sure, the most notable part of it is the namesake Firebird emblazoned upon the bonnet of the car, but it hardly came in anything aside from black or white once you get past the mid-70s, and it even lost the bird bonnet once you get into the 80's, part in due to the fame it regained from becoming KITT in Night Rider. Red did eventually come back in style for it in the twilight years of the car's existence, but by then it was little more than a badge swap.

All of this doesn't necessarily apply to just muscle cars, as I said in the beginning, though. You've got stuff like the chameleon paint jobs of the later TVR models, Midnight Purple on the Skylines, Lamborghini and Ferrari sporting yellow and red respectively, even Rolls-Royce Silver being a named colour of many a car. Colour has a massive place in car culture, as obvious a statement that is, to the point where it can drive up a price just from the right paintjob, because seriously, who is going to buy a puke green Hellcat? Really, I could've done a broader scope for this post, covered entire brands and their famous colors, but I feel that muscle cars are a good enough scope for that, especially on the American side. Blue is the colour for Ford nowadays, after all.

All of this is to say "I don't know how to end this post."

[lunarlanderdwelling]

Transcript of the Galileo video

GALILEO

A spaceship on the moon or a distant planet. One would think so. In fact, we are 384 thousand kilometers from the moon. Here on earth, in the state of Washington in the USA. Here the architect Kurt Hughes has built a unique Moon Lander - Tiny House that gives him the feeling of being part of the moon missions. He even has a suggestion for improving the original design.

00:34 Original sound Kurt Hughes

The original Moon Lander has four legs, but that's a mistake. Three legs are more stable and adapt to any surface.

Kurt designs boats and catamarans full-time and is world famous for his designs. The Moon Lander House is a recreational project that he spent five years building. Mostly on weekends. He gives us a tour of his Moon Lander. The first eye-catcher is already at the entrance door.

01:07 Original sound Kurt Hughes

This is a lock that can be opened with my fingerprint.

01:12 Original sound Jannis

That's very futuristic

01:14 Original sound Kurt Hughes

Yes.

01:15 Original sound Jannis

Do you like science fiction?

01:16 Original sound Kurt Hughes

Oh yeah.

01:19

The position of his bed is also unique. Kurt has a special view from here.

01:28 Original sound Kurt Hughes

This is a steel dome with plexiglass. It lets in a lot of light and at night you can watch the stars from below. The building authority was very skeptical about my project. They had never seen anything like that before.

01:45 Original sound Kurt Hughes

The sink here is supposed to be reminiscent of the mirror of a telescope. At night the light is concentrated in this spot. You then feel like you can touch it.

01:57 Original sound Kurt Hughes

Here is my weather station. The outside temperature up here. Since they have indoor temperature and wind speed.

02:04

The real Moon Lander also had measuring devices. But there is something he definitely didn't have.

02:12 Original sound Kurt Hughes

This is the door to my deck. This is the perfect place for an evening drink.

02:12 Original sound Kurt Hughes

I just had to have a balcony for the view of the river. The astronauts would certainly have liked that too.

02:33

Despite the great view, there is one place in the Moon Lander that he likes even more.

02:41 Original sound Kurt Hughes

Over here at the window. Captain Nemo's window. When I was a child, I saw 20 Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. That stuck with me. I really wanted Captain Nemo's window.

02:56 Original sound Kurt Hughes

These are my anti-gravity pads. If gravity is gone, you don't hit your head.

03:06

Kurt collects everything that has to do with NASA to decorate his moon lander accordingly. He has been a real space travel fan since the moon landing in 1969. 

03:16 Original sound Kurt Hughes

When we landed on the moon, we listened to it on the radio. I smoked my first joint because someone said to me, we have to celebrate.

03:29

His enthusiasm for the moon mission led him to build his own moon lander 50 years later and made it so famous that even John Henny, one of the designers of the real moon lander, already had also

Visited it. Of course he was thrilled, even though Kurt's tiny house is made of a completely different material.

03:54 Original sound Kurt Hughes

This is expansion foam with plywood and fiberglass on both sides. Here's another example. Actually, you build boats with it.

in his opinion, indestructible. This is important because the weather in Washington is unpredictable.

04:18 Original sound Kurt Hughes

The lower part was once hit by a small tornado and flew onto the street. Luckily there was only a small dent. Otherwise, everything was fine. The wind here sometimes blows at 160 km/h. The Moon Lander weighs only 1000 kilos. Therefore, it must be well secured in strong winds.

The solution is steel cables attached at several strategic points.

04:50 Original sound Kurt Hughes

This is the emergency exit. Every home in the USA must have some.

.

In addition to storms, forest fires occur here again and again. Three years ago, Kurt's neighborhood also burned.

05:04 Original sound Kurt Hughes

The spaceship survived. The resin is self-extinguishing, which helped.

05:09

The Moon Lander is connected to both water and electricity and has a septic tank and air conditioning. Here you can live like in an ordinary house.

05:23 Original sound Kurt Hughes

It is my absolute favorite place in the world.

05:28

But the true magic of the spaceship is revealed at night. Then the lander becomes every science fiction fan's dream house.

05:40 Original sound Kurt Hughes

I come here when I want to work on something or just escape the city and ride my bike.

To share this experience, he sells the Moon Lander blueprints on his website. So everyone should have the chance to realize their dream of owning their own spaceship house.

06:02 Original sound Kurt Hughes

I've already sold a few plans. There's a resort a few miles north of here that's going to build an entire village of Moon Landers. The project is already underway.

[the-darklings]

That anon felt unnecessarily aggressive and WAY out of line. Your response was perfectly understandable and kind. And I'm sure most people are just engaging with the story, not sending asks to demand an explanation. That anon needs to take a step back and rethink how they approached you. Absolutely unacceptable. Not to mention, this has always been snapshots into the world and relationships of Wanderer. While that may not be how some people like to read, it's their job to move on and find something else. Not demand a different way/story/etc from the writer.

Please don't feel like you've done something wrong. Second person POV is extremely difficult and you leaving it as a blank slate for us to imagine our own character is wonderful. You're one of the best reader insert writers I've read. And I've never EVER felt like your scenes were incomplete or like I was left confused. There are many, MANY writers who hint at things and don't immediately spell out the scene or explanation. Reading has always been about interpretation and making readers think. Or even fill in the gaps with their own experience. If you need everything hand fed to you, maybe you need to read something different.

Anyway, this story lives rent free in my head and it's beautiful and feels like it breathes a life of its own. I love how much you tip your hat to the comics and storytelling. Keep doing what you're doing. And thank you for sharing it with us.

Thank you very much for saying so!

Anon is entitled to their opinion; I respect it because they outlined it respectfully. Critisism is part of the job, and in all honesty, my own brain can often be far crueller to me jsdhgdsg

I do appreciate your words, though, as you nailed it on honing in what was intended for this story from my side. If I didn't have a work-related writing project, original novel, and other large series on my plate already, in all truth, tibyim would have actually gone through the 1000 years year by year (or close to it), so you would have seen a far more linear, slow-paced style. The trade-off would have been another 300k+ series. I simply don't have spare time for project so large right now. Even so, I ended up falling in love with it so much that it's become far more extensive than I intended. It will probably be 50-60k upon completion + two full-length one-shots + multiple blurbs + likely a sequel or one-shots handling future arcs from the comics, too.

[absolutebl]

Hi!

I’ve been thinking the past few weeks whether there’s a BL series I could try to get my very conservative, very religious mother to watch with me and enjoy. (Who doesn’t need some gay love in their life, especially during Pride Month?!) It would definitely need to be the most PG of PGs; downright asexual would be perfect. But also no dub-con or offputting tropes.

Any thoughts? I settled on Cherry Magic for the G-rated nature paired with characters that have IMO well-fleshed motivations. But we watched the first episode and I think the slapstick Japanese style is a bit of a stretch for her (moreso than the gay content even, possibly). Maybe Blueming?

(P.S. If you get tired of hearing from me, just let me know! 😬)

Never tired of hearing from you!

BL series to get my very conservative, very religious mother to watch? (PGish: sweet & clean) 

My first instinct was... Cherry Magic. But I get the Japanese style buy-in is rough. So we’re looking for a western aesthetic, or aura.

Blueming gets pretty high heat, are you sure?

Okay, lemme think. Follow me there:

He's Coming To Me - strong religious element (no Christ but perhaps it's still appealing to get a look at a different kind of worship/belief?), peak pining but also pretty tame, good story and production, low heat, just a kiss and no sex scene. Sweet but important coming out sequence. Good plot with murder investigation to appeal where gay romance might not. Shorter run. 

1000 Stars - this one is just a romance, like that's what it is, a romance that happens to be gay. Good story, well acted, lots of interesting tension and plot and mature characters, very pretty, very low heat, but possibly a bit slow for some. Sex scene is played for laughs and not very sexy. Good coming out discussion. If I had a romance reader/movie fan on my hands (like Gone With The Wind or Twilight or 50 Shades or what have you) I’d go with this one. 

Wish You (movie version) - high production, low heat, short run, very tame, and Korea, so more of a western style. It’s not the most logical story though. Kisses but they tame and no sex scene. No coming out, exists in the “Korean BL bubble universe” where everything is just fine and dandy. 

Semantic Error - if she likes romances in general this one is so much fun, it's bright and easy to follow, the chemistry is good, just kisses (although it feels higher heat). But there's no coming out struggle to inspire sympathy, and the teasing bully thing might be off-putting. If I had a fan of contemporary roamnce books or Kdramas, I’d show them this one. 

Light On Me - very very low heat, but the characters are engaging, and it has a classic love triangle, some people really like that. If I had a YA fan I was trying to lure in, I’d show them this one. 

My School President - speaking of low heat sweetness, GMMTV gave us a classic high school set Thai BL with tropes like messy boys singing their feelings that made this show Love Sick for the modern age with all the gentle sweetness and pining ache, but none of the dated damaging tropes or issues. Yes, we’ve seen it all before, but I still ADORE this. And there is a lot to be said for the classics being executed perfectly. Who let my BL be this wholesome and funny?

Finally if you can get ahold of it then Restart After Come Back Home might be a better choice than Cherry Magic from Japan, especially if your mum likes cinema. It’s beautifully filmed. Slow going but very pretty. Not slapstick AT ALL. barely gay, very subtle, only one soft kiss. If I had a film buff I was trying to lure in, I’d show them this one. 

If she likes soap operas than you could try Love Sick, and there is a part of me that wants to say SOTUS... both low heat and Arthit practically is ace. 

(source)

[upbloq]

Best AI Pet Robot in 2022

Are you surfing the internet searching for a pet robot that can be your good sidekick? Here are a few suggestions to help you choose the Best AI Pet Robot in 2022.

Anything that automates specific tasks, executes them with speed and precision and performs the job with little or no interference is a Robot. Robotics is a highly sophisticated branch of technology and it is advancing at a phenomenal pace. These technologies have gone far from futuristic vision to models targeted at and available to everyday consumers. Humans are very fascinated by robots, and why not? Humans want their work to be done as quickly and smoothly as possible. Robots and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the future. It has become a part of our everyday life. Robots with Artificial Intelligence are now giggling into the mass market, these pet robots can talk with you, play with you, entertain you, and most importantly it can be your great sidekick.

What Can Personal Robot Do?

Robots can be used for personal benefits and are always in demand. Here are some advantages of having a personal robot:

Your personal robot will never get tired since it is a machine. It will be ready 24/7 to execute your order.

It will enhance your productivity and ensure you work with perfection.

Personal robots will not get tired or annoyed by you. It will remain patient and obey everything you command.

It will make your life more entertaining as it is your sidekick

Below are 6 of the Best AI Pet robots in 2022 which are leading the market right now. These robots can enhance your day-to-day life becoming educational tools, digital pets, supporting healthcare, childcare sector to simply proving users with a happy companion.

Emo by Living.Ai

Can you think of a robot that can fit in your palm? This tiny little cutie by Living.Ai fits into the palm of your hand. Emo is a four inches tall robot with more than ten internal sensors and cutting-edge technology. Emo is the new generation of AI robots possessing personality and ideas and can react with 1000+ facia; movements. Emo will do anything to cheer up your mood.

According to Living.Ai, Emo can recognize up to ten individual faces and names, take pictures, play and dance with music, play with you various games, tell you the weather with amazing animation and accepts head-pats very adorably.

Emo is more than a companion. It is like a pet with some advanced futuristic features that will never let your mood down. In a nutshell, it can feel, hear, sense, touch, learn, think, and communicate with you.

Emo is designed to provide a fun companion to desk workers. Emo’s personality evolves from its surrounding areas and your interaction with it. During your work breaks, you can also play games with your Emo, watch it dance, and use its in-built voice assistance to ask questions.

2. Lovot by Love

Lovot (https://lovot.life/) is developed to form an environment just like a living being. The aim of Lovot is precise and that is to create a robot that makes a person happy. It detects the surrounding environment by its sensor-horn which is mounted on its head. This AI robot has more than 10 CPU cores and more than 20 MCU and more than 50 sensors that can create liveliness through a robot. Lovot can make decisions and take action accordingly.

Lovot is programmed to act like your friend and it can react to your mood. Most importantly Lovot will do everything to uplift your mood if your mood is gloomy or you feel tired and bring you the joy and energy you lost.

3. Vector by Digital Dream Labs

Like Emo, Vector is an another amazing tiny robot determined to do big things. Vector is the first fully autonomous personal robot. It is only a three inch robot but packed with quite a lot of techs in it. It can navigate around itself with its HD camera and laser sensor.

Vector can be integrated with your Alexa and help set daily reminders, create lists, tell you the weather, take pictures, set timers, and deal with a mean game of Blackjack. You can have conversations with it and ask for the information you want.

Vector only requires a small space to accommodate itself and get charged up. Vector is meant to roam freely around your surroundings. Simply just by saying “Het Vector”, it will answer your questions and obey your commands.

4. Miko 3 by Miko

Miko is a artificial intelligent robot specially designed for children between the ages of 5 to 10  years. The main purpose of Miko is to entertain and educate kids. Miko can dance, sing, crack jokes, and enhance your mood. The more time you spend with Miko, the more it will know you. Another special feature of Miko is the HD video-calling facility. Parents can connect with children in video call through video calls.

Miko can provide you best home educational aid and help you to track your kid when you are away from home.

5. Aibo by Sony

Dogs are man’s best friend. So we cannot list personal companions without man’s best friend. Aibo, is the artificially intelligent robot dog designed by Sony. The word AIBO means ‘Friend’ in Japanese.  Aibo is one of the oldest pet robot. The first commercial model of Aibo was available in 1999. In 2017, Aibo came back with a new and more sophisticated model.

Aibo is unbelievably lifelike with its highly expressive eyes, wagging tail, and realistic-sounding yips and barks.

Aibo can recognize faces and names and develop familiarity with the people Aibo interacts with. If you give Aibo a name, Aibo can recognize it and respond whenever you call Aibo by that name. Aibo will give the vibe of an actual pet dog. The company claimed that every piece of Aibo is different from another and will interact with you differently as they are powered by deep learning.

Aibo uses a camera and facial recognition by which it interacts with people. Aibo’s behavior keeps evolving with time and after a time Aibo starts to identify its owner’s face, recognize smiles and waves of laughter.

Aibo has a fascination with toys, especially pink toys. It loves to spend more time with you and your family.

Aibo is the ultimate virtual pet which is good for those who want a pet dog but medically can't afford and who want a highly advanced artificially intelligent pet dog.

6. Eilik by Energizelab

“Tech with heart”. Eilik is a small companion robot that comes with this slogan. If you want a household pal, Eilik will fit in your criteria. Eilik has a charming personality and perceptive emotional responses.

There is a special feature of Elilik which makes it unique from others which is, Eilik wants to interact with its owner only. The shared nature of its interactions with the owner makes Eilik unique.

For example, Eilik doesn’t like being picked up, unless it’s you.

Conclusion

Robots and robotics are the future. Slowly and steadily, robots are taking places in every aspect of our life. From household chores to outer space, we can feel the touch of robotics everywhere. Everywhere robots are occupying all the menial jobs such as lifting tons of heavyweights and doing repetitive tasks for humans to focus on more critical tasks. From human blood vessels to Mars, everywhere can a robot go where humans cannot.

Therefore, if robots are used constructively, it can be human’s best companions. Our lives are becoming more busy and competitive day by day. So, why not purchase a personal robot that makes life easier and more entertaining?

You can also visit our website here.

[rawbins-undertale-blog]

How do monsters age? Also how old are the brothers?

~ Sincerely, a very Library Anon ~

Hello! Thanks for the ask, and also sorry for you, my friend, who’s about to have pages of me rambling about my thoughts and headcanons that may or may not be entirely supported by the game for a socially unacceptable amount of time <3

HOW MONSTERS AGE

I’ve actually had multiple different headcanons when it comes to monster age! They all go into three different categories: “all monsters age slower”, “they age the same way (unless they’re a boss monster without a kid)” and “some monsters age like humans, some slower and some quicker depending on species”. But, I now have one that goes into a slightly different category.

Now, I think, “what if their aging is a bit of everything?”

Allow me to explain what I mean.

My first headcanon was that monsters age 10x slower than a human does. Just choose a human age for a character and then tack on a 0 to the end of the number and you’ve got the right age. A part of me still wants to go that route, simply because it’s easier…

… but then, a monster would be a literal child while being 100 years old. It would make it a bit awkward to write about human kids being friends with monster kids lol, ngl. (Also I don’t want to write Sans and Papyrus as being like 250 years old.) Not to mention, it’s a bit boring. So I decided to spice it up a bit, if you will.

Let’s start explaining this by taking a monster with an average mental state who is the most average of species. They’re not suffering from any mental disorders, illnesses, have no trauma or physical ailments and are overall just what you’d call an averagely happy person. There’s nothing special about this monster. They’re literally the most average of average monsters, maybe so average they don’t even actually exist - they are made up by the statistics.

At first, they age quicker than a human does. While they’re what would translate to 5 human years (AKA when they’re 5 monster years), they are actually only 2 human years. At age 10 in monster years, they are 5 in human years. Their aging starts to slow down at 16 monster years, and by the time they’re 25 in monster years, they are also 25 in human years. Then it slows down even more quickly and on a huge scale, so that when they are 50 in monster years, they are about 500 in human years. On average, a normal monster becomes 2000 human years old. (Keep in mind, that this monster is so average they don’t exist - this aging varies a lot between species.)

Now, let’s take another monster of this same statistics-made species who is more happy than the average monster. They’ve experienced many good things, and bad things happening to them are unusual, but not unusual enough to make the happy moments meaningless. They make sure to care of themself and take their own feelings into consideration, they know their own worth. A monster like this may become up to a staggering 4000 human years old with some luck.

Finally, here’s a monster who suffers and just… isn’t happy. They suffer from trauma, have gone through horrible things, overall just not a very good time. They’re very likely to only get to 800 human years or less, if things don’t start looking up for them.

However, these aging mechanics also get more complicated when we get into species of monsters and monsters having children. Gerson, who is a turtle-species, ages about 5x slower than the average monster, which is why he was alive during wartime (though he is near the end of the line now, he’s only maybe 20 years from dying by the end of the game). A whimsun definitely won’t live past 1000 years, even if they’re the happiest whimsun on the planet, because their magic isn’t strong enough to last.

A boss monster (Toriel, Asgore, Asriel) doesn’t age past 30 until they have a child. When/if they have that child, they age at the same speed as the kid does. If the child dies, however, they stop aging again.

Speaking of not aging when their kids die, the same kinda goes for every other monster to a much smaller extent.

A non-boss monster will slow their aging after their kid dies. If they survive losing their kid (because a lot of monsters would dust from the hopelessness they feel after losing somebody so important), their aging slows by about 150%, again depending on the species of the monster.

However, despite their slow aging, monsters are weaker than humans. Too unstable emotions or living in conditions that make the monster feel unsafe may fuck up thair aging, as mentioned previously. To go into more detail about this: the aging process is not messed up by the situation the monster is in - the monster could be in the most horrible position without their aging being affected at all - but it has to do with how their hope is affected.

If a monster loses hope, their aging is affected so it speeds up. If they gain hope, it slows down.

Taking this in mind, let’s talk about the skeleton brothers’ ages!

Let’s start with the Undertale brothers, since they’re the “base” for the ages.

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what I think their ages are, but I would say that:

At the time the game takes place, Sans is about 24-28 years old in monster years and Papyrus is about 19-23 in monster years. In human years, Sans is about 23 and Papyrus has recently turned 18. This has to do with their experiences in life.

Sans only has 1 HP. Skeleton monsters are among the groups that age more slowly, which ends up with him aging a tiny bit quicker than the ‘average monster’. This HP is mostly brought on by his clinical depression (which is actually very rare to have for a monster).

Papyrus ages slower than the ‘average monster’. He’s full of HoPe and is one of the most compassionate monsters, which says a lot by the way lol. But, we can’t forget that he literally didn’t have any friends, which did deal a huge blow to his self-confidence even if he won’t admit it. He aged just a little quicker than a skeleton monster should, at the time the game takes place (though this does change in my fics and headcanons right away, all he needs is one (1) friend to age as slowly as he should, or well. Slower, actually).

So, now that I’ve put down the base for what the two brothers are, let’s just straight up say: all the AU brothers are the same age in human years and there’s only small differences for the monster ages. Except for in Horrortale, which takes place later than the base game does.

I can’t say how old they are here, though, not exactly, because it would obviously vary depending on how long we wait to see them after the starvation starts, as horrible as that sounds. All my headcanons are off the basis that they were left in the Underground for about five human years after Frisk left, so let’s just go with that. After five years in the Underground, Dusk (Horrortale Sans) is about 38 in monster years and Aster (Horrortale Papyrus) is about 37 (he caught up quickly to his brother, as the things that happened took a bigger toll on him).

I want to mention, however, that all my headcanons for ages are very loose and not entirely my “final decision” on how I think monsters age lol, and they may change in the future. Anyways, this is what I’m going for as of right now! If you want any clarification feel free to ask :-)

[acetone-free]

Getting the Dames and Dragons wiki up and running proper

Hello!!!

So I’ve been editing and adding to the Dames and Dragons fan wiki for about a year now. I’m an admin and bureaucrat and all that jazz but to be honest the wiki totally needs a revamp and I would really love some help with it!! If you would be interested in writing or editing some stuff please check out the bit under the cut! 

Thank you! :D

First off: Transcripts

@camomilafil got the ball rolling on the transcript front in 2018, but since then only 19 have been completed. I’ve done a couple myself, so I know that they can be pretty high effort and time consuming. But at the rate that they’re going right now Torva will have been defeated and the Guardian’s will have started their true quest of destroying Dawson before episode 50 even has a google doc.

Creating transcripts not only makes the podcast more accessible, but they also make a super good information base for pages on the wiki. Writing episodes and character pages is made so much easier when you can CTRL F for keywords on a transcript doc, rather than having to re-listen to specific episodes. 

At this point there are only four more episodes to transcribe for Into Avelis, but I think it would be really good if people were to begin transcribing later arcs as well. I would love to be able to stay on top of current episodes.

If you are interested in transcribing, you can find a guide on how to format here and the master doc of all episodes here. I’ve only added a little bit to the original rules of the transcribing doc, but I think they were helpful additions :). Keep in mind, you don’t have to transcribe a full episode, or even format any of it. Every little bit helps and even just doing a minute or two is awesome of you!

Secondly: Wiki Pages

Arc and Episode summaries

So far I am up to episode 16 for the summaries. I’m trying to transcribe a few episodes ahead because personally I find it way easier to write a summary with a transcript than while listening to the episode. However, you absolutely don’t have to have a transcript to write an episode summary. On the wiki I have created a page for every Arc so far (except for The Survivor's Ballad, I’ll get on that soon hehe), with an episode table so it should be pretty easy to see episodes that need summarising. 

If you don't want to summarise an entire episode but do want to help, please, please, please feel free to go back and edit episode summaries from Arc 1. I made those about a year ago before I really had a good idea on how to summarise and trust me, those bad boys are rough to read. I’ve been planning on going back and redoing those for a while now lmao. 

Otherwise, whole Arc summaries also need to be written. I’ve already done one for Arc 1, so that should give you a good idea on the type of detail needed. 

For writing episode or arc summaries, I would say try to keep them around 1000 words and generally don’t write anything too meta. Try to keep it as in the world as possible. That being said, it’s totally cool if the summaries aren’t Serious Retellings. I usually try to do jokey subheadings and stuff like that. 

There are a few more things I think are important to keep in mind while writing episode summaries, and if people express interest I am totally down in writing a guide to how I have been doing it. The best thing I think to do would be to go and read a couple of the summaries already on the wiki. Preferably from Arc 2 because I wasn't kidding about the quality of the ones from Arc 1. 

Place and People pages

Hehe alliteration.

Just to get it out there: The main Guardians’ and Maeri’s pages totally need revising. They need summaries for their actions in each arc, as well as updates on their personality sections because these dudes have gone through character development. So if you wanna start somewhere, I’d say go ahead and do that. 

Otherwise, here's what I think you should do if you want to write a character or location page: Choose your favourite character or location or item or whatever. Figure out exactly what episodes they are in, listen to them, take notes, and then write the page. If you’re feeling frisky, even transcribe the parts of the episodes that they appear in. 

Once again, I think the best thing to do is to read a few characters or location pages to get an idea of the amount of detail needed as well as what type of sections you should write. Like, their personality and appearance and whether or not to separate their page into episode summaries or arc summaries for that location/character. If people want, I can also make a more thorough guide on how to write these pages. 

To be honest I haven’t done many of these because I’ve been more focused on getting transcripts and summaries out. So far, however, I’ve been doing these pages as I go. If a new NPC is introduced and only appears for an episode or two, I’ll write those character pages as I’m writing the episode summaries. That being said, if an NPC is introduced and I know they’ll appear later down the line I’ll usually compile all information I have on them in a separate google doc and wait until later to write they’re page. The same goes for location pages, really. For example, I have a google doc full of a half-written page on Danmar that I haven’t published yet because I know that in about five transcribed episodes the party will be back there and I don’t want to have to edit it a whole bunch. 

Thirdly: Editing

If you don’t really want to write an entire summary or don’t feel comfortable enough to do so but still want to contribute the absolute most helpful and important thing you can do it edit. The wiki is like, full of typo’s my dude. (Totally my bad, I’m really bad at catching them hehe). Not only that, but it would be really good if people were to fix any grammar issues or any incorrect information within the pages themselves. Broken links, missing info, inconsistencies in categorisation, all that good stuff. 

You could also go through and double check transcripts that have been deemed ‘complete’ for any typos or formatting issues, if you wished. Absolutely anything and everything helps and it’s always good to have a second or third pair of eyes. 

Fourthly: Where to start

Here’s a list of wanted pages on the wiki. For anyone unfamiliar with how fan wikis work, a red link indicates that the page hasn’t yet been written but has been linked in another page, and that’s where you come in, my dude. 

You don’t have to write a full on, in depth complete page. Even just creating the page and beginning to summarise is great. That creates a basis for other editors, allowing people to build on what you have started. 

If you want to start a transcription you absolutely have to read the formatting and editing guide, linked here once again. Do your best to follow those rules, but it’s okay if you forget or miss some here or there. That’s why other people double check your work! This is collaborative and you can’t be expected to do everything right in the beginning. 

A Final Word

I think it would be cool if we got a few more people to semi-consistently edit and add to the wiki. I don’t expect many people, but any addition to it makes it a better compendium. 

If anyone wants to start writing stuff for it but feels like they need direction please message me! I’m sure I can find something fun for you to do :). Again, I think I’ll write some more in depth guides for how to write pages on the wiki, but if you want to do transcriptions the instructions are already in place and good to go.

That being said, I don’t completely know what I’m doing. I don’t know how to write any of the cool formatting code and stuff that some wiki’s have, so if anyone is interested in helping create a more fancy-schmancy lookin’ wiki and knows how to do all that, it would be really cool if you could get in touch with me as well. 

I would love to hear any other questions or suggestions! To anyone who chooses to help, thank you in advance!

[takanova12]

One of the hallmarks of the aot fandom is massive panic everytime leaks drop and mostly the release of full chapter ends up pleasing if not all majority of the readers. Yet, we still don't learn and negatively react everytime even with the understanding that we are missing context for the leaked panels/dialogues. So amid all of this, here I am just trying to share my positive and hopeful interpretation of leaks, which mostly concern mikasa.

I wholeheartedly love eremika. They will forever remain my comfort ship. The leaks haven't changed anything. If anything, they just reinforced the idea that mikasa loved eren till her last breath. I admit that I loved the ambiguity of last panel of chapter 139; does mikasa live by herself till she dies? Or does she find love again and end up being surrounded by people who cherish her and will be there for her until the end?

I am happy that she found happiness in life. I saw people criticizing her choice of finding love again and how they were wrong about her making a selfless decision and living with pride etc. I personally don't see how her having a family cancels out what she did? She did give up the most precious person to her in the entire damn world to save the damn world. To people who wanted her to be a stronK woman who needs no man to live a empowering life, well she was that in the entire series. It was eren who needed her to save his ass 24/7, it was her and not a man who contributed most significantly to saving the alliance and we all know it was her who freed ymir. Not only that but one of the most popular EM moments where she gave eren emotional support (chap 50) ended up leaving such an impact on him that it helped me activate the coordinate and was also shown to be one of his most cherished memories of her. So, at the end if she wants to live a peaceful and simpler life, let her have that. Most importantly, let her have that considering she never wanted this life of a soldier. So, I am glad isayama gave her that. After all the shit she's been through she deserved some happiness, she deserved to be around her very own family. She deserved to be loved and cherished just like she loved and cherished eren. I am happy for my girl. I am happy that she had such a lasting impact on the story and on eren. I am happy that she wasn't alone her entire life. Sure, she has armin but let's admit it armin is with annie. They were not welcome on the island and even if mikasa left with them or they somehow settled back on paradise, aruannie would have their very own family. Sure, mikasa could be the stronK independent who needs no mAn and be an aunt to other kids so she won't be alone (reminds me of what eh wanted for mikasa; her to be aunt of her beloved dead eren's baby that he had with historia). Okay now being honest, I would have no problem with mikasa being single for her entire life and be some govermental figure of sorts if she was ever presented in that way. Never has ever mikasa shown any interest in politics, being some military leader or some princess to hizuru. She didn't join SC because it was her dream. She did because of eren and now that eren is gone and she served her purpose, she has no reason to become involved in nasty politics that she never wanted to be associated with. Also, she always left the strategic thinking, planning etc to armin. She has always pondered upon how many times does she have to lose her family and restart again. It always came down to home/family/love and a sense of belongingness for her. Sure eren was her home but before that her home was her parents and then carla and grisha. I am not saying that with eren gone, she has to find happiness in another man, but out of these other miserable options for her like living alone in the island, I prefer her being with loved ones. She doesn't have her dad like annie or parents like pieck with her to give her that home and sense of belongingness so I find it even more hard to swallow that some people actually wanted her to be not loved and die not having a home even after everything she has been through. Moreover, it's better for her mental health that she stays as far away from dealing with the mess eren left behind. Didn't she already do enough? She killed him and that was the most painful thing she ever had to do. So, I don't understand why people still want her to be some single stronK woman in power who dedicates her entire life to cleaning eren's mess? Hell no! No more misery for my girl! And thankfully yams agrees.

She has already had her fair share of trauma so isayama did the right thing leaving the diplomacy part to armin and others. Also, people making baseless claims that she is unhappy in her married life? Where and how? Mikasa surely wasn't ever gonna marry someone if she wasn't ready to. Did she visit the grave alone? Nope, she had her man with her, which suggests she is happy and can trust him with her feelings for eren and that he very much respects those feelings. She is not sneaking out of the house to visit her beloved's grave but she is living with pride. She is not doing anything wrong in remembering eren because irl we never forget our most beloved person even if we find love again.

On the topic of jeankasa, Idc whether it had 2 panels together or a 1000, it doesn't matter to me either way because aot was eremika's story ( as in I mean the story only told us about their journey of platonic to romantic feelings). Post titan world jk happened, so I find the jk don't have development and armuika makes more sense argument very out of place. First of all jk do have some development, where they end up trusting each other. Mikasa initially didn't like jean always fighting and criticizing eren and just didn't care about him. Later just like she forged close platnoic bonds with rest of 104th, she did so with jean too and most of it happened off screen because it was not needed for the story. I mean we found out sasha and mikasa were bunkmates not through the story but the guidebook. And this is in line with the fact that mikasa is not a very vocal person to begun with, she mostly speaks through her actions and that is why we hardly ever see her screaming how she is gonna help rid the world of titans or how she saved gabi because she is a child just like them caught up in war. About armuika it is a 100% platonic bond. With jeankasa, only mikasa considered jean as just a friend while jean since day 1 has been romantically attracted to mikasa so much so that he jumped right at a titan for the first time in his life when he saw mikasa in danger, before that his legs would shiver at the thought of fighting titans. So, it makes sense if it was him who ended up marrying her because he was in love with her the entire time and respected her feelings. The execution could have been better but I don't have any qualms with it because it doesn't make me ship eremika any less and overall knowing that mikasa was with someone who had always secretly loved and admired her for a long time just she did with eren makes me believe they both have a solid mutual understanding and good relationship.

Lastly, the takes on her still wearing the scarf is disrespectful to her husband is another thing I don't agree with. The scarf is not a romantic gift given to her by lover. The scarf is what saved her as a little girl. The scarf is what made mikasa understand the dichomoty of life at such a young age. The scarf is what allowed mikasa to realize that the world is not just cruel. It is what saved her and helped her save the world. It is a life-changing and beautiful treasure for her that sheltered her from turning into a cold-hearted revenge seeking psychopath. So, I find it satisfying to know that she is capable of embracing that part of her life and being anle to move ahead in life with her head held high.

On a side note I wanted to wait until the official release but I saw some mikasa slander and just couldn't wait any longer. I do think I am immune to mikasa slander now because I got everything I wanted for her character ( of course I would have loved for her to be with eren but I knew after liberio raid that they were never going to have a happy ending) but still sometimes I like to share my thoughts because I think it helps some people who are at times enjoying the content but the fandom discourse and constant negative interpretation of said events makes them hesistant to admit/enjoy it.

I am content knowing that my comfort character found some comfort in her life at the end :')

[blackypanther9]

Part 15 - Everything went wrong...

No one's POV...

"- Until it rips Jotunheim apart.", you heard Loki say.

Wait....what....? You shook your head, saw Loki throwing Thor back and listened again.

"Why have you done this ?", Thor asked.

"To prove to Father that I am the worthy Son. When he awakes, I will have saved his life, I will have destroyed this race of Monsters and I will be true heir to the throne.", he answered.

'Monsters...? So that's how he thinks...huh ? After all I showed him.... He....'

"You can't kill an entire race.", Thor said.

"Why not ?", Loki asked.

He smiled and laughed. He went down the stairs.

"And what is this new found love for Frost Giants ? You. You've killed them all with your bare hands.", Loki said.

"I've changed."

"So have I."

Loki hit Thor with the staff on the cheek. Thor's head snapped at the touch to the left. Loki leaned in and said coldly.

"Now fight me."

And he hit Thor again to the right, this time with all his strength. Thor fell to the ground and Loki was walking on the other side.

"I never wanted the throne ! I only have wanted to be your equal.", Loki said.

"I will not fight you, Brother !!"

"I am not your Brother ! I never was !"

You saw Loki tears near.

"Loki this is madness !"

"Is it madness ?! Is it ? Is it ?!"

Step two, Loki sounds and breaths different and twitches a little here and there...yup one wrong move and he will drop one or two tears... Thor looks at Loki and shuts his mouth.

"What happened on Earth that turned you so...soft ?! Don't tell me it was that woman !"

.....Woman ? ......Soft ? Thor stares at him and again shuts up.

"Oh ! So it was ! Well maybe, when we're finished here...I'll pay her a visit myself !!"

Okay....Loki let a tear slip...And he is fucking mad... Thor had enough and started a battle cry. They fought, dodged and attacked. After some time...Thor flew with Loki through the wall of the capsule. They landed on the rainbowbridge and continued fighting there. Loki tricked Thor with an illusion of himself that he will fall, Thor as dumb as he is...fell for it and Loki attacked him as soon as Thor turned around. Loki made many other illusions of himself and laughed at him, Thor had an outburst with the words 'enough' and threw lightnings everywhere. Loki fell again and Thor put his hammer on his chest. Because Loki isn't worthy, he can't lift the hammer and needed to lay there. Thor tried to safe Jotunheim and the Bifrost. But he couldn't safe both. He needed to get rid of the Bifrost.

"Look at you.", Loki said and Thor turned around to look at Loki.

"The mighty Thor...With all your strength !"

He spoke with hate and jealousy.

"And does it its use now huh ?! UGH !! YOU HEAR ME BROTHER ?! THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO !!!", Loki screamed.

Thor called his hammer from Loki's chest and hits the rainbowbridge. You were shocked. You need to get away from there. You were still on the side of the Bifrost. You ran until you were safe. Loki slowly sat up and looked at Thor shocked. Thor hits a second time and Loki found his voice again, after the sixth hit.

"What are you doing ?!", Loki says.

Thor hits another time.

"IF YOU DESTROY THAT BRIDGE YOU'LL NEVER SEE HER AGAIN !!", Loki screamed at him.

Thor ignored him and hits another time and another, the bridge made now cracking sounds. Loki stood up, grabbed the staff and ran to him. Thor raised his hammer one last time and said...

"Forgive me Jane..."

He hit again and Loki was in the air to stab him. The rainbow bridge exploded and sent them in the air. You ran away more from the falling everdark abyss. You saw them fall and Odin appear. Thor and Loki held the staff, Loki on the end and Thor on the beginning. Odin held Thor onto his boot. You ran to them and exposed yourself again, with a frown. Loki saw your face and knew...you heard and saw everything.

"I could have done it Father ! I could have done it ! For you ! For all of us !"

Odin hesitated before he said softly.

"No, Loki."

You looked at Odin shocked and then back at Loki. He frowned and...What is he doing ? No...

"Loki no..."

He will let go...

"Loki ! Stop !"

He looked at you and stopped his movements.

"I believe you. You could have done it. But this was wrong. Your anger did lead you. I don't hate you, for what you said and did. But please...no matter what you want to do....DON'T LET GO !! THEY WILL FIND AND TORTURE YOU !! JUST LIKE ME !!!"

Loki looked at you with tears.

"Why should I believe you ? You saw and heard everything, but didn't stop us ! You aren't even my friend anymore !", he screamed at you.

"Loki, this will be a big mistake if you do this ! I can bring you everywhere you want, but please...DON'T LET GO !! You ended the friendship not me ! You said I should take my time with chosing and I did ! I am here because I want to try it again ! If you let go, it's your death, silver - tongue ! He knows who you are and what you can do ! He won't fall for your tricks ! Try and he will kill you ! I know it ! I was there 10 years !!"

"And you are still here."

"Because I escaped closely ! Stay. We will find another way !"

There was a long silence. Loki stared into your eyes, then down into the abyss, then back to you. Loki whispered...

"This is my way."

Loki let go of the staff and fell into the hole. Then it disappeared and he with it.

"NOOOOO !!!", Thor and you screamed.

"No...", Odin said.

After that he pulled Thor up and hugged his Son. You were mad, sad and broken. Thor came to you to hug you, you pushed him away.

"Stay away from me !", you screamed and ran to the Palace.

"Luciella !", Thor and Odin screamed after you.

You ignored them. You ran to Loki's chambers, opened his door, went inside and threw the door close, then you locked it. You jumped into his bed and took in his scent he left on the bed sheets. Even if he wasn't in the bed once....it all still smelled like him. You hugged the blanket tightly and hoped he faked his disappearence. As 50 minutes passed and he still didn't came, you knew....he was gone...maybe even forever... You....cried ? Really ? You thought you can't cry anymore... well...you did. They all did. Even Ratchel. You fell asleep after a while and hoped you will never wake up again. 2 hours later, you awoke, because someone knocked at the door.

"GO AWAY !!", you screamed, thinking it was Thor.

"Luciella, my dear. It's me, Frigga. Open the door, please.", Frigga said behind the door.

You moved your hand and unlocked the door. Frigga opened the door, went inside and closed the door again. She went to you and sat down next to you. You hugged the blanket more than before. Frigga smiled softly. She lifted her left hand and stroked your hair.

"I won't take the blanket away from you, don't worry, dear. I wanted to look after you."

"Everything went wrong !", you hit the matress...hard.

Frigga looked at you. She put a spell in the room so nobody can hear you two talking.

"What do you mean ?"

"Loki is now with bad people...And I can't go back there... I don't know where they are and if they still wait for me..."

"What people ?"

"Promise me, you will never tell anyone, even Odin and Thor, what I will tell you."

"I promise, dear. Where is my Son ?"

(Circus for a Psycho by Skillet)

"At...Thanos....and his 'Children'.", you said the word like it was venom.

"Well...when he has kids... He will surely take care of Loki and bring him back."

"You think so ?! His 'children' are stolen people or even some people who got forced to serve him ! They aren't his real children ! He kills races and takes 1 worthy man, woman or even kid with himself ! He kidnaps, kills, threatens, tortures and he is a psychopath !"

Frigga flinches and lookes at you shocked.

"From where do you know that ?", she asked.

"Easy. I was 10 years there ! They don't stop the tortures and even go so far to raping ! No matter which gender, they do it ! No matter if man and man or woman and woman ! They don't fricking care ! They did that to me ! They firstly start with whipping, then beating you up badly, then they talk shit about your friends, they call you names and if all this doesn't work, they rape you ! Until you break !", you said crying.

The more you said, the more tears escaped you. Frigga looked at you shocked. She slowly wrapped her arms around you and hugged you. You didn't flinch away. You hugged back.

"How long did you make it ?", she asked worried.

"2 whole years and they started to rape me 3 months before I yielded. I couldn't handle it anymore ! I-I-I needed a break ! They did that non stop !"

"Oh my..."

"Do you understand now, why I am so mad and worried about Loki ?!"

"I...I am...", Frigga answered crying.

"Lets hope that he finds a way out with his silver tongue. If not...then he may come back as a psychopath or under some evil control. Or he will never come back and is dead..."

"He will find a way out. I believe in him."

"I do too, but let's face the facts here. Thanos knows him, and not from me. I never told him about Loki, he knew Loki anyways. He knows about his dirty tricks and his lies. He knows his title and Thanos could easily snap his neck in 1000 pieces, if Loki tries something funny."

"Oh my..."

"I am not finished. If you are once on Thanos' side and you fail him on your first mission, he hunts you down, finds you and kills you in the most painful and slowest way he knows. He will make your life hell, if you dare to fail him or even betray him. Loki won't make it, even if he is good in everything...this is a fight he can't win."

"What happened the other 8 years ?"

"I got trained. I studied my magic and can much more than Loki will ever do. I needed to fight and use magic. This all was almost non stop for 4 months then I was like everyone else. One of them, at least I played like one. I trained with more breaks and even had normal food and water. I hoped everyday, Heimdall or someone else of Asgard finds me....but nobody came. Not even Loki. I was so alone...and I almost broke, but Thanos made a mistake. He told me why nobody came for me. Heimdall was blind. On the ship is a spell and that's why nobody found me. After all this time went on and 8 years passed, Thanos wanted to talk to me, about my first mission. He wanted that I kidnap someone..."

Flashback....   Your POV....

"You wanted to talk to me Thanos ?"

"Yes my child. Come here."

I did as I got told.

"I want someone who is unstable, with it's mind. Yes I want you to kidnap someone. This someone is from Asgard. It's a boy. In the future he is very clever, is able to lead an army and is easy to control. We may need 3 days to torture the little boy, but it will work..."

Firstly I thought I knew about who he talked...

"He is a Prince."

I thought it is Thor...

"What's his name ?"

I really thought it was Thor. But it wasn't him....

"It's your childhood friend. Loki Odinson. I want him here in a week. Tomorrow you will search him. And kill the rest of the royal family."

I nodded and played my role.

"As you wish. I shall prepare everything for tomorrow."

I stood up and was on my way out.

"Oh and Luciella ?"

I turned around.

"If you fail me...I need to kill you or punish you very bad. So don't fail me."

I nodded again and went outside. But I never went there. I ran into my room, grabbed my things I needed and used all my power I could to get out of there. I won't kill or kidnap someone. I took a safe - capsule, saw Jotunheim under me, freed the capsule and landed on Jotunheim. I destroyed the capsule and went everywhere. I met Laufey in the end and he kept me alive. We even became friends.

End of Flashback....   No one's POV....

"Since then I never saw Thanos again. He waited. I bet he knew it."

Frigga stared at me.

"He will use Loki for something... He will promise Loki something, Loki will fall for it and gets killed in the end, because of his naivety. I know it. Thanos never holds his word."

"Then it's time you learn how to meditate."

"Meditate ?"

"You can look into the future and maybe it will help you out some times. You can see through someone else's eyes also and hear through someone else's ears. Maybe you get in connection with Loki..."

You thought for a second then nodded.

"Okay. When do we start ?"

"Now."

And with that you started.

Part 16

Masterlist with all Chapters of this Story click here !  

[valeriethepussycats]

Assemble

Chapter 14

Pairing- Loki x Reader x Steve (one side)

Warning- cursing

Your thoughts and other characters are in italics.

Your Alter ego name- Red Wing

Several humvees  aim their mounted .50 Cal guns into the sky, firing and hitting  Chitauri Riders. Captain America fights off a soldier who is pinning him down with its energy rifle. Cap breaks it’s leg. He stands up, pickingup his shield.

“Captain, the bank on 42nd past Madison, they caught a lot of civilians there.”  Clint told Steve.

“I'm on it.” Steve answered.

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Dozens of civilians are gathered in bank. Tension and uncertainty surround them. Three Chitauri  Soldiers oversee them, pointing their weapons at them. One of them charges a bomb.

Captain America jumps through the window and throws his shield at the Chitauri bomber. The two Chitauri Soldiers aim their rifles, but Cap heads for cover under a desk, which he kicks at them. Captain America jumps over the desk, headlocks a soldier, while backhanding another one over the railing. The crowd moves away. A Chitauri Soldiers attacks him from behind and rips off his helmet. The bomb is beeping faster.

“Everyone! Clear out!” Steve shouted.

Captain America flips over the soldier, grabs his shield and just as the bomb is about to go off, Chitauri bomber. dives for, trying to stop it, but it goes off, sending Captain America through the window, landing very hard on a car. The civilians look up from below.

They're okay.

Cap gets off the car, looks around the city. Destroyed. The police and firemen arrive, pulling out those civilians he saved. A waitress looks back, thankful.

“Well every thing here gone shit.” A voice announced.

Steve turns around and see Logan leaning down on the Hood of a burning car, lighting his cigar.

“Who are you?” Steve questioned.

“I’m Wolverine and I’m here to help.” Logan said breathing out the smoke.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Back in the bridge, Fury sees on his viewsscreen the World Security Council.

“Director Fury, the council has made a decision.” World Security Council #2 announced.

“I recognize the council has made a  decision, but given that it's a stupid

ass decision, I've elected to ignore it.” Nick snapped.

“Director, you're closer than any of  oursubs, you scramble that jet...” World Security Council #1 started.

“That is the island of Manhattan, Councilman. Until I'm certain my team can't hold it, I will not order a nuclear strike against a civilian population.” Nick explained.

“If we don't hold them in the air, we lose everything.”  

“I send that bird out, we already have.” Nick shuts off his viewscreen.

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Black Widow, still driving the chariot with the rider, is hit at  her side. She looks about, wondering whose Energy fire it was she looks behind.

“Oh. You.” Loki follows in hot pursuit. They race downward, trailing between buildings. They race madly, driving and dodging.

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Hawkeye looks at Black Widow, astonished. “Nat, what are you doing?”

“Uh... a little help!” Natasha voiced.

Hawkeye pulls the trigger twice, nocks an arrow, and points it at Loki, smiling.

“I've got him.” Hawkeye find the arrow streaks down the city, straight at Loki’s head...Snatch! Like a cat, Loki grabs the arrow straight out of the air...looks straight at Hawkeye, smiling...BBoooommm!! The arrow explodes in Loki’s face, crashing into the Stark penthouse pad.

Black Widow looks down and building her momentum, she jumps of the chariot, lands on top of Stark Towers, rolling herself to the edge.

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As Loki looks up, shocked at what just happened, The Hulk is leaping and kicking Loki hurtling towards the glass window.  He collapse as he hits the wall. The Hulk jumps in, ready to attack. Loki rolls  himself up in a flurry of broken glass, standing up to the Hulk.

“ENOUGH! YOU ARE, ALL OF YOU ARE BENEATH ME! I AM A GOD, YOU DULL CREATURE, AND   I WILL NOT BE BULLIED...”

Hulk grabs Loki by the legs and smashes him against the floor repeatedly and finally throwing him against the ground flattening Loki.

“Puny God.” Hulk mocked.

Loki whimpers in pain.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Black Widow walks up the CMS machine. Erik, slumped down, weakened, looks at her desperately. The Tesseract's energy is firing towards the portal, gaining in strength, at the surge of energy moving through the sky.

“Doctor.” Natasha called out.

“Loki's scepter, the energy...the Tesseract can't fight. You can't protect against yourself.” Erik started.

“It's not your fault. You didn't know what you were doing.” Natasha said tried to reassure Erik.

“Well, actually I think I did. I built in a safety to cut the power source.” Erik answered.

“Loki's scepter.”

“It might be able to close the portal.” Erik looks down. He sees a gold gleam. “And I'm looking right at it.”

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Thor rides on top of chariot, Smacking several soldiers with the hammer. As Thor takes the reins, a Chitauri Leviathan crashes   through a building, knocking him down to where Cap and Wolverine  is, fighting off soldiers. Red Wing and Iron Man flies right next to the Chitauri Leviathan. Red Wing holds out her hand to slow down the The Leviathan while Tony aims his laser Booster at it. Nothing.

“Sir, we will lose power before you cut through that shell.” Jarvis Informed.

Iron Man flies up ahead, facing the oncoming monster.

“I would freeze it and then you could shot one of your....” Y/n looks to her left and  doesn’t see Tony. “Tony??”

“Jarvis. You ever hear the tale of Jonah?” Tony wondered.

“I wouldn't consider him a role model.” Jarvis answered.

“No don’t Tony.” Y/n shouted

Iron Man flies towards The Chitauri Leviathan, unleashing every arsenal on the suit. The Chitauri Leviathan opens its mouth. Iron Man flies in and bursts out the other end, making the Chitauri Leviathan collapse. Iron Man rolls down the street. The wind is knocked out of him. He looks up with an overwhelming sigh as a small band of Chitauri soldiers rush towards him,holding out their rifles they all fired at him busting one of his thrusters. Red Wing uses her powers to make it very cold on the Chitauri soldiers to the point of freezing and then shattering them into pieces. Y/n  rushes to Tony holding her hands out to warm him up.

“I’m sorry. Are you ok.”

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Hawkeye turns to fire his last arrow. Using his bow as a staff, he knocks some Chitauri soldiers, before yanking his last arrow off the dead body a Chitauri soldiers. Hawkeye nocks his arrow, dives down the building fires his grappling arrow up into the side of building. Falling down, Hawkeye finds the momentum and SWINGS himself into a building and cannonballs in.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

The Hulk  holds Chitauri soldiers by the face and slams  them down. More keep coming. Hulk looks up. Hundreds of riders hover over him. Then... they begin to fire energy blasts. Hulk takes them like he’s running though a light rain. Blocking the stream of streaking blasts, as though swatting at bees.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

A lone pilot sits in his cockpit, listening.

“Director Fury is no longer in command. Override order, 7 ALPHA 11.”

World Security Council #2  told the pilot.

“7 ALPHA 11, confirmed. Prepare to takeoff.” He ignites his engine.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Back in the bridge, Agent Hill sees on her screen 7 ALPHA 11 preparing to leave. “Sir, we have a bird in motion! Anyone  on the deck, we have a rogue bird! We need to shut it down! Repeat! Take off is not authorized!”

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Nick Fury runs out to the deck, holding a Airtronic RPG-7. He takes aim and fires, hitting the tail end of the jet. The  jet skids off towards the edge. Pilot unharmed. Suddenly, another 7 ALPHA 11 jet flies  off. Fury stands there,knowing he can't do anything about it.

“Stark, you hearing me? We have a missile headed straight for the city.” Nick told Tony through the earpiece.

“How long?” Tony asked.

“Three minutes, at best. Stay low and wipe out the missile.”

Y/n  looks over at Tony him not needing to say anything. “A missile and it’s Three minutes out.....you can’t take it they shot your thrusters.

Without a second thought Red Wing leaves the streets and flies up into the sky. 7 ALPHA 11 arrives outside the city. He flips the switch to press the button. He presses it. The missile is flying out to Manhattan. “Destination is in 2 minutes, 30 seconds mark.”

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Captain America and Thor Battle, Side by side while Wolverine is slicing and dicing some soldiers with his claws on the outer side. Cap and Thor both throw their respected weapons. Thor catches Mjölnir, but as Cap turns, an Energy blast strikes him down hard. Thor runs over to a broken car, swings the hammer and flips the car over and over on its side, crushing a few Chitauri soldiers. Cap tries to get up. Thor helps him back to his feet. Cap raises his shield back up.

“You ready for another bout?” Thor asked.

“What? You gettin' sleepy?” Replied.

Wolverine plunges his clawed hand into gut of one of the soldiers. And Steve and Thor looks at him. “What?”

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Erik, back in scientist mode, clacks  away at his laptop. Henods. Black Widow grabs Loki's scepter, slowly breaks into the Force field, almost touching the Tesseract. “I can close it! Can anybody hear me? I can shut the portal down!”

“Do it!” Steve exclaimed.

“No, wait!” Y/n blurted.

“Y/n, these things are still coming!” Steve disclosed.

“I got a nuke coming in, it's gonna blow in less than a minute. One of Tony’s thrusters are Busted and I’m the only who can get to it the fastest....And I know just where to put it.” Y/n explained.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Y/n catchers up, now comes at the missile from behind. The missile speeds on.

“Maximum effor.” Y/n proclaimed.

With the uttermost amount of effort, Red Wing touches the missile then use her powers to wrenches the rocket off its course. Steering it from behind, she accelerates quickly, flying straight up into sky, towards the portal.

“Y/n, you know that's a one-way trip?” Steve stated.

“Hey if I die build me a statue.” Y/n answered.

“What’s going on?” Logan asked.

“There’s a missile and Y/n going to put it in the portal.” Steve answered.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Back in the bridge, every single agent holds their breath as they watch Y/n  fly up into the portal. But Nick is concern by 1000 Y/n  is going into outer space without any protection. Y/n limbs higher and higher over the city, gaining speed, suddenly flings herself through the portal.

“Y/n!! Y/n!! Can you hear me.” Nick called out.

But it’s to late communications has die. Y/n begins to feel cold. She looks looks in horror. She about to die.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Every single agent cheers. Fury smiles. He tries to communicate with Y/n. Nothing.

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

The black sky is filled with what must be ninety ships in a vague cluster. Most of them hang still in the air. Some move swimmingly about. Y/n let’s go of the missile. All of a sudden Y/n begins to feel warm and then a burst of the fire comes out form within Her.  Blasting her back out of the portal and blowing the missile up. Y/n being to free fall back down the portal's opening. The explosion from Y/n  and a missile reaches the main ship. The main ship implodes, causing the entire Armada  to burst into a supernova, creating a spectacular heavenly display.

Final

@aesthethickks​

[huskeddevotee]

Music tastes because this game owns my soul

Amara: Nothing but calm, peaceful indie worship for meditation, or Partali Rap for everything else. Does enjoy the occasional rock opera, but not enough to make a Playlist for it.

Ava: Emo grunge and sad lo-fi. Typical sad 13 year old girl songs, but the sadness level varies. Sometimes its "ah, 13yo blues", sometimes "Oh, yeah. This is a child who's gone through some sh*t and is clearly not coping." Everyone uses her Spotify as a mood tracker to check in on her.

Axton: Bluegrass country, old school rock, and - god bless - the most basic pop in the world. Like, retail pop. Radio pop. Pop music no one likes and only hit the charts because of grocery stores playing it on repeat. He genuinely likes it, too.

Brick: R&B and jazz. Most people assume its violent screamo, but why would he want to listen to that when he's relaxing? That's punching music, not kicking back music.

Clay: Either super catchy and suave, or a blatant cry for help. Classy Jazz and touching Southern Gothic, Jimmy Buffet. Songs about confidence, Jimmy Buffet. Ballads for smuggling and general crimery, Jimmy Buffet. Why is he listening to Jimmy Buffet? He doesn't know. He just is. Wainwright has a therapist on speeddial for the day when Clay has listened to nothing but Jimmy Buffet for three weeks.

Fl4k: Anything dark and moody, actual genre doesn't matter. Prefers quieter, slow paced songs. Songs about leaving home for the better fill their main playlist.

Gaige: Screamo metal. The most offensive screamo metal you will ever hear. Has hearing problems from this. Don't use full volume, kids.

Hammerlock: Jazz, classical, folk, orchestra - elegent stuff, as per usual. He isn't stuffy about it like some people. Varied taste, he just has some quirkiness with his preferences. Rap is fine, he just likes old rap from his youth. Will absolutely grumble about it getting worse each year .

Krieg: Doesn't like music, it freaks him out. But, he is known to listen to someone singing. Axton's humming in the garage, Maya's shower concerts, Lilith's quiet memorial songs when she thinks no one can hear her. He doesn't like music. He likes singing.

Lilith: Rock sung by female leads, female rappers, and girl power ballads. Just appeals to her. The only male singer she liked was Roland.

Lorelai: Same as Lilith, but kicked up to a level that makes you think she's part of a coven. Does like the occasional country power ballad, though; songs about community and sticking together and such.

Maya: Music you could fall asleep to. Its the calmest, most zen playlist you could ever find. It's very vocal, with emphasis on slow instruments. The music you listen to when you want to study or transcend. do not find her guilty pleasures playlist.

Mordecai: He could tell you every artist he has ever listened you, and you will have heard of none of them. It's not intentional, he just fell down a rabbit hole and moved in. His taste is very folk, indie, rural country - lots of guitars and percussions.

Moxxi: Carrie Underwood country. That genre of country thats just women killing men. Sure, she likes a sultry jazz, maybe a suggestive pop, but her heart is meant for a raspy-voiced woman with a guitar crooning about poisoning her husband.

Moze: She likes a lot of things, especially old synth-pop. Upbeat rock with old sounds the remind you of fruit for some reason? Her jams. Her favorite song is a mystery, though. Its in a different language you've never heard of, it has no identifiable instruments, the title is Track 1. Someone listened to the entirety of it and died the next day. Definitely haunted. She says it's just a national hymn from her home planet, but no one buys it.

Salvador: Back-porch country and ballads. He likes things that come from the heart. His favorite songs are ones of people singing about their home with pride. He has a soft spot for emotional climax songs from musicals, too. Detests bro country and retail pop.

Tannis: Hates music, but likes wind chimes. That's it.

Tina: Has 218 playlists for every conceivable mood. Her library of saved songs is over 10k. Has no favorite genre, but her favorite songs tend to lean towards the alternative or rap variety.

Troy: If you look at his Spotify he will cry. Barely any his playlists have a title, just keysmashing. The only one that has a title is just an eggplant emoji and it's nothing but dominatrix power balleds. His most played playlist is filled with songs about Cain and Abel. As for genre? Rap. Rock. Punk. Screamo. Everything your mother doesn't like.

Tyreen: Not an active music listener. But! Her Spotify is nothing but love ballads. Her top 50 each year are the sappiest romance songs known to man. A lot of soundtracks of musicals and movies, too. The genre does not matter, what matters is if someone's name pops into your head when you listen to it.

Wainwright: Emo country. Like, Southern Gothic if it was even more depressed and spooky. He has not evolved from his taste as a 13 year old in an unhappy family. Only started listening to happier music when he met Alistair. Would die of embarrassment if this got out.

Zane: Likes literally everything, but has a soft spot for the rock and folk that came out of Pandora during the Gold Rush times when the corps were fighting for tech and power. Those songs stuck with Pandora, and the songs are important for every clan. They're about greed, apathy of corporations, the mystery of the Eridians, the harshness of Pandora. He gets in a mood when he listens them, like a grandpa watching the news report on the war he just got back from. He tells stories when he gets like this. Sometimes they're sad, sometimes they're bitterly hopeful.

Zer0: Techno that sounds like someone vomiting out their soul. Moody, atmospheric, unsettling techno. They say they refuse to listen to anything that has color in its album art.

And it's all a lie.

Zer0 likes the pinkest bubblegum pop and the stupidest meme songs. Carmelldansen? They've listened to it for 1000 hours.

The only person to find their secret Spotify was Rhys and he was too busy admiring this strange account's taste in music to realize that every playlist title and description was a haiku, and that the account was called "atlas.n1nja.b0ps". Rhys brought it up to Zer0 like "I found my soul mate, we have the same favorites!" And Zer0 would have sh*t themselves if they could have.

[deltas-writing-corner]

Warmth: Prologue (2/3)

Fandom: Ikemen Sengoku

Disclaimers: Besides the prologues, I will be posting the first 1000 or so words of every new/next chapter.  There will be a link to my AO3 at the end of the post, where the full chapters are at!

Warnings: mentions of blood

Masterlist: (coming soon)

"Here, let me help with-"

"It's alright!" Fuku shouts as she lifted several rolls of fabric with ease.

To say Fuku was doing a little better is an understatement. She was fantastically better. When Yuki and you came into work the morning after her accident, she didn't greet you both in her usual polite and quiet manner. Fuku had loudly welcomed you both in as if the shop were suddenly a bustling restaurant.

You were mending a ripped seam in the back room when Yuki suddenly enters and whispers, "Please tell me I haven't gone crazy, or is Fuku much more lively than yesterday?"

You resist the urge to smile. She got her spunk back indeed.

"I quite like this sudden shift in her character," you say.

"I do too, really! I haven't seen her like this since I was a kid. But the sudden switch from sweet to sassy is…" her mind trails off with uncertainty. She looks over her shoulder to make sure you two were alone still. "Do you think her accident yesterday had anything to do with her personality change?"

"They say your life flashes before your eyes in an instant when you come close to death. Maybe she decided to drop the quiet act and be true to herself."

"Yeah, that's it isn't it?" Yuki asks more to herself than to you. "But should she really be carrying all those fabric rolls? Those things are heavier than they look."

"Perhaps her back is doing better?"

"In a day?!"

She was getting more confused, more frustrated as she tried to wrap her head around everything. You put your needle and thread down and turn towards her. "Do you remember what I said yesterday?" you ask. Her tense shoulders relax a bit and she nods. "Then trust me on this. She's going to be fine. Would I ever lie to you if I didn't think she would?"

She shakes her head. "I don't know why, but you saying she's going to be okay somehow reassures me that it will be."

You give her a pat on the head, but she pulls you into a tight hug. You would hug her back if she wasn't squeezing your arms against your body. It was strange. Her hugging you like this almost makes you feel as if you two had truly become…

You don't finish that statement, for fear that your rival would hear it and use it against you. You nearly forgot that you could never truly make friends, not when you're still in the midst of a never-ending battle with a damn snake that targets the people around you. One of these days, you're going to get rid of it for good by any means necessary. Even if that means you would have to die with it, so be it. Anything to make sure it doesn't come out victorious.

You won't take away the people I love again.

 _______________________________________________________________

The last time you took a vacation was...never. You've never been on vacation. Your 50-year lone journey could technically count, considering you don't work and essentially goof around most of those years. It wasn't to relax from the stresses of work though. It was merely to pass the time before you could integrate back into society without causing a fuss. It would also help you forget about the people you had gotten to know.

You look over to your co-worker and boss. "Can't I just relax at home? Do I really need to go all the way out to…"

"Kyoto," Yuki finishes your thought.

"Right. Do I really need to go out to Kyoto to relax?"

Fuku shakes her head in disbelief. "Honestly, all you ever do is work! You'll go stir crazy if you don't switch up your surroundings every now and then."

"Besides," Yuki chimes in. "If anyone deserves a vacation, it's you. I don't think you understand how much you work. It's admirable, but also very concerning."

Seeing their worried expression, you feel a bit bashful. They were only looking out for you, thinking you to be tied down to the same limitations they have. You badly want to just bite the bullet and tell them the true nature of who you are. Surely they would understand, right? They would accept you for who you truly are, right? The coiling of the snake around your arm keeps your confession at bay.

Apparently, a vacation for you meant a vacation for it as well. Tormenting you must be such a demanding job after all.

You made sure to sharpen your axe real well the other night.

The chugging of the train grew louder and louder. You and a few other people, mostly fellow travelers from outside your town, walk up to the yellow line on the ground and stand to wait. The train begins to slow down into a complete stop. Once halted, a hiss of steam is let out and the doors creak open.

You turn to give your farewells to your friends and surprisingly find yourself in the middle of a group hug. You give Fuku and Yuki their own pat on the back and they squeeze you a bit harder.

"Have fun! Don't forget to call me and take a bunch of pictures!" Yuki demands.

"And bring a man home," Fuku adds.

You laugh at her comment. She really was a feisty one.

Adjusting the bag hanging from your shoulder, you step onto the train cart and take a seat. After a few minutes, the doors close and you begin to depart from the station. As you look back out the window behind you, you see Fuku and Yuki still standing there, waving you off even as you gradually disappear over the horizon. You swear, they both looked ready to burst into tears.

A tightness against your arm grabs your attention. After wriggling about from under your sleeve, the snake finally pokes its head out and turns its head towards you.

"So," you whisper, as to not attract any attention from your fellow passengers. "It took you awhile to come back. Did I cut you up that badly?"

It hisses at you for mocking it. Uncaring of it feelings, you uncoil it from your arm and drop it in the seat next to you. Should any of the passengers have watched you, they would see you moving nothing. You were actually grateful they couldn't see it. If they did, they would all certainly panic. You did not want to be known as the traveler who carries a deadly snake with them.

You cross one leg over the other and sink in your seat. "Y'know, I should give you a name. It's starting to become annoying just referring to you as 'the snake'."

It seemed surprised that you were speaking to it on neutral terms. Usually, your interactions were hostile and more or less ended with you chopping it into fine bits. It slithers back onto you, this time coiling around your neck. You nearly flinch at the familiar sensation you felt as it tightened its grip to gain stability.

I felt this in my first memory. Go figure.

You pull out your phone and quickly search up an image of a color wheel. You take care to lift the screen up to the snake's eye level while not appearing odd from any lingering gazes. You tell it to tap on a color, and from the one it selects, you would refer to it as that henceforth. It was unimpressed by your naming process but you tell it that it was either this or you give it the most insulting name you can think of.

It looks at the screen for a minute. It then presses the tip of its mouth against the glass and selects the color black.

"How original," you sarcastically say. It responds by tightening around your neck. "Alright. I'll call you Kuro from now on. It'll make cutting you up all the more personal."

Your one-sided chat ends with Kuro, who turns his head away and settles around your neck. You pull up your phone's built-in navigation app and look at the expected arrival time, 3 hours. You lean forward and prop both elbows on your knees. For the next few hours, you just sat there and waited, not bothering to look out the window and marvel in the passing scenery. Your focus was entirely on Kuro, making sure that he wouldn't try to sneak off of you and attack any of the other passengers. He usually only goes for people you had grown attached to or spend most of your time with, but you weren't going to take any chances.

You give yourself a bit of comfort by sticking your hand in your duffel bag and squeezing the familiar handle of your axe.

________________________________________________________________

The city still amazes you. It was hard to believe that in just a couple hundred years, humanity would evolve so rapidly. As amazing as the advancement of humanity was, the air quality has gone to complete shit. Along with sleeping and eating, you didn't need to breathe either. You're thankful you didn't have to subject yourself to the polluted air and spare yourself from burning your lungs. Kuro seems to hate the air as well, as he makes a sort of gagging noise once you step out of the station.

Finally, we agree on something

You robotically push past the crowds, flag down a taxi, and check into your hotel room. You send a quick text to Yuki to let her know you arrived safely and thank her again for booking the room for you. Once you set your belongings down and relax against the plush bed, you get a text back.

'What r u going to do?'

That's right. This was supposed to be a vacation. You were supposed to be going out and doing literally anything other than work.

What the hell are you even supposed to do?

You text back, 'idk.'

'Seriously??? There's a ton of stuff you could do in Kyoto!'

'Like what?'

'I heard shrines are lovely this time of the year'

________________________________________________________________

The fact that you, a god, are visiting a shrine to be very, very hilarious. Kuro hates it apparently, which made it even funnier.

"Aww, don't be like that," you jokingly cooed at him.

You used the ladle from the shrine pavilion to scoop up the so-called purified water and bring it close to him. He hisses so violently that the shrine maiden that acted as a guide for you and your fellow visitors flinched and looks around to find the source of her scare. Deciding to spare him any more stress and reason to go on a frenzy, you put the ladle back in the basin and catch up to the departing group.

The tour was simple, a mere walk around the temple and it's public areas while the guide explained the history behind each building, important figures, and various rituals the worshipers practice. It wasn't the most exciting way to spend your first day on vacation, but you found still found it interesting and very educational.

Near the end of the tour, the guide leads you all up to a statue of a woman. Her skin is as white as milk, half of her black hair twisted up in a bun while the rest flowed down her back. It was a hairstyle your mother would style on you and even taught you how to do it yourself. Her kimono was a faded gold color from years of natural degradation. The pattern on her stone clothing reminded you of flames.

Your tour guide stops and turns back towards you all. "This here is a statue of the sun goddess, Amaterasu. She is a central deity within the Shinto religion. The Japanese nobility claim their divine right to rule by claiming to be her descendants."

Your tour guide went on about the shrine's methods of worship for Amaterasu, but you completely drowned out her words. You found yourself completely enamored by the statue.

Something about it was...

Hearing that name was…

Your body was...

"Miss?" One of the tour-goers waves her hands in front of your vision in an attempt to gain your attention. "Is everything alright?"

As you slowly regain your focus, you notice a wetness on your face. You had shed a tear. You quickly wiped it away and gave the concerned woman a reassuring smile. "Allergies."

She seemed relieved and without a second thought reached into her bag to pull out a bottle. She pops off the cap, shakes out two antihistamine pills and hands them to you. You take them and hide them under your tongue before taking a gulp of water from your plastic bottle. You thank her, waiting for her to walk off with the group before spitting them out.

Kuro gives a condescending flick of his tongue against the cheek your tear descended on. You slap his head away and growl, "Not a word."

You take a moment to gather yourself before heading back with the group. Before you turn the corner and lose sight of the statue, you spare it one last glance. When you looked at it again, you were certain what you were feeling wasn't just a fluke.

You felt warm.

________________________________________________________________

The tour ended not long after you all saw the statue of the sun goddess. You didn't leave until night, when the Shrine closed to the public. You spent the entire day just staring at the statue, basking in the familiar warmth that filled within your body.

"I know you don't care, but that wasn't some coincidence," you say to Kuro. "That warm feeling. It's similar, no, the exact same warmth I summon when I heal people!"

You yank him off your neck and plop him on the nearest surface, a stone tablet of sorts with writing carved into it. It was monument for some historical figure, but you didn't care about it. He looks at you as if he was actually considering your words for once. At this point, you could care less about this ingrained rivalry between you two. If there was anyone else in the world that could ever relate to you, it would be him.

"Who the hell am I? What the hell are we? Who the hell made us so hellbent on screwing each other over? Actually, let me rephrase. Why are we so hellbent on screwing each other over?"

You kept rattling on question after question. Contemplating the meaning of your existence to a snake that no one but yourself could see. In your confused frenzy, you fail to notice the grey clouds engulfing the sky. The loud roar of lightning and sudden rainfall put a halt to your pacing.

So much for clear skies.

The sound of footsteps approaching your figure brought your attention back down to earth. "Are you alright ma'am? Do you have an umbrella?" a man in a lab coat and glasses looks at you with a blank stare, but his voice indicates that he was worried for you.

You shake your head. "I didn't think it would rain today."

The man opens his mouth to say something when suddenly, your eardrums are assaulted by another clap of lightning. This time, it struck the space right next to the both of you. You frantically search your surroundings to locate exactly where it struck. The monument that your rival was on had been completely shattered into pieces.

Shit, I put Kuro on that!

The bespectacled man kneels down towards you and offers you his hand. You didn't realize that you had fallen over until you finally registered the stinging on each of your knees. You reach out towards his offered hand. Before you could place your hand in his own, darkness suddenly enveloped your vision followed by a wave of dizziness. You instinctively shut your eyes and nurse your head in your hands.

The wet and cold air of the rainstorm was suddenly replaced with a suffocating heat. You manage to open your eyes and find yourself in a completely new setting. You were on the balcony of a building, currently blanketed in flames and billowing smoke. You accidentally inhaled due to your shock and began to cough as your lungs fill with black air.

Your fit alerts a figure in the room of your presence. Seeing you, a defenseless woman all so suddenly, they found themselves frozen in shock. Your vision began to slowly clear up enough for you to notice the familiar sheen of metal. Whoever it was that you were looking at had a sword in hand, tip aimed to the floor where a man lied unconscious at his feet.

Instinctively, you reached into your handbag and grabbed your axe. You put all the force you could muster into your grip and threw it at the man with the sword. He gave out a cry of pain, indicating that you had landed a hit on him. He suddenly backs away from the body and you think you hear him mutter some sort of apology before running out the room. With the threat now gone, you make your way towards the man on the floor. He was still unconscious, so you took a firm hold of his shoulders and began to shake him awake. He wakes up with a sputter before taking notice of you.

"Who are you?" his booming voice asks

"No time for introductions! The building is burning and we need to leave! Now!"

You didn't give him a chance to get in another word. Grabbing his forearm and hoisting him on his feet, you pulled him out of the fiery room. You make sure to grab your axe, wedged deep into the wood of the door frame, on your way out.

Miraculously, you manage to find a way out the building. As soon as you're lungs fill with fresh air, you double over into another coughing fit. As you try to calm your breaths, you turn back to building. It was a temple, but not like the one you visited earlier in the day. This one seemed more rustic. It was hard to fully picture what it might have looked like due to it being quite on fire still.

If you hadn't escaped in time, the man you dragged along with you would have perished. If not by the stab of the sword looming over him, then by the flames. Speaking of him, he looks out towards the burning temple with you. Instead of worry or panic, he seemed to be rather annoyed.

"Someone tried to do away with me as I slept? Audacious, but foolish. Killing my guards and managing to get so close to me is another matter."

Who cares if you were asleep or not?! You almost died!

He then turns towards you, taking notice of your grip still on his arm. "You there," he addresses you. "Let go of me."

You let go of his arm and he rubs it as if your grip was uncomfortable. He took in the person standing before him, his apparent savior.

"You may be mere entertainment the monks brought in, but you saved my life nonetheless. You have my thanks."

Did he just insinuate that you were a prostitute?

"I must have missed all the monks among the fire. I don't have a clue how I ended up in there," you tell him.

It's now that you begin to take in your surroundings. You were no longer within the city, not a single skyscraper obscuring the night sky in sight. The air, despite standing next to a burning building, wasn't as disgusting to breathe in. The man you rescued had striking features. His hair black and eyes a carnelian hue. He wore armor sporting colors of black, white, and red. You remember seeing such attire way back when your parents were alive. He was some sort of soldier.

"What are you staring at? Surely you know who I am?" He asks. You shake your head, being at a total loss for words. This genuinely confuses him. "You saved me not knowing who I am? Not expecting reward or favor?" He gives a deep chuckle that echoes throughout the night. "So be it, I shall tell you my name. I am the man who will rule all under the sun-"

Your silence is broken by your faint laugh. Was this man seriously going to monologue and create some sort of suspenseful build-up over his own name? After he just escaped the clutches of death?

He lifts an eyebrow. "Have I said something amusing?"

You cover your mouth to stifle your giggles and shake your head once more. Surely, he must have thought you rude.

Instead, he lets out another round of laughter, this time louder. "You're a curious one. No one has acted so impudently to me before." He takes a step closer to you and you take half a step back. "You intrigue me, which is almost as worthy of praise for saving my life. I am the Lord of Azuchi Castle and Daimyo of Owari, Nobunaga Oda."

Your head involuntarily tilts to the side. You look up at him and say, "...Who?"

His brows furrow. Now he was getting frustrated. "Do you truly not know who I am?"

You fiddle with your thumbs. "Noooooo?"

"You are indeed a strange one. But I have given you my name. Now, give me yours."

You hesitated, but decided it was safe to give him your name.

"I see. A good name befitting my savior"

Was that a compliment? Hang on, where the hell are you?!

You shake your head as if to clear your mind of its confused state. "Now that we got the introductions out the way. Tell me, where are we?"

"We are at Honno-ji. The building before you is-"

"A temple. I can see that. What year is it?"

He seems taken back by your question and of the fact that you interrupted him. "It is 1582. Why?"

Ah, 1582………WHAT?!

Before you could understandably freak out, the galloping of hooves grabs both your attention. The man at the front of the small group heading in your direction shouts, "Lord Nobunaga, you're safe!"

Once he reaches a safe distance, he hurriedly dismounts and approaches you both on foot. The others that rode alongside him turn their attention towards the building and begin shouting out orders to put out the flames.

"Mitsunari," Nobunaga turns to him. "Why have you come? Where is Hideyoshi?"

"Lord Hideyoshi sent me ahead. He should arrive here shortly," Mitsunari explains. He then takes in the sight of the smoldering temple and frowns. "It would seem the information we received about your assassination attempt was correct."

You feel another coughing fit coming and try to muffle it. It is then that Mitsunari takes notice of you.

"Oh, who might you be?"

Nobunaga calls out to you. He gives a nod to Mitsunari as an indication that you were no threat and then commanded, "Present yourself to my subordinate."

"I'm- Ow!"

Something pierces your ankle and you nearly fall over yet again. Mitsunari pulls you towards him and swiftly draws his sword out. As your eyes search the ground for what could have bitten you, you notice the familiar black scales of your rival hidden between the blades grass.

"Kuro! You bastard, I thought the lightning fried you to a crisp!"

As much as you hate to admit, you were glad to see the serpent is alive and well. However, as Mitsunari took notice of the snake, he pulled you further in until you were between him and Nobunaga.

"A snake?! Please stand back!"

He firmly planted his right foot on the ground and raised his sword. You immediately went on the defense and shoved him into the Nobunaga's chest. They were dumbfounded as they saw you place yourself protectively in front of the snake as if they were the threat, not it.

"Stop! He's with me!"

"My lady, the snake could potentially be venomous. Please walk carefully towards me,' Mitsunari beckons you to him.

Oh, he's much more than venomous… hold on.

You look down towards Kuro, then to Mitsunari, then to Kuro and back to the grey-haired man again. "You...You can see him?"

"Of course I can! Now please, get back!"

You glare down at him. "You bastard! You can make people see you at will can't you?!"

Unsurprisingly, he plays dumb and slithers back on you. Like before, he situates himself around your neck before turning his gaze towards the two armor-clad men. He sends an almost condescending gaze at the grown men panicking before him, a tiny viper.

"Ok, before you panic let me explain. This is Kuro. Say hi." You roll your eyes as he hisses at them. What else did you expect? "Lovely. He's my…we've known each other for a long time."

"You say that as if the snake were a person." Nobunaga notices.

Man don't even get me started!

"He's more aware than most, but he isn't harmful. So long as you don't annoy him he won't try to lunge at you." You shift your weight to the foot he had bitten, reminding you of the fact that he sunk his fangs into you just moments ago. "Except me. He'll only bite me."

"He's not venomous, is he?" Mitsunari asks.

"He has venom," you stupidly say, but quickly backtrack on your statement. "But he never shoots it in me, I swear! like I said, you just have to be cautious around him and not give him a reason to bite you."

"A woman with a venomous snake as her companion. There is no end to your amusement, is there?" Nobunaga speaks up, impressed, and not at all ashamed of feeling so, "Mitsunari, this is my savior. Remember her well."

"I thank you for rescuing our Lord," the man, clad in purple armor and a singular beauty mark under his right eye, bows deeply towards you. "My name is Mitsunari Ishida. I serve Nobunaga's right-hand man."

You wave your hands frantically to stop him. "Ah, no need to be so formal! Despite the circumstances, It's nice to meet you as well."

you properly introduce yourself to Mitsunari, who instantly perks up at your more welcoming demeanor. "Is your foot alright? That bite must have hurt. Though now that I've gotten a better look at you, you don't appear to be a nun. Are you perhaps from abroad?"

You look down towards yourself and realized you were wearing nothing but a t-shirt, capris, and some old worn out sneakers. You must look like a clown to them. Also, what were you even supposed to say in this sort of situation? Hey, I'm from 500 years in the future. Did I forget to mention I'm actually a 300 year old deity? Life sure is crazy!

Not knowing what is safe and not safe to say, you remained quiet. Mitsunari takes notice of your hesitation and looks back at Nobunaga for some guidance. The man, now over your rude behavior, steps past his subordinate and towers over you.

"Were you not taught to speak when spoken to? You may have saved my life, but there is only so much disobedience I will tolerate. Tell us where you hail from, and quickly."

You and Kuro glance at each other. Like most of your standoffs, there seems to be a mutual understanding between you two without the need for words. Remain silent. Do not tell them of your origin or of the nature of your being. Even if he decides you aren't trustworthy and strikes you down where you stand, you will survive the blow.

You kept your mouth shut. He seems more disappointed than angry towards your answer and turns towards Mitsunari. "Restrain her. She is now officially a suspect in the assassination plot on my life"

"My Lord. She's clearly disoriented from the chaos-"

"Restrain her," he ordered with finality.

Mitsunari, hesitant but not one to disobey orders, grabs a length of rope from his horse's saddle and walks back towards you. "Please give me your hands,' he politely demands of you. You do as you're told.

"It's alright," you whisper to him. "If it makes you feel better, my reason for being silent is just for my safety. I mean you all no harm. You have my word."

"I…" he appears caught between his orders and trusting in you. "I will trust you. No person with ill intent would risk their life to save Lord Nobunaga."

You thank him by giving his hand a comforting squeeze. He makes sure to tie your hands in a manner that would make escaping impossible, but not tight enough to hurt your wrists. You're escorted away from the temple, to a camp not too far away. You're led to a nearby bonfire and told to sit and not make any sudden moves. Mitsunari steps away from you and is replaced by two of the soldiers he brought with him.

"Hey," you try to whisper as quietly as you can to Kuro, "I have a suggestion. Care to hear it?"

He slithers around your neck until he's facing you head-on. It seems he's willing to listen. "Let's call a truce," you simply state. "The only conditions are that we look out and help one another until we find a way back to our time. After we return, we can go back to despising each other for the next hundreds of years."

Were you seriously offering an alliance with your sworn enemy? Yes, yes you were. As much as you both detest the idea of having to tolerate each other, the current situation made it clear that the only way you two are going to manage to get home is to put your heads together. Maybe even get along for a change?

Ugh, the thought of befriending this slithering asshole is deplorable.

"If you agree to those terms, bite my neck."

He doesn't hesitate to sink his fangs into your throat. You're sure he's wanted to bite you until your body was littered in duo puncture marks. The guards are alarmed at your cry of pain and go to kneel beside you to see what was wrong. They both took notice of the black snake around your neck and bleeding wounds. They look at each other and then nod. "Don't move ma'am. We'll take care of the snake-"

"He's a pet! No need to draw your sword," you immediately explain to them. "Could I maybe get a rag to press against my wound?"

The guard on your right seems hesitant, but his fellow soldier nods in assurance. He leaves in search of a rag, while the guard on your left seems to get closer to you. He's probably keeping a closer eye on you until his partner returns.

Two new people enter the camp. One is clad in blue and white armor, hair a pure white color. The other in green armor with red accents, hair a natural brown. You try your hardest to listen to their conversation. So far, both new figures seem to be concerned for the well being of Nobunaga. They question him on how he managed to escape unscathed and soon the attention is turned towards you.

"This is my savior. Due to her lack of answering my inquiries about her person, I've placed her under custody until we return to Azuchi."

"That one, sitting by the fire?" the white-haired one gestured towards you. You gave him a wave with your tied hands. "What a slender thing, but appearances aren't everything. Shall I pry answers from her mouth?"

The threat of torture puts you both on edge. You more than Kuro as you would be the one subjected to it.

Nobunaga seems to notice your fear and revels in it. "Once we return home, if she refuses to explain herself again, I will leave her in your hands. For now, we prepare for our departure."

The white-haired one nods in understanding before sending a spine chilling grin towards you.

Note to self, watch out for that one.

The brown-haired one comes towards you. While he isn't as scary as the other one, his height makes up for it. He's nearly twice your height and taller than anyone in the camp. He glares down at you and says, "Whoever you are, if you have any plans to harm Lord Nobunaga, I will make you regret ever having such thoughts."

Threat after threat after threat. You were getting pretty fed up with it. You were about to give the man a piece of your mind when suddenly, Kuro lunges at him. His fangs were bared and spurted liquid out of his mouth. That wasn't a warning bite. It was an honest attempt to bite and kill.

"Kuro!" You scold him. "That's not going to help the situation!"

"A snake?! Why haven't you noticed and gotten rid of it?!" The green armored one questions your guards.

They stutter over themselves before you finally speak up in place of them. "He's my pet."

"Pet or not. Allowing such a dangerous animal around Lord Nobunaga is a risk I won't take."

He reaches down to his waist to unsheathe his sword. In your panic, you shot up on your feet and you kick him right in the diaphragm. His arms wrap around his stomach and he nearly falls to his knees over from the blow.

"The next person that points a sword at us, I'm going to hold you down myself and let him pump you full of venom!" you scream. Gods, were you so on edge that you were now threatening people?

Your suddenly thrown face first down onto the ground and pinned from behind. You turn your head to see who it was that had restrained you. It was the white-haired one. The empty barrel pointed at you keeps you still.

I smell gunpowder. That's a rifle no doubt. Father used to have one in the house in case wolves came by at night.

"Those things have a tendency to accidentally go off," you tell him.

He smiles down at you. "Indeed. You'll forgive me if it does, yes?"

Second note, I hate this guy.

Angered by his cockiness, you try to wiggle out of his hold, but it utterly fails. In fact, you actually help him get a better grip on you and make it harder for you to escape. Great job, you dumbass.

"What shall we do with the snake, my lord?" The one pinning you down asks Nobunaga.

He stood over your defenseless self and stared at you with indifference. "It is clearly a hazard, but it has yet to leave it's master side and only struck when it perceived her to be under an immediate threat. Leave it, but keep your distance."

"My Lord, that is too much of a risk. Removing the threat now would be the better option," the brown-haired one protested. Slightly bent over in pain from your hit.

"I hate to say it, but I agree with Hideyoshi," the white haired one says. "Even a moment of vulnerability on our part will result in her releasing it on us."

The one you hit is Hideyoshi. Noted.

Nobunaga smirks at him. "If you're so concerned, Mitsuhide, then I suggest you put your sharpshooter skills to good use and keep an eye on the damn thing. Now, if you're both done bickering, let us head out."

Mitsuhide didn't seem to like his new orders but answers with a practiced "yes sir", before helping you up to your feet. Without any more to say, you're escorted to an large crowd of horses and lifted onto a saddle. Mitsunari is your apparent rider and you quietly thank the heavens for your one saving grace.

"Sorry," you whisper, "I sort of made things worse for myself."

You feel him tense, immediately feeling bad for making him worry even more.

"Once we return to Azuchi, you'll be in a secure place and can speak your truth without fear of lingering ears," he tells you. The horse beneath you suddenly kinks into a speedy gallop and you hold onto him for dear life.

You travel for a few minutes before the steeds around you slow down into a complete stop. A man with an eye patch and blue and gold armor appears with another unit of soldiers. Perhaps he was back up? He sure is late though.

"Lord Nobunaga. I see you're unscathed," he says, a more casual hint in his voice.

"Physically, yes. But my pride has taken quite the hit. We're returning to Azuchi. Have your men follow."

"Damn, I guess I was too late to see some action," he answers disappointedly. He turns back towards his reinforcements and shouts, "You heard the man! It's back home for us!"

His soldiers all let out groans of equal disappointment. He laughs at their expense before maneuvering his horse to join with the rest of the retreat. It's when he and his men fully merge that he takes notice of you and your bound hands. "Who's the lass?" He shouts over to Hideyoshi.

"They're under suspicion for the assassination attempt tonight. She has a snake around her neck and it will strike if you get near."

"A woman with a snake, huh? I like you already. The name's Date Masamune. I hope we can get to know each other well."

First I get called a prostitute, then this asshole flirts with me while I'm tied up! So much for a relaxing vacation!

________________________________________________________________

Kennyo watches the retreat of the Oda alliance with rage. His chance to exact revenge was in the palm of his hand but had been slapped away in a mere instance. The rustling of bushes gains his attention and he turns to see Ranmaru knelt before him, sweaty and disheveled. He's now porting a gash across his normally pristine face. "Are you alright? We need to tend to that wound to prevent it from becoming infected. It'll likely scar."

Ranmaru is on the verge of tears. "Master Kennyo, I failed you. All our efforts to eliminate the head of the Oda have gone to waste because of-"

The monk shushes him. "You've done well, Ranmaru. You've demonstrated how well the devil king trusts you. That alone is enough to be the cause of their undoing."

Ranmaru flinches at the mention of the word "trust." Kennyo turns back to look at the retreating forces once more. He turned back just in time to see that the they had a prisoner in their midst. He becomes even more enraged once he realizes that it was a woman.

"They would go so far as to blame a woman for the fire and hold her captive. The Oda couldn't stoop any lower than they have now."

Kennyo begins to walk away into the darkness of the forest. He gestures for the boy to follow, and he does so without hesitation.

________________________________________________________________

Another set of eyes watch the retreat of the Oda alliance from the sidelines.

"How disappointing. Though perhaps this is a blessing in disguise," Kenshin, initially unhappy seeing Nobunaga escape unharmed, immediately perks up at his own thoughts. "I still have an opportunity to drag the devil king out to battle and strike him down myself."

Shingen shakes his head in disbelief. Although he was frustrated as the rest, seeing the Oda pull out victorious and without a single loss, hearing Kenshin retain his bloodlust was reassuring. "He truly earned the title of devil king. Only a demon could have such twisted luck on his side."

"Lord Shingen," Yukimura suddenly notices an unfamiliar figure among the retreating forces, "look at who is riding with Mitsunari Ishida."

Shingen searches out for the familiar tuff of grey hair. He was in a bad mood, but now he's pissed. That was a woman, bound by the wrist the same way a criminal would be. "Unforgivable," is all the Tiger of Kai could growl out.

"Yes," Yoshimoto nods in agreement with his cousin, "Such a small thing. She must be scared to death."

Kenshin doesn't make any comment at the revelation, but he notices the panic that overtakes Sasuke's face upon hearing that a woman had been taken prisoner.

"I've grown bored. Let us return to Echigo and reconvene another day."

Kenshin doesn't wait for an answer. He turns away and the rest of his allies follow without a word. "Sasuke," Kenshin calls out to his ninja who had yet to move from his spot, "Do not keep me waiting."

He snaps out of this train of thought before following along. "Yes, my Lord."

________________________________________________________________

You had remained quiet the entire trip. A few people called your name, but you were so lost in your thoughts that you didn't even acknowledge whoever was speaking to you. You failed to realize that night had turned into morning. Your surroundings had changed from foliage into a massive fortress-like castle.

Kuro paid attention to your surroundings in your stead. Anyone that had gotten even a little close was hissed at and had transparent venom spat at them. Even Mitsunari, your one and only ally as of now, was not spared of the serpents radar.

You finally speak your first words after hours of silence. "If you keep threatening every man that so much as looks in my direction, I might start to believe you actually liked me all this time."

You're once again bitten, this time on the back of your hand. Blood quickly pools in the twin punctures before rolling down and staining your skin.

Mitsuhide had witnessed the snake sink its fangs into you. "Oh my, such a temperamental pet. Are you sure you have it under control?"

You roll your eyes. "Of course I do. Hey, Kuro," you look down to him. "If things turn ugly, pump me full of whatever you got left."

The snake nods, pleased at the privilege you've given it. Mitsuhide narrows his eyes at you, concerned over your order. You make sure to pat Kuro's scaly head while maintaining eye contact with him.

The entourage heads towards the stable. Stable hands awaited their return and began to board and tend to each steed. Mitsunari eventually dismounts and offers his hand for you to take. You gratefully accept his gesture and he helps steady you on the ground.

"How are your hands? If they feel sore I'll redo my bindings," he offers.

You shake your head. "I'm alright. What's going to happen to me now?"

"Lord Nobunaga requested an immediate council upon his return. It will likely be about the events that took place at Honno-ji and will take some time to inform and gather everyone needed. Until then, you...you will be…"

You didn't rush him. He was clearly having a hard time trying to muster up the courage to tell you what will happen to you until the meeting. You already have an idea what it would entail.

"You will be held in a prison cell until your fate is determined."

There it is.

"Will Kuro be allowed to stay with me?"

He nods. "Hideyoshi requested that the snake remain on your person at all times and visible. I hope his request isn't too unreasonable."

"If it puts the people here at ease then I can live with it. I'd feel safe having him close by anyways, so I'm quite thankful he didn't call in some expert snake hunter or something."

Mitsunari smiles at your words. "Even when the odds are against you, you find the positive within. You are truly admirable, my lady."

You return the smile. "Thank you, but I'm sure I told you before not to be so formal!"

"Very well. I agree with the condition that you address me with familiarity too. Is that alright?"

You nod and, for a brief moment, you forget that you were technically still a prisoner.

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