#got another that’ll hopefully ship soon

[behindthesefangirleyes]

My first shirt arrived for Pride 2025!

[megarywrites]

Day 16 - 30 Line challenge

actually got a bit of writing done today, which was good because i was feeling stuck, but i'm not quite to the part i wanted to post next, so hopefully i can do that tomorrow. anyways, here's today's snippet, and it's much shorter than usual lol

“Sounds like you’re good at improvising. That’ll be useful when it comes time for skirmishes.” I frowned, confused. “Oh, has no one mentioned it? We attack ships sometimes.”  “Yes, I’ve seen the skulls.”  She sighed heavily. “Only a few of them are mine.” Then, she let out another bright laugh. “Maybe I’ll be able to add a few more soon.”

[grailfinders]

Fate and Phantasms #192

Today on Fate and Phantasms we're building the enchanting Caster of Okeanos, which despite her name doesn't actually show up in Okeanos, but rather the fourth pseudosingularity, Salem. She's also one of the last servants in the game (so far) to have her true name hidden, so pretty soon I can stop pointing out how her character build below the cut has true name spoilers. Specifically, this build also includes spoilers for the Salem pseudosingularity, so read at your own peril.

If you'd rather just check out her character sheet, you can find that over here.

Next up: The equal to the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, so just, equal to heaven, I guess.

Circe is a Transmutation Wizard, because she is a witch, and Transmutation is where they stuck polymorph.

Race and Background

Like her protege, Circe is an Elf, but if we want kindasorta falcon wings, that might be tricky. Just kidding, for some reason WotC thought winged elves were a priority, so we got Avariel Elves from an unearthed arcana. This means you only get +2 to a single stat, but we can make that Intelligence thanks to Tasha's for a brain blast. Your subrace gives you 30' of flying speed as long as you don't wear medium or heavy armor (not an issue), as well as the standard elf kit: Darkvision, Fey Ancestry to protect against charms, Trances instead of sleep, and proficiency in Perception thanks to your Keen Senses.

Circe lives on her island alone (if you don't count pigs) so that makes her a Hermit, privy to the secrets of the universe as well as Medicine and replacing the other proficiency (which we'll get back as a class proficiency) with Deception. Tricking men into turning into pigs is kind of a hobby for you.

Ability Scores

Your strongest score should go into Intelligence, that's how you cast spells, and also you're clearly more intelligent than the men who show up on your island. Speaking of, Charisma is next- you're a witch in the middle of a witch hunt that somehow never got caught, and there's also that whole Pig Island thing. Your Dexterity is also pretty good, it's hard enough to cast spells while walking, let alone flying. Also those heels, oh my fucking god how have you not broken an ankle yet. Your Constitution is above average mostly because I'd feel bad putting it any lower. That means your Wisdom is pretty low. You publicly introduce yourself as a witch in the middle of the Salem Witch Trials, and you're pretty flighty in general. Finally, dump Strength. You're a wizard, and you're clearly not that buff.

Class Levels

Circe is a wizard, meaning she starts off with proficiency in Intelligence and Wisdom saves, as well as Arcana and Religion. When you worship the goddess of magic, there isn't much of a difference, tbh. Speaking of magic, you can cast and prepare Spells using your Intelligence. Your spell slots normally only recharge on long rests, but once per long rest you can get a couple slots back on a short rest thanks to your Arcane Recovery, giving you back slots of a total level equal to half your wizard level rounded up. So when you hit level three, you can get back one 2nd level slot, or two 1st level slots. The thing about wizard is, they get a lot of spells. Six now, and two each level, plus whatever they can scavenge from other wizards. Since Circe's whole power set is "good at magic", there really isn't a set of spells that fit- any spell you could cast would be applicable. So rather than try to boil it down myself, we're just giving a rough guide here. There's a whole ass list on the character sheet, and we'll bring up the super important ones here, but really there's three qualifications: if a spell fits into one of these categories, Circe would probably have it. 1. Is it useful? The most open-ended, but just fill in spaces left by the other 2 with spells you want. I'm not a goddamn baby sitter, pick spells you like. 2. Can it turn one thing into another? Men to pigs, You into Medea, whatever kykeon is made out of into kykeon, this one's pretty easy to spot. 3. Can it help someone sail a ship? A bit specific, but helping the sailors she doesn't turn into pigs is also Circe's thing. Skill empowerment, weather control, that kind of thing. With all that out of the way, the big spells you'll probably want at first level are Mage Armor for not dying, Magic Missile for caster balls, and Sleep to knock out the sailors while you go around turning them to pigs. True Polymorph takes an hour per sailor and you need to recharge with a long rest, so this’ll take a while.

At second level, you become a Transmutation Savant, giving you all sorts of bonuses, like how copying transmutation spells into your book is cheaper and faster now. You can also make Minor Alchemy, turning 1 cubic foot of wood, stone, iron, copper, or silver, into another material on that list over the course of 10 minutes. You're not strong enough to shatter wooden chains either, but hopefully someone on your team is. This transformation lasts up to an hour or until you lose concentration, then it turns back to its regular form.

Third level wizards get Cantrip Formulas, letting you swap out one cantrip you know with a cantrip you don't know at the end of a long rest. You also get second level spells, like Alter Self to turn into Medea (among other benefits), and Gust of Wind to help out with sailing.

Use your first Ability Score Improvement to get a Keen Mind- always knowing which way you're facing and the angle the sun should be at are both really useful on the open sea. It also rounds up your Intelligence for stronger spells, and you can make your DM's life hell by remembering things up to a month after they happened.

Fifth level wizards get third level spells. Feign Death will help fake Mata Hari’s hanging later on, and Bestow Curse is super useful, since it can give a creature disadvantage on one kind of save. Like, say, wisdom saves. I wonder if there's a spell you like that requires a wisdom save coming up?

Sixth level transmutation wizards can create a Transmuter's Stone, a tiny object that gives its holder one of several benefits. When you make the stone, and if you're holding it while casting a transmutation spell, you can choose its beneft from the following: Darkvision, increased speed, proficiency in constitution saves, or resistance to one of acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder. You can only make one at a time after 8 hours of work, so don't try to stack them.

Seventh level wizards get fourth level spells, and you could get polymorph now if you really want, but you can also get that spell later for free, so if you're patient, you can get another spell now. If you do go for polymorph, it forces a wisdom save on a creature, and if they fail the save or they're willing, you can turn one creature into a beast with a CR equal to or less than the target's CR or level. All of the creature's stats are replaced by the new creature's, outside of alignment and personality. If it drops to 0 HP in this form, and hour passes, or you drop concentration, they turn back to normal. You can also cast other fourth level spells, like Control Water for sailing, Fabricate to turn... barley, just looked it up, into kykeon. Or any raw materials into a finished product that is Large or smaller.

At eighth level, you get another ASI that'll let you max out your Intelligence for super strong spells. That, plus your curses, will make your polymorph super hard to resist. When you get it.

Ninth level wizards get fifth level spells, like Control Winds and Skill Empowerment, as well as Scrying.

A tenth level transmuter is a Shapechanger, giving you the polymorph spell for free. You can also cast it on yourself once per short rest for free, but only if you turn into something CR 1 or lower. Sadly Medea isn't a beast or CR 1, but it doesn't hurt to practice. Also, yeah! You can now turn pretty much anyone into a Pig (CR 0, so there’s no excuse) or if you want to weaponize it, a Giant Boar (CR 2). Just promise to turn them back if they do your bidding. Still only lasts an hour, but they don’t have to know that.

Eleventh level wizards get sixth level spells. There really isn’t anything specifically Circe-like I want at this level, so just grab whatever your heart wants. There will be time for specifics later.

At twelfth level you get another ASI, and since your intelligence is maxed out we can diversify. Grab the War Caster feat for advantage on concentration saves (very good for pigmaking), the ability to cast spells with your hands full (not applicable), and best of all, you can cast spells as opportunity attacks if that spell as an action casting time and targets a creature. Oh hey, guess what spell fits that description?

Thirteenth level casters get seventh level spells! Again, not necessarily anything you need from here, but Plane Shift is always cool. Maybe you can stumble onto the pig dimension or something.

Your last goody from the transmutation specialty is to become a Master Transmuter, burning your transmuter stone in one go for a burst of magical power. Afterwards, you can’t make a new one until you take a long rest. You can use this for a Major Transformation, permanently changing a medium or smaller nonmagical object into another of similar size & mass (you also can’t cheese value out of this) over the course of 10 minutes. Alternatively, you make a Panacea, removing all curses, diseases, and poisons from a single creature, while also healing it back to full health. That’s some good eating. Going even further, you can Restore Life to cast Raise Dead without a spell slot. Death is a pretty hard line in the Nasuverse, but if anyone could do it it’d probably be Circe. Finally, you can Restore Youth to reduce a creature’s age by 3d10 years without extending their lifespan. You’ve clearly used that on yourself a couple times, but I can’t blame you.

Fifteenth level wizards get eighth level spells, and for once there is something I want to get. You might not use Scylla in-game, but hey, giant sea monsters are cool, so use either Summon Greater Demon, Dominate Monster, or Illusory Dragon to get one, depending on your preferred method.

You get yet another ASI, so bump up your Constitution for better concentration and more health- remember, health gets added retroactively, so that’s 16 extra this level, not one.

At seventeenth level you finally get ninth level spells, giving you access to Mass Polymorph for a proper pig banquet. This one is limited to only half the targets’ levels, but a pig is still CR 0, so it shouldn’t be a big issue. However, if you’re feeling really cruel, you can use True Polymorph for a more... permanent solution. If you keep concentration up for a full hour, the change lasts until it is dispelled. You can also turn objects into creatures, or creatures into objects, but none of those are particularly in character.

Eighteenth level wizards get Spell Mastery, giving you a 1st & 2nd level spell that you can cast for absolutely free, no restrictions. You can always change it later, but I highly suggest Magic Missile so you always have some damage on standby, and Alter Self for the versatility of it.

Your penultimate level grants you your ultimate ASI, so bump up your Charisma for an easier time tricking sailors. It doesn’t do much for the build, but at this point it doesn’t need to.

Your final level of the build gives you two Signature Spells, 3rd level spells that you can cast once per short rest without spending a spell slot. Sadly polymorph is a fourth level spell so it isn’t in the running, but Bestow Curse and Tidal Wave are good runners up. I never said you had to be nice to sailors, just help them out occasionally.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Polymorph is one of the easiest ways to utterly shut down an enemy if it hits, at the very least buying you an hour to run away and regroup. It’s also very funny.

The Transmuter’s Stone is a very powerful support tool, protecting you and giving you healing options wizards don’t normally get. You also come loaded with tools like Skill Empowerment, which is just flexible enough to be useful even when you’re not on a ship.

You get concentration free flight, which is incredibly useful for a spellcaster. Being able to completely avoid an enemy’s front line and turn their back line into pigs is very useful.

Cons

The reason your flight being concentration free is such a big deal is because a lot of your spells use concentration. Honestly, your saves aren’t that bad (esp. with war caster) but it still limits your options, especially when your signature move requires concentration.

While your stone is powerful, it has a huge recharge time to contend with, requiring a long rest followed by an extra 8 hours of work, and the entire time between now and then you might as well not have a subclass. It’s a pretty harsh penalty for actually using your class feature.

It takes a while for this build to go from level one to casting polymorph, so if you want a build you can jump right into and feel like the character, this build definitely isn’t what you’re looking for.

[tailorvizsla]

“Just let me see (her/him/them) one last time. Please.” with Paz 🥺

Title: Home Is In Your Arms Pairing: Paz x F Reader Word Count: ~4k Rating: R Warnings: Canon-typical violence, Reader is an ex-Storm Trooper and was not treated well, some attempts at medical jargon, Paz is injured, a hint of angst, and vanilla sex. Author’s Notes: A request from the lovely, wonderful @huliabitch that was supposed to be a one-shot but evolved into this entire-ass fic because I sort of like this concept? There’s a lot of buildup and not a lot of angst, but just a hint. I really hope you don’t mind! [Holy crap, I copied the wrong list of tags for this. I took those extra names off as soon as I realized it. I’m not sure if I got it quickly enough, though. If you got a note, I am really sorry. Forgive me, please.]

📚 My Master List 📚 If you want to send in a prompt (or just talk to me lol), feel free to peruse the list here!

The gunshot wound to his side is like a singular point of white-hot fire, a blinding supernova of agony as he stumbles against the crumbling remains of the blown-out grocery store. Blood burbles up through his lips and sprays against the inside screen of his visor, streaking crimson as it drips out through the bottom of his helmet. Paz sinks down between two of the shelves, fingers trembling as he tries to staunch the blood rapidly seeping into his kute. Paz gasps as his backside touches the ground, jarring the agonizing pain shooting up his side. His head swims nauseatingly as he struggles to get each gasp of air into his aching lungs.

Fuck, he thinks to himself. Really got in over my head today.

He had a bounty to pick up – a simple bounty for someone skipping on bail – and he had almost gotten them. Then the troopers had shown up with two AT-STs and a TIE-fighter. His head suddenly feels both heavy and empty, and he thinks about his family. His home. Paz lets his head fall back against a stone pillar, blackness starting to seep in at the edges of his eyesight.

Just let me see them one last time. Please.

The last thing he sees as his head bobs down toward his chest are a pair of white boots approaching him.

-

-

-

The EMP blast triggers a minor explosion that knocks you off your feet. Collapsing into the remains of the store, you try to regain your bearings. It takes you several minutes to realize that your collar is no longer buzzing. You toss your weapon down and yank your helmet off, pulling at the band digging into your neck. It does not budge. You swear quietly to yourself.

You remove your breast plate and abdominal armor and drop it on the ground. They will not protect you much from Mandalorian weapons. You’d rather die in your undersuit than in the Empire’s armor. The vambraces follow, falling to the dusty, cracked concrete with a clatter. Glancing around the shop, you find that you are in some sort of supply store. Hopefully, there will be a knife here you can borrow.

As you pass by a display, you pick up a bag and loop it over your chest. Then you go to ransack the shelve for food and medical supplies. There isn’t much here, but it will be enough to tide you over until you can find someplace safe.

When you round the corner, you see a massive pile of blue armor in the corner. You freeze. This is the Mandalorian who had taken out half the buckets on your squad by himself. Many of them had been collared like you. Others were blind followers of the Empire. Despite this, you hold no bitterness against him.

Rather, you find yourself in terrified awe of him.

You get as close to him as you dare and crouch, poking his pauldron. He doesn’t budge. Glancing down at his side, you notice the wound on his side. Shit, he has lost a lot of blood. Chewing on your lower lip, you begin digging through your bag of pilfered supplies. You have some basic first aid training, so you get to work on getting him back onto his feet. When you’ve packed the wound and sealed it with a mass of tape, you start to rifle through his pockets to see what medical supplies he might be carrying. He has a single dose of the really good bacta, the stuff that’ll get a corpse back onto its feet for a few minutes. The stuff that cannon fodder like you would never be given.

For a moment, you stare down at the tiny bottle in your hand, watching as the dose of medicine swishes around inside. You want to take it, but you decide against it. This warrior deserves better than to bleed out in a damn grocery store.

You stab him in the patch of skin you can see. Then you grab his vibroblade and start sawing at the band around your throat, cursing violently as the blade just barely begins to chew through it. You are so engrossed in the task at hand that you do not hear the soft inhalation from behind you. Or the near-silent growl. A rough hand grabs you by the shirt and pulls up. The other hand wraps itself around your neck and you go very still, teetering on your tiptoes to avoid being choked to death.

“Who the fuck are you?” comes a low, deadly voice in your ear.

“The idiot who decided to help you?” you choke out.

“Why the hell would an Imp help a Mandalorian?”

“F-figured would be the right thing to do,” you gasp out. “Borrowed you-your knife – “

“Did you want me on my feet to try and kill me?” he hisses at you. “Did you think I’d be an easy target?”

Your heart rate spikes as his hand tightens around your throat. You cough in response, pulling at his forearm to try and breathe. He doesn’t budge.

“Collar – cut it off – let me – let me die free, please – “

The arm around your neck loosens slightly. Blood rushes back into your head and your knees wobble. His other hand comes up and you inhale, closing your eyes, expecting him to snap your neck. Instead, he examines your collar.

“Interesting,” he says.

Then he yanks his blade from your hand and puts it back where you had borrowed it.

“If I let you go, will you attack me?”

“Not suicidal,” you gasp out.

“Smart girl,” he rumbles out.

He lets go. You stagger a bit, wheezing as you suck down some air to your oxygen-starved lungs. You turn to look at him. Upright, he’s even bigger than you thought. He towers over you by no small amount, nearly twice your size. You swallow tightly, feeling quite exposed without your armor.

Not that it would have protected you much if he decided to take a swing at you. Tripping and falling would crack that cheap plasteel shit. He stumbles and you just barely catch him around the middle. A grunt escapes you at just how damn heavy he is.

“If I help you out of here, will you take this damn thing off me?” you ask him.

“Sure, why not?” he slurs.

“Where to?” you ask.

“East,” he says.

“Are we waiting for anybody?”

“No,” he manages to say. “Just me.”

You stare at him incredulously.

“You are responsible for all this?” you hiss, gesturing at the mayhem outside.

He throws his head back and laughs. It takes nearly two hours to walk the half-mile back to his ship. At some point, you debate on asking him if he’d be willing to ditch the armor, but you decide against it. That amount of beskar is probably worth a small fortune. It takes you a minute to spot his ship, cleverly hidden under a rocky overhang and a large camouflage tarp.

The ramp opens and you carry him up the ramp. There, you drag him as far as you can before he collapses. You grab the tarp and drag it inside to keep it from getting sucked into the intake vents. You shut the door before you start looking for a med kit. You find it in the galley, just above the sink. Then you hurtle back to the Mandalorian and inject him with another dose of the good stuff. Then you check his wound. Miraculously, the bleeding seems to have stopped.

From there, there is little you can do but wait, so you cover his chest with a blanket and climb into the cockpit. It only takes a few minutes to get the ship into the air and away from the battlefield.

-

-

-

You aren’t quite sure when you fell asleep, but when a hand clamps down on your shoulder, your neck is sore, and you have drooled on yourself. You look up. Big Blue is looming over you.

“The fuck are you doing?” he growls.

You blink the sleep out of your eyes. Then it all comes back in a rush. Shit.

“I didn’t know where you wanted to go,” you stutter out. “So I put her in a random hyperspace lane. I think.”

“Move,” he snarls.

You quickly get out of his way and he sits down. You retreat into the copilot’s chair, where you sit in silence for several minutes. He makes several course adjustments before you dare to speak up.

“Can I use your refresher, please?” you ask.

Be polite and he may not just toss you out the back. He growls. You take that as a yes. You head down the ladder and into the refresher you had seen. You relieve yourself. Then you eye the tiny washing machine stuffed in the corner. You stare down at your stained undersuit.

It’s filthy.

You’re filthy.

Gnawing on your lower lip, you peer over at the ladder. You asked for the refresher, not the toilet. And the washing machine is in the refresher. So it’s fair game?

Swiftly, before you can porg out like a coward, you shuck the suit and your underthings off, stuffing it all into the washing machine. Then you jump into the shower and begin cleaning up quickly. You untie your hair and work the worst of the knots in your braid out with your fingers. Then you steal some soap and start scrubbing the layers of blood, dirt, and grime off your body.

The water is cold, but it is glorious to be able to shower for more than two minutes at a time. When you are finished, you hop out and grab a towel. You can just barely wrap it around yourself, and it does little to cover your curves. You are just moving your things into the dryer when you hear your Mandalorian’s footsteps stomping toward the door.

“It’s been twenty minutes,” he snarls.

You open the door, putting your hands up.

“I asked to borrow your refresher,” you say. “I borrowed it. Nothing more.”

He freezes, his dark visor tilted down at you.

“Uh,” he stutters out. “Uhm – “

“It looks like it’ll be a little bit before everything is finished drying,” you tell him. “Then I’ll find a corner to sit in. I promise I won’t do anything stupid.”

“Uh, yeah,” he stammers. “Get dressed. I will be in the cockpit.”

He turns on his heel and goes back to the ladder in a hurry. You frown after him. What a weirdo. It takes another thirty minutes for the dryer to finish extracting the moisture from your clothing. You put it all back on and head up to the cockpit. He turns to look at you.

“You stay on that cushion,” he says, pointing at a chair. “Are we clear?”

“Aye, captain,” you say, sitting down in the copilot’s chair.

He disappears down the narrow corridor. You peer after him, snooping shamelessly. You catch a glimpse of a big bed and a gun case before the door swishes shut after him. You turn your attention back to the dizzying array of blue lights passing by in the windows. Boredom sets in quickly. You glance at the door. Then at the cushion under you.

A stupid thought seizes you. You’re hungry. He’s probably famished. Big Blue is your commanding officer now. So, he gets to eat first. Then, if he allows it, you get to eat your own ration. You push the thoughts away. This isn’t the Empire - he may not care if you eat at all.

But still. He’s your commanding officer now. And he’s been injured.

You give the cushion a tug and it pulls away from the seat, revealing the attachment points. You climb down the ladder, the cushion under one arm. Then you go dig around in the galley for something to snack on. Setting the cushion on the ground, you take your place on it, and start sifting through the packages of freeze-dried food.

“WOMAN - !” your Mandalorian bellows.

You nearly leap into the air. He drops down the ladder and lands with a jarring thud. He comes stomping into the galley, where you have put what appears to be a ration pack on the counter to heat. He glowers down at you.

“What. Did. I. Tell. You.”

“You said I couldn’t leave the cushion,” you say. “But you need to eat – “

“I can feed myself,” he hissed. “I gave you a direct order – “

You pat the cushion under your ass.

“You need to eat,” you repeat. “Your blood sugar is probably tanked by now. And concentrated bacta does weird things to your sodium levels. You need to eat, sir.”

He inhales sharply to yell, but he cuts himself off, pressing his face to his hand. You can almost see the steam curling from under his helmet.

“Do not call me sir. Get your ass to the cockpit. NOW. Before I snap your fucking neck and throw you out the airlock.”

You grab the bread roll and stuff it into your mouth. Then you grab the cushion and climb back up the ladder, hastily replacing it where it belongs. By the time he gets back to you, you’ve devoured the bread, and you are licking the crumbs off your fingertips.

“Don’t get smart with me,” he snaps.

You tilt your head up at him questioningly and decide to not argue.

“Let me see your collar,” he says grouchily.

You flip your hair forward. Big Blue grabs the collar. This time, he far gentler as he starts messing with it. You stay quiet, hoping that it will come off. Then you feel something cold slip between it and your neck. Then it pinches and the collar falls away. You stare down at it, turning it over and over.

“I’m free,” you whisper. You look up at him. “I’m free.”

“Looks like it,” he says. “Where are you from?”

You shake your head.

“I don’t know.”

“How old are you?”

“I’m at least twenty-four,” you say. “That’s all I know.”

He turns to look at you.

“Any fodders who survive to their twenty-fourth get the dubious pleasure of being shortlisted for officer training,” you say quietly, bitterly as you look out the window. “I think my training started last year at some point.”

“How do you not remember?” he asks impatiently.

“They don’t want to damage our nervous systems with repeated shocking,” you say, looking down at the collar in your hands. “They sometimes drugged us if they suspected we were thinking too much.”

He doesn’t respond. You exhale. Then you chortle.

“Are you looking to hire backup? I’m a fair shot,” you say wryly. “I ask for two meals a day and a corner to sleep in.”

“You think I’d pay you that much?” he retorts. “You Imps are all terrible shots.”

“By the time someone gets put on frontline duty, their fine motor controls are fried,” you say nonchalantly, swinging your foot back and forth. You hold up your hand, watching as your fingers tremble minutely.

“A lieutenant made a pass at me and I turned him down. He didn’t like that,” you say nonchalantly. “He refused to take no for an answer, so I broke his nose.”

“You were tortured for defending yourself?” he asks, his voice suddenly quiet.

You tilt your head up at him questioningly.

“Oh, no. Gideon had him killed for making a pass at me. Mingling between officers and fodders is forbidden,” you say, shaking your head. “I got my date with the electrical socket because I missed cleaning up his blood. Some of it got on Gideon’s boot."

You wrap your arms around your knee and stare out at the lights flashing by. He doesn’t respond for a long time.

“Two meals and a corner?” he asks.

“That’s my best offer,” you respond. “If you let me have a blanket, I can negotiate down to one meal a day.”

“Bread?” he counters.

“Warm,” you return easily. “With butter. And I still want a blanket.”

“You look at me wrong and I will toss you straight out through the airlock. You understand?”

You nod, relief filling you.

-

-

-

Two Years Later

You nudge Paz with your elbow and tilt your head toward the gorgeous redhead at the bar.

“How about her?” you ask. “Go ask her for her comm number.”

“No,” Paz says for the twelfth time that night. “I told you, I have a different type.”

“I can’t help you find a nice lady if you won’t tell me what your type is,” you say to Paz. “You have turned down literally every person I have suggested. You do still like ladies, right?”

He sighs in exasperation.

“I don’t do the temporary thing,” he says at long last.

“So you want the whole nine parsecs, yes?” you ask. “A nice courtship, marriage, and a herd of little blue brats? Maybe a loth-cat?”

“Yeah,” he says. “Or as close as I can get to it. I’m not going to find that person in a bar.”

You sigh dejectedly.

“Why do you care?” he asks, tilting his helmet down at you.

“Well, I certainly am not going to get laid,” you say. “Might as well play the role of backup and keep helping you out.”

He huffs in amusement.

“I have my eyes on someone closer to me,” he says quietly.

“Oh?” you ask, perking up. “Is it – oh, who was that – sauce girl? The one who dumped a pot of sauce all over – “

“No,” Paz says, his head turning to yours sharply. “No, you di’kut. That was my kriffing cousin.”

“Well, fuck,” you say. “She’s the only woman I’ve seen you spend any amount of time with.”

“Much closer,” he continues in an odd tone.

“…are you hiding your lady friends from me?” you ask, narrowing your eyes up at him. “What, are you afraid I’ll tell them about your stupid ideas when you get wasted? How dare you.”

He harrumphs grumpily.

“Take mercy on the poor man,” a drunken voice slurs. “He means you, daft girl.”

A sharp jolt of surprise fills you as you look up at Paz. He grimaces and refuses to look at you as he sips his drink down. The drunk person laughs and sloshes their way to an empty booth, where they collapse onto the cushion and start snoring. You give Paz an appraising look.

“So, do you wanna fuck me, or do you want the whole nine parsecs?” you ask, tilting your head up at him.

“Uh…both?” he says.

Without hesitating, you slam a handful of credits on the bar to pay for your drink. Then you finish the last sip.

“Let’s go,” you tell him.

“Where?” he asks.

“Ship,” you say. “I haven’t been fucked in years.”

“Well, maybe we should discuss – “

“Blue,” you say patiently. “There is nothing to discuss. My answer is yes.”

You hear his sharp inhalation from here.

“Now. If you don’t start moving, I’ll just borrow the bartender’s can opener,” you say saucily to him. “I’ll get that codpiece off, one way or another.”

Paz puts his drink down and adds his own money to the pile. It takes far too long to get back to the ship. Once the ramp is closed behind him, you start shucking your clothes off. When you’re completely naked, you start helping Paz remove his armor, dropping it onto the table. Then he removes his padding and undersuit, revealing a thick, muscular frame to you. Then the lights turn off and you hear another thunk. A thrill runs through you when you realize his helmet is off.

“Bed?” you ask, hoping he’ll say yes to a tumble on that decadent bed of his.

“Bed,” he confirms.

You make it up the ladder in record time, opening the bedroom door. Paz follows after you, not bothering to shut the door, as he hurtles onto the bed after you. He throws you down onto your back, mouth crashing onto yours, one hand groping at your hip and the other supporting the majority of his weight. You pull at Paz’s hair, digging your nails into his scalp as you kiss him back, wrapping your legs snugly around his waist. It’s sloppy and a bit rushed, but you do not care.

He tastes like the cheap fruit alcohol he had been drinking and like himself, vaguely sweet and metallic. You nip at his lower lip, a little rougher than you intended, earning a growl from him. He grinds his length against you and you gasp sharply. You’re already soaking wet and ready for Paz as he slides his hand between your bodies. His fingers press inward. You tear your mouth away from his and moan, lifting your hips against his hand.

“Yes,” you hiss at him. “Paz, more!”

He nibbles his way along your neck and down to your shoulder, the wet sounds of his fingers working inside of you barely audible over your moans. Frustrated, you hook one leg behind his, the other on the bed for leverage. You kiss Paz back, forcing your tongue into his mouth, relishing in his noise of surprise. You push against his shoulder at the same time and you just barely get him onto his back.

“Not sure what you think you’re doin’,” he manages to say as you settle on his hips.

“Shut up,” you tell him, as you position his generously sized cock under you.

Your eyes roll back as you start to take him in slow, short thrusts. He’s a lot bigger than you had expected, but you are no coward – you have never shied away from a challenge. Just when you think you can’t take any more of his hard, thick length, your clit presses down against his pubic bone, and a victorious thrill runs through you.

You can feel him throbbing deep inside of you just shy of discomfort. As you catch your breath, Paz shifts impatiently, a groan escaping him.

“Move, move – “ he urges around his pants. “Baby, please.”

Resting your weight on his lower belly, you start a slow pace, grinding slow circles, relishing in each rich moan you can get from your lover. One hand finds your hip, the other your breast. He pinches down on your nipple and you mewl at the sharp burst of pleasure.

“Fuck,” he stutters out. “Feel so-so fuckin’ good, baby.”

You change your pace, swiveling your hips in tight circles, arching your back so he can get in nice and deep with each thrust. Paz gasps, a tremor running through his body as you take him that extra half-inch.

“Shit,” he says, his voice catching just a hair, “Oh fuck, don’t – don’t know what I did to deserve you. Don’t fuckin’ deserve you, baby – “

Your breath stutters at his words, but your pace doesn’t break.

“ – so good to me,” he babbles, “Too good to me – too good for me – “

Tears spring to your eyes at his self-deprecation. You dig your nails into his belly to stop him, grinding down against his pubic bone.

“You’re mine,” you whisper in response. “Mine, Paz Vizsla, you’re mine and you’re perfect.”

Both hands fall to your hips and Paz starts to thrust up into you, taking over and setting the pace he wants. Paz grunts in frustration and pulls you down against his chest, rolling your bodies back over before you can protest. He presses a kiss to your lips before resuming his punishing pace once more, each thrust sending you spiraling higher and higher toward completion. You dig your nails into his back when he starts hitting that spot, the one that makes you sob.

“Yes, yes, yes,” you chant into his ear. “Gods, yes, Paz – I’m c-coming – “

You tighten around him and cry out on more time, digging your heels into his backside as you come around him, walls shuddering around his cock. The pleasure sweeps through you in deep, devastating waves, leaving you breathless and shaking. Paz goes stiff, harsh groans escaping him with each pulse of his cock inside you. After several long seconds, he falls forward onto his elbows, trapping you under him. As you run your fingers along his spine and massage his shoulders, Paz sighs with pleasure, his cock occasionally twitching.

“Need me to move?” he asks.

“I can take it,” you say sleepily. “Kinda like it. You’re like a weighted blanket. A really warm one.”

He huffs in amusement.

“Your feet are like ice,” he says.

He pulls his hips back. A torrent of his spend follows as you stretch out for a few seconds. Then you crawl under the blanket and curl up, inhaling the soft scent of his pillows. Paz joins you a moment later, wrapping an arm around your waist.

“You’re a walking furnace,” you mumble to him. “Holy fuck.”

He chuckles and presses a kiss to your temple. Just as your breath is starting to slow, Paz speaks softly. So softly you nearly miss it.

“Always wanted to go home,” he whispers. “Never knew it was right here the whole time.”

Warmth fills your chest at those sweet words.

“Sleep, cyar’ika.”

For the first time in your life, you find rest easily. You dream of pleasant things, and your future no longer seems terrifying and lonely.

-

-

-

Tags: I guess this qualifies as a fic in some places? lmao

@hdlynn @princessbatears @oloreaa @phoenixhalliwell @reader-without-a-story @nelba @aeryntheofficial @trippedmetaldetector @jedi-mando @marthastewart89

[razorblade180]

Shackles 9: I’m sorry

[Warning: Blood and Extreme harm] [part 8]

“Let her go!” The cries of a young boy echoed, struggling against his captors as he and his sister were dragged through sickening white halls. All attempts to reach out for her failed as he watched Jasmine get tossed into a room. Sobek continued walking his way however, guiding the men to a separate correctional room. Rajah did his best to struggle but his weak body was thrown harshly into a cold metal chair; the exit door shut tightly with him and Sobek inside. Rajah didn’t even have a chance to move before the feel of mangled fingers pressed against his neck as he was strapped down.

“I told you to keep her under control. Now look at what you’re making me do? Should’ve known better. A beast can’t control another beast.”

“Don’t…hurt her.” He gasped. Sobek finally released his hold. Rajah gasped and coughed for air while the man walked away to a tray of various tools. The light in the room went out except for the wall in front of him, which acted like a screen.

“ Oh I’m not going to hurt her. Not physically with my hands anyways. The guards she hurt might have a thing to say to her but we both know that’ll solve nothing.” Sobek drew up a syringe. “You and I, however, we’re gonna fix you right up and then see how sister dearest acts. Hopefully she’ll become more agreeable. If not…well, it’s a big siblings job to look after the little one.”

Rajah began to panic. Try as he might, he couldn’t shake his restraints as the scientist approached, injecting him in the neck.

“Let’s make you a model big brother…”

xxxx

Across the world, helping hands were reaching out. Blake ran across rooftops to the port in a desperate attempt to get on a leaving ship before it was too late. Out of practice, she took a misstep and nearly lost her balance. Fortunately friends followed closely behind her. Blake felt two hands rebalance her as she continued forward. “Thank you.”

Ilia nodded, “Don’t mention it.”

Blake looked left. Yang didn’t say anything. All she gave was a small nod. It wasn’t much but it made Blake happy. “I’ll make it up to both of you later.”

“Oh that’s a given. Let’s focus on what’s important right now. That ship is already leaving port and that Jacquelyn lady already has a head start. Missing this ship could be bad.”

“So we won’t miss it.” Yang said with conviction. Her gauntlets propelled herself forward and launched herself in the air ahead of others. Yang turned around midair and reached out. “Well!?”

She didn’t even have to say it. Blake grabbed Ilia’s hand then threw Gamble Shroud. Yang grabbed the gun and yanked them so hard they flew by her. Still holding on, Yang felt Blake pull her. She timed a shotgun blast with the tension of the pull to soar ahead as far as possible; yanking both girls again. This rendition of their favorite move cut out a lot of time. It only took a few minutes before all three reached the point of free falling over the boat. Yang lets go of the gun so Blake can anchor to the boat. Ilia took the first opportunity to escape that jarring movement she got, running down the taut ribbon to the ship and pulling it to bring Blake down from air.

Yang realized she might be in a bit of a situation and so did Blake. Tucking and rolling might be pushing her luck when it comes to movement options while she’s expecting. “Uhh Blake?”

“I got you.” Blake didn’t want to jossle her anymore than necessary. She jumped up and caught Yang safely before the blonde could fall any faster. “You okay?”

“Put me down the moment we land!”

Blake didn’t bother arguing. She let go as soon as she touched the floor and watched Yang speed over to the side of the boat to lean over. Thankfully Yang held back whatever tried to come up and everyone was spared the sounds of her puking.

“Yang?”

“Jaune was right. Motion sickness is a big deal. Ugh…”

“Don’t you mean, Vomit Boy?”

“I’ll never call him that again. Too cruel.” Yang walked back over to Ilia and Blake to sit against a wall. “Please tell me this was the right boat? I don’t wanna do that again.”

“Of course it is. It’s the one always going back and forth to Vacou. Sun and I might as well live on this ship.” Ilia pulled out her scroll. “We’ll see port a little after daybreak, so we should all rest and be prepared. I’m going to speak to the captain so nobody thinks we’re a bunch of stowaways.”

“You don’t have to worry about that.” A voice called from the front of the boat. The trio looked and gasped to see Jacquelyn walking towards them. “Gunshots aren’t the quietest thing in the world. Also one of you literally lights up, so there’s that. I thought you would’ve tagged out by now.

“And I thought you would’ve been long gone by now.”

Jacquelyn rested on the railings to watch the waves. “If it were up to me I’d be there already, but I don’t control boat schedules now do I? Good thing. Not entirely sure what I’m walking into. So yeah, thanks.” Jacquelyn turned to Ilia. “Hey. You’re the chameleon right? Ilia, was it?”

Eyes widened instantly. “Adam spoke of me?”

“When it was relevant, but yeah. Said that you’re pretty capable at what you do. Glad you’re tagging along.”

“Wish I could say the same. I have lots of questions and I have a feeling the answers are with you.” Ilia crossed her arms. Being out of the loop was a pain in the ass she couldn’t stand.

“As much as I love stories, now isn’t the best time. However…” her attention turned to Blake. “I think the two of us might need one. A brief, but important one. Alone.”

Blake looked around. “It will just be a moment you two.”

“Sigh…fine.”

“Take your time.” Yang added.

Jacquelyn took Blake by the hand to lead her to the front. “I could tell from a glance that you’re troubled. Spit it out.”

“…I’ve learned about what we’re dealing with. Ilia told me what we might face and why. Back in the desert I told you my beliefs run to my core.”

“Don’t tell me that’s changed?”

“I’m telling you sorry. Apparently my efforts as High Leader haven't even scratched the surface. I thought things were progressing steadily but we’re heading to a place that’s about to prove everything is still the same. Spite is alive and thriving.”

“Hehe, and? We both know you were aware of that. So why don’t you come out and just ask-”

“How?” Blake said, balling her fist. “If what you claim is true, then how do you do it? How are you changing someone who’s that spiteful when I can’t reach people like him at all? I’m not sure if I’m reaching anyone right now. I feel…”

“Stupid? You’re not. Naive? I’d say more optimistic.” Jacquelyn put her hand on Blake’s shoulder. “Impatience, that’s what’s got you. Don’t look at me for guidelines because frankly I’m selfish and never bothered looking at the bigger picture when it comes to humanity. You’re different. You know what path you want to take but hesitate to get pushy with it, compromising without realizing it. A flexible leader is good but if you are certain about the way you want things then Blake Belladonna, don’t you dare compromise.”

Blake felt Jacquelyn’s grip tighten. The woman’s eyes went cold and Blake knew her next words would be the most important.

“We’re heading to a place that can only be hell. Blake, you’ll find the real answer to all your questions soon enough. Don’t run from it.”

The meaning to those words reached her, yet Blake knew she’d only truly grasp it in the moment. “Understood.”

“Good. I have a bad feeling about tomorrow. I should probably rest but I’m sure it’s in my best interest to give your friend at least a little bit of info.”

“I can handle that.”

“No, worry about Yang instead. I want all of us at least a little bit at peace.” Ilia walked back over to the other two. “Changed my mind. Story time, squirt.” She took Ilia’s hand.

“Hey!”

“Don’t fight it. I’m too tired for resistance. Yang?”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“Good. Uhh thanks, I guess.”

Yang watched them leave and Blake came back seconds later to sit next to her. The two sat quietly, the sound of waves crashing on one another. “I won’t pretend I’m suddenly okay with all of this. But…I want us to be okay. So I’ll put in the leg work.”

“Heh. Yang, you’re always okay with me. Leg work or not, following me is your choice. Don’t think you owe me anything.”

“Stop being a dummy. I swear you’ve always been like this. How many people gotta say it? You don’t choose what your friends do.”

“Then you should choose to be okay with me.”

Blake looked at Yang’s unblinking face with a smile. Deep down, the bruiser's heart felt as if a weight was lifted. A sense of overwhelming joy couldn’t be contained. “So, we’re okay then.” Yang lifted her fist. “Partners forever.”

Blake bumped her fist. “Forever.”

Frayed bonds may be fragile, but as long as strings remain linked, mending was an outcome. Blake and Yang were living proof, and with a little luck…so would Adam. Life wasn’t always a fairytale unfortunately. One bond may have strengthened tonight, but it wasn’t the only one being tested. There was another, fraying from unseen eyes; until it snapped.

xxxxx

Hours passed underground. Jasmine couldn’t tell when the beatings stopped or started anymore. Every single nerve had been screaming, her ears ringing. The sensitivity drug she had been injected with during her first round of correction never wore off, so the second dose they gave only fueled the anguish. The lights of the labs have prevented her from seeing. Not that she wanted to look at anyone or herself for that matter. All she could tell was she was moving. What was bright became dark rhythmically. Jasmine’s vision, as blurry as it was, made fuzzy images that could only be people. One blob was raised higher than the rest. Had to be Adam. Strange, it wasn’t moving like the rest. It didn’t move at all. However, Jasmine could faintly make out yelling. “Get up!” She didn’t know if it was for her but it chilled her all the same. Loud creaking accompanied moments after. Jasmine suddenly felt weightless until a pulse of pain shot through her back; followed by more creaking and a loud metal thunk.

Jasmine did her best to move. It took time, a lot of it, but she eventually got to her knees. The lack of light helped her vision sort itself out; as well as slightly dwindled her senses. Enough to think without too much pain. “Why hurt me just throw me behind bars?” An attempt to stand only led back to her face deep in dirt. “O...ow”

“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this tired.”

Jasmine’s body stiffened. She turned her head towards the inside of the cell with all her strength. Deep in the shadows reeked blood, but beyond that… “Rajah? Rajah is that you?” There was no mistaking that scent. “Rajah! You’re here. I’m so hap-h..happ…” her heart nearly stopped. Every fiber of her felt cold. Jasmine’s very soul trembled while her eyes remained fixed on Rajah as he got closer. His eyes looked glassed over. And his ears…they weren’t on his head, but mangled tightly in his fist.

“Need help? I can sit you up.” He approached closer.

“Ra..Ra…”

“What’s wrong? Throat dry? Oh…this?” He dropped his ears on the floor, ignoring them and the fresh blood that still leaked down his face and soaked his hair. “No big deal.”

“You’re hurt.”

“Not as much as you. Honestly I feel a lot better. Hehe, weird right?” He smiled, chuckling ever so slightly. “He won’t hurt me anymore. Sobek won’t hurt you either. I promise.”

She wanted to run. Jasmine didn’t know where but she wanted to run as fast as possible, but all her legs did was shake as Rajah kept getting closer with his smile on full display. Tears welled up, her ears folding down. “Pl..Stop it.” What did Sobek do to her brother? “Rajah you’re scaring me. You’re- ah!” His hands reached her throat faster than she could blink. Jasmine gasped as her brother pinned her onto her back and began to squeeze. His vacant eyes stared deep into her own terror filled and weeping ones, kicking frantically underneath him the whole time.

“Aww it’s okay. Sobek’s not gonna hurt us anymore! You see I figured it out! The pain stops when there’s nothing to look at. Hahaha! Sobek wasn’t mad at me. Just my ears! Once I ripped them,he wasn’t angry anymore Jasmine! He said he’d never be angry at me again.” Though vacant and laughing, Rajah’s own tears started falling. “He finally stopped hurting me…! And when you stop kicking, you won’t hurt me either. You’ll wake up like me and be left alone, so listen to your big brother okay? Okay!?” Clenched teeth gritted against one another, drooling with spit and blood. Rajah wasn’t smiling anymore. “Why couldn’t you listen to me?” His bloodied hands dug in.

Jasmine’s nails broke the skin of his wrists. Her lungs burned and vision became blurry again, but she could hear him perfectly. The laughter, the ragged breathing as hearts raced. Her head spun but all her mind could think of was his words. Why didn’t she listen? The thought turned into wondering why this happened? The beatings, torture, seclusion; it wasn’t his fault. Rajah didn’t deserve this. It was all her. Why couldn’t it just be her? The caring eyes she loved, they weren’t staring back. Only her reflection looked back, and Jasmine couldn’t stomach the sight. Narrowed eyes and clenched jaw, Jasmine shut her eyes and let a guttural noise of pain and immense rage while the world as she knew it faded into dark.

“I’m sorry…”

[roguerogerss]

Hi babe! I saw you wanted some requests so here I am! Could you do a Bucky x reader where the reader has secret telekinesis abilities (or whatever Wanda can do lmao) and is forced to use them on a mission. Bucky is just in shock bc his secret crush is a even more of a badass, so when he compliments her powers, she gets flustered and disagrees bc they’re dangerous, so Bucky helps her see the beauty in them? Tysm ❤️❤️

His Girl

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Enhanced!Reader

W/C: 3.9k (eek sorry!)

Warnings: Language (??), that's literally it.

(A/N: This one got away from me a little and I wrote wayyy more than anticipated. I hope u like it though? Idk. I had so much fun with this request, thank u sm bb! Praying that someone reads this, even though it's a whole ass novel.)

————

"Bucky, where are you? We have a minute and eight seconds until this place blows."

Y/N was worried, and, upon hearing her frantic voice in his intercoms, Bucky was too. He was aware that he didn't have long until the bomb detonated, but unaware of just how short that amount of time was. He was caught up in a fight, one that was frustrating in the way that he couldn't shake this guy. "Yeah, be there in five?"

He was being sarcastic, he must've been being sarcastic, Y/N shook her head and pressed her fingers to her temples, agitated. "Five what? Five seconds? Minutes? Bucky, I have to ask, are you insane?"

She seemed angry - no, she was most definitely angry - and Bucky silently cursed himself and allowed the Hydra agent to get a hit in, he thought he probably deserved it. "Look, I'll get out. Is there anything you guys can do to buy me some more time?"

Tony had chimed in by this point, telling Bucky that he was 'fucking crazy', ranting and raving to the heavens above about how the entire motive had been messed up and they might as well have stayed home. Y/N knew that she could help him, but that would mean using them - she didn't like to call them by the name that most would use - and she wasn't sure if it was really worth the risk. Bucky would get out, right? He'd work something out.

But time was ticking on, fifty-nine seconds now, and she was unsure of just how right that assumption was. She wasn't even entirely sure that she still had her powers, since she'd avoided using them or telling anyone that they existed since she'd escaped from the grasp of Hydra. Even as she doubted her abilities, she found herself rising from her seat behind the control panels of the Quinjet, next to Steve, and sprinting to the exit to the aircraft.

"Y/N, where are you going?" Steve asked, getting up and following her. The rest of the team were staring now, Natasha and Tony also standing from their places and looking expectantly in Y/N's direction.

"I have something that'll help. Something that you guys don't know about." She said sheepishly, slamming her palm down on the button that opened the exit hatch. "Don't worry, I've got this."

Even though she was promising her friends that everything would be okay, they seemingly didn't believe her, as all five of the other Avengers on the ship - Tony, Nat, Steve, Sam and Thor - followed her out onto the streets of Bucharest, where the public was in awe at the huge, futuristic ship that was sat in the middle of a narrow, cobbled street. Natasha had told them to go home, she'd made the best effort she could to make sure that everyone was safe. However, no one had listened, and so she desperately ushered them away from the place that she knew would soon be rubble, while Y/N ran in search for Bucky.

They had what they'd came for, but that didn't mean that there were no Hydra agents willing to get into altercations with the team. Thor and Steve were frantically fighting off a pack of them, while Tony and Sam helped Y/N, hopefully getting a better view of the streets and where Bucky might be. "Hey, Y/N, I got him. Turn right, next street over. You'll see him." Sam spoke into the intercoms. Y/N thanked him, hurrying off in search of the super-soldier to whom she'd taken more than a liking to over the few months that he'd been fighting with them.

"Buck, I'm on my way, you better be ready to get the fuck out of here." Bucky's eyebrows furrowed as he wondered why Y/N, of all people, was the one who was coming to save him. He had to admit, he was more embarrassed than anything else, needing the help of the one girl who he'd felt anything for in seventy years. But he tried to brush it off, mostly because he had to focus on not letting a Hydra agent rip his arm off, and answered her.

"What are you gonna do? If I can't fight him off, no offence, but what makes you think you'll be able to?" Bucky sounded breathless, and she could hear the obvious sounds of strain and struggle as he continued to tussle with the agent. Y/N took a deep breath and turned the corner, close enough to hear the ominous beeping of the explosive device that a Hydra agent had planted there in hopes of causing harm to one of the Avengers.

"You know what, maybe don't question it. I have my own doubts, but it certainly doesn't help that you have them too."

The agent, who was currently deep in a brawl with Bucky, noticed Y/N, but all that she was able to think about was the amount of time that was left on the clock. She asked FRIDAY, and a rush of adrenaline and fear coursed through her when she realised that they weren't going to get out in time.

Ten, nine, eight, seven,

Y/N drew her gun and shot the Hydra agent, not missing as usual, and Bucky snorted. "Couldn't have done that earlier?"

Four, three, two,

She knew that this was it. It was either expose the world to her powers, probably be deemed as a weapon and certainly become even more wanted by Hydra, or die, and let her friends die too. She took a deep breath and felt the horribly familiar surge of - what was it, electricity? She wasn't actually sure - coursing through her body, and watched as Bucky ogled at the purple wisps of magic that extended from her hands and the way that her irises seemed to ignite.

One.

Bucky ducked and shielded his face, but looked up again when he didn't hear, nor feel anything that would signal an explosion had happened. Y/N had it under control, holding the bomb together with just her fingertips. She'd thought that it wouldn't happen, that her abilities would've simply subsided into nothingness due to being unused for so long, but she was wrong. She'd done it, and there was no going back now.

And then? The small explosion turned huge, and lurched forwards, setting a civilian apartment building completely alight. Y/N stood, watching, mouth wide open and quite unable to understand the circumstances of what the hell just happened. Bucky was at her side, a hand on her shoulder as he, too, watched the destruction take place. The rest of the team had rushed straight there, each one of them with hands over agape mouths while Steve called for Fire and Rescue and Tony wondered aloud, 'What the fuck is going on?'

Y/N found herself on her knees. She could see and hear Bucky in front of her, worry in his eyes as a few tears dripped from her chin onto her chest, but she didn't have it in her to decipher what his words meant, they all just sounded muffled and like he was speaking a language that she didn't understand.

She didn't know what she'd done, how bad it was, but she could hear the screams of the residents of the building, she could feel them vibrating through her body and ringing in her ears, and that was enough to convince her that her enhancements truly were the worst thing about her, that she really was the weapon that Hydra had deliberately mutated her to be.

--------

It had been hours. How many, Y/N was unsure, but a considerable amount of time had passed since they'd gotten home. The flight back from Bucharest had consisted of Y/N locking herself in a cabin, and the rest of the people on the Quinjet taking it in turns to try to speak to her, to try to understand.

No one, apart from Bucky, (who only had a vague idea), knew what had happened. There wasn't a single person on the jet who could fully understand it, Y/N included.

She was now sat on a sofa in the lounge, chewing off parts of her nails while everyone murmured and tiptoed around her. Tony was speaking quickly on the phone and glancing at her every couple of seconds, Steve was pacing back and forth along the length of the room.

Y/N wondered for a minute what would happen. Would she be arrested? Would something like the accords happen again? Was she about to become the cause of another civil war? Would Tony disown her? Send her back to Hydra? She didn't know. She didn't think she wanted to know.

Wanda and Natasha had come to comfort Y/N at first, sat with her and braided her hair like they did often, and it was nice to think that Wanda knew exactly what she was going through.

However, she'd told them that she wanted to be alone, and they'd dispersed and were sitting quietly in two separate armchairs, watching a movie with Sam. The truth was, she didn't really want to be alone. She wanted Bucky. She didn't quite know why, but she'd always felt calm around him, which was one of the reasons why she'd taken such a shine to him, and she made it very clear to herself that she was at least a little bit in love with Bucky, in a way that was less platonic and more romantic.

She couldn't lie and say that she was happy with the way that he'd handled things, though. As soon as the jet landed, he mumbled something about taking a shower and hurried off to his room, like he couldn't stand to be around her for any longer, like he was afraid of her.

And, honestly? She wouldn't be surprised if he was.

The truth, of course, wasn't that Bucky didn't want to see her, it wasn't that he was afraid of her, it was that she was evidently upset. It was tearing him apart to have to see her like that. He felt like he was obligated to be alone to think about what had happened, because he knew that - realistically - it was his fault that she'd had to use her powers. He'd been caught up in a fight, the bomb that had been planted was seconds away from detonating, she had to do something. Of course, he had no idea that something was going to be exposing hidden telekinetic abilities to the world, but close enough, right?

"I just got off the phone with a higher up." Tony stood in the middle of the lounge, everyone looking at him as he began his speech. "Everything's gonna be fine. Just, maybe don't turn on the news for a couple days, Y/N doesn't need to see that."

"Don't act like I'm a kid, please." Y/N spoke up, making it clear that she was annoyed by the fact that everyone was seemingly ignoring that it was her who had done this. "I did this, Tony. I want to know how much damage I caused."

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, shaking his head at her. "No, this is not the time to get all Steve-y on me, okay? You don't need to see it, you don't need to know, so you're not going to. Is that clear to you?"

"Mistakes happen, Y/N. It's not your fault." Steve said from where he was standing, next to the breakfast bar. "What matters is that you tell us what actually happened at some point."

"So, what I'm going to take from that, is that it's bad." She turned from Steve, back to Tony. "I'm not weak, I can deal with what I did, Tony."

Tony snapped, the stress of the situation and the argument from his daughter-figure becoming too much for him to handle, "Goddamn it, Y/N, you really wanna know what you did? Let's see, first of all, you used whatever powers you have, something that you clearly knew about but warned no one of. Second of all, you essentially bombed an apartment building in a poor part of Romania, you literally took from the poor. And now what? Fifty-five people are dead, kids have been left without parents, and that's on my back. Plus, you're being publicly deemed as a weapon until they figure out what's really going on there. So, do tell us, what is really going on there?"

"Tony. Stop." Wanda said, but Y/N was already halfway out of the room, with Tony realising that he probably shouldn't have said what he did and following after her.

"Y/N, hey, I'm sorry, okay?" Tony called, but she wasn't listening. She got in the elevator and left Tony alone in the hallway without a word, tears threatening to spill from her eyes the whole time.

And then, finally, they did. When the doors of the elevator closed, when she could no longer hear Tony's voice, when she was alone, oh they did. She found herself on the floor, face cradled in her hands - the same hands that killed fifty-five people just hours before - and there were tears falling from her eyes, past her chin, soaking her black catsuit.

She felt empty, like her body was a shell and she was simply there, watching herself fall apart. It was a kind of guilt, one that ate at her from the inside and seared through every nerve, every part of her, until she could think of doing nothing but curling up and ceasing to exist. She wanted to yell, scream, punch something, run. Anything that would distract her from how she felt. She wanted to sleep for a week, maybe two, forget about everything and ignore her responsibilities until it hurt less. Most importantly, however, she wanted Bucky. She wanted now more than ever to be his girl. For him to lay with her and tangle his fingers in her hair and whisper sweet things in her ear until the bad things in the world simply melted away.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened, but Y/N didn't get up, not until FRIDAY asked if she wanted to go to another floor. When she did, however, she found herself taking the wrong turn, to the left instead of to the right, and walking away from her room instead of towards it. Without thinking, she'd already opened the door to Bucky's room, where he was reclined lazily on his bed, a pair of sweatpants on and nothing else, focused on the ceiling.

He furrowed his eyebrows at her when she gave him a tiny little smile, but sighed when he noticed the remnants of her somewhat breakdown on her face. Bucky held his arms open, "Hey, c'mere."

She stepped into his embrace, tears finding their way onto her face again, and let him caress her back and play with her hair until the crying stopped. When Bucky held her, everything felt different, like she could put things into perspective and understand that maybe it wasn't all her fault. "Look, I know you think that this is the end of the world. I know it's scary, but Wanda learned how to use her powers for good. You can do the same." Bucky's attempt at comforting Y/N wasn't exactly superlative, but she knew that he was trying.

"I'm a weapon, Buck." She pulled away from him and sat on the end of the bed, wanting to cry and clawing at the sleeves of her suit in an essay to calm herself down. "That's how Tony worded it, anyway. I shouldn't have used them."

Bucky knew that his next question was stupid, that he probably shouldn't have asked it, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him and he was speaking before properly thinking over the consequences. "How did you get them?" He reached out for her hand and she let him hold it, getting a rush of exhilaration from the affectionate gesture.

Bucky wasn't usually one for showing how he felt, much less for saying it out loud or doing anything to communicate his feelings, and he wasn't quite sure why he had had a sudden change of heart and almost wanted her to know that he liked her, that, really, he would do anything for her. She didn't meet his eye as she began her explanation. "Well, before Tony found me, I worked for Hydra. Actually, less worked for them and more became their personal lab rat. They did a lot of experiments on me, tortured me, really, made me more destructive than any enemy organisation would know how to handle. And then, I escaped. And here I am, talking to you."

She gave him a sad little smile, one that he would swear had broken him. "I'm sorry." It was a lame excuse for comfort, really it was, but he racked his brain once, twice, and couldn't for the life of him find the right words to say.

"Don't be." Y/N shifted in her place, gaze on her hands which were clasped in her lap. It was quiet and Bucky wished that he knew what to say to her, that he could think of something that would make her feel less alone or soothe her in some way. A minute went by, two minutes, three minutes. The silence might've been comfortable between the pair, but it was certainly uncomfortable between Y/N and her own thoughts. "I should go." She said, standing from her place on the bed without looking in Bucky's direction once.

He knew that he had to say something, anything that would make her stay. The thought of her alone in her room was heartbreaking to him. He grabbed her wrist before she could take any more than a few steps towards the door and she looked down at him, lips slightly parted and one eyebrow raised in a silent question. "You're not a weapon. Sure, Stark said that, whatever, the guy's an asshole. But you're not a weapon, Y/N."

She gave a little humourless laugh, blowing a puff of air out of her nose. "The government apparently seem to think so."

Bucky smiled at her and said, "Fuck the government."

"Oh, so you're an anarchist now? Classy." Y/N sat back down and Bucky's heart felt like it was doing summersaults in his chest, all fluttery. She was smiling, he had made her smile, and it was genuine. As far as he was concerned, nothing else really mattered.

"You know what I mean."

"I don't, actually."

Bucky sighed and cocked an eyebrow at her, eliciting a laugh from her lips. "You're really going to make me explain myself, huh?" He joked. "Look, You're not a weapon to me. I think you're a badass, actually." She snorted.

"Bucky, I killed a lot of people."

"So have I." Bucky's tongue darted out to wet his lips as he placed a tender hand on her thigh. "You don't see me as the bad guy. You never have, actually. What I'm trying to say, is that all of us have done bad things. Made mistakes, lost control, that doesn't make us bad people."

"I feel like a bad person." Y/N had her eyes trained on Bucky's face, bottom lip held tightly between her teeth as she tried to avoid letting herself word-vomit about everything that she was feeling at that moment. His hand squeezed her thigh gently, and she let out an embarrassing and involuntary gasp that made her cheeks turn bright red.

"Don't. Y/N, I know it's cheesy as hell, but you did it to save my life, right?" Y/N nodded slowly, "So how does that make you a bad person?"

"You're grasping at strings, here."

“What can I say that'll make you feel better?"

Y/N knew what she wanted to hear, that he liked her as more than a friend, that he wanted to be with her like she wanted to be with him, that her fantasies weren't just fantasies, that he really did love her. But she couldn't say that. God, of course she couldn't say that. So, instead, she simply shrugged.

Bucky knew what he wanted to say to her, that he liked her as more than a friend, wanted her to be with him, of course he loved her. He couldn't drop all of that on her when all she'd given was a shrug, right? Wrong, apparently, because the words spilled from his mouth anyways, like he couldn't control himself.

And really, he couldn't. But he figured that she already knew that.

“I love you." He spluttered, and her eyes widened in shock. "Okay? God, I love you. And what you did today? Made me love you even more. I know you probably don't want to hear this, you don't want me to ruin our friendship, and I get it, I do. But, right now, all I wanna do is protect you, and let you know that you're really not the monster that you think you are."

She stayed silent. What could she say? Her head was swimming with ideas, but none of them really seemed fit. She thought that, if this day ever came, if somehow it came down to confessing her feelings for him, she'd know exactly what to say.

She really couldn't have been more wrong.

So, instead of speaking, she found herself simply staring at Bucky, into his eyes. Had he moved closer? Had she? Either way, their noses were soon bumping together and he was searching her face for any sign of disapproval, one that wasn't there, and so he kissed her.

She felt dizzy, lightheaded, like she couldn't quite figure out where her body ended and Bucky's began, and she didn't think she really wanted to. Lips on lips, his hand on her waist and hers roaming his hair, it felt like heaven.

She was on a high, he was too, and the comedown was breathless and just as euphoric as the real thing. "I love you too." Y/N said.

Bucky couldn't help the plainly stupid, goofy grin that had spread across his face. Did he look like an idiot? Unequivocally. Did he care? Maybe, but that wasn't the point.

"I should get back to my room." Y/N said quietly, a small smile on her lips. "Thanks for...uh, the talk."

Bucky laughed and let her get up, walk to the door and open it while he watched in a daze, and then he stopped her. "Let me walk you."

"I can handle myself."

"Oh, I know, sweetheart. But I'm not entirely sure that you should."

Really, she was already his girl. She always had been.

[mypoisonedvine]

Double-Edged Sword: Capt. Syverson x Reader (Chapter 1)

[I decided to ignore my WIPs and my URL and write something for Syverson because he is just…. a beautiful, meaty man and he deserves some more love.

To those of you who follow me for Witcher stuff only, I promise we will return shortly to the regularly scheduled programming.  As for the rest of us who are thirsty for Cavill in any context… enjoy!]

Summary: As a Major in the Marine Corps, you work with other units and branches relatively often.  That said, you had never really had to ask another unit for help before, so you felt pretty awkward when a mission required you to travel to a nearby Army camp and take shelter with them for the next two months.  Of course, their smack-talking, free-wheeling Captain isn’t going to make it any easier on you, either.

Word Count: 5k (oh jesus christ)

Rating: E

(warning for dub con and people being sexist assholes, cause yknow, it’s the military.  contains lots of angst and bickering and arguing, and of course, smut.)

“Listen, I’m not going to stand here and pretend I’m Ms. Popular,” you sighed, “but hopefully you all can appreciate that I look out for all of you.”

No one said anything, because they were standing at attention at their cots.

“At ease,” you added, and they all relaxed a bit, “but keep quiet so I can finish.”

A few sat on their beds but most still seemed to be paying attention.

“When it’s just us Marines, I don’t mind much whatever you call me when I’m not around.  Or when I’m around.  But once we get where we’re going tomorrow, we’re shacking up with the Army.  And as much as I want everyone to get along, I’m not sure how likely that is.  Anyways, what I’m trying to say is… right now it may be me versus you, but soon it’s going to be us versus them, Marines versus Army.  And us Marines need to stick together.  Does that make sense?”

There were a few nods, but you weren’t sure they were getting it.

“Alright, allow me to be a bit more literal.  Don’t tell the other soldiers that I’m a bitch,” you requested.  There were some scattered chuckles.  “I know it probably seems fine since you say it to each other but I need you guys to help me get their respect.  I’m not saying to go in there and tell every Army nimrod that I’m everybody’s favorite officer.  Just… don’t let them see any cracks they could exploit.  Because I have to start ordering these guys around and I’m already batting a thousand.”

“Seems reasonable,” Private Cole replied, and most of the others agreed.  You smiled and left them alone to have a somewhat relaxing night before they had to ship out.

“I don’t want this to be Marines versus Army,” you told Captain Syverson the next day when you met with him for the first time.  Of course, that was what you had told your own unit would happen, but he didn’t know that.  “I’m sure you know that this is an officer versus enlisted issue.  And us officers should stick together.”

He was smiling back at you from across the table, but it didn’t seem that friendly.  

“I don’t see why there’s any ‘versus’ at all.  You and your unit are guests here.  We get this project over with and you’re out,” he shrugged.  

“Maybe you haven’t had much issue getting control of your soldiers.  But it took me a while to get mine to trust me, and now I have to go in blind and command your unit.  So I hope you’re on my side,” you explained.

He went from smiling in an unhappy way, to laughing in an unfunny way.  You regretted the way you had approached this conversation.

“Sounds like you’re not a good leader, if it was so much trouble for you,” he scoffed. “Maybe you should work on that.”

You didn’t get angry very often, but this was the closest you’d been in a while.  You understood his distrust, even a little duplicity was merited.  To just outright insult you to your face was, of course, hurtful, but mainly just stupid.  You’d always known Army guys were total morons, but this was just ridiculous.  What could he gain from going against you?

“How many years until you get promoted?” you asked him suddenly, standing up from your chair.

“About two and a half,” he responded.

“Well, if in two and a half years we’re both still alive, and I’m not already a lieutenant colonel, call me and we’ll talk about who’s in charge.  Until then, back off,” you huffed, and turned to walk away.  You yelped when he grabbed you by the arm and pulled you back.

“You’re on my base,” he reminded you sternly.

“And we’ll try to be respectful while we’re here, regardless of how we’re being treated,” you grimaced, wrenching your arm out of his grasp.

“You’ll try to be respectful?  On my base?!  How generous,“ he scoffed.  "You can’t just show up and start running things.”

“I have no desire to micromanage your little sandhut, Captain.  I don’t give half a fuck what goes on in here.  What I do have is the final call on any decision made in this mission,” you explained.

“On whose authority?” he pressed.  You laughed.

“Cap, somewhere in your desk there’s a little piece of paper– it’s got a lot of pretty gold and silver stars on it– and it explains how commanding authority is ranked in every branch of the United States military.  Feel free to go and check me on this, but I’m pretty sure that ‘Captain’ is here,” you motioned in the air, “and ‘Major’ is here,” you moved your hand up an inch.

“Well, sweetheart, there’s a sign outside the front of this base that says ‘Army’ on it, and a little sticker on your chest,” he poked it, and you couldn’t decide if you hated the physical contact or the deriding pet name more, “that says USMC.”

“Rank is rank,” you argued.

“So if you’ve got a doctorate in physics and I’ve got a master’s in English, you have the right to lecture me about fuckin’ Grapes of Wrath or whatever?”

“My doctorate is in American History,” you frowned. He laughed in frustration.

“Only a Jarhead could miss the point that hard,” he groaned, “and find a way to brag in the process.”

“Call your superior,” you growled, “who is notably a Major, and ask him who has authority on this base while we’re here.”

You stormed out before you could hear his reply.

~

When the time came, the two of you discussed how you would approach the mission behind closed doors.  Not like it was fun or anything, but you managed to stay off each other’s throats for a while and agree on a few things.  It was nice enough that you actually let your guard down, so much so that you were totally blindsided when he waited until you were in front of the entire company to disagree with you.

“That’ll never work,” he suddenly interrupted as you explained the plan, “we’ll divide and conquer.”

You looked at him with confusion.

“That’s not what we discussed before,” you reminded him.

“I changed my mind,” he shrugged.

“Well, I didn’t.  So we’ll do it my way.”

“My men, my rules,” he growled, stepping closer to you.

“Half these people,” you corrected, since a few of your unit were women, “are mine, and you’re below me.”

“Fuck you,” he said casually, smiling while he did it.

“You couldn’t handle it,” you spat back.

A few of the enlisted ‘ooooh’ed but for the most part it was very, very quiet.

Finally, Captain Syverson silently turned on his heel and walked away, looking exasperated.

“Looks like the Captain is going to take a little break,” you smiled with fake enthusiasm, turning back to the company, “and I’ll keep explaining this mission to you all.”

“If Captain Syverson doesn’t approve it, we’re not doing it,” one of the Army kids announced.  Your Marines were notably silent, but the rest of the Captain’s unit nodded in agreement.

“I’ve got a word for you, boys.  It starts with ‘N’ and ends with ‘subordination,’” you frowned.  They all groaned.

“It’s not insubordination because you’re not in charge of us!”

“Manage your own people, Jarhead!”

You uncrossed your arms and let your voice get a little louder.  “Hey, hey, settle down!” 

It mostly worked, but everyone seemed pretty displeased.

“Captain Syverson and I had a discussion with our superiors and it was concluded that I am highest ranking and I get the final call on every tactical decision,” you explained.

“That’s not what he told us,” one of the Army boys chuckled.

You tried not to seethe in front of them, you tried to keep it professional, but how were you supposed to work in these conditions?

“As you were,” you resigned through your teeth, storming off to where the Captain had gone.  You found him in his quarters, relaxing on a sofa; you nearly kicked the door in to talk to him.

“What the fuck was that?!” you exclaimed.

“I changed my mind,” he repeated calmly.

“You’re such a fucking asshole,” you growled, shoving him where he sat.  He stood up, clearly agitated.

“Get your hands off me, lady.”

“Major,” you corrected through your teeth.

“Only Major you are to me is a major waste of my fucking time,” he replied.

“Take it up with the Department of Defense, they’re the ones who gave me the title,” you defended.

“You know, lately I’ve been having issues with a lot of their decisions.  I’m still trying to figure out why the fuck we’re doing this anyways.”

“The mission?” you asked.

“The war,” he corrected.

“Ah,” you nodded, looking around nervously.  You were more comfortable with the arguing than the awkward silence. 

“Whatever,” he scoffed, crossing his arms and slumping his shoulders.

“Go tell your unit the plan- our plan.  Better yet, tell them they answer to me,” you demanded.

“I couldn’t have made it any more obvious that I’m not gonna do what you tell me,” he frowned, crossing his arms.

“Will you at least cooperate with me enough to get this mission over with?” 

He thought about that for a minute, and you tried not to lose your patience.

“Hmm… no,” he decided finally.

“Then will you shut the fuck up and stay out of my way?” you suggested instead.

He stepped up to you until he was uncomfortably close, and you had to crane your neck to meet his gaze.  He had these really bright blue eyes and they didn’t fit with the rest of his face, which was significantly angrier and grittier.

“Not a chance,” he answered.  But his voice had lost the intimidating tone, and his expression had changed at some point without you noticing… he looked sort of calm, considering the situation, and you realized that he was examining your face.

“You know,” he said suddenly, “you’d be pretty if you weren’t so…” he trailed off.

“Mean?” you finished, having heard this sort of comment more than a few times.

“No, it’s not that.  The mean thing is sorta hot,” he corrected casually as if it were nothing to say.  You bit your lip and broke the eye contact, trying not to blush.  It was a good thing you didn’t find him attractive- because of course you didn’t, him being this dirty brute and all- but still, it was uncomfortable.

“You’d be pretty,” he decided, “if you weren’t a Marine.”

You laughed and shook your head incredulously.

“Yeah, well, maybe you’d be pretty if you shaved that raccoon off your face,” you suggested, “and took a shower.”

You smiled as you left the room.

~

You delayed the mission briefing a day, to give you and the Captain more time to hopefully come to some decision, and you hoped it wouldn’t mean you and your unit had to stay at this camp even just one day longer.  You met with your Marines privately, and they were sympathetic but seemed to be getting along with the other soldiers enough to sympathize with their unwillingness to cooperate.  One soldier said he would only listen to you and not ‘Sy’ as they called him, but you told them to always listen to their commanding officer even if he’s a complete tool.

You were walking back to your quarters for the night when you passed by an open tent, a half-dozen Army boys inside playing cards.

“Hey Major, what size bra do you wear?” a soldier hollered at you, and the others snickered.

“I think they’re bigger than they look in that uniform,” another added.  “Double ‘D’s, at least.”

You stopped and decided to address them, unable to let a comment like that go.

“Oh I’ve got double ‘D’s alright,” you smirked.  “Dishonorable Discharge.”

“Aw, we’re just messing around,” the first dismissed with a frown. “Can’t you take a joke?”

“I can take a joke, but I can take your job, too.  Maybe stay on my good side.”  You winked, just to keep it playful, but you were really screwed either way.  You’d tried playing along with jokes before and all it did was make you seem like some creep and/or slut who liked getting hit on (was this even what that was?) by subordinates.  But getting stern didn’t seem to make you any friends, either.  That’s why you were so comfortable with not having any friends.

“Your good side?  You mean from the back?” one of them murmured, and you wondered if he was trying to be just loud enough for you to hear, or just quiet enough for you not to. 

“Dude, she’s probably a dyke anyway,” Private Lipowitz responded.

“Am I supposed to find that insulting?” you asked him.  He smirked, as did the others, as if it was obvious that you should, but nobody said anything.  “Maybe I am a dyke.  And maybe I could give your girl back home more pleasure in five minutes than you’ve given any woman in your whole life combined, eh Lipowitz?”

“You better not talk about my girl, Major,” he challenged, standing up and puffing up his chest.  “I know you’re not supposed to hit chicks or anything, but seriously, I’ll take out anybody who talks about my girl.”  You decided not to point out that you’re not supposed to hit your commanding officer, ‘chick’ or otherwise.

“Then you better start with your boys first,” you responded, motioning to a few of the other soldiers, “because word on the street is they found those saucy little pictures she sent you.”

Lipowitz turned to the other men with wide eyes, and suddenly you were the only one smiling.  Enlisted seem to talk so much more and so much louder than they realize.

“What the fuck?” he exclaimed, dashing to his pack, presumably searching for those photos.  When he didn’t find them, he stood up and pushed Private Mason back by the shoulders.

“Where are those fucking pictures, dude?”

“I don’t have ‘em, I swear,” Mason defended, but all the other guys were laughing.

“Seriously, guys, whoever has them, just give them back!”

“You’re not going to want them back in the state they’re in,” another finally admitted, “trust me.”

They all burst into laughter as Lipowitz went on a rampage, yelling and kicking and threatening to beat up the other guys.  You took the commotion as a good opportunity to sneak away mostly unnoticed and get back to your quarters for the night.

You weren’t there very long before you decided to spend some time in your temporary office instead.  You had taken your hair out of the tight regulation bun, intending to change into pajamas and go to sleep, but you remembered some paperwork that needed to be done by tomorrow night and decided to make some progress on it, since the Captain got in the way of your productivity during the day.

Of course, you weren’t an hour into it when he knocked on your door, though you didn’t know it was him until you told him to come in without looking up from your files.

He entered but stopped and didn’t say anything.

“Can I help you?” you asked eventually.

“You look different with your hair down,” he observed, and you looked back at him with a confused expression.

“Yes, I’d figure so,” you replied.

“You sleep in your uniform?” he asked, noticing that you were still in your fatigues, though you’d shed the camo long sleeve and just had on the green undershirt.

“Do I look like I’m sleeping?” you asked incredulously, looking back to your papers.  He snorted but didn’t say anything.  "Besides, I don’t think you’re ever in uniform.“

"Not when I don’t have to be,” he shrugged.  “I’m not sure why you wear it when you don’t have to.”

“I barely get taken seriously with it on, so it’s the least I can do,” you explained.

“About that…” he began, and you looked up in surprise. “I’m sorry they give you such a hard time.”

“Oh, I see,” you nodded, getting up from your chair to put some papers in your filing cabinet, “you talked to them and heard some of the awful shit they call me.”

He didn’t say anything.

“Well, you only have yourself to blame for that.  You had plenty of chances to instill respect for authority but you decided it would be more fun, I suppose, to go rogue and turn everyone against me,” you bit back with sarcastic cheeriness.

“Shit, I’m actually trying to be nice to you, and you’re still impossible.  You’re such a fuckin’ brat,” he nearly yelled.  You felt like the word ‘brat’ specifically targeted the fact that you were younger than him, which you didn’t appreciate at all- you would rather be judged on your merits, even if the judgment was poor, than be treated differently just because you were young.

“I’m in charge of you,” you corrected, “and you’re refusing to listen to me.  So, if anything, you’re the brat.”

“What I would give to put you in your place right now,” he growled to himself.

“Oh, my place? And what place is that?”

“Bent over my desk and getting your brains fucked out,” he answered with a deep voice.  

A lot of guys probably fantasized about rough sex (or worse) as a means of revenge against you for all those extra push-ups and boot camp humiliations– a few had even made comments about it, though most hadn’t realized you could hear them at the time.  You’d learned quickly how to not let that stuff get to you.  But this got to you… and not in the way you prepared for.  Your face burned and your gut sank and your insides throbbed, as if out of nowhere.

“I figured you liked your women without brains,” you quipped in reply, trying not to show any signs of weakness.  

He dashed to close the space between you, pressing you back against the wall.  He was so big, and he smelled like sweat and beer and pine.  You were surprised, and confused, but you didn’t worry that he would hurt you, for some reason.

“Seems I like my women with a mouth on ‘em, because every time you make some little comment like that, I swear I get harder than steel.”

He pushed his hips into you and yep, there it was.  Your breaths began to stutter but you didn’t want him to see how much this affected you.

“Just wish you put that mouth to better use,” he added with a devilish grin.

“You’d better get back,” you threatened, without actually mentioning any potential consequences.

“Don’t pretend you don’t want me,” he purred, and leaned down to speak against your ear.  “You’ve thought about it, haven’t you?  I can tell you’re getting turned on when we argue, too.”

“You’re confusing arousal with irritation, Captain.”

“Mmm, I like when you call me that.  I assume the intention is condescending, cause you just have to remind me that you outrank me, but I like it anyway,” he presumed.

“It’s the proper way to address another soldier, nothing condescending about it.  You know, I actually don’t have any problem with your rank.  Or your branch.  My problem is with your personality,” you corrected.

“That’s fair.  I have a big personality,” he smirked, and pressed his erection harder against you… it felt pretty big but you couldn’t get a good impression through your fatigues.

“Well, that might explain your ego,” you murmured.

“Just tell me you don’t want it and I’ll leave you be, we’ll go back to bickering an’ shit,” he offered.  “Just look at me,” he prompted, putting a finger under your chin and guiding you to look up at him, “and tell me you don’t want it.”

As you met his gaze, you let yourself really get a closer look than you had before.  It had always been obvious that he was good-looking, but right now he looked oddly gentle considering the circumstances.  The look in his eyes lacked the confidence you were expecting… as if he really didn’t know if you wanted him or not.  As if he really wanted you to want him.  As if he really wanted you.  And it had been a long time since someone had looked at you like that.

“Fuck it,” you growled and wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him down into a kiss.  His beard rubbed against your face but it wasn’t as scratchy as you’d imagined- not that you had imagined this or anything.  

He inhaled through his nose and stepped back, pulling you with him and putting a hand on your hair and the other on your hip. 

“Looks like you’ll have to settle for bending me over my desk,” you mumbled against his lips.

“Not gonna bend you over anything yet,” he replied, putting his hands on your butt and lifting you up until you were straddling him in the air.

He walked with you wrapped around him until he could set you down on the desk, and his hands felt so damn big on the small of your waist.

He pulled back so he could pull your shirt over your head, and he took off his own while you slipped off your sports bra.  You both took a moment to stare at each other’s toplessness, a silent acknowledgement that you’d both been wondering about the other’s body.  You ran your hands up and down his chest, and he just looked at you while you did it with a difficult-to-read expression.  Of course you were familiar with muscle, you saw shirtless soldiers all the time and they were all in great shape, but this guy was just enormous.  His shoulders dwarfed you and with him so close you felt uncharacteristically small.

He didn’t say anything as he pulled you into another kiss, and this one was a bit gentler than the last.  You felt giddy and nervous and so desperate for him; you couldn’t remember the last time you felt like this, honestly.

His hands trailed down your back and you slid off the desk until you were standing.  He spun you around and pushed you down between your shoulder blades until you were face down on the desk, the cold wood making your skin break out in goosebumps.

He reached around your hips to open your button and fly, pushing your pants and underwear down to your knees.  You gasped a bit when you felt the air hit your skin.

“Oh shit, you’re wet already,” he noticed.  “Really wet.”

His fingers slipped through your folds and you tried to spread your legs but the pants got in the way.

“Just fuck me,” you demanded.

“All you know how to do is give orders, huh?” he laughed.

“This might be my first order you actually follow,” you considered, hearing him unzip the fly of his jeans.

“I don’t have any condoms,” he explained, “it’s an all-male unit, after all.”

Internally, you wanted to point out that being in an all-male unit doesn’t stop plenty of soldiers from getting it on, and that he shouldn’t be hooking up with anyone in his unit regardless of gender, but you realized this was not the time for explaining rules.

“Don’t need them,” you replied, “as long as you promise you don’t have anything I can catch.”

“You’re being so reckless,” he teased as his hands ran along your back and grabbed your ass, “it’s so unlike you.  What happened to that stubborn little rule-follower, hm?”

“She got really fucking horny,” you growled, “now get inside me, damn it.”

And without much warning, without any preparation, he slammed himself into you all at once.

“Oh fuck!” you cried out, much louder than you meant to.  He was big, really fucking big, and your walls struggled to fit him.  He didn’t slow down though, instantly setting a fast and brutal pace.

“Not so loud, sweetheart.  Not that I don’t love you screamin’ for me.  But if the other guys found out we were doing this…” he trailed off.  “Actually, I bet I’d be the most popular officer at camp if they knew we were doin’ this.”

“You already are,” you pointed out, struggling to focus on forming sentences. “And we’d both get in a lot of trouble– ah, god– if anybody reported it.”

“You’re right.  Better keep you quiet, then,” he sighed, leaning forward and stuffing two fingers into your mouth.  Your moans became sputters and chokes yet you eagerly sucked on his fingers and took them all the way down your throat.

“Fuck, that’s hot,” he growled.  “If you’d deepthroated my fingers like that when we first met, I bet we’d have gotten along a lot better.”

That’s not really the way I do business, you wanted to respond, but you couldn’t say much when you were busy with the task at hand.

His fingers pulled out and you felt his hands wrap around your elbows.   He grabbed your arms and held them back as he slammed into you so hard that the desk scraped across the floor with every movement.

“So tight,” he observed.  “Bet no one’s done this to you in a long time. Bet what you always needed was a good fuck to loosen you up– literally.”

He landed a hard slap against your ass and you moaned.

“Oh, you like that?  You like it when I hit you?”

“Yes,” you answered through bared teeth.

“Dirty little slut,” he said, but the way he said it sounded more like a compliment than an insult.

He spanked you again, just a bit harder, and you yelped but found yourself pushing your hips into him and arching your back as an invitation for more.  He grabbed your hips and pulled you closer, pressing as deep inside you as was physically possible and grinding against you.  You sobbed and he grabbed you by the hair, pulling you up until his chest was against your back.

“Anybody ever been this deep inside you before?” he asked, his lips right against your ear.

“No,” you whimpered.

“Fuck, baby,” he moaned, leaving open-mouthed kisses along your neck down to your shoulder.  You weren’t sure how to feel about him calling you ‘baby.’

He let go of your hair but kept you close to him by wrapping his arms around you as he started to thrust again.  It was oddly intimate, and your head fell back onto his shoulder as you moaned and sighed and whimpered.

Calloused hands began to grab at your breasts, teasing and pinching your nipples; you hadn’t realized how sensitive you were there, because it sent sensation shooting straight down to your inner walls.

“I’m close,” you gritted out.

“That was quick.  You’re easy to please,” he replied, and you could hear the grin in his voice.

“Just don’t stop,” you pleaded.  He pushed you back down onto the desk and began to pick up the pace.

“Oh, I won’t stop, I promise you that.” His voice sounded different than normal- deeper and scratchier and oddly weak in a way.  You liked the idea that this had such an effect on him.

His thrusts slammed into you so hard and fast that you were sure you’d have bruises from it, and probably on your thighs where they were hitting the edge of the desk.  For some reason, that thought was what sent you over the edge.

“Ca-captain!” you cried out as you came, and he growled a bit against your ear.  You figured he thought you were calling him that as some sort of sexy nickname, a flash of authority, but it’s just the only thing you could think to call him, the only thing you’d ever really called him.  

He, on the other hand, responded with your first name, even though you’d never gone by it and never even told it to him, mixed in with his grunts and moans as he pulled out and came all over your back.  

It was strange to go from so much noise– skin hitting skin, moans and yelps, the desk screeching on the concrete floor– to just heavy breathing and the sound of the ceiling fan spinning above you.  Or maybe it was you that was spinning; you felt sort of dizzy and numb.

He leaned away from you until you couldn’t feel his touch anywhere, and you heard him zip up his jeans.  You awkwardly lifted yourself off the desk, pulling up your own underwear and pants as well, and looking around for something to wipe yourself off with.

“Did you come?” he asked, and you felt shame and fear and anger bubble up inside you.  This had been a really, really bad idea, and both of you could lose your jobs over it, or worse. And he was such an asshole and you were supposed to be setting a good example for the women in your unit and here you were with some Army dumbass’ cum all over you and he didn’t even have the courtesy to make sure you’d finished before he did… what a joke.

“Oh, I came alright– came to my fucking senses.  Get out of my office,” you barked.

He laughed like he saw all this coming.

“Your office?  It’s my base.  Everything here is mine.  Even that jizz you’ve got on ya,” he grimaced.  “Kickin’ me out before it’s even gone cold.  You’re a real ray of sunshine as always, Major.”

“That’s the first time you’ve called me Major,” you realized. “Let’s make that the only thing done tonight that we turn into a habit, alright?”

He shrugged and turned to leave, but of course, he had to have the last word.  “You can fuck the ice queen but you can’t melt her, I guess.”

“Is that what this was?  Some sort of sexual scavenger hunt, to prove you were macho enough to get the prude to spread her legs?”

“Well, it worked didn’t it?” he grinned.

“I said get out,” you reminded him, hoping he’d leave before you started crying.  He did.

You didn’t cry very often, not something you had the luxury of doing after a decade at war.  And you still didn’t let yourself do it for very long, because you were morally opposed to crying over boys.

[smallsies]

bitter tragedy

ship(s): ralbert?

word count: 2.0k

trigger warning(s): mentions of guns, death, & injury

description: albert and race meet again while the world is ending.

—

a/n: apocalypse au. title is from "this will end" by the oh hellos. thanks to my wonderful friend morgan (@santa-fe-maniac) for beta reading!

—

Albert DaSilva never expected to see Racetrack Higgins ever again in his life.

Which, considering the way things had been going, was due to end shortly anyways.

Yet there he was, standing on the doorstep. Out of breath, hollow-eyed, and covered in blood, but he was alive.

The pair regarded each other for a long moment, a thousand words passing between them in the silence.

“Brooklyn?”

“Gone,” Race replied, and the look on his face told Albert not to ask anything further.

He stepped back, inclining his head by way of invitation, and Race gratefully came inside. “Well, Albie, how have things been here?” he proffered, instinctively reverting to the old nickname he’d used for the redhead.

“So-so. Charlie got bit, but Davey managed to amputate his leg before he was infected. Goes by Crutchie now.”

The blond drew in a hissed breath between his teeth. His way of showing sympathy. “Any casualties?”

“Just one. Henry, the stupid kid—” Albert paused, drawing in a breath before continuing. “A few weeks ago, Smalls requested backup, so Tommy Boy and Blink went up to assist. He snuck out after them, but, uh, he didn't make it to the Bronx,”

Race cursed under his breath. “I’m sorry,”

Albert shook his head, raking a hand through his hair. He’d have to ask Sarah about getting a haircut.

“He knew better.”

A silence blanketed them for a moment, and then Race jammed a hand into his pocket, pulling out a box of cigarettes.

“Want a smoke?”

Albert couldn't help the surprised laugh that escaped him as he tilted his head to one side, studying his friend.

“The world is ending and you’ve still got cigarettes?”

“I’m just keeping my priorities straight, Albie,”

In truth, when you live every moment thinking that it could be your last, you stop caring about a lot of things.

For Albert, it was other people. They could be the death of you, if you weren't careful. And Albert DaSilva hadn't ever been anything if not careful.

For Race, it was himself, though he’d clearly never stopped caring for cigarettes. Even now, he had one dangling unlit between his lips.

It was a way to cling onto what made them human. Amidst the ruins of civilization, that was an easy thing to forget.

———

“You wanna go say hello to the others?”

Race nodded in confirmation, so Albert bounded up the stairs, with Race right on his heels.

They stepped out onto the roof as several pairs of eyes turned to regard their entrance.

Jack, Davey, Kid Blink, Crutchie, and Katherine were all crowded around a table. One of its legs was broken, so someone—probably Davey—had propped it up with a book.

“Racetrack?” Davey stood to greet them, shooting Albert a confused look. “Is everything—”

“Brooklyn’s taken,” Albert interrupted swiftly as he felt Race tense at his shoulder.

Condolences were muttered, along with the Manhattaners exchanging looks of shock. It was clear they tried to be subtle, for Race’s sake, but it was unsuccessful at best.

Then Jack was there, pulling Race into a fierce hug.

Crutchie took longer, tucking his makeshift crutch underneath his arm before stiffly crossing the roof.

“Hey, Racer,” Crutchie murmured softly as Race hugged him in turn.

Jack touched his younger brother’s shoulder. “Welcome home, kid,”

That night brought Race curled up under a blanket borrowed from Elmer, on a bed borrowed from Henry, who’d been the previous owner.

Race whimpered in his sleep, thrashing about for what must’ve been the seventh time since he’d finally drifted off to sleep, and Albert sighed, just once, before shifting to lean over the railing, down at the boy on the bunk beneath him.

“Racer,” he hissed, and Race jolted awake, eyes immediately alight with a wild, animalistic panic as he caught sight of Albert. “Hey— ‘s just me. Nightmares?”

Race blinked and nodded slowly, tears welling up in his eyes, and Albert frowned, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Cut it out, will ya? ‘M tryin’ to sleep,”

“I can't—”

“Figure it out, a’right?”

With that, Albert rolled back over, burying his face in his blankets.

Not twenty seconds later, there was a quiet shuffling beneath him and then Race appeared, resting his chin on the bedrail.

“Can I stay with you? It helps, a-and we used to share a bed, so—”

Albert sat halfway up, tufts of ginger hair flattened to the side of his head due to the way he’d been laying. “No.”

“Al—”

“Go back to bed, Racer.”

———

Several weeks after Race’s return to Manhattan, he appeared in the kitchen early one morning with a hopeful look in his eyes.

“Hey, Al, I’m goin’ out on a supply run. You wanna come with?”

“Sure. What ‘re we after?” Albert slid past Race to grab his hunting jacket off of a hook in the hallway. He’d looted it right after the start of the apocalypse, and rarely went anywhere without it now.

“Davey's runnin’ low on first-aid supplies, so we’ll go uptown to check out that corner store. Hopefully we can scrounge up some stuff,”

“Got your gun?”

Race made a show of patting the pistol tucked into the waistband of his pants before nodding. “Yep. Good to go,”

“A’right,” Albert grunted, double-checking that he had his own.

The pair headed outside, making for the middle of the street, their way lit by stars still clinging to life, defying the sun just starting to rise.

“Lead the way,” Albert nodded to the west, falling into step beside Race as they set out.

Fifteen minutes of weaving through streets littered with miniscule fragments of glass, abandoned vehicles, and the occasional rotten corpse, they reached the corner store.

It was in one of the nicer parts of town, with the windows still clinging onto life, though the door was long gone. “C’mon,” Race jerked his head in the direction of the building and stepped inside, pausing uncertainly in the doorway as he caught sight of the shelves, set perpendicular to the entrance.

Goods had been more or less thrown around, scattered across the floor and piled on the shelves in a way far less than organized.

“Guess we weren't the first ones to find this place,” Albert had slid past Race and was investigating a display of candles. He picked one up and sniffed it, before scrunching up his nose. “Pumpkin. Gross.”

Race rolled his eyes, starting down an aisle at random. After another minute or so of aimless wandering, he triumphantly returned to Albert’s side, holding a plastic box emblazoned with a red cross.

The redhead seemed to be on a mission to smell every candle in the store, but he lifted his head, studying the kit that appeared in front of his face. “You think that’ll be good enough?”

“If Dave doesn't like it, he can hunt down a different one on his own,” Race shrugged, an easy smile crossing his face. Evidently, he wasn't serious, though he rarely was.

“Winter Fir, or Blueberry Waffle?”

“What?”

Albert pointed at the shelf. “The candles,”

The corners of Race’s mouth twitched up as he shook his head in exasperation. “I haven't had a waffle in a long time,” he finally said, so Albert picked up the blue-and-white candle, stuffing it into his pocket.

———

After leaving the store, the pair set off in the direction of the lodging house.

They didn't make it any more than three minutes down the road before running into their first zombie.

Albert remembered Davey saying they were diurnal— only active during the day, if his memory served him right.

Race frowned as Albert felled the creature. “I didn't know “sun’s out, guns out,” was meant to be taken literally,”

“Nine o’clock, Racer,” Albert warned.

The blond spun, cocking his gun and firing it in the same fluid motion.

More zombies were stumbling toward them, but for every one that went down, two more seemed to take its place.

The pair fought like they were fighting for their lives, like one wrong move meant an untimely end. Fought with the pent-up anger of those wronged by the world. Fought desperate and tired and scared.

Albert and Race were losing ground, and they fought like they knew it.

A well-placed bullet between the eyes and the zombie nearest to Race dropped, but Albert wasn't having the same luck.

His gun had jammed, or run out of bullets—whatever it was, he flicked it over his shoulder, then kicked fiercely out at one of the zombies, sending it stumbling back into the others.

When he abandoned his gun, Albert abandoned his last chance of survival.

At the time, he had no idea, but it soon became evident as the distance between him and Race increased, and the number of zombies between them did too.

Race realized it first. Got this frantic look in his eye, started shooting wildly to pave a way to his friend.

The redhead’s location was obvious amidst the drab sea of greens and grays, but Race could do nothing more than watch on in horror as one of the zombies opened a long cut on Albert’s side.

An inhuman scream tore from Albert’s throat, and he disappeared under a wave of undead.

“Al!”

There was no reply, but Race’s focus was redirected as his own enemies were getting too close for comfort, though a new fire had lit in Race’s chest and he battled the zombies without mercy.

———

Eventually, the last zombie collapsed with a bullet embedded in it’s chest, and Race was left alone, standing on a street littered with bodies.

Movement caught his eye, and Race turned his head toward the source as it keened quietly.

His heart lurched in his throat and he began to pick his way over to Albert, who lay sprawled across the pavement.

Blood was matted in his hair and he was as white as a sheet. He’d managed to stem the flow of blood from the gash in his side, at the very least, fingers splayed over a ragged strip of cloth torn from his shirt.

“Al—”

“Get away, Racer,”

“No, Al, ‘s okay— i-it's just a little blood,” Race kneeled beside the boy, who was shaking his head.

Foolishly, Race tugged the box of first-aid supplies out of his pocket, flicking open the lid.

“We’ll put some gauze on it, just until we can get you back home,” he said, but knew the idea was impossible once he met Albert’s gaze.

Time was running out.

Race’s hands shook as he dropped the kit, but Albert must've noticed the terror on his face because he stopped him from reaching for it again.

He’d grabbed his hand and laced their fingers together. Strangely cold against Race’s sweat-slick palm.

Albert gritted his teeth, removing the hand that had been clamped over the cloth that was covering the wound in his ribcage.

Before Race could question what he was doing, the redhead had jammed a hand into his pocket and pulled out the blue-and-white candle.

“Here. Until you have waffles again,”

“Don't talk like you aren't gonna be there to eat ‘em with me,”

“And you don't be a fool, Racer,”

Three words was all they needed. Three words they’d both been too scared to commit to reality for years, even if they knew them to be true, in one way or another.

Albert gritted his teeth. “I’m dyin’, okay? Let me die human,”

“You aren't gonna die,”

Albert didn't reply, remaining quiet until Race found his voice and spoke again.

“I need you.”

Just three words, but time was running out. They’d left so much unsaid, and now it was too late.

“I could say the same,”

“You don't get it, Al,”

“Maybe I do.”

Three words that were the reason Race ran away to Brooklyn. The reason Albert shut everyone out.

Silence settled over them again, carrying on as Albert's skin chilled and his eyes darkened, a peculiar growl building in his throat.

Three words they couldn't quite say, seemingly fated to remain unsaid.

Race’s hands shook as he pulled out his gun, miles and miles of silver glinting coldly in the half-light.

And, if it was even possible, Race thought he saw Albert’s eyes soften a moment before he pulled the trigger.

—

taglist: @newsies-is-my-erster

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[veliseraptor]

I hope this doesn’t come out the wrong way but I think I have a withdrawal for your Loki stuff,,,, I know you’re into other fandom right now and gosh I feel bad for even sending this bc my intention is not to make you feel bad or to rush you, I just want to ask, could I pretty please get a little snippet for whatever Loki fic you have in process? No ass kissing but I haven’t seen anyone write him better than you do and I miss you and your Loki fic. Again I hope this doesn’t sound like I rush you

It’s okay, anon! I mean, I feel guilty but that’s not your fault, that is my fault for the ways in which I feel obligated toward people in fandom and I’m. Trying to not do that and just focus on what Brings Me Joy and whatnot. But I’m truly flattered by the sentiment and also sorry that you’re missing it. 

But I’ve got plenty of Loki fic floating around here that I can share with you, so here, have a long snippet that’ll hopefully give you a little bit of ease in this time of me being thoroughly sucked into another fandom.

this being the first three scenes of the fic the first steps stumbling forward, sometimes known as “100 pages of ostensibly Steve/Loki fic and not only no kissing, but also Loki is still solely referring to Steve by his last name only.”

A ship full of Aesir landing on Midgard’s northern hemisphere was, apparently, “a humanitarian crisis.” From what Loki gathered, that meant mostly a great many arguments ensuing about who was going to deal with them, which really seemed to be about if anyone was going to.

Loki almost wanted to see what would happen if someone tried to tell Thor they had to leave. At least so far, though, no one actually had. Perhaps they recognized that there was no one on their planet with the means to actually enforce that decree. At least not for certain.

Not that their entire reception was hostile. Almost as soon as the situation became clear humans began arriving, some simply to gawk but others seemingly with intent to help. Crews of camera-people and reporters swarmed - mostly around Thor, but others like flies around the miserable remnants of Asgard’s people.

Loki, for his part, kept his distance from them. Eventually he supposed someone might mention his name, but until then he planned to avoid that particular difficulty.

He did go to spy on Thor’s meeting with Stark, who had arrived with much fanfare, stepping out of his suit with a too-wide grin and turning to wave before turning to Thor and promptly doing a double-take.

“Buddy,” he said. “What happened to your hair? Also your eye-”

A small smile played around the corner of Thor’s mouth. “That’s a long story.” He glanced past Stark like he was looking for someone else. “You’re alone?”

Stark’s expression did something tight and complicated. “Long story.” He glanced over his shoulder at the snapping cameras. “Can we go somewhere else? Talk in private?”

“Yes,” Thor said. “This way.” He gestured Stark toward the makeshift headquarters they’d set up back inside the ship, and he walked inside fiddling with the bracelets on his wrists. Loki slipped in after Thor and took up a position in the corner of the room to listen.

The moment the door closed the last of Stark’s bravado fell away and he turned to Thor looking exhausted. “As good as it is to see you, and as much as I’m - really sorry about--” He gestured awkwardly at their surroundings, “--I gotta tell you that you have the worst timing.” He walked over to the table and sat down. “Where’ve you been? Caught some selfies of you on Instagram the other week - in New York, and you didn’t come say hi - but you still had two eyes at that point.”

One of Thor’s hands rose briefly, still self-consciously, to touch his eye-patch. “Yes,” he said. “I was on Earth. Briefly. As I said, it is a long story. Why do I have poor timing?”

Stark rubbed his eyes. “So, uh, right now? There’s this thing called the ‘Sokovia Accords.’ Basically the idea is to make sure superhumans are, uh, supervised.” Thor’s expression remained impassive. Stark glanced away. “So, see, then you show up with a whole...whole bunch of homeless superhumans, superaliens, and everyone’s not quite sure how you fit into this, what kind of compliance they should be demanding...it’s a whole thing. Secretary Ross - you’ll meet him, he’s awful - he says that Asgard should be under US protection because you were an Avenger and the Avengers were a US team, sort of-”

“‘Were’?” Thor said, just as Loki was thinking it, but he thought he’d already figured it out.

“Yeah,” Stark said after a beat. “There was a bit of a falling out. The point is...you and your people are a problem with a capital ‘P’, as far as the governments on Earth are concerned. And I swear to god I heard something about you bringing the Hulk with you too, which is just - hang on, you’re not serious.”

Loki had gathered enough from this conversation, so as much as he wanted to see Stark’s expression he slipped out. He felt Thor glance toward the door opening, but Stark was too busy making incoherent noises that were either excitement, horror, or both, to notice.

**

Thor came and found him paring slices out of a small and slightly sour apple. The taste wasn’t pleasant, but at least it was fruit.

“You were eavesdropping,” Thor said, not quite an accusation. Loki gave him a quick, wry smile.

“And?”

Thor sighed, but he didn’t actually seem upset. After a moment he sat down next to Loki. “What did you think?”

“I think,” Loki said, “that your friends have done a better job of tearing themselves apart than I ever could have.” Thor gave him a hard look and Loki raised his eyebrows. “What? It’s true, isn’t it?”

“Loki,” Thor said chidingly. Loki shrugged.

“I think it doesn’t change much,” he said. “Midgard’s governments were never going to be happy. They still can’t do very much about it.”

“It also means they won’t help. Or are reluctant to help.”

“True.” Loki glanced down at the half eaten apple in his hands. “Not quite the welcome you expected, hm? Almost makes you wish someone had already conquered this planet.”

Thor’s jaw tightened. “Our people are suffering, Loki.”

Loki held up his hands. “I wasn’t being flippant. Or, I was, but not because I miss the gravity of our situation.” He sighed. “You are just going to have to convince them of our good intentions. While maintaining our independence from the kind of control Stark was describing, as I doubt that would end well.”

“Simple enough,” Thor said.

“And I,” Loki said, “will continue to stay out of the way. If you are now a possible threat…”

Thor rubbed his remaining eye. “Tony thinks that they will ask that the Hulk be turned over.”

Loki barked a laugh. “I’d like to see someone tell Hulk that. From a distance.” Thor’s lips twitched like he was trying not to smile. “Is Stark planning to try?”

“No,” Thor said, sounding faintly puzzled. “I asked if he wanted to speak to the Hulk, but he refused. I have no idea why.”

“He’s ashamed of something,” Loki said promptly. “I’d really like to know what. Though not enough to actually pursue it.” Thor frowned at him again. “What?”

Thor shook his head and then pushed himself to his feet. “I have another meeting with this ‘World Security Council’,” he said. “Wish me luck.”

“Good luck,” Loki said. “Perhaps you should remind them that you’ve saved their planet...how many times is it, now? It’s always possible someone will remember to show some proper gratitude.” He pared another slice off the apple and popped it in his mouth. “If not, you could always set a few nearby trees on fire.”

Thor frowned. “I’m not going to threaten them into submission.”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t been tempted.”

Thor gave him an exasperated look and left. Loki eyed the rest of the unappetizing apple and almost threw it away, only to remember that their food stores were pitifully limited and largely reliant on the relief crews.

Waste not, he thought wearily, and ate the rest of it. It was almost a pity he’d had a solid three years of soft living to get used to luxury again. He’d lost all the good lessons of the three before that.

By the looks of things, he’d have plenty of time to get them back.

You could always leave, whispered a faint voice, not for the first time. There’s a whole universe to wander.

But if he walked away now, Loki didn’t think he’d ever be able to come back. He’d made his decision, for better or for worse. Besides, it wasn’t as though he had a whole lot of options for other places to go where he wouldn’t be risking his neck just by showing his face. Which...was the case here, too.

Loki made a face at the core he was holding and bit it in half hard enough that his teeth clicked together.

**

The trouble with having to avoid any and all public appearances was that it severely limited what Loki could actually do. He was skulking about like a thief, confined to administrative tasks behind the scenes.

A not insignificant part of him resented it. He wasn’t proud, but there it was: he had always hated feeling invisible, and now more than ever. He’d gotten too used to the spotlight, just as he’d gotten too used to comfortable living. He should have known neither would last.

He reminded himself it was his own fault. That did not particularly help.

Valkyrie seemed to be having the opposite problem. Asgard’s people were in awe of her. The humans were even more impressed. She, meanwhile, appeared to be trying to avoid both.

This meant they spent a fair amount of time together, since her green best friend was a bit of an attention-getter. (Thor had tried to get him to stay out of sight, but it hadn’t gotten him very far. Still, based on Stark’s reaction, someone was suppressing that bit of news. He had to wonder who.)

“You look cheerful,” Loki said when he found her in - surprise, surprise - the ship’s bar. It was empty, but she seemed to find it comforting just the same. She scowled at him.

“Some Midgardian reporter wants an interview. An interview.”

“Are they going to shoot photos of you? Ask about your fashion sense?”

Valkyrie narrowed her eyes. “Is that what they do?” She paused. “How do you know anything about Midgardian news?”

Loki shrugged. “I stole some magazines from one of our generous volunteers. They’re appalling. I don’t recommend them.”

Valkyrie shook her head and stared at the empty bar. “You’re lucky,” she said. “No one’s trying to talk to you.”

Loki barked a laugh. “Yes,” he said, a little bitterly. “Lucky.”

“You are,” Valkyrie said. “If they were trying to talk to you they’d probably be trying to kill you. Right?”

Loki gave her a flat stare. “Thank you for that.”

She shrugged. “Just saying. You should be ready for that to change at some point. Someone’s going to start talking about Prince Loki and then you’re going to have some problems.”

Loki knew that was probably true. He’d thought about it a few times - he was almost surprised it hadn’t come up. Thus far the limited contact between most of the Aesir and any reporters - Thor had been careful about limiting access to their camp - and Thor’s explicit request to the Asgardians that they were to keep Loki’s name off their tongues had spared him, but that wasn’t likely to last forever. At that point...there would be some difficult decisions to make.

Some bleak part of him wondered what Thor would choose to do if Midgard’s authorities asked for his head.

“Thor’s not going to let them kill you,” Valkyrie said, apparently guessing his thoughts.

“Mm,” Loki said. “Even if it is me or Asgard’s safety here?”

“Thor doesn’t like ultimatums. He really wouldn’t like that one.” She leaned back. “I get all the fretting about that. ‘Oh, Valkyrie, what am I going to do about Loki? We can’t keep him secret forever!’”

Loki had to snort at her imitation, but he didn’t know how to explain to her that he was too aware of the fact that Thor had reached the end of his rope with him, the feeling that he was still walking a narrow bridge above a chasm and there was nothing to catch him if (when) he fell.

“You look like you could use a drink,” Valkyrie said.

“Have you left any alcohol in a five mile radius?” Loki asked caustically. She smiled a little toothily.

“I said you could use some,” she said. “Not that I had any.”

“Helpful.”

The toothy smile faded. “Make you a deal,” she said. “You come up with a way that I can avoid all these people who want me to be a hero, and I’ll threaten anyone who comes after your head with Dragonfang. Sound good?”

Loki gave her a crooked half smile. “I think I can figure something out.”

[world-of-socks]

Chapter one: Spies are Forever (sorry I had to…*)

*If you don’t know what Spies Are Forever is please look it up. The full thing is on Youtube, you won’t regret it!!

(Got the idea from @steven-universe-au-prompts. I’m still working on concept art and stuff I’ll post that later. Anyways this was super fun to write and I hope you all enjoy this first look into hopefully will be a series that I’ll complete for once lol)

...

“Soldiers!” A pearl roared to the oncoming sea of quartzes and other miscellaneous gems and fusions.

Nobody was paying her any mind, the camp was full of excitement, everyone was talking to each other and conversing about the next move and where they were stationed. The air was so abuzz with different conversations that Yellow Tourmaline heard none of them. Nor did she care. She was here for one purpose and one purpose alone, and that right now, was to hear that renegade pearl speak.

“SOLDIERS!” she roared again.

A few looked up and then went back to chatting.

The pearl looked towards everyone’s leader, the rose quartz, who was speaking with a fusion, and then turned towards the crowd once more, “SHUT! UP!!”

Everyone turned to face her, and ceased their conversations. Yellow watched the pearl sigh, and then continue,

“We all appreciate you being here, your service is greatly needed in our fight to win back this wonderful planet. Though, we will need to have some form of organization in our camps, you will now hear a word from my general and yours: ROSE QUARTZ!”

The crowd erupted into applause and roars and cheers. These gems loved this Quartz, loved her more than any gem Yellow Tourmaline had ever seen. The Rose Quartz dismissed the applause, humbly, and then began to speak.

“You wonderful gems, you’ve worked so hard your entire life to please someone who doesn’t care about you, or your well-being. You’ve slaved away for the whims of a dictator who thinks you are a pile of sediment, unworthy. Those days are over. When you are under my command you are free to be whoever you want, and to fuse with whoever you want!”

There was another planet shaking roar of applause, Yellow just stood there, dumbfounded, she didn’t understand. The Rose quartz held up her hand to silence them once more.

“Though I would like to make one thing clear. There will still have to be a level of organization in my camps! You will be organized by your station, you won’t be shattered if you don’t listen, but if we want to do this properly, it would be preferred if you would do as I tell you. Though, all ideas are welcome! Pearl will continue from here.”

She then stepped away and resumed talking to the fusion, her pearl then started commanding everyone on where to go.

“The front lines will be stationed in the first two barracks, the blacksmiths will be stationed…..” her voice seemed to fade away.

After the meeting, Yellow knew exactly where she was to go, she was a general on the front lines (she had perfected the basic general appointment test) and would be staying with other generals in the barracks. She hadn’t met any of them yet, and wasn’t thrilled about staying a week with everyone else, but she knew she had to.

She pushed back the fabric of the tent and stepped in timidly, inside was a table with chairs and a few gems gathered around it, a few cots (she only recently learned what those were), and a weapons rack. As she walked in a few of the gems looked up at her, a few looked a little wary, but the others appeared friendly.

“Heya, we got a new one ‘ere!” exclaimed an Ametrine.

She got up from her table where the rest of the generals were huddled over a map, and approached her. Yellow backed up slightly, she wasn’t used to being interacted with in such a way.

“Ey, I’m not gonna ‘urt ya.” Ametrine gave her a pat on the shoulder, “I’m Ametrine, by the way, but you can call me Ame, everyone does.”

Ame looked her up and down to take her in, Yellow watched the evaluation process go on in her head, “Let’s see ‘ere, a newby most likely from, what, Yellow’s court?”

Yellow stiffened up, not used to the informal addressing of the name, “Yes.”

“Ah! rough, mate. I was too. She’s a bit cold, ain't she? Kinda emotionless, yeah?” Ame shook her head, hands in her pockets,“Yeah, I’m real glad I left when I did. I started feelin’ real low, always scared of gettin’ shattered, y’know? I’m feelin’ much betta’ under Rose’s command, though, no need to worry ‘bout little ol’ me.”

Yellow just gave a weak laugh.

“Ya don’t talk much do ya?” Ame remarked, “What’s ya name anyway?”

She straightened up, “I’m Yellow Tourmaline.”

“Do ya go by anythin’ shorter?”

“No.” she retorted simply.

“Well that’ll have to change.” Ame thought for a moment, “I’m sure durin’ trainin’ tomorrow a betta’ name will reveal itself.”

There was an awkward silence yet again, Yellow wasn’t very good at interacting like this.

“Lemme’ introduce ya to the team!” Ame said with fake or real enthusiasm, Yellow couldn’t tell.

“This is Black Opal, but we call her Bo. She don’t say much either, but she’s a great archer and an even betta’ general. Her surprise attacks are some of the best and smartest in the biz!” Ame pointed to a tall and darkly colored gem towards the left of the table, she looked up and simply nodded in greeting.

“Over there’s Emerald, but we just call her Bear. She got the name cuz’ we went on a scoutin’ mission, and ran across an earth creature, Rose said it's called a bear, and she got chased by that thing for hours! Once she got fed up though she stopped in her tracks and screamed in its face and scared it off into the woods! She’s more a bear than it was!” The Emerald rolled her eyes, she must’ve been used to the anecdote.

“There’s old Peach Sapphire over there, Bismuth, and oh that there’s Cat’s Eye, don’t mess with them, they’re a tricky one. I could tell ya a million stories about all these guys.” Ame laughed, but quickly stopped when she saw the unamused look on Yellow’s face, “Ah, but, I won’t… I won’t.”

Yellow strode across the room to the map on the table, and looked at it for a moment.

“Judging our strategies, are you?” Peach Sapphire retorted to Yellow’s glance at the map.

“Wha-... no.” Yellow lied.

“Ah well you were going to.” she mused.

“I thought only Blue Sapphire’s could predict the future.”she grumbled, realizing she had been caught.

“Hm, yes, and that’s where you're wrong. Blue Sapphires can predict the future more accurately than I, but no, they aren’t the only ones.” She sighed, “And if you’re worried that we won’t succeed without good incite on the future we have a rare Blue Sapphire on our team. She’s fused with Ruby, they go by Garnet by the way, she’s Rose’s lefthand gem.”

Yellow cringed slightly at the mention of fusion, “The Pearl is the right hand?” she clarified.

“Yes.” Peach sighed and looked back at the map, “Newcomers aren’t permitted to be strategists until they go through a week of training. Our apologies, but this war has been long and hard, I’ve lost friends, loved ones, excuse me if I don’t trust you right away.”

“I… see.” the room was silent, a distant grief hung in the air.

“I assume you aren’t one to sleep are you?” Emerald asked, breaking the emptiness, “The newbys usually aren’t.”

“No, I don’t sleep.” she replied.

“That’ll change!” Ame called from where she lay on her cot, her cap over her eyes.

A few of the other generals snickered.

“Well even if you don’t sleep I recommend resting on the cots until morning.” Emerald added kindly.

“Is there really nothing else I can assist with?” she asked, desperate, not loving the idea of being left alone with her thoughts, surrounded by strange gems.

“Not until we get a chore list, a training schedule, or a command.” Emerald replied.

“Or until Jasper comes in here and breaks something.” Peach muttered.

Ame laughed from her cot, even Black Opal snickered slightly.

Yellow sat in the cot the second closest to the tent opening. She lay down on her back stiffly, and closed her eyes, but when nothing changed she sat up and looked around. She hated the feeling of not being in charge, but she knew it was only going to have to be for a week.

After an hour or so of sifting through the pamphlets for newcomers, she was startled by a loud sound. The tent ripped open and a giant Jasper burst through with a terrified look on its face. Yellow jumped to her feet.

The Jasper ran over to where Ame lay presumably asleep and shook her violently.

“Ame! Ame!!” she cried, “You gotta wake up! Please wake up!”

“Wha-... Jazz what’s,” she yawned, “What’s goin’ on ya loon.”

“I was just-...I was just!” she panted and stuttered, “I was just-... practicing my acting! Free acting lessons with Jazz as soon as the sun goes down!”

“Nobody needs ya classes Jazz, not in this war. Besides no non-sleepin newby would ever join.” Ame muttered readjusting her cap.

Jasper stamped her foot, “Yeah, but MORALE! Ya know?” she turned excitedly to Yellow who felt more uncomfortable than ever before, “Hey, would you wanna join?”

“Uh… no.” She answered, Jazz frowned, “Uh I mean- no, not really.” she stuttered.

“Dang,” Jazz mused, “This one IS new. Welp, they're always open if ya ever change your mind.”

Jazz crashed onto an empty spot on the floor which had blankets, that were probably chipped in from the other generals, for her to lay on. Yellow hadn’t noticed the broken cot pieces before.

Yellow resumed her sitting position at the end of the makeshift bed and continued looking through the pamphlet, more to look busy, she had already read the entire thing. After an hour or so the other generals retired, save for Cat’s eye who, without a word, glided to the tent entrance and stood guard.

Once she determined it wouldn’t be awkward to stop reading, she layed back down, this time on her side. She stared at the dirty tent fabric.

It would just be for a week, then she could transform back into her usual form, get into her ship, and drive home with whatever plans she could find. Nobody would know, not even the others on homeworld. She could finally end this fight once and for all.

[prongsisabadger]

The Wolf Pack Chapter 15

The elevator doors opened onto the bridge. We had made it to the Abregado system a few minutes ago and Master Plo had requested my presence. The scanners had detected a massive ship orbiting the system, and now the fleet was moving into attack position in preparation for the coming battle. We had found Grievous' mystery weapon, and since the ship had no escort whatsoever and needed to be taken out, Master Plo decided to engage.

"Given the past history of this weapon, i think it wise to report our location before engaging the enemy." Said my master, turning to Wolffe for his opinion.

"General Skywalker is nearest, in the Bith system. I hear he's always ready for a fight." He commented.

"No wonder he got paired up with Ahsoka, they must be made for eachother." I smirked.

"Let's hope they are both in the mood for a little bit of action then." Answered Master Plo before turning on the communications.

"Koh-to-ya, Master Plo. Nice to see you in one piece 'Ari." greeted Ahsoka as soon as the hologram stabilized.

"Koh-to-ya, little 'Soka." returned my Master. "General Skywalker, we are in the Abregado system and have found Grievous' ship. We are in need of reinforcements."

"Well, Master, I will have to speak to the Council about it. I'm under strict orders to keep my position, I'll let yo- ow- s oon-" The communication got cut short.

The enemy was jamming us. Someone reported the enemy ship had moved into position and that a massive mass of energy was building up. Master Plo called for fire, but we were not in range yet. And then, the enemy fired. An ever expanding energy field shot through the entire fleet and took out all power. We were adrift in open space, defenceless and vulnerable. It was then that the enemy opened fire on the first ship, tearing it to pieces in seconds and sending all the leftover debris flying towards us and our third ship. I was shocked, confused, terrified at how quickly everything was happening. I could not believe how easy to break a ship of that size would be when left completely bare. The canon blasts had made it crumble like dry leaves inside a fist. It was a terrible sight.

"I want everyone in the escape pods NOW." Ordered Master Plo.

There was chaos, emergency lights glowed red and troopers everywhere ran towards the escape pods. There were men yelling, cursing, some even panicking. I tried my best to stay calm and ran towards one of the pods. I had been so out of it that I hadn't realized Art had come to find me. It was him who dragged me by the arm and got me inside the nearest pod. Two other troopers got in before someone closed the door and launched us into what was soon to become a graveyard.

Outside, some pods crashed into debris, others crashed into each other, and some even malfunctioned, unable to launch at all. The force was in disarray all around me. There was so much pain, so much fear, so much confusion and anger. It was so overwhelming. But we had made it, we had made it and I would make sure we survived until someone came looking for us. I would, I had to.

"Okay men, let's get to work," I said once the pod had stopped drifting. "We'll make propper introductions later. First we need to do a diagnosis of the pod, what we do and don't have. Next we'll get the communications running and send a distress signal. Hopefully, someone out there will receive it."

No one even tried to protest, we all wanted to survive, so we got to work immediately. Art ran diagnostics while the other two tried to get the power back on and I tried to hardwire the distress call.

"Okay, so here's what we are working with," started Art. "We have no power -as we already know- but I believe that if we rearrange the circuit we may be able to get it back on. We have no life support recharge, so once the oxygen we have is gone, that'll be it. But the communications system seems intact so we can probably get in touch with other pots and figure something out."

Our prospects were not good. Our chances at survival depended on whether someone came looking for us or not. I couldn't risk that, I needed to figure out a way to keep us all alive regardless.

"Are the scanners working, Art?" I asked.

"Yeah bit they are not very powerful." He answered.

"Okay men, I need you to get the power up and running, I may have an idea that could better our chances."

While working, the other two troopers told me their names were Happy and Twitch. This was their very first deployment. Art sighted and muttered something about shinies under his breath, but I ignored him as best as I could. Shinies or not, they were here with us, and they were Pack. After a few minutes and a lot of debate, they managed to get the power back on, and so, we could now turn our communications and scanners on.

"What should I scan for, Commander?" Asked Art as he started setting up.

"Fuel cells."

"Fuel cells? What good would fuel do us in an escape pod? It's not like we can fly this thing to the nearest fleet." Said Twitch.

"No, but undamaged fuel cells are probably still attached to a ship. I'm hoping that -if we can get our hands on a fighter in good enough condition- we can use it's longer range communications system and oxygen tanks." I answered.

It was a long shot, there was nearly no chance a ship had survived that attack, but we had to try regardless.

"Wouldn't it be more effective to scan for life forms and contact another pod?" asked Happy skeptically.

"And do what?, they would have the same problem we do. Our better choice is to improve our own situation and then help others," I said. "As things are right now, if we can't help ourselves, we can't help others either."

It was at that moment that a transmission came in. One of the pods was asking for help. They were under attack, the enemy was attempting to open their pod. They weren't far, in fact, when I use the Force to bring our pod around, we saw it. A separatist ship that looked like a gigant claw manned by four battle droids attached to one of our pods. They were trying to break it open, they wanted no survivors.

"Art, you are staying in here, keep the distress signal alive," I said, grabbing one of their helmets and putting it on. "The two of you are coming with me, we are taking out that ship."

"But Commander they haven't spotted us yet." Protested Happy.

"But they will eventually, and if there are other pods out there, we seed to make sure they don't find them." I said, making sure Art's helmet fitted me and the seal was working properly. "I won't be able to last too long out there, so we need to be quick." I said.

"Well, then you better get going, Commander. They have just spotted us."

The pressure was unbelievable. I had known all along that this would be a risky choice to make, but in all honesty, it had also been the only one I could make. My torso felt like someone had landed a cruiser on top of it, and breathing was difficult. And yet, I had a mission to accomplish. We ambushed the droids from all sides, blasting two of them and making the other two retreat. But they were compromising the pod, and Art's life with it. And I could not have that. At first I had had the intention of using the pod hunter for fuel and a boost in our comms, but when they started putting pressure on the pod I knew it wasn't going to work. I cut two of the claw's metal fingers and force pushed it away, making it collide with the debris from our fleet and explode.

We were compromised, and I was almost out of energy. The pressure of the vacuum of space was getting to me, I wouldn't last much longer. My ribcage would collapse and all of my organs with it. Or so I thought.

"Commander, another pod is signalling us! It's the General!"

But I could barely hear him. I didn't feel Happy grab me and hand me over to my Master. I didn't feel how both pods were towed into a shuttle. What I did feel was the release of all the pressure I'd been under. I felt how my lungs expanded again, how my heart started pumping faster now that the blood vessels were no longer under pressure. I could feel the blood running from my nose, my ears, even my left eye. But I couldn't hear anything. The silhouettes around me were just that. The only thing I felt was the probing of the medical droid and the warmth from a hand holding mine.

…

I woke up tired, cold and with a terrible headache. When I tried to sit, it felt like someone was stabbing me everywhere. So I groaned and gave up trying, it was too painful. Someone inside the infirmary started talking to me, but I was too concentrated in trying not to cry. I felt as if a giant had tried to squeeze the juice out of me like a meilooron.

"-ari. Child. Can you hear me? Kriari." The voice to my right started to register in my head and it took all I had just to turn my head.

Master Plo was there, looking intently at me. Waiting for me to come to my senses and maybe give him a sign I could hear him.

"Hello, Master." I whispered.

Talking took too much energy, it required too many muscles that just didn't feel like working right then.

"You had all of us worried, my Child." He said honestly.

Behind him, Ahsoka looked ready to burst into tears, and Commander Wolffe looked relieved to see me breathe.

"How many survived, Master? Where are my troopers? Art, and Happy and Twitch, are they-"

I winced sharply, as a shock of pain ran from my chest, all the way up my spine and into my head.

"They are okay, Commander. They are in their quarters, resting." Answered Wolffe.

"You are so stupid sometimes, Kriari. You almost died." Whispered Ahsoka. "If you ever do that again I won't forgive you."

I smiled at her fondly. She really had been scared for my life.

"Oh, shut up 'Soka, you would have done the same."

They stayed for a few more minutes, put me up to speed, told me the new plan to engage Grievous' Ion cannon before he attacked a medical station near Naboo. All the while, I listened silently. I wanted to go and help them, but I knew I couldn't, not in the condition I was in. So I stayed silent, listened to what they all had to say. Master Plo said my actions had been brave, but to be careful in the future. A Jedi could not risk their life so readily, they had to live to fight another day, for there were few of us. Then, they all left. All except for Wolffe.

"Anything to scold me about, Commander?" I teased, but he didn't smile.

"You lied to them." He took one look at my confused expression and then clarified. "Your troopers. You told them you could withstand the pressure."

Oh, that. I looked away, not wanting to have that conversation.

"General Plo Koon told me he had been trying to teach you that technique. That as far as he knew, you had never managed to master it." He accused.

"There were lives at ris-"

"That included yours, Kriari."

In the time I'd known Wolffe, or any member of the Pack for that matter, no one had ever addressed me by my name, always my title. He was angry.

"I was trying to protect everyone, Wolffe. I may be a Jedi but my life is not worth more than that of the clones." I said icily.

"It is to the war effort."

"I don't give a shit about the war effort, Commander." I snapped. "I am in this war because I have to be, and so are you, If we are going to fight and die in the process, then the least I can do is save as many of you as I can."

He looked away. If it was out of frustration, anger or shame, I didn't know. He took his helmet from a nearby table and made his way towards the door.

"Then at least let us return the favor."

[awhitehead17]

Universal Signs

Chapter 17 / Previous Chapter

Also on AO3

Enjoy! :D

Kon does his best to ignore the pointed look being sent his way. It’s incredibly difficult considering the intensity of the stare. He shifts uncomfortably in the chair he’s sat on and keeps his focus on the paper in front him as if he’s actually interested in what’s on the page.

From the side, Cassie continues to stare at him in that unnerving way, not moving an inch as she waits for him to break.

The two of them were in Kon’s room at the TOC and it’s been a couple days since they woke up from the attack by the League. Bart still hasn’t woken up which is major concern, the two of them had been sat his bedside for several hours at a time, hoping he would soon wake up but he has yet to. In that time the two of them also recovered themselves, they’re both nearly back to normal and at full power the only thing is the lingering fatigue which quickly catches up on them at random times.

Right now they were discussing a plan to go rescue Tim from the League of Assassins. Well, Kon pitched an idea and now Cassie is glaring at him probably for the stupidity of that idea.

In the end, the weight of her looks does make him break and he turns to her almost desperately. “Look we don’t have a lot of options on how we’re going to do this, especially covertly.”

“What you just said Kon-el has got to be one of the most moronic ideas I have ever heard of.” Cassie bites out still glaring at him. From her position on the bed next to him, she crosses her arms over her chest and stares in disbelief. “You’re suggesting that we go to the ship, sneak on board and purposely get caught. That idea alone could easily backfire against us Kon!”

Kon sighs in frustration. “Look it’s an option. Anyway it might work for us because the Demon’s Head may be interested in us because we’re the ones who picked Tim up originally, so he may actually want to keep us alive to find out why.”

Cassie shakes her head in disbelief. “I can’t believe you even thought up that idea.”

“Well it’s one of three actually,” Kon points out, “the other ideas I had were that we sneak on the ship and sneak around until we find Tim. The other is that one of us purposely gets caught and acts as a distraction while the other goes off to try and find Tim.”

There’s a moment of silence as Cassie takes in his suggestions, probably trying to work out which of them is the least stupid one and will less likely get them killed. In the end she sighs and rubs a hand across her face in obvious displeasure with the situation they’re in.

“I don’t like any of those plans.” She declares bluntly. Kon nods accepting that, he’s not exactly a fan either but it’s all he's been able to come up with in the short time frame they’ve had.

“If I have to choose one, however, I suppose we sneak on board and sneak around until we find Tim. Though we’ll have no idea how many assassins we’ll be up against, what kind of weapons they’ll have prepared or what level of combat they have. Then there’s the issue of where we’ll find Tim. We know the Demon’s Head has an interest in him so Tim will be kept close to him. How are we expecting to free him? Then there’s escaping the ship once we have Tim.”

“I don’t know,” Kon admits quietly, “I haven’t really thought about that. My initial thought is that we find out where Tim is and what condition he’s in and go from there. We make it up as we go along.”

Cassie gets up from the bed and starts pacing around the small space of his room, one hand tapping her face she thinks things through while the other is wrapped around her torso. “Not only are we talking about sneaking on the ship but how are we supposed to get close enough to actually get onboard without being detected? There's no way the base ship wouldn’t have any sensors that pick up foreign ships in range.”

“Again, it was going to be one of those, we’ll deal with it when we get to that stage.”

“Then, even before that, how are we planning on escaping Krypton? Your father made it very clear he didn’t want us leaving the planet, we’re going to have to get creative to be able to sneak away and find a ship to take. There's no way we can take ours, it’s too obvious.”

Kon sighs and rubs a hand through his hair. He hadn’t even considered taking their own ship, because as Cassie said it’s too obvious. His father will no doubt have it locked down somewhere being watched in case they attempt to leave Krypton despite his orders. Which they are planning, obviously, but in a different way.

“Could there be another ship we could take? Anyone we would know who may be willing to lend us theirs?” Kon asks openly as his own mind searches for an answer.

There's a moment of silence between them as Kon stays seated on the chair while Cassie paces the room. Eventually the Amazon sits down on the bed with a huff and falls backwards until she’s stretched out.

Kon looks away from her and turns back to the paper in front of him. It wasn't anything much, just his ideas written down on the page in messy writing. A loud gasp gets his attention and he whips his head over to Cassie who’s now sat in an up right potion with a wide-eyed expression. “The compound!”

Kon blinks at her, not understanding the exclamation. “What?”

“The compound!” She repeats excitedly. “I’m certain the Kryptonian ship compound has an old League of Assassins ship parked in it. It would be perfect if we can get to it and start it up. Also it wouldn’t be tracked because the trackers would have long been disconnected when it was first brought to the compound.”

His own eyes widen at the idea. He hadn’t even thought of that. “With that ship it wouldn’t be picked up by the base ship because of its origins, it’ll bypass any form of security. Cassie that's brilliant!”

“Right, so we get that one and use that to get to the base ship, but how are we going to find the location of it?”

“What about Tim’s translator?” Kon suggests after a moment of thinking. “We should be able to track Tim’s location with the remote, that’ll lead us to the ship and then even to Tim once we’re there.”

Cassie’s face lights up for a brief second before she’s frowning once again. “That’s good, however the remote is on our ship which is being guarded.”

Kon shakes his head. “My father said we can’t leave Krypton, not that we couldn’t go to our ship. All of our belongings are on there, we could make up something saying we need to grab something off the ship and promise there’s nothing more to it. So we’re not exactly lying, just leaving out some details.”

His teammate nods, accepting the idea. “That sounds good. So we grab Tim’s universal translator remote, take a League of Assassins ship, track Tim’s location with the remote and then….”

“We go from there.” Kon finishes off. “What about at night fall we take the ship, there are less Kryptonian’s about then.”

“Yeah. We’ll have to sneak past the guards and work out how to start the ship but I think that's possible. What about Bart though, what are the chances that he’ll wake up when we’re gone?”

Kon frowns, his chest suddenly feeling heavy at the thought of leaving their teammate behind. It’s terrible that they don’t know when he's going to wake up. Kon sighs, “We could leave a note? An explanation of what we’re doing? We can’t plan around him because we don’t know when he's going to wake up.”

“That's a good idea, then he won’t be panicking when he can’t find us either. I don’t like it but it’s better than nothing. How about I grab Tim’s remote and you write Bart’s note, once that's done we’ll drop it off to Bart and then make our way to the compound.”

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

It was dusk turning nightfall when Kon visits Bart’s still unconscious form. As it always did, the sight of his usually energetic teammate now unmoving makes him uncomfortable. It wasn't right. Bart should be awake and talking off ears with his endless chatter. Bart should be joining them on this unsanctioned rescue mission, not left behind in the infirmary.

Kon leaves the envelope containing the note he had written detailing their plan to save Tim in an easy place where the Speedster would find it when he eventually wakes up (because he will wake up, Kon believes that).

He gives Bart one more glance over, quickly checks his vitals to find that nothing has changed, before he turns to leave the infirmary. Hopefully they’ll be back with Tim before he wakes up and everything will go back to how it should be.

As he leaves the infirmary Kon leans against the wall, waiting for Cassie to come by. He hopes that she’s had some success getting on board their ship to grab Tim’s remote. They could always track Tim’s location or the base ship’s location using other methods, but anything else feels like they would be caught before they get the chance to do anything.

When Kon hears footsteps approaching him he straightens up and turns towards them only to freeze when he finds Kara walking towards him. She has her training armour on with her long blonde hair swaying with each step she takes.

She comes to stand by him, giving him a questioning look. “What are you doing here Kon? How did it go with Kal?”

Kon sighs and rolls his eyes as he leans back against the wall. “It went as well as expected, nothing out of the ordinary. As for why I’m here, I came to see Bart. Why are you here?”

“I got sent by the mentors to grab some medical supplies. We’re teaching how to dress a wound in the field if our powers weren’t available.” She tells him. Kon nods and gestures to the door, as if allowing her in.

Kara continues into the infirmary but suddenly back tracks her steps and narrows her eyes at him. She stands up straight and puts her hand on her hips. “You’re up to something.” It wasn’t a question.

Kon shrugs, shaking his head. “No. I’m not doing anything. What makes you say that?”

He stares at her, silently pleading that she doesn’t call him out on it. If she finds out what he and Cassie have planned then she’ll either go to Kal and tell on them or demand to join. Both options were as bad as the other.

“Kon.”

“Kara, nothing is going on! Trust me, Kal made it very clear he didn’t want me or my team to be doing anything for the time being.”

Kara opens her mouth to respond when a different set of footsteps could be heard coming towards them. These were accompanied along with a voice speaking out as they come around the corner of the corridor. “Kon I got lucky and was able to easily access our ship. I managed to grab -”

Cassie stops short when she realises he’s not alone. Kon sighs and rubs a hand over his face, well there goes that lie. He glances at Kara who looks even more sceptical than before. She raises her eyebrow at him and glares, silently demanding answers.

Kon’s gaze flickers between the two girls before he breaks and ends up blurting out, “Okay, fine, yes I’m up to something! But I’m not telling you what because it’s got nothing to do with you. Please don’t tell anybody, especially Kal. If it all goes well we should be back soon enough!”

“Kon!” Cassie scolds him and slaps him on the arm.

Kon grimaces and watches as Kara looks at him, taking in his words. To his surprise all his cousin does is sighs and looks resigned. “You’re going to rescue that human aren’t you? Even though Kal has probably forbidden you from doing so.”

“Maybe…”

Kara nods her head as if she had been expecting this, after a moment she pins both of them with pointed looks. “Fine. The less I know the better, however I will cover for you where I can.”

“Really? Why?”

“You’re family Kon. You would do the same if the roles were reversed, I would offer to come with but it may be better that I stay on Krypton instead. Whatever you’re planning, be careful, if you need assistance don’t hesitate to call for help.”

An overwhelming feeling of gratitude fills Kon as his cousin talks. Once she’s finished speaking he pulls her in for a quick hug, thanking her as he does so. When they pull apart Kara waves them off.

“She’ll keep quiet right?” Cassie questions him as they make their way to Krypton’s ship compound.

Kon nods, feeling confident in his answer. “Yes. If she says she’ll keep quiet then she’ll do so. Kara is trustworthy like that, I’m grateful for her.”

The two of them continue in silence after that. Getting to the compound unspotted was surprisingly easy, getting into the place happened to be just as easy which has them sharing troubled looks but they work with what they’ve got.

They find a League of Assassin’s ship at the back of the compound, buried amongst all the other ships around it. Unexpectedly, not only do they discover one ship but two ships instead. The ships were small and circular with rounded engines coming out of the sides. They were also rusted and worn, the age of them easy to be seen as they’re not made of materials from recent times. Kon wonders how long they’ve been kept in the compound for.

Choosing one of the two ships, together he and Cassie make their way inside it after quickly working out how to open the door. Like it is on the outside, the interior of the ship is just as old. Old technology lined the control room, certainly things from before Kon’s time alive.

Kon wordlessly steps up to the dashboard and tries to figure out what he’s seeing. He’s seen a lot of different technologies and energy signatures that ships from around the galaxy are made of but nothing quite like this and certainly not this old.

As he starts to experiment with different buttons and levers to turn the ship on, Kon hears Cassie rustling around behind him looking at other parts of the ship.

One particular action of pulling two levers simultaneously has the ship making a clicking sound which soon abruptly stops. Kon eyes widen when he realises he's found the way to start it up and instantly repeats the action. It takes a few times before the engines kick in and the vroom sound could be heard signalling the ship finally turning on.

Now it’s powered up, Kon needs to work out how to fly the thing. It shouldn’t be too hard. Despite all of the different kind of space crafts out in the universe, every single one Kon has ever come across have all had the same basic piloting properties. This one shouldn’t be too different. Hopefully.

After some time, Kon eventually has them up in the air and shooting out of Krypton’s atmosphere.

He and Cassie don’t relax until they’re far enough away from the planet and have determined that they weren’t being chased by any Kryptonian’s for stealing a ship from the compound.

Kon turns to Cassie who has now joined him at the dashboard. “Time to track where Tim is. Can you bring out the remote?”

Cassie wordlessly pulls out three remotes from somewhere behind her and places them all on the dashboard. Kon gives her a look for the extra two remotes. Cassie rolls her eyes as she explains. “I got Tim’s remote and at the same time I grabbed ours so the leaders won’t be able to track us.”

Kon nods, unable to argue against that. It was smart and certainly something he hadn’t thought about. His teammate goes ahead and starts up Tim’s remote, going through it’s settings until she finds the tracking system.

It’s takes a while until it pings with a known location. Cassie reiterates Tim’s location, therefore where the base ship of the League are, and Kon guides the ship in the direction they need to go.

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

Surprisingly it didn’t take them too long to reach the base ship of the League of Assassins. While it’s a good thing they haven’t had to travel galaxies to reach it, it leaves an uneasy feeling in Kon because of how close they are to Krypton. Was there a particular reason for that or is it just a coincidence?

When all of this mess is sorted this will have to be something Kon brings up to the leaders when he gets back to Krypton. That’s saying if they choose to listen to him of course, he's going to be in so much trouble for disobeying orders.

The base ship is huge. It’s has a dark exterior which blends in well with the void surrounding them, from a distance no species would spot it at a glance. It’s long and has multiple levels. On the top deck Kon could easily see various of weapons set up in defence, a mixture of large canons and lasers. Near the bottom of the ship there is a hatch open and Kon watches as smaller ships and pods come and go in a steady stream.

Surrounding the base ship were smaller ones all scattered around. Kon’s guessing those smaller ships are the first line of defence. The positioning of them forms a ring around the base ship, covering every angle possible, all prepared for any kind of attack.

“Oh Hera…” Cassie sighs next to him. She turns and looks at him expectantly. “Well? Here we are, what’s your plan?”

Kon casts his gaze back onto the ships to avoid making eye contact with her. He hesitates to answer because he doesn’t actually have a plan in mind. Now they’re here it’s suddenly become all that more real and he realises even more than before of how much danger they’re in.

“You don’t have a plan do you?” Cassie accuses him after a long pause.

“Absolutely not. No.” Kon admits immediately, figuring that there’s no point in lying about it. That and also there’s the fact that Cassie knows him too well by now.

The Amazon sighs again and Kon knows what’s coming. However before she could open her mouth to scold him the two of them were suddenly thrown off balance. At the unexpected impact they both collide against the wall hard and collapse to the ground in a heap.

Kon’s disoriented from the sudden collision but before he could make any sense of what happened the ship lurches again forcing him and Cassie to propel to the other side of the ship in a tangle of limbs.

The two of them curse and scramble up to their feet, trying to get back to the dashboard. It’s almost an impossible task with how much the ship is shaking and with the unpredictable violent jerks happening.

“We’re being attacked!” Cassie exclaims glancing at him wildly as she grips the dashboard to keep her balance.

Kon grunts when he almost tumbles over again. He grasps the dashboard next to Cassie and starts rapidly pressing various of buttons to try and work out the ships defence system. After a moment he could feel trepidation rising up inside of him after nothing happens and when they’re blasted again.

“Kon!”

“I don’t know!” Kon yells back frantically continuing to slam different buttons. “I thought we were far enough away that they wouldn’t have picked us up.”

“Obviously not!”

“You think!”

In the middle of their screaming conversation everything abruptly stops and everything goes still. Kon peers over at Cassie in confusion, not understanding what’s going on, and the Amazon simply returns the look.

They were being attacked and then suddenly not. Kon’s got no idea what to expect. When an enemy attacks usually they go straight for the kill and destruction until nothing was left behind. He didn’t know what to make of this unusual tactic.

A sudden thought comes to mind, what if they’re preparing for the final blow? Aiming some kind of canon laser or missile at them right now? They have absolutely no way of defending themselves against a blow like that.

Just as he’s about to voice this to Cassie a deafening blast sounds out and the ship violently jerks. Unable to keep his balance this time, Kon falls to the floor but not before smacking his head against the dashboard. He hits the ground with a groan and clutches his head as everything becomes fuzzy.

He hears Cassie shout something but to Kon it sounds muffled and then there’s a rapid blast of harsh air. As he looks up everything tilts to the side so he quickly shuts his eyes and clutches his head once again in attempts to make the spinning stop. What’s wrong with him? What’s happening?

His attention is pulled away from his head when he feels something grab his arm, at that point his instincts kick in before he could comprehend what’s happening. He swings out blindly with a hand in hopes of hitting whatever has him hold but it dodges his punch and easily captures his hand forcing it back down to the ground.

A heavy weight keeps in it place and Kon tries to tug his arm to free it but finds he couldn’t With one arm pinned to the ground he swings blindly with his other hand but the exact same happens again. With both arms pinned against the ground, Kon is forced to lie down on his front. He squirms against the hold, still disoriented from earlier, and only stops when he feels a sharp pressure on his lower back keeping him place.

He needs to clear his head, he needs to work out what is happening. He takes a couple deep breaths and tilts his head up to look around, finding that the spinning has now mostly stopped. His view is limited from his position on the floor but he makes out multiple bodies around in the ship. Several more than what there were moments ago.

“Cassie?” He calls out to his teammate.

Instead of the desired voice answering his call, a deeper and more rich tone answers instead. “Oh he’s back with us. Hello pal, how’s it hanging?”

Kon frowns and continues to look around, trying to find the owner of the voice. Eventually one of the bodies kneels down in front of him and leers at him. It’s a male with blue skin, pointed ears and striking green eyes. He’s wearing a black uniform with the League of Assassins logo printed on it. Kon doesn’t know what species he is but he knows he isn’t pleased with how he's being spoken too.

“Can we help you?” Kon asks rhetorically. Even through his muddled mind he could now work out what’s going on.

“Yeah actually.” The blue male says almost thoughtfully. “Mind telling us what you’re up to? The Demon’s Head doesn’t exactly like intruders.”

“Just paying our respects.” Kon says without thinking. In response there’s a sharp impact against his back which makes his grunt. Maybe he should just keep his mouth shut from now on?

The blue male goes to speak again but he's cut off by another member speaking up first. “The master has just responded. He wants them on the ship, locked up in a cell. He’ll pay these two a special visit himself.”

That makes the blue male hum, he casts a mindful look at Kon and responds. “Very well. Prepare to transport them over and someone take control of this ship to drive it into one of the bays onboard.”

Kon watches as they all part ways, each doing the separate tasks ordered of them though the pressure on his back never eases, it stays there as a constant reminder to the situation he’s in. Kon doesn’t get long to observe what’s going on because the blue male is back and is holding a piece of cloth in one of his hands.

He smirks at Kon, looking rather pleased about something. The look makes Kon aware that something unpleasant is about to happen.

“Sorry about this, but it makes our jobs much easier if we didn’t have you fighting against us.” With those words he stretches out and places the cloth over Kon’s nose and mouth, attempting to smother him with it.

Kon jerks against the action, trying to twist his head away as well as break the hold that is on his back. The grip on his only tightens and suddenly there’s a hand in his hair, forcing his head still against the ground as the cloth blocks him breathing.

Kon does his best to fight against it, to not breathe in on whatever is on that cloth but he knows it’s too late. His body slowly becomes unresponsive and his mind starts to drift as his eyes become heavy. The cloth is finally removed from his face when he could no longer lift his head and when he could no longer open his eyes. After that everything goes black.

Jerking awake, Kon sucks in a lungful of air. It takes a moment to control his breathing but once he feels calmer he finally observes his surroundings. There are three solid plain walls, the last has a large metal door in place and Kon couldn’t see any furniture in the room. He does however find out he isn’t alone, Cassie sits opposite him, leaning against the wall looking completely bored out of her mind but thankfully unharmed.

“Cassie?” He croaks out, grimacing at the way his voice sounds. Whatever they used to knock him out certainly did the trick. It makes him wonder what they used because there isn’t really a lot that could make a Kryptonian go unconscious.

His call gets her attention and she perks up at seeing him awake. “Kon! Oh thank Hera, for a while I thought you may have been dead and they simply left me in here with your body.”

Kon blinks at her but chooses not to make a comment, there are more important matters to address first. “Where are we?”

“On the base ship, locked in a cell after getting captured on our own ship before we even had the chance to do anything.” She looks both unimpressed and frustrated by the end of her summary. Kon grimaces again, feeling like she has a point and the right to be upset with current circumstances.

When he doesn’t say anything Cassie huffs. “I told you this was a bad idea, and here we are, captured!”

“At least we’re not dead.”

“Not yet.”

Kon sighs and looks around the cell, not feeling very hopeful. “Look, we’re on the ship. All we have to do now is come up with some of plan to get out, find Tim and escape.”

“Because everything up to now has been so easy.”

“That's not helpful Cassie.”

Before she could retort a loud cranking sound could be heard and the two of them turn their attention to the door as it opens. Kon feels himself tense up as a figure appears in the doorway and enters the room with the door slamming shut behind them.

It takes a moment to work out who’s in front of them but when it clicks Kon sucks in a sharp breath. It’s the Demon’s Head himself, Ra’s Al Ghul. Kon’s never seen him in person before, he’s only ever heard stories, rumours and seen the occasional picture but all of that is very different compared to seeing him with his own eyes.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. I have certainly been waiting for this, especially when you decided to take what is mine and run off with it.” His voice his deep and low but holds some resentment in the tone as he speaks.

Kon doesn’t know what to make of the comment so he stays silent. He glances at Cassie to see if she has any ideas and finds the Amazon copying his actions, simply staying quiet.

“I can’t let you get away with what you did of course but the punishments could be less severe if you tell me what I want to know and if you simply cooperate. Also this whole nonsense of yours has taken me away from something rather important so I wouldn’t do anything too rash if I were you.”

Kon swallows thickly, trying to work out what he’s after. Obviously he's talking about Tim and it infuriates Kon that he's talking about Tim like he's a piece of property. It isn’t right and certainly isn’t fair.

His and Cassie’s silence doesn’t seem to bother the Demon’s Head because he continues to talk without any prompting. “Now why did you take the human?”

He looks between Kon and Cassie waiting for an answer. Kon shares a look with Cassie, unsure on what to do. His teammate looks back just as unsure and gives a light shrug of the shoulders.

After a moment of silence Ra’s speaks up again, this time sounding more agitated. “I’m waiting for an answer. Why did you take the human?”

“We didn’t take him.” Kon snaps in the end, hating the way he’s referring to Tim. “Tim was lost and confused. We wanted to help him.”

Piercing eyes turn on him and Kon feels himself shiver from the intense look being sent his way. “See that’s exactly what the human said. How you just wanted to help him, how there are no ulterior motivations. If that happens to be the truth then why did you help him? He could have been a spy.  Did your precious Kryptonian leaders order it of you?”

Kon grits his teeth trying to keep his temper in check. “We first found Tim in a destroyed pod after escaping you. He was a lost and confused soul who doesn’t deserve anything that has happened to him. We wanted to help him get back home. At the time we didn’t even know he was a human but that didn’t change anything.”

Was there something wrong with wanting to help another being in the universe? Why couldn’t he help someone without there being some sort of repercussion from it?

“You gave him a universal translator.” The Demon’s Head states looking at him thoughtfully. “I assume that's how you tracked him too.”

Kon’s eyes widen at the mention of the translator, now suddenly remembering the remotes that had been on the ship. If the League get their hands on those remotes they were screwed because it wasn't just Tim’s in danger but his and Cassie’s remotes too.

His eyes dart to Cassie in silent panic. Her eyes were also wide in fear, as if the same thoughts were going through her head. When they make eye contact she mouths, “I hid them, they should be safe. Hopefully.”

That doesn’t do much to reassure Kon. Thankfully Ra’s attention is only on him so he didn’t catch their brief exchange. Kon swallows and looks back at him. “We did because he couldn’t understand us. He was freaking out and communication was difficult. We decided to give him a translator to help him. There’s nothing more to it.”

The Demon’s Head’s eyes narrow at him and Kon could see that he's getting frustrated with Kon’s answers. It’s not what he wants but Kon’s only telling the truth. It continues to annoy him that Ra’s believes his team had other reasons for picking up Tim off that planet and helping him. Kon speaks up without meaning to. “Just because you don’t know the meaning of helping someone out of kindness of your heart doesn’t mean that everyone is as merciless as your are. You can help someone just because you want to. There doesn’t have to be another reason for it.”

A tense silence fills the atmosphere of the cell after Kon finishes talking. The Demon’s Head stays silent, staring at him with an expression Kon couldn’t work out. Kon starts to panic as he stares back, his mind thinking that he may have gone to far with his words. It only intensifies when the Ra’s stalks forward until he's looming over Kon.

Ra’s leans down, never breaking eye contact with him, until they’re breaths apart. His voice is low and threatening when he speaks to Kon, his gaze fierce and promising painful things to come. “I’ll show you how exactly merciless I can be Kryptonian. You think you know what kindness is? Well I’ll show you a new meaning to the definition and then we’ll see what you think about that concept afterwards.”

After that Ra’s pulls away, giving him a hard look before backing up and heading towards the door. The Demon’s Head turns back around glances at the two of them. “I wouldn’t consider escaping if I were you. You wouldn’t get very far. Those bracelets of yours Amazon, are there to keep your powers subdued, unless you have a powerful enchantress available, you won’t be removing them any time soon. And you Kryptonian, your powers won’t be available as Kryptonite particles were injected into your system. Not enough to kill you of course but enough to be effective.”

With that Ra’s bangs on the door and is let out of the room. The door slams shut behind him with a deafening thud.

It’s when his presence has finally left the cell that Kon lets out a long breath that he hadn’t realised he had been holding in. All of the tension eases from his body as he slumps against the wall behind him even more than before.

Opposite him, Cassie is openly staring. “Kon you just lectured the head of the League of Assassins about kindness.”

Kon blinks, taking a moment to process everything that had just happened. “I guess I did. A lot a good it did though.”

Cassie shakes her head in disbelief.

After Ra’s visit time passes slowly for the two of them. They have no idea how long they’ve been trapped in the cell for but not once do they see another body enter the cell for the duration they are in there for.

They talk to pass the time. Talking about the bracelets encasing Cassie’s wrists, how Kon feels with the Kryptonite in his system, about what they could do to try and help Tim, how they may escape the cell, how Bart may be doing and what they may face if they return back to Krypton.

Within the cell they had the freedom to move around as they please. To their surprise the League hadn’t restrained them to the wall or the floor. Of course having the freedom to move about has both Kon and Cassie hopelessly searching the cell for anything they could to help them escape. Predictably they find nothing.

The two of them slump against the wall opposite the door and slide down to the ground side by side. Cassie brings her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them while Kon stretches out his legs in front of him.

They sit in companionable silence for a long time. They do nothing but sit there lost in their own thoughts as they wait for something to happen.

Kon’s startled out of his thoughts when a loud thump could be heard by the door. He eyes the metal contraption suspiciously and jerks again when a second thump could be heard. He glances at Cassie to find her staring vacantly at the ceiling with a scowl in place. She hadn’t heard the noises.

He nudges her to get her attention. After a small jump from where he startled her she raises an eyebrow in question. Kon gestures to the door, “Something’s up. There were thumps outside just now.”

As he finishes speaking a familiar cranking sound could be heard and the door opens up. Both Cassie and Kon get to their feet, preparing themselves for what they’re about to face. Multiple figures enter the room, three step forward while one hangs back keeping the door from shutting closed. They were all wearing the signature black League of Assassins uniform. Each of them had different skin tones, different features and different weapons strapped to their backs.

Kon shares an unsure look with Cassie, neither of them knowing what’s going on or what’s about to happen.

Before they could react two of the figures in front of them reach up to grab the collars of their uniforms and suddenly their faces shimmer, blur and bleed away to reveal new faces. Ones that were very familiar.

Kon and Cassie find themselves now staring at Bart and Kara.

Next to those two, the third figure begins to change and Kon recognises this as shape shifting. Soon enough another familiar face is looking at them. M’gann, a long time old friend who is a Martian, is there smiling at them.

Kon looks back at Kara and Bart and before he could stop himself he’s darting forward and throwing his arms around his friend. After a moment he pulls back and looks over the Speedster with a critical eye. “You’re awake? You’re okay? How did you get here? What are you doing here!”

Bart laughs and instantly starts talking in super speed about his journey of finding them.

It’s fast and its rapid and Kon has a hard time keeping up with what he’s saying. In the end Cassie cuts Bart off with her own action of hugging him.

Kon looks over at Kara who’s smiling at them. “What happened to staying on Krypton? How are you here? What was that?”

He has so many questions that need answering but he doesn’t know what he wants answered first or what’s the most important. He hadn’t been expecting to find his cousin and previously unconscious teammate standing in front of him on the League of Assassins base ship.

“Look first things first, are you both okay?” Kara asks seriously, looking them over.

They both nod. “Yeah we’re fine but how-”

She cuts him off. “Bart woke up not long after you left. He found the note you wrote and then found me, he insisted on leaving to help you. I knew I couldn’t let him go alone so I joined him. As we were planning on what to do, we bumped into M’gann who conveniently happened to be visiting Krypton. We shared what was going on and she decided to join us, stating that her shape shifting abilities would be useful. After that she also called in a favour with a sorceress she’s apparently good friends with and got us some enchanted disguises which we can manipulate with our thoughts and a small button.

We used M’gann’s bioship to track your location using your DNA. The bioship is able to shift to look like other ships, so we changed it into looking like a League’s ship and disguised ourselves as assassins and snuck on board. As we tried to find you, we bumped into Pru. After a long misunderstanding and several threats, Pru decided to help us and brought us here. We knocked out the guards who were on watch and here we are. Pru also knows where Tim is being held.”

Kon blinks as he tried to comprehend all that information. He can’t believe what they all went through to find them. Kon glances at M’gann and then at the assassin still standing at the door who must be Pru. “Thank you, all of you. I don’t know what to say.”

Bart blurs up in front of him. “You don’t have to say anything! Remember Tim is part of my team too, the fact I had helped along the way has made it all so much easier but I wouldn’t have let you guys fight this without me!”

“Won’t they notice that you’re gone from the infirmary?” Cassie asks him.

Bart shrugs. “At this point I don’t care. We’re already in trouble so what’s a little more. Plus you guys are going to be in for some serious consequences when you go back. The leaders are not happy.”

“What else is new,” Kon deadpans with an eye roll. He looks at Pru. “You know where Tim is? Can you take us there?”

“No.” The assassin states bluntly. She straightens up, still keeping the door open with her foot, and looks at them all. “It’s bad enough I lead them here to the two of you, it’ll be stupid to allow the five of you wonder around the corridors. I will bring Tim to you then you can head back to the Martian’s ship.”

Then without any warning she slips through the door, letting it slam shut behind her.

“Can we trust her?”

“She did bring us here, so possibly?”

“What if it’s a big trap, have us all together locked in this room?”

“Well we’re trapped in here so all we can do is wait and hope.”

After Pru left the cell they all spend time catching up. Cassie catches Bart up with what he missed after the attack from the League while Kon catches up with M’gann. They had met when they both were young as his father and her uncle worked closely together, it’s been a long time since they spoke and Kon wishes it was under different circumstances that they joined together again.

Eventually the cranking of the door opening could be heard again. Everyone is immediately alert and waiting for whatever is going to come through that door. Two bodies enter and they all relax when they find one to be Pru. When Kon sees the other instant relief washes over him but it’s quickly replaced with horror when everything becomes clear to see.

“Rao, Tim. What happened to you?!”

[allhailshadamy]

[A/N: UHH ok so this chapter will involve Sonally/Sonal (which ever you perfer) and well, I don'twant anyone to think that I hate that ship or hate Sally due to what happens. I'm trying to stay as close to the series as possible. Once again the reactions of the characters and their actions are all part of the series. I don't hate any ships nor any Sonic characters! Without further ado, enjoy and once again thank you:)]

As Sonic and Amy returned to the Clinic, Jane looked at Sonic and let out a sigh of relief when he saw Amy was with him. She smiled at them, Sonic smiled back then let out a happy sigh when he turned to look back at Amy. Her green emerald eyes piercing right through him. The feeling he had gotten on their first date coming back to him. Her cupped her face and gently kissed her forehead then planted a soft kiss on her lips. Amy more than happy returned the sweet kiss and smiled as they pressed their foreheads against eachother.

"I have to go. Tails has been trying ro reach me the entire night." He said softly as he held her hand and brought it to his lips kissing it softly. She let out a small chuckle as she nodded, "Sure. Plus, I'm getting tired. Today has been one hell of a day." She giggled then sighed, she stared at the blue hedgehog for a longer while before finally letting go of him. Before he left Amy grabbed one of his arms.

"What's wrong?" He asked, Amy scratched the back of her head as she looked at him.

"I know I'm asking for a lot but can you please keep all of this a secret? Don't tell anyone, not even Tails." Sonic's eyes widen, he got closer to Amy.

"Amy...Tails is my best friend..."

"I know and I'm sorry I'm even asking but I'm just afraid of how he would react and knowing him he will probably run some expirements and I'll have to be stuck in his shop all day. By the time you know it Eggman will attack and well..." she said refusing to imagine what Eggman might do to her. Sonic looked at her, a small smile forming on his face.

"I understand, don't worry. I won't let anyone know about any of you guys okay? I promised I'd protect you and I am going to." He planted another kiss on her forehead, Amy smiled she finally let go of his hand and he waved at her goodbye. She watched him run off until Jane approached her taking her somewhere she could sleep in.

-

The next morning Amy woke up to the sound of birds chirping. She sat up from the single bed she had slept on and then stood up making her way to the restroom where she began to get ready for the day. When she started to get undress she looked at herself in the mirror, a huge cross across her stomach could be seen in her reflection but when she looked down at her stomach nothing but fur could be seen. She formed a small smile then went into the shower where the stubborn graveyard dirt finally lost the battle to the soap. When she was done she got out to the smell of breakfast being served. Jane had arrived early to bring them their first meal of the day. Amy walked towards her, Jane noticing almost immediately, looked at the pink hedgehog and smiled.

"Early bird gets the worm huh?" She teased, Amy smiled and nodded.

"I guess so, the worm smells delicious by the way." She continued making Jane giggle. Amy sat down after grabbing the plate Jane offered her. She began to dig in after thanking her, the food melting into her mouth and a memory coming back to her. She recalled a morning like this one where she woke up to the smell of burning food only to find out Sonic had almost burned down her kitchen trying to cook her something. She soon snapped out of it and let out a small laugh, she was just so happy to be back. To be back with the person she always loved and in the town where she had stayed in almost her entire life. Everything was just too perfect.

"So how did you and Sonic meet?" Jane interrupted her eating. Amy jumped a little, she took a napkin and cleaned her mouth before speaking up.

"Oh right, I never formally introduced myself to you. I'm so sorry. I'm Amy Rose, to answer your question well we have to go back about fifteen years?" She said with a small laugh, Jane's eyes widen.

"That long? You guys been dating for that long?" She asked, Amy shaking her head almost immediately.

"No, Sonic and I met when I was eight. He saved me from an attack from Robotnik and well it was love at first sight for me." She said looking down at the cup of coffee she was cupping, a small blush coming onto her cheeks.

"I was always after him, I always told him how much I loved him and I never gave up on him which seemed to work because well we started dating when I was nineteen. We dated in secret for a while because Sonic was so afraid of commitment and well I'd say he still is but he still the inevitable happened and The crew found out." Amy let out a small smile, Jane returning one herself.

"Sally, Tails, and Knuckles?" Jane asked, Amy raised an eyebrow taking a bite of her food.

"Sally? You know her?" She asked after swallowing her food, Jane simply nodded, her lips formed into a clueless pout.

"Uh yeah, is she not who you're talking about? The crew?" Amy shook her head, "The crew is Knuckles, Tails, and Sticks. Is she no longer around? Don't tell me she died too?" Amy said as her eyes began to tear up. Jane shook her head, "Oh no no she left about two years ago before I came into the picture. Sonic and Tails told me she wanted to complete a mission of her own and we haven't heard of her since." Amy sighed in relief then smiled, "Typical Sticks." She muttered with wiping a tear off her face before taking a careful sip of her hot coffee. It didn't take much time before the others woke up and join Amy at the table. Soon Sonic had arrived and Amy ran to him hugging him tightly, he happily returned the embrace.

"Hey, you missed me?" He asked as she smiled, nodding.

"Of course I did. Where have you been? We almost finished all the breakfast!" Sonic smiled as he began to walk towards the others, his hand holding onto Amy's.

"Well it's fine. I just ate so don't even worry about it."

After greeting everyone he took out a small note pad and looked at everyone around.

"So I have some information about you guys. Before heading home last night I went to the graveyard. I have a few names here that'll hopefully help you remember something." He informed everyone, "Before I continue, I would like to let you guys know that you were dead before." He said, the echidna and Chameleon's eyes widen. The racoon simply scoffed, letting a small chuckle out afterwards.

"Dead? Right." She said not believing it. Amy turned to the racoon and nodded, "It's true." She backed Sonic up, Sonic nodding.

"You may not believe me but this is Amy, my girlfriend of four years, she's been dead for about three years." Amy nodded, the racoon simply shook her head.

"Do you remember dying Amy? Because I don't and I feel like something like that would stick by me." She said, Amy simply glared at her. "You know he's right..." she said then looked away as Sonic opened his notepad and began to read.

"Espio age twenty seven when he died. You've been dead for about seven years." Sonic read, the Chameleon began to nod.

"Yeah Espio that's it..." he muttered as he had finally remembered his first name. The Racoon rolled her eyes as Sonic read the next name.

"Tikal, died age twenty one." The orange echidna looked up at Sonic, a small frown coming upon her face. The racoon let out another scoff shaking her head. "You're seriously not believing this are ya? I mean the doctor here examined us. Do we look like zombies Doc?" She asked looking over at Jane who simply shook her head. The racoon turned to look at Sonic who despite the racoon's remarks, kept speaking. "There was a tomb that had been messed up, all I could see was Marine, missed by Blaze..?" the racoon's eyes fell. Her expression sadden as she recalled her own name and the name of whoever had missed her. "Blaze..." she muttered, the rest took a few seconds to think about the information Sonic had just given them but a wince and grunt coming from Tikal made them turn their attention to her.

"Well I'd say Tikal needs to go to a hospital right about now..." Amy suggested, Sonic sighed and nodded as he carefully started to pick her up but another complain came out of her. He quickly and very carefully put her down.

"Are you okay? I'm so sorry." He sighed, Espio immediately stood up and helped Tikal by taking one of her arms and putting it around his shoulder.

"I think we should use the doctors van..." the chameleon suggested, with a sigh Sonic nodded.

"I guess you're right. Jane do you mind?"

"Not at all, go ahead." She said with a smile and taking the keys out of her pocket she handed it over to Sonic. The blue hedgehog and the chameleon made their way out of the clinic with the orange echidna holding onto them. After carefully putting her in the van and Espio going with her Sonic closed the doors to the van, just when he was about to hop on Amy appeared behind him. He looked back at her and smiled, she was quick to hug him and he happily returned the warm hug. She then pulled away cupping his face, Sonic kissing her forehead and smiling.

"Be careful okay?"

"I will don't worry Ames. I'll come back in one piece."

"Afterwards can we head home?" Amy asked, Sonic simply smiled and gave her a small kiss before finally getting into the van and driving away. Amy smiled and walked back to the clinic where she was left with Jane and Marine.

-

Driving towards the bridge that was used as an entrance and exit to hedgehog village, Espio and Tikal who had been resting her head on the chameleon's shoulder, started to feel a bit uneasy. The closer they got to exiting, the weird feeling inside worsen. It wasn't until Espio noticed Tikal's eyes bleeding that he turned to inform Sonic.

"She's bleeding..." he called out as Sonic looked at the rear view mirrored looking back at him.

"You are too..?" He said as Espio started to cough as well as Tikal, Sonic's eyes widen as he started to drive back until they were no longer feeling sick.

"You guys okay?!" He asked, Espio turned to look at him nodding.

"We're okay..."

-

Back at the Clinic, Amy had been reading a book that she had left behind a few years ago. The folded page still intacted reminding her where she had left off before the war had begun. As she folded back the corner of the page a flashback begun inside her head. Sonic was talking with Tails when she overhead something about Eggman and his new plan, she remembered asking what was happening and Sonic refusing to tell her ending them in an argument. Her flashback once again interrupted by a knock on the door. Amy immediately snapped out of her flashback startled but then smiled widely when she though Sonic had returned. Just when she was about to go open the door, Jane stopped her.

"Go hide in my office and do not come out okay?" She said, Amy nodded after realizing she couldn't open the door at all costs due to her condition. She took Marine with her to Jane's office where they both started looking around. Jane sighed and walked towards the door opening it just enough for her face to be seen. She saw knuckles smiling at her.

"Hey Jane! Can I come in?" He asked, Jane bit her lower lip and then looked back at the clinic.

"I'm with a patient Knuckles, is it something important?" She lied, Knuckles simply scratched the back of his head apologetically.

"Oh well, I just wanted to speak about the cemetary business last night? I mean I can wait inside till you're done." He suggested, Jane immediately shaking her head.

"It wouldn't be appropriate Knuckles... maybe some other time yeah?" Knuckles scoff with a small smile.

"I mean I guess so, I'll come by when it's appropriate yeah?" Jane nodded at Knuckles statement. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion then turned around to leave.

"I just can't believe it... he's wrong." Marine complained, Amy letting out a sigh.

"What he said is true Marine. You have to listen to him... you're dead..." she calmy yet annoyed tried to explain to the racoon who was still stubborn about it.

"I have to go see it and confirm it." She said as she went out a window from the office.

"Shit! Marine, come back!" Amy complained as she followed Marine. It wasn't long when Jane came back to inform the girls that Knuckles was gone but to her surprised they were gone as well. Jane sighed and softly slammed her palm against her face, her fingers going through her own quills.

-

As Marine walked barefooted around the road that led to the graveyard Amy followed, they soon arrived at Marine's tombstone where he name and information where written at, just like Sonic had said. Marine's eyes widen as she began then began to crt rapidly digging through her own grave.

"No no no no..!" She exclaim as she cried at the sight of her own headstone. Amy hugged her and tried to calm her down,

"Marine, Marine, Marine, calm down it'll be okay I promise..." she said and eventually she ended up consoling Marine. Soon they were back on the road and onto the Path to Amy's hut which had always been near.

"I think I remember now Amy... I think I died when my ship began to sink... my cremated and I must've all died..." she said in a shaky voice, Amy looked at Marine and put an arm around her giving her a side hug.

"It'll be all right Marine! Plus, you're here now! You get a second chance!" Amy tried to cheer her up, Marine simply glared at her then looked away.

"Easy for you to say, you have your house and boyfriend around..." Marine made a side remark, Amy simply sighed.

"Maybe some of your crew mates survived Marine, maybe you still someone around here..." she said as she picked up the pace when she saw the top of her hut. Amy smiled widely as her eyes winced in happiness.

"This is my place!" She exclaimed happily looking at Marine who looked back at her.

"How do we get in?" She asked as Amy made her way to her front door and picked up a flower pot that was beside the door. The key to her place was there just where she always left it at, she took no time in opening her place and walking right in after letting Marine in first. She closed the door behind them and then furrowed her eyebrows.

"Oh I guess Sonic changed the furniture..." she said as she looked back at Marine. "I used to have the cutest lavender couches ever!" She said with a small sad smile, she then shrugged it off and began to walk towards her room.

"You want any clothes Marine?" She offered, Marine muttered a simple sure and Amy began to look through her closet. She let out a pout when she looked through the clothes and all she saw were some blue vests and some navy blue shorts. She began to open some drawers and saw some of Sonic's scarfs neatly folded in them. When she didn't find any of her dresses and over night tees she turned to look where she used to keep her jewelry but all she found were some bracelets similar to hers but in a light blue color. Along the jewelry box she found a small wedding ring.

"These aren't mine..." Amy said, Marine who had been looking around the hut then locked her eyes on a picture of Sonic and a chipmunk hugging lovingly, the chipmunk wearing a wedding dress. When Amy started to come out of her room she noticed Marine staring at the picture and she turned to look at it too. She saw the picture and one of her eyebrow rose, Marine looked at Amy's reaction which was hard to read until she began to talk.

"That's... that's my friend... Sally..." she said with a scoff coming out of her. Marine looked at Amy who was in disbelief.

"I'm sorry Amy..." she said, Amy ignoring her comment, she had all her attention on the situation at hand. Amy let out another shaky scoff as she then began to walk circles in her living room.

"How could he..?" She asked as she held back some tears. "Oh shit..." she said under breath as she started to feel the tears coming closer to rolling down her face. She walked to a small table that was near the window which had a picture of Sally and she pushed it down. Suddenly footsteps approached, Marine looked at Amy.

"Someone's here..." she informed, Amy taking Marine's hand and quickly yet carefully walked towards her former room to hide. Sally started walking to the front door holding some groceries bags. She put them down picked up the flower pot to find the key missing from its place. While Sally was looking for the key Amy and Marine took advantage to escape. Amy took Marine and went out through the garden where she hid behind a large tree. Sally slowly opened the door and as much as she wanted to stay outside she built enough courage to go in.

"Sonic..?" She asked, taking a knife from the kitchen. Sally walked out of the back door and looked around to see if she could find anyone but when she didn't see anyone she let her guard down and walked back into the hut. Amy caught a glimpse of her before she disappeared, she had seen to be a bit bigger than usual. Her stomach was round and her feet were swollen. Amy's tears finally rolled down her cheeks as she then began to quickly walk away from her own hut and away from Marine who tried to stop her.

"Amy wait!"

"Stop following me!" She cried out, Marine furrowed her eyebrows.

"Why are you yelling at me? I didn't do this to you!" She replied as Amy began to slow down, a sob coming out of her.

"I know..."

"Where are you going?" Marine asked as Amy began to pick up her pace once again.

"Anywhere but here!"

-

Back with Sonic who had finally arrive back at the clinic. He honked and then got out to open the van doors for Espio and Tikal, Jane came out and looked at him.

"You need to check on them. Make sure they're okay." He said, Jane simply nodded as she helped Sonic get Tikal and Espio out. After Jane examine them and made sure they were okay Sonic took her out of the office to speak to her.

"Jane, as soon as we approached they bridge they started to bleed from their eyes and they started grunting in pain. Do you have any explanation to this?" He asked, Jane simply shook her head speechless.

"Well we're going to have to tell them to stay close to town. Where are they?" He asked and Jane bit her lip looking guilty.

"Knuckles came earlier...he asked questions so I told them to hide but when I came back they were gone..." she said, Sonic looked at Jane then sighed as he started to walk out the clinic to look for them. While he was on his way out he got a call from his communicator, he immediately answered.

"Sally?"

"Sonic I just got home there was someone in the hut."

"Wait wait wait what?"

"They went out through the back door."

"Did you see them?"

"No but they were in the hut when I came in, I have no idea what they've taken yet..."

"Okay get out of the hut now."

"No, it's alright. They're gone now." She sighed then began to walk through the hut to make sure nothing was missing.

"I could've chased them if I was as big as well Big himself!" She said referring to their feline friend.

"No, no. Listen, just stay inside and lock the doors. Are you okay?" He asked as Sally kept looking around.

"Yeah I'm fine."

"Well, call Tails and Knuckles."

"Okay okay!" She hung up. Sonic cursing under his breath as he started to run. It wasn't long till he bumped into Marine, he immediately stopped and looked at her.

"Marine, where is Amy?" He asked, Marine stopping in her tracks and glaring at Sonic.

"She is gone... she's leaving town... she knows about you and Sally..." she mentioned, Sonic's eyes widen, a worried look planted across his face. He then sighed.

"Get off the road and go back to the clinic. I don't care what happens don't leave okay? The clinic is two blocks on your left." He said as he started to run through town looking for Amy. Eventually he found her, she was walking towards another exited Hedgehog town had, another bridge. Sonic began to jog towards her trying to talk her.

"Amy I'm so sorry I meant to tell you!"

"When?"

"Please stop Amy..."

"It's alright, you have Sally now!"

"You were dead! I thought you were dead!"

"You said I died three years ago," Amy turned around to face him. "How long did you wait till you hooked up with her?" She asked, Sonic looked at her staying quiet which enraged Amy more. "Just fucking tell me!"

"We've been married for eight and a half months..." he confessed, Amy grunted in disgust as she began to walk towards the exit again.

"What about the baby?"

"It's due in two weeks..."

"Ugh! Where you seeing her while I was alive?!" She asked as she kept walking. Sonic followed behind her.

"No! Of course not!"

"Am I suppose to believe that?"

"It's the truth!" He exclaim as Amy let out another grunt of disgust

"Well it worked out for you. It was just me you didn't want to commit to." She responded, Sonic caught up to her and held her arm.

"How can you say that? My life ended when you died Amy..." He replied to her as he looked into her eyes. Amy jerked her arm away from him.

"Then why her, why my bestfriend?"

"Because she was in as much pain as I was." He said softly but loud enough for Amy to hear.

"Yeah right..." Amy kept walking eventually making her way mid Bridge until she back away. Her eyes bleeding, she collapsed and began to shake uncontrollably.

"Ames what's wrong?" He asked as he made his way towards her, Sonic then noticed her bleeding as started to back her away.

"No no no I've seen this happen." He informed as Amy tried to pull away from him but her body had been weakened.

"Let me go!" She yelled as she let herself collapse in his arms. He picked Amy up and started to jog towards the clinic.

"It's going to be okay..." he reassured her as he picked up the pace and ran towards the clinic.

[loridrabbles]

Trust | The Mandalorian x Reader

Warnings: Angst. Swearing. Time to suffer.

(Y/n) sat, curled up in her seat on the Razorcrest, arms folded across her chest, squeezed tight around her body. She trembled, desperately trying to hold back a flood of oncoming tears. Fear, panic, and remorse caused her body to shake so violently, she could feel her bones threatening to fall apart from one another. Her stomach ached. She wanted to vomit, cry, and scream at herself.

     "How could I have been so stupid?" She thought to herself. She let it slip. She actually let his name leave her lips in the presence of an entire cantina full of patrons who would do anything to get their hands, or in this case, ears, on such information. She didn't mean it at all, but when, from across the room, she saw some dim looking ne'er do well walking up behind him, blade in hand, ready to strike, Mando not even noticing him despite being inches apart, she had to scream something. In her panic, hi.s name was the first thing that flew past her gritted teeth

     There was nothing more honorable than gaining someone's trust. Nothing more in the universe. The Mandalorian, who she had been working with for nearly a year had trusted her enough to reveal his name to her. They slept together in the dark, a darkness so black one couldn't see their hand mere centimeters from their eyes. They had made love to one another in the same bed, in the same darkness. One of those nights, as his body hovered over hers, suspended by his forearms, he leaned to her ear, giving her a kiss on the neck before he whispered:

     "Din." His soft breath warmed her skin in the cold air, his body just the same. "I haven't told anyone my name since I was a boy."

     The next morning (y/n) awoke and hazily made her way to the cockpit with a hot cup of caf, still in her pajamas. As she sat and took her first sip, he spoke.

     "I hope you know how much I trust you to share that with you. I...I love you." He said as he flicked a few switches. "Never use it in front of anyone. In front of the child is ok, but as he gets older, if he grows old enough to speak, you have to stop."

     "I understand." She said smiling, sipping her caf as the hot steam warmed her cold nose.

     "Now get dressed. We've got a job to do." He said looking over his shoulder. She couldn't see, but she could tell he was smiling.

     Now, sitting all curled up in the cockpit, she ran over that night again and again in her head.

     "I understand, I understand, I understand." She repeated to herself in her head. She wondered when he'd be back so he could tell her to gather up her things, get out of his sight, and start running because if he caught up to her, he'd kill her. Slow and painful. She wouldn't blame him either. Deep down, she knew she was being dramatic, but the thought still crossed her mind.

     "Go! Wait for me on the ship!" He yelled at her before turning back to the skug, peeling himself up off the ground.

     She remained in her seat until she heard the whish of the door opening and the heavy footsteps of someone boarding. She quietly listened to Din placing the child in his little cubby for bed before shutting the door, and she began trembling again as he climbed up the ladder, and entered the cockpit. He threw a bag of credits on the floor in front of her, the bag hitting the floor with a loud 'ching' making her jump.

     "There's your share of reward." He said angrily. She sniffled, biting her lip so hard she could taste blood on her tongue. She couldn't hold back the tears anymore. 

     "I'm sorry." She squeaked out, her voice high pitched and shaky.

     "I can't believe I trusted you!" He shouted. She had never heard him so angry before. His voice shook the room and coaxed more tears from her eyes. "When someone shares something like that with you, you keep your fucking mouth shut, no matter the circumstances! I'd rather be injured, lying on the cot in the back!"

     "I know...I'm sorry...I c-can't believe I-I did that." She was crying so hard she could barely spit out the words. "I know there is no way I c-can apologize for what I did...a-and-"

     "When I gave you my name, I trusted you with my life and everything I believe in."

     "I know...I'm so sorry...I know there's nothing I could ever do to make it right and-"

     "You're right. There's not." He said, sitting down with a huff. He flicked a few switches preparing for flight. "Do you know what I had to do in that cantina?" He asked.

     "N-no." She sniffled, wiping her eyes and nose on her sleeve.

     "I couldn't risk my identity getting around to anyone." His voice was calmer, but still riddled with anger. "I had to get rid of them all. All of them, (y/n). I don't like killing. You know I don't like killing! When I was sure everyone was dead, I burned it to the ground, made it look like an accident. That'll keep anyone I don't want trouble with off my back." 

     Hearing what had happened, made the tears flow from her eyes again and her lip quivered behind her hand. 

     "It's all my fault." She cried, shifting to sit on the edge of her seat with her feet on the floor.

     "No. It's my fault for trusting you." He sighed...sadly. "I don't want to have to do this, but...I'm dropping you at the next planet. I can't have another slip up like that. There were husbands, fathers in that cantina (y/n)."

     "But, y-you promised you'd never leave me. The first night that we-"

     "You trusted me didn't you?" He asked, looking over his shoulder. Silently, he turned back to face the controls before jumping to hyperspace as (y/n) aat staring at her hands in her lap. She finally collected herself to speak, even though her voice came out in a near whisper.

     "Din-" Before she could form a sentence, the mandalorian had jumped out of his seat and spun around in her direction at the mention of his name. He leaned over her, visor mere inches from her face as he pinned her back into the seat with a heavy hand to her chest.

     "Don't you ever say my name again." He spat, raising the volume of his voiced again. "I don't ever want to hear it leave your mouth again. Understand?"

     She nodded, squeezing her eyes shut, sobbing. 

     "We'll be landing in about an hour. Get your things." He said, picking up the bag of credits at her feet. "I gave you a little extra to get you on your feet."

     (Y/n) felt the ship come to a halt as it touched down on whatever planet he had chosen to dump her on. The last of her things were stuffed into a backpack she then slung over her shoulder. Her weapons here fastened into their holders and she took one last look at her tiny empty room, making sure she didn't forget anything. She thought about leaving something important behind in the hopes that he'd think about returning it to her so she could see him one last time. She heard footsteps behind her followed by a sigh.

     "Ready?"

     "Yeah." She answered, wiping what was hopefully her last tear. She stood at the bottom of the ramp, and turned around to look up at him where he stood, waiting to leave as soon as she stepped away. "I..." She began to speak, but wondered if it was even worth it. "I know it...it won't make a difference, and it doesn't really matter anymore, but...I still love you."

     "I know." He answered. "I still love you too, but you're right. It doesn't make a difference."

     With that, he raised the ramp leading to the door of the ship. As she watched him disappear, she wished she could feel his lips against hers one more time and hear one last unmodulated, "I love you" that wasn't toned with anger, but she couldn't. She lost the most honorable thing in the galaxy.

[katierosefun]

author interview tag game

thank you for the tag, @pandora15! <3

Name: caroline

Fandoms: mostly the clone wars, but i also have some marvel stuff, and waaay back in the day, i wrote some doctor who and merlin stuff!

Where you post: primarily on ao3! i mostly just write on tumblr when i’m accepting prompts from like...ask games or something.

Most Popular Oneshot: real

Most Popular Multichap: to these memories (this fic only recently hit 1k kudos, and my heart?? w h a t)

Favorite Story You’ve Written: def. to these memories because a) longest fic i’ve ever written, and b) oh, the hours i logged into writing this fic, and c) oh, the outlining that went into this fic...i’m very proud of myself for completing the fic, and of course, i credit this to everyone who showed their lovely support for the story. :’)

Fic You Were Nervous to Post: uhhh definitely too far just because it’s...rather personal. i sometimes say that there’ll be a scene or two or just straight up a line or two that’s plucked out of my real life, and i think it’s inevitable for writers of any kind, including fic writers, to isolate their real lives completely from whatever they’re writing, and?? this fic is probably the most personal for me because of that. i remember kinda hem-hawwing about posting it, because i was like whoa, maybe this is a little too personal? but then i steeled myself and was like, “okay, well, would this have lifted my spirits when i needed a story like this??” and then decided to post it.

How you choose your titles: i def. toss and turn between titles! there’s a few fics of mine that are straight-up song lyrics (no surprise there), but to my surprise (as i was looking through my catalogue of fics just now), i realize that a lot of my fics are usually just words or two about what i think might have been extremely important to the story. (or captures the overall tone/theme of the story, anyways.)

Do you outline? for multi-chapter fics and relatively long one-shots with lots of moving parts, i’ll outline. but for shorter one-shots and prompts, i’ll usually just stick with the image that compelled me to write the prompt/one-shot in the first place! (and then kinda write around that.)

Complete: uhhhhh, i’m gonna answer relatively for all my clone wars fics, because in total, i have 74 completed fics. (make that...75, hopefully in a few minutes or hours!) but out of clone wars fics, i have 46 completed fics! (and again, hopefully 47 in a little while.) a part of me is lowkey hoping that i’ll get up to 100 total fics by the end of this year. a part of me highly doubts it, but given how much i was able to write over summer break, i’m...intruiged if i wind up somehow writing another twenty or so fics by the end of this year. (asfsf my wip list is long enough to fill in for another twenty fics. caroline finish all your wips challenge.)

In Progress: okay, so officially, time, wondrous time is in progress and online. but in terms of the works in progress on my laptop...i have...*mutters, counting* fourteen official wips. (ten of them are one-shots, and the other four are longform fics. one of them, i’m hoping to release next week (!!!), and another, i’m hoping to release hopefully around mid-december. uhhh so fingers crossed??)

Coming Soon/Not Yet Started: oops, i guess i kinda already answered that question, but eh, might as well! the one coming out next week (hopefully!! caroline get your shit together challenge!!) is titled most ardently, and it’s an obitine au based off pride & prejudice because i cannot and will not shut up about obitine being the period drama ship out of star wars okay--

and then the other longform fic that is very overdue is called getting lost in a big galaxy, which is a fix-it of sorts taking place after season 5. anakin’s gone missing, and obi-wan winds up going on a galaxy-ride road trip with ahsoka (who, remember, has left the order) to find their idiot. this is honestly my excuse to just write more obi-wan and ahsoka content. hopefully, that’ll be posted in december!! (despite the fact i...originally meant to post it in august oOps.)

and then there’s this other longform fic which...might be coming in early 2021 called red, underlined, which is essentially...uh. everyone’s a stressed out law-school student, and anakin might have accidentally murdered professor palpatine, and now anakin, obi-wan, ahsoka, padme, and rex are all trying to find out what the hell to do with themselves because they’re all in on it. (def. influenced by how to get away with murder except without the criminal justice professor to lead them through the ropes. so more chaos. kind of a dark comedy vibe, if anything else? anakin no is major theme in this one. uh, i mean, maybe anakin was justified in murdering creep palpatine because our gang’s gonna find out what was going on in the background, but either way! lots of “holy shit are we good people are we bad people what are we doing”. lots of questions about morality! ethics! law school student study nights with anakin sprawled out on the floor and obi-wan wearing glasses (which he pushes up the bridge of his nose whenever he’s about to lecture anakin that no, that’s not how that statute works, dumbass) and ahsoka just bringing snacks and rex catching paper airplanes and padme being the one to supply everyone with very neat flashcards. this fic is gonna be an absolute beheamoth, and i’m estimating about 45 chapters? like...130K+ words? help? yeah idk either this really blew up in my head

and then...this stupid, wonderful, boring, amazing job, which is...office x tcw au. only not? it’s very, very loosely based off the office, but not really. obi-wan moves in as a new manager of a company, and we’ve got anakin being like “lol new guy i’m gonna mess with him”, and ahsoka being the one who’s both like “please don’t mess with our new boss” but also being like “actually, wait, lemme help”, rex being in hr and being like “i don’t get paid enough for this”. (also there’s some parts that are written like actual interviews like you would find in the office, so there’s this one bit where uhhh

Obi-Wan flicks his eyes to the cameras in silent question before turning back to Ahsoka. “Well, if you need to call maintenance, then I hardly think you need my permission—”

“Thanks!” Ahsoka says quickly, and she’s about to disappear from the doorway when Obi-Wan stands up.

“Wait, Ahsoka, what exactly—”

Ahsoka re-appears at the doorway. “Oh, right,” she says. “Um—maybe just stay away from the men’s bathroom for a little bit.” She pauses.

“Actually, just stay away from them for the rest of the day.” She hovers by the door for a minute longer, and then she adds quickly, “And maybe also avoid the breakroom. Everything’s fine!”

And with a perfectly not-fine smile, Ahsoka disappears from the doorway.

Obi-Wan stares at where Ahsoka was just a moment ago, and the he turns to the cameras in disbelief. “Did she just—” Unable to finish his own sentence, Obi-Wan starts out the door. “Ahsoka?”

The camera follows Obi-Wan out of the conference room and into the breakroom. There are only muffled shouts—Anakin’s shouts, and then Rex’s, and then Ahsoka’s frantic “no, sorry, everything’s fine!”, and then Obi-Wan’s loud, “What is going on in here?”

surprise y’all just got a snippet i’m sorry can you tell i’m weirdly into this au?? i need to rewrite some scenes but uh there you go

Prompts: for the most part, yes! i have some stuff in my faq about prompts that i’ll probably turn down (mostly anything that’s...above a certain rating/really, realy heavy themes that i just don’t think i can tackle with justice or with enough education on my end). i can be a little slow with prompts, but i’ll get to all of them in time!

Upcoming Work You’re Most Excited About: uhhhh i have too many that i’m excited about. literally i can write a mini essay on every single one of the fics i’m working on? but uhhh i guess since i already talked about all my major longform fics above (asdfasdfsd didn’t mean to do that, i’m so sorry for everyone who had to scroll past that word-vomit), i guess the one i’m most excited about releasing is the post season 7 obi-wan-and-ahsoka-finally-talk-about-how-they-miss-each-other-also-sorry-for-fighting-with-you-i-know-you-were-just-trying-your-best fic. (not a whole ton of spoilers for this one, but uh. i’m looking at some of these scenes and making frustrated sounds because there’s this one particular instance where i’m like, ahsoka. ahsoka just talk to him just ta lk to him but then lol no talking :)) also maybe some h/c? lowkey sickfic might be involved in this somehow? might have accidentally served as a precursor to to these memories? help? this fic just ballooned. caroline keep your ideas contained challenge!)

No Pressure Tags: @lightasthesun @soplantyourownflowers @ohhellokenobiand anyone else who wants to join!

[zabrak-show]

Blood of the Sith

Summary:

Kudra Deschain is a young pilot working for a trade company out of Coruscant. Her next trade route to Mustafar, ends up being a fiery life changing revelation to the dark side of the force, where she meets Maul, a Sith apprentice to Darth Sidious.

Notes:

This is pre phantom menace, by like maybe a couple years. I had fun writing this, but it's just for fun so hopefully no one takes this too seriously and gets mad at me for depicting Maul in a way they don't like, or not having some other random spec incorrect. I wanted to show a softer side to Maul. Probably NSFW, but there's nothing that graphic as I am a secret prude.

A huge thank you to my fiance for helping me out with some of the technical aspects as well as the story writing. And thank you to all my friends who have not only put up with me talking about my dumb Maul story for the past few months while I slowly chipped away at it, but encouraged me to continue. Sorry it’s such a slow burn, please hang in there I swear Maul shows up soon lol!!

7 chapters all together. 12.7k words (total for all 7 chapters combined)

Chapter 1

The metal floor plates quietly vibrated as the YT-1000 entered the Coruscant atmosphere. The pilots were a young woman with pale skin and long black hair, and a young male twi’lek with orange skin. They wore similar black jumpsuits and even seated at the helm it was obvious the twi’lek would tower over the woman.

“So Kudra, what are you planning to get yourself into now that we’re back from that mess?” The twi’lek asked with a smirk.

“Mess?” She replied, dodging the question, “I had everything under control the whole time.”

A green and gold astromech droid wheeled in to beep his counter and the twi’lek laughed and asked, “Your droid really loves to call you out. Why do you still keep that old thing around?”

Kudra busied herself with checking all the landing sensors and grumbled back, “That droid has proven useful on every run we’ve done. Plus, I like her sarcastic attitude.” She was cautious to not make it obvious the droid was her only friend and constant in her life the last 10 years.

“Have you set up the meeting then with Krass? After we land I won’t have much time to…”

“Yes Kudra,” The twi’lek cut her off and she shot an icy glare his way, “Krass will be ready and waiting for us so you can go off on your secret missions or whatever it is you do.”

Kudra sat in silence while they came into the landing bay. Why did he always get so mad she didn’t want to hang out with the team after a job? They just spent 2 weeks on this crusty cargo ship together. They both deserved to do whatever they wanted on their own.

As promised, Krass was there waiting for them, once they got off their ship. He was a tall weequay with leathery brown skin and knotted blonde hair. He always tried to look higher class than he was, which made him look tacky in Kudra’s opinion. He wore his usual worn out and dated long red leather coat with tarnished brass buttons and knee high black boots over canvas pants. He stuck out like a sore thumb on the landing bay amongst the muted flight suits of most everyone else.

Krass and the twi’lek discussed unloading the cargo and routine maintenance with the landing crew while Kudra checked in on L0-K1.

“Make sure these maintenance droids don’t mess anything up while I’m gone.” She said as she stooped down to wipe grease from the droid’s arm. L0 beeped and wheeled away.

Kudra stood in the back against the wall of Krass’ small, now crowded office. The whole team was probably over 40 people, but he only held the meetings for pilots, engineers, and copilots so 13 of them all together. A low hum of conversations between everyone enveloped the room until Krass spoke up to start the meeting. The room quieted and he gave his usual fanfare speech while explaining everyone’s next jobs. A sinking feeling hit Kudra in the gut as she realized her name hadn’t been called. She could not afford any time off right now, and as far as she knew she hadn’t done anything wrong lately. As it seemed like the meeting was wrapping up, Krass remembered her, “Ah yes Kudra, I haven’t forgotten you. You’ll be taking the Z95 to the outer rim for a small but important job.”

Kudra nodded her head, “Yes, Sir.”

Slowly, everyone filed out of the room and Krass caught her arm as she neared the door.

“Listen,I know you just got back, but if you can leave right away, it’d be a huge help. I’d consider your ship, the YT1000, paid in full after the job got done. If you do it right of course.” He finished sternly now forcibly grabbing the top of her shoulder.

“Sure,” Kudra responded coolly, “I can leave as soon as the ship’s ready. What’s the mission?”

He loosened his grip, “Top secret.” he stared into her green eyes as if to search for a reason he might be wrong about sending her on this mission, finally removing his hand from her shoulder and looking away.

“You’ll be going to Mustafar to trade with a mining collective there. In and out, easy peasy. It’s hotter than blazes there and not like some desert planet. It’s covered in lava so pick up some protective clothing, ‘fore you head out. I’ve already deposited more than enough credits for ya to prepare. Any questions?”

Kudra thought for a moment, “Naw, just load the information onto L0 about which landing bay to aim for and who the point of contact will be. Thanks for trusting me captain, I won’t let you down.” The weequay sprung to life suddenly and patted Kudra so hard on her back it made her cough. “Enjoy your night and I’ll let you know when the ship’s ready.”

Kudra pulled the covers up around her, pulling it off the naked sleeping man next to her in bed. She quietly packed her bags and got dressed. She debated on waking him up, and tripped over an Alderaanian wine bottle, spinning it across the floor and making a loud clank against a metal chair leg. Well, I guess that’ll wake him, she figured. He rubbed his eyes and yawned. He was really quite handsome, dark brown skin and curly brown hair with scruffy facial hair like he’d forgotten to shave.

“Hi gorgeous, are you leaving already?” he looked up at her from the bed.

“Yes,” Kudra responded plainly. “Apologies for waking you.” She started to pick up his clothes to hand him and he grabbed her for a kiss, causing her to lose her balance and fall into him, kissing him deeply and forgetting herself for a moment.

“I’m sorry” she said, pulling away, “this was fun. I do need to get going though.”

“Right,” he shrugged her off and got dressed in awkward silence.

Kudra made it to the ship bay just in time. Krass was waiting with L0.

“Ok, you’re all set with coordinates.”

“Great, thanks Krass,” she started to crawl up the boarding ladder.

“Kudra, wait.” She stopped and turned her head toward him.

“I didn’t mention it earlier, but” he paused to look around them as he handed her a small black velvet pouch, “this is very important and very secretive. Never take it off your person, until you meet your point of contact. It’s worth your very life.” He stuffed the bag in her hand and didn’t let go for a moment.

“So what, is this the actual cargo?” she looked at him skeptically.

“You could say that. Don’t let it into the wrong hands. It’s imperative it gets to our contact person.” he shook his hand holding hers and the pouch.

“Ok, I’ll make sure your old “friend” gets their prize.” she joked with a wink.

“Please, Kudra. This isn’t a joke. No funny business with the clientele this time. You won’t always have someone like me to get you out of your lovelorn messes.”

Kudra’s cheeks burned red hot and her heart raced. How dare he treat her like this, like some mischievous star crossed lover. She covered the anger up with her voice keeping it as cool sounding as she could, “Of course. In and out, business as usual.” She turned to crawl back up the ladder, and Krass was still standing there and yelled after her, “No. NOT business as usual! Professional this time please!” Kudra kept climbing, “Yup you got it Captain. You know I always get the job done one way or another.” She and L0 boarded the Z95 at last. She tied the bag to her belt and got ready for take off.

“What’s the worst that could happen, L0?” she asked the droid as they exited the Coruscant atmosphere. L0 responded, likely with an actual answer to the worst things that could happen and Kudra laughed.

After about an hour into their journey, Kudra remembered the weird encounter with Krass before they left. She opened the pouch to see what was so important inside. L0, beeped her opposition.

“Chill out, L0, I’m just seeing what it is that is so important. I’ll put them right back in the pouch.” She dumped the pouch contents into her palm. Two pyramid shaped, black and gold objects fell into her hand. She noticed there was some type of inscription on the sides of the pyramids. Somehow they felt heavier outside of the bag than inside of it.

“Wow, what do you think these are? Some kind of puzzle?” she asked L0 and the droid screeched a response.

“Ha ha yeah, I suppose my life should be worth more than a couple puzzles.” She slipped them back into the bag and tied it to her waist again.

“Alright, L0, we’re getting close. Narrow in on our coordinates before we get out of hyperspace.”

Kudra tied her long black hair back, revealing a portion of her head shaved and a tattoo of a convor. The ship came out of hyperspace near Mustafar, but in the middle of an electrical storm. The ship controls went erratic and every sensor that could beep started beeping.

“Woah, L0 what the hell is going on? I can barely get into a landing pattern.” Kudra weaved in and out with the barely working steering controls, trying to avoid the erratic lightning happening all around them.

“Why does this shit only ever happen in the outer rim?!” She was desperately trying everything as they started to enter the atmosphere, “L0 please fix our navigation plot, I can’t see anything!” L0 chirped, but the ship was struck by lightning, flickering their main power and everything went dark, the controls went dead.

“That can’t be good! I’ve gotta land L0, find me something to land on, find a way to SLOW us down.” Another lightning strike on the ship and power flickered on for a moment. Enough for Kudra to take some controls and slow the ship down. Everything happened so fast and she was doing everything not to panic and to just focus to try and find any type of solution. She had to use all her strength to try and guide the ship with what little power they had. All Kudra could see was lava. “Is there anything NOT lava on this dumb planet??” she screamed and L0 screamed back at her. She found a landing, but they were coming in way too hot. It was the best they could hope for, so she made the descent.

The initial impact onto the scorched ground completely obliterated one of the wings and most of the rest of the ship was torn up beyond recognition. They were sliding and spinning out of control until finally a bed of lava stopped the ship. What was left of the back of the ship was up in flames as the lava ate away at them. No time to think other than “escape” Kudra began kicking the canopy to try and free both of them. She was running on pure adrenaline as she could feel the ship slipping further and further into the lava, the flames getting hotter and hotter. It started to feel hopeless, so Kudra took a moment to focus every part of her on getting out of the burning ship. A deep breath in, eyes shut, and a strong kick thrusted the canopy off the ship and Kudra jumped out and fell onto the burnt ground. L0 flew out after her with a shriek and an ungraceful tumble next to her sounding like an empty can.

“Woah, L0, you look like shit.” Kudra coughed out, while starting to stand. L0 wheezed a response

“I know, I feel like shit too. Thankfully I have these ugly threads to keep me cool.” she looked down at the black and dark green thick formless robes draped over herself and then back at the ship melting and burning into the lava pool as she lowered her goggles over her eyes. The reality hit her again, and she realized how bad this was. The ship was gone. They were in the middle of nowhere on a lava covered planet. The ship let out a final death rattle as the lava engulfed it entirely and Kudra fell to her knees. Well, this was maybe the worst that could happen.

They started walking, with no real apparent plan other than to maybe find somewhere that wasn’t covered in lava.

“Do we even know how to get to the mining collective from here? What was the contact person’s name?”

L0 chirped the answer.

“Ok, I am choosing to ignore the distance we are from them, but Uane’s the name so we got that.” Kudra sighed deeply. She was too exhausted to keep up any sort of positive charade.

“We need to get out of this heat. Let’s see if we can find a cave over in those cliffs.” Kudra pointed off into the distance a series of cliffs that normally probably wouldn’t take longer than 20 minutes to walk to, but in this heat it was hard to say.

L0 beeped conversationally.

“Listen, I realize if I had taken Krass up on his original offer years ago, I’d be unhappily married but with a ship. And not here. That much I realize. What’s your point?”

Another prodding chirp from L0.

“Settle down? With Krass? Are you out of your mind? I do just fine on my own without looking after some useless old person all the time. This heat is really melting your brain, L0.”

L0 continued prodding Kudra with past mistakes she had made. Kudra wished she could punch a droid and have it do anything other than hurt her own hand.

“L0, what is your deal? We’ve been over this. Why are you always bringing up that deal on Corellia? The whole thing worked out a lot better, actually BECAUSE of me.”

L0 whirred in disbelief.

“Yes I stabbed Crix Harend! As you’ll remember he attacked me. At the time, I had no idea that was his wife in my bed.”

The droid buzzed on about this Correllian from Kudra’s past.

“I actually don’t think Crix ever found out about me and his brother. Anyway that was so long ago. Why can’t you let it go? We still managed to trade our cargo with them in the end.”

L0 wasn’t letting it go and starting to get on Kudra’s last nerve.

“Yes, because I slept with Crix too. What is with you right now?” She screamed at the droid.

They walked on and on in mostly silence now as Kudra was mad at L0 and also too exhausted and shell shocked to make commentary. As thankful as she was to have been warned about the heat and having the right clothing for this planet, something told her they weren’t meant for all day frolicking in the lush lava fields.

Mustafar felt like hell. Every breath was fire on Kudra’s lungs, every step reminded her of all the pain, mostly physical, but her mental game wasn’t so strong right now either. She trudged on and on, L0 whirring quietly behind her. At last, they found a cave to hide in. It wound pretty far back through some tunnels, but that was good. The further in they went the cooler and darker it got. L0 lit up the cave with a small flashlight attachment as Kudra made a makeshift pillow and blanket with her capes and passed out.

Next chapter